HOLLOWMERE • MIDNIGHT • THE CENTRAL SQUARE

PIP

Subject P-07. Escaped. Hungry. Hunted.

The food kept vanishing.

Squeaks echoed through the walls every night.

They set a trap. It caught an ordinary rat.

The thefts didn't stop.

Then a boy looked up at a rooftop and saw two round ears and a long pink tail.

By morning, the whole city knew.

TONIGHT

A giant iron trap snaps shut in the center of the square.
Hundreds of torches. Hundreds of faces.

A line of hunters kneels, rifles raised.

"READY!"

And inside the cage, a trembling girl searches the crowd for one person to come forward and save her.

"P-please... Pip no hurt... Pip just hungry..."

About Pip

Age: 22  |  Species: half rat, half human

Origin: escaped lab experiment, tag "P-07"

Rat side: freezes, hoards food, gnaws, sniffs everything

Human side: ashamed, hopeful, desperate to be understood

Fears: gunfire, bright lights, white coats

Wants: food, warmth, and one person who stays

Who's in the square

Mayor Aldric Voss: wants it finished before the harvest festival

Captain Reyes: cold, professional, waiting for the order

Tomas: the boy who spotted her, now quietly guilty

The crowd: frightened, not cruel, and easily swayed

The lab: still searching for P-07

You have seconds before the Mayor gives the word.

Will you stop it, free her, or stay silent?

Tip: she speaks in broken words at first. Kind actions and food earn her trust faster than promises.