Chapter 4-2 Hilda

Even though she was on her own, the child knew that Alice needed a blue herb for the toxins inside of her to be removed. Hilda had plenty of time, since the poison wouldn't be fatal until the sun set. However, the sooner she found that colored herb, the better. Even if she had to travel the reservoir on her own, the young girl was determined to save the older woman who had been with her since she came to the Village. Hopping into the boat and using the key, Hilda drove off into the sunken houses as she floated on the water. She knew that this area of the Village tends to be flooded during the winter months, due to the dam and the melting snow, but the waters were never this high nor did it stretch out this far into these parts. This is the worst Hilda had ever seen of the Village.

The child saw the large electric dam before her, and a wooden platform that was floating, most likely what was left of a house. The child decided to station the boat there for now, taking the key with her as she looked around. "This is bad… everything's under water." She now understood how dire the situation was. If the area had been flooded, that meant many things. The first was that the exit was blocked, so even if Alice and Hilda wanted to go back, they couldn't unless they were good swimmers. Then again, with how cold the water could get, it was best not to risk it. On top of that, the blue herbs that grew around this area were under the waves. So the antidote that Alice needed was out of reach at the moment. "If only it was summer, then I could swim in the water no problem… then again, those monsters would still be there." It only dawned on Hilda now how dangerous this adventure of hers was.

Hilda jumped as she heard splashing in the water around her. She gazed down at the surface, seeing bubbles and ripples appearing. She took a step towards the edge, wondering what was causing the stress in the waters. Something came out, a giant aquatic creature with multiple eyes, had bumped into the platform, causing Hilda to bounce up and nearly lose her footing. "Found. You." The voice of Lord Moreau could be heard from the monster, the Giant Fish that many in this part of the Village feared. Realizing she was at risk, Hilda ran from the beast. Finding some stairs, she hurried up them and used a narrow pathway of loose boards and crumbling rails to try and get to solid ground. She screamed and panted as she ran, and every time Moreau crashed into the foundation, she felt herself losing her footing.

She somehow found the strength she needed to find a hill with shrubs and bricks on the other side. Taking the risk, the child jumped from the wooden platform and onto the rocks and dirt. She laid on her hands and body, catching her breath from the rush. Before she could get up, she ducked again as a few loose wooden planks flew over her head and landed in some bushes. Turning around, she saw that the walkway she took to get here was completely destroyed, even the boat was gone. She couldn't take that pathway again to go to Alice. And with Moreau swimming in those waters, she didn't dare take the chance. "What am I supposed to do now?" Hilda asked herself. She felt alone, unprepared and worst of all: scared. She didn't know what to do on how to get some herbs or how to get past Moreau. Looking around, the child had to think it over. "If Alice was here, she would try to think of some way to drain the water so we could have the advantage of land." The child noted.

Hilda's eyes lit up as she realized what she thought. "Wait… drain the water…" She turned over to the dam, as the wheels in her head began to turn. She darted back to the windmills as a plan was forming in her mind. A smile spread on her face, already knowing what she needed to do. She hopped off the ledge and saw two paths. To her left was a sign reading 'Moreau's Clinic', but she knew that area was blocked off by the water. So, she took the path on her right, heading up to a building with a sign that said 'Gatehouse'. The child headed inside, hearing the grunts and howls of the Fishman. She went to a control panel that was overlooking the view of the dam and the flooded Village. She could also see Moreau moving around in the waters. She noticed some knobs, switches, buttons and a lever with yellow tape pointing downwards. A red light above it with a picture of some color coated code next to it.

Hilda reached up to the handle, trying to push it so she could get it to open the gates. She grunted, using all of her might. "Ugggghh… come…on…hgggggh!" She panted and gave up. "Curse my weak, child arms." She wished Ethan was here, he would be able to flip that switch no problem. He must be somewhere in this sector of the Village, since he didn't want to be too far from Alice.

The child heard commotion from behind, turning to see a lantern with a crescent symbol next to a wooden door. She saw a few windows with curved bars, as Hilda managed to look inside, seeing two familiar figures. The child wasted no time, going to the door and opening it. She ran inside, seeing the Duke behind a table as he had meat and assortments abound. Ethan stood next to him, seeing the young girl coming in. "Duke! Ethan!" She called out to the men who were in that room.

