Part 1: Ravenwood's Shadows
The Ravenwood Sanitarium stood on the outskirts of the city, its crumbling facade swallowed by overgrown trees and creeping vines. The building loomed against the night sky, its shattered windows like gaping mouths. A faint wind rustled through the surrounding forest, carrying with it the faintest hint of decay.
Elliot and Mara stood at the edge of the property, their breaths visible in the cold night air. The sanitarium felt alive in a way Elliot couldn't quite describe, as though the building itself were watching them.
"It's worse than I imagined," Mara muttered, her voice barely audible.
Elliot glanced at her, the unease in her expression sending a chill through him. "What do you mean?"
"Places like this..." Mara trailed off, her gaze fixed on the building. "They're not just thin—they're fractured. Whatever's on the other side, it's leaking through."
Elliot swallowed hard, gripping the flashlight in his hand. "And we're just walking in there?"
Mara shot him a grim smile. "Unless you have a better idea."
They moved cautiously, keeping to the shadows as they approached the main entrance. The massive double doors were chained shut, but Mara quickly found a side door, its lock rusted and barely functional.
The whispers began the moment they stepped inside.
Part 2: The Halls of the Lost
The air inside Ravenwood was thick and damp, carrying the acrid scent of mildew and something far worse. The halls stretched endlessly before them, their peeling wallpaper and broken floor tiles illuminated by the dim beams of their flashlights.
Elliot's footsteps echoed softly as he followed Mara, his every sense on high alert. The whispers surrounded them now, faint but insistent, like a distant conversation he couldn't quite hear.
"What exactly are we looking for?" Elliot asked, his voice low.
"Anything that looks out of place," Mara replied. "Symbols, artifacts, records. The Circle wouldn't just leave this place unattended if it wasn't important."
They moved deeper into the building, passing rows of abandoned patient rooms. Some doors hung off their hinges, while others were bolted shut, the faint scratch marks on their surfaces telling stories Elliot didn't want to imagine.
One room in particular caught his eye. The door was ajar, and the faint glow of candlelight spilled into the hallway.
"Mara," he whispered, nodding toward the room.
She nodded, motioning for him to stay close as they stepped inside.
The room was small and sparsely furnished, its centerpiece a crude altar made from a broken table. Symbols were scrawled across the walls in what looked like dried blood, their jagged lines twisting into shapes that seemed to writhe under the light.
Elliot's stomach turned as his flashlight landed on the altar itself. A bundle of photographs lay scattered across its surface, their edges singed. He picked one up, his breath catching in his throat.
It was Emily.
Part 3: The Experimentation Wing
Mara placed a hand on Elliot's shoulder, grounding him. "They're taunting you," she said, her voice steady but sharp. "Don't let it get to you."
Elliot nodded, forcing himself to set the photograph down. He could feel the whispers pressing against his thoughts, their cadence growing more distinct.
"She's waiting."
"She's so close."
"Come and see."
They left the room, moving further into the sanitarium. The hallways grew narrower, the walls closing in as though the building itself were alive. The whispers grew louder, mingling with faint, unearthly noises that echoed from somewhere deep within.
Finally, they reached a set of heavy double doors marked "Experimentation Wing." The metal was tarnished, its surface scarred with deep grooves.
Mara hesitated, her gaze fixed on the doors. "This is it," she said. "If there's anything left of their rituals here, it'll be behind these doors."
Elliot took a deep breath, steeling himself. "Let's end this."
Mara pushed the doors open, and the stench hit them immediately—a nauseating mix of rot and chemicals.
The room beyond was a nightmare. Rows of rusted medical equipment lined the walls, their surfaces stained with dark, unidentifiable fluids. Chains hung from the ceiling, their ends tipped with crude hooks. And at the center of the room stood another obelisk, its surface slick with a faint, pulsating light.
But it wasn't the obelisk that made Elliot's blood run cold. It was the cages.
They lined the far wall, their bars twisted and blackened. Inside each one lay a figure—some skeletal, others bloated and distorted, their bodies twisted into impossible shapes. Their eyes glowed faintly, reflecting the sickly light of the obelisk.
Elliot staggered back, bile rising in his throat. "What... what is this?"
Mara's face was pale, her jaw clenched. "Sacrifices," she said. "Failed ones."
Part 4: The Awakening
The moment they stepped into the room, the obelisk flared to life, its light casting long, shifting shadows across the walls. The whispers erupted into a deafening roar, their voices overlapping in a chaotic symphony that made Elliot's head throb.
The figures in the cages stirred, their bodies twitching and writhing. One of them let out a low, guttural moan, its glowing eyes locking onto Elliot.
"They're waking up," Mara said, her voice sharp. "We need to destroy the obelisk. Now."
Elliot nodded, his hands trembling as he reached for the vial of liquid silver. Mara moved to cover him, her blade ready as the figures in the cages began to stir more violently.
The obelisk pulsed, its light growing brighter with each passing second. Elliot could feel its energy pressing against him, a tangible force that made his skin crawl.
He uncapped the vial, his movements hurried but deliberate. As he stepped toward the obelisk, one of the cages burst open with a metallic screech.
A figure lunged at him, its movements jerky and unnatural. Its face was barely human, its features twisted into a grotesque mask of rage and desperation.
Mara intercepted it, her blade flashing as she drove it into the figure's chest. It let out a keening wail, collapsing into a heap on the floor.
"Hurry!" she shouted, her voice cutting through the chaos.
Elliot didn't hesitate. He poured the liquid silver onto the obelisk, the substance hissing as it made contact. The surface of the obelisk cracked and splintered, its light flickering violently.
The room shook, the walls trembling as the obelisk began to collapse. The figures in the cages wailed in unison, their voices rising into a single, inhuman scream.
"Run!" Mara shouted, grabbing Elliot's arm and pulling him toward the exit.
Part 5: The Collapse
They sprinted down the corridor as the sanitarium began to crumble around them. The walls buckled, chunks of debris crashing to the floor as the building itself seemed to convulse.
The whispers faded, replaced by a deep, resonant hum that reverberated through Elliot's bones. He glanced over his shoulder, his heart pounding as he saw the faint glow of the obelisk collapsing in on itself.
They burst through the front doors just as the building let out a deafening roar, its roof caving in with a thunderous crash. A cloud of dust and smoke billowed into the night sky, swallowing the sanitarium in its entirety.
Elliot collapsed onto the grass, his chest heaving as he gasped for air. Beside him, Mara knelt, her blade still clutched tightly in her hand.
"It's done," Elliot said, his voice trembling.
Mara shook her head, her expression grim. "Not yet. This was just another piece."
Elliot stared at the smoldering ruins, his mind racing. If this wasn't the end, then what would it take to finally close the door?
The whispers may have faded, but he could still feel the alley watching.