You have your orders, soldier

I'm on a mission to find my brother Joshua. Have you seen him?

[silent--soldier-blog]

Is anyone still around?

[fathervincent]

Showdown in the Hall of Mirrors

[masonrysecrets]

Focusing on herself for a moment, Heather rubber her face off, her once orange wrist band now slightly darker. The two of them seemed to be completely in the dark about the situation, and she really didn’t see the point in pressing the matter any further. They were in the dark, and she trusted them greatly so as far as she was concerned they could move on. And thankfully she had, stopping Vincent dead in his verbal tracks. She didn’t want any more blood shed here. There were no more monsters, thus the battle had no need to continue any further. She felt a twinge of regret as he mentioned the glass. She… really didn’t want to touch it. It was bad enough simply being here at all. Relief passed over her as she saw the first-aid kit. Should the kit come her way, she would decline. She didn’t want anything wasted on her. 

That question… she felt like she should answer  but knew Vincent had a better grasp on the subject. Instead she let her gaze wander down the mirrors, she shivered and looked back to the group. She couldn’t take it. The sooner she could leave the better. Perhaps after this she would finally go to the monastery and finally confront her … mother. The thought didn’t seem right, she felt like it was a trap, but how could it be? Releasing a sigh she knew it would have to happen. And now was as good a time as ever.  

[silent--soldier-blog]

All of this didn't make any sense. And it was frustrating as hell.

Exhaling audibly but not loud enough to be considered rude, he looked at his surroundings again. What seemed like millions of shattered glass lay on the floor before them. It was almost impossible not to get across without stepping on a shard or two. He could relate with them- his mind was a delicate glass container and upon coming to this town, had fallen and shattered into a thousand pieces. He would try desperately to pick them all up but would just end up with cuts and blood. Being in this town, there was no use picking up the shards. And if he were successful in picking up some and trying piece them together, more shards would take place of the held ones. Sometimes Alex felt that it wasn't worth trying to be safe with glass. Besides, a few cuts never hurt anyone.

Hearing Vincent's apology, he waited for Travis to speak first before he nodded his head and responded, "Same here." There was no time for fighting. It was evident that everyone in this room was going to get seriously fucked if they didn't start doing something about it; Vincent was living proof. And apparently so were Alex and Travis, despite not having any recollection of the ordeal at all. That was Silent Hill. He was about to volunteer to help Vincent when Travis took the offer before he could. He watched silently as Travis left and came back with a first aid kit. For a town that was trying to kill them all off, it liked to mock the humans it tortured by laying out medicinal and combative needs. Was it trying to test to see how far they could go before they all eventually met their downfall?

Alex took the first aid kit but looked over at Travis and Heather. Sure he ached in numerous places but he wasn't as bad far off as the other three. I guess that's an advantage of being a soldier... he thought before watching Travis tend to Vincent. It was almost painful to him to watch the shards being pulled out of Vincent's back. Trying to get his mind out of that he turned to Heather and handed her the box. "Take it. I'll manage on my own."

[fathervincent]

Showdown in the Hall of Mirrors

[fathervincent]

Vincent’s eye twitched when the man, who had seconds ago been the monster trying to kill her, even dared ask if she was okay. He turned to glare at Travis and hiss. “Awful lot of concern for the guy who was just trying to gut her. Does she LOOK okay to you?”He looked ready to spring up and attack Travis, and then he heard Heather speak, or at least he thought it was speaking. He shot Travis one last glare and then turned back to Heather. “That looks bad…”

Carefully he moved to help her sit up, letting her lean against the wall beside the mirror they had fallen through. “Just take it easy for a bit alright.” Knowing Heather that wasn’t going to be alright. Still, she wasn’t still bleeding that bad anymore, and he was sure she knew how to handle a little nosebleed. She just needed to catch her breath.

Once she was situated he turned back to Travis, and the other man, who finally spoke, voicing the question on everyone’s mind. Vincent rose to his feet, watching them warily. “Moments ago the both of you were monsters, and trying to kill the both of us, care to explain?” His tail flicked agitatedly, and he narrowed his eyes, placing himself between Heather and the two men. There was a faint flicker of recognition in his eyes when he saw the younger man, but still he felt another question was necessary. “Who the hell are you two?”

[stilljusttrucking-deactivated20]

“Gut her? Wait what are you-” Travis started before Vincent started having a go at him. The man’s body quickly shifted to fighter’s stance as he saw the monstrous being ready to attack him. He clenched his fists and was ready to defend himself against Vincent when the young woman spoke, snatching up the half-man’s attention and drew him away. While Vincent and Heather conversed and attended to each other, he looked up at Alex, thankful that the young man was alright and alive.

“You okay Alex?” Travis asked, trying to find his feet. He groaned, rubbing his sore back and his head, trying to collect his thoughts. He was alright but confused as hell. The last he remembered was that he was in the Otherworld and in so much pain. Then it all went fuzzy from there until he found that half-man thing on top of him.

Everyone was confused and asking what the hell. It was only when Vincent spoke though could Travis manage an answer. “We were… monsters?” He raised his eyebrow, looking over Vincent’s appearance. “I… I don’t know… we were in that mirror world, there was some bullshit circle thing and then.. I don’t know. You’re saying we were monsters?” Travis crossed his arms. “He’s Alex Shepherd. I’m Travis Grady, trucker from Brahms. Who are you to ask?”

