The year is 3142. I am about to leave the hangers. It has become a do or die affair for me now. This place is no place for living creatures, let alone humans...
I paused at my typing, and put down my tablet momentarily, for something was now crawling up my arm. I rolled up the worn out sleeves of the tattered linen that passed for clothes these days, and I saw it. It was one of those ants that were affected by the infection. It had an extra long body, and an even bigger size of head. It couldn't sting anymore though, none of them did anymore.
With ease, I picked the poor thing up, and placed her on the ground. Then I proceeded to crush her beneath my feet. It felt cruel, but it was actually mercy. No living creature ought to suffer like this. Which is why I was leaving today. I was going to find the library, even if it proved to be the last thing I do.
I picked up the tablet again...
Image by Pezibear from Pixabay
Everyone has grown to be less human each day, since the infection had occurred. People no longer even fight for grub like in the early days anymore. They just shuffle around and eat whatever they can find. Technology has no meaning, with the infection also affecting all internet technology. It is more like humanity as we knew it, ceased to exist with each passing day.
Yesterday, I passed by a tent in the far east of the hangers. I had gone to search for those old snails that proved immune to the disease. I couldn't find any though, and instead I had to settle for some mushrooms. But what I saw in that trip told me all I needed to be told. It was the motivation I had been waiting for all my life. And today, I am leaving the hangers.
They say the key to curing all of these current problems and restoring our once dear planet lay in the books of old. Books that man had abandoned for centuries now. They say they lay in an old library across the dunes.
I am hardly even sure what the books look like myself. I know I once saw one old relic of the paper and ink stuff in a museum when I was a kid. But I don't know if I would recognize them again. I just know however, that I have to try...
Our lives afterall, do depend terribly on it...
I dropped the tablet, and picked up my bag.
....
....
....
The year is 3144. I am in the giant hall of the old library. Around me are numerous books, their old pages filling the room with a strange but welcoming scent. I have to put these in writing now, because I am closer to death with each passing moment.
I want the world to know that I tried, and that old Sully did make a huge effort. But more importantly, I want the world to know that there were all lies. Humanity's saviour is not north of the hangers, it is indeed south. The infection was a lie, and what happened at the hangers were only a social experiment.
Life is not about to end, and the library's books are filled with blank pages, save one...
And in her pages lay the real truth...
The truth I gave my life for...
I felt the tablet slowly roll off my hands, as peacefully, I watched the light dim, and dim, and dim...
...
THE END
#SladenSpeaks
#IfWordsWereNudes
Prompt: The Library
For twenty four hours I thought of what to do with this prompt. It pulled at my insides and threatened to frustrate my poor little brain.
The words "social experiment" and "After life" kept recurring in my head over and over whenever I thought of it. So this morning, before leaving for work, I just picked up my laptop and started writing...
Now I am a bit late for work, but I hope the effort was worth it for my readers.
Cheers!
A touching story.
Sully has to make the ultimate sacrifice to save humanity and succeeds. But now what? The truth has been discovered, but how does it get out to the world?
I guess we can only imagine.
This is a beautiful piece @seesladen, really captivating. Keep it up.
Hi seesladen,
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Beautifully done, @seesladen. You really succeeded at world building and taking us to an intense and desolate time and place far into the future. Great details, with the ants, snails, mushrooms, dunes, and empty books. Those rich sensory details really bring a story to life!
Thanks for the kind words @jayna
I really do appreciate. Funny how I was writing for the library prompt, and managed to play it well into the world building prompt as well. I guess that one still sat in my subconscious somehow.
Cheers!
Cool @seesladen, it was really worth it. You're a good writer, yourself and your story was smooth and attention grabbing. I only wish Sully explained his findings.
Thanks bro... For the explanations, I always like a mysterious feel to my stories... So one can decide some things for oneself while reading. That way the intrigue is high.
Thanks for stopping by bro. I appreciate!