Maddening Storm

Descent Of The Meteor

On midnight of June 1, 2024, news channels in all parts of the world went wild. Numerous reports from various countries about the sighting of a strange celestial phenomenon streamed in one after the other.

Overnight, without warning or reason, the moon turned crimson, and the scattered stars in the black canvas of sky seemed to fall like sprinkles of rain.

They descended on earth in a shower of crimson and gold radiance. Leaving flame and destruction in their wake, they swept through the four directions in a giant mushroom cloud.

Buildings fell, roads crumbled, and as the numerous wires controlling the city's power lines combusted, a blanket of darkness fell over Aurora City.

A giant black rock, ignited in flames, sailed through the sky and thunderously crashed into the Epien Forest.

Boom!

Violent shock waves traveled through the ground, and a giant crimson mushroom bloomed above the remaining trees. The earth fractured and split apart like dry pieces of twigs.

Ella's heart pounded in her chest, half from the excitement of encountering the first wave of radiation, and half, for the end of the world she knew.

After tonight, Aurora City, Cyprus and the rest of the world would no longer be the same.

As the blood moon in the sky cloaked the land in a crimson glow, the flames from the combusting meteor added an eerie fiery radiance to the night.

Ella took a deep shuddering breath.

It was now or never.

She decisively removed her clothes and shoes, and naked as the day she was born, took a determined step forward.

The end of the world was already set in stone. Her sadness or reluctance wouldn't change the flow of events. To survive what was to come, she needed sufficient strength and power to protect herself.

When she arrived a meter within the flaming rock, a wave of crimson-gold heat blasted in her face. She felt a mystical force, elusive and obscure, prickle her skin and enter her body through her pores.

Unbearable heat suffused her lungs and heart, and white spots filled her vision.

This was a good sign.

According to the apocalyptic scientists, the first wave of crimson-gold radiation would stimulate the human body's abilities and strengthen it so it could resist the tough environment of the apocalyptic world.

The first sign of this transformation began in the strengthening of the hearts and lungs. The heart rates of the infected individuals would rise and experience symptoms similar to lung and heart disease. They would cough, their eyes would leak tears of blood, and they would find it difficult to breathe.

Once their hearts dropped to the lowest extreme, the change would be complete.

As long as an ordinary human's heart didn't completely stop at this point, they would successfully be reborn. After reaching this step, it could be said they overcame the zombie virus, and would be guaranteed to awaken a special ability.

Ella's mind grew sluggish as the heavy feeling in her heart and lungs intensified. Lowering herself to the ground, she wrapped her arms around her legs in a fetal position and slowly closed her eyes.

In a matter of one night, the temperature in Cyprus rose dramatically. Reaching as high as two thousand degrees Celsius, plants were reduced to ash, while animals with hides combusted in flames. Some, who got in contact with the first wave of radiation, evolved and changed into monstrous creatures.

Urban infrastructure became paralyzed, and with the sudden power outage, communication got cut off.

Terror and panic spread through the cities. The government officials couldn't be reached, and with the second wave of heat radiation, people began to fall sick.

By early morning, public hospitals and emergency centers were overwhelmed. Under the blazing heat, the sick lay on stretchers and blankets outside the hospital facilities with their family members as their only caretakers.

By mid-morning, the first wave of the zombie apocalypse began.

It started from inside the hospital building, from the first group of admitted patients.

A doctor and nurse restrained a man with an almost crazed glaze in his eyes. Strapped to the bed from the arms, waist, and ankles, the man thrashed wildly, with an inhumane strength. Medical trolleys went spinning, as the tools on top of them crashed to the ground.

The moment the man's heart stopped, his violent movements vanished. He went as still as a frozen block of ice.

"Doctor, he's not convulsing anymore! His heart stopped!"

"Perform CPR! We must do our best to resuscitate him!"

The doctor and nurse frantically used mCPR to resuscitate the patient. They checked his vital signs and administered heart recovery emergency aid. However, the man remained still and didn't respond to any of their efforts.

After 5 minutes, they finally declared him dead.

Silence settled over the family members of the patient.

Their eyes were vacant as they looked at the pale corpse. After a long period of stifling silence, the wife of the patient lifted her head and glared at the doctor and nurse.

"My husband was fine and healthy just yesterday. How could he die from a mere fever? You guys did something, didn't you? You made a mistake in treatment and killed him!"

Blind with sorrow and grief, the woman ran forward and held the collar of the doctor. She roughly shook him and beat him, crying and wailing as she commanded him to bring her husband back to life.

"He was fine yesterday! How could he die from a mere fever!?" She shrieked.

Finding reason in the woman's words, the old parents of the man rounded on the nurse. "My daughter-in-law is right. Mike was fine just a day ago. How could he die from a fever? Come clean and tell us what you did. Otherwise..." They held the nurse and doctor captive, refusing to let them go without an explanation.

As the family and physician argued back and forth, the dead corpse on the bed abruptly sat up. It's milky eyes slowly opened, and hunger filled their depth at the sight of the five entangled people.

With an inhumane growl, he lunged forward and viciously bit on his wife's neck.

Instantly, shrill cries resounded in the ward. As the loud crash of falling equipment and animalistic snarls passed the walls, the cacophonous clamor mixed with the numerous sounds transmitting from the other wards in the building.

Some infected individuals successfully overcame the virus. But detecting the strange aura in the hospital, they wisely leaped out of the windows and made a quick gateway through the back.

The humans turned zombies swept through the hospital building and flowed outside. They gained momentum as similar scenes of jumping and biting played out in the vicinity.

The patients laying on stretchers and blankets lunged on their families, and the families collapsed on the ground, wide-eyed with pain and horror. Piece by piece, they watched their beloved ones eat their flesh and drink their blood, until the virus transmitted to them and their heart stopped.

When they opened their eyes again, they were no longer the same.

Joining the group of undeads slowly sweeping through the cities, the horde of zombies, covered in blood and missing limbs, threw the country into an immediate state of emergency.

Three days later, the entire country was placed on lockdown.

"A horde of level 1 zombies are spotted in the bay areas. All residents of the bay areas are advised to lock their doors and stay inside until a military vehicle reaches their region."

"Level 2 zombies are spotted in the Emerald supermarket! Those with guns are advised to aim for the head. Do not approach. I repeat. Do not approach. Level 2 zombies have a stronger physical defense."

"All residents in urban cities are advised to remain inside or relocate to the nearest safe house in their region!"

Driving in her Rolls-Royce, Ella turned off the radio and crashed through the military gate.

Dressed in black ankle-length skirt and blouse, her mid-night hair swayed in the fiery wind as she slowly got off the car. A smile graced her lips, and her bright eyes swept over the rows of trucks.

"Miliary Facility, I am back. It is time to get my military truck."