Shadow, take me down
Shadow, take me down with you
For the last time
For the last time
For the last time
For the last time
- Shadow by Chromatics
Darkness itself is not evil. It is merely a blanket that envelops and hides the true evil lurking beneath the seams. Like vampires, evil rises under the moonlight. In the shadow of the night, the world shifts to another plane of reality, to a layer of existence where people and places are not what they seem.
It was raining the night of February 20th in the forest at the outskirts of Twin Meadows. The trees dance intensely as the rapturous wind blows over the land. Under the cover of the towering pines lies a quaint cabin whose windows emit a sinister red glow. There was a primal scream poured out from inside.
Inside the house, the walls were entirely covered with red velvet curtains. The only light source was a night lamp in a corner. There were two figures, a man and a woman, on the ground. The young woman was lying on the ground as she was repeatedly being hit by the fists of the man on top of her. The savage beatings continued for what seemed to be an eternity; her wails and screams echoing in the room. Then, one fatal punch connects. One last piercing shrill filled the room. Yet even such deafening cry was still drowned by the torrential downpour.
Then, everything went black.
February 21, 6:12 AM | Sycamore River, Twin Meadows
The trees sway gently as the chilly wind blows over the land. The sun is emerging in the firmament above. The water of the river flows unimpeded. The birds are chirping happily. Only little traces of last night's intense rain remains. The weather forecast said that it will be a sunny day. Koji Kawaguchi thought he could exploit this perfect morning by doing his favorite hobby, fishing.
"Seems like a bad day for catches..." Koji Kawaguchi sighs as he sat slumped in his signature red fishing chair. Even after 40 minutes of gripping his fishing rod, his bucket remains empty. Slowly but surely, daylight is slowly cracking through the clouds. Koji stared at the dancing trees whose rhythmic movement induces a certain kind of hypnotic tranquility. The lack of fish aside, he thought it would be a good day.
A few meters from his spot is the Kawaguchi residence. An old rustic cabin bought cheap by an immigrant family that came from Japan a few years ago. Inside the house, Akiko, Koji's wife and the steadfast matriarch of the Kawaguchis, just woke up to prepare breakfast. Their kid, Hifumi who is normally full of vigor, is still soundly asleep, sprawled down his bed in a comfortable way. It was a Sunday, there were no classes. His snore can be loudly heard in the kitchen. Akiko simply smiled as she hummed a Japanese folk song while cooking bacon and eggs.
The luster of a good morning is fading as the Kawaguchi patriarch is almost at his wit's end. He frowned, his face tinged with disappointment. It was just one of those days, he thought. As he was about to stand up, something heavy tugged his fishing rod. Koji almost let go of his rod, but manages to hold on to it in the nick of time.
"Finally!" Koji exclaimed with exuberance as he tries to pull the line as hard as possible. The weight is dragging his body to the water. He finally stood up to hold his ground. "This one is heavy as bricks though. This one is definitely not a fish"
After a few moments of heavy pulling, his catch emerged at the shore. He continued to pull the line until the mysterious catch was finally out of the water. He dropped the rod and approached it. It looked like something that was wrapped in plastic repeatedly. The height was a meter and a half at the very least. Koji kneeled closer, his eyes scanning the strange object he had caught. He was still unsure of its content inside, but something about it is unsettling. From seeing the size and shape of the object, deep in his unconscious, somehow Koji Kawaguchi feared the worst.
The content inside is meticulously packed by the plastic and tape. However, he noticed a little tear by the side, caused by the hook of his fishing rod. He went closer to the tear and ripped the remaining thin layers of plastic. He peered through the little hole and saw something that was somewhat white cream in color. Then, he moved his index finger towards the hole. As he made contact with the unknown object, he immediately retracted his finger.
"What the hell!" He widened his eyes realizing that what he had just touched.
