Author's Note: This is quite a long chapter and was, at first, a bit difficult to write because I still needed to smooth a few things out in the information and events that take place in this particular chapter.

Enjoy. And don't forget to review. Thanks in advance.


Episode Three: The Return


Everyone was out in the streets that day. It was the day of the "fair" that was put on by the church. Mothers and fathers and boys and girls were all dancing and cheering for the show to go on. Robbie the Rabbit was there to entertain the kids. It was a sad day.

I was sitting in church alone, save for the priest that was there to tend to the place. I had my hands clasped together and my head bent down in prayer in hopes that God could hear me.

"Aidan," someone called me, but I didn't look up to see who it was. I was praying, couldn't they see? "Aidan," they called out again. This time they tapped me on the shoulder. "Aidan, sorry to bother you but,"

I looked up at them but there was no one around. Every shop in town, every building, every street was deserted and devoid of life. It's not even that late. There aren't even any cars in the streets, save for the ones that are parked along the sidewalks. I walked past the flower shop and stopped at the intersection of Sanders and Neely. On its corner to my right there was a bar named after the street itself. It was strange because this was the only place I've seen so far that had its lights on. I walked towards it and the closer I got to the building I began to hear voices coming from inside the bar. I approached the nearest window and peered through, but it was useless because the window was so thick and murky that all I could see were shadows moving about inside.

I tried for the door next but found that it was locked—from the outside. There was a heavy lock attached to the door. Why would it be locked from the outside? Wanting to get inside to hopefully ask someone for a ride I tried something foolish that probably wouldn't work. I reached into the pocket of my jacket and withdrew that key I found in the dead guy. I inserted the key into the keyhole of the lock and it fit! But when I tried to turn it, it jammed. I took the key out and pocketed it once more. What the hell is wrong with this place? Where is everyone?

Then I heard someone run pass me. I quickly turned around to see who it was, but all I could see was the silhouette of someone running down the street. I called after them.

"Hey!" I called out, running as fast as I could to catch up to them. I'm a pretty good runner, thanks to track and field. "Hey, wait up!" I picked up speed, but as soon as I did so did they. Were they running away from me?

They then made a sharp right turn onto Katz Street, so I made a right on there. "Stop!" I finally said, but they didn't even bother to look back. Then they made a left onto the next street, I did the same.

I turned into a narrow alleyway. I ran down it, and as I was running down this alley, the lights on the lamppost began to flicker off and now I was being chased by the darkness behind me. Then suddenly the lights in front of me turned off and I was completely consumed in the abyss of the town.

I stopped in my tracks and waited until my pupils adjusted to the immense darkness that surrounded me. When they finally did I started to walk carefully ahead. But then I kicked something on the ground and it skit away from me. It hit something and it flashed on, almost blinding me because of how bright it was. I walked over to it and picked it up. It was a clip-on flashlight.

After clipping it on to the breast pocket of my jacket I surveyed the surrounding, now lit with my flashlight. I couldn't find that person anywhere, they must've jumped over that fence.

I walked over to the fence that blocked off the alley and hoisted myself over it. I landed a little haphazardly and I think I hurt my ankle a bit, but I didn't mind that, it wasn't like I was going to die or anything.

When I wiped myself clean of any dirt or dust—just a habit of mine—I scanned my new surrounding. I found that I was in the back of what appears to be an abandoned fire station.

It was a rather massive piece of block made entirely of redbrick. The building stood three stories high and probably twice as long. There were three large doors and above each were signs that read "Silent Hill Fire Dept. No. 1, 2, and 3". And to the far left I could see an average-sized door, which was the back entrance to the building (obviously). I looked around for a bit longer and found nothing unusual, save for the rusting heap of metal abomination to the right of me. There was no other way out of the back, the only way out now was to either turn back and climb over the fence or—

There was a crash from the third floor of the building. I looked up to see if I could see someone. When I looked up I saw a flash of light from one of the third floor windows. It must be that person I was chasing. I ran for the back entrance door and pulled at the doorknob but it wouldn't budge. Fuck. They must've locked it from the other side.

