Cadenza: Veritas
Chapter 19: The Butterflies Were Just an Illusion
Al opens the backdoor of the van, taking umbrellas underneath one of the seats. There are enough for everyone; she eventually hands you a dull, purple umbrella. After she ensures that the doors of the van are locked, she leads the way, walking towards the neglected warehouse.
Years of disuse rendered its exterior covered with dirt and grime. Its walls are similarly defaced with graffiti, ranging from artistic renditions of Subetan animals, vibrant pop art, to crudely spray-painted unmentionables. The perimetre of the building is surrounded by "sprinkler posts" just like those simulating rain in the pavement. Ignoring the main entrance, which is kept shut by multiple heavy-duty padlocks, Al heads toward a side entrance labelled as the "Service Entrance". Unlike the other parts of the warehouse façade, it seems to be well-maintained. Someone left the steel door open, giving you a glimpse of the building's dimly lit interior.
As you enter, you are greeted by stacks of boxes labelled "Rain Machine", reaching up to the high ceiling of the building. Al was right, it seems to be a depot now. The overhead lights are dim, either from being close to their end-of-life, or from the dirt that accumulated on the bulbs' surfaces. While there is an abundance of packages surrounding you, there is a noticeable dearth of people.
You can't help but feel that you're being watched.
"Here!", yells Al, who is on the opposite corner of the room. A multitude of faint lights encircle Al. As the group approaches her, you notice that she is standing in front of what seems to be a display of sorts. As you approach Al, the display and its contents become clearer to you. There are various photographs clipped onto a string, as though it were a clothesline. The faint lights around Al reveal themselves to be monarch butterflies with a dim, orange glow around them.
Years of disuse rendered its exterior covered with dirt and grime. Its walls are similarly defaced with graffiti, ranging from artistic renditions of Subetan animals, vibrant pop art, to crudely spray-painted unmentionables. The perimetre of the building is surrounded by "sprinkler posts" just like those simulating rain in the pavement. Ignoring the main entrance, which is kept shut by multiple heavy-duty padlocks, Al heads toward a side entrance labelled as the "Service Entrance". Unlike the other parts of the warehouse façade, it seems to be well-maintained. Someone left the steel door open, giving you a glimpse of the building's dimly lit interior.
As you enter, you are greeted by stacks of boxes labelled "Rain Machine", reaching up to the high ceiling of the building. Al was right, it seems to be a depot now. The overhead lights are dim, either from being close to their end-of-life, or from the dirt that accumulated on the bulbs' surfaces. While there is an abundance of packages surrounding you, there is a noticeable dearth of people.
You can't help but feel that you're being watched.
"Here!", yells Al, who is on the opposite corner of the room. A multitude of faint lights encircle Al. As the group approaches her, you notice that she is standing in front of what seems to be a display of sorts. As you approach Al, the display and its contents become clearer to you. There are various photographs clipped onto a string, as though it were a clothesline. The faint lights around Al reveal themselves to be monarch butterflies with a dim, orange glow around them.
V reaches up to touch one of the butterflies. They pass through her hand, as if they were holographic projections.
"Turn around," says E. "There's a light coming from the opposite side of the room. It's probably a projector."
"Oh dang, he's right," mutters Cess.
While your companions are pre-occupied with the illusory butterflies, you take another look at the display. Specifically, your attention is drawn to a box where some permanent markers lay. There is a piece of paper laid face down. Flipping the paper, you reveal its contents:
"Turn around," says E. "There's a light coming from the opposite side of the room. It's probably a projector."
"Oh dang, he's right," mutters Cess.
While your companions are pre-occupied with the illusory butterflies, you take another look at the display. Specifically, your attention is drawn to a box where some permanent markers lay. There is a piece of paper laid face down. Flipping the paper, you reveal its contents:
"Who are these people?"
In the stillness of the warehouse, you hear a booming voice. "Leave," it commands. You search your immediate surroundings in vain for its source.
"What are you still doing here? Leave NOW!"
"Maybe I shouldn't have reached for those butterflies," V laments.
The ground beneath you begins to tremble. The contents of crates and boxes in the distance rattle violently. Debris fall close to where you're standing. You fall to your knees, trying to remember everything you learned about staying safe in the middle of an earthquake. You look above, trying to make sense of the objects close to the ceiling, amidst the darkness. You move close to the bare corner of the warehouse, crouching and covering your head with your arms.
As the shaking intensifies, from the small space you've given yourself to peek at your surroundings, you see a massive structure rise from the middle of the floor. It resembles heavy machinery, but there isn't much you can see with even the lights from the projector shutting off.
"You are not welcome here," seems to come from the metallic behemoth that erupted from the ground. The timbre of the voice seems rather feminine.
"Who are you?", Bella interrogates, in a loud voice.
"Raine Santos," replies the voice. "But I doubt that my name holds any significance to you."
Have you heard this name before? Is she, perhaps…
"…the rain in the warehouse?", blurts out V.
"Lisa must be dead."
"Do you have something to do with this," asks E, who stands up against the large structure.
"Your purpose here has been fulfilled. Please leave. You'll trouble yourselves by staying here," replies Raine. One of the machine's attachments gradually swings towards E's direction. V pushes E out of the way, just as what seems to be a large, mechanical arm comes to a halt.
"What about Carlos and Rose?" Al, who is still on the ground, asks.
"I'm doing this to protect them." A brief pause. "And you, too. There are things best left hidden in the dark."
In the stillness of the warehouse, you hear a booming voice. "Leave," it commands. You search your immediate surroundings in vain for its source.
"What are you still doing here? Leave NOW!"
"Maybe I shouldn't have reached for those butterflies," V laments.
The ground beneath you begins to tremble. The contents of crates and boxes in the distance rattle violently. Debris fall close to where you're standing. You fall to your knees, trying to remember everything you learned about staying safe in the middle of an earthquake. You look above, trying to make sense of the objects close to the ceiling, amidst the darkness. You move close to the bare corner of the warehouse, crouching and covering your head with your arms.
As the shaking intensifies, from the small space you've given yourself to peek at your surroundings, you see a massive structure rise from the middle of the floor. It resembles heavy machinery, but there isn't much you can see with even the lights from the projector shutting off.
"You are not welcome here," seems to come from the metallic behemoth that erupted from the ground. The timbre of the voice seems rather feminine.
"Who are you?", Bella interrogates, in a loud voice.
"Raine Santos," replies the voice. "But I doubt that my name holds any significance to you."
Have you heard this name before? Is she, perhaps…
"…the rain in the warehouse?", blurts out V.
"Lisa must be dead."
"Do you have something to do with this," asks E, who stands up against the large structure.
"Your purpose here has been fulfilled. Please leave. You'll trouble yourselves by staying here," replies Raine. One of the machine's attachments gradually swings towards E's direction. V pushes E out of the way, just as what seems to be a large, mechanical arm comes to a halt.
"What about Carlos and Rose?" Al, who is still on the ground, asks.
"I'm doing this to protect them." A brief pause. "And you, too. There are things best left hidden in the dark."