[ « I guess... I guess it's a good thing I had Emily send those case files over. What exactly do we know about his powers? What exactly can Alan Wake do? I died, but, now I'm not. And you're still here with me.... even then, how did I lose to that... that freak? We could of overpowered him. We should have overpowered him. I... »
She thought back on the events she just relived? Witnessed? It felt like Polaris had been... drained. Blocked? Something about the Darkness that double had made Polaris's signal weaker to send out. Almost like she was weaker to use.
« I really need to talk to Emily. How can Darkness block out resonance? I'm not really a scientist so that's definitely not my area. But, I have the feeling we need to know. »
Thud.
Jesse looks up from the floor again and around once more. Her eyes travel to herself in the mirror. Once again her reflection is... wrong. Well, not wrong, but not a reflection. Her other self in the mirror is in the outfit she had seen her mirror self wear in the one in the FBC--the one she had on when that double killed her. That's when she sees the blood running down her forehead and her temples. A dark spot seeps through the outfit where her heart should of been...
Jesse steps closer. It's not the weirdest thing she's seen but it's definitely one of them.
The not-mirror self pulls her hand from the surface of the mirror and then points to the door to the bathroom. The bathroom in the mirror is destroyed with every small detail that led to her fate that round. Jesse hesitates for the briefest moment before looking at the door on her end. Part of her braces for something horrible to come through like before. It doesn't matter that it's daytime. Not when the light is dim and can flicker at any moment. ]
Pu ekaw ot sdeen eh. [ Her not-mirror self speaks, but it's not that Jesse hears her really. It's more like... feeling the vibrations in her mind. Resonating like Polaris does. Is she really talking to herself...?
The not-mirror self raises her hand and slams against the surface of the mirror as if to make her desperate point. ] PU ekaw nala!
[ Suddenly, there is more banging. Knocking that she should of heard coming from the bathroom door. She glances to the door, then back at herself in the mirror. She looks desperate, and not just because of the blood rolling down her face. Desperate, and afraid, and worried. Herself lets out a scream of frustration and slams on the mirror once more as if she's not being heard. ]
PU EKAW NALA!
[ The not-mirror self doesn't so much shout as she cries out that time. Then, in a blink of an eye, the twisted face of Alan Wake shows up behind herself. He smirks and puts his hand on her shoulder. The resonating voice echoes in Jesse's mind.
In a blink of an eye, they're gone.
The bathroom is normal. The mirror is normal and so are the lights. Everything is the way it should be.
She hears the banging at the door again and her attention fully moves to it then. Jesse squares her shoulders, exhales, and forces herself to calm down. Her heart is still racing a million miles a minute while she unlocks the door and grabs the handle. Maybe seeing outside the room will calm her back down. She'll just... go about normal, have breakfast, get Alan back to the cabin, and then contact Emily. It sounds like a strong plan.
A plan that seems to die the moment it forms as she opens the door.
Her gaze first lands on Alan, then immediately to the waitress standing there and waiting. Her eyes dart to find Alan's hand raised. So, he was banging on the door. Why? Was it weird that she just got up and walked to the back? She knows what happened in it was weird, but, it shouldn't have been enough to get Alan to leave the booth.
Behind the waitress is Steve, aviators pulled up on top of his head, glancing between everyone at the whole situation. His eyebrows raise as if to ask the Director if she's alright, but he can tell by the look on her face it isn't. With a quick nod he clears his throat and interjects in the conversation. ]
Sorry, ma'am. She gets travel sick time to time and we're just worried how she was handling settling in. I'll get them back to their seats. [ Steve gently guides the waitress away from the two. ] I'll pay the extra if it disturbed any guests who are here to enjoy, what'd you call it, Deerfest...?
[ « And that's why he's my best ranger. »
Jesse immediately turns her attention back to Alan. She gently pushes him forward to be able to step out of the bathroom and close the door behind her. A brief moment passes. What should she say? Should she say anything? He's not really all there anyways. Would saying anything really matter?
She hasn't even noticed the manuscript page in his hand.
"PU EKAW NALA!"
The message resonates inside her, echoing, like if she had yelled down a large tunnel. The message needs to be passed on.
« Will it really matter if I pass it along? Maybe he's too far gone to hear it. It might not matter. That was... a different time, right? A different shift in reality. It might not matter now... »
The message still persists.
Jesse lifts her hand and places it on Alan's chest. Then, she pushes him up against the wall with just enough force for him to feel it's not just her. It's not just Polaris. It's an echo from another shift before this one she's standing in. How many shifts had their been--how long ago was it? ]
Alan. [ Her tone is stern and direct, low enough so no one else can hear. Her voice wavers. She's scared, despite her best attempts to hide it. Her fingers curl into the shirt he's wearing, but not enough to ball into a fist or push into the fabric further. Just enough pressure to try and get his attention. ] Alan.
