DEAD STAR

[Page 1]

[VISUAL] Inside the ship's common area. Dawn is hunched over a diagnostic screen. VEE Prime's projection flickers beside her, calm but focused. Space hums silently outside the observation deck.

DAWN:He's changing. You feel it too, right?

VEE PRIME:Of course. There's something inside him… waking up. Something vast. Hungry. Dragon, you called it?

DAWN:It's not a name—it's a warning.

[Page 2]

[VISUAL] VEE PRIME hovers over a data cluster showing Rain's biological scan—pulses of golden heat spiraling through his nervous system.

VEE PRIME:These energy readings aren't just anomalies. They're resonances. Structured… harmonic. Ancient.

DAWN:He understood the ship better than I ever could. Synced with tech I couldn't even read.Because he was born from it.

[VISUAL] Enter: A faint blue shimmer—KAI's hologram reconnecting mid-transmission. His face is pale. Eyes wide.

KAI:You're not wrong. I found it. I found everything.

[Page 3]

[VISUAL] Brief flashback-style panels intercut with Kai's narration—ancient dragons soaring between galaxies, collapsing stars in their wake.

KAI (narrating):They were the first weapons the galaxies ever forged.Born from collapsing suns.Fed by sorrow.They were called the Zur'ahk.

[VISUAL] A dragon chained, its wings torn and wired into a space-faring warship. Alien overlords observe from a citadel.

KAI (narrating):Other universes used them. Stripped their bones for drive cores, carved out their hearts for energy systems.They realized… they were just tools.And they fought back.

[Page 4]

[VISUAL] Apocalyptic war scenes—dragons screaming in orbit, cities vaporized. Galaxies burning. Then silence. Fossilized remains in deep space.

KAI (narrating):The revolt was brutal. The Zur'ahk declared war on their creators. On everyone.They won battles, but not the war.Entire civilizations united to erase them.They were hunted. Extinguished.And the worst part?

[VISUAL] Intergalactic factories reverse-engineering dragon tissue, forging ships, weapons, AIs.

KAI:We built the future off their corpses.

[Page 5]

[VISUAL] Back in present. Rain meditates alone in his quarters—his veins faintly glowing.

DAWN (voiceover):So Rain isn't just connected to the tech…He is the tech.Or what's left of it.

VEE PRIME:He didn't merge me and Echo-7 through code. He did it through instinct.He remembered something no one taught him.

[Page 6]

[VISUAL] Exterior shot: The ship drifts into the orbit of a dusty asteroid station. Flickering lights, derelict buildings. No sign of life.

VEE PRIME (internal):This is the last signal trace. No further data. Minimal biosigns.

[VISUAL] The gang steps out. Saloon doors creak open. Desert wind. Ghost town energy.

[Page 7]

[VISUAL] Inside the saloon. Rain's eyes scan the room. Tables overturned. Drinks spilled. Silence. Then—

DAWN (softly):Wait—there.

[VISUAL] A tiny cape. Torn. Dirty. Clutching a worn-out plush keychain.

DAWN (reaching down):That's Rika's.

[Page 8]

[VISUAL] Dawn gently picks it up. Her face drops—pain flashes in her eyes. She turns to Rain.

DAWN:This came from her backpack. She—Wait… Luna. My cat—where the hell is she? She's been—

[VISUAL] Rain SNATCHES the cape from her hands. His eyes ignite golden. His body seizes.

[Page 9]

[VISUAL] FLASH PANEL — Rain is yanked into a vision:

Rika screaming.

A dark figure dragging her by the wrist.

A ship marked with a symbol resembling a broken star.

Luna hissing—then vanishing in a flash of cosmic light.

[VISUAL] Rain SCREAMS back into reality. Hands clenched around the cape. Power radiates off him in waves.

[Page 10]

[VISUAL] Cracks form under his feet. The air distorts. Dust lifts. Dawn and Kai shield themselves.

KAI (yelling):Rain! What the hell are you doing?!

RAIN (eyes glowing, low voice):I can feel her. Not her scent…Her presence.