[masonrysecrets]

“‘ait! ‘ish ‘avish!” She coughed a bit, spitting out the blood that flooded her mouth. She coughed a bit, about to clear her mouth when she was beat to the punch. She still spat out the blood that had made her speech gurgled and very much like something other than English. Rubbing her nose a bit she coughed again. The taste of blood was … to say the least, unpleasant. Trying to regain some composure, she forced herself to her feet, every muscle complaining.   She wanted to assure Vincent they were innocent, especially the trucker, but she didn’t want to go into the weirdness of how she was part of Alessa. In stead she reloaded her gun. Instead she gave a fake cough. “They look like monsters to you?” She muttered slightly, lifting a brow. Now really wasn’t the time, but anything to keep him from killing someone who once saved her life.  “Despite the rather grotesque appearance, this is Father Vincent Smith.” Yes, she was going to be smug at this, she really wasn’t in the mood to be serious after all that happened. Not to mention her head still throbbed. “I’m Heather Mason. And you both did just attempt to bifurcate us.” She sneezed a bit, clamping her nose at the pain. She really wished she could blame that on them, but that was unfortunately her own damn fault. 

[silent--soldier-blog]

Even though the situation was far from okay, Alex couldn't help but get a bit defensive when Vincent began to verbally attack Travis. He was about to intervene when he heard about the entire fiasco from his mouth. "So what you're saying is, we turned into monsters and tried to kill you both." It was very strange saying this out loud. A hard face began to form and he gave out a harsh sigh. His eyes widened when Heather mentioned who her companion was. "Vincent?! That's really you?" His gaze focused on him. Last time Alex saw him, he looked completely human, normal. Now... "Not looking too good, huh." Whether that was sarcastic or not, Alex didn't take the time to dwindle on it, and went back to paying attention to the other two.

The woman had a bit of sass to her. That made Alex smile a bit- she reminded him of Elle a little bit. They almost looked the same too. At least the hair, anyway. "Alright, Heather. I'm not sure what to say. I honestly have no recollection of the past few hours. Big surprise." He noticed the blood coming from her house and wanted to reach out to her, but then there was Vincent. Maybe his anatomy changed his personality too, making him protective, making it a wise idea not to get too close to them. Fuck if he knew.

"I'm sorry. I wish I had something to help you with your wounds, but I lost everything..." He silently cursed to himself. Where the hell did his axe and gun go?

[fathervincent]

Showdown in the Hall of Mirrors

[masonrysecrets]

The world was cold, not unlike when she first came here… but, she could feel it change. Her head throbbed, the urge to curl up growing but the ability to do so was still beyond her reach. She didn’t like being out like this, the blackness in her mind led to locked memories.  Voices… her ears stung but she could certainly hear voices. Her mouth could move, barely but enough. She tried to say ‘I’m okay’ but she she managed was a gurgle as her mouth filled with bitter fluid. What the hell had she landed it?! Oh, right, blood. She nearly died at the thought she had someone else’s blood in her mouth. Another voice, this time her head was pounding as her body slowly realized how much pain she was in. But wait… two voices? But there had only been her, Vincent and… the monsters! She forced through the agony to roll over and point the pistol in front of her. “‘On’ ‘ouc’ ‘im!” She managed to slur out through blood pouring down her face. Okay so, it was her blood she knew atleast. But instead of monsters it was … a man. No, not just any man. She remembered him, no, Alessa did. “‘Avish?” What was going on?! What had she missed?! Arms shaking she lowered the pistol. She spat out what blood she could, it seems she had a cut on her cheek, and a nose bleed. “What… what the hell is …” She put a palm to her forehead, groaning. Thinking hurt too much. Actually, everything hurt too much. 

[silent--soldier-blog]

This was going on far too long. Even as a monster, the Bogeyman had a limit of patience. Time was being wasted here, and yet he could not kill the two intruders. A weak woman and some incompetent man-beast- surely no match for the Bogeyman and his comrade. But they were still living. It was shameful to have fought this long without inflicting death upon them. At least they had severe wounds. The Bogeyman's  mind went to his Master. How horrible it would be for God Herself to witness this failed assassination. The thought was almost making him sick to his stomach. It really... The Bogeyman growled loudly and grabbed his abdomen, dropping the Great Knife. A pain began erupting from his stomach. The pain became so unbearable that he gave out one last roar before he fainted...

...

Josh?

The faint voices in the room eventually brought Alex back into a state of consciousness. Grunting, he fought to open his eyes. As he tried to move around, the sound of crushed glass could be heard, causing Alex to cease his movements. He slowly turned his head to see Travis, a woman and... "Shit!" Alex quickly stood up, forgetting about the shards of glass he came into contact with. He was about to pull out his gun when... The gun was no longer there. He was ready to go hand to hand combat with the monster but then lowered his guard. Is he... human? Alex thought, walking to the group.

His breathing was heavy. Biting his lip, Alex remained silent about his pain. "What the hell's going on here?" he asked to everyone. Practically panting, his eyes darted from each person and back.

[fathervincent]

Showdown in the Hall of Mirrors

[masonrysecrets]

Everything was flashing before her, as if an old fashion movie. Three beings cluttered before her, her boots slipping backwards. She couldn’t help but release a yelp as the massive knife was swung seemingly in any random direction. In attempt to back up she skidded slightly on bloodied ground, falling to her knee. Thankfully, it still avoided her, but barely. Adrenaline pumping, she jumped up.  Vincent smashed into a mirror, Heather forcing herself to look to see if he was alright. Her reflection called to her, but she kept her eyes focused on Vincent. His breathe was ragged, clearly fighting for air. But he sprung up again and attacked. ‘RUN!’ Run?!  ”But, I can’t-What about you?!” She kept firing, panic welling up in her. “Don’t you fucking die!” She yelled above the sound of the fight. She turned to run,  but her boots slipped again. “NO!” That last she remembered seeing was her own reflection staring down at her, blood dripping down it’s face. She felt her hand reaching for the ground to pull herself away, but everything went black.

[silent--soldier-blog]

A large hand dug its nails into the Bogeyman's chest, removing any bullets that still stuck to his bloodied figure. The sound of the shells hitting the ground was almost deafening. If that wasn't acute enough, a loud SMASH! was soon heard. He slowly turned his massive head in the direction of the sound. It seemed that the Butcher took pretty good care of the man-beast. He still wasn't dead yet, however and that needed to be changed.

