"I felt the spoon and the hot liquid on my lips, in my mouth, and little by little, spoon by spoon, she made me drink the whole cup. Tea that tasted like memories of another life long forgotten. I was a vessel, lost at sea, rudderless, flooded by strands of meaning like stowaways, discovering aspects of myself I never thought I had. One, in particular, was burning brighter than the rest, or darker, for I felt such terror as I have never felt before, another self, a new self within the old, my body the cocoon." - This whole paragraph is fire! And the ending is cathartic. Well, for the narrator at least lol.
Thanks, Kate. Glad you spotted the reference. Marcus does talk to a skull, too. Maybe the reference is too removed, though, same with the tomb covered in lipstick. ;)
Brilliantly done, Alexander. Like you say above, having Horatio as the narrator puts the world on an uneven keel as you try to navigate your way through the story not knowing what is the actual reality
It reminded me of a movie I watched years ago called Jacob’s Ladder which had that same liquidity of perception. I need to go back and watch that again. Anyway, great stuff 👍🏼
Really enjoyed this, Alexander! Loved the story. So many interesting passages, prose-wise. This one I liked particularly: "My chair moved by hands unseen, past shadows of people petrified, eyes grey and empty, waiting for their future. I tried to call out to them, but no sound crossed my lips. As I sank back into the chair, a familiar scent tingled my senses, and memories of the past washed over me." -- Bravo!
I'm not sure I fully understand everything here and this man's madness, but I'm drawn in and pulled along regardless.
The best line: "Listening to him was like listening to the ever-increasing whistle of a boiling kettle, louder and louder until it became one constant whine that drowned all other sounds and my mind went blank." 👏👏👏
Thanks, Nathan. Horatio isn't the most reliable narrator, and some questions, on his descent into madness, remain unanswered I presume. Glad that you enjoyed it regardless!
"...and when I woke I felt there was a hole inside my brain, a blank space where time had been erased." What a nightmare!
"I know not how long I spent there, .... weeks turned into months, years went by and still no Amelie."
Were these metaphorical months and years? A "perception" of months and years? Or did that much time actually go by? I wasn't sure of your intention here. It could not have ended any other way. Excellent
Horatio is losing his mind, he perceives time in a non linear way, so for him it could be an eternity, while he may still be back at the police station and only constructs this cell as a kind of escape.
I could have stuck "Reader discretion is advised" up top, then again, the drill was whirring at the end of part 2. Would you have preferred a disclaimer?
Thanks, Nick! Glad you found it engaging. This is part three of the Sad Man, I added navigation links up top to make it easier. As to what the hell is going on... Horatio is trying to figure that out.
"I felt the spoon and the hot liquid on my lips, in my mouth, and little by little, spoon by spoon, she made me drink the whole cup. Tea that tasted like memories of another life long forgotten. I was a vessel, lost at sea, rudderless, flooded by strands of meaning like stowaways, discovering aspects of myself I never thought I had. One, in particular, was burning brighter than the rest, or darker, for I felt such terror as I have never felt before, another self, a new self within the old, my body the cocoon." - This whole paragraph is fire! And the ending is cathartic. Well, for the narrator at least lol.
Thanks, Nadia. I quite liked that passage, it just came out like that, no edits. Glad you liked it, too.
Perfection!
What an opener! 🤯 A good adventure. I liked considering the Hamlet intertext - was this desired?
Thanks, Kate. Glad you spotted the reference. Marcus does talk to a skull, too. Maybe the reference is too removed, though, same with the tomb covered in lipstick. ;)
Brilliantly done, Alexander. Like you say above, having Horatio as the narrator puts the world on an uneven keel as you try to navigate your way through the story not knowing what is the actual reality
It reminded me of a movie I watched years ago called Jacob’s Ladder which had that same liquidity of perception. I need to go back and watch that again. Anyway, great stuff 👍🏼
Thanks, Daniel. Much appreciated. Jacob's Ladder is a great analogy. (They remade it in 2019, only seen the 1990 one ages ago).
wait...they remade jacobs ladder? WHY WOULD ANYONE DO THIS????
Beats me, then again Hollywood is remaking stuff all the time, I guess it works money wise...
Really enjoyed this, Alexander! Loved the story. So many interesting passages, prose-wise. This one I liked particularly: "My chair moved by hands unseen, past shadows of people petrified, eyes grey and empty, waiting for their future. I tried to call out to them, but no sound crossed my lips. As I sank back into the chair, a familiar scent tingled my senses, and memories of the past washed over me." -- Bravo!
Thanks, Silvio! Glad you found it engaging.
Powerful, Alexander.
I'm not sure I fully understand everything here and this man's madness, but I'm drawn in and pulled along regardless.
The best line: "Listening to him was like listening to the ever-increasing whistle of a boiling kettle, louder and louder until it became one constant whine that drowned all other sounds and my mind went blank." 👏👏👏
Thanks, Nathan. Horatio isn't the most reliable narrator, and some questions, on his descent into madness, remain unanswered I presume. Glad that you enjoyed it regardless!
"...and when I woke I felt there was a hole inside my brain, a blank space where time had been erased." What a nightmare!
"I know not how long I spent there, .... weeks turned into months, years went by and still no Amelie."
Were these metaphorical months and years? A "perception" of months and years? Or did that much time actually go by? I wasn't sure of your intention here. It could not have ended any other way. Excellent
Horatio is losing his mind, he perceives time in a non linear way, so for him it could be an eternity, while he may still be back at the police station and only constructs this cell as a kind of escape.
Thanks for reading, Sharron!
Is insanity difficult to write?
insanely difficult. Darren Aronofsky will agree, drilling holes in skulls, looking for Pi.
Jesus, Ipfelkofer! I read that first paragraph and had to put the story down.... Eeuw! I will try again later. ha ha ha
I could have stuck "Reader discretion is advised" up top, then again, the drill was whirring at the end of part 2. Would you have preferred a disclaimer?
No! Definitely not.
crazy stuff. what the hell is going on?
is this part one or part three? very engaging, fluid, visceral.
Thanks, Nick! Glad you found it engaging. This is part three of the Sad Man, I added navigation links up top to make it easier. As to what the hell is going on... Horatio is trying to figure that out.
Tricky! It is an exciting and disturbing ( in a good way) story.
Thanks, Sharron. I think you may even know the graveyard they visited ;) Stephen Fry for sure would know the tomb Horatio was hiding behind.