For it that sleeps where eyes don't see

Samuel_Tow · 03-31-2008 06:27 AM

Journal Entry #33507414
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 23
Subject: Header
Body:
I am creating a journal entry stub for the research of a new subject, currently pending a subject ID. I will be using this stub to outline my studies of the subject and make personal notes. As with all Para research, this is available to HQ though means of the NRAD data sharing and monitoring subsystem.
On a more personal note, from everything Ive heard about our new subject, things seem very promising. Alleged telekinesis and pyrokinesis have been observed, as well as a mental profile more fitting the expected framework than weve ever seen before. My expectations are very high.

Journal Entry #33507417
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 24
Subject: Delays
Body:
Great! The most promising subject weve had to date, and Utility are delaying transport. I was promised a subject today, and yet here I am, with expensive equipment at the ready, just Waiting. Do these people think running Bypass Ectoscanners in prime condition is cheap? These machines cost the company $50 000 a day to keep running, and I just know Paranormal Psychiatry will get slapped with the bill for their incompetence.
At least we received some more information on the subject, so we wont be sitting on our hands so completely. Subject name is Cheryl Pierce, daughter of McDonald and Jane Pierce, currently orphaned after the brutal murder of her parents. Well begin examining her family tree for signs of paranormally-inclined ancestors immediately, as well as pull the subjects medical background out of city hall records. Hopefully well end up with at least something to show for a day wasted.

Journal Entry #33507422
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 25
Subject: Further Delays
Body:
What are these people doing? This is completely unprofessional. If I had known I would spend two days, and from the looks of it even more, just waiting for a subject I was forwarded with extreme priority, I would simply not have bothered calibrating the Cerebral Scanners. At this rate, they will lose focus by the time the subject arrives and well have to recalibrate them anyway. And now Im hearing talk of incidents and even mortality cases during transport? This is completely unprofessional! Ill see if I can dig up a report from somewhere. Authority limitations or no authority limitations, this is my job on the line, and I do not intend to lose it over the incompetence of the people over at Utility.
My records queries came back, at least. I wish I could be happy about that, but the results are dreadfully disappointing. None of the subjects ancestors, as far as local records go, have even the slightest paranormal inclination. I would have expected to find at least bits of ancient paranormal heritage or spectral affinity, but weve come up with absolutely zilch. The girls medical records were equally as disappointing, listing no abnormal medical conditions. In fact, the subject appears to be in perfect health, save for a recently-diagnosed behaviour disorder. This could lead somewhere if were lucky, but right now its looking like a major waste of time. Chances are the girl is simply schizophrenic, and the chowderheads over at Recon mistook that for paranormal affinity. Bloody witch hunts!

Journal Entry #33507428
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 26
Subject: Arrival
Body:
Finally! We have a subject logged in and catalogued. She has been given #1214 and settled into her holding cell. Subject appears stable, if somewhat unresponsive. Our equipment is primed and ready, but HQ have decided its already too late in the day to start experiments, so well have to pick up tomorrow. I cant say I disagree. None of the staff want to work late nights, especially on a possibly paranormally-active subject. Fatigue weakens the mind, making personnel more vulnerable to suggestion, and that is a security protocol breach. We will use the time to affect containment and enact observation on 1214 and see if we can discover something obvious.
It should be noted, as well, that while Utility did deliver two days behind schedule, they barely made today at all, citing still more complications. I would normally hand-wave those away as incompetence, but for a move that slipped entirely under the radar of any possible threats, it has been far too dogged by problems for this to be random occurrence. To be honest, I really want to think we have a saboteur, because I fear and dread the alternative. I spoke with some of the transport personnel as they were dropping 1214 off, and I have to say I found their mental state disturbing. PP are forbidden to interact with other departments in uncontrolled circumstances, but I had to assist them in transporting the subject, and the people I saw were a right mess. Their captain displayed symptoms of full-blown paranoid schizophrenia, shivering and sweating uncontrollably, as well as mumbling almost incoherently. Another man I spoke with directly appeared aloof, almost apathetic and with seemingly no peripheral vision. He walked with a gaze affixed forward and spoke in a slow, even voice. I fear that they may have been exposed to paranormal activity they were unaware of, and that would mean a very, very serious security breach. Ill have the night shift run extensive scans, though I cant report my observations to HQ. Im not supposed to interact with Utility personnel at all.

Journal Entry #33507431
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 27
Subject: Initial Observations
Body:
Our observations of 1214 have been largely disappointing. I reviewed the nights tapes this morning, and found the subject had spent most of the night completely immobile. Personnel checked on her this morning, and found her to be catatonic. This is not looking good. From 1214s position, however, it wasnt cleared if she said anything during the night. If she really is catatonic, that would be irrelevant, but it isnt rare for the paranormally-inclined to talk to themselves. I listened to the tapes and found nothing but silence and static, but Ive sent them over to IT for processing just the same. Its possible something got imprinted on them.
Weve also run extensive ectoscans, MRI scans and para-mentality screenings. We came up with absolutely nothing. If this subject is paranormally-inclined, were not seeing any signs of it. Its entirely possible that 1214 really is, but shes just acting passive, however Im starting to doubt that. I reviewed Captain Jake Rockwells personnel file today, and found out that he was indeed suffering from mild schizophrenia. My observations from yesterday were likely the result of the stress hes received on the mission. None of the symptoms of his colleagues were such that couldnt be otherwise explained, as well, leading me to believe I was seeing what I wanted to see paranormal activity in a case that looked otherwise completely pointless. I will refrain from any further unprofessional conjecture and stick to the science that got me this job in the first place.

Journal Entry #33507435
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 28
Subject: A Dead End
Body:
This is hopeless. We repeated all of our tests and still came up with nothing. Yesterdays tapes came back from IT and, as I feared, it turns out that they were completely empty after all. 1214 had not been talking to herself, and no other entities had been caught on them. Disappointing, and not a little concerning. Paranormal Psychiatry has been under heavy scrutiny from HQ recently, and even though they arent saying anything, I know theyre looking to downsize personnel, probably even shut down the division. I cant say I blame them weve had no success for the past three months, yet weve affected expense of upwards of 100 million dollars. We need a breakthrough, or were sunk.
Since none of our tests are showing anything at all, Ive gone on an act of desperation and requested full details of 1214 in search for anything that may hint at a possible paranormal affinity. Personal records, school grades, doctors notes, birthday pictures, anything that can help. Ive also requested the complete report of the incidents which occurred during the transport of 1214. That raised a few eyebrows when I presented it to the administrator, but she knows as well as I do that if we come up empty-handed on this one, the divisions in trouble. She pulled some strings and authorised the request, but itll take a few days to process. I also had to come clean about my interaction with Utility personnel. I was surprised that I did not receive a penalty for it. Seems the brass think I was right to pursue all angles of investigation. Maybe someone out there knows more than I do?

Journal Entry #33507440
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 29
Subject: A Stalemate
Body:
1214 is still catatonic, not responding to any stimuli and not moving any of her skeletal muscles. Her condition has deteriorated since we brought her to the facility, in fact. Vital signs are holding well stable, but her brain activity is decreasing rapidly. Im afraid she may lose brain function at any time, and then woe betide all of us if we lose our subject. Weve scanned and rescanned her brain numerous times, drawn fluids and tested physical reactions, and we cant understand why her brain activity is receding. Her brain is physically healthy, and her bodys vascular and nervous systems, as well as all major organs are operating well. Ive scoured my medical books and come up with only partial matches. Disappointingly, all the explanations I can come up with are psychological or neurological. No paranormal affinity that we can detect.
Ive also received 1214s files, and those proved to be even more disappointing. Firstly, her alleged recently-diagnosed behaviour disorder is in fact a suspected case of psychopathy and anti-social behaviour. This had been going on and worsening for most of 1214s life, but the family appears to have been consulting a psychiatrist who was a personal friend, so none of that went into the girls official record. What I got with the original files was, in fact, a psychiatric examination 1214 had received in her school after a particularly violent episode got school authorities concerned. Seems this perfect little girl wasnt so very perfect. Looking through the original psychiatrists notes, I can see clear signs of psychopathy, which coincide very well with the schizophrenia Ive diagnosed in examining the subject. This is starting to sound more and more like a messed up little girl than a poltergeist possession, I have to say. And thats not good.

Journal Entry #33507442
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 30
Subject: Final Thoughts
Body:
Ive finished reviewing 1214s file. From all the evidence, it appears that the subject was born with an unknown congenital defect of the brain, which developed slowly at first. She was born and spent her first few years as a normal child, but soon began developing increasingly disturbing behaviour. Pretty much all her photos after her fourth birthday are very much alike. 1214 is sitting or standing quietly, looking down. Towards the age of 6, she became extremely introverted and unresponsive to other people, which is when her family first took her to a child psychiatrist. She would refuse to interact with people, and then become incredibly violent when her parents tried to make her respond. Im looking at a picture of her during one of her rage episodes, and I have to say the look in her eyes is actually a little scary. Eventually, 1214 developed schizophrenic symptoms, talking to herself, hearing voices, seeing things that werent there. Her outbursts increased in intensity, as well. When in a rage shock, her body would be flooded with adrenaline, giving her physical strength seemingly-impossible for a girl of her size. I can see how they would mistake that for possession.
Looking at her records, Im finding a brief anomaly. Several months ago, right around her 12th birthday, 1214s mental state underwent a rapid transformation. Her violent outbursts decreased, and then disappeared, as if overnight. Her apathetic state lessened, though she was still a reclusive child. This made her parents confident enough to send her to school. She went there for a month without any trouble, until the incident that saw her in school counselling. Id very much like to know what happened to provoke that outburst, but theres no record of it. All we know is that the incident then recurred several times until 1214 was taken off school and back home. Around two weeks later, the murder of her parents occurred, and she was placed into a state orphanage, pending the investigation of the case. It seems many of the children and staff members there experienced strange encounters with 1214 that made them feel uncomfortable and often genuinely afraid, from where HQ picked up on the idea that this may be a case of possession.
We extracted 1214 from the orphanage she was assigned to exactly a week ago, and shes been nothing but a disappointment since. She has no paranormal affinity, all of her unusual behaviour can be explained through psychological disorders, and the supposed paranormal incidents that occurred during transport appear to have been greatly exaggerated. Im still waiting for the after-action report, but if that doesnt contain anything interesting, Im afraid this case is done.

