Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ Where Darkness Falls ❯ Meetings ( Chapter 3 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Chapter 3 - Meetings

Misato simply stared at the man in front of her. What on earth is HE doing here?! she thought, finding no RATIONAL reason that the commander of NERV, Gendou Ikari, would be standing in the middle of the police station on the outskirts of downtown Nowhere USA.
again, not much had been rational since she had arrived.

I'll bet he's not here looking for Shinji, she thought, assessing the man closely, maybe he's after Ritsuko?
explanation made a bit more sense. After all, Gendou did not seem like the kind of man to take betrayal easily, and Ritsuko had definitely betrayed him. Misato also seemed to recall hearing whispered rumours of a planned 'backup program,' involving brainwashing the EVA pilots should they prove uncooperative - so she sincerely doubted that his son's welfare was at the front of his thoughts. This concept was reinforced by the vivid memory of Shinji's scream of agony at seeing the pilot of Unit 03, Touji Suzuhara, pulled from his shattered entry plug after his father's cold-hearted activation of Unit 01's Dummy Plug autopilot system.
Misato decided, Gendou was definitely not the kind of man to trek halfway around the world for one errant boy - be it his son or God himself.

Too much silence

"Hello Commander," Misato blurted, finding that she really had no other opening.

"Major," the man replied coolly, his gun staying barrel down, but at the ready. "Would you be so kind as to give me a status update? Or to put it a bit more bluntly - what the hell is going on here?"

"I don't know sir," Misato confessed, "it was like this when I got here." She hesitated only a second. "What are you doing here?"

He didn't ask you that, her mind whispered, he's too cool about all this - be careful

"I was on my way to inspect the new American branch of NERV when my car was rammed off the road by a police cruiser," Gendou said smoothly. "My bodyguard was killed in the crash," he elaborated as he slid off the desk and tucked his pistol into his jacket.

"New branch?" Misato asked uncertainly.

"It was need to know only," Gendou replied calmly, "you did not need to know."
stared at each other for a moment in silence, then Misato whispered, "Well, you'd better leave town, sir it isn't safe here."

Training is a hard thing to break, I guess, she thought ironically, scum sucking bastard from hell or not, he's still The Commander, and if - WHEN - I get out of here, I'll still have to work with him at least until I turn in my resignation. New branch my ass!
she decided as the man studied her over the top of his glasses, a resignation sounded just peachy to her at that moment.

"Indeed," the Commander said belatedly, "good luck then, Major."
kept her face neutral as the man headed for the door, keeping her eyes on him until he had made his exit. Gendou, she noticed, did the same, watching her from the corner of his eyes as if hoping she would drop her guard and leave him an opening to-

To what? her mind chided, Attack you? The COMMANDER?? This place is getting to you, Katsuragi. She frowned as she looked down at the creature on the floor. No, she thought darkly, no, I don't think I was out of line for treating him like a possible enemy - for God's sake, the man barely blinked and he was just too damn cool about everything!
shook off the feeling that the man was still in the room with her and did a quick search of the room, turning up a spare clip for her pistol, several girly magazines, a half eaten ham sandwich, and thankfully - a small medical kit.
a liberal amount of antibiotic ointment to the cut on her arm, Misato looked around the room. Looks like they were working on a pretty big case, she thought, pausing in her assessment to wipe some of the excess ointment away and peal the backing off of an oversized bandage. Drug trafficking? In a resort town? I guess it makes sense - hook the tourists and keep 'em coming back for more but what is 'White Claudia'? I've never heard of a plant with that-
soft click behind her made her whirl around, spilling the contents of the first aid kit all over the desk. She stared in silence at the long barrel of a standard-issue police assault rifle, held by a standard-issue American police officer. The man was of medium height, with blue eyes, blonde hair, and a neatly trimmed blonde moustache.
noticed that he wore a small, tin star with the word 'sheriff' etched in it just over his regular badge.

"Sorry about that," the man said, slowly lowering his weapon, "I thought you were another one of those monsters." He extended his right hand, keeping his left wrapped firmly around the stock of his rifle. "Aaron Fletcher - I'm the chief of police around here."
cautiously took his hand, flinching slightly as he shook her hand firmly, the thick muscles of his upper arm rippling slightly under his too-tight shirt. "Misato Katsuragi," she murmured in her best English, reclaiming her hand and discretely rubbing it to regain some of the circulation, "Operations Director for NERV."

"NERV?" Fletcher arched an eyebrow, "You here to check out the new branch over in Hartford?"

"Y-yeah," Misato lied with only a small hesitation, "just got a little sidetracked."

Why is it, she thought suddenly, that everyone else knows about this 'new' American branch but me? And why isn't he more concerned?!
found her hand drifting to rest on the butt of her pistol as it dawned on her that the chief of police had not once asked her if she was ok - in spite of the fact that he knew there were monsters in his town.
clarified this by smoothly asking, "Don't suppose you passed any of my officers while you were out there, did you? They all have orders to direct any stragglers to come here for shelter but so far, you're the first person to turn up."
relaxed slightly. "I saw a cruiser over by the school, but no one was in it," she said calmly, wondering why she was so edgy around this laid-back official.

"I see," Fletcher nodded sagely, "well, I better go check that out. You should stay here wait for me to get back."

"Absolutely," Misato said, trying to inject a note of relief into her voice, "thank you sheriff."
laughed, glancing down at the tin star and shaking his head. "My kid gave me this," he chuckled, "couple weeks before his mother took him over to Brahms to stay with her mother."

Another broken family, Misato thought, feeling a bit more empathetic towards the man, guess it's everywhere these days. You'd think people would want to stay together, with the whole damn world falling apart and everything sometimes all we have is the people we care for.

"Stay put now," Fletcher said lightly, giving Misato a brief salute, "you look like you can take care of yourself but leave this to me and my people, ma'am - we'll take care of you."

"Yes sir," Misato returned the salute, letting her smile stay in place until the man had made his way to the door and slipped out. "I'll stay right here until I see if there's anything else I need to help me find Shinji."

searched the police station as thoroughly as she could, but unfortunately she found the armoury securely locked with a computer-coded touchpad, and seeing as things electronic no longer seemed to work (and she did not have the keycode) trying to open the thick door was a futile exercise. The garage, however, yielded spare ammunition for both her pistol and shotgun and, oddly, three more small, silver crosses, exactly like the one she had found by the abandoned cruiser near the school.

Strange she thought, cupping the crosses in her palm for a moment before slipping them instinctively into her pocket. Must be a hell of a religious town.
back through the station, she found herself in front of a small wooden door marked simply 'chief.' "Well mister Fletcher," she murmured, taking a quick look around to ensure that the man had not slipped in at some point, "let's see what you have to hide."
was quite a letdown. Other than a very tidy desk, a comfortable looking chair, and a row of six, four-by-six-inch picture frames on the windowsill, the chief of police had a very unexciting office. None of his drawers yielded anything more interesting than a box of thumbtacks and a bottle of aspirin (which she pocketed), and all of the papers on the man's desk pertained to speeding tickets and complaints of dogs barking too loud.
a sigh, she threw herself into his chair, reclining the seat and lacing her hands behind her head. "Nice looking family you have, Sheriff," she commented quietly, unconsciously deciding that this would be the way she referred to him as she surveyed the row of photos, "too bad you couldn't hold it together." She frowned. "What's that?"
let the chair rock forward, rolling it closer to the windowsill. Her frown deepened as she found a seventh picture lying face down in a small dusting of broken glass, a small drop of blood - still wet - gracing the sill directly in front of it.

