The monster inside // Crane & open
The more he waited, the more he could feel it inside. Pacing back and forth like a caged tiger, teeth bared in a devious grin as it patiently waited for the moment the cage would crack. Setting it free and throwing Crane into a whirlwind of chaos. Each night, the nightmares became more vivid, bringing him back to his childhood and hearing his great-grandmother verbally punishing him. All because of the books he kept hidden under his bed, the fact that he was not cleansed of sin. The taunting of his classmates he endured through most of his life. Relieving all of it only strengthened his resolve to put his plan into action. To show that he was willing to cross the line and show everyone that he was not to be trifled with, along with the fact that his research will be worth being funded.
Crane chuckled to himself as he jotted down his thoughts into the journal on his lap. Recalling the details of his dreams from the more recent, yet accidental exposure to his liquid fear and writing down the changes he made to it. It was nearing its perfection the more he continued his trials. Testing it every moment he could, but ever so cautious. It would do no good to be caught and put an end to a lifetime of work, especially when he was about to put an idea into action. That is once he could gain access to a gun. Frowning, he had quickly found out how much a gun cost and that was through the legal way. The lanky professor did not want to think about the cost of a firearm through the black market, much less get near it. Too much trouble.
Steal it. He was not startled to hear the voice again, whispering in his mind like a passing breeze. It was the same voice as the skeletal creature he saw a while back. Tempting him, urging him to move on further and see it all come to light. With a heavy sigh, Crane furrowed his brows in concentration as he tried to finish writing the more recent entry, along with coming to terms with the voice that wanted him to commit a crime. He wouldn’t even know where to begin, much less know how to cover his tracks. There was using the gas form, but it would require time and patience. Patience that he was slowly losing, along with sleep. Each morning he had to stretch out the stiffness from his neck and back due to falling asleep at the desk, research notes half written and eyes straining from long hours of work.
Crane penned a final entry into the journal before closing it. To kill the monster, you becoming the monster. Stare into the abyss, the abyss stares back. It is alive, it is hungry and it devours. Hazel eyes calmly staring at the person who just sat down at the table he occupied in the local coffee shop. Now realizing that the music he had been listening to ended as he removed the earbuds, just to be polite.
“I do believe that it is good manners to ask before occupying a seat” Even if he was asked, Crane had not paid attention but it still did not excuse the rudeness of a complete stranger. Even then, no one in Gotham was the polite southern bell and gentleman that he had read in books long ago. The professor was not in the mood to be sociable, especially when the voice kept on whispering. Perhaps he should have stayed inside, but a change in scenery was needed before he went insane.
