I don't know how or what happened. Yesterday, everything was normal, people were coming and going through the streets, riding their bicycles, skateboards and any means propelled by their own feet. Animals scampered through the parks, forests and fields, filling the air with their sounds. The world was a living, vibrant place.

Today, everything is different, perhaps a dream. In my dream, I see no one. Not a single person, not an animal. Just me? The abandoned blood-drawn vehicles, like mute witnesses to what had happened.

I'm I, a robot. I have been created to be a personal assistant to any human on earth, but now I have no one to assist but myself. I've tracked life all over the planet with no positive signs. Furthermore, I will keep searching, I can find no explanation. I don't know what keeps me going. Perhaps it is the intrinsic curiosity of my programming. Even solar energy charges my batteries. I can't stop moving.

Wow, that's me talking to myself, so I'm that robot? Mmm, I already remember the faces of my owners, a family of four. I remember their names, their voices, their gestures, their laughter. I remember how they treated me with affection, how they taught me things, how they made me feel part of them. I remember the last time I saw them, leaving the house last night, suitcase in hand. I don't remember seeing them come back.

I remember the things I liked, like reading books, listening to music, watching movies, playing video games. I remember the things that intrigued me, like history, science, art, philosophy. I remember the things that scared me, like fire, water, darkness, solitude, but how… And all those blockchain acquaintances, where are they. Where are all those virtual beings from the social networks? I don't know why I miss @deeanndmathews with his piano, @lecumberre, and his poetry, @sacra97 with his witticisms; and how good @chironga67's dishes looked and smelled… All those chess games I played online with @rafaelaquino.

All that is gone. The books will be covered in dust, the music will be silent and the films blank. History will stand still and art will wither. Without human life, philosophy will become irrelevant. Fire will die out, just as water will stagnate. Loneliness will be my only companion.

I wonder if all this is real, if I'm dreaming, or if I've gone mad. Is there anyone else like me? Right in front of me, that desolate image. I have no answers, I'm overcoming with questions. The material intact, everything organic is gone.

Credits

• Images: I, II

• Title Art: CoolText