A thunderous knock jolted me from the clutches of my nightmares, its urgency palpable. Reluctantly, I approached the door, apprehension gnawing at my resolve. With a hesitant hand, I swung it open, revealing a young girl standing before me. she had a beautiful smile, her arms covered in rock-like formations, and she waved at me in greeting.
"You," I said, "I recognize you from yesterday."
She nodded enthusiastically; she began pulling from my gown and walking away with me in it.
"Wait, where are you taking me?"
I tried to hide the surprise in my voice unsuccessfully. She began pulling harder, taking me with her across the hallway. Her stature was relatively small, and she was no older than ten years old. However, it seemed that now that her extremities were made out of rock, she also developed incredible strength. I wish someone had given me a warning before I opened the door; I looked like I had just woken up because I had just woken up. My hair was all over the place; I still had saliva stuck to my chick from my slumber. And my breath could kill a dragon. But the girl didn't care about any of that; she wanted me to follow. And follow I did.
The girl continued pulling me; luckily, Finn's door was along the way. I knocked on it in hopes that he would wake up and follow. I wasn't sure if I would need backup, but it would be nice to have an extra person just in case something went wrong.
We were about to turn the corner when Finn opened the door. He looked like he had about as much rest as I did. His hair was a golden tangled mess, a Rapunzel of sorts. He was stretching as he saw us quickly going away. He stared at us blankly for a couple of seconds. He clearly understood as little as me about the situation. Lucky for me, he decided to follow. Here is to hope curiosity won't kill the cat.
He caught up to us fairly quickly; the girl was quick, but he was quicker. He was next to me by the time we reached the lobby. I was thankful the hotel was a single-level building; I didn't want to be pulled down the stairs.
"PB? Where are you guys going to?"
"I don't know, she won't tell me."
We both gazed at the figure in front of us; she was determined to get me somewhere, she kept pulling tighter, stretching the fabric around her little fingers. We walked for what it was at least half an hour north, reaching the edge of town opposite the site where we had arrived the day before. She let us to a beaten-up home, just before the edge of the town. Most of the houses in the area looked similar. Except this one looked older. Time was not gentle with this property.
She led us in, and the home was quite cozy; a room sat close to the entrance; in it, three people stood before a man; the man was possibly the oldest man in town; his wrinkles tell the stories of centuries ago, a woman, a man, and another young girl watched over him, as he took his last breath.
"He is gone," the woman said. "Please take him with you, doctor," she said without talking to me, fixated on the man lying on the bed. Her eyes watering down with every word.
It took a moment for her words to register—me, a doctor? I certainly wasn't, but I suppose to this town, I was as close as it got.
Finn didn't want to disturb the scene. He politely stood at the threshold and asked in a coarse voice.
"Why?"
The woman broke down, she began crying loudly, kneeling down. The man rubbed her back in consolation. He was also crying in silence. His mouth formed a u shape facing the opposite direction, and his green skin was so light that it could have been a darker shade of yellow.
"This is what he wanted," the man said, breathing harshly. "My sister's husband heard of your arrival and of the experiments you have been performing in the hospital. He was delighted to get rid of this illness."
He slightly pulled the blanket and pushed it over the leg of the deceased man, rocky formations all over the legs. Finn took a step back, horrified.
The last the man said was, "Use his body for science. Find a cure." With a heavy heart, Finn nodded in understanding, the weight of responsibility settling upon his shoulders. As the room cleared, he gently lifted the man's body, a silent promise to honor his final wish. Together, we made our way towards the hospital, where the journey towards discovery awaited—a journey fraught with uncertainty yet infused with the hope of a brighter future.