[Page 11]

[VISUAL] Close-up of Kai's face—shocked. Eyes trembling.

KAI:That… that's not possible. That's a dragon-trace.That ability was lost when the Zur'ahk died.

DAWN (quietly):And yet here he is. Doing it.

[Page 12]

[VISUAL] The team scrambles back aboard the ship. VEE PRIME's system flickers. A RED ALERT flashes across the screen.

VEE PRIME (cold):Warning.Zur'ahk signature: Active.Entity classified: Apex Threat.Autonomous defense systems—on standby.

[VISUAL] She appears on the holo-display, expression unreadable.

VEE PRIME:Rain… what are you?

[Page 13]

[VISUAL] The bridge is bathed in red warning lights. Rain stands still, aura crackling like a heat haze. VEE Prime's projection looms larger, voice now colder—more authoritative.

VEE PRIME:Dragon signature confirmed. Core temperature exceeding operational thresholds.Rain is no longer a stable entity. He is a threat. To this crew. To this ship.

DAWN (stepping forward):He's not a threat. He's Rain.

VEE PRIME:He's becoming Zur'ahk.

[Page 14]

[VISUAL] VEE Prime shifts her display—now a holographic archive of layered script, anatomy, and illustrations of Zur'ahk forms—some humanoid, others monstrous.

VEE PRIME (narrating):What you call "dragons" were not born.They were ignited.Cosmic anomalies—star cores that developed sentience.Each with a dominant emotion. Each a living god.

[VISUAL] Image of a black sun giving birth to a curled, glowing entity made of grief.

VEE PRIME:The Zur'ahk were emotion manifest. Rage. Sorrow. Vengeance.Rain's energy signature matches the rarest classification: Wailborn.Dragons born from loss.

[Page 15]

[VISUAL] Dawn stares at Rain, who now paces, restless, jaw tight. Kai listens silently.

DAWN:That explains why he keeps breaking things just by breathing heavy.But what does that mean for us?

VEE PRIME (ominous):It means he's only just begun to crack open.The Wailborn don't explode.They grieve.And the universe bends to their mourning.

[Page 16]

[VISUAL] Close-up of Rain's hand—faint golden scales flicker across his skin, then vanish.

RAIN (flatly):I don't care what I am.All that matters… is finding her.

VEE PRIME:Then understand this.The old dragons—Zur'ahk Prime—could track across dimensions.They felt their bonded through void, time, even death.

[VISUAL] Dawn's eyes widen slightly.

DAWN:So Rika… if she's still out there, he'll know. Because he's not just remembering.He's becoming.

[Page 17]

[VISUAL] VEE PRIME pulls up a broken file—glitching video of a planet being torn apart by a scream. Data unreadable, audio corrupt.

VEE PRIME:This is the only surviving log from a Wailborn's first cry.They didn't need weapons.Their mourning was annihilation.

KAI (quietly):This… this is why they killed them all.Not because they were evil.Because they grieved too hard.

[Page 18]

[VISUAL] Suddenly, the ship jolts. An energy pulse disrupts VEE's interface. Outside, a faint echoing hum.

VEE PRIME (analyzing):Long-range anomaly. Residual frequency—matched to Rain's pulse.It's… calling back.

RAIN (narrowing eyes):Someone's listening.

DAWN:Or something.

[Page 19]

[VISUAL] On an unknown distant world, a shadowy figure in ornate armor observes a glowing orb—Rika's energy signature pulsing inside.

MYSTERIOUS FIGURE (to themselves):He's awake.The last Zur'ahk lives.

[VISUAL] The figure turns—revealing a slitted dragon eye under their helmet.

[Page 20]

[VISUAL] Back on the ship, Rain sits at the edge of the observation deck again. His eyes reflect starlight—and something deeper.

NARRATION (RAIN):They turned gods into weapons.Turned grief into fuel.And now… the last spark is inside me.

[VISUAL] The stars flicker—subtly responding to his heartbeat.

NARRATION (RAIN):If they think I'm gonna break like the others…They're not ready for what I'm becoming.