How to Survive the End of the World

The end of the world was planned the very moment it began. Somewhere in the supervisor's office, there's a piece of paper with instructions for those who will be here for the very last act. Put the chairs on the tables, close the windows, and turn off the lights…

Humanity has been imagining what it will look like since time immemorial. Often, it involves things falling from the sky, angry deities, and a whole lot of noise and mess. We sci-fi and fantasy fans have a huge advantage over the rest of the muggle population—we aren't easily surprised!

Our culture has known both dystopian and utopian works since antiquity, and it's easy to imagine the first terrifying stories told by cavemen around a fire. However, once 20th-century society reached a point where we didn't have to worry solely about our own survival, artists began to wonder what would come next. Post-apocalyptic literature saw its greatest boom during the darkest period of the Cold War. The constant threat of nuclear catastrophe forces a person to wonder if they'd still have to go to work and what they'd cook for lunch afterward.

The typical fantasy fan has already experienced the end of the world in many forms. You could say some are even looking forward to it. Life after the end brings so many interesting stories and opportunities, after all. Think of all the vacant real estate that will be up for grabs! But perhaps you're an inexperienced reader looking for answers and recommendations. Here they are!

The Gods Must Be Crazy!

When the gods decide to shut up shop, there's not much a poor human can do about it. In Norse mythology, it's Ragnarök; Christians dread reading the Book of Revelation; Muslims watch for the Signs of the Hour. In every religion, some image of the end of the world appears sooner or later. Curiously, it almost always involves some guys on horses. Surviving this type of event is generally very difficult. Some claim salvation lies solely in regular church attendance and similar facilities. Others argue the only option is to hop onto a passing meteorite at the right moment. But we know that the best chance comes from being friends with one of the participants. Having Thor as a buddy, for example, is a good start…

Rabies, Power, and the Sniffles

Humanity has had its fill of plagues and epidemics. Yet, the whole world was recently surprised by the success and popularity of Covid-19. Every proper post-apo fan must have enjoyed the mass attacks by cart-wielding mobs on pallets of canned goods and flour in shopping centers. It seemed we hadn't learned a single thing. People started acting out just because society wanted them not to cough on others on the bus… Yet, compared to something like the T-Virus (Resident Evil) or the wildfire virus (The Walking Dead), SARS-CoV-2 was really just the sniffles. H.G. Wells showed in The War of the Worlds that even a common cold can thwart a long-planned invasion of an alien planet. And I'm not even mentioning the very insidious virus of sexual attraction.

When Mother Earth Becomes a Stepmother

This way of ending our world is insidious for several reasons. First, it's almost certain we'll be responsible for it ourselves. Furthermore, it's quite likely the end of the world has already begun… Agent Smith was right; humanity often acts like a virus trying to exploit its host to the maximum and continue spreading. We cut down everything we can, hide the cute little animals under piles of plastic, and every seemingly good idea we have regularly turns against us. American writer and screenwriter Michael Crichton was an expert on such catastrophes. In his visions, humanity cultivated something that eventually devoured it. We must admit that the end of the world in the jaws of a hungry dinosaur will be a spectacular sight. Jurassic World simply isn't for everyone.

Into the Woods for Atomic Mushrooms

Destruction in the fire of a nuclear explosion has been popular over the last century, and it seems more relevant today than ever. Unfortunately. Nerds and survivalists are prepared, though. They've stocked the basement in advance, are digging bunkers in the garden, and the luckier ones have a season pass to the Metro.

The question remains whether we'd actually want to survive something like that. The Fallout series taught us that life in a post-blast world is no picnic. There are three-headed cows everywhere, spiders as big as horses, and only bottle caps fall out of ATMs. Yet, it all started with some madman's desire to press one stupid button. One thing is certain: if we manage to avoid this catastrophe, we have a chance to achieve great things…

Even something as ordinary as our universe has an expiration date. It might take another 14 billion years. Will it end with a Big Crunch or dissolve into an endless void? We'll see. Maybe humanity will succeed and watch this momentous occasion from the safety of a parallel dimension. Perhaps listening to Nearer, My God, to Thee while doing so. Anything can happen. Sci-fi and fantasy readers or viewers of disaster movies can list a whole range of different versions of the end of the world. Watching the end, especially if it doesn't concern you, is actually great fun. Although, we should learn from it too!

author Karel Krajča