Mind Snap

A Story by GamingGal

Years ago the United States became enamored with the idea of telepathy. Scientists from all over the nation joined together in search for this rare and valuable talent. The goal was to create a new section of the military, one that could disable the opposing force with a mere thought. They sent out a survey to everyone in the nation, requiring them to answer the questions, claiming it was for a new poll. If their scores were above a certain level, the person was visited by an official. These visited were always wonderful things with camera crews and balloons and congratulations. The person was praised for their talent and promised a monetary reward if they agreed to participate in a small research group. Everyone agreed. After all, money was tight at the time. The research facility they were taken to was nothing more than a discreet block building. All the windows had bars on them and guards stood at the entrances. It couldn’t be seen from the road due to hedges, and an electrical fence surrounded the entire property. Of course, none of the participants saw this for they were brought to the building via armored truck. Once at the facility, they were each escorted to their own room, each with bed and homey fixings. From there, they were nothing more than a number. They were never allowed from their rooms unless they were having tests done in the laboratory. Food was delivered to them via slots in the doors. After a few days of observation and brain wave testing, the experimentations began. Electrical tests were performed and chemicals were injected into the poor, pitiful winners. Most of the time these tests resulted in nothing but agonized screams. However, a few rose about the tortures and exhibited the talent the scientists were longing after. Due to the amount of people that were driven to insanity due to the testing, the ones who had risen to the occasion were given the title “Mind Snap,” which was someone who could control the mind in any way.

During their studies of the Mind Snaps, one woman rose above the rest. She was a Latin beauty by the name of Alice. Although she was only a housewife in reality, her powers of telepathy made her a queen to the scientists. They praised her when she would snap the minds of the other subjects, the ones who had failed the tests, rewarding her with free time when the subjects would scream and gnash their teeth. However, she was a kind-hearted woman and didn’t like hurting others. Oftentimes she would fret over her orders before finally giving in when she was threatened with solitary confinement. When she would weep over what she had caused, the scientists calmed her by assuring her that they would be healed. They did not tell her that the healing came in the form of death. As time passed, they noticed that she was growing bigger. A quick test was conducted and she was declared pregnant. Unsure how to handle such a situation, the scientists called a meeting. Ideas were tossed back and forth before they settled on one: they would declare the baby stillborn and take it for themselves. Since its mother was a powerful Mind Snap there was a chance that it would be as well. They could not allow her to raise it, to turn her focus from anything other than what they desired. With this decision in mind, they awaited her due date.

When the baby was born, they enacted their plan with ease. The child was whisked out of the room, its cries echoing through the empty halls. Moments later, Alice begged for her child and they gave her the rehearsed story, told her that her baby boy had been stillborn and they had taken it so she wouldn’t have to suffer seeing his cold, gray body. She had heard the cries, though, and her mother’s intuition knew better. With a shriek like that of a banshee, her mind snapped the same way she had snapped the minds of so many others. The love of her child had been keeping her going and now they had taken that from her. What else was there to live for? She screamed for her baby, screamed to be let go, screamed that hell would be visited upon them all. The scientists attempted to calm her, not wanting to lose their best Mind Snap, but quickly saw that her mind was gone. Having become useless to them, they issued her the freedom she so desired. And so, Alice entered Heaven while her child entered Hell, which was how she had come to view life on earth.

The child, named Daniel by the scientists, grew in the shadow of his mother and became the most prolific Mind Snap the facility had produced. Being a child, Daniel was highly impressionable, and the scientists used this to their gain. They convinced him that snapping minds was commonplace, something that was treasured in society. When he would ask about life outside the facility, they warned him that a terrible war was going on and that he was most safe inside with them. They let two of the other patients pose as his parents and he loved them the way any child would. He adored praise and did whatever was asked of him so long as he knew it would make his parents or his guardians, which was how he viewed the scientists, happy. However, one cannot cage a wild spirit. As he grew into a teenager, he began to overly use his power. Instead of snapping just the mind of the subject, he would snap the minds of the entire hall, creating a chorus of shrieks and maniacal fits of laughter that would drive anyone mad. While he was proud of what he could accomplish, the scientists tried to corral his power, telling him that doing such a thing was equivalent to playing with fire. He resisted them, though, saying that he wanted his freedom, to be allowed to do as he pleased. They promised him everything he could desire so long as he stayed. For a while their little lie worked, but Daniel was smart. He accused them of lies, and they kept asking him to be patient.