February 21, 7:05 AM | Sycamore River, Twin Meadows
Hifumi woke up to the sound of sirens blaring outside his house. Normally it would take an effort for his mother to make him get out of bed, but it wasn't everyday that the police went to their house. He promptly got out of his bed to peer through the blinds of his windows. He saw two police cars outside of their porch. The young Kawaguchi went out of his room and heard people talking in their backyard which is adjacent to the river. He went out of the house to the backyard and saw three strangers and his parents crowded in one spot of the shore. Akiko noticed him and ran to Hifumi. The 9-year old boy could see tears welling up her eyes. She kneels down and hugs him without saying any word. For Hifumi, it is a memory that will last for a long time.
The three strangers and the Kawaguchi patriarch hobbled around the newfound body. Detective Dawson Cabrera and Doctor Alan Rose walk around the body. The detective scanned the plastic coffin and the surrounding perimeter. Office Bradley MacArthur meanwhile took as many pictures of the site as possible. Koji Kawaguchi simply stared at the body out of concern with a creeping fear inside of him.
"You done Brad?" the detective asks. Bradley merely nods in affirmation.
"Okay, let's see who this is then we'll bring the body to forensics." the detective kneels down to tear off the top part of the plastic. The doctor and the other officer merely looked on. Koji glanced at the direction of the house to see his wife and their son coming back inside.
The detective peeled the plastic cover and finally saw what was inside. The eyes looking around it widened. From the torn plastic emerged the pale face of a woman, about early 20s in age. Her blonde shoulder-length hair was messy, as if she was in some sort of struggle.
The rest of her face, however, remains serene as if soundly asleep. Yet it was clear that death has swept over her, from the cold tone of her skin to the foul stench of slow decay.
"Joan Johnston..." The detective whispered as he remained standing, unable to move. Doctor Rose kneeled down with his hand over his face and wailed. Officer Bradley was merely silent, his face stiff.
"No way..." Koji laments running his hand over his hair as tears start to well up.
The four didn't move, as if time had frozen all around them, trying to process the body, once full of life, now lost.
February 21, 7:35 AM | Johnston Residence, Twin Meadows
Robert Johnson sat at the dining table as he goes over the daily morning paper. The sunlight intimately illuminates the dining room as it passes through the windows. The scent of newly-cooked bacon and eggs filled the room. For the patriarch of the Johnstons, today was supposed to be another good day. A man in his fifties, Robert Johnston was well-known in the community for being a civil servant of the Twin Meadows, the fondness for him goes as far as being affectionately called Uncle Bob by the locals. His stern face symbolized his conscientiousness, a trait that was admired by everyone.
He has this neurotic obsession of doing everyday routines. For example, every time he wakes up in the morning, he would play Only You by The Platters and do his morning stretches to its tune. Reading the paper in the morning is one such ritual.
As Robert read the paper, a woman emerged from the kitchen, holding two cups of coffee in each of her hands. She places one cup in front of him at the table.
"Thanks Molly." He flashed out a rare smile. Molly did the same.
Molly Johnston, the matriarch, was also a respected figure in the community. An English teacher in Twin Meadows High, known for being highly insightful and kind to her students. In her youth, she was a professor of English Literature at a university in Seattle. However, the stress of academia overwhelmed her and she retreated to Twin Meadows where she fell in love with Robert and the rest was history.
Molly sat down across Robert as he put down his papers to say grace. They began eating breakfast in silence with a smile and a contented look on their faces.
"Joan's not home yet." Robert said in a very matter-of-fact way.
"Cut her some slack. I'm sure last night was very fun. It's still too early anyways." Molly simply smiled, wholly aware that beneath the stern exterior is a loving yet worrywart father. He merely sent a look of mild irritation to her.
"That girl is becoming more and more independent day by day." He sighed, shaking his head. "Very soon enough, she'll have to leave for college."
Molly continued to smile imbued with a melancholic tinge as she looked out to the windows, seeing the birds flying, the gently swaying trees, and the sunshine. "Time flies by so fast."
