Comments, critiques, and more should be sent to If you just want to chat you can catch me on AIM under the name: gscbw5
I'd love to hear from you. Any suggestions will be considered, and anybody who just want to talk gaming will be welcomed, especially Nintendo gaming

A little about me and this fanfic:
I'm (now) a 22 year old college student and game designer living in Illinois. I've drawn a lot of inspiration in my development group from Silicon Knights emphasis on storyline and Nintendo's innovation, this is just a small way for me to say "Thank You" to them for keeping innovation in the game industry, cause we all know Sony and Microsoft aren't going to do it as well, or as often.

Also, if you haven't picked up the game Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem for the Nintendo Gamecube, I highly recommend it, and you can find it pretty cheap at most outlets (most for $15). Don't pass it up (and don't read this fiction before playing the game, as it does contain some spoilers and things you just won't understand unless you've played the game)

Thank you very much for choosing to read my work,
Greg Szemiot
Designer & Director
Crossbeam Studios
http/ Darkness: Sanity's Requiem ©2002 Nintendo / Silicon Knights

Blood and Tears of Norlath

Chapter 1: Sunset Over the Mountains
The drapes fell from his fingers as he stared out the window. They swung in the slight breeze as Jack watched the sunset over the Appalachians. It was a dramatic sight, but he knew this was the night his life was going to change. The eggheads at work had been predicting paranormal activities for the past few months, but tonight, the planets were aligned, something was going to happen, he could feel it deep in his core. Suddenly a knocking came from the front door. Odd, he hadn't seen anybody drive up the winding driveway, and he'd certainly not seen anyone approach his Pennsylvania estate all day, he was here alone, like most nights. Nonetheless he walked to the door, and upon opening it was startled by an old man, dressed in black, clutching a large parcel under his arm.
Jack was puzzled, "May I help you?"
"I have a package for you." The old man replied in a squeaky voice.
The man's voice seemed to fill Jack's soul with dread, but for what reason? This was just an old delivery man.
"Ah yes, let me find a pen to sign."
"No matter, I need no signature, here's your package."
"Um, Thank you."
The man walked off down the drive. Jack turned closing the door. He glanced at the package in his hand. The return address was smudged, the lettering dark and deliberate. Jack moved to a small table, moved a small clock aside, and put the parcel on the table. Grabbing a silver letter opener he proceeded to unwrap the parcel. When he'd finished he was surprised to find a large book. It was very intricately made of what seemed to be leather and grayish bindings. An intricate design on the cover, five skulls and vertebrae arranged in a circle, commanded his attention. A design set within the circle seemed to glow as he stared at it, a slight yellow, before fading again. He grabbed the book and took it to a desk in the corner of the room. He sat dawn, pulled the book close and opened the cover.
Horrific visions swam through his head of death, struggle, and beings more powerful than he could have imagined. As the vision faded his was left with one image in his mind, a being entirely of yellow wreaking havoc and destruction across time and space. What was this book?
He read the book, absorbing all he read, seeing the characters, feeling their pain and hardships. Brief visions of a young dancer, a reporter, a Roman centurion, and others flooded his mind as he read. He finished the book, and was unsettled by the visions he was having, but the book seemed to conclude as a firefighter was transported to ancient Persia. It was a strange book, but who would send such a thing to him? And why? Reading the book had left him drained, and he walked to the stairs ready for a long nights sleep in the cold November weather.
He stripped of his clothes and stepped into the steaming shower. As the water flowed over his body he felt a chill down his back. He turned and saw shape in the steam standing in the shower with him. It was a girl, about 25 he guessed, nude, but she seemed semi-transparent. Looking down at her feet he saw blood pooling, with the water. He stumbled backwards against the far wall. Deep cuts appeared in the girls body as she stood there. The blood flow increased, but she just turned and walked out the back wall to the shower, bloody footprints tracing her route until they were swept away by the water. Jack's breath came in shallow fast bursts as his eyes grew wide with terror. He turned off the shower and stumbled into the bathroom. Quickly, wrapping a towel around him, he saw something on the mirror. A line was being cleared along the mirror in much the same way as when one runs their finger across it, the condensation pooling slightly before running down the mirror. He saw blood on the sink trailing back towards him. He looked at his own wrists and saw deep gashes in them, his hands dripping blood on the white tile floor.
Out in the hallway the bathroom door jam splintered and burst under a tremendous force placed on the door. Jack came running out screaming, staring at his bloody hands. As he stumbled about in wild fear the blood disappeared from his hands, as did the gashes in his wrists. Jack, frightened out of his mind let out a yell of anguish and fear that wracked his body. He collapsed on the floor then, unconscious.

"Jack, what're you watching?"
"Nothing Alex, go to bed."
"But it's only 9:00, c'mon, let me watch the movie with you. Please? Pretty please with sugar on top?"
Jack smiled at his younger cousin, "Alright, it's called Nosferatu, it's an old vampire flick."
"Is it scary?"
"A little, but don't worry, it's just a movie, it's really old, and it's silent."
She climbed on the couch looking at him with her big green eyes, lightning flashed outside, she shivered with some fright. He pulled her close so she wouldn't be so scared.