"Temper, temper"
Misato lifted the frame, fully expecting to find the chief of police shaking hands with the devil, or something equally as shocking but the picture in the frame was mundane - just a picture of a small, towheaded boy with peanut butter and jelly smeared across his grinning face. With a sigh, Misato began to put the picture back down, but she paused as her sharp eyes picked up another detail.

Now why she thought, frowning as she examined the picture a bit closer. The boy, she realized, was being held by someone just off camera. She could see a sweater-clad arm wrapped loosely around the boy's waist but for some reason, a small square had been cut from the photo, obscuring most of the person's hand.

"Huh," Misato mused, turning the frame over in her hands and examining it from every angle, "strange"
shook herself. I'm wasting time - none of this is helping me find Shinji.
the picture back down she twisted the chair back to face the desk and rose to her feet, but as she moved, she felt something brush the top of her leg. Lowering herself back down, she reached under the desk, her questioning hand encountering cool leather and rough packing tape.
a grunt of effort, Misato pulled the tape free and retrieved her prize - an ordinary looking brown wallet. "Well that was hardly worth it," she muttered dryly, staring into the empty billfold, "just an old credit card receipt and an address."

Then again, she thought with a sudden wave of tiredness, has anything been 'just' this or that since I got here??
the wallet to the side, she unfolded the credit card receipt, frowning as she found a very innocuous book title alongside the sales price of $.05.

"'The Growth Patterns of New England Wildflowers ,'" she read aloud, shaking her head as she puzzled over the price. "Why put five cents on credit??"
confused, she pocketed the receipt and read the address, feeling a chill wash over her as she looked at the street - Asimov - alongside a single, Kanji character Sakura.

I never was too good at handwriting analysis, she thought, running her forefinger slowly over the character, but I'd swear this is Shinji's.
herself from her thoughts, she pulled out her map, scanning for the location of the bookstore. "Sakura blossoms are pink," she muttered, trying very hard to convince herself that she was not grasping at straws, "maybe White Claudia looks like - damn it!" She slammed her fist down on the desk. "What does this mean!? Why would Shinji be writing notes to the police chief about flowers? He can't be involved in that drug business, can he? No way! He would never let himself be forced to-"
took a deep breath, trying her best to calm down. God, just be alive that's all that REALLY matters.

walk to the bookstore was tense, but uneventful. Though nothing came out of the fog to attack her, Misato still walked as fast as she could while still staying quiet, and she nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard the far-off, reverberating howl of a dog.
at least, what she hoped was a dog.

"This town is gonna be the death of me," she groaned, wishing she could laugh at her little double entendre as the bookstore came into view. She drew her pistol, approaching the front door cautiously, but as it became clear that there were no creatures lurking just out of site, she hurried inside and shut the door, heaving a sigh of relief.
a moment to collect herself, she glanced around, finding herself in a cosy (if just slightly too warm) little book shop, every shelf overflowing with all manner of novels, self-help books, cookbooks, magazines, and pamphlets imaginable.
small shelf marked, 'floral,' caught her eye.

"Let's just take a look, shall we?"
knelt in front of the shelf, taking a quick look around to make doubly sure she was alone, and began scanning titles, mumbling under her breath until she found a small row of the book listed on the credit card receipt but all bore small stickers reading 'marked down! Now just $4.99!'

"Huh," Misato whispered, tapping one of the books thoughtfully, "maybe it was a mistake when it was rung up? No he wouldn't have signed it" She rose to her feet and rested her chin in her palm, taking another look around the bookstore. "Or maybe," she said softly, "it was in a different section." She grinned to herself as her eyes happened on a small shelf tucked in the corner.
sign over the shelf read Clearance .
a sense of certainty, Misato strode over to the shelf and began scanning it. "Clive Barker," she muttered, "Stephen King SD Perry man, they're just clearing out all their horror, aren't they??"
a handful of novels aside, she found what she was looking for.

