|| Amphitheater ||

Nestled comfortably deep within the Rock Mountains between Montana and Idaho there is a Psychiatric Institution like no other. No one can replicate the serene beauty surrounding our state of the art facility. The doctors and therapists on staff are some of the greatest minds in the world, hand picked to create the perfect team of professionals to provide full around the clock care for all our patients. We have accepted some of the hardest and most unique cases any psychiatric facility has faced, and we can say with certainty the every customer leaving our facility leaves 100% healthier and happier than when they came in...

"They really are laying it on thick," Elizabeth muttered to herself as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, looking at a brochure from a box of them just delivered to her office. They were trifle things really, and completely pointless for their actual work, but they kept people's noses out of things, and having a waiting room meant having brochures...even if no drop-in had actually gotten past the waiting room. They discouraged walk-ins, and more so they were highly known for being picky, having a "waiting list" long enough to keep people waiting years to get in. Another lie, another ruse to dissuade from the truth.

The truth is far more deliciously gruesome.

It truly is an institution like no other. The doctors there are not only hand picked…they've all been drafted by a board of directors who chose to remain anonymous. And these aren’t the nice type of doctors, who give children lollipops or wish the best for your health. God Elizabeth hated working for those kinds of doctors, their smiles always too fake, their words dripping in lies. At least here no one needed to lie, there was no need. The doctors she worked around were the type of twisted, deranged doctors who never minded a few blood splatters on their pristine lab coats to get the results they want.

And the patients…

They never signed to a waiting list. Hell, there wasn't even one, it was just another rouse to keep the public from growing wise. The patients here never even applied. Nope, they were taken from their homes or on the streets, plucked from their lives like a feather and thrown in glass cells to be ogled and experimented on like lab rats. Not that Elizabeth minded...it wasn't like these beings were human, even if they had been once, and masquerading in the human society always annoyed Elizabeth. How could these beings really think they could remain hidden forever, with all their juicy secrets and powers? Hiding them from the human population as they watched mortals died from illnesses, sickness and death, while these nonhumans coveted their immortality, health, and magics?

But now they had a facility that could change all that, and Elizabeth was happy to work there, as secretary to Doctor Hans Funer. They could make strides in science, medicine, therapy, and everything else she was sure the doctors were working on, and these greedy beings stuck in their cells could grow a little humility for hoarding their powers from the world, watching men and women die for centuries and doing nothing. That was all changing here.

"Welcome…to Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution," she read out loud, smiling happily to herself."

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution

Jakob is a security guard at the Institution, though security guard is the safe term for it. He works as a member of the Black Hand Corporation, a company contracted to this place and paid a whole lot of money to keep their mouths shut about it. He stands outside of a cell in Cell Block C, where the unstable Supernaturals are placed.

In his hands he holds an M4A1 Carbine, fully loaded. The gun is attached to his wrist, if anybody were to remove the weapon from his hands it would disable itself automatically, only able to be reset by the armorer that is placed by the Security quarters, where all weapons go after checks have been completed.

He patrols silently, the only sound he makes are from his footsteps as he tries to keep his head on a swivel, knowing that the inmates here would rather kill than sit around all day in straight jackets doing absolutely nothing. The reflection of a mirror in one of the cells reminds him of his FAST helmet, his PMC uniform and complexion, his hazel eyes peeking out from under his black ballistic glasses, his athletic and muscular form obvious from the way his uniform stays close on his skin. On his chest is a chest rig, made to resist bullets though it often doesn't do its job very well.

Doctor Funer paces through Cell Block C, his hands behind his back as he inspects the patients there. He shakes his head at the ones that have long given up trying to escape, some trying to break down the doors, but easily becoming discouraged from doing so from the simple fact that escape is impossible.

Funer to his office, sitting down in a leather chair that he had purchased with his first paycheck, deciding that the aesthetics of the facility are more important than that of his own home. He puts his hands behind his head, his eyes flicking to the security cameras to admire the clockwork of the facility, how smooth everything seems to be running under his guidance. He would include in his report to the Directors that there is nothing to worry about.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution



Biting her bottom lip, the blonde bombshell sits in the back of the orientation room, fiddling with the metal cuffs attached to her wrists, preventing her from Changing back forms, into what she felt comfortable in. Natalya Silvka is singular unique case of werewolfism, being as she was never bit by another were, nor was she born human. The Russian beauty was born and raised a wolf, in her small pack residing in Russia, now dead to the hunters who had captured her. If her grief wasn't enough, this bizarre world she'd been thrusted into made no sense. She was unused to walking on two legs, or having no fur. The few times she had Changed it was unwillingly, and now the kidnappers who took her had made her Change a half dozen of times for their delightment.

The cold steel chair bit into her bare skin, Natalya given no more than a black slip and matching shorts that barely kept her warm in the freezing cold room. Or was it only cold because she wore no fur? Naty wasn't sure, no did she want to ponder it, more concerned about that man standing behind her with a gun cocked at her head, ready to fire if she lashed out again. She had already torn through two security guards jugulars, and they fully expected her to try for three. It's what they deserved for caging a feral wolf.

"Stop playing with that," the guard snapped, "Eyes ahead."

She didn't understand a word he was saying, but the butt of his gun hitting her against the skull was enough for her to drop her hands and sit stiffly, staring at the chalkboard at the front of the room that had white letters written across it.



Elizabeth's pristine black heels clicked along the white floors as she strode with purpose towards Dr. Vera's office, a folder with a dozen or so papers under her arm. Dr. Funer was back in his office, and she had delivered the brochures to the waiting room, but now she had an urgent job for the Head of Psychoanalysis. They had a few arrivals today, and while normally they shoved their new patients in cells until they had enough for a proper orientation session, they already had a fair number to work with. Including one Zach Mcknight, who had reached his violations limit again, and was required to take orientation before he could return to Cell Block B. For a boy not yet out of his teens, he could cause a fair bit of strife.

"Dr. Vera?" she tapped lightly on the door with one of her manicured hands.



Akila Kassis was not in this room for Orientation, nor was she handcuffed like the newcomers or the delinquents causing enough grief to be forced to retake this session. No Akila was in here to help Dr. Vera when she arrived, a sort of teacher's assistant as it was. Every patient in Cell Block A had to do this at one point or another, and Akila had gotten the short straw. Now she got to spend her entire afternoon stuck in the stuffy room without air conditioning, listening to dumb or annoying outbursts and bending to Dr. Vera's every order or else she'd be demoted to Cell Block B, and all her privileges stripped. And the raven haired beauty was not fond of the slop they served on the third floor.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution


Rupinder Vera sat at her oaken desk, her cheek pressed into the palm of her hand, supported by a slender arm bent at the elbow. It was dark in her modest office, the windows bloated out by thick, sable curtains and only half of the ceiling lights turned on. But for someone like Rupi, cursed with her affliction, she rather liked the dark. She felt her eyes perceived detail far better than it did under open light, which tended to leave a lingering sting that grew worse and worse during prolonged exposure to sunlight. Because of the nature of her vampiric curse (or gift as others might interpret it), Rupi often arrived to the Institute in the early morning before the sun had even risen, and usually departed well into the evening. She felt it suited her line of work as Head of the Psychanalysis department.