Jack awoke to a pounding headache, he'd hit his head when he'd fallen, and blood had covered his nose and mouth. He blinked, and seemed to otherwise be unhurt. He heard footsteps downstairs on the tile, though he knew nobody was home, for he lived alone, always had. He slowly got up, walked to an old wall hanging and pulled an old english dagger from it. He then slowly made his way to the stairs. Finding his slippers at the top of the stairs he put them on. Gripping the dagger in one hand he went slowly down the stairs. As he reached the bottom, he felt vibrations course through his body. It took him a moment to realize it was his heart beating. He gripped the bannister, and then, with pure willpower he walked into the middle of the foyer. The lights above him flickered for an instant, but remained on. He took a step and heard a crunch beneath his slipper. Stooping down he found a piece of circular glass on the floor, slightly chipped, but not badly broken. He found the small clock a few feet away, the hands frozen at 3:33, the date at 4:4:04. What the hell? He put the clock back down, puzzled by his surroundings. He heard a shuffling behind him, and as he turned, he saw a spindly creature made of what looked like lightning. It cast a yellow glow around itself. It shuffled towards him. He took careful aim as he swung the dagger at what appeared it be it's head. The head exploded in a shower of light and glowing embers. The creature stopped moving, and Jack smiled, confident he'd killed the creature. Then, to his horror, the creature reached up with it's arm inspected it's shoulders, searching for it's head. Jack shivered. As he thought about what he was seeing his vision blurred. He swung at the arm and severed it as well. He severed the other arm, and then, screamed as he jumped onto the creature and stabbed it through the torso. It stayed there, impaled and attached to the ground until it disappeared in a flash of sizzling yellow. Jacks vision returned to normal, but he was just as confused as ever.
The creature had come from the guest room of the mansion, he'd have to investigate, but first he picked up the phone to call the sheriff. As he held the headset to his ear he heard bizarre talking in Latin. Before he knew it screaming and sounds of torture along with children laughing cheerfully came over the line,. together each would have been creepy, simultaneously it was very unnerving. He hung up the phone, but to be sure he wasn't imagining it he picked the phone back up again, and heard a quiet mad babbling over the line. He slammed the phone down, ripped the cord from the wall and threw the whole phone across the room. He knelt down on the floor and sobbed, what was happening? Why here of all places? Why to him?

"Alex, you shouldn't play with those old books, you know how your grandfather likes his things kept in order."
"I know Jack, but I want to read that sci-fi book, grandfather says I can't."
Jack stood and looked at the book, it was odd, it was the only book face out in the whole library. Strange, he reached out to touch it.
"Hey, Jack, I told Alex no, that goes for you too."
"Grampa Edward!" Alex's face lit up and she ran to her grandfather, who picked he up and put her on his shoulders.
"Sorry Uncle Edward, I was just curious."
"I know, but you should ask, I don't want either of you touching that book. It's for you own good to stay away from it."
"Okay Uncle, I won't touch it. I promise."
"Me either Grampa, cross my heart." She crossed her heart with her small hands.
"I know you'll both keep away from it. Thank you. Now, who wants some chocolate cake?"

"Alex? Alex? Oh cousin where have you gone? I need you to hear me now." Jack said as he stopped sobbing. He picked himself off the floor and walked carefully towards the guest room. He opened the door and peered inside. His heart froze, on the bed was the body of a young woman. She was decapitated, her head was lying on the pillow. Her hands were clutched over her heart as if in prayer, but her head showed a look of utter terror. Jack, unable to keep his balance, fell into the room, the door banging loudly against the wall, making a hole in it. He quickly stood and looked over the girls body, trying not to notice her unique condition. As he looked at her, her eyes started to glow yellow and a beam of electricity arched from her eyes to his. He screamed in terror, as he saw himself in the guest room, praying, when a creature came from the wall and decapitated him. The vision stopped, and he knelt there, breathing heavy.
"Your fault." A sultry voice said very slowly.
Jack looked at the head and saw the mouth moving slowly.
"NO! I did not do this. I did nothing!"
"You opened the book."
"The book?"
"The Tome of Eternal Darkness."
"So?"
"Flesh and bone, life and death, sanity and spirit, all are intertwined. Now that you have opened the book, you will die, just as we have."
"What? Who are you?"
"We are the few..."
Jack's vision flashed white, he was alone in the room, the body of the girl gone.
"Ugh, what the hell is happening? This isn't possible"
Jack looked around, a light of some source was bathing the room. He saw a light from behind the door somewhere. The hole in the wall, something was back there. He looked in and saw a candle, pristine and glowing. A page sat in the space between the walls. On it, in very erratic writing was a passage:

"O, oblivious humanity...How ignorant we truly are, safe only in our blind view of the world. We are merely caretakers, for when the Ancients return, we shall be swept aside like driftwood on the tide of destruction..."

