Location 009R part 4

 Here is the final part of "Location 009R." In it, we learn about one of the missing Richwell residents who may make an appearance in another entry once I resume writing new entries for The Agency. Fr now, though, gather some supplies and don't question the voice. 

Location 009R

Testimony 2017-09-26

Arch. Sykes: Statement of the alleged Caleb Henderson who claims to be—

Henderson: I am the Caleb Henderson and I am from that group.

Arch. Sykes: —one of the original residents of Location 009R, also known as Richwell, who walked into the forest and vanished on September 26, 1939. Statement recorded direct from subject by Archivist Theo Sykes with Officer Jude Holland of support team Sigma witnessing. Now, Mr. Henderson—or whoever you actually are—you’re claiming to be from the group that disappeared seventy-eight years ago. Further, you’re claiming that you are Caleb Henderson who, according to birth certificates and town records, was fifteen at the time and would be ninety-three now. As I’m sure you are aware, you look fifteen. You can understand why I find it difficult to believe you.

Henderson: I don’t care what you say. I am Caleb Henderson from Richwell in 1939. I know it is hard to believe, especially if it’s really been as long as you say it has, but it’s the truth. It was September twenty-sixth of 1939. I don’t know what happened, really. One moment everything was fine, but then suddenly there was music and a voice telling us to follow it. It wasn’t in English, but we knew that that is what it was saying. The music was the only thing that we could understand.

            It sounded like…like that song from The Wizard of Oz. The song where they set off to see the wizard. It wasn’t as upbeat as in the movie. It was…slow. More like a funeral march. I don’t know what happened after that. I just know that I joined the others walking. We started walking toward the woods. We just knew that if we got there, we’d find the music, find the wizard. We knew that everything would be better if we just kept walking.

            Someone stopped me and spoke to me, but I don’t know who or what they said or what I said. I don’t know how long I was stopped, but then I joined the others and we walked into the forest, up the trail. Things get a little foggy there. I just know we kept walking and walking. The song was always just out of reach. The voice was always just a little further away. We kept walking and walking and we stopped in front of the wall. There was…a voice. It told us to stand there and it would pick one to join it. I don’t know who it called to it, but suddenly our group was one shorter. I could sense it.

            We started walking again. We kept walking for so long. Any time we stopped at the wall, the voice called one of us to it, told one of us to go back, and told us to eat. I shudder to think what we were eating that whole time. We kept walking and walking. Our number grew and shrunk and sometimes there were others that hadn’t been part of the original group. The routine kept going and we kept walking.

The voice finally spoke to me. It didn’t tell me to come with it or to go home. It just spoke to me. I don’t know exactly what it said. I know it was a good conversation, though. I felt at ease. Safe. It talked and finally told me that I was going to come with it, but then I would go home until it called me again. It told me that I would need to do things for it and it didn’t seem happy when I asked it what it wanted me to do.

It was angry with me for questioning it. It talked to me for a long time then told me to go home. I asked it why I wasn’t going with it and it told me that I needed to learn to appreciate things before it would let me come with it. It told me to go home and it would call me again when I learned to be appreciative and not so defiant. I didn’t argue after that, but it told me that it wanted me to come with it, but I was going to be more helpful to it out here. It didn’t elaborate and I didn’t ask. It told me to walk back the way I came and then I’d be back on the trail and able to find my way home. It told me to just keep walking back down the trail and I would find my way home. It also told me that it had one more thing to tell me. When I asked what it was…I don’t remember what happened after. I just remember pain and then everything went black. Then I was walking off the trail into town and the town looked so different.

Arch. Sykes: Okay. Thank you for your statement. You’ll be remanded to support team Sigma’s custody.

Henderson: You can’t keep me locked up!

Off. Holland: Come with me. Fight and I will tase you.

Arch. Sykes: Statement ends. Until we have confirmation of his identity, the alleged Caleb Henderson will be held in support team Sigma’s custody. Once we have his identity, he’ll likely be kept in Sigma custody.

Arch. Sykes: Addendum—As of October twelfth, Omega scientists and Epsilon medical personnel have reviewed dental records, done DNA tests, and checked his appearance against photographs from that time. They have found that he is, in fact, Caleb Henderson. He has been offered an employment opportunity and it seems likely that he is going to accept. It isn’t as though he has many other options.

 

I hope you've enjoyed "Location 009R." I certainly enjoyed writing it, even though I had to write it during the day only since it spooked me.