I woke up, and gasped for breath. I coughed and choked for a few moments before catching my breath. I took slow, deep, rattling breaths. My lungs felt constricted, as if within deflated rubber balloons. This was not uncomfortable though. This was simply how life would be now, or always was. I don’t remember properly.
I rolled over onto my back. I was lying on my face when I woke. My thin arms were outstretched, my fingers gripping deep into the cool earth, tearing away its grassy flesh. I let loose this grip, no longer remembering its purpose. My arms creaked recognizably as I pulled them in to my chest. My body moved slower, or just slow. This was not frustrating, and I remained patient. I had no other goal to rush towards.
My elbow shook violently and my arm pushed me up, to a sitting position. I looked around. Everything was calm. Glass shard shined in the sun across the street, its car’s no longer forced into continuous movement. The city was quiet, no longer continuously beating as it pumped cars through its veins. It was at peace.
I stood up. I took several moments to find my balance. This was difficult, as my right thigh apparently was injured. Blood stained a tear in my jeans. It didn’t hurt though. Then a roar burst through the skies. A new restlessness burn through me, burned through the city. I whipped my head back in shock and fear. In the sky I saw the source of the noise. The large metal mechanism glided across my view, its wings twirling in a continuous circle creating an uproar of wind and noise in its wake. As it reached up and over the horizon I began to take steps to follow it. Why not? I was curious as to the objects nature, and I had nothing else to do. So I walked.
I walked. I walked. I walked. I knew not why I did so. I knew not where I was going. These questions felt so trivial in my mind, and there answers inconsequential. So I abandoned them, and continued as I was, walking. Soon others joined me. I would see them in there travels, and as I had no known destination I would follow them. Sometimes others would do the same to me, and I was followed. This repeated numerous times. Soon we were a group that was hundreds strong, walking together. No, that’s not quite right. Marching, we were marching.
We marched forever. We swayed on the road, back and forth, following those individuals who were ahead of us. We march continuously, but aimlessly. Nothing unifying us but our motion. Then we heard it. A loud bang, like thunder, ran through the woods. It ran through our group. This noise, this disturbance of our quiet was not ignorable. We uniformly turned. We silently agreed upon our shared curiosity, and we marched. We marched now knowing where we were going. To the sound so powerful and vibrant it could not be dislodged from memory.
We marched into the forest. We never stopped moving. Some tripped on the exposed roots of trees and would fall. But unable to pull themselves up, they would resort to crawling. Some lost their footing while crossing the river, and would be washed down stream. But they would continue their march once the washed onto the shore. The hundreds of us continued resolutely until we made it out the other side of the woods.
Upon being in the light once again we saw people. But not real people. So under evolved were they, they seemed like apes. From the edge of the woods we looked upon these primates. They screamed and yelled at each other. They cried and whimpered. They fought, and brandished their guns at each other. I saw the pure exhaustion that emanated from their faces. There lives had become nothing a continuous struggle for survival while wading through a river of only fear and hate and blood. If I could have cried, I’d of wept in pity at the sight of them.
Why couldn’t they see the flaws in their existence? Hadn’t they seen that their was a better way to live? There was better life made available for them. A life without strife or struggle. A life without wants or needs. A life without fear of death and the unknown. Our life. Our way. Had they not seen that it exists now, to make the world better? To make life better? They couldn’t have. Why would they continue their primitive and panic filled existence after being shown the awe-inspiring alternative.
We who stood on the edge of the woods knew what we had to do at that moment. We would have to teach them our way. Teach them of its benefits and how we could help them. And once again we marched. We marched toward the flimsy shack in which the primitive people hid from the world. They saw us coming. They looked upon us with such fear. They just stared at us. I made the first attempt to communicate with the primitives. I barely made a word when they reacted. The screamed and protested, at made for their weapons. As much as we protested, spoke of our peace, they just wouldn’t listen. Clearly they only understood war, and action. SO we would respond with action. They would see that our way was better for them, once they were a part of it.
They slashed and fired upon us. But we were many, and they were few. One by one they were surrounded, and sank under our numbers. Anxious to show them their new life, we clawed and bit at them. They would bleed, but soon they would never bleed again. Soon they would never have need for blood again. They would choke and gasp and clutch for just one more breathe as if it would change anything. They would no longer breathe or have a need to breathe or remember needing or wanting to breath. I briefly contemplated why even when it was obviously inevitable, they continued to struggle back. Perhaps it was only reflexive. All the primitives ever knew was struggle after all. It was of little importance, as it ended soon enough. Then they would be dead, and a wave of peace would wash away every seemingly important thought and problem that existed during life. Like releasing a hot coal you no longer remember why you are holding, there is a great relief with no regret. And they would wake up once again, reborn without any of the difficulties that once were required for life. Then they would be one of us.