The room was another stone hallway. It was more consistent with the rest of the basement before the Church. The only thing out of place were two rectangular gray stone pillars near the exit. As Aya made her way forward, an object fell from above. It was falling at a far higher velocity than anything that fell from the ceiling. It smashed against the cobblestones and splattered. Aya jumped back to avoid the unknown projectile.
Aya shuddered as she examined the object. It was the head from the woman in the memory book. Somehow, it had fallen here from the void. Aya hesitated as she took her first steps over it. The half that was left lay on a puddle of blood, still maintaining it's emotionless expression. Aya wasn't sure why this of all things was getting to her the most.
Aya turned the corner and made her way down a steep staircase. She felt a wave of exhaustion come over her once more. She didn't know how long she could keep going on adrenalin alone. Every breath she took felt laborious, and the chainsaw, hardly light in its own right, felt as though it were made of pure lead. Her muscles burned from the effort of lugging it around, but if she abandoned it, she gave up her only means of defense, save for the knife. Her thoughts went back to the boar man from earlier; she didn't feel confident taking something like him on in a fight with a knife. Besides, if the sheer number of things she'd needed to use it on were any indication, she'd be needing it a lot.
The end of the stairs couldn't come fast enough. She entered into an octagonal hallway that doubled as a storeroom. There didn't appear to be much of note, just the usual metal-fitted crates and three oil barrels stacked in a pyramid. Aya set her chainsaw next the stack of barrels and pressed her hand against the top one. She needed a moment to catch her breath. Suddenly, a voice came from behind her.
"KILL ME!"
The noise was followed by a squelching sound. Aya's eyes widened in fear. She turned to the side and yelped at the sight, falling to the floor in the process. Before her stood a ghoul woman with long blonde hair that reached the floor. A trail of drool dripped from her lips and her right arm was covered in lacerations.
"IT HURTS SO KILL ME!"
"NO!" Aya exclaimed, more out of fear than reluctance. Truth be told, she had half a mind to reach for her knife, but she was paralyzed with fear and exhaustion induced delirium. Her jaded indifference to the horrors of the mansion melted away at the sight of the woman. A single ghoul accomplished what countless spirits and paranormal occurrences could not.
"KILL ME! JUST KILL ME!"
"No! Stay away!"
"KILL MEEEEEEEEEE!" The spirit shrieked, and lunged towards Aya. Without thinking, Aya reached for the chainsaw. She revved it just as the ghoul made contact with the blade. Blood sprayed across the floor.
Aya looked up to see the ghoul collapsed on the floor, bleeding. She spoke one last time before expiring.
"F-FINALLY…REST…" The ghoul disappeared with that.
Aya sat shaking on the floor, her trembling hands struggled to release the trigger. She slowly got up, nearly falling over as she did. She ambled along forward, down another staircase. She paused for rest several times, bracing herself against the wall several times. Finally, she made it to the bottom. She took a few steps forward and crumpled to her knees.
I can't move my legs anymore.
I have to… save father.
Fa…ther…
Aya collapse to the ground, unconscious. The last thing she heard were footsteps, followed by a familiar voice.
"At your limit, are you…? Perhaps you should rest a bit."
Aya once again dreamt of the past. Aya was playing with her mother in the flower fields near her house. Her mother suddenly beckoned her over.
"Close your eyes Aya." Monika instructed. Aya did so, and Monika kissed her forehead. "May you be smiled upon."
"Mom, what was that?"
"A good luck charm!"
"A what charm?" Aya was even more confused.
"I charmed you so you'll always, always be happy from now on."
"Wow…" Aya seemed blown away by the statement. "I love you, mom."
Aya's thoughts became more jumbled as the dream came to a close. Dialogue seamlessly bled into her own musings.
Mom… you smell nice….
It's the perfume mom always wears…
Aya once again dreamt of the past. Aya was playing with her mother in the flower fields near her house. Her mother suddenly beckoned her over.
"Close your eyes Aya." Monika instructed. Aya did so, and Monika kissed her forehead. "May you be smiled upon."
"Mom, what was that?"
"A good luck charm!"
"A what charm?" Aya was even more confused.
"I charmed you so you'll always, always be happy from now on."
"Wow…" Aya seemed blown away by the statement. "I love you, mom."
