chapter 13: lakeside amusement park
The darkness made it hard to make out anything, but finally he came to an opening, a huge metal sign hung in the entranceway. It read
Welcome to
Lakeside Amusement Park!
"This is it…"
He realized that he had to find Cheryl, but he was sick at the thought of something bad happening to Cybil, one of the few normal people he'd met since his hellish excursion into Silent Hill.
Not to mention this was where the final showdown was now going to go down, according to Dahlia.
"Crazy old hag…"
He followed through some turnstiles and into an open area, something creaking to his left. He decided to venture in further, a rickety concession stand coming into view.
There were three windows, one of which that was not destroyed. Inside he saw a pad of yellowed paper and a pencil, something he figured might help release his jumbled thoughts.
"Hopefully, if anyone else experiences these bizarre events, maybe my notes will be useful."
He walked over to it, immediately starting to write as soon as he picked up the pencil.
Dahlia's the one who said that the girl was a demon, and that she took my daughter. But, it's not totally believable. I mean, can't appearances be deceiving? The photo in the hospital basement…that girl looks like Cheryl. Maybe…Is that why I feel this way? I know nothing good can come of this, but I just can't think of her as a demon. I suppose I feel sorry for her. I wonder if it's just me, or does it feel like she's looking for someone to help her? I do know that Cheryl is what's important to me. I brought her here, and everything can wait until I've got her back.
He lay the pencil down, still feeling like his head was in the clouds, but not wanting to waste any more time.
"That'll do…"
He turned and headed down the walkway toward the only sound he heard in the tomb-like amusement park, a low metal churning sound. He took a right, going through a small metal gate. A merry-go-round came into view, the contraption silent and not moving.
"…"
"What up here buddy?" He asked quietly, placing his hand on one of the more colorful of the carousel horses. His voice echoed, and his flashlight caught the gentle movement of something in the darkness. He stepped forward, seeing someone slumped over in a wheelchair.
"…Cybil?" He asked, noticing the leather pants and police uniform. Her head was almost resting on her chest, her blond hair the only visible part of her head.
"Are you alright?"
She suddenly sat up, standing sluggishly from the wheelchair. She locked eyes with him, and panic suddenly set into his body. Something was wrong with her.
Her movements were slow and timed, and she had a slight grin on the corners of her lips. Also, the whites of her eyes were completely bloodshot, and he realized that they were actually that color now. That's when he noticed the parasite squirming near her waist, blood around the jagged wound.
"Harry…"
She said, her tone smooth and cold, a dangerously sexy overtone rolling from her lips. It didn't even sound like the same person.
She then raised her handgun, and he had mere seconds to fall to his back as she fired several shots, barely missing him.
"You have to do something, its not Cybil anymore…!"
He already knew now he'd run before he could shoot her, and bludgeoning her to death wasn't an option either. She began a steady stride toward him, her movements light and airy. He almost thought she was floating at first.
She was still smiling, and her eyes had turned completely crimson. For some reason he stuck his hands in the pockets of his jacket, and felt the glass vial he'd picked up at Alchemilla.
He pulled it out, the red liquid shimmering at the bottom. He wanted to help her, so feeling that this was his only option he turned and ran around the merry-go-round, opposite of Cybil.
"Where are you going?"
She asked in the same monotonic voice. He sped up, finally coming up to her back. She started to turn, hearing his footsteps-
-and he threw the vial at her, the tube exploding on contact. The red liquid drench the parasite attached to her, and it emitted a high pitched squeal.
He covered his ears, watching in horror as Cybil fell to the ground, clutching her side. She screamed in pain, and suddenly the creature was trying to wiggle away, Harry running up and stomping the thing several times.
He saw that Cybil was already standing to her feet, albeit leaning against a carousel horse for support. There was a long silence, neither of them saying anything, just staring at the parasite that had been controlling her.
"…Thanks"
"Don't mention it…"
They stood there a second longer, lost in thought.
"Harry…Why have they taken your daughter? Do you have any idea?"
He looked up at her, somehow relieved that she was intrigued and enthused on helping him find Cheryl.