While he was still down, the massive creature dragged his mighty companion and made their way for execution. Stepping on shards of glass didn't phase him at all. If it was possible, the sound of his boots crushing it would probably please him. He would wonder if these uninvited guests would sound the same way under his boot, or Great Knife for that matter.

The Bogeyman was gathering his strength to lift up the knife over his head once more to deal a final blow to the wounded man-beast. Unfortunately due to the light and millions of shards everywhere, the Bogeyman was blinded in a way, causing some noises of displeasure to come from him. Roaring, he swung the knife.

But he heard no splatter of blood or organs.

Vincent was lucky to be thrown into the mirrors because if he hadn't, the Bogeyman would have had perfect accuracy and he would have been sliced in two. Bits and pieces of his reflection were destroyed by the knife, saving Vincent. The Bogeyman lifted his weapon again, making sure to hit this time.

[fathervincent]

Showdown in the Hall of Mirrors

[masonrysecrets]

With a jolt of surprise a shot hit. The beast that had endured it seemed to freeze, halting his attack. She grinned, but only to notice the advance of the other beast. She backed up, stumbling as she tried to get away while keeping him in her sights. She steadied her hand and aimed, but before she could shoot Vincent sprung to attack. He had risked himself…  The thought was whisked away as the first monster began to resume his attack. The dead on hit apparently wasn’t enough. She readied her pistol and shot…once. “Shit.” Now was the literal worst time to have to reload. Fumbling through her pockets she grabbed the pistol ammo, her fingers struggling to remain calm. It was getting much closer than she would have liked, before she finally snapped the pistol back into a ready state.  She fired again, careful to aim for the fleshy bits this time. She was starting to panic now, the spare bullets she had brought weren’t many to begin with, now there was even less. And there was no way in hell she was going into close-combat with this freaks. The one with the long knife wouldn’t be much issue, she doubted he was very agile with it. But the cleaver, that could likely be swung a bit more quickly with perhaps a tad more grace. That scared her. Not to mention both looked like they were on steroids.  “What are we going to do?!” 

[silent--soldier-blog]

Growling, he shifted the Great Knife, greatly agitated. He was ready to strike but more bullets fired into his chest. Another roar escaped his mouth, the pain from the bullets postponing his attacks. But he could bear the pain in the name of God. He would gladly fight to the death- and that's exactly what he was doing.

The other enemy grabbed his attention as he attacked the Bogeyman's comrade. While Heather had the gun, this one could be more of a pest. Seeing the Butcher make its way toward Heather, he was about to help out when the man-beast attacked the Butcher. This one needed to be dealt with so he decided to go for him. With a low growl, he grabbed the base of his weapon and using his whole body strength, swung it horizontally, hoping to slice anyone at this point.

The metal hit the ground hard and the Bogeyman looked, seeing if he had made a hit.

[fathervincent]

Showdown in the Hall of Mirrors

[masonrysecrets]

Heather nodded in agreement, something was certainly off. But she still refused to move. The heavy snarl of metal rumbling towards them. “What do we do?” The question hung in the hair, and then was hurled aside as their monster friends greeted them. “W-WHAT?!” Frozen in fear for a moment, Vincent’s words ripped her awake.  Pulling the trigger in rapid succession, she hoped at least one connected. The twang of metal told her a few missed, with what have been a head shot was turned into a rather dangerous miss. “What the hell are they?!” They reminded her of the freakish monster that killed Harry. It was human-esque, but distorted. Muscles bulging and head hidden. That was hard to kill, and then she at least had a shotgun. “I don’t have much ammo!” She tried to keep a safe distance while keeping them somewhat in range. “What do we do now?!” She didn’t want them to get close, with each massive step they took, she took two back. This was insane.  

[silent--soldier-blog]

Target acquired. These beings weren't like him and the Butcher. They were different. Different means bad. Different means against God. Against God means Death.

Death needed to be executed here. While it may result in its own, the Bogeyman had a job to do and that was to eliminate anyone who stood against God. He took a moment to get a better look at the two intruders. The woman was extremely foreign to him but he couldn't help but feel a sense of God gracing him with Her presence. Was this woman imitating God? What an insult. She would be his first target for sure. Through his thick pyramid-like helmet, he slowly turned toward the mutant. He wasn't surprised; he was a product of God's work, and it seemed that it wasn't complete yet. He would be a good candidate for being one of God's aides, but he still had a mind of his own and that was not acceptable.

He made the first move. The metal scraping against the rusted floor, the Bogeyman made his way toward Heather. His walking pace increased slightly as his upper body was getting ready to wield the Great Knife. Gaining energy, he effortlessly lifted the huge weapon from off the ground so that he had his arms up and behind his head, Great Knife pointed downward, reading to slice in half. Before he was about to strike, a bullet hit him in the chest. They Bogeyman stumbled back, dropping the Great Knife in one hand, the sound of it hitting the ground was almost shattering. The Bogeyman stared at Heather, animosity growing. He then let out a bellowing roar, in hopes to stun and intimidate the two intruders. Once he stopped, the Bogeyman suddenly moved towards Heather again. He lifted up his weapon, ready to strike, ready to kill. 

[fathervincent]

Showdown in the Hall of Mirrors

[masonrysecrets]

“Different enough, the rooms are similar but different ways to get to them.” She really couldn’t explain it properly. It shifted, as usual. She followed, gun lifted dead ahead.  She noted his mouth about to open, but then froze. “T-the walls…” Mirrors. Lining the walls. Like a dear in the headlights she stood dead still. “Vincent I can’t go down there…” The last room she went in with a mirror in this hospital nearly sucked her life away. As he spoke, she lifted her feet. They felt heavy as cement blocks, but she had to move. She dared to look into the reflective glass beside her, but it was not her own face that looked back. Or, it was hers but… bloodied. She felt a dull ache, no real pain but the memory of the past. She backed up, pressing against the wall behind her, but as she turned to look at it the gore dripped down it’s grimy surface. “NO!” She jumped back, and quickly left the hallway.  “Just… go ahead. I’ll be fine.” She didn’t want to go through there again. Her heart rate had jumped. “I’ll … stay here.” She heard a scraping noise, shortly after Vincent pointed it out. Was it a nurse? She gripped the pistol tightly, finger ready to press down at any moment. “Yeah, I do.”