Journal Entry #33507447
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: March 31
Subject: Borrowed Time
Body:
The report from the transport of 1214 arrived today. The administrator must have pulled some heavy connections, as theres barely anything censored on it. I guess she values her job as much as I do mine. The report, though, is... Interesting. Before I thought the events during transport were exaggerated, but after reading the report, I realise theyve actually been heavily downplayed. The complications during transport are almost staggering, and include one confirmed mortality, something which I didnt believe before. Beyond that, there have been several incidents of severe bodily harm and not one, but five separate instances of events that have been given no explanation whatsoever. The single mortality was that of John Jerry, the teams forward agent and inside man. He was found dead of a massive heart attack in one of the childrens group bedrooms. The lack of surveillance and witnesses left that death explained as natural causes. The teams mechanic, Terrance Pra, lost his arm from below his elbow in an attempt to fix the transport vans engine. The engine cut out inexplicably and would not even turn over. When Pra reached under the hood to see what was going on, the engine fired up on its own and his hand got caught on the cam belt, the cover of which was inexplicably nowhere to be found. The rest of the team scrambled to shut down the engine, but even after removing the key, it kept on running. They had to disconnect the battery, choke the engines air intake and drain it of oil before it eventually seized itself up, having mangled Pras arm beyond saving. Another inexplicable event was what happened to team member Papa Barran. He had been acting strange since the beginning of the mission, but 40 miles before city limits, he suddenly got up, opened the vans door and jumped off onto the freeway, right in the path of an 18-wheeler. He survived, but the truck crushed both his legs completely. Finally, Jake Rockwell, the teams captain who I already knew had been suffering from light schizophrenia, began experiencing increasingly powerful symptoms. Id noticed a dark stain on his sleeve when I met him, but what I didnt know was that he had actually carved hieroglyphs into his skin. The pictures of the cuts he had made all over his body are shocking, to say the least.
Before reading this report, I was positive 1214 had no paranormal affinity, and that we were wasting our time. But now, Im not so sure. Jake Rockwells team are elite in their field, so for so many of them to suddenly develop sever psychiatric disorders and for so much to go wrong with their equipment is incredibly suspicious. Im positive this isnt a saboteur, either, as most of the problems came from the team members loss of touch with reality. It is very possible that they came under the attack of an enemy psychic of some sort, but to what end? They still delivered the subject, and were on several occasions so vulnerable that if it were an enemy psychic, he would have struck. Theres hope yet that 1214 is paranormally-inclined!

Journal Entry #33507450
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 1
Subject: Curious Possibilities
Body:
I spent a good deal of the day today redoing tests on 1214. Her condition remains unchanged for the most part. She is completely catatonic, her brain activity is almost zero and her paranormal affinity... Is undetectable, if its even there. Ive gone as far as to probe for deep-brain spectral residue and take large skin samples for ectoplasm exposure analysis, and even those came back negative. Everything Im seeing with the subject, all the tests Im running, all the science I have, is telling me that Im wasting my time. Yet the more I look into the circumstances surrounding her, the more convinced I am that there has to be something there.
Today at noon I received the final piece of information on 1214, which has all of the forensic research in relation to the parents murder. Police appear to have exhausted all of their leads and all of their ideas and still come up with not even a hit at a suspect. However, when I look at it, I see something odd. The parents were found burned and dismembered in their own bedroom, yet there was no sign of charring on anything other than their bodies, nor any sign of blood or violence. No forced entry was discovered, and the Pierces were an ordinary couple with no enemies that anyone knew of. The murder had all the hallmarks of a serial killing, yet no similar murders were been discovered either before or since, and police seem to have given this a very thorough look. Whoever or whatever, I dare say, killed those people, it did so without leaving a single trace of it ever being there to begin with, or any trace that it even exists. After 27 years of investigating paranormal phenomena, I have to say that this looks like a textbook case of a spectral killing. And if I have any luck, whatever spectral force killed those people should have come from subject 1214. Im not sure if theres really anything to this, but it should keep the penny pinchers out of Paranormal Psychiatry a little longer.

Journal Entry #33507455
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 2
Subject: Dubious Progress
Body:
Weve had absolutely no progress today. After yesterdays finding, I was certain that if we just scanned again and scanned for longer, wed find... Something. All the circumstantial evidence points to some kind of paranormal force operating within or around 1214, yet we cannot detect even an inkling of it. I refuse believe that all of this is just a massive series of ridiculously unlikely coincidences. That is simply not scientific. There has to be an answer to all of this, something to explain why Im seeing evidence of paranormal activity relating to 1214, but no actual paranormal activity that I can measure. As it stands now, there is only one possibility that I can fathom, and thats a rare example of latent effect 1214 is keeping her paranormal affinity passive and locked within her bio field where we cannot detect it. Its extremely unlikely for a paranormally-inclined subject to be able to completely hide their affinity from equipment for... What has it been? Coming on two weeks now. Its part of their mind and part of their psyche. However, in this case our subject is catatonic, which is an instance weve never worked with before. Its unlikely, but it is possible 1214s catatonic state is keeping her energy levels so passive that they are undetectable. The only recourse, logic would dictate, is to force her out of her catatonic state and hope we can return enough brain activity to the subject that we will detect something.
I spoke about this with the administrator, and she is understandably concerned, and very much so. While I cant say I dont understand her concern using anti-depressants on a possible paranormal is hazardous in the extreme I dont believe we have much of a choice in this instance. I spoke with HQ this morning, and theyre asking for results. They want them yesterday. I understand the risk, but with a subject in such a deep catatonic state and one that is so unresponsive, I believe we have a lot of leeway. If we wake 1214 up gradually and look for brain activity and ectoplasmic radiation, we should be able to keep things under control. I need to convince the administrator that this has to be done. We have a unique opportunity here, I finally believe that. We need to take certain risks to capitalize on it.

Journal Entry #33507457
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 3
Subject: A last resort
Body:
I spoke with the administrator again this morning, and she was a lot more willing to listen to me this time. I guess that call from HQ that Mark detected really lit a fire under her. She overrode about half a dozen security protocols, pulled a few favours and got the facility sealed off and under heavy guard. When that woman commits to something, she really commits to it. Im really glad to have her as my boss. Without her stout leadership and able management, this division would have been disbanded way back when the Landark disaster happened.
Weve been authorised to bring 1214 out of her catatonic state, but we were absolutely forbidden to wake her up. We have the necessary drugs ready to go, but are currently preparing the required measuring equipment. Were hoping well have a large margin for error, but I want those scanners accurate to the dot. We cant take needless chances. The shielded chamber is being prepared and on-base military personnel have been put on high alert. Once were ready and the last few exits have been sealed off, well begin the procedures. Its generally bad practice to work night shifts when dealing with paranormals, but when you call down a code 7 on an entire facility, you cant really ask HQ if they could wait while you have your beauty sleep. Ive tried to explain how dangerous fatigue is in our line of work, but the bureaucrats would have none of it. Lets just hope their rush doesnt cost us our lives.
We have 6 hours remaining before the go-ahead. Time to see if all the work we put into this wretched little girl was worth it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Samuel_Tow · 03-31-2008 06:30 AM

I sincerely hope this catches the eye of at least someone besides me. I'm looking for comments and criticism (yes, really) of any kind here, so I'd be very grateful for any feedback you guys can give me on anything related to the above. I'd also be interested if anyone cares to see the rest of it when it's finished

For those that wonder, yes, that's 6 and a bit Word pages long, formatting included.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Mr_Grey · 03-31-2008 09:56 AM

Frankly, Sam, I'm glad to see you writing again. You've got some wonderful things cooking in that cranium of yours.

Having said that, this is a crazy piece of literature. I can't wait to see Part 2.

My Stories

Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.

Khellendrosiic · 03-31-2008 10:30 AM

[ QUOTE ]
Frankly, Sam, I'm glad to see you writing again. You've got some wonderful things cooking in that cranium of yours.

Having said that, this is a crazy piece of literature. I can't wait to see Part 2.

[/ QUOTE ]

What he said.

Statesman said let there be heroes, and there were heroes.

Lord Recluse said let there be villains, and there were villains.

NCsoft said let there be nothing, and there was nothing.

Samuel_Tow · 03-31-2008 01:15 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Frankly, Sam, I'm glad to see you writing again. You've got some wonderful things cooking in that cranium of yours.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks I'm really happy to be writing again, myself. I was worried I'd lost my language, but the truth turns out to be much simpler - I was sadly out of inspiration for a very long time. I tried pretty much everything I could think of: movies, stories, games. In the end it was something as simple as... Well, let's not spoil the surprise. Suffice it to say what everyone is so eagerly complaining about gave my inspiration a massive kick-start

[ QUOTE ]
Having said that, this is a crazy piece of literature. I can't wait to see Part 2.

[/ QUOTE ]

I managed to genuinely and literally scare myself writing that last night. Granted, as a writer it's a lot more effective on me, since the idea's already in my head without having to be conveyed. But feeling uneasy when I bend over to drink some water, almost expecting I'll see an image in the mirror when I stand up was not fun in a very real way. Self-suggestion is a powerful tool, it seems But hey, whatever gets me in the mood, right? Speaking of part two, I have that ready and waiting. I was in luck that I managed to get it all out before my lack of sleep caught up to me and turned my brain into alphabet soup. Will probably have more still tomorrow.

Frankly, I'm actually interested in how this story ends, myself. I'm making it us as I go completely on the spot, and any and all attempts to plan ahead meet with general failure.

Double-posting the next chapter now:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Samuel_Tow · 03-31-2008 01:22 PM

Journal Entry #33507461
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 4
Subject: Success of Sorts
Body:
The nights commitment paid off. We managed to bring 1214 out of her catatonic state and are currently keeping her sedated and sealed off in her holding cell. Everything went perfectly, no security breaches occurred and no complications hampered the operation. Yet I cannot help but be dreadfully disappointed with the results just the same. It was my firm belief that if we just brought her brain activity up to a measurable level, wed detect at least something. An ectoplasmic spike, a bio-field fluctuation, inexplicable quantum noise. Something, anything, that would hint at paranormal activity. For the umpteenth time, we came up with absolutely bupkis. Im getting tired coming up with new words to say nothing, but that is the exact sum total of the discoveries weve had on this project a perfect nothing. We brought 1214 almost conscious, and no paranormal activity displayed itself. Short of waking her up, theres nothing more we can do at the moment, and Im confident even that wont make a difference.
Why? Why are there no signs of paranormal activity? I know the subject is paranormally-inclined, all the evidence we have points to that as unequivocally as Ive ever seen it, and yet we still cant detect a thing. I dont understand it, but we need to keep trying.
The administrator is breathing down my neck. No doubt HQ is breathing down hers. We enacted one of the largest-scale operations in the organisations recent history, and if we dont get something to show for it, were in deep, deep trouble. Even if I werent convinced 1214 is paranormally inclined, I no longer have a choice but to keep trying to prove she is. Ive negotiated with the administrator and managed to buy some time for additional research. She says a week, but I know itll only last a couple of days. We need to come up with evidence of paranormal activity immediately. At this point it doesnt matter what that activity is, just so long as its paranormal. I have the team working night shifts. I know its a security risk, but right now were facing the bigger risk of being shut down.

