FutureStory

In the year 2029, the world is very different than it is now. Let me give you a brief synopsis: China and Russia have been bought out by a Microsoft/Apple conglomerate. Pakistan and Afghanistan are both ruled by the Taliban and the remaining free counties live in fear of a powerful nuclear strike. America has been reduced to a shadow of its former self. Only the west coast has escaped most of the evils that plague the rest of the states. The world teeters on the brink of a major ecological disaster, and as a consequence both the moon and Mars have been settled and less than an eighth of the human population remains on a slowly dying Earth. Virgin Galactic is unofficially the most powerful entity in our solar system. It controls most of the atmosphere, along with the moon and Mars. This story begins with a young boy living in the ruins of Chicago, in an abandoned apartment building.
Tom sat on a moth-eaten sofa, the only piece of furniture other than the bed left. He sat twiddling with an old radio, trying to get a message out. He lived by himself, in this apartment building. As far as he knew, he was the only remaining human inhabitant left in Chicago. He had lived here for as long as he could remember, with no way to contact the outside world until he found an old police radio in the wreckage of a house a couple of weeks ago, and since then he had tried night and day to get an SOS out to somebody, hopefully a charity group. When he was younger, he had a friend, an older man, who had told him about when the world was bright and hopeful, and then how everything had gone sour. The collapse of the world ecosystem, the self-destruction of many countries, and the decline of the economy, until everyone was virtually broke. He kept twiddling the rusty dials on the radio, when something suddenly happened. Instead of the usual hissing and crackling, a voice, gravely, suddenly appeared. It was saying, “So we have the transport ship ready for takeoff, and once we leave we will collect all of the residents and have them report back here. Then we will load them all on the rocket and… Hey, John, someone’s on this channel. Uhhh… Hello? What do you want?” Tom responded, “ H-Hi. I’m Tom. I live in Chicago.” “Chicago? I thought Chicago was abandoned?” “I guess I’m the only one here. Other than the rats, I mean. I’m only ten years old. Is there any chance that someone could come and get me?” “Of course, little buddy! We are the Red Cross, after all. We help those that need helping. Or something like that… Well, be at the city’s edge on 5 o’clock Thursday evening. We’ll pick you up there.” “Thank you so much!” Tom said.He set down the radio and cheered, his face lit up in a joyous smile. “Did you hear that, Rodney? We’re finally leaving this rotten old place!” He said to a camera-sized rat with crooked whiskers and a runny nose. He hugged the little rat smiling in spite of the smell.