RED VEIN: 1999

After investigations into the Camp Ashland massacre had run their course, the secrets from this tragedy finally faded, but the story continues 12 years later in 1999.

 

The young and wild, looking for a good time close to the new millennium, descend upon a disused warehouse in the woods for the infamous Full Moon Pop-up Rave. No one questions the mysterious street drug with the “VV” on the label, but as music thumps, lights flash, and their hearts pump with the rhythm, a change is slowly taking over… 

 

… It was only a matter of time. Deranged campers in fur, feather, and bone had been found in the woods those many years ago. Their blood, collected and refined by a shadowy organization, was used for horrible and violent experiments. As testing of the new narcotic continued in a laboratory set-up in a former home for wayward children, researchers injected their formula and observed as victims contorted, shifted, and developed a “wolf-like” appearance, savagely craving the hunt. And as the light from the moon shines down upon the latest rave, the drug’s chemistry starts altering its users into their final form…

RED VEIN: 1999

After investigations into the Camp Ashland massacre had run their course, the secrets from this tragedy finally faded, but the story continues 12 years later in 1999.

 

The young and wild, looking for a good time close to the new millennium, descend upon a disused warehouse in the woods for the infamous Full Moon Pop-up Rave. No one questions the mysterious street drug with the “VV” on the label, but as music thumps, lights flash, and their hearts pump with the rhythm, a change is slowly taking over… 

 

… It was only a matter of time. Deranged campers in fur, feather, and bone had been found in the woods those many years ago. Their blood, collected and refined by a shadowy organization, was used for horrible and violent experiments. As testing of the new narcotic continued in a laboratory set-up in a former home for wayward children, researchers injected their formula and observed as victims contorted, shifted, and developed a “wolf-like” appearance, savagely craving the hunt. And as the light from the moon shines down upon the latest rave, the drug’s chemistry starts altering its users into their final form…

Timeline

1508

In a dreary alleyway on the streets of England, a sick and dying vagrant named Nicholas entered into a blood oath with the sinister demon Redvyn. As Nicholas begged for his life, Redvyn promised him good health and many riches, in exchange for a life of servitude and obligation. First Nicholas must give up his soul. Next he was to find a wife and have many sons, spreading Redvyn’s namesake throughout the land. Lastly, generations from now, Redvyn would send a daughter to marry one of Nicholas’ descendants, as is foretold in the Book of Knowledge.

1652

Thomas Redvyn, Nicholas’ great-great grandson, and his wife Emily traveled to North America in the late seventeenth century from Europe, having met and married two years prior. Thomas came from the wealthy Lord Redvyn family of England, while Emily claimed to be Irish-born and poor. They first settled in Massachusetts and joined a Puritan community, fitting right in with the leadership circle.

1653

Late into the second year in the community, two families reported missing children, aged 5 and 6. Around that time, Thomas saw Emily carrying the Allan family newborn baby inside their barn. After a confrontation, Emily was able to convince Thomas that she possessed powers and abilities beyond his wildest dreams. Knowing he had no choice, Thomas reluctantly went along with Emily’s plan and for the time being was able to keep her secret. A month-long investigation by community leaders on the missing children led them to discover the bloody blanket of a child in Thomas and Emily’s barn.

1654

That February, Emily Redvyn was officially accused of kidnapping and murder. By the time the townsfolk arrived at the Redvyn residence to place her under arrest, both Thomas and Emily had already escaped.

The Redvyn name popped up again in Virginia many years later….

1781

In the late 1700’s, a small facility named Providence Home for Wayward Children was founded in the area now known as Hanover County. The founder’s name was Emily Redvyn. No one at the time knew of the Redvyn name or it’s history in Massachusetts, and Emily was described as young and vibrant. Providence was known to accept children who were abandoned, those with mental and physical handicaps, addictions, or just needing guidance.

1795

After years without incident, suddenly reports of missing children began to spread throughout the settlements in the area. Emily Redvyn was eventually arrested and sentenced to death for practicing witchcraft. The townsfolk first tried drowning her in a nearby lake without much success. She was then hanged from a tree. When a pulse was still found on her body, she was set on fire, decapitated, and disemboweled. Her remains were buried under the tree in which she hung.

 

As the townsfolk ransacked her residence and went through her possessions, they found a book full of obscure symbols and arcane magic. A local preacher, using what knowledge he gained from the book, was able to trap Emily’s soul, forever encapsulating her in the void. Witches at the time were known to possess rabbits, not black cats, so all rabbits in the area were hunted and slaughtered, with their remains splayed around Emily’s tree. It’s said the field where Emily’s body was buried was covered in red for days following her execution.

