To Outlast Your Never-Ending Career

Chapter Nine

The two walked through the end of the dark hall only to enter a dark generator room. Y/N had never been this far down before, so she wasn't certain. Quiet grunts echoed, and it went unnoticed until Waylon pointed out the crawling man to their left. Not important, just weird. Y/N took Waylon's arm as they carefully made their way down the viewless stairs. She tried to let her eyes focus, but she could only see a few glimpses of light.

They explored whatever area Waylon saw fit. She didn't know where they were going or what they'd missed. Y/N didn't feel the need to take lead, considering how many times she had almost gotten them killed. They walked around a somewhat lit corner, finding a chain-link door. It was locked, per usual, so the two ventured back. The next spot was home to a new source of light, just not her favorite.

Fire. Specifically, fire used to cremate the dead here. She hadn't known about a crematorium. Y/N started to realize she knew a lot less about the company she hated than she originally thought.

"Do we... Have? To go in there?" Y/N inquired, already knowing the answer. It was either this way or back to the hall with Frank.

Waylon tried to smile reassuringly. Y/N calmed her jumpy nerves, finally deciding to get it over with. They only had to go through the door. After everything else they've seen, this little trip through here wouldn't hurt too bad, right?

They briskly walked through, glancing around for batteries as they made their way to the door. The two were almost out of this creepy, shadow covered area. A hand on the door from Waylon and suddenly, the door swings wide open. Y/N and Waylon fall back, both somewhat leaning on one of the pull-out beds of a furnace. Neither able to talk. Somehow, Frank "The Cannibal" Manera found another way down to them. In shock, the two stood stock still, involuntarily allowing themselves to be shoved into the furnace. In which people were burned. Corpses. Burned here... Y/N began to panic. Enclosed in a small space with a bigger body to be burned was not exactly on her To-Do List today.

"You stay there," The two heard menacingly growled from outside, "And cook!" Holding herself up from above Waylon, her hands were tickled from the flames now beginning to lick at her.

"What are we gonna do? I knew something was... Oh...! I'm sorry, I--" Y/N stammered, tears or sweat dripping down her face. Her eyes flicked around, landing on a hole in the wall before her. Without a moment's hesitation, she crawled over Waylon and immediately began banging against it. The only trouble was now her arm was sore and the wall remained just as sturdy. Waylon moved her aside (despite her protest to "finally do something right") and started tearing the wall down himself. He tried to erase his memory from when the woman beside him was straddling him.

It felt like forever before he had actually broken the wall down, bringing the two tumbling down.

"No. NO! You are supposed to be mine!"

The two sat in the mess for a second, listening for Frank's steps to lead away from them while they tried desperately to cool down.

"And thanks to you, we survive another round of the ole Manera." Y/N shakily breathed out.

"As if you had no part in us getting out? I never would have even moved if it weren't for you finding the weak spot in the wall." Argued Waylon.

"Oh, come on now. I know that's not true..." She stood up. It hurt to admit how useless she was here, even though it isn't true. Waylon couldn't make the right words come, so he didn't say anything. He stood beside her and the two started walking to the open door on the right. If the corpse they stepped over was headed in this direction, it was good enough for them.

"Is this a church? I don't recall this one..." Y/N ambled through the pews, slowly making her way to the pulpit.

"There's another one?" Waylon just stood, occasionally looking around, but mainly watching the doctor's lazy movement.

"Yeah, it's on one of the... well, I think levels above us. I'm not too sure where we are." She gradually inches closer to the podium. Plain as it was, the room intrigued her. "The other one is Martin Archimbaud's. He's a self-proclaimed priest and prophet, but it helps keep him and some other patients under control so we never corrected him."

"Oh? I don't want to question your professionalism, but are you supposed to be sharing your patient's information with me?" He crossed his arms, hoping to rile the woman up. It doesn't work.

"Does it even matter now?" Y/N crept behind the podium. She knelt down. "Hey, I found another document." Waylon wasn't particularly interested in whatever the paper held, but the way Y/N walked to him told him to not mention it.

"How much did I not know about? This says we used to have a real priest." She looked to Waylon for answers before remembering that she had worked here years longer than he had. She shook her head. "Let's just get out of here." Y/N walked to the door with the glowing "EXIT" sign above it. Of course, it wouldn't be that easy.

The two left the room rather quickly. Back where they started, they had two options: the ladder or the doorway. After a corpse fell from the hole above the ladder, the choice was obvious.

Y/N led them around the corner but walked right into steam coming from a busted pipe.

"Agh!" She gripped her affected arm, "What on earth!? How cliche!" Y/N stormed around the now obvious spray.

"Y/N! Are you alright?" Waylon didn't know what to do for her. She nodded, but small, pain filled tears escaped. This only made him more worried, though he didn't mention it.

Waylon and Y/N searched around the new room, only to find the only useful thing being two lockers. This meant it was back through the steam and to the ladder.