The AutoImmune War

The AutoImmune War began with a Guard Cell screaming, “It's an attack!” Immune Cells responded. The attackers were viruses. Calderone, who was a Beautiful Shimmer straddling Light and Cell, sat in Heart, overseeing strategy. Lieutenant Willing rushed in. “How goes?” Calderone demanded.

“Not well. Immune's response is good, too good.”

“Explain.”

“B Cell have gone rogue.”

“B Cell!” Calderone blanched. “They're our most powerful Immune Cells!”

“They're destroying Neutrophiles.”

“What! It'll be our death if we don't root this out. Stop them!”

“Your Will be done.” Willing called to his cadre of Cells, “To me!”

Calderone leapt into Artery and headed for Brain. He stopped and asked a guard, “How hold the gates to Brain?”

“Well enough,” Lymphocyte Garth replied, “But losses are heavy, and Veins are taking damage.”

“Have you taken prisoners? Interrogated any?”

“B Cells. They claim to follow orders.”

“Not mine!” Calderone declared. “It's quiet here. Leave half your force, the rest, with me!”

Led by Calderone they swept through Artery, and turned into a vessel flooded with Body Inhabitants. A red cell Captain named OTwo looked weary. “What hail?” Calderone called.

“The balance is against us,” OTwo cried. He looked determined. “We can't get oxygen where it's needed. Lung is under attack. Kidney too!”

Calderone knew if Kidney went down, all was lost! “To Kidney!" he cried. "Captain Otwo, take half your Cells to Left Kidney. I'll head for Right. Send for reinforcements. Hold Kidney! Make haste!”

They dashed off. Calderone arrived at Right Kidney where B Cells ripped veins apart as they pursued tiny Neutrophiles. Calderone hailed a Neutrophile named Iron. “Bring me a B Cell.”

Iron raced off with a thousand like Cells. They swarmed a B cell. Her massive white body undulated engulfing many, but she was brought to Calderone.

“My daughter,” Calderone said kindly, “What's your name?”

“Groin.” She was sullen.

“Why are you attacking Neutrophiles?” Calderone asked.

“Following orders.”

“Whose orders?”

“Immune Command.”

Calderone knew B Cells would never stop. “Fight them to the death!” he ordered.

Powered by the beating of Heart, Calderone raced to Immune Command where he pushed through a swirl of Cells. Normally smooth flowing, they clumped where battles raged. Guardians at Immune Command saluted Calderone. “Sir?”

“Take me to Command.”

Command was in Lymph, surrounded by Proteins carrying instructions to his armies. Calderone addressed Command. “Why are you sending B cells to attack Neutrophiles?”

“Neutrophiles?” Command checked a Messenger Molecule. “Not so! We're defending against Virus. I'm producing, let's see, ANCA protein, instructing B Cells to stop them.”

“You're ANCA's instructing B cells to attack Neutrophiles that are fighting Virus! You have them confused!”

“I'm only as good as my Messenger Molecules.”

“Look outside your own Tissue Flaps! Stop manufacturing ANCA, at once!”

“No can do. You'll have to take this issue higher.”

“I am higher!” Calderone yelled.

“I suggest you speak with Mind.”

Calderone stared at Command. “Show me a quiet space. Immediately.”

“Your Will, Calderone.” Calderone snorted at the irony.

Mind was Energy that flowed and pulsed according to Awareness. At that moment, Mind contemplated a single yellow Marigold flower that Ego stared at in The Great Outside. Calderone settled between Nerves, calmed himself, and communicated with Mind. “Excuse me,” Calderone said.

“Flowers know their own beauty,” Mind mused.

“I never thought of that,” Calderone replied, “But if I may interrupt your contemplation, are you aware there's a war going on?”

“I am.”

“Why is it happening?”

“Conflict in Body mirrors conflict in Mind. You're sending conflicting messages that are then used to form You.”

“Explain the conflict.”

