Stone: (remains silent)
Messenger: Any man who follows your preaching and hate another man for whatever reason has a case file here in the world beyond to face. When my master came down there he asked Everyman to love his neighbor as himself. That was a divine command and an open door for you to use in entering (pointing) that golden city over there. It was made on the basis that every human person intrinsically commands some respect no matter his or her size, age, race, or position in work or society. Take away that respect and you reduce the individual to a beast. So what you had to do was tear down the walls which might have been erected between you on the basis of color, race, religion, sex, material and economic status. That is to say that the fact that you were an employer was not supposed to make your employee a lesser human being. In the same vein, a house owner should not consider his or her tenants as mere beggars; a house man or wife should not consider her housemaid little less than a slave; a political, traditional, religious or public authority should not bring his or her subjects to the level of mere listeners who are never heard.
Exits the room leaving stone and Sandi
Act 2 Sc 2
Still in Stone’s room
Stone: (To Sandi) why are you staring at me like that?
Sandi: Because of all what that Messenger said to you. Are you convinced of all the transgressions he said you committed?
Stone: Why do you ask? Is it because I kept arguing? It is in my nature to argue even when I know that what is being said is true. Of course I am convinced. I did all those things he said but it’s too late now to make amends.
Sandi: (Extending the hand) I’m called Sandi:
Stone: (Takes the handshake) and I’m Stone.
Sandi: Nice meeting you stone.
Stone: (Furious) Did I just hear you say nice? What is nice about this encounter? It seems you do not still know what you are in. You are in this hole meant for rats with no prospects of ever getting out and you are talking about nice?
Sandi: (Startled) Hei! Hei! Hei! Brother, I’m not responsible for your being here and don’t see why you want to take it out on me.
Stone: (Calms down) Sorry about that. You know it’s not easy to be living in affluence and within a twinkle of an eye you find yourself with nothing and being forced to answer tough questions. It really makes me nervous. Sorry about that.
Sandi: It’s ok. Since you cannot have what you want here, like what you can find.
Stone: You know quite much about me concerning how I got here. What did you do that landed you here?
Sandi: I did some things which I’ve come to realize were really terrible.
Stone: What kind of terrible things are you talking about?
Sandi: I killed young girls who disobey my orders by going to school and women who were already professionals and refused to quit jobs I considered to be for men. I equally killed people who were not of my religion and members of my religion who collaborated with them.
Stone: What did you have against girl children going to school and educated women occupying posts of responsibility?
Sandi: My spiritual leader told me that girls who went to school opposed their husbands. They were supposed to be seen and not to be heard and education was changing all that. The women who held posts of responsibility became models for others who aspired to become like them. When we asked them to quit their jobs, it was intended to kill the aspirations of those who wanted to be like them. They were a threat to our authority as men and we couldn’t just let that happen.
Stone: …. And those who did not belong to your religion?
Sandi: They were considered as infidels who could not inherit the kingdom of our creator. We had to eliminate them so that only those who were considered worthy were allowed to live. That messenger told me that I had no right to do all those things.
Stone: I disagree with the fact that ALL what we did was wrong. At least we did some dignified things which have to be considered.
Sandi: If your problem is with the word ‘All’, it does not matter. But I think most of what we did was wrong. I think that messenger was right otherwise why are we here?
Stone: (Remains silent for a while in a pensive mood) I think we are brothers in crime.
Sandi: What do you mean by brothers in crime?
Stone: I mean we had a lot in common. We were afraid of anything that was different, we killed people, we wanted to maintain our supremacy and last but not the least, we were all afraid of change and used all the means at our disposal to combat it. But unfortunately change was the only thing that remained permanent. Now that we are speaking, all what we fought to preserve is fast being relegated in to the backyard of history.
(As they sit talking, they can see Messenger and another person pass outside heading to another room).
Sandi: I think we should go and see that guy who has just walked in.
Stone: That’s a good idea. I think we can forget about thirst and hunger if we are constantly busy. Let’s go
They both Exit.
Act 2 Sc 3
Messenger: (Introduces William to his room)
William: (Enters the room. There is nothing as furniture. There walls are perforated and the floor is very dusty. William goes in reluctantly and stands in the middle of the room peering around with a very disgusting look on his face).
Messenger: That is where you will have to put up.
William: Please, is there no other room better than this one?
Messenger: I’m afraid not. You sent absolutely nothing here for us to prepare for your coming.
