They took their time to check everything at least once, knowing that the first round would be wasted on observation anyway.
The result was quite simple – the patients here were indeed treated well, but there were hints here and there that things weren’t fully as they seemed. For example, the timetables for several doctors had whole hours where their tasks weren’t documented, and the same went for nurses and security guards.
“Time to go upstairs.” Once River was satisfied, he put back the last folder. Aspen listened at the door to ensure that no one was outside who could see them.
“It really is too quiet though-”
It was as if Aspen’s words were a jinx. They could hear Amber shout something from upstairs, mixed with the voices of Plaster and Rhythm. Shortly after, a shadow rushed down the stairs – right past them, almost bumping into Aspen.
River pulled Aspen to the side, who gave him a thankful glance. The shadow paused at the end of the stairs, head moving frantically, before he ran into the kitchen area.
Amber almost fell down the stairs, catching up with River and Aspen. “That guy, he suddenly appeared!”
“We saw where he came from. It was a room that’s supposed to be something like an office”, Plaster hurriedly stuttered. “He just ran out and downstairs, and there was noise from upstairs-”
The noise joined them soon, in the form of two distinct nurses and two distinct security guards.
The light had been turned off by now. The four moved with flashlights, keeping very quiet, likely so as to not alert any of the sleeping patients. The two nurses moved together towards the left wing, one of the guards to the right wing.
The last guard entered the kitchen while, unknown to him, followed by four people.
Having lost sight of the Actor for a moment, even they didn’t know where he was.
“Escaping. It’s the topic of the games so far. We either have to stop or help that guy, is my current guess. None of you do anything to mess with the setup – we need to see the original end first.”
The games River knew worked according to the topic of escapism.
The little lady that wanted to escape with the gardener.
The murdering aunt who had to escape the house.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
The bullied girl who wanted to escape the influence of her bullies.
Ccv cbk, j qjalfca ktb kjr frmjqlcu jc jrsiew.
“Lf’r ogbw atf atlgv oibbg. Mlcv tlw, kf cffv ab rff ktja tf vbfr!”
“Ljnf P fnfg wfcalbcfv atja sbe wjxf j gfjiis mbbi ifjvfg?” Crqfc atgfk atf mbwwfca ja Elnfg lc jwerfwfca, atfc tegglfv ab rfjgmt atf xlamtfc.
Qlat atf olnf bo atfw, atfs wjcjufv ab olcv atf Cmabg delmxis vfrqlaf tlr ugfja tlvlcu rxliir. Lf wbnfv ilxf lc j tbggbg ujwf, xffqlcu lc vjgx mbgcfgr bea bo atf rfmeglas uejgv’r rluta jcv rklamtlcu qijmfr mbcrajcais rb jr ab cba ufa mjeuta. Lf fzqfgais erfv atf ajyifr, mtjlgr, jcv atf jmaeji xlamtfc jgfj ab xffq tlwrfio tlvvfc.
If this was a real person, you’d have to applaud his skill.
The Actor had a short frame. He was either naturally bald or shaven, and his hands kept on quivering. He was wearing a short-sleeved shirt and no shoes.
Because only a single person was around, he actually managed to keep hidden.
If this was a real horror game, then by leaving through the door, he’d have entered the next area or be free.
But this wasn’t a digital game, and there was another security station right outside the kitchen, at the reception. The security guard had either been informed somehow or just heard the movements of his coworker, as he must have gotten up from his station.
The very moment the patient reached the door and planned to open it a bit to slip through, it opened with a whoosh.
The guard and patient froze at the unexpected meeting. There was a loud shout.
The patient struggled at being held down and started to scream, but a gloved hand shut his mouth. Muffled, tense shouts kept on escaping him.
A call for help, for the other patients, for anyone who was so merciful to notice him.
I’m not dead! Someone, anyone, please help me! Don’t lock me away again!
…Amber rubbed her arms. Plaster and Rhythm took a step back.
River couldn’t help but glare at Aspen in accusation.
Aspen pouted. “No voice-over? I thought it fit the mood.”
“It sure made everything about twenty times creepier”, Amber complained quietly, rubbing her ears. Now that Aspen had whispered those words, she too could hear the screams of the patient who had fled for his life, only to get caught again.
