Nightshift 43: Main Hallway 2-Center

[constellates]

[from here]

As they approached the top of the stairs, Alkaid took the natural exit, and turned to face the right. She'd already sorta been down what was there in the left corridor, but she wasn't sure where to go from here.

"...Hey, Badou? Speaking of sane... don't pay any attention to me if I talk about items and item screens and equipment. It'

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[roseoverture]

[From here]

The flesh floor and walls bled back into normal plaster not much further down the hall, like a grotesque gradient of sorts. Utena and Leonard ended up around the corner from the western half of the hall, next to the balcony. "Really, really hope they'll be okay," said Utena, glancing back over her shoulder worriedly and listening for any sounds of scuffle.

She sighed softly, and turned to the hallway ahead. She had no idea where to start looking for clues. None of the closed doors gave her any immediate hints, either. To make matters worse, when she turned her flashlight back on, she swore she could see another of the phantom doors caught in the beam. Just as before, however, it disappeared faster than she could focus on it.

"Uh, maybe the Chapel?" she suggested after a few long, silent moments. "They say Landel appeared in person there once a few weeks ago."

[otnemememento]

Leonard ran a hand through his hair, trying to calm himself. He looked behind them, still trying to figure out the hallway. Damn this place. Were we both hallucinating somehow?

He turned back to face the girl when she spoke. "Makes sense to me." Guess we're looking this guy. He fumbled through his pockets for his polaroids, his hands still shaking a little from the adrenaline running through him. He scanned them for a moment before returning them to his pocket and grabbing his camera.

"What did you say your name was, again?" he asked as he flipped the device open.

[roseoverture]

"Huh?" Utena blinked in confusion when Leonard brought out his camera, turning back to face him rather than heading for the Chapel. "Isn't this a bit of a weird time for a photo op?" she asked, giving him an awkward smile. "Anyway, it's Utena." She thought it a little odd that he couldn't recall her name even though she had told him what it was only ten or fifteen minutes ago. Was her name really that hard to remember?

[otnemememento]

Using his flashlight for better lighting, Leonard snapped the photo and grabbed the polaroid once it was dispensed, closing his camera and reaching for his pen. He stopped, feeling strange, as if someone was watching them from over his shoulder. He looked over his shoulder- No one. Hm.

"I have a system," he said as he wrote on the back of the now-developed photograph:

[roseoverture]

The intercom started doing funny things again just after Leonard snapped the picture. At this point, Utena was doing her best to listen to what it said while also trying not to get too spooked or hung up on it. The faint voices from earlier hadn't gone away either. In fact they might have even gotten a little louder, sending a chill down Utena's back. Don't let him get to you, don't let him get to you, she told herself firmly, clenching her hands tightly for a moment.

"Guess everyone's got their own ways of organizing their life," said Utena with a nod, watching Leonard write on the developing photograph. "I know I could probably use a few pointers on that front. I keep notes as best I can here so that I don't lose track of what's going on here, but I never was the best note-taker or anything like that. It's been hard," she said, managing a soft laugh despite the cold lump of nervousness in the pit of her stomach.

[otnemememento]

"Organization is everything," he said, putting Utena's picture with the rest of his collection. "I have this condition- I can't make new memories. I don't remember when I met you, and if we talk too long, I won't remember how this conversation started. I use photographs, notes, more permanent markings to keep my life in order."

He had that feeling again, the sensation that they were being watched. The intercom's strange messages weren't helping the situation. He looked toward the intercom in the wall and back to Utena, his eyes widening as he thought he saw someone over her shoulder- someone he remembered without a photograph. She was gone in an instant.

What was... This isn't right. She's gone. You know she's gone. Not even a Hell like this could bring her back. He closed his eyes for a moment.

"You can't function without a system like this," he said. "The system works, and that's the only reason I can handle it."

[roseoverture]

Well that was something Utena hadn't been prepared for. "So you already don't remember something like, say, you checking out that wall at the bottom of the stairs? That was maybe fifteen minutes ago," she said, wanting to make sure she got what Leonard was telling her right. She had seen what looked like tattoos on Leonard's lower arms before, but hadn't really bothered to look at them yet; now that she focused on them, she could make them out as writing. They were probably the permanent reminders he was talking about.

Before she could make out any of the actual words in the tattoos, however, Leonard seemed to tense slightly, his eyes widened for a moment. Utena tensed as well, shooting a look over her shoulder. Thankfully, there was nothing there. Had Leonard seen another phantom door? The look on his face seemed a bit too strong for that. Then again, if he couldn't remember seeing the first phantom door, she guessed that it would definitely be a surprise to see one again for the first time. This is going to get confusing, she

[otnemememento]

Leonard scribbled some notes in his journal as Utena spoke. Have to write this down. Something is very wrong with this place, and I'll be damned if I can't find out what.

He followed Utena with a fast pace, taking note of the doors they were passing as he returned his journal to his pocket. He could hear a myriad of noises around them- fighting from down the hall, whispers and screaming in the shadows. His grip tightened on the grilling instrument in his hand.

As they walked, he could swear he could see her out of the corner of his eye. He compelled himself not to look. She's not there. It's a trick. You're not gullible.

"Are you seeing things?" he asked for reassurance.

[roseoverture]

Utena tried to shut out the sounds coming in from all around them, focusing on the entrance to the Chapel ahead. No matter how much she tried to push the sounds away, however, there still remained a whisper of a chill in her body, making her feel constantly uneasy. She glanced around them in all directions as they walked, keeping an eye out for anything out of place. On the ceiling, she caught sight of some open, rusted pipes, but they quickly flickered out of view just the same as the other sightings had before.

She shook her head as they neared the Chapel. "Just the same sort of stuff as before. Doors and other bits of the walls that shouldn't be there," she answered, passing through the doorway.

[roseoverture]

[To here]