The Haunted Hospital
The gravel crunched under my car's tires as we approached the abandoned hospital.
The hospital was a five-story complex, that during its heyday, boasted sprawling gardens and top-of-the-line care. That is until it was shut down because of the inhumane treatment of patients came to light.
"Five people reported missing within the past three months, and they all had this place in common. Why hasn't someone checked this place out?" I asked. Even though it was still warm, I wore jeans, a pair of sturdy hiking boots, a long-sleeved shirt, and enough iron jewelry to set off a metal detector.
"I'm wondering the same thing." Levi, my literal, guardian angel said. He wore a pair of hiking boots, jeans, and a green button-down shirt that was a size too big for him. He wore the shirt untucked, with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows.
The hospital looked ominous in the pale moonlight.
I parked the car and turned off the engine.
The way to the front doors was overgrown with a dense jungle of vegetation.
I checked my Glock to make sure everything was all set. I had enough
Anti-Things-That-Go-Bump-In-The-Night
ammunition to stop a giant rampaging monster in its tracks. The only catch was it didn't work so well on humans, though there were some exceptions.
I grabbed a yellow box-style flashlight from the trunk and we headed for the hospital's doors. Even with the thick vegetation, I could still see where the previous explorers had ventured in.
Just past the doors, it was significantly colder than it had been outside.
The darkness seems to swallow the flashlight's beam.
I reassuringly touched my holstered weapon. My skin began to crawl at the very thought of going deeper into the hospital.
"Levi," I said finding my voice. "Something don't feel right. Maybe we should -"
"Are you here for the tour?" Came a voice that sounded as pleasant as a rusty door hinge.
I spun around, ready to clonk whoever or whatever it was upside the head with the light.
Standing in the light was a gaunt-looking human male. He wore a suit and tie. His dark hair was slicked back.
"Tour?" What tour?" Levi asked, studying the man.
"A tour of our most esteemed hospital." The man said.
"We are." I said forcing a smile.
Why is this guy here?! This place has been abandoned for over twenty years. Just who would want to take a tour here?
I thought looking about the lobby.
Paint peeled from the ceiling and walls. Debris littered the floor mixing with the obvious signs of water damage, as water dripped onto the tiled floor from the ceiling. There were gaping holes in the walls, probably made to extract the copper wiring.
I pulled my shirttail over my weapon, hiding it from view.
I've been in some creepy places before, but this place was weirding me out, and we hadn't even gotten twenty feet from the door.
"Then please follow me, and I shall enlighten you of the hospital's history."
We learned that his name was Bradford and he was the head surgeon.
As we walked the corridors, I stayed close to Levi. The darkness was oppressive and the deeper we went into the hospital, the more I felt like we were being watched.
We were on the backside of the second floor. We took the stairs. Bradford bounded up with ease. While me and Levi, helped each other out, having to avoid rotting and missing floorboards.
Then I started hearing voices.
They sounded like hurried whispers. Their ages whispered from senior citizens to young children.
"Is he an angel?"
"Are they here to help us?"
"The doctor likes them fresh."
"I don't like it here."
"I'm afraid."
"Why are they here?"
"HELP ME!"
I touched my free hand to my temples. All the voices speaking at once were giving me a headache. "Please stop," I whispered, "Please."
Then the scream of a woman tore through the corridor, making me bump into Levi.
"DON'T CLOSE THE DOOR!"
We were standing in front of a patient's doorless room. The room was in shambles. The only thing that remained was a metal bed frame, laying forgotten on its side.
No one was inside but I had heard the scream and so had Levi. I could faintly hear the agitated rustle of his wings.
"I'm not closing the door," I raised my hands, palms out, as best I could while holding a flashlight. "I'm not going to touch the door. I'm going to back away and move on." I explained, backing slowly away from the room.
Then I started to see human-sized shadows.
They weren't caused by me, and they weren't even out the corner of my eyes.
"Never mind Patient 573, she's always like this before being sedated," Bradford said adjusting his tie. "Now, on with the tour."
"Levi," I whispered, so Bradford wouldn't overhear. "Was there ever any angels here?"
Levi rested a hand on a wall and thought for a moment. "There were once. And they wept." He whispered.
"Oh my stars. We were made to check this place out. Do you think-" My voice trailed off as the temperature dropped.
He nodded. "Something big and bad is binding all these souls here, and we need to put an end to it."
I hissed as a stinging sensation shot across the back of my exposed neck.
"May I have a hug?" I asked aloud.
"Sure thing." Levi said, wrapping me in his arms.
"Look at my neck. I don't think it was a wasp." I whispered.
