GO

“GO GO GO” the announcer yells over the loudspeaker and the racers go! It’s that simple. Nobody yells at him in the morning to "GO GO GO". Not even a judge to blow the whistle, so he would know the match has began. Nevertheless, he gets up every morning to start the new day, to live and to breathe and to deserve the right to do so. Money is not the issue, it hasn’t been in his lifetime, he doesn’t even know the word for it. Humanity has long ago overcame the petty race for money. Today the second that anyone is born they’re granted everything needed for life, until death. Most people live happily ever after, content to exist, make new humans and indulge in every fantasy they can imagine.

Not Jack. He always had the urge to contribute, that itch at the back of his mind telling him to be useful, or lay down and die. So he studied science, to find out what to contribute. He learned that he isn’t clever enough to advance it in any field. Jack tried to make art, but his paintings were bland and his poems and stories were boring. He even tried to do manual labor, but that just couldn’t scratch that itch in his mind, not with the robots doing it faster and better.

So he tried to enjoy himself like other people do. Jack tried having fun and exploring the pleasures available in this cosy world. He played the VR games and listened to beautiful music and explored untouched natural wonders. Including gorgeous generous women too happy to help him explore his sexuality. Exploration and pleasures of sex satisfied him for a while, but soon he became restless again. His children grew up fast as any with the help of modern technology, and they didn’t need him either, no matter how much he adored them...

And the itch continued to itch, nagging him every waking second until he was unable to stand it anymore. He developed a machine to help him explore that last place, or state of mind, left unexplored by the human race. When he pushes the button “GO” it will inject him with a lethal cocktail of drugs that will kill him fast and, he hoped, with no pain. When the brain activity drops to zero, it will count down 60 seconds before administrating drugs and advanced CPR to bring him back to life. To succeed, he must not only survive but also be able to remember what was on the other side. If he doesn’t survive it won’t matter anymore, and if he survives but gain no new information about the other side, he’ll repeat the procedure until he does.

Sitting in the chair with various electrodes taped to his chest and head, Jack smiles. He is finally ready. For months he prepared everything to be perfect. He presses the button “GO” still smiling, and that smile vanishes as light vacates his eyes forever.