It looks
like mine...
As I trace each letter, I can hardly believe how effortlessly my hand replicates every detail, down to the smallest imperfection.
Letting my hand move freely, I quickly scrawl the remaining words.
Somehow, it still ends up being a perfect copy of the original message, without a speck of gold ink left on the page.
Another
one?!
It's
almost like it
read my mind...
I write faster this time, the tip of the pen gliding effortlessly over the golden path as if fate was guiding my hand.
That's
what I'd like
to know...
Out of curiosity, I close my eyes to write the next line.
SCRIBBLE
SCRIBBLE
Again, it's completely accurate.
This
shouldn't be
possible... I couldn't
even trace something I
wrote myself this
perfectly.
Is there
some kind of trick
to the pen itself?
A scribble appears on the page next. In theory, it should be more difficult to reproduce.
But again, the movements come naturally to me.
My hand moves in a blur, copying each random scribble that appears on the page without pause. I don't even stop to examine the golden lines before swiftly recreating them.
Just as I decide I've had my fill of this trick, a new mark appears on the page.
...What happens
if I don't copy
what it shows?
What if,
instead of a circle,
I draw a square?
But the pen makes no mark when I try to draw something in one of the blank spaces on the page.
I shake the pen, expecting a few drops of ink to splash the page like last time.
SHAKE
But nothing happens.
Maybe
the pen only
works on top of
the gold...?
Sure enough, the ink flows as I trace the circle.
I veer right.
SCRATCH
Immediately, the ink stops, and I press down more firmly, practically digging into the page.
Pain slices across the back of my hand.
AGH!!
There's a thin laceration running just below my knuckles.
BADUM BADUM
BADUM BADUM
BADUM BADUM
BADUM BADUM
What
the f*ck...!
Did this thing just
cut me!?
I see my blood splattered on the page.
Exactly
where the gold
splotches were
before...!
As if
it knew this
would happen!
TREMBLE
It must be a
coincedence... I'd have
to try again to
be sure.
Another stabbing pain accompanies my second attempt to draw a line.
HSK!
It
happened again...!
As if the lines are being
etched into my skin
instead of the
journal!
The circle gleams ominously on the page, just waiting for me to finish it.
...What
will happen to
me if I refuse to draw
it altogether?
I have a terrible feeling that I don't want to find out.
Alright...
this is the last
time. Then I'm definitely
getting rid of this
thing.
WOOSH
I think I understand now. The journal shows the next "entry" before it's written. So far, every time I finish writing what's shown in gold, another one appears immediately after. As strange as that sounds, it should at least help me to avoid any more surprises until I can get out of here.
Unfortunately, leaving is going to be harder than I thought. Apparently, I own this building. Nearly every cent of my savings is currently tied up in this damn place. Thankfully, I found the paperwork in the back of the filing cabinet. It may take a while to sell, but I could end up turning a profit.
P.S. Get dressed. Mrs. Green is about to arrive.
(clothes on the floor)
...what!?
This can't be
right...!
The sudden creak outside the office door startles me.
Good
morning!
Mr. Mendez?
KNOCK
KNOCK
to hide this object go to the settings
Audio Trigger
W-who's
there?
Please
don't say
"Mrs.Green"...
It's
Mrs. Green,
Mr. Mendez.
f*ck!
What is
happening!?
Thank goodness
I've caught you.
!
Would you
mind opening the
door for me,
young man?
HOP
HOP
Just
a minute!
What
was that,
dearie?
CREAK
ZIP
Oh
nevermind, Mr.
Mendez, I can manage it
myself.
...!
Oh, my...
Am I interrupting
something?
creepy....
So excited to see where this journal thing goes :]
Well I’m glad he didn’t test out what leaving would do to him, he’s had enough trauma already 😅
I think his personal timeline is doing pretty much the same as the lines in the book, lagging slightly behind a previous run of the timeline but always keeping within the same confines.
That had a dark feeling of Dolores Umbridge's Black Quill... I like the idea of a Kogan from the future. I wonder what would happen if he used the pen and journal in front of Mrs Green? If bet the pen would never work. And Kogan could never set hands on another pen to try the journal itself.
I wonder if this is the journal itself, the pen, or someone else like Anne or some other entity. Maybe even a Kogan from the future leaving these entries for himself?
Edit: I thought on it more, and I don't think it's Anne, since she was concerned about her choices potentially not being her own.