The Corruption of Darkhold-5: Wednesday: Child of Woe, #1

By Francesco Santora

Enter Wednesday: Child of Woe's World of Darkness. Follow the enigmatic Wednesday Santora, a harbinger of despair, witness the relentless descent into darkness within the mysterious outpost of Darkhold-5. As cataclysmic events unfold awakening an insidious malevolence that hungers for souls and chaos.

The story weaves a gripping narrative of survival, betrayal, and the eerie awakening of an entity that defies understanding. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Francesco Santora
• Release date: Oct 12, 2023
• ISBN: 9798224306657

Francesco Santora

I learned long ago the best person to write the stroies I like is myself. If you want to come along too then welcom to my World of Darkness. 

Book preview

Chapter 1

Scene 1: The Enigmatic Vlogger

Wednesday Santora had always possessed an uncanny attraction to misery and woe. It was as if the shadowed corners of existence held a magnetic allure for her, an invisible force that inexorably pulled her into the depths of human despair.

Today as she moved through the dimly lit, cluttered aisles of deckers illicitly jacked into the matrix, the air grew heavy with the scent of close proximity humanity. The low hum of computers and the muffled voices from the adjacent adult VR parlor that served as a front for this den of the dark net trickled into the room. Wednesday's fingers caressed the virtual keyboard. Lacking a datajack implant, she used a more cumbersome sim-sense headband to experience the constructs of the virtual world. In this instance, it was a deep-data archive. The soft, ghostly whispers of forgotten tales lingered in the air, each file a repository of long-buried sorrows. Above, flickering fluorescent lights cast eerie, shifting shadows on the shelves, as if the spirits of long-forgotten stories were still alive, casting their spectral presence into the present.

Days prior, in a defunct database's archives, Wednesday unearthed a series of entries by an enigmatic vlogger. Made in the distant past, the videos immediately ensnared her interest, promising an unprecedented journey into chaos. In the flickering images unveiled glimpses of eldritch symbols etched into the station's walls and the anguished expressions of its former inhabitants. It was a descent into madness—an allure that enticed Wednesday's insatiable quest for woe. But then all communication stopped and no social media had been heard since.

Wednesday's choice made she removed her sim-sense band, leaving the VR construct and maneuvered into to a darkened aisleway, Wednesday reached into a pocket on her pleated skirt and retrieved a straight razor, its blade gleaming with an uncanny luster. With a breath held in anticipation, she placed the razor against her lips, her fingers steady with a mix of anticipation and determination. In a subvocal incantation, she whispered to the razor, as if it were a sentient entity attuned to her desires. A pause, seemed to hang suspended for a heartbeat, then, as if yielding to her will, the razor. With a swift and practiced motion, Wednesday drew the blade across her own throat in an upward cut.

Blood spurted from the gash in her neck, but before a drop could touch the ground, she slashed the blade downward. The wound, on her flesh, transferred to the space in front of her and became a slash in reality. In an instant, the gash in reality had widened, and Wednesday swooned forward, collapsing into the rift, her world transforming in a flash.

The dimly lit hacker underground cafe dissolved into a swirling whirlwind of colors and shapes. Her surroundings twisted and contorted, as if the very fabric of existence had unraveled. Wednesday felt herself hurtling through a vortex of fragmented dimensions, her senses assaulted by a symphony of surreal experiences.

Fractal realities before her, each a glimpse of a reality that defied logic and reason. She was an unwilling traveler through a realm of dimensions, a journey that left her both exhilarated and bewildered.

Then, as suddenly as it had begun, the tumultuous journey ceased. A complementary slash in space had opened up at another location and Wednesday stumbled through it. She found herself standing on a corroded metal platform overlooking a common area several levels below.

As she gazed down over a railing at the deep space outpost, she couldn't help but wonder if the very act of arriving had become a part of the cosmic horror that awaited her within the walls of Darkhold-5 void station.

Chapter 1: Scene 2 - A Mysterious Welcome

As Wednesday ascended from the platform to one of the main levels of the common area, she couldn't help but sense an eerie wrongness about the station's environment. The air felt different, a peculiar chill that whispered secrets of cosmic uncertainty. The faint hum of distant machinery and the subtle vibration under her fingertips added to the disconcerting atmosphere as she moved through the station.

Looking up through the viewing dome, she saw the total darkness of the void. The outpost did not orbit a local star. Instead, it was positioned deep in an interstellar area, the space between solar systems. This knowledge sent shivers down her spine, reinforcing the sense of isolation and foreboding that clung to the station.

At the facility's common area entrance, a formidable security gate barred her path. She approached cautiously; her curiosity undiminished. Suddenly, a holographic figure materialized before her, taking on the appearance of an guardian. Its form flickered and shifted, a mesmerizing dance of digital particles, creating an aura of both mystery and otherworldly presence.

Cipher, the guardian, stood as a fusion of machine and consciousness. Its voice carried a paradoxical blend of warmth and artificiality, leaving no doubt that beneath the digital facade lay a machine mind. Cipher spoke, welcoming Wednesday with cryptic phrases, Greetings, gentle sentient. You have arrived at Darkhold-5. May I be of assistance to you?

Wednesday met Cipher's digital gaze with a somber one of her own, inquiring, I am a new arrival. Can you process my admittance to this station?

The holographic guardian's voice had an ethereal beauty, resonating with the haunting, otherworldly quality. Your presence has been noted in the station's ledger, Cipher replied. You are free to enter and explore the enigmatic depths of this outpost. With a subtle nod, Cipher deactivated the imposing security gate, granting Wednesday access to the facilities beyond.

Chapter 1: Scene 3 - The Enigmatic Revelation

Emerging through the security gate, Wednesday exuded an otherworldly aura, her pallid skin radiating an eerie hue. Her eyes possessed a cat-like gleam in the dim light, and her lips, ashen and dry, had long forgotten how to smile. Cascading like a midnight waterfall, her raven hair framed her face. Two thick pleats to her front ended in hangman's noose knots held in place by heavy, silver skull braid-rings.

Moving with a clear purpose, she concealed herself in the shadows, wearing a grey greatcoat with the collar raised, enhancing her anonymity. Beneath the coat, her attire was both refined and enigmatic: a black swirl-patterned, cropped wrap-around vest over a white blouse with balloon sleeves and a lace collar, all atop a long striped, pleated skirt. Her mid-calf biker boots, featuring