S n o w
Dreamer
On the morning of May 1st, 2021, two scientists, John Tate and Daniel Xiao, created a bioweapon.
They named it TX-118, but it was more widely known as 'Apocalypse'.
It was a monster of genetic engineering, made to be as persistent as the strongest bacteria in nature and as infectious as a super virus. Samples of TX-118 were locked away in a decontamination room deep underground, and hazmat suits were required just to be on the same floor as the bioweapon. After extensively testing it on mice, rats, and other small animals, they found that it causes the most damage to three parts of the body. First, it destroys the immune system before the body can produce enough white blood cells to defend itself, then it stops the body from being able to process food properly, eventually causing starvation and/or dehydration in the host. Lastly, it spread to the brain and multiplied at an explosive rate, extensively damaging the host and causing them to either fall into a catatonic state or become unreasonably aggressive. They named it TX-118, but it was more widely known as 'Apocalypse'.
On May 28th, the few samples left of TX-118 suddenly disappeared. The facility was locked down immediately once the theft was discovered, and no one was allowed to leave until their work stations had been searched, but TX-118 didn't reappear until three people fell ill two days later. No one knows how it happened. Some suspect that the bioweapon was released on purpose by a vengeful scientist that had been fired the day before. Others think that whoever stole it intended to sell it to whichever overseas government offered the most, but wasn't careful enough. Either way, the results were devastating. TX-118 lingered in the air for months after an infected person coughed or sneezed, and it only took one that used public transportation for thousands to become sick. Government officials stepped in as quickly as possible, warning everyone in affected areas to avoid traveling out of the country until more information was available, but it was already too late. Right after the announcement was broadcast, the first case of TX-118 was reported in China, when a foreign exchange student collapsed at the airport right after getting off the plane. By June 1st, cases of reported in seventeen countries around Europe and Asia. Hospitals were quickly overwhelmed to the point where blankets and towels were spread over every available space as makeshift beds.
On June 2nd, the first person to contract TX-118 died of organ failure. The next day, it was reported that over one-hundred people had died from the disease. The death count double with each passing day, and as more and more world leaders became infected the world fell into panic. Looting, rioting, even murder as the non-infected turned on their neighbors, friends, and sometimes children in an effort to save themselves and stop the spread of the disease. Homes were burned, windows were boarded up, and as more doctors and nurses fell, hospitals became places where the infected went to die in an attempt to protect family members. What was left of news reported on mandatory curfews, entire towns being quarantined, and a statement from the CDC, promising that a vaccine was being worked on and would soon be available to the public. But no one could have predicted how TX-118 mutated.
The first reported case of the dead coming back to life was on July 13th, after family members witnessed a young woman clawing her way out of a grave. The deceased's brother, who was the only one to survive the encounter, also went onto claim that she didn't recognize them and didn't seem to be able to speak, only communicating in grunts and moans. According to him, she went into a frenzy as they tried to approach her, viciously attacking the closest person. And when another family member stepped in to try to separate her from the victim, she bit them, which seems to have accelerated the disease. All three were found dead on the scene when help arrived, with the 'reanimated' woman having been shot twice in the head. Unfortunately, the brother of the deceased fell to the disease before the matter could be investigated further.
On July 14th, the body of John Tate was found in a closet of the facility responsible for the creation of TX-118. A note was found taped to the deceased, with a single word written in red ink: 'Sorry'. The cause of death was determined to be suicide. Daniel Xiao was last seen by what remained of his colleagues a few days before the body was discovered.
August, 2022
"We're All Infected.
Hmm. Did that get your attention? Did you think you somehow managed to hide until the worst of 'Apocalypse' was over? Or that you were lucky enough to be immune? Ha! There's no such thing as immunity. Maybe it was luck that kept you alive and uninfected until the disease mutated beyond the 'kill as many people as possible as quickly as possible' stage. Now it just kinda lingers in the body, spreading a little more every time you breathe out.
But radio person! I'm swear I'm not infected! That's you, by the way. The only way you could stay uninfected is if you suddenly didn't need to breathe anymore. If any of you out there have learned how to do that, be sure to share it with the rest of us. Oh, and here's a bit of advice. Don't get bitten. But that's obvious, you say, reaching over to turn off the radio. No, no, I don't mean it in the way you think. A bite from the dead make the disease in you stronger. It's like... like how vaccines used to work. When you first get vaccinated for, I don't know, measles, your immunity is at its strongest, right? Then as the years go on, your immunity stars to fade, and you're not as protected as you were before. Sometimes you were required to get a second shot a decade later to bring your immunity back up. Replace 'shot' with 'bite' and 'immunity' with 'Apocalypse' and... you get the idea.
A kid was bitten yesterday because someone made a mistake. Only once, but, let's just say it was awful. Point is, the stronger your immune system, the more bites you can take. But how do I know how strong my immune system is radio person? Offer your hand, neck, or whatever else to a zombie. If you're still alive after twelve hours then congratulations! You have a strong immune system! From what I've seen, kids and the elderly don't make it past the first bite. Middle-aged adults almost always survive the first bite. Young adults? Teens? Hmm. Replay what I said about testing the strength of your immune system.
If you've stuck with me this far, I'll let you in on a secret. I know you have questions. How do I have working electricity? How am I broadcasting this? Who am I? I'm in Pax, a colony built in what's left of northern California. It isn't much, but it's better than being out there. And as far as we know, we're the only organized group of survivors around. Hopefully this reaches someone this time.
Signing off from Pax."
-Unknown
Last edited:
