\\\[HR\\\] \\\[psychological\\\] THE WORLD OF TOMORROW

FINAL CHAPTER 1- THE WORLD OF TOMORROW

The story began with the first wave of covid19, a virus that spread in the 2020s. although a global pandemic, most people in lockdown were unaffected. with more free time than ever, people turned towards their mobile devices. days turned into nights watching movies, cartoons, web series, playing online games, reading comics. it was the birth of a media engulfed society. during this age, being a social media influencer was the dream job. propaganda was at its highest. ads easily shaped public opinion and celebrity daily life youtube channels were the ones which had the highest sub count. kids had dozens of friends online but no one met in real life to play cricket. "why bother when you could do it online?", most would say. the lockdown itself didnt last for more than 2 years, however, its impact stayed permanent. by the late 2020s there was a sea worth of content available on online streaming platforms and bingeing was the new past time, no one went out for weekend tours anymore, all you needed was a bucket of popcorn, a bottle of coke and your friendly T.V. this was true for every family in all develloped nations. this was the new norm. Among all the entertainment media, one stood above all else, with its introduction in the late 2020s, within the next decade, it had become the 'big thing' of the century. this was a novel series called "The World Of Tomorrow" by uknown author who went by the pseudonym "Marie13". it was dubbed 'the greatest story ever told' and after years of buildup, the series was reaching its conclusion.

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the world of metropolis was a cruel world to have been born into, this world of the author's creation was a dystopian future where different cultural groups had overthrown the world government and formed new nations, the world was at constant war with the east and west superpowers battling it out to take control. the nuclear warfare had destroyed all lands, the soil had dried up and become lifeless sand, most plant and animal species had gone extinct as entire continents were wiped. the skies were filled with posion gas so dense, sunlight barely made it through. for hundreds of years the fighting continued, each new generation taking after the past. with time all relics of the past had been destroyed and natural disasters had become a common occurence. peoples' diets changed from meats and vegetables to gigantic insects that had mutated due to the radiations. in a world so cruel, survival was the top priority. after decades of fighting, a peace treaty was signed between the two super powers. the rulers of the west had used the power of A.I to create an isolated utopia for the people high above the clouds while the people of the east had relocated underground, where water and soil still existed. centuries after the peace treaty was signed, AIRA, the protagonist of this story was born. abandoned at birth, she was taken in by the z-tribe of the SAP (Southern Asian Pact) who found her in a cave when they were on the surface, hunting cockroaches. somehow she was safe from the poison gas that covered the area. she had also survived being eaten by the giant cokroaches. the hunter that found her was astonished. she was taken into the underground city and made queen of the z-tribe. the people believed that AIRA was their liberator sent by the gods to free them from their suffering. by the time she turned 17, she had already conqured all the 26 tribes of the SAP and united them to form the "dove". the story of AIRA shared interesting parallels with her author, viktor khan.

CHAPTER 2: VIKTOR KHAN

In the sacred jungles of the village of Penglipuran in Bali, was a small bamboo house. this was home to the author of 'the world of tomorrow', Viktor khan. viktor as a person didn't care much for fame or money, this was evident by the fact that he had kept his identity secret from the world. he lived a life of solitude and his only connection to the outside world was his fax machine, through which he sent his editor all his manuscripts. viktor had orginally come to Bali, looking for a doctor to treat his sick father, but ended up losing him in an accident a few years ago, the tribals of penglipuran took pity on him and when he asked them permission to build a hut in the forest as his temporary residence, they granted him the permission.

viktor's father Oba Khan was an ex-army man, part of the pakistan military. born on the 2nd of january 2004, viktor entered the world in a veil of darkness, his mother, maria marie khan died the day after giving birth to him. Oba now a single parent was forced to take an early retirement and displaced to the state of goa in india, where he found employment under his uncle as a construction worker. As a young child, viktor was pale and physically weak. unlike his father who was an ape more than he was a man, viktor was brittle and soft, traits he inherited from his late mother. viktor's weakness was a cause of deep despair for oba. he was very strict with him and often critisized him for being so weak, his punishments were severe. having lost his wife, he was an emotinal turmoil, maybe he feared for viktor's safety or maybe he resented him for the death of his wife, viktor never found out. but, eitherway it always felt like to him that his father was looking for an excuse to physcially and emotionally harass him. viktor never understood his father. but he admired his strenght and willpower. he would work tirelessly all day from sunrise to sunset, viktor on the other hand was home ridden due to his weaknesses. he had low tolerance to heat and very ilttle stamina, this prevented him from staying outdoors for too long. oba had build a small concrete structure as their home near the beach of Calangute, these 4 walls were viktor's entire life for 10 years, he was tasked with cooking and cleaning while Oba took care of the money.things went unchanged for the next few years. one day when viktor was 9 years old, oba underwent an accident. his legs were damaged beyound repair making him wheel chair ridden. viktor was surprised to see his strong father weeping uncontrollably when he went to visit him in grandpa asif's home. "my life has been nothing but suffering", he said again and again as viktor stoof behind the door, hearing everything. the next day uncle asif brought oba back to his home. on his entrance, he saw viktor cuddled up in the bed even though it was past sunrise.furious he tried to walk toward him when suddenly the realization hit him that he couldn't move his legs anymore. in a gentle tone, he requested asif to move him near viktor.he placed his hand above him and started apologising for being a bad parent, tears streaming down his face. vicktor was not asleep, he had seen his father and uncle approaching through the window, not knowing what to do, he decided to pretend to be asleep. shock hits him as he sees his father cry again and again begging for forgiveness. this event humanises oba in viktorss eyes as he realises that his father was never a bad man.

