In the Belly of the Beast

by Class 702

(This is an ending to the story In the Belly of the Beast. It was written in 2002 by students in Class 702 at the Elite English School. The students include Joanna, Aimee, Tess, Julia, Joseph, Wendy Yang, Winnie, Ellen, Eden, and Wendy Han. It has been my luck to teach such humorous and charming students. Soon we’ll be moving on to the Odyssey, but I’m glad we had some time to ponder the tamer trials of Genius Mike. –E.M.-L.)

Chapter 5

Mike left the small park and walked down the street to where the boys directed him. As he walked he started to notice the strange color of the sky. The air was foggy, but the further he got from the wreckage field the clearer the air became.

“Excuse me,” he said to an old man who was walking by.

“Yes?” the man said.

“Why is the sky here purple?”

“Why not?”

“I just think it’s very strange,” Mike said. “I’ve never seen a purple sky!”

“I can see you’re new here,” the man said.

“Yes, Godzilla just ate me today.”

“Welcome then.”

The old man shook Mike’s hand.

“In the afternoon the sky here is purple,” the man explained. “In the morning the sky is light pink, and at night it’s dark blue, so in the afternoon it’s usually purple, like today.” He pointed at the sky. “We often have rainbows too, then we call it a ‘rainbow sky.’”

“But how can you have rainbows if you have no sun?” Mike asked.

“The light reflects from the fire in the wreckage field,” the man said.

“I see.”

“The air here is foggy, but we don’t have much pollution. In fact it’s quite clean.”

The man took a deep breath.

“That’s very strange,” Mike said. “You’re in a monster’s belly. How can the air be clean?”

“We think it’s because the stomach walls filter the air somehow.”

“Very interesting,” Mike said. Then: “What’s this number?” he asked, pointing to the man’s shirt.

“Everyone in Godzillaville must wear a uniform. We all wear these white shirts and black pants and we all have a number. After you register, you’ll get your number and your uniform.” [Wendy Han]

“So I can’t wear what I want?” Mike said.

“No, if you don’t wear the uniform you’ll get fined,” the man said.

“Thanks for the information,” Mike said. “I’m on my way to the registration office.”

“Welcome to Godzillaville,” the man said. “Maybe I’ll see you around.”

“Goodbye,” Mike said.

Mike entered the registration office and was directed to a woman behind a large desk.

“Can I help you?” she asked.

“Yes,” Mike said. “I’m here to register.”

“Please fill out these forms. Here is a pen.”

The woman handed Mike a pen and pointed to a large table. Mike sat down and answered the questions on the forms. It took around five minutes.

“Here you are,” Mike said, handing them back to the woman.

“So your name is Mike,” she said, glancing at the top form.

“Yes.”

“Hmm.” The woman knit her brows. “I see for job here you wrote ‘genius’. What kind of job is that?”

“I’m a genius,” Mike said. “Why not be proud of it?”

“Alright, alright…. Let me tell you, Mike. You are the 3, 905^th person in our country this year.”

“Really?”

“Yes. So your number will be MK-02-3905.”

“Okay.”

“I’ll give you this pin to wear on your shirt for now. And you can come back after three days to get your uniforms.”

“Thank you.”

Mike took the pin from the woman.

“Here is the map to your dormitory. And here is the key.”

“Do I go there right now?”

“Yes, you may go there and check in.”

“Thank you. I’ll come back in three days.”

Chapter 6

Mike left the registration office and walked down the narrow streets into the city. He saw a lot of shops, restaurants, internet cafes, parks, and fast food restaurants all crowded together. But even though the streets seemed too chaotic, they also looked quite lovely under the purple sky. And the people around seemed friendly and happy.

Soon Mike realized he had misunderstood the map and had gotten lost.

He asked a woman on the sidewalk which way to the building on the map.

“This city is like a maze,” he said to the woman.

“Yes, but the city isn’t very big,” she said. “Anyhow, you will get used to it. There are no flights out.”

Mike found his building soon after that. As he tried to get the door open with his key, it suddenly came open by itself. Mike was scared by the young man who’d opened it. He was very strong and tall, but he had no hair anywhere on his body. He didn’t even have eyebrows!