Enter Stone and Sandi while Messenger exits.
William: (Looks very afraid and runs to one end of the room) who are you guys and what do you want?
Stone: Don’t be afraid. We are not going to hurt you. I’m called Stone. (Pointing to Sandi) and this is Sandi: We are your neighbors. We arrived here…. (Can’t say when exactly) since there is only continuous day light here, it’s difficult to say when we came. But he came first and I came after him.
William: (feels less threatened and introduces himself). My name is William. When I saw you guys walk in here, I thought you were coming to torture me.
Sandi: Well as you can see, we are not torturers. Did the Messenger tell you why you were sent in here? We all know that you are not happy to be in a place like this. No normal person will.
William: I don’t need him to tell me why I’m supposed to be here. I know why I’m here.
Sandi and Stone: (Surprised…simultaneously) you know why you are here? How?
William: In that world down there, I was master of the law. I knew what was morally right and morally wrong. I was charged with deciding the fate of people who were accused or suspected of committing crimes.
Stone: Are you telling us that you made the conscious decision to come to this place?
William: Not really. Sometimes you know the right thing to do but you fail to do it. Instead you do what you are not supposed to do. It is like wanting to succeed in an academic examination but failing to read. By failing to read in preparation for the exam, you’ve prepared to fail. We humans were made and punished with too many weaknesses. The major ones were those of the flesh and love for material things as well as love for power. Once you allowed those I’ve just enumerated to dominate you, you became disinterested in what was morally wrong so long as you stood to benefit from them.
Sandi: But I thought having the knowledge of what is right and wrong should help you avoid a place like this.
William: Yes I agree with you. But being armed with the knowledge of what is right and wrong is not enough. You would be gravely mistaken if you think that having the knowledge of what is wrong or right would make things easy for you. On the contrary… the more you become aware, the more it becomes difficult. Do you know why? It is because you would have to constantly battle with yourself.
Battling means you would try to fight yourself not to seize that power, money and all the many other beautiful things life can offer which unfortunately were there in abundance and my job gave me the opening to grab more, more and more. The temptation was so great and I had to take advantage of it and live life to the fullest. I saw that fighting the temptations for the sake of honesty, honor and moral uprightness as useless and senseless. Anything that was morally acceptable depended on the whims and caprices of those with physical, economic, judicial and political might. I was one of them.
(Sandi and stone are listening with mouths open. They are almost dreaming)
Stone: So what did you do that brought you here?
William: I worked in the courts and had the responsibility to either free or condemn someone everyday that went by. That had to be done after all evidence had been laid down and proven beyond every reasonable doubts. But…
Sandi: But what? You didn’t look for evidence before condemning people?
Stone: (To Sandi) can you be quiet and let him speak? When you keep interrupting him, my thirstiness comes back and I don’t want to think of it when the tap is not flowing.
William: (Surprise and unhappy with what he just heard) what did you just say? Did you say there is no water? I’m really thirsty too.
Stone: If you continue with the story on how you got here, you will not feel it. You were on the point of verifying evidence.
William: Ah yes. I was saying that the evidence presented in court whether true or false did not matter to me. All what mattered was the amount the plaintive had to pay for a case file to be opened and the fines the defendants had to pay when charged. The court premise was never a place where justice was served but a place where a lot of money was made. Nothing went for nothing. I set booby traps for anybody who came into the court premise either to complain or to defend his or herself.
Sandi: What sorts of booby traps did you set?
William: No one had to wear shoes which made noise when he or she was walking in the court premise. Anyone who entered in any office and sat on a chair without permission was asked to pay a fine. Anybody who came in to complain or defend his or herself and spoke without being asked to do so had to pay a fine. No mobile phone had to ring and if it happened even by mistake, there was a fine. I did nothing to publicize my self made rules and regulations. They were out to fetch money for me. Any signature, pen or ink or piece of paper was paid for. All those who worked with me were very happy because they shared all they collected into three parts… one for me, one for the state coffers and the last one for themselves. The court was really a money making institution. I became addicted to money. The more I had it, the more I desired it and the more I reinforced my booby traps to obtain it. I weighed the pockets of any two individuals who came to me with a problem. The one who had more money won the case. There was no justice for the poor. My numerous booby traps sacred many of them from the courts. I had no use for the little salary the government paid me.
Stone: What did you do with all the money you collected?
