Remmy slowly straightened up and sighed. He spent the time pondering his situation rather than the next step. The more he thought, the more the pain grew, and the only thing gained through the eerie silence is the growling sensation in his stomach.

"Sorry, girl," Remmy spoke. "My mind's a blank."

"Well, we can try to wait this out. Someone should be coming around here sooner or later."

"If this can be waited out." Remmy replied and sighed again. "Evelyn?"

"Yeah?"

"You said you were from... Brahms, was it?"

"Yeah... what about it?"

"Nothing particular. How'd you get here?"

"Well, I drove here yesterday... last night actually."

"A car? That's good we can-"

"No... car's dead. It was the first thing I tried. It was acting fine, in fact I had it checked a couple of weeks ago, but it just... wouldn't start."

Rembrant rubbed his temples before rising up to stretch. Suddenly, his abdomen gave a desperate groan.

"Hungry?" Evelyn chuckled.

Remmy smiled back. "Yeah... I'm surprised you aren't though."

"That's because I had a bag of Cheese Snappers before I met you." She smiled, "I picked it up at the last rest stop before hitting town. Actually, I hoped that this place had something like a lounge or a fridge... but after seeing those things outside... I decided to stay put in this room. Though, I highly doubt that this place can store food anyway."

"Well, rust and dust doesn't quite scream hospitality, but maybe ther-"

Suddenly, shuffling was heard by both of them. Which echoed through the empty hallways.

"What was that?" Evelyn asked, slightly shaky.

Remmy picked up his lead pipe. "I'm going to see..."

Slowly and cautiously, Remmy walked towards the door, gripping the pipe firmly. He poked his head inside to the barren corridor along with his small flashlight and looked around. Relying heavily on his ears, he followed the noise as it becomes louder with each step through the littered hallway, his shoes becoming clustered with fallen rust. With each step and turn in the building, the noise sounded less than shuffling and more like static. Remmy's fears grew as he cautiously walked through the building's disturbed ambience. The presence of rust covered walls and calx-ridden floors didn't help to strengthen his courage.

"What is that?"

Remmy jumped and turned around to see Evelyn huddled behind him. He took a breath and responded. "I don't know, but I'll find out in a minute. I thought you wanted to stay behind."

"Are you crazy?? I don't want to stay back there alone. I've seen too many horror movies not to know better."

Remmy took a step forward and listened. He realized that the noise was coming from a nearby door. He clipped the flashlight back on his sleeve and reached for the knob. The handle gave a sharp squeak as he gave it a twist and frightened his new companion, who moved closer to him for protection. Remmy gave the door a slight push and walked inside.

The flashlight revealed a small and almost bare interior with a ceiling so high that it was impossible to see the top with the current light, and at the far wall was a rotting plywood table sitting on rusted metal legs. The visitors' immediate attention fell on what was lying on the table; A small, black handheld radio. As Remmy approached the device, the radio squealed louder and the white noise became more cluttered.

Evelyn, being cautious, turned around and closed the door behind them. She took a couple of steps towards Remmy and suddenly felt something grip both sides of her neck. She tried to scream but the force around her windpipe was too tight. Remmy picked up the radio as it let out very high pitched wails, unaware of his friend's predicament. Evelyn suddenly felt herself being lifted as she struggled to get free. She tried punching behind her, but her fists impacted what seemed to be rusted metal. As she fought to breathe, her legs flailed wildly as she was slowly rising in the air. One foot managed to kick the closed door, which finally alerted Remmy's attention. After he swiftly turned around, his eyes widened and jaw dropped as he saw what was strangling Evelyn.

A large mound of writhing, skewered flesh enclosed in a barless, linkless scrap metal cage was dangling from the ceiling from what looked like a black tentacle. At the bottom of the cube was Evelyn, struggling for dear life while being held up by the neck by a pair of short, thin legs. She kept trying to scream and fight as her eyes met with Remmy's, but her actions proved futile.

"EVELYN!!!" Remmy yelled, gripping his pipe as he charged. But before he could take the first step, he was suddenly grabbed by the neck and lifted. As both of them struggled, the radio was getting louder by the second, spewing large and nerve-racking amounts of heavy static and white noise. Remmy used his free hand to try to pry one of the legs off but each time he tried, he could feel the appendages squeeze him tighter. He also felt something nibbling at his hair above him. As an act of desperation, he took the metal pipe into both hands and shoved it upwards towards his attacker. What followed was a steady spray of crimson fluid originating from the newly opened wound and Remmy was immediately dropped. He coughed as his lungs pleaded for air as he slowly rose to his feet. He looked up to Evelyn's legs shaking rapidly and immediately took action. He once again gripped his pipe tightly and rushed to his friend's aid, swinging the pipe at the monstrosity's mid-section. As the blow connected, the creature swung back and the grip around Evelyn's neck loosened, making her fall with a hard thud. Remmy heard a gurgling sound behind him and ducked just in time before the other creatures legs could bind him again. With adrenaline fueled by both anger and fear, coursing through his body, Remmy raised the pipe over his head and plunged it into the monster. As blood sprayed then trickled from the new opening, the creature went still and raised both legs like a robotic doll. Remmy turned his head and saw the other creature advancing towards him. He immediately side-stepped it and stabbed, this time adding all of his strength to the blow. As the pipe rammed through its middle, the creature let out an awful gurgled roar. Remmy removed the pipe and saw the monster's legs rise up like its slain partner and heard sirens wail in the distance. He dropped to his knees after his head was suddenly hit with an overwhelming feeling of dizziness. He weakly turned to Evelyn and tried vainly to call out to her, but was little strength that was applied to his voice was drowned out by the mechanical howls. His vision became blurry as he watched his new friend lying motionless on the floor. He also tried vainly to reach out to her, but ended up collapsing on the bloodstained floor, his eyes still fixed on Evelyn.

