005 ✎ Fifth Manuscript ✎ Video ✎ NIGHT 129

[furrows]

It's called the Dark Presence.

[BLAM.

For those who were wondering if anyone knew what the hell was going on, here's your cue. Alan is in the dark, holding a hunting rifle and sporting a heavy-duty lantern flashlight in the other. It's pointed in the direction of something nearby, a hand being seen covering what looks to be possibly a face. In front of him is a Taken, a girl who is a native and sells bouquets at a local stand. It's clear that she has no intention other than to hurt Alan, planting tools being hurled in his direction as she sing-songingly skips around him.]

Fresh FLOWERS FOR SALE!! Only THREE COPPER RUNES-

[BLAM BLAM. Without even hesitating, Alan points the light, raises the rifle, and fires. The girl shrieks and then suddenly turns into ash that fades as she disappears. He looks back at the camera, eyeing it but still wary for other attackers.]

Those are what we call "Taken" back home. They're consumed by the Dark Presence and have no mind of their own. They can be anyone you know. And once they're possessed, their mind is gone.

[Alan grits his teeth suddenly, reloads the gun, whirls as another Taken appears, light from the lantern pinpointing the creature and making it hiss. The shroud covering it evaporates, fizzing out a few seconds later, leaving the thing to be more irked now that it has no protection. Alan still continues to speak, even as he's fighting.]

You can only hurt them in light. [BLAM. It becomes ash and fades like the last one.] Get rid of the darkness surrounding them, and then attack. You're just wasting ammo otherwise. The ravens and the objects that fling themselves at you? Use light on them and they'll disappear once their darkness is gone.

[Now he turns back to the camera, because this is something he has to emphasize.] And no matter how much they look like someone you know, no matter how much they sound like your friend, no matter how much you think it's your crush or wife or husband or whatever playing a joke, they're not. They've been possessed by the Dark Presence, and they're nothing but an empty puppet for it now.

[His voice is dark, but it's blunt and hits the point right on the head.] You can't save them. If they become a Taken, the only way to help them is to kill them. [He ducks as another Taken comes by, the blade of a sickle narrowly missing his spine, and he pulls out a flare to give himself space. The red light creates a small circle around him, and one the creature backs away from instantly. He uses this to his advantage, grabbing his lantern again, knocking out the shroud, and then shooting it before the thing can recover.]

If you're inside, stay there. Keep all the lights on in your house. If one goes out, light up candles and keep as much possible lit at all times until morning. If you're outside, find a light source and stay by it. If you can get in a building with light, do it.

[At this point, he pauses before continuing, almost like a hesitance.] If you can't get inside, tell me where you are. I'll come look for you and bring you someplace safe.

Just please, all of you- this is dangerous. It's not the time to play "hero." Stay inside if you can, and don't come out until you notice the sun is up. I don't want this to get any worse than it already has. [But the tone of his voice says that this isn't the end. Not by a long shot.]

[[For those who want to run around with Alan and help him with finding others and fighting, you can find him in the logs for Day 129, Day 130, and Day 131]]

Comments

video.

[stakes]

You're kidding. This is the crap you were talking about before? You couldn't have said that a little sooner? Can't you just whip out some paper and a typewriter and write 'and then the sun was shining and all the Darkness died forever, the end'?

video.

[furrows]

[There's a snap in his tone as Alan turns from the camera, focusing on another Taken.]

I didn't know if I was still dreaming or not- the Dark Presence can literally do anything. It kidnapped my wife and brainwashed me into almost setting it free back home. I just got back after it tried making me believe all of this was a lie!

[Cut him some slack, Buffy- the man's going insane.]

I tried that. Believe me, I did. But it's not- it's the Dark Presence, but it's not my Dark Presence. It's going after everyone, not just me.

[video]

[swedge]

[Thanks for that bro, could have used this a little sooner - but hey! She figured it out, didn't she?]

Light weakens them, and then you can kill them. Anything else we should know? Like how to get to the source? The 'darkness' or whatever?

[video]

[furrows]

The head of it all? You can't. It's not here, and I doubt this is the exact thing.

[There's a sigh at that.]

It's the Dark Presence, but it's also not. It has everything that it does back home, but it won't react to the things I can do to prevent or change it. It's... complicated.

[seventeenpills]

Wait - you're saying this is something from your world specifically? That's what I'm picking up because otherwise how could you know so much about it? How did it get here from your world? I thought that outside powers weren't compatible with this world!?

[furrows]

They aren't- and the gods told me that anything from our worlds couldn't get here! It's acting like it would back home, but I can't change or prevent things from happening like I could there.

video;

[deputychief]

Forgive me, but aren't you setting a rather bad example if you don't want people to play hero?

video;

[furrows]

Maybe. But this is from my world, so it's my responsibility to take care of it.

audio;

[bloodypocket]

I assume that there are no exceptions to finishing these Taken, or even qualifications for why one would be a more likely target than another?

[He didn't want to have to kill unnecessarily, even if he acknowledges he may have to.]

audio;

[furrows]

No. Once they're a Taken, they're no different from any other Taken. They'll come after you and try to either kill you or take you into the Darkness.

[digophelia]

You would like that, wouldn't you?

[furrows]

I don't like any of this!

[video]

[holmes_fanatic]

Is there a way to prevent someone from being Taken to start with?

[video]

[furrows]

Light. Make sure they have some source of light. The stronger, the better. Because the Taken are always filled with the Darkness.

[Sound a little familiar, Conan?]]

video.