“I’m Tom,” the young man said. “You don’t have to tell me your name. I don’t care if you’re Dave or Francis or Luke or even Susan. So I don’t care, you understand?”

Mike didn’t say anything.

“The only thing you have to remember,” Tom said, “is that I’ve been living in this building longer than anyone. Okay?”

“Yes,” Mike said. “I....”

“You can sleep anywhere in this apartment you want, but you can’t move my things. Don’t touch anything.”

After Tom was finished speaking, Mike started to look around the room. It was like a disaster. Everywhere there were clothes and books and magazines and dishes. Soon Mike found a place where there weren’t any clothes or books. He stepped over to it, but when he got there he realized it was the entrance to the bathroom. So at least for awhile, Mike would have to live near the bathroom.

“I’m going to the cafeteria,” Tom said. “I’ll show you where it is.”

The cafeteria was in a place like a school gym. There weren’t many people there. Tom said hello to some of them as Tom and Mike began to select their lunch.

The food, Mike found, was gooey and disgusting. There were pieces of airplane wreck in the sushi and the vegetables smelled a little like motor oil. As Mike tried to eat he noticed a beautiful girl come in.

She looked Japanese. She had long, straight black hair and was wearing a teeshirt and a skirt. Maybe she was fifteen or sixteen years old. Mike watched her as she chose her lunch. Finally, to Mike’s surprise, she started to walk toward the table where he and Tom were sitting.

“Who’s this?” the girl said to Tom with a smile toward Mike.

“He’s new here,” Tom said. “They’ve put him in my room.”

“Oh,” the girl said. “My name is Ryoko.”

“My name is Mike,” Mike said, blushing.

The girl noticed Mike’s blush and looked toward Tom.

“Ryoko is Japanese,” Tom said. “She and I have been going out for about five months now.”

Mike suddenly felt his throat contract. How could such a beautiful girl go out with Tom?

Tom didn’t speak much during the lunch, but Ryoko asked Mike many questions. Mike answered all her questions stupidly. Finally Tom said he was leaving. He had to go to the gym to work out.

After Tom had gone, Mike felt better talking with Ryoko. He even had the courage to ask her if she would be willing to take a walk with him after lunch and tell him something about the environment of Godzillaville and the rules. Ryoko said she would. [Joanna, Tess]

Chapter 7

Ryoko took Mike along one of the few wide streets in Godzillaville. After they left the cafeteria, Mike became nervous again and didn’t know what to say to her. Ryoko was almost too beautiful for him to look at, and what made it even more difficult, she was a little taller than him. Finally Ryoko began to laugh at him.

“What’s wrong?” Mike asked, blushing again.

“Don’t you have anything you want to ask me?” Ryoko said, stopping on the sidewalk and turning to him. “I mean, didn’t you just get here today?”

“Yes.”

“Well, aren’t you curious about things?”

Mike felt confused by her question. In fact the only thing he was curious about was she and Tom.

“Of course I’m curious,” Mike said. “I mean.... I mean you must have some strange rules here, right? What are the rules in this city like?”

“It’s a good question,” Ryoko said, and continued to walk. “If you’re going to live here you better learn what the laws are.”

“So?” Mike said.

“Well, first of all, maybe you’ve noticed these cars.” Ryoko looked to the cars going by on the road. “They’re pretty quiet, aren’t they?”

“Yes, they are,” Mike said. “They sound like they’re electric.”

“You’re right, they are. And it’s one of the city’s rules that all cars must be electric. Because here in Godzillaville we have to be careful not to change the balance of the environment by polluting the air.”

“I see. Are there any other environmental laws?”

“Yes, there are,” Ryoko said. “We can’t play loud hip hop music here.”

“Huh?” Mike was very surprised by this rule. “Is it because the government doesn’t like it? I know some of the words in the songs are bad.”

“No, that’s not the reason,” Ryoko said. “It’s because scientists have learned that hip hop causes Godzilla’s stomach walls to vibrate in a certain way. And the vibration makes him feel nauseous. And then we start to have earthquakes.”

“Oh, my God!” Mike said. “That’s really bizarre!”

