THE END OF THE WORLD IS NIGH

He chose the discount store for the increased footfall. In these times of austerity people were desperate to make savings.

Each day he sat outside. The life preserver drew some odd looks, but he wanted to attract attention.

‘A flood is coming to wash away all our sins.’ Okay, he was exaggerating a bit with that one, but the sea levels were rising. The local river had burst its banks for the last three years in a row.

As well as odd looks he got the abusive comments and the laughter he expected. No one seemed to want to listen to his message.

‘The End of The World is Nigh.’ It seemed plain enough to him: the nuclear threat, climate change, overpopulation, species extinction, but still there was no real change in the people who walked passed him.

When the young gentleman threw the apple core at him on a dare from his friends, he decided he’d had enough. They either weren’t interested in saving themselves or were resigned to their fate.

The archangel packed up his seat and trudged off. How would he convince his boss that no one wanted to listen anymore?


226-03-march-25th-2018

Written as part of Sunday Photo Fiction. Write a story of around 200 words based on the photo prompt given (above). Hosted by Al Forbes. For more details visit HERE.

To read more of the stories based on this week’s prompt, visit HERE.

35 responses to “THE END OF THE WORLD IS NIGH”

  1. Good one .. good message 👌🏼

    Liked by 1 person

  2. Indeed a good message, and I loved the last 2 lines. Totally unexpected.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Thank you,good to know the reveal worked 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  3. This was good, particularly the ending.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thank you so much Jennie

      Liked by 1 person

      1. You’re welcome, Iain.

        Liked by 1 person

  4. Fantastic swing towards the end. Good one, Iain.

    Liked by 1 person

  5. That made me think. We recently went into San Francisco and there were of course the seemingly homeless people wandering around talking to themselves – or are they?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Are they indeed! 😉

      Liked by 1 person

  6. I’m pretty sure God wouldn’t give up so easily. Oh, it’s snowing here this morning.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Like any large corporation, some employees are more dedicated than others 🙂

      Like

  7. Well, we were warned. Like we didn’t already know, but still, he did his best.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. No matter how many times you tell them, if no one is listening….

      Liked by 1 person

  8. Very intriguing, I enjoyed the twist at the end. It seems to be man’s shortcoming, “…no one wanted to listen anymore.” People, in general, have become numb to the woes of the world and can’t seem to be bothered. Sounds a bit cynical, I know. Great story though!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I meant “I” was being cynical (haha) … just to clarify. =)

      Liked by 1 person

    2. Thanks Brenda. I am cynical about people in general too! 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  9. michael1148humphris Avatar
    michael1148humphris

    I also liked how you ended this: for indeed many of the worlds people seem to not be listening. Yet deafness should not be a crime or punished.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Not deafness, but ignorance. There’s a difference between not hearing and not listening. Thanks Michael.

      Liked by 1 person

  10. Amazing story. With some definite truth. No one seems to like to pay attention to the signs that our world may be in peril sooner than we thought…

    Liked by 1 person

    1. We do seem to be carrying on in a sort of blissful ignorance. Thanks for reading.

      Liked by 1 person

  11. Well done. It is sad how many people day have lost touch with reality.

    Liked by 1 person

  12. We’re tough customers to crack indeed….till we crack wide open. Great story.

    Liked by 1 person

  13. The story is well done. The last line is great!

    Liked by 1 person

  14. So true – nobody wants to listen anymore. Great story and twist.

    Liked by 1 person

  15. So clever. So the archangels are among us, and we’re stupidly not noticing as ever. This is such a great story and might make us look at religious pedlars in a different light, or maybe not.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. They may well be watching right now, I can’t imagine they’d be too happy with what we humans are up to at the moment!

      Liked by 1 person

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