Paramount ✹ Septicgab

2

"What do you mean?" I asked him. "Are you.. Are you saying that.. Amy did this?" Ethan nodded. "What?"

"Before dying there.." He said, sighing. "I ran into Christine... and... she wasn't acting like the one... we kept seeing there. She was nice. She.. She tried to tell me.. she saw me before. She thought it was really me, but he was violent."

"Okay.." I said, feeling uneasy about still being at the hospital. "If.. If that wasn't Amy.. then what's to say that.. any of them are real?"

"Marzia has acted exactly like herself since she got here... Amy... from day one... she wasn't well."

"What do you mean.. unwell?"

"I remember a few of the things that happened there," Ethan looked at me, about to cry. "I was there... when Amy was... gone."

"So.. she did die.."

"Yeah, but the story this 'Amy' is telling that she remembers..." He shook his head. "It's all wrong. I came here, thinking if I had remembered anything, I would be seen as the suspect. I would get convicted, and I wouldn't be able to argue it..."

"Ethan, you and I both know you're just as innocent as any of us..." I said.

"I was with Mark.. and Amy. We were near the sewers, heading back to Hunter's Dream... when Amy dropped something down into the sewers. Mark and I... we should've gone down with her.. but we didn't.. She told us she would be right back.. that she dropped her bag, and that she could see it from where we were..." He started to explain.

"Ethan, you don-"

"No.." he stopped me. "I do.. I have to tell someone..." Ethan took a deep breath and continued. "She said she could see it her bag from where we were... but when she climbed down, she couldn't hear us.." He started to tear up. "We were by the bridge... and that.. that troll.. he pushed the flaming ball toward us.. She managed to get out of the way, but.." He paused. "It was a pig.." I wrapped my arms around Ethan, trying hard to get through the pain I was feeling, in order to comfort a friend. "We heard her scream... and a squeal.. followed by more screaming... and then silence."

"We need to get out of here," I whispered.

"How could we possibly?" We kept our conversation at a low volume, making sure no one would hear us if someone were to record us.

"You told me you guys figured out a way to sneak out to talk, right?" He nodded. "Then we can figure this out. I'm not going back into lockdown.. I'm not mental.."

"Okay... what first?"

~

Mark and I made it through every major battle, surviving through thick and thin, managing ourselves throughout absolute Hell. It was time for the battle against Gehrman the First Hunter.

"Mark.." I gulped. "I'm terrified."

"We can do this..." His voice wavered. "We have to... For our girls." I nodded.

"Dear, oh dear. What was it? The Hunt? The Blood? Or the horrible dream?"

"For our friends... and our loves.." I said, looking at Mark. "May you find your worth in the waking world.." He nodded in agreement.

"Oh, it doesn't matter... It always comes down to the Hunter's helper to clean up after these sort of messes." Gehrman prepared himself. "Tonight, Gehrman joins the hunt.." He raised his scythe as we charged into battle. Mark was hit, groaning as he fell to the ground. I tossed him a vial which he used immediately, and got right back up. I swung my axe, hitting the monster as many times as possible with one spurt of energy. During my attacks, Mark was given just enough time to sneak up behind Gehrman and parry him.

"He's weak!" Mark yelled as I was slammed into the ground. "Seán!" I had one last vial and a single molotov in my arsenal. "Do it!" I grabbed the flaming bottle and chucked it at Gehrman. My aim was perfect. He went up into flames, and Mark smiled at me, trying to catch his breath. "You did it.."

"No.." I said. "We did." He ran to me, giving me a hug.

"Ready to go home?" He asked, chuckling, already knowing the answer. I smiled, opening my mouth to say something, but before the words could come out, there was a blinding white light.

~

"What's going on?" Evelien heard something outside of her room, so I poked my head out to see if I could find an answer.

"I don't know.." I said, listening in on a conversation between two members of the staff.

"Listen, I don't understand what is going on. You're telling me there's more patients with the same story?" One nurse said, and I gasped.

"I'm serious," the other sighed. "I doubt Reynolds will tell us anything."

"Yeah, she's a bit of a lunatic, as far as I've heard."

"You know what she did?"

"No, what?" The conversation became more inaudible as the two nurses whispered. "You're kidding.."

"Nope. It's rather fucked up, isn't it?"

"Ethan?" Evelien said. "What is it?"

"Long story.." I gulped. "Short... Two new patients... and I think the resident psychologist knows what happened to you."

~

No one told me a thing that was going on in the hospital. Every treated me like a criminal. I started to remember everything that happened there... and I never meant to hurt anyone. Everyone was scared shitless, and fighting was surviving. I didn't kill anyone. I didn't even remember being there for very long. I continued picturing everything I experienced, and my memories were interrupted by the sound of a hand knocking on my door.

"Can we talk?" I nodded.

"You've got to know.... I didn't do that to you," I started to tear up as my friend lifted her shirt to show the enormous scar from when someone cut into her stomach. "I love you Evelien.. I wouldn't lay a hand on you, unless it was to give you a hug."

"I know," she smiled. "Ethan and I were just talking... and um.." She sighed, warning me of what she was going to say next. "Have you told Reynolds anything?" I shook my head no. "Good. Keep it that way."

"What's going on?" I asked. "No one tells me a thing.."

"We don't exactly know... but there's something going on. Not everyone we met there.... is really... them." Evelien was trembling in fear as she spoke. "Um... I need to ask you something..." I nodded. She hesitated for a few minutes, trying to muster the strength to say it... when finally:

"How did you die?"