The Shadow: Become Who You're Afraid To Be

Summary

Bertrand, an introverted man with a troubled past, moves to a secluded cottage in the Scottish Lowlands seeking peace. However, he is haunted by a mysterious monster in his basement. After fruitless attempts to fight it with various weapons and an elixir for pain, he follows the advice of a wise shopkeeper to communicate with the creature, leading to an unexpected invitation for dialogue.

Takeaways

• 🏡 Bertrand moves to a secluded cottage in the Scottish Lowlands seeking solitude and an escape from his troubled past.
• 👦 Bertrand's childhood was marked by rambunctious behavior and a strict, abusive upbringing that instilled a deep-seated aversion to people.
• 🏭 As an adult, Bertrand's life in the city was filled with exploitation at work and isolation in his personal life, leading to a growing desire for change.
• 🌌 His new home in the countryside offered the peace and quiet he craved, but it was not without its own mysterious disturbances.
• 👂 Bertrand's first night in the cottage was interrupted by unexplained thudding sounds, sparking fear and curiosity.
• 🔦 Upon investigating, Bertrand discovers a hidden hatch in the basement, which unleashes a monstrous entity and shatters his newfound peace.
• 🛡 In response to the apparition, Bertrand repeatedly attempts to confront and defeat the monster using various weapons, all to no avail.
• 💊 He also resorts to a 'Numbing Elixir' to cope with the pain and fear, which only leads to further dependency and disarray in his life.
• 🤔 The shopkeeper suggests that Bertrand consider the monster's wants and needs, proposing dialogue as a potential solution.
• 🗣️ Bertrand finally decides to communicate with the monster, inviting it upstairs for a conversation, signifying a shift from conflict to understanding.
• 🤝 The story concludes with the possibility of coexistence and mutual respect between Bertrand and the monster, emphasizing the power of empathy and communication.

Q & A

Why did Bertrand move to the countryside cottage?

Bertrand moved to the countryside cottage because he didn't like people and often felt exhausted by them. He sought seclusion and peace away from the city and its noise.

What was Bertrand's childhood like?

Bertrand's childhood was marked by rambunctious behavior, curiosity, and a tendency to challenge local boys to fights. He was often in trouble due to his strict and abusive father and a passively complicit mother.

What was Bertrand's experience like at school and church?

Bertrand's experience at school and church was not much better than his home life. He felt that figures like his father were present everywhere, and people were mostly reminders that he needed to conform to others' expectations.

How did Bertrand's life change after secondary school?

After secondary school, Bertrand enrolled in a shipbuilding program and later worked for a major ship manufacturer in the city. However, he faced an awful boss and coworkers who took advantage of him.

Why did Bertrand feel trapped in his neighborhood and city?

Bertrand felt trapped due to the noise and activity of the city, which constantly bothered him. The sounds of the world seemed to bang against his small one-bedroom home, making him feel confined and restless.

What was Bertrand's initial reaction to the mysterious thud he heard in his new home?

Bertrand initially felt a wave of fear and anxiety, which caused him to frantically search his house for the source of the sound. When he found nothing, he attributed the noise to his imagination.

What did Bertrand discover in the basement that led to the appearance of the monster?

Bertrand discovered a small wooden hatch on the ground in the basement. When he opened it, a plume of black smoke and fragments of light emerged, followed by the appearance of the monster.

How did Bertrand attempt to deal with the monster initially?

Bertrand initially attempted to fight the monster using various weapons he purchased from the general store. However, none of his attempts were successful, and the monster seemed unaffected.

What was the effect of the Numbing Elixir on Bertrand?

The Numbing Elixir made Bertrand feel numb, warm, calm, and blissful, disconnecting him from his body and the terror of the monster. However, it also impaired his balance, focus, and aim, making his attempts to fight the monster even less effective.

What advice did the shopkeeper give Bertrand regarding the monster?

The shopkeeper suggested that Bertrand try talking to the monster, empathizing with it, and finding common ground. He advised Bertrand to accept the monster's presence and consider compromising with it.

What was the outcome of Bertrand's decision to communicate with the monster?

When Bertrand decided to communicate with the monster, he invited it upstairs to talk. The monster agreed, indicating a potential shift from conflict to understanding and coexistence.

