Brother

The hall was dark. Only the dull light from the dirty windows high up on the wall lit the room, casting beams of light through the dusty air. The stone floor was covered with a thick layer of grey dust. It was evident that this room was not frequently visited. A few footsteps in the dust were the only evidence that someone had ever been there.

"Hello. Is there anyone here?" Willard shouted. Only the echo of his own voice answered him.

There had to be someone there. His brother had said to meet him there. Willard thought it passing strange since he had no brothers. He had no family at all. His parents had died when he was still an infant. A car accident, he had been told.

Large blocks covered with white sheets were spread around the large hall in long columns. His curiosity drove him onwards. He slowly walked towards one of the square objects. Why am I here? Willard asked himself. Maybe what was underneath one of these sheets could answer him.

He had the awkward feeling of being watched, but when he looked around the hall was empty. Slowly he lifted the sheet off the block in front of him. A plume of dust rose from the sheet, making him cough loudly. The fit soon passed.

He could not quite understand what it was he saw in the circular glass case, it was filled with a strange green-yellow liquid. Floating in this liquid was something that looked like a small ball of organic material. The sight made him nauseous, even though he did not know what it was.

He decided to see what was underneath the next blanket in the row of boxes. Another cloud of dust was thrown into the air, but this time he ducked beneath it. The white sheet hid a stand with a drawing at the top. The drawing looked like a human embryo only with an unusually large head. Something had been written next to the drawing, but over the years it had been rendered unreadable.

He continued on to the next covered object. This time he did not hesitate before lifting away the blanket. The sight that met him this time stunned him. It was the embryo from the drawing, but this was real, no drawing. It was floating in the same liquid as the last thing. It was dead. The feeling that something was wrong grew in him. What was this place?

He continued down the row, the things in the glass cases more and more resembling a real human being the further he went. In the last one, was an almost full-grown man, his arms were dangling dead, and his overlarge bald head wrinkled. His neck was bent at an impossible angle. He seemed to have been there for some time. His eyes were wide open, still after life had left them fear and pain was evident. The sight was hideous.

Willard could hear a scuffling sound behind him, and turned around. A dwarf was standing there, his back crocked and his head unusually large. His arms were so long that his hands touched the stone floor.

"Welcome to the museum," the crippled dwarf said panting.

"Ah. Thank you," Willard answered, taken aback by this clearly irregular man; or rather, creature. "I was looking for someone. Someone who called himself my brother said for me to meet him here. Do you know where I can find him?"

"Oh, yes. I sure do," the dwarf chuckled. "He's standing right in front of you. Hello, I'm Willard, you brother."

Willard was shocked to silence.