Jack studied the note in his hand, not comprehending it's meaning. He suddenly heard a thump from the floor above him. He'd have to investigate, but before doing so, he walked, always on guard, to a gun cabinet in the foyer. It was locked, and his key no longer fit the lock.
"What the hell?"
The metal cabinet would not be forced open. Jack, scared out of his mind, given the events of the past night and today so far, very slowly made his way up the stairs. At the top of the stairs he turned the corner and saw a blue transparent form of his Uncle Edward, standing there, in the hall. The apparition walked into a door some feet away. Jack made his way cautiously towards the door. As he neared the door, a scream echoed around the mansion from the same room the apparition had entered. Jack's blood seemed to turn to helium as he became very self conscious, wondering what he was doing in this mansion with these nightmares. Something kept drawing him forward though. He reached the door, and was surprised to find a circular indentation in the face of the door, a tiny piece breaking the line of the circle. Jack recognized it was resembling the circular glass he'd found earlier and placed the glass in the carving. The glass glowed a deep yellow before going black. The door opened, and Jack walked in, and fell down, an endless room stretching beneath him.

"Hey Alex, want to play a game?"
"Okay, what game?"
"Hide and seek sound good?"
"Yeah, that's a good game Jack."
"Alright, you go hide and I'll find you."
"Okay, but no peeking, or I'll tell Grampa."
"Alright, no peeking. I promise."
"Okay, ready, GO!"
"1...2...3...4...5...6...7...8...9...10...11...12..."
"AHHHHHHH!"
"Alex? ALEX? What's wrong?"
"JACK!"
"ALEX, where are you."
"I'm in the Kitchen, hurry."
Jack ran into the kitchen, he saw Alex sitting in the far corner crying he eyes out.
"What's wrong?"
"The bird moved Jack, I saw it."
Jack looked at the crow on the mantle of the fireplace. It seemed to be in a different position than before.
"Oh, it's only you imagination, come here."
She walked on over and placed her braided blonde head on his shoulder, as he just sat there and looked at the bird. Did it actually move?

Jack stood there, unfeeling for the moment. In front of him was a picture of Alex, sitting there in her little dress, and him, kneeling beside her, smiling for the camera. She was only 5 in the picture, he was 10.
"What happened Alex? Why have we grown apart?"
"You betrayed her."
Jack came to his senses. The room around him was a spattering of blood. The voice that addressed him seemed to come from nowhere.
"You betrayed her that day."
"What day?"
"The day the bird moved."
"What? She was frightened, I consoled her, how did I betray her?"
"You told her it was her imagination."
"It was."
"You thought the bird moved too."
"It didn't."
"You set her up to take the fall, she fell at my hands mere weeks ago, now, you shall fall, and humanities last stand shall be over."
Jack felt a presence behind him, and swung the dagger. A pillar of smoke swirled and then reasserted itself. Jack, with the smoke and room spattered with blood, wasfinding it difficult to keep his bearings. He started to stumble around, taking swings when he though he saw the smoke creature. He heard laughing, chanting and wailing as he stumbled. He felt a pain in his chest. Looking down he was suddenly focused, he saw his own hands around the dagger. The dagger was buried up to the hilt in his chest. He spasmed, throwing up blood, as he fell to the floor.
"Forgive me Alex, I'm sorry. I've let you down. I've let you down."

"Jack? Jack? Why do you talk in your sleep?"
"Sleep? Death is not sleep."
"But death is not final, at least not yours. You must go back and finish."
"Alex?"
"Yes, Jack?"
"How did you die?"
"By my own hand, in the bath. I slit my wrists and throat."
"But why?"
"The darkness clouded my mind."
"Has it clouded mine?"
"No. Fight it Jack, fight the darkness."
"I'll try Alex, I'll try."
"Just a little longer"

Jack gasped as life returned to his body. He crawled towards the door, there was only one choice of action. Destroy the book. The book was the key.

"You can't win Jack."
Jack looked up, seeing a young woman, holding her head in her hands, blood staineing a white wedding dress she was wearing. The head spoke again, "You can try as you might, there is no one left to stop us."
"You...were...the girl...in...in the...bedroom...right?"
"Hmm, you remember with your soul what your mind blocks out."
"If I fall, another will rise to take my place, and you will parish from this universe."
"The ancients can NEVER die. We are immortal."
Jack puled the dagger from his chest, screaming with the pain coarsing through his body, and with his last ounce of strength swung at the demonic bride before him. She twiled and gripped his throat in one hand while the other held her head. She began to choke him, Jack was all but dead.
"Ha ha ha ha, you weak humans are no match for the power of Norlath." With that, she summoned a beam of darkness unto Jack, and his body was no more.

"Alex, I tried, I really did."
"I know Jack, and you did fine, you gave us the time needed."
"Time needed?"
"We had to find another to take up the fight, we believe we have found them."
"Who?"
"Nicole"
"Nicole? You can't be serious."
"I am, and so is she, she is the next in the fight."
"Very well then, let us hope she succeeds."
"Let us hope she realizes what she is, before they do."