Then everything went black.

"Maggie!" she yelled, slowing slightly.

"It's no use looking for her now." Mallory said, gripping her wrists harder. "We have to lose these things fast."

Diana noticed that a hulking figure was attempting to ambush them from a nearby street corner.

"Duck!" Diana said as she grabbed Mallory's shirt downward. The two sliders went low just in time as the creature leaped towards them with one of its massive arms outstretched. Mallory felt the wind of the missed swipe against his back and felt a heavy thud inches away from him. He quickly rose and gripped Diana's hand and resumed their retreat before the monster could stage another attempt.

"Dammit! What the hell did we do to deserve this?" Mallory thought.

Fatigue grew quickly on them as the sliders pressed on. After rounding another corner, Mallory led the doctor through the door of a nearby building. After both of them had gone inside, Mallory immediately pressed himself against the door as his lungs worked busily to regain oxygen. As Diana leaned against the nearby wall to catch her breath, she turned her head and saw only a stairway that led downward. She instinctively picked up the flashlight Mallory dropped and aimed it downward past the steps, but the powerful luminous beam wasn't enough to pierce the shadows below.

"I think we... lost them." Mallory spoke as he looked through the peephole. "Maybe we should--"

Mallory's lips stopped moving when he looked behind him.

"What the hell?"

Diana gulped hard and took two cautious steps downward, her grip tightened around the grip of the flashlight.

"What the hell are you doing?" Mallory whispered.

"I'm... going to see what's down there." Diana casually replied, her voice wavering. In her head, she was asking herself the same question.

"Haven't you learned any lessons from horror movies, Diana?"

"We don't have a choice. Plus, we have that." Diana pointed to the radio. "Even if there's something down there, that radio can sense it."

"And what would we do then?" Mallory asked, growing unnerved. "We can't run back outside."

Diana sighed and spoke. "I don't know. We may have to. It could be safe, but it can also be dangerous. But we need to go."

With a deep breath, Diana proceeded down the staircase, each step on the aged wood planks sent chills down her body as the footsteps echoed through the silent corridor. Suddenly, she felt a hand placed on her shoulder and she shrieked in surprise. She turned around quickly with the flashlight raised above her head and saw Mallory's frightened face.

"Ah! ... um... sorry about that..." he said.

Diana clutched her chest and nodded.

"Uh..." Mallory continued. "Mind if I pass you? I want to take point." Diana replied by stepping aside and hands him the flashlight before resuming the decent. "That way if we do run into something, at least you have a chance to..." Mallory just stopped in his tracks and went silent. One moment later, he started chuckling.

"What?" Diana asked, looking puzzled and nervous.

"Heh heh... sorry. I was going to say 'at least you can get help'. I've never been in a situation without a backup plan before."

Diana gave a slightly nervous chuckle. "Well, me neither... No one to call this time..."

"... Yeah... " Mallory said as he lowered his eyes.

The travel down the stairs seemed endless, the faded and chipped brown paint on the walls made it as though they were walking in a looped film reel. Mallory's and Diana's footsteps provided an unlikely rhythm to shatter the surrounding ambience, their fear increased with each step. That would have stopped them if it weren't for the growing curiosity that fueled their legs. Several minutes have passed and the light had found a patch of wooden flooring that marked the end of their trek followed by a slightly damaged beige door with a metal knob.

"You ready?" Mallory said after laying his hand on the knob. Once Diana nodded in response, he turned the knob and slowly pushed the door open. The beam of the flashlight revealed a large storage area. Mallory had taken one step when the radio gave out a small crackle and soft hissing.

"... Uh oh..." Mallory said, stopping in his tracks.

He panned the flashlight around, illuminating every part of the room slowly for any signs of a threat. The beam revealed that the walls were draped with white sheets along with what appeared to be furniture placed around the room. Also, Mallory spotted three deformed mannequins, each one had its upper torso replaced by another pair of feetless legs.

Cautiously, the two sliders proceeded through the room, looking for any other exit. Step by step, the radio raised its cry of urgency.

"Mallory... do you see anything?" Diana asked, looking in every direction in front of her for anything threatening.

The flashlight beam grazed a nearby mannequin and it suddenly came to life, kicking its upper legs forward as it walked towards Mallory.

"What the hell?!" Mallory shouted.

Shocked, Diana stumbled backwards into another statue and it responded by landing a kick on her neck, knocking her to the ground. While she was recovering she saw the creature bend down towards her, the light reflecting from its smooth, polished plastic exterior.

Mallory turned to run, but saw that his friend was in danger. Immediately, he followed his instincts and slammed the barrel of the torch on the bending monstrosity. The creature yelled in pain from mouths unknown and tried to recover, only to receive another strike from the flashlight. It fell to the ground, now sporting two bleeding bruises from its back and side. Diana immediately climbed to her feet once she saw the creature twitch violently next to her, its legs flailing and contorting in quick, disturbing ways. Mallory ran to the scientist's side.

"You o-- AH!" Mallory felt something punch his jaw, nearly toppling him. Mallory regained his footing and kicked the monster's "gut", making it fall to the floor. It didn't get the chance to flail its limbs as Mallory continuously stomped on in uncontrolled fury. The room was suddenly filled with the creature's warped yells. Diana witnessed this in shock and saw the third creature making his way towards the infuriated slider.

