Thank you everyone who reviewed and everyone reading. I think I need a new way to start my chapters besides that…Anyway, here's the third chapter.
Disclaimer: I don't own Silent Hill, but this story and all of its characters are mine.
Chapter Three: A Mother's Love/Hate
Ericka stared at the woman in front of her. This woman just called her Amy, and then said that she was her mother. "I think you have me confused for someone else," Ericka said.
"No, no, dear!" said the woman. "A mother knows her child when she sees them," Ericka shook her head.
"No, you're not my mother," she said. "I came here looking for my mother and father," Ericka tried to explain to the woman. All she got in response was a disgusted look from the woman.
"Why would you want to find him?" The woman stared at Ericka. "That man is hopeless, give up dear," Ericka looked at the woman.
"You don't know my father," Ericka said defensively. "And please stop calling me 'dear',"
"But Amy," the woman grabbed Ericka in a hug. "I haven't seen you in so long!" Ericka tried to push her off.
"Get off of me," said Ericka. The woman just sighed and kept holding Ericka. "Get off of me!" Ericka yelled. She pushed the woman with all of her strength and watched her land on the ground in front of the brick wall. Ericka just watched as the woman didn't move for a while. Then the woman raised her head in spoke in a deeper voice.
"You stupid bitch," growled the woman. Ericka was taken back. She didn't expect that kind of retaliation. "Veronica, you were nothing but a mistake," Now Ericka's name was Veronica? "I'm going to tell my husband about this,"
The woman stood up and left the ally. Ericka couldn't do much more then stare. What was up with that woman? She was starting to think that everything and everyone in this town was insane. She tightened her grip on the pipe and walked out of the ally. The woman was nowhere to be scene. Ericka shook her head and started to walk down the street. She had to find that blood trail again.
Ericka hadn't gone very far when she saw a large canyon separating the street from the other side. Where the hell did that come from? Ericka walked closer to the chasm and looked down. There was no way she was getting across this. The thing stretched down as far as the mist of the city would let her see. Aggravated, she stood up and turned around. What she saw made her pale.
Two of the monsters from the ally were closing in on her. They looked as disgusting as they had then. The smell that Ericka had identified as something rotting was overpowering. She felt her mouth water in the urge to throw up.
Ericka started to breath through her mouth to avoid most of the stench. She ran to her left. There was another ally like the one she came out in between two buildings. She ran down it, knowing that those things were still shuffling along behind her. She rounded a corner and stopped.
One of the tall monsters with half its flesh missing turned to stare at her. Next to it was a new creature. This one looked sort of like half a human stuck to half a wolf. Ericka had trouble deciding which side made her sicker.
The human side was vile. The head was attached to the wolf's half by the forehead. The entire right side of what would've been its face was gone. A twisted, rotting arm was grabbing onto the dirt patch it was standing on. The spine was exposed and graphed into the wolf's anatomy. The leg looked like it had been ripped off and sewn back on. The wolf next to it had ripped strands of muscle waving in the air in place of fur. The creature stood on all fours, and suddenly started to run towards Ericka.
The thing moved unnaturally fast when compared to the lumbering giant behind it. It was closing the gap between them in no time. Ericka didn't take long to figure out how to run again. She went towards the gray door closest to her. She pulled on handle. It wouldn't open.
"No!" she screamed. She banged on the door. She tried the handle again with all of her strength. She didn't stop pulling, but looked over her shoulder. The wolf-human had jumped. It was about to sink its cracked teeth into her. Ericka screamed and felt herself lose her footing as the door sprang open. It hit the wolf in the face. Ericka smiled for a second, and then ran inside.
She slammed the door behind her and breathed for a while. When her heart rate returned to something along the lines of normal again, she looked at where she was. She seemed to be in a kitchen. Directly ahead of her, a large butcher's knife was stuck in a chunk of green meat.
Ericka thought about taking it, but decided against it. That meat was unrecognizable. The thought of touching the blade made her shudder. Ericka looked around for a short while. She finally decided to head through the swinging door that she guessed lead to the main restaurant.
Her guess was right, and her eyes met a luxurious restaurant. The area was huge, and filled with round tables with white cloths over them. Candles in gold holders were burnt down to small stumps. A massive crystal chandelier was hung by a silver chain above the center of the area. Two potted plants that had died over time sat on either side of the main entrance. Silverware was scattered over the floor along with cracked glasses.
Ericka walked slowly towards the main entrance, observing a large abstract painting on the right wall. A voice came from her left that made her jump. "About time! Do you know how long I've waited for a waitress?" Ericka turned and felt her blood run cold.
The man from her home that told her about Silent Hill was sitting at one of the tables. His hands were folded and resting on his stomach as he tilted back in his chair. He smiled and waved. 'Long time no see!" Ericka stood still for a few seconds, and then turned and ran back into the kitchen. "Now come on! Don't make me chase you!" He sounded annoyed as he called after her.
Ericka looked around the kitchen for a place to hide. She didn't even know if this guy was following her, but she'd rather not find out. She saw some small handles under one of the counters. Ericka pulled on it, and saw a large empty space that was probably used to store pots and pans or something. Ericka crawled inside and slid the door shut.
