Arc 6: Bleed Quietly

Everything swayed in the wind: the trees, the shadows on the forest path, the tall grass, knee high in some places. It was like we were on a ship, rocking in the waves, making every step feel unsteady. The soldiers fanned out over a wide area and moved with weapons raised at our dark surroundings. […]

The H.E.S.P. soldiers retraced our route back to the convenience store. I followed at the back, unable to get the image of Alek’s head snapping backwards from the force of the shot out of my mind. The Captain, on the other hand, seemed to be in a good mood after seeing the efficacy of Alek’s

The H.E.S.P. squad set up a temporary base inside of the convenience store. A few of the soldiers removed their helmets to take furtive swigs of water, eyeing our group distrustfully. I counted fourteen men and women, each fully geared in tactical black body armour and weaponry. At least one of these guns was always

I pulled AJ back down from the windows as lights shone through, dividing the room horizontally into light and shadow. “They- they got Terry,” he said miserably. I could tell he was holding back his tears. I patted his shoulder. “It’s okay. We’ll get him back. I just need to talk to them.” Without getting

I followed the team out into the yard of this abandoned house on the edge of Old Town. Occasionally the cone of a flashlight would flicker above the rooftops some distance away. Looking any higher towards the sky made me nauseous, the twin spheres bearing down on us with that eerie effect of being simultaneously

The Aberrant moved with strange deliberation. It held its bloodied hoof in the air as if unsure of where to step next. I stayed absolutely still, trying to keep my pained gasps quiet. I didn’t know if it could see me, smell me, or hear me. The black featureless torso shifted to the side slightly

Rings hunting me outside, a casino filled with crows on the inside. Surely this was the better option. I wasn’t fully convinced as I watched black feathers drifting down from the second floor balcony that overlooked the first. Each whirring machine in the casino was decorated with shuffling, beady-eyed birds. My dramatic entrance had caused

We walked deeper into Sillwood as the waning sun began to break across the rooftops, leaving walls of light and veils of dark following the gaps in the highrises. The streets were a mess. Smashed glass and trash joined tire marks and blood stains in painting a strange mural where we walked. Richard would often

The room steeped in the stillness. Not a thing moved. The soldiers held their aim on me with steady, unwavering hands. It felt like minutes had passed before I realized that they may be trying to say something to me and I couldn’t see their mouths. I had witnessed soldiers like these ones before. There

Heeding Tom’s strange advice, I found an exit point, a window that faced the forest whose security shutter had been jammed open by a mop, and slipped outside. Making my way around the side of the university, I contemplated what the next step was. Pale blue and red flashed against the trees ahead. First responders