Journal Entry #33507467
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 5
Subject: The Unforeseen
Body:
I got lost on my way to my quarters last night. I dont know how it happened, I must have taken a wrong turn and ended up in a section of the base that I wasnt familiar with. The strange thing, though, is that Im familiar with the all sections of the complex that Im permitted to visit, so either I managed to slip past a guarded checkpoint somehow, or something strange is going on here. I have no memory of the evening up until I was sitting in Interrogations, answering questions I didnt even comprehend. I spoke with colleagues today, and several people described similar symptoms. Aloofness of mind, loss of sense of orientation, zoning out and strange pervasive thoughts, nightmares... All of those could be explained with certain paranormal effects.
I had hoped that this would convince HQ to loosen up the deadline, but the administrator believes Im exaggerating anecdotal reports. She cant report that back to HQ, she says, and I know she should! I realise those blockheads would probably still fail to comprehend its significance they hire experts on paranormal psychology and then end up drawing conclusions for themselves anyway. Why even bother have us? Then again, perhaps thats why theyre looking to shut us down? No doubt some arrogant egghead read a few fiction novels and now believes he knows all there is to know about the paranormal. This is getting ludicrous!
Just the same, we repeated our entire range of paranormal scans and still came up with nil. I dont understand this. Others may not believe it, but this is what I do for a living the experiences were going through are clearly paranormal. So why cant we detect the paranormal energies that are causing them? Ive already scanned for toxins, radiation, hypnotic suggestion... Even microchips in the brain. The base and all personnel are clear, as one would expect from a high-security facility. We need to run more tests.

Journal Entry #33507471
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 6
Subject: Security Breach
Body:
I saw her today... At least, I think I did. I was walking to the cryo lab when I saw 1214 right in front of me, in the middle of the hallway, just standing there, looking at me. Oh, those eyes... Theyre not human, thats the only way I can describe them. They dont look out of the ordinary, but her gaze is tangibly cold and malevolent. I rushed off to sound an alarm, I took my eyes off her for no more than a second and when I looked back she was gone. There are no side exits in Corridor D, and its a long, straight stretch of reinforced concrete tube. Theres nowhere she could have hidden. I rushed over to 1214s holding cell and ripped the technician on duty a new one, but it turned out I was shouting for nothing. He showed me the holding cell, and there was 1214 still prone on the bench just like yesterday. The technician was positive she couldnt have left her cell at all. We reviewed the observation videos, and they showed her lying there without moving since as far back as the tape had video. We reviewed the hatch access log, and it hadnt been opened in 12 hours. So how did 1214 get out? Or did she get out at all? Am I seeing things now?
I reported my encounter to the administrator, and I was shocked to hear shed experienced the same, though hers had been even more frightening. She had been washing up in the morning when she felt a presence. She looked up and saw 1214s reflection in her bathroom mirror, standing right beside her, but when she turned around, the bathroom was empty. She checked the mirror again and 1214s reflection was still there. Finally she ran over to the hotline and called security. When they arrived, the image was gone and there was no trace of anyone else in the administrators quarters but the administrator, herself. When she gave me the time of the event, I realised it had happened almost simultaneously with my encounter with 1214 in Corridor D. I interviewed all division personnel afterwards, and while none reported sightings of the subject, many had different scary tales to share, from sudden inexplicable cold shivers to an overpowering feeling of being watched. Michaels computer had also acted up, displaying static and a very, very loud tone out the speakers. He managed to grab an audio and video recording of the event, which Ive already sent over to IT for analysis.
The administrator was forced to report the event to HQ, even though our instruments still fail to detect any paranormal activity. What is going on here?

Journal Entry #33507474
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 7
Subject: Mounting Problems
Body:
This is ludicrous! HQ replied back to our reports, stating that we were all under the influence of mass hysteria and that we are seeing things due to fatigue and self suggestion. Who do these idiots think theyre talking to? Im qualified psychiatrist and a qualified paranormal psychiatrist. Im the one who should be making these assessments, not some fat, overpaid CO who couldnt tell BDD from near-sightedness. This is preposterous, and not a little insulting! Looks like they need more proof. I guess someone will have to die before they take notice.
The administrators week is also up. As of today, our deadline is here and we are to provide results by the end of the day, or the project will be cancelled. I have to say, she seemed really pissed off, herself, having to land this on us like that, but I know shes under a lot of pressure. Its especially hard when the idiots over at HQ dont listen to the assessments of their own scientists.
Well, I still have a few aces up my sleeve. The audio and video tapes from Michaels incident should be back from IT later today, and Ive already begun a reverse-trace of all data we gathered from yesterday. If most of the divisions personnel experienced what I am convinced was a paranormal event at roughly the same time, there is a very high chance that high levels of paranormal energies occurred at and around that time. Hopefully high enough to detect with concentrated scans. Unfortunately, these scans cost inordinate amounts of money to perform, so if they dont yield a result, Im in trouble. I went over the administrators head with this, so Im really putting all my eggs in the same basket. I really hope this works.

Journal Entry #33507479
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 8
Subject: A Mortality
Body:
We had a mortality today. Engineer Eric Wilso received a massive electrical shock from his work console, enough to incinerate his arms to the bone all the way up to his elbows and boil his skin. Theres no way HQ will pass that off as an on-the-job incident. That jolt passed through no less than three breakers which should have tripped at a tenth of that amperage, yet arent even singed. It came out of an outlet thats not actually connected to a power source strong enough to produce this kind of voltage, as well. This is as close are we can get to lightning out of a blue sky. Ive had our engineers back-trace the entire rout all the way to the generator down on level 12, and theres just no physical way that this could have happened.
Well, I guess HQ got what they wanted a man is dead under paranormal circumstances. Ive spoken to the administrator, and she has says HQ have authorised the project to continue on high funding for the foreseeable future. So now theyre taking interest, eh? If they had at least a lick of sense, they would have listened to me a week ago, and this tragedy wouldnt have happened. But, no! They had to go around pretending to be paranormal psychiatrists and playing expert. The bloody fools are lucky something worse didnt happen. None of them realises just how much power a paranormally-inclined subject possesses. Youd think the Landark incident would have taught them to treat paranormals with more respect, but I guess they need to have another one of their bases erupt out of the ground and explode in low orbit. Because thats good for keeping your research secret, oh yes!
Dealing with the mortality ate up most of today, so even though the tapes and scan results came back, I just dont have the time to go through them right now. I still havent told the administrator about my unscheduled, very expensive tests, but theres no sense in telling her before I have results to show for it, anyway. Of course, now that were back to high funding, its probably not going to be a big problem, but its still easier to ask for forgiveness if you can prove you were right all along.

Journal Entry #33507482
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 9
Subject: Major Security Breach
Body:
With all that happened yesterday, it seems no-one managed to pay sufficient attention to 1214s brain activity diagrams. She woke up today, scaring the living daylight out of the technician on duty. 1214 is still perfectly passive and refusing to respond to stimuli, but she is now fully awake and aware. I can... Sense her now. This bad. This is very bad. This is among the worst kind of security breach that can happen. We attempted to sedate her with gas, but she didnt respond to it at all. She disconnected her heart monitor, so we cant tell if shes actually breathing. We certainly cannot tell if her chest is moving. So far, though, we should be reasonably safe. 1214s holding cell is sealed and shielded, so whatever paranormal affinity she may have should remain mostly inside. But even at her passive state right now, looking at her awake is deeply concerning.
On a more scientific note, I reviewed her biometrics recorded over the course of yesterday and discovered some very curious facts. Her brain activity had been holding relatively steady for most of the day, spiking so very slightly only when the mortality occurred. But over the course of the night, all her stats elevated exponentially almost in a matter of hours. The indications of the increase are present as early as mid-day yesterday, so if someone had actually been watching, this potential danger would have been discovered and acted upon. I have to wonder if perhaps 1214 purposely caused the accident to distract us from monitoring her. Could she be plotting this?
I reviewed all the data from the day before yesterday, as well. The tapes were disappointing. IT were unable to find any patterns in the tone from Michaels computer, and while they did find shapes in the video static, they werent able to ascribe any meaning to them. Could that have been a bust? The deep scans of the mass hysteria incident, however, as well as of yesterdays mortality, were a lot more fruitful. We finally have data we can work with. Its not much, but there is a distinct and obvious fluctuation within the mental-activity spectral grid balance. Were not entirely sure what this means, or exactly how its related to 1214, but we do know that it is present every time she generates paranormal events. Why we cannot measure the events themselves, we are still not completely certain, but at least now we have something to work with.

