Unbroken Light Within (Areyesia vs. Bilanda)

Chapter 1: Seeking Refuge

"Desperation is the raw material of drastic change. Only those who can leave behind everything they have ever believed in can hope to escape."
William S Burroughs
—————

It's fascinating to see history in action, to see on the news what will be learned and remembered for decades if not centuries to come. It's also tragic; many of history's most memorable events are the cruel mistakes of humanity, almost always borne of greed or hubris. Compared to the gargantuan struggles humankind and its societies have endured, one would think personal struggles—the tragedies only felt by the individuals and perhaps a handful of their loved ones—would be inconsequential to the lives of millions. But in this world, one would be wrong; for as above, so below.

August 10th, 201X

It's been a long day. Two young ladies feel the weight of a great time well spent lift from their shoulders. In this one moment, life is good; lying next to each other, no light in the room other than the TV while the cool air from outside cradles and carries their hair with a gentle breeze. The girls are too tired to cook any real dinner, so the meal they have to look forward to is merely sharing a jar of peanut butter.

            "Hey, Ariana, think you could grab the peanut butter?" Belinda asks.

            "Sure, but I wanna have a few bites first." Ariana says.

            "Fiiiiine" groans Belinda.

            Inside said mouth, a barely-older-than-adolescent, gauntly thin red cell girl stands at the base of Ariana's left teeth. She gazes at the peak of the incisors and the canine, and gulps. She has to climb one of these teeth to have any chance at survival. But how is she supposed to climb a tooth? She's so weak and malnourished; she can barely walk on her own two feet without her going bow-legged and wobbly. The only way she can climb this tooth is the effort made through her willpower, and hopefully that's enough. So, with nothing to her name except a dirty, tattered purple dress on her back and a ribbon of the same color tied into her dark membranous hair, she makes the first jump. She falls, and makes another. But this cell can't give up. Freedom is worth every effort she can engage. Finally, after one last leap, she's able to grab some plaque. A small victory. But she must lift herself further in order to start climbing. Her arm can't lift her body, but just then she gets a thought.

What if....? She thinks.

The cell swings her body without letting go, there's more plaque edges that can be reached if she were only just a little bit closer. With each swing, the other plaques on the teeth are more and more in reach.

At the edge of the throat, some strange figures start appearing. They're sprinting on the tongue, dodging taste buds as they race for the front of the mouth.

"Come on men! We have to find her!" One shouts.

"Boss, I think she went for the left." Another replies.

The figures start uniting in one direction, heading for the left side of the mouth. As they expose themselves from the shadows, they all reveal their true forms: The leader is menacing. He has hard, shell-like skin as dark and as red as the girl's hair. Black stripes only seen in the wild paint him from head to toe, yet the mane framing his face is as silvery and white as the harshest winter. His eyes are bright yellow, surrounded by a dark, speckled, radiating void. The other figures bare a similar form, except they seem far smaller and intimidated by the situation.

            "Hah...Hah...Hah...hhhhhnnng" One of them pants.

            "Don't give up. I think I just saw something." The leader points with his finger towards the gap between the canine and incisors.

A red silhouette swings like a chimpanzee between the two teeth, making her way towards the top.

            "There she is!" They shout.

The germs stumble and pull out their enzyme blasters. They run, trip, and fall closer and closer to the red cell. Then they aim, and start shooting.

            Pew! Pew! Pew! The enzyme bullets are fired with ferocious force. They hit many parts of the teeth, but have yet to hit the girl.

            "Oh shit!" The red cell exclaims.

The germs are after her. She has to get to the top before they shoot her down. Her effort to climb and swing strengthens. But unfortunately, she is still profoundly weak, and one of the germs has good aim. The girl is shot in the hand before she can grab a higher level of plaque, and falls to the gums. Germs crowd her, many sinister glowing eyes peering into hers—and boring fear into her soul. She wants to scream and moan, but opening her mouth produces no sound.

            "Hello. You probably know this already, but, we've really been looking for you." A germ says. He grabs her by the arm as she tries to flee.

            "Hey now, don't try to run away, you know what you did." He taunts.

            The cell still struggles, breathing heavily out of panic and exhaustion. She's running out of energy and is almost ready to give into her grim fate. But then a light shines through. It gets wider and brighter.

            I must be dying... wait... the light... the mouth is open! She thinks.

The cell feels so disoriented as the germs start to drag her away from the teeth. But this is her only chance. The narrow window of freedom gives her an overwhelming sense of power, enough to let her move and fight more forcefully. The cell escapes, and sprints for the center.

            While she's running, a large object starts to enter. It carries a mountain of goop on it, and the cell moves out of the way so she won't get buried as it lands on the tongue. It's now or never. The spoon is empty, and she has to get on top of it. She climbs the peanut butter to the rim of the spoon, and grabs hold. She steps and slips into the center of the spoon—and just in time too. It starts to move out of the mouth and into a place where few cells go and live to tell the tale: The outside world.

            The girl takes a huge sigh. But her journey is only beginning; she has to survive the brief moments she is exposed to the air while traveling to the other body.

            "Hey Ariana, please, I'd really like that spoon now." Belinda pleads.

            "Hey I gotya. Here you go." Ariana says.

Belinda takes the spoon and scoops a hearty portion of peanut butter.

The cell is still on the spoon, but barely holding on. Luckily, she's able to use the peanut butter for a small source of moisture to keep her alive. But her arrival to the other body can't be soon enough—her left hand is starting to coagulate! The cell stares at her dying hand with blasé frustration. But that frustration is turned to relief when the light starts changing, and the environment around her is clearly inside a person's mouth—but a different one entirely.

"I'm... I'm finally free from Areyesia." She breathes.