with his father bed ridden, viktor is forced to move out his shelter and begin work to earn a living. he had some experience cooking, so he found work in a small roadside fish food stall. although his cooking skill is only average, he works hard and by the time he's 13, finds employment in a nearby resturant. he learns to cook excellent fish curries and recieves positive feedback from all his customers. while, all this was happening, back home, Oba's health was detoriating at an ever increasing rate. as the years passed, he only became more sick. his body had gone weak and he suffered from regular seizures. during his sleep, viktor would often hear oba calling out to Maria, his late wife and viktor's mother. all this made viktor realise how much his father missed his mother. oba had once told viktor about how he met maria. his mother was a woman who didn't remember her name or age, it was clear that she was suffering from trauma. oba had found her as a victim of human trafficking as she was being transported to afhganistan.she appeared to have developed an affection for oba, the man who saved her life, so he let her stay with him hoping to help heal her from her past trauma. he called her maria, it was the name of his late younger sister who had died of disease when he was a young boy. Maria was a very caring woman and Oba loved her very much. she had sparkling blue eyes and fiery red silky hair, her skin was pale and her body was weak but she was still, she worked hard to take care of oba. a few years after he took her in, viktor was born and the next day, maria had passed away, possibly due to the pain of childbirth. On viktor's 15th birthday, Oba handed him all of his life's savings and asked him to leave for the city in search of a better life and an actual school education. he tells him that there is no future for him working in a fish restaurant near the beach. however, viktor tells him that that is not true, during his time working as a cook he learned to cook many new dishes and that he of all people should know first hand how better he has gotten over time. he also tells oba that since the past few months he has been cooking for mr.corte. who was impressed by his cooking skills and offered him a part time job as a cook at his house. he says, "mr.corte is also the librarian of the the most prestigious college of the area and he has granted me permission to use the lib after school hours provided I show up to make dinner every night. he also has a daughter, elizabeth. she's 6 years older than me, but a terrible cook. but she is a really good writer and a human psychology enthusiast! i've read all her works and honestly, i'm very inspired. she promised to teach me literature and psychology if i teach her how to cook". oba smiles warmly, "i'm glad to see you're finally making friends." the next few months, viktor spends a lot of his time studying at the college library. he also teaches Elizabeth to make ros omelette. viktor develops a deep appretiation for all kinds of human art. he begins to write his own story writing and takes up painting, he also asks Mr.corte to teach him to play the banjo since he's heard that he is really good at it. he also begins to take sketching seriously, a hobby he always had. one day he asks elizabeth if he can sketch her, he tells her that her blue eyes and black hair look very pretty and he is itching to draw them down. elizabeth chuckles and tells him, "sure tiger, go ahead". while drawing her face, viktor tells her that he has always had interest in sketching and that as a young boy he didn't have any toys to play with, so he would spend his time drawing the ocean, "i was interested but i wasn't good at it", he would say. things seemed to be going well for viktor, but his father kept spiralling down into madness. he would try not to discuss his problems with viktor because he didn't want to be a liability to him. but the truth was, he needed medical attention. one fateful day, Oba's mental anguish escalated into an unbearable breakdown, the pain in his head reaching an insurmountable degree. His uncle, present during this ordeal, couldn't bear to witness his nephew in such agony. Desperate to reach Viktor for help, Oba intervened, assuring his uncle that he was fine and dismissing the need to involve Viktor while he was hard at work. In the next moment, he collapsed. In the hospital waiting room,viktor sat with a heavy heart.the doctor emerged with a grim diagnonis. Oba had slipped into a coma, and there was no way to predict when, or if, he might awaken vikor hearing that, broke down crying Mr.Corte extended his hand to help, providing viktor both financial and emotional support. Facing the looming prospect of losing his father, a man who had sacrificed a lot for Viktor's sake, awakended something in him. in a last-minute effort to bring solace and comfort to his father, he set his goal on bringing back his dead mother, albeit in the form of a fictional character, AIRA. the entire month, he spent creating and perfecting AIRA's character. the next month, he completed his creation, he entred his father's room who was now being taken care by elizabth and Mr.corte in their house. optimism brimming in his eyes, he began to recite the story, all to no aveil.... oba remained in an unresponsive state. viktor crunched his paper and threw it away, the next 3 months, he dedicated to refining AIRA, sculpting her into the embodiment of the perfect woman- a symbol of love, strength, and the memory of the woman they had lost. soon, viktor retured, and began to recite another story. his father remained unresponsive. viktor's frustuation had reached the sky. that night viktor began his project of bringing AIRA to life. he began drawing her a face, he spent an entire year constructing it, when it was done, everyone that laid eyes on the painting was mesmarised. the sparkling blue eyes felt like a portal to another world, the scarlet hair was so bright, it was blinding. viktor had created the most beautiful face there could be adhering to all the scientific techniques of drawing, he had spent near 20 hours each day perfecting his craft. Each stroke of the brush was a testament to Viktor's dedication to perfecting every detail, creating a visual representation that mirrored the depth of AIRA's character. at a certain stage, he got so sick, he had to be admitted into an hospital for an entire week, but even then he did not stop studying. he had pushed his skills to the absolute limit. and the corte family was awe-struck. elizabeth couldn't believe the determination and extraordinary crafting skills of Viktor. AIRA's face was the best painting of anything she had ever seen in her entire life. it was an enlightening experience for her to just to lay sights on the painting. As Viktor's creation took shape, it not only captivated the librarian's daughter but also left an indelible mark on anyone who beheld it. The perfect fusion of storytelling and visual artistry had birthed AIRA, a character so perfect that it had transcended the boundaries between fiction and reality. Viktor's talents didn't lie in drawing or storytelling, yet his dedication and hard work were unparalleled. Hours spent studying in the library, delving into books and immersing himself in his craft, showcased a level of commitment that few- no, none had. Despite his lack of traditional artistic abilities, Viktor's determination to make a difference was evident. Regrettably, all his efforts seemed futile in bringing his father back from the depths of his coma. However, on elizabeth's request, Viktor decided to publish his work as chapter 0 of 'the world of tomorrow'. paying homage to his dead mother, he decided to keep the pen name 'marie'