As the chief psychiatrist within Eternal Peaks, it was her role and duty to study the various patients brought in. But not like the other doctors, who mostly held her department with little regard. Rupi studied the mind and behavior of the patients, especially when placed under tenures of extreme stress or anxiety. It was her job to discover what made some of these…creatures tick and function. She was not cruel like some doctors she could name, but she wasn’t kind hearted either. Being immortal, she had developed quite a pragmatic and stoic outlook towards her patients. More often than not, she tended to dehumanize them by referring to their enrollment numbers, rather than their names. It saved her from getting too close with her patients when she delved into their minds.

A knock at her door drew her attention away from her computer, where she had been working on her weekly report to the Head of Departments, Dr. Hans Füner. “Come.” She answered, her British accent evident in her voice. She quickly made an adjustment of her outfit, her slender torso and shapely arms concealed within a white lab coat, breast pocket full of pens and pencils, while her lower body was revealed the skirt end of a sable dress that she wore. Her legs were folded one over the other, displaying the muscular tones of her caramel hued thighs. She gazed up to see Elizabeth Thorn, one of the secretaries, standing at the threshold of her office.

“Are those the paperwork for our new applicants arriving today?” She asked as she stood, flicking off her monitor and grabbing her clipboard as she came around her desk, heels clicking with each step. “Talk me through it as we walk to the amphitheatre. Is it just the usual patients seeking mental help or are there…other cases?” Rupi inquired of Elizabeth, staring at her with keen sea-grey eyes. As they headed towards the large room built for orientating new applicants, they passed by the offices of one, Dr. Rufio Arellano. Sick bastard Rupi thought with disdain…

---

But Dr. Arellano was not in his office when Rupi had passed it by. He was already in the large chamber employed for new arrivals, having arrived early to snag a seat on the dais next to the podium, where they would be addressed. At first he would seem to be just a normal doctor, also dressed in a white lab coat that was unbuttoned, revealing a grey sweater-vest atop a white dress shirt, neatly tucked into grey dress pants. His hazel hair was tied neatly into a bun behind his head with a faint stubble of matching hair spread modestly across his jaw. He was a handsome man, relaxed and reserved, which utterly belied the true nature of the man within. Holding a zippo lighter, he was fidgeting with the cap, flicking it open with a thumb to reveal a small flame, before snuffing it out by closing it.

He loved fire. He loved playing with it. He loved introducing it to his patients. Fire was a wonderful thing in his mind. It brought warmth and light that was true. It also brought fear and destruction. And seeing the look of terror at the prospect of fiery pain was one of his favorite perks of the job. Other than that, it was his job at Eternal Peaks to provoke and develop certain skills of particular patients. Frighten them, anger them, it was all a part of his job description. What the Institute did with the knowledge that could be garnered from such displays, he did not know, or care. He merely enjoyed his line of work, with a sadistic pleasure.

Eyes ahead.

The harsh remark by a guard drew the seemingly lifeless eyes of the doctor towards the receiver of this outburst. The wolf girl. A wild one, that one. She was not one of his, but Arellano would have enjoyed learning what motivated her. Turning a cruel smirk upon her, he flicked the lighter open and kept it so, wondering what this wolf of the forest might think of the anathema to all that was green and lushful in her home. When are we getting this show on the road? I got work to do. He thought impatiently as he gazed around the room.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution



Orientation

The sack hit the cement… Hard. The bone crushing sound ringing through her slightly pointed ears once her shoulder had made contact. Blondish – blue hair spilled around her head, the minimal light peeking through the loose knit of the burlap, highlighting bits of her hair. A soft groan left her lips, and a dark sadistic chuckle sounded off in response to her misery. What had she done that was this bad? Why was she here? Where was she exactly? How long had she been in that god awful bag? All while Kyli’s head tried so desperately to wrap itself around the facts, a foot nonchalantly wedged itself into her side. Earning another groan.

“Head doc’s got orientation. Better take the drop off to it to get it over with.” A deep voice grunted.

“Then off to one of the rooms. Doc wants their hands on her.” Voice B declared, nudging her again.

Like that, the sack opened and light blinded her brilliant hazel eyes that usually shimmered with the glitter of life. But second’s passed and something violently grasped at her perfect hair, yanking her up to pin prickled feet. Kyli’s gasp was soft, her eyes taking in the cement walls and cages lining the walls of the bleak and unnatural structure.

“Come’on”

Without any consideration, the strange man yanked her forward – guiding her deeper into the uncomfortable and stuffy halls. Where was the water? The trees? And the nature life? This wasn’t right. Kyli’s gut sunk deeper once he pulled her into a room… finally. Supernaturals…. Everywhere. What was this?

Kyli’s normally cheery and uplifting face dropped further if it was even possible. Paling lips and darkening bags against her usually flawless complexion only signified her uncomfortable position as the guard dropped her. Harsh words followed the rather brutal action as the man nodded off to another guard before leaving the small and rather helpless blonde.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution


Elizabeth always felt self conscious in the presence of this woman. She oozed confidence, anything she wore only highlighted her stunning beauty, and she spoke so eloquently. To say the secretary was a tad jealous was an understatement. it made Elizabeth happy she was Dr. Funer's assistant and not this woman's, knowing each department got one secretary to try and balance out all the paperwork.

It was Elizabeth's jobs to handle the secretaries in a sense, as it was Dr. Funer's job to run the facility and the doctors he under his wing. Elizabeth really had no power though, all she could do was hand down paperwork to them and make sure no one was late for a shift. Many of the secretaries lived in the quarters of the Main Floor, but some preferred to live outside the facility. Same went with the doctors and nurses, with the only exception being the security guards. The latter had no choice but to remain living inside the facility, in case a fight or escape broke out. But as for the rest of staff, they were given the option of living in the facility close to their work, or outside of it, where the nearest town was a handful miles away, a cozy little village in the mountains.

"Yes ma'am," she handed the folder to Dr. Vera, "We got some interesting ones today. All unique cases from what I saw, no average supernatural species. There is a werewolf in that file, but she's her own unique case. Shipped from Russia, born a wolf not a human. The girl can't even speak English, and she's killed two guards so far so we have her restrained."

