Some eight or nine yards away, a hunched figure sat in the sand, cross-legged, his back leaning against a low sand- coloured wall. He looked like an Asian monk. But this was Africa. It was burning hot and dusty and yellow. Alice shook her head. She was sitting in the sand too, Devery and Andy were on either side of her, their eyes fixed on the monk, their faces excited. Alice asked them what the monk was doing here. But they didn’t answer. Didn’t they hear her? She tried again. No reaction. Instead they threw another question to the monk as if they were throwing a banana to a monkey. Alice looked at the monk again, and his big mouth turned into a grin, revealing large teeth. ‘What is good and evil?’ Devery repeated keenly. ‘There’s no such thing,’ retorted the monk. ‘It is a simplification at best. There is stupidity. An awful lot of it. But that's mendable if people put their minds to it. Stupidity is laziness of thought — and misinformation. The savage has sway over—’ the monk dropped his head with a snigger. ‘Over what?’ Andy shouted excitedly. But the monk didn’t react. ‘The savage has sway over the human?’ Devery called. The monk lifted his head again. ‘Oh, yes!’ ‘What’s wrong with the savage?’ Andy pressed on.
The monk grinned. ‘The savage believes he is better. Better. Better. The best!’ The monk rocked with laughter. ‘THE BEST! That is the crown of stupidity.’ The monk stopped, his face suddenly benign. In a much deeper voice he said calmly: ‘But that is mendable. Stupidity and superiority complexes can be cured. But there is something else. Something that is much more deeply buried and therefore—’ ‘Therefore what?’ Andy shouted, but the monk just stared at Devery. Devery jumped to his feet, like a pupil eager to please. ‘This has something to do with good and evil. This something that sits deep.’ ‘BRAVO.’ The monk applauded and bowed his head. ‘Indeed, this something is the reason why people came up with good and evil. The idea of good and evil serves humans to—‘ The monk winked at Alice and dropped his head again. Alice wanted to get up too, but she couldn’t move. Why? But she could could shout. ‘What is the deeply rooted thing?’ At once the monk lifted his head and spat: ‘ANGST!’ Alice felt a cold shiver run down her spine. ‘Tell us more,’ Devery called. But that didn't work. Alice heard a crackling noise behind her. Something was burning. There was smoke in the air. ‘Is angst evil?’ Andy tried and the monk laughed. ‘Oh, dear boy. Of course, angst isn't evil. Angst is just angst. A good invention of nature. Supposed to protect you from danger. But alas humans …’ The monk shook his head. ‘Oh, humans! They forgot how to master it, use it, how not to be governed by it. There were times when humans had a better understanding of angst. Knew it for what it was. An alarm
system, not something that trenches their whole being—’ The moment the monk stopped, Andy shouted: ‘Why can’t we understand again?’ ‘Because, dear boy, humans realised that they have better control over other humans if they don't reveal what angst is for. So they didn't pass on the knowledge. Only a few did to a few. Hardly anyone knows how to deal with angst today. In fact, humans do all sorts of things to increase it. Humans are so stupid. But you see, boy, angst, when left to its own devices, is dangerous.’ The monk dropped his head, his whole figure went limp. Now he looked more like a heap of clothes than a person. The crackling sounds were getting louder. The fire was coming closer. The air became smokier. ‘We have to run!’ Alice shouted. But she couldn’t hear her voice nor could she turn to see where the fire was burning. ‘What is the danger?’ Devery called in a concerned voice, as if he was afraid the monk wouldn’t look up again. But the monk’s head reappeared, his eyes fixed on Devery. ‘Angst makes one human lash out at another. It makes another human brag about an orgy in the hope of getting some applause because he is so afraid that nobody loves him. And the next human uses angst to control others, to sell them medicine, an insurance, a matrimony, hatred towards the stranger. And angst makes humans feel bad about themselves. Which makes it so easy to manipulate them, push them towards bending their knees to a master. Angst. It makes a teenage girl go pregnant because she’s afraid of facing life on her own. And she thinks the child will make the father stay. Worse, she thinks her family will finally see her if only she had a child. But all they see is the child and her failure. And she sees it too and breaks. Angst. Angst does terrible things to humans. There are people who have been driven to a degree of confusion, they might never escape it. And they are dangerous.’ The monk fell silent. They all did. Fire, Alice thought. Fire.
She looked from Devery to Andy. Why didn’t they hear her? The monk looked up again, his expression calm. ‘Angst can make people evil of sorts. It turns one into a master and the other into a slave. It’s deep-seated. But it’s not a necessity. And mostly it’s stupidity that keeps people from getting to grips with their angst.’ The monk paused, his eyes briefly flashing at Alice. Alice grimaced. ‘Fire,’ she whispered. The monk turned to Andy again. ‘See, boy. Even the rich are full of angst. They are afraid of failure, of losing their fortune, position, influence, popularity. Some are even afraid of being unjustly rich. Afraid. Hah. They could go out and change the world. Can you imagine having all this power at your fingertips and blowing it on a stupid yacht?’ ‘Why?’ Devery shouted. ‘That is the essential question.’ ‘Fire,’ Alice whispered. All of a sudden, the monk jumped up, looking very much like a gnome in a long robe. Andy, Alice and Devery shot to their feet, standing shoulder to shoulder, their eyes fixed on the approaching oddity. And then the oddity started to shout at Alice, madness in his eyes: ‘You, you — YOU!’ Pointing a finger at Alice, he shouted again: ‘You, you — YOU!’ The monk came to an abrupt halt in front of Alice, his robe nearly touching her shirt, his fierce eyes glaring at her. ‘YOU are full of angst and fear and anger and stupidity.’ And then he calmed, his stare softening, and he said, with some sort of weird smugness on his strange face: ‘But you also have strength.’ He took a step back and laughed out loud. He was laughing so hard that he nearly choked on his laughter. Still laughing, he turned and shuffled off towards the sandstone buildings. The moment Alice relaxed, the monk jerked his head around and called over his shoulder: ‘Just imagine what you could achieve if you mastered your angst. If you conquered your fears. If you sent your anger back to hell. If you ripped out your stupidity. Just imagine what you could do!’
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