Aya's thoughts became more jumbled as the dream came to a close. Dialogue seamlessly bled into her own musings.
Mom… you smell nice…
It's the perfume mom always wears…
Ines sat alone in her room, her legs dangling off the bed. She kicked them back and forth rapidly, desperate to occupy herself with something. She'd gotten so bored she'd actually taken the time to move the spilt barrel out of the room and try to lure rats into it, to take back to her room. It didn't really work since she didn't have any bait, and the rats had little reason to enter through the bunghole of a barrel that had just rolled at them at high velocity. The other barrel had been empty, much to her disappointment. She'd hoped that there would be grain or something to use as bait. Still, she figured it couldn't hurt to try. Ines was starting to wonder if maybe her sanity hadn't weathered the years as well as she thought.
She didn't know how the other spirits handled it. Spending all day doing nothing but enduring the pain of their last moments, waiting for someone to come by to take their rage out on. It didn't matter who, it was as Ogre had said, their minds were practically gone, consumed by rage and pain. Hatred and fury alone held them together. Ines could only hope there were more like her. More who had retained enough sense to show restraint. Ogre said there were three, but there had to be more, right?
She hoped no servants tried to investigate the mansion. As far as she knew, none of them knew of what the Doctor was up to. It was amazing how he managed to keep his whole operation under wraps. The Basement was massive, impossibly so. How could he have had this all built without anyone getting suspicious?
Ines pondered the thought some more. It wasn't like there was anything else to do. Perhaps he'd hired workers to build the basic structures, then installed all of the weird mad science stuff himself? No that couldn't be, there was way too much of it. She'd seen the lab in her lifetime. There were vats for growing homunculi, for crying out loud! That took a team of skilled laborers to install. Perhaps the laborers had been silenced? It wouldn't surprise her. Or maybe he got the dolls to help. There were a lot of them.
Ines had thought it impossible that one man could kill so many. There were many dozens of dolls in the house. Each doll was a person, a patient, or an urchin he'd takin in, or a vagrant perhaps, people who wouldn't be missed. People like her.
Her morbid thought process was interrupted by the door to her room opening. In walked Ogre, and in his arms was Aya, unconscious. Fear gripped Ines as Ogre set her down on the bed.
"I-is she- "
"Poor dear's just a bit tired, is all. She's been pushing herself hard lately. Let her rest for a while, and she should be fine."
Ines breathed a sigh of relief. She'd nearly had a heart attack. Or maybe she had, she wasn't sure if she still needed her heart to beat.
Ogre spoke once more. "Keep an eye on her, will you? Until she's rested."
Ines nodded nervously.
"Good. Now, just one more thing." He walked off for a moment, and walked back holding what appeared to be a small chainsaw, covered in blood and gore. "A tool of hers. It's served her well on her journey, as you can see." He chuckled. "I'll be off now. I do look forward to seeing how you handle this… situation." He walked off once more, shutting the door behind him. Ines was once more left alone with her thoughts.
Hours passed, Aya slept soundly. Ines was consumed with anxiety. What was she supposed to say? "Hey, I'm your long-lost sister! You've never heard of me because your father cut me up in his lab!" Would she even believe her? She wouldn't if she were her. How much did she know, anyway? Had Ogre told her what was going on? For all Ines knew, Aya thought ghosts were haunting them for no reason. She wasn't going to believe some random ghost girl!
Ines grabbed her head and groaned in frustration. What was she supposed to do? Ogre was right, she had no idea how to deal with this. She was pacing rapidly around the room in a desperate attempt to calm her nerves. Her feet splashed around in the damp remains of the puddle she'd created and haphazardly mopped up. As she was, she caught a glint of something in Aya's front pocket. She walked cautiously over to her and examined the object. It was a small bottle of perfume, it looked… familiar somehow.
Ines couldn't resist her curiosity. She carefully reached for the bottle, making sure not to disturb the sleeping Aya. She felt a slight jolt of excitement. It reminded her of her days on the street, of the rush she'd get from stealing from a merchant, the thrill of the chase as she dodged and weaved through the streets. She couldn't help but giggle to herself as she plucked the bottle from the pocket.
Yes! Still got it!
She noticed an odd jingling sound as she took the bottle, like the sound of coins or jewelry shifting around. A sound she knew well. What could Aya be doing with something like that? She'd have to ask about that when she woke up.
