Epilogue: The Descent
"What follows is not conjecture. What follows is record."
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Randall Patts was declared dead the next day by Dr. Cornelius West. The official cause: catastrophic brain hemorrhage secondary to blunt force trauma and acute seizure activity. The body was removed from the facility within six hours. No autopsy was performed on-site. His family was not permitted to view the remains.
Seth Rowans has not been seen in the facility by other patients since that day.
Rumors began to rise immediately. Some claimed Seth had been placed in a straightjacket, declared too unstable to remain in general population. Others whispered that he was being experimented on in sub-level rooms no one could confirm existed. Most dismissed these as delusions, the paranoid fantasies of minds already fractured by confinement and medication.
But Seth's room, Block B-464, remained locked. And when patients passed it in the hallways, they reported a smell. Copper and rot.
The guards never commented.
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June 6th, 2023
A new doctor arrived at the facility.
His name was Dr. Rodrick Sawyer.
He was introduced in a mandatory assembly held in the main atrium at 9:00 AM. All patients, male and female, were present. Dr. Sawyer stood on the raised platform in a sharply pressed black suit, his hands clasped behind his back, his expression placid and unreadable. Sheriff Rogers stood to his right. Dr. West stood to his left, hands folded, eyes downcast.
Dr. Sawyer was described by the administrative documents as "a man of faith, discipline, and order." The patients would come to know him differently.
He was the worst of the twelve doctors in the facility.
He was the one who implemented The Rules.
And he was the one who designed The Punishments.
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• The Rules (as displayed on every wall, every corridor, every room)
1. Wake-up time is at 3:00 AM.
1.1. Shower time is from 5:00 AM to 6:00 AM. Patients will shower in assigned groups. No exceptions. No delays.
1.2. Breakfast is served at 7:00 AM and ends at 7:20 AM. Lunch begins at 1:00 PM and ends at 1:20 PM. Dinner begins at 8:00 PM and ends at 8:30 PM. Sleep is mandatory at 10:00 PM. After each meal, a pill must be taken. Refusal will result in forced administration.
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2. Prohibited Items:
- Drugs and alcohol: Possession or use is strictly forbidden. Random searches and mandatory testing will be conducted without warning.
- Weapons and firearms: Not permitted under any circumstances.
- Pornography: Possession, distribution, or display is forbidden.
- Valuables and electronics: Large sums of money and personal electronics are discouraged. The facility is not liable for lost or stolen items.
- Vapes and e-cigarettes: Banned.
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3. Conduct and Participation:
- Respect for Others: Patients must respect the rights, dignity, and privacy of other patients and staff. Abusive, degrading, or violent behavior will not be tolerated.
- Appropriate Attire: Modest and appropriate clothing is required at all times. The issued gray uniform must be worn without alteration.
- Maintain Cleanliness: Patients are expected to keep themselves, their rooms, and common areas clean. Failure to do so will result in disciplinary action.
- Participation: Patients are expected to fully participate in their prescribed treatment plans, including therapy sessions, group activities, and meetings with doctors and occupational therapists. Non-compliance will be noted.
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• The Punishments
Every patient is given three warnings for violations of the rules. Each warning an action that's taken by the staff, each one promised to be different then the next, except for the third warning.
Upon receiving the third warning, the patient will be Grounded.
Little is known about what "Grounded" entails.
Only one person has been Grounded.
Seth Rowans.
He has not been seen since.
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June 25th, 2023
For the past four days, there have been repeated complaints from patients suffering symptoms entirely inconsistent with their documented illnesses.
The reports were varied but shared disturbing commonalities:
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Harold Wayne, a former patient admitted two years prior for severe depression, was found hanged in his room on the morning of June 25th. The ligature was fashioned from torn bedsheets. His neck was broken cleanly.
In his last recorded session with Dr. Gordon, conducted three days before his death, Harold reported "hearing a clock in every corner" of the facility. He described the sound as "DING, CLICK-CLACK, DING," a deep, resonant chime followed by mechanical clicking. He claimed it followed him. That it was always just behind him, just out of sight.
Dr. Gordon prescribed an increased dosage of his medication and noted Harold's behavior as "acute auditory hallucination, likely stress-induced."
Harold's body was removed within two hours. No investigation was opened.
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**Fin Murphy, a 23-year-old patient admitted for post-traumatic stress disorder following military service, reported the same auditory phenomenon on June 22nd. He described the clock sound as "getting louder," as though it were "coming closer."
On June 23rd, Fin was found unresponsive in the communal showers. His body temperature was 104°F. His eyes were open, pupils fully dilated, unseeing. Foam had dried at the corners of his mouth.
Cause of death: sudden cardiac arrest.
Dr. Sawyer signed the report.
Fin had no prior history of heart disease.
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By June 25th, nineteen patients had reported hearing the clock.
Fourteen of them were in the same wing: Block A.
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June 26th, 2023
Dr. Rodrick Sawyer called an emergency meeting of the facility's senior staff at 6:00 AM.
Present were:
- Sheriff Rogers
- Dr. Cornelius West
- Dr. Gordon
- Dr. Miriam Holt (psychiatry)
- Dr. Alan Cross (neurology)
- Head Nurse Delilah Grant
- Security Chief Malik Okoye
The meeting lasted eleven minutes.
No official minutes were recorded.
But three members of the janitorial staff, working in the adjacent corridor, reported hearing raised voices. Specifically, they heard Dr. West say:
"You're pushing them too hard. The dosage increases are destabilizing their cognitive function. We're going to lose more."
And Dr. Sawyer's response:
"Then we lose them. The weak will fall. The strong will emerge. That is the point."
Sheriff Rogers said nothing.
Dr. West did not attend any patient sessions that day.
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June 27th, 2023
At 2:47 AM, Matthew Winters woke screaming.
Guards arrived at his room, Block B-466, within thirty seconds. When they opened the door, they found Matthew standing in the center of the room, barefoot, his gray uniform soaked with sweat. He was staring at the far wall.
He was pointing at nothing.
When asked what he saw, Matthew said:
"A bleeding tree. It's branches trying to grab hold of him."
The guards reported his eyes were "glassy, unfocused, like he was looking through the wall."
Matthew was sedated and returned to his bed.
At 3:15 AM, Samantha Wilbur reported seeing the sky red with droplets of oil in Block A-291.
At 4:01 AM, Jacob Hathaway was found unconscious in his room, his hands wrapped around his own throat.
By 5:00 AM, three patients had reported seeing "the boy."
Descriptions were identical:
- Pale skin
- Dripping wet
- Vacant eyes
- Standing in the corner of the room
- Never blinking
- Never moving
When asked what the boy said, two patients gave the same answer:
"Follow the lion and you will be the scorpion."
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End of Epilogue.