Horror Game Developer: My games aren't that scary! Chapter 625: Surgery [3]

Time seemed to have frozen still. Zoey shifted from room to room, caring for the endless stream of patients. In every space, blood confronted her, their suffering echoing back into her as fatigue stealthily invaded her thoughts.

Tick. Tick—

Tick!

As time crawled onward, she sensed herself teetering on the edge of breakdown.

"Nurse! Nurse!"

"Over here! I need immediate help over here! This is an emergency! We need you to quickly come here!"

"I need urgent help over here!"

"Nurse!"

Shouts poured in relentlessly, blending one into another without respite, and as Zoey got led into yet another chamber, her gut heaved wildly within her chest.

Her gaze fixed on the patient, freezing her briefly at the view of raw organs tumbling from the gaping belly, shimmering beneath the brutal lights while surgeons maneuvered them inward with deliberate, precise motions.

Squelch!

The slick, gruesome display squeezed her throat tight, and precisely then, a bizarre twist slithered through her own belly, like something deep inside was being poked and repositioned.

She ground her teeth fiercely, compelling her body to remain erect as the turmoil boiled inside.

"Nurse, I need your help over here."

One surgeon halted and turned to her.

He clutched a loop of the bared entrails—intestines precisely—giving it a light squeeze amid his efforts, and right at that instant, torment ripped through Zoey's frame.

——!

Keen and shocking, the feeling coiled through her core, snatching the breath from her chest.

Her legs quaked wildly, threatening to fold under her as she battled to stay on her feet, scarcely avoiding a crash to the floor.

"Nurse?"

The surgeon elevated the intestine, sending Zoey's legs buckling further.

"C-coming..."

Thrusting the agony aside, Zoey advanced to the surgeon, taking position beside him. Yanking down his mask, the doctor passed the viscera to her.

"Hold this for me."

"...."

Zoey lingered wordlessly, gazing from the entrails to the surgeon. Would any hospital permit such a thing?

Hauling in a icy gulp of air, she stretched out and seized a length of intestine, a subtle squelch emerging as it moved in her grip. It throbbed faintly against her fingers, heat bleeding into her palm, and no matter how tenderly she cradled it, the echo pulsed into her own gut.

The steady pulsing defied her efforts to tune it out, each beat stronger than before, twisting her features as she strained to hold steady.

"Keep it like that. I’ll be inserting the intestine now."

The surgeon stated evenly, his attention turning to the intestine's far end as he eased it back into the patient's torso bit by bit.

While Zoey gripped it, an unwelcome creepiness diffused through her—intrusive, laced with odd prickles that churned her stomach.

Her expression hardened more, face contorting as she fought to withstand it without releasing her hold.

Tick! Tick—

Clock ticks reverberated softly in the distance as she chewed her lips, desperately ignoring the feel while the surgeon methodically tucked away the intestine.

No outright pain struck, but the sensation burned vivid in her mind, her hand twitching sporadically, jerking from the startling throbs assaulting her.

Eternity seemed to pass, seconds dragging in agony until the surgeon at last claimed the intestine from her and slipped it into the patient. Only then did Zoey release a hushed breath of relief, her shoulders slumping momentarily. Yet despite the brief respite, she knew the nightmare raged on.

The surgeon started closing the stomach gash, needle and suture stabbing through flesh as Zoey backed away several paces, whipping her head from the horror.

Though hidden from view, she experienced every bit—the slender, biting crawl over her skin, akin to a centipede slithering across her belly.

A surge rose in her throat, brutally shoved down, as her gaze swung to the doorway where a fellow nurse waved her urgently over.

Zoey’s spirit plummeted, yet she trailed behind.

Simultaneously, her eyes flicked to the clock.

8:05 P.M.

Her stomach threatened to revolt, legs turning to jelly as she glared at the clock once more. Just twenty minutes gone?!

Zoey clapped a hand over her mouth, overwhelming frailty surging through her as she wrestled with the truth, her earlier weariness swelling unbearably.