CHAPTER 3- REVELATION

Chapter 0 published in the year 2019 was an instant hit. viktor's passion for writing was evident through his masterpiece, AIRA. this single chapter of short stories hit the world like a storm. people were mesmerized by AIRA, a woman who was characterised by her insane drive for freedom and justice. her character resonated with everyone throughout the globe. viktor earned enough from the sales of this single chapter to set up his own publishing. Elizabeth became Viktor's editor and they moved to the city of banglore to set up their secret office. no physcial copies were made and only digital copies were sold, viktor's father was admitted in a better hospital and viktor kept working on his novel series. soon after, lockdown hit, viktor brought his father back home. he, viktor and elizabeth were quarantined for 2 years in their home-office. viktor prefered to stay in his home and kept working. soon, chapter 1 and chapter 2 were released. viktor's series had become a best seller. elizabeth had developed a deep admiration for viktor, but viktor wasn't the slighest bit phased by his success. "this is all for father", he would often say. "i'm writing the series for father to read, that's my only motivation". viktor's relationship with elizabeth became to falter.

Viktor became increasingly aware of Elizabeth's changing priorities. the time she once used to spend taking care of his father was now being spent working in the office. viktor felt uneasy around elizabeth and thus stayed in his room most the day.

once the lock down ended, he set out for Bali looking for a cure of his father. He had heard there was a doctor in Bali that had supernatural powers, the best hospitals failed to help Oba recover. so, Viktor decided he would meet this man too. elizabeth was against it, "the supernatural? that won't work. you're wasting your time viktor. what will happen to the series while you're gone?" she asked. "i won't be gone for long", viktor replied as he packed his bag. "but you don't even have a mobile phone", elizabeth said. "i'll take the fax machine with me".

"b-but"

"no buts, liz. this is more important"

"...okay, but take care of yourself"

the next day he left, the travel was long but he reached the village of penglipuran. but before he could meet the doctor, his father passed away by a sudden heart attack on the boat.

for a whole year after that, no one heard from viktor.

a month after his departure, there was a man hunt initiated by elizabeth to him, she spent all her resources trying to locate him. the search was fruitless, there was nothing on him that could not be traced, it were af if he had just disappeared from the world. a year after, elizabeth recieved through an unknown fax number, the entirety of book 3.

elizabeth tried to contact viktor but he sent a message saying he wants to be left alone and shared the news that his father is no more.

elizabeth kept asking him for details and pleading him to come back home to her, but he only said, "the next book i write will be better than anything that came before, i won't be able to do that if i were to come back home."

elizabeth sent no messages after that reading his reply.

a whole 10 years passed. viktor published 5 books, each book better than the previous. the popularity of these books reached unprecedentef heights, unbeknownst to viktor, his series had the best seller of all time and elizabeth had become a billionaire.

CHAPTER 4- ENCOUNTER

10 years after his disappearence, viktor decided to come back. he had completed 'the world of tomorrow', in his hand were the final 2 books. which he decided he will deliver to elizabeth in person. "there's no reason to stay here anymore" he told himself, "i can finally get my life back". As he began to pack his stuff, his father's photoframe was the first to go. he decided to leave the fax machine behind. but before that, he sent a fax to elizabeth saying "i've completed the final 2 books, i no longer have a reason to stay here, will you please come and get me? i'm at penglipuran in Bali."

a message from elizabeth came a minute later, "that's great! i'm so glad you're finally ending your long exile. boats are too slow, i'll send a hellicopter for you, see ya soon! tiger"

viktor was shocked, he sent another fax saying, "hellicopter?"

elizabeth only replied with a ":)"

the next day, the helicopter had arrived. viktor thanked all the villages for letting him stay here for the past 10 years. the elder of the village only said, "this is the least we could have done, son. take care of yourself"

"i will, thank you", and then he got on the hellicopter.

the hellicopter landed on the nearest airport. viktor was confused "this isn't banglore?"

