Dark Descent

Disclaimer: Yada yada yada. Konami owns Silent Hill. You know the rest. ;)

 

Chapter 8: Deeper into the Darkness Hazel Street Station: Part 2

 

Over an hour in this damn place, and she was still stuck in the subway station.



Alessa cursed the obstacles this place put in her path. All she wanted to do was to get home, and this place kept finding ways to keep her from being anywhere near that goal.



She found an item in another basement of the subway, a nutcracker rusted brown from disuse. She resisted the urge to make any jokes, wondering what use she might have for such an item. Maybe she could use it on Douglas.

On second thought, maybe she wasn't as out of humor as she thought, smiling wickedly to herself.

In the stairway to the second level, she spotted a note attached to the wall. Picking it up, she felt confusion and revulsion as she read:

Tisk, tisk; I have a very enticing birthday present for you. Come to the platform number 4 to get it. I'm sure you'll enjoy using it on others. Or perhaps, you can use it on yourself instead.

Alessa was intrigued by the note. Her eyes lit up in anticipation. It looked like she was heading to platform 4.



She swore when she realized there might be more of those monstrous things there. But if there was something to be found, then perhaps it was worth bypassing those monsters for.

Strangely, there were no dogs around. And there was a train stopped right in the middle of the track. Alessa opened the door to the passenger car and was stunned by what she saw. There was a beautifully wrapped gift box with a bow on top. Opening the box, her eyes lit up when she saw what the gift was. It was a shotgun! Alessa picked up the hefty weapon and paused with an admiring glance. It even had 12 shells beside it and was fully loaded. Now she was ready to get past those dogs on platform 3, and anything else that might threaten her.

There was an unusual atmosphere waiting for her when she emerged. Alessa shuddered in instinctive reaction. Something wasn't right. Her radio was buzzing like crazy. And then she saw it.

She thought it was a garbage bag at first, until she realized that it had form. It looked like would get a chance to test her new shotgun a lot sooner than she anticipated.



The closer she got to it, the more disgusting it became. Oh my god, she thought to herself. It looked like a mass of tumors in human shape - or one giant tumor in the form of a human. The smell was horrible. It smelled like a piece of meat that had been left rotting out in the sun, or something. Was it dead? The radio didn't indicate it, but the thing wasn't moving. Looking closer, she saw that it was twitching. Was it still alive? She wondered in amazement.

And then the creature stood up, nearly startling Alessa out of her wits. She quickly steadied the shotgun. Without hesitation, she fired at th upper part of the mass in front of her. The explosion was deafening, and it almost sent Alessa reeling. The monster was far more affected, falling to the ground in a wounded mass of flesh and fluids. Before it could recover, Alessa smashed her pipe down on its head. The monster gave one final shudder and fell still, after an unearthly death growl. It was dead.

To her surprise, it literally deflated after its demise.



Like...

Like a tumor drained of its liquid, Alessa realized.

Alessa felt the relief pour off her in waves. That almost gave her a heart attack. The pipe in one hand, the shotgun in the other, she was almost using them to support her from collapsing under her shaky legs. She looked at the shotgun, an admiration for how powerful it was growing inside her. It was a powerful weapon, if it could bring a monster to its knees with one shot.

She was carrying the shotgun and the pipe now. It occurred to her that she was going to have to leave one of them. And it sure wasn't going to be the shotgun. She wasn't Ash from the Evil Dead series. She couldn't fight with the pipe in one hand and the shotgun in the other. But she wasn't comfortable doing so until she got out of the subway station. Only at that point would she relinquish the weaker of her weapons.

She traversed back to the place where all this had started: platform 3. The dogs were waiting for her. But this time, Alessa was ready for them. There was a thunderous sound as the first shotgun blast struck the dog, destroying part of its skull. The creature stood up from the blast, dripping blood and skull matter from the wound, only to have another shot put it down for good. Another dog came at her, and this one suffered the same fate as the other, getting blown to hell by the massive blast of the shotgun. Alessa had to admit, it felt satisfying to see that monster go down. She didn't even have to stomp on it. She did so anyway, feeling it necessary to release some of her frustrations.

