Rosewood Hospital

I was not happy about my transfer, as I had to travel more than 100 kilometers from my home. The train reached the station like a snail, and it was nearly 6 PM.

There was a car with the name of the hospital painted on its side."Welcome, doctor. I am Carlos, the driver and the attendant," he said.I did not like his appearance or the rustic language he used.

According to him, we had to travel more than 12 kilometers, and it might take a full two hours to reach the hospital, as the road was not in good condition. I thought about the hardships I would face in that rural place.

"Many doctors come and go. I think you will do the same, sir," he said.

"Sometimes," I replied without much care.

The driver did not try to speak with me after that. Suddenly, the path became harder and rougher for the car. The driver looked nervous and was carefully scanning the road ahead, which I found very odd.

"We did it, sir!" the driver cried jubilantly. I looked at his face."We just passed the area of the Dark Souls."

"What?" I snapped.

"Sir, this part of the country is very different from your urban home. We have to face a lot of things that cannot be explained by science."I was annoyed by the driver’s behavior, and his strange words made me uncomfortable.

"They live there," he continued. The car was moving somewhat faster now, and I listened to him reluctantly. I started feeling uneasy as he described THEM."There are five of them… I think they are not ghosts or spirits, as many fear, but something else."

"Have you seen them?" I asked.

At first, he didn’t respond, but I could tell he was about to speak. The short silence only heightened my curiosity.

"I have seen them. It was a full moon night, and I was out of the hospital heading for the station to pick up some supplies," he said, pausing and glancing at my face.

"They are different. I don’t know how to describe them," the driver said, struggling to find words.I wanted to hear more, but we reached the hospital very soon. He parked the car about 100 meters away from the building.

"I haven’t visited my family since last week. Can you walk the rest of the way?"

I nodded and got out of the car.

It took me about 10 minutes to reach the hospital. It was an old building. At first, I didn’t notice much until a nurse came up to me. She was wearing an old uniform that looked like it had never been touched by soap.

"Sorry, doctor. We weren’t able to send the ambulance as it’s currently out of the hospital," she said.

"I was given a lift by a car from this hospital," I replied.

The nurse’s face changed.

"Oh, my Lord," she muttered, then ran inside the hospital.

I called out to her, but no one answered me. Something felt very odd.

"You came here with one of the Dark Ones," she said when she returned.

"What?" I asked, shocked.

"Yes, doctor… Anyway, you are lucky."

I sat down on a nearby chair, trying to process what had just happened.