Project: Death for Classroom Zero

Chapter 56: The Missing

“I bet Caspian would be surprised seeing he’s going to have a new bed neighbor,” Timmy said, full of jokes and mockery.

“Shut up, Timmy,” in reply, Seven has suggested.

Seven was being carried by Tristan, and all of them are going to the clinic room for a quick check-up, and also to confine Seven Lanford on the clinic room. Seven was gravely affected by the long exposure of red light over a long period of time. He was awaken when they were about to leave the room after miraculously solving the quiz-activity. However, as he woke up, the after-effect of the red light was making his whole body weak, to the point that his legs won’t move anymore.

Seeing the condition of Seven, Professor Buenavista told them to go to the clinic and make a quick consultation to the medical-in-charge (after congratulating them for being the first group to solve the problem).

Now, on their way to the clinic room, Tristan’s happiness were incomparable as he kept on realizing that no one in their group who met the guardians of death. Everyone of them … they are all safe. Though pained and needs medical attention, Tristan could antagonize it, because the fact that they were all still alive is enough for him.

After a minute of slow walking (because aside from Timmy and Tristan, everyone from the group had experienced being covered by the red light, making their body ache and feel less of energy), they reached the clinic room.

The clinic room’s door was now open, unlike yesterday, wherein it was all securely closed. There are lots of medical staffs inside the room, all dressed up with full body covered suit. All of them, they are prepared for the surging of patients to attend, because of the current activity in the Zero program.

“This man needs help the most,” Tristan said to the medical staffs, pertaining to Seven, as they started to attend to the whole group of Tristan. They placed seven on a white, newly-covered bed, and there, they started to treat him. Other of his groupmates, Rain, Blaze, Tammy and Amara, were placed into different beds as well.

“This is weird,” Tristan has out of click said.

“What did you say?” Timmy asked him. She was beside Tristan as they both stand in the middle of the clinic. They were the ones who does not need being treated because they are nowhere injured—except mentally.

“The clinic,” he answered, “It’s weird.”

“Huh? What do you mean weird? I just see a clinic room which was wide and spaced enough to be an ordinary hospital; Men in white space-suit-like uniform as if we’re contaminated of a virus; and lots of technological devices that I don’t recall being in any hospitals I have seen. s**t … dude … am I now overthinking just like you?”

“That was not just that, Timmy,” Tristan said.

“What’s more?”

“This is not the clinic room in which we have brought to Caspian.”

“Huh? Wait, I can’t follow you,” Timmy said, asking for a vivid explanation about what he was telling.

“I can’t get wrong. This location is the exact location of the clinic where we brought Caspian.”

“Yeah, we came here too yesterday, right? And … there’s no other clinic room than this.”

“But have you seen the interior of the clinic yesterday?”

Timmy hesitatingly answered, “uhh … no.”

“I couldn’t be wrong, but I clearly remember that this was not the clinic before. It was sonly a small room with three bed. It wasn’t as white as this room: it’s in the color of crude brown. it wasn’t as big or as advanced as this one.”

“Are you sure about that?” Timmy asked.

Tristan nodded because he was sure about what he had described.

“Then how is the place changed that instant?” Timmy again asked.

“I don’t know. But I have a bad feeling about this.”

“Yeah, me too. I can sense something bad about this.”

Tristan’s gazes landed at Rain. From the bed where she was lying, she was also looking at him. Tristan was certain that Rain too has realized the same thing that he knew. They both nodded to each other. Then, Tristan started moving. He went towards a medical staff who was at a front desk (which yesterday was not there) and started asking.

“Excuse me, is a certain patient named Caspian Jones confined here?” he asked.

Yet, minutes passed, the staff did not answer him. It was just standing behind the desk, positioned as if he was part of a soldier brigadier. Tristan thought that maybe the medical staff had not heard what he asked, that is why he repeated it. However, just like earlier, the medical staff still did not answer.

“Excuse me,” Tristan started to feel irritated by the constant ignoring of the medical staff on him. “Excuse me,” he repeated. “Please answer me.”

The constant ignoring, fused with panic and fear for the sake of Caspian, has all blended to him, and made a trigger towards his anger.

“ANSWER ME!” he shouted. The loud, terrifying voice of him echoed in the whole clinic room. The place turned silent, and with that silence, he grave, fast beat of his breath—along with the beeping machines—was the only thing that people could hear.

“We brought a friend here yesterday and now, he is nowhere found. We wanted to get in touch of him because he is still fighting for his f*****g life. But Bullshit! Why are you not even answering my f*****g simple question!”

Behind Tristan is Timmy. Having a wide, terrified eyes, he could not believe that Tristan has that kind of terrifying side he was hiding. In her own eyes, Tristan’s figure became dark, terrifying, and demonic. He was too far from the usual Tristan whom they have known—that kind of Tristan who is always serious, yet aura is calm and soothing.

“T—Tristan,” Timmy called. “H—Hey man, you need to calm down.”

Yet, Tristan wasn’t listening to him. His frantic breathing sounded as heavy growls of a frightening demon who ascended from Tartaros.

“I just need an answer, Timmy,” said Tristan. “I just need an answer as to where did they bring Caspian. We need to save him no matter what.”

“We cannot disclose what had happened to student Caspian Jones of Zero batch five, as per the Principal instructed.”

“Principal?!” Tristan asked with both the hint of surprise and mockery. “So this f****d up, rotten ‘school’ has still a principal? What kind of principal do you have? A serial killer? A mad scientist who f***s every scientific works he complete? Or maybe even more. Is he an extraterrestrial creature? An alien? Or maybe he is a demon? Or a soul sold to demon?” Tristan continued.

“Hey, T—Tristan, that is enough for now,” Timmy said, afraid for the sake of Tristan.

“Where is he? Where is Caspian?” he repeatedly asked.

When the commotion seemed like it would never end, Timmy saw the medical staff that was behind the front desk nodding to one of his comrades. Quickly, four of the medical staffs that was on standby, moved and went towards Tristan.

“Hey, what are you going to do to him?” Timmy asked. Her face paled when she saw that the men in medical suit grabbed Tristan’s arm. With the grabbing, she could conclude its terrifying force that was being applied, because Tristan was being brutally dragged.

“Where are you going to drag him?” the whole group was alerted with the scene. Having the situation getting worse, Rain stood up and tried stopping the staffs that was dragging Tristan out.

“Rain, Caspian is in danger. Caspian might be somewhere else and we need to save him. Rain, we need to save Caspian.”

Rain could see the plead at Tristan. The thought of Caspian missing and has the probability of not coming back anymore was breaking him and made him fall in this kind of situation—a kind of situation wherein his presence became a menace.

Rain realized something about Tristan: he is not yet ready.

Even though he has been surviving the program for a quite a long time, he has not yet accepted the fact that … anyone of them could die. Everyone trapped inside this place … is going to die. Except only one. And, no one knew who will be the only one who will survive until the end of program. But, she was sure that not everyone will have the opportunity to survive—Caspian, in her thoughts, is one of the unfortunate student.

“We’ll be putting him in a detention room until he would calm down,” the medical staff said.

Hearing that, Rain moved aside, and stopped hindering the medical staff’s path.

“R—Rain, we need to save Caspian. W—We need to help him!” he repeatedly said until he and the medical staffs who were dragging him, has gone in sight. The clinic room now went back into its usual buzzling noise.

“You need to calm down first, Tristan.” Rain said in whispers, even though Tristan was not around anymore. “Once you’re calmed down, we’re going to talk about it. I’m going to tell you a hard reality.”