Shadows of the Asylum

The Next to Fall

The oppressive darkness of the hospital seemed to deepen with every step the remaining teens took. Kara, Mia, and Ethan had no idea how long they'd been wandering the halls. Time felt irrelevant now. It had stopped mattering when Ben's life had ended in such a cruel and inexplicable way. The shock of his death still clung to them like a second skin, suffocating their thoughts.

They had no choice but to keep moving. There was nothing else to do. The hospital was an ever-shifting maze that trapped them in its cold embrace, and every attempt to leave was thwarted by the labyrinth of hallways and locked doors. The air was heavy with the stench of decay, but there was something else-something darker, more sinister. It was as if the building itself was watching them, waiting.

Kara felt her heart pounding in her chest as she walked ahead, the flashlight trembling in her hand. The shadows clung to the walls, shifting and writhing as if alive. She couldn't stop looking over her shoulder, half-expecting to see Ben's lifeless body trailing them, but each time she turned, he wasn't there.

"Mia, Ethan, are you okay?" she asked, her voice strained.

"Yeah," Ethan replied, though his voice was hollow, distant. He kept his eyes fixed ahead, his face pale. "Just... tired, I guess."

Mia didn't respond. She walked beside Kara, her eyes wide and searching, but her lips were pressed tight. There was no telling how much more she could take. They had all been so sure that Ben's death had been a freak accident. Some kind of unknown force. But now...

Now, something else was in the air. It wasn't just the shadows. Something was coming.

They rounded another corner, their footsteps echoing in the emptiness of the hall, and for the briefest moment, the sound of distant laughter broke the silence. It was a soft, mocking giggle, followed by the sound of someone sobbing-a girl's voice.

Kara froze. Mia's flashlight flickered.

"What... was that?" Mia whispered, her voice barely audible, as if speaking too loudly would make it worse.

"I don't know," Kara said, her voice trembling. "But we need to find a way out of here, now."

Before they could take another step, a sudden, cold gust of wind rushed through the corridor, making the walls creak and groan as if the hospital itself was exhaling. The gust was followed by the distinct sound of footsteps. Not their own. They were coming from behind.

Kara spun around, her flashlight flashing erratically, but the hallway was empty. Nothing but darkness.

"Did you hear that?" Mia whispered, her voice almost frantic.

"Yeah, but-" Ethan began, but his words were cut off as a loud crash echoed through the hospital. A door slammed somewhere down the hall. The sound was so sudden, so forceful, that it felt like the walls themselves were closing in.

"That was... not normal," Kara said, her eyes wide with fear.

The group hesitated for a moment, then cautiously moved toward the source of the noise. The door, once closed, was now ajar, and a thin stream of light filtered through the crack.

"Mia, you go first," Kara said, her voice firm but laced with dread.

Mia nodded, stepping forward, her breath shallow. She pushed the door open slowly, revealing an old storage room filled with rusted equipment and broken furniture. It was eerily silent, the air thick with dust.

"I don't like this," Ethan muttered under his breath, his hands gripping the flashlight tightly. "I don't like this at all."

But just as he spoke, the door slammed shut behind them with a deafening bang.

Kara screamed in shock, spinning toward the door, but it was locked. It wasn't just locked; it was sealed, as if some unseen force had welded it shut. There was no way out.

"What the hell is going on?" Mia cried, her voice trembling with panic. She yanked at the handle, but it wouldn't budge. The door wasn't just locked-it was as if it had been buried under layers of something unnatural.

"Calm down!" Kara snapped, trying to force her own panic down. "There has to be a way out. There's always a way out."

But there wasn't. Not this time.

And then, they heard it. The laughter again, louder this time, and this time, it wasn't coming from behind them. It was coming from inside the room.

Kara spun, her breath catching in her throat, and saw it.

At the far end of the room, standing motionless among the broken furniture, was a figure. A girl, her hair hanging in front of her face, her body swaying as though caught in an invisible breeze. Her hospital gown was stained, tattered, and worn from years of decay. And her eyes-those eyes-were hollow, black, and empty.

It was her. The girl who had died in the hospital. Lily.

Mia gasped, stumbling backward into Ethan. "It's her... it's the girl from the stories. It's Lily!"

"Stay calm," Kara whispered, but her voice shook with terror. "Stay calm. We have to find a way out. Now."

But as she stepped forward, the floor beneath her feet gave way with a sickening crack. Her foot slipped, and she crashed to the ground, the fall jarring, knocking the air from her lungs. She looked up, gasping, and saw Lily's face-the empty, lifeless face-looming over her, her eyes locked on Kara with an intensity that made her skin crawl.

The laughter grew louder, the room closing in on them.

And then, the floor beneath them gave way entirely.

Kara felt the world tilt as she fell through the blackness. Her body slammed against the cold concrete, pain shooting through her as she struggled to get up. She blinked, trying to clear her vision, and saw Mia and Ethan beside her, both of them disoriented but still alive.

But Mia's face was pale, her lips trembling in shock.

"What happened?" Kara gasped, trying to focus. "Where's Ethan?"

Mia's eyes darted around the room, but there was no sign of him. Only silence.

And then, a sound. A low, guttural moan that made Mia's blood run cold.

Turning slowly, Mia's flashlight flickered. And there-laying on the floor in the corner of the room-was Ethan.

He wasn't moving. His body was still, but something was... wrong. His mouth was open, but no sound came out. His eyes were wide and glazed over, staring blankly at the ceiling. His fingers twitched.

Mia rushed to his side, her heart racing. "Ethan! Ethan, please!"

But when she touched his hand, it was cold. Colder than it should have been. And then, she saw it. The mark. A dark, bruised impression around his neck, like something had strangled him.

But there was no way to explain it. He hadn't been touched. He had just fallen.

He was gone.

Kara stared in horror as Mia shook Ethan's lifeless body, her cries growing louder. But it was too late. Ethan was gone, just like Ben.

And in the distance, Kara swore she could hear Lily's laughter, cold and mocking, as if she were enjoying their suffering.

The hospital wasn't just trapping them. It was killing them.