Shadowveil - The Forgotten

Chapter 3: Friend or Foe?

Patrick darted down the cracked tarmac road towards the light source, shining like a beacon through the thick fog. He passed by an impressively large sign, which seemed to have once declared the name of whatever place he was in. The only letters still legible were the capital letter "W" and "C" and the lowercase word "to" between them.

After crossing an intersection he soon reached the area where the building with the bright white light stood some ways farther down the street. As he came closer he saw that the light suddenly dimmed before going out completely.

"Okay, that's... uhh weird," he stammered to himself as a chill coursed through his body. Coming up on the source of the light while nervously checking his surroundings he noticed a sign on top of the structure, reading "Welcome to the Fish-n-Chips Diner". The source of his lure there was a now inactive searchlight mounted on top of the building. "Why had the light suddenly gone out when I came closer?" he thought and tried to stifle his anxiety.

The diner was part of a series of buildings in a classic row structure set-up, reminiscent of rustic American countryside architecture. For a short moment, he felt a sense of deja vu, thinking that he'd seen the place before. He checked the area up and down the foggy street but his stressed-out mind didn't obey him no matter how much he pondered the idea. Considering the unnatural situation, it didn't come as a surprise that he couldn't place it in his mind.

*

He carefully pulled the handle on the front door after catching his breath. Just as expected, it was locked, prompting him to give it a few knocks. After waiting for a little while without any sounds coming from within, he moved over to the large rectangular window on the outside of the diner. The glass was crusted over with a thick dust layer of the sort stirred up by construction machines. Patrick immediately set to work brushing off the window with the sleeve of his sweater.

After cleaning a small circular area, he looked in through the dusted-off section. A couple of chairs stood on the floor beside two long tables. The tables were decorated with lit wax candles and filled to the brim with various kinds of food; a buffet of meat and vegetables to delicious-looking pastries and several types of beverages. Everything inside seemed to be very neatly organized and lined up with great attention to detail.

Patrick was amazed by the overabundance of food and the luxurious tableware considering the state of the rest of the seemingly desolate area. It was almost as if whoever made it was waiting for a social gathering or something, adding to his unease when thinking that someone was reveling in such gluttony when the region was as dilapidated as it was. Having been lost in thought ogling the delicacies inside, he snapped into attention when a shadowy figure suddenly moved in the back area behind the long tables.

"Hey, hey! Excuse me! Can I come in? Hey!" Patrick exclaimed to no avail. He grumbled and looked over his shoulder down the foggy streets after catching a glimpse of what seemed like a silhouette behind him, but when he looked there was nothing there. Was his mind starting to play tricks on him or was something roaming around? He shuddered but tried not to let anxiety get the better of him.

*

Patrick started knocking at the diner window. Just when he was about to give up, a loud clacking sound could be heard from the inside, followed by a person emerging, casting uncanny shadows on the wall in the light from the candles. A sense of relief filled Patrick's mind as he quickly scurried over to the door. A familiar click could be heard as the door unlocked and there was a squeaking noise from its rusty hinges when it opened up. Blocking his path was an overweight man with a generally disheveled visage and dreary, roaming eyes. He wore a worn-out black and white shirt and dirty pants. "What's happening here?" Patrick thought as their eyes met.