Finally, his patience wore out. He had had enough of their constant lies and empty promises. Even though he had known nothing of life outside of the facility, he had seen glimpses of it on the television through the window of the staff lounge and he wanted it. One afternoon as he walked down the hall to get a glass of water, he passed by and saw the television once more. It was showing a bunch of teenagers in high school laughing before the name of some brand popped up. His hands clenched into fists. They were denying him freedom to be like everyone else. Without a second though, he closed his eyes and reached out, feeling. Having found everyone, he snapped his fingers and waited. He opened his eyes and looked around, wondering if he had achieved anything. Then, a single shriek broke through the silence. Sobs of anguish followed mingled with peals of laughter. Doors flew open as scientists and patients ran out, some speaking of fairies and others clawing at their skin. With a laugh and a grin, Daniel pushed his way through the crowd and out the front doors, leaving one Hell and entering the next.

It was a cold and dreary morning when he woke up. He stretched and groaned, the muscles in his back pulsing with a dull pain. Sleeping on the floor of an abandoned train car was never good for the back it seemed, but it was all he could afford. He had left the facility six months ago and had been busy trying to get on his feet, which was proving more difficult than he had hoped. All he had were the clothes on his back and the few he had gotten from his dumpster diving. These few others were hung to dry on a wire that stretched across the car. Despite his bleak situation, he considered it much better than the confinement he had escaped from. Besides, he had found a way to put his talent to use all the while making money doing it. He stifled a yawn and opened the door of the car. Rain was pouring down steadily, casting the world into a hazy oblivion and making his job that much easier. He cupped his hands under one of the streams running off the top of the car and drank till he felt his stomach would burst. Fresh water was hard to come by, so he always took as much as he could when opportunity presented itself. With his thirst quenched, he started to leave, then froze. His hands went to his pockets, patting them and feeling for what he needed. Finally, he found the pencils in his left pocket. He sighed and smiled. They were still there, which meant a good day of work was ahead. After grabbing a flimsy coat he had found a week ago, he took off into the rain.

The hardest thing he had had to adjust to upon leaving the facility was the food. At the facility they had been fed normal food. It wasn’t the highest quality, but it was freshly prepared and free of any contaminants. Now that he was homeless and on his own, he had to resort to dumpster diving for all his meals. Many tries with different dumpsters led him to develop a preference for those behind the fast food restaurants. He could almost always find a good meal with those, and a few of them were covered, which kept the food safe from rainy days like these. He approached the nearest one and lifted the lid; to his delight, it was full. He would eat well. Using a nearby box, he climbed in among the garbage and looked around. Various goodies caught his eye: French fries, hamburgers, shakes, sodas. After a moment of decision, he picked out a bag that felt promising. It wasn’t too wet and it felt rather heavy. He reached in and pulled out a seemingly unblemished hamburger. The bread was a bit soggy from a soda spilling on it, but he didn’t care. Beggars couldn’t be choosers. He wolfed it down and chased it with a gulp of what tasted like sweet tea. He munched on a few nearby fries, then hopped out and continued on his way, falling into the flow of people on the sidewalk. Everyone avoided him as he walked along and no one ever met his eyes. When he had first begun the life of the homeless, he had thought this was because he smelled. Now, though, he knew the real reason. They seemed to feel that if they didn’t acknowledge him then he would just disappear, one less blemish on the face of a perfect society. He didn’t care, though. Being able to fade into obscurity made what he did even easier and kept the chance of someone recognizing him minimal to none. The rain was still steady as he made his way to the mall.

Rain, sleet, snow, or hail, he could always bet on the mall being busy. Today was no exception. He sat under the usual dogwood and waited. Men, women, and children spilled out of the mall, all scurrying to their cars. Some waited under umbrellas for a car to pick them up. Occasionally a child would escape its mother and jump in the puddles, enjoying the rainy day. The mother would always pull the whining child to the car, all the while reminding them of the dangerous things that could happen if they got separated. Little did they know how close they were to danger. The day wore on and he continued to wait, having learned patience early on. He had to wait until someone separated themselves from the pack to venture further out into the parking lot. Only then would he be mildly safe. Another hour passed before a woman started in his direction. She appeared young, early twenties if he had to hazard a guess. She was toting bags from various stores and was hurrying to her car which she had parked further out. She didn’t see him, but that was normal. When she passed, he stood and followed her. She opened the trunk of her car and was putting away the bags when he walked up, an unsharpened pencil in his right hand.

“Excuse me, miss?”

