"He was in a dark, dry room that carried the stale rot of death in the air. With each breath he took, his nostrils burned from the stomach-churning stench. Horrified, he found himself unable to move. He had no choice but to look about the curvature of the room at the beds that lined every patch of open space around him. Atop each one lay sweaty, pale, thriving bodies. They included men, women, and children. Some were fighting and others were dying. A handful had already succumbed to the inevitable, adding their poisonous essence to the haze of death gradually filling every inch of the enclosure. Looking towards his feet, he felt as the beating of his heart suddenly raced out of control. There before him lay the man he had known all his life, and who was now about to be taken by the darkness of the room. Rasped breaths started to echo out all around him, like dozens of small explosions, and he felt something begin to push against his chest. Then the man lying before him started to scream."