Truth be told, I have a fear of wasps because of a time I was stung by one and blew up like a balloon. It didn't trigger anaphylaxis but it was still uncomfortable nonetheless.
"Something scratched you. It looks like a claw mark. It's also bright red and raised up. What did you get scratched by, a mountain lion?"
"No, it was just all of a sudden."
"Right. If it happens again, I'll get them to back off."
"Thank you."
I stayed closer to Levi for the rest of the tour. Even though I kept seeing shadows that didn't blend into the regular darkness, and kept hearing disembodied whispers, nothing attacked me again.
"There's that bad man again."
"He loves inflicting pain."
"Don't let him hear you say that!"
"I don't like it here."
"I wanna go home."
"I feel better."
"The last stop of our tour is the Operating Room." Bradford said.
By now my skin was crawling from being here. My heart pounded against my rib cage. The smell of rotting wood and decay was stuck in my nose, to the point that I had decided on buying a large scented candle on our way home.
Levi glanced at me. I could tell what his facial expression meant.
Fear Not.
We walked through the opened metal doors and was practically knocked down by the smell of a decomposing body. Or in this case, five bodies.
I couldn't scream. I was too busy fighting the urge to empty my stomach.
"What's going on here?!" Levi demanded, as heavenly light surrounded him. "Why are there five missing people on the floor missing who knows what?"
I dropped the flashlight and drew my Glock. I could see the dark pools of dried blood on the tile floor.
"Medical progress demands sacrifices." Bradford said, with a wide unsettling smile as full sections of his body began to rot away, landing on the floor with a wet slap, similar to that of cold oatmeal.
I snapped the safety off my weapon, training its sights on the middle of his chest.
The doctor laughed, plunging the room with an arctic blast, and me without a jacket.
Levi's Roman Legionaire armor appeared, shield on one arm, sword drawn and ready in the other. "Your reign of terror ends here." he said.
"I really don't think so." The doctor said, as the last bit of his human appearance fell away. What remained was a spirit that looked like him, but you could tell he was evil just by looking at him.
The pit of my stomach squirmed.
He waved a hand at me.
A solid wall of air slammed into me. I landed on the tile floor, taking a tray of rusted surgical instruments with me.
I yelled in pain as a scaple peirced my forearm, drawing blood.
This needs to end and fast, before I lose too much blood. I thought, pulling the scaple out of my arm, before it could do more damage. Then I fumbled for my weapon.
Levi and the spirit were fighting. I could tell by the power Levi put into his attacks, he was furious.
I finally got a hold of my weapon. I aimed and started firing, providing Levi with covering fire.
A shot struck the spirit in the chest.
Levi sheathed his sword and threw out his Heaven Wrought Chain.
The chain wrapped around the spirit, pinning his arms to his sides.
I got to my feet, but kept my weapon pointed at the spirit, even though Levi had everything under control.
The chain glowed brightly. Keeping it tight, Levi walked towards him.
"Mercy! Please have mercy!" he cried.
"Why? Why, should I have mercy on someone who didn't offer it to those who needed it?" Levi asked, his voice even, lacking any emotion. But at the edge of his voice was the force a category five hurricane being surpressed.
The spirit made a squeaking sound, trying to hold back a fearful cry.
The light surrounding Levi grew brighter.
"You can't make an omelet without cracking a few eggs." The spirit said shaking.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Levi yelled, dramatically snapping his pure white, wings out at full length. "Do you not know who you're dealing with?! I am an angel of The Lord. I have been fighting the very same evil, that you display, since the beginning of Earth's timeline," The chain glowed almost as brightly as Levi. "And you claim it was all in the name of progress?"
Okay, I agreed with Levi. I really wanted to end the spirit myself. I mean the doctor was the cause of everything wrong at the hospital. He was experimenting on humans, for crying out loud.
Before the doctor could reply, Levi said, "I am neither your judge, jury, or executioner, but you will answer for what you did."
Then he jerked the chain.
The spirit screamed, then shattered in a shower of golden sparks.
Levi retracted the chain.
I darted to his side, my weapon pointed at the ground.
The room stayed frigid. Shadowy figures moved through the walls, surrounding us, all while staying at the edge of the light.
"Alright y'all listen up!" Levi announced, "This place is under new management. You are free to pass on to the other side. The evil that held you here is no more." His light now surrounded his wings. Even his skin, hair, and eyes glowed.
Then as if someone exhaled their breath, the shadows disappeared.
The room temperature returned to how it was outside the building.
"They're gone. We are the only ones left here," Levi said, "I know we need to report this to the authorities but...let's go home."
"I couldn't agree more." I said, holstering my Glock and pulling out my cellphone. Miraculiously I had a strong signal.
