April highlights- round one

You make the gratuitous assumption that merely because I was aware of the pain my body was experiencing I was not immersed in the moment. 

Your on your own this time Charlie, good luck. *walks far, far away*

It is only fitting that Paul should succeed where others fail... I imagine the scene went like this (Sorry Jon for casting you as a reverand mother...)




                REVEREND MOTHER
                    (using The Voice)
              Now you come here.

    Paul finds he cannot help but obey her, yet he
    fights her controlling him.

                          PAUL
                    (inner voice)
              She's using The Voice.
                    (out loud)
              No.

    She sees him struggling.

                    REVEREND MOTHER
                    (inner voice)
              Some strength there. Surprising!
                    (out loud)
              Come here.

    The Reverend Mother holds up a green metal cube.

                REVEREND MOTHER (CONT'D)
              See this... Put your right hand in the
              box.

    Paul stares at the hole in the box.
--
                          PAUL
              What's in the box?

                    REVEREND MOTHER
              Pain.

    Just then, she raises one hand to his neck. Paul
    sees a glint of metal. He tries to back away.

                REVEREND MOTHER (CONT'D)
                    (The Voice)
              STOP! Put your hand in the box.

    Paul's hand goes in. Fear passes over his face.

                          PAUL
                    (inner voice)
              The Voice again.

                    REVEREND MOTHER
              I hold at your neck the gom jabbar. Don't
              pull away or you'll feel that poison. A
              Duke's son must know about many poisons --
              this one kills only animals.

                          PAUL
              Are you suggesting a Duke's son is an
              animal?

                    REVEREND MOTHER
              Let us say I suggest you may be human.
              Your awareness may be powerful enough to
              control your instincts. Your instincts
              will be to remove your hand from the box.
              If you do so you will die. You will feel
              an itching -- there... see? Now the
              itching becomes burning... heat, upon
              heat, upon heat.

                          PAUL
                    (whispering)
              It burns.

                    REVEREND MOTHER
              SILENCE... SILENCE.

                          PAUL
                    (inner voice)(struggling to compose
                    himself)
              I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer.
              Fear is the little death that brings total
              obliteration. I will face my fear... I
              will permit it to pass over me and through
              me.
--
    The Reverend Mother moves her face up to his. Her
    ancient face with its metal teeth gleaming inches
    away breathes hotly. She is smiling.

                    REVEREND MOTHER
              You feel the flesh crisping?

36.  THE HAND - PAUL'S MENTAL IMAGE

    Paul's inner mind sees his hand on fire with all
    sorts of sores. The skin is bubbling.

37.  INT. JESSICA'S CHAMBER - CASTLE CALADAN - NIGHT

                    REVEREND MOTHER
              Flesh dropping off.

38.  THE HAND - PAUL'S MENTAL IMAGE

    He pictures this. The destruction of his hand is
    complete -- now only blood spurts out and burns.

39.  INT. JESSICA'S CHAMBER - CASTLE CALADAN - NIGHT

    Paul's face registers extreme pain.

                          PAUL
                    (cannot help the explosion)
              THE PAIN!

                    REVEREND MOTHER
              NO!! ENOUGH!! Kull wahad! No woman child
              ever withstood that much. I must have
              wanted you to fail. Take your hand out of
              the box and look at it, young human.... Do
              it!

    Paul pulls his hand out of the box. No sign of
    anything wrong. He turns his hand, flexes his
    fingers. He looks to the Reverend Mother.

                REVEREND MOTHER (CONT'D)
                    (explaining)
              Pain by nerve induction... A human can
              resist any pain. Our test is crisis and
              observation.

                          PAUL
              I see the truth of it.

Mike Smith, why are you so sweet?

I love you!

OMFG!    Other than Jon not being a Reverend Mother and my hand actually did get minorly damaged, it's pretty close to what happened.    LOL!