Chapter 459 The 3%
Soon, the silent majority’s patience was rewarded as the imperial government released a notification on all devices informing the citizens that the emperor would be releasing a statement shortly. Included in the notification was a link that people could follow if they wanted to watch the announcement; everyone would be free to decide whether they wanted to see it or not.
In a matter of seconds, more than a billion people followed the link to watch the announcement. This would be the third time the emperor had made a public appearance, and the previous two raised mixed emotions in the citizens. In his first public appearance as the emperor, he had announced the formation of the empire, and in his second, it was a response to the recent attacks. Thus, people were curious whether this would be more bad news, or simply some matters of administrivia, but considering the situation, it was more likely to be bad news.
“Citizens of the Terran Empire, We come bearing good news.”
A collective sigh of relief escaped the mouths of everyone watching the announcement.
“Following the attacks that took place a few days ago came a time of peace and recovery. We have been preparing a ceremony to mourn the fallen innocents that lost their lives in the cowardly terrorist attacks, and while We were working on that, it seems something else happened to us all. We understand your fear, but let Us reassure you, this is a good thing. What is happening now is no attack, nor is it a tragedy. In fact, it’s the opposite—though frightening, what those children are undergoing is a blessing.”
……
@pacw64000: [I think the emperor’s cracked from the stress already, hbu?]
@king_Abyss: [How the fuck is millions of people falling into comas something to celebrate? Is he really that disconnected from us normal people’s lives??]
@pacw64000: [@king_Abyss I know, right? I think the attacks broke him...]
@marwaneami: [@pacw64000 @king_Abyss Damn and I thought he’d be a good and smart emperor, but I think you guys are right. He’s gone mental from the stress and forgotten how it feels to be a normal person]
Comments like those were flooding Pangea, along with many others. But the announcement continued, the only change being that the emperor had a subtle smile on his face as he briefly scanned the comments flitting past his viewscreen.
…...
Their concerns didn’t remain unanswered for long, as Aron soon continued his announcement. “No, make no mistake. We can say with absolute certainty that those ‘unfortunate’ people who fell into comas and are now laying in medical pods are absolutely blessed individuals. Upon diagnosing their situation, Our technicians made a fascinating discovery—the DNA of those affected by today’s events are undergoing changes. It’s an evolutionary leap caused by a certain particle in the atmosphere reaching a certain density.”
Small bluish-gold specks began appearing around Aron, their concentration growing more and more thick around him.
“This is a visualization of those unseen particles that triggered the evolution in those lucky children. As for why We consider it a blessing, that’s because when they wake up, they’ll be... different. Better, stronger, even. As for how those changes will be expressed and manifested, that will require further research into the changes.
“As for why they fainted, it’s because the evolutionary process is occurring at a vastly accelerated rate. Cells are mutating, dividing, and mutating again all throughout the body. The process is incredibly painful, as well as draining in terms of the nutrients required to support the regeneration. Consider it a price to pay for great power, if you will.” Aron snapped his fingers and the simulated mana particles surrounding him disappeared.
“Most of you were probably thankful that you weren’t among the three percent that collapsed. You probably thought you were escaping a calamity. But now you know that, instead of escaping a calamity, you were dodging a blessing. And if you are indeed one of those people, We can assure you that you don’t need to worry.”
The camera pulled back from Aron and a representation of the world appeared, but it showed sparkling bluish-gold glints all over it. Then, much like a time lapse video, the glimmering specks began multiplying faster and faster, until the entire planet glowed a brilliant hue.
“What you’re seeing behind Us is a simulation of the spread of the evolutionary particles throughout the atmosphere. Our researchers told Us that the spread is increasing in speed and will soon become a self-sustaining reaction that increases on a logarithmic scale. There will be a rapid increase in density at first, then it will taper off as the particles reach their ideal saturation. The current prevailing theory is that the reason only adolescents have received the blessing so far is because their bodies are already undergoing rapid changes, including in their genes. Thus, the density required for them to begin their evolution is far lower than it would be for those whose genes have been fixed for a long time. But as the density increases, more and more people of all ages will begin undergoing the same evolutionary process that Our children are experiencing today.
“But some people are outliers. We don’t yet understand everything about this newly discovered particle, so We can’t explain why some people who are long past the age of pubescence have had their evolutions triggered. But rest assured, they are indeed outliers, and everyone will get their opportunity to evolve as the particle density required to trigger your evolutions is reached,” Aron explained.
“We call upon all people of the world to help your neighbors right now. If any of you see this—” he waved his hand and a recording of someone beginning their awakening process played on the screen behind him, though there was no sound on the video, “—contact your local emergency response service or get in touch with the imperial representatives in the simulation. We are available at all times for assistance, and those receiving the blessing will require immediate aid. Our medical pods are capable of inducing a temporary coma in the patients within them, as well as providing all the nutrients their bodies will require to safely undergo the rapid evolutionary process,” Aron warned, exhorting people not to hide their friends or family members’ awakening from the public, as they’ll likely die during the process if they went through it unaided.
“On a more unpleasant note, with the emergence of new... what we call ‘superpowers’ comes the possibility of chaos and discrimination between the haves and have-nots. Let Us stress right now that those with superpowers are in no way superior to those without. And to address the situation before it grows uncontrollable, We will be forming a new agency responsible for registering and rating the superpowers of the newly evolved humans, as well as enforcing imperial law among them. We will also be establishing special schools specifically for researching the new superpowers and teaching people to control them once they have them. That way, the harm they inadvertently cause due to losing control will be minimized.”
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