03-20-2015, 01:34 PM
Somewhere in the distance, the air raid siren started to scream once more. The warbling roar swelled until Shang felt as if he was standing right next to its source. Gritting his teeth, the aged sorcerer clamped his hands over his ears and clenched his eyes shut as he tried to do anything to drown out the horrid noise. When the siren fell silent, Shang opened his eyes and had to blink a few times to prove to himself that he wasn’t dreaming or hallucinating.
The ash and rust were gone, and in their place, the street and adjacent buildings looked as if they had a few hours earlier. Glancing over his shoulder, Shang saw that the tarkata were just as confused as him, which made him feel just a little better about the situation. “Stay on your guard… this place is rife with deception.”
Turning from his warriors, Shang continued down the street, leaning on the pipe as he tried to find any sort of landmark—street sign, address numbers on a building, or anything that would give him a clue as to his location. He would kill anyone for an idea as to where in this wretched town he was located. Just as he was about to swear, he noticed a broken sign lying on the sidewalk at the upcoming intersection. Limping over to it, he glanced down and noted that one of these streets was called Toluca Avenue. With a sigh, he leaned against a nearby car. A quick glance inside piqued his curiosity enough to try the door, which was unlocked.
Sitting in the vehicle, the elderly Shang leaned over and picked up the handgun clip lying on the chair. On the floor, he spotted what seemed to be another walkie-talkie, and after leaning over to scoop it up, he confirmed his guess. A twist of the knob on the side revealed that the batteries weren’t dead, but all of the channels contained nothing more than white noise.
I wonder… Setting the walkie on the car’s dashboard, Shang tried the glove compartment, which fell open to reveal a stack of papers and napkins from fast food restaurants. Unfortunately for the sorcerer, he couldn’t find what he was looking for, which was a road map. Damn it. With a grunt, the man slid out of the car as dexterously as a man in his seventies could. As he retrieved his pipe/crutch, he noticed something approaching from the other end of the road.
“Is that you, Shang?”
No. Of all the damn things…
Stuffing his ire down deep into his withered husk of a body, Shang turned to see a lightly glowing figure approaching him. With Atelos gone, that meant the only heavily armored warrior from the Middle Ages left in Silent Hill was Argento. To Shang’s amusement, the paladin was not only alone, but he was also sporting more than a few dents in his formerly majestic armor, and he even had a bruise on the right side of his face. The fact that the paladin had taken his fair share of bumps and injuries made Shang feel a little less embarrassed at his own situation.
“By the Sun, what has happened to you, my man?” Argento asked as he paused and glanced at the tarkatan warriors that moved to defend their master. “What are these creatures?”
“They’re from my world… they may look unsettling, but they are loyal.” Shang muttered. His voice was a hoarse wheeze as the paladin analyzed the tarkata. A lesser man may have been unnerved by the almost burning eyes of the creatures and their wide, teeth-filled maws, but Argento had glared right into the depths of darkness itself. The paladin merely nodded his head and turned his attention back to the sorcerer.
“What has become of you? Your light remains the same, but your body is…”
“Withered, I know,” Shang answered. “When the siren first sounded and the town grew dark, I was set upon by monster and demons. I fended them off, but it took much of my strength to do so. I will be fine… I just need time to regain my strength.” And I wish I could put a knife in your heart and devour your soul.
“That’s terrible,” Argento muttered as he stepped forward and placed one of his gauntleted hands on his ally’s shoulder. “What of the Spartan? Is he among the fallen?”
The sorcerer could only offer a shrug of his shoulders. “I’m not certain... the two of us were in the Sanitarium trying to find supplies when the building started to collapse. Right before the siren went off, Atelos was sucked into a wall, and I was unable to find him in my subsequent flight from the structure after the town descended into nightmares.” Saying it out loud made Shang start to consider the idea that maybe the Spartan was dead. How many people got pulled through walls and spat out somewhere in one piece? The reality that Atelos was probably gone was an unsettling one, because it meant that the sorcerer’s only viable option in an ally was standing in front of him.