“Yes, it is. We can play rock music, techno, jazz, even reggae music. But we can never play hip hop. It’s against the law.”

“Are people here required to pay taxes?” Mike asked.

“Yes, of course. We have a fixed tax rate. Each adult must pay 10,560,000 NG dollars a year.”

“Oh, my God!” Mike said. “That sounds like a lot.”

“It’s not,” Ryoko replied. “Tom just spent about 400,000 NG paying for our lunch.”

“I see,” Mike said. “Well, what about you? How long have you been living here?”

Mike wanted to change the subject to something that interested him more.

“I’ve been here seven years,” Ryoko said. “I went to junior high school and high school here.”

“You have schools here?” Mike asked, surprised.

“Of course we have schools! Why not? I graduated from the Godzillaville National High School. It’s a little further up this road we’re walking on.” Ryoko pointed up the street.

“And you are Tom’s girlfriend now, right?” Mike asked.

“Yes, that’s right,” Ryoko said with a questioning smile. She’d stopped again on the sidewalk.

“But I wonder,” Mike began. “I mean.... You are so beautiful, but Tom is so.... Well, why are you going out with him? He seems like a strange boyfriend for someone like you.”

“I have to go out with Tom,” Ryoko said. “It’s because of the Seniority Law.”

“The Seniority Law?” Mike asked. “What is that?”

“If you have been here longer than someone else, then you have more rights and power than that person. You can choose whatever job you want, and you can choose the girlfriend or boyfriend you want. Tom has been here all his life. He was born here.”

Mike’s face went pale. He couldn’t believe that she would accept such a law. How could it be possible?

“You should break up with him if you don’t love him!” Mike said decisively.

“You’re new here,” Ryoko answered. “You shouldn’t talk like that. You will learn soon enough.”

“No,” Mike said.

“No what?”

“I will never learn! I am a genius, you know. I would never agree to such a stupid law, even if I have to live here.”

“Really, Mike!” Ryoko grabbed on to Mike’s arm. “I’m speaking to you very seriously now. You may be new, but you can’t let people hear you talking in this way. It is the law of our society. Even if I don’t love Tom, I must accept him.”

Mike shook his head and looked at the ground. He remembered Tom’s arrogance when he first got to his dorm room.

“So,” Mike said. “What other stupid laws do you have here here?”

“Come with me,” Ryoko said.

It was a little tea house that she directed him into. After they sat down Ryoko ordered for them and Mike decided, at least for awhile, not to mention the Seniority Law any more. Ryoko talked more about her days in high school, while Mike tried to think of some way of hinting to her that he liked her. Although he never found the right words, Ryoko could tell what was on his mind.

When they left the tea house and walked around a block more, it began to rain. Mike ran into a 7-11 and brought out an umbrella for Ryoko. He only had enough money for one. Mike walked Ryoko all the way to her dorm room.

“Goodbye, Mike,” Ryoko said as she stood at the door. “I’m really happy to meet you this afternoon.”

“I’m happy too,” Mike said. “Could we go out together again?”

“I don’t know. Maybe... Well, I hope we could.”

Ryoko seemed a little as if she didn’t want to enter the dorm, but finally she stepped into the doorway.

“Goodbye, Ryoko,” Mike said one more time.

When Ryoko got to the top of the stairs, she looked out at Mike through the window on the landing. She could see him walking away. She felt she already loved him.

Chapter 8

Around a week had passed, and Mike didn’t see Ryoko. He was really beginning to miss her.

One day he decided to follow Tom, to check if he was going to see Ryoko. Mike had guessed right. Tom and Ryoko met at a park. But Mike noticed that Ryoko looked unhappy.

After Tom left, Mike came up quietly toward Ryoko and gave her a surprise. Ryoko saw him and started to laugh immediately. Then they both became quiet. Finally Ryoko began to cry.
“Oh, Mike,” she said. “You know, after that day I missed you so much.”

“Me too,” Mike said. “I followed Tom here in order to see you. I didn’t think it would be smart to come to your dorm.”

“What can we do?”

“Ryoko,” Mike said, “don’t you think we love each other? Don’t you feel the same thing I do?”

