It was so peaceful when we finally went to sleep last night, but this morning was anythin' but. Dozens of voices woke me from my slumber, various conversations floating through the air to the tent where Decker and I sought refuge. I have no idea how that man slept through it all, but he did. I considered my options: go out there and meet a few of these people, or stay within the safe confines of the tent, Decker within reach if needed. I decided to wait and see if he woke, listenin' to the random chatter a few feet away.
Of course it was difficult to ascertain who was speaking to who, but the more I listened the more I learned. Apparently there were three factions that were established within the area: the EOL, the Red Light District, and the Misfits. A woman was talkin' about how all three would most likely butt heads over territory and come to some kind of war, and she was hopin' to break away before that began. I couldn't figure out which group she was with though.
I heard another conversation between two men; one addressed the other as Jimmy. I didn't pay too much attention to them until I heard Jimmy mention Jericho. Jimmy said he enjoys foolin' Jericho by calling himself Steven, and how easily Jericho could be manipulated. I wondered if it was worth trying to track down Jericho to let him know, but thought better of it; probably best to stay out of the affairs of others.
More names were mentioned as well, Sasha, Phrankie, Sissy, no one that I had heard of before or that meant anythin' to me. All of the voices turned into a whole lot of useless noise until two men approached the tent. I held my breath, kept my head down, but thankfully they kept on walkin' to have a private conversation. One introduced himself as Detective Shaun Lawson, and the other was Strider. Seems they were both tryin' to be "good guys" and agreed to exchange information with each other.
Havin' heard so many walkin' about in this place, I figured it was safe to get up and stretch a bit. I left a note for Decker lettin' him know I was right outside in case he woke up, and then I slipped quietly through the flap of the tent. I checked the barrel for any new letters that may have been dropped off throughout the night, and while doin' so was approached by a much older gentleman named Wally. He seemed nice enough, reminded me of my grandpa a bit. While I was talkin' to him, two other men approached us, and it was then that I met Jimmy and his brother Jax.
Jimmy did all the talkin' while Jax hid behind him; the both of them makin' me a bit nervous. Jimmy was friendly enough at first, asking me about what I had done before comin' to this place. When I told him I was an aspiring singer, he glanced over his shoulder at his brother and laughed, then turned back to me and said I should put on a concert here at the Quarry. I politely declined, still havin' no interest or inspiration in singin' for anyone. Jimmy kept insisting, sayin' that I was exactly what this place needed to lift it from the darkness, and suggested we head back to his camp to talk about it further.
At that moment Jax went running to a nearby tent, whimpering. I could hear him talkin' to someone he referred to as Jekyll or Jackal? It was hard to make out through the incoherent babbling. All I could hear was "get out of my head" and "no, I don't' want to hurt anyone." I asked Jimmy if his brother was okay, and Jimmy just laughed. "He's fine, let's get back to you and I getting out of here."
I explained to Jimmy that I had to wait here for a friend, and cautiously backed away from him. Never in my life had I been so grateful to see someone when I saw Jericho approaching from the distance. "Macie, wasn't it? Good to see you! Let's step over here and catch up."
I quickly said goodbye to Jimmy and his brother, who was now watching from the tent he had run to, and Jericho and I walked far enough out of earshot from the two. "You don't want to get mixed up with them," Jericho warned me. "People that go off with them tend to never return."
Once I saw Jimmy and Jax engaged in another conversation, I made my way back to the tent where Decker was sleepin'. I thought about wakin' him up, but fear got the best of me and I just sat there, wishin' I had never left Decker's side in the first place. I tried to block out the constant voices outside, but they continued for over an hour. It wasn't until I heard a soft voice whisper near the tent that I truly began to panic, as I heard, "Jimmy and Jax are cannibals."
The moment Decker awoke I begged him to leave the Quarry so I could fill him in on what had happened that mornin'. We walked for some time before I felt safe enough to do so; I was terrified that maybe the brothers were still around, even though I didn't see them when we left. I tried not to show Decker how truly scared I was as I repeated the conversations that were had. Of course he was not happy to hear what had transpired, and vowed that these two would be taken care of. We were about to try and find Jericho to learn more when Decker stopped abruptly and turned. "Darlin', get behind me," he said when he noticed two people across the road from us.