They stepped into an elevator and Elizabeth pressed the level 2 button, her french manicure looking fresh, "And then there's Zach Mcknight, patient ZM1234 he's taking orientation again. He's been stirring a lot of problems recently."

The elevator dinged and opened into a long white corridor, this one plain and dismal. Directly to their left was a set of double doors made of steel, inside the amphitheater. Elizabeth stopped outside the door, knowing she was not needed inside.

"Oh yes, and Akila Kassis, patient AK8866 from Block A is inside as her helper for the day. One of the docile girl's from Cell Block A."


Akila noticed Dr. Arellano's stares and they made her skin crawl. Of course she had heard of his experiments by now, although luckily she had been lucky in that draw and didn't have him as a doctor. Yet. The one horrid thing of this facility other than the torture would be the patients had no choices in anything. Not where they slept, what they ate, when they showered. Not even which doctor was there's. Multiple doctor's could request one patient, and it was up to Dr. Funer who was approved, or if all were approved. There had been a very rare supernatural in at one point during Akila's stay, although she never met him and there were too many rumors to discern what he truly was. What she did know is almost every doctor wanted a piece of him, and Funer approved practically all of them. The man died within a month of being in the institute.

Akila prayed she'd find a way out before that happened to her.

Sitting quietly in the small chair across the room, Akila pinned her eyes to a brick in the wall and refused to look away, staring at the peeling white paint over turning her head and catching the doctors gaze. She didn't need his attention, god she'd much rather remain in the shadows to him. Just thinking about it made her skin hum and vibrate, her atoms beginning to shift and change, activated by her fear. Breathing slowly, Akila calmed her powers before they grew unstable, knowing any display she made at the moment would only harm her in the long run.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution

Location:Orientation
Jinx Ballentyne
“Keep it on,” the voice snapped, halting the movement of the blindfold. The headphones covered her ears again, and once more the world around her fell silent. Jinx darted her head about as if she could hear or see the faces the hands belonged to. “If she can’t see it or hear, she can’t move it!” Lifted to her feet with no care whatsoever, she stumbled, feeling the powerful arms of the men catch her, keeping her from colliding with the floor she felt beneath her shoes. Being guided in silence and darkness, Jinx was disoriented, but she was also helpless. Her hands were opened, as if she could brace herself should she stumble once more. There was never any notion to try and cast a spell. She couldn’t even if she tried. Her mouth had been gagged effectively stopping her from speaking. Besides that, the seriousness of her situation had no escaped her. These men had seemed to come out of nowhere, taking her from her home, and now she was lost to where she was, unsure of what had become of her parents. If they had the power to do this, the power to render take her from her home and render her helpless, what else could they do?

She felt the temperature change slightly and felt her body pushed down to the chair she was forced into. Once more she looked around desperately, wanting some indication of what was going on, but nothing came. The darkness, the silence, the cold, the chair beneath her, the loneliness, and the fear now flooding her body was all she knew. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears, and she waited. Something would come. Something would happen. It was the uncertainty of what that made her swallow hard against the gag in her mouth. One thought raced through her mind over and over again. ‘I wanna go home.’

The headphones were lifted, and the voice whispered in her ear. "One thing moves in this room because of you, and you'll never hear anything again. Nod if you understand." Jinx quickly nodded, feeling her tears well up behind the blindfold. "Good. Now stay still and listen."

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution



Entering the room with the rest of the supernaturals, new ones and a few choice old ones as well, Zach still had his straight jacket on him. White, pajama like pants and clean white socks rounded out his outfit out. Now with the freedom to navigate to his chair, Zach's tall and thin form had stepped around the helpless blonde on the floor. With his straight jacket, he would be powerless to help her anyway. Step by step, the witty and grinning patient had walked right by the agitated brunette who seemed to be glarring at a wall, all the way down the seats until he was at the front. The first patient in the room in a front seat and a familair face to the staff members who were present, Zach's smile was firm and his eyes went from one medical professional to the next. Only brief pauses on interesting events, like Rufio's lighter play.

Once Zach finished taking in the staff member's faces with his brown eyes, he returned his glance to Rufio. Not a masochist, Zach would take no doctor over any doctor any day of the week. But, under the understanding that they had him imprisoned indefinitely in order to put him through these 'appointments', Zach began to weigh the idea of seeing Rufio for an appointment when compaired to his laundry list of torture sessions he's already endured. With the ruse of white coats, these sadists have no reason to show their true colors. All Zach's imagination had to piece together what Rufio might to him had come down to his physical appearence. It wasn't enough to conclude what kind of tests and torture Zach might face if he was assigned to that man.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution

Private First Class Jakob Garner
Location: Orientation Hall

Jakob had relieved one of the guards in the Orientation hall, one of them that had dragged a Nymph from the looks, into the hall for the Orientation. He keeps his gun lowered, not expecting any threat from any of the supernaturals around him.

His eyes flick down to the Nymph for just a moment, just seeing her gives him a little doubt on the facility, how humans could be doing this. He shakes his head before returning his gaze to the man at the head of the Orientation stand, Doctor Füner.

Doctor Hans Füner
Orientation Hall

The Doctor stands at the head of the hall, standing at the stand as he looks out at the crowd of supernaturals. "I assume this is all of them?" He asks, putting a little bit of acid behind that word to express his distaste for these creatures that stand before him. "Welcome to Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution." He reads loudly from a piece of paper in front of him. "This orientation is strictly for your benefit, we will be going over the rules of this facility." He says before clearing his throat.

"Of course I will not be going all of them, but the important ones I will be touching base with." His German accent really peeks into that sentence. "Rule number one, any assault of Institution staff is strictly prohibited, along with this you must follow their orders, I do not care if the janitor is ordering you to do something, you will follow his or her orders." He reads. "Second of all, you will not leave your cell unless granted permission from a staff member, any caught outside of their cells without permission will be subjected to Cell Block C." He says. "Next, there will be no resistance of experimentation, if you are chosen to be experimented with, you must comply, if you do not you will be subjected to Cell Block C." He says.

He looks up at the crowd before nodding. "Those are the three biggest rules, others are posted around the facility for your reading." He says before giving the most fake smile of his life. "Welcome to the Institution, we hope you enjoy your stay." He leaves the stand, allowing Doctor Rupi to take it from there and walks back to his office with a sigh, pressing a small button on his phone. "Elizabeth, do you have the reports I asked for ready?" He asks while sitting back in his chair.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution


After letting her ride with them, Nysa got out on the same floor as the two guards and the kid, prancing behind them as they escorted him into the room. Unfortunately though they wouldn't let her in, but one mention of Dr. Funer inside and she knew better than to complain.

