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armadasA whisper of a word, carried on a heavy wind. The smell of sweet, fragrant flowers. The chime of church bells.
[silent hill]
a place both close and distant.
Somehow, someway, this town seems to attract all manner of visitors. On first glance, [silent hill] seems like a fairly innocuous town, nestled between dense forests and compact mountain ranges. It gives off a certain vibe to most: pleasant, if tinged with an unknown melancholy. Living up to its name, [silent hill] doesn't see much in terms of bombastic parades or publicity stunts, relegating most of its attractions to the theme park and nearby lake. Of course, there are all sorts of shopfronts and vendors to be found, giving the little town a fair bit of personality between the quirky inhabitants and their bizarre, sometimes disconcerting, rumors.
Maybe it was a long, winding roadtrip that landed you here. Seems like your car broke down, huh? What a shame! Good thing the denizens of the town can point you to a reputable mechanic!... if he hadn't happened to be closed up for the night. Sorry about that. Good thing you can grab a cheap motel room for the night.
Or maybe you heard of the place and wanted to check it out. Some of those rumors reach further than the knitting circles and bar counter banter of the town, after all. Sounds like it might be a fun little diversion, for those interested in the strange and unusual.
Or maybe, just maybe, you don't remember why you're here. Or how you got here. You just sort of... are.
Strange. Well, at least the locals are nice.
That is, until the weather report comes in for the day. People seem a bit on edge as the wispy curls of fog start to encroach on the town. No one can really explain it, but there's a strange bit bit of unease on foggy days. Maybe because it's depressing and overcast; anyone's mood would take a dive.
there was a HOLE here. it's gone now.
But it's just fog, right? Just an old wives' tale, as the more skeptical residents charmingly call it. But as the thick mist starts to roll in, people seem to be engulfed by it, taken from view as if it were nothing. No screams of panic, no mad dash for shelter, just... gone.
Except for you, and maybe some other lucky (or perhaps unlucky) folks. Everything, from the steady bustle of socialization in the shopping district to the rumble of engines down the street, is suddenly replaced by silence.
What now?
🌫️ Well, one obvious choice is to run around the streets, yelling things like "IS THERE ANYONE THERE?" Surely you can't be all alone now, right?
🌫️ Another option is to start rooting around buildings, seeing if you can find someone—anyone—to talk to. Maybe someone could fill you in on this crazy situation? Just be wary of breaking and entering: it's still a crime!
🌫️ Maybe you've found someone (lucky you!). From here, maybe you should come up with a game plan. Are we sticking around to ride this out? Or are we gonna try to find our way out? Well, if you choose the latter, you'll need to figure out a way past the sudden rifts in the roadways. That wasn't torn up before, was it? What about that tunnel that leads to the highway? When was that boarded up?!
you see it too. for me, it's always like this.
One way or another, you're going to find out the hard way that this isn't a harmless little prank that the entire town all in on. Not a soul to be found, except maybe a few "chosen" few, and most everyone's instinct is to try and get into a building for a sense of safety and security. Being out in the open like that can make a person lose their sense of direction, among other things.
But not only are all the buildings empty (at first), but many seem to be in disrepair. That's funny. Weren't you just in this convenience store a few hours ago? Now it looks dusty and abandoned... Weird.
But that's not all. During your travels of exploring houses for clues, gathering supplies, and discussing your next steps with your companions, you hear the faint droning sound of a siren... almost like an old air raid siren...
🔪 Within moments, you're feeling kind of woozy... Well, whether or not you pass out, it's only a blink of an eye later and your surroundings start to... change. While the oddly decrepit, dusty veneer that everything had taken on was certainly unnerving, it doesn't compare to the seeping of blood-red rust over every surface. In fact, the odor alone can singe your nostrils and inspire tearing in your eyes. What the hell just happened?
🔪 Now panic is really setting in. It was one thing for a fog to roll in and wipe the streets clean, but watching the interior of a room decay and rust over right before your eyes would definitely be the limit for some. Are you going to keep your cool? Or are you going to lash out at everyone around you and run off on your own? And what about the others? Are they going to care to run after you? Or will they start to see you as a threat...
🔪 The real meat and potatoes is finally here. Somehow or another, you may be separated from your companions, but whatever the case may be, you've come across some rather disturbing signs of activity. Pools of blood, maybe corpses that you know were not there the last time you checked this room! To top it all off, you might find yourself cornered in a hallway, facing down the embodiment of all you fear, all you cherish, all you hate, all you miss, and all the guilt that comes along with it. These creatures manifest in many ways, but one thing they share in common is that they are violent and dangerous. Talking your way out of it won't work. But you found a knife in that other room, right? Fight or flight will guide your hand whether you want it to or not.
monsters? they look like monsters to you?
Just when you start to feel that pit of despair overcome you, threatening to drag you down into the depths with it, that ominous sound drones from somewhere in the distance. The air raid siren. Like water washing filth from the pavement, the buildings return to their former state. The monsters seem to disappear. You can see the overcast sky once more.
It's time to leave.
Whether or not you say your goodbyes, you're closing in fast on that exit sign, and never before have you felt such an overwhelming sense of relief...
And yet... Something still doesn't feel right.
See, here's the funny thing about [silent hill]: you never really leave it, and it'll always have a piece of you, woven into the patchwork of its bizarre, horrifying secret.
Actually, come to think of it, where is everyone?
