Chapter One: The End of Silent Hill

Nicolae

I looked at the shocked congregation, looking up at me with fear and shock at the actions. The young man leaked his live hood onto the church altar, the bloody dagger in my hand, the weapon that dripped the young man's life behind me. The whispers of those around me rang loudly, though the whispers were hushed. I dropped the dagger as it thumped against the old murky floors below our feet, as the room once again grew silent, except for life draining from the young man behind me. The stares were icy pools. "He was a blasphemer," I said as the congregation looked at me, some confused, as their gazes came from the young man behind me to my face.

"He went against our goddess, our savior. He brings false religion, teaching false doctrine against everything we have stood for. Our god is the only god. There is none other."

I felt my heart beating, waiting to die and live. The boy brought out the side of me. I dared not show anyone. He was the offspring of the woman who tricked me into her bedroom. The night that I will never confess was respectfully one of my best nights; however, the boy behind me was something I hadn't expected from that night. Out of the corner of my eyes, I watched my son, my seed, a young man who could rule these people, but his birth was out of fornication that I would not stand and give an account for.

The whispers of the congregation caused me to look at them. "His claims of life outside this sanctuary is blasphemy, and that alone is worthy of death. Everything that comes in this town is the apocalypse. Our faith is the only truth in this insane world of ours. Our faith has never lied to us. It has kept us pure. Our faith has kept us safe in this darkness that his faith has brought to our town."

The group continued to look at me and then at the young man who was now lying in a pool of his blood, his breathing faint, as my heart ached, shaking the roots of caring for this abomination from my thoughts before they could grow, I looked at the people before me. "Blasphemer!" came a voice from an elder woman causing a chain reaction from those around her. I inhaled a sigh. "Sorcerer, burn him!"

I looked from them to the young man lying behind me, extending my hand as the commotion grew silent. "No, I have a better idea. The boy shall lie here. I have delivered his punishment. Burning him now would be a waste of wood. His livelihood is going. He doesn't have the life to last for the burning."

The sounds of the alarms brought every eye to look around as the sanctuary dissipated around us, becoming the other world. I saw my brother holding the young man in his arms, a frosty glare in his eyes. The surrounding group screamed, rushing towards the massive wooden doors. "Hello, brother." The words came from Leonard with malice, his words as cold as the gazes in his cold, lavender eyes.

I grinned. "Hello brother, come to gather your dog?"

Leonard looked at me. "Hardly. This 'dog' is your child. Your son from your fornication that you criticized me for, like mother, like son. However, during my night of being merry, I committed no sin. I married the woman you burned me for."

The congregation's screams were now silent as they stood and looked at me, the shock on their faces. "Liar! Don't bring your lies into this place."

"Demon!" Leonard looked at me. "You are not sinless, Nicolae. If there were ever a snake in the grass, that would be you, and now you try to hide your sin by killing your son." Leonard chuckled. "You would have succeeded too if you had stabbed the boy; you're not the only Gillespie brother that can be a lie and a sneak."

I looked at the boy, who was looking back at me. "You allowed this demon to use you, boy? You're tainted just like the woman that gave birth to you, full of trickery."

The young man opened his mouth to speak, only for Leonard to sigh with an eye roll. "Oh, shut up, Nicolae. This act takes two to tango. You could have easily declined. Don't act so righteous. You have been pulling the wool over these people's eyes with lies to soothe your own lies, judging people on things you are guilty of. You controlled the fear of this town to appease your greed, lust for power, and sick desire to take me out of the picture, as you had done to our mother. Normally I would have nothing but the utmost respect for such actions, but the acts from you are sickening. Your antics had lost all my respect when you burned me and hid behind this lie. You are as pathetic as they come, and here I thought you had some dignity."

"Filth and lies. The woman was a liar. Just like the fall of man, that woman was no different."

"Enough!" Leonard yelled. "Woman may or may not have been the fall of man. That's none of my concern. My view is on the here and the now, and from what I see, I see my brother as the creature that was solely responsible for the fall of this town, and my job as this towns executioner, as a father to my children, as the man that promised my lover that I would bring this town back to its former glory, I am here to do what I am called to do and that is to delete you from reality, to cleanse this town of the corruption that this family has brought to it, and seeing that you have done most of the work for me, you are the only one of this tainted family left in this town. I will end you here and now. You will never spew another lie from your garb again."

Leonard held the boy down as we glared at one another. Leonard's fit of laughter caused me to look at him. "What's so funny?" I asked, still glaring at him.

"I think you know the answer to that question, Nicolae. You can scowl and act dangerous all you desire, but brother. While they have sheltered you in the land of the cult leader, you've had everyone else do your dirty work for you. You have never stood your own against me. Even when we were growing up, I was always one step ahead of you. And you still think after nine years that you stand a chance against me? For nine years, while you lived a life of the imagination, I lived in this realm you created. You don't have a leg to stand on. And since Annette isn't here, no one will stop me from handing you your justice. Face the facts, brother; you're alone in this limbo, and no god is in this."

