Chapter 23: Prove
The barrel of the shotgun was tapped in Adrian's left hand as he walked with it into the hotel. The front door was open, therefore nothing barred him from entrance.
It was dark, just like the hospital. It wasn't fun having to constantly strain his eyes, but he didn't really have much of a choice. His hands were full with the shotgun and he had nothing to rig his flashlight to, which left him stuck in the darkness once again. It was not the greatest feeling in the world.
The lobby was eerily empty. It was, once more, a reimagining of the hospital in a way, or the rest of the town for that matter. But none of that was enough. Adrian would have forced himself to continue, not caring at all for what possible circumstances there could be.
He led himself up the stairs in the front lobby. He did not question his decision for a second; it was as though he knew for a fact that he was going in the proper direction. The steps creaked under Adrian's weight as he moved slowly toward his destination.
Atop of the stairs, he turned to his right. He approached the one door at the end of that side of the hall and attempted to turn the doorknob, but to no avail- it was broken. This did not hold Adrian back for long; a couple of slams from the butt of his shotgun into the doorframe caused the wood to quickly succumb to the blows. Adrian shoved through the splintered wood, and found himself in the hall he wanted to be in. Doors labeled in numbers as far as he could see- and 105 had to be one of those numbers, he was certain.
---
Cybil rushed through the city streets as fast as her police vehicle would possibly go. In her years of chasing vigilantes, she never once pushed that car to the limits it was being pushed to at that point. She gravely disapproved of Adrian's decision for them to split up, especially for her to leave the town while he remained in Silent Hill- possibly in trouble.
"Shouldn't have left him there," she muttered to herself in anger, "I'm supposed to keep everything under control, and I didn't. How many times can I lose control of a situation?"
She had gone so far, it was too late to turn back. If she turned back, it meant that she had left Adrian behind for no reason... nothing important enough to risk such a thing. She was so close to reaching Maria's house, she needed to at least get there and look around. She owed Adrian that. Afterall, he couldn't have just sent her off without a valid enough reason.
---
Adrian looked to one side of the hall. Then the other. It was tough to tell which side was the right one, but he soon found out not from his eyes, but his ears. The sound of a soft cry, and then lullaby that seemed to attempt to drown the cries out more than soothe them away.
"Hush, little baby, don't say a word... mommy's gonna by you a mockingbird."
And then, a giggle. Adrian moved to his right, following the source of the sound as well as he could. The voice the noises were coming from was more than recognizable.
"Your father should be doing this," the voice continued, "he can sing much better than I ever could." Adrian stopped in front of the door that the speaking had been coming from.
"But he's not here right now."
Adrian looked up to find out what door he was standing outside of.
'105'
He almost felt ready to vomit right then and there, but he held strong; even after the crying began again. A baby's cry.
"Hush, little baby, please don't cry... mommy's going to sing you-"
Unable to take anymore, Adrian cut her off with a soft, yet menacing reply.
"Is that my child in there, Raven?"
He didn't get an initial reply. He yelled louder.
"Is that my fucking child in there?!"
---
Cybil didn't even bother to park the car and she almost didn't even wait for the car to stop. But the second the parking brake was put on, she flew towards the house. She wouldn't be there long anyway, if that wasn't obvious by the speed she was moving to get into the home.
She pushed the front door open and ran upstairs. By the structure of the house alone, she could guess where anything regarding a baby could be kept. Whether it was natural to her or something acquired from her time on the police force, she didn't know, it wasn't that important to know anyway.
There were five doors in the upstairs part of the Constantine household and two were wide open. The bathroom door that was directly in front of her upon reaching the top of the steps, and Maria's room directly on her right. Those two doors held nothing of interest to her. She checked the one next to the bathroom, and shrugged it off quickly- just the linen closet. She then turned and made her way down the hall to the room next to Maria's. She opened the door, and there was a room that was as untidy as could be, even if the method of its thrashing seemed to be more than just sheer untidyness.
The king sized mattress was overturned, sheets spilled along the wooden floor. Papers and envelops were strewn around in a large abundance. Looked like someone had done all the searching for Cybil could even get the opportunity. With a sigh, Cybil stepped fully into the room and got to looking.