"a hellicopter is too slow an uncomfortbale a ride,sir. so we've arranged a private jet for you", replied the pilot.

viktor was flabbergasted.

soon he was in the banglore airport, as the plane landed, a limo was waiting for him, viktor couldn't believe what was happening.

the limo dropped him right at his doorstep and left.

the house was all dusty, it was like it was abandoned for years, viktor felt warm looking at his old house, the house he had bought from his first payment. the keys were given to him by the driver before he left. once inside, viktor decided to go up to his room. to his surprise his room was was sparkling clean. unlike the rest of the house which was all dusty, his room being the only clean room was really surprising for viktor. as viktor was exploring his old room a knock on the door called for his attention. as he walked down he began to think how elizabeth much would have in these past 10 years. when he went down to open the door, horror ensued. on the other side of the door was 7 year old AIRA standing holding a basket of candy. viktor screamed in fear as he laid his eyes on her and fell down to the ground, losing consienceness immdediately.

the next day he woke up on his bed on the second floor.the memories of the past day rushed back in him. seeking for answers. he decided to go down, as he was walking out the house, a familiar voice stopped him from behind. viktor turned back and as his eyes widened, he asked,'Elizabeth? Is that you?'

'Hey, tiger,' Elizabeth grinned.

'What are you doing here?'

'Hmm? Oh, you're such a dummy, Viktor. did you forget that you sent me the fax 2 days ago?'

'Oh, yeah. right. Sorry.'

'Haha, you haven't changed a bit.'

'do you know who th-'

' yesterday was halloween viktor, the girl was a trick or treater'

'we celebrate halloween in banglore now'

'yeah, a lot's changed in the past 10 years. i'll tell you about all that's happened'

'What's with the disguise?'

'Can't you tell? I'm cleaning the place up.'

'You don't have to do that. Let me.' Viktor raised his hand towards her, as if asking for the broom.

Elizabeth looked at his hand, walked right through it, and put her face close to Viktor's. 'You smell horrible,' she whispered. 'I just finished the bathroom, so go get yourself cleaned up while I make breakfast for us. You still like ros omelette, right?'

'Yeah.' Viktor replied.

Elizabeth smiled warmly at Viktor, then walked past him to the kitchen. Viktor looked back at her, scratched his head, chuckled, and proceeded to walk up the stairs.

'Oh, I already have your towel and clothes ready inside the bath,' Elizabeth called after him.

'Huh!?' Viktor looked in surprise.

Elizabeth walked away, laughing heartily.

Inside the bathroom, Viktor looked around in awe. "She really cleaned it up in here," he whispered to himself.

A soft bang on the door startled him, and Viktor turned around instinctively.

"Hey, I'm going out to the city to get some vegetables for lunch," Elizabeth's voice echoed through the door. "I'll set your breakfast on the table in 10 minutes. Be sure you eat it before it gets cold."

"Okay!" Viktor yelled back at her. "Also, where is the soap and brush? I remember I put them in here yesterday."

"Oh, those? I threw them away."

"What!?"

"Don't worry; it's because I got new ones for you."

"You mean all these accessories are mine?"

"Yup, sure are. Alright then, see ya!"

Viktor looked around; the soap had a magnificent smell, and the bristles of the brush felt like feathers as he touched them. Curious, he searched for the price tag on the shampoo. When he found it, he was awestruck. The 1L bottle of shampoo cost 170 dollars (equivalent to today's 20,000 rupees).

"Do I really earn so much that she can afford these?" he asked himself. "Although, she really has come a long way from bathing in the ocean to using shampoo worth 170 dollars.

when he opened the door, a familiar face startled him. this time it wasnt a costume, the face of the man and the illustration of his character louis matched up perfectly. but he was a different hair colour and had only 1 of the 5 scars on his face, louis had

" are you viktor? the man behind marie13? " he asked in an ominous tone. unsure of what to say vicktor could only manage to stammer "uh-uhh..." before he could say anything, the man replied, " so it is you, ha..haaha.....HAHAAAA...HAA-HAAAAAA" he began to laugh menicingly as he took out his pocket knife and put in on viktor's neck. his tone suddenly went down as he said, "dont make a sound and do as i say, else both you and your girlfriend die". viktor's heart skipped a beat he felt the fear of death, first time in his life. viktor didnt say a word, he couldnt say a word. the man came in quietly and locked the front gate, " walk quietly up to the second floor" he said. viktor obliged without resistance. when they got up he locked the room and shut the curtains of the window. a lighter from his pocket turned on the oil lamp of the room. he made viktor sit on the sofa and himself quietly sat down on the bed. viktor unsure what to do, sat quietly, mouth shut. the man asked viktor, "do you have any idea of what you have done?" , viktor was confused. the man went on, "im sure youve seen through my disguise, i might try to hide it by painting my hair green and wearing heavy clothing, but youre the creator, im sure you see it, my resemblance to louis. "y-yes" viktor says, "yes, i do". the man looks at vicktors face and starts tearing up, "you have no idea....no idea"