"Eww!!"
lone copy of The Growth Patterns of New England Wildflowers was the single most disgusting book Misato had ever seen. The cover, depicting a wild rose of some sort, was so dingy and crusted with filth that Misato did not even want to touch it. On corner of the book appeared to have been chewed on by a large dog, which had apparently succeeded in cracking the spine and tearing the bottom corner of the front cover clean off.
there was the matter of the large clump of some brown substance clinging to the top, partially obscuring the small 'only $.05!!' sticker in the upper corner.

Why me? she thought, her fingers twitching in subconscious revulsion as she beheld the vile book. Why does stuff like this always happen to ME!?
a pre-emptive cry of disgust, Misato let her hand shoot out and seize the book, pulling it towards her and praying that this might have an answer to at least ONE of her questions. Instead of sliding out, however, the book tilted forward, a heavy clunk echoing from some hidden mechanism behind the shelf.
silent awe, Misato rose to her feet and watched as the clearance shelf laboriously moved to the side, exposing a narrow stone staircase.

"Now that's something you don't see every day."
whirled around, relief flooding her at the familiar voice. "Ritsuko!" she cried. "Oh thank God! I thought you were dead!"
smiled. "I nearly was," she muttered dryly, "one of those damned winged demons dropped out of nowhere and tried to eat me, so I ran. By the time I lost it and made my way back to the school, I couldn't find you anywhere." She shrugged. "So I figured I'd just lay low in one of the houses around here until I caught my breath then I saw you go in here, followed you, and here we are."
nodded. "Did you see any sign of Shinji?" she asked bluntly.
atmosphere of the town was wearing on her, forcing her to discard simple ideas like courtesy and manners.
seemed to understand. "I did see someone," she said slowly, biting her bottom lip pensively, "but I wasn't sure if it was Shinji I was kind of far away."

"You just let him go!?" exclaimed Misato.
possible, Ritsuko looked even more flustered. "Well, no - I didn't really have a choice!" She took a deep breath. "He was walking on thin air!"

"What??"

"You heard me," Ritsuko sighed, rubbing her eyes in a tired fashion. "I couldn't see who it was from where I was standing, but it looked like a young man with black hair and he was walking over a twenty-five foot crevasse in Bachman Road in the direction of the lake so, yeah, I didn't really have a chance to stop him, since I left my jetpack back at NERV!"
awkward silence fell between the two, broken when Misato mumbled, "Sorry."

"I understand," Ritsuko said calmly, "I want to find him just as much as you do." Her eyes flicked to the stairwell. "What's this?"

"I don't know," shrugged Misato, "just found it."
checked her shotgun. "You want to go first, or me?"
considered this for a moment, then shook her head. "You stay here and watch the entrance for me to make sure no one follows me, and I'll check it out." She hesitated, then asked, "Have you ever met the chief of police?"

"No, why?"
quickly outlined her experiences in the police station, including Gendou, Fletcher, the wallet, and the little bit she understood about the drug investigation - simply because it now seemed to have a bearing on finding Shinji.

"I can see why you'd be nervous about someone sneaking up on you," Ritsuko said, looking a bit green as she considered what might happen to her if her former lover got his hands on her, "be careful."

"You too."
went down the dark tunnel, snapping on her flashlight after a few feet. Someone forgot to pay the power bill, she thought grimly, I think I'm starting to hate this town - not just dislike it or find it creepy, I actually HATE it!
about fifteen feet, the narrow hallway opened up into a small, alcove like room complete with what looked suspiciously like an alter whose centrepiece was an elaborately decorated brazier, carved with symbols she did not recognize, but still made her uneasy. Tapestries hung on either side of the brazier, and the floor under the altar had been painted in a rough, unhealthy looking diagram.

