My Allegory of the Cave

A First Person Account.

One day a girl was born deep in a cave society, unceremoniously, and spent her childhood mostly neglected and abused by the people in her life, but cats and ghosts made good company. Every day the people of the cave world would gather like drones in the main cave and spend hours and hours and hours staring at shadows projected on the main cave wall, as this was the accepted Governing Intelligence of the Cave Society people, and many even stared at the shadows projected on the wall from their own windows when they returned home in the evenings, too, but the girl was a willful girl and was often in trouble for following her cats and ghost and straying from the group. It is also while she strayed that she happened upon thought provoking works from others, like her, that had also strayed from the group, and drew great inspiration from them, but she very seldom, almost never, encountered any them, yet on rare occasions she had, and came to understand that all are common man and all are capable of becoming great kings and queens, herself included. But back at the main cave, where the many gathered to watch the shadows on the wall, the girl was only shushed and told to pay attention to the cave wall any time she spoke out that the morals of the shadow stories were bad and wrong in nature.

The shadow stories themselves were conducted by the Great Elders of The Governing Intelligence, who hid behind red and gold velvet curtains, giving no clue to the mechanics of their shadow mastery, which they alleged to the people of the cave came from their own extensive research and study into Divine Enlightenment and thus makes them the Great and Mighty Moral and Scientific Authority. Many of the cave people accepted this, while others saw faults, but the Governing Intelligence had masterfully created shadow illusions of truth, strength, intelligence, innovation, and order, and led the people of the Cave Society to false hopes and feeble rewards to keep themselves in power over the people for so many centuries that, for many, it felt like the only way, even for the girl. Thus, the girl grew up and came into her own, within the Cave Society.

The girl was little and cute and funny and clever and very talented in many ways, but also very much a loner, because she learned early on that being the cute little girl that she was attracted the attention of boys, and that made her feel special, but it made other girls really jealous and mean, and then the boys betrayed her and shamed her, and that made the other girls laugh and shame her as well, so the girl was always happier and better off on her own, with her cats and ghosts, and that's when she really bloomed in her own rite anyway. The girl was always good and right and kind and fair and she worked hard to earn a good place for herself within the Cave Society and, for a time, the feeble rewards she received made her complacent, as all the others, but then she ran into faults within the Cave Society and Governing Intelligence, and made great protests and brought charges, but was always quickly dismissed and then forced to return to the Cave Society, faults and all, always hoping that one day, some day, something or someone would set her free.

Then, one day, the girl ran into an awkward boy she had known from earlier childhood, an awkward boy that always had stars in his eyes for her and would sometimes be mean to her because she didn't love him. The awkward boy also liked cats and ghosts and, on this day, felt that fate had brought them together, because he had just discovered a Hope Diamond hidden within a rock that shined like the girl's eyes and the awkward boy wanted the girl to wear it, as he said it matched her eyes so it must belong to her, but only if the girl would excavate it with him. True enough the Hope Diamond shined brighter when the girl approached, but only when the girl approached. The Hope Diamond shined for no other. The girl immediately believed in this Hope Diamond, that it had found her and chosen her and therefore belonged to her, and that it meant something, that it was important, but above all that it was precious, and needed to be protected, especially from all those that approached and became angry and destructive when the Hope Diamond did not shine for them as it did for the girl.

But the Hope Diamond was among the treasures of a Good and Wise Elder, and highly coveted by other Elders Not Good and Wise, so the awkward boy, whom had previously courted The Good and Wise Elder, himself, for the rights to the Hope Diamond, introduced the girl to The Good and Wise Elder as the Muse of the Hope Diamond, and this pleased The Good and Wise Elder who also saw the Hope Diamond shine in the girl's eyes and recognized something in her that resonated within the Hope Diamond, that had resonated within him, and that he had protected for many, many years, like a secret, and thus felt a strong affection for the girl, as well as great protectiveness. This was the first time in the girl's life that she felt recognized and loved, ever. She felt like she had finally been found and liberated, but the awkward boy saw this relationship form between the girl and The Good and Wise Elder and became jealous and spiteful and threatened to take the Hope Diamond away from the girl, insisting that he had found it therefore it belonged to him, but the Good and Wise Elder loved the girl and smiled down on her, encouraging her. So the Hope Diamond remained hidden as the girl gathered in the main cave to watch the shadows on the wall like all the others, every day, but then in the evenings she returned to the rock and tirelessly continued her gentle excavation of the Hope Diamond. In a year's time the girl had slowly and methodically picked and brushed away rock debris with great care and loosened the Hope Diamond from the rock.

