"The rapture of pursuing is the prize the vanquish gain."
-- Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Intro:
The world was rattling.., splitting apart at the seams -- the meaning of life, although different for everyone, had taken on a completely negative vibe. And the citizens of the world held on to the last thing they had -- The Rapture.
Near Future:
NO RAPTURE… Were the only two words they had heard -- as silence fell over the previous ravenously, exuberant crowd. Sure there was always some people on the fringes of society that were constantly claiming The Rapture was eminent, only to wake the next day in worst shape than the day before… But this was different -- somehow, through social media, with all the decentralized platforms that had continued to pop-up, word had spread so fast and so wide -- it rang true!
It had become common knowledgeable -- worldwide.., that December 31, 2019 at the stroke of midnight, a complete ending to not only the year -- but a civilization. A savior would appear.., and those "without sin" would transcend this world.., and the "sinners" left to die in the coming apocalypse -- so they say…
Just like that is how people had always understood, the End of Days.., would go down. Pretty much the worst shit you could imagine -- fires, floods -- all kinds of wicked weather, earthquakes, tsunamis -- the whole shebang. But the whole world was never on-board, before… Like I said, it was normally just a tiny segment of the world.., or just some whacko waving a giant sign in the street, that actually thought the world was really ending.
NO… This Was It -- THIS SHIT WAS HAPPENING!!!
And it would happen, nowhere else but Times Square… As the the infamous New Years Eve Ball descended, The Rapture would begin.., and by 12:01am January 1, 2020, if you were still standing there with a party favor in your hand -- you had not been chosen.., and the shit was about to hit the fan.
It was truly amazing how quickly the truth of this moment was accepted -- by everyone.., but really, should have been no surprise… People had grown desperate.., once simple disagreements and compromise turned into insanity, nothing could be accomplished. Whole groups of people were being forgotten -- left behind.., human interaction had grown so rare, we now, as an entire population -- had a coldness about us.., a meaner spirit.
And from there.., it was just all down hill -- things just snowballed out of control!
It happened in the drop of a dime, too. Even though everything was going on right in front of our eyes -- in realtime, we had chosen to not to see it. And when we did see it.., we would just rationalize it away. After being slowly distracted for so many years, blinded by all the new technology, completely disconnected from ourselves -- drifting away from our humanity.., things had become hopeless -- just like that.
It wasn't as if, people didn't try, either -- a large portion of the population had seen this coming… I mean, how long could civilization go on this way -- what right did anyone have, to think they should be saved, while they lived in world filled with such suffering, consciously turning a blind-eye to all those in need -- struggling just to survive, in our quest for a materialistic dream… Lying-down, giving-in -- letting the bad guys win. Rolling over like a two dollar whore.., and buying into their vision of a world that catered only to few.., and left so many without…
Choosing everyday.., to ignore our humanity.
So when the ball started to descend from its peak.., no savior showed up -- just that "crazy" guy waving his big sign, shouting to the crowd that had come from all over, to the masses that were watching on TV, to the gazillion people staring at their smartphones -- "I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN HERE WITH YOU… LIVING AMONG YOU IN THE FACES OF THE HUNGRY -- THE CRIES OF ALL THE COLD AND LONELY!!!"
But as opposed to disregarding this "crazy" man, like we would normally do -- immediately everyone listened with a sense of reverence and awe… As he continued.., there faces grew a pale shade of white and an overwhelming sense of doom filled their entire being. And in an forced and loud whisper -- "How dare any of you expect or assume you deserved to saved.., you have all forgotten what it is to live as gracious, thankful, decent humans. But now, in this moment -- you will know what it is like TO DIE as humans…"
"YOU HAVE FAILED.., to lift each other up -- and in not doing so, it is impossible for you -- any of you, to transcend this cruel, unforgiving world…" As soon as he finished these words -- riots began breaking out world-wide.., instead of fires spontaneously erupting -- they were set, by the very same people, that just seconds early believed they should be saved. The earth trembled and started to collapse around them.., but not from any unknown or supernatural force -- but form their own hands… As panic and fear griped the world, missiles were launched and nuclear bombs dropped. And there you have it -- the world would be ending but.., there will be -- No Rapture.
The End.
P.S.,
A few of us have managed to survive the onslaught of mass killing, that wiped out an entire civilization.., but it is only a matter of time -- a few days before we vanish from this earth. I would be surprised if I even finish this stor-rrr...
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