“Church of Nightmares: Part 2 - Drowning”

Posted on Wed May 11th, 2022 @ 3:23am by Jaclyn Morrison & Unawakened Kai Irving

Mission: Tales of the Unawakened
Location: Church of Eternal Light Compound, Edgerton Wyoming
Timeline: Current

=Jaclyn=

The training room was in the basement of the Reverend Church and it was stark white and Jaclyn was not impressed. She had woken in it, dressed in a white smock that covered her from neck to her feet which were now shod in paperthin slippers. Her hair was down and she was missing her watch. She had found the door easily enough but it was locked of course. Her cast itched but she tried to focus on trying to get out. She ran her hands along the walls pressing and probing. After a while she gave up and sat down on the floor.

As soon as she sat, the room was filled with static noise. Jaclyn clamped her hands over her ears. It started loud and then lowered until it was a droning background noise. And then the lights dimmed and cold air was blasted into the room.

Jac huddled in the middle of the room, her bare arms tucked into the smock and wrapped around her knees.

After a while, the static was changed for a soothing voice that began to speak of the glories and wonderment of the Church of Eternal Light. It was the same message that had worked on gently breaking down the wills and brainwashing nearly two hundred initiates before Jaclyn. In every instance, the procedure never failed. The only thing that varied was the duration of time it took to break down each initiate. Some broke in hours, others took days. In the end, however, everyone left the room a true believer in the Faith and a loyal follower of the Reverend.

Jaclyn buried her face in her knees and began to hum, anything to block out the noise. She was freezing but she would not cave, she could feel the cast on her arm against her bareskin and her nose ached. Focusing on these things made her remember who she was and who had put her in the cast and caused her nose to hurt. “I am Jaclyn Morrison and you will not win” she whispered. “I will not break!”

Hours passed and suddenly the cold vanished and the noise stopped. A woman in a hooded robe entered and walked over to the huddled form on the floor. She gently touched the girl’s shoulder and Jaclyn raised her head. “Who will guide you, child?”

Jac’s eyes narrowed “Not you” she replied, her voice soft, and her lips blue.

The woman smiled. “Oh you poor child, you are so cold. Repent your sins, serve the lord and be free here.”

“Pass, thank you.” Jaclyn was wiggling her toes and her fingers beneath the smock, trying to bring feeling back into them.

“Hmm well then, we shall see how you feel tomorrow morning.” The woman left the room. The door sealed behind her. The noise started again and then the recording commenced again. Only the cold stayed away, until hours later, as the clock ticked over into early morning, and Jaclyn had succumbed to exhaustion.

She woke curled in a ball by the wall, hours later, confused and disoriented until her eyes took in the white room and memories filled her mind. She clenched her fists. The words were still droning on and she shook her head. She wanted out.

Before she could fully move, which is what she wanted to do despite the cold air, the door opened and the woman in the hooded robe entered again. “Ah... are you ready to submit Child? Submit to the Reverend and the Lord?”

“W-why?” Jaclyn croaked out “Why won’t you let me go?”

“Oh child, the Lord sees you and he sees your potential.” She knelt at Jaclyn’s side.

“Yeah right.” Jac pushed herself to her hands and knees, bracing herself on her good arm. “My Aunt is expecting me”

“Your Aunt won’t miss you. You will be safe here. You could have a good life with us. Live happily.”

Yeah and just what did they think she was? Stupid. She was smarter than she looked. “I.. “

“Yes child?”

“I want to go to my Aunt.” She let tears well in her eyes. “Sh-she is my mother's sister, I want to see her”

“Shhh” the woman soothed her hair back. “You need to submit to the Lord, and we will work things out.”

~Liar~ Jac’s mind screamed. ~She lies~ “I.. can’t... she wants me there...”

The woman nodded and stood suddenly. “We will try again later.” And left the room, sealing the door behind her.

When the recordings started again, Jac pushed herself to her feet and began to walk to keep warm. She had not eaten in days, her stomach hurt from it and she leaned against the wall as she walked. She walked, and walked and walked, almost in a daze until she had slowed to just standing against the wall. Exhaustion and cold caught up with her and she collapsed to the floor. When she collapsed, the air temperature changed again to warm air, and the volume on the recording increased.

With her unconscious, the woman again entered the room, this time with a small wooden box. She knelt beside the teenager, opened the box and picked up the syringe that lay inside. For a teenager she was very stubborn. They would need to fix it. Pushing the long hair aside she injected the contents of the syringe into the back of Jaclyn’s neck. The drug would make her mind more pliable and then, then they would see her attitude change

=Kai=

The Well was an old well with water in the bottom of it. Kai had been lowered to the bottom of the well, it had been pitch black when she had been lowered in, and it was even worse when night fell. The water was up to her knees and it was cold. She knew she had been sentenced down here for a week.

She knew the dimensions, Monica had drilled them into her years ago, 15 feet deep 6 feet wide 2 feet of standing water and sludge in the bottom Top ten feet of interior are covered in broken glass and sharp stones, bottom 5 feet completely smooth Metal grate placed over top, with small four inch square hole in centre, for light and ventilation. A week in this. She had been dressed in shorts and tee shirt, was barefoot and no food would be given.

TBC