Dark Descent

Disclaimer: Silent Hill is owned by Konami. I make no money off this fictional story.

 

Chapter 10: Vincent

Alternate Hilltop Center – Part 1

 

The darkness encompassed the room all around her, leaving her flashlight as the only source of light in the room. “Damn it!” she cursed, kicking the bathtub in anger. She was here again in the Otherworld. Rivulets of blood flowed from the bathtub, staining the gleaming porcelain with vein-like streaks of crimson. Alessa wrapped her arms around herself and looked around at her new surroundings.

The air was cold around her, like the icy grips of Death. The walls reeked of mold and decay, disease and blood. Metal grating had replaced the drywall in a lot of the sections. She walked on a tiled floor, stained with blood and mildew.

The room had turned into a dark, imposing corridor, even though it was only a few feet long. Alessa trembled as she walked towards the exit, shaky with a bone chilling feeling of dread. Something nasty was about to happen, she knew it. She held her shotgun firmly in front of her, ready to blast it in case something jumped out to slash at her. Alessa looked at a picture of a white-toothed smile, hanging on the wall behind a grating. Strange. That smile seemed familiar, for some reason.

The room led into another office that was once the display center, now transformed by the reality warping power of this realm. There was a wheelchair in the room, sitting there as if it was the most normal thing in the world. There was a doll sitting in the wheelchair, and it appeared to be a baby, wrapped in bandages. Alessa shuddered; something about the bandaged thing was unsettling her, and it wasn’t just the bad memories that it brought up. This couldn’t be a real baby here, could it? Not even this place would be that sick, she hoped. But that was nothing compared to the centerpiece of the room, which lay right ahead. Situated in a section of the wall between two chain-link gratings was a corpse hanging from its left arm, dressed in the ceremonial robes of a priest and knee-high black boots. Its head was melted off into a grotesque parody of a human skull, and in its right hand it held a much smaller figure, dangling over the bottomless hole. The bandaged doll held the hand of the much bigger body, like a parent holding the hand of a child. Alessa brought her hand over her mouth, gasping in shock from the sheer macabre nature of the sight. What in God’s name was this!? This was horrible; she had no other term for it.

Did it symbolize something? She didn’t want to know. She had to get out of here. She couldn’t stay here and stare at that thing any longer.

The floor was dark on the other side as well. A slight discernible noise caught her attention. The noise grew in strength the more she listened to it. Alessa shuddered in the frigid air. The noise sounded like the crumbling of paper, or the sound a bird would make, if it were warped to a monstrous degree.

It became a crescendo as something grew closer. Alessa aimed her shotgun at the darkness. Something was coming, and very quickly by the sound of it. But when she saw she still had time to find cover, she made a decision. Alessa ducked into a nearby door and slammed it shut behind her. She was relieved when she realized she was alone in here, with only a withering plant for companionship. She wasn’t a coward, but she was in no hurry to see what was approaching her. This wasn’t a horror movie, where characters followed stupid rules regardless of common sense. This was real life – the side most people never saw, and if she didn’t make the right decisions, she was going to get killed.

A gleaming object on the bench caught her eye; she spotted it standing out against the dark leather thanks to its white color. She picked it up and froze. It was a picture of her! What the hell was this doing here? More disturbing was what was written on the back. She turned it over and discovered an unsettling message. “Find the Holy One. Kill her?” she read aloud. Was someone trying to kill her? A shudder went throughout her. Someone was apparently stalking her. This had to have been taken recently, judging by the outfit she was wearing. The background seemed to be the mall. Alessa narrowed her eyes. This had to belong to that detective. So, he wasn’t a normal bystander like he claimed. He was actually knowledgeable about the Order, and he had been sent to kill her. All that questioning and pleading innocent must have been to gain her trust. She set her mouth in a grim line. The next time they met, she would show him no mercy. She appreciated the intent of someone trying to kill her, if they were operating off information based on twelve years ago, but she was not going to let them succeed. A quick look around confirmed where she was.

This seemed to be the mental health clinic she had been heading to before the world had changed. It had been transformed like the rest of the office building, overtaken by the disease of rust and decay that afflicted this entire building. She went into the next door office, doing anything to avoid going back out there again for the time being.

Inside was what appeared to be a small office as decayed as the outside walls. A large desk and bookshelf took up half the space ahead directly ahead of her. Suddenly, Alessa realized too late that she was not alone in the room. The old leather chair behind the desk wheeled around to face her, revealing a thin man that seemed oddly familiar to her. Brown-haired with a week’s worth of stubble on his face, he was roguish but handsome looking. His clothes were a little unkempt, but the brown vest and slacks lent an air of sophistication to his appearance. Alessa noted the top buttons of his shirt were open, showing the barest hints of the smooth chest underneath. Alessa instinctively pointed her gun at him, but the man barely showed any reaction aside from clutching the arms of the chair more tightly.