“This place is worse than I ever imagined,” Argento spoke as the sound of something skittering in a nearby alley caused the man to spin and draw his weapon. When a pair of rats scurried out from under a dumpster, the paladin relaxed and turned his focus back to his associate. “I have seen the mass graves from the war with Diablo, and I have fought dracoliches… but this town is something far more sinister. It warps ones perception of reality, and I fear that the longer we remain here, the stronger the town’s grip will become on us. I believe it may be in our best interests to find the quickest way to escape, if such an option is still available to us.”
Shang shook his head and scowled. “I’m not leaving until this means something. We’ve lost too many friends and suffered too many setbacks to just cut our losses and run with our tails between our legs.” The remark was complete an utter bullshit. The Spartan was the only person that Shang considered worthy of something more than serving as a human shield, but the sorcerer wasn’t about to leave without finding out the town’s secrets. “We need to finish what we started… in their memory.”
Argento stood silent for a moment before giving a solemn nod. “Even in weakness and duress, you are a noble soul, Tsung.”
Idiot. “Thank you,” Shang said, tipping his head as he glanced once more at the intersection. “Did you discover anything to help navigate this town? These streets are poorly labeled, and I haven’t found a street map or even a bus stop.”
The paladin ruminated on that question for a few moments before gesturing back in the direction from which he had come. “There was a tavern at the far end of this street that contained the information you seek. Come, I will escort you there.”
The sorcerer held up his free hand and gestured that he wouldn’t require assistance. “They can protect me, Argento. It would be in our best interests to continue exploring this town separately, so we can cover more ground.”
“How will we remain in touch?”
At that, the sorcerer turned back to face the open car door. Leaning inside, he grabbed the walkie-talkie from atop the dash, turned it to the same channel as his own, and handed it to the paladin. “Twist that knob and then depress the large button on the side. We’ll be able to communicate using these,” he instructed as he pushed aside his torn robe to reveal a similar device strapped to his belt.
“Excellent,” Argento declared as he clipped the communication equipment to his own heavy belt. Nothing looked stranger than a man in full plate mail with a walkie-talkie from the 1980s strapped to his hip, but hey, the Omniverse had already prove itself to be a weird place. “If you find yourself facing great danger, call out for me. I will be there. Even in darkness, the Sun shines bright.”
“Be safe,” Shang said after choking down the bile that the paladin’s saccharine declaration caused to well up in his throat. “We shall talk soon, Paladin.”
The ash and rust were gone, and in their place, the street and adjacent buildings looked as if they had a few hours earlier. Glancing over his shoulder, Shang saw that the tarkata were just as confused as him, which made him feel just a little better about the situation. “Stay on your guard… this place is rife with deception.”
Turning from his warriors, Shang continued down the street, leaning on the pipe as he tried to find any sort of landmark—street sign, address numbers on a building, or anything that would give him a clue as to his location. He would kill anyone for an idea as to where in this wretched town he was located. Just as he was about to swear, he noticed a broken sign lying on the sidewalk at the upcoming intersection. Limping over to it, he glanced down and noted that one of these streets was called Toluca Avenue. With a sigh, he leaned against a nearby car. A quick glance inside piqued his curiosity enough to try the door, which was unlocked.
Sitting in the vehicle, the elderly Shang leaned over and picked up the handgun clip lying on the chair. On the floor, he spotted what seemed to be another walkie-talkie, and after leaning over to scoop it up, he confirmed his guess. A twist of the knob on the side revealed that the batteries weren’t dead, but all of the channels contained nothing more than white noise.
I wonder… Setting the walkie on the car’s dashboard, Shang tried the glove compartment, which fell open to reveal a stack of papers and napkins from fast food restaurants. Unfortunately for the sorcerer, he couldn’t find what he was looking for, which was a road map. Damn it. With a grunt, the man slid out of the car as dexterously as a man in his seventies could. As he retrieved his pipe/crutch, he noticed something approaching from the other end of the road.
“Is that you, Shang?”
No. Of all the damn things…
Stuffing his ire down deep into his withered husk of a body, Shang turned to see a lightly glowing figure approaching him. With Atelos gone, that meant the only heavily armored warrior from the Middle Ages left in Silent Hill was Argento. To Shang’s amusement, the paladin was not only alone, but he was also sporting more than a few dents in his formerly majestic armor, and he even had a bruise on the right side of his face. The fact that the paladin had taken his fair share of bumps and injuries made Shang feel a little less embarrassed at his own situation.