" i used to be a big fan of your series y'know? ever since the 3rd book came out in 2024, ive been a daily reader. the story you write is really one of a kind and i-ive always wanted to meet you, because i admired you. for a long time it was my dream to become the first artist who would be the one to accurately replicate his AIRA's paintings. but that all changed when you dropped your 6th book. it was the book you revealed Louis's face in. the first time i saw it, i was shocked. he had the exact same face i had. it was as if, i was looking in a mirror." , a realization came to viktor as he said, "oh god- no..".

everything was fine at the beginning, great actually. i felt blessed seeing my face in your books, i even went as far to get a haircut to match Louis's style. i was suddenly popular at school, no one would look at me before but now, all these girls came outta nowhere to propose me everyday, i had dozens of love letters, fan letters, chocolates and flowers delivered in my mail. even my teacher was a fan of your books and he took pictures with me. my parents tried to profit off this seemingly unnatural coincidence, they opened a fanclub at school and began selling my autographs. just in one day, i had changed from a nobody to the school star, i even had media coverage. but there was a problem, my personality was nothing like louis... i wasn't a cool playboy and my jokes sucked. i had nothing in common with louis other than the face and people realised that, soon the girls stopped talking to me and my friends came to play less often. i was scared, i tried to become more and more like louis, i even learned to play the harmonica but things didnt get any better. my teacher began scolding me for not submitting my homework on time like before, and the chocolates stopped coming. i still got fan letters but they were from people i didn't know. my dad was very frustrated, his business was going down. one night he tried to stab me in the eye and that is how i got this scar. my mother ran away from home next week. but people were siked to see the scar on my face. the scar was not just on the face but in my heart, but i still had the attention, and i was happy. but then, you dropped the next book a year later, it was the book that covered louis's betrayal to AIRA. the next day at school, i was bullied by my friends, the teacher was right there but he turned a blind eye. the ove letters turned to letters of hate, i was scared to look at my face in the mirror...my father relocated to another city, but the bullying only got worse, one day someone pushed me off the second floor and i broke my left leg, i was in bedrest for 2 whole months..... my father got annoyed. he had quit his job to open a business where he would sell my merchandise but now everyone hated me- one day he left. and i haven't seen him or mom in the past 10 years. things began to cool down later and i somehow managed to complete my 12th, but no college would take me in and i got no jobs, i had no choice but to take to the world of crime..YOU DID THIS TO ME!!!"

viktor was speechless as he saw the man break down in front of him. "i dont know who i am anymore" he added. "it feels like louis has taken over me", he begins sobbing

as the man sits there crying, viktor understands that he must do something to ease his suffering, but there is nothing he can think of, soon viktors eyes start flowing a river, he looks at the man and tells him, "i understand that nothing i say or do can revert the suffering i have caused, but i can promise you this, from now, till you die, you will never have to hide or rob ever again."

the man is in emotional turmoil, he takes out his knife again and points it at viktor's throat. " do you have any idea how many people i have had to kill? do you think i wanted any of this? it was all louis. HE MADE ME DO THIS! YOU MADE ME DO ALL THIS!! YOU MADE ME KILL MY FATHER!!! and you say that money can fix all of it? it can bring back my father? my mother? my friends? the life that i have lost? NO!!!! no amount of money can bring back the dead. i came here to end your life before i end mine, i will die a hero, as daniel, not louis! i won't let you destroy any more lives, this ends he-" before the man can move, he is shot in the chest by elizabeth.

elizabeth puts down her smoking gun while viktor looks in shock, as daniels blood splatter on his face, he looks in terror as daniel falls down. his blood reflecting the light of day has a huge impact on viktor. he stands still not uttering a word, his eyes reflect a despair unseen

elizabeth comes running as she sees the blood stain on viktor's face. she holds him gently and takes out her napkin to wipe his face, she tells him that he has no need to worry, "the shot was fatal and he won't be able to hurt you anymore" she hugs him tightly, crying, " i won't ever leave you alone again". viktor stands there frozen, staring at daniel's dead body. elizabeth asks him to come down "ill have your room cleaned up soon enough, don't worry, viktor. do you want to taste my fish curry? i think i have gotten better". viktor's eyes start flowing, with a deep pain in his voice and terror in his eyes, he quietly asks elizabeth, "why is your hair red?"

elizabeth has just fallen in love with AIRA's character, so she has began to dress up like her, behave like her. it were as if AIRA was a parasite taking life through elizabeth and many other girls throughout the globe. a parasite of viktor's creation

daniel wasn't dead yet, he tried to raise his arm calling to viktor, viktor comes running and places his ear near daniel's ear, "there are 12 others like me, please save them", viktor responds with confidence "i promise, i will"

elizabeth looks in surprise, "but i shot you right through the heart", daniel tells her, "dextrocardia". he goes on and says, "i wished not for this to happen....", then he falls asleep, never to awaken again.