I didn't want to scare the person away so I couldn't bang on the door or do something that would cause alarm to the person upstairs so I tried my key again. I fitted it into the keyhole and turned slightly—it worked! I re-pocketed my key and opened the door slightly as it creaked open.

I crept through the door and found myself standing in a hallway wide enough for two people to pass through. At the end I could make out stairs that led up and to my immediate right there was a door, completely dilapidated and hanging on its hinges. I passed by the dilapidated door and peered through: there was nothing really interesting in there. It was just a large garage with two of the three fire trucks still inside. That was all I could make out because it was incredibly dark inside, even with my flashlight shining into it.

There were several pictures and certificates hanging on the wall of the corridor I was standing in. I searched it for some reason and came to a stop when I saw the name

"Robert D. Thames, yes sir, that would be me, son," Father said to me whilst holding up his certificate of achievement that he got from the fire department. "Chief Warren named me 'Fighter of the Year,' he did. I earned it, of course. None of those other pussies matched up to me," he said.

Mother overheard him use the word 'pussies' and yelled at him for five minutes straight. Father walked into the kitchen where mother always was and then I heard a crash coming from the third floor. I looked away from the wall of fame and made my way toward the stairs.

They were metal-wrought stairs and looked sturdy enough to walk on. They made that heavy clanking sound whenever I would set foot on every step—that was inevitable I guess.

As I walked up the metallic stairs I could feel a cold draft rushing down past me. When I finally reached the second floor I immediately made my way up to the third floor but I was hindered by a tall, locked iron gate. There was another lock on this gate and no key lying around. What were they trying to hide?

I took a step back from the stairwell and began my exploration of the second floor. The paint on the walls here were peeling and hanging loosely from their ends. The fluorescent lamps were hanging on their chains, swinging eerily in the air; they weren't working of course. The only source of light came from my little flashlight that was clipped to my jacket.

The floor beneath me was sticky and in most parts wet with puddles of water. I could hear what sounded like running water coming from the distance.

I continued walking down the corridor as the sound of running water grew louder and louder and my shoes soon became sodden with water and started squishing beneath my feet with every step I took.

From what I examined of the walls I found that the entire building was falling apart. I could not only see beneath the thick layer of paint, but I could also see the infrastructure and tiny maggots crawling from its dark holes. I walked past the first door, which led to the lockers. I checked to see if it was unlocked, but knowing my luck it wasn't. So I continued on.

The next door I tried, however, was unlocked, and it led to the showers. I entered this room and found that all of the showerheads had been ripped out of their walls. The shower room was filled with a heavy odour: It smelt like rotting vegetables and spoiled milk blended together in one room.

There was also a strange glow coming from behind the first wall. Being the curious bastard I am, I walked forward, but only to realise that the water level in here was deeper because the room was set lower than the rest of the rooms on this floor. So I was now treading in ankle-deep, brown water. My feet were getting cold already.

When I turned the corner of the wall I found a single bathtub. It was filthy and shit-encrusted. The water that was spilling over its edges was filthy too, dark in colour, and I could see tiny chunks of what looked like human shit spilling over onto the floor, clogging up the drains. Next to the bathtub there was a single silver table that stood on one leg, which looked to be implanted into the floor. And on that table there was a single lamp that was seemingly attached to the table and hung over the bathtub like an erect vine. At the end was a rather large light bulb that shone brightly in the darkness of the room.

But just beyond the bathtub, on the opposite wall, I could make out some writing. It looked like it was written in blood. What the fuck?

'drain the tub to find your escape' was what it read.

Was I supposed to reach into that filthy tub and unclog it or something? Who the fuck do they think they are? Sick bastards. But it said "to find your escape"…Could the key to the gate on the stairs really be in there? But what if it's some sick joke or something? What if I'm really on some stupid reality TV show where they pull pranks on you? What if there're hidden cameras in this room watching me? And people sitting in the comforts of their homes laughing at me? What the fuck is wrong with these people?

"What the hell," I said. What have I got to lose, really?