"Mallory!" she yelled.

He suddenly looked up and saw the incoming monster, but slipped on the blood of his recent kill when he backed away, landing on his back. He groaned in pain as the creature walked closer, its topside legs acting like pincers.

Diana began to yell but something caught her eye. A broken, wooden table leg was lying on the floor, partially covered by a white sheet. Without hesitation, she grabbed it and made a one-woman assault towards the mannequin. It bent low, upper legs kicking in front of Mallory. He looked up to see a leg shoot towards his head when Diana slammed the table leg on the monster's upper crotch. The creature immediately turned and faced the scientist, and Mallory took this as an attack of opportunity and performed a leg sweep, causing it to crash to the ground. Without hesitation, Mallory got up and, with Diana, started stomping and kicking it until the mannequin's flailing had stopped. When the final blow was struck, sirens wailed in the distance as the room became blurry. Diana shouted at her friend, clutching her head as she saw him doing the same and falling to his knees, but her voice was mute. Mallory tried to yell for her, but all he heard was sirens as the pain of his head swelled, making him lose consciousness.

Nothing.

She began to retrieve her torch but stopped when she saw the engraving. Puzzled and frightened, she readily snatched her flashlight and proceeded down the nearby corridor. Her footsteps provided a deafening echo and she walked onward, the chipped paint an unwelcome addition for Maggie's allergies. The hallway stretched on for several feet and the sounds she was emanating was starting to wrack on her nerves.

"Dammit, where the hell is the door?" Maggie thought. "A door? Any door?!?"

Suddenly she noticed patch of dim red light several feet ahead of her, and it was still there after she pointed her light at it. As Maggie pressed on, she started to make out a figure standing in the crimson light. As she pressed closer, the figure simply turned right and walked away, dragging something heavy behind it.

"Hey!" Maggie yelled and she broke into a full-fledged run. "Wait!"

Her response was the echo of something scraping against concrete. Of the way she noticed a door, but proceeded down towards the hallway's end, which was stopped by iron bars. She looked passed them into another adjacent hallway, but no sign of the red light.

"Hello!" Maggie yelled. No answer. Re-collecting her bearings, she made her way back towards the door.

The following room shared the same decaying state as the rest of the building. Two scrap metal frame cubes rested on each wall, the only differences were the large metal closet resting on the left side and a rusted office desk sitting to her right. Maggie's alertness grew as her light shined from side to side, then stopping at a large cardboard box resting on the desk. Cautiously, she walked over the desk and looked inside the paper cube, and saw that it was filled to the top with newspaper scraps. She first picked up a piece and started reading, hoping for some info, but the slip didn't yield any and the remaining bits didn't look like it would help either. Hesitantly, she reached inside and started feeling around, figuring that the paper was used for packing purposes. Her hand finally stopped when she felt something cold and metallic...

... and familiar.

She grasps the object and slowly pulled it out, revealing a standard handgun. Suddenly, Maggie felt a rush of relief overtake her and check the clip. Full. 10 rounds.

"Oh thank God." She muttered as she looked over her newly found weapon. Her triumph was short-lived, however. "OK, now wh-"

Suddenly she heard a distorted yelp echoing in the room. Maggie frantically looked around, gripping the handle the handgun tight and found that the noise maybe originating from the closet. Weapon raised, she slowly made her way to the artificial space, grasps the handle, took a breath, and pulled the door open with her gun ready.

She peered inside, seeing that cabinet contained nothing but a large rusted hole in the storage box's spine as well as the wall it was placed against. Cautious, Maggie stepped forward and leaned her head through the stripped maw, followed by her torch. To her left she saw the iron bars that barred her entry from the hallway and further down were doors that were either boarded up or sealed by cement. Then she heard a warped cry of pain from her right and turned her head. He light can only reveal two doors as the rest was covered in shadow. Seeing that the coast was clear, Maggie scrambled to get herself through the opening to investigate further; the cold steel of her pistol filling her with confidence and vigor. Another cry filled the corridor, this time more intense and pain-filled.

"Hello?!" Maggie yelled as she slowly made her way down the dark hall, her pistol in one hand and her flashlight in the other. As she made her way down, she noticed the air getting staler. Also, every door she passed was crudely sealed by wooden planks. Then her eyes lingered at a rusted wheelchair resting near one of the doors. Her eyes remained there until she heard something slam against the far wall. Reminded of her mission, she pressed on and soon she found a door that wasn't boarded or sealed on her left. She stopped and listening for any other strange happenings, but can only hear some slight shuffling. As her grip on the handgun tightened, she reached out and opened the door.

What she saw next shocked her. All around her, she was surrounded by convulsed semi-humanoid figures. Half of the bodies contained four legs and no head, while the others have melted, stretched flesh for an upper torso. At the far end of the large room, Maggie saw someone wearing an extremely large red pyramid-type helmet and stained apron struggling with a convulsed flesh figure on top of a rusted metal table. The helmeted being held the figure down by the neck, standing over it as the monstrosity kicked violently in the air in protest. Maggie watched in horror as the figure's tormentor reached with its free hand on the table's side, picking up what appeared to be a large spike. Still it struggled, the flesh on its chest bobbed and stretched as it tried desperately to find freedom. In one swift motion, the spike reached a high height and then suddenly plummeted through the figure's abdomen, the sharp end also piercing through the tabletop. The mound of flesh stiffened, struggled weakly, and went limp; its legs brushing against its murderer's hips for the final time. Shocked at what she just saw, Maggie hurriedly grasped the handle and twisted it.

