Standing in front of his class, Marcus took a few minutes to call attendance for his evening class. It was half past five, and all eight of his expected students were there and accounted for. His evening class consisted mostly of older students, between the ages of ten and fifteen. In the morning he taught younger students, teaching them all the things grade school students were expected to learn. By the time they graduated, he hoped all of his students would have a middle-school education, and extensive knowledge of at least one subject. At least then they would have the brains to thrive and hopefully bring light into this new, dark world.

"Jacobs, Spencer," Williams called out, smiling fondly at the name. The preteen raised his hand and gave a soft 'Here' before the older man continued down his short list. That boy, he thought to himself, was going to be a prodigy. Already Spencer had caught up to his senior students, and he was excelling in mathematics and mechanics. Teaching him was difficult but rewarding, as he seemed to eat up any information with a voracious appetite. Although Marcus held all of his students close to his heart, Jacobs was one that he hoped would grow to replace him. Both as a leader, and as a teacher. 

Smiling, Marcus began speaking to his class. "Good evening class. Today, we're going to be studying history for our first period." A number of groans were heard, the young men and women not relishing in the opportunity. "Hey, hey! I think you all will be interested in today's lesson; Today, we will be learning about what was once called 'The Digital Era'. To give you an idea of when this era of time took place, it all occurred recently. More specifically, it was the time before the Fall." That, it seemed, got the attention of his students. Smirking, he continued. "For second period, we will be continuing our study on plant sciences." Groans.

---

"Now, before we continue, are there any questions about what we've covered so far?" asked Williams. There was a moment of silence, before one of his students raised their hand. "Yes, Erica?"

"Mister Williams, you've told us a lot about what happened before the Fall. We've read a lot about what happened before the Fall.. But what happened DURING the Fall? There was a war, but we never got beyond that..," The girl asked. Marcus took a moment to gather his thoughts.

"The Fall.. Was a war. A number of nations, or large of millions of people, fought against one another. There were two real sides to this war, although there were also numerous smaller ones participating. Even now some take sides, debating on which side of the conflict was justified, judging the war entirely on hearsay and stories from those who were there. To this day some shed blood in the name of these old nations and alliances. I couldn't say which side was right or wrong, because in my mind, they were both wrong. The Fall started over a small event, which escalated into a war. Millions died and millions more suffered, before one side decided to end it. They acted with intense force, and when the other side retaliated, things turned into what they are today. Nuclear missiles, weapons of mass destruction, were launched. Hundreds of them. They wiped out tens of millions in hours, before their after effects destroyed our once beautiful world," Williams lectured, his students paying close attention, Jacobs the only one taking notes.

"Listen carefully, students. I know many of you groan when I announce we're going to be studying history. However, we do not learn the subject for nothing. A philosopher of the old world once stated, 'Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.' Take these words to heart; Our forefathers studied history, yet did not learn a thing!" the elder men exclaimed. "They spent years of their lives learning about the past, and yet did not learn a single lesson from it! Those who came before made many mistakes, each more crucial than the last. Another philosopher once stated that, 'We learn from history that we do not learn from history.' Do not make the same mistakes as our predecessors. Learn from history. Remember that violence begets violence, and that once we throw aside our fellow man, we too are thrown aside. We stand together, or alone, fall apart. That is what Rampart stands for; We are a bulwark of cooperation and peace in a violent world. Remember that, my students. Stand for peace, above all."

The classroom was quiet, all of the students taking in the words from their teacher. Marcus simply stood there, catching his breath and thinking over his own words. Even Jacobs had stopped taking notes, staring intently at his teacher. The silence stretched, and eventually became too painful for the teacher to bear. "Are there any other questions, before me move on to plant sciences?" Marcus asked. He was met with silence. "Very well, all of you grab a plant science book from the back shelf, and turn to chapter nine.."