The man was still screaming when Saras was brought into the room.
The University had deemed it fit that the man should be contained inside a soundproofed room with three stark white walls and solid two-way mirror glass that allowed the onlookers to observe the brightly orange-clad man caked in varying levels of mud.
Amongst the group of observers making notes, peeking at colorful screens checking into the man's vitals & making notes, Saras caught a glimpse of her father, Dr. Nadi stroking his well-maintained grey beard.
Saras had no idea why her father had summoned her to something that was obviously top-secret, perhaps something more worrisome that she would have liked to know. She stood close to the door, in case they realized they had made a mistake calling her, and faced the orange-clad man who had the entire attention of the room.
He was slowly turning in a circle - his mouth agape - Saras was thankful she couldn't hear the screaming. His neck muscles were taut, and she wondered how long he would go on for. His skin was a dark brown - withered like a walnut, probably because of the amount of time he spent in the river, his eyes were unfocused - small and possibly drugged.
Suddenly the man stopped screaming.
He put his hands against the glass and pressed his palms and face - almost as if he was trying to see through it.
A wave of excitement went through the group of men assembled as they scrambled around gesticulating their theories.
"Maybe it has to do with the time of the day -"
"No, it must be the temperature, look at where the increment stopped -"
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"Are you sure his endorphins are at a normal rate -"
"Turn on the glass." Dr. Nadi cut through the garble and someone flicked the switch. Once the orange-clad man was able to see through - he began beating his chest wildly and from what Saras was able to gather from the screens - his scream was taking on different pitches.
"He is speaking!" Someone who had their ear to the audio tube connected to the room's inside spoke - grabbing a notepad and a pen to decipher what was being said.
Saras turned to look at her father - only to see him staring at her with a frown and a raised eyebrow, before he beckoned her.
As she walked towards him - she noticed much to her horror that the orange-clad man followed her trajectory - his hand moving to point at her. He was pointing at her!
"This is concerning," Her father was saying, but she had stopped listening to him. Her attention was wrapped by the man with the audio type furiously writing down the translation of the screams. Boosebumps prickled across her skin and the the translator in a daze began to read out the words,
Rise O Goddess of the river,
Your benevolence the people of Arya seek,
Praised in the seven heavens as the land's dearest giver,
Your touch will return the earth to the meek,
Flood the fire with the arrows of your benevolent dawn,
Lull this earth into it's longest yawn,
Seek out the Turner of the Wheel,
With his grace bring adharma to it's heel.
"This is absolute nonsense!" the translator exclaimed.
"I told you it's just a crazy old man!"
"I recommend the transquiliser."
Saras stared at the notepad, and the hastily scribbled words that were put down. The orange-clad man continued to point at her mouthing the same words again and again.
She wondered who it was and who these lines were about.
Her father continued to frown for a moment before dismissing her from the room. Breathing a sigh of confused relief, she hurried down the corridor catching a glimpse of the gardens through the window. The sky had shifted to a polite blue - ever since the Biosphere IV gliched out four days ago, she looked at the sky nervously and she always carried her little hat for extra protection.
As she walked across the building porch, she wondered again, why was the orange-clad man pointing at her.
How did he know she had walked into the room?
Why did it look like he was able to see through the glass?