Locked. Surprised that the door didn't open, she continued twisting it, then starts pulling and pushing the door. The helmeted figure slowly turned towards the room's new visitor and spectator; the majority of its upper torso, including the head and neck, were obscured by the massive headgear. It then walked slowly to a nearby column and picked up a metal spear before making it way towards Maggie.

"Stop!" she yelled, raising her gun threateningly. "Freeze!"

The executioner pressed on with a turtle's pacing, ignoring Maggie's orders.

"I WILL shoot! Stop right there!"

It still pressed forward, stepping over the bodies of its previous victims. The light then revealed the dried blood that adorned the topmost part of the pole arm. Giving truth to her threats, she fired two shots at her pursuer, both hitting the massive helmet. Undeterred it still marched, now only a few feet away from the Slider.

"OK, fine." Maggie muttered, aimed for the torturer's legs and fired two more shots. The creature stumbled back a step, but quickly regained its composure and pressed on.

"Goddammit!" she yelled, firing two more bullets at its arms. The same reaction. The same recovery. As Maggie fired another shot, the executioner quickly raised its weapon and swung it at her, sending her flying towards the wall on the opposite side of the room. Massive amount of pain filled her left side, back, and head. She looked up, trying to focus her vision after the blow, to see that the executioner was still making its way towards her. Weakly, she raised her firearm and continued to fire. Two shots grazed the helmet, producing tiny sparks. The third went inside the monster's hip.

*click*

Maggie's eyes widened when she heard that sound, yet she continued pressing the trigger. A second later, the executioner loomed over her menacingly, raising its spear for the final blow. Her eyed were pooled with tears, both from the combination of the pain and the realization that her life will end shortly.

Suddenly, sirens wailed from distances unknown and the creature froze. At the same time, Maggie became very lightheaded and her vision became blurry. Through the haziness, she could see the figure lowering its weapons and turning away from her. The sirens became louder as everything dimmed. Soon, she went limp.

"Hello!" Jason yelled. No response.

His gripped his ax tightly and began to walk down the chain-linked road into the unknown. With each step, he'd grown more confused and concerned.

"What the hell is happening?" he thought. "First, Night comes in fast, then those dogs... and... Places... they just can't change so dramatically... not that fast... Am I in the same place?"

His eyes wandered to see the fire engine doors are still there, but are more rusty and hanging suspended over the chasm. Another thing that bothered him was that, before, there were only four doors when he came in. Now, there were more and the building seemed longer. As he pressed on, he started to hear additional noises. Metal tapping on metal and low growls suddenly filled the room. Panicking, Jason spun himself around and looked. The flashlight showed nothing behind him other than the makeshift floor. But the sound still persisted and it fueled Jason's fear. Without as much of a thought, he turned around and speedily pressed forward in a desperate run. Before long, he found himself before a wooden door that he did not hesitate to open and sprint through.

As soon as he entered, the noise stopped and was replaced by a new sound; a human voice, but warped. Jason listened intently, but the speech was indecipherable. Feeling dread, he panned his torch around the area, revealing the room being wider but the flooring was much more narrow, which lead to a large cement landing. A few steps later, he could make out an old mattress and blanket on the landing by the far wall. Slowly he made his way towards the landing, his ax at the ready for any surprises. Which each step, the voice got slightly louder, but still unclear. Also, the air had gotten noticeably stale, accompanied with a slightly vile stench. Soon, he stopped before the mattress and blanket, which revealed to be heavily stained, the voice revealing its presence beneath he sheet. Jason gathered his bearings, gulped, and stooped low, using his free hand to grab the topmost part of the cover. Pulling it back revealed a cassette player/radio, playing a cassette to the highest volume. Puzzled, Jason picked it up and examined it. Pressing the "Stop" button made the room silent and still. He ejected the tape, seeing that it had no label, put it back, rewound it and played it back. The same warped voice filled the air.

"Must be broken... it's stuck in reverse." He thought.

Running his fingers on the sides, he found a small level that switches between its dual functions. He started adjusting the tuner after flipping the toggle to "radio" to search for anything hopeful, but all he found was heavy static.

"Dammit." He spat. The radio went into a high squeal as something pierced Jason's back. He fell over screaming and instinctively tried to comfort his wound, but someone was trying to push the weapon in deeper. Instead, he grabbed the arm that's harming him and threw the adjoining body aside onto the side of the landing, seeing a two-foot tall figure almost careening into the abyss. Its skin had a greenish-pale hue with no eyes; in their place were crossed wrinkles and scratches. It struggled to regain itself as it mouth continued to show hideously decayed teeth of green and black. Jason hurriedly pulled out whatever stabbed him, which turned out to be an ice pick. Then he felt something else stab him as he tried to stand, this time in his left calf. Before he could defend himself, he felt another creature tackle and bit him on his shoulder.

"AAHH!" he screamed at the sudden ambush; the radio squealing loudly as if it were sharing the agony.

In a last ditch attempt to defend himself, he kicked the calf stabber in the chest, sending it flying towards the chasm. The creature that was gnawing on his shoulder felt something pierce its forehead repeatedly. With some stored strength, he was able to throw the maimed creature off of him onto the mattress. But the victory was short-lived, and he felt the first offender try to tackle him from his right. Jason struggled with the figure and was able to wretch himself free; the creature landing on its back after the scuffle. Angry, Jason took the last of his strength and raising his ax, swiftly bringing the blade down on his attacker repeatedly. After the last blow was struck, siren started sounding in the distance. Jason, overwhelmed by the pain, dropped his weapon and then to his knees.

