Blood in the Dark
Read………Important…….Stop………Read
Disclaimer: In my world, I DO own ER and all of its characters. But since I'm the only member of my own world, only I know that. The very good people who created ER own it, and so does NBC, my favourite channel. *Sniff* you guys are heroes…
Also, anything I mention, like Oreo cookies, for example, I don't own. I own the crazy guy.
Achieve: I need email first
Spoilers: None
Rating: PG
A/N: Two words. Very. Scary. I don't know why I wrote this, but if you read it…wow. It was inspired by that big blackout thingy that happened a while ago. This would be a great Halloween ER episode, don't you think?
*~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter One: The Dark
*~*~*~*~*~*
It was a bad day to be working. Or rather, bad night. The rain came down in torrents as John Carter walked through the doors of County General. What greeted him was a total shock. Silence. Empty chairs. No drunks. No gun-wielders. Nobody.
At admit, Randi was lounging on a chair, reading a magazine. She looked up at Dr. Carter and nodded her hello. Carter was about to ask her what was going on when Dr. Kerry Weaver came out of one of the exam rooms, escorting a mother and child, who had a cast on his arm. They left and Kerry turned to Carter.
"Empty, huh?" she asked, placing the clipboard of her previous patient on the desk.
"Uh, yeah. Wow. What happened? Are we closed?"
"No. It's just a slow night. And you know, the little fact of the major thunder storm going on outside."
"Oh that? I didn't notice." Carter tried to wring out his coat, which was dripping water.
Kerry and Carter walked into the lounge.
Luka, Susan and Abby were seated at a table, playing cards.
"Good game?" Carter asked Abby.
"Hell no, I lost three games in a row." Abby threw down her cards in disgust.
"Are you sure you've never played poker?" Susan asked Luka.
"You guys will believe anything. I haven't lived in a box all my life."
"Ohh." Susan and Abby rolled their eyes and gave Luka their bets - Oreo Cookies.
"You guys are playing for cookies?" Carter asked.
"We were playing for pretzels, but SOMEBODY ate them." Abby looked at Susan, who shrugged.
"I nike mmsult." She said through a mouthful of pretzel.
Abby threw a card at her.
Carter shook his head and put on his lab coat.
"You won't need that." Yosh, from the coffee maker, said. "Nobody's out there."
"Except for that guy." Susan said.
"That guy has a name Susan." Kerry scoffed.
"Sorry. His name is Mr. Paulson. He came in for a cut on the head after falling down some stairs. He was a little freaked, so we sedated him. He'll come around in a little bit and then he can leave." Susan shrugged.
Kerry put away her lab coat.
"I'm off now. Elizabeth's here, and so is Pratt. Gallant has a shift. If it was anybody else, I know they wouldn't come, but since it's Gallant, you can expect him soon."
"There's nothing like an eager student." Carter said. Abby rolled her eyes.
Carter followed Kerry out of the lounge. He stopped at the front desk.
"You would look good with blond hair." Randi told him. Carter ignored her and decided to see who Mr. Paulson was.
"Randi, do you know where a Mr. Paulson is?"
"No."
"It's your job."
Randi shrugged.
"I thought I saw him in exam three. But then he ran into exam five. Then to the men's bathroom."
"Why didn't you stop him?" Carter asked frantically.
"He went into the men's bathroom. Like I was going in there." Randi said. Suddenly, there was a crash and a scream.
And then it was dark.
The scream belonged to Randi, who looked up at where the lights were.
"Don't panic…" she said fearfully "but I think the power's out."
"What about the backup power?"
"Problem." Came a voice from behind them. Carter recognized it as Pratt's.
"What?" He demanded, trying to find a chair. It was quite dark.
"I was trying to fix the power. I thought I could. But then I cut a wire and plugged in another, and – "
"You broke the generator? Pratt!"
"What? We won't need it. Nobody's here."
"The guy with the cut is here." Randi pointed out.
"Somebody should check on him." Carter suggested. Nobody answered. Randi pulled out a flashlight and a magazine. Carter grabbed the flashlight before Randi could use it.
"Hey!"
"Do your job."
"Yes Mother." Randi said sarcastically. Carter ignored her and went to the lounge.
He was met by the scene of Abby, Susan and Luka playing poker by candlelight. Nothing had changed. They were in the exact same position they had been when he had left. But now Yosh had joined them.