Outlines

00:00

🏡 Bertrand's Escape to Solitude

Bertrand, an introverted individual with a troubled past, moves to a secluded cottage in the Scottish Lowlands to escape the pressures of society. Having grown up in a strict and abusive household, and later enduring an exploitative work environment, Bertrand seeks peace and the freedom to pursue his passion for shipbuilding. His new home is a simple, mid-sized cottage, far from the nearest town and any signs of human presence, offering him the isolation he craves.

05:05

👹 Encounter with the Unseen

On his first night in the cottage, Bertrand is startled by a mysterious thud, which he initially dismisses as a figment of his imagination. However, the sound persists, leading him to investigate his home, including the basement. There, he discovers a hidden hatch, and upon opening it, is confronted by a burst of black smoke and light, revealing a monstrous entity. Shocked and terrified, Bertrand flees his home, only to return the next day armed with a weapon, determined to confront the creature.

10:05

🗡 Bertrand's Fruitless Fights

Bertrand's attempts to fight the monster prove futile, as it effortlessly evades his attacks with various weapons, including a sword and a flail. Each morning, he is found by a shopkeeper, to whom he returns seeking more powerful weapons. Bertrand's life becomes a cycle of fighting, fleeing, and seeking new means to combat the creature. His home becomes cluttered with weapons and elixirs, and his life is consumed by his obsession with defeating the monster.

15:05

💬 The Path to Communication

After numerous failed attempts and a growing sense of defeat, Bertrand consults the shopkeeper, who suggests that he try talking to the monster instead of fighting it. The old man's advice prompts Bertrand to reconsider his approach. He returns home, opens the hatch without any weapons or elixirs, and invites the monster to come upstairs for a conversation. This marks a significant shift in Bertrand's strategy, moving from confrontation to communication.

Keywords

💡Isolation

Isolation refers to the state of being alone or separated from others. In the video, Bertrand's move to a cottage in the Scottish Lowlands exemplifies his desire for isolation, as he seeks to escape the overwhelming presence of people in his previous life in Edinburgh. His new home is described as being secluded and far from any towns, which underscores the theme of isolation as a means to find peace and solitude.

💡Abuse

Abuse is the improper treatment causing physical or psychological harm. The script describes Bertrand's childhood as being filled with strict and harsh discipline from his father, which often crossed into abuse. This term is central to understanding Bertrand's character development and his need to escape his past, as it has left deep emotional scars that influence his behavior and decisions.

💡Self-Reliance

Self-reliance is the ability to rely on oneself, independent of external aid, support, or control. Bertrand's move to the countryside and his decision to build ships on his own reflect his pursuit of self-reliance. This concept is a key theme in the video, as it represents Bertrand's journey towards independence and autonomy, away from the constraints and expectations of society.

💡Fear

Fear is an emotional response to a perceived threat or danger. The script describes Bertrand's initial reaction to the mysterious thud as a wave of fear and anxiety, which triggers his instinct to investigate. Fear is a driving force in the narrative, as it propels Bertrand to confront the unknown presence in his basement, leading to the discovery of the monster.

💡Monster

In the context of the script, a monster is a creature that causes fear and terror, often due to its unnatural or grotesque appearance. Bertrand encounters a monster in his basement, which becomes a central figure in the narrative. The monster symbolizes the unknown and the internal struggles Bertrand faces, challenging him to confront his fears and ultimately communicate with the creature.

💡Weapon

A weapon is an instrument used with the intention of inflicting harm or destruction. Throughout the script, Bertrand seeks various weapons from the shopkeeper in an attempt to fight the monster. The weapons symbolize Bertrand's approach to problem-solving through force and aggression, which ultimately proves ineffective, leading to a change in his strategy.

💡Elixir

An elixir is a substance believed to have magical or medicinal properties. In the video, Bertrand uses a 'Numbing Elixir' to alleviate his pain and fear during battles with the monster. The elixir represents a temporary solution or escape from reality, which ultimately leads to Bertrand's numbness and inability to effectively confront his issues.

💡Communication

Communication is the process of exchanging information, ideas, or feelings. Towards the end of the script, the shopkeeper suggests that Bertrand should communicate with the monster. This advice leads to a breakthrough in the narrative, as Bertrand invites the monster to talk, demonstrating that communication can be a powerful tool for understanding and resolving conflicts.

💡Empathy

Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. The shopkeeper's advice to Bertrand to empathize with the monster is a key turning point in the script. Empathy is presented as a necessary step towards resolving the conflict, as it encourages Bertrand to see the monster not just as a threat, but as a being with its own needs and desires.