“I cannot.”

“Why not?”

“Section 1, rule three of the Life Manual states: the presiding consciousness must understand the results of Its beliefs. Intervention is denied until understanding is achieved.

“Our Immune malfunction is linked to beliefs?”

“Indeed. Now think! From your perspective, you send suggestions to me about the state of The Great Outside. You've sent reports of a die off of, let's see: a brother, mother, cousin, aunt, uncle, father, another brother, and a cousin, all in a few years, and all from sickness. You feel helpless, and it's too much to deal with. Add Thoughts about millions dying from war, extremism, and pandemics, and there's a sense of hopelessness. You think the world is sick.” Mind looked at Calderone closely. “Do you really want to Live in The Great Outside?”

Calderone nodded vigorously. “Of course,” he cried. “Those reports aren't mine!”

“Nothing lives in isolation,” Mind replied, then muttered, “Loss of family, rampant corruption, yada yada yada. Okay! There you have it. The energy of belief in a sick world blocks the flow of Health, and creates sickness in Body. Beliefs, you know, follow the Laws of Suggestion, and return to Body for use in constructing itself. A belief in Sickness, creates Sickness. Elegant isn't it?”

“It's a gruesome way to find out.”

“It also works for Health! You really should ensure I don't receive so many poor beliefs.”

Calderone sagged. His finery was soiled by battle, his fingers twitched. “I didn't know.”

“The solution is clear.”

“What!?”

“I can't tell you. You have to tell me,” Mind said.

“What,” Calderone thundered, “Is it!”

“Sorry.”

Calderone fumed. He pondered, then said, “You send energy to Body according to Body's belief about events in The Great Outside.”

“Not quite.”

“Can you give me a little help here?”

Mind sighed. “What forms belief?”

“I don't know.”

“Sure you do. C'mon!”

“Give me a minute!” Calderone thought furiously. “Belief requires Thought, which is Ego's department. Is Ego responsible for this mayhem?”

Mind stared at Calderone. “You better find out.”

Calderone rushed out of Immune Command and headed towards Ego. Cells, weary from a lack of clean fluids from Kidney, clung to him. “Carry on,” Calderone bellowed. He saw ANCA everywhere, and the war raged.

“Ego, what're you doing?” Calderone thundered, “Mind's using your suggestions about mayhem in The Great Outside to create mayhem in Body.”

Ego was steely eyed, severe, and surrounded by a vast array of Symbols protected by tall fences. “It's a killing world, Calderone” Ego responded. “Everyone knows that. I'm alone, and in control.”

“Ego, you can't control Mind!”

“No? That's unfortunate.” Ego looked puzzled. “I didn't know. Perhaps some part of me is over-compensating?”

“Which part? It has to stop!”

“I'm not sure. I have so many. Could be Child, Sex, Esteem, or Doubter. Perhaps Thinker, though I don't think so.” Ego laughed at his wit. Calderone did not. “Family is good for something, and Fear's upset these days. Look at Past, and Future, they're both quite dark. Failure's confused, and Sinful and Guilty are always difficult. Oh for the old days when We were just Baby.”

Calderone patted Ego's Baby. “Bring them all to me,” he commanded.

“I'll try, but you know how they like to hide.”

“Do it!”

Sinful identified as female, and slipped into a Ganglion, where Calderone waited. Sinful was clouded, ducked her head, was arrogant, yet afraid. “How are you?” Calderone asked gently.

“I'm a Great Sinner” Sinful cried with pride. Her nails were sharp and her boots hard. She scratched and kicked at Tissue in passing. Tissue was very annoyed.

“Tell me about yourself.”

“I've sinned since birth, will sin to death. I'm a sexual, food, and multiple substance abuse sinner. That's just the beginning. My dreams are sinful. Everything, is a sin.”

“Why do you sin?”

“Because Life is Pure.”

“Who told you that?”

“The Great Outside.”