[silent--soldier-blog]

What's going on?!

Where am I?

Josh? JOSH!

I'm losing my...

I must protect the Seal.

The Bogeyman had no more recollection of being human, being alive, being Alex Shepherd. That was a past life long forgotten now. None of it mattered anymore. If the Bogeyman would have remembered, it'd probably sulk in disgrace (if he were capable of any sane emotion). His entire vision was black; he was sitting in complete silence besides the sound of his husky body breathing. Breathing felt... foreign. When was the last time the Bogeyman had breathed? Did he even breathe at all? He was dead after all.

His body began to have sensations again. He could feel. Where was he? He wasn't sitting up straight. He was laying down... but on where. Once he regained most of his physical strength, the Bogeyman pushed himself up to check his surroundings. He was lying on a stretcher than managed to fit his over-sized human-like body. He gripped at the edges, slowly crushing the metal that held the contraption together. His strength... His strength had returned and seemed to come back two-fold. This was Her gift to him, for a price of course. He already knew what he had to do in order to serve and to please Her. He was given the duty of guarding a Seal; and he would fight to the death to protect it.

But now, the Seal was in danger. From the lowest levels of the hospital, the Bogeyman could sense entities unfamiliar enter the building. Were they after the Seal? There was no confirmation but there should be no risks taken. They must be eliminated. He had to kill them.

He slowly looked around, becoming aware of his surroundings. Then, he spotted what he was looking for: the Great Knife. Stepping off of the stretcher, the Bogeyman slowly walked toward it and gripped the handle tightly, feeling the sensation of holding the legendary weapon once more. But he couldn't be fooling around; he had a job to do. The Seal must be protected. He walked forward, dragging the knife behind him.

The energy that the living beings gave off were getting stronger. He was closing in on them. It wouldn't be long now. His weapon scraping against the floor echoed throughout all the hallways, killing the silence. Suddenly, he stopped. He could hear... breathing. Then there was a faint voice.

Target locked.

[stilljusttrucking-deactivated20]

Parked in hell again.

[stilljusttrucking-deactivated20]

The older trucker wasn’t nearly as mobile as Alex and the nurse managed to slash at him a few times. Thankfully he wasn’t too injured because of his trucker’s vest that took most of the blade’s blows. He tightened his fist and punched the nurse in her face, causing the monster to slide back far enough for him to start whacking with the pole. It wasn’t the most efficent method of attack but it seemed to be fending off the monster. It wasn’t doing much damage and Travis was damned thankful that Alex came to come to his rescue. The brunette managed to slice off the Nurse’s scaple-holding hand, making her defenceless and the whole fighting process a whole lot easier. The trucker got in two more swings of the drip stand before Alex finished her off with a slice and a foot to the face.

“I’m surprised this thing didn’t break.” He mumbled to himself as Alex caught his breath. He listened to the young man and followed him out into the creepy but empty hallways. “I know, every lock in this place is probably broken.” He grumbled. The gruff man jotted down where they were on this Otherworld’s map before he walked after Alex. “I remember there always being more medical supplies in this world. We’ll grab them and find another way out of here. If worse comes to worse, we can always go back the way we came.” So it seemed that Alex had been here before.

Then Travis remembered something. Alex had been surprised before, when they had teleported, but obviously he used to this kind of hellish world. “Answer a question for me Alex, can you do that mirror thing? Or is it something only I can do?” He hoped it wasn’t just him. That would just make him feel more crazy then he actually was.

[silent--soldier-blog]

Alex didn't say anything at first when Travis was commenting on the lowly weapon he carried. He wasn't surprised like he was, but a little thankful that it didn't break yet. Then he glanced over at his own weapon. It still looked sturdy but would it break any time soon? There was a high possibility that it wouldn't but then again nothing was impossible. He took a deep breath and gripped it tight. Stick with me.

Oh, did he remember this place. The Otherworld... such a twisted alternate reality but it was ironic that there were more weapons and first aid supplies here. What was the purpose of that? Was someone putting them in random places or was it the town's own bidding? He shouldn't be complaining; Alex should just take what he could get in Silent Hill.

It was strange how it seemed that Travis could read Alex's thoughts. He was very surprised by the mirror trick that he did moments ago. With a stern face, he replied, "No, I can't. Why can you?" Whatever the man's response was, Alex just sighed heavily and said, "Well, at least it'll be useful if we need to get out... but then again, who says this mirror will be back in this room once we leave?"

Why was EVERY door broken? Sure in this world a lot of doors were inaccessible but so far all the doors they've encountered could not be open. "Damn! Where the hell are we supposed to go?" Alex called out, looking at the map once more. First the doors were locked and they haven't encountered any monsters since the nurses. What was going on? The doors to the stairwells were blocked off except the basement, which that hadn't checked yet. "I guess we have no choice," Alex murmured, taking the steps.

The map showed them different rooms but this place wasn't like it at all. It was all just one long hallway covered in blood and rust. There was no use in going back.

Minutes seemed liked hours as they continued walking forward. Alex would glance over at Travis now and then but didn't speak a word. Squinting, Alex tried looking farther down the path. There was a door at the end. Quickening his pace, Alex eagerly walked toward it, unaware of the dangers beyond. Once they reached the door, Alex shared a long glance with Travis before setting his hand on the knob and opened it.