💡Compromise

Compromise is a settlement of differences by mutual consent or agreement. The script implies that Bertrand needs to find a compromise with the monster to coexist peacefully. This concept is integral to the video's message, suggesting that finding common ground and mutual understanding is often more effective than conflict and resistance.

Highlights

Bertrand's move to the Scottish Lowlands for solitude and a new life in shipbuilding.

Bertrand's childhood characterized by rambunctious behavior and strict parental discipline.

Bertrand's struggle with societal expectations and the desire to be someone else.

Bertrand's challenging experiences at work with an exploitative boss and coworkers.

Bertrand's feelings of isolation and anger in his old neighborhood.

Bertrand's initial encounter with the mysterious thudding sounds in his new cottage.

Discovery of the hidden hatch in the basement and the emergence of the monster.

Bertrand's flight from his home after the monster's appearance.

Bertrand's attempt to find a weapon to confront the monster.

The ineffectiveness of Bertrand's weapons against the monster and his repeated retreats.

Introduction of the Numbing Elixir and its impact on Bertrand's perception of pain.

Bertrand's life consumed by the struggle with the monster and the elixir's influence.

The shopkeeper's wisdom on understanding the monster's wants and needs.

Bertrand's decision to communicate with the monster instead of fighting.

The monster's acceptance of Bertrand's invitation to talk upstairs.

Transcripts

It was Bertrand’s first night in his new  cottage in the countryside of the Scottish  

Lowlands. He had just moved from Stockbridge,  a neighborhood that was once a reasonably small  

village but had become absorbed by Scotland’s  capital city of Edinburgh as the New Town had  

grown and encroached on the neighboring villages. Bertrand didn’t really like people. He often found  

himself feeling exhausted by them—at best. He felt  this way as long as he could remember. As a child,  

he was very rambunctious—at least that’s  what people called him. He was insistent,  

curious, and active. He often challenged  local boys to fights. He refused to sit  

still in primary school. He liked finding high  places to climb and then throwing rocks off the  

edge to see them explode into pieces. Being  of a strict, traditional, religious family,  

Bertrand frequently found himself in trouble  and subject to the discipline of his father.  

His father was especially strict and harsh, and  his discipline often teetered into the realm  

of abuse. He would sometimes hit Bertrand  or deprive him of things like food or his  

bed. Bertrand’s mother’s disciplinary  style was far more passive—but being  

passively complicit in abuse is its own  form of abuse. Outside of his homelife,  

Bertrand’s experience at school and church wasn’t  much better. A figure like his father seemed to  

be present everywhere. At an early age, for  Bertrand, people were mostly just reminders  

that he needed to be someone else—someone  who others expected and wanted him to be. 

As Bertrand got older, he fell more and more in  line. He learned how to accept and adhere to the  

rules, demands, and structure of his home, his  church, his school programs, and society. After  

secondary school, he enrolled in a ship building  program and then went on to work for a major ship  

manufacturer in the city. His boss was awful,  often taking advantage of Bertrand, forcing  

him to work jobs without pay or fulfill tasks  completely unrelated to his responsibilities.  

His coworkers sometimes took advantage of him as  well, especially the older ones. Outside of work,  

he was mostly alone, as he struggled to  maintain many friendships and relationships. 

Bertrand was often angry—at work and at home. He  felt trapped in the neighborhood and city. He was  

regularly bothered by the noise and activity.  The sounds of the world seemed to constantly  

bang against his home—a small one-bedroom  stone-faced construction sandwiched between  

others just like it. Sounds smacked against his  windows, his floorboards, his walls, his head. 

At thirty-two years old, Bertrand had some  money, some skills, and some autonomy. And now,  

he wanted out. When the first opportunity  came for him to leave the neighborhood  

and surrounding city, he took it. Now, in his new cottage home, deep in  

the countryside, he was secluded from everyone. It  was a perfect, mid-sized, simple home with plenty  

of land where he could now build handcrafted  ships directly for individuals on his own. 

The cottage was over two miles away from  any towns. It was accessible only by one  

single road that would rarely see much of  any traffic. From every angle of his house,  

you couldn’t see anyone—you couldn’t even see  any signs of anyone. It was just Bertrand now. 