After a few seconds of tense silence, Ericka heard the sound of the door to the kitchen swinging open. Footsteps were heard through the metal. She could tell when they were getting closer. Ericka held her breath when they stopped in front of her hiding spot. She didn't breathe again until she heard them walking away.
There was the sound of something rattling in a can, and then she heard a spray. It stopped after a minute or so, and then the footsteps were leaving the room. The kitchen door swinging sounded again, and then everything was silent. Finally, Ericka slid the entrance open.
"No…" she whimpered when she saw the kitchen. It was just like the boutique when the power went out. Rust and blood seemed to be the main decoration in the poorly lit kitchen. She could barely see anything, but what she did made her wish she hadn't hidden under the counter, as if that was responsible for her being here.
The lack of light was really bothering her. It was bad enough being here, but not being able to see where she was going was like icing the cake. Ericka turned around to the counter and felt blindly for something to use for light. Her hand traveled across something plastic and small. Ericka pulled it down from the space above the counter she'd found during her search and brought it close to her eyes so she could see it.
It looked like a small flashlight. There was a hook on the back and a switch on its side. It was red and rectangular. A small company logo was on the opposite side of the switch. Like I care who made it, Ericka thought. She clipped the light to her shirt collar and turned it on.
For a small light, it sure lit up a good part of the room. Ericka turned slowly to observe her surroundings. There wasn't anything too screwed up, like the manikins or employee from the store, but still, this wasn't normal. Nothing was too disgusting. There were a few discarded knives covered with dried blood in the sink, and something seemed to clogging it. The crimson water was probably the worst thing she'd seen so far. On the counter next to the sink were a few unidentifiable chunks of meat, but that was it.
Ericka turned and immediately took back everything she thought about this place not being too bad. Where she had seen a chunk of green meat before there was now a human arm. The butcher's knife was wedged in the wrist. Random chunks were missing and some bone was exposed with what looked like teeth marks on it. The unidentifiable meat on the counter just got an identity.
Ericka felt the feeling of wanting to throw up return. Ericka closed her eyes in attempts to regain her composer. When she opened them, she was staring into the black abyss of the jawless-monster from the ally's throat. The yellow bubbling fluid started to rise in its throat.
Ericka screamed again and swung the pipe she was holding. The thing lurched sideways and some of the fluid dripped onto the floor. In a few seconds it was standing as if nothing had happened. Ericka swung the pipe a few more times. The monster fell onto the ground. Ericka raised the pipe and swung down. The creature cried out in what appeared to be agony before it stopped moving.
Ericka backed away from the body. She turned to go back to the ally. The brunette pushed on the bar that opened the door. The bar pushed in, but the door remained closed. Ericka rammed against it with her shoulder but succeeded only in hurting herself.
Sighing, she turned to look for another way out. As she walked she felt her foot make contact with something. Ericka bent down and came back up with a can of spray paint. There was a black sticker on the side that she assumed signified the color of the paint. She shook the can and recognized it as the sound she'd heard earlier. That guy had marked something with this.
Ericka slid the can into a back pocket. Maybe it could be used as a weapon or something. She walked forward a few more steps and saw a large steel door. The handle to it was a wide steel bar that latched on the right side. Above that was a small sign that read 'FREEZER'. This was what that guy had painted.
A large black 'X' covered the entire door. Just below it were words. "I wouldn't if I were you…" Ericka whispered reading the words aloud. What did that mean? Ericka pulled up on the handle. It didn't move. She looked over to where the bar latched and saw a small padlock.
She gave up on the door and turned towards the one that led to the main restaurant. This one pushed open easily. Ericka walked forward a few paces and then stood completely still.
The restaurant was full of people. They were all just sitting at the tables staring at nothing. Some tables had two or more people sitting at it while others had only one. They were of all ages, and seemed to have nothing better to do then sit the motionlessly. They didn't even blink.
Aside from these people, this part of the restaurant seemed relatively unchanged. Ericka walked cautiously forward. Not a single person moved as she walked. This was creepy as hell. Were they dead? No, that wouldn't make sense. Dead people can't sit up straight in chairs.
Ericka approached the main entrance to the restaurant. The glass doors looked like they were spray painted black. Ericka reflexively felt the can in her back pocket. A small key shined in the light cast by her flashlight. It seemed like the key was positioned there for her to find it. A note attached to the back confirmed this suspicion.
Look's like its back to square one,
Ericka studied the key for a while. Then she moved to the main doors. She pushed on them both only to feel the resistance of a lock. Ericka slide the key into the lock on the doors, but it wouldn't turn. It looked like the key wasn't meant for here. Ericka turned the note in her hand over.
And by the way, Ericka, Good Luck.
Ericka stared at the note for a while. This key was definitely meant for her. She pocketed the note. What did it mean, 'good luck'? When Ericka turned to face the crowd of people again, she understood what was being told to her.
The entire room erupted into laughter. All of the unmoving people had turned there heads so they could see her and then began to laugh. They all just kept laughing at her. What was so funny? That was when she noticed an old couple. The woman was laughing hysterically. So much so, that her head fell off.
