That Part Chapter 27: Reality Lowdown

This is a Skyrim/Alan Wake 2 fic. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

This chapter has been edited due to content. If you want to see the unedited version GO HERE.

ALEX

I tried to keep my breathing calm. It wouldn't do to lose control of myself now that Alan Wake was in the backseat. I was close to getting the answers to all my questions and couldn't risk losing that chance. So I had to resist my instinct to torment the man that caused me so much pain.

The man that had caused so many others pain. At least I was still alive unlike some of his other victims.

I had made the right call putting Saga in charge of this investigation. Unlike me, she didn't have a personal connection to the murderous writer. She had a more objective view on him.

Out of the corner of my eye I looked at Saga. Wherever she had gone had left her shaken. Her eyes looked at the rear view mirror which showed the reflections of the other passengers: Jash and Alan Wake.

Jash was back in human form and so anyone that looked at him saw how shaken he was. What did he know about Alan? Why the **** wouldn't he tell me? Did he think the truth would shatter my sanity?

Maybe he was right.

I didn't want the writer anywhere near either Jash or Saga. Unfortunately we couldn't leave the damn writer by himself. My partner thought he would hurt himself. I thought that he would begin another murderous rampage like he had in New York.

At least if Alan had to be killed, Jash would do the deed without any hesitation. He had both fought in a war and was one of the best assassins. He had long ago learned to not let his actions be hampered by his thoughts. Saga was different.

“I’m sorry.” Alan said.

During the ride Alan had regained his voice. I found it hard to hate such a pathetic man. It even took some time to remind myself of how deadly he actually was. It was him who had lead the Cult of the Word back in New York. It was probably even him that lead his own wife to suicide.

But it was hard to remind myself of that when he looked as if the devil himself had personally ****** him up.

“Why?” I drawled.

“For not knowing you were real.” Alan replied as if he didn’t care how pissed off I was. “I should have made sure there wasn’t an actual Alex Casey.”

“It should not be yours to question yourself too harshly.” Jash reassured him. “Whatever this Dark Presence is is much more important.”

“Alan is right.” I snapped. “He could’ve searched my name.”

“Ah, yes.” Saga said with a sigh. “Because everyone would think to make sure that someone who solved cases with the last name of Casey was real.”

If it had been anyone but her, I would have had to force myself not to slap the **** out of her. But she was a good woman and was doing her best to keep everyone in line. Even someone that should do better. Besides, it would take more fingers than I had to count all the times she had come to my aid.

“The Dark Presence is just some delusion Wake came up with.” I said once my pulse went down. “He wants to blame this…entity instead of himself.”

“The manuscript pages.” Jash said. “Tim Breaker disappearing. Agent Nightingale coming back from the dead. To deny any magical element to this quest would be pure insanity.”

“What does it all mean?” Saga mused. “That we’re just characters in Alan’s story?”

“Answers to questions caused by powerful magic are rarely so simple. For brevity’s sake, also to avoid a lively discussion about the nature of fate and free will, the answer is yes.”

“No.” I snapped. “You didn’t come here because of a sociopathic writer. He doesn’t control your life.”

“We’re going to play the quiet game now.” Saga said with a tone that bordered on pissed off.

Jash started to open his womanly mouth and quickly closed it. I knew he wanted to ask what the quiet game was but was smart enough not to. I figured he would have to eventually realize she was politely telling all of us to shut up.

I wanted to snap at Saga but remained quiet because she was right. We were on the clock and I was acting like a child. If I could have just kept my **** mouth shut we all wouldn’t be forced into silence now.

My mind drifted to Logan, Saga’s daughter. She had the quick wit of her mother. Whatever happened in Bright Falls shouldn’t hurt her. But Alan’s Cult of the Word had been all the way up to New York once before. Why couldn’t it happen again?

Rose, from the diner, had told Saga that Logan had died. It had spooked Saga as the woman had said it like it was common knowledge. But the girl was still alive as she had spoken to Saga as we had neared Bright Falls. Then she had called mere moments ago and Saga had told me her daughter had fallen in the shower.

What if Rose was part of Alan’s new cult? What if he planned to murder Logan?

If I hadn’t met Jash before now, I wouldn’t have been able to come to those conclusions so fast.