Journal Entry #33507486
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 10
Subject: Progress At Last
Body:
Yesterdays emergency seems to have been handled. Although the subject is awake and aware, our external shielding is holding, and since we sealed her holding cell, all the paranormal events that have plagued the base these last few days seem to have stopped completely. There is still a trace of paranormal noise whispering in peoples minds, but this is normal when dealing with true paranormals. Finally, we have proof that 1214 is paranormally-inclined, both in recorded incidents and solid data. We are still, however, unable to determine why it is that we cannot detect all but what is essentially the quantum bough wave of 1214s paranormal energy. Weve developed reliable ways to track and record her activity through mental-activity spectral grid imbalances, but this is at best a circumstantial means of recording paranormal activity, similar to filming the waves in a lake, but not being able to see or hear the swimmer making them. And I still dont know why, which is really starting to concern me. If theres something here that we dont understand, its possible we may have a security breach were not even aware of.
I tried to sell my findings to the administrator, but shes just throwing HQs need more tests slogan in my face. I know shes in a very precarious position and under a lot of stress, but Id have expected at least a little more cooperation from her. I need outside resources to solve this, but HQ has deemed this a global security risk, and they are perpetuating the lockdown of the complex indefinitely. Ill need to convince the administrator to secure a safe channel for me to acquire help under the radar, because currently, were left with very little we can actually do.
To be honest, at this point, the only thing we can try is to interact with 1214, and that is very, very dangerous. Simply provoking a reaction from her can become a problem if she turns out to be level 10 or above. Our static shields just arent powerful enough to cover for something like that, and without an actual paranormal operative on-site, we really do not want to provoke her. It is also possible that contact will allow her paranormal activity to slip through the shields. Even indirect contact by electronic means can be a potential loophole. And in the end, if my experience is any indication, none of that will actually have an effect at all. From where I stand, and in the absence of any outside assistance, I fear that our only recourse would be direct contact with 1214. Its by far the most hazardous approach, but the presence of real intelligence is the only thing we have that stands a chance of eliciting a predictable response. However, I am determined to exhaust all my other options before I even consider contacting 1214. The massive disaster that Mathew Landark caused when Dr. Brian attempted to contact him in person is a stark lesson that no paranormal psychiatrist should ever forget.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Kasoh · 03-31-2008 02:19 PM

Wow. This is certainly interesting, I'll give it that. Given that we don't know who the doctor is working for, (I've gone ahead and assumed Malta or a Malta-esque organization) But the steady build up of eerie events is leading to something and its going to be bad. I had thought at first that the doctor would degenerate to raving madman before the end, wallowing in failure, unable to see that the subject was the who had caused his instability, but by keeping it going as it is, there is some fascinating possibilities here.
I'm not sure if it would break the style you have going here, but are we going to see sections of interview transcripts and other misc. record keeping aside from the journal?
Great work, by the by.

Infinity
Sam Varden 50 MA/Reg Scrap
Doomtastic 50 SS/Inv Brute
Ceus 50 Eng/Kin Corr
Cinderstorm 50 Fire/Fire Blaster

Samuel_Tow · 03-31-2008 04:59 PM

[ QUOTE ]
had thought at first that the doctor would degenerate to raving madman before the end, wallowing in failure, unable to see that the subject was the who had caused his instability, but by keeping it going as it is, there is some fascinating possibilities here.

[/ QUOTE ]

Truth be told, that was in the cards at one point, and may still materialise depending on how things go. However, I'm giving Miles the a LOT of credit here, as he really is a leading authority in his field and well justified to be as arrogant as he is. Among all of his colleagues, he is the one with an eye on the situation and a constant drive to keep things under control, which is what makes his diary so very relevant to... Everything. I'm still not certain how far his expertise will carry him, however, and if he won't suddenly end up falling victim to phenomenon even he cannot predict.

I'm interested to find out, myself

[ QUOTE ]
I'm not sure if it would break the style you have going here, but are we going to see sections of interview transcripts and other misc. record keeping aside from the journal?

[/ QUOTE ]

Most definitely. The story I intend to tell isn't confined just to the events described by the paranormal psychology journal, as that is restricted, more or less, to a single event, whereas I aim to build a story that spans a greater range of time frames. I do hope I can keep most of it systemic and documentary, however, as that fits the original style, which in turn fits the primary idea behind the story in many ways.

Please understand that I'm not trying to be intentionally cryptic. I honestly don't have much of it figured out at all. All I have is a few vague plot points interspersed throughout a period of time, and even those are likely to change when I get around to them if the story wants to be told a different way. For instance, I'd originally intended for extensive open dialogue to occur between the science team and Cheryl, but I don't think that'll pan out, given the gravity of things.

Funny thing, though, is since I started writing this story, I don't feel like playing the actual game that spawned it

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Lightning_Sight · 03-31-2008 06:53 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Wow. This is certainly interesting, I'll give it that. Given that we don't know who the doctor is working for, (I've gone ahead and assumed Malta or a Malta-esque organization)

[/ QUOTE ]

actually, i think its Crey as it mentions PP when #1214 arrived

Kasoh · 03-31-2008 08:44 PM

I assumed PP was an abreviation for Paranormal Psychology, the department he works at.

Infinity
Sam Varden 50 MA/Reg Scrap
Doomtastic 50 SS/Inv Brute
Ceus 50 Eng/Kin Corr
Cinderstorm 50 Fire/Fire Blaster

Lightning_Sight · 04-01-2008 04:37 AM

ah, that explains a lot. Aside from that, this story is very well done so far

Samuel_Tow · 04-01-2008 08:17 AM

[ QUOTE ]
I assumed PP was an abreviation for Paranormal Psychology, the department he works at.

[/ QUOTE ]

Yes, that was an abbreviation. I originally intended to have it abbreviated after the initial mention, but I didn't like the abbreviation, so I changed my mind. Apparently that one mention evaded my retrofit

That said, I have another chapter ready. I really wish this didn't take so long to write, and that I didn't have to restrict myself to a single chapter a day. This has always hampered my writing - I want to see the story more than I want to write about it, but I can only see the story by writing about it

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Samuel_Tow · 04-01-2008 08:19 AM

Journal Entry #33507489
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 11
Subject: Wait And See
Body:
Im keeping the pressure up on the administrator, insisting on enlisting outside assistance, but shes holding firm that the lockdown will not be compromised. Honestly, at this point Im no longer sure if HQ is putting pressure on her, or if shes just using them as an excuse. I was certain that the brass would have learned to listen to me after Wilsos preventable death, and yet here we are in the same situation. Im telling them in the plainest words I have, that if we do not receive outside assistance soon, more people will die. And they give me that nonsense about security measures in return? Could these people be any more simple? How many more of us need to die before they learn to bloody listen to me! And the administrator is just making it worse by acting like some disinterested third party and refusing to work with me. Well, whatever happens in on her head, then.
Were having no success in our research on 1214, either, but is anyone really surprised? We exhausted all of our methods two weeks ago, yet HQ still refuse to provide assistance. I suppose they believe that just because Cindy, the mental-activity spectral grid engine operator, pulled a miracle out of her hat, that we should suddenly be able to reinvent the wheel and imagine a new way to measure what may or may not even be there. We need outside assistance. We need more scanning equipment. For instance, Id like to run a bio field density analysis to verify a suspicion I have, but we are simply not equipped with a scanner that can do that. I told the administrator about it, and she gave me an excuse. God damn it!
I dont know whats going on top-side, but today has been a complete bust. Weve done all we can about 1214, and now were reduced to tossing around stupid ideas like looking for patterns in the way the girl tilts her head. I dont believe this!

Journal Entry #33507495
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 12
Subject: Unforeseen Consequences
Body:
We had several minor security breaches last night, but the mental-activity spectral grid showed no imbalances. And yet, these breaches bear all the hallmarks of paranormal events. Or do they? Several members of personnel reported feeling a presence in their quarters. Even after searching them, they could still not escape the feeling, and so ended up getting very little sleep. Eddie, the janitor also suffered a nervous breakdown and had to be sedated. Even I have been feeling strange, developing a short temper and losing my patience. Just this morning I had a bitter argument with the administrator. Im no longer certain that shes refusing to cooperate with us of her own will. She was genuinely frightened of something, though I dont know of what.
I dont understand this. Is 1214 responsible for this? Her brain activity has been holding steady, nothing has showed up on the mental-activity spectral grid balance charts and... Im beginning to think these last events arent paranormal at all. Weve been sealed inside this concrete coffin for almost a week now, cut off from the outside world, from our families and loved ones. I would be a fool if I couldnt see how this is affecting the mental health of the personnel. They are reaching the limit of their endurance, and theyre starting to become increasingly neurotic and stressed out. The fact that were trapped here together with what could potentially be a malevolent monster that can play tricks on your mind certainly isnt helping. Im beginning to worry about the state of mind of everybody in this facility. Were not too far away from turning from scientists into lab rats, ourselves. Already some of my colleagues are losing their focus and their ability to affect scientific work.
Something needs to happen, and it needs to happen soon, or I fear things may get really, really bad.

Journal Entry #33507498
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 13
Subject: Inexplicable
Body:
I fell under her power today. At least I think I did. Ive been out of ideas for so long now. I looked through records, looked through all scan results, went over theories and conjecture and finally ended up in Observation, just looking at 1214 as she sat in her holding cell. Her physical state has deteriorated greatly since we brought her here. Shes lost some weight and her skin has gone pale. However, her presence has not wavered at all. Even when shes just sitting there doing nothing, I can still feel her power. Im scared of her, I really am. Every day I look at her observation videos and hope and pray that she hasnt move and that she hasnt shown any signs of activity. Such a little creature, yet she instils such fear in those around her. As I was looking at her and thinking, however, she did move. Ever so slightly she turned her face and looked straight into the lens of the camera... Straight into my eyes. Oh, I had forgotten what her cursed little eyes looked like and the kind of terror they instilled into my heart. I knew she was looking at me, even though I was 50 feet away behind a solid concrete wall. She knew I was watching her, and at that moment... I knew she was watching me. Had been watching me. These eyes, they... They see me. They see through me. The moment she looks at me, I can feel she knows everything Im thinking, everything I feel... Everything I am.
She saw me through the camera. I know she could see me through the walls of her cell. See me wherever I went. I... I think she could see us all. Everyone. Shes sitting there in her cell, watching us day in and day out. And people can feel that. It makes them nervous. It makes them suspicious. It makes them unable to sleep at night. Even I can feel that theres someone there, watching me, always just out the corner of my eye, always behind my back, but always there no matter where I go and what I do.
1214 scared me to death today, and I am not exaggerating. This wretched little girl is evil, I just know it. But even if we cant measure her power, I know that she is indescribably strong. I just know it. Shes sitting there in her cell, biding her time. But if she really wanted to, she could... I dont even want to think about it. We need help, and we need it fast. The facility personnel are losing their minds, Im running out of ideas and its obvious that 1214 wont be content to sit in her cell forever. I need to get some sleep. Tomorrow I will get results or I will shut down this project. This is going too far.

