33 Stillness (1/2)

Gradually, darkness achieved a hold over the dominion; an obscure haunting overcame Garett's heart, and he didn't know if the temperature was rising due to supernatural circumstances or if it was the pressure building up within him.

Afflicted with a gnawing uncertainty, Garett's hits on the adjacent wall turned stronger, and consequently, louder. But the whistling wasn't so easily intimidated by the promise of a veteran huntress, with short steps, it eventually arrived at its intended destination.

'It thought supernatural phenomena could only appear at a fixed range from the manifestation's core! Why is that thing here!? Does that mean the energy core is nearby? But why...' Garett's mind wandered as he used his shallow experience to access the surroundings as his vision blurred in a poignant show of despair.

”That's not it! There's no way Alice wouldn't have woken up with all this noise. There's also the strangeness of the situation...” A faint possibility surfaced on Garett's mind, every cell on his body freezing as his eyes constricted!

'The whistler is not a supernatural phenomenon!' He concluded as a series of faint, ominous knocking sound echoed from the door, the vibrations terrifyingly spaced between each other.

”But it doesn't make sense if he just came because I whistled, there has to be another reason...” His eyes constricted after uttering those words. ”Vincent! The whistler is after me because I've interacted with Vincent!?”

That was a very plausible possibility, as the Almir child seemed to be intrinsically connected to everything that was happening in Tobacco Yard! The Almirs had clearly stirred up something very problematic!

”Sir, I'll have to ask you to please stop the noise. It's bothering the other guests.” A firm voice sounded from the corridor; Garett could recognize the man who spoke, it was one of the room attendants of the hotel!

'F**K! Run, you fool!' Garett screamed inwardly, his thoughts starting to race while thinking of a way to help the attendant.

A maddening silence ensued as the whistling stopped, the cold walls only exacerbating the eerie atmosphere. Garett's mind raced as he struggled to find an appropriate course of action!

Racing to stand in front of the door, Garett stretched his perception to its limits! The blurry details of the corridor faintly surfacing his mind as the seconds ticked.

'I can sense a strong presence right in front of the door, but where's the attendant? It simply vanished!?' Garett pressed the materialized firearm against the door, a drop of cold sweat dripping from his forehead.

The blurry figure in his mind slowly lifted its hand and knocked twice on the door; a strange, emotionless voice sounded in his ears.

”Sir? Would you mind opening the door?” The attendant almost robotic voice elicited Garett's every hair to stand! He struggled against the surging instinct to pull the trigger, he didn't even know if it would be effective!

”I-I'm sorry, I'm feeling indisposed right now. I'll have to ask you to leave.” Garett stammered an answer, seeking only to buy enough time for Alice to notice the situation!

'Come on! Why are you always absent when trouble arrives!?' He could only hope that she would arrive in time!

”Sir, I have to insist - Please. Open. The. Door.” The previously robotic voice abruptly turned cold, almost as if it was becoming enraged at his attempts to delay the inevitable!

'Why don't you just barge in, anyway? I'm pretty sure a door can't stop you!' Noticing this detail, Garett felt something amiss! How could a simple door protect him?

'Forcefully breaking in would surely create a commotion, is it afraid of that? But it came so openly, it doesn't make sense… If it came after me, why would it come unprepared?' In the complete darkness, Garett distanced himself a couple of steps from the door and raised his arm to properly aim at the blurry figure's head; completely relying on his Perception.

'Alice is still asleep, that shouldn't be possible! Unless…' Garett formulated a possibility while piecing together the facts!

'It's objective is to distract me! Maybe this is all in my head!' He didn't think that the Whistler was an unintelligent being, and he also didn't understand the complete extent of its powers!

”Well, there's only one way to find out.” Mustering all his courage, he decided to trust his baseless intuition! What could create a bigger commotion than a gun being shot!?

Employing his perception, he aimed right at the figure's head and held his breath while focusing. His mind entered an unnatural state of stillness as he slowly pulled the trigger, he could sense the revolver's insides moving as the mechanisms set into motion!

”Here goes nothing” He muttered in a low voice while biting his lips. Half of him sure of his bet, while the other half regretted the decision!