Chapter 109 - Wakes of Terror
'Jin!' Samantha called out hearing her voice echo.
Jogging through buildings, she was trying to look for him. The environment was gritty and seemed dull. Opening up all the rooms on the one story facility she entered, she didn't find her son. Leaving it and going outside, she looked around in anxiousness. Either direction of the sidewalk and street seemed to stretch on and on to the horizon.
'Jin! Where are you?'
'...#$%...'
'...!?' the woman flinched from the sound.
Turning around, there was a building up ahead that seemed to stick out. Heading toward it, there was a highlighted glow around the structure. The closer she got to it, the more worry she started to feel. A cold, dead, and eerie sensation seemed to emit from the multi-story facility. Getting a few yards away from the front entrance, she looked up.
Appearing as one of the financial buildings with much glass windows as its walls, the top appeared to be go into the clouds. Not remembering seeing that when she heard the sound, Mrs. Ainsley looked forward. Going toward the doors, they swung open slowly without making a sound. Cautiously entering, the lobby area was neither inviting nor uninviting. The interior gave a dull and lifeless presence despite everything being neat and intact.
Moving to the center of the room, there was a receptionist's counter. Getting in front of it, there was a logbook with an old-fashion telephone. She remembered seeing them when growing up where dialing a number was turning a reel for each digit inputted. Seeing no bell to ring for service, she peered over the counter. Stopping herself from flinching, everything below the counter was in darkness.
'...' Samantha said. Leaning back and away from the counter, she turned around.
'...Jin...are you here?' she asked out loud.
Stopping from feeling as if something was staring at her from behind, she slowly turned back to the counter. There was no one there, but the logbook was opened to a certain page. Approaching it carefully, she looked to see a list of names written in. It had the room number and contact information for each one. Finding her son's name, the telephone began ringing.
'...' the woman commented listening to the nostalgic tone; however, it echoed multiple times over as if overlapping on itself. It added a layer of apprehension from picking it up and answering. Pressing her lips together, she grabbed the handle. Slowly bringing the phone to her ear, she spoke into.
'...h-hello?'
'$M#*O#$^M$?'
'...!?' Mrs. Ainsley reacted with a jump.
There was a dial tone, but no one spoke from it. Looking up, there was a dark silhouette standing on the other side of the counter. Not moving and watching it, a glitched appeared around its head area. When it cleared, two eyes appeared. Seeing what appeared to be demonic eyes from a horror movie, Samantha kept still from fear.
Staring at each other, she became increasing uncomfortable. The figure slowly went through the elongated desk as if it were a phantom. Letting go of the phone and moving away from it, it continued staring at her with unblinking eyes. Only making it to where she stood, a massive decaying hand rose from behind the counter. Watching the hand and fingers curl toward them, it grabbed the dark figure.
Acting like a spider catching its prey, the fingers moved slowly to pull the silhouette back behind the counter. Once it was in the giant hand's grasps, both began sinking into the floor. Before both went out of sight, the black figure seemed to have reached its arm out to her. It spoke out to her; however, it was in a voice that she recognized. Feeling her eyes widen, she bypassed her fear and rushed to the counter.
'JIN!?' Samantha shouted looking over the counter.
"...!?" Mrs. Ainsley reacted and opened her eyes.
Staring at an unfamiliar ceiling, she kept still. Looking around herself, she recognized she was in a hospital room. Calming down a little, she slowly sat up. Putting a hand on her left temple, a mild migraine was felt. Flinching a little from hearing movement, she glanced to her right a little. Seeing someone standing up, it was Alex.
"Hey," he stated from where he was. He wore a weak smile.
"...hey..." Samantha replied back. Putting her hand down, she watched him with a neutral expression.
"How are you?"
"...not that great...but fine."
"...I heard you fainted when you found Jin."
"I did."
"Where was he?"
"The same location where he was last kidnapped."
"...!?" Alex reacted with surprise. "The gaming company kidnapped him again?"