I pulled back the sleeve to my jacket and shirt up past my elbow, knelt down into the filthy water and drove my right arm, whilst placing my left on the edge of the tub (which felt disgusting because it was covered in something slimy). I felt around the bottom of the tub for a few seconds, grabbing on to a few nasty little logs whilst doing so, until I found the hoop that was attached to what I presumed to be the plug.

I pulled at the plug with my one hand, but it didn't seem to budge at all. Water was sloshing onto my clothes and I think a few drops got into my mouth (though I couldn't taste anything). And then I heard something from behind me. It was coming from the adjacent room, the lockers.

I stopped tugging at the plug for a second, to see if I could hear what made that noise, but nothing came for a while. When I went back to pulling at the plug I heard it again; this time when I stopped, the noise from the lockers room got louder.

It sounded like something heavy banging against something metallic—presumably the lockers. I could hear the ground rumble beneath the heavy whatever-the-fuck-it-is.

The sound was getting heavier and louder with every passing second. I turned my head to face the direction from which it was coming but the damned wall was blocking my vision.

I could feel my heart pounding in my chest now. The blood coursing through my body was picking up rapid pace and my body began to perspire dramatically.

Then I felt something grab at my right arm. I turned back to the tub and saw another arm protruding from the murky water. I could feel my skin rip as I felt its claws digging deep into my flesh. It was pulling me towards it, and it was pretty damned strong, too. I tried to hold on to the edge of tub with my left arm but the thing in the water was pulling too hard. It felt as if it were trying to rip my arm from my socket.

The thing from the locker room was still making a loud raucous as it rang through my ears.

It wasn't long before I felt my entire body submerge into the thick and filthy water was rushing up my nostrils. I choked on it for a second. It stung and it was hard to breathe for a few moments but I managed to catch my breath again.

I had slipped into the bathtub trying to reach for a new bar of soap. To night was to be my first time bathing myself.

I remember I had to cling to sweet air trying to fight my way back up to the surface. It took me a while but I managed to do it in the end. When I finally sat up in my bathtub I began scrubbing at my body with the bar of soap.

Then a few seconds later Mommy came into the bathroom and poured a cup of bubbles into the bathtub and in mere seconds an entire cultivation of foamy bubbles emerged from the waters of the bathtub. I couldn't see into the clear water anymore as it was invaded by the white clouds.

Mother left me soon after to fend for myself against these bubbles. But I would manage to do it.

I don't know how much time past by but I was suddenly pushed into the bubble-filled water by someone from the surface. I didn't get to see who it was because I managed to get some bubbles in my eyes. Damned bubbles. They managed to completely submerge my entire body under water.

I could feel the burning sensation of water rushing through my nostrils and into my throat. I tried to gulp breaths of air that I managed to keep in my mouth, but that only allowed more water to pass through my nostrils. My arms broke the water's surface and I immediately grabbed onto someone's arm. It was sleeved.

I pulled at it, trying to make my way back to the surface, but the person's strength was far too superior for my weak body.

Then, finally, the person's arm released me and they pulled their arm out of the water. I jumped out of the water and was hanging over the edge of the bathtub.

My head hurt real badly after that. I could feel my brain thumping heavily inside my skull and all I could hear was the pumping of blood in my ears and the sounds of a siren blaring loudly. I opened my eyes and coughed up the disgusting water. It left a revolting aftertaste so I tried to spit as much of it out of my mouth as possible until the taste was finally gone.

When my vision came back to me I could see that I wasn't in the same room, but at the same time I was. There was evidence left to have me believe that I was still in the shower room, but now every wall was completely taken down and in its place was a metal-mesh fence, completely rusted over. The room was now filled with a red tint and I could hear the humming of the lights above me. And the sound of the siren began to fade away into the distance.

I pulled myself out of the bathtub, having the weight of my drenched clothes keep me down. When I finally emerged my entire body from the bathtub, my body dropped to the floor, which clanked beneath me. I felt the ground beneath me: I was lying not on a solid, tiled floor but a metal-meshed one, and it didn't feel very sturdy.

