Evening Melody
As the body falls, new life emerges, the planet lives
Lay in rest these seventeen souls
May in Heaven they find their way to the Star above
Serve now your old home in death
Bring forth new life
The planet yet lives
Trapped in shadow deep within the core of the Envien Ecumenopolis, many layers deep, nature had been vanquished. Where once there had been lush forests and a deep biodiverse cave system, now resided massive structures of steel. The Encasing of Envis project at the beginning of the 41st century had vehement opposition, but no force could stop the march of progress. It would cause billions to live permanently in darkness, illuminated only by artificial light.
Envis no longer grew most of its own food, outsourcing the task to a host of nearby worlds and moons. This reduced the importation of fertiliser, increasing prices enormously, and causing most plantlife on the planet to slowly die off. In response, many religious and environmental groups would turn to a new, more sustainable form of fertiliser, deceased Humans. To better ease the transition between the living and fertiliser, an effective mourning ceremony, the Evening Melody was created.
The Evening Melody itself is a funeral rite that transcends religious affiliation, and is held with members of the local community, families, and friends in attendence. The ritual itself is fairly benign, a short speech, usually by a priest or in some cases noted environmentalists, and a brief moment of silence for the deceased. There are no hard rules, excluding the final line, which makes clear the great purpose behind the dead, "the planet yet lives". Generally a choir sings a short melody, from which the ritual gets its name.
Over the centuries, flora has gently returned to many areas where it was once thought extinct, pointing to the success of the Evening Melody. It has also become the funeral system for the Church of the Star, even outside of Envis, and greatly assisted in reducing religious tensions on the planet thanks to its shared usage. For brief periods the practice has been outlawed by Envien Planetary Governments as it was percieved as a growing cult, but popular opinion and the visual impact of plants and trees on Envis was enough to strike down these laws.
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