| 4. 03:00 am �I�m Ian McFurrley. I�m an English doctor and I�m here pure on scientific grounds, so don�t expect me to harm you or anything like that. I am doing research on the human behaviour when they know they are going to die in the near future. I know this probably sounds strange in your ears, but it�s kinda useful to know how the human mind works. I�m gonna sit in that corner,� Ian nods in the direction of the corner who is most far away from where they are sitting, �and just forget that I�m here.� After that Ian walks to the corner and sits down, grabbing his notebook and pencil and starts to write. Brian stares for a moment at the man in the corner. It�s a little man, smaller than Brian is, with very short white hair and two piercing blue eyes. �What did you say you were doing?� asks Howie softly. Ian looks up again. �I�m here to do research about human behaviour under extreme circumstances.� Ian looked back on his papers. �You are doing WHAT?!?!� said Howie with a deadly calm but angry voice. Slowly he stood up and turned in the direction of Ian, probably because he wanted to beat the shit out of this man. Brian grasped his arm. He pulls Howie to him and whispers softly in his ear. �Don�t do it. This is precisely what he wants us to do. He wants us to be afraid, to be angry. He wants us to drive insane. Are you going to give him that pleasure?� Howie looks for a moment at Brian and then sits down again. Ian still sits in the corner as if he had seen nothing happening, but Brian notices how tiny beads of sweat appeared on his head. <Not as brave and confident as he wants us to believe> thinks Brian. The three man are silent for a while, Brian and Howie both lost in their own thoughts and Ian, writing down things on his paper. Nick is still peacefully asleep with his head on Brian�s shoulder and he hasn�t got a clue what is going on in the little cell. Suddenly Brian�s soft voice speaks up. �Why are you afraid Ian?� Ian looks up and doesn�t answer immediately. �What do you mean�, � he looks at his papers, �Brian?� �What I mean is this. Why are you afraid to be here, with us, three normal guys who under normal circumstances would have played basketball together in the park, who would have started to have a family and a job? Why are you afraid of us, while the real monster is out there?� �I�m not afraid of you,� his voice doesn�t sound, as confidant as he would probably wanted it to sound. Brian laughs softly. �You are afraid to come near us. You probably only dared to join us after you were convinced that they would save you as soon there was any movement of us.� Softly Brian is trying to stand up, carefully so that he will not wake up Nick. Nick just murmers something and then just continues to sleep. �That kid is amazing!� whispers Howie a bit jealous, while he follows Brian with curious eyes. Slowly Brian approaches Ian. Ian�s face is slightly paler than it was in the beginning and the beads of sweat are way more noticeable. �Fear attracts the fearful, the strong, the weak, the innocent. Fear is my alley� How I once loved Star Wars,� says Brian with an honest smile. �Are we really that scary to you?� He sits down next to Ian who backs away from him. �I sense much fear in you. Fear is the pat to the dark side. Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering.� Now Brian laughs out loud. Ian jumps on his feet. �Go away!� he says with a panicked voice. �Shall I let you in on a secret Ian?� Brian says with a soft, but nice voice. �Fear is maybe a beautiful thing, but it�s not working. Not here. Not in this place, where you know you would die anyways. Do you really believe that you will find out the truth?� After those words Brian gets up again and sat down on his old place, between Howie and Nick. Ian stares with big eyes at Brian and then slowly stands up, shivering. �I don�t believe you.� After those words Ian almost runs out of the cell. After a brief moment of silence Howie speaks. �What did you mean?� �Howie, are you still that afraid of dead as you were when you were just taken prison?� Howie needs to think about that for a moment. Then he shakes his head. �You are right. Sitting here makes me realise that it doesn�t matter if I die or not. I�m not afraid anymore.� Brian smiles at him. �That�s what I meant. They make a mistake. They think that they can punish us by killing us, while it�s almost some kind of liberation. I only don�t think that Nick will understand this.� �What will Nick don�t understand?� sounds the terrified voice of the blond kid. �So sleepyhead, you�re awake again?� �Obviously,� mutters Nick. Howie can�t help but laugh. �Well, Brian you promised me your story remember?� Nick has forgotten his question and turns to Brian. �Your story?� Brian sighs. �Alright, I shall tell you my story.� Next Back Back to the Index |