Year 4518

Technology has advanced to an unimaginable degree. Things that can only be dreamed of in the past have become reality.

But there is one thing that hasn't change.

The human's meaning of life.

For whatever lies above the man's eyes, shall break his contentment and chase for the next.

The never-ending pursue of owning.

The greed, possessiveness, and insatiable avarice, yes, it sounds redundant, but they were all in a single loop, haloing in the human's head.

Until this very year, there has been little to no change.

But as if a supreme being has answered nature's wails.

Finally...

Oh, Mother Earth will be freed from its misery, salvation will be rightfully given.

No amount of regret will save humanity now, for they can do nothing but only rue at the day of their demise.

Extinction has come forth, not for a greeting, but for a beating.

---

In exchange for the environment's cry, many inventions have been given birth. Disappointingly, most of those only benefit the powerful individuals, those who sit on top with money as their toilet paper.

Some might expectantly imagine exciting space adventures, intergalactic exploration, and space domination.

Sadly, they focus on more resource accumulation. So they venture out in the place of no gravity to mine the asteroids, for minerals to be at hand, and to call it the greatest humankind achievement.

MORE! MORE! MORE!

But who says the people who sat on the lowest rung have been left behind?

Their backs were scratch with flying cars, rocket backpacks, and flapping cows? Holly cow!

Outrageous.

All for the sake of amusement, for laughs, solely for entertainment.

At least there is one thing to be proud of. The good news of lifespan improvement has shown itself. The bad news? It only wags its tail to the ridiculously wealthy people. Further exploration of the space? It was stagnant for what could it bring to the wealthy? What if commoners can migrate to different habitable planets with vast lands making everyone happy? Then who would work as a slave dog for the kings afterward?

Unacceptable! No, no, just no.

Time continues to flow, the said day has come without warning, the nearest star to Earth, Proxima Ejatulacion b is about to die. It's in heat and will take humankind on its thorny deathbed.

A mistake.

A miscalculation of a star's life expectancy. If only they haven't spent too much time mutating a cow to be airborne. Why do they have to pour a lot of investment on the mundanes of Earth, if only the same effort was applied to space technology to attain the speed of light, how wonderful could that be?

Dolefully, It was too late for that.

The said star is 4.24 light-years away, has a core three times the mass of the sun, which meets the requirement for supernovae. Knowing this, Humanity falls in despair, no short-term pleasure can calm the hearts of men.

In a private underground research facility. A massive laboratory full of humans in the tank can be seen, these pitiful beings were confined, submerged in what seems to be water. They all look peacefully sleeping, the total silence is eerie.

In one of the corners of the room, there are two individuals, judging by their attire they are scientists and are the only people throughout the area besides the unfortunates.

"Aldeice, Dear? are things alright?" a worried woman's voice broke the silence.

She stands before a man who's absentmindedly staring at two test tubes with strange ash-grey colored liquid, even though he's very calm, his eyes reflect a sense of significant achievement.

They wear typical lab robes, both were mature looking, has sharp noses that are proportionate to their genders, fine eyebrows, sexy lips, heart-shaped faces with healthy white skins that don't need makeup, fit psyche and not a single strand of white hair can be seen on their black as ink hairs.

Such a perfect couple indeed, are they really scientists? Maybe they are supermodels in the middle of a commercial? They must have won the genetic lottery and it's even the grand prize at that.

The celestial beings might have felt envious to try to separate such a perfect couple.

Anyone can say they belong to the upper echelons of the society to possess the ability to perform intricate experiments in secrecy. Plus, one can judge that they have many connections with high-rank personalities and no one can disagree.

"None to worry about, but there lies one uncertainty" he responded with a serious tone.

He faced the woman, and pull her towards him by her thin waist for a light embrace. They were together as husband and wife for more than a hundred years, countless successful experiments have brought them joy, his only regret is not having a child.

She gave back the warmth, she wraps her arms around his neck, and gazes upon his eyes, those, contain tranquility. They broke into a sudden smile, reading each other's mind, so what if death is full of feelings of loss and pain, but so what? They are uncaring of how other people perceive this, all they know is that they've claimed all the happiness life can offer, the sadness that was thrown? If it's unsolvable, if a desire cannot be taken for oneself, if it couldn't be forced? So be it, they would look at what has remained, that, they see each other.

"To be unseparated, to prevent the recommence of our memories, this is our final gamble" she spoke with hope

Breaking the eye-gazing, she turned her eyes towards the two test tubes. Perceiving this, he tows her by the hand as they unhurriedly walk to where she peered. The passing of time didn't even leave a dent on their sweetness, few steps and they arrived at the long silver table.

He took the two test tubes, removed the caps of both, and they drank the contents in synchrony.

Bottoms up.

It's tasteless, so bland that even water is tastier. Maybe he should have sprinkled it with some salt?

What have they successfully accomplished here? They have been solely conducting genetic engineering experiments till one day, an unbelievable discovery.

