Tim retraced his steps down the gravel road, keeping an ear trained on the fluctuating static coming from the radio. He didn't want to miss any more transmissions from Jay or anyone else. Besides, after the overwhelming silence coming into town even radio static was a comfort no matter how many bad memories it brought back. He'd take static over silence or that… thing's screaming any day.
As he reached the end of the road he pulled the map out of his pocket. He slung the broken wooden board he'd used to kill the monster over one shoulder and shook the map loose. He did a quick scan over the scribbles Heather had made. Most of the roads were crossed out, barricaded most likely. It was obvious no one wanted people to come here anymore and he could see why. Tim had to squint to see the sign but he'd just come from Vachss Road, which ended on this side of the barrier on Lindsey Street. To the left it was supposed to be out but a quick check wouldn't hurt. He'd only assumed the thick scribbles were there to mean the road was out and he didn't want to assume wrong again like he had with the girl in the graveyard. He'd thought she meant whatever event had caused the town to be abandoned was still happening. Well, if the town was abandoned because of monsters maybe that was what she had meant. He was just dawdling now.
Tim shook himself and headed off to the left while clumsily trying to fold the map with one hand. Sure enough the road was out… Just not how Tim had thought it would be. Suddenly the road just stopped, falling away into nothingness. Sinkholes didn't get that big. Did they? Looking down into the seemingly bottomless pit Tim felt like he was staring at the end of the universe. The darkness stretched on and on and on with no hope in sight. There was something down there, the fog must have just been obscuring the bottom, it had to be. The world around him tilted and spun in a drunken dance. He was getting dizzy. He backed away quickly, fearing what would happen if he looked for any longer. Something was very, very wrong with this town.
There was a bar on the map that had been circled, he may as well head that way. Something could be there. Not even five steps back up Lindsey St. there was another of those strange creatures that looked like they wore strait jackets made of their own skin. Tim ducked out of the way just in time as it sprayed it's acidic blood towards him. No, not again, Tim ran. The radio faded the further he got from the slow moving monster, blasting louder as another appeared through the fog. They seemed to follow the same rules as the faceless thing that had followed him his whole life, interfering with technology. That was going to be useful at least. Tim quickly ducked passed this monster as well. It was blocking the street he'd passed chasing the first one so he had no choice but to keep going. He'd have to turn at the next street. The bar was on the… Right? Yeah, it had to be he came from the left. Maybe? No time to check the map, he took off down the street vaguely registering the sign labeling it Sanders as he slowed to a brisk jog. They didn't seem to be following him now.
"Holy shit…" Tim panted, out of breath from running so far so fast. He passed an alleyway and ducked inside after a quick look for any monsters. This was going to be a problem. He'd need to find a better weapon and as much as he hated it he needed it to be ranged. He needed a gun. If only he'd been sure enough of himself to carry Alex's gun with him. But no, he'd left it in that building along with whatever was left of Alex. There was no time for regrets, especially those he knew were unwarranted. If he'd taken the gun there wasn't much chance of him still being here to save Jay now.
The bar was just at the other side of the block. It was almost easy to miss with the windows covered in newspaper and the sign half fallen off. BAR Neely's. Or it had been before everything had gone to shit and the town packed up and left. The door opened easily and there didn't seem to be anything worrying inside. On the table there was a map of Silent Hill, the same as his except stained in what Tim decided to believe was wine. Several buildings were crossed out and there were lines through many of the streets. Tim double checked against his map and sure enough all of them had been marked impassable on his map as well. According to the bar's map the only way to progress further into town was through the apartments to the north. The alleyway Tim had hidden in earlier had a question mark at the opposite end.
"Looks like I'm headed there next." He mumbled to himself, copying everything onto his map in red pen. As he turned to leave the papered up glass caught his eye. In bright red paint (he hoped) was written 'There was a HOLE here. It's gone now.' What on earth could that mean? More importantly why would someone write it on a window? It had to be important for something. Tim gave the rest of the bar a more thorough look. No holes, a lot of litter and rubble but definitely not anything he'd call a hole. He circled back around the bar, planning to just leave and get on with it when suddenly his blood ran cold.
Written in thick black marks in familiar handwriting -HE IS A LIAR- on the other window was a message. "If you really wanted to see Jay again you would just die. But you're probably going to a different place than Jay is Tim."
Brian was dead. Brian couldn't have left him that message. He'd only had his back turned for a moment Brian couldn't have written it that quickly.
Tim ducked his head and left the bar. He wasn't about to lay down and die now. He didn't want to die anymore, not if Jay really was here. Alex had wanted him to kill himself and for a long while he'd kept living purely out of spite for his former friend. Now that he had even a small glimmer of hope that everything he'd sacrificed wasn't in vain he refused to die. Jay had been his reason to keep going once before and he could be his reason again. Tim would find Jay, whatever it took.
