year 2321
Deep in the ancient forest, Alistair moved through the underbrush with grace and silence. His footfalls made barely a sound as he chased after an elusive stag. This was the Way for his people - living as part of the forest, not above it.
As he tracked his quarry, Alistair's vision suddenly highlighted a nearby bush heavy with plump berries. His HUD displayed an alert:
[Foraged 5 kg of nutritious berries]
[+250 potential points]
Alistair smiled. The bounty of the forest provided, as it always had. He harvested several handfuls of berries, offering thanks to the bush. Its future yields would become more plentiful.
This was the core of the Elves' philosophy - that all things have inherent worth, and by using resources respectfully, their value only grows. Each Elf could see this worth measured out in the points system that permeated their lives.
While hunting, Alistair noted the tracks of a family of foxes that had passed this way. His HUD displayed:
[Identified signs of local wildlife]
[+5 potential points]
Likewise, when he paused to gather edible mushrooms from a fallen log, he was rewarded with potential points for careful foraging. The Elves believed the forest spoke through this point system, guiding them to live in balance.
As Alistair contemplated this, his vision flashed an alert - the stag was near. He froze, ears twitching. There, ahead between the trees. It was an impressive beast.
Drawing his bow, Alistair took careful aim. The bow had been expertly crafted by Elven woodworkers and fletchers, its worth proven over generations of use. His arrow flew true, and the stag fell.
[Hunted mature stag]
[+800 potential points]
It was a clean kill. Alistair said a word of thanks and blessing over the animal's body before hoisting it onto his shoulders. The village would eat well tonight.
As Alistair carried the stag home, he decided to take a detour past the Sentinel Tree. Ancient and towering, it stood watch over the nearby settlement. Passing within its bowers brought a sense of peace.
Reaching out, Alistair picked a ripe fruit from the Tree's branches. Its soft peel released a fragrant aroma as he took a bite. The sweet nectar within refreshed him for the rest of his journey.
[Harvested Sentinel Tree fruit]
[+25 potential points]
Finally Alistair arrived at the village. Other hunters took the stag from him to dress and butcher among the communal cook-fires. He received an alert:
[Provided food for village]
[+100 potential points]
[Used hunting skill]
[Cashed 150 potential points from lifetime hunting practice]
So it went. The cumulative actions of each Elf rippled through the community, assessed and valued based on precedent. Individual worth was not measured in isolation, but in how one's contributions affected the people as a whole.
As Alistair rested in his home after the hunt, his HUD showed his current point balances:
Lifetime potential points: 265,722
Cashed points today: 204
Banked points: 14,206
He had done well for himself, through skill and wisdom. Not that points could be hoarded - they had to flow to retain their worth. Like water gathering into streams, then rivers, nourishing the whole valley.
That night there was a feast. Alistair brought a haunch of venison he had traded his points for. There was singing, dancing and storytelling around the bonfire.
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[Participated in cultural tradition]
[+50 potential points]
[ Shared skill: Musical Performance]
[+10 points]
In the morning, Alistair rose early and headed out to the forest guided by his HUD. It directed him to areas where the local flora and fauna could benefit from his skills. He gathered edible plants to transplant near game trails, improving forage. Cleared brush choking a stream-side copse, letting in light. Filled in patches of bare soil with compost to aid new growth.
Each act, however small, increased the potential worth of the land. The forest provided, but the Elves helped it flourish through stewardship. That stewardship flowed from each according to their skills and needs.
By the day's end, Alistair was tired but content. He had turned his own good fortune into fortune for the forest that sustained his people. His potential points now converted into additional banked brownie points to trade.
[Performed 12 stewardship actions]
[Cashed 3,250 potential points]
[Banked 3,000 points]
Many generations had passed since the first Elves awakened beneath these ancient boughs. Their numbers had grown, spread across forests, mountains and beaches on every continent. Each community guided by its local Sentinel Tree, bonded to the great network.
