Duskwood fan. Theories.

I also recently finished my very first fanfiction entitled, "Into Duskwood". Basically, it's a continuation of what happens after Episode 6, and it's where I put on my theories with a little bit of backstory.

It's now part of a series called Duskwood Universe. I'm planning to expand it and make stories for the other characters, too, but I haven't thought of which character to do next yet

In case you're interested, below's the link. I'd love to get feedbacks, by the way! 😊😊

I sat down on my bed, leaning on the headboard for support as I opened the only laptop I was able to bring with me. I typed away the codes in the program I made for her phone and started reading the conversations that I missed while I was fleeing.

She made significant progress on the call log after our last conversation. She found out that the second number belongs to a certain "Alan" and reminded me of the video that we weren't able to discuss yet. I looked for the video in question and analyzed it.

The video seemed to come from a bedroom security camera, and it's focusing on the glass door of what looks like a patio. Then there was a rapid knock on the glass door. I tried changing the brightness of the video to see who or what it was, but the footage still remained dark.

She and Lilly were also able to work on the puzzle I left for them, and I'm glad they're figuring it out without being at each other's throats.

I was reading through the messages when I saw a conversation between her and Phil, the third number on Hannah's call log.

Jessy's brother, right?

What can I do for you?

I want to ask you something.

You're so cute. :)

No, Hannah isn't in my basement

I've only just checked :)

That's a relief.

He's talking about Hannah like this is all a joke, and I don't like it. Also, while I've already read from their conversations how Jessica's brother can be such a flirt, I never thought he would be this upfront with her. He hadn't even seen her, and he's already calling her cute. And he's using the same emoticon as me. I really don't like it.

He mentioned how Hannah called him and asked to meet up at his place, thinking that Hannah is into him and is looking for a distraction. I stretched and closed my fist as I read through the chat, wanting to punch something in place of him. How bold of him to assume that Hannah will do something like that.

While I am glad she was able to get some information out of Phil, I don't like how he ended their conversation.

When will you be in Duskwood next?

What kind of question is that?

Haha, calm down

I just wanted to invite you to come over and say hi in the Aurora :)

Sure, I'd love to 🙂

I'm looking forward to it :)

What made matters worse is that she agreed to it. I don't know whether she's bluffing just to end the chat or she's really serious about going to Duskwood. She can't, it's too dangerous for her.

The group's conversation took a different turn after Phil was arrested by the police. On what grounds we don't know yet, but it was enough for Jessica to stir up the conversation and create a rift between them.

While discussing Phil's arrest I can't help but bring up their last conversation.

I saw that you had a long conversation with Phil.

Why did he invite you to come to the Aurora?

All of Duskwood seems to know me.

You said you would go.

Are you jealous?

I was taken aback by that question. Am I jealous? Of course, I'm not! Why would I be jealous that they were talking casually and he called her cute? I am not jealous at all. I replied instantly.

No.

Are too.

He seems very unlikeable.

What? On the contrary 😆

I don't understand. She keeps on contradicting me about this Phil person. It doesn't sit well with me.

Well then it's just me who doesn't like him.

I just don't want you to go to Duskwood.

It would be too dangerous for you.

An objective analysis leaves no room for jealousy.

But my worries about you do.

I will decide that for myself.

I sighed in resignation, the tension in my head leaving. Why am I even arguing with her about this knowing how determined she could be?

Of course, I can't forbid you.

I can only ask you not to do it.

I can feel the tension rising again so I decided to change the topic, mentioning Alan's name on the call log. We talked about how Duskwood Chief of Police might be involved in this and why Hannah called him.

While talking about the bracelet in the pawnshop and how we should continue investigating, she asked me something I had a hard time answering.

Do you ever ask yourself if we're going too far?

How far is too far when it comes to a person's life?

I cannot answer that question.

To be perfectly honest I wasn't sure what to say next after preventing those hackers from getting into her phone. It only dawned on me that I have put her in great danger, the very thing that I was afraid of since the beginning.

I can't help but worry. Now that she has experienced what those hackers can do, will she be angry at me for leaving her alone? Will she be too afraid to talk to me again?

Her reply didn't exactly help ease my worries.

Do you know that I feel like crying right now?

I am sorry.

So incredibly sorry.

Did you just deflect those hackers?

Yes, I stopped them in the very last second.

You owe me an explanation.

I read her messages again and thought that she doesn't seem angry. That's a good sign. I began explaining how I programmed Nym-0s for her in case my pursuers decided to concentrate their efforts into her to find me, even though it was highly unlikely.

