Snippets and Visions

  Hakan was so happy to finally see his parents. They were young and youthful just like he remembered from his childhood. He ran towards them and hugged them. Tears were flowing through everyone's eyes. From over their shoulders he could see his uncle and aunts, his older brother Daniel and his younger sister Anette. They were smiling. Hakan had a big smile plastered across his face too. They were not the wrinkled old selves either but youthful! He realised that he himself was not feeling any of the body aches. He rolled his tongue around in his mouth and his teeth were intact too! ‘By Jesus I can't believe all of you are here !’ said Hakan in excitement. The smiles across the faces of the people dimmed a little. Ennette intervened and said ‘let's all have supper, it should be ready!’ ‘Yes yes let's go’ said Hakan. There was a large shaded area with a table where 20 people could sit.  There were already his grandparents , his uncles and aunts, everyone from his family h...

  The three friends were heading towards the lake to fetch water. Their buffalo card carrying 16 large earthen pots to bring the water back in. Hasu walked unnerved, chewing his cud on the earthen road in the early lights of the morning. Hasu may be unperturbed by the threats around but the boys were conscious. The attacks by tigers have been increasing recently.  In these dry months just before monsoon, most sources of water dry up and both animals and humans must visit the few remaining water holes. The heat during the day can easily scorch a living being and people spend the noon hours in the dungeon like chambers of the fort. It is funny that only a hundred years after earthly human civilization collapsed, most of the buildings from the bubble age were gone too. But the structure from medieval times stayed intact- being rehabilitated after hundreds of years. Our boys lived in Kumbhalgarh with 10 thousand other people. ‘We are nearing the waterhole, keep your eyes open’ sai...

  The meeting had commenced. The room was dark with only a candle in the middle or a large table lighting up the room. There were 20 people in the room, all in their late thirties. These were hard working men aged beyond the years and with looks of sombreness. ‘This cant be allowed to continue on.’ said one of the men standing at one end of the table, his head facing down and his hands leaning on the table.  ‘For generations we have depended on arzyl, it has kept our families fed and our societies thriving. And some of us are giving it up as if traditions mean nothing!’ There was a low hum from the room. People were looking at each other to judge the mood of the room. A few continued to look down. ‘These conversions must be stopped. What are we if we give up our traditions. How can we trust potaloo!’ Another man sitting in the corner calmly objected. ‘By turning to potaloo we are only looking after our families. We all know how tough the produce has been the last few years. Do...

  A strange girl has walked into the fortified village. Her green eyes are red and swollen, apparently due to excessive crying. A crowd has gathered to witness the strange creature. Some are confused, some scared, who is this person or more aptly what is this person.  She has white skin like the slaves but green eyes like those of the masters! The masters were aghast at the sight! The gods shouldnt allow this! Their slaves cowering behind them were only shocked! ‘You witch! How have you done this?’ asked the old shaman. ‘Why did the guards not stop you from entering!’ she thundered. ‘Why would the guards stop me? Any person with magical eyes can enter and go as per their will. Isn't that the rule? ‘ the girl said in a calm voice. She was barely 16 and wearing a fur robe. Her sleeves intentionally lifted to expose her arms - that weren’t brown! ‘Everyone knows that magical eyes can show up only in the ones descended from earth, not the ones descended from snow!’ the lady shaman...

  “The dream had crashed. The best of the talent available on earth had been settled on this land. Oh what idealism it had been! The declaration of universal rights of sentients! There was something cocky about the new inhabitants. Our ancestors had tried to build a society from scratch. One based on idealism, free of petty and erroneous ideas like race, religion, gender and wealth.” The thin and tall teacher paused for a moment as his pupils stared at him. They were sitting under a tree but there were no birds, no wind, no sunshine. Everything is controlled under a nano-fibre dome.  ‘Then what happened?’ asked a little girl, one of the youngest in the group. She had long curly hair of blue color and red eyes, a deep contrast against her pale white skin. She waited for an answer as she sat on the floor with her long legs crossed against each other. The teacher looked back at her and said ‘The plan was we are going to be a source of wealth for the mother populatio, but the real...