"I think my cell in Block A calls," she smiled, winking at the straight jacketed man, "Enjoy the big boss. See you around silver."

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution




Orientation

@Rdske

Eyes bit down into her purplely-blue skin, bruised from being thrown around various different carriers until she'd reached this lifeless hole. With almost too much effort, the nymphs body shifted and her knees slid up in front of her chest, her arms pushing her back into a wall before looping her thin arms around her knees.

Beautifully rounded nails played with the black rag like fabric that had been thrown carelessly over her once freely naked form. Obviously they had the need to cover up the natural beauty of life with their unnatural ways of their civilization.

Eyes bore down on her, and she couldn't help but to feebly look up. His body was huge next to her - all of the more reasons to cower. The darkened look he'd given her rose questions in her head.

"Why do you dislike someone you've never met?" Her honey suckle voice questioned, her chin resting against her knee while she stared at the madman on a pedestal before them. His words made little sense to her. While she knew a fair amount of English, there was still words well unknown to her. Yet; her gut said she'd learn here real quick as to the true meaning of those words.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution


Private First Class Jakob Garner
Orientation Hall

He looks down at her again, hearing the words she speaks to him, obviously not attuned to English like the humans in the facility. "I don't hate supernaturals." He says before looking back up at the stand, his grip on his weapon remaining tight.

"I didn't want to get assigned here, honestly some of the things that happen here give me nightmares.. I'm sorry this is happening to you." He says, lowly enough so that only she can hear him. "If you stay in line, the Doctors assign you to Cell Block A, you want to get there.. That's just my advice." He says while facing forward.

His fingers tap silently against the metal of his rifle, the cord attached to his wrist almost feels like it's cutting off his blood pressure though he knows it isn't, he reaches up a free hand to adjust the helmet sitting on his head. He looks back down at her. "Where did they take you from?" He asks her, ignoring the mad Doctor speak about the Institution.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution




Orientation

@Rdske

Large hazel eyes, burdened with heavy bags underneath of them looked down. Her ears twitched as she listened intently. His words where pure, his heart beat remaining at a normal rate while his tone dipped sympathetically.

Where had she ended up? On top of that...

"Whats assigned? And a... a doctor?" She asked, tilting her head painfully to look up at him. "I'm sorry for your nightmares. Life must be bad here...:

Her tone was losing its cheeriness. The life already draining.

"My waterfall on the edge of the north island." She breathed. "Why did they steal me from my home?"

The nymphs hands grasped at the skin along her arms tightly. The words from the man upfront drowning out the silence, raising the hair on her arms alarmingly.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution



He furrows his eyebrows, nobody had really seen him about advice on Language before hand, so explaining things would be a little difficult. He points up to the doctor at the stand. "That's a doctor." He explains. "They normally wear white."

He pulls his helmet off for a moment, running a hand through his hair before putting it back on. "Assigned is like.. Being placed somewhere." He says. "So let's say you're assigned to a waterfall, you are placed at that waterfall." He says before sitting down next to her, flipping the safety of his gun to on before letting it drop to the ground, the cord still tight on his wrist.

"I guess we as humans are scared of you." He says while biting the inside of his cheek. "So we try to study you in order to understand you better, and try to benefit from you.. Which I don't agree with." He explains while looking over at her. "There's nothing to be afraid of, I'm sure you'll have a waterfall here." He says, trying to make it seem believable but he knows there will be no such occurrence at this facility.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution




Orientation


Kyli watched this "doctors" movements, she looked him over and tried to understand his purpose in life. Was that the man who brought her here? Her small and perfect little nose scrunched up, white was such an unnatural color for many things.

"Why white? Why do they wear those things? What do they do?" She breathed, her beautiful tone so soft it was barely auditable.  She had so many questions. Some of which she couldn't even fathom up the words for.

Kylis small perfect lips opened, but she couldn't find the words for what else she wanted to say. She turned her eyes back to the guard who was taking the time to explain things to her, even sitting down with her to even things out, even if he still towered over her small huddled figure.

"Oh... but not everyone here needs a waterfall... so why would everyone get a waterfall?" She asked, her thin brows knitting together while her eyes moved to the thing he took off his head and the other odd object he placed down. She took a soft breath, her focus shifting back to him as he tried to explain further more.

"Scared? That's when... something preys on you? It's that feeling in your gut?" She asked, her brain almost beginning to overload. She wasn't used to this amount of human knowledge. "But I've never hurt a creature... I save creatures..."

Her tone dropped.

"Whats a study? And.... my gut sinks but an experiment?" Kylis honey suckle voice asked, the words finally forming and seemingly spilling out all at once. Kyli paused for a moment, "What are those?" She asked, her eyes gesturing to the odd and unnatural objects before moving back up to look at his features.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution



She had so many questions, to even attempt to answer them all would overwhelm him easily. He opens his mouth to speak, but is interrupted by a voice in his ear telling him to get down to cell block C.

"Listen, I'll find you later to explain if you're still confused." He says to her before standing, clipping his gun on to his chest rig before looking down at her. "Duty calls, good luck." He says before walking out of the room. He walks to the elevator, taking it down to Cell Block C.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution


Rupi listened with apt attention to Elizabeth’s rundown of the new, and old, cases. There was the usual ray of exhilaration at the prospect of new patients, especially ones with so diverse a background as was described to her. A female werewolf was intriguing. She however pursued her lips with a tinge of disappointment at hearing that Zach McKnight was retaking the orientation. Something’s been troubling him, no doubt. Or more likely, someone. They arrived outside the hall and Rupinder continued to stride forward, leaving Elizabeth behind. Rupi didn’t require her. She had already memorized each case number and file in the short time Elizabeth was briefing her. “AK8866 is known to me. That will be all, thank you.” She bid dismissively to the secretary. Then she entered the room.

Her eyes made a quick scan of the present company as she quickly joined the other specialists and Eternal Peaks doctors by the podium. The new applicants each sat under heavy guard and supervision. A few already looked roughed up. There was no look of sympathy as Rupi passed the diverse collection of men and women, for she knew that any slip up on her part could easily see her among them if anything. And indeed she was one of them, though it was not known to any except the highest tier of management.

She made sure to sit as far as possible from Dr. Arellano, but given the spare seating for doctors such as they it was not possible. Then Dr. Funer, their Head of Departments, rose and stood the stand. His first statement, laced with disdained, caused Rupi to lower her gaze to her lap for a moment, feeling empty for a moment. He had never liked her either, knowing her origins. The rest of his speech was brief and straight to the point however, clearing the stand for her. Straightening out her skirts, she rose and strode to the podium, resting her hands upon it. She at least looked serious, unlike Dr. Arellano who leaned back with a sneering smirk on his face, regarding the patients before him like slender slabs of meat.

