Only One Year Remains

“...wee–bzzz… the President of the United States has put out a statement saying…”

“...wee–bzzz… ‘so Dr. Oliver, can you please explain what a gamma ray burst is?’”

“...wee–bzzz… a plane carrying two hundred passengers has crashed just outside the city of…”

Tick.

Repairing the radio completely wasn’t possible with the dollmaker’s tools. Luckily, only the dial cover had any damage, so after jamming in a chisel and turning, I was able to change the station – not the weirdest thing I’d used a tool for, but it was definitely up there. One station wasn’t going to cover what I needed. The world was still unknown and, like always, the calamity already showed itself. Though, I had a pretty good guess as to what it was.

Looking up into the giant hole left by the crashed airplane was a pale blue sky, lit by the slowly setting sun. The smoke partially obscured my vision, and the heat was beginning to climb, but it wasn’t that big a deal yet. After all, through it shined a completely separate light, seeming to flicker between green and white.

Tick.

I continued to gather information, listening to whatever stations were still operating. About an hour later, I learned a few things:

First, this world was one based on science and electricity with a touch of religion. While they could view distant stars, their technology had only begun to reach the farthest points of their solar system, leaving them trapped on this hunk of rock. Most of the countries were at peace, but there were some growing tensions within the largest superpowers. While researchers and smaller countries had already begun to sound the alarm, the others simply assured their people, blaming it on some other ‘evil’, as they called it. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough to stop the spread of news with the blaring dot above.

Second, I was, once again, an impossibility. The sea of body parts lying in pieces were completely made out of wood, and yet somehow, I controlled this form flawlessly. Compared to some of my previous incarnations, I looked rather human-like. Still, without any clothes, it was obvious. Coming up with a far-fetched tale seemed equally unlikely. If I were revealed, it would probably end with me trapped in some lab. On the flip side, I could become a god. In the end, I decided to go with the battle-tested human act.

Finally, the apocalypse facing this world was simply bad luck. These were always the worst to deal with. People, living their life, looking forward to tomorrow, were told they had no choice but to die. Some would shrug it off while others would turn to their faith. But the majority would begin to panic, unsure and scared about what to do. Maybe they would hide, stealing what they needed to survive. Maybe they would kill others to protect themselves. However, in the end, the story was the same. The cause – a gamma ray burst caused by some nonsense of quantum physics – didn’t matter. Everyone died, no matter what they tried to do.

Tick.

And so, it was time to wander, helping with what little I could. I knew how hypocritical that sounded. The person(?) spouting how meaningless it was doing something to benefit others. There was no point if we were all going to die anyway. Still, even though it was impossible, I would rather see a world go peacefully over violence. Kindness over greed. Normalcy over chaos. Maybe this would be the world to do so, stoking my diminished hope.

But first, I needed some clothes, or rather some regular clothes. While I did need to cover my wooden body, the clothes the dollmaker had picked out were, shall we say, mostly in tatters. The few that remained seemed straight out of a R-rated show. A maid’s outfit, a micro bikini, a few animal costumes – given how they pretty much covered nothing, he seemed to have some rather perverse kinks. The closest I could find was a battle maiden cosplay. If only the dollmaker was a bit taller…

Well, no matter. I just needed to visit a clothing store first. After slipping on the cosplay, which felt eerily snug against my body, I grabbed a large backpack I found after rummaging around and filled it with a few tools and the radio. Food and drink were useless, but I grabbed a few bottles and non-perishables anyway, just in case. Once all that was done, I made my way over to the giant hole.

Tick.

The fire continued to burn below, making its way up the side of the building. I would’ve thought some kind of fire or police service would’ve come to the area, but there was no one besides a medium-sized crowd and a few news reporters on the other side of the smoke. Even with a crisis looming overhead, people couldn’t resist such a large spectacle. They were lucky that the plane hadn’t exploded yet. Or maybe it had already when it landed? Hard to say.

Anyway, judging by the distance, it was probably the quickest way out. I took a few steps back, making sure the path ahead was as smooth as possible. Then, I ran, as fast as these wooden legs could take me, and jumped.

Tick.

Note to self: wooden legs in this world could not move fast. If it wasn’t for the smoldering tree a few stories further down, and the fact that I was a doll, I likely would’ve broken a few bones. Instead, all I received were a few unnaturally bent joints that were easily popped back into place. Another hop and pop and I was on the ground. The back of the plane obscured the vision of any onlookers, so it was easy to sneak away from the growing commotion.

Still, the lack of any help services was disturbing. There should’ve at least been someone helping evacuate the residents. Were they all bogged down with something? But that would mean…

Ah, I see. It’s already begun.

Buildings were on fire. Shattered glass lined the sidewalks. The occasional car exploded. The few people on the streets had a variety of objects in hand as they ran.

In only a few short hours, chaos had taken over.

Tick.