It was a normal room. There was nothing here except three items of interest: a long, huge knife, a long huge butcher knife, and a small red item sitting on the same table. Alex took the initiative and examined the knife. He rested his palm on the blade, feeling its coldness and rust. "What are these doing here? And this..." Alex picked up the Seal and glared at it before he dropped it and yelled out in pain. The headache that was bothering him before was ten times worse and caused him to fall on the ground. He tried to fight whatever was happening but it was no use. He managed to get on his knees, palms on the floor as sweat and blood covered him. "What's happening?" was his last words before he transformed into the Bogeyman.

[stilljusttrucking-deactivated20]

Parked in hell again.

[stilljusttrucking-deactivated20]

No… it couldn’t be. He couldn’t be back here. He shouldn’t be. Alessa was gone. How was he still able to enter this rotten, red world? The old man scrambled to his feet and looked around, hands both nervously gripping on the drip stand. Everything about it was horrible. The looks, the smell, the very air of the world was rotten and things in the mirror were very different: mould had started festering on this world’s walls and the desk had been replaced by a body, covered by a bloodied cloth. The only ‘good’ thing about this place was that the cabinet now sported a fire axe. The other man was so busy being wrapped up in the horrible Otherworld, that he only just noticed Alex when the man had talked.

“You haven’t been here before?” Travis asked, turning around. The man mistook Alex’s confusion of his mirror transport for confusion and fear about the Otherworld but before he could reassure Alex that everything was ‘okay’ (relatively speaking) his pocket radio began spewing static too. Well now wasn’t the best time to talk. Giving a light growl, Travis smashed the glass and grabbed the axe, which he then handed over to Alex. “Save your ammo if you can.” He murmured, gripping the drip stand as tight as he could.

The door rattling stopped almost as suddenly as it started and then… silence. Tense seconds passed as Alex and Travis stared down the door, waiting for something to burst out.

One…

Two…

Suddenly there was a tremendous ‘BANG’ and in came two, convulsing, twitching nurses, armed with scapels. Travis noticed that they weren’t ones he was familiar with (Alex would however) but he really didn’t care. One of the redish monsters charged at him and the other to Alex. Reacting purely on instinct, Travis gave a mighty swing of the drip stand, successfully colliding the metal with the nurse’s head, making her stumble back. Without thought or mercy, the trucker began to smash the nurse as hard as he could. 

[silent--soldier-blog]

He didn't answer at first. Alex was still registering what had just happened. Never in Silent Hill had he witnessed something like this before. Travis actually had the ability to travel to the Otherworld? Was it like that for everyone else? It surely didn't happen to Alex, however he recalled in his nightmare than when he grabbed a knife from a broken mirror did the hospital change into what it is now. What the hell was going on?

Alex wanted to ask about that but it seemed that the time wasn't right. He jumped slightly when the door swung open, revealing two nurses. Oh great, they could get through doors too? What's next, they'll be able to open doors normally now? Alex hoped that wasn't the case. The second thing that startled him was the sound of glass shattering and he whipped his head to see a fire axe being handed to him. He gulped at Travis' words and grabbed it from him.

It was a great time he was given a new weapon because one of the busty monsters came straight for him. He readied himself, gripping the axe tightly. Just when the monster was in range, Alex swung hard, slicing the monster at its stomach. It screeched but still kept moving, scalpel at a stabbing position. Alex jumped back slashing away at the nurse. Eventually it fell to the ground, twitching madly. Gathering potential energy, Alex swung down hard at the nurse's head. Its body stopped moving. He looked over at Travis, who was still fighting the nurse. He had a weapon but it wasn't very good. He ran over to the older man and began to swing at the nurse. He did an uppercut-like attack, chopping one of the nurse's arm off. As the two worked together, the monster eventually died.

Alex caught his breath for a short moment. He looked over at Travis and said with a serious face, "We need to find our way out of here. I know that in this place, the entrances never work." With that said, Alex exited the room and cautiously looked around. His walkie-talkie was silent so they were safe, for now.

[stilljusttrucking-deactivated20]

Parked in hell again.

[stilljusttrucking-deactivated20]

And Travis accepted that as an answer. Some stories were just not meant to be shared. He gave a light smile to the younger man before turning and picking a second visitor’s map off the desk, just in case. The old man pocketed it before silently following Alex down the long, dark hallway and into the first room.

Like how both Alex’s and Travis’ walkie-talkies/radios had predicted, there was no monsters. In fact, there was nothing much there at all. Besides a desk with a few items on it, a first aid cabinet on the wall and an out of place drip stand, there was nothing in the spacious and dusty room. Travis had no idea what kind of hospital wing this was but his eyes practically bulged out of their sockets upon seeing the drip stand. “Finally. Something I can use.” He gave a half-smile as he picked the metal pole up with ease. Sure, it wasn’t the strongest weapon and it wasn’t most durable but it had a pretty good range and well… a weapon was a weapon. Despite how pathetic it may have looked, Travis felt a lot safer.

Trusting Alex to attend to the desk and the medical cabinet, Travis looked around the big room, checking if there was anything he missed. Turned out there was, and a rather big thing too: a dusty mirror, that managed to take up the entire right wall, was hanging there. There was another lurch in Travis’ stomach as the mirror triggered another memory, one where he was confronted by a large mirror with an unusual reflection and a little brown-haired girl on the other side of it.

“She’s not here… it’s not going to happen again…” Travis murmured, walking up almost hypnotically towards the mirror. Without thinking, he raised a hand to wipe the dust off the mirror.

Suddenly, Travis’ reflection began to spazz out and then Travis transported himself into the Otherworld.