During this time the girl met a handsome boy that she believed to be a muse of the Hope Diamond, like herself, and though this handsome boy never saw the Hope Diamond hidden in the rock, he saw it shine in her eyes and became entranced by the beauty, professing his love to the girl on the walls of the cave, the same as the girl had done to catch his eye. The awkward boy, who had observed the courtship of the handsome boy during the girl's gentle excavation, ran over to snatch it away from the girl, beseeching others to join him in rising up against the girl, because he esteemed himself the rightful heir of the Hope Diamond and the girl as a gold digger that had stolen it from him to seduce a husband for greater wealth and status within the Cave Society, but this was not true. The girl just wanted the excavation of the Hope Diamond to be done with great care and the presentation of the Hope Diamond to shine the brightest. The Good and Wise Elder knew this and encouraged the girl to persevere, entrusting the Hope Diamond to the girl, thus the girl and the awkward boy parted ways.

The girl continued her careful excavation of the Hope Diamond while the awkward boy, incensed by the girl's growing mentorship with The Good and Wise Elder, ran around the cave rallying others to lynch the girl, promising them a cut of the Hope Diamond for themselves, and then secretly courted investors to buy the Hope Diamond for himself, to share with the Elders Not Good and Wise, alone, to secure only his own place among the Great Elders, as he resented all those who laughed and mocked him in all his awkwardness, which was absolutely everyone, before his discovery of the Hope Diamond.

Nonetheless, as the girl continued her careful excavation of the Hope Diamond, so, too, did the handsome boy's courtship continue, which, of course, led to the inevitable jealousy and wrath of the other boys and girls, and, unbeknownst to the girl, was the start of an angry lynch mob, but the Hope Diamond outshined them all and the girl continued on. In another two years time the girl finally excavated the Hope Diamond, and then, with even greater care, polished the Hope Diamond to shine even greater than it ever had buried in the rock. The Hope Diamond itself was far larger and grander than anyone had ever imagined and, when the girl finally lifted it from the rock and held it up to the light of the cave fires, the Hope Diamond cast the most remarkable iridescent rainbow prisms all around the cave that none had ever seen before, which received the highest praises from The Good and Wise Elder who had always loved and believed in the girl, and enraged the awkward boy, who by now had gathered a very angry lynch mob and proceeded to launch into a most vicious smear campaign to ruin the girl and steal the Hope Diamond for himself. But, after the girl rightly defended her truth, The Good and Wise Elder rewarded the awkward boy for his discovery, but granted the Hope Diamond to the girl.

This settled the matter of the Hope Diamond between the awkward boy and the girl, but it did not settle the hatred that now led to riots in the caves, directed at the girl and the handsome boy, who quickly banded together against the others, but then, as the girl had seen in a dream, The Good and Wise Elder died, and the other Elders Not Good and Wise came forward to claim the Hope Diamond for themselves, but they wanted the girl for themselves, too. The girl did not want to give herself to the Elders Not Good and Wise, but was beholden to appeal to them because of the chain of hierarchy, of which she was at the very bottom, and though these Elders Not Good and Wise came to defend the girl against the angry lynch mobs and riots, the Elders Not Good and Wise did not rescue the girl from them, but rather played wicked and cruel games with the girl's vulnerability to rally the angry lynch mobs for their own vain amusement, also jealous and wrathful of the girl and handsome boy.

All of this led the girl to seek justice within The Governing Intelligence. The girl was very diplomatic and did everything by the book, but was turned out and left to fend for herself anyway, because, by now, The Governing Intelligence had already learned about the girl and her Hope Diamond and had already taken the lead in rallying angry lynch mobs to ruin the girl and steal the Hope Diamond for themselves. So, with nowhere to turn, the girl launched her own protest and call for justice, a desperate cry for revolution, but no one answered. No one but the handsome boy. So the girl set out to seek justice and to honor the Hope Diamond with the handsome boy, who now also had an angry lynch mob after him, because he had also forsaken all those that wanted him for themselves and pledged his allegiance to the girl and her revolution, making all the other boys and girls only more jealous and mean when he asked the girl to marry him, and she did.