Kind of like the Tree of Life the Commander has on his ceiling, Misato thought, letting her eyes follow the diagram's serpentine pattern. Man, I wonder what kind of sick stuff went on here wait, no I don't - I don't want to kn-
thought was cut off as the brazier suddenly flared to life, filling the room with intense heat and a sickeningly sweet, cloying fragrance - like incense left on a shelf for years. Misato felt her head swim, and she swore she could hear a loud, wailing siren, somewhere far off in the distance calling her - DEMANDING that she heed its cry
up the staircase, Ritsuko nearly jumped as she heard an odd humming sound, coming from somewhere down the stairs. "Misato?" she called cautiously, "Are you ok?"
the only reply she received was silence.

What if something happened? Ritsuko shook her head, grasping her shotgun firmly as she walked down the steps. Making her way into the small room, she blinked in confusion. What did they worship here?? This looks like some kind of pagan religion , probably from the she shook her head, dismissing the old, half-learned lessons on 'alternate religions' she had been subjected to in college.

"Misato!" she called, checking every corner of the room for another way to leave it but there was nothing. Just herthe altar and silence.

Where could she be!?

opened her eyes with a start, quickly scrambling to her feet and casting around the room in fear. "Did I pass out?" she whispered.
seemed the same, as far as she could see, but the air somehow felt heavier - as if no one had been in this room for years and years, and everything had gone to mould. Shaking her head, she quickly made her way back up the stairs and her jaw fell open at what she beheld. Decay that permeated the entire shop, the books that had been so warm and inviting now looked old and worm eaten. The grime that covered the walls reminded her instantly of the apartment building, as did that same horrible stench, hitting her nostrils like a hammer, and she barely contained a scream as she spotted three bodies, all carefully arranged on the rotten walls exactly like the one she had seen on the school roof.
was no sign of Ritsuko.

What if this is just some kind of nightmare or some kind of hallucination, she thought wildly, what if I'm in the hospital or some other shit like that she shook her head, I don't know what's real anymore! Ritsuko was RIGHT HERE!!
walked out of the bookshop and found that outside was the same story - every building she could see looked decayed and dilapidated, as if the town had been abandoned for over a century. Instead of windows she saw rusted bars, the pavement underfoot cracked and worn and as she stood there, she distinctly heard the now-familiar sound of flapping wings, coming closer closer
a cry, she broke into a run, pulling the shotgun off her shoulder as she moved and pumping a shell into the breach. I'm not going to die standing still, she swore, dashing around a corner as something slick and groaning slithered out of an alley to her right, I WILL make it out of her, damn it! I can - the house!!
skidded to a halt, yanking the piece of paper with the Kanji on it out of her pocket. "Not too far," she whispered, quickly consulting her map as the flapping sound grew louder, "go go, go, GO!! "
all the demons of Hell (quite literally) nipping at her heals, Misato ran as fast as she could towards the small house indicated on that little slip of paper, gasping from the effort as she burst through the front door and slammed it behind her. Deciding that she was not safe enough standing by the thin, wooden portal, she hurried up to the second floor, sweeping the air in front of her with the shotgun as she moved.

Something important has to be here, she told herself firmly, making her way through the hall towards what looked like a girl's door - all decorated in pink and pop-singers. This is all related somehow, I just need to find-
froze as a rustling sound came from the other side of the door and the knob began to turn.
brought the shotgun to eye-level and snapped the flashlight off, deciding that she would not fire until she could see the thing's head clearly. Plus it could be Ritsuko, she thought, nearly laughing at the ludicrousness of her optimism, Right, sure and a thousand angels - real ones - will fly down from the heavens and say, 'Oh we'd love to have you! But I'm afraid you have travel arrangements already. Going down!'
tensed as the door swung open with a small creak, and a small form shuffled out of the room but her eyes widened in shock as she realized that the form belonged to, "Amber?!"
girl was so shocked that the scream she seemed intent on giving came out as a muffled squeak, but once Misato snapped on the flashlight, a decidedly relieved expression washed over Amber's features, and she slumped against the doorframe, clutching her chest.

"Oh Miss Katsuragi," she gasped, immediately launching into an apology, "I'm I'm sorry I ran off - but I was so scared! I'm sorry!"