" ... How long have we been gone?"

"... I don't know... it's just... weird."

"But still... I can't believe that we... we're..."

"I need to make a call..."

"What...?" he mumbled, massaging his eyelids to help clear his vision. Then, he suddenly remembered.

"Evelyn!" Remmy's eyes shot open, switched on his flashlight and looked beside him.

No one.

He looked around him, seeing that he had somehow made it into a furniture store. He quickly rose from the bed he was lying on and searched his surroundings, calling out to his companion. All he found was the lead pipe he had used, lying on top of an ornate, polished dining table two rooms over. He picked it up to reveal a compactly folded piece of paper.

"What the..." Remmy said and he picked up the parchment and unfolded it. The resulting sheet turned out to be a map. On it, a small building marker named "Goadmeyer's Furniture" was marked with a sad face showing tears. And a few blocks away from it, a marker highlighting "Toluca Community College" was circled.

"Hello?" Remmy shouted, fear building in his psyche.

No answer. Just silence and cold.

Why would someone want me to go to the community college? he wondered. What's waiting for me there? Where are the others?

Then Remmy started to regret going through that hole. He thought that if it weren't for his curiosity, he would still be with his friends. At least he'll know if Diana has made any progress to make the timer work. After beating himself up, he sighed.

Might as well head over there. It's not like I have a choice... I have no idea where to start looking.

Remmy glanced back at he map and couldn't find any police stations marked on it. While in thought, his hands became numb due to the cold. Instinctively, he put both his hands and the map back in his pockets. His left hand impacted the black radio he obtained earlier. Slowly he took it out and looked at it.

Maybe it'll work right now. Everything seems normal now... well, I hope so.

Remmy switched the device on and adjusted the tuner, hoping to catch a frequency. Low static was the only thing escaping through the small speaker.

Well... it was worth a shot. I'll hang on to it. And he put the radio back in his pocket. His hands now huddled in caves of cloth, Remmy started looking for the exit, using the stores hanging guideposts to find his way. Soon, he found himself at the entrance with a display window at each side showing off master crafted armchairs and tables with clearance tags. The gray light from outside illuminated everything in front of the establishment, with one odd characteristic.

It's snowing... I don't know why, but the snow doesn't seem right...What is wrong with it?

Taking a deep breath, Remmy switched off his light, unlocked the door and ventured out.

Wha... What the hell happened? he thought as he shook his head and switch on his torchlight, revealing that he was standing in a storage closet. Across from him was a large wall-mounted closet-like cabinet with five open storage spaces; three of them contained a fireman's uniform.

And how did I end up in here?

Part of the protruding light fell upon a glass bottle with a label, "Bell Tonic Energy Drink". Curious, Jason picked it up and shook it, seeing that the contents are full. Feeling a bit hungry, he immediately twisted the cap and gulped the bitter liquid.

This isn't going to keep me at bay much longer...I need food.

Jason gathered his bearings and ax (which lay next to him on the floor), turned around and opened the door. He soon found himself inside the firehouse again, back into its original state.

What the hell is going on?

Bewildered, Jason headed for the door. He suddenly remembered passing something while being chased by the dogs. With silent hope, he prayed that it is much safer outside now, since he can see the dim light and fog through the windows. He walked over to exit the building until he stopped as he looked through the mounted window.

"It's snowing?" he exclaimed. "Why the hell is it snowing?"

The slider slowly opened his eyes, seeing the blurred face of Diana hovering over him.

"Mallory. You OK?"

"Stop yelling my name." He said groggily. "My head is killing me."

"Well I had to wake you up somehow." She responded.

Mallory shook his head and looked around. "Where are we?"

He saw that he was sitting at the feet of a loveseat inside a homely looking living room, the light from the medium sized window above the sofa providing its only illumination, some of it filtered through the parted curtains. Pictures of children and a family sat on top of the coffee table across from them, the table linking the loveseat and sofa, and the television set next to a door.

"I don't know." She said. "Not in that damned room, that's for sure."

Mallory raised himself as he reached to turn on a lamp. "Seems kinda cozy."

The lamp didn't respond when Mallory flipped the switch.

"Well don't get comfortable."

"Too late." He said and he sat back down on the loveseat.

"We need to figure out how are we going to find the others."

Mallory sighed but Diana continued.

"It would seems that this dimension is experiencing random shifts in planes. One that is normal and one that is... well... it's like this place has some sort of multiple personality disorder but couldn't control which one gets to be dominant at a certain time, hence those... things during the daylight... well, I hope that it's daylight. It's about as close to daylight as I can possibly classify it. However, it's possible that it's because of this instability that the timer ceased to function. Remember when everything turned dark and the timer started acting all wonky?"

"Ow!" Mallory yelled. "I think you ruptured something."

Diana frowned. "Well, excuse me for trying to make sense of all of this. As soon as we figure out this strange phenomeno-"

"You. You do all the thinking and theorizing. I'm no scientist."

"Part of you is-."

"Will you stop bringing that up?!"

"Fine."

"Look. Even if I can bring him back, I DON'T WANT TO!"

"I'm not asking you to."

"Well, you damn well implied it!"

Diana sighed. "I'm sorry. OK? I'm sorry. I just want to leave this world as soon as possible."