"You know, I didn't really think about that at first, but there's something I haven't really mentioned to her yet. She's…not really my biological daughter. Seven years ago, my wife and I were leaving from a vacation here.
I spotted her right as we were leaving, just abandoned on the side of the road. She was so beautiful, I didn't know who could do that, so we took her in. My wife couldn't have kids, so you could imagine that we were ecstatic."
Cybil laughed and smiled, staying silent so he could continue.
"Soon after my wife died she began to start sleepwalking, and they would cause her to get ill. One night I found her in the living room, and she said 'Silent Hill'.
I was distraught, and when she started saying it every time she sleepwalked I thought that maybe, since I did find her here there might be some connection between her and this town."
Cybil was studying him, truly listening and comprehending what he was trying to explain.
"So you brought her here…"
He chuckled, a sound without any humor.
"Great idea huh…?" He was staring at the floor, and she felt embarrassed for mentioning it.
"Hey, we're gonna find her okay?" She said reassuringly.
He nodded, seemingly comforted by her words.
"But not standin' around!" She joked, not able to fully lighten the mood.
He said "Your right, lets get a move on."
They stepped off the carousel, moving away and toward an old cotton candy machine. That's when he saw a glow around the back of an old restroom about twenty feet ahead. He asked Cybil to stay back, moving stealthily toward the circular light.
"It's the Mark of Samael…"
He stopped at the corner, surveying the area. After assuming it was clear, he inched his way toward the brightly glowing crest.
"What's going on…?"
He heard Cybil whisper from behind. Before he could answer, Alessa stepped from the shadows, standing on the opposite side of the circle.
"Please," he started helplessly, "give me back my little girl…"
She extended an arm, reaching out toward him-
-and he was suddenly sailing backward by a mystical force, landing flat on his back.
A force field appeared around the child, and she lowered her head and shuffled to the center of the mark.
Harry felt something vibrating in his coat pocket, and he reached in and pulled out a now ember glowing Flauros. It started spinning, levitating in thin air.
"Huh…? What is this?"
Pure white beams of light shot from the floating trinket, and Alessa emitted a high pitched scream. The force field disappeared, the child falling to the ground.
"Where's Cheryl," He started sternly, speaking to Alessa.
"Give me back my daughter."
Cybil came to help him to his feet, both turning to the sound of shrill cackling.
It was Dahlia, who loomed over the child, speaking gravely, "We meet at last, Alessa."
She sucked her breath in quickly, taken by surprise.
"Dahlia Gillespie…!"
Harry stepped forward, narrowing his eyes at the old woman.
"Where's Cheryl? Where is she!"
Dahlia ignored him, seemingly oblivious.
"Alessa. It's time to stop this foolish game. Your little free roam of the town is over."
"Mama…" She squealed, squirming to get away from the old woman.
"Huh? So Dahlia is…"
"You've been a ghastly little pest haven't you Alessa?" She barked, now scaring the child.
"I was careless, thinking you couldn't escape from our spell. But mommy didn't know how much you'd grown!"
She looked up at Harry, smiling as she spoke the next sentence.
"That's why I couldn't catch you all by myself."
"Hey!" Harry yelled, "What are you talking about!"
Instead of answering she turned and grabbed hold of Alessa's ankle.
"Alessa my dear little girl, there's one more thing left for you to do for me."
"No, get away from me!" Alessa cried, Dahlia quickly overpowering her.
"Bad girl!" She brought the back of her hand across the child's face.
"Everything is ready so its time to go home now…"
She pulled her closer, and they both slowly disappeared from sight in a giant cloud of purple light, the Mark slowly fading out.
"I can't believe it…" Harry whispered, looking at what his hands had done.
"It was Dahlia all along! That poor girl was trying to help me!"
Cybil's eyebrows were furrowed, and she scratched her head in frustration.
"What do we do now? We cant possibly follow them." She said.
"The hospital, maybe Lisa can-"
He stopped as waves of pain crashed into his skull, quickly bringing him to his knees. He heard Cybil saying something to him, but all he could hear was his heart beat reverberating in his eardrums.
Finally his vision became blurry, and he collapsed to the ground as the world spun to black.