“Welcome to the Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution.” Rupi repeated, her accent laced in her tone as she swept the hall with her piercing gaze. “I am Dr. Rupinder Vera, the Head of Psychology here. It is my duty to see you all lodged and situated by the end of the day. However you may have come to us, remember that our goal here is above all to understand and discern the unique conditions of your bodies and minds. If you cooperate, you will have nothing to worry about. You will not want for nourishment or comfort and if you are capable, may even be permitted to join our team.” She turned her gaze and gave a nod in Akila’s direction, centering her as the model patient.

“However,” she turned her gaze suddenly upon Zach, “if you refuse to subordinate yourselves to our judgement, there will be due consequences.” She raised her grey eyes and gazed silently for a moment over the others to let the message sink in.

Dr. Arellano chose the silence to once more flick open his zippo and then shut it, the click resounding in an ominous fashion throughout the hall.

“You’ll each be assigned a case file and a cell, in which you will be housed and observed during your examinations here. If you have any requests, you make it to your nurses first and your doctors second. They will bring you food and drink, escort you to the communal showers and bathrooms, and overall ensure your safe-keeping here at Eternal Peaks.” Rupi continued, before glancing to the guards and handlers behind each patient. “Follow the rules and your time at Eternal Peaks will be productive and educational. Prove to be a menace and you’ll find us arbitrary to your needs. Now, will the handlers please escort your patient to their cells as I read them off…” She glanced at Akila Kassis, her assigned helper. She better be taking notes.

“Patient ZM1234, because of your repeat offences, you are now being relocated to Cell Block C. Corporeal of the Guard, please escort the patient to Cell C-2.” Rupi said at first, her tone now authoritative and cold as he looked at Zach. She then looked at Natalya and some might note the sudden slackening of hardness in her voice. “Patient NS3456, to Cell B-3.” Next was Jinx Ballentyne and Kyi Grey. “Patient MB4523, to Cell B-4. Patient KG9654, to Cell B-1.” Then she sighed, cause she hated what she had to say now. “Dr. Arellano will be along shortly to give you each your first Physical and medical Inspection…” And with a nod of her head, Rupi stepped away from the podium.

---

Rufio Arellano did not even bother to get up when Rupi handed it off to him. He remained seated right where he was, leaning back with an arrogant expression as he gazed to the patients. He could start with any one of them, though there was no rush. They weren’t going anywhere and he would have plenty of time to get to know them…and their conditions. Raising his hand, he pointed right at Zach, the troublemaker. “We’ll start with tough guy here.” He sneered. “I have other obligations down in Block C, so I’d rather not waste any time going up and down to mingle with that lot. Get him situated quickly into his new, comfy lodgings. I'll be along to see him soon." Rufio promised with a smirk. Turning, he promptly exited the Hall, for he was receiving a very precarious alert pertaining to another patient down in Cell Block C...

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution

She listened. Jinx had excellent hearing. It was a gift or at least part of her gift. At an early age her grandmother taught her, ‘if you can hear it, if you can see it, you can move it.’ The sound was distinct. It wasn’t something she heard often, but every sound made a lasting impression in the girl’s mind. Shoes clicking on the floor. This was not one of the brutes that had man handled her into the van or this place. No. This person was….different. Light and yet confident. A woman. Yes. A woman with….nice shoes. She was walking at a steady pace. Over and over her feet hit the floor. Tap. Tap. Tap. ‘No,’ Jinx thought with a start. ‘Don’t focus. Don’t think about her shoes. Don’t move them. Remember.’ She balled her hands into fists, pulling every bit of restraint she had not to concentrate on the woman’s shoes. Jinx knew full well she could move the woman’s shoes, her feet even, causing her to fall, and that would be disastrous. Taking a deep breath, she calmed herself just in time before the blindfold was pulled from her eyes, and the blind, bright light of the room flooded her senses.

‘No funny business, or you will never see again. Nod if you understand.’

Jinx nodded quickly, the gag still biting into her mouth, pulling at the corners. Though she swallowed, saliva still collected on her bottom lip, threatening to drip down to her chest at any moment. She looked around the room at the various people. Some seemed to be in a similar predicament. Others were clearly along the same lines as those responsible for her presence. ‘What’s going on,’ she thought. ‘What is this place?’ It was a question that she hoped would soon be answered by the woman who caught her attention. It was the woman the shoes belonged to, and she was about to speak. ‘Eternal Peaks? Cooperate? Team? A psychiatric team? Why am I here?’ Her eyes reflected her confusion, and as Rupi spoke about understanding the unique conditions of their bodies and minds, Jinx slowly turned to look at the others. ‘Our….bodies and minds.’ Turning her attention back to Rupi, she listened as she began to read off a serious of letters and numbers. ‘MB..that’s me? Cell B-4? I don’t know where that is. What am I supposed to do? Where is that?’ Questions and concerns that would soon be answered.

The man who had remained behind her the entire time, grabbed her and hauled her to her feet. His look said all that needed to be said. She nodded to his silent warnings, and he urged her forward. As they left the room and started down what seemed like an endless hallway, Jinx wondered if he knew why she was there. It was a question she quickly answered in her own mind. ‘Of course he does. Why else would he warn me? He knows what I can do. So if he knows, they all know.’ He stopped at a door that looked like every other down the hall except this door had the letters and numbers of her cell displayed. “Home sweet home,” was all he said as he opened the door and shoved her inside. Jinx looked at him as he closed the door. “Thank you,” she mumbled softly, not wanting to forget her manners even in this place, this situation. The tears were already threatening, and to be honest, she saw no reason to hide them. Finding comfort against a wall, she leaned on it and slid down to the floor where she drew her knees up to her chest and began to cry softly as she drew into herself as tight as possible.

RE: Eternal Peaks Psychiatric Institution


After the rude dismissal from Dr. Vera, Elizabeth doesn't head back upstairs but instead waits outside the door patiently, knowing Dr. Funer would come out pressing his pager looking for her as he normally did, unless he left his pager in his office, which was a normal occurrence. Standing outside in the hall could grow rather boring, and as she waits she hears a few guards arguing with one of the many patients. Intrigued she steps down the hall to offer help, but by the time she returns fifteen minutes later her small work phone is ringing. Pulling it out of the only place she could store it in the outfit she was wearing -her bra- she recognizes Dr. Funer's office phone, cursing silently for missing him once again.

"Sir? Yes, sorry they are. They are on my desk sir, I'll come right up. Sorry sir, I got distracted."