William: That is a timely question. That is where I was driving to. With all that money, I lived the best life any normal human being could really dream of. I traveled to any country I wanted to, at any time I wanted. I drove in the most expensive cars and built many mansions in my home town. The one I lived in was a come and see. It had a name which eventually became the name of my neighborhood.
Stone: What about those who were already incarcerated and were awaiting trial? Did you use them to make money too?
William: I did not spare anyone. There were thousands who came to court over ten times but I kept adjoining their cases. I wanted them to pay a huge amount of money from which I could have a share. You know, the state had a huge percentage of the fines the courts charged criminals and I had to make mine behind what I charged. Those who were rich quickly got a trial and had their sentences reduced to base minimum. Some simply bought their freedom and got out of prison. For those that were poor, they had their cases adjoined several times. The intention was to get them to pressure their family members to bring money. That’s why some of them could spend up to five to ten or more years in prison without trial. I turned the wives of some of the poor men in prison into mine and had children with them. Some beautiful women who ended up in prison but were poor became my concubines and I equally had children with them. From the last count before I left that world, my children numbered 60. I just couldn’t keep my hands off the ladies. My job really gave me the power and opportunity and I seized it.
Stone: And your wife in all that?
William: I had many concubines outside but they could not replace my wife. She was meant for my home to take care of me and my legitimate children. She cried many days and nights because she wanted me only for herself but I had a contrary view. With money, power and wealth, I considered myself a gift to all women. She ended up developing high blood pressure as a result of my actions. She is still there battling with it. I think it will end up claiming her head.
Stone: From the way you sound, it seems you do not regret coming here.
William: Far from it. Nobody would live a life of affluence and all of a sudden descend into misery and would be happy. My life down there was not the best and I was aware of it. It was a life of vanity because what I had as wealth was acquired through illegal means and the justice I applied was that of money. The power I had through my job as well as the money, made the women flock to me because of what I had and that made the temptation too great. I lacked self discipline and allowed worldly pleasures to condition my way of life and reasoning.
Stone: Were there no protests against the way you did things or managed the courts??
William: There were oppositions. There were protests almost on a daily basis against the amounts one had to pay to lay a complaint or defend oneself or have a document signed. Of course the police was always called in, to disperse the crowds. Those that tried to offer stiff resistance were arrested and I decided their fate. With demonstrations not working, the people resorted to writing petitions. Many of them were sent to the government to have me removed but nothing of that sort happened. Do you know why? It was because the government badly needed me. Those in power wanted to remain there for as long as forever and needed me to help shut up some of those who were eyeing their posts.
Stone: How did you do it?
William: It was quite simple. The government wanted to remain in power by all cost and so became very uncomfortable with the educated class. As a result teachers, lecturers, journalists, philosophers and opposition leaders became targets. Any of them who openly criticized their way of doing things had to either be bought over or killed or locked up in prison for as long as possible. Any aspirant who could not be bought over was sent to me with strict instructions concerning the verdict. I then had to charge him or her with any crime and decide the number of years he or she had to spend behind bars after fabricating evidences or buying witnesses. Very recalcitrant ones were sent to their graves directly and indeed they were in their thousands. For some that I really wanted to make them feel that I had their lives in my hands, I put them on death row and did not tell them when they would be executed. Some of them had to stay for years and I knew the impact on their psychology. It is terrible going to sleep without knowing if that would be your last night alive. That anxiety and uncertainty kills than any poison.
Sandi: If you knew that putting them on death row and not informing them of when they would be executed was too torturing, then why did you do it?
William: I don’t know….may be I enjoyed it. To make matters worse, I informed some of them of their executions only one or two hours before it was carried out. I loved when they were like butterflies in my palm and I could do with them whatever I pleased. I was a product of a system that killed people. Such a system was inhumane and it helped to shape me.
Sandi: I think my methods were bett
er because I did not subject my victims to that kind of torture. I used explosives which killed most of them instantly or a knife to cut their throats and they died shortly after.
Stone: Were there any formal trials for critics of the government and potential aspirants?
William: Only when there were too many eyes on us especially those of the international community and campaigners for the respect of human rights. Most of the trials were done behind closed doors. In most cases, there were no trials. We simply produced documents which the accused merely had to sign with no questions asked. We presented such documents to the international community as prove that the accused actually acknowledged their faults.
Within the Walls of Hell Page 4