The Good and the Bad Sides

The representative color of Atma, the Shape of Balance, was a deep blue reminiscent of the oceans.

The ebb and flow of its waves, its highs and lows, formed an image now associated with balance.

Far from being a straight line, there are good and bad sides to everything: a situation, a new technology, life itself.

Every thing holds pleasant moments and others that are more difficult.

Raising a child in absolute comfort distances them from the reality of those who are less fortunate, and from the efforts they must make simply to survive.

On Esperia, the use of magic had improved the living conditions of the Espers, but at the cost of depleting the Aether, the life source of the planet, which had led to the destruction of nearly all of their ecosystem.

Some new technologies had gradually made dialogue impossible between Espers of different elements, until the breaking point that caused the war of Chaos.

Of course, these technologies had never been intended to create such a situation. But here again, a need for balance was essential: great possibilities imply great responsibilities.

And the Espers had not yet become aware of the need to develop inwardly as well, in order to adapt to the new realities of the world they had ultimately created.


Our latest tales

  • Toward Balance with Nature

    Toward Balance with Nature

    Since the end of the Chaos War, the Espers around the world were finally trying to find a path for their civilization that would lead them toward balance with nature. This balance had been lost for thousands of years, and had accelerated with each new revolution of their system. The use of magic had intensified…

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  • Sowing the Seeds of Awareness

    Sowing the Seeds of Awareness

    Each Esper saw the world in a different way. But the reality of the physical world in which they all lived was, indeed, shared by all. In this context, some Espers were more aware of their vision of the world and of how closely it reflected reality. Children, who were born without any knowledge, could…

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  • A Simple Speck Among the Stars

    A Simple Speck Among the Stars

    The Espers throughout the world had the unfortunate tendency to think of themselves as the center of the world. And with good reason, each one was truly the main character of their own story, so how could they be blamed for putting their choices or their own well-being and comfort first? But sometimes, or even…

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  • Reflecting on a Global Education

    Reflecting on a Global Education

    Before the Chaos War, Esperia had never been so divided over matters that, nevertheless, had previously been understood among the five elemental lands. Tensions were rising, trust was at its lowest, between the elements, but also within some of the lands themselves. Inequalities continued to grow between the winners of an exacerbated globalization and those…

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  • What Do We Really Need?

    What Do We Really Need?

    It was a question that often came up in the debates at the Great Library of Esperia, which, since the end of the Chaos War, had served Espers from all over the world as a place to exchange ideas, discuss, and try to find compromises on difficult issues. The Chaos War had indeed brought to…

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  • Investing Time Every Day

    Investing Time Every Day

    The civilization of the Espers before the Chaos War had gradually become accustomed to having everything done almost instantly. Waiting was becoming unbearable for many of them, and a long-term perspective seemed like nothing more than a vague memory of the past. Now that the StarDust was better understood, however, it seemed obvious that investing…

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  • Perceiving Reality

    Perceiving Reality

    The development of the civilization of the Espers, greatly accelerated by the use of magic for decades, had gradually distanced them from reality. The reality of a physical world with limited resources, shared by everyone. Some indeed believed that by blaming the other elemental regions, or by choosing not to get their own hands dirty…

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  • Choosing Is Difficult

    Choosing Is Difficult

    Faya, the Shape of Willpower and a great element of Fire, had chosen this title to lead a debate about taking responsibility and the choices each Esper had to make regarding it. Even though the end of the Chaos War had brought a brief moment of communion for all, with the StarDust appearing before everyone’s…

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