The basement corridors seemed pretty much deserted as a young girl
of maybe fourteen made her way slowly down the hallway. The pushed a
strand of light brown hair and turned to the figure following her.
"Professor, is this the part of the hospital that you wanted me to check?"
"Yes. There are more portions of the first Kingdom Hospital in this section than in any other part of the hospital." The man reached out and laid a hand against the wall, suddenly lost in thought. He was tall,
his light brown hair only slightly edged with grey around the temples and he could have been anywhere from his thirties to his early fifties. His wore a long black robe but that wasn't the first strange thing that an observer would note about him. Although at first glance he seemed like any other person, on taking a closer look, you could see through him and his skin gave off a slight glow.
He turned from the wall to face the girl once more. "Lucy and I always had problems in this section of the old hospital," He said with a distant look in his eyes. "We got separated once and Lucy saw something,
she would never tell me what...."
"Professor Jensen, you know if Professor Banes hears you calling her Lucy she's going to kill you, right?" the girl said with a chuckle.
"So, what do you want me to do?"
"Honestly, I'm not really sure." Michael turned to stare at the corridor for a moment before turning to his student, who was waiting for some sort of guidance. "Just close your eyes and see if you feel anything unusual, Susan."
"Could I get a better definition of unusual, please?" Susan asked nervously.
"Just a magical presence, dear. Luckily Johnny very seldom finds time to do his job so the basement should be magic free at the moment."
Michael noticed the nervous expression on the girl's face and leaned towards her with a smile. "Susan, please don't worry about this. If you can't do it, I'm not going to be upset with you. After all, I've been looking for Mary for over a hundred years and I've never found her."
Michael closed his eyes for a moment as he spoke his sister's name,
struggling to keep his emotions under control as he spoke to Susan. He had promised his mother to find his sister, to save her and....
"Professor, do you want me to try it now?" Susan asked hesitantly,
closing her eyes and slowly probing the hallway for anything out of the ordinary when Michael nodded. Nothing. She slowly started to walk down the hallway, keeping her eyes closed as she went. She bit her lip as she walked, still not feeling a thing. This just wasn't working. Maybe Professor Jensen was wrong about her, maybe all of the people who said that because she didn't have any real magic.... Suddenly her eyes shot open as she felt a flicker of something.
"There's something here," Susan started down the hallway with her eyes open now that she had picked up the trail. The first faint ripples grew stronger and her eyes widened. "Professor, this feels like something dark. Should I...."
"Keep going if you can, Susan. This hospital has always been very strange." Michael frowned as he followed the girl. "Just be careful.
Very bad things happened here and...."
"Here. It's in here." Susan rushed down the hall now, having to hurry or the waves of dark energy would have brought her to her knees. She pressed her hands against the door in front of her and her brow furrowed in puzzlement. She turned and called back to her teacher. "It's here but it's not here. Professor, I don't know what this is. It's like there's something going on... between?"
Michael slowed for a moment, puzzling over what Susan was feeling.
Suddenly the ground beneath their feet begin to shake and plaster started to rain down from the ceiling.
"Professor!" Susan screamed as she forced herself into the doorway and ducked down low. The evil she was sensing surrounded her now and she flung her hands around her head to try to protect herself as debris continued to fall.
"Susan?" The girl opened her eyes what felt like an eternity later when she heard Michael calling her name.
"Professor?" Her eyes widened as she hurried back down the hall towards where she had last seen him. The part of the hallway near the door she had crouched in seemed basically intact but back the way they had came,
part of the ceiling had caved in, blocking the hallway completely.
"Professor, where are you?"
"I seem to be on the other side of what I'm hoping is not a sign that Jesse has been doing a little cutting on building maintence again."
Michael said as he started through the debris. "I'll be right there. Are you alright?"
As he stepped through the debris, Michael expected to find a panicked student on the other side. Instead, he found himself in a grey corridor, strangely familiar to him. Screams came from a doorway just ahead of him and he slowly headed towards it. "Mary?" He whispered.
"Professor, where are you?!" Suddenly he heard Susan's voice and he forced himself to back up, stepping out of the rubble back to where he had started from. He wanted nothing more but to explore that strange place. the first Kingdom Hospital? Could that really be the first Kingdom? First he needed to see to the safety of the student in his charge though.
"Susan, I think I might have found that between place you were sensing." Michael said, putting a slight chuckle into his voice in an attempt to reassure the girl. "Unfortunately, it seems to be preventing me from going through the debris. I need you to go upstairs and get some help."
"Okay," Susan said slowly. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"I'm fine, dear." Just then, Michael heard a faint shouting from somewhere down the corridor. He shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm not alone though. It sounds like some other people are trapped on this side as well."
"Okay. I'll go get someone and I'll be back as fast as I can."
Susan told him.
"Good. Just don't get Dr, James, dear. He mixed up a summoning charm and a severing charm once. Flakey was never a well man after that.
I would hate to see what he would do if he tried to banish this rubble."
"I'll call the headmistress. She'll know what to do." Susan started to walk away but then turned with a slight frown. "Be careful,
Professor. What I was sensing before is on your side of the hall now."