Wake up. [ Does this even sound sane? Will he even understand what she's trying to say? ] You need to wake up.
no subject
She thought back on the events she just relived? Witnessed? It felt like Polaris had been... drained. Blocked? Something about the Darkness that double had made Polaris's signal weaker to send out. Almost like she was weaker to use.
« I really need to talk to Emily. How can Darkness block out resonance? I'm not really a scientist so that's definitely not my area. But, I have the feeling we need to know. »
Thud.
Jesse looks up from the floor again and around once more. Her eyes travel to herself in the mirror. Once again her reflection is... wrong. Well, not wrong, but not a reflection. Her other self in the mirror is in the outfit she had seen her mirror self wear in the one in the FBC--the one she had on when that double killed her. That's when she sees the blood running down her forehead and her temples. A dark spot seeps through the outfit where her heart should of been...
Jesse steps closer. It's not the weirdest thing she's seen but it's definitely one of them.
The not-mirror self pulls her hand from the surface of the mirror and then points to the door to the bathroom. The bathroom in the mirror is destroyed with every small detail that led to her fate that round. Jesse hesitates for the briefest moment before looking at the door on her end. Part of her braces for something horrible to come through like before. It doesn't matter that it's daytime. Not when the light is dim and can flicker at any moment. ]
Pu ekaw ot sdeen eh. [ Her not-mirror self speaks, but it's not that Jesse hears her really. It's more like... feeling the vibrations in her mind. Resonating like Polaris does. Is she really talking to herself...?
The not-mirror self raises her hand and slams against the surface of the mirror as if to make her desperate point. ] PU ekaw nala!
[ Suddenly, there is more banging. Knocking that she should of heard coming from the bathroom door. She glances to the door, then back at herself in the mirror. She looks desperate, and not just because of the blood rolling down her face. Desperate, and afraid, and worried. Herself lets out a scream of frustration and slams on the mirror once more as if she's not being heard. ]
PU EKAW NALA!
[ The not-mirror self doesn't so much shout as she cries out that time. Then, in a blink of an eye, the twisted face of Alan Wake shows up behind herself. He smirks and puts his hand on her shoulder. The resonating voice echoes in Jesse's mind.
In a blink of an eye, they're gone.
The bathroom is normal. The mirror is normal and so are the lights. Everything is the way it should be.
She hears the banging at the door again and her attention fully moves to it then. Jesse squares her shoulders, exhales, and forces herself to calm down. Her heart is still racing a million miles a minute while she unlocks the door and grabs the handle. Maybe seeing outside the room will calm her back down. She'll just... go about normal, have breakfast, get Alan back to the cabin, and then contact Emily. It sounds like a strong plan.
A plan that seems to die the moment it forms as she opens the door.
Her gaze first lands on Alan, then immediately to the waitress standing there and waiting. Her eyes dart to find Alan's hand raised. So, he was banging on the door. Why? Was it weird that she just got up and walked to the back? She knows what happened in it was weird, but, it shouldn't have been enough to get Alan to leave the booth.
Behind the waitress is Steve, aviators pulled up on top of his head, glancing between everyone at the whole situation. His eyebrows raise as if to ask the Director if she's alright, but he can tell by the look on her face it isn't. With a quick nod he clears his throat and interjects in the conversation. ]
Sorry, ma'am. She gets travel sick time to time and we're just worried how she was handling settling in. I'll get them back to their seats. [ Steve gently guides the waitress away from the two. ] I'll pay the extra if it disturbed any guests who are here to enjoy, what'd you call it, Deerfest...?
[ « And that's why he's my best ranger. »
Jesse immediately turns her attention back to Alan. She gently pushes him forward to be able to step out of the bathroom and close the door behind her. A brief moment passes. What should she say? Should she say anything? He's not really all there anyways. Would saying anything really matter?
She hasn't even noticed the manuscript page in his hand.
"PU EKAW NALA!"
The message resonates inside her, echoing, like if she had yelled down a large tunnel. The message needs to be passed on.
« Will it really matter if I pass it along? Maybe he's too far gone to hear it. It might not matter. That was... a different time, right? A different shift in reality. It might not matter now... »
The message still persists.
Jesse lifts her hand and places it on Alan's chest. Then, she pushes him up against the wall with just enough force for him to feel it's not just her. It's not just Polaris. It's an echo from another shift before this one she's standing in. How many shifts had their been--how long ago was it? ]
Alan. [ Her tone is stern and direct, low enough so no one else can hear. Her voice wavers. She's scared, despite her best attempts to hide it. Her fingers curl into the shirt he's wearing, but not enough to ball into a fist or push into the fabric further. Just enough pressure to try and get his attention. ] Alan.
Wake up. [ Does this even sound sane? Will he even understand what she's trying to say? ] You need to wake up.
[ "Pu ekaw t'nod uoy fi uoy evas t'nac I." ]