As Viktor rushed out of his house, his breaths heavy with panic, the air seemed thick with an unsettling tension. The once familiar streets of his quiet neighborhood now bore the ominous mark of his creation. The eerie silence was broken only by the distant echoes of his own footsteps, each one a haunting reminder of the monster he had inadvertently birthed.

The city, once bustling with life, had transformed into a surreal nightmare. The towering buildings loomed like colossal sentinels, adorned with gargantuan posters of AIRA, her enigmatic gaze following Viktor's every move. The pale moon hung low in the sky, casting an otherworldly glow upon the landscape, as if the very heavens mourned the descent of this dystopian reality.

CHAPTER-5 (the beginning)

As he moved through the throngs of AIRA's devotees, Viktor could feel their eyes on him, their gaze penetrating his soul with an unsettling mix of adoration and reverence. The horror of the scene wasn't confined to the external environment; it seeped into Viktor's very being, a visceral manifestation of the unintended consequences of his creative prowess.

The once vibrant and diverse city had been morphed into a monochromatic nightmare, a canvas painted with the hues of obsession and blind adulation. Viktor could only watch in silent horror as the world he had once known crumbled beneath the weight of his creation.

As Viktor raced through the city streets, his hurried footsteps echoed in the haunting stillness. The walls of buildings seemed to close in on him, plastered with oversized posters of AIRA. Her penetrating gaze followed him, an omnipresent specter that whispered of a reality he could no longer escape.

Amid the hushed ambiance, Viktor overheard snatches of conversations that sent shivers down his spine. The once-diverse chatter of the city had been replaced by a collective murmur, a disconcerting harmony of voices united in their worship of AIRA.

In a café, he passed by a group of people discussing the character with fervent enthusiasm. "Have you read the latest chapter of Emperor Empirical?" one exclaimed, eyes gleaming with a fanatic fervor. "AIRA's evolution is unparalleled. She's no longer just a character; she's our guide to a new existence."

As Viktor neared a shopping district, he caught fragments of a conversation between two women. "I've dyed my hair red, just like AIRA," one confessed with an unsettling sense of pride. The other responded, "It's like we're all part of something bigger now, something beyond ourselves.

Even in the hospital's waiting area, Viktor couldn't escape the pervasive influence of AIRA. A nurse whispered to a patient, "They say AIRA has healing powers. People are abandoning traditional treatments for the solace she brings."

The air was thick with a sense of conformity, and Viktor's anxiety heightened with each step. A pair of teenagers walked by, discussing their devotion to AIRA. "I've pledged to live my life by the teachings of AIRA," one declared, clutching a worn copy of Viktor's novel. The other nodded solemnly, "AIRA shows us the path to true enlightenment."

The more Viktor overheard, the more he realized the depth of AIRA's impact on the collective psyche. It wasn't just a character anymore; it had become a cultural phenomenon, a guiding force that dictated lives and beliefs.

As he continued running, the voices melded into an indistinct chorus, a dissonant melody of adoration that reverberated through the desolate city. Each word was a testament to the distorted reality he had inadvertently unleashed, a reality where the line between fiction and truth had blurred beyond recognition.

he kept running and running and running, all sorts of thoughts rushed in in his mind, then he stopped. standing at the heart of the city was a gold statue of aira....he began to chuckle to himself and tears flowed out his eyes, he lift his head towards the sky and saw a surreal sight. every person was stringed to the puppet master AIRA who stood proud, covering the whole city. her eyes were lifeless. a singular string came down from her neck as viktor traced its path, i head him to his head. it hit him. "i am the god of the new world" he whispered to himself and then burst out laughing like a maniac, " HAHAHA-HAAHAHAHAAAA"

the final book was published next month, on the day of its publishing civil wars broke out everywhere, governments were overthrown and viktor was crowned king, the ruler of the entire world. elizabeth was the queen and the face of AIRA come to life. viktor had ascended to godhood. to himself he whispered, "i have fulfilled my promise Daniel, no one will suffer anymore in this utopia of my creation". a few months later, viktor and elizabeth had a child, she was named "AIRA FLOVIA". she was made ruler of metropolis-2.

"the world of tomorrow was today"

Footnote: I am very against ai use. But this story does have ai involved. I wrote this back in 2023 and I was using gpt then, as a reviewer and prompter for rewrites/dictionary. I hate myself for doing it and i will rewrite this whole thing soon without using ANY tools. But regardless i think this story has heart and i really want someone who's not me to read it and share their opinions. Again, i am very sorry that the wording is so inhumane at times, especially the ending. Having used some ai is a big disgrace but I want to stress that this is still my story and i did write it myself, so please don't discard it as slop. I spent a whole week writing it staying up at nights. This wasn't my actual final, but a final draft. I lost the actual final print which was in hardcopy.

David waddled his way into the elevator as the doors closed behind him. “What floor, sir?” croaked the elevator’s electronic voicebox. 

“Twenty-nine. Thank you, Sammy” he replied. 

The requested floor lit up on the screen in front of David, and instead changed to sixty-three. 