It was late, and Bertrand was tired. He lay in  bed, thinking back and forth to himself for a  

while. Soon, he closed his eyes and breathed  in deeply. The hallucinogenic state of sleep  

began to take over his waking mind. Typical to  this phase of the night, he experienced weird,  

disconnected thoughts—contemplations,  visualizations, and desires that Bertrand  

didn’t recognize and that he wasn’t quite sure  of where they came from. Suddenly, his eyes shot  

open. A wave of fear and anxiety crashed over him,  knocking him back onto the shores of wakefulness.  

He could have sworn he heard what sounded like a  loud thud. He frantically looked around the room,  

trying to locate it. Not finding anything,  he quickly got up out and went over to one of  

his bedroom windows. He looked out across the  sprawling grass-covered hills scattered with  

trees, the landscape dimly lit by only stars  and the waxing crescent moon. He looked down  

at his front yard, then his front door. Then, he  looked to both sides of the cottage, pushing the  

sides of his head against the window to get as  much perspective he could. There was nothing. 

“Hmm,” he said out loud to himself, confused.  Must have been in my head, he thought to himself. 

Bertrand went back to bed. Again, he closed his  eyes and breathed in deeply. This breath was  

quite a bit louder and shook a bit as he exhaled.  He struggled to fall back asleep. His heart was  

beating a tune the opposite of a lullaby. After  enough time had passed, however, the crests of  

brainwaves began to spread out again, and Bertrand  began to fall back into the early stages of sleep.  

Thud, thud, thud. His eyes shot open again. Trying  to be as quiet as he could, he clumsily rolled out  

of his bed and scurried to his closet. He pulled  out a long piece of wood that looked like an old  

piece of floorboard. Slowly, he slid on his feet  over to his bedroom door and opened it. His face  

clenched as it creaked. Hesitantly, Bertrand made  his way around the house, holding the piece of  

wood over his shoulders. Starting on the second  floor, he checked every hall and every room. He  

checked behind the curtains; he checked in the  closets and hidden pockets of rooms; he checked  

behind every door. Then, he did the same on the  first floor. There was nothing anywhere. Thud,  

Bertrand heard again. This time, it was louder.  He was sure it was coming from inside. It sounded  

like it was coming from beneath him. Thud,  thud. Bertrand hadn’t checked the basement yet. 

He slowly opened the basement door, his eyes  peering timidly around the edge of it. Not  

seeing anything, he began down the stairs as  light as he could, carrying all his weight  

on the fronts of his feet. As he descended, he  looked around the cold, dark barren space filled  

with miscellaneous items that he was storing down  there. Otherwise, there was nothing. Thud, thud,  

thud, he heard again. This instance was by far  the loudest. As Bertrand attempted to follow the  

direction of the sound, his eyes caught something  he hadn’t previously noticed. It was a handle on  

what appeared to be a small wooden hatch on the  ground in one of the corners of the basement.  

Almost without thinking, Bertrand approached it.  He stared down at it. His heart was beating so  

loudly, he couldn’t tell if the thudding sound  was coming from him now or beneath him. With a  

shaky hand that struggled to follow the direction  of his mind, Bertrand reached down and opened the  

door. In an instant, a plume of black smoke  and fragments of light exploded out of it,  

knocking Bertrand back and off his feet and  shattering the piece of wood into shards. 

When he regained some semblance of awareness  and control, Bertrand found in front of him what  

could only be described as some sort of monster.  Bertrand entered a state of shock. He couldn’t  

believe what he was seeing. He didn’t believe  it. I must be dreaming, he thought to himself.  

But the pain felt undeniably real. The smoke and  light were still emanating out of the open hatch,  

and Bertrand couldn’t get a clear view. What  he could see, though, appeared to be a large,  

shadowy creature. It just stood there, staring  back at Bertrand through the clouds of smoke and  

beams of light. It moved with a sort of unnatural  naturalness—a fluidity typically reserved only for  

underwater creatures. It looked like it was almost  hovering. Before Bertrand could get a good view,  

he got up and sprinted out of the basement—he  ran up the stairs, out the front door,  

and down the road. He ran, and he ran, and he ran. The next morning, a shopkeeper for a general store  

in one of the nearest towns found Bertrand  sleeping outside the store’s entrance. The  

shopkeeper was an older man in his sixties  or seventies. His hair was gray and thin,  

mostly only left on the sides of his head,  filling in more and more down toward his chin,  

forming into a full beard. He was short  and hunched over a bit, but he walked with  

complete confidence and indifference. He gave  a Bertrand a friendly but forceful nudge with  

his foot as he walked up to the store’s entrance.  Bertrand quickly jolted up, dusting himself off,  

shaking his head, and scrunching his eyes. “Hi,” Bertrand said, frantic and disoriented. 

