Trek Into Silent Hill

Chapter Two

A cry burbles in my throat as I cover my face with my grey sweater sleeves, counting to ten before opening my eyes again. Nothing changed. Sharp gusts of air stings my nose as my breath quickens. This panic is justifiable. Right before my eyes is an unearthly sight that defies reality.

Rushing to the entrance, I tug on the door. It is also made of rotting wood, and upon my grasp more red liquid oozes out of it. Pink pulsating veins are sealing the door. Pain shoots up my wrists, my carpal tunnel aching as I desperately try to yank the door open,

"What the hell is going on in here" I wheeze. My arm muscles are burning. I still clutch the doorknob as I sniff back tears.

The transformation of the gas station is complete, in all of its sinister presence. Gathering my strength, I hesitantly pad over to the check-out counter for something to chop through the disgusting veins. As I rummage around the drawers I hear irregular clicking noises from the bathroom, like someone in heels is walking with a broken leg. My hands scurry faster when my fingers close on a heavy swiss-army knife. In my gut I feel scared -- terrified -- to know I am not alone in here. I raise the knife awkwardly in front of me with the sharpest blade out and back my way towards the door.

A ghostly groan similar to what was heard on the broken phone comes out of the bathroom. The uneven footsteps are louder. Whatever is in the bathroom is on its way into the main part of the gas station.

Fumbling, I stick the short blade into the veins on the top part of the door. With little effort, I sliced through them smoothly. The knife sinks into the indented outline of the door, so I slide it down. As the knife approaches the doorknob, I discover it's wedged too deep into the thickest part of the vein. Somehow reacting, the vein squeezes the knife until I couldn't cut anymore. I glance over my shoulder, hoping I still had enough time. And then I saw it.

A humanoid figure is grotesquely hunched over and lumbering out of the bathroom. Taute taupe skin strecthes tightly over the body and what resembles a head. The supposed head is a rounded lump with a mouth similar to a leech's, as slight teeth rings a circular hole. It is also distinctively armless, and the legs themselves are lean, somehow able to support the bulky body. The only word to describe the thing is a monster.

Shrill whimpering noises escape out of me. At the sound of my voice the monster froze, slightly turning in place to directly face me. With renewed determination fueled by fear, I decide to use my fingers to tear out the knife. I grimace at the feeling of flesh oozing around my bony fingers, and blood squirts over my forearm when my nails pierce the vein. After pushing rather deep, I feel the rounded bulk of the knife handle. Wrapping my fingers around it, I give an almighty heave. This time the veins rips easily down the length of the door, and pulls back to reveal the rusted doorknob. I wretch the door open, vaguely noticing that the cutesy little bell is gone. Then I start running.

Out of blind panic, I got myself lost in this town from trying to escape the monster. After exhausting myself, I am numbly walking in around the block as I think of a plan. There has been a transformation in the world too. Thick fog envelopes the town, making it hard to see anything. I may just be paranoid, but a few times there seemed to be other things lurking in the mist. I didn't bother to check. Now I have to get back to the bus. Maybe I can radio out for help.

I begin to retrace my steps. The consistent static of the miniature silver radio I have found on the ground outside the gas station soothes me. It appears to be malfunctional like Jean's phone, as it cannot pick up any stations or even turn off. Makes sense why someone just left it on the ground beside the dumpster. I fidget with the dials as I continue down the main road that leads back to the bus.

My mind is brewing frustrating and hopeless thoughts about this predicament. If I wasn't focusing on having steady breathing, I would be induced into another panic attack. Glumly I kick a brown pebble. I vaguely hear it skitter, then it was cut off abruptly. I look up. The bridge was gone. I cautiously creep up to the edge of the ravine, stopping where the the rusted metal is turned up. The dense fog covers the bottom of what turns out to be a chasm, and muffles the noise of the river far below. I recall the area being more of a ravine than a cliff, but I figure that the world outside the gas station must have changed too. This exit is not an option.

Suddenly I heard light footsteps coming up behind me. I spin around, slashing my knife blindly.

A young man stumbles backwards, drawing his arms protectively over his face. " What are you doing?", he angrily yells. Steel grey eyes peek out between his arms. "Stop!"

I frown at the surprise, then beam with joy. "Hey. There's another person here too!" Still grinning, I reach out for his wrist to help him off the ground. The man eyes me suspiciously, then accepts the offer.

I look him up and down once he stands. He is only a few inches taller than me, which doesn't mean much because I tower over most girls. Hair the color of sand stuck out in all directions, framing his jaw to look more angular than it already is. A grubby black cargo jacket and ripped denim pants were snug on him, suggesting a muscular build. The whites of his Vans were permanently stained with grass. This guy was rather average in every way. That seemed trustworthy to me.

" What do you mean, 'there is another person here'?" His voice was loud and deep, conveying a sense of strength.

I frown again. "Have you paid attention? This town is empty. And that's not the only part. This may sound crazy, but please believe me; there are monster here. I tried leaving, but the bridge is out." I jabbed a finger behind me. "Here's my question. How did you get into this town?"

"I live here actually. And this place isn't totally empty. A small group of us live at the church." The young man pointed vaguely North. "Name's Derrick by the way."

"Huh." I push my glasses my nose again as I looked off to where he pointed. "My name is May. Can you take me to the church please? I need to go there."

Derrick gives me a quizzical look. "You want to go to a place you just found out existed?"

"Yeah." My voice trailed off. Churches tend to be well taken care of, so there should be either a phone or a computer there I can use to call Tom. If there are numerous people there, they must have a sustainable form of living and get fresh supplies that come into town from a truck. That means that there is another road that comes in here. As confusing as Silent Hill is, I have to focus on getting out of here instead of the problematic occurrences. Think of the solution, not the problem.

Derrick purses his thin lips. "We aren't used to outsiders. While I'm friendly, the rest of us aren't."

"Think of it this way. The sooner I can get to a phone, the sooner I can leave this town. Then we will never see each other again."

Shrugging, Derrick agrees. "Fine. It's on the opposite side of town, but we can cut down through side streets to get there faster."