the wall that divides us | DNF au

one

george

George had always been fascinated by the idea of 'alarm clocks.' Those before him and his people, the ones that had fallen, had left books and photographs between the ashes of all their technological advancements and achievements. Information about 'phones,' 'cars - some controlled by fuel and some by electricity.' All of these words- these contraptions were beyond foreign to the people of today.

Today, their lands are strictly used for eco-friendly agricultural purposes. They'd help the earth, and She'd return the favour by gifting them with nutrients in her soil to increase the yield of their seasonal crops. She'd bless the skies with waters that powered the flow of their rivers, where they'd take their pails every morning for various purposes. Washing clothes, boiling water for cooking and general consumption to quench the peoples' thirst when the Earth wished to converse with the sun, her skin heating up from the compliments of the bright star of the day.

Nowadays, people do not own alarm clocks like the fallen ones. Instead, they'd rely on the sun's rays which sauntered through the drapes used to block him out. 

George blinked a few times, followed by a sigh as he stretched in his bed, the thin blanket covering only about half of his body. Whilst getting up from the comfort of his bed, he thought about the tasks he'd inevitably fulfil throughout the day. 

Everyone has a part to play in maintaining sustainability, which is essential to today's people. Unfortunately, there were tales of those before them neglecting the ideologies of what they preached now. They ignored what the Earth needed and focused more on their own wants and greed. That had most likely been the reason why they had ended up the way that they did. Fallen. 

"George!" 

The man turned his head as he heard the familiar voice call for him from the other side of the torn-up drape that covered the entrance of his own home. After he shoved his feet into his boots, which were too big, he rushed out to be greeted by another man's heavy grin. 

"Bloody hell, mate, I thought the heat had finally gotten to you and roasted you in your sleep," the tall blonde scoffed, blinking a few times before tilting his head and motioning for the pair to get going.

 Although a bit of a pessimist from time to time, Tommy always knew how to start the morning off with his quick-witted mind. The blonde was merely a few years younger than George, but under his childish facade, the boy had an old soul and cared for those around him.

"Might not have happened to me this morning, but I wouldn't put it past it," George started, referring to the heat of the morning sun. "Honestly, it feels like it gets hotter every year." 

Tommy nodded profusely in agreement.

"Honestly, will there ever be a day where the lot of us just choose to ignore the 'weather' conversation?" another voice chimed in from behind, whilst the sound of feet trodding along the dirt started to get all the louder. As he pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, the tall, lean brunette smirked playfully as he nudged George's side. 

 "Wilbur, our lives revolve around a strict routine that we practice and repeat every fucking day. So the weather conversation is beyond necessary," Tommy said, rolling his eyes before further discussing what he believed the weather would be like tomorrow.

The one-sided conversation lasted until the three made their way up to the top of the hill, where they did their daily maintenance on the wind turbines. This was always George's favourite errand of the day. 

It was the only time they got to see it. The one thing none of them could explain. 

It had always been there, lurking in the distance like an evil shadow since the sixth mass extinction. Everything had been wiped out on earth, and everything the people had today was rebirthed afterwards, but that wall, that large looming man-made structure that has been there since the fallen ones ruled. 

"I know I've said this before, lads, but that wall must be fucking sky high if it looks this big from here," Tommy said as the trio stared at it in awe.

Every time their eyes gazed upon the dark structure felt like the first time. George's people believed that that was where the world stopped. Beyond the wall was a void, a black hole, a place of nothingness. 

"I still say we go and scope it out one day," Wilbur said nonchalantly. 

The shorter two turned their heads to him simultaneously with the same expression. 

"Right, and skip all our daily errands, further throwing everything off balance?" George asked with a raised brow; even Wilbur- regardless of his need to explore the world beyond the safe haven- knew the risks and consequences of neglecting the strict daily routine.

"I never said we had to go during the day, George."

It shouldn't have, but his words piqued the shortest man's interest. 

Wilbur continued, "All I'm saying is, once the sun goes down, everyone's exhausted, no one dares to do more than they're instructed to - even that could throw things off balance, right?" he asked with a raised brow, matching the one glued to George's forehead. All the other two could do in response was nod. 

"Now, you two know me. I like to go out and explore, but I don't think I could do an expedition like this on my own," he said as he twisted a spanner in his hand, looking down at the others with a coy expression. "Besides, even if the two of you didn't want to join me, I still have others I could recruit; I personally just wouldn't want you to miss out, is all," he added, knowing fully well that Tommy didn't do great with missing out on something exciting. 

Without missing a beat, Tommy spoke up, "I'm in", causing George to roll his eyes with a sigh before giving Wilbur a beaten smile. 

"When are we doing this?" he asked, evidently not talking the one with glasses out of this adventure with any added effort.

"Tonight. Tubbo and Jack have already agreed to it." This received a laugh from the dark-haired man, which further received looks of confusion from the taller pair. 

"When did you have time to recruit Toby and Manifold?" George asked as he peered at the sun, seeing that it had only just hit noon by the looks of it. Wilbur replied with a wink as he pressed his index finger to his lips.

Once the maintenance was done, the three started to walk back down the hill again. George managed to steal a glance one last time before catching up with the pair. 

'Surely there's more than just nothing behind the wall', he thought to himself, but even if there was something on the other side, walls have always been built with the intention of keeping things out.

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Author's notes:

Hello, hello, I hope you enjoyed the first little intro to this; I know where I want to take it, and I hope it pans out exactly how I see it in my mind. Unfortunately, it's been forever since I've written anything of the sort, so please be patient with me; I'm working on it.

Let me know what you think in the comments; constructive criticism is always welcome, and if you're enjoying it, let me know!

Edited 24/01/2023