Mental Fortress

Roni Chapman

A local legend started by Will Pretty states that If you stare into a mirror and repeat "I am a mental fortress" 5 times, you will be protected from any sickness by a higher power. It is believed that the origin of the the following came at the time of the 'Fall of Kolkata' a.k.a the "Fall of the 11", where hope was drained from The Untouched half of The A.G.S India Pilgrims who sat beyond the walls of room 401; the morgue. While it is rumoured that former pilgrim, and current staff member Tom Rapson was the true founder of the following, the modern practices inspired by Will have appointed him to this title. 

While Aaron Wyllie and I weren't necessarily going to join the cult following (from the likes of Lachie, Boswell, Josh H, and Ollie) to His teachings, we were certainly close followers. As with any religion we differed on our interpretations of The Teachings; such as whether you are able to be protected by the Mental Fortress during sleep and how often the "ritual of 5" prayer would need to be repeated on a daily basis to offer protection. Mr Jordan validated The Teachings with his expansive knowledge on Biology and the human body; a knowledge which surprised us coming from a specialist of physics.

However it now seems as though faith for The Teachings starts to wither especially with the downfall of the Messiah and two close disciples Lachie and Boswell. We now all wait for the rise of a second Messiah or for the resurrection of Will Pretty; another difference in beliefs we have had. Josh, Ollie and I seem to be the remains of the following. 

Personally I was pretty struck when Aaron Wyllie fell on the 20th day of our pilgrimage, having already been distraught by the loss our founders. Aaron and myself had endured the vegetable burgers in a group of 4 without worry; when these two others fell we thought we had gained the blessing from following Will's teachings. It was judgment day and we had both passed. Part of me lost faith in the Mental Fortress with the loss of Aaron, but I now see this as my great test of faith. There now remain 6 of The Untouched, 3 followers and 3 of unknown faith. Callan Adams works off the science of 'smart eating' with cooked vegetables and litres of hand sanitiser, and his atheist ways also waver my faith. I feel as though I am being drawn to them at times. Will I be punished for this sinning?