The Forgotten City

"I don't know and about leaving, I'm not exactly sure I have a choice in the matter anymore," said Thompson as he put his hands on his knees breathing in the foggy air. He looked up and noticed something about the lights on the street, "Joseph look" he said as he pointed to one. The green right arrow was blinking as if saying to make the right turn down the street.

" I would ask for your gun, but you might end up doing something good with it, some people do better this way. As for your sign we might as well check it out." Joseph said before heading over following the sign's directive now unarmed with his fists clenched.

As the duo made the right turn they were once again on long street, but at the very end of it, just barely in full view, was Andrew holding out his arm as if trying to grab the pair. His face had healed from the burn left all those years ago by the Illuminati attack on Joseph's family and once again the scream came.

"DAD!" he yelled as he was dragged into the thick fog by an unseen force.

" Oh HELL no!" Joseph screamed as he made a mad dash for the fog fully unprepared for what awaited him, though he didn't really care. This time he had no thoughts about his comrade at all.

As he rushed into the fog and it cleared he saw nothing, his son wasn't there, though there was a large pool of blood on the street, something that obviously wasn't there before. Thompson rushed after his friend not wanting the man who he had seen at the cemetery to become him.

When Thompson began to get close, Joseph heard him approaching and didn't face him as he spoke, inspecting the pool and the area surrounding it " Looks like I can't follow my own advice huh? Either way we need to keep going, only one way to stop this now."

"Where are we going, Joseph?" asked Thompson as he looked at the pool of blood and then at his friend getting up from his crouched position over it. The whispering around them got louder, it was practically screaming now.

"Can't even find his own son"

"What a lousy father"

"Does he even know?"

"Both of them more in love with their jobs"

"Bastards and Dogs"

"Just ignore them, don't play the game Thompson. Come on they will give us a bread crumb soon enough or their escapade ends and they don't want that so be patient and strong." Joseph said just standing there observing the area still.

They both just stood there and then the whispers stopped. Everything stopped and nothing made a sound, it was just silence. It took a little while, but the sound of music could be heard it came from a small alleyway between two buildings, but it was enrapturing like it was luring the duo towards it.

"See, told you so. Though we should follow the sound for at least a bit for the sake of the mission. Come on." Joseph said urging Thompson to follow him again as he walked towards the sound.

Thompson followed Joseph towards the sound and as they moved the song intensified drawing them in more and more, deeper into the darkness of the alleyway. It got worse and worse until it impossibly seemed that both of them men were completely engulfed by the darkness and then the song stopped. Thompson looked around wondering where they were exactly, he could no longer see where they had come from and just stood in the darkness. He reached out and said, "Joseph where are you, I can't see you".

Joseph was just as lost as his comrade, he began to feel around looking for a wall to lean on to at least offer one side of safety. Once this was achieved he responded to his friend " Yeah I hear you, but I don't know where your at either. Just keep following my voice."

Joseph couldn't feel any wall or anything near him. "Joseph, what the fuck is going on!" yelled Thompson before the two of them felt a falling sensation and if either of them looked down they would confirm that they were indeed falling and towards a bright red light.

Joseph just sat there falling, trying to figure out whether the red light was real or not. he said " I really don't know, just stop panicing, just don't play the game." trying to calm down his comrade.

The group fell down and into the red light which was revealed to be a large room, resembling an old tomb or crypt of some kind. Inside was a horrible sight, Andrew stood crucified in the room, his rib cage ripped open and a look of pure terror on his face. The room was covered in his blood from what must have been days upon days of torture.

Joseph got to his feet quickly though he dropped back to his knees quickly when he saw what had happened. Then he thought, [this is just the game he is fine, he just looks hurt, right? either hes gotta get down to get out.] so Joseph silently approached his son and tried to free him from his current state, ignoring Thompson as he went.

The body wouldn't budge, something kept the body from moving from the cross. Thompson got up and grabbed Joseph trying to stop him from ripping down the boy from the cross.

"What are you doing!" Joseph yelled as he lashed out at Thompson trying to elbow him in the nose to get him off.

Thompson took the blow to the nose and he let go of Joseph gripping his nose. He found something odd though about the blood on his nose and then the blood around the room, "Joseph..." he said as he pointed to how the blood began to float up towards the hole they had just fallen out of.

Joseph resumed trying to remove the body from the cross tugging as hard as he could, completely ignoring anything around him.

Then Joseph and Thompson began to float up faster and faster and they ascended the hole which they had fallen down and were propelled, with quite a bit of force, back out onto the empty street of foggy city with no name.

"NOOO!" Joseph screamed as he ascended. upon reaching the surface, he began hitting the ground still repeating the word NO every time he hit the ground, he struck it significantly harder each time until one could hear his pinkie finger knuckle break from him hitting the ground only screaming louder as he beat the ground still striking harder.

Joseph continued to pound on the floor, but he noticed something: Thompson wasn't there anymore. The man was gone and the whispers came back in a furious roar.

"Alone again"

"Cry bitch cry"

"Dead sons are the best sons"

"Like father like son"

Joseph continued for a moment but as he did he thought to himself [Hold on, I'm playing their game. I'm giving them what they want.] Once these thoughts finished manifesting he ceased beating his hand on the ground and stood back up, breaking his pinkie back into place before looking around again for something, anything.

As Joseph looked around he would have seen something ahead of him a silhouette of four people off in the distance, just beyond the fog, but still identifiable as people. The whispers stopped and the street lights around him continued to flicker.