"Apparently someone in their higher ups hired mercenaries to kidnap him. The police haven't found the third individual that was seen dropping off Jin in the building."
"...but...why though?" he asked slowly approaching the bed.
"..." she replied watching him. Seeing him stop near her bedside, she answered.
"I don't know. I don't want to believe that person that came from the company was that desperate...regardless of him saying that Jin could solve everything."
"It does sound pretty hard to believe...but...desperate people will go to lengths to get something they need to solve something or combat a stress," he agreed and gave her a small smile.
"I'm glad to see you okay," Mr. Ainsley stated and reach out a hand toward her. It was met with her continuing her stoic staring and not moving.
"...thanks..." she replied and blinked. His arm slowly went back to his side. Awkward silence passed between them for a few moments before he spoke.
"The doctor stated you fainted from being overly stressed."
"...really?...I can't imagine why," she mentioned flatly.
"...did something else happen that made you faint or did you just sudden black out?" he asked ignoring her response.
"...Jin was bleeding from his eyes and nose...while wearing that VR thing," she answered adjusting her sitting position a little. Looking at him, he didn't seem that surprise.
"He was doing that when he was transported from the local hospital in town to Conrold."
"...Conrold hospital?" Samantha repeated looking at him confused. "Why was he sent there?"
"Both of you were. Derek arranged it for the transfer."
"..." she responded with feeling herself getting angry again. Biting her tongue, she reasoned with herself to find out if there was a specific reason.
"...why did he transfer me and Jin to this hospital? Our insurance does not have coverage for Conrold...and why was he allowed to do that?"
"Conrold hospital has a floor dedicated toward victims trapped with VR helmets. They opened it to all carriers regardless of insurance provider," he explained.
"...okay?...so...the local hospital does not?" Mrs. Ainsley asked still not understanding the reason.
"Well...Derek didn't want Ami to go back to that hospital from the incident that happened earlier...so he called people and-"
"You allowed him to do that?" Samantha questioned with disappointment. "Are you for real?"
"...I...owed him a favor. Besides, this crisis going on isn't affecting-" he started then was cut off.
"Why are you allowing him to do whatever he wants to our family?" she asked agitated.
"...he just provided a suggestion and...I agreed to it. That's all," Alex explained.
"..." Mrs. Ainsley reacted with a small frown. Instead of glaring at him, she turned her head to stare at the bed.
"Listen Samantha," he began. Walking closer to her, he was stopped from seeing her tense up. Closing one hand into a loose fist, he tried to touch her shoulder with his other hand.
"I only agreed to his idea based on what was the best interest at hand."
"Best interest at hand!?" she repeated with shock. Maneuvering and getting off the bed, she stood on the other side. Turning around, she looked at him with anger.
"The best interest at hand that you could think of was making sure that Derek's daughter got to the hospital. At the same time, Jin was freaking kidnapped a second time. Are you shitting me!?"
"..." Alex replied with opening and closing his mouth. His wife swung two fists down on the bed.
"I still mad at you and him...so you better give me a straight answer before I get more pissed off," she stated with a glare.
"..." Mr. Ainsley spoke just staring. Feeling tension building, knocking was heard on the room door. Seeing it open, it was a nurse and Gene.
"Mom!" the boy commented with a relieved smile. Rushing to her, Samantha rid the expression on her face and looked down at her son. Kneeling, he embraced her.
"You are awake. Are you okay?"
"Yes honey...I am alright now," she answered and hugged him back. Patting his head, he let go of her.
"I've never seen you black out before mom...did...what happen to Jin scare you too much?" Gene asked being quieter.
"...it was...a part of the reason."
"How are you feeling Mrs. Ainsley?" the nurse asked. Seeing the woman stand up, she turned to her.
"I think I feel fine despite having a mild headache," Samantha replied and sat on the side of the bed.
