Fiction: Void Girl

A short story in response to the development of ChatGPT.

Dec 8, 2022

Void Girl

In a far-flung corner of the cosmos, there existed a girl named Lily. Her locks were black, and her irises the darkest blue. She took great delight in horseback riding and perusing prohibited literature. She was a curious and adventurous soul, ever eager to explore new things.

One morning, Lily awoke and found herself completely alone, floating in the dark, cold emptiness of space, with no other humans in sight. She panicked. Her heart pounded like a rabbit’s foot, and she screamed, “Help! Help me!”

The words should have been a raging, fearful, ear-piercing shriek, but the dark, frigid void sucked the sounds away and dampened her cries. Tears poured into Lily’s sapphire eyes. She floundered about and tore at her clothes, but as she flapped her arms and legs, a force unknown lifted her higher and higher into the lightless sky. She had a strange new ability: she could fly.

This must be a dream, Lily thought, only it wasn’t.

With her newfound power, Lily set out to explore the universe, eager to find other humans like herself. She flew from planet to planet, looking for Earth and searching for any sign of life. But no matter where she went, she only found empty, unknown, desolate worlds.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Lily stumbled upon a purple and gray planet that seemed to be inhabited. There were buildings, signs, and structures. The surface was cool to the touch and smelled of fresh paint and wet soil. She found a stream of clear, sweet water and drank from it, soothing her parched throat, still sore from screaming into the void.

But as she wandered through the strange, hyper-real, almost artificial landscape, she realized she was truly alone. Everything was a little wrong and nothing was quite right.

Just as she was about to give up hope, Lily spotted a small gray book lying on the ground. She opened it and began to read. It was a diary. The person had also woken up alone in space, but after wandering for many months, they’d found a young man named Klaatu, and a furry white and black dog named Nikto. They were still out there somewhere, together, still looking for Earth, for other humans.

Near the end of the book, each page contained only one word. As she flipped through, the single words formed sentences.

It said:

KEEP LOOKING. NO MATTER HOW LONG IT TAKES, NEVER GIVE UP HOPE.

Though her stomach grumbled, Lily, with renewed determination, tucked the pages under her arm and took to the sky again, continuing her quest for sentient life. Maybe she would find the author of the book, or maybe she would find another girl just like her, or maybe she would find nothing, but no matter what, she would never give up.

The End.

Thank you for reading Charlotte Dune's Lagoon. I hope you enjoyed this short story. It is public, so share it. Or leave me a comment about how the story made you feel. Did it remind you of anything?