The End

The sky seemed bright, too bright, a sharp contrast to the grounds. Hendrix quickly looked up and away. The sun was flickering, and she had hurt her eyes. Reflexively, she shut her eyes tight and moved under the shade. Even then, she could see the blazing lights of the sun against her eyelids.  

***

A few hours ago

Professor Hendrix sat in her room with all four fingers curled around a cup of instant pumpkin spice coffee. Her features appeared fixed and stoic while her hands and eyes moved at a rapid pace, continuously working. Every minute was calculated, and each second was productive. Even when she thought she had all the time in the world, there was simply too much to do. Little did she know that the clock was ticking backwards. 

Hendrix was an exceptional woman, even more so than the rest of her kind. With great dignity, she thought she knew it all. At least, everything that could possibly be known. 

The countless numbers of books she had read, from even a millennium ago, made her feel able, empowered. With the amount of knowledge, she had, she was undefeatable. If there was one thing she believed in, it was that knowledge was power. And boy was she powerful.  

Nevertheless, she realized how many more enigmas persisted, slightly out of touch. As much as she admired the beautiful mystery of science, she was determined to unravel them. Her name, that was already present in multiple books, would be uploaded in more. If only she had a few more months. 

As much as Hendrix looked at the Impars, the so-called inferior beings, with disdain, she couldn't help but admire one other species besides her own: the Homo Sapiens. They were wise, no doubt, but still had nothing on the Homo Magnus. She had to appreciate them, they were her ancestors, after all. She even shared multiple characteristics with them. While the Sapien’s body was shorter and brain size was smaller, both species shared the thirst for knowledge and the pride of being the best. 

Still, the two were unparalleled. The Magnus were the 2.0 version: more powerful, accomplished, efficient and smarter. The Magnus’ had proven the Sapiens’ impossible to be possible, and with practice, even simple. One’s fiction was the other’s fact. 

Hendrix had a great role in the development of her society. At seventy, she had opted to spread her knowledge as a professor. She yearned to influence the young and open their minds to see the greatness of their kind, and the world she had helped to create. Prior to working as a professor, she was a scientist and a successful one at that. She was most famous for her work in biological and genetic evolution. She studied evolution, practiced biology and thrived as an engineer. Needless to mention, she was one of the best in her field. 

To her, neither the mind nor the body was a black box. Instead, she considered each one a prototype. A model that allowed her to mold, warp and expand others. 

Although it had been slightly less than a thousand years, she felt as though she were light years ahead of the past. She was a part of a new normal, one that the Sapiens could barely imagine. 

A melodic sound interrupted Hendrix’s work and informed her of an incoming call. She brought up a slim device and her slender finger skimmed over the screen. 

“Just wanted to remind you to catch your flight. I know those on Earth are so busy that they might forget.” Merx, Hendrix’s sister, relentlessly teased her for spending every spare minute working.  

She was one to talk since she herself was a workaholic. Like Hendrix, her sister was so busy with work, that the sisters never spoke of things that were not of the utmost importance. Not even a simple hello or hey to acknowledge one another. 

“I know I missed the one last week, but I am not missing this flight to Mars. I’ll be there soon. 

With a quick nod, Merx disconnected the call and Hendrix went back to the history of the world. 

A few minutes later, Hendrix found herself frowning at a thin sheen of sweat on her finger that she swiped off her forehead. It seemed unnatural, so she quickly directed a remote control to decrease the temperature in her study. 

Feeling satisfied, she focused herself on the shimmering screen in front of her. and began making a draft of questions for her students.  

Question no.1: Describe the evolutionary trends of Homo Sapiens and Homo Magnus in between 1500 and 2000 words. 

Question no.2: How did Homo Sapiens evolve to Homo Magnus, within a millennium when such drastic changes only occurred in hundreds of thousands of years previously? 

Question no. 3: Explain the relationship between humans and the Impars in our environment. Do we need them, as some professionals claim? Support your answer with strong evidence.  

Question no. 4: What is your opinion on the claim of the Jungmes in the South and the Polcers in the North, regarding the world of Homo Sapiens and our world? In the 31st century, can we accept their ongoing effort to change the state of the entire planet and set it to the world a thousand years ago?  

Question no. 5: Write the advantages and disadvantages of humans breaking the laws of natural selection and replacing them with Artificial Intelligence. 

Question no. 6: If not for technology, who and what would the world be today, in 3020?   

Question no. 10: Explain the differences between Homo Sapiens and Homo Magnus, including physical, emotional, sociological and structural differences. 

Question no. 11: What is your opinion on the predictions that our universe will come to an end in 3020? Support your answer with evidence, including but not limited to, the rapid formation of black holes and the frequent explosion of stars.   

The letters of her final question swiftly appeared in the paper-thin display. As her final word formed, she felt an abrupt rise in temperature. The air conditioner did not seem to be working; that had never happened before. How could this be? There was a slim possibility that the power was cut off, even though such an outrageous incident had last occurred a hundred years ago. She went to check on the power supply, only to see a green light indicating that everything was fine.  

Nothing is wrong, she told herself.  

As though she wasn’t perplexed already, a feat unusual for her, she noticed that the UltraAIQ screens in front of her were flickering with uncertainty, unlike its previous shimmers. Slowly, yet swiftly, she watched as the screens disappeared, as if being eaten by invisible space.  

She was definitely mistaken. Something was wrong for sure. 

Running off her study to the hall, she touched a button to call the robots. She heard the mechanical sounds before she saw them. Round the corner, a metallic body appeared.  

“R-AI 5682.” It introduced itself, ready to serve the professor. 

Before she could respond, she noticed a system fan noise coming from the structured body.  

Knowing the situation was worse than she could comprehend, she rushed to the balcony. The heat burned her skin, and she began rubbing at her arms, her face, her neck. It was a sensation she had never felt before. Her skin burned on the outside while her insides were swirling with unfamiliar panic.  

What in the name of B-9843 was going on?  

The answer was in the very questions she was working on, but she couldn't possibly think. Her rationality, for which she held so much pride, was nowhere in sight.   

She looked down at her hands to see red marks all over. She felt the leather in her pants starting to dry and crack. Looking across her gates, she saw her neighbor on the balcony of the next building. The look of panic and stupefaction were identical on both faces.  

Even three thousand miles away, the Polcers were alarmed by the rapidly melting ice, and the sweat forming in their brows.  

Seven thousand miles away, the Jungmes were dizzy due to the heat, all their hearts beating rapidly.  

The sky seemed bright, too bright, a sharp contrast to the grounds. Hendrix quickly looked up and away. The sun was flickering, and she had hurt her eyes. Reflexively, she shut her eyes tight and moved under the shade. Even then, she could see the blazing lights of the sun against her eyelids.  

A microsecond.  

That’s all it took, and the biggest explosion in history took place.  

*** 

She burst in a trillion brilliant pieces, like shards of glass. There was no big bang! to be heard and no clusters of life to be seen.  

The billions of trees and buildings on the ground, each drop of water in the ocean, every breath of life in organisms, every mole of oxygen. Everything on Earth vanished. 

The Earth, Mars, Sun and Moon, the asteroids and comets. Each body was destroyed into oblivion. 

The stars, and the galaxies. None remained. 

The entire cosmos ceased to exist. 

There was no space, and there was no matter. 

Nothing existed, yet there she was.  

Everything was over, but she could still feel. There were no eyes, but she could see the dark. It was all an abyss, and yet she was present. 

She was not a body, not even a soul. She just was.  

THE END