Walter's Journey: Charred

[Laraqua]

The corridor seems empty enough though its hard to be sure with the darkening shadows. The floorboards creak dangerously underfoot as he steps across the charred section. Once more the floor responds to his feet, leaving a wake of char and weakening wood behind him as a tale of destruction and devastation. The door is too splintered and damaged to shut behind him, and there is much more hotel to explore and very few clues with which to explore it.

Show Seon,roll Sanity. SAN loss 0 / 1 for being the lone adult in such a dangerous place.

[Seon]

Spoiler:

http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/3482142/

Walter manages to hold on.

[Laraqua]

Strong and resolute, he can now head ... where?

[Laraqua]

There's a sound that surrounds him, buzzing, trying to get inside his mind. His name, repeated time and again, "Liam," "Liam?" "Liam!" "Liam." over and over again. Different voices, his father's, his mother's, Alessa's, tear through his mind as though something were lifting up and examining all of his old memories. He claws at his face and hair, desperate to repel the invasion, but it continues to burn through his mind. His hands, so hot, he feels them scald against the metal handle, feel the skin pressed tight against it, feels the skin adhere, pull and tug away from it loosely, and the shattering sound of little Alessa's screaming. His knees cave in and he hits the floor, shaking his head wildly, and slowly the assault begins to slow and he hears a little girl's voice whisper in his ear, desperate and needy, "Where were you?"

Something about her voice scores him through to the depths of his mind, and cuts him to the quick.

The floorboards, burnt through from his proximity, creak and burst out from under him, dumping him into the darkness of the floor below. He hits the boards below, bruising his hip, and surrounded by darkness.

[Seon]

"Fuck," Walter said. He fumbled to turn on the clip-on flashlight.

[Laraqua]

The light comes on to reveal the darkened walls of yet another corridor, this one with charred paintings and portraits upon the walls.

[Seon]

"...I must have fallen to one of the lower floors," Walter muttered.

Or some crazy teleportation/hallucination/reality warp happened. That also seemed likely.

He moved to examine the portraits.

[Laraqua]

The charred portraits have name plates beneath each one - Gillespie, Kauffman, Garland, Smith, Wolf, Archbolt, Stone, Rosten - though none of the portraits have visible faces. They all look far too charred and blackened to recognise. Scratched into the Kauffman painting are the words: Never forgotten in a childlike scrawl.

[Seon]

He moved further down the corridor. There wasn't anything interesting here. Yet.

[Laraqua]

The gloom seems to settle around him like wisps of smoke as he makes his way down a corridor that is lined with far too many doors and continues for far too long. It reminds him almost of the times he spent in the hospital, scampering about the halls while his father worked, neglecting the appropriate cold attitude for a more fun and playful approach with his friends. Alessa Gillespie had been so shy. His other friend, Laura? was it Laura?, his mind seems foggy from the fall. She'd been so playful, so vivid. His father had scolded him. What man would spend so much time with girls? But who else? Vincent was a few years younger and a few years was a gulf. Claudia Wolfe was the same age, best friends with Alessa, but so strange, so devout, she'd never been ... he and Laura could never understand her. Never grow close to her. Alessa and her, though, they truly seemed to understand each other. Where Alessa saw cheer with them (when the other children weren't watching, so much, though sometimes he stepped in when she were bullied) - her suffering is vital, Liam, let it built - she found solace with Claudia.

Claudia? Where was she.

She's dead, Liam.

His thoughts criss and they cross and it takes him a moment to realise that they aren't entirely his own. It's as though the channels were highjacked and someone else were channel surfing his thoughts. The world around him burned and charred. He can make out support struts now through the gutted ceilings, the alligator patterning showing that the fire began behind him and came forward, but this hallway is too long, far too long. It's like so many buildings he's seen, combined and coupled, and flowing together. There's meat on the floors, pressed up against the walls, huddling there as though small animals came here to die, yet still they tremble.

Somewhere, from further down the hallway comes a sharp whistling.

[Seon]

Walter ran down the halls towards the whistling noise. "Who's there?!" he yelled out.

