Fractured Reality

Man is something to be overcome. What have you done to overcome him?

– Friedrich Nietzsche (Thus Spoke Zarathustra)

The middle ages showed us the results of thinking without experimentation, our present century shows us what experimentation without thinking leads to.

– Arthur Schopenhauer

"Are you still there?"

"Still here, yes."

"Did you write the last chapter the way I told you?"

"You’ve told me plenty of times not to change anything. No artistic freedom. Shame."

"It’s not about freedom. Not about money. It’s only about making sure everyone reads it."

"Then why shouldn’t I send it to a publisher? They have the reach, the money for advertising..."

"You’re supposed to put it online. Make it accessible to everyone. Back in the early 2000s, there was this book, think it was called John Dies at the End, yeah. The author did exactly that. Put it online for free. Became a massive success. You’ll do the same."

"Why didn’t you just write the book yourself?"

"I am the story. You’re the one writing it."

"Right. Got it. Already forgot. And why this stupid pen name? Why not use my real name?"

"Publish it under the name I told you. No other."

"Okey-dokey."

"Good."

"Just one last question."

"Yes?"

"Who the fuck are you?"

No response.

He leaned back, crossed his arms and stared at the monitor, the only source of light in the room, his brows furrowed. After a while—maybe two, maybe three minutes later—he licked his lips and slowly shook his head, still focused on the screen. There wasn’t going to be an answer, he thought. Definitely not. He never answered that question. He had written an entire damn web novel for him, and yet, he never found out who he was.

With a single click, he closed the website, the one he’d stumbled across four or five months ago when a spam mail had landed in his inbox:

Feeling lonely? Need someone to talk to? Want to learn the secrets of the universe, or maybe just some dirty talk?

Start chatting now with our intelligent chatbot! He’ll sweeten your lonely hours.

Visit us at stewpidbot.com

That thing was anything but a chatbot, he thought. It was a person, someone who refused to admit he was human. A weirdo, a troll, a nutcase. But damn imaginative, he had to give him that. But what did he want from him? Why had he picked him, of all people—the most boring, talentless person on the planet?

He clicked to open the file of the web novel, scrolling through the pages one last time, checking if the spellcheck had missed anything. He sucked at spelling. Barely knew the basics from a long-ago school life he barely remembered. Actually, not at all.

"Are you finally coming to bed, darling?"

He was her darling. About on the same level as a stuffed animal.

He wiped the bottom edge of the monitor with the back of his hand, and the screen went dark. The room plunged into darkness. Outside, rain dripped down the window, and the impossible cube of Thandros Corp. burned like a giant hologram in the gloomy December sky.

"Darling? I want to cuddle now. Right now, darling."

"And I want to fuck," he whispered. The chatbot, he thought. That damn chatbot. Dirty talk. That promise had intrigued him more than learning the secrets of the universe. Dirty talk with a machine. Probably still better than no sexual experience at all.

"Darling, tomorrow’s my theater performance. Broadway. I don’t want to be tired on stage. Darling? I want to sleep now. Are you still writing that stupid novel? Give it up already, you’re not an author, you’re—"

"I’m coming," he snapped, sounding more irritated than he should. But for a while, he stayed put, leaning forward in his chair, hands resting on his knees, sighing heavily. As if he had to force himself to get up. But really, he had to force himself to go to bed. That whole thing with the web novel, posting it online and all—that could wait until tomorrow.

"Darling?"

He loved someone else.

That was his secret.

But he had nothing to impress her with. Even less than money, he had no looks. He was as bald as an egg, skinny, and looked deathly ill. He had a rare...

"Darling!"

Goddammit, he thought.

"You’re my hot water bottle. I need you to fall asleep."

He pushed the chair back and stood up.

If this story really becomes a success, he thought, then I’m out of here. So damn out of here.

New York Rebels (Daily Bulletin), 12/19/2050

Our World on the Brink

Christmas and New Year are just around the corner, the days of wishes and resolutions. But will we make the right ones this time, make the right promises? One thing should be clear: Everyone can change the world, but only together can we succeed. And that seems to be our hardest task yet: Humanity must learn to stand united.

At least world politics has shifted focus, thanks to the American tech giant Thandros Corporation, now prioritizing the restructuring of global economies. Additionally, policies aimed at controlling birth rates have come to the forefront, a vital first step toward securing life itself. But the problems don’t end here: In many countries, resources have become scarce and the prices of gas and oil are skyrocketing due to ongoing international conflicts. Saudi Arabia has entirely halted exports due to tensions with India. Sharp disputes between our beloved USA and the Middle East, especially Iran, have continued since the turn of the millennium. Unity? Not in sight.

As climate change worsens, we’re witnessing a global arms race for advanced technologies to harness and utilize R-energy. China’s growing economic power is fueling the spread of communism, leading to fears that the Iron Curtain might be drawn once again.

Do we ever learn from our mistakes?

The world population has reached ten billion. Population density has spiked, especially in developing nations, leading to even greater famine. Industrialized countries are forced to accept millions of climate refugees each year to prevent humanitarian crises. And possibly war. Xenophobic groups have risen sharply in recent years, with anti-immigrant and anti-Black parties gaining strength. Crime rates are climbing. Terrorist attacks have almost become the norm. There are only a handful of boroughs in New York left untouched by terror. In Manhattan, only Central Park and its surroundings have been spared, and that's only because of the towering barricades (humorously dubbed "Paradise Walls" by some of us) surrounding the area where Thandros Corporation has its headquarters.

But it’s not just in the global city of New York that humanity’s future looks bleak. We’ve brought our home planet (the pale blue dot, as the legendary Carl Sagan once called it) close to destruction. Can we now heal it together, hand in hand? Or will the great kindergarten known as politics continue to turn a blind eye, right up until the bitter end?

One thing is certain: we’ll find out.

Sooner than we’d like...

Carry Web, News Journalist