As the police arrived on the scene, Aadam wasted no time in reporting the harrowing events that had unfolded in the backroom. With a sense of urgency, he relayed every detail to the authorities, his voice steady despite the gravity of the situation. Meanwhile, the rest of the staff rallied together to tend to Alya, offering words of comfort and support as they awaited the arrival of the authorities.

Tenuk and Iyaan stepped forward to give their own testimonies, their voices echoing in the hushed atmosphere of the room. With each word spoken, they recounted the events of the night, their expressions etched with a mixture of shock and disbelief.

Once their statements had been recorded, the police began to scan the backroom meticulously, searching for any clues that might shed light on the identity of the mysterious assailant. Tenuk and Iyaan watched in silence as the officers combed through the room, their hearts heavy with the weight of what had transpired.

Finally, the police turned to address the gathered crowd, their words carrying a sense of authority and solemnity. "None of you shall leave the city," they declared, their voices firm. "And none of you shall spread this news outside this building. You can commence work, but I suggest you give it some time."

Aadam stepped forward, offering his gratitude to the officers for their swift response. "Thank you, Officer Johan," he said respectfully, his voice tinged with relief.

"It's our job," Officer Johan replied, his face partially obscured by his hat. "Take care, everyone. We'll be dropping by a lot."

With that, the police cars departed, leaving the staff to grapple with the aftermath of the traumatic ordeal. Tenuk wasted no time in rushing to Alya's side, his heart heavy with guilt for not being able to intervene sooner.

"Sorry it took us so long to help you," he said, his voice filled with genuine remorse.

Alya shook her head, a gentle smile gracing her lips as she clutched onto the blanket wrapped around her. "No, thanks to you both, I'm still alive," she replied softly, her gratitude evident in her eyes.

Determined to ensure Alya's safety, Tenuk and Iyaan took it upon themselves to escort her back to her house, their hearts heavy with the weight of what had transpired, but resolved to stand by their friend through it all.

***

As the days passed in the wake of the harrowing incident in the backroom of "Mind and Heart," life for Tenuk, Iyaan, and Alya settled back into a semblance of normalcy. Despite the lingering unease that hung in the air, they found solace in the routine of their daily lives.

Tenuk made it a point to check in on Alya regularly, meeting up with her after classes or during lunch breaks to ensure she was coping with the aftermath of the ordeal. His concern for her well-being was evident in his every action.

Meanwhile, word of the incident remained tightly contained within the boundaries of the authorities and the staff of "Mind and Heart." There were no whispers or rumors circulating outside of the building, no indication that anything out of the ordinary had occurred. It was as if the events of that fateful night had been swallowed up by the silence of the night.

But despite their efforts to move forward, the shadow of the past still loomed large over them. As Saturday rolled around once again, signaling the start of their part-time job in the building where tragedy had struck, a sense of unease settled in the pit of their stomachs.

As the familiar routine of their part-time job resumed, Iyaan and Tenuk found themselves once again standing in the lobby of "Mind and Heart," scanning their ID cards with practiced ease. With a soft beep, the security system registered their entry, granting them access to the building.

Stepping into the elevator, Tenuk's finger instinctively pressed the button marked '15,' initiating their ascent to the fifteenth floor where their duties awaited. The soft hum of the elevator's machinery filled the air as they rose higher and higher, the anticipation of another day's work tinged with a sense of apprehension.

Their journey was interrupted as the elevator halted on the fifth floor, the doors sliding open to admit a new arrival. A young woman entered, offering a polite greeting to the boys as she stepped inside. Tenuk returned her smile warmly, while Iyaan's gaze remained fixed on the floor, his expression unreadable.

Tenuk's eyes flicked to the ID card hanging around the woman's neck, his curiosity piqued by the sight. As he read the name emblazoned on the badge, a sense of deja vu washed over him, a nagging feeling of familiarity tugging at the edges of his consciousness.

"Backroom duty. Alya," the woman announced with a smile, her voice cheerful and bright. With a nod of acknowledgment, she stepped out of the elevator, leaving Tenuk and Iyaan to continue their journey to the fifteenth floor.

