I sat there for a while, letting the anger burn itself out until all that was left was exhaustion. My hands throbbed, my head pounded, but I forced myself to breathe, slow and deep. I wasn't going to let this place break me. Not yet. I wiped the sweat from my brow, grabbed my camera, and stood up. Time to move.
I stepped out of the room and nearly gagged. The hallway was lined with bodies—patients, or what was left of them. Some were strapped to gurneys, others slumped against the walls, all of them twisted and broken in ways that made my stomach turn. Tortured, mutilated, left to rot. I'd seen death before, but never like this. I wanted to scream, to smash something, but what was the point? This place was hell, and I was just another lost soul wandering its halls.
I heard footsteps—heavy, deliberate. The doctor. I ducked behind a toppled cabinet, holding my breath as he entered the room I'd just left. He stomped around, muttering to himself, then let out a furious scream.
"Stupid! Stupid, stupid, STUPID!" he bellowed, slamming something against the wall. "You think you can hide from me, Itsumi? You're nothing! Just another broken toy!"
I almost laughed, whispering under my breath, "Takes one to know one, asshole."
The doctor kept ranting, pacing the room. "You think you're clever, don't you? Running around my hospital, breaking my rules. I'll find you, Itsumi! I always do!"
While he raged, I slipped out, moving as quietly as I could. I needed to get out of here, and fast. I scanned the hallway, searching for any sign of an exit. That's when I saw it—a battered old elevator at the end of the corridor. My heart leapt, but when I reached it, the panel was dead. No power. Of course. Nothing in this place was ever easy.
I looked around and spotted a map painted on the wall, crude but clear enough. It showed the layout of the hospital, with two generator rooms marked on opposite ends of the building. Because of course they were. Why make it easy when you can make it a goddamn nightmare?
I set off toward the first generator, nerves jangling. The halls were eerily quiet, every shadow a threat. I was halfway there when I heard it—the whine of a chainsaw. The nurse. I bolted, sprinting down the corridor as fast as I could.
"Come here, patient!" the nurse shrieked, her voice echoing off the walls. "Let's play a little game!"
"Not today, lady!" I shouted back, ducking into a side room and shoving a heavy cart in front of the door. The chainsaw roared, metal screeching against metal, but the barricade held. For now.
I found the generator and flipped the switch. The lights flickered, then buzzed to life. One down, one to go.
I checked the map again. The next generator was in the basement storage. I crept down the stairs, every step echoing in the silence. At the bottom, I spotted the doctor and the nurse arguing.
"You're useless!" the doctor spat. "Can't even catch one pathetic patient!"
The nurse revved her chainsaw, glaring. "Maybe if you stopped talking and started helping, we'd have him already!"
"Enough!" the doctor snapped, and with a sudden, brutal motion, he drove his scalpel into the nurse's chest. She dropped the chainsaw, collapsing in a heap. The doctor wiped his hands on his coat and walked away, humming to himself.
I waited until he was gone, then hurried to the generator and switched it on. The hospital hummed with power, lights blazing in every corridor. I hurried back to the elevator, hope flickering in my chest.
But then I heard it—a deep, guttural roar, followed by the thunder of hooves. The bull. The fucking bull was back.
I froze, heart pounding. "Oh, come on! Haven't I suffered enough?" I muttered, glancing around for any escape.
Could I survive another round with that monster? Was there any way out of this nightmare?
I didn't know. But I wasn't going down without a fight.