"As do I-"

"But I can't do that until I find out what kind of situation we're in. Plus Maggie and Remmy are still out there somewhere. We need to regroup."

"And how are we going to do that? We don't even know where to look."

Diana sat on the edge of the table. "I don't know. I was thinking we could make our way back to the police station. Hopefully, the others will have the same idea."

"Um... Isn't the Police Station no longer safe?"

"Oh... yeah. But it's the only thing I can think of."

"What about the part about sliding out?"

"As soon as I know more, the sooner I can find a solution. This is new to me."

"In other words... you need a lab." Mallory sighed.

"Good luck finding one in this place. It's a resort town, remember?"

"Hey, we've found stranger things in stranger places."

Diana chuckled.

Mallory sighed... and the silence became prevalent.

"So..." Mallory said, breaking the ambience. "What now?"

"Huh..." she grunted as she raised herself. "What? How did I end up here? Where am I?"

She started to stand up with extreme difficulty, due in part to the pain from the previous fight. It was around this time that she realized she was still holding her empty pistol, which proved that her ordeal wasn't a hallucination. Slowly she made her way to the nearby door, opened it and limped out.

"Hello?!" she yelled as she walked down the dark hallway. With each step she gripped her empty pistol to dull the pain. "Anyone here?"

Moments passed and she found herself in the receptionist's area, seeing an emergency first-aid kit hanging on a wall near the desk.

"Thank God." She thought as she quickly took the case and opened it. She rummaged through its contents before finding what she was looking for, a small bottle of aspirin. After swallowing a couple of capsules, she made her way to the waiting area and sat down, the surrounding silence leaving only her thoughts. Past events played in her psyche, reviewing what went wrong and how to fix it, namely to reunite with her fellow travelers. What she thought most of all was the overwhelming fear she felt when she was approached by the helmeted figure. Back in that room, she felt something that she hasn't felt in a long while. Something she thought she had eradicated after years of training and service.

She felt helpless.

This feeling terrified her along with the thought of being alone. She tried formulating plans in her head, but she always ended up with dead ends. She had no idea if her friends were safe, or how to find them. She had no idea how to leave this town, let alone this dimension. Then the thought that the town might once again turn on her crossed her mind and made her shiver. She sat there and thought and debated until her stomach rumbled. Maggie looked up weakly, spying an empty plastic jar through the reception window with a label reading "Lollipops".

She closed her eyes in defeat and a slight pain in her abdomen accompanied a second growl.

"Food..." she groaned, making an effort to stand up. She knew that the only way to find nourishment... was to go outside. Without a map, she didn't know exactly what to look for or where to go, but she didn't have a choice since her stomach was now pleading to be fed.

"... OK... I can stand... hopefully I can still run." She told herself as she pocketed her pistol. Slowly, she made herself to the front door and twisted the knob.

Flakes of snow slowly drifted downward from the gray sky; some fell delicately on Maggie's head as she peeked out.

"Huh?" she thought as her eyes panned through the nearby haze-covered street, buildings and signs.

"It's snowing now... but somehow... it doesn't feel right." Maggie also noticed that there were no present breeze or a change in temperature. As she breathed, not any of it was visible. In each direction, the street only appeared to end in fog.

"OK... Left or Right... Left or Right... God, I wish I had that map."

Then her mind drifted to that of Mallory and Diana and her demeanor transformed into that of worry.

"Where are you? I hope you're still alive."

Her thoughts were interrupted but the audible protests of her impatient stomach. Taking a deep breath, she turned right and sprinted. Her footsteps echoed as she traversed down the empty street. She tried her best to see what buildings she passed, only to make out some antique shops and music outlets.

"C'mon, I need a place with food..."

Suddenly, a new noise joined her footsteps. Leather wings. Maggie increased her pace, looking around for the incoming threat. All she could see was thick mist, but the flapping continued, although it sounded distant. The chase and search continued for 5 blocks until Maggie saw a small parking lot to her right. Instinctively, she ran towards it, hastily speeding on the striped concrete. A moment later, she saw a small building and a sign.

Traill Market

Maggie almost yelled in relief but she kept moving towards the front doors, passing a buggy cache on the way. Her victory was short-lived however, when she spotted shutters blocking the doors, as she ran through the fog.

"No." She chanted, as she stopped under the outside canopy. "No no no no no no no no!"

The flapping was becoming more audible and was joined by sounds of tiny padded feet rapidly pounding the cement. Panicked, she ran along the side of the building, hoping to find some other way in. In a few steps, her field of vision revealed a large, partially open chainlink gate and a chain with a shattered padlock beside it. Maggie looked back and saw menacing shapes moving towards her before going through the gate, pushing a nearby barrel in front of the gate, and running off to the store's rear.

Along the way she spotted broken crates, shopping carts and barrels placed along the outer wall. Before long, she spotted a door leading inside, a white van parked beside it.

"Please be open. Please be open. Please be open..." Maggie repeated as she reached for the knob. It twisted easily and the door gave way. She breathed a sigh of relief and stepped inside.

As the door closed she found herself in darkness and quiet. Immediately she fished out her flashlight and panned it around, seeing that she was partially surrounded by boxes, barrels and packaging. Slowly, she explored this new space, finding a couple of forklifts and trolleys lying unused among the unstocked merchandise, along with a pair of service doors. Cautiously, Maggie gave it a shove and peered inside the market itself, or more specifically, the frozen food aisle.