But as the doors slid shut behind her, Tenuk's mind raced with a sudden realization. The words 'Alya, backroom duty' echoed in his thoughts, sending a shiver down his spine as memories of the past flooded back with startling clarity. In that moment, he knew that something was amiss, but it was too late to stop her from leaving.

***

As they stepped off the elevator onto the fifteenth floor, Tenuk's mind was swirling with concern. He turned to Iyaan, his brows furrowed with worry. "Is it okay for her to go there again?" he asked, his voice tinged with unease.

Iyaan shook his head, his expression mirroring Tenuk's apprehension. "What do we say? I'm not sure why nobody is doing anything about this. People died here," he remarked, his tone laced with frustration.

"The police seem to be taking us lightly as well," Tenuk added, his voice heavy with disappointment.

Iyaan nodded in agreement, acknowledging the validity of Tenuk's concern. Together, they made their way down the hallway, Alya trailing behind them as they headed for Nur's room.

Nur, the esteemed psychologist, would arrive for her evening shift at half past six, attending to her appointments every Saturday. Before her arrival, Aadam would assign a pair of staff to clean up her room and ensure everything was in its rightful place.

Typically, it was always Tenuk and Iyaan who undertook this responsibility, their familiarity with Nur's preferences making them the ideal candidates for the task. They worked efficiently, swiftly tidying up the room and arranging everything with meticulous care.

As they finished cleaning, Iyaan stood up, his gaze drawn to a displaced pot plant in the corner of the room. "How did that move out of place..." he mused aloud, his brow furrowing in confusion.

"Some of her patients are wild," Tenuk replied, offering a plausible explanation for the anomaly. Iyaan nodded in response, though his mind remained preoccupied with lingering doubts.

Turning the knob, Iyaan opened the door, allowing Tenuk to exit ahead of him. They left the room in silence, their footsteps echoing softly in the empty hallway as they made their way towards the elevator.

As they passed the backroom, Tenuk couldn't help but steal a nervous glance in its direction, his senses on high alert as they navigated the familiar yet unsettling surroundings of the building.

"Should we wait for Alya?" Tenuk asked, his voice tinged with uncertainty as he glanced at Iyaan for guidance.

Iyaan nodded in agreement, seeing no reason to proceed without their colleague. Their tasks for the day were completed, and there was no urgency to rush off.

As Tenuk began to plod towards the backroom's door, a sudden, harsh noise pierced the air, cutting through the silence like a knife. It sounded eerily similar to the revving of a chainsaw, sending a shiver down Tenuk's spine.

Reacting instinctively, Tenuk grabbed Iyaan's arm and pulled him close, a sense of foreboding settling over them. With cautious steps, Tenuk pushed open the door slightly, the hinges betraying no sound as it swung ajar.

Peering into the dimly lit room from the safety of the doorway, they surveyed the scene before them with a mixture of dread and apprehension. The metal cart, laden with boxes, stood ominously in its rightful place, casting long shadows against the walls.

But something felt off—there was an unsettling stillness in the air, a palpable sense of dread that hung heavy like a shroud. Despite the room being well-lit, an inexplicable chill ran down their spines, raising the hairs on the back of their necks.

As Tenuk cautiously peered into the dimly lit backroom, dread coiled in the pit of his stomach, his mind swirling with horrifying memories of Melacca and Aishah. The accusatory voices of the deceased echoed in his mind, haunting him with their silent accusations of failure.

Iyaan's tap on his shoulder jolted Tenuk from his reverie, urging him forward into the room. Despite the illumination, an ominous chill still hung in the air, casting a pall over the scene before them. And then, as if emerging from the shadows themselves, a figure materialized before them, standing over the prone form of Alya.

Before Tenuk or Iyaan could react, the figure yanked the pull cord of a chainsaw, the deafening roar of its engine shattering the silence of the room. In the blink of an eye, the whirring blade descended, slicing through the air with deadly precision.

A gut-wrenching scream tore from Tenuk's throat although not heard as he watched in horror, his body frozen in shock as the chainsaw tore through Alya's flesh, splitting her head in two with sickening brutality. Blood sprayed in a gruesome arc, painting the walls in crimson as Alya's lifeless body slumped to the floor in a macabre tableau of death.

