"The world forgot him, but I never can... For in this darkness, I have seen him again..."
He huddled in the corner of the cage, the icy wind surrounding him. His back ached as the unrelenting blasts of wind whipped through his torn shirt, reminding him of the familiar sting of a whip.
The sound of revelers came from the nearby tavern, their laughter echoing across the night. The storm clouds had covered the moon, masking the city in darkness. He was grateful for the approaching storm�it had caused the fair to cancel their popular night show.
During the day, at least there were other things for people to do and see. They could see the numerous tumblers, conjurors, and musicians; they could partake in contests and buy inexpensive candy and souvenirs.
But at night, he was the sole exhibit. There would be lanterns on the corners of the cage, lights which cast strange shadows on his already strange face.
Men appeared all through the night to gawk at the creature�the monster, as they called him. He was expected to stay awake for their viewing. He was kicked or beaten if he fell asleep or turned his face away. There had been times when he had simply collapsed out of exhaustion, but the taskmaster made him stand. He was forced to stand in humiliation as people gasped and stared at his face, murmuring amongst themselves about the origin of the creature. Some speculated he was a living corpse�a thing that had truly been dead hundreds of years and yet somehow now lived. Others said he was a beast�they said he was dressed in disguise as a man, and that the fair directors insisted his claws be trimmed so he couldn�t harm the public. Still others admitted they couldn�t fathom what he was.
But no one had ever considered that he might be a person. A human being, no different than those who stared at and ridiculed him. He had far more talents than any of them! He had built a maze of mirrors for the Shah of Persia. He had written numerous musical scores, some of which had come to great acclaim�under pseudonyms. He could have been someone great... A world-renowned composer and architect...
But his face denied him the chance. His hideous, abhorrent, loathsome face was all the people wanted to see. They weren�t interested in the person behind the face�the man who hid behind the mask of disfigurement. They stared only at the distortion�never considering that he was anything other than a monster.
Never did any person see his eyes, the eyes that pleaded for someone to notice him, the eyes that showed all the sadness of the world. Not for over a year had a person heard his voice�aside from an occasional guttural groan. They didn�t know he possessed a talent far beyond their own. Never did a person look at his hands�the hands that had composed and constructed phenomenal things. They believed he had claws�claws that would destroy them if possible.
At first he had tried to make them see. He had pleaded with the people who stared, insisting that he was human, and that he did not want to harm them. But they always gasped and backed further away, claiming him to be demonic, since he was in their opinion a beast and should not be able to speak.
Before long, he could take no more of it, and he remained silent. The men still stared, the women still fainted, and the children still screamed. It was all the same, every place they traveled. Everywhere he was taken he was met with the same response. He had long since given up hope that anyone would see him for what he truly was.
But then, sometimes he wondered if he even knew himself.
He couldn�t remember his own name�he couldn�t remember if he had ever had a name. His mother had been horrified, dismayed, when she first saw him. His own mother had screamed hysterically for him to be taken away, far from her sight. He had lived his first years locked in a tiny room, away from people, away from anything.
And now, he lived in nearly the same way. Locked in a cage, unwanted, unloved�his face on display for the world to see.
He shuddered as the cold rain began to fall, freely entering the cage and soaking him through. No one cared that he was freezing, that he would likely catch pneumonia. He would be expected to remain on display even if he was sick�he was the fair�s most profitable attraction, after all.
He closed his eyes against the rain, forcing all thoughts from his mind. If he could just forget, it would be easier to bear the cold�maybe he could even get a few hours� sleep. The morning would come soon enough�and the spectators would come with it.
Perhaps one of them would be different. Maybe just once, someone would see him as a person. Maybe someone would finally see through the vast darkness he existed in. He longed to be seen in that darkness.
But for now, the blackness of night still surrounded and covered him, along with the icy rain falling in sheets. For now, all but his face was still invisible to the world.
