Xeroscopus blinked. Watery forms began to take shape.
“Xeroscopus Reth?” He heard a voice ask.
“Yes.” He replied. A sudden aura of warmth and kindness filled his being.
“Welcome.” The voice chimed.
Xeroscopus blinked again. One of the shapes took on a human-like form. Taller than most humans, perhaps, and the eyes seemed overly large, and the clothing laughably simple… But still human-like.
“Who are you?” He asked.
The figure smiled, and once more Xeroscopus felt the same warmth filling him.
“I am Ye-er.” He said. “Tell me, you froze yourself that you may see the future?”
“I did.” Xeroscopus confirmed.
“Why?”
He shrugged. “It made financial sense. I invested my fortune, then figured I’d freeze myself for fifty years.”
“Ah… Fifty years. Yes.”
Upon hearing the being’s uncomfortable tone, Xeroscopus felt his veins run cold. “Don’t tell me it’s been longer. Christ, did a whole century go by? They warned me that sometimes the facility loses-” Panic was beginning to overtake him, but a small movement from Ye-er caused a heavy feeling of calm to envelope him. He took a deep breath.
“It will be a surprise to you, perhaps. What year did you go into stasis?”
“2272. They said my investments would only take fifty years to appreciate by-“
But Ye-er moved again, and once more Xeroscopus fell silent. He took another steadying breath. He felt strangely calm in Ye-er’s presence.
“2272. AD, no doubt?”
Xeroscopus gave a weak nod.
“Ah, well, we no longer use that convention, but if we did, the year would probably be somewhere around 47,800.
Xeroscopus laughed.
He saw Ye-er’s expression.
The laughter stopped.
“You… Can’t be serious.”
“For tens of thousands of years you’ve been dead, but because you preserved yourself, your soul has not been able to ascend. That means you have not been able to reincarnate.”
“Tens of thousands…” Xeroscopus slumped to the floor as the emotional reality settled upon him.
“Yours is a soul that is still young. That means you have many lives ahead of you.”
“Everything I ever was… All my money and reputation… My condos… My mansion… Gone…”
“That’s exactly what I’m talking about.” Ye-er smiled. “You are so spiritually youthful. It’s not your friends and family you focus on, but rather your own ego. This is wonderful.”
Xeroscopus looked up at Ye-er. “What are you yammering about?!” He sputtered. “What’s all this talk of souls and ego? Can’t you see I’ve been ruined?”
He was about to sink into a full-blown panic, but Ye-er gave him a slight nod and smile, and the negativity instantly dissipated. Xeroscopus blinked, and though he didn’t rise to his feet, he fixed his posture and became more attentive.
“You must understand that humanity has grown quite old.” Ye-er explained. “Rather, humanity as you knew it has grown old. We have all lived many lives, died, reincarnated, and learned the spiritual lessons required of us. Most of the souls you would have known in your time have already moved on to different, higher-dimensional planes, where their learning can continue. This is the natural order of things, of course, but it means that there are far fewer souls whose development allows them to incarnate as humans, and without souls, humans have become an endangered species.”
“So, what, we’re dying out?” Xeroscopus asked glumly. “And you thought it a good idea to revive me so I can suffer?”
“No.” Ye-er said, allowing his tranquil aura to continue giving Xeroscopus calm thoughts. “I thought it a good idea to revive you so you can maintain the species.”
“Why? If we’re all dying out, it sounds like you’re prolonging the inevitable.”
“There is a large wave of less developed souls.” Ye-er explained. “They are not quite ready to be human, but they will grow, and someday they will benefit greatly from the human experience. Until then, it is prudent we ensure humans continue existing.”
“Okay, so I’m here. What do you want me to do?”
“There are small tribes out there.” Ye-er said, beckoning in a general outward direction. “Men and women, and even children. They live agrarian lives on a land that has returned to a primal state. Live, die, reincarnate, and learn. I want you to join one of these communities, find a wife, have children. I want you to find happiness. I want you to reach a ripe-old age, then I want you to return and repeat it all over again.”
“It’s just a lot to take in… I mean, I used to be rich! I had a mansion! A beautiful mansion! People respected me!”
“You’ll have a house, and as you become known to your community, should your actions allow, you’ll be respected once more. As for wealth, perhaps this second chance at life will teach you what true riches look like. If not… Well, there’s always next time.”