VERY intriguing story... Worth the read.

A man named Fred was driving along a lonely country road one evening after a long day out at the farm. He always liked to take the back roads even though it was several miles out of his way because there was never any traffic at that time of night and the scenery was much better.

Every time he'd driven this road before, he'd always noticed a large mansion way back from the road. There was no driveway leading to it, and there never seemed to be much activity although there was always a dim light in the windows.

Shortly after Fred passed the mansion, his truck began to wobble in a strange way. Thinking maybe it was the road, he moved his truck more towards the center of the road to see if it was any smoother. It was then that his right front wheel stripped the lugs which held it to the hub and rolled down into a ditch, dropping the right front of his truck onto the road and grinding along. Fred put his best effort into getting the truck off to the side of the road before he came to a complete stop and managed to get all the way onto the shoulder.

He first checked out the damage to see if the truck was drivable, and upon realizing that he would need a whole new hub and rotor, he knew he wasn't going anywhere for a while. His cell phone was useless out here in the country, there were no towers for quite some distance. Ironically enough, he drove this road do to virtually non-existant traffic, and in this situation that turned out to be just another thing to severely damper his chances for rescue.

So Fred decided that his best bet was to walk back the quarter mile or so to that mysterious mansion.

As he approached the mansion, he realized just how far away it really was. There was no driveway, no footpath, and the long field between the road and the mansion dipped down and then rose up sharply, putting the mansion at the top of a steep hill.

He traversed the entire distance and finally reached the two large doors to the entrance of the mansion. With slight hesitation as he caught his breath, and as he considered what he might be getting into, he rose his fist and knocked lightly on the door. Instantly it crept open at a snails pace.

Fred softly spoke. "Hello? Is anybody here?"

No answer. He poked his head in the door to see if there was anybody in sight. Nobody. So he entered the dimly lit house and discovered that the source of light was a bunch of strategically placed candles. The room he entered was a well decorated foyer with a large stairwell that led up to two balconies on either side of the room, each side containing three large closed wooden doors. The floor he was on also had two doors per side, but nothing to the opposite end of the house. Fred stepped inside softly as to not frighten anyone that might be nearby. He quietly closed the door behind him. Suddenly, from behind the open door, a short asian man in a brown robe and hood emerged. Fred happened to look behind himself and noticed the man, and jumped back in fright.

The man in the robe removed his hood and calmed the man. "Do not be afraid. I am Number three of forty-nine. Have you come to complete the roster?"

Fred was confused and worried at the same time. "Um.. no... my name is Fred, my truck broke down a little ways down the road and I was just wondering if you had a phone I could use..."

Number Three looked at him sympathetically. "I am sorry sir, we do not have a phone. This is a monestary. But I can provide you a room to sleep in for the evening, and in the morning I am sure you might find some assistance."

Fred thought for a second, somewhat taken aback by the offer, but he considered that since it WAS a monestary, he really had nothing to worry about, and accepted the offer.

Number Three began to lead Fred up the stairs to the empty room. Just as they reached the top of the stairs, one of the doors flung open and 48 Monks poured out onto the balcony in a long single file line, walked down the stairs and straight into the opposite room.

The last Monk slammed the door behind himself.

Fred looked at Number Three and asked what they were doing.

"I am sorry sir, I cannot tell you, you are not a Monk. Now your room is the second door, please enter the room and remain in there throughout the evening. Everything you will need is in there. I have to leave now. Good night." and he walked in a hurry down the steps and into the same room.

Fred entered his room and looked around. It was a large room, and all his ammentities were there - fresh clothes that just happened to be his size, all the toiletries, a large king sized bed, and even pajamas. So he changed into the pajamas and climbed into the bed, and blew out the single candle on the night stand.

Fred couldn't sleep. He just lay there with his eyes wide open, wondering what his Monestary was for, as Number Three seemed somewhat suspicious and the long line of Monks rushing from one room to the other just seemed weird. He heard a door open and then close, a bunch of footsteps, another door open and close. This went on every 10 minutes for 3 hours until Fred finally decided to figure out what was going on. Just after the second door closed during the most recent shuffle, Fred left his room and began looking under doors to see what was in the rooms. The first room next to his was poorly lit, but seemed to be completely empty inside. The second room just across the hall also appeared to be empty. The third room next to that one appeared to be an exact replica of the room Fred was staying it. So Fred ventured downstairs to see what was in the four rooms down there. The first room to the right of the main door was lit fairly well, enough for Fred to see that that's where all the Monks were sitting, all in a circle. This prompted Fred to look at his watch. 3 minutes to go until the next shuffle. So Fred watched for a few seconds, and moved onto the room next to it. It was a stairwell. Just as he stood up to look at the other two rooms, a large chime was heard. Fred heard the Monks all stand up, so he went and hid in the shadows behind the stairwell.

The Monks left the room and went straight to the door with the stairwell behind it. They all went down into the basement and the last one closed the door behind him.

Fred took this time to look in the other two rooms. One contained a very simplistic kitchen that contained no appliances, just a countertop and cupboards. The other was another stairwell. Fred walked back over to the first stairwell and looked under the door. Just then he felt a hand on his shoulder. It was Number Three.

"Sir, I have to ask you to remain in your room this evening."

Fred stood up. "I'm sorry, I just heard all the commotion and I was curious as to what is going on."

"I'm sorry sir... I cannot tell you, you are not a Monk. Now please return to your room, I have to attend."

Number Three opened the door and went down into the cellar. Fred returned to his room and waited. The 10 minute time limit came and went, and nothing happened. No more doors, no more footsteps. He kept waiting to hear the shuffle again, and eventually fell asleep.

In the morning, Fred woke up, washed up, and changed into the clothes set out for him. Although he found it odd that everything seemed to be set out for him, he figured it was best just to leave as soon as possible.

On his way down the stairs, he noticed a young Monk sitting cross legged at the bottom of the steps, facing up toward him. Fred slowed his pace and said "Good Morning" to the Monk. The Monk stood up.

Fred was on his way through the door, and decided to try to ask this Monk what was going on. Since he was younger, he might be easily persuaded to talk.

"Say... you wouldn't be able to tell me what was going on last night, would you?"

The Monk frowned.

"I am sorry sir, but you are not a Monk."

Fred thought for a second.

"Well... what if I became a Monk? Could you tell me then?"

The Monk immediately answered.

"Yes. All Monks are aware. You will be too, if you become a Monk."

Fred closed the door.

"Well, how do I become a Monk?"

The Monk replied.

"Come to this Monestary every night this week at the same time you first came last night. By the end of the week, you will know all."

Fred bid the Monk farewell and headed out the door and travered the field once again.

Once by the road, he hitched a ride with a passing motorist and went home. He had his truck towed and repaired.

That evening he decided to return to the Monestary just as the young Monk had said. He did this every day and on Saturday, the last day of the week, the young Monk found him and gave him a robe, and silently walked away.

Fred put on the robe and looked for Number 3. When he found him, he asked him once again...

"Could you tell me what goes on here?"

Number Three responded "I'm sorry, but you are not a Monk."

Fred said confidentally: "Yes I am, I'm a Monk now! See my robe?"

Number Three looked at him.

"Indeed you are a Monk, my friend. Come, I will show you what we have been doing. You will know all."

So Fred followed Number Three down into the basement, and learned exactly what the Monestary REALLY was, and indeed he did know all.

Would YOU like to know what the Monestary really was?




















I'm sorry, I can't tell you, you're not a Monk.