Why didn't you warn me?

Okay, I take it back. She seems angry. If there's one thing I noticed about her from the way she sends messages, it's that when the emojis are gone, she's very cross with me. Or at least, that's what it seems like.

We might have come up with something together.

Because I truly believed that my fears were unwarranted.

I told her how the trending hashtag helped in my escape, providing me with an immense time advantage.

Nobody has ever done anything like that for me in my entire life.

I don't know how I can express how grateful I am to you.

You don't have to 🙂

I exhaled a big sigh of relief when I saw that little smile emoji after her message. She's not angry, after all. Maybe just a little bit rattled.

:)

I hope that someday I will find the appropriate words for it.

What should I do if the attackers come back?

Don't worry about it.

I would continue receiving alerts from Nym-0s.

But they would leave you in peace anyway.

I made sure of that.

Why did they attack me of all people?

Because you are the only person who I care about.

My pursuers must have realized that, too - how I would go to great lengths to protect her from them. That's why I made the puzzles and Nym-0s in the first place.

You chose my name as your password

I was happy about that 🙂

I hoped you would like that.

So what happens now?

Give me sometime before we discuss everything else.

I have to set up my equipment and read up on everything first.

I was taking my other equipment from the backpack when she replied.

I missed you so much 😔

I missed you, too.

I couldn't think of anything else except you.

What I would tell you when we finally spoke again.

How it might be once all of this is over and we have found Hannah.

I was especially afraid of losing you.

Why should you be losing me?

I was afraid that you would no longer want to be in contact with me out of fear.

I had left you alone.

I wanted to protect you but I only made everything worse.

Can you forgive me for this mistake?

Yes Jake, I can.

Thank you.

:)

I will get back in contact with you again as soon as possible.

I kept running away from the place, taking one train after another with no destination in mind. When I feel like I am far enough, I sit in one of the chairs in the train station, catching my breath and calming down.

I opened my laptop and noticed that the system I made has already finished its course and the bot I used, Nym-Os, alerted me to its completion.

I'm glad that her and Lilly have managed to work together to open it. It was a gamble to trust the both of them to work out their differences, but I feel like Lilly is quite reasonable, and she will be able to convince Lilly of my intentions.

I clicked on the video that I left to the both of them.

When you see this, I'll already be gone. I'll have gone into hiding or my pursuers will have managed to find me. Forgive me that I couldn't tell you in person, but this way, I want to ensure that you find out who I really am.

On the one hand, I owe you, on the other, I don't want you to concentrate on finding me when I suddenly disappear.

I have never told anyone else what I am about to tell you.

I am Hannah's half-brother.

Her and I have never met and although that was the only reason I contacted her all the time ago, I never told her. Soon, I was forced to cut contact with her. But shortly before she disappeared, she turned to me, asking for help.

Hannah and Lilly are the only family I have left and I hope you understand now why I was so invested in finding her. I ask you to keep my secret because I don't want to be responsible for her family breaking apart.

It's no longer in my power to find Hannah. Her fate is now entirely on your hands.

I thank you for our conversations and your trust. We will see each other again when the time comes.

Now that I am on the run again, it would be harder to help her find Hannah, and it would be a good idea to have Lilly by her side to help her.

I put the laptop back in my bag, walking up the stairs out of the train station. That's when I saw this graffiti painted in the wall. It's not that big, but readable enough to catch your attention - an eye symbol drawn in black with the words #IAmJake.

I took my phone to search for the said hashtag, and true enough, a lot of people have been posting pictures and videos of them declaring that they're me - mask and hood and all. It's quite funny and touching at the same time. Could this be her doing?

I realized I need to come up with a plan to help her. I checked the train schedules and bought a ticket going to the countryside.

As I waited to board the train, Nym-0s alerted me to a breach: someone's been trying to gain access on her phone.

ATTACKERS ARE ATTEMPTING TO ACCESS YOUR DEVICE.

I hurriedly opened my laptop and did countermeasures to prevent the hack from proceeding.

ATTACKERS ARE ATTEMPTING TO ACCESS YOUR LOCATION.

The hacker attempted it twice and I was afraid I might not be able to block it. I'm glad I was able to after a while. I boarded the train, anxious of what's to happen. 

They're now targeting her. Because they cannot get to me, they thought they would find out things from her.

When it felt like things have calmed down and they are not trying to attempt to hack her phone anymore, I leaned on my seat, closing my eyes shut and letting sleep claim me for a while.

********

I woke up feeling a bit better. I got off the train and found this motel. It's not much, but good enough for my needs. That's when another attack happened.

