The House of Morpheus

Chapter 5: Recovering with More Death

Rune woke up to a headache, a dense pounding in the back of his head.He sat up and looked around, he  was in an infirmary. Two other beds sat alongside his, one was empty and the other occupied.

Occupied….by Midnight? Rune rushed - slowly - to Midnight’s side. 

Midnight lay on his back, the white cover pulled to his chest, hands crossed over each other. His earrings lay on the side table and he wore no makeup.

“He...he’s dead,” Rune whispered, stumbling back.

The face was pale, whiter than white. The lips a deep blue, the eyes swirled in shadow. Rune touched his hand and gasped at the coldness of Midnight’s skin. He truly was dead and even cold.

“Help! Help!” Rune called out desperately, looking around for somebody, anybody.

The door to the side crashed open and a man ran in, he had grey hair pulled back and green eyes. He was followed by Shiro and the rest of the gang.

“What’s going on here?” The man shouted as he rushed to Rune.

Grabbing Rune by the arms, he began to shake him, shouting his questions. “Are you feeling sick? Bleeding? Does something hurt? Are. You. Ok?”

“What...on Earth is all this noise?” A low voice moaned.

Everybody turned to Midnight, he was now sitting up in his bed, running a hand through his hair.

Rune gasped. “But...how...why? I thought you were dead.”

Midnight blinked and then smiled, understanding lighting up his eyes. “Ah, no, you see….it’s just my usual tone. That’s why I wear makeup. I literally look like a newly deceased person.”

“Well, I should introduce myself. I’m The Doctor, Doctor Helix Grave. Odd name, I know. Welcome to The Arch.” The man waved his arms around.

Rune frowned. “The Arch?” 

Midnight stood up with help from Shiro. “The Arch is a special hospital for people like us - people with powers, I mean. It’s built under the sea and completely secretive.”

Doctor Grave nodded. “Well both of you are as fit as a fiddle, so you can enjoy your stay with us. Midnight….I’d recommend not to use your powers too much, I can’t heal spiritual energy, you know.”

Rune shook his head. “Um...wait for a second, how long are we staying here for?”

Angel stepped forward, a sheepish smile touching her lips. “Well apparently, during the jail visit, an inmate escaped and is hiding in the hospital. People can come in but people can’t leave.”

Midnight smiled. “Well, that’s just what we need while we relax. Fantastic timing if I do say so myself.”

Shiro rolled his eyes. “Well, let’s move you to your rooms, first.”

“We have rooms?” 

X stepped in, a sleeping Moon clutched in his arms. “I’ll take Moon to the dorm and stay there for the night. Contact me if you need anything.” He nodded to Midnight and left with Snake trailing behind him.

Angel and Axel nodded before leaving as well.

“Well, do you need help walking?” Doctor Grave stepped closer to Rune.

“No...I’m fine.” Rune stepped away, feeling uncomfortable.

Midnight laughed. “Um, yeah - I can’t feel my legs.”

Doctor Grave was next to him before you could take a blink, touching his legs and humming under his breath.

“Well, we’ll give you a wheelchair, for now, hopefully, this is just temporary.” The doctor mused under his breath, helping Midnight on to the said wheelchair that was brought in by a nurse.

“During dinner, tell me more about the inmate.” Midnight ordered and then was wheeled out by Shiro.

Rune smiled uncomfortable, why had he been left alone with the doctor?

The doctor turned to him. “Are you-“

Rune fainted, his body falling into the doctor's arms, who had dived to catch him before he could hit the floor.

“Well, I guess I’ll drop you off,” the doctor sighed, heaving Rune up and across his shoulder with ease.

_________________________________

Lunch seemed to be a silent affair. The large dining room was filled with people but still remained quiet, an intriguing mystery.

Well, not for long though because Midnight had entered.

“Fish.” He started with disgust. “There’s only fish.”

X rolled his eyes. “We’re under the sea, what else do you think you’ll get?”

Midnight shook his head, playing with his sea soup. “Anything but fish. It’s vile and putrid.”

The doctor moved over, holding his own tray filled with meat. 