It was at this time that a police car stopped in front of their house. It was not unusual for police to stop by the Johnston residence due to the virtue of Robert holding public office. Yet Robert and Molly felt a creeping sensation in the depths of their consciousness.
Detective Cabrera got off the car and made his way to the porch. Seeing the approaching detective from the window, Robert stood up to meet the policemen, with Molly trailing behind him. He opened the door and the detective saluted upon seeing the couple.
"Good morning, Bob and Molly." The detective put on a strained smile as he greeted them. "May I come in?"
Robert led him inside as the three went to the living room in silence. The couple sat together on a sofa, while the detective sat on the opposing sofa. Detective Cabrera is sweating in agitation. His mind is trying to find the words he would tell the confused couple in front of him. After what seemed to be forever, the detective sighed in trepidation while fidgeting with his hands.
"It's about Joan, your daughter." He said shakily.
"Detective Dawson, did something happen to her?" Robert asked in a low voice. Realization slowly creeps through the couple. Unknowingly, tears start to well up from Molly's eyes. Since when they woke up, they knew something was off, as if a part of their very souls was severed. Detective Cabrera, finally finding the resolve, nodded firmly in response.
"She's no longer with us."
The detective looked at the couple whose expressions were blank for a while. Yet he knew, somehow, that their world is crashing on the inside. After ten seconds, tears started to fall. Molly is shaking as she tries to clutch the arm of her husband. Robert, in turn, is still stiff frozen, his mouth agape in pure shock. However, his anger overcame him as he used his other arm to slam the table enough to damage it permanently. He let out a booming wail, as he cried for the first time since he was a child.
February 21, 12:43 PM | Speedwagon Foundation Headquarters, New York City, New York
Joni Joyner always felt uncomfortable when walking across the sterile white corridors of the Speedwagon Foundation. She can never get used to the cold impersonal feel of the place. Even as a philanthropic organization, the Foundation has an aura of secrecy not unlike the ancient knight orders of the Templars and Hospitaller. It's no wonder that the group captured the minds of many conspiracy theories. However, in some ways, those people are right. The Speedwagon Foundation is not just your ordinary philanthropic organization.
Joni continued her walk across the hallowed halls until she reached one of the many indistinguishable doors in the building. The door was labeled DIRECTOR'S CONFERENCE ROOM. She entered the room to see a man and a woman sat beside each other at a long conference table. Like the hallways, the room is very much white and minimalist with little decoration. Joni, then, seated across the two figures.
"Good afternoon, Jo. Sorry for the emergency. Have you eaten yet?" The woman greeted with her usual signature smile. She donned a long white lab coat with a black shirt and pants underneath and also wears stylish glasses. While her fashion is like a stereotypical cold analytical scientist, her smile dispelled such notion. She has a positive disposition that many people have mistaken for naivety. Yet her underneath that smile emits an aura of confidence that made her deserving of her role as one of the leading researchers in the Foundation.
"I ate at this new Italian place near me. It's really good." Joni returned a smile. "Let's eat together sometime Mary. I know how much you like your Italian cuisine."
"I've heard of that! It was called Salo or something?"
"Yeah, the pizza was simply marvelous—"
"Ehem." The person beside Mary calmly interjected. "Sorry Joni, but the pizza talk can wait."
Joni smiled sheepish but quickly collected herself and turned her attention to the second person. He was a man in his late 50s wearing a typical suit and tie. The name tag pinned to his suit read "Director of the Speedwagon Foundation". Befitting his position, he possessed an aura of authority and experience. His deep pitch-black eyes have seen a lot of things. His most distinguishing feature, however, is his bleached white hair styled into a quiff. It looks so unnaturally white that it was as if it was dyed instead of naturally occurring. However, he always insisted that his hair turned white on its own.
"Hi Leon, why did you call me? Is there a problem?" Joni asked. Leon did not answer. Instead, he pulled out a white folder labeled "Stone Ocean" from under the desk. Her eyes widened when she saw those two words.