Why was the Head of Psychoanalysis staring at her? Akila sat with her hands in her lap, feeling like she was missing something. Then it dawned on her: notes. No one else was taking them in the room, and sure enough Dr. Vera would want detailed notes on the meeting and what Akila thought. All the raven-haired girl wanted was to keep out of trouble, especially since she had been in Cell Block C before and it had been...horrid.

Under her breath, the Egyptian girl whispered, "I wish there was a pen and paper in my hands." and like that a notepad and blue inked pen appeared out of thin air. A few saw, but the doctors already knew of her limited powers and the guards would only grow uneasy with her. It would be the new comers that would be intrigued. She was one of a kind in the facility, although she wasn't the only one who could say that. Rumors were they had captured a living gorgon who now resided in Cell Block C, and of course their was Nysa, the only siren around. Having two of her would not be needed.

Her eyes flickered to the mad doctor, the one smirking and at complete ease. She had wanted to stay out of his radar, and she hoped her meager magic trick hadn't sparked any interest. It wasn't like she had untold power to grant every wish, big or small. Her powers were still forming, like a babe that could barely walk, often failing or fizzling out after a moment or two. Akila had realized quickly that she could only preform small simple wishes, that would appear if she said them just right. Something like a pad and pen.

Taking to the paper she started writing fiercly, needing to catch up with everything she had currently heard and seen. Upsetting Dr. Vera was no more wise than upsetting Dr. Arellano. The beautiful lady standing on the stage now had her own tricks that could make any of them suffer just as greatly if they crossed her.

Patient MB4523, to Cell B-4. Patient KG9654, to Cell B-1. she thought as she wrote it down, keeping up with what was happening, Dr. Arellano...psychical...oh these poor things. They have no idea what comes next.


Natalya understood nothing of what was happening around her, their words falling on foreign ears, their stares only causing her to pull back her upper lip and snarl, fangs exposed. She pulled at the steel cuffs binding her hands, wishing for her own form but every time she did the man behind her nudged her with his gun, telling her silently to stop. And out of all things, Natalya knew what a gun was. She'd seen plenty in her lifetime, a wandering pup in the forests of Russia.

It wasn't until the woman stood up on the podium that Natalya's eyes stopped roaming, gluing to the beauty speaking to the room. She understood nothing of what she spoke, but her beauty was unmatched, making the wolf confused over her attraction. Why was she feeling anything for a woman?

Suddenly the man behind her reached forward and grabbed her arm, trying to lift her. It surprised the wolf and instinct took over, her lips curling back as a snarl left her throat and she tugged from him.

"Ne trogay menya , svin'ya," Natalya snapped in pure Russian, her accent flawless as she spoke the first words anyone in the room had heard from her. The room fell silent, her voice not only carrying weight but power, as if royalty had entered the room and demanded an audience. She was no royalty however, she just held a fair amount of pride and dignity. She snapped at the air near his face, trying to catch his throat and rip his jugular out with her teeth.

"Restrain her!" one guard shouted as another grabbed an animal control pole, slipping it over Natalya's head before she could move, the loop tightening as she pulled away. It took five men to hold her down as her anger surged at the fact she had been put on what looked like a stiff leash, snapping and snarling as her teeth lashed for any flesh. They finally got her to the floor, pinning her as best they could, the strength in her no match for one mortal man.

Rupi watched as each patient was taken out, starting with MB4523. Megan Ballentyne, or as she preferred, Jinx. The young woman had a look of utter confusion on her face and Rupi could tell at once she was not here voluntarily. Of course, most patients weren’t. With their conditions, most individuals would not exactly be prone to turning themselves for to be researched. Rupi was well aware that the vast majority of patients did not arrive here by choice. Some were sent by relatives and close families. Others were hunted…for a price. Science and research were put forth at Eternal Peaks and while for some, it was a line of work and a profession, for others it was a hobby and a sport.

Still, it was wise not to dwell on the mentality that might be behind each of these faces. Not Megan Ballentyne, but patient MB4523. That was her identity now. Rupi had to remember that while they may be unique and special in some circumstances, they were also clearly dangerous people. She herself had her fair collection of close calls and near death experiences when patients often seized a chance for freedom or simply revenge. MB4523 was gagged and cuffed for a reason and could remain so if necessity required it. Then another disruption drew her glance.

NS3456. Her name came unbidden in Rupi’s mind. Natalya Silvka. The wolf girl. Rupi wondered if it was real what the reports said about her, or if she was simply some child abandoned in the forest who grew up to mimick her surroundings. It was not an uncommon case. But just looking at the woman seemed to suggest a different circumstance in mind. The woman’s declaration, in what Rupi assumed to be Russian, proved significant for the doctor. This woman was the first she needed to work a psych evaluation on. Timid Jinx, the beautiful siren, and the troublemaker Zach could wait.

But there was another matter that needed attending. As the patients were wheeled out, Rupi drew to her full height and looked right across to Akila Kassis. “AK8866.” Rupi said, speaking each letter and number with cold sternness. “My office. Now.” She ordered, then moved to leave the Amphitheatre herself.

She was kept pinned down until a gag was placed as well as added bindings, and then she was forced to her feet, the men moving her out of the large room towards what must be her new cell. Natalya was lucky not to be demoted to Cell Block C, although she didn't know that. No, she was in a rage so she could only snarl and growl against her gag, glaring at any who past them. They led her down a few hallways until they stepped inside a small white room, the wall's made of concrete except for one. Stepping out, they closed and locked the glass, watching it perfectly seal to the rest of the wall, making it impossible for her to escape Beside the door the glass shifted up as one man pushed it, making a small square in the glass obviously for slipping food inside.

"Give us your hands, and we will uncuff you."


Akila's voice ran dry as her name was spoken, knowing that tone better than most. Sighing, she held tightly to the notepad and pen, stepping around the scene with the wolf before following Dr. Vera's footsteps out and towards her office at the end of the small hall. It wasn't until she had stepped inside the small therapy office that she asked...

Amphitheater

Tag: Jakob, Vera, Arellano

Large doe-like hazel eyes stared up at the man while he was excused, the man easily comforted when his friend relieved him. Kyli’s small perky head nodded, her arms pulling her legs in further to her chest as her ears tuned back into the woman standing confidently over the crowd. From what ever speech she’d given, the obviously inhuman woman began listing off numbers, all while people where nudged from the room with the ends of those odd contraptions. Blonde strands shifted, almost gleaming amidst the dingy light of the unnaturally lit room.

The numbers continued to get listed off, before a guard nudged her with that metal… thing, motioning her towards the door. Opening her mouth, the nymph quickly closed it in response to the daring death glare she’d received in response to her resistance. Kyli’s legs where stiff as she stood, her once flawless skin still covered in flourishing bruises. Her muscles and several bones screamed in pain, but she pushed on as the guard sunk another just below her ribs.

