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His head was spinning, his body was sore, the smell of burnt electronics filled his nostrils. His body didn't want to move, yet this tiny part of his brain screamed at him to start moving. When he finally opened his eyes, he saw the tram's interior, shattered windows, and mangled front.
"That can't be right," Dr. Kenton muttered, "no wait, I remember." He recalled his morning commute to work from the dormitory. He boarded the facility's internal tram line, the same as always. However, at some point in the trip, there was a power surge, and Kenton's tram car fell from its railing into the abyss below. The scientist crawled out of the twisted metal vehicle, finally noticing his broken leg and the blood dripping down his forehead.
"Phone, where's the damn phone," he searched his person for the device. Unfortunately, all he found was its caved in remains. "Lovely," he sighed as he reached back into the tram, searching for the emergency supply cabinet. He'd seen it every day since he started working at the facility. Still, he had never expected to actually need to use it. In a stroke of luck, the heavy-duty flashlight contained within was still functional. There was even a box of spare batteries and basic medical supplies.
After patching himself up as best he could, Dr. Kenton dragged himself away from the tram, flashlight in hand. It was best to keep his distance; he could still smell something burning and didn't want to wait for the vehicle to burst into flames. Instead, Kenton began his search for a service ladder or stairs, maybe even an emergency phone. There had to be something of the sort down here, he was certain.
Dr. Kenton kept to the wall to ease the weight off his broken leg while pointing the light every which way into the darkness. If he was lucky, rescue was already on its the way; if not well, he'd hopefully spot something that would lead him out of there. In the worst case, the power surge could have wrecked the whole facility. If that was the case, he'd be easily missed in the rush to get everything back in working order. For all he knew, dozens of people in the facility were in similar or worse situations as him.
"I don't have anything to worry about," he assured himself. "This is concrete down here, which meant there were people down here when the facility was being constructed. They had to get back above somehow. Ah, speak of the devil." Up ahead, his flashlight revealed the outline of a metal door. It looked old and rusted, but not terribly so. With one good tug, Kenton forced the door open and made his way inside.
"Let's find those stairs," he scanned the room; however, all he found was a long hallway and a few sets of doors. The doors were wooden and rotted, the hallway filled with the unpleasant smell of decay. "Where the heck...What is this place?" Dr. Kenton was taken aback as he shined his light through the hall, revealing a set of windows. Through each window was a room that resembled one of the labs he worked in above, only smaller, older, and unkempt.
"I knew the facility was old, but I didn't think we had abandoned sections," Dr. Kenton was aghast. "There has to be a way to the current facility, right?" The scientist tried to convince himself, but the area he found himself in looked like it hadn't been touched in decades. "Just keep moving," he forced himself forward.
The further he went, the deeper he seemed to descend. All he could find were more abandoned labs and rooms, each in further disrepair than the last. The stench of decay only grew stronger. While at first, it seemed to be mold or mildew, a light smell of something rotten started to creep in.
Dr. Kenton finally came to the end of the hall. The smell had only grown stronger as he approached the single door that remained. Kenton hesitated to open it, knowing full well he wouldn't like what's behind it. However, the scientist knew he needed to check every space if he had any hope of getting out.
"Here goes nothing," he opened the door, the rotten stench magnifying as he peered inside. What Kenton saw made him wretch. He couldn't tell what he saw, but whatever it was, it was dead, and there was a lot of it. Swarms of flies, the horrid stench of rotten meat, and the color red filled the entire room. Kenton had no idea what happened in this lab, but he certainly didn't want to know and shut the door tightly.
"I'm getting out of here now," he picked up the pace the best he could. Alas, no matter where he went, he could find no path, no stairs, no ladders, just the same deserted labs. His options spent he exited out the door he came and back into the tram tunnel. After puking his guts out, the scientist tried to renew his search for an escape. However, exhaustion, pain, and the psychological impact had slowed him down.
"This is horrific," Dr. Kenton sat down against the wall. "I don't know what the hell I saw, but I have no intention of finding out." The stress and pain finally got to the injured man, and he found himself passing out. He didn't even have a chance to turn off his flashlight before the darkness took him.
~--~
"You still with us?" A voice cut through the darkness, and Kenton opened up his eyes to see a medic attending him.
"What happened?" Dr. Kenton mumbled.
"You took a pretty nasty fall in the tram. You're lucky to be alive," the medic explained. At this point, Kenton noticed the whole team of rescue personnel behind the other man. "Good thing you left your flashlight on, or we might not have found you. Come on, let's get you out of here." The team swiftly moved Dr. Kenton onto a stretcher and carried him away.
"I hope this isn't a dream," Dr. Kenton muttered as he faded in and out of consciousness. As he finally faded back into the darkness, one last thought crossed his mind. 'That place looked like it had been abandoned for decades,' he recalled. 'If that's the case, how could there still be so much rotten meat? It wasn't sealed, was it?' This last realization hung in his mind as he slipped back into sleep.
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The deeper you dig, the more questions you have, the more you learn, the less you want the answers.
Until next time, Read, Comment and Enjoy
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