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Grade
9

INSANITY 

THERE ARE THINGS THAT THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT WANT YOU TO KNOW 

MARUICE’S STORY IS ONE OF THEM                                                                                  

REPORT 

17.03.1997 

TEST SUBJECT: A113 

TESTING ROOM: 4D 

THE SUBJECT SEEMS TO BE LOSING TOUCH WITH REALITY. IT IS NOT CERTAIN WHETHER OR NOT THE SUBJECT IS STILL SANE.    

Day 0 

I shivered in the cold, zipping up my thin jacket. The usually bright park lay in darkness, shut down for the night, and a soft whoosh of a car could be heard occasionally. I settled down onto my favorite bench and laid down, enjoying the twinkling lights that could be seen up above.  

Look, there, Maurie. I thought to myself. Stars. One day, you’ll finally get out of this ****-hole you put yourself in and be one yourself. All you must do is save up your money a little more. If you don’t eat tomorrow, you should have twenty dollars. Won’t that be something?  

I reached into my ratty backpack, pulling out a holed blanket.  

Just a few more weeks of this and you can buy yourself an outfit and go in for a real job. 

I sighed as thoughts of my ex-wife and daughter swirled around my head. Where had it all gone wrong? 

I snapped the blanket up, letting it catch the air and spread out. As it fell to cover the span of my body, I felt a gloved hand cover my face, holding some fabric in its palm. I was out before the blanket had even fallen all the way down. 

Day 1 

The room was white. Its walls were brightly lit and reflected harshly against the paint. I was laid out on the floor, and I sat up, looking around at my surroundings. The only things that were there was a toilet and a sink on the opposite side of the room.  

Where the **** am I? I wondered to myself. The last thing I remembered was the smell and taste of something sweet before everything had gone black. 

“Test subject A113. I’m glad you are awake.” A woman’s monotone voice echoed into the room. I spotted a speaker on the ceiling of the room.  

“Who the **** are you and what do you want with me?” I snapped up, my voice shaking slightly, but it wasn’t entirely from the drug. “And what the **** do you mean, “test subject”? 

“From this moment and onwards, you are property of the government of ____________. I will not contact you again after this conversation. You are part of an experiment that benefits the government in certain ways that you have no need to know. After this conversation, no one will contact you in any way. Your food will be delivered through a protected slot in the wall. You may use the toilet at any time you wish. All experiences you will have will be recorded as data from this point onwards. Have a good day.” The last sentence was said with a slightly mocking tone and my face flushed hot.  

“You can’t keep me here! I know my rights!” My only reply was silence. 

A high-pitched beep began to come from the speaker above me, one beep sounding every two seconds. 

I looked around again, scanning the walls for any possible signs of a door. There was nothing, just smooth white metal. 

A large pit settled in my stomach. How long would I be here? Would they ever let me go? No, I had watched enough movies. Even if I finished their ******* little project, I would never leave here alive.  I punched the wall, relishing the moment of clarity the pain brought me. I began to pace around the room, trying to think of a way I could get out, slowly synchronizing to the beep 

Day 3 

Nothing had changed while I was asleep; there was still only a toilet and sink in the room. I rubbed my knuckles across my forehead, mentally preparing myself for another day in this ****. A beep sounded just then, as though it was agreeing with me. 

Day 4 

This ******* room was starting to take its toll on me. Now my ****-hole of a life had escaped into my dreams. The very thought of it—the walls closing in on me, slowly putting more and more pressure on my frail body until I could feel my bones splintering and breaking—was enough to make me shudder. I blinked blearily and was greeted by the same blank walls and beeping sounds. 

Would I ever get out of here?  I hunched in my small corner, shivering at my thoughts.  

Day 7 

I saw the Devil himself today. He appeared in the opposite corner of the room, a large smile on his face and his red robes dragging across the floor as he walked. I could do nothing but watch in terror as he approached me. The horns on his head glittered in the light and his barbed tail whipped around behind him. His skin was red with the blood of those that he had murdered. 

“Maurice,” he had said, his deep voice reverberated through the room. “I’m coming for you soon.” He reached out to me and slid the back of his clawed fingers across my face. He moved his finger to the bottom of my chin, leaving the point of his claw to bite into it painfully. 

He began to laugh, his bellows seeming to swallow me whole. He looked back down at me sharply, and some of his skin fell away, revealing large teeth that stretched to the edge of where his cheekbones would be. His eyes glowed red in black sockets, and his tongue stuck out to lick my cheek, leaving a line of sticky goop. The goop began to burn through my skin. I could feel the liquid eating through my flesh. I finally found my voice and began to scream. 

I screamed and screamed, until I could no longer scream anymore. The demon disappeared and I fell asleep, exhaustion taking over me. 

Day 9 

I wanted out. Out of this ****. Out of this place. I didn’t care how. I just needed to get out. I scratched at my skin.  

How were the walls so, so bright, but all I could feel was darkness?  Why couldn’t I have just gone to the other **** park that night?  

I remembered the Devil from that time, and I envied him. I envied that he could come and leave as he pleased while I was stuck in this never-ending torture that was called life! Why was it that something so evil had the ability to escape? While I was trapped in my own miserable shell? Why? 

Day 10 

I couldn’t do this anymore. I could feel my sanity slipping away. My sanity was slipping away! I was going insane, I tell you!  

I was in my corner once more, letting my thoughts spiral around my head.  

Insane! Was I? 

I began to chuckle, then it turned into a full-borne, choking laugh, my vocal chords too gone to produce the real sound. I banged my head against the wall to the side of me. I hit it again. And again. And again. And again. Soon, I could feel a substance run down my face. I looked down at it. 

What a pretty color, the color red. I dug my hands into the gash that I had created in my head, pulling at the skin beside it until my hands were covered in the substance.  

Pretty color.  

I laughed again and started slamming my head back into the wall with every beep that came out of the speaker. 

Beep. 

Beep. 

Beeping. 

Always beeping and sounding and watching me floundering. The only thing that had stayed by my side while I was drowning. Its only intention was to torture and wound me, but I held onto it even though its malice was astounding. 

Beeping and beeping and beeping some more. 

A faint odor came into the room and I fell asleep soon after, giggling like I was insane. 

Maybe I was. 

Day 14 

The door! It was opening! It was! I could see it, a rectangular shape opening. I crouched in my corner, scratching my arms obsessively over my already bloodied skin. Some person had come through the door! I laughed again.  

The person was dressed in some weird suit, but I didn’t care. I leaped at the person as soon as they stepped through the threshold of the door, knocking them down to the floor. I held their head down and brought my jaws onto their neck, ripping the skin off. 

I watched in glee as the substance poured from his neck, pooling on the floor below. The person coughed and choked. 

The beeping from the ceiling seemed to get louder and louder as the seconds went by. A sharp sting in my arm made me howl. I whipped around and felt something hit my forehead before everything went black. Darkness began to enfold me, giving me the bliss of feeling nothing. 

Red. What a pretty color.