In all candor, I will hazard a request along this vein, to aid me in accomplishing these changes. As I am but a writer and these but words, I would ask that your departure be a swift and enigmatic one. Don’t reveal your intent; don’t draw attention to this test, and by all means, if you are going to repay us for your devastation, do not do so in any way that can be associated with either the Countdown or my part in this. Accept our ten responses, take your treasures, and depart in silence. I ask this only to offer my people their own opportunities to explain the occurrences in their own context.
We will abide in this new parameter, and we will adapt. Perhaps many will die, but I would like to think that we are a hardy people, able to rebound reasonably well. What has changed for us is irrevocable, and the people we will is not the people we were headed toward being. We will keep our eyes on the heavens, our minds on our objectives, and our hands in our work.
Leave us with the capacity to record again our experiences. We will be better stewards than we were before. In times past, we hammered our swords into plows. We turned back to the earth for what we needed, and we made a place for ourselves in it and upon it. Now, with this new paradigm, this new era of rediscovery, we have a new opportunity to inscribe our world with an epitaph worthy of the ancient ways, and a message of Emergence that will let the Universe know that the Human race is here, is willing to learn, and desirous of a place in the Society of Minds.
The changes in humanity will be great, if incremental. We will have to learn again to crawl before we can walk, to walk before we can race forward into our future. All we can ask of you, is that you allow time for our change to be made evident, and to not judge us too harshly, for we are but children and have to have the opportunity to learn. If we are afforded that, there is no doubt we will amaze and endear the cosmic community to our cause in no time at all.
I must offer thanks again to you for your wisdom in this trial, and for your forbearance with our impatience and arrogance.
One – Should Humanity Be Given Another Chance?
Perhaps it is impertinent, to fundamentally assume we have already earned just such an opportunity. The short answer is yes, and no.
That ambivalence is not suggesting that the human race is a failure, nor is it a hedging of the previous elation of the last answer I provided. Instead, it is an introspective statement of absolute clarity. We, the human race, have not the justification for ‘another chance’ or an ‘extra bite at the apple’. Indeed, because of our natural tendency to move through time linearly from the past to future, we are never in need of such chances. Because we ARE our next best chance.
While your initial threat suggested these responses are an epitaph, the truth is that every epitaph is an epigram, a message to the next generation that the past generation knew things. While you may eradicate the species, you have not gotten rid of us. We live in the present but reside in the past. That I have assessed that the process you have in place will not completely eliminate us, means that as long as a few of us live, we will again become relevant in the universe.
Call it arrogance, call it impertinence, or call it not knowing our place in the universe, but the essence of the human condition is that we are always on our last, best chance. We thrive on the status quo, but to us, that status quo is not static. We are the moving target. So, no, don’t give us another chance. You don’t need to. We will take it when we need it.
I have answered each of your questions, and in doing so, have derived a fairly good understanding of our place in your world. I see that your need to test us was in more than one way a challenge for us to play a game with you, so you could learn how we function, how we think, and to what lengths we would continue to play. I hope I have not disappointed you, and I do believe I have done the best I could to not only reflect the honesty of a human being, but our humor, our intensity, and our willingness to compete in the game as defined.
I hope you realize that in this game, as you defined it, we have not only defeated you, but in your ten sentences and questions, I have gleaned more information from you than I have revealed about us. I am not an unsportsmanlike competitor, but here at the end of the game, I want you to be sure to realize that not only should the victor be able to write the histories, but also be able to define the terms of the competition.
Your request was for ten thousand words to explain all there is to know about us. For that to work, you needed to give us ten statements, or questions about us that presented us with insight into what is important to you, what defined your motivation and your intent. From the second you gave us your list, it was only a matter of time before we could define you in terms that made our position the one of power.
So now, with the time running out, and my words restricted to a finite number, I can only say you have been a worthy opponent, that you ultimately had no alternative or way to avoid offering us what we need to continue, and the benefits we expect in compensation for the villainous way in which we were handled at the beginning of this interchange will far outweigh the paltry losses you visited upon us.
Your ten days have cost us dearly, with nearly ten million casualties against our seven billion population. Truly, we have been decimated across the globe. That number approximates the losses of many other wars we have fought around the world over time, and though you would argue this has been a battle of wills that has earned our place among the stars, I would instead argue that your tactics and strategy suggest that your universe can take lessons in compassion, diplomacy, and yes, in the use of words.