She turned towards the sound of his voice and faltered for a moment. He knew she had been expecting a normal person, not some vagabond teenager, and took the moment to his advantage. He began tapping the pencil against his right temple, almost as he if were thinking. Her confused look disappeared and was replaced with one of slight pain as her hands began to massage her temples. She could feel the seeds of a headache beginning to sprout and spread roots to her temples. The pain quickly gained power, soon pounding behind her eyes and in her temples with each beat of her heart. He stopped tapping his temple, took the pencil between his middle finger and ring finger, and began to bounce the pencil against his thumb. A surprised cry escaped her as she cradled her hands to her chest. Her hands had begun to cramp and her joints felt as if they were filled with glass. When another cry tried to escape her lips, Daniel gently closed her mouth with his other hand. Noise would raise the alarm and he couldn’t have that. She didn’t protest either. Once he started, all his victims seemed to go into a trance, which made things rather easy. By the time he continued, she had doubled over in pain and was rocking back and forth while quietly whimpering. He started rolling the pencil between his thumb and index finger. Now, on top of the pain there was a nauseating dizziness. It made her reel from side to side, holding her forehead between her wrists. She fell to her knees and he watched her suffer. He knew he should feel bad for what he did, but he didn’t. Call it apathy, but he knew he had to do it to survive. With that thought, he took the pencil in both hands and snapped it. Immediately her whimpering cut off. She looked up at him from her spot on the ground. Her eyes, those once sane eyes, now showed a glimmer of insanity. The entire process took no more than two minutes.

“Can you hand me your purse?” Daniel asked. She found his question hysterical and threw her head back, letting out a maniacal laugh as she did. He sighed. They were always tedious to handle after they crossed that bridge to insanity. He asked his question again and this come she complied. He took her purse and dug through it, taking her wallet and a few packs of gum. With his prize, he returned her purse. She took it then motioned for him to come closer.

“Do you see them?” she whispered, her eyes wide like those of a child as she scanned the sky.

“See who?”

“The fairies!” She was looking around with a childlike sense of wonder.

He rolled his eyes, yet nodded just the same. “And I’m sure the fairies would like for you to go home and get out of this rain.”

She nodded and was about to comply when she noticed the packs of gum in his pocket and screamed. “You have the fairies babies! Give them back now!” That was his cue to run. He easily dodged her attempt to grab him and took off into the rain without a look back.

Once back in the safety of his train car, he examined the spoils of the day. He opened her wallet and poured its contents onto the floor. After a quick glance, he scowled. There was nothing but a couple twenties and a few credit cards. He took the cash and stuffed the cards back into the wallet. Plastic was useless to him, but the paper was like gold. He lifted one of the floorboards and dropped the cash on top of the rest. With the edition of today’s spoils, he had a total of eight hundred dollars. Not a lot, but he was proud of it just the same. Today had been dreary, but he was ready to try and start a new life. He placed the board back and laid down, staring up at the roof. The climb to starting a new life had proven difficult, but he felt he had enough to at least attempt it tomorrow. He smiled and closed his eyes, listening to the rain as it drummed on the tin roof. It sounded like a lullaby. He hummed along to it, soon lulling himself to sleep.

A ray of dazzling sunlight broke through the cloud of sleep and he woke up with a grin on his face. He had a feeling in his gut that today was going to be different. He was going to finally get out of the rut he had been stuck in and actually live like a normal person would. He grabbed the money from under the plank, stuffed it into his pockets, and then started outside. Birds were chirping in the trees and the sky was a beautiful, infinite blue. He breathed in the fresh air and let it out slowly, reveling in what could only be described as the perfect day. When he made his way into town, he passed by the dumpster he normally frequented. Instead of aiming for it, though, he went inside the restaurant and got a burger, fries, and a drink. Even though it was a lot like what he normally ate, he relished every bite of it. The food was fresh, made specifically for him. He took his time eating his meal, enjoying it as if it were the finest steak and wine the world had to offer. Once he had finished, he made his way to the nearest clothing store. Upon entering he was immediately confronted by the manager who was worried about a vagabond trying to steal clothing. Daniel refused to let his day be blemished by some close-minded person and insisted on buying clothes, even showing the man the cash. Finally, the manager consented, yet refused to let him out of his sight. After trying on a few different outfits Daniel bought a collared white button up shirt, dark denim jeans, and a pair of boots. Now that he was fed and clothed, he figured the next step in his plan would be to start applying for a job. The sooner he had a job the sooner he could start living like a normal person on a day to day basis.

