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10,000 WORDS TO DESCRIBE PLASTIC
sometime in the not-too-terribly distant future....
following a series of ecological catastrophes and the near complete melting of the polar ice caps, most of the earth's continental landmasses have been swallowed by the ocean, civilization has completely collapsed, and the sun is gradually setting on the anthropocene. it's a peaceful but precarious time, where the remainders of humanity are sleepily persisting on tiny pockets of inhabitible land scattered about the single layer of blue that now comprises the planet. knowing that someday very soon, their fragile way of life will no longer be able to sustain them as the climate grows ever more inhospitable, the earth's last humans live out their days aimlessly and in good company.
one such tiny cluster of humans has taken up refuge on a small but fruitful island outcropping somewhere in what used to be the pacific ocean. on this tiny speck of land, a boy named skipper was born into a decaying world. though his day to day life is peaceful, the bleak future breathes down his neck constantly. he is the only child he knows -- discontented with placid acceptance of death and wishing futilely for adventure, intrigue, companionship, and purpose, he passes his time by performing idle tasks for his little community. fishing, delivering food, and his favorite: mudlarking on the various drifting islands of garbage that float by on the tide, the last ruined vestiges of a way of life he could only ever imagine. he collects trinkets and daydreams listlessly for years, lost and lonely. that is, until he finds something particularly unusual on one of his regular outings: the unconscious body of a cyborg boy stranded among the plastic bags and empty bottles.
the boy -- phi -- awakens with no memory of where he came from, or of anything else for that matter. his only clue is a strange compass embedded in his prosthetic arm, pointing at a mysterious "something", somewhere out there in the endless sea. together, skipper and phi set out on an uncertain adventure into the great blue unknown, in search of answers to dubious questions -- or maybe just in search of any purpose at all. all the while, an enormous white ship of mysterious origin looms on the horizon, infinitely circling a figure eight pattern in the empty waters.
it's a tragic adventure story about love, pain, futility, the past, the future, and the present at the end of human history.
you can listen to a demo of its "theme song"here! (it's embarrassingly bad though...)