Fear Experiment #1:

Simone’s Notes:

Fear is an emotion induced by a threat perceived by living entities, which causes a change in brain and organ function and ultimately a change in behavior, such as running away, hiding or freezing from traumatic events. Fear may occur in response to a specific stimulus happening in the present, or to a future situation, which is perceived as risk to health or life, status, power, security, or in the case of humans wealth or anything held valuable. The fear response arises from the perception of danger leading to confrontation with or escape from/avoiding the threat, also known as the fight-or-flight response, which in extreme cases of fear, horror and terror, can be a freeze response or paralysis. In humans and animals, fear is modulated by the process of cognition and learning. Thus fear is judged as rational or appropriate and irrational or inappropriate. An irrational fear is called a phobia.

Dr. Pierce began his first experiment. He pressed record on the machine.

Subject: Mickey

Day One:

Mickey awoke in the darkness. His eyes scanned the room in a panic. “Where… Where am I?” he asked.

“Oh good, you’re awake,” Dr. Pierce said over the intercom. Mickey jerked his head upwards.

“Where are you and where am I?” he asked. The doctor’s laughter filled the air.

“There, there,” he said. “Just sit down and I’ll explain everything to you.” The pet drew his mouth closed and sat on the floor, filling like he didn’t have much of a choice.

“Very good,” the incubus doctor said. “You are part of my little experiment. I have already taken your clothes.”

“What?” the pet asked, looking down. He found himself sitting naked in the room. “What did you do to me?!”

“Hang on,” the doc said. “I’m not done. I have locked you in room and you cannot leave. If you answer the questions correctly on the sheet of paper in front of you, I will feed you.”

“What?!” Mickey wailed. “When will you let me out?”

“When I get good and ready to,” the good doctor answered. “Now be a good little pet and stay right where I left you. If you try to escape, I’ll kill you.” An icy chill came over Mickey’s body.

“No…” he murmured.

“Oh, one more thing,” Dr. Pierce said. “You might get a bonus if you remember to change the tape.”

“The tape?” the pet asked. It was then he looked up and noticed a little red light on up ahead of him. More fear seized his body. I’m being record?! The pet looked down at the paper at his find.

I just have to answer some stupid questions, right? I can do this and he’ll let me out. He picked up the paper and began to read. I can do this, really I can.

Day Two

Mickey walked around the dark room. He only had one meal today and Dr. Pierce hadn’t spoken to him since. He bit down on his thumb.

I don’t like this. I’m really cold and I’m starting to get hungry again. He got up to change the tape again.

Day Eight

Mickey sat huddled up in a ball. The isolation began to creep in. He shook his head to himself. I can’t break down like this. He’s going to come back, right? He’s got to. He wouldn’t forget about me on purpose, would he?

The silence did little to ease him.

Day Eighteen

Mickey lied on the floor, panting. I can’t take this anymore. I think he’s forgotten about me. I don’t even know how long I have been locked in here. I am so hungry.

He felt so drained from all of the thoughts to take and keep himself together.

Day Thirty-Two

His eyes look so empty and he seems to have lost some weight. His thoughts are so empty that he feels like he died and is just living corpse lying naked on the floor.

Please kill me.

Final Day

Dr. Pierce unlocked the door and went into the testing room. He found Mickey lied out like a broken doll. The good doctor smirked to himself, shaking his head.

“Perfect,” he muttered to himself. Dr. Pierce picked up the doll and took him out of the test room.

Experiment #1: Successful

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