"You guys." Carter said.
"What?" Luka asked.
"The power's out."
"We saw that." Susan said. "I'll raise you two Oreos."
"Mr. Paulson ran away."
"Huh?" Luka looked up.
"He broke free from his restraints."
"Restraints?" Abby asked. "Oops."
"We thought sedation was enough." Yosh explained.
"Well it's not. And now he's run away. And somebody needs to find him." Carter announced. "Whose patient was he?"
Reluctantly, Luka admitted that it was his.
"Go find him." Carter ordered.
"In the dark?" Luka pretended to be scared. "Alone?"
"I'll go." Abby volunteered. "As long as I hold the candle. God knows what we would do if you dropped it."
"Have a séance?" Susan suggested. Carter glared at her.
Abby and Luka left with the candle to go play manhunt patient.
"Is this a normal thing in hospitals?" Abby asked as she walked slowly with the candle. "Having blackouts and loosing patients in the blackouts?"
"This isn't a normal hospital." Luka said.
"That's true. Ow, this candle is hot."
"Uh huh."
Abby and Luka looked in room after room. The candle created shadows on the wall that danced eerily as thunder cracked. It didn't really provide enough light to see by.
"This is like out of a horror movie or something." Abby joked.
"All we need now is a psychotic murderer or something."
"Yeah." Abby laughed.
*~*~*~*~*~*
In the lounge, Susan was playing solitaire. Yosh was making shadow puppets with the flashlight. Carter was being edgy.
"Did you hear that?" he asked.
"Yeah. In America, we call it thunder." Susan laughed.
"Sorry, it's just I have a bad feeling."
"About?" Yosh asked.
"Just…this."
Susan shrugged. "So you're afraid of the dark. It's okay. I was, when I was eight."
That got her another glare from Carter.
"Lighten up." She scoffed
"I wish it would." Carter said.
*~*~*~*~*~*
At the front desk, Randi was looking bored.
"You're an idiot." She told Pratt.
"Why?"
"Because you messed up the emergency lights. Hospitals are supposed to have backup light. This sucks."
"Oh, I get it. You're afraid. Well, don't worry, I'm here."
"That's what I'm afraid of." Randi turned her back on Pratt. Pratt shrugged and picked up a flashlight. He left.
*~*~*~*~*~*
Abby and Luka were getting bored. And anxious. And paranoid. They had to find a patient in the big dark empty hospital.
Abby let Luka hold the candle. He was taller, and it was easier for both of them to see.
"God, where is he?" Abby mumbled. "Mr. Paulson? Hello?"
"Maybe he's hurt or something."
They walked past the bathrooms.
"Go in and see if he's there." Abby ordered.
"You."
"You! He's your patient. I'm just a nurse." Abby smiled sweetly.
Luka sighed and went in. And Abby was left alone in the dark. Suddenly, someone grabbed her. She punched him.
"Ow!" that someone let go of her. She turned around.
"Pratt! What the hell?" Abby demanded.
"Geez, what did you hit me with? Bricks?" Pratt scowled at Abby. "You guys are either wusses or –"
"He's not in there." Luka appeared. "Oh, hi Pratt. What happened? Did you walk into a wall?"
Pratt got annoyed and left.
"What just happened?"
"Nothing. Where's your patient?"
"Like I said, he's not there."
Abby shrugged and they kept walking down the dark hallway. Abby saw a flicker of light in one of the trauma rooms. Luka and Abby went there quickly. Abby opened the door. There was a dark sticky substance on the handle. Abby brought her hand back.
"Luka?" she said "I think this is blood." They glanced at each other uncertainly and proceeded inside. A trail of dark blood began. They followed it along the floor, up the shelves. Slowly, Abby and Luka looked up at the wall. Abby gasped.
Freshly painted in blood, some words ran down the wall.
Didn't your Mother tell you not to play with fire?
At that moment, the candle went out.
As the room plunged into darkness, the door handle creaked open.
"I've been waiting." Somebody said.
All Abby and Luka could do was listen.
A/N: So you see, I think that would make a great ER first-scene. Now review, before my psycho person comes to get you.
And, I'm a Luby, in case you can't tell. I am a Luby, but thisis only a bit Luby-ish. I don't really write fuzz. I'm more interested in their friendship.
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