Ines inspected the bottle closely. It appeared to be a perfume bottle, and an expensive one at that. She'd always wanted to try perfume. The wealthy women around town were always bathed in the stuff. Now the smell of perfume, any fragrance, brought to mind the idea of comfort, of security. It smelled of a life where one didn't have to sleep in alleyways and gutters, worrying about where their next meal would come from.
Ines tried to resist the temptation of the bottle. After all, it was clearly important enough to Aya that she was carrying it around at a time like this. Then again, it'd only be one spritz, surely, she wouldn't mind too much?
With that, she sprayed a bit of the perfume into her hair. It smelled wonderful. It was hard to place the fragrance, it smelled like a variety of tropical fruits and exotic spices, like the ones some merchants would sell, imported from islands in the pacific. Ines had always longed to try some of those fruits, but the merchants always had guards keep watch. She could understand that, to an extent. Shipments of mangos and coconuts only came in so often. It wasn't like that apple merchant, who could just go home and pick more to replace the meager losses she could incur.
Most of the clerks didn't even own the shops. They worked for big companies owned by the nobility; greedy fools born of wealth yet so desperate for more. They couldn't share even if they wished. Resentment began to bubble as Ines thought of them. They were supposed to look after their subjects with their wealth. Levy armies, pave roads, build infrastructure. Yet when the tuberculosis epidemic hit the town all those years ago, they barely lifted a finger to help them. Her family died during that outbreak, just more bodies to add to the pile as far as they were concerned. Even the Doctor, who she thought the world of at the time, saw her only as one of his experiments.
Ines's train of thought was soon interrupted when Aya stirred. She froze as Aya woke up, oblivious to her presence. Aya yawned and stretched, rubbing her eyes, and blinking rapidly. There was a brief pause as Aya registered the strange figure standing next to her bed. She turned her head slightly, finally meeting Ines's gaze. Ines let out a giggle despite herself. The sheer awkwardness of the situation made it hard not to laugh a little. Besides, playing the part of the mischievous thief provided a distraction from the nervousness overwhelming her.
Aya yelped as she saw her, quickly sitting up on the bed, half ready to scramble out the door. She saw her chainsaw out of the corner of her eye and was tempted to reach for the knife if it was still there. Suddenly, she caught a whiff of something. She sniffed a bit to confirm her suspicions.
Ines waited awkwardly as Aya's expression changed from one of fear to one of realization, the same mischievous smile frozen on her face. She tensed up as Aya spoke. This wasn't good.
"I can smell mom's scent… Why do you smell like mom?"
"Who could say?" Ines said, sniffing the bottle once more.
What are you doing!?
"That's mom's perfume! No way… when did you…!?" Aya didn't even finish the sentence before hopping up from the bed, reaching for the bottle. Ines dodged and stepped back. "Give it back! That's my keepsake of mom!"
Just give it back you idiot!
But it was too late. Ines was already bolting through the door, desperate to flee somewhere, anywhere but here. She ran into the next room and slammed the door behind her. She locked it behind her and braced the door with her arms. She paused for a moment, hyperventilating. Her heart pounded against her ribs.
So it is still working. Not that it was much use back there!
Ines jumped a bit at the sound of banging at the door, letting out a quiet yelp. Had she seen her go in? No, she wasn't even out the door yet. Ines was a quick runner. She had to be to outrun the merchants. For a few tense seconds, she waited. As soon as she was sure Aya was gone, she slumped down, sitting in front of the cold steel door. She placed her hands on her head, digging her nails into her scalp. She groaned in frustration.
Why couldn't I do it? Why am I so afraid of her? She's not a monster, she's my sister! I know her! Why did I take that stupid perfume!?
She slumped her head over, looking down at her lap. She glanced at the blue glass bottle she'd dropped to the side. She began to laugh. First it was a slight giggle, then a full-on laughing fit. She threw her head back and cackled like a maniac.
Of course! Of course it was her mom's perfume! Of course she had it as a keepsake to make her feel safe! Of course the one thing I tried to steal was the most important thing she had! That's just my luck, isn't it!? This is how everything I do turns out! I move to a town that gets the biggest tuberculosis outbreak in decades, I steal from the most overprotective apple merchant in all of Germany, I agree to like with the Doctor who turns out to be a crazy serial killer, why would this time be any different!?
