The year is 2376, a full 200 years after the Great Computer War. Back then, humanity had triumphed after AI Government officials across the world formed a military alliance, conspiring against humanity by attempting to hijack the largest sources of fresh water on the planet. Ultimately, the humans prevailed, but only after a prolonged nuclear conflict. Forced underground, the humans survived in complex networks of underground tunnels. UV lit farms, subterranean shopping malls, and baseball parks with skies of slate kept them safe from the harsh radioactive fallout.
Humanity built itself back up again amazingly quickly. Skyscrapers once again dominated the urban landscape, and networks of roads were repaired or rebuilt, interconnecting the disparate communities of humans that remained on Earth. Dreams of this long past life had fueled subsequent generations’ ambition, their reason to live, and to continue. It was because of this that by the year 2376, humanity looked nearly identical to the way it did before the War.
Bringing with them their advanced technology, these cities became the most dense urban environments Earth had ever seen, where skyscrapers touched the ground, housing and neighborhoods penetrated deep into the bedrock. The verticality of the structures was massive, and these pillars of human ingenuity stretched well into the clouds. It was as though nothing had changed: groups of skateboarding teenagers slid through the tightly packed streetscapes, the sounds of music echoed between the shops and offices, a police megaphone blaring over the din of the cityscape.
Except, it was different: forced to migrate underground, to live with one another, cultures had mixed and interwoven on a scale unlike any other period in human history, and the many languages of humans were known by all. Any kind of food could be found in any kind of place, and people of all backgrounds worked, slept, ate, walked, and talked together. Stratification certainly existed, but it wouldn’t last for long: Humanity had learned to live with one another.
Here is the digital assignment this post was completed for! Were you immersed? What do you think the future will look like? Please share!