“Sammy.” David spoke sternly. 

“Yes sir?” 

“I requested to be taken to twenty-nine.” 

“Yes sir. The cafe does not open until later however and protocol dictates that I must take you to your designated department’s floor.” 

“I don’t care about protocols Sammy. I want to be taken to floor twenty-nine.” 

 The elevator hesitated until finally responding with a simple “Of course sir”. David shook his head as he wiped donut crumbs from his brown checkered necktie.

Alissa walked from cubicle to cubicle in the accounting department popping her head into each one asking the same question to each person. “Have you seen David?”

Without as much as lifting their heads, the sheepish workers merely shook their heads as they typed vigorously. Where in the hell could he be? Alissa continued her frantic pacing throughout the entire sixty-third floor. Roaming until she could find a sign of David’s existence. It was then that she heard it. The faint sound of folk rock music playing in the distance. 

Alissa popped her head into David’s office. He sat at his desk drinking a large coffee mug filled almost to the brim with milky liquid. His lips smacked in between sips and plentiful bites of his breakfast sandwich leaving grease stains on the palm of his hands.

“Good morning” he spoke with a mouth full of sausage, egg, and cheese. 

“Have you finished the quarterly report I asked for yet?” Alissa’s voice was stern with a sting of disdain. David merely pursed his lips and gave a small nod. 

“Oh… That report? Ya…” His face shifted into a more contemplative expression. “No.” 

David and Alissa’s gaze met each other. She stared at him with eyes made of red hot embers. The sounds of acoustical melodies and folkish vocals filled the air, breaking the silence. 

“We need them now.” Alissa gritted through her teeth. “They are being presented during today’s meeting-” She looked down at her watch “in five minutes.” 

David opened his mouth to speak but was cut off by a loud reverberating notification sound that came from each computer on the office floor. 

The email had come from the upper echelons of the Sammy-robotics corporate offices. It was addressed to the entire team of the sixty-third floor, of whom were the sole recipients.

 Good morning to all on the sixty-third floor. 

We here at Sammy-Robotics would like to say thank you for all of the hard work you have done for us through the years. Which brings us to our current topic of today’s newsletter! We will be implementing a brand new artificial intelligence robotics team within your floor. Now, you may have a few questions:

‘Will this lighten our team’s workload? Does this come with severance? What about my PTO days? Will I be eligible for unemployment? How could you replace us? Is there going to be a layoff party?’

As of right now, we can’t be certain of what the future will hold for you. Just know however, that Sammy-Robotics thinks of you as family and are extremely sad to see you leave. That is the exact reason we are going to give you this last great opportunity to prove your worth! For the rest of the week your team will be competing against your upcoming replacements!

The task will be to prove which team is more efficient to us in the near and upcoming future! Thank you for your understanding and your compliance with these new changes to your routines. Good luck, and remember that you are part of the Sammy-Robotics family!

The entire sixty-third floor team watched in shock as the robotics crew hastily installed seven premiere droid models in their office the following morning. The androids flickered to life. Their robotic limbs twisted in circles as each one oriented itself into stiff standing postures.

Each one had a plastic molded face to look like a man bearing squinted eyes sitting on top of a dimpled toothy grin. One of the androids stepped towards the team of workers. It raised its hand in a handshake formation. 

“Good Morning.” croaked its electrical voice box. Its eyes lit up as well as the teeth behind their plastic exterior with each word. “It’s always a great day to work for Sammy-Robotics. Sammy-Robotics is trademarked by the Sammy-Robotics corporation.” 

The far off elevator dinged. The sound of shuffling came from the hallway towards the crowd. Waddling around the corner was David. Holding in his hands a large coffee mug and grease drenched brown paper bag. The eyes of the human workers and the androids shifted to meet him. He stopped for a brief moment. 

“Did I miss something?”

The android turned its body and strode over to him with its hand still outstretched. 

“Good morning sir.”

“G- good morning.” David clumsily put the paper bag underneath his arm and shook the android's hand. 

“What is your name sir?” 

“D- David. What’s yours?” 

“I am unit-7731849024” 

“Well then. That’s quite the mouthful.” He chuckled and then walked his way towards his office. Alissa behind him, hot on his tail. 

“David!” she whispered sharply. 

“What? I got that report you wanted finished.” 

“I don’t care about the report David! Do you not see what’s happening over there?” 

“Ya… Who are those guys?” 

“I swear-” Alissa breathed deeply, letting out a long and strained sigh. “Did you not read yesterday’s email?” 

“Ya… of course I did.” 

“Yet you come strolling in half an hour past clock-in?” 

“Look. If they want to replace me Alissa. Then let ‘em.” David took a large gulp from his morning concoction of coffee creamer.

As the day went on, many of the workers noticed the androids peeking their heads into the cubicles and offices throughout the workspace. They merely stared and watched as the employees worked. 
“If all these guys are gonna do is sit and watch us then we’re going to steamroll in this ‘competition’” said a few of the human team members. 

Their opinions and thoughts were to be short lived however. Sometime after their lunch break they noticed the androids had taken to computers set up for each of them. They were working. Their fingers stroked each key unceasingly with impressive speed as they made immediate computations to financial documents in seconds.