The worst part was that this time, she had no one but herself to blame. Her parents had decided to move to this town, and the baron neglected the outbreak. The merchant chose to treat her the way he did. The Doctor specifically targeted people like her. But no one made her take that bottle and no one made her run instead of returning it. Now she'd burned her bridges with the one person she had left in the world, and didn't know how she was going to make it right.
Aya quickly gave up on the door, she knew there was no way she'd be able to open it like this. Even if she'd brought the chainsaw with her, there was no sawing through steel. She'd been trying her luck with the marble earlier and a broken chainsaw chain flying through the air may be more dangerous than any spirits she'd encountered. She might have tried her luck with the hinges, but they were on the other side of the door. She knew that the strange girl was in there, she'd heard the door slam, she just needed to get to her.
Aya sighed and stomped off. With luck, the key would be around here somewhere. It seemed odd that she so often found the keys to doors just lying about, but it was a noticeable pattern, nonetheless. She passed through the stone archway around the corner.
Aya held the lantern out in front of her. The hallway before her was dark. Too dark to see ahead of her. She heard the sound of hundreds of scurrying feet and many high-pitched squeaks. Her hands trembled and she struggled to grip the lantern.
As she made her way forward, she felt the rats swarm her feet. A shiver ran down her spine as their wet, furry bodies rubbed against her legs. Her stockings the only barrier between them and her skin. She caught a glint of something in the distance. It was hard to make out, in the darkness. Aya was reluctant to touch the ground with her hands and risk exposure to the swarm, but she pressed onward in the hopes that someone had miraculously dropped the key to the room in this hallway.
The rats were biting now. Aya attempted to swat them off her legs with her free hand, but there were too many of them. She ran for the object and scooped it up, shaking off the members of the swarm that clung to her arm. She had never been more grateful for sleeves. She didn't even take the time to inspect the metallic object in her hands, she ran as fast as she could back to the door. As she exited the hall, the swarm abated. She was reluctant to examine her legs for bite wounds. She knew rats weren't the most sanitary creatures by a long shot. She could only pray she didn't contract sickness. Fortunately, none of the bites seemed serious. Curious nibbles, mostly.
She examined the object in her hand, holding it close to the lantern. It was a rusty metal key. Aya quickly slotted it into the lock, hoping to enter the room before the swarm decided to expand their territory. The key clicked and Aya let out a sigh of relief as she withdrew it and opened the door.
The room looked much like the one she'd woken up in, only inverted, and much darker and worn down. The wardrobe's wood was rotting, and the bedspread hadn't been washed in days. Three barrels lined the opposite wall, in similarly poor condition. A picture of a dog with a bone hung on the back wall and next to it was a dress stand with a purple ball gown. In the middle of the room, next to a scattered pile of books and papers, was the strange girl. She appeared to be trying to lure a rat over for reasons unknown.
"C'mere… It's okay. Don't be scared…" The look she was giving the rat was probably meant to be encouraging, but her ashen pallor and the dark, inky bags under her eyes made it look unsettling. The rat's nose twitched briefly, before it ran behind the barrels.
The girl sighed; her expression became dour. "Guess this scent's no good. Animals seem to hate it."
Aya didn't waste a second, she darted towards the girl and grabbed her by the shoulders. She turned the girl towards her and shook her rapidly. "Give back mom's perfume!"
The Girl giggled, sounding somewhat relieved, though no less like she was up to something.
"Wh… What's so funny?" Aya looked the girl up and down, checking for the bottle, but her hands were empty. "Huh? You don't have it? Where did you put it?" She sounded more confused than angry.
"I dunno… why not search for it?"
"Wh-" Before Aya could get the words out of her mouth, the girl broke free and ran off.
"What was with her?" Aya stood in confusion as the strange girl ran off into the hallway.
Aya shrugged, it wasn't important now. She needed that perfume. Not just because of its sentimental value either. If what that girl had said was true, Aya may have had a plan to get past the rats.
At first, she thought it may have been in the barrels, the obvious hiding spot, so she went back to get her saw. As she was returning to the room where she'd left it, she realized something.
Wait, why didn't I grab it earlier?
