Hell Hospital, First Dive (Pt. 1)

--- Maya ---

(Ugh, this is a bad idea.) Her inner turmoil warned as they continued through the darkened halls of the hospital.

(Unfortunately, this is our only lead at the moment.) Her inner reason reminded them of what they didn’t want to remember.

(And technically we can still try talking to Elizabeth.) Her inner passion suggested. (We just have to figure out how to get something useful out of her without making her cry or attack us.)

(Both of which are difficult in their own ways.) Her inner logic pointed out.

(Still better than walking through the hospital hell wing.)

“Look, we just need to get in, find anything on Elizabeth, and then get out.” She interrupted. “We already know where the administration room is, and we’re almost there. As long as we don’t fuck around we should be able to get the file before…”

(The walls start bleeding the blood of the damned?)

“Yeah, that.” She swallowed, before flashing her light over the nearby doors and ignoring the various claw marks on the wall.

(Yeah, that’s definitely not a good sign.)

“Like I said, get in, find the files, and get out.” She swallowed, picking up her pace as she searched for the administration room.

(Where is it? Where is it? Where is- There!) She rushed to the door with a faded ‘administration archives’ name plate as if it was the light at the end of a dark tunnel.

Reaching for the door she couldn’t help but growl. “Fuck! Who locks a door on the building they’re abandoning?!”

(Someone who’s abandoning it in a hurry?) Her inner madness offered unhelpfully.

Shaking her head she took a few steps back before trying to kick the door open. “Fuck!”

(You didn’t actually expect that to work did you?)

“Shut up!” She snapped. “I didn’t want to use the Hand Cannons in case the noise draws the attention of… whatever the fuck is on this side of the hospital.”

(Unfortunately, we might have to given how long it would take us to break down the door otherwise.) Her inner reason noted.

“Just means we’re going to have to be even faster about this.” She sighed, before firing off a burst of sound at the door and blasting it off of its hinges as a loud echo tore through the empty hospital halls.

Knowing she’d probably sped up whatever timer she was on, she rushed into the room before letting her eyes dart around several filing cabinets laying throughout the room with a a large desk in the middle of it all. “Shit, any of these could be the file we’re looking for!”

(Given her status as a Deadman perhaps we should start with hospital deaths?) Her inner logic suggested.

“Right, but which one is that?”

(Does it matter, just start looking through them!) Her inner passion hissed.

“Right.” She shook her her head before moving to the nearest cabinet and pulling out the first two files she could find. “Okay, this looks like… hospital equipment?”

Tossing the files onto the ground she moved to a cabinet a few paces over, figuring that the cabinets close to each other would be for the same type of records. “Uh… hospital staff, or payment records? Either way, not what we need.”

Continuing on like this for several tense minutes she slowly made her way around the room before eventually finding a cabinet full of patient files, most notably patient files with a date of death on them.

“Yes, this is it.” She cheered before beginning to shift through the various files in search of any that could be Elizabeth’s.

(Wait, hold up! Hearing something!) Her inner madness yelled.

She froze, before tilting her head and hearing an almost sickening sort of squelching coming from behind her. Turning towards the sound she found a growing black and red spot on the ceiling where it looked like something was trying to claw its way through. (Actually it kind of looks like those Bleeds from-)

A large hand with four viciously sharp claws shot out of the portal in an explosion of blood and trailing back through via a muscular red arm covered in black veins. The hand bent and twisted around before grabbing onto the ceiling and seeming to haul its owner out of the portal.

(Oh, shit!) Realizing what was happening she dove for cover before hearing a particularly loud squelch and a heavy thud as she settled herself beneath the office desk.

Contorting herself into an awkward position she was able to peek out from the bottom of the desk and get a look at whatever had escaped the Bleed in the ceiling.

Near the entrance hunched over on all four was a large muscular humanoid creature with red leather like skin, digitigrade back legs, and ridges along its spine. The entire thing giving her a feeling of (wrong, wrong, wrongness) the longer she stared at it.

As if sensing her mounting panic, the creature seemed to sniff the air a bit before turning towards her and revealing an almost canine-like maw beneath a pair of glowing red eyes and the shaggy matted black hair that covered them.

A rumbling growl escaped the beast’s throat, seeming to vibrate throughout the entire room as the monster stared at the desk she was hiding behind, almost as if knowing exactly where its prey was hiding.

(Oh, that’s not good.)

(Ya think?!)

Righting herself, and leaning back against the desk, her heart began to pound against her ribcage as a clawing sound came from atop the desk.

(Shit, shit, shit! What do we do, what do we do?)