A principle of Stealth: The System, the Matrix is most afraid of the ones who can survive and thrive without it. I feel the need to remember characters who exited the Matrix. They inspire, offer the ways out, even if they are fictional. I think the world needs them now more than ever.
Invisible Man, Fearless Warrior, Wandering Scholar, His Own Secret Agent, Serial Unfollower, Meditative Knight, Stalker of the Zone, Underground Millionaire, Medicine Mage, Defiant Entrepreneur, Ageless Sage, Master of Self, Heart of the Good Company, Rebel Princess, Pathfinder, Mercenary Miracle Worker, King in Exile…
Together, or as aspects of one, they can win.
About some of them:
First, True Rebel Princess. She can’t be bought by an offer of a castle. She won’t settle. Once a rebel, always a rebel. Mighty empires take away freedom, growing again and again from the tiny seeds of fear. She will recognize and fight them, forever and ever.
2. King in Exile. Thinking of Captain Nemo, Senator Organa or Robin Hood. A hero who used to have power within the System but because of injustices had to go underground. He knows the System, is well educated, knows how to get resources, has good leadership skills. Captain Nemo managed to build his super submarine by ordering its parts all over the world and assembling them in secret on a remote island. His crew was very international too, united by their rejection of the order of things in the world.
3. Light Traveler. She doesn’t have much to carry with her, only her cloak and a rucksack. No junk, no unbreakable chains holding her back from moving. Her treasures are kept in her heart, in the hearts of her friends, as her skills, and, possibly, in some crypto wallet. System is too slow and heavy to follow her. She leaves no trace while recognising signs and traces of whatever she is interested in. Thinking about Strider going through desolate wild lands. Does he even have a home? But he has a strong network of friends: other rangers, elves and mages.
4. Mercenary Miracle Worker. He is available for hire with the hope to get paid but his conscience is clear. Not a pretentious knight, but someone doing his job well and known for it. Many don’t like a mysterious stranger, but he doesn’t care. He is not expecting love. If people are kind to him it comes as an unexpected gift. Thinking of characters like the Witcher and the Mandalorian. Stay Free.
5. Stalker of the Zone. Inspired by Stalker from the 1984 film by Andrei Tarkovsky. Risking his life he guides other people to a strange, dangerous and magical place. An activity, of course strictly forbidden by government. He has been imprisoned, seen friends dying, but he is still going where he wants, to where his real country is. Every step could be deadly in the Zone, but what is an illusion of safety, security of an ordinary life comparing to an adventure of looking into the depths of one’s own soul, other people’s souls and the mysteries of the universe? Autorities can’t stop him because he is not of their world, he knows his craft, and his heart is pure.
6. Pathfinder. He has a special wisdom, special senses, he is at home within the elements, in deserts, forest, seas, mountains and ice fields. That’s because he is a friend of all the civilizations who were before, he knows their ways, he adopted their knowledge without prejudice and himself become an adopted child of the ancient ones. He can track animals, read the weather, make a shelter, weapons and a fire. He knows medicinal herbs and perhaps some magic too. Old wisdom lives within him. The System cannot see him because it became oblivious to the ancient ways. Its supporters are too proud of modernity to imagine that a human being can survive alone in Nature without the latest technology. Thinking about Natty Bumppo from the Leatherstocking Tales and, again, Aragorn from the Lord of the Rings.
7. Realist. She knows who she is as much as it is humanly possible. She is neither worshipping herself nor being irrationally humble. She doesn’t feels guilty or proud of things she hasn’t done herself, so the illusions and traps of ancestral guilt or ancestral pride (also called nationalism) are powerless against her. She takes responsibility for what she has done, not blaming others for her troubles or failures. She is honest about her mistakes and knows how to apologise when she is wrong. That’s why she’s independent and free.
8. Healer listens first to his (or her) body and then to many wise healers of his choice and compares their advice. He knows what health really is, and not from any greedy pill sellers. He is mostly his own Medicine Man. He can think and judge independently what is best for him, based both on ancient and modern practices. He knows for sure that he doesn’t really need to take 90 potions every day and wear ten 24/7 monitoring devices to be in good shape. He moves a lot and naturally, he eats real good food and can survive a long time without anything if necessary, he gets exposed to plenty of sunshine, heat, cold, water, wind, mud, germs. He knows good people who also can help but he doesn’t trust in the System. He is free from government control, industrialised healthcare and Big Pharma because he understands that his well being is first and foremost his own responsibility. He also knows that this is not his first or his last life and because of this doesn’t fret too much.
9. Apostatenaut. She is a serial unfollower. She picks and chooses, mixes and matches ideas from schools, thinkers, parties, periods, places. She doesn’t belong to one single bubble with their inevitable prejudices and “mass formation psychosisess”… The thing is that in revolutions, rebellions, conflicts and calamities there is often more than just one idea keeping people blind, agitated, stubborn, ready to be at each other’s throats. It is not enough just to be in opposition, one needs to be able to hover above the whole battlefield. Be truly above all that, to see and to understand all sides. Without losing compassion. The System cannot predict what she will think and do next, and cannot get hold of her with propaganda, fear mongering, sticks or carrots. That’s why she is so free.
10. The Ghost. People do many evils and self betrayals while obeying tyrants. And they are doing this because of fear of death. The Ghost knows that he already died many times, ascending from his body, was born many times and will die again. This is not any religious belief but a simple observation. Strange reality of life, continued recycling of everything in nature, including human consciousness itself. The System cannot infuse him with fear, hatred, greed, or feeling of superiority, and therefore cannot control him. The Ghost steps lightly, stays open and curious, always a wanderer on a journey without any beginning or end in sight and all the people for him are his fellow travellers. Be like a ghost.
Stay free.
