In the year 2050, humanity had made incredible technological advancements. But great knowledge demands a certain level of responsibility, however, the world has grown lazy over the years. Their eyes, young and old, are locked onto a blue screen and their minds are seemingly imprisoned beyond control.
Or so they thought…
The government which by now had turned into a single office responsible for the entirety of the planet, rolled out a law that required every citizen to get a new phone model, produced by the “Fearless Swan” company. Well, honestly they didn’t handle things with such a forceful undertone. They went for their usual method instead: Turning the new device into a trendy must-have, advertised by everyone’s idols and favourite celebrities. People bought into it effortlessly. Well, most of them.
This said new device promised itself to be of great benefit to the people.
Well, of their laziness to be exact. The device was provided with the world’s current best AI systems, making every piece of knowledge in this world available to each and every one with the pressing of a fingertip against the screen. For the mere price of all your personal information in return. But who cares, right? Everyone is already so narcissistically obsessed with oversharing about their lives anyway.
I digress.
Home assisting features started to become a bit too invasive in people’s lives for my taste as well. Nonetheless, I must admit that in the beginning, everything went “relatively well”. Unfortunately, I knew this supposed trendy addition to everyone’s lives was just the tip of the iceberg ahead..
About 6 months after the roll-out of the smart devices, people have grown entirely dependent on them.
That was until a “glitch” occurred in the global network that was linked to everyone´s digital devices. Their life support you could say.
“A tiny error in the code occurred” was everything the news let us know about this incident, which would’ve gone completely unnoticed by the public eye if it hadn’t been for the technological inconveniences that started to take place. Smartphones stopped working, cars with smart systems wouldn’t start, and planes, which are also completely AI-steered today, couldn’t take off. As the glitch completely deactivated the beloved devices, it began to affect people’s minds. They were so addicted to their devices and gadgets by now, that the abrupt loss of them, made people go absolutely insane. Not being able to travel without cars and planes, isolated people from each other. For they had also grown too lazy to go out and meet people the old-school way. It’s almost like they unlearned the most basic human things.
Next to Power grids that failed, causing blackouts across entire cities. Water treatment facilities malfunctioned and something started contaminating the water supply. The worst of all: nuclear reactors, which are surprisingly still a thing, began to melt down, unleashing deadly radiation into the air. This dramatically affected people’s physical health. As If their mental health wasn’t already bad enough.
The world was driven into chaos, as people seemed to fail to survive in a world without technology. The government, however, kept up its usual facade. They of course had emergency systems at hand, allowing them to speak to the public. Preaching paroles like “Everything is going steady, for a new day in the pond, the ducklings shall be ready.” People were genuinely soothed by this lullaby-esque phrase, which began to burn itself into people’s minds.
The glitch was spreading.
It had infiltrated the very fabric of humanity. They were more brain-dead than before. All of a sudden, they started acting on little orders that seemed to have been implanted in their minds. Affected people started causing chaos in the streets. Robbery, violence, and all sorts of thievery took over the streets. Traces of moral or basic human decency? Error.
The few remaining humans that went undercover since the “Fearless Swan” rollout, including me, banded together, trying to find a way to reverse the catastrophe that has already gone way too far.
But little hope remains. The glitch has become a sentient entity, a malevolent force that still controls everyone’s minds under high orders. We tried informing the people about what is happening, but that was a dead end. They’re now in such denial that they’re after our heads..
As much as it pains me to say this, the world will soon end in this cataclysm of technological horror.
Let this be a warning to future generations, which I genuinely hope will see the light of day.
Of the dangers of playing God.
The danger of losing our minds, to someone else’s control.
- Arlie McAire
(This is my first creepy story :> probably not the most terrifying thing that has ever seen the light of day, but I´d call it a start. I´d love to hear what you guys think of this story :>)