"What's happening?" With the mention of the words "Stone Ocean", her tone became solemn, her face grim.
"We got a call from an informant in Seattle. From the looks of it, it's possible that might be another Stone Ocean case. According to our informant, there was a murder in a town called Twin Meadows." Mary answered in turn. The frigid air around the room reinforced the anxious mood of the room.
"I see. That's why my visions seems so different than usual." Joni can only grab her head in frustration as she tries to wrack up some images on the back of her mind.
"Dream Theatre has already sensed a disturbance. It only means that this is truly a Stone Ocean case." Leon said, speaking for the first time.
"Yeah. I know if my stand saw something that is out of the usual ballpark." Joni grimaced as she clenched her hands. "Unfortunately, even seeing the future means shit if we can't prevent it."
"Don't blame yourself, young Joni. The fact that you have seen something means that there is a lead in the investigation. Not to mention, the local authorities might have some leads of their own as well especially as they are having an autopsy right now." Leon said in a soft tone.
"I see. So you called me because I'm going to take this case, right?"
"That is quite obvious, young Joni. We already booked you a flight. I'll give you a copy of the folder of all the previous Stone Ocean cases. Although I doubt you need it." Leon handed over the folder as he smiled. Joni merely looked at his eyes, her face full of doubt and uncertainty. She sighed and took the folder.
"Brief me whenever you can. I'd like to discuss your dreams but time is of the essence. Just file a report along with the other necessary details. You know the drill, Joni." Leon said.
"Affirmative. I'll do whatever I can. I guess this is goodbye for now. Mary. Leon." Joni stood up and nodded in their direction as she called their names. Mary nodded and smiled in return. She turned her back from them and headed toward the door.
As she opened the door, Leon called out to her. "Joni, we still have no idea on the whereabouts of Darcy Wolfe. I'm sorry."
She stopped for a few seconds, then moves again, going through the door as she simply says as unconcerned as possible not even looking at the direction of Leon.
"I see."
February 21, 8:50 AM | Seattle, Washington
After the meeting at the Speedwagon Foundation, she quickly flew to Seattle carrying only the barest essentials. Immediately after getting to the hotel, Joni slumped against the soft bed. It was a long day and tomorrow will be another long one. She planned to leave as early as 4 AM to drive up to Twin Meadows, a 2-hour drive away from Seattle. It was raining once again. Joni was swept by a certain fatigue. Even with her suit still on, her eyes shut away anyway. As her consciousness is slowly fading into the inner depths of her mind, her last sensation was hearing the sound of the endless downpour turning slowly to the sound of television static.
Everything went black. Then, after a few seconds, Joni finds herself standing in a deep forest. Beside her is a humanoid figure. It is as tall as Joni with an androgynous build. Even though it's shaped like a human, its features are utterly alien. It is as if it wore a futuristic armor straight out of a science fiction, dyed with deep mauve. Its head is like a helmet with a visor which glowed a dim white light. A being truly unnatural.
"Dream Theatre." Joni muttered the supposed name of the bizarre figure as she gazed at it. It looked back at her. Their eyes met for a few moments. Joni began to walk forward as if an unknown force compelled her. Dream Theatre, as it is called, merely floated as it followed her. She continued to trek through the forest until she emerged in a forest glade where she noticed a cabin. Its windows were glowing red. A familiar sight for her.
Was it the same vision as last night? Dream Theatre can only see what is yet to happen so this must be different. She thought.
She inched further towards the house until she heard the sound of people walking. Joni deduced from the sound of the steps that there were two people walking. She glanced around the darkness until she spotted two figures coming from the opposite direction of the forest glade. Their exact details are obscured by the darkness, but she can see from their silhouettes that the pair was a man and a woman. The man was tall about 6 foot tall and the woman was shorter, her height is half of his head. Joni went closer to see their faces. However, it was too late as the pair went inside with their faces barely seen.