“By the Sun, what has happened to you, my man?” Argento asked as he paused and glanced at the tarkatan warriors that moved to defend their master. “What are these creatures?”
“They’re from my world… they may look unsettling, but they are loyal.” Shang muttered. His voice was a hoarse wheeze as the paladin analyzed the tarkata. A lesser man may have been unnerved by the almost burning eyes of the creatures and their wide, teeth-filled maws, but Argento had glared right into the depths of darkness itself. The paladin merely nodded his head and turned his attention back to the sorcerer.
“What has become of you? Your light remains the same, but your body is…”
“Withered, I know,” Shang answered. “When the siren first sounded and the town grew dark, I was set upon by monster and demons. I fended them off, but it took much of my strength to do so. I will be fine… I just need time to regain my strength.” And I wish I could put a knife in your heart and devour your soul.
“That’s terrible,” Argento muttered as he stepped forward and placed one of his gauntleted hands on his ally’s shoulder. “What of the Spartan? Is he among the fallen?”
The sorcerer could only offer a shrug of his shoulders. “I’m not certain... the two of us were in the Sanitarium trying to find supplies when the building started to collapse. Right before the siren went off, Atelos was sucked into a wall, and I was unable to find him in my subsequent flight from the structure after the town descended into nightmares.” Saying it out loud made Shang start to consider the idea that maybe the Spartan was dead. How many people got pulled through walls and spat out somewhere in one piece? The reality that Atelos was probably gone was an unsettling one, because it meant that the sorcerer’s only viable option in an ally was standing in front of him.
“This place is worse than I ever imagined,” Argento spoke as the sound of something skittering in a nearby alley caused the man to spin and draw his weapon. When a pair of rats scurried out from under a dumpster, the paladin relaxed and turned his focus back to his associate. “I have seen the mass graves from the war with Diablo, and I have fought dracoliches… but this town is something far more sinister. It warps ones perception of reality, and I fear that the longer we remain here, the stronger the town’s grip will become on us. I believe it may be in our best interests to find the quickest way to escape, if such an option is still available to us.”
Shang shook his head and scowled. “I’m not leaving until this means something. We’ve lost too many friends and suffered too many setbacks to just cut our losses and run with our tails between our legs.” The remark was complete an utter bullshit. The Spartan was the only person that Shang considered worthy of something more than serving as a human shield, but the sorcerer wasn’t about to leave without finding out the town’s secrets. “We need to finish what we started… in their memory.”
Argento stood silent for a moment before giving a solemn nod. “Even in weakness and duress, you are a noble soul, Tsung.”
Idiot. “Thank you,” Shang said, tipping his head as he glanced once more at the intersection. “Did you discover anything to help navigate this town? These streets are poorly labeled, and I haven’t found a street map or even a bus stop.”
The paladin ruminated on that question for a few moments before gesturing back in the direction from which he had come. “There was a tavern at the far end of this street that contained the information you seek. Come, I will escort you there.”
The sorcerer held up his free hand and gestured that he wouldn’t require assistance. “They can protect me, Argento. It would be in our best interests to continue exploring this town separately, so we can cover more ground.”
“How will we remain in touch?”
At that, the sorcerer turned back to face the open car door. Leaning inside, he grabbed the walkie-talkie from atop the dash, turned it to the same channel as his own, and handed it to the paladin. “Twist that knob and then depress the large button on the side. We’ll be able to communicate using these,” he instructed as he pushed aside his torn robe to reveal a similar device strapped to his belt.
“Excellent,” Argento declared as he clipped the communication equipment to his own heavy belt. Nothing looked stranger than a man in full plate mail with a walkie-talkie from the 1980s strapped to his hip, but hey, the Omniverse had already prove itself to be a weird place. “If you find yourself facing great danger, call out for me. I will be there. Even in darkness, the Sun shines bright.”
“Be safe,” Shang said after choking down the bile that the paladin’s saccharine declaration caused to well up in his throat. “We shall talk soon, Paladin.”
![[Image: Shang.jpg]](http://www.omniverse-rpg.com/images/Shang.jpg)