Chapter One
“This is Madison May – an operative from the Missing Individuals Department. I’m reporting from Northbury, which is a British town in East Yorkshire.
“As I am recording this, it’s now Saturday the 12th of October early morning. I am sitting in my room at the Sunny Gem Resort – a small bed & breakfast that is located in the Town Square. I'm wearing a black silk bathrobe with black slippers. It’s now raining cats and dogs.
“Sadly, I am not in this cosy little village for luxurious reasons. People have been mysteriously disappearing from this vicinity. The police haven’t been able to locate any of them, and the biggest clue is that they all visited this little town.
“The key people I hope to track down are Ryan Richardson, Morgan Johnston, Kirsten Duffy, Demi Carr and Aidan Burns. They belong to the same department as me. They were sent here to investigate, but failed to return to the bureau.
“The bureau was reluctant to send any more field agents to investigate. It took me quite a long time to finally convince the Director to send me here. I am ordered not to directly engage with any hostiles, to gather as much evidence as I possibly can, and to also rescue the missing people I find; their safety is my number one priority. I am also ordered to call for back-up if anything gets too hairy, and I have to wait for the field agents to arrive.
“After my clothes have finished drying, and the rain has finally stopped, I intend to go around town and ask for some useful information. Hopefully, a resident of this small village will help me shed some light on the matter. I hope the missing civilians and my co-workers are safe and sound. End of report.”
#
“This is Madison May – an operative from the Missing Individuals Department. It is now Saturday the 12th of October, in the late morning: it is no longer raining. I managed to change into a leather jacket, a pair of navy blue jeans, black boots and a band T-shirt.
“Even though I am here on official business, the company suggested that I dressed casually to blend in. If I wore the uniform, I'd make a huge scene.
“I already ate my breakfast so I could boost my energy. In the breakfast room, I ate some delicious eggs, crispy bacon, and washed it down with a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice. The food at the Sunny Gem Resort is superb. If I weren’t here on official business, I’d love to soak in the sites more, and get involved with the place’s activities.
“Before I arrived here, I was told at a rest stop that a lot of law enforcements have been threatening to turn the town upside down to find the missing people. The mayor was extremely upset by this, and claims she doesn’t know what happened to the missing people.
“At the rest stop, I was seated next to an elderly fisherman. He looked me right in the eye, and said I should stay away from Northbury, and also that I should go straight home. He told me he had warned countless university students, but they did not heed his warnings.
“I plan on going around town and asking the locals if they know anything. Naturally, I will most likely use my cover that I am actually writing a book. For some reason, people are more than likely to respond to authors than authority figures.”
#
“This is Madison May – an operative from the Missing Individuals Department. I’m back from asking the people around the village some questions about this bizarre case.
“Right now, it is late afternoon and I'm sitting on my bed in the Sunny Gem Resort. I’ve kicked off my boots so I can free my poor aching feet. I could really do with a massage.
“Surprisingly, my theory was right that people were more open to talk to me. The residents were too afraid to tell the authorities where the missing persons had gone. Apparently, the people that disappeared have one thing in common: they’d headed to Grimlow Thicket.
“Grimlow Thicket is supposed to be a sacred site that was a refuge for pagans in the olden days. They had to go there to escape the constant prejudice they had been subjected to. They had allegedly cursed the land to stop any potential intruders from leaving the forest alive.
“I was shocked when I heard that particular urban legend: I swear, it reminded me of another grove where another missing girl had visited. Scarily enough, they managed to find her clothes inside the grove, and they were dumped outside the strange guardian statues.
“I have a theory as to what has happened: The people of the village are in on it, and they are the descendants of the pagans that had cursed Grimlow Thicket. Of course, they are prohibited from telling strangers to visit the grove. Of course, they told me I had to stay away from that grove, and they said the missing people were headed that way. They also told me that they had warned those who had disappeared not to go there, but they did not listen.
“Of course, I informed my superiors that the missing agents probably went to Grimlow Thicket to investigate. My superiors have given me permission to travel to Grimlow Thicket. Hopefully, no one has captured and they’re all safe. End of report.”
#
“This is Madison May – an operative from the Missing Individuals Department. It is now night time and I have finished eating my tea. Tea was indeed amazing: I ate some roast duck with the finest of vegetables, the tastiest gravy, and amazing red wine. It’s no wonder that the Sunny Gem Resort has gotten some fantastic reviews online.
“I did a lot of research on Grimlow Thicket, and I found a lot of other weird stories. Allegedly, pagans needed a strange monster to keep them safe. They allegedly sacrifice some virgins to it. However, I cannot find what the monster looks like.
“I recall reading a bizarre story involving an astronaut that’s tricked into becoming an ancient monster’s pet. The story was written as erotica and it even made blush.
“If my teammates, and the civilians, have been kidnapped by some pagan cult I need to rescue them as soon as I can. Naturally, I have to wait until morning because it’s now far too dark to drive to Grimlow Thicket, and it’s like a two hour drive to get there. After I have a nice relaxing bath, I will surely go to bed. End of report.”