Suddenly, she heard an empty can drop a few yards away. The sound echoed through the empty building, disturbing the surrounding ambience, and was followed by some rustling. Maggie quickly shut out her torch and slowly followed the noise, clutching her empty firearm. She also covered her nose when she passes a large freezer bin filled with spoiled meat and goods. As she proceeded, she also heard something scraping against tin and minute grunting. Maggie mentally cursed for having no ammo and moved on. Pressing herself on the nearby shelf, which was stocked with cookies, she leaned out to see what was causing the clatter.

"Whoaf!" The figure shouted in mid-feed. In an instant it reached for something.

"Freeze!" Maggie shouted, aiming her gun at the offender.

"Donp ... *gulp* Don't shoot lady!!!" Jason yelled, his hands shooting upwards.

Maggie turned on her flashlight and saw a very young, panicked man; his low-cut red hair almost matched the pasta sauce remnants surrounding his mouth. On the ground, she identified at least three empty ravioli cans and a fire ax.

"You're human." She uttered.

"Last time I-I ch-checked." Jason replied, visibly shaken, a can opener reflecting in his left hand. "C-can you lower th-that thing please?"

Maggie sighed and put her gun away. "Better?"

Jason slowly lowered his arms. "Yeah... um, now that we established that we belong to the same species, who are you?"

"I tell you mine... if you tell me yours." Maggie smiled.

"Um... Jason."

"Jason. I'm Maggie." She said, reaching out her hand. Jason grabbed hers and shook it, the tomato sauce from his fingertips now finding a home on Maggie's wrist.

"Well, um, nice to meet you. Oh, sorry about that... I think 'toiletries' is in the next aisle."

"It's ok... it's not the first time I've had red on me."

"... Oh... um... you don't happen to know what going on, do you?"

"No... and I was going to ask you the same question."

"Not a freakin' clue."

Maggie sighed. "Are you from this town? I've been separated from my friends... Have you seen anyone else here?"

"No and no. I haven't been to this town in 3 years. What brings you here?"

"Just passing through. You?"

"A reunion."

"Really? High School? Family?"

"More of a personal thing."

"Right..."

"Old friends."

"Yeah... still, we're on the same boat now, Jay."

"... *sigh* Any ideas? I'm out of 'em."

"No yet... though," Maggie said, clutching her mid-section. "I may need to stop at a hospital soon."

"What's wrong."

"I ran into something... "

"Was it 3 feet tall and was carrying an icepick?"

"No... "

"Ah... a different something."

"What are you talking about?"

Jason took a deep breath. "Um... I have a map. Let me get cleaned up and we'll look for a hospital together."

"OK. Before you go... can I use your can opener?"

Jason looked confused, then remembered the thing he was holding. "Oh! Go right ahead. It's not even mine anyways."

Jason handed the opener to Maggie. "Help yourself. I don't think the owner will mind."

Maggie eagerly reached down and grabbed a can of Chicken Noodle soup, disabled the tin seal and drank its cold contents. As she reached for another can, her thoughts lingered on the rest of her friends.

Mallory... Diana...where are you?

...Remmy.

Toluca Community College
Est. 1936

As he turned to cut through the grass to reach the front steps, three "dogs" turned and started running towards him. Remmy put more energy to his pain-filled legs and ran, climbing the small flight towards the glass doors. He immediately grasped the metal handle and pulled it open, thanking the heavens for it not being locked and went inside. The creatures clawed at the glass panels and growled after him as the door closed. Remmy breathed heavily as he slowly turned around, his eyes meeting a very clean interior. The floor was adorned with checkerboard tiling and is accompanied by a large staircase on the right, partially illuminated by the gray light outside. To his left, another glass door with a sign marking it as the Bursar's Office, followed by more traditional plywood doors and a darkened hallway with gray/beige colored walls.

Remmy took two more steps forward, his exhaustion almost lifted.

"Hello?" he called out, switching on his pocket torch. No response.

Confused, he looked back at the map to make sure that he was in the right place. "Hello?!"

Still, no answer. Remmy felt both confused and angry. Why would someone want him here and not greet him? Suddenly, his train of thought was interrupted by the growling of his stomach. Remmy walked into the hallway and saw that his beam targeted the student directory posted on a nearby wall, as the building's air temperature felt dead cold.

<-- Rooms 102-117
<-- Business & Technology Dept.
<-- Financial Aid: Rm. 112
Rooms 120-136 -->
Student Lounge -->
Liberal Arts Dept. -->

His first instinct is to go to the Student Lounge and raid the vending machines, but his eyes still lingered on the first post, his mind searching on what it may mean. As he thought he reached into his pockets to give his hands some warmth... then it finally clicked. Slowly he pulled out the key he acquired earlier and looked at the number.

106

Is this why I was guided here? He wondered, staring at the oddly shaped piece of metal. He took a deep breath and followed the guide arrow to room 106, the air became much colder and stagnant as he pressed on. Soon enough, he was standing before the door, staring at the marker posted on it.

Here goes...

Remmy began to insert the key, which seemed to slide in without difficulty. He then gulped and turned it. But the key wouldn't turn.

"What?" he exclaimed as he tried the key a few times. The locking mechanism refused to give and Remmy extracted the key in disgust.

"Well, that was a waste of time." He said in defeat. His hunger reminded him of his previous quest and he started his way towards the student lounge.

Maggie finished her second box of granola bars before she saw Jason walk back to her with clean hands holding a map.

"Better?" he asked.