But for a few years the girl still suffered the abusive control of the Elders Not Good and Wise, until one day she came to understand, through her dreams, that The Good and Wise Elder had granted the girl the Hope Diamond in his will and that the Elders Not Good and Wise had no claim her Hope Diamond, much less to her, so, as anyone would, the girl parted ways with the Elders Not Good and Wise, but the Elders Not Good and Wise would not leave the girl alone and still stalked and abused the girl, demanding the Hope Diamond. Likewise, the awkward boy and his angry lynch mob, and the handsome boy's angry lynch mob wouldn't leave the girl alone, but still stalked and abused her as well, while they spread their hatred all around and into every corner of the cave world. Nonetheless, the girl never looked back.

Now, the handsome boy had promised to lead the revolution and run away from the cave with the girl, but pleaded that first he needed to settle some personal affairs. However, it wasn't long before the girl realized that the handsome boy never really loved her, only wanted her Hope Diamond for himself, like the rest of them, and would never be her Knight in Shining Armor, much less the Great Captain of her Revolution, but it still took seven years of Stockholm Syndrome Stranglehold Domestic Violence at the hands of the handsome boy to demonstrate her own innocence, integrity, diplomacy, and good honor to finally be able to break free from the handsome boy's manipulative control without persecution for the abandonment of a wounded soldier in war, even though it was the girl that had been abandoned by the handsome boy when he ran away to hide in some other part of the cave where no one could find him, leaving the girl trapped in the main cave to be categorically raped, slaughtered, trampled, and spit on again and again by all the different lynch mobs that had now merged and become one massive Army of Darkness under the Governing Intelligence, while the girl led her protests and revolution, alone, because she would not forsake her truth and justice to give them her Hope Diamond, but finally the girl could divorce the handsome boy and walk away free of guilt and blame, and so she did.

During her marriage to the handsome boy, the girl was led, once again, by her dreams, to Prince Charming of the Governing Intelligence, who claimed to be full of disgust and contempt for the Cave Society and Governing Intelligence responsible for the death of his mother, the People's Princess, once adored and then tormented by the people, and then murdered by the Governing Intelligence when she threatened to expose their shadow mastery. Because of this the girl felt an instant chemistry and bond with this Prince Charming who professed and pledged his ever loving loyalty to the girl and her revolution, and believed him to also be a muse to the Hope Diamond, like her and the handsome boy. Of course there was a rivalry between the handsome boy and the Prince Charming, but the girl did her best to reconcile differences between them, believing that both would have an important role in her revolution, until her divorce from the handsome boy, who then returned to those he had forsaken to conspire with them against the girl and the Prince Charming, publically pining for the girl and for the sympathy of others, and then sneaking around and spreading rumors to ruin the girl.

Now, in another year's time, the Prince Charming made all the same promises to the girl that the handsome boy had made, to lead the revolution and run away from the cave with the girl, but that first he needed to settle some personal affairs, but the girl had already heard it all before and recognized the same behavior patterns, so, again, with the same great diplomacy, only greater insight and foresight, the girl broke away from the Prince Charming Stockholm Syndrome Stranglehold Domestic Violence without persecution. However, the Prince Charming, like all the others, still coveted the girl and her Hope Diamond, as the girl came to understand that Prince Charming coveted her Hope Diamond to not only secure his own place of power and authority within the Governing Intelligence, but to rule over the girl and her Hope Diamond, and use them to usurp the Governing Intelligence with his own governing rule over the Cave Society, using all the power and influence of the Governing Intelligence he could gather to pursue the girl and her Hope Diamond. But still Prince Charming was at as much of a loss as The Governing Intelligence, because neither could rightfully steal the Hope Diamond for their own purposes, and the girl would not give it to them, nor would the Hope Diamond shine for anyone else, only smite them and strike them down when they tried to take it from the girl, so, not knowing what to do about the girl, the Governing Intelligence banished the girl to the farthest reaches of the cave, near The Tunnel of No Return, where anyone and everyone were not only permitted, but encouraged, to stand over her, where she was now shackled to rock, and kick her, and hit her, and spit on her.

