UnderSouled

In the heart of New Haven, where the clamor of machinery echoes through the streets and the glow of soul-powered lanterns illuminates the bustling thoroughfares, lies the world of the Mids. Here, amidst the towering edifices of the Highs and the sprawling tenements of the Lows, I, Alex, find myself navigating the intricate web of society that defines our existence.

As a Mid, I am neither at the zenith of power like the Highs nor relegated to the depths of despair like the Lows. We Mids occupy the precarious middle ground, striving to carve out a semblance of stability and prosperity in a world fraught with inequality and uncertainty.

From the moment we are born, we are assigned our place in the social hierarchy based on the extent of our soul's reach and the strength it wields. For some, like the Highs, whose souls extend meters beyond their bodies, power and privilege come effortlessly, their every whim catered to by the machinery that surrounds us.

But for us Mids, whose souls reach only a fraction of that distance, life is a constant struggle against the forces that seek to keep us in our place. We toil away in the factories and fields, our labor fueling the engines of progress that drive our society forward, yet reaping only a fraction of the rewards that it bestows upon the privileged few.

And then there are the Lows, whose souls barely extend beyond their bodies, consigned to a life of poverty and hardship that knows no end. They are the forgotten ones, the invisible masses upon whose backs the foundations of our society are built, yet whose voices are seldom heard amidst the cacophony of progress.But amidst the rigid hierarchy that dictates our lives, there are whispers of change on the wind, murmurs of discontent that grow louder with each passing day. For within each of us lies the potential to defy the constraints of our birth and forge our own destiny, to rise above the limitations imposed upon us and grasp hold of a future that is truly our own.