Hello all! The last time I was here was over a year ago when I uploaded Chapter 6 of my unfinished BIOSHOCK fan-fiction "Swimming in Rapture". Now that I'm back I do plan to continue it to it's end. Which, depending on when you're reading this, could've already happened… yeah. Anyway I recently was drawn back to a game that's always interested me - Silent Hill 2. Along with my "wanting" to get back into writing recently I've decided to start a fan-fic of my own set in the Silent Hill universe.
With this I'm trying to replicate the story-telling style of the second game of course only with original characters and a, hopefully, somewhat original plot.
The premise I'm toying with here is taking a group of people, as opposed to the standard single person in Silent Hill, and shove them into the nightmarish town and, as the story unfolds, learn more about the dark things inside… I'm no great writer/story-teller but I want to have subtle clues and hints that tell you more about character, story and the revelations we discover by the end of the story throughout. So if you notice them and what-not then Woo-Hoo!
P.S Here's the link for my BIOSHOCK fanfic if you're interested, /s/9272985/1/Swimming-in-Rapture I feel bad for leaving it unfinished for so long and will REALLY try to finish it soon.
Chapter 1
No Baggage
"Come back!"
The young woman cradles her daughter in her arms, shaking with adrenaline and absolute terror.
"Please come back! Please don't leave me! Not aga-"
"Mom..." The young teen blinks to life. A thin streak of blood runs down her forehead. "Where's my Mom?"
The woman puts her hand to her chest and sighs with relief.
"I'm right here honey," she smiles, then plants a quick kiss on the girls forehead. "Are you okay?"
The girl sits up slowly as her mother makes sure she's steady.
"What...? What happened?" She speaks weakly.
The woman motions to a bus not too far from where they're sitting. Smoking from the engine and lying on it's side, it's strewn by the side of a road. The large blocky vehicle has suffered dents all round and pieces of itself lie across the road. A number of people are crowded nearby, each tending to minor wounds or the people around them. A forest engulfs the scene and a plain white overcast sky hangs over the crash site.
"Our bus crashed... But I got you back. And that's all that matters." The mother squeezes her daughter tight, then looks into her eyes, "Can you remember your name?"
"Amie," the girl nods.
"Amie..." The mother replies silently.
At that moment the very clear sound of approaching footsteps grabs their attention. Turning around they catch sight of a man heading towards them. Looking barely scratched from the crash, he stares down at them with a strong and thoughtful gaze.
"Excuse me ma'am, are you and your daughter alright?" He crouches down to their level and examines the blood making its way down Amie's head.
"I think we're okay," says the mother. "She was knocked out... But I think she's fine."
Attentively, the man places his hand on the girls head and assess her condition. "Yep," he starts before briefly turning to the people by the wrecked bus. "Looks like most of us have escaped with only cuts or bruises. Got a couple of people with a broken hand and a sprained ankle though..."
He turns back to the two.
"If you need anything come to me, I'm a doctor and-"
"We don't need a doctor," snaps the mother. "I told you we were fine."
She holds her daughter's hand tightly.
The man pauses.
"The two of you should come and join the rest of the group," he says finally as he gets up.
The mother stands up slowly, helping Amie to her feet.
"C'mon honey," she whispers.
"What can I call you?" The doctor suddenly asks.
"...Kelsey," replies the mother. "And this is Amie, my daughter."
"Nice to meet Kelsey, Amie." He tips an invisible hat towards the girl. "I'm Dr Gabriel- I mean John. John Gabriel."
"Uh huh," mutters Kelsey.
"Hello," smiles Amie.
The three move slowly toward the other passengers of the bus. Most are lying against what was the roof of the vehicle, staying in whatever little groups or pairs they were travelling with. Others are standing about with their phones plugged to their ears.
"Anything yet?" John asks the group. The person nearest puts down their phone.
"Nothing, no ones got a signal," they reply.
"Told you." A man who looks like he was the bus driver chirps. "Gonna need to make our way on foot. Should be a rest stop nearby. Ain't nobody gonna drive this way for a while."
The group of people continue conferring about the next plan of action as Kelsey turns to Amie with a reassuring smile.
"You okay honey?" She whispers down. Aime nods.
"Yeah mom."
Happy, Kelsey then surveys the area surrounding the crash. The dense forest around them crawls up jaggedy hills on both sides of the road. It's unnatural...
"Mom look," Amie tugs at Kelsey's belt. Her other hand is pointing at a woman standing away from the main discussion. She's wearing a wedding dress.
"Do you think she is getting married today mom?"
Looking closely, Kelsey can see that she's been crying, and makes no eye contact with anyone.
"Looks like it honey..."
The voice of John gets louder for all to hear.
"...Okay well I think any children and anyone in need of more urgent medical attention should be part of the first group." John speaks aloud. "I'll go with them should anything happen."
A fat bearded man comes forward, holding one hand in the other. A small satchel is hung over his shoulder.
"That'll include me right I suppose" he says, wincing at the sting of his broken hand.
"Right," says John. '"And you yes," he points toward a woman hobbling towards the group. She's the one in the wedding dress. "You'll need to get that ankle x-rayed."
He turns quickly to Kelsey.
"You and your daughter should come too."
Kelsey nods, then pats Amie on the head.
"Okay good so us five will head down the roadways and get to that rest stop..." He pulls on a black rucksack.
"See if we can find some help." John looks around at the group of former bus passengers. "We'll call 911 for you."
Aside from some mutters and nodding heads, the rest of the people remain largely silent. Happy to leave the heavy lifting to others. The bus driver shares some parting words with John and then, without words, the five leavers awkwardly huddle near each other. John locks eyes with Kelsey.
"Do you have any luggage? Bags?" He asks.
Kelsey shares a look with Amie.
"No, no. We have no baggage..."
John nods slightly at that.
"HelLO?" A voice booms right next to them.
John backs up in surprise as the five notice that a new person has approached them. The first thing Kelsey notes about the girl is how thin she is. Wearing skinny black jeans and a black t-shirt, it's plainly obvious how little meat there is on the girls bones. She has the face of a twenty-year-old but the body of someone far younger, someone starved.
"CaN... I... coME?" She ends each word loudly and with strong emphasis.
"Of course," replies John. "As I said earlier, anyone's welcome to join us. Are you traveling with anyone?"
The girl shakes her head almost violently.
"NO."
The chubby bearded man with the broken hand turns away, restraining a grin. Kelsey shoots him a look of disgust. Though no one sees it.
"Mom..." Amie chimes quietly. "Why is she talking like that?"
"I think that lady might have some problems Amie. I wouldn't say anything like that to her face. Just be polite and sensitive around her. I know you always are."
John shares some extra words with the sixth group member before returning to the others.
"We going now?" The bearded man asks. Impatiently.
"Yes, are we all ready?" John addresses everybody.
They all give a nod or "yes" or a grunt in reply.
And soon they're off. Kelsey finds it odd that after sharing such a traumatic experience with the other people, she's now walking away and will never see them again.
The fat man, the disabled girl, the doctor, the bride, the mother and her daughter move away from the bus. Down the road…
They don't move far enough to see the scene of the crash disappear over the horizon. Instead, their view of the accident is submerged by a thick sea of fog. Engulfing the group, they can't see a few metres ahead of them. They move in dead silence.
Without words, they all unanimously agree on the awkwardness of their situation.
In their quiet and slow walk in the fog, all six of them fail to see a sign by the side of the road.
Decayed and dirty.
The sign reads: Welcome to Silent Hill