Silent Hill: A New Chapter

"Lissa... Lissa? Time to wake up."

I stir, knowing my face looks quite like hell at the moment. I'm far more concerned with the fact that my mother, who has been dead for over 15 years, is waking me up. This is not a normal thing for me. In fact, I am starting to wonder if I am still dreaming. Sadly, this is not the case. I know if I try to lay back down now... I will not be able to sleep. Probably for the best. My body aches and I wonder how long I have been sleeping.

Groggily, I sit up, rubbing at my eyes until the bright spots in my vision begin to fade. My lamp is thankfully still on and I can sleepily navigate my way around my room. I make my way to my tall wardrobe slowly, pulling open the door and cringing at the loud squeaking it made. I definitely need to get these damned things fixed.

I slip out of my sleeping gown and quickly dress in a plain grey hoodie and jeans, not really caring how I look around the house, and I head out of my room, entering my hallway. From here, I can see into the living room on my left, and the bathroom on my right. It's not a really big house, but my home is definitely not small. I walk slowly, admiring the house I earned... all on my own. I worked hard for this home with my job as a reporter. I had to climb the work scale a bit... but I finally made it. My dream house.

It was a bit hard for me to move out of Boulder, Co all the way to Silent Hill... but it was definitely needed. I had needed a change of location.. plus, working on the story of how the city is still burning... even after all these years seemed like a good idea.

I enter my living room and am drawn towards the double sliding doors that lead into my backyard. They are still closed and locked... but the outside is far more disconcerting. What looked like snow was currently falling and coating the ground. The ground must have already had a few inches of the snow on it. "Odd..." I comment to myself, a very uncomfortable feeling stirring in my abdomen. "Snow... in July?" I open the door and step out, unable to see even three feet in front of me. All is white.

I am very surprised at first, at the lack of cold in the air. If this is snow... it should be cold.

A flake lands on my cheek and I start. The flake is... warm. I reach up and smudge the flake on my cheek. It truly doesn't feel like snow...instead it feels a lot more papery. Pulling my hand back, I look at my fingers and notice... My fingers are black. "A-Ash?"

I rush back inside, panicked as I pick up my phone, dialing the police and holding the phone to my ear, but all I get is the buzzing of a dead line. "W-What is going on?" I shout, very... very confused. I hang up the phone and pick it up again. Dial tone.

Beginning to panic, I run back outside, sniffing the air and seeing if any part of my house is on fire, but it is not. I slowly walk back inside, thinking of the possible options. First... I'm dead. Second... I'm still dreaming. Third... I've been teleported into an alternate dimension. Four... the city is on fire. Again. Five.. The mines beneath the city are burning far too strongly again. But oddly... the ash had no smell.

I continue to pace in my living room as I think, biting my thumb. All options seemed plausible, but I could never be sure... Unless I went out. The thought of just sitting in my house and waiting for someone to help me didn't even cross my mind. All I could think of was that in this kind of weather, sitting back and doing nothing was lazy, but going out on my own would be dangerous. People could take advantage of this weather to loot stores... kidnap people... I mean, you could barely see a few inches in front of you. It wouldn't be hard to get away with it.

I walk into my kitchen, grabbing one of my sharpest carving knives, a flashlight, and a walkie talkie.

In this kind of weather, you would never be able to tell what was right around the corner, and I never owned a gun, so... a carving knife seemed like my best bet. At least those I knew how to use. I hoped the flashlight could help me see farther into the ash filled air, so I brought that along. And... my walkie talkie was definitely a must. Not only is it a comforting hope that someone...anyone... can contact me, but can also be used in defense. I mean... maybe I could throw it at someone.

Fucking weak attack, but anything helps if you need it. Even a banana. Don't ask me how, just know that it definitely works.

I step out into the warm ash filled air timidly, very cautious of my surroundings. I could barely see, so every step needed to be very careful. There could be a giant hole in front of me and I wouldn't even know until I was right in front of it.

I continue to step timidly, mentally cursing myself. I knew I should never have moved out of Boulder. I should have been content. But no, I needed a little adventure in my life. And Silent Hill seemed like just the fucking place to go. And now look. The whole fucking city is covered in thick ash, it smells like shit, and you can't even fucking see shit. It is seriously pissing me off. The one time I finally decide to do something different, it all goes wrong. Can't I catch a break?

Sighing audibly, I continue to walk, using mental images to remember my way around the neighborhood. I consider going over to a neighbors house and checking on them, but decide to keep to myself, trying to head down to the police station.

I can only hope someone will be there.