Ironically enough, the mall was the first place he decided to go job hunting. He felt a pang of anxiety as he passed his normally dogwood, but ignored it. He had to get used to being a normal person, which meant feeling comfortable with other people. As he entered the crowed, his hands began to sweat and his heart picked up the pace. His eyes flicked from person to person, waiting for someone to call him out, to recognize him. No one did, though. All were too wrapped up in their own lives to even barely notice him. A few gave him a smile, though, which he returned with a forced ease. Upon actually entering the mall, his heart kicked it up another notch. He had never actually been inside the place that provided him his victims, and now he felt he was more comfortable outside. Voices and laughter echoed all around him. Bells and ringing could be heard from the nearby arcade section. Streams of people flowed around him as he stood taking everything in. Everything seemed so normal. He took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and then fell into step with the others. It wasn’t so bad, being around the people. Even when he was one of them no one seemed to notice him. He had a feeling that was just how people in general were, which didn’t bother him. The anonymity made him feel safe. He passed storefront after storefront without entering a single one. He had to work up the courage to do so, having used up a lot of it to even get this far. Ahead of him was a video game store and he determined to enter it when he got there. However, on his way he passed by a mall cop. The officer was putting up a flyer with Daniel’s face on it. His blood ran cold and he stopped in his tracks, staring at what he couldn’t believe. Someone had seen him harassing the woman the day before and reported it to authorities. Multiple others confessed to having seen the same individual harassing others as well. Police were now on the lookout for him and a reward was offered to those with information leading to an arrest. At first, he decided he would just play it off, continue to blend in. Then the officer turned and looked at him.

“Something wrong, son?” he asked.

Panic stole into Daniel and he took off through the crowds, shoving people out of his way as he ran. There were cries of confusion as he ran and he could hear the officer yelling for him to stop, but none of that mattered now. He had been found out and he had to escape. He couldn’t let them take him back to that awful place. He pushed through the doors and stumbled into the parking lot. People stopped what they were doing and looked at him with wide eyes and whispers. His eyes darted from place to place before settling on the woods. He could hear the approach of people behind him, but he was already running before they were even close.

The woods were familiar to him and he knew all the best hiding places. He picked his way through the closely knit trees and made sure he was well hidden before stopping and daring a look back. No one had followed him, but he had a feeling that was going to be changing. The officer had to have recognized him, especially since he had panicked and ran away. A search party would be put together, maybe even with the dogs to track his scent. He leaned his forehead against a nearby tree and tried to blink away the tears that were threatening to spill down his cheeks. They were tears of anger and self-loathing. Sure, he had been able to escape the facility, but here he was six months later having amounted to nothing and hiding in the woods. His attempt at a new life had been squashed firmly beneath the foot of society. Vagabonds like him did not get happiness. He had to simply accept the cards he had been dealt and deal with it. He attempted to hold everything in and failed. Tears flowed freely down his cheeks and he swiped at them with the sleeve of his shirt, which was now ripped in a few places from tree branches. He gritted his teeth together, his hands clenching themselves into fists. Anger roiled through his body. How could this be fair? He had worked hard for his new start and it was being taken away from him. What had he done to deserve this? Sure, he had been snapping minds, but that was so he could survive! He couldn’t be punished for something that was necessary! He wiped away the remaining tears and ran even further into the woods, wanting to escape the life he had been given.

The next morning found him asleep in a pile of leaves. Fueled by anger, he had spent most of the day running and had collapsed of exhaustion and sorrow sometime near midnight. When he woke up, he winced against the harsh sunlight and brushed the leaves off his face. His sleep hadn’t offered him any rest for it had been plagued with nightmares of running from the scientists, leaving him feeling both mentally and physically exhausted. He ran a hand through his tangled hair and then scanned his surroundings. Nothing was familiar. He had run so far into the woods that he had no clue where he was. He scowled, cursing himself for doing something so stupid, and then got to his feet. The muscles in his legs cried out in protest and he almost collapsed back into the leaves, but he kept his balance. After a moment of shaky wobbling, he set off towards the sun, using it as his only sense of direction.