It was a good question. She wouldn't have just forgotten it, it was her only means of defense, besides her knife. Sure, she wanted the perfume back, but she didn't think it was so important it could override her survival instinct, not when she was this on edge.
Come to think of it, she felt much calmer than she ought to have when she saw the girl. She was afraid at first, who wouldn't be? But she was much quicker to approach her than normal. She was mad, sure, but not enough that she'd forget how dangerous it was to do that, especially not after that last ghoul. Yet, when she approached her, it was like she felt no fear at all.
She kept thinking about it as she returned to the room. Sure, it wasn't that important, but it seemed really odd for some reason. Even more so when she jumped at the sight of the rat from earlier. That scared her more than the ghost girl standing over her bed! It didn't make sense!
The barrels seemed to be a dead end. They revealed nothing upon being opened. She sighed and paced around the room, thinking. Suddenly, she caught a glimpse of something behind the dress stand. The wall behind it was boarded up. She moved the stand out of the way and took the saw to the boards. Inside the resulting hole was the perfume bottle.
There it is! Mom's perfume! Oh thank goodness!
Her excitement soon turned to confusion.
How did she…?
Her thoughts were quickly interrupted by a loud, distorted cry of fury. Aya jumped at the sound and was soon beset by a doll in a red and white ballgown and a linen bonnet. The doll burst from the hole and tackled Aya, wielding a large carving knife. It was monstrously strong for its size. It approached her face and raised the knife in its hands. Aya grabbed the doll by the wrists with one hand and desperately fished for her knife with the other. Finally, her hand grasped the leather hilt of the dagger. She pulled it out and thrust it into the doll's side.
The doll flailed wildly, the knife digging into it the more it moved. It was easily long enough to fully penetrate her body. The more she struggled, the more the blade sliced and sawed its way through it. Blood oozed out of the widening wound. Eventually, the blade sliced free of the doll's stomach, and it fell back onto Aya's chest, blood pouring everywhere. Aya quickly rolled on her side. The doll fell to the ground and struggled uselessly as the blood pooled around it. Aya rose to her feet. She eyed the doll with pure contempt and hatred. She brought her foot repeatedly down upon the doll, until its head was shattered to bits.
Aya exited the room, huffing and puffing rapidly as her stress returned to normal. As she returned to the entrance to the rat filled hallway, she noticed bloody writing appear on the wall under a metal torch.
YOU SAID I'D BE FAMILY
YOU LIED
Aya shook at the message. Was it addressed to her? To her father? To all of them? She'd never made anyone that kind of promise and she certainly wouldn't break it if she had. A shiver went down her spine once more as she pondered the implications. Her thoughts returned to the strange girl, and to the Hungry Boy. What had her father promised them?
She took several deep breaths to calm herself. It was clear that she would have a lot to deal with when this was over. She couldn't just do nothing anymore. She couldn't let any more people die like this. She didn't know what she'd do once she found him. Maybe she could talk him out of it? She doubted it. He valued his work as much as life itself. She could go to the police, but what would happen to him if she did? That, she decided, was a problem for later. First, she had to find him. She pocketed the bloody knife once more and uncapped the perfume bottle. It was time for her plan.
"Just a little bit, okay mom?"
It certainly didn't feel like a little bit. She doused herself from head to toe with the stuff, her legs especially. She hoped and prayed the rats would smell the sweet, spicy odor of the perfume, and be repelled.
Slowly, she stepped into the hallway. The rats swarmed her once more, only to be driven away by the overwhelming smell. Aya sighed with relief, and made her way through the hallway.
She exited the hall through an archway similar to the last one, and came to a fork in the path. To the left, was a door blocked by a metal gate, to the right was an open path blocked by a nun. Aya approached the nun, who proceeded to cough up blood, which splashed all over the cobbles, before vanishing. Aya didn't even know how to react anymore. She entered the doorway.
She entered what appeared to be a sort of… town? No, not quite a town. It was a series of rooms with iron fences in the front, like one would have around their yard. Each room contained a scene of sorts, with dolls acting them out.
The first was an elegant looking woman in a large blue hoop-skirt dress, with a matching silk hat kept in with a large pin. The room appeared to be an office. Wooden floors with a large red carpet in the center, a wooden desk topped with a golden clock flanked by candelabras. Beside the desk on each side were gold pedestals with flower vases.