"That is a good sign," the medical person stated and got out a clipboard. "Since you are awake now, we can do a little check-up and then have the doctor come in to do his check-up. If everything is all good, you should be released relatively soon."
"That's good to hear," Alex commented with a tight smile. "Would it be alright if I went to the cafeteria to bring my family some breakfast?"
'...breakfast...?' Samantha thought blinking in surprise. She glanced at a digital clock that was on a counter and saw what time it was. Her mouth parted from seeing that it was early morning.
"That should be fine," the nurse said with a head nod.
"Cool...what will you two like to have?"
"Can I have orange juice and a pastry dad?" Gene asked and saw his father nod.
"What would you like dear?"
"..." Mrs. Ainsley responded with closing her mouth. "...I'm fine...I'm not hungry at the moment."
"...I'll get you a coffee and pastry just in case," he commented and left the room.
Hearing the door close, the nurse began the medical check-up. Finding everything in normal readings, she parted stating that she will go inform the doctor. Watching her leave, Samantha felt a little relieved. Looking at her second son, he was sitting on a chair quietly. Seeing his head move toward her, he blinked.
"...Gene...how is Jin?"
"I think he is alright...though it seems he is playing in a nightmare with the VR headset," the boy answered a little down. However, it was short live.
"But it will be okay mom. Gamco found a way to get the gamers out of E.D.E."
"They did?" she responded with surprise and a sense of hope.
"Yeah. The online forum for E.D.E. posted about players able to log out and remove their helmets. It stated that last night, one gamer was told by the administration people to go to a place. From there, they made an exit portal. Once they go through it, the players are fully logged out," Gene informed with relieved enthusiasm.
"...what a relief..." Samantha stated feeling a bit better from the news. "Do you know how many were able to log out?"
"From the company's post, only 200 of 2,000 players were able to log out...Jin...Renee...and Ami are still logged in."
"...2-2,000 are trapped!?" she commented shocked.
"Y-Yeah mom...that isn't too high of a number...is it?"
"..." his mother closed her eyes and just leaned back in her bed. "...sounds too high for me...at least...they did something and it is working slowly."
"I wonder why they did just do a reply to all the players so everyone can just be able to exit."
"Don't know honey...maybe the system can't take a lot at one go."
'...Jin...I'll be there soon,' she thought. Opening her eyes and looking at the bed, she curled her hands into loose fists.
'I make sure that I will be by your side when you wake up.'
"...h...a...a...a...a...a..." Jin said breathing deep and haggardly.
After running and doing glitching vanishing steps for what seemed like miles and miles, the chaotic imagery and the voices started to fade away. Seeing the altered sky change back to what seemed normal, he started slowing down. Reducing to a walking pace, everything in him hurt. Clenching his teeth in what felt like agony, he forced himself to continue breathing and walking. Looking around him with only his eyes, he noticed that he seemed to be in a country setting.
'Where...is...here...?' he thought.
Around him were rolling hills of grassland with little number of trees. In the distance, he could see many farms and different vegetation. Looking in the opposite direction, the rural environment slowly leveled off to just flatlands. At the horizon, there seemed to be the shape of a large town. Seeing that is where he probably came from, he looked back forward.
Looking down at himself, he blinked to see that he was bare again. The bits and pieces of clothes that were remaining on him were shredded. Removing all of them, he proceeded to the nearest barn. Reaching it in several minutes, he observed what was there. Other than seeing farm animals here and there, there was one person working outside the house.
Thinking that with his appearance and aura, he would be detected regardless of what method he used to head there. Checking around himself before opening up his menu, he blinked seeing the psychological horror settings. Looking at his avatar, it seemed to have gotten a more sinister look. The black veins on his forearms spread further to his hands and biceps. Seeing them on his thighs above his knee caps, they went down to his feet.
