Audio

"Umm... hi.

"This is Dr. Siena Dupont, and it's around 8 a.m. on day four of the expedition to Mount Agnes. I..."

[Siena laughs. It isn't happy.]

"It's funny. Feyrer almost predicted the amount of misfortune I'd run into on this trip. He always said nothing in Deadswitch was easy. Called it a curse. I used to give him shit for it. Researchers aren't supposed to even entertain the thought of curses, especially when it comes to their magnum opus.

"Are curses passed on when the bearer dies? I know magnum opuses are.

"I shouldn't digress. I'm recording this on the ridge while the others are by the body, and I don't have a lot of time.

"Oh yeah... we found a body. Way to bury the lede, Sen.

"The woman's in her twenties, Asian, designer gear... hanging over a tree limb like she'd been thrown up there. There are no other signs of violence and little decomposition. She must have died recently... maybe fell from something, though I don't know where from other than the freaking sky.

"We booted up the satellite phone but haven't been able to reach anyone, not even 911. It's... strange. I finally gave up when the sun rose, but Cam says I shouldn't have hung up.

"She's acting weird. I mean, all of us are messed up from this, but Cam... she's quiet. Retreating inward and tuning the rest of us out. Since I've known her, I've only seen her do that once or twice. I wonder if it has something to do with her time in Search and Rescue. I'll ask later.

"Before we left, I taped a list of emergency numbers to the back of the satellite phone. The school office, the ranger station, the local sheriff... I've spent the entire morning dialing out without luck. I keep getting a single tone, like a landline off the hook. Phone's busted.

"I'm starting to believe in this curse.

"I really wish Feyrer was here for guidance. I'm feeling... I don't know... shook. Wondering if we should just pack up and head home once we get hold of the police and they question us.

"I'm trying to search for a good memory of him to keep me going... maybe inspire me to continue on despite, you know, finding a dead body. He spoke so fondly of this place. But every time I think of him, trying to find a reason to continue, all I can picture is the hospital.

"Shit, gotta run. Emmett's coming."