Welcome to Lobotomy Corporation

Day 48: The Well & Remnants

(Give yourself some music to make the reading more interesting, that one's a long chapter. Unless you like reading long chapters with absolutely no sound, it's up to you.)

-What happens when the black swan wakes up from being a white swan?

-...That's not a flower. Order all the employees nearby to evacuate immediately.

My footsteps felt like distant echoes in my ears, my tired body forced to drag itself out of this endless reality of nothingness. I was exhausted from the battle that I barely came out of alive, yet couldn't linger around to rest. Something was telling me to keep moving or else something bad would happen, I would get left behind and abandoned in this eternal void.

My legs were aching, begging me to let them rest but I couldn't, I was gritting my teeth to endure the pain. I couldn't remember exactly how long I've been walking, just that it was a lengthy period of time. However, I could see it in the distance, the destination that I was aiming for. Taking the apparance of a hallway with one of its wall missing, it was welcoming me. Once I was fully inside, I was greeted by a shocking difference of lighting to when I was looking at it from outside, extremely dim compared to the perfectly illuminated hallway that I peeked at from within the empty void. Slightly curious, I peeked over my shoulder and the missing wall was now present, preventing me from escaping.

No going back I guess.

Y/N: ...

Nowhere to go but in a single line. I followed the corridor, leading to a singular closed door. It was the last obstacle stopping me from progressing. Reaching for it, my mind pondered: did I truly want to see what was on the other side? Do I have the fortitude to see what lies behind it, knowing that it could be even worse?

...I suppose I already know my answer, the words I uttered at the one in that darkness were my answer.

Y/N: I'll keep going until I let out my last breath.

With that, I turned the doorknob and opened the door with no hesitation, refusing to be held back by doubts.

The inside of the room I entered was just as dark as the hallway leading me to it, as if almost all of the lights inside died at some point. One of the few sources of illumination was coming from the center of it, a green light inviting me to come closer. With no real choices in the matter, I carefully made my way over, keeping my hands on my weapon in case something tried to attack me.

...

After reaching the middle, the door that I took to get in suddenly slammed shut, fully trapping me inside. Out of instinct and fear, I pointed the barrel of my rifle at said door and pressed the trigger, simply hitting the wall with the projectile.

???: You don't have to be so scared Y/N.

Y/N: ...

A voice called out to me, a kind voice that could only be associated to a certain someone. Stepping out from the shadows, the figure of the woman with a ponytail revealed itself to me. However, even in that dim lighting, I could tell that something was different. Unlike the last time I saw her, her clothes were now slightly disheveled and bags were under her eyes. Nonetheless, she gave me a smile that did not lose its warmth.

Yet, behind those eyes, she was in pain, she was haunted by many thoughts, her labcoat stained by an unknown dark liquid and her hands hidden in her pockets. I stepped closer and looked at her in silence.

Carmen: I have to apologize, that... me acted quite aggressively.

Y/N: I... I suppose?

Why was she talking about herself like they weren't the same?