The next seemed to be a factory of some sort, with massive gears and pistons in the background. A scarecrow with a pumpkin head dressed as a Victorian industrialist stood inside the room next to a large wooden wheel meant to be pushed by laborers.
The third scene was set in Japan, with a doll dressed up as a geisha standing in front of paper screens with lines of black ink painted on them in a sort of design. Behind her was a wall split into square segments. A set of double shoji doors appeared to lead out of the room, though Aya doubted they served any purpose.
The next scene was far more morbid. The room was plain brick. Red brick flooring and yellow brick walls. A chair sat knocked over. As Aya walked over, a doll in a green and white dress fell from the ceiling with a noose around her neck. She had light brown hair that reached her neck. She bore a resemblance to Aya's aunt. Aya had only known of her because she found some old photos of her one time. When she asked her mother about her, she refused to talk about her. She didn't seem too fond of her, which was made all too apparent by the wooden sign on the iron fence gate. It was labeled Disgrace of the Drevis Family. Aya gave her a mournful look as she remembered what she had read in the Archives, and in her mother's diary. She had a feeling she knew why she was considered a "disgrace".
The next scene was similarly macabre. A coffin covered in flowers in a grassy field. What the grass was made of, she didn't know. There were trees in the background, and a crow sat on a nearby stump. The crow was eyeing the coffin.
Unlike the other scenes, this one's gate was open, and untouched by the ivy vines. It slammed shut as Aya approached. Aya was able to reopen it with little effort.
"What's even the point then!?" She shouted to no one in particular, hoping the spirit responsible could hear.
As she entered the gait, the crow flew into the coffin. Aya eyed the crow, which seemed to be beckoning her inside. She stepped into the coffin and sat by the bird. The bird seemed to be miming sleeping, or at least getting ready to sleep. Aya was confused, but she thought she knew what the bird was telling her to do. She laid down inside the coffin as the bird returned to its perch.
For several seconds, nothing happened, but as Aya prepared to get up, she felt the coffin shift. It appeared to slide to the right. As she left the coffin, she saw what appeared to be a stone stairway leading downward.
The stairs lead to a narrow hallway leading north that went up a much shorter set of stairs before turning east. The path led to yet another hallway ending in a staircase leading upwards. There was a wheel prop much like the one in the second scene. Aya tested it, and it seemed light enough to move, encase the path needed blocking.
Aya took the stairway up and found herself in the last scene. It appeared to be a room inside a castle dungeon, made of stone brick. There was a metal cot to the left and a metal nightstand to the right. On the stand was an herbicide sprayer. Aya took it, and used it to kill the ivy on the gate. The herbicide worked unnaturally quick, withering the vines within seconds. Aya wondered if this was another of her father's inventions. She pocketed the bottle, wondering if she should report the results to her father. She then made her way forward.
Around the corner was the exit to the room. Aya approached cautiously. For some reason, she got a bad feeling about it. Her feelings were immediately vindicated when a life-sized doll emerged from the door, wielding a hatchet.
The doll had a rather unique dress compared to the others. It had long blond hair and a dark red dress, rather plain in design in contrast to the usual frilly gowns. It's only defining feature was a bowtie on the white undershirt.
Aya had little tome to contemplate the doll's fashion sense, however. It approached slowly, deliberately. Aya thus had more than enough time to plan her counterattack. She revved the chainsaw and hefted it above her head in a striking position. She charged the doll, letting out a bloodthirsty battle cry.
The doll raised the hatched in front of its face in a desperate attempt to block the oncoming attack. Unfortunately, chainsaws weren't valued by the lumber industry for nothing. The saw cut through the haft of the axe like it was butter, bathing the doll in sawdust. The doll fared little better as the saw continued its downward trajectory. Blood sprayed from the doll as her upper half was torn in two by the saw. Blood and fragments of porcelain-like skin spattered on Aya's face as she pushed the blade further, deeper, screaming with rage and fury until the doll ceased all movement.
Aya huffed repeatedly as she lowered the mighty weapon, her muscled relaxing as her foe fell to the ground. She sighed in both relief and elation, beholding the site of her work. She walked over the gory mess that was the doll and moved onward through the doorway.