I looked at Leonard, who extended his arm, his gaze not leaving mine. "Brother, would you kill a man with a family, your younger brother? Your only remaining family member, the two of us, can work together to create the town your family desires. What would you gain out of killing me? The two of us are the same."

Leonard looked at me, his gazes still the icy glaciers. "Very well, I'll entertain the idea of this conversation, mind you. I will remain as biased as one can be when dealing with the likes of you, plus when you're gone, it will get rather lonely around here. What is your purpose? I'm in a good mood. Humor me."

I looked at the young man standing beside Leonard, who wore a confused look on his face. "Don't act so surprised. You allowed yourself to be a tool for this man. We are brothers, after all." I looked from the boy to Leonard, who was still looking at me. "I purpose a change. There is always room for change. I believe in giving chances and people changing for the better. We were both leaders of these people once upon a time. Mother was all about to change. What would Mother say looking at you now, mad with power, insane from overthinking, threatening to kill your brother, a man with nothing but love and good intentions for you?"

"Is that so, Nicolae? I remember you yelling for the heat to be intensified nine years ago and speaking of Mother. I also recall you sending the idiots that marvel at this conversation after our mother, who had tried many times hiding from you. You don't think I know you had mother banished from her position of power once you thought you got rid of me? Do I need to ask where our mother is now, considering the heartache I experienced while digging her grave and burying her? This incident hardly calls for good intentions for anyone. I enjoy the lies you're cooking up. However, I am still biased and still humored."

"Let me help you, brother. I know I have made mistakes. I want to make them right for whatever his name is over there. Your mind is tarnished because of my actions. I can't apologize for the mess I have made. Just allow me to mend your emotions before you join your lovely family."

"Shut up!" Leonard glared at me. "Don't bring my family up in this. You have no authority to tell me the state of my mental status since you are the ringleader of my mental meltdown. My biased nature is getting thinner if you are done. I'm growing bored with this banter."

"Come on, hear him out. It's better late than never, Leonard. You promised me if I gave you access to the church, you would do me a favor. This is my favor." I looked at the young man looking at Leonard, who was now glaring at him.

"Fine. Five minutes. You better hope he says something world-changing. If not, it won't only be his demise. You will meet the same fate for your involvement."

"You've lost your mind, Leonard. What would Annette say? Since she's the only one that can talk some sense into you, why not bring her here?"

The young man looked at Leonard, who grinned back at me. "I may be mad, but I'm not too far gone to make a deal, Nicolae. Tell me your son's name. If you win, you go free, get one shot, miss, and both are dead. It doesn't matter to me either way."

I looked at the boy, then at Leonard. "I know my son's name, Leonard. I'm not that tone-deaf. I just never claimed him. His name is Micheal, and he goes by the name Vega from time to time. Are you done with this stupid game? Or do you have another baffling question cooking up?"

Leonard looked at us. "Well, I am a man of my word. But know this, Nicolae, I'm letting you leave here. But I will always watch you. However, with the time you have taken from me, I require some payment for letting you get your freedom."

"What payment do you want, Leonard? You're a free man to see your family. Nothing is keeping either of us here any longer. I told you I would help you out of your condition. What more could you want?"

The surroundings turned back to the fog realm. The group that had once been around us was dispersed. Leaving the three of us in the church. Leonard rolled his eyes, walking from the church. I heard a sigh as I looked at the youth beside me. As he looked back at me. "So, you hungry? Mom is cooking meatloaf today. She takes requests."

I sighed as the boy beside me continued to look at me. "What do you get out of the bargain? It was a bargain that brought you here. What's the catch with your invitation to this meal? It can't be that simple."

"Dude, there isn't a catch. I only made a deal with Leonard because he required me to be stabbed, as in bringing blood. Inviting someone to eat with me and my mom differs from bloodshed, so you want to eat with us and be a family, or do you want to stay here?"

I looked at him. "Look, Micheal. I don't know your plan, but I will not fall for it."

Micheal sighed. "You're my father. Yeah, you have your issues. We're all clear on the way you stand on my birth. But I think this whole thing is a mask. You had a chance to burn me as a wizard or whatever. And I agree you would have had the right. Those crazies wanted you to, but you would have let me die without going into overkill. They gave you a choice to burn me or let me bleed out. If it wasn't Leonard's blood, I was bleeding out. I think I can safely say you would have left it at that. I wasn't expecting a full-on burial, but let me die by a stab wound. It's a start at showing you care somewhat."

"Right, somewhat." I sighed, looking around the empty church. "I think I will stay behind. Leonard opened the gate, so you and your girlfriend can leave."

"Annette's not my girlfriend. She loves someone else, someone who is married apparently."

I looked at Micheal. "Right, well. It's been eventful, but I have got things to do. And you have dinner with your mother, take care of her. Keep her out of this town. There's nothing for her here." I bent down, retrieving the dagger.

"Why are you?"

"It makes me feel better. Let's leave it at that." I walked away from Micheal.

I heard footsteps behind me, causing me to look to see Micheal. "What do you plan on doing with that dagger?"

