By: Liz Vaughan.

The angel appeared in Kira’s bedroom at midnight. Showering magnificent feathers upon her comforter, they explained: the end was here. Only one hundred other people would remain on Earth.

The selection belonged to Kira. She wrote the list in her diary.

In the morning, ninety-nine people arose and found commonality between those left behind. Kira’s parents. Her best friends. The cute boy from afterschool, the cute girl from soccer.

A continent away, a man awoke to an empty world. He wandered, forlorn and bewildered. He’d never know why he was special—the arbiter of the end owned all his band’s CDs.

© 2025. Liz Vaughan

Liz Vaughan is from Western North Carolina. They are an undergraduate at UNC Chapel Hill studying creative writing and linguistics. They love speculative fiction and innovative storytelling techniques. Find them on Bluesky @creaturewriting.

Posted April 16, 2025.