'Bill. Bill. Lottery ticket, heh. Wow, were bills the only thing they ever saved?'
She shook her head in dismay and took a step back. It was then that she almost lost her balance, if only for a second. She looked down at her feet, and there she found a small blue toy. Something a child would play with. An infant even.
---
"Is it a boy or a girl, Raven?"
Adrian pressed the side of his face against the door, trying to hear anything at all going on in the room. However, there wasn't much to hear beyond what was meant for him to hear. Nothing. Adrian sighed out of frustration.
"Look, I know it's my kid, okay?" He tugged on the doorknob. No go. "Come on and open the door. Please..." Adrian trailed off there. He was quickly running out of things to say without losing his temper. There was only one thing left, and even though he knew that it would be impossible to express his grief through the mere words, he prayed it would be enough. "I want to see my kid. Open the door and I let you live."
---
Cybil turned and slipped out of Cain's room, only to put herself face to face with the last door she hadn't checked. She pushed it open, and there, her and Adrian's suspicions were answered.
A sky blue colored crib, surrounded by other harmless colors- pinks, whites, yellows.
'Jackpot.'
In a flash, Cybil searched through every single cabinet and drawer inside the small room, pushing aside large teddy bears and pink bunny rabbits in the process. And in the end, her keen detective skills won. She smiled in triumph at the birth certificate before her.
'Name: Mia Angelica Constantine
Date Of Birth: April 3, 2003
Mother: Maria Jezebel Constatine
Father: Adrian Samuel Weber'
That was more than enough for her to lay her eyes on. With the paper in her hand, she quickly rushed out of the house, surprising herself that she didn't fall over from doing so. She knew she had to tell Adrian as soon as possible- a homicide and a possible kidnapping in the same home didn't leave a good taste in Cybil's mouth.
She threw open the driver door to her car and dove in. She had to get back before anything worse could happen.
---
"The least you can do is answer me, you know."
Adrian closed his eyes, in an attempt to prevent any tears from forming. "You're not going to open the door either, are you?" Slowly, he felt his hands tighten around the shotgun he held to his chest. He pointed it at the door, down at the doorknob to be precise. "If not, I'll get in on my own. Don't tempt me, because I will get in to that room sooner or later. I'd bet on sooner." His trigger finger was rightfully itchy, but not enough to follow through when the voice on the other side of the door decided to answer.
"I don't think you would do that. Not if you didn't want to endanger our child."
And slowly, the shotgun was lowered. "What do you want me to do?" Adrian asked in defeat.
"Prove to me that you are the man I want in here with me."
Adrian didn't like the sound of those words, but he played along anyway. "How?"
"Just get the key. He's got it."
Before Adrian could ask who it was Raven was referring to, he could hear a shuffling movement just to his right at the end of the hall. A lump formed in his throat as he took a step away.
'You have to be kidding...'
Adrian could hear the sound of Raven continuing the lullaby where she had left off, but that wasn't what he concentrated on. He lifted his shotgun one more time, and pointed it at the large hulking figure that approached him, dragging its huge knife along the floor behind it.
CHH-CHH. BLAM!
The monster stirred for a second but no longer, before it pushed forward. Adrian took one step back.
CHH-CHH. BLAM!
The same effect. It didn't bleed from the two blasts at all, at least Adrian didn't think so. He couldn't tell, given the dark surroundings and the blood that was already all over the monster's butcher apron.
"Come on, triangle face."
CHH-CHH. BLAM!
"Go down already!" No dice. Adrian took another step back, aimed carefully, and fired. The slugs continued to tear at the figure's clothing, but nothing more. He aimed again as he backed off even further, and his fifth shot aimed much higher than the prior four. The shot rang out, and the monster's head snapped aside just a little bit. As it turned to seemingly face the human again, Adrian could hear the distinct sound of dripping, and it wasn't just from his own clothes.
He hurt it.