"I plan on throwing it in Toluca Lake."

"Respectfully, I don't believe you."

"Don't you have meatloaf to get home to?"

"Why are you against coming home to your family?"

"You can forgive my flaws and my imperfections. I can't. I considered you an abomination and your mother a harlot all your life. I don't enjoy facing you. How do you expect me to forgive myself for years of lies and be self-righteous and face the woman who gave me something I almost killed? I can't do what you're asking me to do, not knowing the things I know. Go home, Micheal. That's an order."

Micheal sighed. "We can forgive you. You're taking accountability. You're taking steps to make something better in your life. My mom, she can forgive you. It would hurt her if you didn't come. Seeing you again is all she talked about. For years she's turned down men, saying she has someone else. She has a picture of you by her bedside. She prays every night for your safe return. Bringing you home to us was why I came, and I'm not leaving here until you say yes."

I looked at him. "Is that so?"

"It's a promise. You like making deals."

I sighed. "No, I don't like making deals. That was Leonard. You have the wrong brother."

"You like fights."

"Still, you have the wrong brother. Fighting isn't my thing, either."

"You're a religious nut. My mom likes church—something the two of you have in common. You can't tell me Leonard is a religious nut. I know for sure I have the right brother on this one."

"A religious nut. That's a new one. But yes, I respect religion. I like to think that there is a deity that loves me. The one you marched in here preaching about did interest me."

"Just do me one favor. You don't have to say yes, but hear me out."

I looked at him. "Fine, what?"

"Give my mother and me one week, stay with us one week, and if you don't like your stay." The boy sighed, seeming to dread the last statement. "If you don't enjoy being with us, you have my permission to wipe our memories of you. Leave us and come back here. You go your way, and we will have no memories of you to intrude on your life. Just give us one week. You could at least do that."

I looked at him with a sigh. "Fine, it will be my attempts to apologize for the events earlier. I do owe you as much."

"Finally, come on. I'm hungry. I want to go home and see my mom."

I looked at the young man making his way from the church. I looked at the dagger in my hand, throwing it with a rough thud to the floor. With a sigh, I looked around, soon following Micheal out of the church. Taking one last look at it, I closed the doors as we walked through the empty streets.

The walk to the gate was anything but silent, with Micheal doing most of the talking. The two of us got to an old red four-door truck with a small pink car beside it. "You ready for some meatloaf?"

I looked at him, leaning against the passenger door. "I think we can wait a few minutes longer."

"Why?"

"Trust me, Micheal. Once Annette tells Leonard she's in love with him, he will shoot her down. She likes you. We can wait. She'll be here soon."

Micheal looked at me with a sigh. "Alright then, if you say so."

The boy sighed, following pursuit, leaning against the driver's side door. The two of us were not long waiting until we saw the young blond girl walking towards us, her head down in shame and disappointment. I sighed. It would seem that Leonard shot her down alright, and by the looks of it, it wasn't the easiest rejection the girl had received. Of course, come to think of it, when is rejection ever easy for anyone? Micheal beamed from the car with excitement to see the young girl who looked up at Micheal's excitement. She looked at us and stopped. She looked at me, then at Micheal. "Dude, you brought Nicolae with you?" her face was weary. However, a sweet smile soon covered the weariness in her expression. "What were you two waiting for? By now, I thought you would have been long gone, Brahms."

Micheal scratched the back of his head. "I was waiting for you. I wanted to tell you something, more like to ask you something."

She looked at Micheal, a brow raised, with the same sweet smile. "Okay, sure, ask me."

"I wanted to ask if you wanted to come to my house for dinner. Like a date, or we could go to a movie or whatever you want to do. I'll pay."

She looked at Micheal. "Alright, since you cared enough to wait for me, it's the least I can do. You want to go to dinner and a movie tomorrow night, say seven o'clock?"

Micheal looked at her with a smile. "Awesome, sounds great. I'll treat you like a princess. I'll do nothing to hurt you, I promise."

She smiled. "I know. I'll see you tomorrow. I'm going to get home and get some sleep. I'm beat."

They exchanged farewells as Micheal and I got into the truck. As the two of us followed Annette from the town of Silent Hill. As Micheal drove, I couldn't help but think of the new life that I was given, a life outside of the cults and the darkness that brought intense heat and monsters in its wake. I thought it wasn't a life I had ever considered for myself. It seemed like a pleasant change. And Leonard, he too, could go to the family that had waited for him for nine years. He appeared Silent Hill was the least of his worries. The further we drove from the old ghost town, the feelings of my new beginning chased any remnants of the town from my mind as I saw the road leading to town once again disappear. A small gas station go by as the sun hangs high in the brilliant blue sky. I couldn't help but smile at the welcoming embraces of this new world that I had grown to detest and consider as something that brought corruption into the world that I had lived in. Still, now the only sin to ring true was the town I had once lived in, and this world seemed to be a great breath of fresh air. And I welcomed this change with arms wide open. Regret was gone. I felt enthused to see how this life would be with the new sounds—the surroundings. I leaned back in the seat, looking out the window.