My heart never beat so fast in my life, fearin' the worst and thinkin' it was those two that we were about to hunt down. Thankfully it wasn't, knew that the second they got closer. A man and a teenage girl stood in the distance; odd that I hadn't even considered someone that young bein' stuck in a hellish place such as this. Poor thing must be terrified, I thought. I let Decker handle most of the conversation, as I usually do. I much prefer stayin' safely behind him rather than havin' to speak to strangers, especially after this mornin'.
The man made mention of the gas mask Decker was wearin', said it resembled the same one a not very nice man was wearing. Instantly I thought of Jimmy, who did have a similar one, and then the man confirmed it was Jimmy he was speakin' of. Odd how fate seems to work in your favor sometimes, this random stranger now confirmin' for Decker that Jimmy and Jax are bad people. He told us that Jimmy tried to kill him and his girl.
Unfortunately their conversation was interrupted by some strange half-naked man walkin' up the road. I didn't know what to make of him; said his name was Ernie and the Irish had hurt him again. Poor thing looked like a downright disgrace in his underwear. Apparently he was stripped down by a group of people the stranger knew about and was accused of being a cannibal and a murderer. Hearin' about more possible cannibals in this place left me feelin' a bit unsettled yet again.
After we sent poor Ernie off to the Quarry to get some clothes and food, we learned the names of our new acquaintances: Benjamin and his daughter Mya. At least if she's forced to grow up in this crazy place, she has her papa around to lean on. God knows there are times I wish mine were still around, I could really use his advice right about now.
Benjamin and Decker then got back onto the topic of Jimmy and Jax. Benjamin told us that the brothers had trapped him and Mya in a police station in Kamyshovo, shootin' at them and tryin' to kill them. Apparently they were also spouting some nonsense about a bear demon, which reminded me of one of the notes I saw in the barrel at the Quarry. All the note said was Beware the Demon Bear. Mya seemed a little frightened about the story bein' repeated, so I tried to make sure she was alright with some small talk about family to get her mind off what the men were discussin'.
Cutest thing she was, gettin' all excited the fishing tackle I had in my hat that Decker had found for me. I never did tell Decker why I had wanted one so bad; truth is it reminds me of my dad and the fishing trips we used to have. I kept on my conversation with Mya but heard Decker tell Benjamin that he should take the girl fishin' to create some memories. Ain't that the truth, some of the best memories I have with my papa. Like I eventually told Benjamin, it was never about the actual fishing, but the time spent together.
I don't think I ever felt more safe in this place than I did during this interaction with these two. I heard Decker tell Benjamin that the brothers were a threat to someone very special to him, and then stated that anyone who messed with me would end up havin' him to deal with. Of course he said it a bit harsher, more like, "You fuck with Macie, you fuck with me. And that's the last fuckin' thing anybody wants to fuckin' do." The way he said it, with such certainty and authority, well shit, it's hard not to feel completely safe when someone says that on your behalf.
We parted ways with the father/daughter duo and headed south to try and find Jimmy and his brother. It wasn't long in our travels until we stumbled onto what we believed to be their camp. No one was around, but there were a few tents and barrels set up. Two things led us to believe it was theirs: one was a note mentioning the demon bear Benjamin had said they talked about, and the other was human meat. Cannibals indeed. And to think I could've been in pieces in this barrel as well. Can't even handle thinkin' about it for too long.
Hours we waited in the woods, Decker hopin' they'd show up so he could take care of them. But they never did. Eventually we moved on to continue south, but I was exhausted by then from everything that had happened, and so we ended up settling down for the night. Took all of two minutes for Decker to pass out of course, the man can sleep anywhere. As for me, well I stayed up to write this, and then the thunderstorm began. Nope, no sleep for me tonight. Who could sleep when they close their eyes and picture two men cuttin' them up into slices of meat to feast on?