Hours of walking later he stumbled upon a road. There didn’t seem to be a town nearby and traffic seemed almost nonexistent, but there was a convenience store a little ways down it. Famished and parched, he made his way for the store. There were no cars at the pumps and the store seemed to be owned locally, which meant no cameras. He gave a cursory glance to make sure no one was around then entered the store. There was an old man behind the counter, but he paid Daniel no mind. Daniel browsed the shelves, scanning the many items and trying to decide what he wanted. A lot of the cash he had stuffed in his pocket had fallen out while he was running, so he couldn’t afford much. Then it dawned on him that he didn’t have to pay for anything. After all, his attempt at fitting into society had gone awry, so he saw no harm in adding another person to his list of victims. Once the old man had been reduced to nothing but a blubbering mess, he helped himself to everything, blowing through the store like a whirlwind. He ate and drank as he pleased, plundering everything he could. Society had denied him his shot at fitting in and he was determined to enjoy freedom while he could, even if it meant causing a little havoc here and there. He considered taking the cash from the register, then decided against it and walked out.

As he exited the store, a truck pulled up. He froze, panic trying to take root yet again. His fight or flight instinct kicked up and urged him to flee, but he held his ground, watching as an older man got out of the cab. The man offered him a friendly wave.

“Care to help an old man carry a few heavy crates?” he asked, motioning to the crates in the bed of his truck.

Daniel took a step back, shaking his head as he did. “I have a long walk back home. Sorry.”

The old man shrugged and began unloading his truck. With him distracted, Daniel began to walk parallel to the road, making sure the woods were within easy running distance should he need to disappear. He was a few yards away before he heard the old man cry out in surprise. That’s when Daniel took off, not bothering to snap the man’s mind. All he wanted was the security of the woods. The shade of the trees helped to calm his nerves and soon he was relaxed again, continuing to walk parallel to the road.

Time passed without him knowing and soon he found that the road had led him to a small town. It was evening so there weren’t many people out, but it seemed to be a happy place just the same. He slipped into an alley between two stores and watched carefully. There didn’t seem to be any kind of alert out for him, not that he could tell. None of those flyers from the mall had found their way here, which was good. He refused to let himself think he could start over in this town, but he could at least find some sort of shelter for the night. The alleyway was clean enough, so he found a nearby piece of cardboard and made it his new bed. The ground was rocky beneath him, but the cardboard made it bearable. Overhead the stars were beginning to take over the evening sky. He picked out the brightest one and wished for things to be better in the morning.

“Sir?”

Someone nudged him with their foot and he rolled over with a groan.

“Yeah?” he mumbled. He yawned, blinked the sleep away from his eyes, and then looked at his inquirer. It was a police officer. He immediately scrambled into a sitting position, unsure what to expect and silently cursing himself for being so stupid and sleeping in an open place.

“Sir, would you like to come with me to the station? I’m sure we could find you something better than that scrap of cardboard. Maybe even a blanket and some food.”

The police officer seemed nice enough, but Daniel knew he couldn’t be trusted. No one of such authority could be trusted. Daniel jumped to his feet and ran down the alleyway. The sound of the police officer’s heavy boots echoed off the walls, but Daniel was faster and the woods were just a stone’s throw away. He had almost reached safety when his foot slipped on an empty beer bottle, causing him to go sprawling onto the pavement, his forehead colliding with the cement. He felt blood trickle down the side of his face. For once, he was the one with the splitting headache. The officer caught up to him and pulled him to his feet.

“Come on, son. Let’s go to the station.”

Mention of the station brought his urgency back and he flailed, reaching for the pencils in his pocket. The officer restrained him, though, with a pair of handcuffs. He patted him down, then, and found the pencils. Though they were unsharpened and therefore not dangerous, the officer tossed them onto the ground, not wanting to give the kid any idea of a weapon. Daniel’s eyes widened as he watched the pencils fall and hit the ground. They were his everything and now they were taken from him. His only means of surviving was taken. Daniel felt his will collapse, and when the officer tugged at his arm he followed without an ounce of defiance.

It wasn’t long after arriving at the police station that the police recognized who Daniel was.

“Yeah, you’re the kid who’s been messing with people, aren’t you?” they asked.

He refused to say anything, though. Despite having his everything taken from him, he still had his pride. While the officers called the authorities from the town where Daniel had come from, he was shoved into a cell. It was a lifeless, hopeless place with nothing but gray walls and bars, something that felt all too familiar. He curled up on the mattress in the corner and attempted to hide the tears that slid down his cheeks. He had failed at finding his new life and was now going to be sentenced back to the place he had escaped from. All his hard work had been for naught. He was going to be placed in a small room and forced to take orders, to do everything he was told. Any hope of freedom was going to be taken away. He bit his lip and curled himself into an even tighter ball, wishing the thoughts away as he drifted into an uneasy sleep filled with horrific nightmares from his past.