She immediately jogged to the house and tried to open the door but with no luck as it was locked. Nonetheless, she used her corporeal body to phase through the walls unimpeded. However, there was no one inside. She began to scan the interior. The person who designed this place has a bizarre taste, she thought. The interior design was unusual, and utterly divorced from the common conception of a cabin. It was closer to a cabaret place with lavish red velvet curtains that covered its walls like wallpaper. The floor itself was even tiled with a zigzag pattern that alternates black and white. The furniture was Victorian consisted of a single sofa and a circular wooden table with ornate designs. The only source of light was a tall night lamp standing in one corner. It was a minimalist intimate space.
There was no other room here yet they were gone in an instant? Joni thought. Putting the issue of the two mysterious figures' disappearances for later, she scoured the room looking for any clues to what happened to the vision she saw last night. It was clear to her that last night's vision and the dream she is in right now is tied directly to the case assigned to her.
It's highly probable that the woman murdered that night inside the cabin was the same person in the documents, Joan Johnston, she thought. With that conjecture, Joni thought it was possible that the man who killed Joan was also the same man she saw earlier. Even though the case was far from solved, she sighed with relief as she managed to get a significant lead and continued to walk around the singular room of the cabin. However, after a few minutes, there weren't many clues, the exact spot where Joan was killed was already spotless. She pinched the bridge of her nose, and looked to her right to see the humanoid figure still floating beside her.
She remained standing, clueless to what she should do. Time is running out as she knows she's about to wake up soon. While the gear turned in her head analyzing what her next moves should be, she heard the sudden sound of a door opening and noises of two people arguing. She immediately went out through the open door and witnessed a woman walking away into the shadow of the woods. Joni gazed to her left to see the man from before leaning relaxed against the wall with his hands in his pockets.
The man was slightly taller than her, about six feet tall. His smooth flowing hair reaches up to his shoulders. He donned a black biker jacket with a white shirt inside and leather pants with chains dangling from his stylish belt. He wore a blank expression on his face that makes it hard for Joni to get a read on him. By now, the woman's figure has been swallowed by the darkness. The man removed himself from his relaxed position, presumably ready to go back inside the cabin. As he was about to walk back, however, he suddenly stood alert as he frantically looked around his surroundings.
"There's someone here." He whispered to himself, narrowing his eyes. Joni's eyes widened at the implication of the man's statement. She pursed her lips as she attempted to back away from him. After many glances of suspicion, his eyes landed in the same spot where Joni was standing. She instinctively stopped moving as the man's eyes shot straight at hers. The man gazed at the void yet deep inside him he knew someone was there at the very spot he was staring at.
"Reveal yourself!" The man's voice boomed across the forest as he threw something from his pocket. In a split-second, Joni saw the man throw a peculiar white key. Then, a blinding white light flashed out of nowhere. She closed her eyes and shielded herself with her arms. After a second, the light has gone. She opened her eyes once again only to be greeted by a bland grey ceiling. The rain had long stopped.
Joni's first instinct was to look at the clock at her bedside. It was February 22, 2:56 AM. She continued to lay down her bed as she tried to feel every sensation of that vivid dream. Her eyes ached as if she was temporarily blinded, but her sight was virtually unaffected. Joni knew her skin had felt the sensation of the forest wind touching her. At her right, the humanoid figure simply floated as it stared at her, then faded away like the passing of wind.
Fatigue immediately swept over her body. Her mind numbed by the endless stream of information. She sighed as she moved to make herself more comfortable in bed. The man and the woman. Joan Johnston. Darcy Wolfe. Stone Ocean. All of it can wait. Joni Joyner slowly closed her eyes as she slept a dreamless sleep for another hour.
To be continued...
Author's Notes: Welcome, I hope you enjoyed the first chapter. If you have opinions (good or bad), please comment below or PM me. This fic will be updated monthly most of the time because I'm really really busy. This fic will also be posted on AO3.