Julia tried the door for nearly two minutes after Gray left through it, but to no
avail – that door was locked and it clearly intended to remain locked. She looked to the
left and right of the hellish hall, her eyes wide in fear.
"What do I do now…?" she whispered to herself.
At that point, Julia realized just how much she had been relying on Gray to get
her through all this. Despite his constant insults and his indifferent attitude, she suddenly
knew that he was right – had it not been for him, she would have perished as soon as she
attempted to walk out on the streets of Silent Hill. The sights and sounds of the town
would have driven her mad with fear, but somehow his calm demeanor seemed to rub off
on her.
But now, it seemed he had finally snapped. The monster that was currently
rotting away in its space between the floor grates had pushed him over the edge
somehow. As he bashed that thing's head in, his roaring had made Julia cringe against
the wall. It was like he had been possessed by something…no, it wasn't that. It was like
Gray had been holding something back this whole time, suppressing it, and that beast had
finally allowed it to break loose. Now, it had broken him. His calm, hard features had
seemed to sag when Julia saw them. He had looked like an old man.
Silent Hill only called those who had damned themselves somehow.
But…
What had Gray done…?
All of a sudden, the racket in the halls stopped. With an almost audible SNAP,
they resumed their original shape. Only this time, the corridor was much smaller, and
there was only one door – at the very end.
Without hesitation, Julia opened it and stepped through to find…
Nothing at all.
With a shriek, she grabbed onto the bottom of the door, hanging over a yawning
black pit that completely defied the laws of space. It was totally black down there – not
that she felt any great need to look down. Her grip was slipping…
She fell, screaming, into the pit.
"Oomph!"
After what felt like only a few seconds of falling, she landed hard on a dirt floor.
Her back felt like it had been bruised, but otherwise she was okay. She looked around.
This was NOT a part of the school.
But if this path led to Gray, then it would be worth taking. She opened the only
door in the room and went into a room that was completely black. Small mewling sounds
were audible though, and Julia wondered where they were coming from until her eyes
adjusted.
She let in a soundless gasp and held it in. The walls and ceiling of the room were
completely covered with Cadaver Babies, clinging to them like some horrible parody of
insect. They rustled occasionally, but otherwise appeared to be sleeping. Her heart
thumping crazily in her chest, Julia made her way through the room as soundlessly as she
could and opened the next door.
This place looked like a normal hall, though somewhat dirty. It in fact resembled
the school hall, complete with the alcoves. Waiting for her heart to calm down a bit, Julia
leaned against the door and slowly slid down.
Her eyes suddenly spotted another scrap of paper on the ground. She leaned over
to look at it, but reading it was almost impossible. It was specked with filth and torn up.
(Ts wld is tmng wh unnesry pple. ven she is prt o thr enlss flws and hmiltins.
Cnstnly bzing wh no cre fr her own sn. She dnt derv t lv… - GA)
"What is this…?" Julia said softly. Disregarding it, she stood up and made her
way down the hallway…only to run into a Paperface.
Julia screamed and held up the knife. The demon gave her a long, calculating
look…and then walked past her, its head twitching rapidly. It didn't even make a violent
move toward her.
Julia didn't bother wasting any more time. She went to the next door and pulled it
open. This room was another plain one, with no other features except for another door.
Julia suddenly remembered how much she missed her home.
Why had SHE been pulled into this town? Sure, she wasn't exactly perfect – she
went out a lot when her parents weren't home, and a few times she had taken money from
her mom's purse – but small things like that surely weren't worthy of calling Silent Hill.
She missed her family so much she almost wanted to cry.
And, a small voice in her head whispered, if it hadn't been for Gray, you would
have never seen them again. You would have been killed and left to rot on the street.
Julia recalled with horror on how she had almost shot him when they met in the
pharmacy. What would have happened if she had pulled the trigger?
"I owe him too much," she said fiercely to herself. "I owe him my life."
And she would not stop until she found where he went.
