Jobe was starting to get on my nerves so I thought I'd write this little chapter to take a break. I still don't own Silent Hill but I do own ten fingers and an over active imagination so the joke's on them, right?
A lamb to the slaughter: The First Interlude
As Jobe was forcing his way out of the hole, another person was feeling the same sensation of relief. She was glad to be back, after all this church was the closest thing to a home she had. Claudia allowed a small smile to linger on her face as she walked up the isle, letting her toes sink into the deep red carpet. She made her way to the back of the alter, for behind it rested the organ, an ancient instrument that one of the church's previous owners had decided to splurge out on.
She pulled the old moth-eaten stool out from underneath the organ, where it had been collecting dust for years. More dust coated the long metal tubes that rose up from it's back, and the coating on the lid was so thick that you could write you're name on it. Claudia carefully prized the heavy lid back and for a moment just stared at the ivory keys before pressing one down. The sound it made was tremendous as air tore up the pipes and completely shattered the silence that seemed to flap away like a flock of frightened birds.
She began to play to the audience of saints depicted in the stain glass windows and the rows of unforgiving church benches. Claudia allowed her mind to wonder as Bach's Staccato & Fugue rang out from the dusty pipes with the force of screaming angels. This skill had been the one thing her father had hated to admit she was good at and getting praise from him, no matter how small, was harder than getting blood from a stone. At least now, she was out of his reach and the reach of the children, with their cries of insult like 'Claudia Wolf is
* * *
a walking FREAK SHOW!!!'
The pale girl frowned as she looked at the message carved into her locker and shrugged. They'd called her much worse in the past and after Alessa had gone, she'd become used to this kind of thing. After all, every school had one person who was the victim of their peer's wrath.
'Guess who is that lucky person' She slammed the rusting door shut (it was the only way you could
close it now since some kid had made a huge dent in it, with Claudia's head)
and the metallic clang echoed up and down the deserted hall way. Since fifth
grade, she'd opted to wait at least fifteen minuets after the bell had gone to
leave the school. Most of the other children couldn't be bothered to wait that
long to ambush her on her way home when they knew she'd be at school the next
day. That and it meant she wouldn't have to spend a further fifteen minuets at
home with her father, even if it meant he would 'teach' her for being late.
Claudia shuddered just at the thought of him, his touch, his 'lesson's', his_
The girl tore herself from the lockers, scooping up the weather-beaten satchel
as she left and turned to go down the empty corridor, alone. But then Claudia
had always been alone since Alessa 'died' in that fire seven years ago. It
probably would have been better if her only friend had died, for now she was
kept locked up in that room, deep in the hospital, no more than an empty husk.
Claudia had been there a few times even though she knew if her father found
out, it would be more than her life was worth. She knew he and the 'order', a
higher circle of their religion had something to do with it and it wouldn't be
a surprise if they'd engineered the whole thing. After all, it was the
heartless kind of thing her father would revel in taking part in.
Out of the corner of her eye, Claudia caught a glimpse of herself in a mirror that hung over a water fountain that had no more purpose than to collect algae in it's metal bowl. She stopped and glared at her reflection with malice. No wonder they'd singled her out as their universal punching bag, she stuck out like a sore thumb.
'I mean, who's heard of a fourteen year old girl with white hair?' And then there was her skin. It made her look like a walking corps, as it was so void of colour, except for the occasional purple bruise. Claudia threw back her head and laughed, something she rarely did. For a moment, she became one of her tormentors and laughed at that pathetic excuse of a teenager who stared back at her. There were of course, darker secrets that the rest of the world didn't know that made her even more of a freak. Claudia saw things the other children couldn't, not even in their wildest dreams. Beneath this world was one that only she could see. A place filled with lurking shadows and never ending darkness, a place Claudia knew was the promised Paradise that the order believed would be returned to them and they could finally live by god's grace.
The girl wiped a tear from her cold blue eyes; still giggling as she walked towards the double doors and threw them open.
The fog hung over the empty grounds as it did every day, masking everything in a gray mist. Claudia hurried down the cement steps and out onto the pavement, maybe she'd take the scenic route home through Rose Water Park seeing as it was such a nice day.
She'd only just past the school gates before she stopped dead in her tracks as a voice broke through the crisp air.
"Where do you think you're going?"
Claudia sunk her teeth into her lip and debated weather or not to run like hell. No, she'd better not. Last time Claudia tried that, they'd stone her. Letting out a shuddery breath, she turned to face her tormentor.
A group of five boys stared back at her with their hands pocketed in their heavy anoraks. One younger boy stood slightly apart from the group not really looking as though he belonged with all his burly friends.