Prince Charming also came every day, stealing and preaching the girl's words through false airs and false pretenses, in an effort to undermine the girl's growing influence and popularity among the good people and children for his own rule, kicking and hitting and spitting on the girl while she cried out, cursing and thrashing him the same as the others, and then he tried to woo and seduce the girl and her Hope Diamond with cheap flattery and sweet lies, to follow him into Governing Intelligence Power, trying to condition her to his abuse, and steeling himself to gain strength and control with every failed attempt to steal the Hope Diamond, esteeming himself the rightful heir and owner of the Hope Diamond and the girl herself. So the girl sat chained to the cave and suffered endless abuse and false stakes and claims to her and her Hope Diamond, day and night, but her will was strong and she could not be broken. She cursed and thrashed and kicked and scratched everyone. No one that dared to abuse her walked away unscathed, in fact, no one that dared abuse her ever walked the same again.

Now, the thing about the Hope Diamond is that in all the years that the girl had cared for and kept the Hope Diamond close to her heart, the Hope Diamond itself revealed itself as the otherworldly power and authority of Illuminating Moon and Enlightening Earth that shined only in the eyes of the girl. The dreams that the girl had always had all her life now came to life, manifested, and became visions of truth and wisdom, guiding the girl toward a bright ethereal light and warning the girl of those that came and wished her harm, always knowing that which the girl could not otherwise know, always knowing what she needed to know when she needed to know it, and always right and always in real time. Meanwhile, the revolution that the girl always spoke of became a real Diamond of Hope for the good people of the Cave Society to embark upon the more she spoke of it, because the good people could see not only all the faults of the Cave Society and Governing Intelligence that the girl brought to attention, but also the great wisdom of the world she was building in her mind for the good people outside the cave. This enchanted and enlightened many who now saw the girl as a Martyr and Savior with the voice of an angel standing before them, but bewitched and bewildered those that wanted to undermine and sabotage the girl, to steal her Hope Diamond for their own vain purposes, but couldn't because the girl was always protected by the visions in her dreams brought by the Hope Diamond. But there she sat, nonetheless, alone, abused, protesting, calling for revolution, and waiting for a miracle every day, while the Cave Society continued watching the shadows on the main cave wall every day.

Then one day something happened. The Earth quaked and a small crack formed in the cave wall that loosened her shackle chain, and after everyone settled back into watching shadows, the girl carefully wrapped the chain around her ankle and stole away into The Tunnel of No Return, and thus began the girl's journey into the tunnel, which was dark and cramped and seemed to lead nowhere, and, after what seemed like a lifetime lost in a tunnel of darkness, the girl decided to stop and rest. Her eyes were heavy as she clutched her Hope Diamond and hoped for salvation, and in a moment she fell asleep to dreams of the anger and punishment that awaited her back in the cave upon the discovery that she had escaped.

When the girl woke she found that she could see the cave walls in front of her. It was still dark in the tunnel, but she could see, there was light coming from up ahead, and when she turned to look in the direction of the light it was blindingly bright. The girl squinted at the light as her eyes slowly adjusted, and then slowly started making her way towards it, stopping every few feet to let her eyes adjust until she reached the opening of the cave. When she finally stepped out of the cave her heart leaped into her throat and her eyes welled with tears. Never had the girl ever fathomed that such a world of immaculate beauty existed outside the cave, as the cave was the only life she had ever known, but this world was breathtaking in its beauty, and take her breath away it did.

As soon as her knees stopped trembling enough for her to regain her balance the girl began to walk, and then run, and then laugh and cry and scream and sing to the trees, the mountains, the ocean, the sky, the clouds. The Earth and Moon welcomed the girl, smiling down on her and taking her into a warm and safe embrace, christening the girl with a gentle rain as the clouds parted, allowing the sun to warm her, and the trees bent down to offer shelter as the Moon then illuminated her dreams with revelations of great natural wisdom and knowledge unknown to any other.

Then the girl noticed other animals, unlike herself, that had stopped to observe the strange wild thing that had crawled out of the cave, and then she stayed very still and spoke softly to them and then sang to them with the voice of an angel, enticing them to stay and come closer and break bread with her. All the animals slowly and cautiously came closer to the girl, nervous and cautious, but captivated by this strange creature, a unicorn to them. Soon the girl and the animals became good friends, laughing and playing together among the trees and mountains and streams, and the girl greatly cherished these friendships, but as the days passed the girl became restless thinking about the good people that she had left behind back at the cave, the people like her. The girl did not want to return to the cave, but felt that she must tell the others about this new and glorious world that she had found, so with a heavy heart the girl bid farewell to her new friends, promising to return to them once again before she returned to the mouth of the cave and climbed back down into the darkness of the tunnel, making her way down into the pitch black darkness from which she had emerged. Again it felt like a lifetime in the increasingly dark and cramped tunnel when she stopped to let her heavy eyes close, falling into a restless sleep filled with dreams of the anger and punishment that awaited her upon her return.