“What should we do about it?”

“Make me suffer!”

“We are suffering.”

“Good! I should...” and Sinful looked around wildly.

“Yes? Go ahead.”

“I can't, it's a sin.”

“Say it!”

“DIE FOR MY SINS!” Sinful screamed.

“I'm glad that's out. But why?”

“So Sin will end.”

“Now listen,” Calderone said gently, “You're not a sinner, never have been, and cannot be, by the nature of The Great Outside, of which you are a Part. The Great Outside would not survive one day if it's nature were Sinful. You're a Good Self and can remove those beliefs.”

“All of them?” Sinful whispered.

“Yes. You're blessed, valued, and important to Ego, Body, Mind, and The Great Outside.”

Sinful stopped picking holes in Body. “All?”

“All.”

Sinful sighed, and her energies diverted to Good.

Guilty entered and sat on a Tissue Couch. He looked nervous, unwell, and poked a stick at Tissue, making Tissue angry. Guilty felt guilty about that.

“Tell me about yourself,” Calderone said.

“I'm guilty!” Guilty cried.

“About what?”

“Everything!”

“Can you give me an example?”

“I have so many! I never visited Cousin in Hospital, and he died.”

“Why didn't you visit?”

“He had a disease. I was afraid. I should have helped!”

“Now listen. It's alright that you didn't visit. His death was his responsibility, not yours. Release those Thoughts.”

“Can I?”

“Yes. Now, tell me all your guilt,” Calderone urged.

Guilty talked for hours, and finally left Calderone unburdened and luminous, to pool his efforts with those of Confidence.

Calderone questioned each part of Ego. It was clear; the Will to Live diminished in lockstep with a decline in belief in the Quality of Life. But he left Ego strengthened, and observant of suggestions sent to Mind through Ego's beliefs. That battle was won, and Ego looked for Good in The Great Outside.

“Thoughts are real,” Mind reminded Calderone, “They have effects. Now you know.”

Calderone instructed each Bit of Body to run all Thoughts through Wisdom, and henceforth, place all Poor Thoughts in balloons labelled Poor Thought, and release it so it would disappear forever. Be relentless! Then request balloons containing the poor thought's Opposite to descend. Absorb those. Without fail!

Lieutenant Willing brought news. Kidney was down to 50%. Ankle reported floods of fluids Kidney couldn't process. Lung reported blockages as B cells ruptured Veins while chasing Neutrophiles. There was damage to all Skeletal Joints. Vital Motions were seizing! Time was of the essence. Did they have it? Calderone sent all Cells a simple message; We're strong together, weak divided.

“The war rages, Calderone,” Lieutenant Willing said, “Its momentum is fantastic! We may have to use Chemicals from The Great Outside, to destroy Neutrophiles and remove them as targets for B Cells. That will take years.”

Calderone sighed. “If we fail here, know I'm proud of everyone's efforts.”

“We won't fail, Calderone. We still live!”

“Yes? I'm just tired, Lieutenant. It's already been a long fight.”

“There's more. Parts of Ego still hold poor beliefs. You know how hard it is to get Ego to change. There's too much Despair leaking in from The Great Outside.”

“The Great Outside didn't promise an easy life, Lieutenant.”

“No, Calderone, just an interesting one.”

Calderone sat in a Fatty Tissue Booth and watched teams play a game of Poison Gathering. Red led White by a few milligrams. Suddenly a swarm of Neutrophiles rushed the stands and attacked a B Cell that had ANCA hanging from it. They stuffed the protein into a balloon, wrote ANCA on it, and sent it away.

Calderone held a Body-wide ceremony called The Froth. Bad Beliefs were launched in an explosion of balloons, to disappear forever. It was based upon his evolving knowledge of how Beliefs operated; no Attention, no Construction. He instructed Lieutenant Willing to alert him if Ego formed damaging beliefs during interactions with The Great Outside. And the war dragged on.