In the city of Perpetua, located in a desert region, the demand for water was increasing as the population grew. New immigrants were arriving every day, attracted by the city’s thriving marketplaces and its reputation for hospitality. The old pipes and reservoirs that had once been sufficient were no longer able to meet the needs of all the city’s inhabitants.

One day, a team of engineers was hired to design a new system of pipes and reservoirs that would bring more water to the city. The engineers were diligent and ambitious, and they spent long hours studying the city and its needs. They consulted with local experts and examined the city’s ancient cisterns and aqueducts, seeking to learn from the wisdom of the past. They drew up plans for a series of grand, elaborate pipelines and reservoirs that would allow for a more constant and generous flow of water to the city.

The construction of the new water system began, and soon Perpetua was transformed. The grand, elaborate pipelines and reservoirs brought a steady stream of water to the city, and the people rejoiced. They took long, leisurely baths, watered their gardens extravagantly, and even allowed their fountains to run constantly.

But as the months went by, something strange began to happen. The people started using more and more water, and the reservoirs began to run low. It was as if the abundance of water had inspired a sense of indulgence and excess. In the end, they decided to impose stricter limits on water usage. It wasn’t a perfect solution, but it at least helped to balance out the demand for water.

The reservoirs slowly started to refill, and the city returned to a state of balance. The people of Perpetua learned that their actions had consequences, and that it was important to be mindful of their consumption. They realized that sometimes, it is necessary to temper our desire for abundance with a sense of moderation and responsibility. The city’s leaders implemented measures to ensure that the water was used wisely, and Perpetua flourished once again.

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This short story was generated using ChatGPT by Serena and Tobias over the course of a few hours and a few dozen iterations. The illustration was generated with Dall-E 2, using the prompt “tiny, cute, persian style lego castle with winding blue roads in the sky, mostly gray with some neon accets in blue, red, and yellow, photorealistic 3d render on white background, top-down perspective, does not touch the edges of the frame”.