Case 79

Chapter 3: Seeing things I don't

I remember the first time I saw Mercy snap. None of us saw it coming. We all knew he saw things, but not that they were that….

…bad.

Things were great. Everyone loved Jonah, especially Dharma. Dharma was like our mother. She was the oldest person (not counting the Doctor or nurses) in the asylum. She was in her 20's, but still very, very pretty. She had skin the color of night, and long black hair. Apparently she and Jonah shared a common ailment, a thing that sounded to me like fiber-my-algae. I asked her about it one day.

"Um… Dharma?"

"Yes chile?"

"What is fiber-my-algae?

"Oh dear chile, that is wat both me andz Joey dear got. Youz spellz it F-i-b-r-o-m-y-a-l-g-i-a and its where your bones andz your skin hurts."

"So…Jonah's skin and bones both hurt? He doesn't look like he's in pain."

She laughed. "have youz eva watched him closely before? That chile in pain."

And so I started watching him. And she was right. Know that I truly looked, I noticed the little things, like the way he flinched slightly every time something touched his skin, or when he groaned as he lowered himself into a chair. And I noticed something else, too. The way his eyes flicked around, how they would stare hard at something but nothing was there. And sometimes when you would talk to him, his eyes would see something behind you, and they would widen in fear, his mouth opening in a silent scream, obviously seeing something we couldn't. I have no idea what the Doctor is thinking he's gonna do to stop the visions. I mean, he already has him doing a jig a good two times a day, and it isn't helping him any. Electroshock therapy is deffenatly not having any effect, and no one has any idea how to 'cure' him.

But then the Doctor DID get an idea, and it was bad.

He decided to do what we called the Crazy Man Sane.

We all were just in the common room when the Vixter walked in. Jonah had been reading us his bible, trying to teach us the word of God. I was slowly finding faith in the God, and Jonah had pretty much gave faith to everyone in Sector D. because of his teachings of peace and love, a lot of us had started being resistant to some of the more harsher treatments. And no, we weren't rebelling. It was just…. Forgiving the nurses. Instead of cursing them like we normally would, we started forgiving them, and it unnerved them to no end. We had also started standing up for ourselves, not going to our 'treatments' so easily anymore.

Anyway, Vicky walked in, leering at us.

"You all are to come to the auditorium," she said

"Why?" I asked. She ignored me.

"And you," she pointed to Jonah, "are to come with me."

She exited, leaving Jonah to follow behind her, confused.

"do you think they're going to run a test of some sort on Jonah?" I asked.

"I think they are," he said, walking out, "and they want us to watch."

We filed into the auditorium, taking our assigned seats in the front. On the stage was a saturation chamber, with the Doctor standing proud in front of it. They were putting Jonah in there! They… they can't do that! It might affect him bad! A saturation chamber was a machine they would put you in. the thing spins, and while you're in it, it bombards you with flashing lights and sounds, showing you horrible things that make you scream. The philosophy behind it was that what would drive a sane man crazy would drive a crazy man sane.

Hence the name Crazy Man Sane.

"Welcome my children!" he boomed, smiling widely at us all. I snorted. Your one hell of a father dear Mr. Turner. Bastard.

"I have gathered you all here today to witness an experiment of mine! We will put number 26, a boy who sees visions, into the Saturation Chamber, to see how the lights, sounds and images coupled with his visions will affect him!" he smiled again, his steel gray eyes glinting. They brought Jonah in. his hands were tied behind his back, his eyes blindfolded. He stumbled slightly, and Vicky kicked him, making him groan. She undid his hands, leading him too stand next to the Doctor, the man leering at Jonah. He whipped the blindfold off with a flourish, and Jonah's eyes widened at the sight of all of us.

"what are you going to do to me? He asked, his voice trembling slightly.

Turner ignored him, grabbing his arm roughly and shoving the boy into the machine, slamming the door behind him. He flipped the switch.

And the screaming began.

At first it was just frightened whimpers as the contraption began to turn. And then they turned into shrieks as the light and sounds bombarded his senses. Then terrified screams as the images came, coupled with his horrifying visions. We heard him as he screamed and pled, his fists pounding the door as he begged the Doctor to let him out. Eventually he stopped fighting, just screaming and screaming as it spun him round. After a good nother 10 minutes Turner shut it off, opening the door with a hiss, Jonah's seemingly lifeless body tumbling to the cold floor. But soon he was on his feet, screaming, screaming, screaming at things we couldn't see, begging with an invisible person not to hurt him. His eyes lolled and rolled in his head. The Doctor laughed at the crazed boy, watching as the boy reeled, fighting imaginary demons. Jonah screamed and cried, falling to his knees on the stage and yanking at his hair, still screaming.

They broke Jonah.