She opened the next door and found herself in yet another school hall, but this one
was different. The walls, floor, and ceiling were a slimy brown, and almost felt alive
underneath her feet. Also, the left wall of the place was steel mesh, and a loud screeching
sound was echoing throughout the area. Julia walked through and looked to her left, then
let out a soundless scream which rushed through her lungs like dead air.
There was a creature behind the mesh. It was wearing a thick apron and gloves,
and was turning a pair of rusty red valves, creating the horrible screech that was echoing
in her ears. There was a twitching growth on the back that was dripping blood. Julia
took a step back…and heard her feet crunch on another bottle.
The monster stopped dead. Slowly, it turned its head toward Julia, revealing a
smooth, blank face completely devoid of features. As she watched in numbed horror, the
monster raised a gloved finger to its nonexistent mouth.
Amazingly, she clearly heard it make a sound.
"Shh…"
At that, it resumed its duties, allowing Julia to marvel at what had just happened.
She went through the door at the end of the hall, leaving the strange creature alone.
This room was different.
The floor was splashed with blood, lying in puddles and streaks all over the place.
The walls were papered with what looked like newspaper, without a single blank space
anywhere. Julia looked at them and noticed that they were all the same page – and that
they all bore yesterday's date.
(WOMAN FOUND DEAD FROM PILL OVERDOSE: Angela Grayson, age 46,
was found dead today at 3:45 p.m. The cause of death appeared to be a massive lethal
overdose of sleeping pills combined with alcohol. Estimated time of death was around
8:17 a.m. Since Ms. Grayson, recently divorced, was a heavy alcoholic, the police are
investigating accidental death as a cause. Her son, Douglas, was found in a catatonic
state and has been planned to be put into a foster home within 48 hours.)
Angela Grayson…Douglas Grayson…
(Mary said that that boy…Douglas Grayson…)
Gray….Grayson…Gray…Grayson…
Julia almost thrust herself away from the papers and opened the door.
And on the other side, she found Gray.
avail – that door was locked and it clearly intended to remain locked. She looked to the
left and right of the hellish hall, her eyes wide in fear.
"What do I do now…?" she whispered to herself.
At that point, Julia realized just how much she had been relying on Gray to get
her through all this. Despite his constant insults and his indifferent attitude, she suddenly
knew that he was right – had it not been for him, she would have perished as soon as she
attempted to walk out on the streets of Silent Hill. The sights and sounds of the town
would have driven her mad with fear, but somehow his calm demeanor seemed to rub off
on her.
But now, it seemed he had finally snapped. The monster that was currently
rotting away in its space between the floor grates had pushed him over the edge
somehow. As he bashed that thing's head in, his roaring had made Julia cringe against
the wall. It was like he had been possessed by something…no, it wasn't that. It was like
Gray had been holding something back this whole time, suppressing it, and that beast had
finally allowed it to break loose. Now, it had broken him. His calm, hard features had
seemed to sag when Julia saw them. He had looked like an old man.
Silent Hill only called those who had damned themselves somehow.
But…
What had Gray done…?
All of a sudden, the racket in the halls stopped. With an almost audible SNAP,
they resumed their original shape. Only this time, the corridor was much smaller, and
there was only one door – at the very end.
Without hesitation, Julia opened it and stepped through to find…
Nothing at all.
With a shriek, she grabbed onto the bottom of the door, hanging over a yawning
black pit that completely defied the laws of space. It was totally black down there – not
that she felt any great need to look down. Her grip was slipping…
She fell, screaming, into the pit.
"Oomph!"
After what felt like only a few seconds of falling, she landed hard on a dirt floor.
Her back felt like it had been bruised, but otherwise she was okay. She looked around.
This was NOT a part of the school.
But if this path led to Gray, then it would be worth taking. She opened the only
door in the room and went into a room that was completely black. Small mewling sounds
were audible though, and Julia wondered where they were coming from until her eyes
adjusted.