The other notable observation was a faint glow outlining the perimeter of his body. It wasn't enough to be noticed with a naked eye but if stared at for a while, one could see it. Shaking his head from seeing the menu glitch hard and rapidly, he went to the skill tab. Accessing the list of skills he currently now had, none of them were for suppressing fear. Seeing that "Sneak" was high, it was one skill that would hide some of his presence.
Looking at the rest, one of them was "Telepathy". Deciding on a different approach instead of invading the property, Jin exited the menu. Staring the worker down, he waited to see if an icon would appear in the HUD. Seeing no option to select, he pondered how it was activated. Focusing on the person again, he tried to experiment with what he thought would transfer his thoughts.
'...h...e...y...' he thought in an eerily airy breath. Seeing the farm worker suddenly stop, he looked up slowly. Turning all around him slowly, there was confused look on his face.
'...y...e...s...y...o...u...' the sophomore continued. The bucket that was in his hands fell to the ground as he looked a little spooked.
'...a...n...s...w...e...r...m...e...m...o...r...t...a...l...'
"...who...w-w-who...who's there!?" the farmer stammered. Strangely, the sophomore could feel his apprehension and sense of dread of the unknown.
'...do...not...fear...just...think...understand?'
'...o-o-okay...w-w-what do you want?' the worker thought continuing to look around nervously.
'...where...is...here...?'
'H-Here?...this is...S-Sage County,' the man thought. Moving around a little bit, he was checking places to find where he was hearing the voice.
'...w...h...a...t...i...s...h...e...r...e...?' Jin thought trying to remain neutral and as calm as possible.
'...it is...a farming community,' the person answered then looked up to the sky. '...are you...God?'
'...I...am...neither...above...or...below...this...world,' the sophomore said in his mind. Feeling faint whispers in the background, he ignored them. Looking back at the farmer worker, the man just blinked then looked back forward.
'...i...s...t...h...e...r...e...a...c...e...n...t...r...a...l...p...o...s...t...?'
'Y-Yeah...it is a few miles south from here. That is where all the farmers go to do trade, sell, buy, and have entertainment.'
'...I...s...e...e...d...o...y...o...u...n...e...e...d...a...n...y...t...h...i...n...g...?'
'N-Need anything?'
'...y...e...s...f...r...o...m...t...h...e...p...o...s...t...o...r...s...o...m...e...t...h...i...n...g...e...l...s...e?
'...um...well...my boss, the farmer, asked me to go pick up a delivery at the post while tasking me with all these chores. It be a great help if you would go pick them up and drop them off here.'
'...v...e...r...y...w...e...l...l...n...a...m...e...o...f...p...a...c...k...a...g...e...?'
'A-Actually, we are based off numbers. So for this farm, number 17 is what would be for the delivery.'
'...I...see...I...will...go...there...and...retrieve...' Jin thought then vanished away.
"...!?" the worker reacted feeling the odd presence leave him. Feeling spooked still, he shook his head and continued to work. After about five minutes of doing his task, he saw the owner come out of the house. Watching him head toward the barn, the worker continued what he was doing. Not too long after, the farmer came out.
"Yo boy!" the owner stated out loud. Getting the young man's attention, he saw the farmer looked pleased about something.
"You did good getting the stuff from central so quick. Go inside and get some grub from my wife. She's in the kitchen," he stated then went back into the barn.
'...that thing got the stuff already!?' the worker thought shocked.
"Y-Yes sir!" he said with a nod. Smiling for his good fortune, he put his work down and headed into the house.
Standing on the roof of one of the buildings of the Sage County's central post, it looked more like a strip of buildings. The setup reminded him of how wild west towns were depicted on TV and movies. Seeing there was people out and about, their clothing was still more towards the renaissance in comparison to the industrial age attire in Trentavila. Moving his eyes slowly toward the other side of the strip, he detected an abnormal amount of magic casters. Narrowing his eyes, he vanished.