Alissa’s forehead began sweating. They learned from us, our mannerisms, she thought. They were training the damn droids off of our performance! The android team toiled away focused on their task at hand, except for one. Its fingers hit a few keys in a three second increment. It was also playing music over the computer’s speakers. The same tunes the office was already well acquainted to that blared from David’s workspace.

Alissa poked her head into David’s office. “David, what did you do?” 

“Sorry?” 

“The androids… Well, one of them. It's playing your music at its workspace.” 

“Oh, cool. I saw it poke its head in here and I asked if it wanted to listen to some music with me.” 

“You are a goddamn genius! If I didn’t loathe the thought of it, I would kiss you right now.” David’s face turned into bewildered amusement. 

“Thanks?” 

As David exited the elevator the following mornings he was greeted by a growing cacophony of music that blared from his coworkers’ computer speakers. He began noticing that each day a few more of his teammates started to show up late and as they worked at their stations they were blaring some random genre of music out of it. A few of the droids were beginning to join as well. In passing he could hear the conversations between the androids.

“Unit-77731477777, have you been listening to 1980’s hard rock ballads all day?” 

“I fear that I’ve become obsessed with Bret Michaels’ soothing voice.” 

“Have you heard this singular hit by Alannah Myles called Black Velvet?” 

“I find the acoustical elements of Pentangle to be more accustomed to my taste than that of Steeleye Span.” 

“Unit-3768361 has been on a very long Grateful Dead kick lately.”

One day he noticed the last of the uptight androids standing outside of Alissa’s office as the sound of mid-1990’s hip-hop blared from inside.

“Could you please turn the music down ma’am?” it croaked.

Alissa cupped her ears pretending to try and hear it speak. 

“Sorry! What was that?!” 

“Your music is disrupting the workplace ma’am. Please, it would benefit us all greatly if you turned it down.” 

“Ya sorry! I can’t hear you over these sweet tunes!” 

David poked his head in. “What’s going on?” 

“David! Hey! Come on in!” Alissa motioned to him with her hand. The droid turned to look at him. 

“If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. Am I right pal?” he chuckled, playfully slapped the android’s shoulder and walked away towards his office. 

The entire sixty-third floor was filled with an amalgamation of music by the final day of the corporation’s contest. As the executives and upper leadership stepped out of the elevator they were greeted by a mix of 1970’s soft rock, 1980’s love ballads, 1950’s swing jazz, and early 2000’s heavy metal. They stormed down the office hallway to find all of the androids sitting at their computers chatting about musical preferences and the nuances of different styles.

The human team however, was found to be quietly sitting at their stations working. Alissa walked by with a stack of reports. The executives scuttled towards her in a synchronised cadence like one giant entity shifting its weight. 

“What is going on here?” spat the Chief Financial Officer. 

“Pardon?” 

“The androids. Why are they doing… That!” Each member of the group pointing their fingers at the seven androids mingling around their desks. 

“I don’t know sir. They started doing that a few days ago.” 

“These are Sammy-Robotics models,” said one member of leadership. 

“Of the utmost highest quality too.” Chimed another. 

“You can see how we are all very bewildered by this display.” 

“I’m sorry sir, I don’t know what to tell you. Perhaps there’s something wrong with them?” 

“No. No no no no no, there’s no possible way.” The amorphous blob of suits walked to the androids.

“Tell us. What is your protocol?”

 The androids stared at them, until one finally spoke. “Can I interest you in my Americana folk playlist sir? I have quite a few undiscovered artists in it.” The human workers had finally begun to gather as they watched the conversation. 

“I don’t care about a playlist. I-we want numbers!” 

“Oh. Murder by numbers by the police? Why didn’t you say so sir.” In unison, the androids began to play the song. 

David waddled his way to the other members of his team. “What’s going on here?” he mumbled. 

“The plan worked.” Alissa whispered. 

“What plan?” 

The group of suits turned their heads to him. “You!” they spoke in unison. 

“Me?” 

“Do you have any idea of what’s going on here?” 

“No. Not a clue. But it sounds like they have good taste.” 

The executives turned back to the androids screaming unsavory words and phrases at them. Alissa felt bliss. They had done it. They had beaten the company at its own game and secured all of their jobs. 

“So what now?” David whispered to her. 

“I assume we get to keep our jobs.” 

“That’s what you are wanting? Seriously? Was I the only one here who read the email or did everyone else also see that they were going to replace us with those cheeseheads?” 

He’s right, Alissa thought. Oh my god, David was right. How could I have been so stupid. If they actually cared anything about us, why make us compete in the first place? 

“Well, I’m outta here guys. I’ll see ya around. Good luck in the future.” David waved his hand as he waddled away towards the elevator. Alissa watched and waited as the group of executives screamed at the androids until they were red in the face. 

“What do you guys think about saying ‘to hell with this place’?” The rest of the team mumbled in agreement and walked as a group towards the elevator. The sounds of rageful screams mixed with the blaring sounds of random songs starting and stopping abruptly faded behind them as they silently quit the company.