He couldn't celebrate long- Pyramid Head didn't seem so happy with the fact that it was bleeding, and it stomped forward with a bit more urgency to its pace. Adrian was alarmed by this, and was unable to find his footing again. That gave the monster more than enough time to grab its prey by the hair and fling him through a wooden door- placing Adrian back in the main lobby atop the front steps.
Adrian quickly got to his feet, adrenaline coursing through his veins, but he had nowhere near enough distance to aim another shot. By the time he could even raise the hefty shotgun, he was punched hard in the jaw. He had tumbled down the flight of approximately a dozen stairs as a result. The shotgun slid and got itself stuck under the railing on the way down, and Adrian felt around for his next best thing as his attacker stalked downstairs after him.
He whirled to his feet and showed off the item he held in his trembled hands, before he plunked every nine millimeter bullet in his pistol into the monster. It seemed to have little to no effect- the shots to the body practically bounced off of it, and the one or two bullets that found their mark to the head only caused tiny rivulets of blood to flow.
'Perfect.'
Backing up in a straight line along the velvet red carpet that led from the stairs to the front entrance, Adrian thought fast. He had one clip left in his pocket, and he didn't dare think about trying to get his shotgun with Pyramid Head near it. In the end, all he could do was reload then holster his gun, run to one side of the lobby and enter the first door in sight.
The screech of the abomination's knife along the floor chilled Adrian to the bone as he looked around, finding himself in the restaurant and bar section of the hotel. He tried to act quickly on where to hide and plan a strategy further, but it was no use. The unbearable noise from the lobby left him paralyzed in fear of what could very well foreshadow his fate. Or even, the fate of his child.
The door to the Lake Shore restaurant was shoved off of its hinges, and the eight foot tall figure filled the doorway to the brim. Not a comforting sight in the least.
However, when it took no more than two steps inside, Adrian felt a glimmer of hope as he witnessed something dash in from behind the monster and raise something at it. "Adrian! Run!"
The monster either took special notice to the request Cybil made or had actually felt the parabellum rounds that struck it, but either way it had turned around and did not appear thrilled by the woman's presence. And at that moment, it lifted its knife and swung with tremendous force. A force that sent a evasive Cybil off of her feet and over to the lobby stairs.
Satisfied enough with the results its attack made, it turned and refocused its attention on what it was really after, but there was something different- the person it was after was gone.
It angrily tore through the restaurant and into the back where the kitchen was, and its intent on using its knife on human flesh was made even more obvious. It slammed the blood stained steel against every material in sight, as if butchering Adrian was no longer enough- it looked as though it wanted to destroy absolutely everything in its way. And then, in the middle of all of the carnage, it stopped.
Pyramid Head took its huge knife and stuck it into the tiled floor with a single abrupt movement. Then, seemingly in discontent, it began to twirl the handle in its large and deformed hand. The grinding of the steel into the ground made for a grating mix of noise on the ears, but the monster was a safe bet not to be the one that cared. It looked to try and guess where the little human it was after could possibly have been hiding; maybe it could even outsmart him. That was when the harsh noise ceased.
The huge beast wound up, and sent its near equally huge weapon through a steel shelf with very little effort. The top two to three layers slid and crashed down to the floor, creating a huge mess. A mess that included a glob of red matter.
With disgust, Adrian's eyes trailed upwards at how close he came to a certain death- and normally at that moment he would have shit in his pants. Only five inches separated the knife's mark from his scalp, which was a little too close for comfort. Adrian found himself still alive, however, and therefore he didn't complain. Complaining would have ruined his hiding spot, and probably would have caused that knife to return a foot lower. He looked down, and there he found that his shirt was stained with raspberry jam. Jam which had more than likely gone bad. Adrian sneered and quietly slipped his hands into the shelf level with them, each finding the plastic handle to a kitchen knife.
Pyramid Head continued to walk through the kitchen, and it didn't seem to take second thought to missing its mark that moment ago. And if the key Adrian wanted was on that thing, he would have to make the next move. He debated whether or not that move was to come right then, the very second he heard silence.
Then, as fast as the silence erupted, it was broken.
"Adrian... Ah!"
The sound of struggling caught Adrian's ears. It wasn't the loudest thing in the world, but it was there- it was just one of those things he could sense.
