Inverted Kingdom

Inside her head there it was again the niggling thought not quite heard but glimpsed as it passes. It had been a year now since it had first began. She sat with her legs clenched tightly in to her chest. The wall of the the basement closed in and leered at her like a menacing captor. She thumped her head in exasperation with her left hand, it was getting smaller than the other hand, she thought idly. She swooped back in to almost glimpsing .....no it was gone again. The shadow that now plagued her. She felt alone and lost, she could not mention it to anyone because after all what is it exactly she would be mentioning? That some vague thought she cant express is somehow changing her.

How had she changed, she inventoried. Lets see, 'I have darker thoughts.' she exclaimed, much darker. I never had these before. I think of situations then they turn in to a hideous event.A sudden visual flashed in her head of herself cutting her own throat. She had started to hide the knives, she had to after finding herself sitting staring at a knife and about to clutch it and thrust it in to her neck. Lately a lot of things on tv had been about young people killing themselves and no one really knowing the reason why. But that surly couldn't be related to her.

Marcus Fratby sat in his bosses plush office and leant his feet fervently against the mahogany under bar. One day very soon he thought he would run the show. He turned the chair to imbibe the spectacular vista from the 42nd floor. Private school was good for one thing he thought , the old boy net work , he wouldn't have had this job without it. His boss suddenly entered. Marcus stood up. Looking down at the papers in his hand Stein Wernika pretended not to notice that Marcus had been sitting at his desk. He remembered how he used to be when he started off. He admired the younger mans ambitiousness, but sadly wondered if anyone else found the top as futile as he did. No matter, money to be made,he always liked money. The firm had major clients in the market place, the British government being one of them. The mind experiments his scientists had devised appeared to be having the desired effect. The Prime Minister had had a forecast of rebellion in 2024 by the general population and steps had to be taken. The situation had to be quelled for the sake of the government. The plebeians wouldn't know the difference anyway he mused, the general population just never really got how devious things are. He laughed . 'Good news, twelve more suicides. Set up the next meeting for the 3rd there's a good chap.' Marcus trotted off to his desk outside the plush office and dutifully phoned central office .

' All the areas targeted have yielded above estimated returns. Now stage three is where we combine the sound with the subliminals in the soaps . We can see the effect through doctors prescriptions for antidepressants going up keeping the major chemical companies happy of course. The numbers of deaths is of little consequence now as many more will be targeted in phase 5. Of course the older population is suppressed by all the taxes and bills they have to pay and keep on top of ,but of course the younger ones do have more time on their hands to think . There are a lot of subversive web sites springing up spouting anti government propaganda and there's nothing better than a cause for the young.' sniffed the large grey haired suit at the end of the table. Yes the beauty is the buggers cant prove it you see ,we've got them . My government superiors are pleased with the progress of your companies population control strategies. You have the next contract.' Stein gave a small gasp of relief.

Dad is that you? she looked up from the TV as Stein Wernika entered, greeted his daughter with a warm loving hug. 'Hi baby, is your mother upstairs?' 'yes, she is drinking again.'replied Faith. 'Its just a phase hun, just a phase.' It wasn't a phase it was her trying to mask the truth from her mind when she found out what her husband actually does .The guilt of the knowledge gnawing away at her psyche . Each time she looked at her own daughter knowing others had been sacrificed by the men in suits who played with all their lives.It was all a big game what did it matter anymore. She lurched forward for the bottle of vodka and sloshed it in to the tumbler. 'Chin chin.' she quipped, hitting the side of the glass on her double chin.

Stein had no idea his daughter had not been taking the drugs their doctor had prescribed. They were an anti hypnotic to ensure she didn't become ensnared in what was going on. She was told they were for a mild form of epilepsy. Faith didn't agree with taking drugs. Her thing was being natural She didn't want to disappoint her dad so she made a big play of pretending to take them whenever her dad was around, which wasn't much. His wife was one of his regrets, not marrying her, but her having found out about what was going on. She was one of the casualties of being in a high powered position, There is no falling at this height unless your suicidal and that was for muggles. He winced at the Harry Potter reference annoyed its advertising had made it in under his skin. He needed to do another clearing procedure. Hypnotism really was the new religion.

She was becoming inside out, each day finding it harder to suppress her deepest thoughts of madness and mayhem. She was going to burst. Faith knew she shouldn't but she was drawn to looking at the suicide sites ,they had handily and consistently mentioned them on the news. Wow it was fascinating there were so many ways. She read the torments of the troubled souls on line. They were the same as her ,she felt at home here and understood. Faith realised suddenly that half the words in front of her were of the dead or as she would soon come to look at it , the successful ,the released, the happy ones.Those who had achieved their ultimate goal in life - death. It all made perfect sense. She wasn't in her right mind of course but the mind is genius at making you think you are.

'Let me see you swallow it hun,' dad was at home more lately and she had actually had to take the medication . She felt different now not so intense. There were other things that took her interest besides death. She wasn't as self centred she suddenly noticed her mother and became concerned for her and wanted to help.She hadn't felt this for so long, it made her cry. She saw her mother slumped on her bed, dribble making a dark pool beneath her cheek on the crisp white sheets . She stepped quietly and sat gently next to the still figure that had created her, and wept.