“Oh. You’ve finally arrived,” the well dressed man remarked smoothly, getting up from the desk. “I’ve been waiting to meet you, Alessa,” he said.

Alessa drew back in shock. This man knew her name? “You’ve been expecting me?” 

“Of course,” the man cocked his head, in a disbelieving way.

Okay… “But…who are you?” She was still confused.

The man offered her a cocky smirk. “The name’s Vincent. Don’t forget it, okay? I know you’ve been through a great ordeal so far, but you don’t have to worry. I’m on your side,” he reassured her.

“Really?” Alessa asked skeptically.



“Sure. I can help you…if you will let me,” Vincent smirked at her.



Alessa stared at him in sarcastic skepticism. “Really? Is it the same kind of help Claudia wants to give me?” she asked dryly. She raised her eyebrows.

The comment seemed to touch a nerve in Vincent. He threw up his hands in disgust. “Please don’t lump me together with that madwoman. She was totally brainwashed by that crazy old hag.” He paused, looking a little sheepishly at Alessa as he recalled whom he was talking to. “Well, maybe crazy old hag is a bit harsh. She was your real mother, after all,” he sneered casually, smirking at the raven haired woman.

Something snapped inside Alessa, and before she knew it, she was responding back with a torrent of blazing anger. “That monster was not my mother! She gave up any right she had to that title when she tortured me in that horrible sick way,” Alessa growled, holding the gun subconsciously at Vincent. He drew back in sudden shock, holding his hands in a disarming pose.

“Hold on a minute. I was just pointing it out,” Vincent pleaded, not wanting the woman to get the wrong idea and overreact. If Alessa killed him now, then his whole entire plan would be for naught. He hadn’t expected such fierce anger, even after 13 years. Dahlia must have really done a number on her psyche. And he had to admit: it was a bit frightening.

“Yeah, well, I suggest you not point it out ever again,” Alessa warned. She stared unsettlingly at his casually sophisticated form, evaluating whether he would pull another joke again, and tempt her directive by mentioning Dahlia. Finally she lowered the gun, deciding it wasn’t worth it.

“Okay,” Vincent said, still holding his hands up in a disarming gesture. When he realized she wasn’t going to shoot him, he sat carefully back behind the desk.

Alessa decided a change of topic was in order. “You said you want to help me. How? Do you even know what’s going on?” she inquired.



“Of course. I know everything,” Vincent said mysteriously. Alessa rolled her eyes at the confident tone, but he continued unfazed. “I know all about your…less-than-perfect past. And I know that unless you do something soon, you’re about to repeat that hell.”

“What are you talking about?”

Vincent looked surprise. “Don’t you know? Haven’t you figured it out yet?”

Alessa’s eyes narrowed. “If I had, would I really be asking you now?”

“Hey, there’s no need to get upset. I’m merely surprised, that’s all,” Vincent placated her. “But if you really don’t know…”

“What is it? Tell me what’s going on.”

Vincent sighed, but he looked rather satisfied at knowing something she didn’t. Too satisfied, in fact. For just as it seemed like she would get her answer, Alessa saw a shadow cross his face. His lips curved into a smirk as his eyes took on a hint of maliciousness she didn’t like at all.

“No, I think not.”

“What?” Alessa exclaimed.

“I don’t think I’ll tell you anything. Not yet,” Vincent reiterated.

“Why?”

“Because it’s not important yet,” Vincent shrugged, smiling a bit at the woman. “Why don’t you enjoy yourself a bit longer instead?” he suggested, smirking in that unusual, unsettling way of his. He was enjoying her confusion, if he was to be honest with himself.



“Enjoy myself?” Alessa repeated. “Are you out of your fucking mind? Don’t you realize what the hell is going on out there!? We are caught in some alternate dimension or plane of existence between who knows what, and we have no way out! There are monsters out there intent on eating anything they come across, I’ve had to fight them all the way through my trip here, getting beaten and bloodied, and you’re telling me to enjoy myself!?” Alessa screamed, losing her temper beyond her control. She couldn’t help it, this man was pushing all her buttons in one night and if she weren’t so reluctant to take a human life, she was certain she would have killed him by now. He was lucky she was so morally responsible, thanks to her parents’ upbringing, or else he would have been dead.

