The masked man watched them go through his tinted red goggles from the tree he was perched in, the plentiful leaves keeping him hidden. He observed the new girl with keen interest until the group turned a corner and disappeared. Finally, he jumped down from the tree, landing gracefully on his feet and darting off.

Evangeline followed steadily behind Kai until they reached their destination. The Sanatorium loomed up ahead in the eerie fog that had arisen on their way back, and she hesitated for a moment. Despite her clear unease, Kai continued towards the building, seemingly unfazed by the thick fog all around them. After a few moments, Eve followed him again, her eyes darting about on high alert. The image of the dusty-haired Inzomniac flashed in her mind;

That smile... The blood on his hands...

“Oh, no, I’m fine. It’s not my blood.”

She shivered as she recited his words in her mind, the thought of where the blood had come from making her dizzy. She slowly glanced at him; he was still paralyzed, Greg’s arm wrapped around his torso to drag him along with them despite his visible discomfort.

...Discomfort?

Am I assuming that... thing... has feelings?

She shook her head. How could he feel anything if he did something so horrible?

But you don’t know what he did.

She froze immediately at the voice in her head. She didn’t feel panic, it felt familiar... normal, even. Regardless, she pushed the thought away, looking straight ahead at the doors to the building that were now mere feet away.

Kai stopped in front of the doors, reaching out with a hand to knock rhythmically on the one to his right. It was quiet for a few seconds before the sound of the heavy doors unlocking broke the silence. Kai stepped back as the doors were cautiously opened.

A ginger-haired lady in a white raincoat poked her head out, examining the group and giving them all a smile. “Welcome back.”

Kai waved enthusiastically to her as she opened the door wide to let them inside. “Hey, Em. Look what we found.”

As if on cue, Greg stepped forward, dragging the Inzomniac with him.

The woman Kai had called “Em” took a step closer carefully. As soon as she saw the creature in Greg’s arms, a wide smile spread across her face. “Is that-? You got one back alive?”

Kai and Greg nodded in unison, and Eve watched as Em studied the limp figure with the unwavering focus of a scientist. Hesitantly, Eve cleared her throat, and Em’s head snapped up.

“Oh! Hello. Uh- Emily Stradford.” She threw her hand out. “Welcome to Stormfall Hills! I can show you around. I think we’ve got a room ready for you.”

“Yeah... sure... I’m Eve.” A short pause. “Evangeline.” She corrected herself, taking Emily’s hand and giving it a light shake before pulling away and following her down the hall. “My friends call me Eve.” I think. “So- Do you... study, um, those, or?”

“Oh, yes! Well, sort of... I’ve only had the chance to study one up close a couple times... an old one. She’d been infected for a while, so she died a few days after we got her here.” Emily froze in place, realizing Greg was still holding the Inzomniac. Quickly, she called back to him. “Oh, Greg? You can throw him in one of the quarantine cells for now. I’ll look at him later.”

After receiving an affirmative nod from Greg, she continued down the long hall with Eve. “...So, where are you from?” She asked conversationally.

“Oh, um... I’m not really sure. I guess...” Eve trailed off.

“Oh, no, that’s alright.” Emily was quick to interject. “I suppose you probably have amnesia, or something... that wouldn’t be too surprising, considering Kai found you lying in the middle of the street... Ah! Here we are! Sorry it kinda looks like a mental asylum, but you know.”

Eve peered into the room. A repurposed hospital bed. A foldable desk and chair. A single, small window high on the wall. The door was made of metal, with an opening at eye level that could slide open and closed to look in or out.

Eve barely noticed the subconscious shudder that ran through her body while she took in the surroundings.

“Here. Thought you might feel safer if you had a key to the door. We’re not trying to lock you in or anything.” A small metal object was placed in her hand.

“Thanks.” She said absentmindedly. “What is this place, exactly?”

“Oh. It’s... complicated.” Emily explained slowly. “Back in the day, it was a Sanatorium. That was during a pandemic of some kind... After it ended, the building was transformed into a mental asylum. I guess the people of Stormfall Hills figured it would be more practical. Things were getting a little... I don’t know. People started going crazy, for some reason. Maybe it was related to the Inzomnia outbreak that followed after. In any case, we started storing medical supplies inside again after people began to get sick. We didn’t know what it was, me and my fellow scientists that is. We were supposed to turn it back into a hospital, but things got pretty hectic pretty fast, so it never got done. Now it’s an insane asylum full of medical supplies and research equipment. We’re calling it the Sanatorium, though. Telling survivors we live in a mental asylum doesn’t really sound... well, sound, I guess.”

“Yeah, makes sense, I suppose.”

“Well, the lab in around the corner, and my room is a few doors down, so if you need anything, you can come get me whenever. Liz is bringing your stuff from the medical wing, so she can help with that.”

“Alright.” Eve replied, watching Emily make her way down the hall. When she was out of view, Eve went inside, sat at the desk, and waited. For what, she wasn’t sure... yet.