PROLOGUE

The Sun had vanished, leaving the horizon’s hues of gold and orange in its wake. Nearby, birds may be heard making their way home. The chilly air starts to come in as evening approaches. Skyscrapers, newly constructed structures, and surrounding residences listened to the streetlights that had just been turned on. From the seventh level of the St. Mark’s General hospital, the houses appeared rather little. On the desk next to the patient’s bed, there lie a few loose sheets of paper and a log book. Gabrielle Talbot stood on the side of the glass window. Her gaze, fixed on the hazy lights below. A cannula attached deep on her left hand, close to her wrist. The patient’s outfit didn’t appear to protect her from the icy air seeping out of the window’s microscopic flaws and gaps. A sound broke the quiet ambience. The door was knocked on. Talbot turned back and climbed up onto her bed.  The door was opened as soon as her plastered feet landed. It was dark in the cubicle until a nurse appeared, bringing the hallway light with her. The door’s edge was fitted with a stopper to keep it from shutting on its own. The room brightened instantly when the overhead light came on. Talbot’s eyes were unable to open due to the intense lighting. The windowlight’s rays were unable to compete and faded into the night. Rubbing alcohol, a glass vial, and syringe that was nearly full were all carefully organized on top of a grey colored carrier that was being steadied by her gloved right hand. The nurse walked to the patient’s side of the bed and checked the plastic bottle that contained the glucose and any other medications that had been previously mixed with the fluid hanging from a metal holder. Talbot had her eyes closed. She hesitated to seeing the procedure. It hurts to observe the sights, worse when experienced. While opening the cannula’s lid and removing the needle shaft from the already-prepared syringe, the nurse carefully stroked her left palm with rubbing alcohol to kill any bacteria surrounding the cannula, followed by pushing the syringe into the opening. The nurse barely needed to exert any effort to press on the plunger after the alignment was confirmed. Even though there was a mild flare of discomfort that alerted Talbot, she remained unmoved. She could feel the cool liquid from the syringe flowing through the veins before blending in with her body heat. It ended in the following minute, just as she had hoped. After making sure it was properly sealed, the nurse closed the cannula tight shut and walked out the door with the carrier to her next assigned patient, flipping the light switch behind. The stopper was lifted and without making any scraping noises, the door closed on its own. The outside noise gradually receding as the chamber once more became completely dark and quiet.

The street lights along the well-lit East Avenue Road provided the sole light that entered the room through the window. Slowly opening her eyes, Talbot noticed the window’s blazing yellow light. Looking up, three stars shined brilliantly in a straight line in the unfathomable vastness of the midnight blue sky. “Orion. Only if I had a telescope to view them.” Talbot murmured. Her speech shaky, with certain syllables sounding strange. Her weak eyes were still getting used to the starlit background and dark foreground, eyelids’ inability to hang on any longer. Maybe the medication was beginning to kick in. The lips started to wet after a few measured seconds had passed. It wasn’t just saliva. She felt her throat push out. On her mouth, a white substance started to bubble and spout before immediately turning orange and then scarlet, followed by a sharp pain from her chest. Talbot shrieked and cried out, but why was she unable to hear anything at all. Eyes filled with agonizing tears. Chest aching severely. Talbot tried to raise her right hand, pull forward and press the red emergency button with all her available strength but it was of no use. Her hands fell out of the air. She could not feel her hand at all. Regaining energy, Talbot tried once again but her hand would not respond. A new ray of light passed onto the desk and her eyes began to re-adjust. Talbot noticed a tall figure standing still, camouflaged in the background, the starlight made it very clear. It was evident to Talbot that the figure maybe the nurse who had come back. “Sister. Sister. Help me, sister.” Talbot tried to shout, but the voice so faint, nothing was heard at all. The bed’s metal creaked as her body twitched in attempts to get up. She was paralyzed head to toe. The medicine couldn’t do this, Talbot thought. The light from the window hit the figure’s skin and the burgundy dyed hair, revealing a side of the face. Talbot’s narrowed eyes widened with shock. Her body lay still. “You?” The figure, a woman dressed in a nurse’s uniform leaned forward, closer to Talbot’s face. In that moment, Talbot realized that the nurse who had come never left. She was here, her eyes fixated on Talbot the entire time, watching in the blackness. “Oh! What’s that?”, the woman whispered. Talbot’s nose beginning to bleed. “Just stay very still. It will be over soon. Just the way you always liked it, Gabby.” Saying, the woman moved away from the bed. “Ali..cia, please. hel..help m..” The twitching and all movement seized. The foaming slowed and came to a full stop. The reddish white fluid dripped onto the bedside lining. As Talbot’s eyes closed one last time, the tears drained, wetting the side of the white pillow. The woman waited for a few more seconds until confirmation before taking out a pocket book from a side of the uniform and a pencil laying atop the loose papers. The pages turned, stopping at one. She draws a tick mark with the pencil. The sounds of the graphite scratching the paper tore into the absolute tranquil room. She closes the booklet and walks out of the cabin into the hallway, forcefully sliding shut the door, leaving the silence.