I got up on my two feet and stood there for a second and surveyed my surroundings more carefully. I could see that the walls were now completely covered in blood and rust. There were metal rods also protruding from the dead wall.

That banging noise was gone now, as was its source. The doorway that separated the shower room and the lockers was completely demolished and the door from which I came through was sealed now. I checked my flashlight in my shirt pocket because I noticed that there wasn't any light shining. The switch read "off" so I switched it back on and it lit up again.

As I did so, the light shone upon the sealed door and in the distance I could see that there was more writing here, in the same substance as before. I took several steps closer to see if I could read it. It was barely legible. It looked fresh and was still running down the wall.

Fire Purifies All

I walked past the enclosed door into the locker room. In here the benches and lockers were still somewhat in tact: there were several lockers that looked beaten and a few that lay collapsed on the floor. The majority of the locker doors were hanging on their hinges, squeaking as if a nonexistent wind was blowing them hither and thither.

The air in here was heavier and dirtier. I could almost taste the musky scent that lingered in the air.

This room was just as bloodstained and rusted as the previous. I scanned the contents of one locker, but there was nothing interesting inside. As I closed it, I heard a rumbling sound coming from another nearby. The door suddenly creaked open and something fell from the locker. It made a clanking noise as it made contact with the ground. I knelt down to pick it up and examined it before my flashlight. It was a gold-plated lighter. With closer examination I found the same insignia on the lighter as I did on the key. I flipped open the cover and ignited the lighter. It still worked.

After checking the first set of lockers against the back wall, I moved toward the ones on the wall opposite. The first one was locked, as were the proceeding eight lockers. But when I approached the tenth and final one, I noticed that it looked a lot like a miniature door rather than a locker door.

It had a doorknob and an eyehole to boot, and also on it was a wreath that Mother would always put up every holiday season.

I leant in to get a closer inspection of the miniature door and found that the address to my old house was placed adjacent to the door: "152406". I tried for the tiny doorknob, but it seemed to be locked. I checked the keyhole and saw that it required a normal-sized key.

Suddenly, there was a loud crashing sound coming from the hallway now. I turned away from the door to see if there was anyone in the room. But I found no one.

I walked to the door at the end. It was unlocked. I turned the doorknob slowly and pushed gently against the door and peered out through the crack of the door.

There I saw it: A large behemoth standing on its two massive arms. Its upper body was just as massive and tumour-like. From where I was standing I could see its body bubbling with blisters and pus ooze from its orifices. The bottom half of its body was nonexistent. From where the top half ended, a large chain protruded from its underside, chained to the floor. It was practically immobile.

The creature also lacked hands or fingers. Its huge arms were just massive stubs, bandaged at the end with blood still soaking through. I couldn't see its face from here, seeing that its back was turned to me. I took advantage of this situation and snuck out of the locker room and ran back to the stairwell, but a metal-mesh gate blocked it now.

Fuck.

I turned back to face the back of the monster, who was just standing there, its body convulsed at random moments. I scanned the floor to see if there was anything to protect myself with, but I could only find broken beer bottles and trash. The hallway was modelled exactly like the locker room and shower room: distorted walls that bled and metal-grated floor that moaned softly with every step I took.

Without anything to protect me, I prayed that the thing wouldn't catch me, so I decided to run at a sprint. The floor beneath me cried in protest to my weight. I took several large steps at a fast pace and barely made it past the creature when it suddenly woke to life.

Its arms swung out at me, brushing against my back. I felt a metal object—like a blade—slice into my skin, but just barely. I fell forward to the shock of the attack, landing on my hands. Tiny glass shards pushed into the palms of my hands, but didn't penetrate.

I quickly got up and didn't look back to see if the monster had gotten loose. I ran straightforward and made a sharp left at the turn. In this corridor I found two doors opposite each other on either side of me. Above the door to my right there was a placard that said it was the conference room and to my right was the dispatch room. I tried for the room that first came to mind: the dispatch room. But when I grabbed for the handles, I found it to be locked. I turned and opened the door to the conference room.