“Hello,” the old man said. The man continued past Bertrand,  

unlocking the front door, and entering  the store. Bertrand chased in after him. 

“I need a weapon,” Bertrand shouted clumsily. “Okay,” said the man in a calm, unaffected  

tone. “Everything we have is over there.”  The man pointed at a few shelves and cases  

toward the back of the store. Bertrand rushed over to the  

shelves and cases and began inspecting them. “Are you from around here?” the old man asked. 

“Yeah, I just moved a mile or two  up the road,” Bertrand responded. 

“Why? Not much out here,” said the old man. “That’s why,” Bertrand answered. “Self-reliance.  

Self-actualization.” “Hmm,” said the old man. 

Bertrand compared prices of weapons and  imagined battles inside his head in which  

he killed the monster—in which he regained  control over and peace inside his home. 

Eventually, he looked over to the man. “I’ll take  that one,” he said, pointing at a large sword. 

“That’ll be six pounds,” said the old man. Bertrand paid the shopkeeper, left the store,  

and made his way back to home. When he arrived home, he spent some time  

in his front yard by himself. He practiced using  the sword, trying different stances, and swiping  

it in front of him. He struck and slashed at  nothing. After many hours passed and the sun began  

to submit to the night sky, and he felt he was  ready, Bertrand went inside and into the basement. 

He found the basement empty and quiet. The hatch  was closed. He slowly approached it, holding the  

sword out in front of him. His breath sped up.  His heartbeat echoed throughout his body. With  

the sword in his right hand, he opened the hatch  with his left and out shot the smoke and light,  

nearly blinding him. Soon, the hazy outline of  the monster emerged, and Bertrand began to swing  

the sword back and forth in its direction.  He completely forgot all the motions he had  

planned. The monster seemed to almost morph into  what looked like a disfigured person. Bertrand  

swung harder and harder. The monster appeared  completely unaffected. It effortlessly evaded  

every swing. Bertrand, soon realizing his  underpreparedness, retreated, frantically  

running back up the stairs, out his home, and  down the road. He ran, and he ran, and he ran. 

The next morning, again, the shopkeeper found  Bertrand sleeping outside the store’s entrance.  

He kicked Bertrand, and Bertrand jumped up. “Hi … I … uhm … I need a different weapon.  

That one didn’t work. I need something  more powerful. And easier to use.” 

“Okay,” the old man responded. “Come on in.” Bertrand followed the man in, going back  

over to the shelves and cases of  weapons. After much inspection,  

he decided on a flail—a weapon with a spiked metal  ball attached to a wooden handle by a metal chain. 

“I’ll take that one,” Bertrand  said, pointing at the flail. 

“That’ll be five pounds,” the old man responded. Bertrand paid the man and began his way back home. 

Before going inside, he practiced with the flail.  Nighttime soon began to take its turn in the sky,  

and after he felt ready, Bertrand made his  way inside and down into the basement. Again,  

he found the basement quiet; the hatch  was closed. Trembling, he opened it,  

and out shot the smoke, and the light, and the  terror. Bertrand moved back and steadied himself,  

waiting for a better view of the monster.  Then, he began to swing the flail recklessly,  

his eyes were closed more than open. The monster  effortlessly shoved Bertrand away, sending him  

sliding on his back across the basement floor, and  slamming him into the wall. In immense pain now,  

Bertrand scurried back onto his feet and  ran out of the basement, out of his home,  

and down the road. He ran, and he ran, and he ran. The next morning, unsurprised at this point,  

the shopkeeper found Bertrand  waiting outside the store. 

He let him in, and Bertrand looked  around at all the weapons again. 

After a few minutes passed, Bertrand looked  over at the shopkeeper and said, “Excuse me.” 

The old man looked over. “Yup?” he said. “I need weapons, but I also need … something  

else. An edge. Something that might help  me in a fight mentally, or physically,  

or both. Do you have anything like that?” “Yeah,” the old man said nonchalantly. He  

walked to the other side of store, still behind  the counter, and then returned with a small,  

reddish bottle. “I think this is what you’re  looking for,” he said, handing the bottle to  

Bertrand. The label on the bottle read, Numbing  Elixir: Feel Nothing. “Drink a few drops of that,  

and, for several hours, you won’t feel any pain.” “That’s perfect!” Bertrand said with  

enthusiasm. “I’ll take it.” “One pound,” the man said. 