'Cybil...'
That was all the incentive he needed. He clutched the two kitchen knives as if they were his life, before he turned and ran with a scream at the large monster.
He stabbed at it with everything he had; one slice after another cut into the monster. And to his inner surprise, Pyramid Head flailed in a defensive manner, itself seeming surprised that the human actually came out and attacked it the way he was. However, if it actually asked Adrian what caused him to do such a thing, the answer would have been simple.
'I want to see my child, you fucking bastard!'
It didn't bleed, but even if it didn't Adrian stabbed it in a way that he wanted to be sure that Pyramid Head knew he wanted it dead.
Pyramid Head eventually grew tired of this, and shoved Adrian away so it could try to lift its weapon. Adrian was right back on it, though, stabbing and cutting as much as humanly possible. To make sure it couldn't get its knife back up, he kicked repeatedly at the hand that held it, although that didn't work. What did work, was when Adrian impaled its hand with one of his own knives. And with that, the great knife clattered to the floor.
Adrian slid down and continued to chop away at his enemy, going for its legs next. A half dozen thrusts of steel into its right leg caused the large being to fall to one knee. Adrian didn't let up. He stood, and momentarily felt powerful to see himself face to face with the masked monster. That feeling did not take long to subside, though, and Adrian wound up- much like his enemy- and swung. However, the motion was disrupted.
Adrian soon fought for air, as he felt the hand clasp around his throat in a death vise. And shortly thereafter, his feet left the ground. He struggled to resist, but there wasn't much else he could do. The other knife Adrian had on him fell out of his hand to the floor as he felt his life being sapped away. He wriggled and squirmed to break free, but Pyramid Head had none of that. It took its shishkabobbed hand and slid one end of the knife that impaled it under its flat foot, before sliding it off ever so slowly. It then took that hand and picked up its large weapon, holding it menacingly close to Adrian's side.
The dying man stared at the object, and almost felt the last of his energy leave him right there. But the longer he eyed it, the closer he was to fighting back harder. And then finally...
'I can't die yet.'
Adrian lifted his feet and pressed the thick heels against the blade, which bought him just enough time to reach into his pocket and retrieve his pistol. One hand grasped the monster's wrist while the other pressed and fired the gun into its arm. His finger never left the trigger until he heard the gun empty its last bullet, and that last bullet was barely enough to cause the thing to drop him.
He fell to the ground, coughing out choked breaths while he clutched his throat lightly. When he looked up, he found that he wasn't home free yet- Pyramid Head had its blade held high, ready to strike at any second. Adrian waited in silence, watching it go through its all too familiar wind up. He watched the knife reach its highest point, before the hand that held it begun to swing down. And at the last possible moment, Adrian slid out of the way.
Bits of the floor underneath him flew everywhere from the impact, an impact that left the knife stuck in the ground it practically shattered. So stuck, even Pyramid Head had a difficult time pulling it out. By the time it did, though, Adrian was back on his feet.
It stared at the human for a long moment, and as if bored with him, it turned around and began to walk away. Adrian started to follow it, angered by what he mistook for a display of cowardice. "Come on! Turn around!" Pyramid Head paid no attention and continued walking. Even when something fell from its butcher outfit and hit the floor, it seemed equally uninterested in finishing its bout.
Adrian piped down long enough to check what it was that Pyramid Head dropped, and his lips curved into the slightest of smiles in reaction to it. A small gold keychain, and a single gold key went along with it. The number carved into it, was the exact one he was looking for.
Adrian then looked up to see where the monster had lumbered off to, but he no longer saw it. But with the key he had that would lead to his child, he couldn't bring himself to care where Pyramid Head went. Maybe it simply gave up with trying to kill him and disappeared. Adrian doubted that, but it was the only reasoning he could come up with. One way or another, he assured himself that he was safe to return to room 105.
He slipped back into the heart of the restaurant and peered into the lobby. The feeling of being alone was comforting when the demon had left, but suddenly it had grew to unease him. Something was wrong, and he soon remembered what it was. "Cybil?"