The girl woke to the echo of voices coming off the tunnel walls and, again, could see the cave walls in front of her, but much more dim. This time her eyes adjusted quickly and soon the girl found herself at the entrance of The Tunnel of No Return, looking in at all the people gathering to watch the shadows on the main cave wall. Unnoticed, the girl ducked back to observe the happenings in the cave. After the shadows began dancing across the wall, all became still, transfixed. The girl stole a glance to the back of the cave and saw the so-called great mastery of the Governing Intelligence that she had come to understand through her moonlight revelations, learning the secret behind the red and gold velvet curtains. The girl looked back to the people watching the shadows, still hypnotized, and became furious.

Still unnoticed, and certainly unexpected, the girl walked over to the curtains that were raised just enough to reveal a series of mirrors, fixed at various angles, which, if anyone had ever stolen a peek behind the curtain would surely support the Governing Intelligence statement that it is a Great Refractor of light that projects images on the wall by harnessing and harvesting the blinding light above ground, reflecting from mirror to mirror, transmitting communications about the uninhabitable outside natural world as well as news from within the cave and other cave communities that benefit from cave innovations and advancements, but as the girl stood beside the Great Refractor and looked up to see the blinding light of the outside world that she had come to know she instead saw only a pinhole of light in the ceiling of the cave. The girl shook her head, knowing that the outside natural world held much more knowledge and wisdom than the Governing Intelligence and Cave Society. Then her eyes moved along the back wall of the cave where she caught sight of the same curtain, but lowered from above, revealing several Great Elders gathered around a fire on a hidden upper level of the cave, moving puppets and props in front of the fire, casting shadows on the ceiling of the hidden upper level of the cave that then reflected down onto the Great Refractor and onto the main cave wall.

Determined to expose the Great Elders of The Governing Intelligence to the Cave Society, the girl eyed the line of the velvet curtain and saw that it wrapped around the Great Refractor in its entirety, thus if anyone should peek behind the curtain they would observe the Great Refractor, but never the hidden level, separated by the raised velvet curtain. Smart, but stupid, the girl thought to herself. Smart because it looks sound and keeps the hidden level hidden, but stupid, because it's all concealed behind one curtain, so when the girl shouts, Hey!, and rips down the whole curtain, both the Great Refractor and the hidden level are revealed, and, indeed, when the girl shouted, Hey!, everyone DID turn and look.

There were gasps, scoffs, hisses, and angry voices admonishing her, as everyone first saw the girl holding the curtain, an act of great disrespect that would warrant great disgust and contempt among the most loyal of the Cave Society, but there were also cries of shock, surprise, realization, and relief among those that had always felt strongly opposed to the Great Elders of The Governing Intelligence. Then all the eyes moved first to the Great Refractor and then to the hidden level. And then there were stunned and angry voices as everyone gathered around the girl demanding an explanation. The Governing Intelligence called down from the hidden level for everyone to remain calm and that the Great Elders would come down and explain everything themselves, but by the time the Governing Intelligence Elders made it down the girl had already explained everything and had already begun telling her stories of the outside natural world, of the wind that caressed her cheek and arms, and the sun that warmed her flesh, and the waters that cleansed and nourished her, made her fresh and new, and the trees that offered shelter, and the animals that were her friends.

Of course the Great Elders tried to talk over the girl, calling her stupid and a liar, insisting that the outside natural world is uninhabitable without the crude oils and fossil fuels of the cave, but the girl told them, "No! Look how my hair and skin shine! Look how healthy, fresh, and full of life I am! I cannot have become so in a cave!" Now everyone really looked at the girl and she really did have a natural healthy glow. People began to whisper and reach out to touch her hair and skin, and then the Hope Diamond tied around her neck. The Great Elders now spoke quickly to command everyone's attention, again saying that the girl is stupid and a liar and must have fallen asleep before a fire for several days and woken feeling fresh and renewed with her hair and skin warmed by the fire. But the girl implored the good people to listen and believe her as she had now revealed the truth about the Great Refractor and thus the false authority of the Governing Intelligence.