  The old monk was dying. He lived a long life of 94 years. For most part of his life he had not known much apart from the premises of the monastery.  He was remembering his childhood days of carefree play. When he could wake up and not have to worry about anything but only to run out of the house and meet his cousins and friends. What great days.  ‘Oh I have stopped breathing’ he realised.  The old monk was already dead but his brain had some activity left.  ‘So this life is over! Let us see what is to happen next’ He was satisfied. He was born into a rich family. He was an only child.  When he was 17 years old, he had to go to the passing out ceremony. Jack was excited to know how he had done in the exam. Where were the mistakes committed and where all he had shown character. He planned to use the practical skills learnt, to better his life and benefit the society in general. This was his time to learn from mistakes and not commit them again. He went to t...

  The times were tough. While the Manu were good at killing the Ruks they were not that good at fighting back the climate.  The strong and large Ruks would easily overpower an individual Manu if they got their hands on one. But Manu attacked in large groups with well laid out traps. It was like wolves falling on a bull! In the many caves, what an irony it was! The enslaved female Ruks were tending to the injured Manu- the same men who had butchered their fathers, lovers and children. No males no matter how old or how young were spared.  These females, sometimes themselves as large and strong as Manu men, were treated like animals. They were predated upon sexually and used as beasts of burden.  However the Female Manus were more understanding. Maybe because they themselves often were meted the same treatment especially those without strong male allies.  Among the children however there was something different brewing. They were free from the biases that the adult...

  In the Siberian plains Mammoths had been hunted for long. But something else was going on with the Inushi. They had figured out that it was better to have these large animals as partners than on plates. The impact of this was felt quickly. They were able to dominate all local tribes and their own population grew rapidly. The Inushi were as intelligent as they were ruthless. They had figured out ways to trick nature.  From every batch of mammoths, they selectively culled the males keeping only the most docile and co-operative ones. The females were all allowed to breed and were even captured from the wild from the breeding program.  They had extended the same trick to humans. When a new tribe was subdued all males were killed and females distributed among the men to increase their population. But trouble was brewing. The Mammoth population was not able to keep up with the human population. Recently the rate of stillbirths too was increasing among the Mammoths. Aspiration...

  Everything did go bad! Sun, the god of so many civilizations, the giver of warmth and life, now wants to burn! The rivers, goddesses to be worshipped, along whose banks humanity thrived, now carry currents of acid.  It looked like Nature, treated as feminine force of nurture, had finally abandoned its spoiled brats. Along with humans, all other life suffered, even the ever elegant trees. The air is hazardous, the storms bring dust and poison. Volcanoes were busy redistributing lands, taking some and creating some. The ocean currents had weakened, and europe, western north america had frozen over. While siberia and eastern north america were desertified. The legion of Iron were all that was left to clear off the mess. We had to try to clean up the mess and create large enough areas where the remaining plant and animal species could take root and create self-sustaining ecosystems. Yes, like the ones destroyed. It was ironic that the places most suited to this were the volcanic...

  This must have felt like heaven promised to Adam and Eve. As humans crossed the equator once again and entered the Australian mainland, they found a strange world. A snapshot of a world long vanished in the rest of the world, a place ruled by marsupials. The seas and rivers were filled with fish and land was aplenty with birds and animals. There were few threats, no large felines, no wolves, what a world! But the serpent did inhabit heaven. In the grasslands lived a giant dragon. As they moved deeper into the continent, they came across this terror. The casualties were relatively few, but the psychological toll was humongous. An animal that the bravest warriors couldn't fight, whose poison the wisest couldn't counter. However it could be countered by... fire!  Large fires were organised on a regular basis. The charred remains of the dragon were proof that it was working. Larger areas were being rid of the monster. To make sure that the dragons never returned fires were set o...

  There was mass hysteria in people. The news was filled with videos of machines and men swarmed by ants! The UN had recently authorised massive chemical warfare in amazon rain forests and there was massive die off. Bald patches were emerging deep into the remaining forests. But the frontiers had already moved!  The ants were now invading the low population density areas like farmlands and villages. A massive effort to evacuate these areas is going on, but everyone knew this wouldn't be the permanent solution. The ants had moved deeper into the ground and came to the surface only for strategic attacks. Somehow they had got a hint of our underground infrastructure too… so borewells, sewage lines, underground power cables and oil and gas pipelines were under threat. Major infrastructure threats like nuclear power plants have already been dismantled! Scientists were baffled by the complexity of the plans and organizing. Humanity had never imagined that the threat to our superiori...

