(Turq) The Final Curtain

You don�t see blue skies these days. Most people I meet have gotten used to it by now, but not me. It all happened so fast that people either lost it completely with shock or just adjusted. I adjusted, just, but still longed to see just a sliver of blue above my head.

The world is a very different place now. The people are intrinsically different. Affected. Science and technology have been reduced to the stone age. We�re not moving forward as a civilisation any more. We�re stagnant. Going nowhere.

I can remember my life before the final impact of it all like it was yesterday, though it has now been nearly a year. From time to time I feel great loss and sadness, but worst of all is the guilt. A million people. That�s all the government of the UK said they could save. A million people out of fifty five. Fifty four people out of every fifty five had their death warrants signed, sealed and delivered by the very man they voted in to power. It would be ironic if there was any room for irony in the world we now inhabit.

What happened was so unbelievable that it makes me feel silly even writing it down. Not being a scientist most of it means nothing to me, but you would have to be pretty stupid to not pick up the important elements of what was going on. The vast majority of people only had ten days to come to terms with what was about to unfold, though those of us �lucky� enough to be offered shelter knew for about three months.

I had been chosen because of my background, my work, and possibly because of a few family connections. My wife, mother, father, brother and sister were also offered sanctuary, but all of our extended family and friends are now dead. Vaporised was a word that kept cropping up, not a nice word.

I�ve often tried to work out what went wrong with �the plan�, but my knowledge of this sort of thing is very limited. Our day�s pass by looking to the future, but we all really know that there isn�t one on offer to us. We�re simply placating death for a few more decades until the inevitable extinction of the human race. Babies are born every day we are still hearing, and some take solace in that. Not me. I am all for everyone being sterilised and getting on with wrapping this whole mess up once and for all.

It was the EMP, and the repercussions of having to let off ones so big, that was the nail in the coffin for Earth. There was a window of about fifty nano-seconds when they had to be detonated or it would all be in vain. They were, of course, late with the detonation, meaning that all electronic equipment across the globe was shot, and all for nothing. I didn�t believe that there was something on earth that powerful, I was wrong. A man made device that gave rise to the total destruction of man. I was wrong, irony is alive and well.

They spotted the comet years ago apparently, but the petty beaurocrasy and red tape of these government facilities meant that a tin pot plan was devised in a rush as they had left it so late. As far as I can understand the plan was to land a craft on the comet, place tactical nuclear devices at places of known structural weak points, and then kaboom, just like in the film Armageddon. Makes you wonder doesn�t it, where do they find these morons?

Only around ten per cent of the thirty or so nukes actually detonated, though they did enough damage to leave the twenty five or so others dangerously unstable. What we were left with was several comet pieces, laden with unstable tactical nukes, all still on a collision course with Earth. Text book thinking from the guy�s at NASA. They said that letting off an EMP bomb next to each of the comets as they entered the atmosphere would stop the risk of nuclear explosions to compliment the comet strikes.

After the EMP�s had been detonated there was no way of knowing if they had worked as all the instruments were fried. It was wait and see time. As it turned out they didn�t, but it didn�t matter anyway as the nukes didn�t detonate on impact, they were simply vaporised themselves I guess.

So here we are, society, if you can still call it that, awaiting the inevitable. I�ve heard rumours that people want to try looking for any of the nukes that may have survived the impact as a possible source of power. I don�t know what they plan to do with them if they find one, but I know what I would do, let�s embrace the final curtain and see if there really is an afterlife. Perhaps reincarnation, though only if I can come back as a cockroach as they�re the only one�s with a future in sight.

Sometimes my thoughts drift to other countries, maybe another million people sequestered into huge underground cavers like we are. What do they think? What are their plans? Why are we all bothering?

And so I continue to do my bit for mankind. As I lie here, waiting for the doctor to perform my vasectomy, I can only hope that others take my lead and realise that there is only hope once we realise that there is no hope. We�ve had our time, let�s move over and let another species have a bite at the cherry���


** Edited to remind you all to be so kind as to vote for this? Do be honest, it's my first try at the short story thing! **

[Edited on 24-5-2004 by benjj]

Great story, benjj!

There's a very visceral sense of the character's bitterness at their hubris and stupidity, and his disillusionment. Very bleak, and very compelling!

Thanks StrangeLands, much appreciated.

I just started and out it came, guess I must be one of those 'glass is half full' guys deep down in my subconscious!

I just saw you had an entry in, will go and have a read and let you know what I think!

B

competition will be tough
well written story, you portrayed the character's emotions very well
good luck

Talk about atmospheric !
That was a 'fecking' good read