The sound of Tenuk's body hitting the ground went unheard amidst the cacophony of the chainsaw's roar, his senses reeling with the overwhelming horror of the scene before him. Beside him, Iyaan stumbled backward, his face drained of color as he struggled to comprehend the nightmare unfolding before his eyes.

They had done everything in their power to prevent this, to protect Alya from the same fate that had befallen Melacca and Aishah. They had fought against the darkness, but now it seemed that their efforts had been in vain.

As Iyaan staggered out of the room, his body racked with cold sweat, a sense of despair washed over him. They had avoided this fate once before, but now it seemed that their worst nightmares had become a horrifying reality, leaving them to grapple with the brutal truth of their own powerlessness in the face of evil.

Iyaan stood frozen in place, his body seized by an overwhelming sense of terror that held him in its grip like a vise. His chest constricted, his limbs quivered with a sickening weakness, and his mind was ensnared by an oppressive fear that seemed to consume him from within.

The pulse throbbed relentlessly in his ears, drowning out all other sound as the horror of the scene before him washed over him like a tidal wave. Every fiber of his being screamed for him to flee, but he remained rooted to the spot, paralyzed by the menacing aura that surrounded him.

Meanwhile, Tenuk's wide eyes stared into the abyss beyond the slightly open door, witnessing the ghastly spectacle unfolding within. Though fear coursed through his veins, it was something deeper and more primal than mere fright. The color drained from his face, replaced by a bone-chilling coldness that enveloped him entirely.

As the chainsaw mercilessly tore through Alya's flesh, Tenuk felt a primal terror grip him, rendering him powerless against the horrifying tableau before him. The faces of Melacca and Aishah materialized in his mind's eye, their accusing gazes haunting him as if they were right there in the room with him.

The sound of bones crunching beneath the relentless assault of the chainsaw filled the air, assaulting Iyaan's senses and sending shivers down his spine. He covered his ears in a futile attempt to block out the horrifying noise, but it persisted, driving him to the brink of madness.

As the figure continued its gruesome work, decapitating Alya's head and hammering relentlessly at her lifeless body, Iyaan's legs finally gave way beneath him, sending him crashing to the ground in a heap. Crawling on his back towards Tenuk, he sought solace in the comforting embrace of his friend, their trembling arms intertwining as they clung to each other in desperate terror.

Together, they huddled on the floor, their bodies trembling with fear as they waited for the nightmare to end, the relentless whirring of the chainsaw echoing in their ears like a cruel symphony of death.

***

Iyaan cautiously peered out from the safety of his own arms, his gaze fixed on the scene unfolding before him. The relentless whirring of the chainsaw had finally ceased, replaced by an eerie silence that hung heavy in the air like a suffocating shroud. With trepidation, he stole a glance from the enclosed dome of his arms and beheld the figure standing amidst the aftermath of their gruesome handiwork.

A shudder rippled through Iyaan's body as he caught sight of the figure's eerily smiling side profile, a chilling expression that sent shivers down his spine. The figure's long, wavy brown hair, now matted and drenched in blood, danced in the cold air, adding to the macabre scene unfolding before them.

With a disturbing calmness, the figure proceeded to extract strips of skin and muscles from Alya's lifeless body, their movements methodical and deliberate. Each piece was carefully placed into glass bottles, the viscera coiling and twisting within the transparent confines like grotesque specimens in a laboratory.

Iyaan's stomach churned at the sight, bile rising in his throat as he struggled to comprehend the horror unfolding before him. Tenuk, beside him, was equally paralyzed with fear, his wide eyes fixed on the grotesque tableau before them.

As the figure meticulously arranged the bottles, shifting them around until they formed a sinister pattern, a sense of dread settled over Iyaan and Tenuk like a suffocating weight. And then, with a sudden, swift movement, the figure turned around, their gaze locking onto the two terrified witnesses.

A wave of terror washed over Iyaan and Tenuk as they realized the true identity of the figure standing before them. It was Nur, their colleague and mentor, her once kind and gentle features twisted into a grotesque mask of insanity. Dread coiled in their stomachs as they stared into the abyss of her darkened eyes, realizing with horror that they were now trapped in the clutches of a madness beyond comprehension.

*2457 words*