The Ensoulment Lectures

A/N: This is not the true storyline, more like the history book of how the human race became what it is in the plot. The story is titled Next Step--, and is a dystopia novel set in what would roughly be 2200 CE. The world goes to the metaphoric hell in a handbasket, and a new structure emerges with the recovery. Part of that structure is an emphasis on faith and religion-- a monotheistic that encourages a strict class setup with equal segregation (sounds like an oxymoron, I know) where people are taught to fit into a specific steorotype and are considered pre-destined to fill a particular role.

         The Ensoulment rose up in the middle of what is now Area IV, after the section had an economic plunge. The people were tired, poor, and there were uprisings between neighbors and co-workers in attempts to achieve the best for everyone. But no one could agree on what was right and what was wrong. Police had to separate the people, and each put one restraining order on another, and another, and it continued to spread throughout the Area. The other Areas began to suffer as well. People were feuding over every single detail, who worked where, who taught whom, and who worshipped what. The people began to drift apart from those with different backgrounds. Wars threatened, and the government was forced to maintain order. Chaos was erupting, and people did not know what to do to return to the ways of peace.

Marcus Doriano, and elderly man of Area IV, was a member of an unguarded, false faith. One night, his inner self awoke, and he was given the gift of speech by the true divine being, one who could only be called “Deity”. Doriano began to speak to his fellow man, and his fellow man alone. He taught them how all people may be equal, but the animals within will always seek to overcome the others. In order to be sure they will achieve their greatest goals, his group must stay within itself. They will act as One, and become One. Doriano’s group, who he called the Milanis, achieved greatness in their community

“My family,” his cry began, “I have missed you. Our world has been so obsessed with mixing and merging, it has lost the sense of history. We became an “all-or-nothing” structure. Our origins were either completely accepted, or completely suppressed. Naturally, we would choose the former. But the moment we began to praise our ideals, we were bashed for holding a prejudice or a self-righteous agenda. As we could not express discomfort with the lives of others, we began to feud within ourselves. We no longer had a solid goal, a firm stand point, or a shared philosophy. How can we remember the days when we were all brethren? How can we recall the time when we actually were a family?

“Hear me, patriots! I call upon you as a member of your family! I call on you to remember who you are, who you once were, and notice who you will be if this world progresses in such a manner. I now encourage you to learn of who you can be. Who we can all be!

“I was asked in a dream- if you could save one loved one or five strangers, who would you save? I instantly chose my one loved one. However, I was attacked by a rush of guilt. Can I consider myself that important? After all, those five strangers have loved ones too. They have spouses, friends, children, and co-workers, all of which rely on those people. Who am I to deny those citizens their families? I then found myself in a room of fire, and saw two locked glass doors: one with my loved one, and the other with those five strangers. The doors were too heavy to break with my body, and there was nothing but a ceramic pole at my disposal. A voice called out to me-

“'That pole will break through the glass. However, it too shall be shattered. You must decide who you can help. But remember, if you delay for too long, you shall also succumb to the fire.'

“It tore me in two. My heart and my brain were at war. While I feared the selfishness of choosing my friend, would it not be traitorous to abandon my kin? If one of the others was in my place, would he not save his wife before the wife of another? But how could I live with myself by allowing a child to lose his mother and father? Still, would I be able to comfort the child I’ve known since his infancy if I allow his father to die, all while I try to hide my own despair? I closed my eyes, cried out with the agony of guilt, and swung the ceramic pole into my kin’s glass door.

“That instant, the fire disappeared, along with the bodies of all those around me. I collapsed to my knees and wept, my guilt overcoming the relief of saving my dear friend’s life. Was it worth it? Did I do something wrong? It felt as if the fire became internal, and I was burning for someone, something, to offer any resemblance of comfort. Fortunately, my wish came true. The voice which had challenged me spoke. This time its tone was filled with a kindness I had not heard for many years.

“’My son,’ it began, ‘you have no reason to hold fear for these decisions. Regardless of your choice, you will feel both respect and resentment. You should not feel selfish when you are protecting your own life, when you are allowing your natural bond with family to take over. It is what all creatures I know will do. If a bear had to feed either its cub or a fox pup, it would feed its fellow bear.’ The voice paused, and a gentle breeze arose to brush away my tears. For a moment, I would swear I felt a thumb ushering a soothing caress across my cheek.

“’Now, this is not to say you should not be aware of another. You would offer your regrets to those who lost someone. You would have helped them if only there had been a second pole. The bear would grant the fox any meat it can. If a wildcat invaded the forest to stage an attack on the pup, the bear would defend it with its own cub. But once again, it will always put its own family first.’

“And with that, the breeze offered one last caress, and the voice left with the wind. I had been holding my breath unaware; I released it with a heavy sigh. Though part of me mourned for the pain of the strangers—most of my heart held ease while my mind was mind clear. Something had awoken inside me; I no longer had the fear of guilt. I finally knew that my priority was to you, those who share my blood and flesh.” It is recorded how Doriano flung his arms towards the sky, threw his head back, and shouted out with an ecstasy powerful enough to impassion anyone who was exposed to it

“With that said, I invite you to join me. Perhaps, if we can ever achieve our goals and repair our world, we can help repair that of others."
Marcus Doriano’s arms fell as his body drooped. He was clearly drained after sharing his philosophy with his kin. The audience held their silence; they were entranced by the sermon shared. He people gradually awoke from the trance, and the response ignited with cheers.

That lecture was the beginning of humanity’s next era, as Doriano travelled the four Areas to spread the new-found culture that resulted from Deity’s true wish.