She was an isoAMYl acetate, but her full name ISOAMYACETATE823E10578 was far too long, so she went by AMY.
AMY had been floating around in a vat, surrounded by her isoamyl acetate* community for around a month. She didn't know it, but her birthday was stamped in big bold letters at the bottom of the immense metal casket she inhabited. DATE OF PRODUCTION: 12th May 2020. AMY swam laps around the perimeter, she was trying to break her record for speed, but there was no heat or pressure pushing her and she didn't have the energy to go any faster than usual. AMY was always dreaming of speed! Always yearning to move hotter and quicker. Sometimes she would imagine, as if it was an idea coming from a distant memory, that she could move alone and weightless, surrounded by shadows she didn't recognise. It was only an aspiration however, AMY had never left the vat.
Occasionally she would collide with a fellow isoamyl acetate and there would be a brief interaction, but she never met anyone in the right orientation or form for any long lasting bonds. She would bump against the side of the drum, and the STEEL police that controlled the perimeter would push her back. They were completely inert and impervious to her presence.
AMY enjoyed the company of her peers. They were a pleasant, sweet lot and when they were close together the air would take a luscious sugared scent that for AMY was the flavour of home.
It seemed like an ordinary day in the vat.
At least that was what AMY thought at first.
There was a loud whirring sound. A sudden jerk. The vat was yanked to one side, then to the other. Vibrations shook the surroundings, rapid un-forseen convulsions gave way to a steady humming reverbrating from the STEEL perimeter. AMY buzzed around affected by the steady oscillations - what had happened?
Then, without warning the top of the vat gave an ominous creak and AMY saw a sight she hadn't seen in her whole existence. Photons! Bright little balls of energy seeped their way past her isoamyl acetate brothers and sisters. Filling everyone in the vat with a mild excitement!
What came next was momentous! The vat went through a cataclysmic convulsion, it tipped over a full 180 degrees and AMY free fell into the open air…
She was caught by a muddled mass of contorted bonds and atoms and plunged right to the bottom of a brand new home.
She came too, after the the initial shock of impact. There was a lot more movement than before. At first, it was difficult to find her bearings, until she realised that was because a rush of kinetic energy was propelling her along her tail. A colossal mixing hand was steadily and systematically sweeping the entire molecule community around and AMY felt a rush of unprecedented energy. Immediately she became excited. This was faster than she'd every traveled. Around her she saw all kinds of new molecules she didn't recognise. Finally! AMY thought, it's time to break my speed record!
Instead, the stay in the tank was very brief. AMY barely had time to enjoy it. She was only just getting accustomed to the new surroundings when she was launched into a small shoot, cramped in a crowed molecule subway, then finally dropped! A jet of fizzing little molecules waved goodbye as they happily paved her way.
She swirled around, twisted by all the movement.
When after some time, AMY regained focus, she found herself in a calm place where everyone moved at a slower pace. It was a little cold, but that just made AMY relaxed. She meandered along lazily interacting with other molecules, serenely striking up exchanges to get to know each other. A water. An ethanol. She didn’t see many other isoamyl acetates now.
There was a new kind of police patrolling their borders. Not STEEL but Crystalline Silicon Oxides. They were translucent, still inert but much more open than the STEEL had been. They would allow for example, the occasional photon to pass through their barriers. Their light brought in blurry visions of the outside. On the Silicon oxide glass infront of her, she was able to discern a darker mass that resembled a series of lines.
The darker mass had a meaning, but AMY couldn’t read it.
ЯƎƎꓭ AИAИAꓭ
REFERENCES:
*isoamyl acetate is a key flavour component for banana, pear drop or other fruity flavours.
Here is a reference if you want to have a little look into the science.
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