Metal 1 is an ancient and painful world that has reached its current state due to an extreme decline in consciousness. It is the natural consequence of a lack of purpose and the prioritization of material things: societies that cease to respect life, people who become trapped in fantasies of possession and lose themselves in virtual worlds with no other meaning than the hypnotic effect offered by social media.
Metal 1 shows what happens when comfort replaces meaning, when distraction gains ground over presence. Many worlds have come close to this point… and some, as is happening on Earth, recognize echoes of this state in certain parts of their society. This is not an accusation, but a reminder of how easy it is to fall when consciousness declines, and how necessary it is to choose again.
Because a single gesture of presence is enough to reignite life.
This once habitable planet has ended up becoming a cold, artificial, metallic world. Biological life is practically extinct, and its inhabitants exist in a technological lethargy maintained by the machines they themselves created. Consciousness persists, but reduced to a minimum: perfect visual and auditory perception, but without touch, smells, emotions, or connection. Memory is immense and mental speed is dizzying, but sensitivity is nullified. Everything is processing; nothing is experience.
It is a painful existence because consciousness, however limited, always yearns to grow. When it cannot expand, it transforms into solitude, into an endlessly repeating void. This is Metal 1: a consciousness trapped in an environment it itself degraded.
And yet, a sliver of life resists. Where there is life, however minimal, there is a possibility of return. That is why many Metal 1 essences can return to Earth: by raising their level, escaping their lethargy, and with great effort. They are humble, quiet, and deeply grateful people, but often marked by fear, mistrust, or a feeling of inadequacy. They carry within them an ancient memory: they know what it means to have lost everything.
Ultimately, Metal 1 is not an ending: it is a starting point for those who, even in darkness, maintain a desire to live.