[silent--soldier-blog]

Alex watched silently as Travis picked up his new weapon. He looked over to his gun that he was holding. He didn't have any idea how much ammo he had left and once that was gone, this weapon would be useless. Perhaps it was a good idea to search for a weapon here as well. He went off into another corner and spotted a desk and medicine cabinet of some sorts. Searching on its surface, Alex didn't find much except a few hospital records and doctor's notes- all seemed useless to him. He sighed heavily as he looked through the drawers, finding nothing until the very last one. He picked up the small box. Ammunition, huh? Strange to find it in a hospital but I need these, he thought to himself as he placed it in his coat pocket.

Moving over to the cabinet, oblivious of what Travis was doing, Alex opened it up to see nothing but dust and scratches. The glass had been broken and he wondered if anyone else was here before he and Travis came here. However, something in the back corner caught his eye. Just like retrieving Josh's Robbie doll, he stuck his arm in the cabinet and moved his hand around until he bumped into the object in question. Grabbing it firmly, Alex pulled out, revealing that he obtained a First-Aid Kit and an Ampoule. Turning around, Alex said, "Hey Travis I found some-" He stopped mid sentence as he saw Travis' reflection in the mirror and blood filling the room. "Travis!" Alex yelled out, running as fast as he could. Just in the nick of time, Alex grabbed onto Travis' shoulder and they were soon taken into the Otherworld.

It only seemed like a second went by before they ended up in this place. It was like all Alex did was blink and then boom, Otherworld. He was really confused too. Out of all the times he went into the Otherworld, Alex had no control but it seemed like when Travis was touching the mirror, he could willingly transport between worlds. "Hey, what the hell's going on?" Alex questioned. But before he could get an answer, his walkie-talkie burst out into static and something began to bang on the door. Alex readied himself, just in case whatever walked in. The knob began to shake a little.

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Parked in hell again.

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“Well that’s good to hear. It sounded like you took a nasty blow.” Travis said to the young man. After swallowing some saliva, trying to get rid of the disgusting taste in his mouth, the man straightened himself and wiped his hands on his pants, his eyes occasionally darting about to see if any more creatures were coming for them. He gave a weak, half-hearted chuckle at Alex’s concern, trying to shrug off any unnecessary worry. “I’m not that old. I’m feeling better already because that thing is dead… but what I wouldn’t give for a nutrition drink right now.” Or a medkit, or a weapon of any description. He just wanted something useful so they didn’t have a repeat of that fight. They were lucky that it was just one of thosethings.

“Huh?” Travis looked to where Alex was already walking away. The old man quickly turned and pursued him, quickly catching up and arriving to their destination. Alchemilla Hospital. The name inflicted both dread and hope into the trucker.The place may have looked different on the outside (it seemed that some renovations had been made within thirty years) but the hospital was still the same freaky hospital in Silent Hill. Memories of that hellish world came immediately to his mind, more vivid and alive then before. The little girl from the fire… Travis was snapped out of his thoughts by Alex, telling him that they had to go in. As much as he didn’t want to go in, Travis knew that Alex was right. They should go in. They weren’t severely injured but they could use a little pick-me-up and some supplies. Plus, there wer bound to be some abandoned medical supplies in there… Maybe even a doctor.

Travis found himself wondering about Lisa. Was she dead? Had she gotten out of the town before all this started? Or was she a fully-fledged nurse now and somehow hiding in the hospital? Hopefully not in the hospital. Travis got the same chills as Alex did as the younger man opened the door and switched on his pocket flashlight, just in case. Travis was about to ask his companion if there was a spare map before he noticed Alex’s tension. “Are you okay?” He asked quietly, before placing a hand on the brunette’s shoulder. He would listen calmly to Alex’s response before giving a weary sigh. “This hospital hates me too. Three times to this damned building is three times too many. Let’s just get what we can from storage, rest up and go.”

[silent--soldier-blog]

Alex gasped and his body stiffened when Travis' hand laid on his shoulder. He was too busy remembering his constant nightmare that he had totally forgotten that Travis was there traveling with him. Looking him in the eye, he calmed himself down, loosening the grip on the map. "I'm fine. Sorry." That was it. Alex didn't want to explain it, it was his business; it wasn't a necessity that Travis knew about his foreshadowing nightmare. He made a mental note of what Travis said about the hospital but decided to save it for later- they were wasting time. Both he and Travis knew that something was definitely wrong, even for this fucked up town and they had to find safety from it, if that were even possible. He nodded and looked at the map again to find a general direction.

Entering one of the hospital wings disturbed Alex. It was like his nightmare all over again but Josh was nowhere to be found. Maybe that meant he wasn't here and was somewhere safe- like at the hotel with that woman. He had really hoped that were true.

It was eerily quiet in the hallway. His walkie-talkie wasn't going off so that was a good sign but still... it creeped him out. Silence was supposed to be a good thing in this town, right? He turned to the first door he saw. His hand gripped on the door, hoping that it was locked. Unfortunately, it wasn't. He slowly pulled the door open and walked in.

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Parked in hell again.

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Travis honestly didn’t know how the hell he managed to hold his ground. He never remembered being strong enough to match a friggin Two-Back in hand-to-hand combat. His fingers gripped the back half of the monster so tightly that his nails began to dig into the feminine body. Occasionally, Travis felt the monster lift him off the ground but somehow Travis would force his feet down and keep him planted. He was just supposed to distract it long enough for Alex to get away, not processing that Alex may not shoot because of his interruption. He gave a groan as he felt himself tiring. What was Alex doing now? He tried to look but the monster began shaking violently, almost succeeding in throwing Travis off.

Alex’s attacks caused the monster to rear up, Travis, this time, falling off onto the hard road. He gave a winded groan and tried to scramble back up to his feet, managing to watch Alex deliver the final cut to the monster. That motion… it reminded him of the Butcher. Travis gave a loud cough (sounding like he was about to vomit) at link and pushed the thought away. He didn’t need that shit now. The bearded man managed find his footing by the time the beast fell at Alex’s feet and managed a small nod to the limping solider. “I’m fine.” He said, panting heavily. He looked at the defeated monster, looking at how its blood gushed out and soaked the road around them, before giving a scowl and stepping on its head for safety’s sake. With that done, he turned back to Alex.

