In the twenty third century, hope was gone and people were just...tired. Tired of living, tired of fighting. Tired of trying. Who could blame them? I was one of those who refused to give up; I stayed, even as the facilities were deserted, and reports ceased coming in. I was alone in the world, yet I worked tirelessly to try and solve the crisis plaguing our planet. Or, I was, until I saw what our planet had become. I was born in a facility, raised there; I had never seen the outside world. I was... horrified by what I saw. Cannibalism on a mass scale, though I myself didn't fear for my safety; I was human and the creatures I saw were decidedly not. Their pale skin stretched taught over their arching, prominent spines. Their wide, salivating maws filled with jagged teeth, their dark, bulging eyes; they were monsters.

It took me a few weeks, but I finally began to piece together what had happened. The lack of available food had hit a critical point and those still alive looked to the only source available; each other. It was a last resort to be sure, but, soon, it became a necessity. Our brains began shutting down except for our most basic survival instincts; eat, drink, reproduce. We became mere animals, and we...those creatures, they began to eat everything.

The next day I ventured outside and I was attacked. I did the only thing I could; I beat it to death with a rock.

Except...it didn't die. It continued to writhe and rasp and hiss; everything but die. That was my first experience with the monstrosity that humanity had become. I dragged it inside and locked it in a spare room, trying to think. I had three options; I could observe it and, then, after data was collected, throw it back. I could find a way to kill it. Or, I could feed it and see if it reverted back to its human nature. I foolishly chose the third option. It ate everything I gave it, but showed no signs of improvement; it showed no sign of reverting to its previous nature. It wasn't even a human anymore; just an "it".

After two days, I had discovered enough. Our brains had shut down everything unneeded, including pain, or any emotion at all; those...things no longer felt anything except the need to survive, to feed. It even began to eat itself; it seemed there was nothing it wouldn't consume. I resolved to kill it the next day.

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I checked on it the next day only to find the door ripped off its hinges, lying, torn apart halfway down the hallway. I felt myself, my world, caving on in me; what kind of creature could do that? What kind of nightmare was I in? Why? Why did it...why? I remember taking a deep breath; I could smell waste, commingled with the stale air of the facility. I remember it still, and that scent followed me as I made my way outside and saw the creature I had observed; it looked the same. There were no discerning marks, nothing to suggest that it possessed obscene and incredible strength, though there was proof within the facility. There were no bulging muscles, no radioactive glow, no... that's when it hit me. At the time, I couldn't believe it had taken me so long; now...it seems like I was constantly overlooking the most obvious choices. Maybe I too had, even then, been feeling the effects of the radiation. I was sure that was the cause of the creature's immense strength: radiation. The side effects of eating humans have never been properly researched; there had been no reason to. But if this mass cannibalism had been going on for the past two centuries... not only were they eating other humans, but radioactive humans were eating other radioactive humans. And they were somehow reproducing.

After that, I quickly shut myself in the facility and took samples of flesh from the creature that must have come off when it ripped the door clean apart. I thought it happenstance,actually; I knew so little then. Even now...but once more I ramble. More to the point, I discovered there were no diseases, nothing to suggest that they were stronger than the average human; but that didn't explain the door. I wondered to myself, "If they could do that to the door, then what was stopping them from breaking in here?"

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So here's the second part of the story everyone! Starting to get a little more serious, eh? Here we have Sonny using his brain, and then the massive amount of panic begins to set in. Let's see what happens! I'd love to hear from all you out there; all feedback, comments, etc. is welcome and appreciated. Right now this is a short story, but if it ever gets popular enough, I may have to add more. Hope you enjoyed, check back for the final part Monday, December 12th!

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