Recondite Painting

rating: +17

17 votes (+17, -0) 5★

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> Hey Jim, finally got my hands on those documents you were asking me to restore. Names are kinda corrupted, though. Might still be able to get something out of them. > You never told me why you wanted them, but after reading them, I'd rather not ask. > Sorry for taking a peek, by the way. I couldn't help myself. It's fine. Thanks for the help. <

Open File: %C2AA65 Interior of abandoned house, basement entrance to the upper right. I always pass by an abandoned house on the way to the market. It used to be a meeting place for dealers and drug addicts. I know this because I used to frequent it. The house's interior had a basement door that was always open - I never saw anyone going into it. There were rumors of a painting down there that made people "go missing." I didn't believe them at the time - I thought it was a scare tactic for whatever. I avoided the basement either way. That was back in the 1980s. In recent years, I've acquired a newfound interest in liminality, having stumbled upon my fair share of strange occurrences during travels. Law enforcement has also begun actively hunting down crack dens, pressuring its frequenters to leave - which reminded me of the rumors. They just returned to me one day as I passed by the house. The description of the "painting" matched too well to that of a threshold. As if by gut instinct, I headed down to the house. It was as empty as I expected, but when I entered I shouted that I was police to make sure I was truly alone. The silence that followed was confirmation, so I progressed down to the basement. It was actually there. And in contrast to the house's dirty concrete walls, the ones surrounding the painting were spotless. I've been lacking drive, so I'm looking forward to this.

Open File: |2EE6C p3D@CAE:@? Yesterday, I managed to smuggle a few supplies into the basement. Most notable of which is a chair since there was no furniture. I took them in during nighttime, so I made sure to bring a gun in fear of whatever could be in an abandoned house at that time. I also brought a laptop - I believe my notations will be safer in virtual storage than on paper. These matters aside, I had noticed something interesting. My possessions - including the clothes I had worn during my first visit here - began to lose color. The effect was more significant on objects placed closer to the painting, going as far as removing stains. I somehow believed it'd be a good idea to poke towards the painting, being unpleasantly surprised by the skin at the tip of my finger being sucked into the portrait. I realized something in my pain: how did people disappear from this? There has to be something I'm missing. I'll have to take this more seriously.

Open File: r@?D4:6?46 I've begun having trouble staring at the painting directly. With time, I've started to discern what the hell is exactly going on in it. However, it also becomes harder to comprehend? I'm not sure if I'm conveying this right. It feels like everything in it is moving in such incomprehensible ways. I've contacted a relative who's similarly interested in liminal spaces. If worst comes to worst, they'll retrieve my research. If beyond this threshold is truly a limspace, I hope it's not what's being portrayed by this image.

Open File: x (2?E %@ u:?:D9 %9:D $@ q25=J] The Recondite Painting I kicked a ball into the painting, and it worked. The ball made contact with the picture before disappearing, losing all pigmentation in the process. The same happened to the shoe I kicked with, so that's something. It seems that non-biological matter is absorbed all at once into the painting, in contrast to biological matter, which is absorbed progressively. Example: my finger skin. I feel like I was supposed to be ecstatic, but for some reason, I just can't be happy with this. I've been having constant headaches when staring at the painting - maybe it's that. I will move on to the next stage and then get a break. God, I've only just noticed I've lost a bit of pigmentation myself. Speaking of which, it's about time I came up with a name for this threshold. Maybe "Recondite Painting" due to the headaches it put me through metaphorically and literally?

Open File: !9JD:42= r@?E24E I've put together a few objects through duct tape, namely: a ball, a walking stick, and my chair. I'll be throwing them directly into the "Recondite Painting" - if they're all teleported at once, that will give me an explanation as to how the human disappearances happened. If they don't, I'll just give up and maybe outsource this project to someone more ambitious. I have also been suffering from auditory hallucinations of sorts - I've begun suspecting they're more than that, considering the noises cease the moment I leave the basement. They're a wild mixture of groans and shouting. I can't make out what exactly they're saying amidst the confusion. It's almost deafening - I've been writing this a few steps away from the basement's entrance. I have to get this done as quickly as possible.

Open File: {:>:?2= $A246 they were shouting warnings

+ Author(s)

CHECK. Cjecl pout my other works! The file names are actually encrypted, can you find out what they say?
~ Bloof / Author Page