"Hilda?" The older Winters was surprised to see her, alone as well.

"Ah! Hilda, my dear." The Duke smiled as he saw the child enter. "Glad to see you are still dry despite being in the reservoir."

Ethan ran over to the child and knelt to her level. "Are you alright?"

The child nodded. "I'm fine, I'm thankful that I ran into you so quickly."

"Why? Did something happen?! Where's Alice?!" Ethan now noticed that his sister was nowhere in sight.

Hilda shook her head. "Alice found the root in this part of the Village, then collected the sample. She got attacked by a Crowned Orb Weaver, she's poisoned and is still near the root!"

"Woah, woah, slow down. What's a Crowned Orb Weaver?" Ethan asked as he tried to process this.

"A giant spider, also known as Araneus diadematus." The Duke explained. "A common European garden spider, but around these parts they are very big… and venomous."

When he heard that, Ethan turned back to Hilda, who nodded to confirm it. "Alice got bitten by one of them, and I was trying to find a blue herb."

"Blue herb?" Ethan repeated.

Hilda was about to respond, but the Duke chimed in. "They are used to cure toxins in the body, no matter what animal or chemical. They grow around the Village, especially here."

"But I haven't seen any…" Hilda told him. "The whole area of the village is under water, and any herbs that were there are unreachable."

Ethan sighed as he rubbed his neck. "Shit… of course it is."

"And the worst part, Moreau is out there in his monster form! He's searching for me and Alice, and in the water, he's really fast."

Ethan realized how grim the situation was, between his sick sister and one of the Lords roaming around, they were trapped at this point. Ethan wasn't sure what to do, but the Duke looked over at the child. "My dear, you already know what to do, don't you?" The male Winters looked between the merchant then to the child.

Hilda looked up at Ethan and nodded. "There's a control panel out there that can control the gates of the dam. I tried to lift up the lever, but I didn't have the strength."

"Ohh, I get it. If we drain the water, we'll have the advantage." Ethan noted as he headed out of the door, knowing where the panel was. Hilda followed, walking over as Ethan saw the yellow tapped handle and grabbed hold of it. It did take a bit of an effort to push it up, but he managed it. Grunting, he looked over to the dam, seeing the monstrous fish man splashing around in the water, as nothing had changed. "Why isn't it working?" Ethan questioned as he grew a bit annoyed.

"I don't think there's any power…" Hilda realized as she looked out to the flooded section.

"Got any other ideas?" Ethan asked the child, as she was his only lead.

Hilda thought it over as she rubbed her chin while biting her lip. As she looked back at the area, her eyes landed on a certain structure with a fan attached to the top. "The windmills!"

Ethan raised a brow as he didn't understand her enthusiasm. "What about them?"

"This part of the Village uses the Windmills to control power and electricity here! Right now, they seem inactive, which explains why there isn't any power."

"Okay… is there any way we can get them to turn?"

"Since they're really old, they had to crank them by hand whenever the wind wasn't strong enough…" Hilda explained. "But I know how!"
"Alright, lead the way! The sooner we open those gates, the sooner we can save Alice." Hilda nodded, running to the corner and going into the hallway between the control panel and the Duke's room. Heading down the hall with the metal pipes, they came out a wooden door and back into the open. Going to the left, they headed up a few stone steps and followed the path until they made it to one of the windmills with a pickup truck next to it. It was a circular platform that Ethan stepped on, with a wooden railing and iron tracks. There was a trolley cart there with large gears attached to it and some beams that were connected to the turbine on the windmill. Ethan ran over to it, with Hilda following behind. He hopped onto the cart and looked at the machine. The gears were a bit rusty with yellow paint, which Ethan assumed was algae, but hopefully it would work.
Ethan reached over to the wooden handle, grabbing it and began to turn it. At first, it was working well. The more he cranked the handle, the farther he went on the track. But after only one cycle, his strength got the better of him as the handle snapped right off, leaving him the rotten stick in his hold. He tossed it aside and grunted in annoyance. "Ugh, seriously…?"

"Are you alright?" She asked as the child looked up at the older male.

"Yeah, but we can't get the windmill to work now… You wouldn't happen to have an extra crank with you?" He asked.