"I understand, believe me," Misato assured her, "Hell, I ran too - soon as I got the chance."

"R-really?" Amber asked, smiling a sick little smile. "You look so cool, I didn't think you would run from anything!"
flattery was so honest that Misato had to laugh. "I'm about as far from cool as you can get," she said warmly, leaning against the hallway wall, "but I'm glad you did run, because that thing was nasty."

"Yeah"
glanced around the house for a moment. "So," she said slowly, "umm why'd you pick this house to hide in?"

No need to tell her why I'M here, she reasoned, she's probably known the sheriff all her life - I don't want her to think I'm after him or think he's a criminal or something.
's reply shocked her.

"I live here."

"Uh oh," Misato stammered, not really knowing how to respond, "so you figured it would be a good place to hide, or what?"

"Huh uh," Amber shook her head, glancing back into the room (her room , Misato mentally corrected herself), "I forgot my ring when I went to school, and it's really important to me, so I came to find it."
's jaw fell open. "It can't be that important," she sputtered, "Amber - you should be on your way out of town! You can get another ring!"

"It's special," Amber said, blushing brightly as she timidly added, "my boyfriend gave it to me."

"I see," the older woman sighed, knowing it was pointless to be trying to convince the girl of her error at this point in time. "Hey, can I ask you something?" she said, pushing away from the wall and resting the shotgun on her shoulder. When Amber nodded, Misato said, "How do you get to the lake from here?"
shrugged. "Just take Bachman Road," she answered, stepping a little closer to Misato - clearly for comfort - and tilting her head as if she had heard a sound.

"That road's out," Misato countered, frowning as she recalled Ritsuko's tale, "Is there any other way?"
looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well," she said slowly, "it'll take longer, but if you go east along Sagan Street, you'll eventually go past a railroad. Go right after you pass the railroad crossing and you'll get to Munson Street. Keep going along there and you'll hit Nathan Avenue - follow it it goes all the way around the lake." She looked up at Misato curiously. "Why do you want to go there? It's not that great - all that's there is few houses - oh, and my dad told there was a house owned by some Japanese guy but I can't remember his name." She bit her lip. "Is that why you want to go?"

"No," replied Misato. "Shinji might be there"

"UmMiss Katsuragi?" Amber asked, glancing over her shoulder and frowning again, then shaking her head and clearing mouthing, 'just imagining it.'

"Yes," Misato replied, holding up her hand to forestall any further comment as she added, "And don't be so damn formal - call me Misato!"

"Okay M-Misato," Amber nodded, "Ummm why is Shinji so important to you?"
was taken aback by this question. "He he was placed in my custody when he first moved to my city," she replied with a trace of guilt, "I promised I would take care of him."
looked thoughtful. "That makes sense," she said slowly, "I never thought that Takeuchi lady was his sister anyway."

"What?"
was curious to know how a young American girl could tell that two Asian's that had lived in town for less than a month were not related but the girl seemed to have another question on her mind.

"Do you think he would come looking for you ?"
blinked but Amber shook her head, quickly saying, "I'm sorry Miss Katsuragi I shouldn't have asked that."
nodded. "Its okay," she whispered, briefly considering whether or not Shinji WOULD come after her.

Probably not after what happened with Kaworu, she thought sadly, but but maybe when things were good between us - there were SOME good times, right? She shook her head to clear it, looking down at the earnest, slightly dirty girl in front of her. Well, I guess it's not important right now, she thought firmly, and I can't just leave Amber here, so I guess

"Amber," she said calmly, "it's too dangerous here you'd better come with me -- your boyfriend will just have to get you another ring."
's shoulders slumped, but she nodded reluctantly. "Yes ma'am," she said diffidently, "but he doesn't go out with me that much anymore - he's so busy with his work and stuff."

"You have a working boyfriend?" Misato asked, sounding impressed.

