The Squirrel and The Mechanic

A poetic tale about a futuristic universe

Artork By Dan J

Natural colours were long lost in this world,
with neon lights reaching every skyscraper.
A squirrel made a noise, dropping the next tech from its scavenger hunt.
It had disturbing looks, a dim gradient with a white belly.
It made its daily run, racing across cables from one skyscraper to the next.

In this rooftop tech garden,
she had made the most of her circumstances.
In her vivid imagination, she desired to fly.
She had heard tales of the world that once existed.
This squirrels was her only link to the long-lost nature that once thrived.
The little creatures looked much different back then, with fur instead of gradients.

With a wrench in her hand, she sat out to repair a broken metallic bird.
It needed a final touch before it would fly again.
She would have loved to see something different;
she had heard dove letters once existed.
This day, the sky was mimicked as best people knew how, using birds made of metal.

Clouds had remain for centuries still.
She had heard it once rained in this world-
She deeply felt the need to make it rain using her tears made of gold.
A few drips later, and below them was the squirrel getting wet.
In this universe people cried gold out of the goodness of their souls.

Her heart really was golden to the touch, that of a sweet woman in her early 30s.
Her soul divided in two parts: human and factory-made gold parts.
With everyone’s souls shattered in a long-forgotten catastrophe,
with the invention of soul repair, humanity had a chance to still exist.

This day was a regular working day, which also meant delivery day for working squirrels.
With her neon friend now sitting on her left shoulder, it began to blink a different gradient.
It was loading up speed for the next quick delivery.
Squirrels with their acceleration and jumping ability, made this task a breeze.

She knew the communication language of gradients.
With a flick of her fingers, it changed.
Next something was close to instant:
A squirrel taking off with a metal bird on his back.
Now she was once again alone on this rooftop.

This furry thing was her best friend,
the most important our of all the reminders around her of nature.
Then she felt that daily and deep love for nature.
Her soul was sparkling golden as it never had before.