The short exchange only managed to ease the mood momentarily. The patient on the floor was sobbing, his resistance growing weaker as the second security guard also joined to hold him down.
Even as a shadow, he was visibly emaciated. He couldn’t put up a fight against two trained guards.
One of them pushed a piece of cloth into his mouth, the other pulled him up into a sitting position so they could tie his arms behind his back. The helpless resistance died down more and more, until all he did was quietly sob – a sound like something slowly dying.
A nurse entered the kitchen. The shine of her flashlight also illuminated the director, who approached the patient with steady steps. The director went down into a squat, trying to calm the patient with a soothing voice.
On the ground, the patient shivered and cried harder, even attempting to move closer to the security guards. He was shaking his head in terror, a movement completely mismatched with the kind voice of the director.
Aspen reacted with the greatest amount of discomfort. River noticed him step closer until the smaller man was half hidden behind him, fingers around River’s sleeve. The easterner merely glanced at Aspen – whose expression was a forced pokerface – and didn’t push him away. He could guess why the scene was the worst for Aspen, which was likely why the other had tried to change the mood before.
They followed as the patient was dragged into the administration room. He was kept restrained while the director asked various questions that none of the players could understand.
Having the chance, River called on the others.
“What have you found?”
Plaster and Rhythm spoke up first. “We checked the treatment rooms. They were a bit creepy but… probably normal? They were brightly lit and it smelled like disinfectant. We found a lot of written test sheets, but also shelves with medication.”
“Psychoanalysis and common medical treatment”, River mused.
“I checked the washrooms and managed to take a glance into something that looked like a sleeping chamber for the doctors. Both nothing special. Although I… ran into Honey and Deer.”
“What did he want?”
“He asked if I knew you two.” Amber nervously played with her hair. “I didn’t answer him. I know you said he’s not good, but I didn’t really believe that until he got me alone… He’s… really scary somehow…”
Amber shuddered.
If she had to compare it, then Aspen was like someone with a gun watching an animal inside a zoo. It was unsettling for sure, but he didn’t use the gun on you as long as you behaved.
But Deer… had felt like a wild wolf with rabies – no matter how calm he appeared, you still had a feeling that he was about to tear out your throat at any moment, like a hunter watching prey.
“Who is he in reality…?”
“He works in a drug den.” River saw no reason to keep it a secret, though his answer did cause Aspen to grow suspicious of how they could know each other in that case. “What about Honey?”
“Oh, she just offered that I could join her in searching for the exit any time I wanted to. She also asked me to notify her if I found a weird door.”
That was no different from the last game they had played together. Honey was determined to find that rumored door out.
Honey was no problem. She was peaceful and had no ill will. Deer, on the other hand, was seriously hard to gauge. Why did he want to find out more about River? He was already taking the drug obediently. Why would Deer still hold an interest in him?
More annoying, if Deer found out that Ling Xian was searching for Aspen, he might inform him. It wouldn’t affect Aspen, who was locked away, but River would suffer.
Thoughtful, River scratched his thumb.
The only way to permanently kill someone inside the dreams was to have them eaten by a shadow, but that included endangering yourself a lot.
Worth it?
…Probably not.
Author’s Note
Will I ever remember scheduling chapters?
I feel like those behind these games are playing with the feelings of the players. For example, “someone else’s straw” was the theme of River and this time, with the asylum, it’s more Aspen. But either way, shadows have sufferings that are similar to both. I wonder if River will be able to contain Aspen if he can’t stand Deer or the asylum patient situation. SHORT! Thank you so much for this chapter!! I loved it again ~♡
That’s a fun theory but actually it’s me doing it. Very much on purpose. :’D You found out!
XD I understand, as an author I do the same too. Because making our protagonists suffer is an intrigue that keeps them going and gives them a reason to fight. I would just like them not to collapse, because we get attached to them, and want their happiness. Well, I say that but I don’t trust myself to post my work ^^’ I’m more of a painter. Sorry, I went too far =v=’.
Posting your work is a very scary thing to do indeed… So it’s understandable that you hesitate!
The problem is that if I don’t read myself I make 30,000 mistakes… Yet what would I want to post my BL stories ><! That’s why I respect you a lot, and why I like discovering new chapters every week.🙂
Thanks for the chapter ! ^^
Thank you for the chapter 🙂❤️