The street outside the bar was clear and the radio continued the soft buzz Tim had quickly associated with peered down the alley but the fog kept him from seeing too far. With the wooden board close quarters would either be a saving grace or a death sentence. Cautiously, Tim crept down the alley with the plank primed to swing at the first sign of a monster.
A sudden burst of static was all the warning he got as one of the creatures slithered out from beneath a van. It scuttled along twitching as if having a seizure. Tim screamed, kicking it away from him as it rushed at his legs. It was so much faster on the ground. One, two, three swings to the head before the twitching stopped. Killing the second had been no easier than killing the first. His hands were shaking and his head was starting to throb. Almost there, just keep going… Just-
At the end of the street lay a dead body. This was what he'd been pointed to
Tim had to turn away. No no no this was all too much. Monsters where bad enough but this was definitely a person. His face had been entirely destroyed past the point of recognition but there was still no doubt he'd been human. The man had wearing a faded beige hoodie and amidst the carnage Tim could make out the faint glimmer of metal in the pocket. "I'm sorry." he whispered to the corpse as he dug the key out. This was familiar in the most disturbing way. At least the last time he'd had to rob a dead man he hadn't been left to rot outside, the smell was nearly unbearable.
As soon as the key was in his hand Tim fled the alley. That was not an experience he'd like to repeat. Death was the last thing he wanted to get used to. 'Wood Side Apartment Complex' was proudly inscribed on the plastic tag attached to the key. Oh good, that's where he'd been going. It seemed that whatever had placed the notes and map at the bar was looking out for him, in some strange messed up way. Brian had always looked out for him even after he put on a mask and stopped being Brian anymore. But it wasn't Brian, it couldn't be no matter how much Tim wished it was.
To Tim's great relief there were no more monsters as he exited the alley and made his way down the street to the apartments. The apartments themselves were surrounded with a high metal fence whose gate was chained shut with a padlock. Tim hesitated, looking up at the dilapidated old building. There was much more to explore outside and every possibility that he'd walked right by Jay, but something told him he hadn't. At any rate he didn't want to be stuck out here with those things any longer. He'd search the apartments, if he didn't find Jay here he promised himself to search back outside.
The rusted old padlock popped open with surprising ease. There had been someone here, and recently. At least that's what his paranoia told him. The front lot looked barren, so Tim wasted no time getting through the front door. Aside from the disrepair that had befallen the entirety of the town the apartments didn't look too bad. Once upon a time Tim may even have considered them a good place to call home. The floorboards creaked under his weight and the wallpaper was peeling. Besides the front windows there didn't seem to be any source of light natural or otherwise. The front room was large, with a door and a staircase on the far side, a desk to his left, and a couple long dead potted plants to his right. Beneath the stairs there was a long curved retaining wall for a garden overrun with grass and weeds. Scraps of a torn up notepad scattered the floor leading from the reception desk to a small case housing a map of the building on the opposite wall.
The notepad still sat upon the desk with a couple pages filled with text remaining. He could barely make out the words in the dark room. "I'm going to write everything that I've learned so far. Maybe that will help you out somehow." he read aloud, "If you're reading this, it probably means I'm already dead. I saw those demons. They were there, I'm certain. But my friend says he didn't see anything. If that's true, does that mean that what I saw was an illusion? But whether that demon that ate human beings was real, or whether it was just some kind of hallucination that my mind dreamed up… one thing I know for sure is that I'm beyond all hope. It seems that they're attracted to light. That's why people who need light to see are their natural prey. They also react strongly to sound. If you want to go on living, you'd be better off just sitting in the dark and staying quiet. But even that probably won't save you. If you're going to try to fight them, the most important thing is to relax. It's dangerous to fire a gun while you're all crazy with fear. Take good aim, then squeeze the trigger. And don't forget to finish them off. I think most of those creatures can be killed, even if they are tougher than people. Run away. Run away!" the rest of the page and all of those scattered on the floor were filled with nothing but "Run away!" written over and over again.
Tim sighed and ran his hand through his hair. Light attracted them. Light and sound. He looked up at the darkness at the top of the stairs. He would need a light if he planned to explore much here. And worse yet he'd gotten here mid afternoon, the sun through the fog was weak but at least there was sun. As soon as the sun dipped below the horizon he'd be at a loss without something.
He crumpled the note and stuffed it in his pocket, pulled the map from it's display on the cork board and jogged up the stairs before he could have second thoughts. He wouldn't have day light for too much longer so he'd better get a move on and find Jay. He'd start on the second floor and work his way up. If there was nothing there he could look around the first floor last so he could leave easier. It was just logic, he reasoned, he was definitely not afraid of heading further up the darkened stairs. Or the oppressive darkness on the other side of the door. Or the idea that Jay probably wasn't here anyway and he was being ridiculous.
With a shake of his head Tim pushed forward into the building. There were doors lining the side of the hallway. There were… a lot of doors. This would take a while.