 

Several years passed…

1931

Providence reopened as a reform school operating under a new head mistress and her family. They adorned the home with pictures of Emily and Thomas, and blocked off certain sections of the property known as “Emily’s Quarters”, which is assumed to be part of the original Providence. The majority of the home was destroyed in a Christmas fire 15 years later with most residents perishing, though some members of the family disappeared without a trace.

1987

Summer of ’87 has finally given way to autumn in Virginia! As the leaves change and nights grow cooler, counselors and campers at Camp Ashland prepare for their annual Halloween Bash on farm land near the old abandoned orphanage and asylum of Hanover. The grounds include great camping sites, plenty of woods for hiking and outbuildings for activities. But as they ready the apples for bobbing and the pumpkins for carving, the dark and mysterious history of the land begins to resurface. Certain campers find themselves stalked by maniacs in the corn fields and woods, while others are starting to act on the whispers in their dreams. Whispers from obscure, discordant voices, beckoning them to do the bidding of sinister owl-like creatures from an ancient coven. As the All Hallows’ Eve celebration draws closer, party invitations are sent out and jack-o-lanterns are lit… but the threats at Camp Ashland loom larger…

2016

A local scientific research organization, while investigating a new Richmond-based cult calling themselves The Order of Red Vein, stumbled upon the story of Emily Redvyn and began piecing together her malevolent history. Through their research, they discovered the location of the original Providence house, including Emily’s tree and her final resting place, at Hanover Vegetable Farm in Hanover County. That October, Unexplained Virginia gave historical tours of the area with the hope that they’d finally be able to tell the true history behind Emily Redvyn. Unfortunately, during one of the tours, many lost their lives under violent circumstances and the area was closed off to the public. In the scramble to save their research, the remaining team moved everything into an abandoned building near the Providence location, thought to be Redvyn Asylum, which was one of the first mental hospitals in Virginia.

2017

No one has heard from Unexplained Virginia since last Halloween night, sans a few random posts from their social media page. In August, the team started updating their website from inside Redvyn Asylum, explaining they were trying to “close the gateway”. The updates included entries from Thomas Redvyn’s seemingly lost diary. And as October approaches, sounds can be heard coming from the research center building…

2019

After the sudden and mysterious deaths of the paranormal researchers in Ashland, a pestilence now spreads throughout the region. Strange red veins mark the fingers and neck of all infected, 73 years since the last outbreak in Virginia. The area surrounding the long-standing Redvyn Asylum facility has been taken over by government agencies as they prepare residents for decontamination. Stories of demonic possession and human mutations fill the hallways as more residents continue to file into the asylum. If one were to look beyond the chaos, towards the outline of the woods, and at the old, abandoned house that sits on the hill, they’d see the lights in the windows slowly flicker on one by one. Emily Redvyn waits. And as history has shown, like an approaching storm, plagues are a sign for great change. The Ashland Witch calls forth her twins…

2020

Last October’s witch’s plague brought forth unprecedented devastation and carnage to the region. Government decontamination facilities at the old asylum have been abandoned, leaving the dilapidated building open for plunder. Local treasurer hunters from the Sons of Stone, taking advantage of the chaos, have set up a temporary auction of their varied collections, consisting of pieces pertaining to the history of the farmland. History that includes demonic possession, paranormal experiences and peculiar stories that mention a mad doctor, cannibalistic killers, long lost sideshow performers, a haunted orphanage, red-cloaked figures and of course the Ashland Witch. These treasure hunters are also giving residents their only opportunity to see the collection’s crown jewel: a stone tablet etched with esoteric inscriptions that’s said to grant the holder a long life and great fortune… at a price. Legend has it, that this piece is one of four tablets, which when assembled together, open a doorway to the other side…

2021

The Witch’s Plague opened our eyes. Her relics opened the gateway. Out of the earth they crawl to the surface, leading us to what lies beyond the veil. Awakened by her scourge, new insect-like creatures and winged beasts have been spotted in the area, while human mutations spread throughout the region. A group of missionaries, calling themselves the Eclipse, have taken over the abandoned asylum and invite residents to join their mission to save themselves. Using the symbol of a moth, they speak of death and the mysteries of the afterlife… and an evolution of something new. In this final chapter of The Witch’s Plague, will you be chosen for the metamorphosis?