Appearing in an alleyway more towards the middle of the buildings, he followed along the wall of one two-story shop. Reaching to the back, there was a small incinerator outpost. Detecting no one present inside, he just blinked and materialized inside of the large room. Seeing it to be an office setting, there was a door on the opposite wall of the entrance. Opening it, the incinerator was inside and appeared to be out.
Smelling the burnt ash in the air, there were things that haven't been put in yet. Going toward them and moving things around, he was able to salvage some clothes. Though poorly dressed, the cloak with tattered edges served to hide his appearance. Going back into the main room, he heard tapping to his right. Looking over at it, it was Morse code auto depiction machine. Standing in front of it, he read what was being put on paper.
[Attention all outpost. Attention all outpost. The mansion of Count Vamer has been attacked by unknown forces. Casualties are deemed high. Most of Vamer's soldiers have been deployed as well as the police forces in Trentavila. Recommendation to people outside to not travel to Trentavila until threat has ceased.]
'...must be...either Selbith...or Han-Ko...' he thought then continued watching and reading.
[Sources have noted that a wave of destruction occurred shortly after the large blast attack on Count Vamer's mansion. The pathway starts from Trentavila and ends to the outskirts of Sage County. Casualties are unknown when damages are deemed high. Further investigation is already in motion. Keep look out and report any findings.]
"..." Jin commented with a small frown and monstrous airy grunt. Shaking his head, he left the outpost. Upon closing the door, there was an individual that was standing a couple yards away. Recognizing the toga outfit and tanned skin, he looked up at her. The look on her face seemed intrigued though cautious.
"How hard is it to bring down one stinking gunslinger!?" the chief of the Count's guards asked out loud.
Ever since the loud explosion and sending out a few men to investigate, none of them have reported back anything. The only things that have been consistent is the loud fire of a cannon. It seemed far away given to how muffled it was. Still, hearing that booming slowly travel to different areas of the mansion was unnerving. Hearing someone running to where he was, it was one of many soldiers he had sent.
"Chief," he spoke then stood at attention.
"What is your report?"
"Me and my men investigated the Count's master room and found no trace of him. However, his desk had blood on it and a wall is damaged from some kind of impact. We also can't reach any of the Count's personal protection squad. No one has seen them since earlier in the day."
"Damn it. What the hell is going on in here?"
"Chief. A couple of my men heard there were monsters loose on a couple of floors as well," the guard added which did not make his superior happy. Just about to give him orders, they heard someone coming from another direction. Turning, the guard was haggardly breathing and bleeding from various wounds.
"Chief...the...guahn...is...com-" the man spoke before being cut off.
A portion of his head got blown by a loud cannon fire sound. The flare from the blast was seen further down the hallway in the shadows. Falling to his knees, the soldier collapsed onto the floor. Blood flowed out from the massive wound as he laid prone. Both glanced up and saw something approach them that did not look human.
"Hiissssssss" a Grim Reaper appeared with a wicked looking scythe.
Seeing the two men instantly become afraid, they turned and ran. It was short live as they saw the blade of the scythe coming in fast in their peripheral. Cutting them down, both died quickly from the blood loss. The demonic being hissed again before black flames engulfed it. When they subsided, Selbith was back in her human form.
Going to the desk that the more decorative guard was standing at, there were many documents laid about. Moving some about, nothing caught her eye. After pushing things more papers aside, there were a couple that drew her attention. Skimming through them, she heard death screams from the hallway that she came from. Ignoring them, she finished reading them.
'So...this Count has certain artifacts in the basement,' she thought and turned around. Leaving the room, the "Stalker" skill activated. With a popup window displaying a compass, the needle was pointing in a direction in the mansion. Smirking, she reloaded her gun and continued.
'If the bastard has those...I will be the victor...not only over the other demons,' the gunslinger continued. Turning into a hallway toward her left, she opened fired at the guards running toward her. After emptying the clip, the small group of henchmen were blown apart. Resuming in going where the compass was pointing, the smirk grew into a confident smile.
'But in ensuring that Jin can never be separated from me ever again.'