Lotus

Prologue Three: Toil

Toil.

Havoc, destruction, chaos... and toil. From the dawn of humanity's first steps, homo-sapiens dominated over the Earth, their profundity and cognition surmounting all other creatures that roamed the world. Mankind lingered; each step indicative of advancement, each ember of curiosity soaring their minds as an incentive to grow. Their intelligence was the staple of their insurmountable abilities, the realm of reasoning their flame within the darkness, as no muscle nor race could carry them in the wilderness of such a wicked world.

In a world structured of survival, instinct was the driving force behind every action, simple urges, and innate wiring being the fundamental property that defined one's ability to flourish, and nothing more. An animal's insatiable desire to hunt, intrinsically succumbing to their ignorance of morality and sinking their teeth into the flesh of their victims, juxtaposed by the life of serenity donned by few, creature's avoidant of conflict and sorrow, only to be preyed upon by the strong. Humanity, in the end, stood in the middle; yet their defiant factor maneuvered the disparity in physicality, as one's wit and sense were the cardinal assets to holster their shield and plunge their sword into such ruthlessness.

That intellectual comprehension extended far beyond meager tools, or the coalescence of sticks and rocks. Humanity stood at the peak for a reason. Their ability to grow, their ability to adapt, to advance no matter the adversity, no matter the situation. Humans redefined the laws the world was built off of, they defied the linearity of the system. Rather than moving through the filter of pure instinct, they maneuvered with reasoning, perception, with comprehension. They recognized the patterns of their prey and thrived through the luxury of connection established by the mutuality of understanding; the lack of threat posed by one another. Rather than listening to the heart, they listened to the mind.

...Yet, in the end, there was a stark difference in 'listening', and 'obeying'.

Whilst humans were naturally intelligent, adaptive, and flourishing creatures, prospering in the luxury of connection, the natural jurisdiction of all things wasn't perturbed by their presence, never once was it waned by their transcendence to the apex of the order.

Humans were wired to be selfish.

In a neither careless nor caring world, one predominant rule remained true. Every creature, every being, every individual was defined by their wiring. Their natural aptitude, a disposition honed by their inherent existence within reality, that dictated their position within nature. Whilst humans were blessed with understanding, with cognition beyond all others, they were cursed with knowledge, forever bound to the iniquity that intelligence comes with. Ignorance was bliss, and those who adhered to instinct forever remained within its solace. Yet, humanity fell deeper than that.

The darkest depths that consumed them; a horror that stimulated that very wiring. An insatiable hunger for growth, for power beyond what they have already. Humans were never satisfied, their rule over all other species purely wasn't enough. Their advancements from tools to pure weaponry weren't enough. Their architecture from rudimentary wooden shacks to buildings of concrete wasn't enough. That desire perpetually festering within every human's soul forces that paradigm, defining their ambitions, and leading to the understanding of something... grander.

Superstitions,  abstract concepts such as the "SOUL" or "BEING" weren't unfamiliar to humanity. Something beyond their physiological form, the truest extensions of themselves that made up just who were at their very core. These ideas were chalked up to mere myths, ideas that held little merit when in the discussion of reality, yet as humanity continued to push the heights of their understanding, they discovered it.

The contours of a Soul.

Turmoil was ubiquitous within humanity. The most rudimentary characteristics of humans were something casually overlooked by the world as they continued to flourish, qualmless disregard for the quarrel that extended from those of their own kind. Humans are innately selfish. Almost every mind that was exposed to the neither callous nor caring world was quick to understand its predominant principle. In this world, it's kill or be killed, trust was a dubious virtue, only grounded in the merit of strength and the solace of superiority, nothing more. "Right", "Wrong", they were all trifling; mere excuses to apply order to things, elements clung to desperately to elude the terror that truth brought.

Yet, when the intricacies of the Soul were finally peered into, something much more abstract came to light. A fundamental force imbued into their beings, able to be honed and drawn from their vessels. The world shifted. The ubiquitous erudition of their world was abandoned, the structure of PRISM came to light. The facet of what was tied to everything, fundamentals that were malleable to their abstract existences.

The world was divided. Those in imperium attempted to subjugate such ineffability, aiming to dominate any soul that managed to grasp the ungraspable.

Witnessing the mystical arts revealed to them, the discovery thought to bring revolution was quick to reveal beyond its mask, leaving only the surging iniquity that made up their Souls to act. Wielding such potent abilities and striving for the depths of knowledge that the divided factions each seemed to possess only fueled the flame of war, spiraling humans into the roots of their truest selves.

War quickly broke out, humanity lashing against each other, their greatest and only enemy being themselves. The once blooming civilization, prospering through the compliments of one another, built off of the solace of understanding how the world worked, fell into a never-ending quarrel. Endless conflict engulfed the races stifling the most determined and capable of hearts. Humans were quick to utilize the very arts that they had just grabbed hold of, and those within the position of authority only continued to orchestrate and instigate the battles, much to the dismay of its population, continuing to wage battles with intensity so potent it was palpable. No matter the efforts, execution, or scheme, the tides of war never faltered. Obstinacy clouded the minds of power, preponderance persevering as a variable bent to their whim. Justice–an already frivolous, meager virtue utilized by those who refused to fathom the law of nature– was a concept that faltered under the dim light of those of the wicked, with imperium over those rendered defenseless resting in the palm of those of purest to themselves. Countless brave souls were subjected to the purgatory of the battlefield, the very fate of the populace was strung like puppets.

Variables that only escalated the heat of conflict slowly began to present themselves. Their prevalence proved to be hindrances to their victory, once encapsulated within their grasp now just barely out of reach. With the new insurmountable obstacle, the battle was forced beyond the dilapidated warzone that was once a serene town. This led to humanity creating individual factions, dividing themselves into each cardinal direction: North, South, East, and West. Even in the face of calamity and apocalypse derived from the greed of humanity, each faction managed to flourish in at least something, resources being poured into what those of higher authority thought may be the key to prosperity. Despite how run down everything was, all four of the factions managed to scavenge some ray of hope amongst the darkness; some sort of guiding light to bring them to the goal they all both unilaterally and laterally shared.

The light that protruded the darkness for some may be science, a few astute and capable minds able to find a way to achieve control over what orchestrated this mess in the first place. Some depict it as what's presented at face value: war. Through brute force and combative abilities, they could surmount the endless obstacles plastered amongst the tracks. For others, it was peace. To the few ignorant minds, they genuinely believed that there was a flame to reignite. A fire of happiness, a time where living in harmony was possible, to ward off the fangs of battle burrowed into their core. But, deep down, everyone knew that those foreign times had come to an end. Dictators, corrupted minds, tyrants, all tainted by and tainting the lands around them. The kindle of hope held with such tenacity was just a fantasy. A fiction, one that they urged and prayed to come true. Yet, it was obvious: whatever God was out there... they weren't listening. Not to their prayers, at least.