Another Life ↬ Paul Lahote

01 *

Fairview Training Center,
Salem, Oregon
1944

His shoes hit the floor loudly as he walks through the doors of the otherwise quiet asylum. The musty, worn down building reeks of what he can only describe as death. The smell of dried blood and dying patients making his enhanced sense of smell reel in disgust.

The screams of the patients and the hum of electricity are the most prominent sounds that reach his ears. Occasionally, he'll catch faint whispers that make his ear itch and quiet sobs that make his frozen heart ache. They're mostly from the patients in the middle levels - the ones whom haven't lost what little humanity they have left in this place.

He wishes he could help them all, every second he ignores the silent pleas, another wave of guilt washing over him. His eyes are glued ahead of him, his path firm in mind despite his conflicting emotions attempting to get in the way. He's on a mission - an important one at that - and he can't be deterred no matter what.

Reminding himself that, should his plan succeed, he'll be saving countless lives from a fate far worse than just death, he continues on. Following in the footsteps of the nurse whom had contacted him weeks prior, it's obvious he displays extra caution in the way his body remains stiff. She isn't deterred by this, caring not for his trust, but for the life of the girl. Only the girl.

Limbs reach out for him through the small windows and bars of their rooms - more like cells - attempting to grab at any part of him in reach. They scream and shout to be let out, pleas of help and even death forced from their lips. Some even resort to slamming their entire bodies against the doors, creating a loud noise that attracts the attention of the guards just down the hall.

His family wait outside in the thundering storm, on alert should he need assistance at any point. They hadn't wanted to risk going inside, paranoid that it may be a trap set by those who would seek out the girl for self-gain. Hell, they hadn't even wanted him to risk stepping into the hellish place, something they protested heavily despite his adamant arguments.

But he was needed, and he would'nt just ignore a plea from a soul in dire need.

He had heard of her kind before, read legends and listened to stories, but he and never seen one with his own eyes. They are the tales told in horror, after all. Scary stories told by towns people to instill fear in the hearts and minds of the naive.