Midnight gasped, being over-dramatic. “Why do you get that?”

The doctor laughed, moving on. “Staff privilege, Midnight.”

“That’s not fair, I’m injured. Give me my meat.” Midnight howled.

Moon leaned over and stuffed a whole king prawn into Midnight’s open mouth.

“Yum, yum.” She whispered, sitting back down.

Midnight gagged, spitting it out as he turned an unattractive shade of green.

“Wait, how are you wearing makeup?” Rune asked, leaning closer to Midnight.

Midnight smiled, “I’m not.”

Snake coughed and Rune understood, it was some sort of illusion.

“But why?”

Midnight rolled his eyes. “Because of the way I look. Remember your panic attack earlier? Now imagine that on a mass scale, especially in a hospital.”

Rune nodded, understanding that it would be bad if the hospital thought there was a walking zombie moving around freely. 

A scream shattered the air, causing people to flinch. What had happened?

Doctors in white coats started to run around as Nurses moved equipment between rooms.

Doctor Grave rushed up to Midnight. “A nurse has been killed outside the food hall, could you take a look at her for us?”

Midnight nodded, pushing away his untouched food. “Ok, first confine everyone to their respected rooms.”

Doctor Grave called over a nurse and gave her the instructions.

The body, by the door of the food hall, was of a young woman. Her hair was short and brown, her clothes clean and neat.

The only thing unusual about the body was that there was no head, no head at all.

Doctor Grave moved to the side. “Cause of death is obviously decapitation.”

Midnight gave the doctor an odd look. “Obviously.”

Snake moved forward. “We just have to look for a crazy killer running around with a rotting head. Easy, right?”

Midnight shook his head even though everyone else agreed. “No. That will only work if the killer has the head, he could have dumped it or even used it to frame someone else because that’s what we’re looking for.”

Midnight began to pace as he started thinking. “And does it have something to with the inmate that’s here?” 

Doctor Grave gasped. “I remember that the inmate is wanted for murder but I don’t know the exact details.”

Midnight turned to face the doctor. “Find them out, then.” 

Shiro stepped in. “Shall we rest, then? You're looking awfully pale, Midnight.”

It was true, Midnight was shaky, his gait uneven and his face pale beneath the illusion of makeup.

Midnight laughed, letting out a strained sound. “Well, I am a patient. But that’s a fantastic idea, I’ll do just that. Let’s talk more at dinner time, yes?”

Everyone departed, but tension hung in the air, bringing with it fear of the unknown. Would the killer strike again? And if so, who would be his next target?

___________________________________________

Midnight sighed, staring at his plate of dinner. “Are you joking? There’s even more fish here than there was at lunch.”

Doctor Grave laughed, enjoying his chicken curry with rice. “Well, it’s what it is, Midnight.”

Midnight glared at him. “I honestly hope that you are the killers next target. I’m literally praying to god, right now.”

Grave gasped and then meekly offered up his plate. “Here you go Midnight, why don’t you just eat my food? Yum, fish cakes and fish.”

Midnight laughed, digging in with gusto. “Ah, this is so good.” He muttered, licking his fingers clean after he had scraped his plate.

A woman moved to them, a new nurse. Her blond hair long and her chest huge. Her skin was pale, her face flushed and her breath short.

Midnight stood up. “Are you alright?”

The nurse spun around, obviously disoriented. She fell to the ground and gasped, her hand on her chest.

“She’s having a heart attack, I need assistance.” Doctor Grave shouted, moving to her side, quickly.

A stretcher arrived quickly and she was taken away by some members of staff.

Midnight hummed, something was rubbing him in the wrong way. 

“Midnight?” Rune called for his attention.

“Hmm? On, it’s nothing. We should visit her later in the infirmary.” Midnight mused, pulling his hair back into a tight ponytail.

Rune walked back with him. “Can I ask why your hair is so long?”

Midnight gave Rune a sideways glance, surprised at the change of subject.

“No.” He rushed off, leaving Rune to stand alone.

An hour later, everyone met up in front of the infirmary just as Midnight requested.

