In the Shadow of the Mountain (Reboot)

[Revision]

​

Autumn was a spectacular sight in the small town of Reminiscence. The leaves on the maples, oaks, sycamores, and poplars were a riot of warm colors: gold, orange, red, pink, some edged in tan or brown. Some of the leaves were already falling, though not enough that the rakes had come out of the garages and storage sheds, yet. Days were shorter than one would expect, the mountains and the broad space that was the town upon the river forming a cup that encouraged early nights and false dawns that faded back into the chill dark of morning.

This particular day was fading fast, slipping to dusk and bringing with it a beautiful starscape diluted by the few streetlights in decent repair. Many denizens of the town found themselves retiring early, drawn to bed by an irresistible urge to sleep, a feeling that something important was coming, something they needed to be well rested for.

In the middle of the night, those who'd felt the pull to Reminiscence would experience it intensifying a hundredfold. The quiet of a small town at one a.m. would normally have been pierced by the sound of owls and crickets, cicadas and frogs. Tonight, silence reigned. Each of them would be drawn from their beds, would feel the almost irresistible urge to make their way to the old theatre on Main Street.

The street itself was the closest thing to flat in the town, though it wove its way through, following the path of the river and the train tracks. The theatre was situated across from most of the town's important buildings. The coal mining museum, post office, and town hall were there, along with a small park and an even smaller second hand store. But those were not important on this night. Only the theatre. And each of them would make their way there, bathed in a cloak of night and a mantle of flickering streetlamps.



Alexander felt like going for a walk. No, it was more than that. He didn't just want to go, he needed to. He dressed quickly, hesitating but a moment to grab keys, wallet, and phone. It was almost like moving through a dream. At one point, he wondered if he'd left his front door open, but the concern was unimportant. Only getting to the theatre mattered. He wondered if something might be wrong. His family was funding the renovation, and this might be some imminent disaster calling out to him.

But why? As much as he hated to admit he had them, his talents did not include premonitions or feelings such as this. So what was drawing him? Could he be feeling the emotions of another who was feeling a pull? Was someone in danger? Ander increased his pace, jogging down the road and briefly wishing he'd taken his car. But it hadn't seemed important. Besides, the distance from his house to the theatre was less than two miles. He'd be there soon enough, and perhaps the jog would clear his head. But that didn't seem to be the case. The closer he got, the stronger the pull. Something was very wrong, but he couldn't turn back. He had to know.

 

[Zen]

Crystal awoke gasping, plastered in her own sweat. Her nightgown and hair were completely soaked, for reasons that were unknown to her. She was just sleeping for god's sake, and fuck she couldn't remember a single thing from her dreams. It had been like this for several days now, where she would wake and not realize where she was and what had startled her. It had gotten better though, she could remember where she was now, but the dreams that tormented her still eluded her memories.

Her sheets felt too restraining. She promptly tossed them to the side of her queen sized bed, the sound of whipping fabric denting the silence. Lifting her legs she sat on the edge of the bed, a hand placed upon her growing belly. Perhaps she was imagining things but Crystal always thought her baby could feel her emotions and knew that these dreams were plaguing her. Sighing quietly she rose from the mattress and got into the shower, the faucet screeching as she turned the knob. As the warm water washed away her sweat and her anxieties, a new emotion came to replace it. It was that restless feeling again, the one that brought Crystal here to Reminiscence and got her to live at this motel for the past two weeks. She knew she didn't have to travel far, it was within walking distance.

After donning a t-shirt and sweat pants, Crystal found the urge growing more and more demanding. She had very little time to think about the whys and hows; her brain was far more focused on getting there and quickly. She trotted down the street, huffing and puffing from the exertion. She worried that her baby would be harmed if she pushed herself any harder. As she got closer to the theater something... Wrong entered Crystal's mind. It made her want to leave, but her brain wasn't allowing her legs to move.

"Hello, is someone here?" She called out, her voice bouncing off the buildings.

 

[Cammeh]

Every evening was the same: close the shop, clean up, eat dinner and relax, then go on a late evening run. She loved to run, and would run a few laps around the small town. No matter what her day, her evening run always helped to relax and wind down before a shower and bed.

Lydia had only been in Reminiscence for a few months, but she already loved the place. She was a bit of a loner, despite her friendly face and demeanor in her shop. The local farmers enjoyed supplying her shop with their old-fashioned fruits and vegetables for her juice bar and little snack shop, and that helped to bring a lot of the more long-time residents into the shop. The younger, newer residents were more into the health-fad lifestyle, which she didn't mind because it also brought them into the shop as well. But despite keeping to herself and not really making any close relationships as yet, she felt at home here. Here was where she belonged. Here is where she could hide, or so she thought.

Tonight, as she ran, she didn't feel the stress flowing away. Instead, it was building. She usually only felt like this after a bad dream, but tonight the restless emotions were even more intense. She felt like she wanted to explode. Finally, instead of jogging, she found herself in a flat-out sprint, fighting to keep her speed in check. She couldn't go too fast, that would draw unwanted attention. After what felt like an eternity, she mercifully reached the theatre and banged on the door, feeling frantic and wanting to cry. What if she couldn't get in? She had to get in. She shook the doors, at the same time looking around for another way in. Sweat dripping into her eyes, she could barely see but didn't stop trying to get in. Where was a rock when you needed one?

