The Gem

“I don’t wanna go to sleep! You can’t make me!”

“Here, let's make a deal. I will tell you a story, only if you promise to go to sleep. Deal?”

“Deal.”

“Then lay down my child, and get comfortable. For this story is as old as time.”

Long ago, before my time, before my fathers time, and his fathers too, in the vast emptiness of space, sprouted a tiny black bud of life. This bud, over hundred of millions of years, bloomed into a beautiful Gem. On this Gem were plains of bright green you could run alongside forever, smelling like freedom. Valleys so deep, an echo made at the bottom would take a full minute to reach the top; you could feel happiness. Colossal mountains pierced the sky with their gleaming tips, screaming adventure. Endless, vast, seas were filled with life; from the tiniest shrimp, to the massive blue whale.

“Just like in my school books?”

“Exactly like your books! Now don't interrupt anymore.”

Now this Gem, and every living being on it, was quite in fact lonely for some time. Until one mysterious day, the first man appeared. This was no normal man like we are now, this man appeared with a much more ape-like appearance. This one man quickly evolved. He learned to colonize for himself and others. For a vast amount of time there was only one. Until there became two. With the increase of man, came the decrease of life. Man needed something to eat. He needed something to feed off of. Consequently, man hunted. The Gem did not mind. It was only the circle of life. Man evolved, gave birth to fire. Squares morphed into circles. Clubs sharpened into swords. Grunting became a language. Man continued to increase in numbers exponentially, decreasing the amount of other life. Once again, the Gem did not mind. It was only natural. Swords became screws, and with the invention of screws, came the home. The home was just a gathering of resources, altered to perfect man's every need and want. Homes could not just float in the air though, houses took up limited space. The Gem did not mind, however. It was only, again, natural. Screw then turned into an arch. With the arch came a massive boom of population. At this point in time, man split into separate groups. These groups started as towns and quickly grew into empires. This was the first case in which the Gem was bothered. The Gem was meant to be a place of life. But no set amount of empires wanted to live together peacefully. Each wanted to rule for their own reasons. But the Gem was a forgiving thing. Maybe too forgiving. Perhaps the largest advancement took place now; the arch became an engine. Although seemingly amazing at first, the engine motorized countless tasks. It stripped people of their work. Even worse, the engines were fueled by a means of no good. They pumped coils of toxic black smoke into the air. Tearing a hole in the atmosphere they did not care for nor knew much about. They threw their disposal into the seas, never to be seen again. Man, slowly, started killing their source of life. Man is a messy creature. More and more waste was piled up in the middle of nowhere. More trash was burned, releasing toxins strong enough to suffocate a bird. More sewage was disposed of into the ocean. Magnificent turtles, beautiful dolphins, fish of every species, all suffered a horrible death to the hands of man. The worst part, man didn't know, frankly they didn't even care. Eventually, as expected, man turned against one another. The gun was invented. It took countless lives. The Gem could not understand how man could kill one another. Relentlessly, they continued to do so. Perhaps the worst came next. The atomic bomb. Taking thousands of lives at once, and leaving a nuclear wasteland behind, the atomic bomb was a terrifying thing. Land became scarce. People became crowded. However, nothing can stop evolution. Soon came the dawn of technology. Even more jobs were replaced. Poverty spread rapidly. Cities fell. Famine and drought took over. The Gem was in crisis. Seas dried up and turned to desserts. Plains shriveled up and became wastelands. What used to be a green Gem was now becoming black once again. Man finally thought of the impossible. Man decided to attempt to leave the Gem they have now ruined. They have decided to go into the stars. But this would not happen anytime soon. What would happen soon, was far from good. A virus spread around the world. The virus killed millions of people, contaminating even more. Those lucky enough to live life normally, before the virus, would never see the skies the same way again. Lockdown was quickly initiated and put into place. Those not lucky enough, were forced to live their whole lives in lockdown. The virus never went away. Every time scientists were amongst the breakthroughs of a cure, the virus evolved. It became smarter. It infected people in any way imaginable. The Gem was now sick. It could no longer stand humanity. It offered them life. It offered them peace. It offered love. What did the Gem get in return? Nothing. It was abused and harassed. Not long after the virus appeared, the Gem could no longer take it. Mountains started to quake and tremble. Seas conjured up waves that have never been seen before. Clouds were a rare sight. Rain, even rarer. The Gem continued to shrink as man drilled into its heart. The Gem did not understand. Man did not understand either. From the perspective of man, they've done nothing wrong. However it didn't matter. No matter what man thought, the Gem was dying - and they could do nothing to stop it. The humans messed up, and now there was no turning back. The rocket came into view. Man raced for a chance to become one of those who survived. Everyone who claimed a seat eventually left the Gem. For good.

“And that my child is the end of the story.”

“What happened to the survivors on the rocket?”

“Well, you should ask yourself, you're one of them. Someday you'll understand kiddo.”

The man gazed at his child, who was already fast asleep. He slowly stood up and went to the window to close the blinds. He stood there for a minute. Eyes blank and full of thought. Gazing into space. Into the stars. Amongst those stars he knew, somewhere, was the Gem, formerly known as Earth.