Quintessential | Joshua Washington

Introduction - I

With shaking hands, Quinn gripped the table tightly and re-read the headline across her screen for what felt like the thousandth time. Blackwood Pines seven, safe and sound. Underneath the huge, bold print in smaller writing it read: Joshua Washington still reported as missing on Blackwood Pines, the same spot his two sisters disappeared last year...

"Quinn...you ok?" Her friend, Stuart, asked her tentatively. He'd been watching her in growing concern for the past five minutes as her face gradually darkened, like a thundercloud. "Quinn..."

"He's dead." She replied shortly, spinning her laptop around on the kitchen table to face him. Stuart was still none the wiser.

"Who's dead?" He took a seat opposite her and furrowed his brow, eyes quickly taking in the screen. 

Quinn ran a hand through her long, dark hair and looked away. 

"Pops." Came her short reply.

Stuarts eyes flew up to her face once again, "Wait...what?! How?" He scrambled for a response as she sighed deeply.

"Says in here he died helping some kids save their friend up on Blackwood Pines," She scowled, "Some good it did; the guy's still missing." Silence filled the kitchen; Stuart didn't know what to say as he scanned through the online article. Was he supposed to comfort his friend? Quinn and her father hadn't exactly had a normal father-daughter relationship; heck he'd shipped her off to boarding school just to keep her out of his way.

"Hey...Quinn..." A thought had suddenly occurred to him, "If the guy's still missing...and he's alive then won't he..." Stuart left the idea hanging in the air, but Quinn understood; she'd had a similar idea as soon as she'd read the article (and her initial rage subsided).

"Be one of them? Well it's only been a week so not yet I don't think." Quinn frowned, "But...if he continues to live up there, then it's only a matter of time." Stuart's mind was racing. "And...if the police find him in that state, he'll get them. And without Pops up there to keep the other Wendigo's in check who knows what'll happen to the people nearby if they decide to roam..." Stuart was chewing his finger nails by this point; none of what she'd said had been good. 

Quinn suddenly sprang up from her chair, making him jump.

"What're you thinking?" He asked, regaining his composure and immediately recognising the look on her face. "You look like you have a plan..."

"You bet I do." She mumbled, leaving the room; Stuart followed.

"You're going to the mountain aren't you?" He asked with a sinking feeling in his stomach; he had heard more than enough about the place to know it was about as far from safe as safe could be.

"I'm going to the mountain," she echoed back,  "But first..." She peaked her head around her bedroom door, her eyes glittering in the dim light, "I'm gonna have to take a little detour."

A/N This section was initially attached to chapter 1 - interrogation, but I figured it made more sense to split it considering the time and perspective shift between this and the next part. Re-reading this has ignited my love for the game so much!