“Well…at least you know who you are. That’s a good start,” Joseph returned, releasing a light sigh that revealed just how optimistic he was. Reaching up, the detective shifted his glasses upwards in order to gently rub his eyes – a momentary feeling of weariness creeping up to him. There was no time to sleep, however; there never was in this place. Knowing that the next moment may well be his last did wonders to keep him awake, and the constant adrenaline really got the heart pumping. It was dangerous to stay still for more than a minute, because his body was ready to drop. The moment he let the silence lull him, the less prepared he was for a sudden attack, and he needed to be on high alert at all times.
“I know it’s confusing right now, Carlos,” it was constantly so, and it never stopped, “but I’m afraid it’s going to be like this for a while. This place has the habit of…making you doubt a lot of things.” He knew what it was like first-hand, not knowing whether something was real or not. An hallucination or reality – it was becoming increasingly difficult to tell the difference. “I found you wandering down the hallway, speaking to…well, nobody. You asked me where the biology laboratory was, before part of the ceiling fell and knocked you unconscious.” It was clear that the gentleman had lost time, convinced that he was still back home. Some people were more sensitive to the affects of STEM, and refused to transition swiftly – not that they had a choice in the matter.
“I fixed your wound the best I could, so that shouldn’t be too much of a problem now.” Joseph continued in an attempt to reassure his companion. “However, we should keep moving. This building is highly unstable, and the longer we stay here, the higher the risk of getting trapped – or killed.” There was still the possibility of Haunted roaming around, and they needed to find the exit quickly. “I’ll explain more on the way. Are you able to stand up?”
What? What was he talking about? This man seemed high-strung
about something and he was talking about life and getting killed.
“Uh – buh, what?” Carlos asked intelligently. But he quickly
took on a more alert manner. “No, no, wait, what?”
What the hell did he mean by ‘making you doubt things’? And
what place did he mean – the hotel? And Carlos didn’t remember seeing him at
all. He was meeting with some technicians and he was asking a nurse for
directions… Was he on drugs? Was Carlos
on drugs? He didn’t remember taking anything that would cause psychosis.
Something was obviously very wrong.
When asked about it Carlos immediately got up to his feet –
not just to show this other man that he could stand, but he was taking a
defensive stance. “What’s going on?” he asked. “Why did you bring me into a
broken building? What – who are you?”
Was this man a danger? Something had him rattled, clearly, and Carlos wondered
if it was because something was happening or if this man was disturbed in some
way.
The Perfect Scientist 