~~~~
He trudged through the seemingly
endless factory with the oil can clutched close to his chest. The many robots
and machines that filled the factory surrounded him on all sides. Yet, they
still failed to register his presence. At this point, he was certain they
couldn't.
The sound of constant production
filled the factory to the brim. Yet, it felt empty and quiet to him. He never
felt so alone in his life, and desperately desired to reach home. Not that he
could, but a man can dream. He ducked into a far corner of the factory, away
from the sight of all the machines. Finally, he arrived at a network of
pipes.
"Home Sweet Home," he lied
to himself as he began to navigate the pipes. Past the pipes, in an untouched portion
of the factory was his destination, his "home." A cozy spot in a dark
corner of the factory hidden between the pipes. It wasn't much, a mere twenty
feet of living space. It was truly cramped living, but he had no choice. It was
this or nothing.
The space was "furnished"
with several large pieces of fabric. Some were in place for comfort, others were
used to store his few possessions. The only potential light source was a single
oil lamp placed in the corner. Although, it was currently extinguished.
He gently placed his oil can in the
corner and retrieved his lamp. He took a seat on the largest piece of fabric,
sat the oil lamp nearby and turned it on. Finally, he retrieved a blanket from
the opposite corner and wrapped himself in it. The blanket was stitched together
from old clothes and rags but showed minimal signs of wear and tear.
He laid on the ground, only a thin
layer between himself and the cold, steel factory floor. He shut his eyes and
tried to go to sleep. He tossed and turned for some time, but never managed to
drift off. It didn't feel right for him to sleep here, this wasn't his
"home." It was home in a sense, he returned to this place every day,
he slept here, he was even born here. Yet, it still wasn't "home" to
him, which always made him melancholy, because there was a time it was home.
It was a long time ago, he wasn't
sure how long. Months? Maybe even years? He wasn't certain, he had no time
reference in the factory. No sunlight, no seasons, not even a clock.
Regardless, back when his "home" was still home a most horrible event
transpired one day.
"They" came,
extra-terrestrials, aliens, invades from another world. He didn't really know
who "they" actually were, or even what they looked like. All he knows
is they came, they saw and they conquered. It was so fast and so sudden he had
no time to prepare. At the first sign of invasion, when the alien ships
darkened the skies, he hid in his basement. When he next emerged, everything
was gone. The people, his neighborhood, the streets, even the top half of his
house. All that remained were bits and pieces of fabric, the only thing the
aliens never took.
He had tried to awake his inner
survivor and forage for whatever he could find in this now empty world. However,
he returned from that venture to find what little remained of his home gone as
well. Replaced with a giant sheet of metal that seemed to stretch forever in
all directions.
He remained in the former location
of his home for a long time. Forlorn and ready to accept his fate. Yet, it
never came. While he remained there, the factory was simply built around him.
The robots which constructed the factory never acknowledged his presence. It
was only by luck that left the location as a dark, unused corner of the
factory. He was thankful for that at least.
Now he continued his struggle to
fall asleep, while the nostalgic memories of home tormented his mind. His home
that he desired. The home he grew up in. The home he inherited from his
parents. The home he invested so much time and money into just to make it
perfect.
He was still there in a sense.
Separated only by several feet of steel. Despite that, nothing felt right. The
empty factory was not home, he didn't know what it was really. He had to do
something, he needed to something. He wanted to make this "home" to
feel like home again. He just wished he knew how.
~~~~
This was another story I originally created to submit to a periodical, but never finished. I forget what it was called now, but it was a sci-fi anthology magazine. The original version was meant to be significantly longer, which is part of the reason I never finished it. I got about two-thirds of the way through and simply couldn't figure out how to end the story. There was a lot more fluff and detail in the original as well. I miss it, but it was a sacrifice I had to make to shorten the overall story for this blog. Maybe one day I'll finish the original and post it here, but that won't be for a long time.
Until then, Read, Comment and Enjoy.
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