Gomorrah

3.Trip

Two weeks had passed since Levi was admitted to the hospital. His new life had settled into the regiment of the hospital. Wake up at eight, go to breakfast,shower,  go to therapy, take meds,  have lunch, go outside for an hour, wander the day room, dinner, evening meds, sleep and do it all over again. Whenever he was having his meals, wandering the yard or in the day room he was always near Evan and sometimes Tick and Patches. Sometimes the two would find ways to get contraband like cigarettes or candy in, usually through Sgt.John. John admitted that what went on at the hospital was cruel and that "You guys barely know what is done beneath the surface here". Sure the two would get the occasional beating for acting out of line but other than that they just slogged their way through the days. 

One Sunday after the usual Sunday Services ended a nurse approached Levi and said he was needed by the doctor. He sighed and left Evan outside their room. "Shit what did I do now? Not sing loud enough at church? Did she find our stash of candy bars? Did I walk down the steps wrong? Is it just high time for another beating?" he ruminated as he rubbed the recent addition to his battle wounds, a cigarette burn on his right arm for having cigarettes in his pockets with intention to distribute them. He went into her office. She was sitting at her desk with a plate of one single sugar cookie and her notebook. She smiled sweetly at him and motioned for him to sit. "You know Levi, I think you are by far the model patient. Sure I caught you with cigarettes but hey that's nothing compared to some of the other patients. Your new friend Evan has a biting habit". He was surprised at this sudden attitude change but was still on his guard. "Because I trust you I want you to have this new form of treatment called Snack Treatment. That sugar cookie is all for you. Go ahead". 

Levi ate the cookie and sat across from Dr. Angela. She made a note in her notebook "LSD, 80 micro grams in a sugar cookie. Patient consumed the entire cookie". She smiled and started making small talk "So, I see you are really good friends with Evan. He's an interesting case. He thinks he's a dragon. He really is a card huh?". Levi nodded and  shifted in his seat, the leather felt a little odd. He rubbed his temples as he felt them tighten a little. "Are you alright? Is something bothering you?" Angela asked. "I'm ok, probably just tired after a long day" he replied feeling a little shaky. His vision trembled, warped and went back to normal. He saw Angela write in her journal again. The pencil in her paw briefly morphed into a feather and then back into a pencil. "Did you put something in that cookie?" he asked starting to feel shaky. She smiled and nodded "Yes I did, Lysergic acid diethylamide. You may have heard it called LSD or Acid. How do you feel?". He moved his paw over his eyes and they left a  trail. "I feel funny. Like everything here is just a dream and I'm just along for the ride..Say did you just sprout an eye?" he replied. She smiled, a wide toothy grin with purple teeth "You tell me Levi. What's real and what is just the drugs? Tell me something, were you in the army?". He felt the leather chair he was sitting in pulse and then stop, like a heart. "I served in the United States Army during the last war. I was in Europe fighting the Germans". She looked impressed and continued "Oh wow. Any battles?". He nodded and replied "Oh yes, the Battle of the Bulge. It was quite chaotic. Afterwards I was briefly in Berlin where I..actually met my cousin in the Red Army, 2nd Belorussian Front under Rokossovsky". She nodded and asked him "Do you have any Communist Sympathies?" to which he just laughed. "My family fled the USSR because of Communism. The Tzar was no saint by any means. My father did like Nestor Makhno's ideas but he was too much of a communist. So no I really don't like Communism nor Stalin nor Lenin. This is some pretty wacky shit". Angela laughed as she saw the acid trip reach its peak. He was given pure LSD. He started seeing the walls melt and morph. After that he started seeing creepy crawling shadows come up from the desk. He cringed and moved away. 

Angela started to turn even more black like the shadows and her eyes went from yellow to tiny flames. She giggled and asked "What do you see now?". Through chattering teeth he replied "S..Shadows..Stop no!" and started swatting away the imaginary shadows. "You see Levi, this drug helps us not only get information about you but also to manifest your unconscious mind. To help ease you into a therapy session where the walls just melt away. Of course the trip depends on how you feel and clearly you are not feeling good. Oh stop trembling like a puppy! Act your age!" she shouted at him. His vision started to tremble and he felt himself start to dissolve completely. "Awww too much for you? Not feeling like yourself today? I think you had enough Acid for one day. ORDERLY! TAKE HIM BACK TO HIS ROOM!". 

He was strapped to a wheelchair and taken back to his room. The screams from the patient rooms were louder and more distorted when on the drug. He tried to cover his ears but could not. He took to screaming rocking instead. "LET ME OUT! LET ME OUT OF HERE!" he screamed loudly. The orderly just told him to shut up and stop rocking. When they got to his cell they unstrapped him and laid him on his bed. Levi curled up in a fetal position and shook. Evan just stared in fear, wondering is he was having a psychotic episode. After about an hour of shaking and seeing shadow figures they stopped. Levi stood up shakily and shuffled to the bathroom. He showered and just sat on the floor for a few minutes to try and get his bearings. The water felt heavy on his fur. His vision still trembled and he would see something move out of the corner of his eye. He held his head in his hands and moaned until everything stabilized.

He shuffled back to his room and laid down. "The fuck happened to you?" Evan asked. "She drugged me with LSD in a sugar cookie. She said it's some new treatment.She just asked about my past and..I don't know what the hell is real anymore". Evan lowered his head "Damn..Are you going to be alright?". "I think so. I just need a few minutes for everything to calm down. Rule one, do not eat any sugar cookies this place hands out from now on".