Midnight, himself, arrived late, looking quite pale.

Dr Grave was behind him. “Ah, Cameron’s on duty today. You’ll like her.”

“I will?” Midnight stared at Dr Grave.

“Well, she’s good at her job. You know, last year, she was sent to the Blue hospital. She worked there for a transfer. I wish I could get one.” Dr Grave cursed with a laugh.

“Whatever.” Midnight moved away, heading inside.

The infirmary was empty, only one bed occupied and the sheet was pulled over the face.

“Mmm? Is she asleep?” Dr Grave mused, moving closer.

Midnight gasped, rushing to the bedside and pulling off the clean white sheet.

Underneath was the body of the nurse, except for her head, which was missing.

“Oh, dear god.” Dr Grave exclaimed, touching his chest as he moved back.

“Well...this certainly is interesting.” Midnight moved closer, rubbing the white neck.

“Don’t touch that.” Dr Grave warned, still looking shaky.

“What’s with all this fuss? Are you relatives?” A new voice joined.

A lady approached the bed, wearing a white coat and holding a clipboard. Her tag proudly proclaimed her as Dr Cameron Wake.

“Dr Graves? What brings you here today?” She moved closer and then froze, gasping as she saw what the fuss was about.

“Who did this?” Dr Wake moved closer, inspecting the body for other wounds.

Midnight caught her attention. “Dr...Wake? Can you tell me what was wrong with the nurse in the first place?”

“I...don’t know. She wasn’t having a heart attack and everything else seemed fine. I...labelled it as a cold and moved away to get some food sent here.”

Midnight nodded. “Is there anyone else assigned here? Did you leave her here alone?”

The female doctor shook her head, looking around. “Ah, no. There’s an apprentice nurse, a male one. He’s new but really good, better than some doctors.” She whispered the last bit, looking away.

“What does he do?” Midnight leaned into her, ignoring the headless body.

“Clive? Well...a bit of everything. He sorts out the IVs, the drips and the samples.” She covered the body with a clean sheet.

Midnight nodded, taking mental notes. “Does he do sponge baths? Does he sort out medical trays? Does he have access to the medical equipment?”

The nurse blinked, reddening slightly. “Yes, yes...he does all that. That’s his duty as a nurse. Wait, are you saying he did this?”

Midnight opened his mouth when someone else entered, the man that came in was holding an IV tray.

“Oh, Dr Wake, are you back? The patient's fever went up, so I got a new drip...who are all these people?” The man looked young, in his early twenties at the very least.

Midnight headed over to him with a fake smile. “Are you Clive?”

The man nodded, “Yes? I’m Clive Andrews.”

“Clive, I've heard you’re the new nurse? What did you do before this?”

“Ah -? I worked for my sister, she’s a beautician and she owns her own salon and everything.”

“You only have a sister? I have a younger brother.”

“Ah, no. I have a brother, too. He’s older, doesn’t really live a good life but I have to help him, that’s what family does. After all, we all share the same blood and desires, you know.”

“Hmm, your sister is she younger or older?”

“My sister? She’s younger than me by a year, I’m really proud of her. To pay off her school fees, I worked as a cleaner at different places. It was really hard at first but the end result made it all worth it.”

“A cleaner? Any place good?” Midnight moved back.

“No...not really. Oh, I worked at the big Blue hospital last year. That was good, in fact, that’s what made me choose to become a nurse in the first place.” Clive nodded with a smile, the fond memory relaxing him a bit.

“What an interesting tattoo.” Midnight changed the subject, his eyes focusing on to Clive’s right wrist.

“Thank you?” Clive put down the tray, looking uncomfortable but Dr Wake was distracted talking to Dr Grave, so she could be no help to him.

“What does it mean?” Midnight cornered him, offering up another smile.

The tattoo was a line of water droplets, following the line of his veins, a paragraph was written under in a different language.

“Ah - um, it means something like water fills my veins, for I am one with the sea. I got it when I was younger and drunk. Your tattoos are cool as well, is that your only one?”