Bertrand paid the man and returned home. Before  going inside, he drank a few drops of the elixir.  

He grabbed his flail that he had left outside and  swung it around a bit as he waited for the effects  

of the elixir to kick in. Soon, he began to feel  numb—he felt a warmth, and calmness, and bliss;  

a disconnection from his body, and a disconnection  from the terror. It made him so numb, however,  

that when he went down into the basement  and opened the hatch, he could barely  

stand up right. His balance was off. His focus  and aim were absent. He flailed even more wildly  

at the monster than he had the night prior. “Get out of my house!” Bertrand yelled with a  

slur in his voice. “You don’t belong  here! This is mine! I live here!” 

The monster swerved around the basement, evading  Bertrand’s haphazard swings. It knocked and shoved  

Bertrand around, but Bertrand didn’t feel any of  it. Because of the elixir, he didn’t even barely  

care that he wasn’t accomplishing anything.  He didn’t care that the monster was there,  

puppeteering him around his own home. Soon,  Bertrand became exhausted and just gave up.  

He retreaded back upstairs, and this night,  he just slept in his room—he took a few more  

drops of the elixir before he went to bed. He  figured if the monster was going to kill him,  

he would’ve already done so, and since he  couldn’t feel any pain, what was the risk? 

Over the following many days, Bertrand attempted  to fight the monster nearly every night,  

drinking increasing quantities of the elixir each  time. He returned to the general store many times  

to buy more weapons. He bought double-sided axes,  stars, a bow and arrow, and so on. He bought more  

and more of the elixir as well. By this point, his  home was a mess. He hadn’t cleaned it or finished  

organizing his stuff, and broken objects were  scattered around his home from nights in which  

he took too much elixir. He hadn’t gotten much  of any work done on the ship he was supposed  

to be working on. He couldn’t focus, he couldn’t  barely sleep—at least not without the elixir. He  

couldn’t live a normal life in his own home. He  was angry all the time. His life became consumed  

by fighting the monster, doing everything he  could to kill it, and, yet nothing worked. 

Desperate, Bertrand found  himself at the store again. 

“I need something else. Something different,”  he said to the shopkeeper in a defeated tone  

as he stared at the inventory of weapons  and elixirs. “Do you have anything else?” 

“What exactly are you fighting?” the  old man asked. “You’ve never even said.” 

Bertrand looked up and over at him. “I’m not  sure. It’s some sort of monster. It lives  

in the basement of my new home.” “Hmm,” said the old man. “Well,  

you’ve tried nearly every weapon I have. Every  elixir.” The old man rubbed his beard for a  

moment. “What does the monster want?” “I’m not sure,” Bertrand responded,  

confused. “It’s a monster. I  don’t know if it wants anything.” 

“Well, everything wants something.  Have you tried talking to it?” 

Bertrand paused. “No. Like I said, it’s a monster.” 

“Well, maybe you should try. You know some  monsters don’t even mean to be monsters. And  

they don’t want to be. They’re born or created  in a way that causes them to be one. Or the  

world treats them like one and that causes them  to be one. Either way, they often just need what  

you or I or anyone else needs. To be talked  to. To be respected. To be given the space  

to be themselves. You want my recommendation? Go  home. No weapons. No elixirs. Go to the monster.  

Ask it who it is and what it wants. Accept that  it is there, in your house. Find common ground  

with it. Compromise with it. Empathize with  it. Some things you can’t ignore or fight.  

Some things you have to talk to directly.” Bertrand stood in silence for a moment,  

staring back at the man. He nodded and left. When Bertrand returned home, he went into the  

basement. He left his weapons outside. He kept  himself sober. In the basement, as it always was,  

the hatch was closed. He approached it,  breathed in deeply, and then reached down  

and ripped it open. Smoke and light shot out.  The clouds and rays consumed him as he watched  

the vague outline of the monster appear. In front of him, it stood. Bertrand did  

not approach it, but he did not back away  either. He stood his ground, close enough  

to see and communicatee with it. The hazy outline morphed more  

and more into a defined human-like figure. Bertrand breathed in loudly through his nostrils. 

Then, in a shaky but bold voice, he said, “Would  you like to come upstairs? We can talk there.” 

There was a long pause. “Yes. Thank you,” said the monster.