As I entered this room, I found that there was a lone table that sat thirteen men and women, and in the centre of the table was a small, portable fax machine that looked like new. I scanned the rest of the room but found nothing interesting, other than a church flyer that was advertising for the annual church festival. St. Stella's Church. The church next door to the fire station.

I walked around the room and surveyed the conference table. It looked like its about to fall apart. Termites have chewed at the wood incessantly it looks like. Mould formed at the ends of the table, seemingly oozing from its crevices and dripped to the floor, which was surprisingly tiled.

That fax machine still had my attention above all else in this room. It was still so pristine and new. Its shiny white coat glowed in the presence of my flashlight. I walked toward it and pressed the power button to see if it was in working order. Immediately the machine shot to life and began humming its mechanic tune.

What the—

Paper was dispensing from the output of the machine. I took it from the tray and read it:

Attn: THAMES, Report to Chief Warren's office A.S.A.P.
Information regarding S— of the I— is to be discussed.

I reread the sheet of paper several times over, flipping it over to see if there was anything on the back, but found nothing else pertaining to the information I just read. 'S of the I?' What the hell is that supposed to mean? I shoved the piece of paper into one of my jacket pocket and left the conference room.

Remembering that that monster was still in the hallway, I made haste down the hallway and made another left toward the chief's office. I remember when Dad used to take me here; we would always go visit the Chief of the Fire Department. He was a nice man.

As I walked down the corridor to the chief's office, the world around me began changing again. The walls were changing back to normal, the ceiling above me pieced back together again and the floor became solid. But something else was happening along with this. I began to lose the ability to see colour. The world around me became nothing but shades of blacks, whites and greys. A static noise started playing in my head—or was it?

My head began hurting again, the static sound getting louder. My heart started pumping at a fast pace. The world was normal again, but my vision was still in black and white. Everything was grainy, like an old film.

I reached the door and turned it, noting that on the door a sign was hung: "Chief of Silent Hill Fire Department Brian Warren".

I turned the knob and walked in.

Warren was sitting behind his desk, his fat chin resting on his folded hands, his elbows resting on his oak desk. He was staring into the eyes of the man who had just stepped foot into his office.

He received my memo, Warren thought, not taking his eyes off the man. As much as he hated to admit it, he was afraid of this man. He had potential. A lot of potential. He beckoned the man to take a seat in one of the open chairs. The man sat down, folded his hands and placed them in his lap—very businesslike. He had that smirk on his face, that smirk that looked like he had just won something.

You haven't won yet the chief thought. Finally, Warren made a grab for a stack of papers on his desk and handed them to the man.

"Thames," he started, still not taking his beady eyes off the man. "There in your hands is the packet given to me from the High Priestess. She has outlined everything from point A to Z for us. She has noted that she has all that is required for it to all go smoothly and work perfectly, save for the one Lamb she lacks."

Thames looked away from the packet now and returned his line of vision to the fat chief. His smile still didn't wane.

"And so she's turning to me to offer up the lamb? Or are you turning to me in hopes that I would offer up the Lamb to God?"

"Robert, please, the orders do not come from me, a mere layman in the church. The High Priestess has been waiting for the ripen age of her own fruit to bring forth the Paradise that we all so eagerly seek. But before we do that we must appease God by offering the Lamb of Innocence. God's will permits it. The Lamb must be purified of all past, present and future sins through—"

"I know the story, Brian. I still don't see why the High Priestess would turn to me for the Lamb. Albeit, I am most honoured that she has, but why me?"

"Do not question her authority, Robert. Do as you are told, that is a direct order from me."

The man named Robert Thames nodded his head and stood up again. He turned without saying another word and left the office, finding himself once again in the corridor, where the walls were deteriorating again and the floor beneath me was no longer solid. I was standing in the hallway, facing away from the office. I turned back and tried for the doorknob but it was locked.

What the hell was that about?

There was a sudden crumbling sound of cement collapsing. I turned again and stared down the hallway. The wall before me now possessed a giant, gaping hole, and beyond that was darkness.

I walked down the hallway and climbed through the hole into the abyss.