Journal Entry #33507502
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 14
Subject: The Bastards
Body:
Now I know why weve been sealed in here for coming on two weeks now and why weve been refused assistance so stoutly. HQ have reviewed my findings and deemed our project to be a code 8 hazard. Theyre just following standard protocol. Seal off the area, contain all subjects exposed and await further orders. It appears all of us here at Paranormal Psychiatry have become expendable. The administrator told me all this today. Shed known for over a week now, which would explain her change in attitude. I understand now why she was so scared and so distant. Weve been condemned to die down here, and if the subject doesnt kill us, Section 4 commandos probably will. She was the only one with sufficient authority to know about this, and was under strict orders to keep it from us, but I guess even her loyalties have their limits.
This is just great! Were condemned down here. Maybe I should just open 1214s cell and go slap her on the face. See if shell punch a hole to the centre of the Earth. I bet those [censored] over at HQ will just love that to bits. But no... Were still Code 8, and have been so for a while now. Theyre still observing, which means theres still hope for a resolution, or at least results of some sort. No, we still have a chance. If they wont let us out, then maybe we can get them to let help in. I just need to convince the administrator to negotiate for it. If were still alive down here, then theyre expecting results. So lets give them some results. If 1214 really was paranormal all along, then there will be imprinted messages on all audio and video observations made of her since she arrived. Forget IT, well rescan them here. She must have also imprinted on other surveillance equipment throughout the base and created paranormal noise all across the complex. Well need to review those, as well. Im not going to go down like a chump!

Journal Entry #33507507
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 15
Subject: Whisper
Body:
Finally, a real breakthrough! While reviewing audio tapes taken from 1214s holding cell, Cindy managed to isolate what sounds like a low whisper. It will take a lot more work before we can tell what its actually saying, but we have our first tangible confirmation that 1214 really does have a paranormal affinity. I guess at this point HQ are already convinced of this, having locked us down with a Code 8, but these results may get them interested enough to send help down here. Ive submitted the raw whisper recording to the administrator, and she has forwarded it to HQ. I certainly hope that makes things happen.
This finding would normally have had everyone in the base excited with the prospect of paranormal activity, but instead it just made is look over our shoulder all the time. This whisper... Its eerily similar to the constant noise weve been hearing in our minds ever since 1214 awoke. I realise paranormal noise is an on-the-job hazard and an unavoidable side effect, but could this be actual speech were hearing? Could she actually be talking to us? Telling us things? Making us do things? We thought ourselves secure, protected behind thick walls and powerful shields, but were we really? There is something very strange about this little girl. Shes not an ordinary paranormal, that much Im pretty sure about.

Journal Entry #33507512
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 16
Subject: A Losing Game
Body:
Things are approaching a critical stage here. The mental health level of my colleagues is taking a dive, and even Im starting to lose my grip on reality. Weve had no progress with the paranormal noise whatsoever its still unintelligible. However, people are starting to see and hear things. At this point I cant tell if its paranormal or psychological. Ive dispensed a few packs of prescription drugs and anti-depressants to the staff, and this seems to have put a lid on the situation somewhat, but I can see that things are getting out of hand. Weve been trapped in this dark pit for longer than I can remember, and this constant, incessant whispering is starting to drive us all mad. At first I could put it out of my mind, but it never ends and it never lets up. I dont understand what its saying, but... Maybe I do. My mind cannot interpret it into words that I can write down, but I feel like... Like I somehow know what it means. Like it can make me do things, make me feel things. It makes me nervous to think that, but its a possibility I need to accept. Ive been under the influence of a paranormal before, and I know just how strong their grip can be. How persuasive their words are. It takes a strong mind to resist that. Though mine isnt as strong as it used to be, I can tough it out. Ive had extensive training in resisting suggestion. I worry about my colleagues, however. Theyre not soldiers, theyre scientists. They have so very little protection against it.
At least we confirmed that 1214s power is leaking out through the seals on her holding cell. Its infected the entire complex. Every audio-recording machine in just about every location has picked up on 1214s paranormal noise, and we began discovering shapes and symbols in the noise most of our cameras were experiencing. Its clear that weve all been exposed to it pretty much since the day 1214 was first delivered to us. That would explain the anxiety, the visions, the feelings and even the stress we have all been going through. The influence isnt strong, but its very pervasive. It has been building up for almost a month now, and frankly, I dont know how much longer we can take it.

Journal Entry #33507514
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 17
Subject: Frightening Breakthrough
Body:
We know what it is! Finally, after all this time, we figured it out. Jason rigged an old broad-band brain scanner to perform area sweeps, and discovered brain activity was occurring right there in the middle of the room, without a brain in sight! The device has a very limited range 10 feet or thereabout but we wheeled it all over the facility, and it measured brain activity absolutely everywhere. There is only one explanation for this, and its something Id never even considered at all. 1214 isnt paranormal, at least not entirely so. What she is, is psychic. This would explain so very much. Just about everything we had attributed to paranormal activity could just as easily be explained with psychic activity, instead. And unlike paranormal activity, we can actually measure 1214s psychic activity.
So far, all we have is partial data from a machine that can barely be called reliable, but already things make a lot more sense. We were never measuring for psychic activity at all, so there was nothing to detect. However, like paranormal activity, psychic effects operate on a quantum level, which is why they left a disturbance on our mental-activity spectral grid. Additionally, the shielding we have on 1214s holding cell is very effective at resisting most types of paranormal activity, but offers only moderate resistance to projected brain waves, and so it only hampers, but does not prevent psychic activity from slipping through.
Finally, we have real results. I wasted no time in reporting them to the administrator, and she was very relieved to hear it. She is a strong woman, stronger than me by a lot, but even she seems to be losing this battle of late. Her drive and determination seem to have disappeared, and though she wills herself on, I can tell she is hurting. But the new results seem to have lifted her spirits some. She forwarded them over to HQ, and we got great news they are sending help. The order comes down straight from Management that an exception in the Code 8 should be made and an operative is being sent in soon. Trevor Cooper, an elite paranormal psychic, apparently. I didnt even know something like that existed, but if hes an elite, then I believe it. It makes me wonder, in fact, if 1214 may not be something like that, herself. Ill need to think about that, though the prospect is intriguing.
I should mention that its interesting HQ would send in an elite when they previously refused to send any help at all. Yes, I realise that in the most basic sense, they are more likely to send an operative who can take care of himself in a Code 8 situation, but I know from experience that HQ arent terribly concerned with the lives of their operatives. As a matter of fact, why would they send an elite into a Code 8, when theres a good chance theyll lose him? Elites cost millions if not billions to train and outfit, and yet theyre risking one so haphazardly? Does someone at Management know something we dont? Im beginning to consider that prospect very seriously.

Journal Entry #33507519
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 18
Subject: Disaster
Body:
Our joy at reinforcements didnt last long. At 6AM today, the main generator on level 12 shut down and we lost power to the entire complex. None of the 6 back-up generators activated. We remained with no power for around 13 minutes, and I have to say, these were the worst 13 minutes of my life. As the power went down, the shielding on 1214s holding cell went down with it, and then all hell broke loose. A waking nightmare in the dark is the only way I can describe it. I, personally, saw 1214 walking in the dark towards me, illuminated by flashes of pure white light, like someone was taking flash pictures of her. She looked just as I remember her from the observation videos underweight and dishevelled, with eyes that pierced me like pikes. She was looking straight into me, straight through me, like I was made of glass. I could feel her eyes predicting my every move, my every thought, and writing a terrible future for me. Her unintelligible whisper boomed in my head like a hurricane wind. She was telling me so much, saying so much, and while I didnt understand a thing, I understood everything. The horror of what she told me made my heart stop beating and my body freeze in a spot. I wanted to run, I wanted to scream... But I couldnt. I just couldnt. And when she came up to me, something happened. A flash of white light occurred, and hung on for about a second. It made 1214... Cheryl... It made her cast the most horrifying shadow I have ever seen. It was clearly not her shadow, but that of a man, tall and slender. The shadow of a man whose presence made my blood run cold without even knowing what I was looking at.
Thats the last thing I remember. After that, I woke up in ICU, hooked up to all manner of medical machines. The administrator was sitting on a chair next to me. She seemed so happy I was alive. I have to say I was flattered by her concern. It turns out I suffered a massive heart attack during the black out. As a matter of fact, the only thing that had saved my life was chance. I happened to be in the administrators office at the time of the blackout, discussing the elites arrival. Our administrator has extensive medical training, apparently, so when the power went back up, she resuscitated me. Apparently, her medical training isnt her only skill, as she survived a massive psychic attack with barely a side effect, whereas I, the one whos supposed to be trained to endure that sort of thing, lost my heartbeat.
And I wasnt the only casualty. So far weve counted 17 mortalities and 9 people are still unaccounted for. The mortalities have a great variety of causes, though most are self-inflicted, and all of them utterly terrifying. We also lost contact with everyone from Engineering all the way up to level 5. I dont know anything about the lower levels, but all of levels 5 and 6 have lost all of their lights, and at this point its impossible to get anyone to descend into the darkness and look for survivors. Even Im too scared to go down there.
All I want right now is to abandon this subject and get my colleagues out of here, but were sealed in. All we can do for now set up more shielding around 1214s holding cell, fire up the emergency generators and hope we survive the night. HQs elite arrives tomorrow, and I pray to all the gods that he can do something to save us. Because at this rate, well all be dead soon at the hands of that wretched little girl. I cannot believe I actually considered going into a room with that monster.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Mr_Grey · 04-01-2008 09:42 AM

Excellent setting of tone, Sam. You've got me at the edge of my seat.

There are a few grammatical and spelling errors dotted throughout this whole thing, but they appear symptomatic of feverish writing. There's heart in this. I can't wait to see how it all turns out.

My Stories

Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.