  Finally the sun was to be recreated on earth. This could be the turning point for humanity. International thermonuclear experimental reactor was late by 15 years but its activation was much awaited world wide! The next phase of humanity was to commence, but not in the way imagined. The day finally arrived, The second of November. However the results were not exactly as anticipated.  New humans had come into existence!  There was a world wide programme to capture the new humans and to be put into quarantine. We knew so little about them. Strange news was trickling in from all corners of the world. There were sudden deaths among the existing humans.  The scientists soon realised that there had been a break in the time. Humans from 200 BC have been moved into the current timelines! History was alive! Languages, cultures, traditions from the long past were now living!  But a lot had changed in the meanwhile, people had migrated, populations had mixed, cultures mov...

  New people had moved into the plains. These men moved with large herds of bovine animals, much like they had seen in the forest but smaller and colourful. The hill people were intrigued why the bovines did not attack them, how they were so docile. These people moved among the herds as if they were a part of the herd itself! These men were setting up camp near the stream. This was in clear line of sight from the hills.  The council was gathered to decide what needed to be done. They decided to send a diplomatic mission to judge the intentions of these new people. Two men, in their early 40s gathered some fruits and went early in the morning and stood outside the settlement. They were noticed when men set out to graze their animals. They stopped and one of them went back to the settlement, maybe to inform the others as soon a group gathered up to watch. Two men with sticks moved forward to meet the delegation.  The hill people stood their ground now with hands extended, w...

  There were advertisements everywhere, in newspapers, on TV, on the internet. Rolo Smith had made himself the next messiah, who had taken over the reins of pushing human civilizations. After the success of his office complex, he wanted to expand it into a full scale housing complex, rather than a new city. The Government of Tuvalu had welcomed the initiative whole heartedly, this was to be the solution of sinking islands. Let them sink properly! Rolo was proposing undersea cities. A small device worn over the arm created a small bubble of nanoscale material. It would not only maintain the oxygen level within the bubble but also provide protection against elements. Living under sea had its own advantages, for young people, it provided the thrill of flying around in water, keeping pet fishes and relative freedom from climate change. For old people it made life easier, giving them the option of moving around like young once again. For business the transport costs were lower and there...

  The project of creating lift to space had other implications.  Finally humans were able to create the magic material. It was transparent, it was super light and thin. It could be altered by signals to be strong as titanium or vanish like air. It could disintegrate itself or form back. Within ten years of its creation, Israel had created a real iron dome. A layer of material physically covering the landscape of Israel. Which could stop missiles when required and still let rain fall through. Within 20 years, all major world cities had implemented it over their cities, thus controlling temperature, humidity and radiation levels within the enclosed area. Sweden could have 20 degree celsius temperature in its work areas in the middle of winters. Saudi Arabia could do the same at the peak of summer afternoon while generating electricity to heat up the nights.  There were hiccups initially. Many birds had to die after being hit by these invisible walls. But these were overcome...

  An essential part of human civilization had been their ability to channel weather and make it take course as required by man. This however had limitations. It was limited to water already on the surface of earth and it could only go from higher elevation to lower. As men were able to make this process more complicated- raising dams, lifting water and creating long canals and pipes to transfer water to the required fields, humans were able to spread out into areas further away from sources of water. Large parts were still devoid of this. Wavap was a startup that was trying to change this. A century after technology offering software as a service, we had the dawn of nature as a service.  Their idea- book a slot when, how much and where you want it to rain. The drone systems then will go to the closest source of water. Evaporate water and collect it in a container of nanomaterial. Transport it to the location required. And then just squeeze the container to make it rain. Vapori...

  The next messiah had been delivered. The insects of the world had almost vanished over the last one year. Challenges with huge prize money were launched to resolve the problem. The solution came from technology once again. Insect size drones which could do the work just fine. The areas where the technology had been deployed had seen better than normal production while the rest of the world was falling apart. However a leaked video of the Founder and CEO had caused a brouhaha. Adamu Misr was caught talking  “You see, the world was disbalanced. Humanity didn't have justice, you see. In the cold icy areas and in the deserts people had to work hard, had to plan and prepare and invest in having a good future. But if you looked at the so-called tropical paradises, what did people have to do? You don't need a house, a hut will do just fine. You don't need to protect against the cold, sleeping naked in the open would do just fine. You didn't have to prepare and store food, go...