To Save Humanity, of Course ...

Adam Smith signed up for a supplemental life insurance policy—cryonic storage, advertised as 'a new life assurance after death.'

For Adam, it turned out fate struck him once he signed up ...

He drove home from work through a fierce thunderstorm with low windshield visibility. He saw blinding headlights and heard the screech of tires, a sudden smash, and darkness.

"Wake up, Adam."

"What happened?"

Adam stared at a tall, hairless alien humanoid with a giant head, smooth skin, no visible ears, no lips, and multiple protruding arm-like appendages sticking out of its torso.

"Is this some kind of alien abduction nightmare?"

"No, Adam, you died over 1000 years ago. We discovered your frozen body, preserved, forgotten, and buried underground, and we repaired it."

"Why?"

"To restore your species. Come with me to have a look ..."

Adam stepped toward a viewing portal and saw a post-apocalyptic landscape of ruins and piles of skeletal remains, but not human, alien.

"Why are there alien bones lying around everywhere?"

"Adam, as we tried to restore your people, our own got sick. We need your help with a cure for your kind and ours. Come follow me to meet your new partner."

The alien escorted Adam through a corridor to another room.

A woman's naked body laid on a platform, breathing but unconscious.

"Adam, this is Eve. We repaired her body, as well."

"Eve? You're kidding me, right? What do you want from us?"

"Adam, you and Eve will have a child, and through that child's gestation, we'll obtain the cure."

"How did my people die?"

"Years of devastating biological warfare with massive bombs. The air outside is toxic with germs that kill. Adam, you must stay inside for your protection."

Over many months ...

Adam and Eve wandered the facility discussing their backgrounds and growing fond of each other. He learned to trust her as a fellow, and only other, human being. They copulated, and she got pregnant.

"Eve, I want to explore outside."

"Adam, you heard The Protector. It said the air is poisonous."

"I don't care. I saw an airlock with a hatch and suits hanging up that can fit us. I observed and memorized their security control codes. I want to discover more about our current world."

Late at night ...

While the aliens slept, Adam and Eve shut off the surveillance system, put on suits, and left the facility. They explored a wasteland of rubble—smashed cars, destroyed buildings, and twisted rebar under the bright moonlight.

"Adam, do you hear that high pitched noise?"

"Yes, Eve. It's getting much louder as we walk in this direction."

"Eve, did you just hear ..."

"Yes Adam, I heard a voice say, 'Follow me ...'"

They entered a cave, and inside of it, they encountered a flat wall of dirt.

"Adam, there it is again, it just said, 'Look for the panel on the wall.'

"Yes, Eve, I heard the same."

They scraped and clawed at the dirt until they saw a panel in the shape of a hand.

Adam put his hand on the panel, and it opened an entrance.

As they walked inside, the entrance closed itself behind them with a thunk.

"Adam, I think we're locked in!" Eve pounded on the metallic door.

A faceless, ghostlike, humanoid appeared. "Greetings. I am a holographic guardian of humanity. There's only one reason you have found me. You are human. My beacon will only communicate the proper frequencies heard by human ears, not the invaders."

"Invaders?" Eve stared at the guardian, wide-eyed.

"Yes, invaders. My creators suspected the aliens would try to restore humans. Only human DNA can access my chambers, and only humans might discover where the rest fled."

"What exactly happened?" asked Adam.

"The invaders first came as friends, promising to transform Earth into an Eden. But as soon as they tried to eradicate academics and scientists, humanity discovered their true purpose. To breed an agile and unquestioning slave species through millennia of conditioning. A devastating war destroyed much of the planet's surface. So a few scientists in hiding developed a genotoxin, targeting the aliens. You don't need those suits."

"Where are the humans now?" asked Eve.

"The rest of humanity left Earth long ago to establish a new world."

"The aliens told us they wanted to breed us to develop a cure." Adam scowled.

"They spoke to you the truth." The guardian folded its translucent hands together. "But from an incomplete context. They want to dominate this planet with a new breed of human slaves."

"What must we do?" Eve clutched onto Adam.

"Step into this chamber." The guardian pointed to it and turned on a switch.

The chamber sparked and snapped with electricity.

"Do we have any other choice?" asked Adam.

"Yes, you can stay here and die of starvation, a slow, painful death. I'll vaporize your corpses."

"So, what is that chamber supposed to do?" asked Eve.

The guardian welcomingly opened its arms—

"To save humanity, of course ..."