 

[Davion]

He had been laying awake on his bed, staring at the ceiling and counting the small specks that formed the rough plaster roof of his room, when the pressure behind his eyes built slowly. At first he suspected that he was just overtired, but soon he found himself unable to stop looking in the direction of down town. Swinging his legs off of the bed, Jackson pulled on his jeans and tshirt before hastily stepping into his combat boots, throwing his necklace and brown timberland jacket on. Before heading out the door, his better side got hold for a moment to convince him to put on his gun holster with glock 9mm.

The lack of wind and the dominating silence made him uneasy, as time seemed to flow slowly as it ever had, it was elongated by the absence of everything. He had been the first to notice them, as he picked out the shapes of human figures as he made his way down the old main street, approaching the theater because he could hardly bear to look anywhere else. As he stepped out onto the street from a side alley, standing beneath a large street lamp, he cleared his throat in arrival at the others, all of which who had now caught sight of them. "There a good show tonight? I hope I didn't get out of bed for nothing..." Jackson took a few steps towards the door, looking at the hinges of it and then to Lydia, nodding for her to move aside.

 

[Iskari]

Perry could not remember falling asleep so easily in his life. Usually the feeling of every little imperfection in his clothes or his blankets would keep him tossing and turning until his body was too exhausted not to pass out. But here, Reminiscence, he had none of that for the first time in... forever. Despite having to sleep in an alley, it was never-the-less a good sleep...

...so why was he awake now? It had to be right about 1 in the morning if the stars weren't lying to him. His normally overwhelming attention to detail seemed almost non-existent. Instead, all he could find himself thinking of was the theater in the middle of town... the building he slept behind the dumpster of this very night. It captured his thoughts and pulled at his mind in a most peculiar way.

Confused, his newly-conscious brain tried to make sense of it. Perhaps he'd just remembered a detail he had missed before... were the doors all locked? could he get in and have a roof over his head for once? Was there, perhaps, dropped change out front? Perhaps it was something else.

As he pondered the attraction and tried once again to get comfortable in spite of the cold, the smell, the roughness of the cloth upon him, the contour of the cement... ... he heard the unmistakable sound of people approaching. Not approaching HIM per se, but coming toward the front of the theater. In the dead quiet of the night, their footfalls rang like thunder to his ears.

Perry picked himself up and worked on straightening his tattered clothes. Walking to the corner he wondered what might be drawing them all there. He decided to make himself about half visible, as humble as he could.

Maybe someone was the charitous sort.

 

[Cerulean]

He listened as the worn bus tires screeched and pulled away. A very emptying feeling was felt, in his stomach. The lights disappeared around the corner and so did any chance of going back home. Rich couldn't go back there. Not now and probably not ever again. His hands carefully dropped a case and a backpack. The sound of it's plastic echoed down the desolate street. After that, it was silent. The street was also rather a bit unpleasant. A lack of territorial knowledge didn't exactly help either.

His blue eyes scanned the immediate area. There wasn't much to be seen, except for a theater down the way. That theater looked rather interesting. It also looked like people were gathering Rich adjusted his fedora and picked up his personally cherished things. He still wore a pair of dress shoes from last night. They clicked on the sidewalk, as Rich drew closer to the gathered people.

 

[Anglkate]

Samantha Tavarez was still up, and hadn't gone to sleep yet. She often enjoyed staying up late to listen to the night and peer at the scattering of stars overhead. It was therapeutic in a sense. Unlike when she lived in Pittsburgh, here in Reminiscence the skies weren't blanketed by a haze of lights and smog. The air was clean and the skies clear, allowing one to enjoy the natural beauty of the night sky. It was the simple things in life and in nature that Samantha sometimes enjoyed. Sitting on a stool on the balcony she had an easel and some painting supplies as she worked by the dim light of her livingroom to paint the beautiful night scene. Wrapped in her own thoughts, for the longest time she simply ignored the nagging feeling that she just needed to get up and move; the feeling she needed to get out of the house and go somewhere. Still fighting the urge her careful hand reached forward to add a delicate stroke to shape the painting, but her hand suddenly jerked, smearing the intended detail. Lowering her brush she sighed faintly, "What is wrong with you Samantha?" she muttered quietly as she reached forward again but the stroke just wasn't coming out correctly. Seeing this as a sign she set her art supplies aside as she stood and went inside to clean herself up and grab her coat and keys.

The feeling that she needed to get away kept pulling her stronger and stronger the longer she dilly dallied. Finally she was out the door and letting her feet mindlessly aim her. She'd been living in Reminiscence for about a year now and so knew her way somewhat around the place. Enjoying the night around her, the peaceful air, it was as if she were in a dream. She soon found herself standing in front of the theater, "What am I doing here" she wondered as she moved forward, there was a small group gathering. Curious, she moved forward enough to be seen if anyone happened to look up, but remained quiet. Waiting. What was going on?