Alessa took a look around. The train should be arriving soon. She supposed she would just have to wait for it. The dog problem was solved for now. There were no more canines lingering in the vicinity of the platform.

Minutes passed, and the train did not come to the station. Alessa began to get concerned. Was the train out of order too in this place? It should have arrived by now. She wondered: what was she going to do if the train did not arrive to take her home? She would have to go back to the mall and find some way to break through the door, so that she could got to her car (if it was still there). Or if that detective was hanging around, perhaps she would steal his instead.

Alessa suddenly felt like there was something she was supposed to be noticing. There was a door on the inner wall of the track, and there was a light above the door. Alessa immediately stepped back. Oh no, she thought snidely. This was the oldest trick in the book. As soon as she set foot on the track, the train was going to come barreling down the railroad track and mow her away.

She decided to wait. Something urged Alessa to check it out, but she resisted. How was she going to get down there? The obvious danger was present. How could she be sure the power was turned off? Never mind the implications of that, she wasn't going to go down there if there was any risk of being electrocuted.



She stretched as much as possible from the platform edge, but she couldn't reach the door. She would have to go down onto the tracks in order to open it. The thought of going down there was terrifying in its consequences. But then she realized that unless she checked out that door, the train would possibly never arrive. It was a neat as trap as any she had seen. She pulled out a useless item and tossed it onto the tracks. The item did nothing when it connected with the rails. No sparks, no jumping; that was a good sign.

She jumped down onto the track, being careful to avoid the rails. She kept close to the platform, just in case she needed to make a hasty retreat. The door was locked. The doorknob rattled repeatedly, but the handle simply would nor turn. What the...? She thought to herself. Then what was the point of all this? Suddenly she heard a sound that nearly stopped her heart cold. It was the sound of an oncoming horn, and it was very, very nearby. Now she knew what the point of this was, and it left her scrambling to get herself to safety.

Oh fuck no.

She scrambled to get up to the platform. Feverishly working her arms and legs, Alessa climbed up quickly, driven by the sheer terror that had taken hold of her at that moment. As a precaution, she threw herself with forward momentum and landed several feet away. Moments later, the train came barreling past her on the track where she had been only moments before. Several cars bypassed her in the process before finally grinding down to a halt.

Alessa looked at the train with a combined sense of horror and disbelief. She had almost gotten killed. If she had not stayed close to the platform, or heard the horn when she did, she would have been mowed down by the oncoming onslaught of the subway.

Once again, she felt a wave of anger at whoever was doing this. God, hadn't she suffered enough?! What the hell was the point of all this? Was it just to torment her? Or were they really out to kill them for what she did to them those six years ago? She demanded an answer. Unfortunately, no answer was forthcoming. Alessa realized this was just another thing she would have to deal with in a long list of unpleasant experiences today.



The way out was blocked. She would have to go upstairs through the second floor in order to come down on the other side. And yet, she felt compelled to return to the first floor before that. She didn't know why she felt that way, yet she just did. But she had learned to trust such feelings, and she wasn't going to ignore this one. Maybe she had missed something. Or maybe there was something that she really needed to see.

True enough, someone had blocked the passageway above. Which meant she really had to go through the first floor in order to come out on the other side. Debris was piled up in the middle of the hallway, forming a large concrete wall. It was like the ceiling had crumbled on itself. How could this have happened without her knowing about it?

It was a long climb to the first floor, and one that Alessa undertook with caution. She was careful to maintain her guard, keeping her eyes and ears open for anything that might look out of place. She didn't know where the next threat could come from, or when the environment could suddenly collapse on itself, revealing that grotesque nightmare lurking underneath. And sure enough, it didn't take long for something to register on her radar.

There was a scraping sound coming from the beginning of the station. Specifically, the passageway where she had come from. The noise grew closer until Alessa could hear it distinctly. And then it showed itself.

Rounding the corner, two-charcoal skinned arms dragged themselves along the ground, hauling an incredibly deformed body now. It was her double from the Otherworld. Somehow the creature had made its way down here from the mall and was pursuing her. Briefly Alessa panicked. She recalled she had fired several shots into the creature, all without any effect. No matter what she did, it refused to give up. The creature regenerated itself almost instantly.

