The Last Hour of Earth
Told in reverse, one man tries to fix everything in the final 60 minutes of humanity.
The Last Hour of Earth
Genre: Science Fiction / Apocalyptic Drama
Word Count: ~860
---
00:00 | 1 Minute to Zero
He kisses her.
Not passionately, not desperately—just… tenderly.
The kind of kiss you give when everything’s already gone, except for the memory of what mattered.
Smoke fills the sky. A second sun flares in the horizon. Time’s out.
---
00:05 | 5 Minutes to Zero
Marcus stands on the edge of Launch Platform 7, wind tearing at his coat, tablet in hand.
His fingers tremble over the sequence: Reboot Global Shield Grid.
But the satellites are gone. Disarmed.
Too late.
His brother's voice echoes in his head: "The world doesn't end in fire, Marcus. It ends when we stop trying to save it."
---
00:12 | 12 Minutes to Zero
In a bunker deep beneath what used to be Colorado, the world leaders argue over broken maps and severed cables.
Marcus pushes through the door, bloody and breathless.
“I can reroute the core—buy us a few more hours!”
“No time,” someone barks.
“You had years.”
Silence.
He turns and walks away.
---
00:18 | 18 Minutes to Zero
He runs. Not away, but toward.
Toward the central tower where the AI sleeps.
Once the guardian of Earth’s systems—climate, weapons, medicine—it was shut down when peace was declared and power was privatized.
He slams the override panel.
A voice, feminine and soft, comes alive.
"Hello, Marcus. Do you wish to restore protocol: Humanity?"
He hesitates.
“Yes.”
"Restoration will cost your life."
He exhales. “Then let’s make it count.”
---
00:29 | 31 Minutes to Zero
The streets are empty.
Not from evacuation—but from surrender.
The news drones scream headlines from the sky: “Collapse of Global Shields!”
“Atmospheric fracture reaching terminal phase!”
Marcus picks up a child’s drawing from the gutter—blue sky, green trees, stick figures holding hands.
He folds it into his jacket pocket like a prayer.
---
00:37 | 23 Minutes to Zero
He calls his daughter.
No answer.
He sends a voice note.
"Lana, if you get this… I tried. I never stopped. I’m sorry I missed your concert. I’m sorry I left before you woke up. I love you more than the stars."
He deletes it. Sends silence instead.
---
00:44 | 16 Minutes to Zero
Marcus finds a rebel technician still trying to hack the orbital grid.
They work side-by-side in near-darkness, rewiring long-abandoned uplinks.
"We can’t stop the fall," the tech mutters.
Marcus just says, “We can slow it. Maybe someone will make it. Maybe not us. But someone.”
They share half a smile.
---
00:52 | 8 Minutes to Zero
He watches the skies fracture.
The northern auroras burn blood red, swirling unnaturally.
The moon flickers.
He thinks of his wife—long gone now.
Her last words: “Don’t save the world, Marcus. Save yourself.”
He hadn’t listened.
Still didn’t want to.
---
00:57 | 3 Minutes to Zero
He reaches the observatory, the last place where the Earth still hums.
Solar panels twitch in dying sunlight.
He uploads the restoration protocol.
"Uplink 17% complete."
He stares at the loading bar like it’s a lifeline.
Then he hears footsteps.
Soldiers.
Too late.
“Shut it down,” one orders.
“No.”
“Move!”
“I said no.”
They raise weapons.
He steps in front of the panel.
They hesitate.
Then lower their guns.
Just this once—they believe him.
---
00:59 | 1 Minute to Zero
The screen flashes.
"Protocol complete. Global Shield Grid restored. Atmospheric repair initialized."
He breathes for the first time in what feels like years.
He doesn’t know if it’s enough.
But it’s something.
---
60:00 | 0 Hour: One Hour Earlier
Marcus sits in his kitchen, sipping cold coffee.
Outside, the world still looks normal.
His TimePad pings: “Category 5 Solar Event: 63 minutes until impact.”
He sighs.
They’d said the shield systems were permanent.
He’d built them to be.
But politics undid them faster than any weapon.
He checks Lana’s room.
She’s asleep, curled up with a music player humming softly.
He walks out quietly, slipping on his jacket.
Under his breath:
“Just one more try.”
---
✨ End.
About the Creator
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