[Page 1: The Title Page of the Man*script]
"Departure" by Alan Wake
[Page 2: Wake Attacked by a Shadowy Murderer]
The man turned to face me. His face was covered in shadows. It was hard to make him out in the darkness of the forest that surrounded us, but the axe he lifted was plain to see. It glistened with the blood of his victim.
He grinned madly. The shadows were alive, distorting his features.
It was a scene from a nightmare, but I was awake.
[Page 3: Wake Fights a Taken with light]
The taken stood before me. It was impossible to focus on it, as if it stood in a blind spot caused by a brain tumor or an eye disease. It was bleeding shadows like ink underwater, like a cloud of blood from a shark bite.
I was terrified. I squeezed the flashlight like my life depended on it, willing it to stop it coming any closer. Suddenly, something gave, and the light seemed to shine brighter.
[Page 4: The Dark Presence Wakes Up]
For a long time, the Dark Presence had been weak, sleeping, nothing but a half-forgotten nightmare or a shadowy flicker in the corner of an eye in the forest at night; not real enough to properly exist, and yet too evocative to fade away completely.
Now it was waking up, the writer like a fly caught in a spider's web, each jerk and kick vibrating the strands that led deep into its lair. It was aware of him now, and it could use him.
All he'd need was a little incentive.
[Page 5: Wake Attacked by Birds]
I heard them before I saw them, swooping down from the sky and screeching as they came.
I spun around just as the cloud was upon me. For an instant, I stared into a hundred dead eyes, black pearls glittering in the darkness.
I raised the flashlight and the swarm exploded like fireworks. Feathers burned, turned into ash. I couldn't hear my scream above theirs.
[Page 6: Wake Finds Pages]
At first I kept finding the pages as if by accident. The book I couldn't remember was either a terrible and true prophecy, or an act of creation that had rewritten the world. I began to hunt the pages, feverishly, for they held the answer to the mystery.
With it I could save myself.
With it I could save Alice.
[Page 7: TV in the Gas Station]
I stepped into the gas station's garage. It was dark and quiet. The place was a mess. It looked like someone trashed the place, or that there'd been some kind of fight. Light spilled into the room through an open door at the back, and I made my way toward it.
Without any warning, I was blinded by a bright light. An old portable TV on the shelf had come alive by itself. Impossibly, I could see myself on the screen, talking like a madman.
[Page 8: Wake Lies to the Sheriff]
"The cabin on Cauldron Lake?" she asked.
The Sheriff looked at me suspiciously. The early morning light flooded through the office windows. I would probably never have gotten out of the woods alive without her help, but I couldn't tell her the truth of what I'd faced the previous night. She'd think I was lying, or crazy. She'd lock me up.
And she wouldn't help me find Alice.
[Page 9: Stucky Taken]
Stucky spat on the garage floor and tried to shake the cobwebs from his head. Ever since the couple never showed to pick up the keys, things had been fuzzy.
Something -- a feeling -- caught his attention. Stucky looked up and stared as his brain tried in vain to process the horror before him. He stumbled back, knocking over a can of oil; a black pool spread across the floor while he struggled for a brief moment, then let go as the unrelenting darkness engulfed him.
[Page 10: Rose Daydreams About Wake]
Rose knew she'd been gushing, but right now, she didn't care. As far as she was concerned, her brief meeting with Alan Wake was literally the high point of her life.
She watched as he got in the car with his wife. She was pretty, confident, at ease with Wake, not like Rose. They were perfect for each other.
She'd have given anything to be called their friend.
[Page 11: Barry's Arrival]
Barry Wheeler was bouncing off the walls. He'd jumped on a plane after his calls were ignored by both Al and Alice for several days. It could mean that they were both on a second honeymoon, but Barry didn't buy it. Al had been way too unstable for that -- not sleeping, messed up.
Barry had years of experience dealing with Alan Wake, and he couldn't ignore it; something was wrong.
[Page 12: Toby the Dog]
Toby knew the smell: it was the man, the nice man who always gave him treats and never got tired of playing with him. Toby wagged his tail in excited anticipation and gave a joyous bark. Then there was another smell - a wrong smell - and it was alien enough to stop Toby in his tracks. Confused, he growled deep in his throat. The wrong smell came from the nice man. Blind animal terror pierced the dog's brain an instant before the axe followed suit.
[Page 13: Rose is a Fan]
Barry took another sip of the heavenly coffee. He grinned at Rose. Surely, this was love.
Rose gushed on, breathlessly: "The new one will be a masterpiece. I know it! You must tell him not to listen to the trolls in the forums saying "Departure" will never get finished. He should take his time and make it perfect. I can wait."