"Hey freak, I'm talking to you!" The boy she recognised as some kid in her class called Bill Denbrough jeered again. One of his friends stepped up, pulling something from his deep pocket and with a flip of his wrist, a short blade slid from the wooden handle. He waved the switch-blade at Claudia and muttered,
"If she ain't gonna speak, maybe we should make her cry." Some of the boys laughed at the comment as he leisurely threw the blade from hand to hand as if it were no more dangerous than a ball. Claudia felt as though her heart was beating so hard, it would tare itself from her chest. Suddenly, the smile dropped from his face, "Get her."
She caught a glimpse of them lunging towards her before she turned and ran up the street. She could hear them behind her as their feet beat the pavement, baying like dogs chasing down some small creature. Claudia skidded round the corner of the street, hoping to lose them in the fog. A rock sailed past her head, nipping her ear as it flew past but she didn't feel it. She was too scared; anyway, there would be plenty of others for her to feel. She turned onto another identical street and tore up it with no idea of where she was going, as long as she got away from them. The sound of their footfall was beginning to fade as the distance between her and the horde grew. Maybe she was going to make it, maybe_
A rock smacked into the back of her head, snapping it forward and Claudia lost her footing. She fell face first onto the pavement, her face grating over it's rough surface. For a moment, she just lay there, totally absorbed by the sharp pain that racked her skull.
'Have to keep moving' She opened her eyes and tried to push herself up on grazed hands. Dots swam in front of her eyes but when they cleared, Claudia saw a forest of legs surrounding her.
"You know," Bill slammed his foot down on Claudia's back as she tried to rise. "They had the right idea when they burnt that little witch friend of youre's, leper." The boy pressed his foot down harder as Claudia tried to squirm out from underneath it. He pulled a small silver lighter from his pocket that glinted evilly in the fading light. He bent over and grabbed one of Claudia's pale hand and clicked the lighter open.
"Bill, you don't_" The smaller boy started but was cut off by a vicious glare from Bill.
"If you're going to make a fuss, Vincent, you shouldn't have come!" He snapped and the small mousy boy melted back into the crowd, trying to ignore Claudia's pleading eyes.
Bill held her hand out, twisting it violently so her palm was raised to the sky. He held the lighter underneath it and without batting an eyelid, flipped it on.
Oh lord how it hurt.
Bill held it there, seeming oblivious the screams from the writhing girl and the smell of cooking flesh. Claudia clamped her eyes shut as tears welled up in their corners, praying that this torment would end or they'd grow bored of mutilating her. Finally after what seemed like an eternity, Bill let the lighter drop to the floor, but only because it had run out of gas. He curled his lip at the whimpering girl and sharply planted his foot into the back of her head, forcing it further into the pavement. Claudia felt her lip split open and warm metallic flavor of blood slowly crept into her mouth.
For a moment, Bill watched her spit up blood before turning to his grinning companions.
"Let's finish this, I got homework."
Instantly, they started kicking at any part of the girl's body that was exposed. Claudia felt the first boot hit her between her shoulder blades but after that, they came as fast and indistinguishable as rainfall.
Finally, they left; leaving a semi conscious Claudia sprawled out on the street in a pool of her own blood.
Her father would surely beat her for being late.
She opened her eyes to find the street was gone, replaced by thin, rusting metal grating that stretched over the unfathomable darkness beneath her. In a matter of seconds, day had turned to night and the buildings around her looked even more decrepit than usual. All around her, she heard the groans of the inhabitants of this forbidden land and smiled. Claudia always enjoyed these small glimpses of Paradise.
* * *
The last thing Claudia remembered about that day was that her father had beaten her for getting home late.
'I pity them, for they could never understand. But when they see the Paradise Alessa brings to us, they shall be forgiven for being so naive.'
Well, she was free from them now, and from the grip of her father.
A hand slapped down on her shoulder, causing her to miss a note on the organ's slender keys. She let her fingers drop from the instrument and took a deep breath before looking over her shoulder. It was a father of a different kind.
"Well, Miss. Wolf, how did you're little excursion go?" He drawled in that southern accent of his. She looked at the stumpy man for a moment before answering.
"The holy one is coming and I believe that we won't have long to wait for the birth of God." The man nodded approvingly and pushed his glasses up his nose.
"And just what did you do to ensure this?"
"Something I am not proud of." Claudia hung her head as the man nodded again. He paced over to the first row of pews and sat down, sprawling out as much as possible.
"How long until her arrival?"
"A day, maybe more…" He slouched even more, resting his arm over the back of the wooden seat.
"We have time to prepare our 'special guests' then?" Claudia frowned slightly before giving an answer.
"We can only pray, Father…"
"Amen to that, Sister Claudia, amen to that."
BTW, there was a reference to a Stephan King novel in there. If you spot it, you can have a cookie *waves cookie in the air*
