Chapter 159: Chapter 157: Silent Hill
The courtyard was bathed in the warm glow of the sun, where dapples of light played across the ground. Beneath the shade of a tree, a young girl, who seemed to be in her early teens, rested her back against the sturdy trunk. Her delicate features were framed by her long, jet-black hair that cascaded down her shoulders.
She was comfortably seated on the grass, with a piece of paper on her lap and a pen in her hand. She was completely engrossed in her drawing, which depicted a cheerful scene of a young girl playing joyfully with a variety of small animals on a sunny patch of grass.
In the midst of this tranquil scene, Rose walked over quietly, her figure interrupting the patterns of sunlight on the ground. Sharon, the girl under the tree, felt Rose's presence and looked up, her face lighting up with a welcoming smile.
"Do you want to see what I've made?" Sharon offered, her voice gentle.
"Of course~!" Rose replied with enthusiasm as she settled down next to Sharon. She leaned in close and asked in a soft voice, "What's this picture about, pumpkin?"
Rose carefully took the drawing from Sharon, and as she did, Sharon cuddled closer into Rose's embrace. Together, they admired the drawing.
"Look at that big lion there. Did you draw this all by yourself?" Rose asked, her voice filled with pride and affection.
Sharon responded with a proud nod, and Rose playfully tapped her nose, saying warmly, "Sweetie, you're so talented!"
After a moment of admiring the drawing, Rose's voice took on a more serious tone. "We have a special journey ahead of us, do you know about that? Do you know where we're going?"
Sharon shook her head, her expression showing she didn't understand.
"You don't know?" Rose whispered gently. "Honey, sometimes when you're asleep, you get up and walk around. And sometimes, you talk about a place called Silent Hill."
Sharon met Rose's gaze, then softly shook her head again, "I don't remember any of that!"
"That's perfectly fine, sweetie~!" Rose reassured her, stroking Sharon's hair soothingly. "We're going to visit that place to help jog your memory!"
Just then, the sound of a ringing phone interrupted their moment. Rose seemed to anticipate who was on the other end and, without hesitation, she ended the call.
"Isn't daddy supposed to join us?" Sharon inquired with a hint of disappointment in her voice.
"No, sweetie, it's just going to be us two~," Rose replied, her voice carrying a hint of mystery.
At that moment, the smile that had been playing on Sharon's face slowly faded away. A sense of unease crept into her heart, a whisper of intuition that something unsettling was on the horizon.
"Remember the man we saw when we were in the car the other day? Had you ever seen him before?" Rose asked, her question hanging in the air. But then she chuckled at herself, realizing the absurdity of her own question. Sharon had been by her side almost constantly since she was very young; it was unlikely she would recognize a stranger that Rose herself did not know.
Surprisingly, Sharon responded, "I think I've seen him before."
Rose was taken aback by this unexpected reply. "When did you meet him?" she asked, her brow furrowing with concern.
Sharon concentrated, trying to dig through her memories, but nothing came to the surface. "I can't remember, mommy, I really can't!" she exclaimed, her small fingers tapping against her forehead in a mix of frustration and fear.
The mention of Silent Hill seemed to stir a deep-seated dread within Sharon, a premonition of something ominous. Yet, when she thought of the mysterious man, that fear seemed to dissipate, replaced by an odd sense of calm.
"It's okay, honey. If you can't remember, then there's no need to worry about it," Rose comforted her, her voice soft and reassuring.
Sharon nestled into Rose's arms, and before long, the gentle rhythm of her mother's heartbeat lulled her into a peaceful slumber.
As time slipped by, the quiet was broken by the sound of a car driving past. Rose, who had been on the edge of sleep herself, was jolted awake. She carefully adjusted Sharon in her arms and whispered, "Naptime's over, baby."
Sharon stirred, slowly opening her eyes and blinking away the remnants of sleep.
"Are you awake? Shall we get going?" Rose asked gently.
With a sleepy nod, Sharon agreed.
Hand in hand, Rose led Sharon out of the serene courtyard and to the roadside where their family van was parked. She helped Sharon into the back seat before taking her place behind the wheel.
Turning the key in the ignition, Rose started the engine, the van's gentle rumble ready to carry them forward.
Unbeknownst to Rose, the journey ahead would plunge them into a nightmare.
As they drove away, they passed a peculiar road sign, one that resembled an open book with a passage from the Bible inscribed on it:
"Do you not know that we will judge angels? Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?"
The words seemed to echo in Rose's mind as the van rolled on, heading towards a destination shrouded in mystery and foreboding.
***
Meanwhile, Jon was gearing up for his own trip to Silent Hill.
He stepped out of his apartment, ready for the day ahead. As he approached the elevator, the doors slid open, and he came to an abrupt halt.
There, on the elevator floor, was a glowing sigil painted in a deep, blood-red hue. It was the same eerie symbol he had stumbled upon in the subway.
"Why is this here?" Jon pondered to himself.
The symbol had seemed familiar in the subway, and it had eventually clicked—it was the save symbol from the third installment of the Silent Hill game series. Such symbols often signified a transition to an alternate, often more sinister world.
In this reality, where the lines between movies and games blurred, references to game content like this were not out of place.
But Jon wasn't the type to be intimidated. His abilities were more than a match for the challenges of Silent Hill, and he could navigate its twisted paths with relative ease. Dismissing any thoughts of dark conspiracies, he confidently stepped into the elevator.
Inside, the elevator looked surprisingly old and neglected, which struck Jon as odd. He remembered it being renovated not too long ago; it shouldn't have appeared so dilapidated.
This decay was reminiscent of the Dark world's aesthetic, where everything was in a state of ruin and monsters lurked around every corner.
Without warning, the elevator shuddered and shook as if it were in free fall, then abruptly came to a halt, as though it had gotten stuck.
The doors creaked open slowly, revealing nothing but darkness beyond.
Jon, undeterred, stepped out into the void. He opened his hand, and a small flame flickered to life, casting light on his surroundings.
Rusty iron fences greeted him at the elevator's exit. Beyond the barriers, a grotesque creature loomed, similar to the one he had faced in the subway. Its flesh appeared necrotic, its limbs were contorted, and its head resembled a massive, featureless tumor.
Another loud noise echoed as the elevator doors slammed shut behind him, leaving Jon enclosed in a cage-like space.
He took a moment to survey the area, finding himself caged within a chaotic, clearly run-down industrial environment.
The creature fixed its gaze on Jon, emitting occasional, disturbing howls.
"Enough with the howling; it's getting on my nerves," Jon muttered. He then drew his high-tech firearm, took aim at the creature, and fired. A beam of blue laser light shot forth, slicing through the monster, disintegrating it.
Following the destruction of the creature, the cage began to move once more, descending slowly. After some time, it reached the ground, and the door opened automatically, inching open to reveal what lay beyond.
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