Whisper City was something to behold. Although the sun remained steadily in the afternoon sky above their heads, it looked like it was already Dusk. In fact, the entire city seemed to be shrouded in some dark shadow. Torches and candles were seen everywhere, creating a beautiful contrast against the dark blue background of the sky. Why did it look like night here during the day?
Meryl thought it was gorgeous, and used the beauty of it to make her forget the splitting headache she'd had since they arrived in the city. Even the people in the city were beautiful. Nearly all of the residents had long, silky hair and pale eyes. Strangely, although it looked like the evening, the air in the town was warm and moist. Because of that, most of the inhabitants were wearing shorts and sleeveless shirts. Meryl felt like dropping her cloak right then.
She hurried ahead of the others, eager to find the hotel. She wanted nothing more than to unpack, slip into something less constrictive, and go exploring the city before it got too dark. When the hotel came into sight, she dashed inside and got the usual: three rooms, one for Vash, one for Wolfwood, and one for her and Millie to share (although she knew where Millie would end up).
They were all pleased to find that each room had a great view of the city from a wooden balcony. Meryl and Millie stood on their balcony, watching the beautiful townspeople walking back and forth to the strange shops and bars. Meryl opened her sack and began digging through the clothes. At the bottom she found a pair of cut-off jean shorts and a short, plaid shirt. "I stuck these in at the last minute before leaving home years ago, but I've never had a reason to wear them." She told Millie.
Millie was pulling out a long but thin sleeveless dress. "I packed something I thought I'd never use too."
The two girls giggled as they changed into their outfits. They quickly left their rooms and headed for the streets, where they planned to hit every shop and bar in the city. The first shop they entered was selling a wide variety of colorful tank tops and shorts. Millie bought an outfit; Meryl broke over and bought one tank top. The next shop was selling straw hats, and the one after that was selling sandals. "It must be hot year-round here." Meryl said. "But that's kind of strange. It's so dark that you'd think it'd be the other way around."
"This whole town is strange, but it's very pretty, don't you think?"
Meryl agreed with Millie. Everything in the town was strange. Why were all the people so beautiful? Why was it so hot? Why was it so dark? So many mysteries were pounding Meryl's brain. She finally decided to just forget about them all and enjoy herself. They'd be leaving in a few days and all this would just be a memory.
Finally they arrived at the bar. They spotted a corner booth and sat down. A glamorous looking waitress approached their table. "Can I help you?" she asked, her voice sounding strangely like music.
Meryl stuttered a bit before ordering their drinks. Within a few seconds, the waitress returned with their order. Meryl wondered how she got them so fast. She looked into the swirling liquid, wondering if it was really what she'd ordered. She suddenly shook her head. She shouldn't think of things like that. No one there knew her, why would anyone want to poison her? She took a few sips. Delicious.
Meryl had never had such a wonderful drink before, and she quickly ordered another. After only a short period of time, Meryl became aware that she had simultaneously ordered six drinks, and downed them all. She had never drunk like that before. Ever. She looked at Millie and was surprised that she had only two glasses in front of her. "Don't you like this, Millie?"
"Not really. It's too bitter." Millie replied, looking over the menu in an attempt to find some sort of dessert.
Meryl started becoming dizzy. Suddenly the whole room was getting fuzzy. It looked as if a bucket of water had been poured over Meryl's eyes. She glanced nervously around the room, trying to clear her vision, but was instead met with images she never wanted to see. Everyone in the bar looked very different than they had when Meryl and Millie had first entered. The townspeople were no longer beautiful, their f aces no longer soft and friendly. They now had distorted, twisted faces with scraggly black hair and blood red eyes. And it seemed as if every single one of them had stopped what they were doing to look directly at Meryl.
As the creatures slowly got up from their seats and began edging toward her, Meryl instinctively jumped from her chair and called to her partner. "Millie! Millie, look!" she cried.
When no response came, Meryl turned to look at Millie, but Millie was not there. Only an empty chair remained. She called out Millie's name several more times before returning her gaze to the creatures that were approaching her. They were dangerously close now, and she backed up until she met the wall behind her.
Finally, one of them was upon her, reaching out with thin, wrinkled hands. She screamed, louder and harder than she ever had before. It was a blood-curdling cry of terror, and it could be heard all throughout the city. Shortly after, the bar when black, and Meryl faded into unconsciousness.
When she awoke, she was laying on her back on the ground outside the bar. Millie, Vash, and Wolfwood were standing over her. "What happened?" she groaned, rubbing her sore forehead with her right hand and pushing herself up with her left.
Millie squatted down to her level. "You had too many drinks in the bar."
"Too many drinks? I just had…. I had…"
"Six." Millie finished.
Meryl began rubbing her forehead harder. "Oh, God. I got dru-"… Meryl stopped herself. "No… that's not it. I'm starting to remember… the people in the bar changed."
Vash looked at Meryl strangely, then looked at Millie with a questioning stare. "What's she talking about?" He asked.
Millie shrugged. "I don't know. How did they change?" she asked Meryl.
"You didn't see it?! They had wrinkled skin and red eyes! They were all coming at me!"
Millie looked very worried. "You passed out. After that last drink, you stood up and stumbled around to my side of the table. Then you screamed really loud and fainted."
"No, that's not what happened!" Meryl screamed, struggling to get to her feet. "Those creatures attacked me!"
"What creatures?" Wolfwood asked.
"The people in the bar!" Meryl was near hysterical now.
Vash put his hand on her shoulder. "Meryl, you had too much to drink. Go back to the hotel and get some rest. We can talk more about it in the morning."
Vash's voice calmed her down a bit. She took a deep breath and began walking back to the hotel. Millie ran after her, leaving Vash and Wolfwood alone in front of the bar. Vash eyed the building.
"What do you think?" Wolfwood asked him.
"There's definitely more to it than Meryl getting drunk."
"Are you sure? Millie didn't see anything wrong."
Vash narrowed his eyes toward the bar. "Maybe, but something wasn't right about it. Meryl isn't the type of person who makes up horror stories, and she's also not the type of person to get drunk."
Wolfwood nodded. "Then let's check it out."