[multifacets]

Was that you with the anonymous message before? [If it was, you should've mentioned the rest of it sooner!]

Never mind that - how're you so sure we can't save the ones that got possessed? I'm not just going hurt someone else because you think you know all about this!

[Watching Alan shoot those people was horrifying. Rise's been all about the city by now, and she's definitely seen that little native girl before.]

video.

[furrows]

[He shakes his head at that.] No. That wasn't me. It clued me in to this being what it was, though.

[He knew this was coming, though.] I'm sure because I know! They're only shells once they're possessed. You can't do anything but kill them, because even without the Darkness surrounding them, they're still under its control. Nothing else works.

video

[badluckdelivery]

Oh well I'm really glad somebody knows what's going on, it almost makes me feel better for shooting people while I was on the way back to the hall today, except not really.

video

[furrows]

You can't just shoot them, you have to get rid of the darkness around them first.

[Private Text]

[key_illusion]

Took you long enough.

[Private Text]

[furrows]

Yeah. I couldn't tell if I was still dreaming or not.

audio;;

[strahta]

Excuse me. Where may firearms and ammunition be obtained on short notice?

audio;;

[furrows]

Do you have a light with you? And where are you, outside?

[video]

[extraordinarymuse]

[Well this is great.]

There are safehouses set up in the Library and the Arena, if you need to send people that way.

[Kate's a bit tired, if you can't tell. These Takens...they don't let up. But she's found a corner under a street-light and it looks like things on this side of the street are calming down. For now, at least.]

You've dealt with this before?

[video]

[furrows]

Good. The more we get off the streets, the better.

[He's going to be tired by the end of this too, Kate.]

Every night since I came to Bright Falls. The Dark Presence there kidnapped my wife, and almost got me to set itself free to cover the world in darkness.

[histories]

That was... informative. Even given the fact that those killed will simply come back after some amount of time, is there no alternative? Such as simply subduing those taken by the darkness until the sunrise, perhaps?

[furrows]

If you try that, they'll only disappear when the sun comes, just like everything else with this mess. Once the Dark Presence has them, it won't let go.

video;

[expy]

Ignoring your hypocrisy, you've dealt with this before. How did it get here?

[Because last time she checked, legions of unimaginable horror didn't qualify for feelings.]

video;

[furrows]

[He bites his lip to keep from snapping something back about being called a hypocrite- there's a difference between being outside and knowing your stuff, versus being outside just to save people.]

I don't know. It's the Dark Presence from my world, but it's also missing things that it has back home.

voice;

[catorce]

How can you be sure killing them's the only way? There has to be something else we can do.

[Because having to intentionally kill something she knows is a person, was simply a horrifying thought for her.]

voice;

[furrows]

[He sighs. More of this.] There isn't. If you don't kill them, they'll just keep coming after you. They will kill you, without any hesitation. It's not the person you know anymore.

[ video ]

[pratentious]

You know of this threat?

[ 'Back home,' he said, and the practised with which he handles them. It settles something unpleasant in Arthur's stomach. ]

You know, and you've nothing for advise but to kill everything?

[ video ]

[furrows]

[Ugh he wants to facepalm. YOU GUYS JUST DON'T GET IT WHY IS IT SO HARD FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND.]

I do. And you have to. They'll keep chasing you otherwise. They will kill you, because they're mindless and can't think anything else but to obey the Dark Presence.

[ video ]

[kd_0079]

[ A brief punch to knock one of the natives down, before K' spoke. ]

Any source of light will work, huh?

[ He could only hurt them in light...That explained why his attacks were useless half the time. ]

[ video ]

[furrows]

As long as it's bright, it'll hold them back.

[A nod. GOOD SOMEONE IS UNDERSTANDING IT.]

[Video]

[gate_of_babylon]

[A soft, half-amused and half-bitter chuckle as he knocks one into a sharp ray of light with a backhanded sweep of a crude sword.]

If this 'Dark Presence' is, in effect, a concentrated form of evil itself, I can safely say I have some experience in the matter.

But knowing light will harm them is a useful bit of advice.

[He's in a good mood, so this is the closest to a real 'Thank you' as he'll ever get]

[Video]

[furrows]

Yeah, light will basically make them targets to actually get rid of. Nothing else works until the shroud is gone.

video

[wristbands]

I can't just stand by and stay inside when people could be in danger—that's not right! I want to do anything I can to help out... I mean, isn't that what you're doing now?

video

[furrows]

I'm only doing it because I know what this is! There's a difference between going around without a clue, and being experienced in this kind of thing!

video;

[gymnast]

[ If there was ever a good time for flash bolts, it would be right about now. ]

There's really no other way to stop the Presence and save the ones it's infected?

video;

[furrows]

[Hahahahaha this is why he has flashbangs 8D]

If it were the real Dark Presence, I would've stopped it by now with my writing. It's obvious it's not. So no, there's no other way.

[Video] So late...sorry ;;;;

[damnidjits]

[Knowing sooner would've been nice, but warning and information is more than he'd expect in this world, so he greatly appreciates it. He quietly absorbs the information, only speaking up when Alan is done.]

Thanks for the info. [It's more than obvious that this is something from Alan's world, and hell, that really sucks for the guy.] This happen often back home?

[He keeps one eye on the bracelet while going around grabbing supplies that will probably be needed.]

I got extra ammo, flashlights, and some other stuff if you need anythin'. Any other weapons useful, or can only light and bullets do shit to them?