ATTACKERS ARE ATTEMPTING TO ACCESS YOUR CAMERA

Shit. They're getting real aggressive, aren't they?

I typed as fast as I could, letting Nym-0s delay the attack with the countdown while trying to defend the system on her phone.

First try. Failed.

Second try. Failed.

While Nym-0s is trying its third attempt, I tried to help reinforce the system, typing as fast as I could.

There are two of them, their masked faces showing on her screen, pointing at her as if to say "we see you".

Too bad for you guys. She has me.

The glitch worked and I was able to stop the hack.

It must be very scary for her to go through that. I must calm her down and tell her how sorry I am. Feeling anxious, I typed the first word that came into my mind.

I must admit that I didn't see Lilly's actions coming. It was very keen of her to look through Hannah's emails to find things about me. I wonder if that's a family trait?

Things haven't been that easy since her video. I have managed to mask my IP address and make sure that those who are after me cannot track my whereabouts. I'm also nearly finished with this system I am working on since the day the group communicated with her. I really hope I don't have to use this, but with the way things are right now, it could be sooner rather than later.

I can't help but think about her lately. By letting her investigate on her own she might put herself in more danger. While I know that she can handle it, there's still this lingering worry that I can't shake.

She managed to find out Jennifer's last name. However, when I checked it in my database, no such name turned up. There must be something wrong with the information that was given to her. I told her not to worry, and I will check on it at a later time.

She also told me that Hannah's friends are starting to doubt me, mainly because of the video and the last call I made to all of them about the vote. To be honest, I don't really care what they think about me. All I care about is that they trust her, and she trusts me.

The forest search was also cancelled. Cleo sent her the letter from the Man Without a Face that Cleo's mother received, along with her pictures, indicating that he's watching her. The only thing that's sure is that Hannah's in the forest, that's why the Man Without a Face is doing everything to prevent people from going there.

The Man Without a Face did something I don't expect him to do - attack Hannah's friends. He attacked Jessica when she was on her way home after their tour. It seems that he's becoming more serious now. Is it because we're getting closer?

After Thomas sent the bracelet to her, we made the connection that it is Jennifer's, and that she is Iris' daughter. Her connection to Hannah is still unclear, but at least Thomas can now rest on knowing that Hannah is not having an affair with another man.

A lot of information was exchanged, but there's really something that's been bothering me.

Can we still talk a bit more?

I mean

Apart from everything else?

Geez, I'm so bad at this. Why is it making me so uneasy?

You mean small talk? 🤭

Yes, that's it - small talk. I was thinking about what to talk about but then I remembered I'm not very good at this, so I asked her the most boring question I can think of: How was her day?

I'm just glad she was able to get what's on my mind and decided to ask the questions and forget about my embarrassing attempt at conversation.

Why do you suddenly have time for small talk?

I don't

Well…

To be honest, it's pretty hard to concentrate on my task when my thoughts always drift off to you.

Somehow, I'm not even sorry about that

Haha

Somehow, I hadn't expected you to be.

I told her that she didn't have to worry about my pursuers finding me - I am doing everything in my power to thwart their plans and fool them.

Please don't worry about me.

They won't find me. :)

How can you be so sure?

Because it would separate me from you.

She's far too important to me now - I won't let them get to me or to her.

The system I was working on was finished and I had to test it again before using it,so I had to cut our conversation. I asked her to go over the call list again so that we can get other leads, and she agreed.

If anything happens, you can message me anytime.

Same to you

I think it would be be

Suddenly, the proximity alarm on my system started flashing. Shit. They found me. They're too close.

I activated the command that will erase all data from my computer set, slammed my laptop shut and into my backpack as I ran out of the room. No time to unplug the computers - they will be empty by the time they reach it.

I looked at my phone one last time before putting it inside my pocket. It's a message from her.

Hello to my fellow detectives and friends. I know I am not that active in Tumblr but on the following weeks I'm afraid I will be more unlikely to post updates on my stories.

I got another job and I'm not sure if my schedule will allow me to write as much as I have before. I'm planning to keep this account open but I will not be able to post as often as I did.

To those who have been following this account, I would like to thank you for your interest and patience. I still want to finish Through Hacker's Eyes and maybe even post oneshots, but from now on it will only be once I get a free time.

This experience of writing fanfics for Duskwood has opened avenues for my creativity, kept me busy researching and learning things (programming and ethical hacking, for example), and helped me ease my worries, especially from this pandemic.

I hope you all will stay healthy and happy 🤗

Until the next episode! ❤️❤️❤️