The Last Human

Agent Aquarius wakes up after a billion years of cryogenic sleep to see the humans are extinct.

The Year 4,000,000,000 A.D.

“Are you sure you want to undergo the experiment?” Agent Scorpio asks again, hoping he’ll change his mind.

“Of course,” Agent Aquarius replies, grinning nervously.

“You do understand, when you’re unfrozen in 5 billion, we won’t be alive.”

“Why do I have to go alone.”

“We only have one cryogenic chamber, silly.”

“Could there be a second?”

“No, it would take too much time. Get ready.” She straps him in, her eyes glistening with tears. She leans in, kissing his cheek for the last time. “Love you.”

“You too, sweetheart,” He smiles. Then, everything goes black.

❂❂❂

The Year 5,000,000,000 A.D.

The pod opens, and Agent Aquarius steps out, coughing in the black air. He looks around, realizing there’s no building here anymore. Weird, he thinks, looking around. The town! He’ll find people there! He runs, hoping to see glimmering lights. Nope.

The town is deserted, the stores blackened and dusty, the roads cracked, the paint faded. He steps inside what used to be his house, greeted by the staircase he walked down every day. Tears in his eyes, he goes around to the kitchen, and sees his picture on the kitchen counter. His family still lived here when humanity died.

The TV. Something must’ve broadcast about the end! Suddenly, the TV flickers to live, and a young woman appears on screen. “This is Agent Aries, the year is 4,000,000,003, and the cryogenic chamber lab just burnt down. If you’re watching this, you know what’s happening outside. A deadly disease, known as Agent Z, transmitted through air, is instantly killing the whole human population. It appears the disease needs humans, so after a week or so without humans, the germs die off. Anyway, the big guys think everyone is going to be dead by 4,000,000,006-” H turns off the TV. He can’t take this anymore. His wife, his daughter, his dog, all dead. God, his daughter was turning 6 in 4,000,000,004. She was 5 when she died.

He knocks out the bricks on the fireplace, frantically reaching for the hiding hole. He feels his fingers wrap around his pistol, and he retrieves it. He loads it, and puts it up to his head. “Let’s hope Heaven is still open,” he smiles. BANG!

❂❂❂

He wakes up in a dark place. Everything is black, except for two lights, far away. He starts running, and realizes he isn’t tiring. He must’ve run at least 10 miles by now, in a matter of a few minutes! Suddenly, the lights are within view. He stops, realizing these aren’t lights. They’re gates! Two glowing gates!
The one on the left is beautiful and golden, shining brighter than the sun itself. The one on the right, by contrast, is dark and misshapen, giving off an aura of evil.

“Hello,” a voice pierces his thoughts, and he turns to his left. An angel stands there, a beautiful angel with golden hair, eyes like the blue sky, and teeth so white you could use them as a mirror.

“Why, hello.”

“I’m Myra, guardian of Heaven’s gate. Name please.”

“Oh, Agent- I mean, Charlie Shield.”

She pulls out a paper, and leafs through the list. “I’m sorry, you’re name isn’t on here.”

“But-but I’m a good man! I’ve never done anything wrong!”

“I’m sorry, but I’m going to have to ask you to check with the other gatekeeper.” She dematerializes before his eyes. Laughter resonates in the vast chamber. Charlie whirls, seeing someone he hoped he would never face. The man’s a demon, not Satan himself, thank goodness, but a demon, none the less. He has empty, black eyes, and raven hair.

“Hello. I’m Case, second gatekeeper. I don’t have a list, but let me ask you a few questions.”

“Okay.”

“Have you been divorced?”

“No, I’ve only had one wife, and she died.”

“Do you practice any sorcery.”

“That’s not a thing, so… no.”

“Do you worship a different God?”

“No, I’m a good old fashioned Christian.”

“Have you killed anyone?”

“No.”

“Are you gay?”

“No.”

“How did you die?”

“I shot myself.”

“So, a suicide,” Case smirks, eying the agent. “This is your gate.” He opens the portal of darkness, and the color drains from Charlie’s face.

“I had too! I was the only human left!”
“No excuses!”

“Listen, I just want to be with my wife! Give the last human a break!”

“Fine. I’ll see if I can find her. Is she Christian, too?”

“No, she’s Atheist.”

“I see. Do you have any other Christian family members.”

“My daughter, Elizabeth. She went to church with me every Sunday.”
“I’ll see if I can find her here. If not, I’ll get Myra to do some searching.” He disappears, leaving Case alone in the dark

❂❂❂

“Any luck?” Charlie asks when the demon returns.

“She’s not in Hell, I can tell you that. But I don’t know if she’s in Heaven. Myra!”

“Hello, Case,” Myra smiles.

“Charlie here is looking for his daughter, an Elizabeth Shield. He may not be on your list, but he’s not on mine either. So he can go where his daughter is.”

“Let’s see if I can find her.” She departs, on yet another quest.

“So, tell me, Charlie, how old are you?”

“Thirty.”

“How old was your family. I mean, when they died.”

“My wife was thirty-three, my daughter was six.”

“I’m sorry.”

“You’re awful nice for a demon.”

“Thanks. You want to know why we have to guard these gates?”

“I’ve got time, go ahead. Tell me.”

“She was God’s pupil, he was teaching her how to rule a kingdom, in case of his absence. I was Satan’s right hand demon. We were on the verge of war. God sent Myra to talk to Gabriel, who supposedly could stop the war. Satan sent me to Gabriel, because he was to supply us with weapons. But I wanted peace, and she wanted a war. So we both poisoned Gabriel. But something went wrong. We put two different poisons in his cup, and he was paralyzed, not killed. Anyway, we finished him, and decided to stay on Earth. God and Satan were furious. They sent a plague to Earth, since angels and demons aren’t affected by disease. The plague was supposed to turn humans purple, oddly enough. But Satan changed it, so it killed everyone. They found us, and this is our punishment.”

“Not that bad of a punishment, if you ask me. I mean, guarding a gate for eternity?”

“It’s not like that. Myra’s a disgrace to the angels, they wanted to send her to Hell. But God showed mercy. Satan immediately gave me this post, because he got bored of scaring people. Anyway, we can never return home, not unless someone like you is looking for someone.”

Myra returns in a bright burst of light. “Nope, sorry. No Elizabeth Shield in Heaven.”

“Where could they be?!” Charlie yells.

“Cool it!” Case yells back. “There’s one place left. You said your wife was Atheist.”

“Yes, I did. Where’s she?”
“Well,” Myra picks up, “they can’t go to Heaven or Hell, much like pets, so they go to Limbo.”

“What’s Limbo?”

“Oh, it’s nice. Just like Earth. Only the sun never sets, you’re never hungry, etc. The only difference from Heaven is you don’t become an angel.”

“How do I get there?”

“Close your eyes. We do the rest.”

❂❂❂

Charlie opens his eyes, and he’s laying on a strange bed, somewhere in a forest.

“Hello,” Agent Scorpio grins, helping him up. “Welcome.”

“Thanks, Mikhaela,” he smiles, kissing her cheek.

“Welcome home.”