>>12135712When I was surrounded by the strong, blinding light, I had the feeling I had been paralyzed, and when the hands touched me, I had the very distinct impression of a strong electric discharge, as if I had been shaken by a lightning bolt. My whole body was annihilated, helpless, without reflexes. I was like a broken toy between the inhuman hands of my unknown aggressor. For a little over a minute, I felt his hands tightening very strongly on either side of my throat. It was horribly painful. Then he began to swing me forward and backward several times, still fiercely squeezing my head against his chest. I had the distinct impression that this being wore armor or a steel carapace, or some very hard and cold material. I felt his two [invisible] arms pressing heavily on my shoulders. It was at that moment that I heard his laugh, a strange laugh I could not explain; it was as if I heard him through some water, and yet it seemed quite close, above my head. At first it sounded rough and hushed, then rather strong and rolling. It made me shudder and hurt me. After a few seconds the laugh stopped, suddenly cut off. Then a knee hit me in the back, hurting me very much, as if it were made of steel. That made me think my aggressor was completely covered with steel. This blow made me fall back, and the unknown aggressor made me lie down, still squeezing my head against his chest. Then he dragged me along the path, by my head, and he seemed in a great hurry. I did not hear him breathe. He pulled me into a bush full of brambles and nettles and acacias, still going backward at an incredible speed, holding my head. At that moment I heard his voice above me, and it said: "There she is. We've got her." As if he were talking to someone else, some accomplice who had stayed inside the bush; this voice, like the laugh, seemed close by, although hushed by some obstacle, and it was short, rough, sharply cut.