But the moment she crossed the threshold, the nearby nurse cried out desperately, "Nurse! We need to hurry! There’s a situation in the other room!"

Zoey nearly voiced her refusal, the words bubbling up to her mouth, but she realized that choice wasn't available to her. She trailed after the nurse instead, her footsteps hasty and faltering. Meanwhile, her gaze flicked about, surveying the messy environment while she urgently hunted for any trace of Rowan or Seth.

Her bond with Seth felt tense right now, yet his abilities couldn't be overlooked.

If he...

'No, even if he's present, nothing would differ. None of my abilities work here. I've checked all around, but it's obvious no easy path exists in this test. We must press on steadily without faltering.'

Yet saying it was far simpler than achieving it.

"Nurse, this way!"

Guided into a different chamber, Zoey steeled herself for the ordeal ahead. The impending agony churned her gut, but she pushed onward regardless. The instant she entered, though, her eyes widened a bit upon spotting a known silhouette, facing away while tending to the patient.

"Seth?"

As though he knew her voice, Seth lifted his head, and their eyes locked.

Though silent, a faint change in his motions suggested recognition, his hand pausing briefly.

...Or so Zoey believed initially.

'Bastard!'

Suddenly, a piercing tingle erupted at the rear of Zoey’s thoughts, racing outward as she gritted her teeth and trembled.

"Nurse, assist the doctor please."

Only after the nurse urged her did Zoey jolt back to action. Approaching Seth, she then saw his ashen complexion, his face strained with weariness.

Instinctively, she snatched a cloth and started dabbing the perspiration from his brow, striving to calm herself and dispel the odd lingering feeling while he kept operating.

"How long have you been at this?"

"....."

Seth stayed mute. Maybe his focus on the operation prevented a reply.

Without pause, Zoey kept cleaning his face, softly removing the sweat to let him concentrate. For a fleeting instant, her bitterness toward him dissolved, allowing her to truly observe him and note the exhaustion carved into his traits.

He wasn't strikingly good-looking, mostly due to neglecting his appearance. Were he to maintain himself, perhaps...

Shaking off those notions, she cleaned his face once more.

Seth stayed utterly absorbed, his focus locked on the patient unwaveringly. Seeing his intentness, Zoey aided silently beside him, avoiding interference as he delicately extracted a chunk of flesh from the brain.

The feeling reverberated intensely in her head, compelling her to bite down hard as unease swelled inside, almost prompting her to yell at him to go easier.

Fortunately, the operation wrapped up swiftly since he managed it efficiently, extracting the mass and repositioning the skull. Once finished, Seth appeared utterly drained, collapsing into his seat with labored breaths.

Gazing at him, Zoey watched quietly before grabbing the nearby water bottle and offering it over.

"Here."

Seth looked up, eyeing the bottle then her.

Zoey scowled.

"What? Think it'll chomp you or something? Relax, I'll be the one chomping if you don't grab it."

At last, Seth accepted it, grasping the bottle and attempting to unscrew it. But he seemed too feeble to succeed. Zoey ground her teeth, intervened, seized the bottle from him, unscrewed it, and returned it.

Yet right then, she caught Seth's gaze upon her.

"What?"

He kept quiet, but Zoey got the hint, her expression twisting.

"Seriously? No, fuck no."

"....."

"...I said no."

"....."

"No means no."

"...."

"You... I still—Fuck, fine."

Snatching the bottle again, she drew near and held it to his lips as he tilted his head back to sip. Some dribbled out, which Zoey wiped with her cloth while grumbling, 'Drink right. You're an adult.'

Simultaneously, she glanced around at the nurses. Normally they'd be whisked off already, but curiously, they gained a moment's respite as the patient was wheeled away.

She heard distant noises, likely another patient arriving, and Zoey withdrew the bottle.

"You’ve had plenty. Clear your head. More patients are coming shortly."

True to her words, mere seconds later, movement arose at the room's doorway.

Clank! Clank! Clank!

The door swung open, admitting a new patient, while Zoey rested her hand on Seth’s shoulder.

"I’ll leave it to you..."

She paused before adding.

"...Doctor."