Chapter Text
That town will forever remain engraved in my memory. What was once a small little resort based town that sat by the lake, bustling with life as people came, stayed, and went. I had visited that town many times growing up, having once fished in the lake, played in the amusement park, and slept in the hotel. I had gone to visit the town just last Autumn, around September of 1994, as an early birthday present to myself. It would be a nice treat, I thought to myself, to visit the place, to see how much it had changed since I last was there. And in all honesty, I was further encouraged to do so after my mother and brother had passed away just the year before, to cheer myself up of course.
That was a mistake, however. The town hasn't been any different since I last visited. Not a soul could be seen throughout the streets, all the cars had long been abandoned, the stores old and falling apart. It was more like a ghost town than the bustling resort that I remembered. I roamed the streets, hoping to find someone, but nothing turned up. All I managed to find were small memos, old polaroids that made little sense, and thankfully, a map of the town. The only thing I knew would be worth finding here is another person in this place.
By now, I had searched every unlocked shop possible, not quite finding anything else or anyone else. All I managed to scrounge up were more polaroids, more memos, and a few gross needles and unopened supplements in the grocery store and some long abandoned vehicles. I didn’t truly understand why these were placed here, after all they were all in such interesting spots. While most normal grocery stores would have the supplements resting on one shelf or sat in one area, they were… scattered about. The needles were also out in the open, and sat in absolutely unsanitary spots. It was disgusting. What was even weirder were the bouts of handgun ammo scattered about, the boxes just about empty, and I wasn’t even in possession of a handgun. It was odd.
Nevertheless, I persisted, searching high and low for anything or anyone. I managed to obtain myself a decent pistol from within one of the abandoned houses, it had a few stray bullets left in the safe so I simply stuffed them into my bag, checking the magazine as well. Thankfully, the magazine was full, not requiring me to tediously reload it with another. There was truly something off putting about this town, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on.
I felt like I was being watched by something, something I couldn’t see no matter how far I looked. I thought nothing of it of course, simply continuing on with my search for someone out there, someone who could help me get out of this spooky ghost town that was once my preferred resort spot.
I soon came across a small bar, one that had clearly been visited before I got here, as the Jukebox wasn’t at all in pristine condition. Maybe here I could find some food, maybe a drink or two to ease my nerves… but clearly someone had taken all the drinks with them before leaving town. I sighed with disappointment but continued on either way. I attempted to leave out the door, turning without looking, and there I saw it. It looked familiar, too familiar to feel comfortable with. I looked nearly human, but the way it contorted and moved was nothing natural, the way its bones cracked sickeningly with every wonky step it took.
Whatever it was, it didn’t hesitate to lock eyes with me, letting out a disgusting screech, drool dripping from its chapped lips, and it came stumbling for me, arms, or what was left of them, reaching out to try and grab me. I stumbled backwards before it could even touch me, heart rate increasing steadily with fear. ‘What is that?’ I asked myself, trying my best to tear my eyes away from the monster. I soon managed to regain my composure, stumbling away and out through the backdoor of Neelys Bar, running as far as I could until I managed to reach a familiar building, one I had stayed in when I was searching for a proper home in my twenties.
Woodside Apartments.
I gasped with relief as I ran right in, pushing open the doors and slamming it shut behind me. Safe, I thought, I was safe from those monsters that were roaming those foggy streets. I was so sure I’d be safe here, that they wouldn’t be able to get in here. With my newfound safety, I decided to explore the building, finding the floor guide to this place had already been taken. ‘Huh, that’s weird’, I thought to myself idly, but I simply shrugged it off. Maybe they had since taken it down before abandoning this place, seeing it was unnecessary to have. After all, people should know where their apartment was located before even entering the building!
I wandered for some time, running up and down the halls, testing every door to find which ones were unlocked and which weren’t, even going up and down the stairs every time I ran past them, burning some energy. As I laughed down the hall, having bolted down the second floor hallway for the fourth time that round, I ran into someone, stumbling backwards with relentless apologies. “Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry, I-I should’ve paid attention to where I was-” I stammered nervously.
“Hey, it’s fine, you didn’t mean to.” The other answered, reassuring me that he was fine. I was relieved of course, having been thankful that I both managed to find someone else in this awful town, and that he wasn’t upset with me for running around aimlessly. I just couldn't really help myself is all. “Why are you here?” I asked, wondering what on earth he was doing in this town, it was full of monsters after all, and absolutely dangerous! “Just… looking for someone is all.” He answered, giving me a shrug.
I didn’t push it further, simply just asking for his name is all and if we could perhaps stick together and find that someone. I didn’t have anything better to do either way. He told me his name was James, James Sunderland, and I told him mine, Rory Smith. After a few moments of rest, we headed off, as I just stuck behind him, trusting his sense of direction. We certainly made a good team, fighting those monsters, for the most part at least.
By the end, all I can remember is dragging James out of there, assuring him that we’ll be alright and to just hang on. He really was a heavy bit of dead weight on my shoulder, but he was my friend, I wasn’t just about to leave him all alone in that town to die, even if none of it was really real. Those monsters weren’t real, nothing was real. It was just some haunted town picking on us through our subconscious. I dragged him as far as I could carry him, managing to support him all the way back to the observation dock that overlooked that beautiful lake, the one that separated Old Silent Hill from the newer South Vale.
With all the care in the world, I placed him against my car, digging in my pocket for my keys as I managed to unlock it. “Don’t worry James, I’m going to get you someplace safe, just relax and try not to think about it okay?” I assured him, digging through my glove box and center console for some spare water bottle, handing it over to James. “Here, drink up, you’ll feel better.” After that, I hauled him right into the right passenger seat, letting him just sit quietly and hang on.
Suffice to say, I am never coming back to this horrible town ever again, for it wasn’t the Silent Hill I remembered from my childhood. Nor was I ever allowing James to step foot into the town either, seeing how harmful it must’ve been to his already poor mental state. I understood why, why he had a desire to come here, to find that important someone. He had received a, now blank, letter from his deceased wife Mary, a woman who supposedly died three years before now and a woman he loved with all his heart. Though, as awful as most would take it, the truth was that James, in a desperate attempt to end her suffering from her incurable illness, had killed her. Most would simply see that as an act of cruel murder, but I knew she would’ve understood a little, she wouldn’t have wanted to suffer for much longer.
“We’ll get you someplace safe, someplace comfortable.” I assured him once more, just resting my hand upon his shoulder as I drove towards my home, understanding James might not wish to return to his own for fear of bringing up memories of what he had done to Mary.