The Forgotten City

The music box stopped playing and the light died. The darkness around Hunter engulfed him and he stood there alone in the dark, but somehow he didn't feel alone. He heard the pitter-patter of footsteps and the sound of children laughing as if they were playing a game of tag. Finally, something that would put fear into many men was a simple phrase spoken in the dark.

"Come on Hunter, catch me!"

Hunter took a step back into one of the cubicles. The window still in bolting distance. "I can't play with you in the dark though. The last spirit who wished to play with me in Sweden allowed the lights to stay on, we had fun..."

Nothing could be heard except the pitter-patter of footsteps, right up to where Hunter was. It was impossible because the laughter was that of a child, but a voice spoke right into Hunter's face, it's disgusting and putrid breath hitting it, "Catch me Hunter, come on..." said the voice in a horribly demented and distorted tone.

Hunter quickly cranks the machine looking straight at whatever laid behind the shroud of darkness. This was his light. "They claimed he said let there be light, and for my well being there shall be light here too."

The light turned on and what he saw was terrifying, even to him. It was a face, pale as the snow itself, but it wasn't that that truly scared him it was whose face it was. He was staring into his own demented eyes, the face had a menacing grin on it and the voice repeated, in the voice of a small child, "Come and play, Hunter, come and play," said the face.

Hunter closed his eyes and brought his head backwards before slamming it forward into it's head. He screamed in fright and in resistance he would NOT play this city's game!

The creature stood there and took the headbutt before it pushed its head into Hunter's and pushed him back, all the while yelling 'come and play, come and play' over and over and over again.

Hunter growled his hatred for the creature over powering his tower, in that moment when the best pushed back into him he grabbed it and pushed it past him, an attempt to push it out the window and down into the darkness below. "I will not play your damn games!"

The creature disappeared as it flew out the window. The music box stopped its song and the darkness again engulfed Hunter, this city, this place with no name, was starting to get to him.

Hunter continued to crank the machine for a moment before repelling back down the building and continuing on his way. Following the red lights as they grew brighter and brighter, cranking the machine all the while, it was his light and his music, his solace.

"Nally..." Joseph finished his sentence as he hit the ground from his falling, once he hit the ground he stood and said. " Really should of thought before i planned the dramatic effect." Then he snapped to a window when he heard a scream from out in the city, i was familiar, but not enough for him to worry. He just blew it off as some poor sod as he brushed himself off. "So, lets go hunting guys." Joseph said trying to bring an optimistic tune into the situation as he started off in no particular direction, despite he noticed he was unarmed he still fancied himself a capable fighter.

In Joseph's hand the talisman crumbled into dust and the man behind him smiled behind his back and said, "Have fun, Joseph, I hope you find your son,". Then finally the man dropped to the ground dead, blood dripping from his ear and his mouth, Thompson looked at the corpse and then looked at the fog around them and spoke aloud, "Where the fuck are we?"

Joseph headed back to check the body for vitals, after he a moment he said "I don't know but..." He began to crack the ulna out of the man's for-arm as he continued "I don't care, and nobody I care about is dieing here today." Joseph said as he finished cracked the bone out and resumed his trip out into the nothing.

The whispers started overhead saying nonsensical things above the two men.

"He's here"

"The Son and the Father"

"The Bastard and the Dog"

"Too dark here, can't see"

There was one whisper, or more of a loud scream that Joseph and Thompson recognized all to well and made them both cringe slightly. It screamed like it was unearthly, but the two men knew all to well who had yelled.

"DAD!"

Joseph stopped in his tracks as the whispers began, scanning all around him for the source of the noise, but couldn't really find anything to focus on. But once he heard the scream he went into a full out sprint in the direction of the noise, a few seconds of sprinting went by before he remembered that he wasn't alone, he turned back to Thompson and yelled " Come on hurry!"

Thompson ran and caught up with Joseph as he ran after the sound which appeared to be come from the end of the street. The whispers continued and got louder and louder the farther and farther the two man ran until they reach something at the end of the street, it seemed out of place, but this town was wrong in its entirety. It was a cemetery.

"Well isn't that just perfect! No matter come, on we can't afford to slow down." Joseph said as they neared the cemetery. He was just waiting, eager even, for something to pop out and get a new hole in its head. Joseph was sure that nothing, not even god himself could keep him away from his son now. He mumbled quietly to himself as he ran " Never again, will I fail."

As they ran through the cemetery which seemed to never end, Joseph and Thompson may have noticed something about the gravestones: they were all in the name of their kids. Each and everyone bore the names of "Lily Thompson" and "Andrew Anderson".

Joseph turned and checked periodically to see the headstones, he then turned back to Thompson to check on his friend, he gave some brief words trying to reassure the man " Don't let it get to you, its all a game, but don't play, cause in this game we lose no matter what."

"That's right we do" said a voice in front of the pair. It was accompanied by the back of a man, his head hung low and he looked down into the ground o one of the headstones. "Why did you take me here old friend...Why here of all places..." said the man as he patted the tombstone and sobbed for its occupant.

Joseph slowed when he neared the man, but after a brief moment he shook his head and keep going urging his friend to continue by saying " Don't play the game, don't play."

The man's ears perked up as he heard Joseph's voice, "Joseph! No please don't go! Please don't! I don't want to be left here! Please!" yelled the man as h turned revealing none other than Thompson. The Thompson that had came with Joseph took a step back as he looked horrified. The Thompson over the grave had lost of his eyes, the other was white and mist filled and he was horrifyingly skinny as if he had not eaten for weeks or months.

"Hey! I Don't play games! And neither are you, not when you lose." Joseph yelled as he drove the previous man's ulna directly into the blind Thompson's forehead, wrench end first and grabbed the real Thompson by the arm as he began sprinting again leaving the poor man to his fate with the bone still in his head.

The Thompson who had been tabbed gripped his forehead and screamed, "WHY?! Please don't leave me! Joseph! Joseph!" yelled the man as the duo ran away. The cemetery ended and was once again replaced by the whispering city streets and if the duo looked up and around the they would notice the silhouettes in the windows of all of the buildings.

Joseph looked around, and with no immediate threats he took the time to stop and catch their breath but also to check on the moral of his comrade. "I told you not to play the game, now I don't have a weapon, and we still have to hurry but i cant hear him anymore. Where should we go, or are you even still up to this?"