Mike began to hug Ryoko, but she pulled away.

“But we can’t,” she said. “Tom....”

“I don’t care about that Seniority Rule,” Mike said. “I only believe that we should become a couple.”

“I think so too, Mike. I really do love you, but we can’t let Tom know or we’ll get in trouble. Believe me, it would be terrible! We need to think of a way of meeting each other. I can’t stand not seeing you even for one day.”

Mike and Ryoko talked over different possibilities of where they could meet. Finally they made their plan for their next tryst. [Eden]

Chapter 9

And where did they decide to meet? Probably you will guess wrong. They decided to meet right in Tom and Mike’s dorm room! But why? It was so dangerous!

“Actually it’s the safest place,” Mike had told Ryoko in the park. “Because if Tom sees us you can just say that you came over to find him.”

Ryoko knew that every Wednesday Tom would go to visit his mother, who lived quite far from the dorm, in an apartment on Tom Street. So she suggested Wednesday.

“Tom Street?” Mike asked. “How strange! Is it a street named after Tom?”

“Yes, you’re right,” said Ryoko.

“But... But why?” Mike asked in surprise. “Why is there a street named after my roommate? He’s not so great that there should be a street named after him!”

“It’s a long story,” Ryoko began. “I knew you would learn about it some day. But I didn’t tell you at first.”

“So tell me now.”

“Well... You know how Tom doesn’t have any hair?”

“Yes.”

“It’s because he was in an accident when he was young.”

“What kind of accident?”

“Tom’s father was a kind of inventor here in Godzillaville. When Tom was young his father was working to invent a machine to help people escape from the city. Because at that time life here wasn’t as good as it is now.”

“Did Tom’s father finally escape?”

“No, he died,” Ryoko said. “And Tom was hurt in the accident.”

“I see,” Mike said. “So they named a street after Tom because his father was kind of hero.”

“Yes,” Ryoko said. “And that is why Tom is so spoiled now. That’s why he has so much power.”

“What kind of accident was it?” Mike asked.

“The father had made a kind of submarine. He wanted to use it to go down through Godzilla’s bowels and escape that way. He knew the submarine had to be strong enough to hold people for two days at least. That would allow them time to get through all the intestines. At first he wanted to attach the submarine to a strong cable, just to test it. He and his team of workers went to the end of the stomach, where the stomach goes into the bowels. It’s a terrible place: all steam and fire. They lowered the submarine, with Tom and his father in it. But what Tom’s father didn’t know was that Godzilla’s digestion system is special. It doesn’t only use acid to digest food, but there is radiation there too. The radiation caused problems with the submarine, and Tom’s father had died before they pulled it back out. Tom was still alive, but the radiation caused him to lose all his hair.”

“I knew there was something strange about that,” Mike said. “In my life I’d never seen a person with no eyebrows.”

“Godzillaville doctors saved Tom’s life,” Ryoko said, “and finally he has become a kind of symbol of hope for the city.”

“So on Tom Street is there a statue of him or something?”

“No. But there are pictures of Tom and his father along the street, and there is a museum about his father’s work and about the accident.”

“Who is that man over there?” Mike said then, gesturing with his head.

“I don’t know,” Ryoko said. “Why do you ask?”

“I’m almost sure that he is watching us,” Mike said. “He keeps looking up from his newspaper.”
“It’s possible,” Ryoko said. “Many people in the police force are close to Tom. They might be spying on me, to make sure I don’t get close to other boys.”

“Great,” Mike said with annoyance. “Now we have spies too!”

“It’s time for us to go,” Ryoko said. “Next Wednesday at two o’clock in the afternoon I will see you in the dorm room.”

Mike and Ryoko left the park in separate directions. [Julia, Eric]

Chapter 10

On Wednesday Ryoko came to Tom and Mike’s dorm. Of course Tom wasn’t there. Mike and Ryoko were very happy to see each other. This time, Mike told Ryoko a lot about his life in the Tien Mu Mental Hospital, about his collection of AK-47s, and about how he got into Godzillaville.

“So, Ryoko,” Mike asked. “Do you believe I’m a genius now?”

