Young Writers Society

Maeve was a lone creature, wandering the local ruins in the year 4647. Ze had always been fascinated by them. They were said to be from a past group of people, ones unlike the Inzen. Some say that they were an entirely different species altogether.

Maeve smiled softly to zerself as ze came upon what was similar to a space station, but far less advanced than their technology. This was zer special spot, a place that always brought a sense of comfort to zer. Ze walked inside, the steps echoing the overgrown halls. Zappions and Dizers were in full bloom around the station, along with other unfamiliar plants that were said to be from the age of the olden creatures.

As ze walked around, Maeve got deeper and deeper into the station. Deeper than ze had ever trekked before. Ze paused when ze noticed something. A storage unit..? Maeve opened it, out of curiosity. There was an abandoned box on the ground, one that held a shiny key and a note. Eyes sparkling with newfound interest, ze picked up the note and began reading.

If there is anyone left to read this:

We’re gone. We’re all gone. The asteroid successfully hit our planet, and everything’s gone. As I’m writing this, I don’t know if the plan worked. The plan is to fly a group of humans to distant space, in hopes of salvaging what’s left of our race. Please, take the key. Go find the lock in the programming room. If we’re successful, then maybe someday I’ll explain more.

-Roberta Jackson, NASA astronaut

Maeve blinked. NASA? Humans? It was confusing, but ze somewhat understood what to do. Ze carefully picked up the key, examining it for a moment, before going to the programming room. Ze knew exactly where it was. Maeve had been there several times, and had always wondered what that lock was for. But now, ze knew, and maybe ze’d finally get some answers to the question ze always asked zerself: who was here before zer?

The Inzen creature cautiously slipped the key into the hole and twisted it. At once, the screen lit up, static filling it. Maeve flinched for a moment, about to remove the key, until ze heard a voice.

“Hello? Hello? Can you hear me?”

Ze froze. That person sounded so different… was that Roberta, the NASA astronaut? The one who had left the note? A creature unlike anything Maeve had ever seen popped up on the screen. They had messy, long red hair, skin the color of sand (save for the dark circles under their eyes), and brown eyes that looked exhausted and tear stained.

“Alright… god, where do I start… My name is Roberta Jackson. If you’re hearing this, I hope I’m not alone. I really hope not. Everyone else is dead, I’m the last one here… I don’t know what to do anymore. I think I’m the last human. If you’re seeing this, maybe some alien species has taken over, I dunno… it’s probably too far away for that, maybe this is being seen in the future..? Whatever. I can’t take this. Nothing matters, I can’t do anything… I’m trying so hard to find another planet, somewhere with food and water and.. and people. I need- I need people. I can’t keep doing this alone, I can’t- I just-“ Roberta sighed. “God, what’s gotten into me…” The red haired human clutched a finger, one with a ring on it. “Harmony… god, what would you think of me now…” Tears filled Roberta’s eyes. “Why did this have to happen- why- WHY?! YOU COULDN’T HAVE HIT ANYWHERE ELSE- n-no, I… I gotta stay sane, for you, my love… r-right. The camera. Please, send a signal, ANYTHING. I just- I just wanna go home… please…” Alarms suddenly rang on the ship. “Wh-What the- holy- okay, what’s going-“ Smoke began to fill the interior. “No- NO NO NO NO!! ST-STOP IT!! PLEASE, I JUST- I JUST WANT MY LIFE BACK, I-“ The screen reduced to static once more.

Maeve stood there, frozen. Ze had just watched the last moments of humanity, right in front of zer.