Samuel_Tow · 04-01-2008 12:23 PM

Thanks a bunch

New chapters are generally not proof-read pretty much at all. It is indeed feverish writing. I hate taking breaks, because once I lose my train of thought and my feel for what the setting is supposed to exude, it's gone. Even something as simple as having to go a couple of pages up and copy-paste the name Landark because I just can't seem to remember it can be disruptive

I generally try to proof-read the previous chapter before I start making the new one, partly to have at least some kind of quality control, and partly because it sets me in the mood. This last one will probably be proof-read some time tomorrow before I start making the next one. I promise

*edit* Come to think of it, I wouldn't be opposed to having spelling and grammar errors pointed out to me. If any spelling errors made it through, then Word's spell-check let them through, so I'm not likely to find them on a skim. I will be proof-reading this stuff, of course, and I don't want this to come off as a demand. More I'm saying that if something bugs you about how I wrote something, don't worry about letting me know. Unlike most people on these forums, I actually like having my spelling errors pointed out to me

*editedit*
Adding the new chapter today. It came out shorter than I expected it to in terms of days, but I think there's enough in there for it to have a meaning.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Samuel_Tow · 04-02-2008 06:46 AM

Journal Entry #33507524
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 19
Subject: The Death Knell
Body:
We are screwed. Our only hope of survival was HQs elite, and now hell be delayed another day. All I know is it has something to do with yesterdays disaster, but frankly, I dont give a crap. Hes not here, and were dying one by one. At this rate, I dont know if well even last until tomorrow. Frankly, Im not sure anything can save us now.
None of us got any sleep tonight, but is that really unexpected? We lived through the worst nightmare imaginable yesterday, and it never went away. Even now, almost 20 hours later, I still see that... That shadow every time I so much as close my eyes. Its spectral damage, it has to be. I know it has to be, but... I dont know how to explain it. Ive been trained to resist spectral terrors and mental suggestion. Ive been dealt with hundreds of paranormals, been exposed to thousands of mental attacks and illusions. I should be able to deal with this, its what I do. And yet, I nearly lost my mind yesterday. None of my training, none of my experience, none of my knowledge, nothing could protect me. Why? Why did this happen to me? It shouldnt have? This... This was no mere spectral terror, no mere illusion. This felt real. Oh so terribly real. My fear wasnt a suggestion, it felt real. I wasnt being forced to be afraid, no. I was shown an image. An image that terrified me to the core. That shadow was evil. I dont know what it was, and I honestly dont want to know, but whatever it was, its not of our world. It... It exuded indescribable malice, untold power and... And something else I cant even describe. Its as if a primordial part of my mind recognised this presence, and knew full well to be very afraid. I still get cold shivers just thinking about it. This shadow, this presence... I dont think its human at all.
Im not going to get any of my questions answered, however. I dont think well be doing any more research from now on. Were just fighting for our lives. I dont know whats keeping the generator down on level 12 still running, but we know its not the engineers. All the radio signals were getting from down there consist of just that same maddening whisper. Weve welded the lift shafts to the lower levels shut and erected shields around them. Whatever got released down there, we dont want it up here in PP. The administrator has taken active charge of the facility now. Shes wasted no time in organising a defensive position. We rigged up half a dozen old brain scrambler emitters we had on cold storage and arranged them so they cover the entirety of our command centre. Its given us all splitting headaches, but at least it made the whisper go away. I think were safe here, and Id gladly trade that madness for any headache Im offered. A search party with a mobile brain scrambler scoured the facility for the missing people, but of the 5 they found, only 1 was alive, and even he died on rout back to ICU. We dont have confirmation of all missing personnel, but looking for them is just too hazardous. Weve had to count all 9 as mortalities.
With engineering gone, we cannot count on the main generator downstairs, and since the backup generators didnt fire last time, we cant count on them, either. Weve began ripping engines and generators off our own equipment and jury-rigging them to power important devices, like the array of mental scramblers weve positioned around 1214s holding cell. We wont survive another massive psychic attack if the power goes down, that much is certain.

Journal Entry #33507529
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 20
Subject: What The Hell?
Body:
If I hadnt lost my judgement a week ago, Id have laughed so hard today. HQs elite finally arrived today. I led a team of 5 to greet him and what do I see? He is a she. A rather strikingly beautiful young woman, in fact. What the hell kind of parents call their daughter Trevor? And I thought we were going insane down here. But Trevor, or TC as shes asked us to call her, cant be older than 25. How the hell did she manage to get promoted to elite status. That takes decades of training and experience. Did she start with the company from childhood or something? I know there are rumours running around of eugenically-bred super-children, but could I be looking at one of them? Whatever the case, the administrator sure doesnt seem to like TC. Their first meeting was almost comic. I know our administrator is a strong, proud woman with a cool head and clear drive, so to see her engage in the most ridiculous verbal catfight you can imagine was embarrassing. I really want to resign that to the stress of the situation, but I suspect the administrator is actually a little jealous. Whatever. As long as those two can keep focussed, maybe we can get out of this mess.
TC had a lot of interesting things to tell me, however. Were keeping the shielding on 1214s cell pretty much blasting at full power at all times, and we were convinced that wed managed to restrict her power, but apparently were still not as secure as we thought. TC can sense psychic activity everywhere, even in the areas shielded by brain scramblers. Come to think of it, if TC can sense things inside the brain scrambler field, then that means she can still channel her psychic energies, and if she can, then so can 1214. According to our resident psychic, however, the energies are pretty weak. Too weak to affect us if we stay within the protected zones. Im not sure if I should be concerned or relived about that, but I do know its put everyone here on edge. Whatever little safety we thought wed made for ourselves turns out to be less secure than we thought. Now theres a running trend.
She told me something else, though, something that seems to make a hell of a lot of sense now that I think about it. 1214 is psychic, that much we already knew, but according to TC, the way the subject uses these psychic powers is entirely very reminiscent of actual paranormal activity. I dont have a lot of test results to go on, but Ive reviewed what I had, and I believe she is right. The nature of the energy is psychic, but its pattern is an almost exact match to a textbook case of paranormal activity. Im still not sure what the implications of that are, but I need to think about it. Realistically, though, why would a psychic emulate paranormal affinity? Why not just use her psychic powers directly? Theres something here that Im not seeing, but what?

Journal Entry #33507529
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 20
Subject: Mounting Death Toll
Body:
We lost power again today. To everything. The main generator is dead and buried, along with everything below level 9. Something happened, I dont know what, but the lower levels collapsed. It doesnt make sense. Each level is supported by 10 massive steel girders. Youd need masses of high explosives to even just dent the things. I cant believe they just gave way. And if 1214 is largely isolated in her cell, then... What the hell is going on?
Todays blackout took out everything, even our own emergency generators. The only thing that kept us safe was TCs intervention. She sensed the blackout coming and prepared... Hell if I know what she prepared, she said shed protect us, then she took this goofy pose and squinted really hard. Whatever she did, though, Im thankful to her for doing it. As soon as the power went down, I saw a vision of 1214 again. Like before, she was walking towards me, illuminated by white flashes, but this time she cast no shadow. Her eyes were still mortifying, but Ive learned to resist that monsters gaze now. She came up to me and spoke. She moved her mouth, but no words came out, just a low, indistinguishable whisper. She took my hand, pulled me down to a kneel and looked me dead in the eye. She said something to me, said it in a whisper. And I think I understood it. I dont know any more, I could be delusional, but I could swear she whispered Im sorry. No sooner had she said that, the lights came back on. Just as if the little girl holding my hand were a shadow, herself, she disappeared with the light. I hadnt collapsed this time. Instead, I woke up in a kneel with the administrator standing over me. Why does this motif of shadows keep repeating in these visions? Is 1214 trying to tell me something? I felt... I felt as though Im not afraid of her, but rather of her shadow. Afraid of the darkness she brings with her every time we meet, but not of the little girl, herself. I dont understand any of it.
Unfortunately, weve lost TC. Shes still alive, but is comatose and in critical condition. She took the brunt of that massive psychic attack, and she saved us all. I... I really dont think anyones ever done something like this for me. Ive been in this company for over 30 years now, and everything HQ has done has convinced me that I was expendable. But this young woman, she took one for me. I know she was probably following orders, but still... Even the administrator seems to appreciate it. She couldnt stand TC at first, but now shes spending most of her time by TCs bedside. I really need to get some sleep, because I dont get anything anymore.

Journal Entry #33507533
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 21
Subject: A Breather
Body:
After yesterdays incident, we expected things to go to hell in a handbasket, but they seem to have calmed down. 1214s power seems to have receded back into her holding cell and our generators are holding firm. Were still not sure how she was able to reach out of her holding cell and affect the main generator, but we found out how she shut down ours because Im an idiot. While we were aligning the brain scramblers in the control room, I put one of the mobile generators next to the scrambler it was powering, which put it just a little out of the brain scrambler field. 1214 was able to affect it without having to interact with our protective field. Once that went down, that gave her full reach over us. It turns out that its my fault TC got hurt and I... I dont think I can go on. I cant think straight any more. My head is killing me, I can still hear 1214s whisper in my ears and now I caused this... This disaster. The administrator tried to convince me it wasnt my fault, and that it was an honest accident, but I know better. Im the project leader here, Im the one whos supposed to be immune to psychosis and the one whos responsible for all base personnel. Instead, I put everyone in danger because I wasnt thinking straight.
I dont know what to do. I need to rest. I havent slept in 72 hours, and I can no longer tell if the visions Im seeing are the result of psychic illusions, or if Im just finally losing my mind. I keep thinking about that shadow. I keep seeing it. I cant tell the difference anymore. I... I feel like it has some kind of significance. Like all these visions do. Is 1214 trying to tell me something, or is she trying to kill me? What am I really afraid of here? I dont know. I just... I just dont know. None of it makes sense. Nothing makes sense any more. I dont even know why Im here. I was supposed to be on vacation with my son. I had a month leave coming next... Oh, I dont even know what date it is. I shouldnt be here. I was supposed to be out. I havent seen my son for... How long has it been? A year? Ive never been there for him since his mother died. She was always taking such good care of him, always had time for him. I love him so very much, but will he even remember me now? What the hell am I doing down here? If I live through this, Im leaving this company for good. This... This madness... I cant do this anymore.

Journal Entry #33507539
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 22
Subject: Out Of Options
Body:
Weve officially run out of options. I spoke with the administrator this morning, and I now know were sunk. She managed to get a call out past Section 4 jammers and reached an old friend of hers over at HQ. Theyve elevated the situation to Code 9 terminate project, eliminate all exposed personnel, destroy all evidence. Theyre going to kill us all, and theyll probably try to kill 1214, as well. I must admit, itll be funny to see them try that. Maybe when they break in, well just shut down our generators and let her show them what were dealing with here. Clearly, Section 4 wont be stupid enough to come unprepared, but I know how those fools at HQ think, and Ive seen 1214s power. It doesnt matter what they do, they will never be prepared for her. But theyll try, which buys us some time. The administrator says two days. I guess theres only one thing left to do now.
TC woke up today, as well, which was marvellous news. It seems she was attacked with spectral terrors so powerful they shut down her brain activity, but this young lady fought her way through them. Im impressed. Well certainly need her help if we want to get out of this alive. I told her about the Code 9 order, and I expected her to panic, but she remained largely unmoved. I dont think she was surprised at all. I think she was expecting it. Did they warn her shed be killed in the end? Why would they send her in, then? Or maybe she just foresaw what was going to happen? But then why would she even come here if she knew she was going to die? Or maybe she knows she can survive? I asked her about it, but she didnt give me an answer. Frankly, Im too tired to insist.
Beyond that, the situation is strangely quiet. Even 1214s whisper seems to have receded. Weve seen no massive psychic attacks recently, either. Of course, this doesnt make me any more confident, it just makes me jittery with anticipation of the next one. But I... Sense that something has changed. I cant get my last encounter with 1214 out of my head. I wasnt aware of it at the time, but I wasnt afraid of her, not in the same way as I was pretty much every time before. I know she wasnt trying to hurt me. She was trying to tell me something, but what? And what is the deal with that shadow and the darkness motif? Do those visions mean something? I think they do, but what? I cant think straight anymore. I need sleep. Im going to try to get some sleep tonight, and I dont care if I get eaten by spectres. Were all going to die, anyway, and I sure as hell cant help anyone when I can barely speak a sentence. We have two more days to live. Might as well get some sleep.