“I don’t know,” Ryoko said. “Usually we don’t think of people living in mental hospitals as geniuses. But I do know that you’re braver than anyone.”

“Ryoko, don’t you sometimes want to get out of this city? Don’t you think it would be good to live out in the normal world?”

“I’m not sure where it’s better,” Ryoko said. “I only know it’s impossible to escape. We don’t have a chance of making it.”

Mike noticed Ryoko began to look sad. Were her words meant to apply to their relationship too?

“Anyhow, forget about it,” Mike said. “Don’t you think we should be happy?”

Ryoko smiled again.

“Let’s take a walk, okay?” she asked. “I don’t really feel comfortable here.”

“Sure.”

They stood up and stepped toward the door. As Mike opened it they came right upon Tom and two other men standing in the hallway. The two were policemen. [Eden]

“Genius Mike, you are under arrest,” one of the policemen said.

“Tom, no!” Ryoko cried.

“It’s your own fault,” Tom said.

“I came here looking for you,” Ryoko said, grabbing his arm. “I was just talking to Mike for awhile.”

“Yeah, right,” Tom said. “I have it all stored here.” He held up a small digital recorder. “There is no way you can deny it.”

The policemen began to take Mike away.

“Where are you taking him?” Ryoko cried, pulling away from Tom.

“Somewhere where he can’t destroy my life,” Tom said, pulling her back. “I love you, Ryoko, and we will be married next month. It’s time you forgot about this ‘genius.’ Anyhow he looks more like a fool to me. He’s only been here a week and he’s already committed a felony.”

“You will regret it, Tom!” Ryoko yelled, struggling against him. “You will regret it!”

Chapter 11

Genius Mike was taken to a high security prison, where he still languishes to this day. The food in the prison is no worse than in the dorm cafeteria, though the prison is closer to the rubble field than most other parts of the city, and the air is bad.

Around three weeks after entering the prison Mike watched the marriage of Tom and Ryoko on TV-G. Ryoko smiled occasionally, but Mike could see that she wasn’t happy.

This is the sad ending to the story, although it is not as sad as Joseph’s ending. Joseph thought Tom should kill Mike in jealousy, then Ryoko should kill herself because life was meaningless without Mike, then Tom should kill himself because he realized what a terrible thing he had done. Finally Godzilla too would die, from a sick stomach.

So here we have two different sad endings. If you want a happy ending to the story, you should read Chapter 12, which was written by Wendy Han. Remember that Wendy was the one who gave Godzillaville its purple sky. So her ending will surely be more optimistic.

Chapter 12

(Mike and Ryoko are in the park.)

R: Mike, I don’t want to go back. I want to stay with you.

M: Don’t be silly. I’ll always be with you.

R: Really? You’ll always be with me? Is it true?

M: Yes.

R: Then I have good news to tell you. I told Tom I don’t love him any more. He decided if that was true he would break up with me. Maybe he’ll go to some other country.

(After Ryoko said this Mike didn’t feel happy any more, and he started to walk away.)

R: Mike! Where are you going?

M: Sorry, Ryoko. I have to find Tom.

(Mike pulled away and ran to the dormitory.)

M: Tom! ... Tom! ... Where are you? Tom!

(When Mike got into the room, he saw a man crying, picking up his clothes and things sadly and putting them into a travel bag. Seeing Mike, Tom closed up the bag and walked swiftly to the door, trying to push his way past.)

M: Please don’t, Tom. I feel really really sorry.

T: Sorry? Only sorry? ... My hear is so empty now. My Ryoko. My love Ryoko. How could you do this to me? What are friends for? You killed my heart and my love.

M: Neither of us can live without her.

T (crying): So I will go away. Right? When I go away you can love her.

M: But it’s not fair to you.

T: But you know. If I stay here, it won’t matter. She still won’t love me. Staying or leaving are the same. So I choose to go.

(Tom pushed his way past Mike. He left the dormitory and headed down the narrow street. He didn’t bother them again.

Mike and Ryoko stayed together. And they continued to live in Godzillaville. If they could be together they had no desire to escape. Both of them would soon begin to study at the Godzillaville University.

This is the happy ending to the story.)

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