"Professor, is this the part of the hospital that you wanted me to check?"
"Yes. There are more portions of the first Kingdom Hospital in this section than in any other part of the hospital." The man reached out and laid a hand against the wall, suddenly lost in thought. He was tall,
his light brown hair only slightly edged with grey around the temples and he could have been anywhere from his thirties to his early fifties. His wore a long black robe but that wasn't the first strange thing that an observer would note about him. Although at first glance he seemed like any other person, on taking a closer look, you could see through him and his skin gave off a slight glow.
He turned from the wall to face the girl once more. "Lucy and I always had problems in this section of the old hospital," He said with a distant look in his eyes. "We got separated once and Lucy saw something,
she would never tell me what...."
"Professor Jensen, you know if Professor Banes hears you calling her Lucy she's going to kill you, right?" the girl said with a chuckle.
"So, what do you want me to do?"
"Honestly, I'm not really sure." Michael turned to stare at the corridor for a moment before turning to his student, who was waiting for some sort of guidance. "Just close your eyes and see if you feel anything unusual, Susan."
"Could I get a better definition of unusual, please?" Susan asked nervously.
"Just a magical presence, dear. Luckily Johnny very seldom finds time to do his job so the basement should be magic free at the moment."
Michael noticed the nervous expression on the girl's face and leaned towards her with a smile. "Susan, please don't worry about this. If you can't do it, I'm not going to be upset with you. After all, I've been looking for Mary for over a hundred years and I've never found her."
Michael closed his eyes for a moment as he spoke his sister's name,
struggling to keep his emotions under control as he spoke to Susan. He had promised his mother to find his sister, to save her and....
"Professor, do you want me to try it now?" Susan asked hesitantly,
closing her eyes and slowly probing the hallway for anything out of the ordinary when Michael nodded. Nothing. She slowly started to walk down the hallway, keeping her eyes closed as she went. She bit her lip as she walked, still not feeling a thing. This just wasn't working. Maybe Professor Jensen was wrong about her, maybe all of the people who said that because she didn't have any real magic.... Suddenly her eyes shot open as she felt a flicker of something.
"There's something here," Susan started down the hallway with her eyes open now that she had picked up the trail. The first faint ripples grew stronger and her eyes widened. "Professor, this feels like something dark. Should I...."
"Keep going if you can, Susan. This hospital has always been very strange." Michael frowned as he followed the girl. "Just be careful.
Very bad things happened here and...."
"Here. It's in here." Susan rushed down the hall now, having to hurry or the waves of dark energy would have brought her to her knees. She pressed her hands against the door in front of her and her brow furrowed in puzzlement. She turned and called back to her teacher. "It's here but it's not here. Professor, I don't know what this is. It's like there's something going on... between?"
Michael slowed for a moment, puzzling over what Susan was feeling.
Suddenly the ground beneath their feet begin to shake and plaster started to rain down from the ceiling.
"Professor!" Susan screamed as she forced herself into the doorway and ducked down low. The evil she was sensing surrounded her now and she flung her hands around her head to try to protect herself as debris continued to fall.
"Susan?" The girl opened her eyes what felt like an eternity later when she heard Michael calling her name.
"Professor?" Her eyes widened as she hurried back down the hall towards where she had last seen him. The part of the hallway near the door she had crouched in seemed basically intact but back the way they had came,
part of the ceiling had caved in, blocking the hallway completely.
"Professor, where are you?"
"I seem to be on the other side of what I'm hoping is not a sign that Jesse has been doing a little cutting on building maintence again."
Michael said as he started through the debris. "I'll be right there. Are you alright?"
As he stepped through the debris, Michael expected to find a panicked student on the other side. Instead, he found himself in a grey corridor, strangely familiar to him. Screams came from a doorway just ahead of him and he slowly headed towards it. "Mary?" He whispered.
"Professor, where are you?!" Suddenly he heard Susan's voice and he forced himself to back up, stepping out of the rubble back to where he had started from. He wanted nothing more but to explore that strange place. the first Kingdom Hospital? Could that really be the first Kingdom? First he needed to see to the safety of the student in his charge though.
"Susan, I think I might have found that between place you were sensing." Michael said, putting a slight chuckle into his voice in an attempt to reassure the girl. "Unfortunately, it seems to be preventing me from going through the debris. I need you to go upstairs and get some help."
"Okay," Susan said slowly. "Are you sure you're okay?"
"I'm fine, dear." Just then, Michael heard a faint shouting from somewhere down the corridor. He shook his head. "I'm afraid I'm not alone though. It sounds like some other people are trapped on this side as well."
"Okay. I'll go get someone and I'll be back as fast as I can."
Susan told him.
"Good. Just don't get Dr, James, dear. He mixed up a summoning charm and a severing charm once. Flakey was never a well man after that.
I would hate to see what he would do if he tried to banish this rubble."
"I'll call the headmistress. She'll know what to do." Susan started to walk away but then turned with a slight frown. "Be careful,
Professor. What I was sensing before is on your side of the hall now."