What would possibly happen to her now? The poor nymph barely understood where she was, nor what lied ahead.

Cell Block B~

Name: Zach McKnight,
Location: Main Floor – Orientation Hall
Tag: Rufio Arellano​

The sad looking motley crew of new flesh for this crippling game had all been seated, or on the floor, behind Zach. He wasn't eager to start caring about any of them. The first rule he lived by had come to him after tragic heart break in the form of the tortures and the death of a handful of friends he had made here. This rule was to give up on hope in others. There wasn't a reason to believe that any of these newcomers would have his back if a moment of opportunity had presented itself. Sell outs, potentially the whole lot. Zach ignored the German doctor as he let his brown eyes cast back over the newbies from over his shoulder.

During this action, he went over the near run in with the Siren in his mind. His time here succeeded most, and that permitted his big pale ears to hear guard chatter and fellow patients in block B spilling the beans about her. Their height difference, her vocal confidence, her hair, he didn't need to clue himself in on the context clues that the guards had dropped on the trip here. That woman had him silenced the whole way, and that should come as a surprise. She scared him more than anything else, even if he tried to hold his smile in front of her before. If she so wished, just at the parting of her lips, she could break the convictions that no one else could. Sure, she would refrain from doing it to skirt the punishment that would be involved. But, Zach knew that any sadistic freak with a diploma in this building could schedule a 'play session' and bring all of their little toys regardless of how well you behave. Admittedly, playing nice and being a good bitch could drop you off their radar and come with perks. Zach could hear the psyche-staff woman speaking now, he never cared about her name. The way she spoke would lead one to believe that there was an understanding where good behavior would keep you safe. This was fundamentally untrue. Any curiosity that gave the staff a sadism chubby with a patient's name on it, from block C to Block A, and that patient would find themselves on the wrong end of a whole mess of abuse. Nothing gave a patient immunity to the appointments. There were no means to keep the staff to their word, any curiosity of theirs can be explored. For a patient to keep their sanity, they have to give up on the idea of being a good bitch and stay who they are up to the disgustingly bitter end.

Sadness occupied Zach's gaze before he blinked it away and returned the brown orbs to his ankles. He was beginning to feel the need to speak those thoughts to the newcomers. But, that was likely to put his return to Block B at risk. With a return to form, his cheeky smile etched across his face and his brown eyes became hollow. Empty. He couldn't fake bravado when he knew he was selling out to get back into Block B. In no way did Zach expect to have his innocent little deal to be revoked. He was powerless to deal any shape of harm in this spiffy straight coat. And yet, poetically, he would find he had no shape of immunity to the lies of the staff. Just as he noted in his head a moment ago.

Rufio Arellano, the lighter flicking bastard that Zach had been playing iris hockey with before, stood and made his declaration. With a finger pointed at Zach, Rufio had awkwardly highlighted Zach's infamy while shattering the deal to move Zach back to Block B in one fell swoop. Not that the newcomers knew the deal, the backstabbing nature of the staff would remain in the dark for them. Even so, Zach's heart returned to him as the challange was issued and his previous flame returned to his eyes. "Come and get me." Spoken calmly, Zach stood and turned away from Dr. Arellano just as the other man's movements would obscure his vision of Zach. They were separating from each other's sight, but Zach was sure he was dancing across Rufio's frontal lobe anyway.

With no means to escape or put up a line of defense in his straight coat, Zach approached his Block C escourts and gave them nothing more that a wild smile. Transporting Zach back and forth between Block C and Block B had to be one of the easiest things the guards had to do. Especially today, since his way up was completely silent in hopes of not attracting the Siren's own curiosities. And, Zach didn't have much to say as he was escorted back to Block C this time. Zach was quietly contemplating Rufio, mulling over just what may be in store in the coming days.

Click…Click…

Click…Click…

Click…Click…

The echoing sound of her heels on the waxy clean white tile was a haunting sound, especially when those saw who they belonged to. Candice Whitehorn was a woman no one wanted to trifle with. At her side was Robert Miller, dressed in a nice navy suit and equally annoyed looking. But for very different reasons. Candice had the pleasure of reading all the notes on each successful experiment, and catching up on reports of each doctor which the Head of Departments and Head of Staff conducted monthly. Her findings. Not positive.

And Miller had been up at the crack of dawn to pick her up at the arrival terminal, only to be stopped at the Gate, and then the plane was late. By the time he got to Candice and got them both in his unmarked black SUV, the man had had to speed back to make the morning conference being held in the Amphitheater. Not only that, but he had not gotten any reprieve from Candice’s annoyed ranting in the car, his employer none too pleased with what she was seeing.

The only positive remarks she had were on security at the gate. It was a quickly redrawn compliment though, as she saw no other security walking the fence or inside the main lobby.

“What do we hire that company for?” she snapped as they head down in the elevator.

“Security,” Miller replied back curtly, “But Mrs. Whitehorn, without adequate housing for many of the guards, we can only keep the top ranks on premise. The rest must return to town at night and in the morning, greatly decreasing the numbers on staff during those times.”

It was a report he had read himself by one Jakob Garner. In the report, it explained that housing, even if apart from the main building but still on the estate, would help increase security and faster response times. It was a report Miller was going to bring up at the next Board meeting, but he seemed to be doing it now instead.

“Hmph,” Candice made a noise in her throat before holding her hand out. Robert opened the small briefcase in his hand and pulled out the report, handing it to her.

“I’ll read over it over lunch,” she explained, tucking it into her briefcase, “Time?”

“7:55 am ma’am. Meeting is in five.”

“Good. “

The doors opened and they stepped out, now walking down the perfect white floor, unmarked by stains. As they approached the theater Miller quickened a pace and opened the door for her so that she could step inside before him. The amphitheater was built in both an interesting, and strange way. The doors opened to the floor between the seats and the stage; the stage itself was only a few feet raised, with stairs on both sides and a podium in the middle. As for the seats there were two choices. The floor was big enough to hold a couple dozen chairs, normally used on Orientation days when they only had a handful of attendees. Otherwise the raised seating was used. Like in a university classroom the back was filled with long rows of seating, the row behind each raised higher than the one ahead of it so that everyone could see. All the chairs in these rows were built into the floor, with tiny oval tables big enough for a clipboard protruded from every other arm rest, to give doctors something to write upon.

These rows were now filled with staff: doctors, nurses, and guards alike, all mixed and talking quietly to one another. No one knew of Candice’s arrival, or the surprise evaluations. It was meant to be that way.