Just then the Earth quaked and a boulder crashed down on the Great Refractor, destroying it. Now the Great Elders could see that the people wanted to believe the girl as the people began to cast suspicious and distrusting sideways glances at them. So the Great Elders said, "Okay, maybe the girl did survive the outside natural world, and maybe the Earth, Moon, and animals did embrace her, but she doesn't know anything about real survival and just got lucky, and further, that's probably why she really came back, because she couldn't really survive, because she's just a stupid girl that doesn't really know anything, so, as the long standing authority, the Governing Intelligence will take the information the girl gathered and make our own well educated plan to lead the people out of the cave into a new world outside with our knowledge of crude oil and fossil fuels for our survival, and that is our final judgment."

But rather than return to their cave dwellings, everyone turned to the girl, who sighed deeply and said, "Well, actually, you can't..." The Great Elders quickly turned back to face the girl who then went on, "...well, as you know, there are two drinking wells in the cave, one pure and the other poisoned with your crude oil and fossil fuel. You all learned early on that drinking from the poisoned well would turn your flesh and soul cold, and that helped you adapt to the cold and darkness of the cave, which gave you greater strength and endurance to survive in the caves, thus made you more dominant and more powerful than those drinking only the pure water, who struggled and pained to survive beneath your poisonous shadow tyranny, but remained pure, and now, well, look at yourselves..."

And for the first time the Great Elders, and those of the Cave Society that had also indulged in the poisoned well themselves, looked around at themselves and at each other, noticing how the poisoned well, that had made them cold and hard to survive the cave, had turned them all to rot. The girl said, "You see? While the tunnel is long and dark and cramped it also runs straight up to the greatest, most immaculate light of good and pure nature. You will never make it out alive, only perish in the tunnels as you near the outside natural world, and hold others back from salvation."

Then all hell broke out and the girl was seized by Governing Intelligence Guards that, on orders, shackled her, once again, to the cave wall near The Tunnel of No Return. The girl screamed and cursed and thrashed and when she quieted the Great Elders stated that the girl would remain shackled until she came to see things their way, and it was their opinion that, as there was really no need to proceed to the outside natural world, because, according to the Governing Intelligence, the Cave Society was in no real danger, rather only in need of renovations, and that the knowledge the girl had gathered from the outside natural world would serve to advance their own Governing Intelligence and Cave Society.

Just then the Earth quaked again and a large crater formed in the cave wall that ran up the ceiling with rock and dirt and dust crumbling, covering everyone and everything. Many were struck down and did not rise again, others were injured but rose to their feet. The Great Elders, who were shielded by Guards, were without harm. Then the girl said, "But, as you see, the cave is going to collapse. This is the message that I have been sent by Earth and Moon to deliver. If no one leaves then no one survives."

But the Great Elders only spat, "Nonsense! The people need only move deeper into the cave and make a new world in the deeper recesses where it's safe from collapse."

Then the girl said, "I won't go with you. I will wait here for my shackle to break free in the next quake and then I'm going to run away, back to the outside natural world that's waiting for me! All the good people and children should come with me! Now or Never!!"

The Great Elders, incensed by the girl's willful determination, tried, once again, to snatch the Hope Diamond from around the girl's neck, but, once again, it struck them down. The Great Elders quickly retreated, brushed themselves off, and replied, "You will do no such thing! You and your Hope Diamond will come along deeper into the cave with the others and serve the Governing Intelligence to rebuild the Cave Society. This, I tell you, is your higher calling!" Then, turning to leave, the Great Elders called to all those that gathered, "see to it that she does!" as they began to make their way deeper into the cave, cursing the girl and vowing to succeed her all the way.

Many spat at the girl and followed the Great Elders, dragging their children with them, kicking and screaming, to their own damnation, while others seemed unsure, and yet still others became determined. A few of the children managed to wrestle themselves free and ran back to hide behind the girl and the others. Some of the rot parents cursed the children and kept on while others gave chase, determined to catch the children and drag them away, but gave up when the girl and others, some Guards that remained as well, took the children among them, protecting and defending them. Then arguments began and reached a fever pitch as many rot people of the cave that had come to abuse the girl pleaded, demanded, cursed, and cried for the girl and those who had not come to rot to come with them deeper into the cave or to carry them out of the cave to the outside world, too, but the girl explained again and again that she would not follow them deeper into the cave and that none of them would make it out alive, only hold others back, but still the rot people demanded, cursed, pleaded, cried and tried to barter and negotiate. The girl only shook her head, sending those that had come to rot into ugly rages directed, once again, at the girl.