[Laraqua]

The whistling stops and a man rounds the corner wearing an impeccably tailored suit and carrying a worn old book with a leather cover. He shuts it with a snap and tilts his head to one side as he looks at Walter, head tilted to one side. "Walter? Is that really you? You look the spitting image of one of the villains from your novels. Which is it this time? A serial killer who can't find his way home without burying skulls at every crossroads he meets? Or the schizophrenic who thought he saw a zombie but was merely an axe crazed sociopath?"

[Seon]

"You know," Walter said. "That's kind of funny because I did see a dead body come back to life... and this axe did happen to be buried half way into it... Wait... who the hell are you?!"

[Laraqua]

"You don't remember me?" The mysterious man gapes at him as he approaches. "I'm hurt. Crushed." One eye gazes at him but the other seems to be looking over at the wall. One pupil is also larger than the other. It's been years, decades, since he's since the little child but there's no doubts now who it is. Vincent Smith. The deceitful little cultist from the Order.

[Seon]

"Actually, yeah," Walter said, stepping slightly away. "I do remember you. Vincent."

He coughed.

"So...err..." he said, pointing towards the bloody messes on the ceilings, the walls, and the floor. "What's up with this place?"

[Laraqua]

"What's the matter? Don't you recognise Paradise? This ... this is Alessa's work. A world created to represent her pain and misery fuelled by that which lay within her womb. Doesn't it just fill you with pride?" There's the touch of irony in his voice, as though he knows he's full of crap about the wonders surrounding them. "Oh, and it's Father Vincent by the way. If you're looking for Claudia, she's not here or anywhere anymore. From what I can gather, she and God had a bit of a disagreement. Alessa isn't here either ... nor should you be. You're just going to cause a fuss, I'm afraid."

[Seon]

"What's the matter? Don't you recognise Paradise? This ... this is Alessa's work. A world created to represent her pain and misery fuelled by that which lay within her womb. Doesn't it just fill you with pride?" There's the touch of irony in his voice, as though he knows he's full of crap about the wonders surrounding them. "Oh, and it's Father Vincent by the way. If you're looking for Claudia, she's not here or anywhere anymore. From what I can gather, she and God had a bit of a disagreement. Alessa isn't here either ... nor should you be. You're just going to cause a fuss, I'm afraid."

"...What."

Walter shook his head.

"What womb? They told me she died."

[Laraqua]

"She died twice but is hardly your concern now," said Vincent with a dismissive wave of his hand. "What matters is that you get out of here but, unfortunately, Silent Hill has a firm grasp on you and the theoretical protections tend to fade in time so I think.... Yes, I think you will need to pass through Silent Hill. I do have a few pieces of advice. Firstly, keep moving. People sometimes attempt to barricade themselves into places but it will just prolong the experience and make you tired, hungry, and thirsty. Secondly, avoid Laura or unknown small children in general. Thirdly, monsters generally will die but you can't always rely on shooting them. Pay attention to your surroundings. Silent Hill is like the subconscious mind. It will give you hints and clues as to what you must do and ... sometimes ... such clues will lead you toward strange and esoteric acts that you wouldn't normally consider. Alas, such is life here. Oh, and read any notes you come across. They're often what will give you little hints. Stockpile Health Drinks and First Aid Kits and ammunition. You'll be provided with just enough to survive if you're clever but this place does want you to fail and die so don't anticipate it making it easier for you. Any more questions?"

[Seon]

Silence. Walter stared at Vincent long and hard.

He raised an eyebrow. He scratched his head.

"Yes, I have one question. What the hell are health drinks anyways?"

[Laraqua]

"I'm sure you'll figure it out," said Vincent with a theatrical gesture. "Just try not to listen to little Laura or whatever she's calling herself these days or any of her plans. It just ... isn't ... wise ... to feel sorry for her. Try to understand that, will you? I've had to look everywhere to find you. I don't need you to go causing a fuss." He lays his hand on one of the door handles just as an air raid siren begins to wail in the background. "Let alone a mess. So long." With that, he opens up a doorway into darkness and steps inside.