But now Alessa had an edge, and she welcomed the chance to use it. She loaded up her shotgun and readied her aim. When the creature was in range, she fired. The thunderous blast struck the creature in the shoulder. The creature hesitated, but continued to move. Another blast struck the monster in the forehead. But the creature was still moving. She unloaded a third shot into it. The creature roared in pain and quickly rushed toward its aggressor, almost skittering on the ground.

Alessa dodged out of the way as the creature slashed at her with a fearsome claw. Not thinking about it, she swung the pipe in an arc that connected with the creature's skull. Letting the shotgun drop, she took a two-handed approach as she brought the pipe down on her opponent's head. All her frustrations and anger over the day's occurrences, over 13 years of carrying around horrible memories since her youth, exploded in an outburst of outrage as she mercilessly beat the living mockery of her suffering, not giving it a chance to strike. The pipe bent out of the stress of hammering the inhuman form, and Alessa realized she wouldn't be able to beat it this way. Tossing the pipe aside, she grabbed the shotgun and got ready. As the creature lunged at her, Alessa shot it point-blank range in the head. There was a rain of blood as the monster halted in its tracks. The creature gave one final growl, then collapsed as its arms gave out under it.

It was dead.

Alessa gave a sigh of relief, mopping the sweat off her forehead. Finally she had triumphed over the adversary that represented her old memories. Alessa picked up the weapon she had discarded. It was stained with blood and bits of flesh. It was repulsive to look at, and she dare not touch it with both hands. Distantly she wondered if the blood had any effect on its own, or if it was ordinary blood. She wasn't going to touch it - that was for sure. She sure didn't want to have it poison her or anything. Alessa looked at the pipe. Bent and cracked from the monster's hard body, it wasn't going to be of much use. Tossing it aside, Alessa held her shotgun firmly. She would have to rely on it from now on. Her life was in its grasp.

The way out waited for her.

She traversed down to the lower level through a stairway on the other side of that barricade. There was only one thing left to do, and that was get on the train that would take her away from this place. And sure enough, there was the subway on platform 3. The subway stretched across the platform, blocking her view of the other platform and effectively shielding her from any enemies. The sight was a relief for Alessa, who was weary of the constant battles and having to hide - finally she would get out of this nightmare. Strangely enough, the doors were all closed. But she paid it no mind. She wasn't about to question her only way out of here. There was a lone door open at the other end. Alessa rushed to it with nary a thought.

Moments after she stepped in, the doors closed behind her, with a rather loud slam. Alessa turned back in surprise, but it was too late to get out, and she didn't really want to leave the train anyway.

For better or worse, she was on her way.

~

The train sped past the darkness in the tunnel at breakneck speed.

With nothing else to do, Alessa sat down on one of the benches. The train was empty, from what it looked liked, but she forced herself not to think that was an ominous sign. It was probably just late in the evening, and the conductor was blissfully unaware he had just sped past an overwhelming horror. She breathed a big sigh of relief. Finally she was away from there. It had taken her longer than she had imagined, but hopefully the horror of the subway station and the shopping mall was only a memory. She rubbed a tired forearm across her face. God, she was exhausted. She wanted nothing more than to go home and cry about how she was almost run over by a train, and the things she had been through thanks to that godforsaken place. She wanted to kill someone for what she'd been through, but hopefully her father would do it for her. She was done for the day. She couldn't allow herself to believe that home wouldn't be there when she arrived.

Suddenly Alessa noticed that the train wasn't making any stops. Instead it sped along a never-ending tunnel of darkness, lights flashing as it went by, while never making any more to slow down. She checked around the train compartment, but there was only a door that led to the outside. Oh no, what's wrong with it now? She thought. It couldn't be infected by that...thing that took over the mall, could it? She knew the conductor's car had to be at the front, but getting there would mean a trip through several subway doors, something she wasn't prone to doing. But it seemed she had no choice.

