It was a day like any other.The sky over the city, or what was left of it, was a dull shade of gray, cut through by advertising drones and trails of smog. Morning traffic crawled along, guided by the monotonous hum of electric engines and the synthetic voices of smart traffic lights.
As usual, I drove in silence toward the Horizon Biogenic Research Center, where I had worked for the past seven years.A lifetime devoted to science, to genetic manipulation, to humanity's desperate search for its "next stage of evolution."
They used to call me prodigy.At twenty-two, I published a paper that opened the path to the creation of neural enhancement elixirs. "A step toward the perfect integration of man and machine," they said.Now, just five years later i lost my spark, I'm just another name on a badge, a researcher like any other, trapped in routine, buried under deadlines, protocols, and the fake smiles of my superiors.
Most people would kill to be in my position.A big home, a nice car and a more than generous salary but I feel nothing.Every day is identical to the last. Every achievement feels hollow.
Lately, the only thing that interests me is reading novels about reincarnation. Magical worlds, interstellar journeys, powers inherited from mythical creatures...Maybe I like them because, deep down, I envy those protagonists.They die but they are reborn as something greater, something alive.
I, on the other hand, just keep existing.Not living. Existing.
Yellow light.Perfect. I stop, like always... obedient, predictable.The electric motor hums quietly, and the holographic dashboard reflects my tired face. Dark circles. Unshaven. Thirty-four years old, carried with apathy.
I rest my head on the steering wheel and stare outside. The city moves like a living organism, but without a soul.People rush by, phones ring, drones deliver synthetic coffee.An endless cycle of noise and emptiness.
Then, suddenly — a scream."WATCH OUT!"
The voice tears me from my thoughts.I turn my head just to see a construction worker on the scaffolding above, eyes wide, face frozen in terror as he looks up at the sky.
I follow his gaze.
The steel beams of the crane above me are swinging like blades of light — the main cable has snapped.For a heartbeat, time stops.The world goes silent.
I can almost count the specks of dust hanging in the air, feel my pulse slowing down.Then, everything accelerates.
A crash.A blinding flash then Cold... Darkness.
My body no longer responds, but my mind remains conscious long enough to grasp the absurdity of it all.
Dying at a red light.Crushed by a random construction accident.Not even a heroic death, just… statistical.
My consciousness sinks slowly, drawn into a silent abyss.The world loses color, shape, and sound.Only the void remains.
And within that void… a strange sensation.As if someone or something were watching me from afar.
"Maybe this is my chance.Maybe this time, I'll be reincarnated too…"
Then, nothing.Only darkness.