The Voice of Reason

Chapter 1: The Cavern

In the beginning, there was only darkness. My mind woke first to the darkness. It was a darkness so complete and so perfect that it seemed natural for there to only be darkness in the world. It was absolute and unchallenged. I was submerged deep inside the earth, in a sea of black soil. Dirt surrounded me, pressing against my skin. I felt safe and protected in the earth's womb.

Years and years passed.

With time, my mind shifted and my body awoke. A shudder fell over me and traveled across me. I could feel so much: arms, hands, fingers, legs, feet, toes. I tried to move, and suddenly my chest burst with life. My body jerked. Beneath my skin, a faint, steady beat fluttered into action; ba-dum, ba-dum, ba-dum. Fascinated, I listened to it for days on end.

Like anything that lies underground, we all make our way to the surface. Even in the deepest of sleep, there is movement. The soil pushed me upward. Inch by inch, foot by foot I progressed. In my sleepful state, I tried to will myself to remain put. But despite my effort, I rose bit by bit over the days. I felt less protected as I heard more noise.

My ears detected the gurgles of water moving through the earth. Far above, there was a tree with tingling leaves that shivered. The sounds grew louder and louder as I floated higher. I breached the surface. My nose, followed by the tips of my eyelashes began to rise from the soil. My mouth breached the surface and my lungs gasped for air. My chest began to compress and expand: in, out, in, and out.

My discovery of my eyes was long overdue. I opened them, blinking away the dirt. There were lights above me and I pressed my eyes shut again immediately. The lights were blinding against the darkness. I could still see the white glow through my eyelids. I waited for my eyes to rest again. I opened them slowly the second time, peering first at the darkest corners as my eyes slowly adjusted.

Hundreds of white orbs floated above me, casting a brilliant glow. They gave light to the tree that they grew from. It was a lone tree that stood proud and tall in an otherwise empty cavern. The tree's upper branches reached higher and higher, until they brushed against a rock ceiling. Pricks of sunlight peeked through the rocky ceiling.

I looked down at myself. Most of my body was still encased in the earth. I tried to move my right arm, but I felt something restraining me. I cast my eyes down. Roots ensnared my body, twisting around and trapping every limb. I was tied to the ground. My eyes followed the roots to the trunk of the tree. The tree was huge! It must have stretched at least a hundred feet into the air. I realized now that the glowing white orbs were fruit: luminescent fruit suspended like bait from the branches.

I closed my eyes again, taking deep breaths. I had no thoughts, no desire to see more. Every movement was exhausting and overwhelming. I laid my head back down against the soft soil. Remaining perfectly motionless, I fell back asleep to the ba-dum, ba-dum of my heart beat. My body was an independent machine; its sole purpose was to stay alive. I didn't need to move. I didn't need to open my eyes. Staying right here, perfectly still and perfectly satisfied, was all that I needed to do. It was a simple and fulfilling, and therefore beautiful way of life.

That's all I could say for my life. It was completely quiet and dark. I existed in a permanent slumber. I floated like a star, my hands and legs outstretched and encircled by roots. There was nothing to hear. There was nothing to see. It was an invigorating state. I was cradled gently by the powerful earth. The soil was cool and clung to my skin as wet clothing.

In one day, everything changed. I heard something much louder than I had ever before experienced: footsteps. They interrupted my semi conscious state. They were soft, but somehow every sound forced its way through my ears and to my brain. With the footsteps came an even louder humming voice. The voice came closer and closer too quickly.