Midnight smiled, “No. This is an elemental tattoo that I designed, it shows water, air, fire and earth. I have the word death tattooed on the side of my left thumb and my name on my collarbone. Cool, right?”

Clive nodded but his expression showed, interestingly, disinterest.

“And you, how long are you going to bother my nurse?” Dr Wake moved up to Midnight.

“Clive, go call the Head Nurse, we have a dead body.” Clive nodded, rushing off to do so.

Dr Wake turned to Midnight and pointed towards the door, a silent gesture for him to leave.

Midnight nodded and moved away, heading to his room without conversing with the others.

“Hmm, I could be wrong but what’s with taking the heads?” He muttered as he headed in for a shower.

______________________________________________

Later that night, Midnight lay awake, staring at the ceiling as his mind started to wander. If he could find the heads, he would know who killed them but where were the heads?

He turned to Shiro, and slid out of his single bed, heading over to Shiro’s.

“Shiro.” Midnight hissed, shaking him awake.

“Hmmm? What’s wrong? Bad dream?” Shiro whispered back, sitting up as he rubbed his eyes.

“I have an idea, are you awake?” Midnight grabbed Shiro’s hand.

Shiro nodded, holding back a yawn unsuccessfully.

“If I lend you a bit of power, can you take over the building?” Midnight put on the desk lamp, still keeping his voice low.

Shiro shook his head. “Even at full power, I couldn’t do that. Maybe a small area? What are you going to do?”

“Listen, if you killed people and took their heads as trophies, what would you do with them?”

“Maybe he took them because of something else and dumped them? But if he wanted a trophy, maybe keep them close to him? Look, it’s the middle of the night, Midnight, and I don’t know.” Shiro glared, rubbing his forehead.

“Then he’d have dumped them. But if nothing leaves, then where?” Midnight stood up and started pacing, whispering under his breath.

Shiro watched for a couple of minutes, his eyelids feeling heavier and his body slowly sinking back into bed.

Midnight smiled, a thought coming to him suddenly. He turned to Shiro and debated against waking him up again, rushing for the door instead. 

He headed to the entrance of the underwater hospital, the front couple of rooms had a water ceiling, the water held up with incredibly powerful glass.

A guard stood by the entrance, surprised at the sight of Midnight, he jumped to his feet and rushed forward.

“Are you alright, sir? Your lips are blue! Please come with me.” The man panicked and Midnight inwardly sighed, forgetting that he wasn’t wearing makeup.

“I’m fine, thank you for asking. Can I ask you a couple of questions?” Midnight pushed away from the guard and offered a bright smile.

The guard frowned worried but nodded, stepping back. 

“Great, does this place have a large cooler that is near the surface but in an unused place?”

The guard thought about it. “Um, no? All medical equipment is moved if a room becomes unused for whatever reason.”

Midnight sighed, what was it that he had been expecting?

“Oh wait, do you mean like a water cooler?” The guard asked, rubbing his chin.

Midnight nodded, where was the guard going with this?

“Well, there’s one on the first floor. The wing is getting remodeled so that the left walls are like the ceiling, they show the water.”

Midnight frowned. “What’s the purpose of the water cooler then?”

“Oh, it used to be a small kitchen for waiting people, the back that is. I’m sure the large cooler is still there since it was built in.”

Midnight rubbed his chin, touching the tattoo on his collarbone. “How do I get there?”

The guard moved closer, pointing with his right hand to the left side. “Take that door, go down a floor and then follow the hallway until the end. There’s a big ‘Keep Out’ sign, you can’t miss it. When you enter, take the first right door, go down the corridor and take the last left door. The room is the only one with the finished water windowing. Is that helpful?” 

Midnight nodded, handing the man financial compensation for his hard work in a from of a bill and then followed his directions until he got to the room that the man had mentioned.

The room was large, the cooler more like a fridge. It ruined the beauty of the water windowing, but the reflection of the water was beautiful. 

Midnight smiled as he moved to the cooler, the wisps of shadows confirming his suspicions. He didn’t need to open it to know that the heads of the deceased were there.

“Now, what to do?” Midnight mused. “Let’s create a scene, shall we?”