Title: The extinction
by Benoit | in writing, fiction
Walking down South Avenue. California. December 25th, National Holiday, labour arrested for one day. Year 2133...I was strolling down taking a breather from work, staring at the sky meaninglessly. You don't have much time anymore to look at the sky, besides the sky is all we've got left that we haven't destroyed. The sky, with dark shadows outlining the clouds of desolate'buildings, man made constructions covering most of it, overshadowing what lies over us, almost intentionally..almost'
There is one thing I love about human nature: their amazing ability to adapt and forget, adapt and forget, adapt and forget. They never realize what's going on before it suddenly hits them. Completely oblivious to casualty unless sudden, completely oblivious to destruction unless sudden, completely oblivious to death unless it's staring at them straight in the face'.Yes amazing really. They call each other foreigners and immigrants even though they're all in the same world, all the same species. Humanity was never destined to last'
'Good morning Jake,' I mumbled.
'Mornin' Morty,' he groaned.
I kept on walking down the road staring up at the 'Sky Scrapers' as we used to call them. Overshadowing the bit of nature we have left to look at. Trees were done for, couldn't withstand the pollution; we have artificial air purifiers in every city so that we can breathe. But who needs to breathe when there's nothing to breathe for, who needs to live when there's nothing to live for, who needs to die when there's nothing to die for. These are the questions I ask myself. Life, death all is meaningless, pointless not only to me but to everyone. I go to a canteen and hear discussions on what if we had stopped polluting 100 years ago, and they would continue discussing arguing with hopefulness and wishing in their eyes. But the truth was nothing was going to change and 'What if?' will never help. Like I said, humanity was destined to crumble into the wasteland we forged and rot in the pages of history.
Soon, very soon they'd all say, we would rest in peace; the planet would fight back and we would all die, and everyday the only reason people would keep going was to see that day see it and savour it when all humanity is extinct. But how I ask myself, how and why I ask myself why, why would anyone die when death isn't frightening or exciting or relieving. So many explanations to death all of them seem so fearsome, daunting dreadful or for someone who has lived long and learned much; exciting and relieving'But what happens when all emotions go, what happens when all willingness to live fades away. No matter how hard you try it doesn't matter, all hope is gone does anyone deserve to live? Does anyone deserve to die-relieving yourself from the hardships of daily life when there is no daily life? Do life and death switch place? All these questions have no real answer. All meaningless to pose yet curiosity fills the mind wondering, searching for answers'meaningless, useless answers.
The road is getting darker. It's 3pm. Humid, cold eerie atmosphere, people walking considerable distance from each other, heads down. Taking advantage of their 'holiday' knowing work is waiting tomorrow, knowing society will bring them back to their natural trail of life soon enough. All hoping for a day when extinction is inevitable and life no longer exists. Only death can cleanse such sins that we've committed'or is it just a way of escaping from them?
Stop at a café, buy a holographic News series, watching the news lady announcing the daily casualties and politics'obvious fake smile appears on her face, she begins to speak: 'I'm Sara Shentum and this is the news for today. 340 suicide casualties in Paris today. Mostly adolescents and newborn babies with their mothers. Gruesome pictures started flashing up on the screen of dead mothers and children, it did not move me. UB effect Bomb warfare still going on in U.S.A (United States is now both Americas, South and North).China sending nuclear infrared warheads on civilian based areas according to death toll information: 51million 2 hundred and 82 thousand 500 dead in America around 82 million injured. China: 320 million dead 40 million injured. And this is the news for today. Thank you for listening.' I took my car back home slept'long day.
Next day 5am. Woke up, ate my breakfast pills, took a quick shower, got dressed hurriedly and ran to the car. Drove to the factory arrived at 5 30am just on time. Greeted everyone with the usual fake smile and started to work on the machines improving them with upgrades. Machines..hard ,cold used to improve our lives. Dark, the factory is dark. It seems kind of sunny outside though, nice to have a sunny day, never seen one in 8 years. I'll go out and look after my shift I thought to myself.
Shift over. Lunch time. I didn't eat. I wanted to see the world. I ran out far until I reached an area with less buildings than the rest. Sat down on the rough asphalt floor crossed my legs one over the other and just watched. The sun was shining high up, it warmed me. I smiled. I looked around. People followed me. I did not notice but I didn't care when I did. They sat down next to me. We watched, more crowds came, this was the best view you could get and oh did it feel great! People sitting all around me an hour later, probably hundreds or even thousands just staring in amazement. Just looking, interest reviving their eyes, thanking whatever made them for giving them eyes to view this sight. An expression I haven't seen for a long time was shown on their faces, an expression you would call happiness'.
The sun high above the sky-radiant, splendant as if smiling at us, clouds moving away from it uncovering its beauty. The clouds, gradually yet innocently, moving away from the sun as if it were trying to get a further view of it, to fully appreciate its splendor. We all wished the buildings weren't there to see the view better'.
They started to disintegrate in front of our eyes, just melting down, turning into ashes, blown away by a gust of wind. Everything in front of us completely dismantling and disintegrating, turning into what it was before, breaking down into their main elements. everyone kept staring at the sky, the sun and the sky, oh the beauty no one cared about! Anything but that view! All people around me started to go away, into dust sparkling in a mystical manner and as they all disappeared I saw smiles, and content filled my heart. Sadness but content. Was this the end?'. I believe so, as everyone left me, as everything did, I was still there smiling until I was the only thing humanity ever made left behind. I stood up, took a deep breath, exhaled and smiled a true smile, a smile of relief and joy and in my head I spoke, 'Take me away, I'm ready'' and thank you''
Human nature and their ability to adapt and forget.
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