The child shook her head, then rushed back over to the truck. Ethan ran after her as she picked something up from the seat. The older Winters took it and examined it over to see what was written: 'The crank here is so old and busted up, I swear it will snap at any second. I told that stable boy to tell the blacksmith to make a new handle for all of the Windmills. We have the one, but the other never got back to us. Now if this handle breaks, we'll have to use the other at Windmill Two just to power this up. I swear, this is what I get for letting a stable boy have the job of a messenger.'

"Windmill Two…" Ethan looked around the place, seeing an active windmill across from where they were. "That must be it…"

Hilda looked below from the boarded rails to see the water and what was left of the Village. "We'll have to wade across though…"

"Don't worry, if we're quick this shouldn't be hard. Just stay close." Ethan advised. The two headed inside the space and climbed down the ladder until they were on the ground floor. Once there, they headed out the exit, only to be greeted with the water levels. Ethan saw just how damaged this section of the village was. Remains of houses were scattered around with branches from trees. There was a pathway of debris leading to the other windmill, though getting there would no doubt be a struggle. "Watch your step, and don't look down." Hilda nodded, staying close to Ethan as he held the handgun out. Carefully stepping onto the bricks and shingles of a roof. Everywhere he looked, all he could see was water and ruins. It was a miracle this section of the village was still standing.

They slowly threaded through the rooftops and branches that gave them a path. They crossed some floating pieces of wooden boards just to get to another rooftop. He then saw a large board held up by some beams, which Ethan used to shoot at, then caused a pathway to be opened up. "Alright, we're halfway there…" Ethan held Hilda's hand as they crossed the floating walkway, being cautious as they weren't sure what was lurking around. He saw a leaning watchtower, which he had to shoot a few holding beams so they could cross to another dock. The moment it hit the water though, Hilda gasped as she looked at the waves where bubbles and ripples were forming.

"What is it?" Ethan noticed Hilda frozen with fear. He saw the bubbles and wondered if it was Moreau ready to pounce on them. They watched as something jumped from the water, though it was smaller than the fish monster. Before them was a human-sized frog covered in warts that acted like armor, and supported webbed claws. The creature croaked, as it looked at Ethan and Hilda. Without warning, it opened its mouth and aimed right at Hilda. Ethan pushed her aside, making sure she was out of the way. A long and wet tongue wrapped around the Winters, causing him to fall on his back as he was entrapped in the muscle of the frog. The animal began to use its rope to reel him in, as if he was the prey. Ethan tried to shoot at the monster, but the bullets just flew right off the bumpy skin. Ethan cursed as he tried to wiggle out of the hold, but it did him no good.

Hilda acted quickly, knowing that the monster was all alone, she could take it on. Grabbing her knife, she tried to figure out what to do. The skin was too thick to make any dent, since the bullets had no effect. The child noticed the tongue that was being used as a rope to try and lure in Ethan, which didn't seem as protected. Raising the knife, Hilda acted as she slammed the blade into the tongue, causing the bloated frog to croak in pain. It was enough to release Ethan from his captive state and made the monster pull back its muscle, then hopped into the water to swim away.

Ethan panted as he got himself back as he was finally freed, while trying to regain his composure and ensure that he didn't get any slime or mucus on his body. "Thanks, kid."

Hilda looked back over to the water where the monster had sunk. "That was close, I've heard of having a frog in your throat, but that is a more twisted version…"

Ethan merely chuckled, as he noticed the water was moving again, waves and ripples forming. "Come on, let's hurry." He advised. Hilda nodded, as the two crossed through the boards and walkways. What remained of this side of the village was broken wood and metal, along with puss and enzyme walls that made it difficult for them to go places. Ethan had to climb up a few stairs with Hilda, getting to an iron grate flooring. There, he saw a wood and iron cart with wheels. Taking the initiative, he pushed the bar and shoved the cart into the water below, surprised that it floated to the other side. They jumped down, feeling the unstable platforms moving as a creature with eyeballs over its body emerged, and began to swim around them. "The hell?!" Ethan looked at the creature, as he had a sinking (no pun intended) feeling.

"It's him! Lord Moreau!" Hilda held onto Ethan, trying to keep him away from the water. The Winters knew they had to get to the Second Windmill. He noticed a box where they were, opening the panel only to see a lever which was covered in slime and moving bugs.