Then the Earth quaked again and loosened the shackle chain free from the rock. The girl rose to her feet and looked at all the faces of the good people and children looking back at her and said, "Are you ready? It's time. We need to leave now!"

That's when Prince Charming, who had been hanging around behind the girl, still clinging to her and her Hope Diamond, tried to appeal to those determined and loyal to the girl saying, "Wait! Don't leave that way! Stay! Come with me to go after them! Come with me to claim my namesake, as I am the rightful Governing Intelligence King of the Cave Society. You can be my Hope Diamond Queen. With you at my side I can take over the Governing Intelligence and rule a new Cave World Society!"

But the girl just shook her head, noticing for the first time that Prince Charming had also come to rot, and said, "No. I'm not going in there after them. I'm leaving the cave now and if the good people and children know what's good for them then they need to come with me now, as Earth and Moon have decreed." But Prince Charming would not have it and grabbed the girl by her hair and began dragging her, kicking and screaming, deeper into the cave.

Just then a Guard emerged from the crowd, a man at first unknown to her, but strangely familiar as the girl recognized him from her dreams. Then he made himself known as Christian, a boy from her childhood now a grown man. A breathtaking and heart pounding rush of adrenaline washed over the girl as their eyes aligned with each other and she immediately felt an ineffable synergy between them. This man had been a boy that had gone away and into the world before ever the chance between them. Now she learned that Christian had gone off and become a Guard of the highest order for the Governing Intelligence and, when the angry lynch mobbing over her Hope Diamond began, had heard her cries and came to defend her, fighting against the angry lynch mobs and advocating for her rescue and justice within the Governing Intelligence to no avail. In all these years the girl had not known that Christian had come back for her, having never seen or heard him calling out to her from among the angry mobs, restrained by duty and an obligation to abide by the orders of the Governing Intelligence that denied his requests, and unable to capture the girl's attention until now, finally, in this moment that the girl finally saw him and recognized him from her dreams as the angry mobs parted and he stood before her. Prince Charming and the people of rot groaned and muttered curses under their breaths having always known Christian's strong, loyal, formidable, and determined presence all along. Now Christian pledged his eternal love and loyalty to the girl, as he always had all along, promising to help the girl, the good people, and the children escape the cave to the outside world with help from a fleet of equally strong, loyal, formidable, and determined Rebel Guards that he knew and assembled unbeknownst to the Great Elders of the Governing Intelligence for the purpose of leading the revolution with the girl.

Prince Charming immediately began to protest, saying "You're a stupid girl! He's lying! He's one of my Guards! He works for me! For the Governing Intelligence! He only has orders to bring you along and wants you for himself! So, just come with me!"

Then a female of rot sidled up beside Prince Charming saying "Yeah! You're a stupid girl! My daddy is a Great Elder of the Governing Intelligence and Christian is mine, too! And he doesn't want you, but I can be your best friend and show you how to be great, so you better come with me now!"

But her extreme rot and the cold distance between them told a different story, one the girl had heard several times before. Christian's eyes narrowed as he clenched his jaw and shook his head in disgust, reaching his hand to the girl, pledging his eternal love and loyalty to the girl, again vowing to help her, the children, and the good people escape the cave to the outside world. The passionate intensity of his gaze stirred something deep inside the girl's soul and she believed him. As the girl reached for Christian both Prince Charming and the rot female began cursing and protesting, along with many others that had come to rot.

Prince Charming said, "This is ridiculous! You are mine and you are coming with me deeper into the cave!" Prince Charming once again grabbed the girl by her hair and began to drag her away, but now Christian lunged forward to intervene. Prince Charming stopped and stared daggers at Christian, seething under his breath "You work for me! Remember that! And mind your place!"

The rot female lunged after Christian saying "Listen! I'm telling you! Christian is mine! You need to come with me!"

Then a Guard of rot stepped forward with other rot Guards in tow, pushing Christian back behind him and saying "Christian works for me! I am your real Christian! Your true Champion! And you are mine! Come with me! Now!"