"Oh he's the best," Amber said, immediately perking up, "sometimes he takes me for long drives in his-"
Amber could finish her sentence, something hit the side of the building with an enormous bang , shaking the windows in their frames.

"Get behind me!" Misato cried, grabbing the girl's shoulder and stepping between her and the open door.

It's coming through her window, she thought grimly, raising the shotgun in preparation, here it comes!
come through it did only the monster that crashed into Amber's room took more than the window - it took the glass, the frame, and a large chunk of the wall surrounding it as well.

"Downstairs!" Misato barked, "Amber, get downstairs!!"
pulled the trigged before the girl could reply, trying not to throw up as she beheld another nightmarishly deformed monstrosity. The most sickening thing, to Misato's eye anyway, was that the thing looked almost human if you ignored the fact that it's entire body was a horrible fusion of rotted flesh and dull, lifeless metal. Where a human's hands would have been, only claws resided - made up of that same, metal and flesh combination like a sickening, patchwork lion. Its head, while human in shape, was entirely covered in metal, allowing only two slits, ever so slightly too high and wide apart to be quite human and each filled with ice blue embers, burning with malice.
buckshot from the shotgun ricocheted off the metal of its body, leaving tiny, pepperish holes in the wall all around it. Misato immediately rushed for the stairs, realising that she was at a horrible disadvantage in this cramped space. As she took the steps two at a time, she kept firing, praying for a miracle as the creature slowly, almost casually made its way down the hall, regarding her through the slats in the stair's handrail as she pumped round after round towards it.

It's playing with me! Misato thought desperately, imagining that she could hear a soft, raspy laugh coming from somewhere under its metallic hood. Think thinkthinkthink!!
guttural growl came from somewhere deep in the creature's chest, and Misato's mouth went dry as it hunkered down on all fours, shaking what were clearly its hindquarters in obvious preparation to jump.

"There!"
the shotgun, Misato whipped out her pistol, praying that her sudden inspiration would pay off. The monster, seemingly tired of playing with its pray, flew at Misato, bounding over the railing of the stairs and freefalling towards her even as she brought her weapon up and fired.
seemed to stop for Misato as she pulled the trigger, and she imagined that she could actually see the bullet leaving the barrel. In her mind's eye, she saw the round speed through the rapidly closing space between herself and the monster, and when it struck home, passing neatly through the right eyehole in the creature's mask, Misato swore that she could actually see its soul leaving in a roar of cold blue fire.
the world exploded all around her, forcing her to close her eyes as a brilliant white flash flooded her consciousness.
she was still breathing a moment later, Misato opened her eyes.
was the decay gone was the grit and grime of disuse gone were the signs of abandonment and disrepair. All that was left was a pleasant little house on Asimov Street, and several gaping, still smoking holes that Misato's shotgun was clearly responsible for.
no time to glory in the apparent defeat of the metalloid beast, Misato immediately turned to the living room. "Amber!" she cried. "Amber, are you ok? Amber?!"
searched the entire first floor for any place a teenager could squeeze into - closets, under beds, the pantry - everywhere but there was no sign of the girl.

"Damn it," Misato nearly sobbed, throwing herself down on the sofa and burying her face in her palms, "Damn it! DAMN IT!! " She pounded the cushion next to her, letting out a quick cry of pain as something sharp and metal stuck into the flesh of her hand. "Figures" she whispered dejectedly, carefully pulling out the small, chintzy looking ring that had apparently fallen between the cracks in the couch.

Now I have two children to save, she thought grimly, slipping the ring onto her pinkie finger for safe-keeping, Amber... you know where I'm heading - please have the sense to go there too.
a deep breath, Misato levered herself off the couch and retrieved her shotgun, then, taking a moment to reload it, she reviewed her course of action: Go along Sagan Street, past the railroad, and then go left. You'll come across Munson Street, then Nathan Avenue, there's a road around the lake
at her eyes and telling herself sternly that she was NOT a failure, Misato stepped back out into the nightmare that was Silent Hill.