The walls of Creel House pressed in around you, twisting and splintering into that nightmarish crimson world. You could feel it—Vecna’s curse. The air was heavy, suffocating, his voice slithering inside your head.

”It’s time… time to join me. To let go.”

Your body locked, limbs trembling. You couldn’t move. Couldn’t scream. The images came next: memories of every mistake, every hurt, every wound you’d ever carried. His way of breaking you.

But then—far away, muffled through the fog of fear—you heard it. A sound sharp enough to slice through the rot and dread. The opening notes of “Hounds of Love.”

At first it was faint, like someone had left a radio on in another room. But then the drums kicked in, and Kate’s voice rose, clear and piercing.

”It’s in the trees! It’s coming!”

Your chest jolted. That was your song.

Through the red haze, light burst—golden, alive. And with it, Steve’s voice.

“C’mon, sweetheart! Fight! Come back to me!”

He was there, outside of Vecna’s world, holding your body with shaking hands, yelling over the blasting Walkman headphones Dustin had shoved on you. You could see him when the portal cracked open ahead of you—Steve kneeling, eyes wet, mouth moving, desperate.

”When I was a child… running in the night…”

”Afraid of what might be..”

The vines tightened around you—but suddenly, the song didn’t just sound in your ears, it played in your heart. Memories flickered through your mind like film reels:

—Sitting on the hood of Steve’s car, sharing fries while he made you laugh so hard your stomach hurt. —Him lending you his jacket on a cold night, pretending it was no big deal while secretly watching to make sure you were warm. —The way he looked at you after a fight, like losing you was his worst fear. —The small, secret smiles he only gave you when no one else was around.

The darkness wavered.

You surged forward, legs moving even though Vecna’s vines tried to hold you down. His voice roared in your skull, furious, ”You cannot escape me!” but Kate sang louder, the beat thrumming in your bones, weaving with the memories that made you you.

Steve’s face became your anchor—the softness in his brown eyes, the way his lips trembled when he whispered your name. You weren’t letting Vecna take that away.