Quoted By:
You have decided to make your speech on the <span class="mu-i"><span class="mu-s">Rewards of Obedience</span></span>. After the brutal ideological purges and genocides of your predecessor, the appearance of the Death Mask has hit deep within the Jaxtian spirit and soul. All crime and disobedience, even self-reported “Thoughtcrime”, has been at an all time low. Anti-social behaviors are almost nonexistent in the population. In many ways, the leash has loosened since those years, but the ones within have been too scared to explore the newfound slack from intergenerational trauma.
First is the ceremony. The coronation, the anthem, the bowing. It's all quite exciting, but this is the first time you've experienced this from this angle- being pledged to, instead of pledging. One of only a handful of billions upon billions who will ever see the Day of Obedience from this angle is both an honor and a rush. But you're going to have to do this every year for the rest of your life...? You just hope it doesn't get too boring. But you're prepared for all the boredom of rulership. After all, that's what you've trained for. Just like public speaking.
<span class="mu-b">”...It is time now, my dear subjects, to enjoy this newfound stability. The Hegemony promises you a meaningful career, which it has delivered. The Hegemony has promised land and resources for its people, which it has delivered. Your Supreme Ruler has given all you could ever need- but there is one thing I cannot order you to do in good conscious- and that is be a people. Not merely a collection of assets, but to create art and culture that is the thriving, living soul of a nation. Go forth and breath. This is my command to you.”</span>
<span class="mu-s">Year 41 of the Resurrection Era</span>
In the months following the Day of Obedience, a great number of new artists and athletes begin careers expanding the cultural palette and milieu of the Hegemony. But a more immediate effect is the branching out of existing art and entertainment- kept in lockstep and painted-by-numbers according to bureaucratic suggestion and societal browbeating- very little experimentation and spirit even in state-approved propaganda, simply due to the culture of obedience and fear following the previous regime. This breath of fresh air has lead to many new and interesting growths of development; leading to a general increase in happiness. If there are any other benefits to this decision, they have yet to reveal themselves...
