Part 32

Nice looking place. A closer look would be better though. Just walk down those stairs...





Poor Benny. He should know by now that AM does not play fair. Benny decides to head to right first, to scope out the area AM wants to send him to.




Hmm. Why would the dead be buried so far from the village?

Off to the village to find out.




So many choices...which cave should Benny enter. Let's try the one with the blue glow first.



How would Benny know what's impressive by the standards of these people? For he know, this could be the way everyone here lives. There isn't even much in this room. Just a chair that looks uncomfortable,



and



Odd little cave. Maybe if you tried talking to the old guy in the chair, he might be able to tell you more about the village.




More assumptions, but let's not worry about that for now. Benny goes to check out the video screen.



It seem AM controls the people here as well. However, like was mentioned during Gorrister's story, there are only supposed to be five people left alive.

Still hungry, Benny wanders off to the right past the caves, where he quickly discovers a fruit tree.




After taking a bite though, Benny quickly discovers that the damage inflicted upon by AM is not only external, but internal as well.



Cautiously, Benny takes another piece of fruit, wondering if he may have use for it later.



Benny heads back to the caves and this time tries the third cave below the wood shelves, where he finds...




Real nice Benny. Good show of compassion. Try talking to them, maybe learn more about them.



Nevermind then.




Maybe it's for the better. What would they have anyway? More fruit that would make your throat bleed. Maybe there is a reason they look so starved. Any oddites among them that would make the villagers fear them?



That'd probably be it. Since there is nothing they can do for you, might as well leave. Get rid of that pear-thing first. Give it to the boy, as you certainly can't use it.



Interesting. He can talk to you, and you can understand it, through the video screens. This freak might be useful after all.




Benny: I tried eating the fruit. It only made me sick.
Freak: You bleed when you eat. When I was young and not so different, my mother chewed up food and fed it to me.

B: You don't look like you eat very much.
F: Mother and I not allowed in food cave. Villagers are afraid of me and let me starve.

B: How are we able to talk?
F: I learn to talk using AM screens. I am smart, but villagers think smart is defective. I wish I were strong so then they would give me food, too.

B: Defective? That's tough.
F: Sometimes. But I am spared lottery. Villagers are afraid of me.

B: Lottery? What lottery?
F: Villagers hold lottery to choose sacrifice for AM.

B: How long have these sacrifices been going on?
F: The sacrifice to AM machine goes on many long years. The very different must go to him soon. Not many villagers left.

B: Why do they sacrifice their own people to AM?
F: One is sacrificed so AM does not hurt all.

B: What are these sacrifices like?
F: The sacrifice to AM hurts very bad. There are better ways to die. Almost any way is better.

B: Are the victims buried in the graveyard?
F: I know nothing about graveyard.