As Candice and Miller made their way to the stage though, the crowd began to hush, recognizing Robert Miller instantly, and growing wary of the woman at his right. It was Candice who took the podium first, Miller standing off to the side of the stage with his hands folded in front of him, watching the crowd.

“Good morning staff,” her voice took on a cheery tone, much unlike the cold eyes staring around, “I haven’t had the pleasure to meet many of you, but I can see some faces I recognize. My name is Candice Whitehorn, and I am on the Board of Directors that runs this fine operation.”

Pure…silence.

“As most of you are probably guessing by now, my arrival is not of any recreational sense. This year marks our fifth year running Eternal Peaks, and those on the Board and I are determined to keep running this facility at maximum efficiency. Starting today, we will be conducting the yearly evaluations. I know most of you are used to seeing Robert Miller, and rest assured he will be conducting all evaluations with me.”

She scanned the crowd, finding Dr. Funer’s face and pausing for a minute before looking on to the rest of the crowd, “We will be starting with all Heads of Department and working through the staff from those at the highest ranks to those who are new. This includes guards and nurses. There are certain…concerns with Black Hand at the moment within the Board and Miller and I are here to put these rumors to rest.”

Her eyes moved along until she spotted Dr. Gregor and his assistant in the crowd, “Now I know there will be many questions, but please save them for the evaluations. I would like us to turn our attention to our newest staff member, Doctor Helmut Gregor. He has many esteemed awards for his advancements in science, and he was highly praised to us. Dr. Gregor, would you like to say a few words before we continue?”

Last one to leave, first one to arrive.

That had always characterized Rupinder Vera’s work habits. She had little need to recuperation or rest. She did not like to linger on Institution grounds any longer than she needed to, not wanting to attract the attention of a certain individual. Usually being the first one in, any memos or emails from Rupi to her colleagues would be generally the first ones they might receive that day, even before their own secretaries and receptionists. So when Rupi checked her schedule early that morning, having been absent from the Institution for perhaps only six or seven hours, she was surprised to find there was actually an item waiting for her.

Staff meeting planned in the Amphitheater for 0800AM. Attendance mandatory.

Rupi merely sighed and leaned back, wondering what this could be about. It wasn’t new attendees. It certainly wasn’t some holiday function or event. Maybe they were being given a lecture over performance numbers or some other issue that probably wasn’t her fault. Another drain of time in her already busy schedule. She hated it, but had no choice to attend. There wasn’t much she could do at this early hour besides wait. She thought about summoning one of the Block A patients for a…drink, but decided against it. Those types of indulgences might exactly be what this meeting was about. Even though Rupi’s excesses were small and mostly secretive, she wasn’t exactly free of guilt. But there were worse examples that would no doubt draw more attention. Hopefully enough to overlook her own.

She shrugged, using the time to write up some reports and organize her case files for the coming day. She did not fret much over the delay that might be caused by the meeting, being one who already worked late. A half hour before the appointed time, Rupi rose and made her way over from her offices to the large amphitheater, finding it mostly empty when she arrived. She ignored the ones present, especially choosing not to make eye contact with one Daniella Coleman as she made her way to the front of the chamber. Being Head of the Psychoanalysis department certainly had its privileges, allowing her to sit in the front row without having to stare over people’s heads and suffer the disgusting scents of their cheap shampoos. Yet perhaps having an entire room of people breathing down your neck from behind was not exactly better either.

She sat in the center of the first row, smoothing out her flaxen skirt that covered her caramel thighs, her legs crossed at the knee. Just a hint of her toned leg was visible and it wasn’t long before she began to fidget as she sat rigidly, her uppermost leg bouncing casually off her other, her heel slipping to reveal the perfect ball of her ankle and heel. It took all the effort in the world not to turn and stare at whatever newcomer was entering the amphitheater, the only point of interest as they waited for whatever was about to occur. She smiled as some of the other Heads joined her, especially Zandra of the Science department whom Rupi liked and admired.

“Good morning, Zandra. Any inkling on what this is about?” She inquired casually, giving the other woman a small smile.

Whether she knew or not, Rupi’s question would soon be answered when she saw none other than Robert Miller escorting one Candice Whitehorn into the room. Rupi understood at once. Yearly evaluations, great. Another chink of distraction to add to my day. The last thing Rupi wanted to endure was tedious questioning of her performance and results, especially when she could be using that time to get results and perform better. She listened attentively as Candice spoke, introducing herself and explaining her purpose, just as Rupi guessed. It wouldn’t be her first time being evaluated and certainly not last. Not that she had anything fear, having one of the best performances in the whole Institution. Still, she disdained the whole process, preferring to use that time more productively.

When Dr. Gregor was called up, praised for his awards, Rupi clapped with the rest of them, though her face was guarded and closed. Sadistic bastard she thought to herself with a small scowl.

---

At 7:56AM, Rufio Arellano burst into the Amphitheater with the liveliness of a stirred up bee hive. He threw open both doors in his entrance, letting them slam shut behind him as he casually strode into the chamber. His zippo lighter was in hand and he faintly smelled of the cigar he had smoked prior to showing up. He had barely been in the building for ten minutes when he saw the memo in his email. Meeting for 8AM? Great! Hopefully it lasted quite a bit, allowing him to waste up most of his day rather than dealing with the pitiful fucks they called patients in this place. Not that he minded, knowing some could be loads of fun while others were more lackluster. Still, given the week so far, it was a nice break and change of pace to enjoy.

He himself sat in the second row and unlike Rupinder Vera who silently took her seat, Rufio had to pause to greet every doctor, who all returned his greeting with the same flare. “Dr. Hodge! Good to see you. Ah, Dr. Carr, still kicking I see? Dr. Morgan, congratulations on your child!” And so on, his handshakes loud as he smacked his hand into the other and shook it firmly. He was one of the few not wearing a lab coat as typical of his status as a doctor, instead wearing a white dress shirt tucked into his dark grey pants, with a black vest overtop. His hair was slicked back and tied in a bun as usual as he dropped heavily in his seat with a sigh, arms spread over the backrest of the one next to him.

“So anyone know what this is about? I got a patient waiting in Block B that’s been hankering for me all night.” He sneered, drawing a round of laughter. However, like the others, his question would soon be answered and his laughter and joking silenced when he saw just who entered the room. His face lost its cheerful look, instead going as serious and calm as those around him. His eyes followed Candice as she took the stage and introduced herself. Yearly evaluations. God damn it. Rufio however simply raised his chin in a haughty manner, not exactly fearful of it either. He had gotten through them before, like a football player dodging obstacles during practice. He would persevere.

Like the others, he clapped when Dr. Gregor was called up. Now there is a fine man. I could learn a thing or two he pondered to himself with a half-smirk.