“Oh, I understand perfectly what is going on out there,” Vincent responded calmly, pushing his glasses up with his fingers. He leaned back in his chair, seemingly unfazed by her outburst.

“Then why? Doesn’t this place get to you at all?” she asked. This guy was both starting to frustrate her and seriously give her the creeps. But even she didn’t expect the next statement that came out of his mouth.

“Oh, it gets to me alright. I find it most…fascinating,” Vincent said, glancing around at the rusted walls and furniture, reeking of mildew and decay.

Alessa stared at him. She simply stared at him.

“Oh my god. You’re insane,” Alessa realized. “You’re fucking insane, and I’m standing here talking to you,” she said dazedly. It was clear to her now. Whoever this man was, he was just as out of it as Claudia, if not more so.

Vincent cocked an eyebrow. “Insane? Oh no. Quite the contrary, my dear; I assure you I am very sane. However, I am what some people would call an ‘unconventional’ thinker.” He stared at Alessa with morbid amusement. “But even if I was insane, isn’t insanity just a different point of view?"

Alessa had no answer to that. Suddenly she didn’t care whether he told her what he knew or not. Her own instincts told her that she really didn’t want to be in the same room with this man. He was dangerous; she could see it in his eyes. She started to back away towards the exit. It didn’t escape Vincent’s notice.

“Where are you going?” Alessa didn’t say anything. “Aw, did I scare you?”

“No,” Alessa shook her head. “But if you’re not going to help me, I really have no reason to stay here, do I?” she stated, trying to sound irritated. The truth was that Vincent was starting to intimidate her. But she couldn’t let him see that. She knew full well how effective a weapon fear could be in the hands of someone dangerous enough. Someone like him.

“Actually, I can think of a few,” Vincent remarked. An unsettling glint came into his eyes that send a chill down Alessa’s spine. She rushed to the door, eager to leave the office as quickly as possible, but Vincent was faster. He shielded the exit with his body, grinning wolfishly at her now.

“What are you doing?”

“Are you so eager to leave? Why don’t you stay a while? Like I said, there is some enjoyment to be found here,” the unsettling man remarked playfully. Yet Alessa didn’t miss the hint of dark intention in his tone. She glanced at the door she had come through, gauging how long it would take to escape into the outside area scattered with chasms and monsters that although frightening, would be very convenient at the moment.

“Don’t think I can’t get there just as fast,” Vincent broke into her thoughts. But before he even took a step, Alessa pointed the barrel of her shotgun at his chest.

“Stay away from me,” she ordered. “I don’t know what game you’re playing, but whoever you are, I want no part of it.”

Vincent immediately held up his hands in protest. “Whoa, hold on there. You aren’t seriously going to shoot me, are you? I’m not even armed!”

Alessa sighed. No, she didn’t want to waste precious bullets on a human nuisance with all the demons out there. She certainly didn’t want to kill an unarmed man either. However, she would do it if left with no other choice.

“I will if I have to,” she warned him.

“Fine. I apologize for that. I was just having some fun,” Vincent explained. He gestured at the grotesque scenery surrounding them. “You can’t tell me you expect me to act normally under these circumstances.”

Alessa lowered her weapon a little, seeing his point. Vincent approached her cautiously, keeping his palms up.

“Look at this place, Alessa. I may find it fascinating, but only because it’s the stuff of nightmares. A living nightmare – that’s what this is. Inhuman beasts, bottomless pits, walls painted in flesh and blood; Dante and Geiger would have a field day with this little slice of Hell,” he commented philosophically. “Normalcy is nearly as dead as those corpses hanging outside. If I am to retain my sanity from the clutches of this place, I need something positive to focus on. Something real and meaningful. Something like you.”

“Huh?”

“You’re beautiful, you know. I used to yearn for nice things when I was younger. Lovely girls, respect from others, worth as a human being. But I was always too shy to get any of them. I was afraid to approach women with my intentions, and they always ignored me. I couldn’t demand the respect I deserved from others, and I got treated badly because of it. How I wish I’d have had the strength to state what I wanted when I was young, rather than just react to what was going on around me,” he said contemplatively, and Alessa could almost feel the sadness – or regret – as he looked down from the area, seemingly lost in his moment of contemplation. The demeanor had turned earnestly serious suddenly.

Alessa lowered the gun entirely, wondering if perhaps she had been too quick to judge earlier. But then the pensive mood disappeared, replaced by the arrogant, threatening demeanor she had encountered earlier.

“But alas, things always change, don’t they? And I’ve learned a very valuable lesson since then: merely yearning for something does very little good. You have to reach out and take it. Don’t you agree?"

