The year XIVAT

The year was XIVAT, humanity sat at its absolute peak. Every square inch of the cosmos had been explored, and the world came to a unanimous conclusion that no other life form existed outside the earth. The dark void of space was a vast expanse of nothingess, filled with only rocks and gases. Many varying sources to unlimited, renewable energy were discovered. Global warming became as inconsequential as small pox, they eradicated world hunger as well as poverty, diseases, and suffering. No one ever had to lift a finger because the much superior and smarter Artificial intelligence handled all tasks in the most efficient and optimal way.

And humanity itself, they sat back and did the most important job only they could do, which was to simply exist.

Kaelix Voss, a thirty-two year old, slightly obese kid, sat on a sleek hovering bench by a lake that reflected the sky flawlessly. He watched a little machine called Puritron pick up garbage and clean contaminants on the lake and its bank. He let out a heavy sigh before he reached his hand out, a rumble of atoms and blue lights flashed to generate a bag of chips in his palm. “I wish something would happen.” Kaelix muttered to himself as he stuffed a handful of chips into his mouth. Puritron whirred to him, picking up the crumbs fell to the ground “Eco-hazards are prohibited.” Puritron chimed. “Oh, my bad!” Kaelix exclaimed, he got up from the bench, wandered towards a trash bin to toss away the empty wrapper.

Suddenly, Puritron swiped the wrapper from Kaelix, folded it neatly then dumped it into the trash. There was something about Puritron’s hum that rubbed Kaelix the wrong way, “Did a Puritron just sass me?”. He furrowed his brows then reached out his hand for another bag of chips, this time only the empty wrapper appears. He folded it into a somewhat rectangular shape. Satisfied with his little craft, he showcased it to Puritron, eyebrows held up and a smile to form a chubby smug face. He slowly turned to put it away in the bin once more, but Puritron snatched it again, folded it into a neat triangle, and tossed it into the bin.

It stared at Kaelix a quiet moment, almost waiting for something to happen. Kaelix grinded his teeth, the blood flushed up his face turned him red. Kaelix reached his hand out, this time generated a full bag of chips. Kaelix narrowed his eyes at Puritron, POW! The bag exploded with a clap, spewed its contents all over the ground.

Puritron turned bright red at the sight, flashed caution holographically above its head. It scrambled to clean up the mess like a surgeon cutting the Aorta in an operating theatre. Kaelix cheekily used the time, grunted and scoffed as he struggled to fold the wrapper into something impressive. He found himself a hexagon…technically. “Too bad a trash folding chip isn’t protocol.” Kaelix paraded it to Puritron then reached for the bin. In a swoosh the bin moved away. Propelled by mechanical spider legs, it scurried into the distance.

Kaelix’s jaw slacked, before he could react he heard another mechanical whirl behind him. He gazed at Puritron, it had popped out two wheels twice its size on either side. A target symbol hovered around Kaelix then locked on the hexagonal wrapper in his hand. Kaelix was quick, stumbled over himself in a bid to coordinate his legs to move as fast as possible. Puritron zipped by and plucked the wrapper from him. Kaelix could only watch Puritron go on to slam it into the bin.

Kaelix let out a heavy sigh, sat on the floor, and stared at the sky with a blank expression. Another jumble of atoms sprung forth Riley “That was amusing” she remarked. She joined Kaelix on the floor with a handful of grass, and sprinkled it delicately on him one blade at a time.

“The scrap metal even takes out my trash better than me.” Kaelix said.

Riley smirked. “That’s kind of its job, why would you want to?”

“You’d think after all this; there would enough, but it feels like there’s more we’re missing.” He replied.

“That’s impossible, we are the zenith of evolution. Nothing exists out there that we haven’t discovered.” She answered.

“I know… honestly, I don’t.”

“Be grateful Kaelix, you get to live till you’re at least two-hundred.”

“That might be where the problem lies, thirty-two is already so exhausting.” He sighed.

“Only machines have problems, our ancestors made sure of that.”

“We don’t get to have problems.” He blurted through his teeth.

“Making it sound like a bad thing, would you rather be born in 2020? Have all problems you could ever want; disease, poverty, global warming, hunger, Wa—”

“Okay I get it already… wait a sec, were you about to say war?” Kaelix retorts with his eyebrows raised. “Now that’s amusing, why don’t we throw in a couple fire breathing dragons and some blue eyed undead?”

“You’re kidding, it’s a very real thing that used to happen all the time.” She insisted.

“How much time have you been spending in the virtual universe lately?” He sneered.

“You need to stop competing with literal trash bots and get your history chip updated.” Riley snapped, she playfully tapped Kaelix on his forehead. Kaelix’s eyes reflected as if made of glass, he quietly observed the calm lake. Riley tilted her head, a silent observation that his thoughts might overwhelm him like a blizzard burying a lone traveler in endless snow. She ran her slender fingers through his glossy hair.

“Come on, your dad wants to meet us at Andromeda.” Riley stood up, navigated a projected holographic map.

“Hold on Riley.” He clasped Riley’s hand. “If nothing exciting happens by the time we’re one-hundred, would you help me start a war?”

“…We’d lose.” She countered.

“Lose what exactly? ...Come on, what do you say?” Kaelix asked with a twinkle in his eyes.

The air seemed to hum with the unspoken, Riley’s lips parting just enough to let the word form, a single syllable poised on the tip of her tongue.