When he awoke, he was greeted by a man in a white coat. At first, he thought the man was simply a lingering specter from his nightmare. He rubbed his eyes and looked back up. When the man was still there, Daniel jumped to his feet and retreated as far into the corner as possible, his eyes wide and glassy with fear.

“You stay away from me, you hear?” he shouted, attempting and failing at keeping his voice steady. It quivered with fear and hatred for the man who embodied everything he resisted. This man was exactly like those who had raised him. This man was a White Coat.

The man laughed and shook his head. “I’m not here to hurt you. I’m here to offer you freedom.”

“Yeah, right. I know your kind. I know what kind of freedom you offer.”

The man took a step closer and put a hand on the cell bars. “Those men were corrupt. They let the power of the idea of telepathy get the better of them and it turned them into nasty people. They stopped caring about their subjects, people such as you. I firmly believe they deserved the punishment you dealt them.”

Daniel didn’t trust a word of what the man was saying, but he was surprised nonetheless. The man was a good liar; he had to give him that. That wasn’t going to fool him, though. After all, evil had to be cunning.

The man saw that Daniel wasn’t going to speak, so he continued. “All of us still dedicated to studying the psychic capabilities of humans know about you. The fact that you were able to do what you did when you left the facility is astounding. You’re a scientific one-of-a-kind. We had thought you had been lost to the world, and yet here you are!” The man grinned at him.

Daniel was pleased to know his power had impressed someone, but still didn’t trust the man. Regardless, he took a step forward and crossed his arms.

“Why should I trust you after what your kind did to me?”

The man reached into his pocket and pulled out an unsharpened pencil. He held it through the bars and looked at Daniel.

“Come with me and you can have this. Let me give you a chance to do something worthwhile in this world. If you don’t like what I have to offer, then you can go free. You can even use this on me if you so desire. Just give me a chance.”

Daniel couldn’t deny that the pencil was definitely tempting. If he had the pencil he could start anew yet again. Sure, he’d have to start from the bottom again, but it would be better than sitting in a cell, confined for the rest of his life. But to get the pencil he had to trust the man. Daniel bit his lip, hesitated, then strode forward and took the pencil from the man’s outstretched hand.

The man smiled and waved over an officer who unlocked the cell. The urge to run coursed through Daniel’s veins, but he reined it in for the moment being. Curiosity was now getting the best of him as he followed the man out to his car.

“So where are we going anyways?” he asked as he got into the passenger seat.

“A mental institution.”

Daniel tensed and narrowed his eyes at the man. Of course, they were all the same. He was simply being moved from one confinement space to another. He gripped the pencil and was about to unbuckle when the man spoke.

“I’m not taking you there as a patient. I’m taking you there as a visitor. We have an idea we want to test and it involves taking you there.”

Daniel looked at the man, searching his eyes for the slightest hint of deceit. When he found none, he settled back in the seat and prepared for the ride. The man smiled and started the car.

“Are you ready?”

Daniel nodded and followed the man into a small room. It contained two chairs situated at a table. Daniel took a seat and listened as the man explained the idea the scientist’s wanted to test. Even though it seemed a bit farfetched, he decided to go with it just the same. After all, it couldn’t hurt. The man left and Daniel waited for the subject to enter. Soon, she did. She looked like a normal eighteen-year-old girl, but her eyes told a different story. Her eyes spoke of an insanity that ran deep. She sat across from Daniel, giggling hysterically as she did.

“Can you?” the man asked.

Daniel sucked in a breath and shrugged. “I can try.”

“That’s all we ask.”

The man handed Daniel a pencil and tape dispenser. Daniel took the pencil and immediately broke it in half. It had no effect on the girl considering she was already fully insane. She was looking around the room, so he whistled to get her attention. When she was looking at him, he carefully pieced the pencil together and taped it. The girl flinched. He took the now whole pencil and began rolling it between his fingers. Soon, her eyes closed as she drifted into a light sleep. She twitched every now and then, her insanity having followed her into her dreams. He tapped the pencil against his thumb. Her twitching stopped and her body became limp. A string of drool hung from her mouth as her body entered into a deep, empty sleep. Then, he tapped the pencil against his temple three times. Each tap sent a small spasm through her body. The final time, she jerked awake, glancing around the room in confusion. She looked at the man, then Daniel, then around the room once more.

Where am I?” she asked. Her voice was level and her eyes were clear. She was once again the girl she used to be. They had succeeded.