Alessa didn't expect any trouble. Just in case, she armed her shotgun. She decided to check the other compartments one by one. Alessa carefully stepped into the next passenger car, heart beating a thousand miles a minute until she was fully inside. That wasn't something she would be trying again, after she was done with this whole thing...

The train was dark, more so than the last car. And as she stared into the shadows, she saw them coming.

Oh God.

There were two of them, marching along with that odd gait of theirs, their purplish skin partially obscured by the shadows. They made that strange crying sound that sounded like a mewling baby; it was disturbing on so many levels. And they were coming straight for her. Alessa nearly reached for her pipe, before she remembered she had discarded it in the subway station. She would have to expend more ammo if she wanted to get past them.

She waited until they were both within reach, and then let loose with her weapon. A blast of her shotgun brought them down. Alessa stomped on one, and then disgustedly stomped on the other. She cringed as she heard the sickening crunch beneath her boot, but she was quickly getting used to it.

The next car was all right. There was nothing unusual about it. But the car after that presented some trouble. There was a loud stomping coming from the darkness. "Oh God", Alessa panicked, as the creature emerged from the shadows. It was huge, she realized; twice as big as the others she had killed. It even sounded more terrifying, as it stomped its way towards her. Holder her weapon in her trembling hands, Alessa fired one thunderous shot at the creature. The monster paused in its tracks, but it shook it off and kept coming. Really panicking now, Alessa blasted another shot at the purplish creature. The man-sized monster gave a momentary groan as it stumbled to the ground. Alessa quickly ran up and stepped on it before it could recover. She could have used her shotgun to bludgeon it to death, but there was no way she was getting her hands stained with the blood of that...thing.

Alessa wiped her forehead with her forearm. She was getting too antsy for this. She'd thought she was done with this stuff after leaving the subway platform. Why couldn't they just leave her alone? What power had taken hold of the city, that all these things were targeting her and her alone?

The next car was empty. Briefly Alessa wondered where they were going. Where could they possibly be headed, that the train would keep going like this without making a single stop?

She hoped it wasn't straight into Hell. She really wasn't ready to deal with that realm again, all things considered.

Finally she reached the last car before the conductor's. The monster came out of the darkness with a heart-stopping stomp, its clawed feet making heavy thuds on the ground. Alessa nearly cried in frustration when she realized it was one of the big ones. Alessa blasted it once as it approached. She waited until it got closer, much closer, before she fired again, not wanting to miss this shot. She barely had enough ammo as it was. And then the monster did something that stunned Alessa. It leapt towards her, using its body as a hammer in an attempt to strike her. Alessa fell to the ground as she jumped back from the monster's attack, trembling as she aimed the shotgun upwards. The blast drove back the monster with unwavering force, dropping it like a stone. Alessa stood up and struck it with the butt of her shotgun. She stomped on it to finish it off.

Her heart was pounding. That was too close, she told herself. Next time, she would rather not wait until the monster was within three feet of her.

Alessa sat a moment to catch her breath. When she recovered, she stood up and examined the compartment.

She looked around the large passenger car, taking it all in to see if there was any detail that could prove useful. She found a box of shotgun rounds and pocketed the shells. Suddenly, she noticed that the door to the conductor's car was showing darkness through its window. That was odd. She looked closer and to her shock, there was nothing but darkness.

There was no other car after this one.

The revelation left her stunned. If there was no other car for the conductor to be in, then who the hell was driving the train?

Alessa leaned back against the wall. She felt a little light-headed; like she needed to get some air into her system. This was getting to be too much. First all these monsters around and now a train that was driving itself. What the hell was going on around here? Suddenly, the train jerked violently as the invisible conductor slammed on the breaks. Alessa was thrown to the side, and she grasped onto the handrail as the train ground to a halt. The doors slid open with little fanfare, opening the gates into places unknown.

She was here.

The only problem was she didn't know where ‘here' was.

Alessa looked to see if there were any monsters coming, but the train remained empty. It was evident she had reached her destination - whatever place the forces behind this had chosen for her - and there was only one way to proceed. Gathering her shotgun, Alessa readied herself for what might come and emerged into the darkness outside.