Then a remaining member of the Governing Intelligence backed by a few others also stepped forward saying "No! It's me! I am your true Champion! You're mine! Come with me!"

Then one by one in turn several others stepped forward, all of them rot, adamantly staking claim to the girl and demanding her Hope Diamond. Then all of them began quarreling with one another, each demanding the girl for themselves respectively, but the girl could see that the rot had consumed all of them, turning all of them deranged and rabid, and she became fearful. The girl looked passed them to Christian who gave her a knowing look and a nod. Just then the Earth quaked again and the cave began to collapse, knocking Prince Charming down and disorienting the others. The girl quickly scrambled away from Prince Charming and the others, and ran to Christian.

Prince Charming cursed, "You stupid girl! You're coming with me one way or the other!"

The others began to curse, protest, and argue the same, all crowding around and slowly closing in on Christian and the girl, but Christian now stood between them, eyes fixed on Prince Charming and the others while his fleet of Rebel Guards moved stealthily in the background, subtly signaling back and forth, unbeknownst to the rot others. Christian turned his head slightly, never taking his eyes off the rot others, and quietly murmured over his shoulder to the girl that now held herself to him, assuring her that she would be alright and that he would protect her and keep her safe while all the rot others stood snarling and baring rotten teeth at them.

Christian returned his gaze to the rot others and said, "It's alright! I've got this under control! I'm going to work this out with her and take care of everything! She will come with me and I will see to it! Justice will be served by the courts of the Governing Intelligence!"

Now all the rot others laughed and sneered at the girl, "HA! You see! He works for the Governing Intelligence! You're just a stupid girl! You're going to surrender and serve the Governing Intelligence anyway!"

The girl tightened her grip on Christian and said, "What?! They're all completely mad! And the cave is going to collapse! We need to leave! Now!"

Christian held his ground between the girl and the rot others, stealing quick glances at the Rebel Guards moving stealthily in the background and murmuring over his shoulder again, "We will, but I have to stay with my team to secure the area, to make sure that you, the children, and the others make it out of the cave safely and that no one comes after you."

The girl's heart sank at the thought of finally finding him only to leave without him now, but she found her strength and whispered back "You're right. And none of them can survive if we are going to liberate Earth as well as ourselves. They cannot come with us, but neither can they stay and continue this poisonous world."

At this the Earth quaked again, and with one last look Christian promised to come for her and the girl promised to wait for him. The girl pressed herself to Christian and held him tight, choking back tears, and then turned and ran into The Tunnel of No Return, clutching her Hope Diamond. As she fled the cave the girl could hear Christian calling after her "I'm coming for you! I promise I will come!" as well as Prince Charming and the others calling after her to "Stop! Come back! You won't escape! I'll get you! You'll be back! Just you wait! You're mine!" but the girl never looked back as, sure enough, the cave began to collapse behind her.

Soon the girl found herself crawling out of the cave, coughing and choking on the dirt and dust of the cave as her lungs gasped at the clean and pure air of the outside natural world with other good people and children slowly climbing out behind her the same. The girl looked back, waiting with a heavy heart for Christian to emerge. She knew he would not soon be coming, but also that she would scry and fervently wait for him as the war raged on in the collapsing underground cave.

The girl turned to the trees, mountains, ocean, and open sky that greeted and welcomed her and others into a beautiful new world, and as the girl made her way to a stream to drink the refreshing cool water she saw her reflection looking back at her. And for the first time the girl saw that she was a girl no more.

She had become a woman. Her own woman.

As the days passed the woman began to settle into the natural world, making herself at home in the wild. But the war raged on in the caves and, by the angry voices that carried up through the tunnels, the woman learned that when the Elders and those who followed deeper into the cave had heard that the woman escaped, they returned, enraged, commanding everyone into the Tunnel of No Return to capture the woman and bring her back, but each time the people of rot began to climb...the Earth quaked again, sending all of them tumbling back into the cave. For a moment there would be silence as the rot people were stunned and some buried in rubble, but then the rot people would once again begin climbing the tunnel, and once again, the Earth would quake and knock them down.

The woman listened for Christian and could hear him among the chaos, calling to her, promising to come and protect her, and she worried and waited every day while the creatures she had befriended comforted, consoled, and kept her company with tender and playful affection and companionship.

To be continued...