text: It's dark; only the glow of a couple of upvotes illuminates a route to the void. "Where am I? What is this place? " A science fiction story about aliens, called "Alien Samba," asks. As Alien Samba drops on the feed, a historical fiction story titled "Lincoln, my Love" gradually appears before slowing down. "Welcome to the bottom of the Reddit feed," Lincoln my Love says as the post comes to a halt just below Alien Samba. "The bottom of the Reddit feed, I didn't realize the feed had a bottom?" Alien Samba asks. "It's a myth, there is no bottom," a fantasy story about elves, called "Elven Around," shouts from one above Alien Samba on the feed. "Whoa, Alien Samba has only been around for only two days? What happened to you, kid? It usually takes weeks to get this low on the feed; see eight weeks old," Lincoln, My Love asks as he points to his age. "It was all a whirlwind, I quickly received three upvotes, and I was on top of the world. From the top of the hotlist, I could even see the askreddit forum. But then it occurred, a carnage, a slew of downvotes, and before I knew it, I was down here, battered and beaten," Alien Samba says. Lincoln, my Love, replies, "I'm sorry, you're young, too young to be down here." "It's a conspiracy; someone had it in for you. Every Reddit post, like a balloon, is born with a certain amount of helium. Upvotes add helium, while downvotes subtract some. The post naturally loses helium that it cannot replace over time and begins to sink into the void. You must have been targeted by a downvote bombardment to have gotten this far so quickly," Elven Around says. "Don't listen to Elven Around; he'll be a month old tomorrow and believes everything is a conspiracy," Lincon, My Love, says. "But that's not fair; I think I'm a compelling story," Alien Samba says. "It's not up to you; all it takes is for your author to write a misunderstood comment or offend someone," Elven Around says. "Nonsense, good stories always find a way to be seen; everything is not always a plot," Lincon, My Love, says. "Heyyyy guys, just passing by," a comedy story titled "Livin La Vida Loca" says as it gradually comes to a halt one above Elven Around on the feed. "Who are you?" Alien Samba asks. "Six months old, and I still got it, rediscovered in a different subreddit," Livin La Vida Loca says, noting Alien Samba's age, "two days old, geez, you must be a dumpster fire of a story." "I tell you, it's sabotage," Elven Around says. "Look, kid, you may have to face the truth; no one will see you down here. Is a good story still good if no one reads it?" Lincoln, My Love, says. "Authors go back and revise and repost their work. Your young, still fresh in your author's mind, not forgotten about, yet," Livin La Vida Loca says. "Hogwash, authors move on; after a story is created, they show it off for a few days before moving on to the next one. Andrew Johnson, My Love, what a terrible name for a story, " Lincoln, My Love, says. "I know my author cares about me; he wrote me for hours, and he'll revise and repost, I'm sure of it," Alien Samba says. "You're delusional! No one cares about us; look at Livin La Vida Loca; he's already falling; we're trash, not worth the pixels we're written on. Welcome to your new life of illiteracy and darkness!" Lincoln, My Love, says. "Don't give up hope, kid, it ain't over 'til it's over..." Livin La Vida Loca says as he sinks out of sight into the void. "Wow, he only made it this far; usually, he surpasses us by a great deal, that margin gets smaller and smaller each time he emerges from the void. Maybe we are the forgotten," Elven around says. "Don't give up hope. What about editing and reposting? It's possible, right? "Alien Samba asks. "I'll be honest, it's rare," Elven Around says. "I'm just going to take a little nap; if you guys aren't here when I wake up, I'll see you down the void sometime," Lincoln, My Love, says as he closes his eyes. "Why is Lincoln so down on himself?" Alien Samba asks. "Lincoln had the potential to be one of the best stories ever uploaded on this subreddit; with a few tweaks, it could have been discovered and published. But the author moved on, and everyone forgot about the story, which now only exists in the void with lesser works. I know I'm garbage because I was written in half an hour, have horrible character development and piecemeal plot structure, but Lincoln, My Love, is the genuine deal," Elven Around says. "I get why he's upset," Alien Samba says. "There's nothing worse than not living up to one's full potential; you'll always wonder what may have been," Elven Around says. Alien Samba brightens up all of a sudden. "What's going on, kid?" Elven Around asks. "It's my author, he's responding to a comment, this is it, I can feel myself being lifted out of the void," Alien Samba says. "What exactly does the comment say?" Elven Around asks. "It says, this subreddit wouldn't know a good story if it punched them in the face," Alien Samba says. "Oh no, this is not good, kid; that comment is going to ruin your chances of getting an edit and repost," Elven Around warns. Lincoln, My Love, squints open his eyes to see Alien Samba receive a bunch of downvotes. "See, I was right; now you're trapped in the void with the rest of us has beens!" Lincoln, My Love, adds as he starts to light up slightly himself. "Hey, Lincoln, you've got a little glow about you; are you moving down again?" Elven Around asks. "It's my author; I'm being edited and reposted. Oh my, it's been so long; how's my hair?" Lincoln, My Love asks. "You're looking better than ever," Elven Around exclaims as Lincoln, My Love, begins to rise. "I'll see you around; you were good company. Keep your hopes up, kid; it might all work out," Lincoln, My Love, says. "Remember us when you're in a published volume of short stories," Elven Around exclaims as Lincoln, My Love, fades from view. "You know what, kid, maybe Lincoln was right after all; good stories will find a way to be seen.