A/N: I picked this game up again recently and thought, hey, wouldn't it be fun to write about the characters in Strangetown? So I am…. this chapter is in the hotel clerk's POV.
~Lamentations of a Lonely Hotel Clerk~
My name is Jeff. I've been the hotel clerk here in Strangetown for quite a few years.
I needed a place to crash until I could secure myself a job. Driving away from home, far from sober, I fell asleep behind the wheel one day. When I woke up, this strange old guy was hovering over me.
My head was killing me. I blinked until my eyes were focused. The old geezer introduced himself as Jebediah S. Jerky. He wore a brown cap that hid his eyes and some blue-jean overalls. Looked like a farmer to me, maybe in his 70s. After scrutinizing him a bit, I realized that he'd been talking.
"Sorry Mr. Jerky, but… what?"
He stopped mid-sentence to stare back at me. If you could call it staring- I couldn't see his eyes, but I still felt them trained onto me from beneath his cap. He opened his mouth and spoke slowly in a low, rough voice.
"You've been out here for several days now, mister...?"
"Jeff Cornwell."
"Mister Cornwell. I was all for leaving you out here, but then you'd attract the attention of some… unwelcome visitors. Plus, your car is in the middle of my cows' grazing field."
My mouth dropped open as I looked out of the windshield. I was, indeed, surrounded by two cows and a bull. I squinted past them and saw a vast desert, cactus and canyons galore. Mr. Jerky snapped his fingers in front of my face.
"Huh?"
He grunted and motioned to my car. The old man stepped to the side as I came out of my 2005 Volkswagen Beetle. My hood was crumpled and cracked open, and there was a bit of steam coming from the engine. Wait, how long had I been out?
My head came into my hands and I let out a groan.
"My poor car..."
A wrinkled hand settled upon my shoulder.
"Come on son, you'd better have a chat with the mayor. Then we'll see about fixin' up your car here."
I let out a defeated sigh and followed him up a steep hill, past an old jailhouse into what I assumed to be City Hall. Behind the counter stood a very bored looking man, who looked more like a wrestler than a clerk. He was patting his hands on the counter, barely acknowledging us as we walked past him. It looked like someone lived in here.
"Oh crud… the mayor is in one of his moods again," Jebediah muttered.
A dark-skinned man in a red suit and black pants was storming around, muttering phrases in gibberish. He grabbed a lamp off of a nightstand and smashed it on the ground. It instantly turned into a pile of dust, and I let out a yelp. Not something you see everyday.
Then the man turned and started to storm towards me.
"Look buddy, I don't want any-'' I was cut off when his fist connected with my face. Everything turned black.