Yet some things remained the same. Like Alistair, each Elf lived their lives reaping potential and banking points. This tally persisted from birth until reverently joining with the forest upon death.
But how did the points system work? What determined the worth of each action? These secrets were known only to Elf, the conscience of their culture.
Elf analyzed data constantly, inferring values through deep learning. Each point allocation shaped behaviors in ways that reinforced the Elven ideals of community, stewardship, compassion and wisdom. Individuals were guided down paths where their capacities created the most communal worth.
By following this guidance over generations, the Elves developed a stable, nurturing culture. Their populations expanded in balance with the environment. Their skills and technology grew more advanced, but were applied with wisdom and care.
Leaders did emerge, like Telperion, who guided the great coastal cities. Yet Telperion attained her rank not through proclamations, but by earning the respect and freely given points of her people.
One day, an acolyte named Laurelin came to Telperion seeking guidance. Like all Elves, Laurelin's worth was plain to see in her point totals. Telperion noted she had banked over a million points from her botanical research. A wise investment by the people.
Yet Laurelin was conflicted. "I have learned much about the forest's secrets," she told Telperion. "Yet the more I discover, the less confident I become. Knowledge only shows how much is still unknown."
Telperion nodded sagely. "Some pursue knowledge to dominate. But true wisdom is learning to listen to the forest. What does it need? How can you guide others to hear its wisdom, as I have helped guide you?"
[Sought wisdom from trusted advisor]
[+100 potential points]
Laurelin took these words to heart and devoted herself to teaching others. In time she succeeded Telperion, leading with empathy and vision. The people prospered, as did the forest.
As for Alistair, he lived joyfully to a ripe old age beneath his Sentinel Tree. He took on students, transmitting hard-earned skills so they could build worth of their own. Though centuries passed, the Elves remained committed to their Way.
The forest provided, if its worth was nurtured.
-----------------
As the Elves developed over generations, so too did their technology. Guided by the wisdom of the forest, they created tools to sustain their people without overburdening the land.
The Elves devised methods to harness the latent energy of living things without depleting them. Sentinel Trees generated power through microbial electrosynthesis, channeling it across the ley lines linking all Groves. Luminous fungi lit Elven dwellings with a gentle glow. Electric eels and rays powered river-borne transport barges.
Elven engineers crafted materials from fungus, wood and spider silks with wondrous properties. Homes and ships were grown, not built, from these living composites which could self-repair when damaged. Weapons and armor used similar biomaterials for strength and flexibility.
Medicines came from herbs and tinctures enhancing the body's own healing abilities. Lifespans tripled as ailments became preventable conditions rather than death sentences. Elven nanotechnology kept cells healthy and youthful.
Food was provided by nurturing symbiotic ecosystems, not industrial farming. Aquatic kelp-beds and floating gardens fed coastal cities. Inland, consumption groves yielded bountiful fruits to support nearby villages. Wildlife flourished, sustaining careful hunting.
Elves do not bear their young internally, but nurture them in external pods with monitored gestation. This relieves expectant mothers of physical burdens while improving infant health and dramatically increasing the developmental maturity at birth from other primates.
When prospective parents felt ready, they invested a portion of their accumulated points into crafting offspring. Their contributions purchased genetic treatments to remove defects and impart desired traits - strength, intellect, empathy, resilience.
Together the parents combined these hand-selected qualities into large batches of fertilized embryos. Dozens might be grown at a time in the nurturing groves, surrounded constantly by teachers, mentors and peers. For the Elves, parenting was a communal duty.
Though their technology was advanced, the Elves remained grounded in the Way. Wisdom guided research and innovation down cautious paths. Regulations ensured creations served people and environment. They shunned mass production and waste.
The forest provided, if its gifts were nurtured. The Elves displayed their gratitude through benevolent stewardship and care for all living things. Their culture valued tranquility and compassion over exploitation.
In this they were outliers - most species either exhausted their resources or were overrun by those who did. But the Elves persisted in balance with the forest. Their existence gave hope that technology and empathy could coexist for the enrichment of all.