Alessa shuddered. That was sensible enough advice, yet her sixth sense detected the casual ruthlessness hidden behind his tone. Something told her this man had done more than his fair share of taking anything he wanted, regardless of the consequences. And she really didn’t like the way he was staring at her now.

Vincent glanced intensely into her eyes, letting her see the depth of his desire.

“And right now, I know exactly what I want.”

Vincent stepped closer to Alessa, letting his eyes trail over her body. The tight clothes she wore only defined the womanly curves she possessed. She wasn’t as stunning as some of the women he had experienced in Silent Hill; her breasts weren’t the largest, and her legs weren’t quite as statuesque. That didn’t matter in the least. She was still beautiful, and her sharp stubbornness more than made up for any shortcomings of the physical. She was fiery, unlike some of the ones he had conquered. He liked it when they had spirit.

It made things so much more enjoyable when they finally submitted.

“Wh-What are you doing?” Alessa asked uneasily, shifting beneath his heated gaze. There was something there that she didn’t like at all.

“Taking what I want,” Vincent replied, as he looked down at her.

And then he pressed his lips against hers, as he pressed his body close against hers. He grabbed her in a tight, firm grip that made her gasp in astonishment. His hands were on her breasts, touching her all over as they worked their way down to the sides of her ass. Alessa was frozen in stunned disbelief, unable to do anything to respond. He groped her thoroughly through her clothing, frantically touching every part of her as if in a daze. He held her arm at her side, so that she would be unable to aim her shotgun at him. His lips were smothering her mouth, with his tongue intruding its way into her personal space, urging her to respond. His hands went up to her breasts again, as his arms pinned hers against the wall. And suddenly, Alessa woke up. She couldn’t shoot him, but she knew there was something she could do to get herself out of this.

She slammed her knee hard into his crotch, making him double over in pain. As he grunted in agony while holding his body, Alessa brought down the form of the shotgun across his back, bringing him to his knees, and then she swung it hard across his side, driving him to the ground. As Vincent lay holding his stomach on the ground, Alessa grabbed his legs and stomped on his crotch. She stomped on his crotch repeatedly in a rage inspired by the events of the past few minutes, until Vincent was crying out in pain. Finally, when it seemed she wouldn’t stop, Alessa slammed his legs away, and finally let him shift onto his side in an agonized position. Alessa grabbed her shotgun and she was tempted to just shoot him right here, but she decided against it. She was not going to murder someone who was unarmed, even if he was a creep who had just tried to rape her, and she was not going to waste a bullet that might be needed out there for a monster on someone who was obviously just a piece of trash, unworthy of her attention. She hurried towards the door, still aiming her shotgun right at him.

“Stay the fuck away from me! Or next time, I’m gonna blow both of your balls off! You hear me? I don’t know what the hell kinda thing you’re trying to pull here, I don’t have time for this. Just stay the fuck away from me,” Alessa screamed at him, moving her shotgun warningly.

Vincent was still crying in agony on the ground, thus he was unable to respond. She didn’t wait for a response, knowing what was best for her. Alessa slammed the door behind her, as she exited the room.

Vincent groaned in pain, carefully pushing himself up into a sitting position. Shit, it still hurt with more pain than he had ever thought possible. He hadn’t been expecting that at all. He had been expecting her to be an easy pushover, and instead the opposite had happened. She had almost killed him, and the rage in her eyes was frightening to behold. He had pushed her too hard, too fast, and paid the consequences for it. Such rough language for the Mother of God, too. Such coarse, unrefined words; like a common street walker. Being away from the Order had cheapened her in some ways. But, it had made her immeasurably strong in others. He had always wondered about the Mother of God, with Claudia speaking so frequently about her. He had heard about her strength, and her deeds, through the eyes of a twisted brainwashed believer. And now that he saw her, for the first time, he knew that he had to have her. She was going to be a challenge. He couldn’t just whisper a couple of words into her ear, and oh-so-skillfully twist her to his will. But, everyone had a breaking point. He would break her down slowly, challenging her defenses at every turn when they met, and when she was at her most vulnerable point in this play, he would move in for the kill. He smiled as he leaned on his elbow, relaxing a little despite the soreness. Yes, it would be glorious, his most powerful triumph to date. He would play his true role in this sordid little situation, and there would be nothing Claudia could do about it. The invigorating thought was almost enough to give him strength to rise to a proper standing position, though he remained on the floor for safety’s sake for now. No need to injure himself and ruin the experience for his prized pet, soon to be all his and no one else’s.

He looked forward to breaking her.

~

* Some dialogue may be borrowed from Silent Hill 3.