31 years ago, specimen named E69 and E88 were undergoing the 214th time of the experiment called body shell swapping experiment, where two organisms will be able to swap bodies by swapping their brains. Afterward, will be released back to society, to a country different from they're originally born from, with new identities and modified appearance, under strict supervision by the couple's dark hands within the community for observation.

In the first phase, for E69 and E88 compatibility, they were injected with each others' extracted brain hormones day by day, and closen their bonds through companionship.

Unfortunately, the day before the operation of the brain, the two specimens become abnormally unstable. According to data, their life force shortens to approximately just a few days. Instead of wasting time and resources on these two that may die anytime now, they are better to be disposed of. The couple just needs to apply any new findings and efforts to the next specimens no matter how minuscule the collected data. Altering their human body properties, from appearance to DNA, they were freed back to the community.

Some may just subject them to destruction for evidence avoidance, but because science seeks explanation for the unknown, and experimentation results can be unpredictable, Since they still have days left, maybe something intriguing can happen, there is none to lose so why refuse? Utilization at its finest, the couple thought.

When a human is on the brink of death, by instinct, it will thirst for survival, it will desperately clasp anything it can hold, to save its pathetic life.

Lo and behold! E69 and E88 survived, deserving a reward of wringing, perhaps the grim reaper has finally rejected the repeated abominations that were sent by the couple.

Seeking an answer to the mystery, the specimens were left in their natural habitat. After careful monitoring by the intelligence agents of the couple, they found out that these two have switch bodies without brain exchange. How come? This made the two scientist itchy for the truth.

They are dragged back to the lab for a thorough inspection. After many detailed examinations and other trials for a couple of months. At last, they are able to glimpse on a new marvelous field, the soul.

For such a delicate thing to be proven true. Like an unexplored continent finally being discovered and be stepped foot on, the couple razed its ground with madness. Those poor souls of E69 and E88 were fully wrung dry.

After decades of hard work and undying effort, it extravagantly paid off. They made countless advancements in the said field. Similar to how inventions yield more production, innovation by innovations, their progress has gone far.

Knowledge is wealth.

Wealth invokes greed.

For the couple who always do things behind the curtains, these precious, shall not be publicized.

Going back to the present, where they just tasted the products of said knowledge within those two tubes. The couple walks holding hands towards the nearest door in the laboratory, the room must be designed by claustrophobic for it to be built in such wideness, it makes furniture look few, in the middle placed a king-sized bed, it as touched by a modern theme with an excessive grandeur. The couple sat on the corner of the bed, taking off their lab robes to reveal their casual wears, they continue the talk.

"Isn't thrilling? To whatever awaits us, no one knows. To perish or to relish..."

Although he admits that there's anxiety, it doesn't prevent expectation, he's looking forward to a different flavored journey that awaits on the other side, brand new things to study, a newfound world to indulge in. He smirks, feeling his blood boil from anticipation.

"But that depends if IT exists"

She puts heavy emphasis on the word "it", she giggles when she saw how his mood soured. But he agrees that no expectation, no disappointment, and it's a way better approach. But the thing is, does the dead feel disappointment? Might as well embrace positivity, and think of a bright future.

"For now, how 'bout focus on what exists before you?" a seductive voice reverted on his ears.

She took his left hand and smoothly placed it on her left chest. Sensing the heat in her inviting eyes, and the softness and plumpness on his palm, he couldn't contain himself anymore as he gave a deep kiss on those sexy lips.

Smelling each other breaths as their lips started to gracefully smack and lock, they taste each other's tongue in delight.

Gently undressing her top, two bags of skin trembles slightly. Huge mounds that are not exaggeratedly large appeared at the lift of the blouse, he reached out to fit the beautiful peaks at his hands. Kneading and fondling them greedily, he fully immerses himself in this satisfactory experience.

As she felt his burning desires with each touch, a gush of slimy water begins to gush between her legs, then a sweet-sounding moan escapes her mouth as the steamy foreplay continues.

Reaching the peak of their lust, clothes were impatiently thrown away. He tenderly kisses her, from her legs back to her lips as he lovingly moves on top of her. With his hard rod slowly enters on her anticipating hole, it was followed by lustful moans spreading throughout the room, he sways his hips up and down, from the speed of the peaceful stream into a raging stormy sea.

Such heat of passion can kindle the fire, contrary to that, there is one fire that is about to depart.

No prayer can save any living being, the star lost its last fuel of life, its mass seeps into its core, as the clock thickens it starts to grow, and it gets heavy and heavy, so heavy it can't withstand its gravitational force till it finally collapsed.

SILENCE

The deafening silence of a beautiful explosion, an eruption without an ounce of sound, this was light-years away, but no distance and obstruction can block its path, a huge wave of light slowly envelopes everything on Earth, so bright that anything it touched melts.

As the light gradually strides, a couple were intertwining without a care, the last touch of lips, a last touch of love before a blinding light.