I am pleased, however, whether you eliminate us out of hand as the foul brigands and cultural thieves you may be or truly embrace us as your brethren in a universe-spanning community of kindred spirits, that my words were acceptable to whatever judging committee or entity you have, and that this process has resulted in a very clear message of hope and peace for the world. We are like the alcoholic who entered the bar. It takes conscientious thought to choose the less violent path, and by bringing us to this train of thought, you offer us a refreshingly ingenious new course… forgetting the old path, we press on toward the goal, wherein innovation and imagination can re-spawn, and no longer be trapped and constricted by the aegis of the old and perceived impossibilities. We can again rediscover the value of improvisation and experimentation.
I have no delusions about what you are capable of. I have no false belief that you will do less than completely annihilate us if you choose. But I do hold the absolute faith of the convinced that I have provided you what you need to make the right decision, and that when I awake tomorrow, I will truly be in a whole new world. It seems likely that both of your assessments will be true. These ten thousand words will be an epitaph for the human race that existed before your arrival, but that it will also be an Emergence, as much as a Butterfly from a Chrysalis. We consumed, devoured our very world around us in that older self. Now, we can explode into the universe, and take our place among the stars, a recognizable, yet more pliant and recognizable world.
To the combined peoples of the Universe, I proudly introduce the Human Race.
Twenty Questions for the Reader.
Clearly, the Chosen One was correct, that the Test is over, and we have been given a chance to change life. We, the Order of The Chosen One, have created this questionnaire in order to take advantage of the collective thoughts of our Readers, those who have seen the Works of the Chosen One, even as the Emissary did those long months ago.
Having so read them, we ask you to relate to the Chosen One, and his Acolytes who follow him, your thoughts on the World that IS. Perhaps you can one day be counted among the Acolytes, and reach the world with His message on your own right.
Answer each with One Hundred words exactly, as He did the One Thousand. Your answers will be your own, but you can send them to Him at the Website.
1. Was it right for One Man to answer for us all? Explain why or why not.
2. Was he the Chosen One because he had any skill or talent that is
not common to a Reader? Why or why not?
3. What aspect of Communication is most critical, when interacting with those unfamiliar to you?
4. In what way are accomplishments different from achievements?
5. Should one be more apologetic or more explanatory in Inquest, and why?
6. Did the Emissary already know that the Human Race would prevail? Explain.
7. What would define a Universal Contribution?
8. If there are no good reasons for War, why do we still have them today?
9. What would be your strategy for avoiding armed conflict?
10. The New Way requires the Non-tax on every purchase, to be paid into one’s retirement account on every purchase, on the buyer’s own recognizance. Assuming a person adheres to the New Way, will his own retirement be better or worse than the old way? Explain.
11. Describe your best memory of all time, and explain why it should be included in the Annals of History.
12. What is the one thing you believe we should all forget, in order to make the world a better place? Explain
13. Change is a necessary part of life. Explain how our reaction to change makes our life better or worse.
14. You have the opportunity, as the Chosen One did, to recommend one change for all humanity. What is it, and explain its value.
15. “The concepts of anarchy and religion are in opposition.” Explain the meaning of this quote attributed to the Chosen One.
16. The Chosen One is just a man, or the Chosen One was destined for greatness. Which do you believe, and explain your belief.
17. Is luck a manifestation of happenstance, or the applied use of preparedness in the face of opportunity? Explain your choice.
18. Today is the first day of the rest of your life. How will tomorrow be any different than today because you know this to be true? Explain.
19. IF you were the Chosen, give a one-line response to the Ten Questions.
20. Should every person be offered a second chance in every circumstance? Why or why not?
Conclusion
I am not prepared to let this end, without a bit of explanation. As a writer, I am often faced with a dilemma, need to say more than the words on the page seem to allow. Count Down is a different kind of book, but I believe it may hold a key for readers that need explanation. Once you get the understanding that the Chosen One is working in a vacuum, wherein no outside influence could impact his answers, the rest will make more sense. Imagine, as the Chosen One, how you would have responded, and consider whether the choices he made were adequate. Think about how you would react in the same circumstances, and the Questions to the Reader make sense. You can send your responses to the publisher, and they will be sent on to me, the writer, and they will be compiled. I anticipate a sequel to cover the Twenty Questions when I have received a compelling number of responses to justify it.
The concept that we as a people should have to take such an accounting from time to time is an appealing one, and I hope you can see the value in it. The world is a fragile space, and we should truly take into account our own measure of it. Thanks for reading, and I hope to hear from you soon.
Apocalyptic Survival Fiction: Count Down - The Concise Epitaph of Humanity (A Sci-Fi End-of-the-World Story) (A Dystopian Series) Page 4