Journal Entry #33507545
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 23
Subject: Vision
Body:
I think I understand now. I managed to fall asleep last night, and I had a dream. A very vivid dream. 1214... Cheryl... Was walking through a corridor with a single white luminescent light above. A long, ugly shadow trailed behind her. As she approached a light, her shadow stretched far behind her. I looked into her eyes, and I saw something I hadnt before. I saw a little girl trying to reach out to me. I wasnt afraid of her eyes, even though I could sense they saw right through me. Instead, they made me calm, because I could tell they saw my will to help. I was relieved about that. But as she reached the light, her shadow grew shorter, and finally gathered around her feet. Then her eyes changed. They grew darker, more menacing. More aggressive. They saw right through me. They saw my weaknesses, they saw my fears. They handed my life to her on a silver platter. And as she walked past the light, her shadow stretched forward, towards me. This ugly, frightening shadow of a man stretched and stretch in my direction, and with every second I grew more and more afraid. I had no idea what it was, but it was scaring me to death. The shadow finally reached me, and cast its darkness over me. It enveloped me, invaded me with a foreign consciousness. A malicious, evil being touched my mind, and it chilled me to the bone. In the darkness, I saw a face, and I heard a voice. The face looked human, but I knew it was not. The voice sounded human, but it was something else. This... This shadow. That is what I have always been afraid of. That evil, that malice, that... That thing. It lives inside the girl, it hides in her shadow. But... What is it?
I awoke to the administrator shaking me. She said I was screaming at the top of my lungs in my sleep. Was I? I know I tried to scream when I saw the shadow, but I couldnt. I couldnt in the vision, at least. Was it real, this strange dream? Or was it just that a strange dream that my battered mind conjured up to make me feel like I understood? I spoke with TC about it, and she couldnt detect any psychic energy residue on me. Whatever happened to me tonight, Cheryl didnt do it. Or maybe not directly. Ever since she spoke to me that time, this recurring memory has stayed with me. Perhaps she left something inside my mind? A message? I believe so. I dont understand it at all. I have no idea what I saw, but I do know one thing this little girl is not a monster, not in the way I had always thought. She is living in this waking nightmare just the same way we all are, suffering and screaming, contorting in pain and fear. But we cant see her pain, and we cant hear her screams. She is living her own nightmare, where she cannot move to run, and where her screams only come out as whispers. We cant keep using her as a guinea pig. We need to save her. I need to talk with her in person. Its the only way.
I put that proposal forward with the administrator, and she laughed in my face. Yes, even as recently as yesterday, I would have agreed with her completely and denounced the idea as ludicrous, but today... I dont think Cheryl wants to hurt us. I dont think she ever did. She is living in darkness, and we need to save her. If we allow Section 4s commandos to raid the complex and kill us, theyd just provoke her into more violence, and pull her even deeper into darkness. I... I dont want her to suffer any more. I have been living her pain for so very long now. I want to see it end. TC seems to agree with me, strangely. At first she thought I was nuts, but I suspect she tried to contact Cheryl and felt pretty much the same as me. The administrator seems to have heeded her word pretty much without question. What is the deal with those two?
So its decided, then. Our sources tell us that Section 4 have put their invasion plan at 08:00 hours tomorrow. That leaves us around 4 hours to make contact with Sheryl. I have no idea what Im trying to achieve by doing so, but may God help me when I face her in person.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Lightning_Sight · 04-02-2008 02:52 PM

spooky, can't wait for the next installment

Samuel_Tow · 04-03-2008 07:20 AM

[ QUOTE ]
spooky, can't wait for the next installment

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks

I've been working hard on the final instalment of the journal, and I'm not sure how well it came out, but I think at least it gives it some closure. I'm really not very happy with my writing these last few days. My drive and inspiration seem to be receding a bit, and you can probably tell from the quality of the story. I still think there are some good bits, but I'm glad that part is over. I might add more to this, as the story itself is far from over, but I can't promise that it will be done immediately. I haven't even decided what format the rest is going to take, how much I'll want to tie it into the loose ends from this part and... Generally what's going to happen. I have a somewhat vague idea, but nothing good enough for a story yet.

Just the same, I hope the read has been worth it

Here's the final section of this arc:

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Samuel_Tow · 04-03-2008 07:20 AM

Journal Entry #33507547
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 24
Subject: Last Words
Body:
Its 4 AM now, and were entering Cheryls holding cell in 10 to 15 minutes. The Section 4 assault is still an hour away. Im making this entry now, because I am afraid I may not survive this meeting. For anyone who finds this, my name is Miles Steinberg. I worked as project leader of Paranormal Psychology for [sensitive information censored] for 27 years. Ive dealt with many paranormally inclined and psychotic patients, and all of them were painted as monsters. My current project, #1214, Cheryl Pierce, was brought to me as just another monster. But she isnt a monster. She is a hurt, scared little girl just trying to wake up from her pain. The real monsters are up there the men who paid to have her kidnapped, locked in a cell and stuffed with all manner of drugs. They are the real monsters, and now theyre coming for us. Coming for her.
Weve prepared as well as we could. Weve had our little naps, steeled our minds and went through the procedure. It was decided that only three would go into Cheryls cell myself, the administrator and TC. It wasnt a hard choice. Of those few who survive, none are in good enough mental health to do this, and even if they were, everyone is scared witless just thinking about that little girl. Just the same. She spoke to me. I need to be the one to go speak with her. The brain scramblers around the holding cell are still active, but well need to shut them down when we enter. TC assures me she can protect us from the inevitable psychic attack that will occur, at least for a while. Thats all we need, just a little time. If I can get in touch with Cheryl, if I could just talk to her... I dont know what that will achieve, but I know I have to.
I need to leave now. Theyre ready to go.

Journal Entry #33507548
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 24
Subject: Indescribable
Body:
We survived. I spoke with Cheryl, and the experience was both exhilarating and mortifying at the same time. We shut down the brain scramblers, and we were expecting we come under a massive psychic attack, but TC didnt sense anything. As we walked into the room, both the administrator and TC began hearing that same whisper, booming into their ears, but being completely unintelligible. I heard it too, but it wasnt just a girls whisper I heard. There was something else in it, something in the background. It sounded like a deep, booming voice was mumbling something unintelligible. A voice uniquely intertwined with Cheryls whisper, perhaps even part of that same whisper. I... I need to retell this as it happened. I cant afford to try and make sense of it now. Not now, after everything that has happened. I cant think clearly.
When I saw Cheryl in person for the first time, my heart sank. Id seen her once before, when they first brought her in, and she looked like a somewhat skinny, but otherwise completely normal little girl. But now... Now she looked like a ghoul. Her skin was pale, her hair had grown long and dishevelled, hanging in rags over her face, her gown had creased and stained. What have we done to this little girl? What have I done... All these years, all these subjects, I never once looked at them as human beings. I did tests on them, hurt them, tortured them, and never at all thought about what I was doing to them. No... I was the real monster here all along.
Cheryls eyes first greeted me, just the same as I remember them dark, brooding and incredibly piercing. She knew me. Even though shed never seen me before, she knew who I was. She knew why Id come. She just sat there, not saying anything, and yet saying so very much. This little girl has indescribable presence. Being in the same room as her literally stunned us. Wed prepared for this, rehearsed so many times, and yet when we came into her presence, everything just went away. She spoke to us first. Spoke to me. Oh, her voice... That voice... It was... Terrifying. She spoke in a very low whisper, but it howled in my head like wind coming from all directions at once, and at the same time from deep within my own mind. It was that same whisper, as if a thousand voices spoke over each other. But I understood.
Ive attached the transcript of our conversation to the end of this file. Ive filled in all the blanks by hand. None of the audio tapes caught anything Cheryl said, all they have is this same, unintelligible whisper and just the things we said. But I know what she said. I could never forget. Her voice is imprinted into my mind, such that I will always hear it now, no matter what happens. Cheryl has reached out and touched my mind. Touched my heart. I want to save this girl from her darkness, but I fear there is nothing I can do.
The section 4 assault didnt materialise. I dont know why. The lift shaft is still sealed and the radio chatter from top-side has gone completely silent. I have a suspicion why, but I cant talk about it now. Im tired. I need to sleep. Cheryls gone. She left us. Only the three of us. I think she finally woke up. But now its time for us to sleep.