“I should be asking you that. Are you okay? Your leg? It’s not broken or anything, is it?” He asked in concern. Instinctively Travis reached for a medkit but grimanced, realising he had an empty inventory.

The howls continued in the night, each sounding closer than before. Travis cursed under his breath. Hopefully they were near the hotel Alex was talking about- it would definitely be safer than out here. If they had another monster attack like that, Travis wasn’t sure if they would be able to survive through it.

[silent--soldier-blog]

Hearing Travis vomit (at least that's what it sounded like), Alex walked faster over to the older man to help. Someone his age didn't need to deal with this, especially a second time. Finally within hearing range, Alex caught his breath and answered, "Yeah I'm fine. I just-" He stopped suddenly, not wanting to reveal the true nature of his wounded thigh. "That thing just scraped me. That's it." He squinted, looking at Travis directly. "But what about you? You're not looking too good, man." Alex looked around: there was a dead body, blood, empty streets, and fog- absolutely nothing that could help them. But over there... Was that a? "Hey, follow me," Alex said, walking over to the building he spotted.

The sign read, "ALCHEMILLA HOSPITAL". Alex wanted to say he'd never been here before... but something inside him was making him sick to his stomach. He remembered being in a hospital after being wounded in battle. He had this constant nightmare of Joshua being in a deranged hospital, and him chasing his younger brother until he was killed by that... Alex shook his head, trying to get the nightmare out of his mind. It did scare him though; he would have that nightmare almost every night in the hospital he was at. Could this have been the same hospital he dreamed of? He surely hoped it didn't, but both of them needed some medical treatment. "I think we should go in," Alex stated, gripping his gun tightly. There was bound to be something in there but they needed to survive.

The doors squeaked open which didn't help Alex's state of mind at all. Everything looked normal so far except that it was completely abandoned.

Well, that probably was considered normal in Silent Hill.

Looking at the bullitin board was a map of the building. Alex tore it down and froze. This... this is- This was it. This was the hospital he would have nightmares about. His pulse quickened and his hands squeezed the paper as he stared intently at the map.

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[[ OOC: Short Hiatus

Will be busy all week this week with my job and my online class.

I’ll try my best to get on here every now and then

<3~ ]]

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Parked in hell again.

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There was no time to respond to Alex’s surprised face. They had a situation on hand- a bad one too. When he faced these things he usually had a whole range of weapons he could use- now there was nothing, zero, zip. There was no way that Alex could defend them both with a measley gun. The worry on the younger man’s face told Travis that he could have been low on ammo. The man franctically looked around for a weapon, he didn’t expect a convenient gun to be lying around but at least a plank of wood could be lying around. There was a bin nearby and Travis ran to it, unintentionally dodging the incoming acid as the giant beast hurled it.

“You alright?” Travis yelled out, going pale when he heard the vomit. The man knocked the trashcan over, scouraging through the dirt for something useful. His heart was beating in his ears and he didn’t notice the beast coming up behind him until he heard the gunshots and the beast’s roars of pain. Now it was charging for Alex and, besides an empty, medical alcohol bottle, there wasn’t anything of interest. What he wouldn’t give for a meat hook right now. Beggers couldn’t be choosers so Travis picked the bottle up and flinged it at the monster, hitting the tall, smaller ‘person’s’ back and making it halt and screech for a moment as glass pierced into its hardened flesh. It couldn’t have done much damage but at least it was something. The monster began to shake itself and it turned. At first, Travis thought it was going to get him but it continued heading for Alex.

Travis felt ill. Everything was happening all at once and adrenaline was pulsing through his veins. His head felt funny and, before he knew it, he found himself violently sprinting towards the slow creature. Taking a small jump, the strong trucker grabbed the creature’s upper torso and pulled it down towards him with all his strength, like he was trying to rip the being off the other’s back. The monster roared out and tried to kick him down, now definitely distracted from Alex, with the intention to kill the older man.

[silent--soldier-blog]

After a grunt of pain, Alex managed to shout out, "Yeah, I'm good! Just-" Another sharp of pain surged through his leg. What the hell was going on? It wasn't broken but it hurt llike a bitch. Maybe he was just putting too much pressure onto it? After all, that nice woman, Mary did patch it up for him only a short while ago. Perhaps it hadn't healed all the way. Still, this was a bad time for this to be happening, but Alex had to make the best of it. He watched as Travis threw the object at the monster, blood trickling down from its back side. Its screech made him sick to his stomach. He backed up silently, trying his best to keep his ground as the monster advanced toward him. He lifted up his gun and began to aim.

He was about to shoot once more until Travis just jumped on the beast. He gasped in horror as he watched the monster fight with Travis, but this was his moment! But... Alex cursed to himself. Shooting was too risky for he could accidentally shoot Travis. But damn! What else could he use? Alex suddenly flashed back to the basement, in that room where he was no longer allowed it. That's it! Alex reached into the inside of his jacket and pulled out the Ceremonial Dagger that he had for quite some while. It still looked a bit rusted but it could still do some damage. Gripping the dagger tightly, Alex ran up to the distracted monster, and stabbed it right in the chest. It screeched in pain, rearing back, exposing its underbelly. Taking the advantage, Alex pulled out the dagger and stabbed it again in the middle of its chest, dragging the blade down.

The monster screeched again, but croaked. Blood was pouring out of its chest as it slowly backed up. Was it trying to run away, Alex wondered. The monster moved slower and slower until it did one last final screech before falling to the floor.

Catching his breath, Alex stared at the monster to make sure it was dead, then looked over to Travis. "Hey Travis! Are you okay?" he asked, limping towards the old trucker.

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Parked in hell again.

