Bacterium

In a far-away land, now long gone, a calamity so great no soul saw hope, a disaster so ever-compassing that differences of wealth or creed were now no concern, occurred. Everyone was equal, everyone was doomed.

No one could see the light beneath the sea of dark. Hope was extinguished like a flame under the rain. The beacons of hope fell, one by one. The sky trembled and the earth shattered. Among billions of lights not even a single one of them emitted a spark.

The fires of hell were a paradise of radiant gardens compared to the existence they were condemned to suffer. And after years of endless torment, voluntary extinction was proposed. No one opposed the idea, but no one could ever put it into motion. Death was terrified of entering this accursed realm to reap souls. So no organism was allowed to die. Everyone was trapped into an endless nightmare where hope had been eradicated long ago.

After a few millenia every organism had become a mass of flesh incapable of communicating their pain, they had to scream, but nothing came out when they tried. Blindness was not only metaphorical now, but literal. Pain was the only universal constant left.

After a few aeons, all life had ceased to feel pain as they all eventually became planet-sized balls of flesh and bones. And soon after that, Death dared to pay a visit to this broken world, to finally lay to rest all of the victims of the calamity.