She let in a soundless gasp and held it in. The walls and ceiling of the room were
completely covered with Cadaver Babies, clinging to them like some horrible parody of
insect. They rustled occasionally, but otherwise appeared to be sleeping. Her heart
thumping crazily in her chest, Julia made her way through the room as soundlessly as she
could and opened the next door.
This place looked like a normal hall, though somewhat dirty. It in fact resembled
the school hall, complete with the alcoves. Waiting for her heart to calm down a bit, Julia
leaned against the door and slowly slid down.
Her eyes suddenly spotted another scrap of paper on the ground. She leaned over
to look at it, but reading it was almost impossible. It was specked with filth and torn up.
(Ts wld is tmng wh unnesry pple. ven she is prt o thr enlss flws and hmiltins.
Cnstnly bzing wh no cre fr her own sn. She dnt derv t lv… - GA)
"What is this…?" Julia said softly. Disregarding it, she stood up and made her
way down the hallway…only to run into a Paperface.
Julia screamed and held up the knife. The demon gave her a long, calculating
look…and then walked past her, its head twitching rapidly. It didn't even make a violent
move toward her.
Julia didn't bother wasting any more time. She went to the next door and pulled it
open. This room was another plain one, with no other features except for another door.
Julia suddenly remembered how much she missed her home.
Why had SHE been pulled into this town? Sure, she wasn't exactly perfect – she
went out a lot when her parents weren't home, and a few times she had taken money from
her mom's purse – but small things like that surely weren't worthy of calling Silent Hill.
She missed her family so much she almost wanted to cry.
And, a small voice in her head whispered, if it hadn't been for Gray, you would
have never seen them again. You would have been killed and left to rot on the street.
Julia recalled with horror on how she had almost shot him when they met in the
pharmacy. What would have happened if she had pulled the trigger?
"I owe him too much," she said fiercely to herself. "I owe him my life."
And she would not stop until she found where he went.
She opened the next door and found herself in yet another school hall, but this one
was different. The walls, floor, and ceiling were a slimy brown, and almost felt alive
underneath her feet. Also, the left wall of the place was steel mesh, and a loud screeching
sound was echoing throughout the area. Julia walked through and looked to her left, then
let out a soundless scream which rushed through her lungs like dead air.
There was a creature behind the mesh. It was wearing a thick apron and gloves,
and was turning a pair of rusty red valves, creating the horrible screech that was echoing
in her ears. There was a twitching growth on the back that was dripping blood. Julia
took a step back…and heard her feet crunch on another bottle.
The monster stopped dead. Slowly, it turned its head toward Julia, revealing a
smooth, blank face completely devoid of features. As she watched in numbed horror, the
monster raised a gloved finger to its nonexistent mouth.
Amazingly, she clearly heard it make a sound.
"Shh…"
At that, it resumed its duties, allowing Julia to marvel at what had just happened.
She went through the door at the end of the hall, leaving the strange creature alone.
This room was different.
The floor was splashed with blood, lying in puddles and streaks all over the place.
The walls were papered with what looked like newspaper, without a single blank space
anywhere. Julia looked at them and noticed that they were all the same page – and that
they all bore yesterday's date.
(WOMAN FOUND DEAD FROM PILL OVERDOSE: Angela Grayson, age 46,
was found dead today at 3:45 p.m. The cause of death appeared to be a massive lethal
overdose of sleeping pills combined with alcohol. Estimated time of death was around
8:17 a.m. Since Ms. Grayson, recently divorced, was a heavy alcoholic, the police are
investigating accidental death as a cause. Her son, Douglas, was found in a catatonic
state and has been planned to be put into a foster home within 48 hours.)
Angela Grayson…Douglas Grayson…
(Mary said that that boy…Douglas Grayson…)
Gray….Grayson…Gray…Grayson…
Julia almost thrust herself away from the papers and opened the door.
And on the other side, she found Gray.