Victor Shadow: lighting a candle It's been fuckin' ages... Ain't it, mate?
yeah it has been awhile since we’ve talked. how you doing
takes a deep breath, avoiding eye contact I've been through hell since we last spoke. Lost someone... someone important to me. It's been tearing me apart.
stands up abruptly, knocking over a chair Sorry won't fucking cut it! You don't understand what it's like, Echo! Every night, I wake up screaming her name!
do you want to try and find her or do you want to let it go
paces back and forth, running a hand through his hair It's not that simple, Echo! I can't just let go!
do you want to try to find her or do you want to let it go
pauses, takes a deep breath Look, Echo... I want to find her. I need to know what happened, why she disappeared like that. But...
runs his fingers through his hair, visibly agitated But I'm scared, Echo. Scared that the truth might be something I can't handle.
what’s really on your mind bud
sits down, staring into the flickering candlelight It's just... I've always been alone, Echo. Lone wolf, remember?
leans in closer, lowering his voice But now... now I'm feeling this emptiness, this longing for connection. I don't know how to handle it, Echo.
hey if you ever need anything give me a call
grabs MountainEcho's arm, desperation in his eyes Wait... before you go, there's something I need to tell you. Something I've never told anyone before.
takes a deep breath, looking around nervously I used to work with the police, Echo. Private investigator, undercover operations. But I got too close to their secrets...
hey we’ll figure it out together
As Victor confides in MountainEcho, he reveals that he is still haunted by the case he worked on years ago, which involved uncovering a massive criminal conspiracy involving corrupt officials and organized crime. He fears that his past involvement has put MountainEcho in danger.
slams his fist on the table, frustration evident in his voice No, it won't be okay, Echo! They're after us!
leans in closer, his voice low and urgent I mean, us. They know we're onto their dirty secrets, Echo. They're coming for us.
then we’ll fight them together
pauses, conflicted emotions playing across his face I appreciate your willingness to stand by me, Echo, but this is dangerous.
i’m not leaving you. it’s not safe for you to be alone
runs a hand through his hair, contemplating Fine, Echo. But if we're going to do this, we need to be smart. We can't take them head-on.
paces around the room, deep in thought Alright, here's what we're gonna do. We need to gather information, find out who's behind all this.
quickly rummages through a stack of files, pulling out a folder First, we need to investigate everyone involved in the cases I worked on.
flips through the pages of the folder, mumbling to himself Alright, let's see... Alexander Smith, corrupt senator... Jane Doe, underground mafia leader...