It didn't fall off exactly. It was still attached to the neck by a sliver of flesh and a few strands of muscle. That happened at the same time that all of the others revealed what was wrong with them. Some were missing chunks of flesh, while others had limbs in the same condition as the old woman's head. All of them stood up from there seats.
Then Ericka saw what was on all of their plates. Chunks of human remains were on every single plate in the entire area. They had been eating people. Now the grotesque scene in the kitchen made a little more sense.
They started to move towards her. Ericka looked at them and then at the pipe in her hands. She would've laughed if it weren't for the fact she thought she was going to die. Ericka slid the pipe into a safe position on her belt. She moved for the gun she had since the boutique and pulled it out. She flicked off the safety and began to fire at the crowd closing in on her. A few went down, but the gun had to run out of ammunition some time, and when it did, there was no time for to reload.
Ericka thought she was going to die. She had nothing left except the pipe. She backed up to the doors behind her. Then she realized something. They were made of glass! She pulled out the pipe and slammed it into one of the doors. Glass fell to the ground, and Ericka smiled for a fleeting second before she saw what was behind the glass.
There was a brick wall. A God damn brick wall! "No!" she screamed. "That's not right!" she yelled soon after. Ericka turned to the crowd closing in on her. There were about three that were still on the ground from her shooting, but the others didn't care. Ericka backed up until her back was against the wall. Then she remembered the can in her back pocket.
Why not? She thought. There wasn't anything left for her to try. Why not try spray paint? Ericka pulled out the can and popped off the cap. She shook it a little before aiming at the closest thing to her. She was surprised at the reaction.
The things immediately recoiled, holding their eyes where she had sprayed them. Ericka smiled as she got an idea to get out of there. She aimed the can directly in front of her and started to spray while she ran. She moved her arm from left to right to try and hit as many as she could. Once the things were hit with the paint, they fell easily when she pushed by them.
She was about ten feet away from the door back to the kitchen when the can ran out of paint. Ericka stopped running and looked down in horror at the empty can in her hands. She threw it at the crowd in aggravation. Erick looked over her shoulder at the trail she'd knocked down. The crowd was closing over their fallen comrades and some of the ones shed managed to get down were standing again.
Ericka swallowed the fluid in her mouth, and lowered her head. She charged as fast as she could through the remaining crowd. As she ran, she felt pain suddenly form in her left arm. She didn't stop to inspect where the pain was, and just ran until she felt herself hit the door.
It swung open, and Ericka stood up. What could she use to stop them from getting into the kitchen? Ericka looked frantically around for something. It was after a few seconds that she realized they weren't following her. Ericka turned to the door. She cautiously pushed the door open to the restaurant again.
The entire crowd was sitting back in their seats. They weren't moving at all, just like before. They just sat there staring at each other in the darkness. Ericka slowly closed the door in the kitchen and turned back to the door to the ally. Ericka walked up to the door with the key in her hands.
She noticed there was no keyhole on the door, and sighed. The only place left to try was the freezer. Ericka stuck the key she was holding into the padlock and turned it with ease. The lock fell to the ground. Ericka pushed up on the bar and freed it from the latch.
She opened the freezer and walked into the darkness. If it weren't for the light she had, she wouldn't have been able to see. She walked forward a few steps and looked at one of the pieces of meat on a hook. It wasn't meat.
"Oh God," Ericka choked. It was a human. The large hook that normally held meat above the ground was stabbed through a body's back. It had no clothes, but chunks missing from the body still made it difficult to determine what sex the hanging body was. Dried blood was right below the mouth. The thing had frostbite and looked like someone had taken to it with the butcher's knife out on the counter.
Ericka took a step closer to the hanging body, when it moved. It threw an arm out at her. Ericka screamed and turned to leave the freezer. The door was closed. Ericka pushed on it with all of her strength, but it had latched again on the other side. There was no handle on this side.
The sound of a motor starting made Ericka turn to the body that was hanging. Ericka looked at the body as it started to move around to large freezer on the hook that was on a track. Behind it, several other bodies in the same condition were also hooked. All of them tried to reach her with flailing arms and legs.
Ericka screamed again. The vent that would normally blow cold air into the room started gushing out blood. The other vents in the room started the same process. In only a few seconds the blood was up to her knees. "Help me!" Ericka screamed. She struggled through the blood to walk towards the door again. "Someone please!" she called.
The blood was now up to her waist. One of the arms from one of the bodies grabbed her by the hair. Ericka fell in the pool of blood. After a second she stood back up, covered in blood. She ran towards the door again and started banging on it. "Please!" she cried. The blood reached her neck in no time.
Ericka struggled now to find a place for oxygen. She managed to cry for help one more time before the blood had filled the room entirely. Her lungs felt like they were being crushed. Ericka kicked the door in a last-ditch effort, but failed. This was it. She escaped the hands of hundreds of human hungry things with only a few scratches on her arms to die here. She slowly blacked out in the pool of blood.
I know I know, not the happiest of chapter endings, but everything will be resolved next chapter! Please review, and thanks for reading.