"Slightly." Maggie said, groaning a little. "At least I'm not hungry anymore, though."

"Yeah..." Jason smiled as he laid down the map. "I've been looking at the map... we're right here... and the nearest hospital is here... about 8 blocks."

"Brookhaven Hospital..." Maggie said, looking at the building marked on the sheet.

"Yeah... but given the spontaneous large potholes, they're probably won't a direct route. And if its like every other place here... forget about seeing any doctors."

"I just want something to nullify the pain for the time being... just until we do find somebody."

"Like your friends?"

"Or like your friend."

"... I hope we find them..."

"Me too."

"I wonder what caused all of this, it's kinda mind boggling, you know."

"I don't know and I don't care." Maggie stretched. "I just want to find my friends and leave."

"Same here. Um... we should pack some food just in case."

"Yeah... let me look around a bit. Maybe the manager has a hidden stockpile hidden around." She smirked, tucking her empty firearm in her pants.

"I doubt it, but good luck." Jason walks off to one of the registers and placed a large paper bag inside of a plastic one, and jogs to one of the isles.

Maggie strolled away from the spoiled produce and stood by one of the gumball machines situated by the shutter-sealed entrance. She took comfort in having a new ally, giving her confirmation that she and her group weren't alone in this ordeal. While waiting, the marine panned her torchlight around the cash registers, candy boxes, magazine stands and conveyor belts. She was in the process of going to help her new friend pack until her light revealed an open leather duffel bag sitting near the customer service window. After taking a few steps closer, Maggie saw that it was a toolbag, the handle of a hammer sticking out of its opening. She pulled it out, feeling and grasping the rubber grip and swung it in the air to test its weight and versatility.

"Hmm... at least it's something I can work with." Maggie said to herself, eyeing both the blunt and sharp ends.

"OK, ready!" Jason yelled as he held a slightly heavy makeshift sack. "I only packed enough so it wouldn't hinder my running. I had a hell of a time getting here as it is. Might get more dangerous as we get to the hospital."

"Might?" she asked sarcastically as she walked towards the young man. "Considering our luck?"

"Well, excuse me for being an optimist."

"Ready, flamehead?"

"Yeah, let's go."

Then the two headed back to the rear of the store.

"That's the last direct way out." Diana replied while looking at a map. "Give me a few seconds, maybe there's another way."

"Are you sure this is the right way?" Mallory looked around frantically for any incoming dangers.

"Well, according to the address on the utility envelope, we started on Levin Street and now we're on Bradbury. We just need to get on Bloch St. to cross the drawbridge. I wish I didn't drop the map from the diner... this one we found in the house seems old and incomplete. I mean, I found a police station, but I'm not sure if it's the police station we ran from."

"Diana, calm down or else your brain will fry. And we need it later. Let me see the map."

Diana handed Mallory the large piece of parchment and kicked a rock into the large maw.

"Wait, here!" Mallory said, pointing a small white line in the middle of a city block. "It looks like we passed up an alley that leads to Bloch." Mallory ran to the sidewalk and away from Diana and stopped. "Here! So far, no holes."

Diana gathered her bearings and followed her companion, the fog seemed to get thicker for each step she took. When she looks down the small passageway lined with garages, wire fences, and garbage cans, a chill went down her spine as she couldn't make out what was on the other side.

Mallory folded the map, pocketed it, and pulled out a hatchet he found in the house's kitchen. After taking a deep breath, he looked at the scientist.

"Ready?"

Diana slowly nodded and they started jogging down the alley. Almost immediately, the radio began to emit white noise, which caused them to increase their pace. Out of the corner of his eyes, Mallory began to see small approaching silhouettes galloping and flying in the mist.

"Mallory?"

"Yeah..."

"Have you noticed... anything... strange... about the snow?"

"It's odd.... Why?"

"Well... none of it... is hitting... the ground."

"We should keep... focused... on the bridge."

"Hey! Jackpot!"

Maggie followed him inside and saw two cabinets filled with medical supplies and first aid items along with an examination table and a sink.

"Can you belief that crappy store doesn't supply any first aid stuff?" Jason said as he extracted a bottle of peroxide and alcohol from one of the nearby cabinets before taking off his shirt.

"Whoa!" Maggie shouted as he saw some of the scars on his back. "What the hell happened to you?"

"To answer that, I have to replay a memory that nearly traumatized me."

"OK… " Maggie raised her eyebrow slightly as she took a couple of painkillers. "But I have another question."

"Shoot."

"Who are you here to see?"

Jason stopped treating his wounds and looked back. "A friend."

"And does this friend have a name?"

"Eric."

"Eric… Childhood buddy?"

"More like a college buddy. But we were very close."

"Ah."

"He's helped me out a lot, that's all. Plus things were always fun when he's around."

"You think he's still here."

"Somehow, I highly doubt that."

"And yet, you're still in this crazy town."

"I am still in this 'crazy town' because there's a giant hole blocking the way to the interstate. Even if my car hadn't died, I wouldn't be able to leave."

"Don't worry… hopefully we won't be here long." Maggie smiled as she dabbed some ointment on a couple of her bruises.

"And your friends?"

"Hopefully we'll find them also."

"So full of hope, are you?" he smiled.

"At least one of us should be." She smiled back.

"I'm going to grab a bite. Be right back.

"Okay." Maggie nodded as Jason walked out. He stopped a few feet away from the grocery bag when he noticed a piece of paper lying right next to it. He steps closer to grab it and looked over what was written.

3rd Floor. Rm. 329.
- E