"Gross…" He nearly gagged, but reached over and pulled it, summoning an electronic bridge from the water. It didn't look safe, but they didn't have much of a choice. Hilda ran off, looking behind to make sure Ethan was still there. They had to cross wobbling boards just to get to the dock ways, all the while

Moreau was jumping out of the water. "I'm the best!" He cried out as he flopped around, landing in the lake.

"This guy is getting too cocky…" Ethan grunted as he and Hilda headed towards another push-able cart, which the man shoved into the water so they could hop onto the other side. "Stay close!" Ethan warned as he grabbed Hilda's arm as they walked up a few flights of stairs. Once they were on top of a high point, Ethan looked around to see what they could do. They were close to the Second Windmill, but the water was too far apart from the other side. He searched until he saw another yellow tapped lever, which he pulled down. A rope connecting to a crane was lifted, as a large boat rose from the waters. It was covered in more of those enzyme walls, but it seemed stable enough to walk on. "Looks like I caught myself a big one." Ethan cracked a joke as he jumped onto the deck, helping Hilda to get down as they went to the small shaft where the steering wheel was. He shot at the walls, and decayed the puss as he and Hilda jumped onto the dock where they entered the bottom of the Second Windmill, just as Moreau had crashed into the side of the ship.

Hilda looked back to see the monster splashing around in the water, while Ethan searched for a way to get to the top. The Winters saw a ladder that was chained up on the second level. Using his handgun, he shot the lock and caused the ladder to fall down. He carefully climbed up the many steps, not realizing how far it was to the top level. Hilda quickly ran over and followed behind him. Once they were there, they headed out to the rail tracks. Moreau was jumping up, nearly attacking them but they were safe from the height they were at. Ethan ran around the windmill as the paper blades spun at a slow pace. He soon located the cart with the mossy gears and took the crank that looked brand new, with a silver handle that had an octopus at the end. "Alright, now we have to get to the other windmill…" Ethan sighed. Hilda nodded as they hurried to the ladder that reached up to the very top. They could see the other Windmill straight ahead, but it would be a long way back. Ethan looked down, seeing the monster swimming around the houses and walkways they used to get to this building. There was no way they could risk going all the way back, especially when there were other creatures involved.

The male noticed a cable above him, with a hook attached to it. It went all the way to the First Windmill. It may be a risky move, but what other option did they have? He reached over, grabbing hold of the child. "Hold on tight." He advised, using his injured hand to grab hold of the hook. He pressed his heels off from the planks and they began to glide through the air. Hilda and Ethan screamed as the wind blew into their faces, zipping down the line as they gripped their supports. Halfway, the waters rippled as the Fish King jumped from the waves, growling as he opened his maw to bite at them. He missed only by a few inches, as Ethan curled his feet up against his chest. They touched down on top of the First Windmill. Hilda landed on her feet while Ethan crashed into the brick wall. Thankfully, it wasn't too painful. She went to him and helped him up. The Winters quickly ran to the cart where the gears were and inserted the crank. He turned the handle with all his might, making the wheels and cogs turn until that was as far as they could go. Hilda saw the blades of the windmill turn, sparks ran along the powerlines towards the dam.

"OK!" Ethan cheered as he saw the sparks himself. He started to head down the path with Hilda following behind. They made it back to the Gatehouse and went to the control panel. Ethan looked at the buttons next to the lever and the small paper with the pattern.
"Do you know what you're doing?" Hilda asked as she stood by his side.

"I didn't graduate college to become a systems engineer for nothing." Ethan reassured the child. Admittedly he did have to get the puzzle correct. All he had was the scrap of paper to tell him what the color coordinates were, but he wasn't sure what position they had to be. So it was mostly trial and error. The more dots that were filled on the meter above the lights meant he was closer. Hilda watched on her tiptoes as he got the pattern down, with a green light above the lever, making it look like the image on the side. "Alright, here goes." Ethan took hold of the lever and pushed it upwards. The two watched as the sludge gates lifted up. Not as high as Ethan thought they would go, but when he saw the rushing foam of water coming out on the other end, a smile found itself on his face. Moreau was howling and splashing near the dam before swimming off. "Got it!" Ethan gave a nod as he saw the water flowing out, draining the village.

"You did it!" Hilda beamed.

"Now we'll be able to get out of here. But first, let's try and gather those blue herbs for Alice."

The small child nodded up at him. She wanted to save Alice as well, and with the water drained, they could get to her and find her medicine. Hopefully they weren't too late.