Journal Entry #33507549
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 24
Subject: Cheryl Conversation Transcript With Notes
Body:
Cheryl I know you. You can hear me.
Steinberg Yes, Cheryl, I can hear you. Can no-one else hear you?
Cheryl They dont want to hear me. Theyre afraid.
Administrator Can you understand what shes saying?
Steinberg Yeah, seems only I can hear her.
Steinberg Cheryl, what is it you want to tell us?
Cheryl Im sorry I hurt you. I didnt want to hurt you, but I had to.
Steinberg But why did you have to hurt us?
Cheryl I didnt want to, but he said I had to.
Steinberg Who said that?
Cheryl The man from the darkness.
Steinberg Who is that man? Can you tell us his name?
Cheryl No. *note: her voices pitch lowered significantly when she said that
Steinberg OK, Cheryl, Im sorry.
TC Miles, you said something to piss her off, cause were in trouble now! *note: hostile psychic activity increased at this point.
Steinberg We need more time, can you hold on?
TC I can try, but dont take your sweet time with this!
Steinberg Cheryl, Can you tell me where this man came from?
Cheryl From the darkness. He said he came for me.
Steinberg From the darkness, you mean like when the lights go out?
Cheryl No, not that kind of darkness. From the other darkness.
Steinberg What other darkness? I dont understand.
Cheryl The darkness thats always here. Cant you see it?
Steinberg Cheryl, I dont think I can see that darkness. Can you describe it for me?
Cheryl Its dark, and there are people in it. Its everywhere I look.
Steinberg People? Can you talk to them?
Cheryl They all want to come to me into the light, but I dont like them.
Steinberg And this man from the darkness, he came to you?
Cheryl I called him. He said I had to. But I dont like him anymore.
Steinberg Why is that, Cheryl?
Cheryl He makes me play scary games. I dont like his games. People get hurt. I dont want people to get hurt. He made me play his game with mom and dad. I didnt like it, but he said I had to. I dont like him. *note: at this point Cheryl became visibly upset.
Steinberg Thats OK, Cheryl. Thats OK.
Administrator Stein, youre making her upset again. What are you talking about?
Steinberg Something came out of the darkness and made her do all this.
Administrator What?
TC Guys, I cant keep this up all day. Do something!
Steinberg Working on it! Cheryl, well help make this man go away.
Cheryl You cant make Mr. B go away.
Steinberg Why do you believe we cant make Mr. B go away?
Cheryl He cant leave me. He wants to leave me, but he says I wont let him.
Steinberg Why wont you let him, Cheryl?
Cheryl It hurts when I try to. I want to let him leave me, but I cant.
Steinberg Cheryl, I promise well make him go away.
Cheryl Shhh...
TC What the... Shes stopped attacking. *note: all psychic activity ceased at that point
Administrator The whispers gone, too.
Steinberg Cheryl, what happened?
Cheryl Mr. B is here. He says I have to play a game with you now. Im sorry.
TC Guys, theres something else in here, and I dont like it one bit!
Steinberg Cheryl, no! Please, you cant play this game with us! We dont want to play!
Cheryl Im sorry. I have to. *note: physical psychic activity begins to shake the room and swirl the air
Steinberg No, you dont! Cheryl, Mr. B is using you. Everything thats happening here is your doing! Mr. B cant do anything that you wont let him do!
Cheryl But...
TC Miles, whatever youre gonna do, do it now!
Steinberg Cheryl, Im sorry I hurt you.
Cheryl I...
Steinberg Im sorry I kept you locked up in here, Im sorry about all the terrible things Ive said to you. Im sorry I played this awful game with you.
Cheryl Im sorry, doctor. I cant stop it...
TC I cant hold it!
Steinberg Cheryl, no!
Cheryl But I can save you... *note: at this point Cheryls voice returns back to a quiet whisper
Steinberg Cheryl, why are you always whispering?
Cheryl He talks through my voice. Thats how he hurts people. Thats how he makes things happen. I cant make it stop. But I can save you.
TC Its gone! Whatever it was that was attacking us is gone!
Administrator Stein, somethings happening to the girl!
Steinberg May God help us now.
*note: the last thing we heard was a powerful, piercing scream, then Cheryl was gone.

Journal Entry #33507558
Author: Dr. Miles Steinberg, Paranormal Psychiatry
Date: April 26
Subject: The Aftermath
Body:
What the hell? What day is it? The 26th? Did we sleep for two days straight? I woke up this morning from what felt like very deep dream. It took me half an hour just to remember where I was and what had happened. I found TC and the Administrator sound asleep in their quarters. Asleep in their beds, as if nothing had happened. Everyone else is dead. Even those who were still alive when we went to bed... What, two days ago? Even they are dead. I dont know from what, I dont care anymore. Its just the three of us now, and were still sealed in. Why werent we invaded? What happened to the Code 9? When I went to bed yesterday... No, the day before yesterday... I didnt care about anything. I just wanted to sleep. We all did. What happened to us in that cell? All I remember is that scream. The scream Cheryl let out just before she disappeared. That... That was easily the worst thing Ive ever heard in my life. It pierced my mind, flooded it with voices, made me see things. I know it wasnt loud, because none of the microphones we still had operational caught it. But... That wasnt Cheryls voice, at least I dont think so. That... That thing... This Mr. B. That was his voice, Im sure of it. Ive been listening to Cheryls voice for... Months, I think, I dont remember when this all started. Ive been listening to her whispers, and I know them. I also know the growl that grates in the background, the voice that is not her own, but speaks through her, like presenter over the radio. That thing is what I was always afraid of, that stopped my heart, that killed all of my friends. But why didnt it kill us? Why are the three of us still alive?
Cheryl is gone. I dont know where she when, or what happened to her. As soon as she screamed, we ran out of her cell and the lock gate sealed behind us automatically. Im not sure if we restarted the brain scrambler field or not, though I think I did. But shes not in her cell now. Ive checked the video, logs, and the cameras just filmed a minute of white noise, then when they returned, she was gone. I went into her holding cell earlier, and there are no signs of violence. She didnt break out, that much is for sure. Even though shes gone, however, I can still feel her. I can still hear her voice. I can still feel the good, kind little girl that I spoke with underneath all that power. I can still remember the girl that saved my life.
I dont know what were going to do now. Were sealed down here with barely any food and water left, we have no idea whats going on on the surface... But at least were still alive. And you know what? After all this time, after everything thats happened, I actually feel good right now. Id forgotten what that felt, but I do. I think, in some small way, we helped Cheryl. We showed her that whatever it is thats making her do these things isnt all-powerful. That she can oppose it, that she can think and act for herself. I think we managed to wake her up from her living nightmare. Maybe, just maybe, she can do the rest on her own.
As for me, Im done writing these reports. The company can kiss my [censored]. You want to know what happened here? Come find out, yourselves. Im done leaving records for you.

Journal Entry #33507574
Author: Colonel Jack Morrison, Clean Up and Containment, Section 4
Date: April 29
Subject: Final report on project Baltazar
Body:
Project has been deemed a complete failure. All objectives have failed, and the situation has elevated to Code 11. Containment operations are currently underway, and are scheduled to complete by May 1st, provided Management can delay US rescue efforts until then.

Preliminary findings suggest that a massive psychic event occurred some time around the morning of April the 24th, coinciding almost exactly with the time we lost contact our outpost at the Daedalus research facility, as well as with the reports of riots in the town of Edmunton. What little eyewitness reports we have of the event describe a powerful, piecing scream emanating from belowground, followed by outbreaks of mass psychosis. Preliminary research has linked that to entries in the operation journal of the facilitys project leader. We are reasonably certain subject #1214 initiated a massive psychic attack that penetrated the facilitys outer shell filtered through to the city above, causing the psychosis and the riots.

The death rate in Edmunotn following the Code 10 is 100%, and destruction rate is around 85-95%. Trace evidence is low, in the 5-10% area. The air-burst tactical nukes have failed to create noticeable craters, and weve already fabricated a false ground zero. There are no survivors of the incident, but several recordings did leak out to unknown locations, and we are in the process of tracking those down and disposing of them. No official media coverage occurred or survives. As of right now, the situation is around 95% contained.

The search of the Daedalus facility yielded very little. All on-base personnel has been accounted for and confirmed dead, with the exception of project lead Miles Steinberg and facility administrator Amanda Marshal. There is also no signs of the traitor Tamika Cooper. The security leak that allowed this traitor to infiltrate the Daedalus facility, however, has been dealt with. Trevor Cooper is currently being interrogated, but it appears he played no part in the security leak. According to him, his sister stole his ID and passed herself off as him. We need to investigate why a woman with the first name of Trevor did not raise anyones suspicion, or how someone managed to authorise an insertion into a Code 9 situation. Worse still, we are not clear as to exactly what Miss Coopers goals were, but were looking into her records in hopes to find out.

We have, however, discovered an old light rail tunnel behind the wall of one of the facilitys warehouses. It appears the Daedalus facility was once part of the now defunct underground light rail system that was disbanded back in 1982. It doesnt show up on any of the facilitys blueprints, but engineers are confident that particular warehouse was once an operational light rail station. Im filing a request to have all current facilities inspected for links to undocumented light rail tunnels. It appears this tunnel was the rout of escape for the three missing persons. We are currently searching the tunnels, but 1980 maps show the tunnels heading into the now-disuses Gemini facility under Riverlake. Given the timeframe of the events, it is likely the targets have already left the facility, and so become impossible to track.

Subject #1214 is also missing from the facility. At this time we have no way of determining where the subject went or how it escaped. One of the few surviving video recordings suggests the subject disappeared out of its cell. IT believe it teleported away. Given that the subjects true powers were never accurately documented, currently this seems to be the most likely outcome. Unfortunately, we have no means to locate #1214 at this time. However, our examination of the facilitys superstructure reveal an interesting event. It appears the bedrock beneath the facility has been forced up, crushing 7 of the sub floors and killing everyone inside. This proves that #1214 had both telepathic and telekinetic powers as the original reports suggested.

Currently, operation is a total failure. No meaningful way of controlling the subjects power was discovered, and the subject itself was lost, along with the entire Daedalus facility and the whole of the city of Edmunton above it. No research into the nature of the entity Baltazar appears to have been conducted at all, though Dr. Steinberg appears to have discovered its existence and made contact with it at some point. Unfortunately, both Dr. Steinberg and Administrator Marshal are missing, with no way to determine just how much knowledge they escaped with. The traitor that infiltrated the facility is also missing, presenting not only a glaring security risk, but also leaves us with no clue as to who she was working for or what her real objective was. Weve also lost two platoons of soldiers, an entire facilitys staff and created a global ecological catastrophe and massive media sensation in the process.

I believe this tops even the Landark disaster of 79 in terms of size of failure. Im submitting a request for a general overhaul and review of our operational procedures, security measures and general rules of conduct for field bases across the globe. This disaster may well be the one that buries us all.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Mr_Grey · 04-03-2008 03:24 PM

Excellent story, Sam.

My Stories

Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.

Samuel_Tow · 04-03-2008 05:17 PM

[ QUOTE ]
Excellent story, Sam.

[/ QUOTE ]

Thanks a bunch

My mind is already abuzz with possible ways I can perpetuate it, though for now I NEED to leave it alone. At least for a while.

But then on the other hand, I'm really happy about this. I seriously believed I'd lost my inspiration even just a week ago. I know my little story isn't to everyone's taste, and I know it's rife with errors and mistakes of every calibre, and that I most likely don't have the first clue about creative writing ('cause I don't ), but the fact that I have ideas I can put together into something I like, that makes me happy.

Still need to proof-read it a few times, probably top to bottom, no less, but this chapter is done. And, frankly, that's more than I can say for most other stories I've started

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arcanaville

Samuel_Tow is the only poster that makes me want to punch him in the head more often when I'm agreeing with him than when I'm disagreeing with him.

Tigers_Rule · 04-15-2008 01:26 PM

LOVE IT LOVE IT LOVE IT!!!!!!

@tiggy

Beware the attack cat