People ask me what's the scariest thing I've seen. “Was it 682, the invulnerable reptile who kills all it can? Or 173, the statue that only a constant and steady gaze can render immobile. No no no, I bet it was……”
No.
All have guessed. And none have done so correctly.
They don't see the funny side.
What I fear most in this world is something that most people would consider quite ordinary. Odds are, you've seen someone possessing it today, in whatever form it appeared in. What I fear is what some others may find reassuring, happy, or genuine.
I see only depravity, madness, and sorrow.
I fear that which gashes from ear to ear, teeth the cages that hold back that which is beyond. The grin, the terrifying preamble to that which follows. The smirk. The snicker.
Especially the Laughter. Oh god the Laughter. The music to which blood is senselessly spilled and bathed in with delight.
Some say the frown or the scowl is what marks a truly violent specimen.
I say the frown indicates a sense of work to be done, the scowl pointing to displeasure.
The Smile points to a willingness and enjoyment.
The Smiling Man, the one who waits in the dark, the one who breathes down your neck through the instrument from which the Laughter plays.
The Clown, the one who shakes your hand and Smiles, Laughing while convulsions run up your arm and eyes roll from their comfortable sockets.
The Old Man, the one who Smiles while coming from the walls, decomposing and dragging his prey to a slow torturous death.
Smiling. Always.
This is my fear. This is my life.
This is what I must contain. What needs to be contained.
Taken from the desk of Dr. Hao