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Travis, on the otherhand, had no suspicion of Alex at all. If he did, it was quickly swamped out by distracting thoughts. There was no way he could just associate the pain with his age anymore. He had experienced trucker’s headache while driving amongst other common ailments but he had never experienced any illness like this. The man subconciously rubbed the side of his face, doing his best to keep up with the younger man.

If their shared sickness and their original doubt about the town wasn’t enough, then the lack of monsters was already sprouting up suspicion. They could clearly hear the monsters in the distance but there wasn’t one in the area. Not even a bug to squash. It was an unnerving instance, The air was heavier and thicker than usual too, the fog looming over the two men as if it was preparing to choke them both with smoggy hands.

Travis stopped and coughed but there was no time for him to respond. Also breaking Alex’s sentence was Travis’ own pocket radio, screeching its desperate warning that danger was nearby. The trucker reached for his weapons but groaned when he realised he didn’t have them. He’d have to rely on Alex’s gun and, if necessary, his own two fists.

“Oh hell no…” Travis yelled, seeing the figure through the fog. “One of these two-backed things.” The powerful monster was a mutilated humanoid with its lower front fused into the lower back of a large, monstrous creature. It was absolutely repulsive and it was slowly making its way to presumedly kill them. He wasn’t sure if Alex knew what this thing was but he began to murmur what he knew about this demon anway. “Shoot it fast and shoot it before it gets too close. It will spit acid and it will tackle” The man muttered.

[silent--soldier-blog]

A shiver ran through Alex's body when he heard not one but two places where static was coming from. He looked over at Travis and that's where the second sound of static was the loudest. So I'm not the only one, Alex thought. So his walkie talkie wasn't the only one that alerted any monsters around. So other radios and such were like this as well? He had remembered trying to turn on a television once in a while but it either wouldn't turn on or it would just emit static, no matter how many times he pressed the button.

Alex turned to Travis, surprised. Not once since he'd been here had Alex seen a monster like this. This was different from all the other monsters he had seen. The closest that Alex could relate it to was the Siam from earlier, the one that separated him and Frank. Frank. Alex had hoped that he was alright. But this wasn't the time to be thinking about the past. There was an immediate danger in front of them and Alex was the only one who had a reliable weapon... but damn! He couldn't remember how many bullets he had left. He would have to take careful aim and try to use as little bullets as possible.

He wanted to question Travis why he knew about this monster but he sure wasn't lying about the acid part. The acid had barely missed Alex yet the stench of it caused him to retch. During his little episode, Alex barely had two seconds to dodge before the hideous creature was tackling him. He tried to get out of the way the best he could, but the beast managed to knock his leg. He grunted loudly in pain, rolling toward the ground, clutching his knee. It didn't feel broken but it sure hurt like hell. He looked over to the monster and noticed that it was slowly approaching Travis. Readying his gun, he fired two shots to the monster's head. It made a grotesque noise and went toward Alex. He scrambled up quickly, but yelled out slightly as he began to put weight on his leg.

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Parked in hell again.

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Travis had been sick of this place from the moment he rolled in and he wanted out. There was just something different about the town and the difference seemed to seep into his older, more tired body. His head was in a worse state then Alex’s, his headache had been coming on and off since he had driven in but when it hit it felt like it was cutting his brain in half. Travis bit his lip and missed what Alex had said, trying to fight the pain off. As much as he should have been resting, even for just a moment, Travis didn’t tell Alex anything. With hell running around them and only one gun between them, Travis just wanted to get to the hotel as fast as they could. That and to also berid of this troublesome headache.

Thankfully his pained look slithered off when Alex looked back at him. He had managed to catch everything from ‘Joshua’ on and tried to process the information. Poor kid, having to go through all that shit. He understood the sensation- still having love for the insane Helen Grady. At least Alex had Josh, when Travis was young he was left to fend for himself. He remembered that so often that he wished he had someone to rely on and still found he could relate to Alex’s situation.

Travis was pretty surprised he was revealing so much of himself and thankful for that as well. There was at least some kind of trust between them and Travis knew to at least reveal a little more about himself later. “You’ll find what you’re looking for.” The town revealed the truth all the time- especially the darker and more mysterious ones. 

Alex’s smile was returned with one of Travis’ own and they pressed on through the fog. The older man gave a soft groan, his headache cutting through him once again. Something just felt wrong. His fists tightened and nervously he looked over his shoulder. “Not too much further, is it?” He asked.

[silent--soldier-blog]

Alex repeated Travis' words in his head. You'll find what you're looking for. Alex had hoped that was true, but... A pain erupted in the back of his head, causing Alex to put a hand at the base of his neck, squeezing his eyes shut for a second. Then, it was gone. Alex was relieved but it still worried him. Keeping his head forward, his eyes darted to Travis. He seemed like a nice man but there was something about him. Alex had never felt this sick until Travis came along. Could he have been the one that was causing it?

Still keeping his eye on Travis, it didn't look like he was in the best shape either. He didn't look too stressed, but Alex had been fighting internally whether or not to speak up about it. After all, Alex was probably feeling the same way too. Maybe it was just something in the air? But he had been in Silent Hill for a long time and he had never felt so ill like this. Something was definitely wrong but Alex hadn't a clue as to what. And there were no other people or monsters around. One should be relieved that no monsters were around but to Alex, it was pretty suspicious.

He heard the small groan coming from Travis and he turned to look at him. Perhaps in his old age, he needed to rest or something. He looked sick. Alex stopped walking and turned his attention towards Travis. "Hey man. You wanna sit down somewhere? We can-"

And just like that, the walkie talkie Wheeler had given Alex was emitting loud bursts of static. His body stiffened, and he readied his gun, looking for the new threat that was about to attack them.

The disgusting, mutilated humanoid of a monster made its appearance, walking slowly towards them. They were the enemy. They were trying to steal the Seals. They must die. It was ready to attack, to defend God and Her power. It would not fail Her.