Sci-Fi Film Fiesta, The Swingin' 60s - Volume 7: They're Damned, Man....DAMNED! by Chris Christopoulos - HTML preview

Part 4:

“A force is building up.

Sooner or later, it will explode”

At the local school house building Zellaby, worked with the “Time-out” children including his son, David and there he tried both to teach them and learn more about them.

The children confirmed to Zellaby that they could indeed read his thoughts but only at the front of his mind. They had not yet mastered the understanding of his thought processes and reasoning but would be able to do so eventually.

Zellaby even questioned the children about their awareness “of life on another planet” and whether “it is possible that life exists elsewhere,” presumably thinking back to the London meeting and one of the theories put forward to explain the existence of the children. According to Zellaby’s notes, the children refused to answer that question hich may in itself have spoken volumes.

Zellaby then moved on to a most crucial consideration which he put to his son, David. Namely, what they intend to do with the powers they are developing. David responded by telling Zellaby that he was aware of what he was trying to find out and that it would be better if those types of questions were not asked. David told Zellaby they were there to learn from him.

Later, an inquest into a tragic “accident” is convened at which Mrs Zellaby is called to testify as a witness. Her testimony was somewhat confused and lacked detail, as if she was trying to remember what happened but couldn’t quite recall specific details. Even without absolute proof, It can reasonably be assumed that one of the “time-out” girls was nearly run over and killed by a car. The driver fearing that he may have hurt the girl most likely got out of the car to check on her welfare. Some of the “Time-out” children who accompanied the girl used their collective power to cause the driver to slip into a trance, return to his car and drive it directly into a wall, killed him on impact.

At an inquest a verdict of accidental death was given By this stage there was a palpable feeling among the residents that Midwich was “living on top of a volcano” and a force was building up that would sooner or later explode. Many would have agreed with the brother of the man who had supposedly died in the car ‘accident’ that the “Time-out” children were “not human” and “ought to be destroyed.”

The next incident could not be so easily disputed and it involved the very same brother just referred to. In revenge for his brother’s death and overcome with emotion he tried to ambush a group of the “Time-out” children with the intent of shooting them. Zellaby, his wife and Bernard attempted to talk him out of the attempt, but all four of them fell under the mental control of the children. They then exert their power causing the man with the gun to fatally shoots himself with his own gun.