The burning heat in his abdomen jolted Aric awake from his nightmare. Rubbing his stomach, he sat up bleary-eyed, struggling to distinguish dream from reality. A faint stench of dead rodents permeated the house beneath the gloomy, overcast sky outside his window. Below his sanctuary, the streets had become a death zone filled with bloodthirsty zombies whose guttural growls and wet chewing sounds made his scalp prickle.

  He grabbed the half-eaten protein bar from the table, inhaling deeply through his nose. The comforting aroma of processed food momentarily overpowered the ambient rot. Crumbling the bar deliberately, he let the crumbs dissolve on his tongue before rinsing his mouth with water and swallowing the pasty mixture. Creeping to the window, he observed the shambling figures below while mentally calcuting his dwindling supplies. Unbidden, his thoughts drifted to that catastrophic morning fifteen days earlier - the dawn of the apocalypse.

  After both parents succumbed to cancer and his sister married away, the thirty-year-old found himself alone. A heated argument with his supervisor had ended his corporate career, prompting an ill-fated restaurant venture in Jelen City with friends that hemorrhaged money. Retreating into self-imposed isotion, he'd whittled away days with video games and streaming services, surviving on rental income from his parents' leased shopfront. His monthly supply runs during rent collection had unwittingly become his salvation.

  The year 2015 saw rampant online doomsday prophecies, which Aric dismissed as clickbait from attention-seeking trolls. September 24th came and went without the predicted ice age, leaving forums eerily quiet except for compints about hoarded flour and eggs - even military-grade ration bars had tripled in price.

  October 2nd news reports mentioned minor meteor showers over the Pacific with no casualties.

  Then October 15th at 9:03 AM shattered reality.

  Exhausted from an all-night gaming session, Aric had wrinkled his nose at an unfamiliar chemical tang permeating the air. His casual decision to seal all windows and doors ter proved life-saving. After showering, he'd spritzed his sister's leftover perfume as air freshener before colpsing into bed.

  Waking at 9 PM, he munched snacks while checking news sites. All updates ceased abruptly at noon. Initially unconcerned, he grew uneasy an hour ter - the perpetually busy road outside y silent. No engine hums, no horns, just oppressive stillness tightening his chest.

  A bloodcurdling scream shattered the quiet. Barefoot and trembling, he rushed to the window.

  Under sulfurous streetlights, three figures hunched over something twitching. Wiping his gsses clean, Aric squinted. The group appeared to be... feeding. Between them protruded human legs jerking spasmodically. When one figure shifted, the yellow light illuminated their grisly banquet.

  Oh God! Aric witnessed the most gruesome scene of his life: A man y supine on the ground, his head tilted to one side, gaping mouth twisted into a horrified grimace. Hollow eyes filled with despair stared skyward. The man's chest had been ripped open as two crouching figures fought over viscera while stuffing organs into their mouths. A third figure sat with its back to him, clutching a heart between both hands as it chewed.

  Aric's legs gave way, sending him crashing to his knees. Bile surged up his throat as he scrambled to his feet and staggered to the bathroom, retching violently. When he finally rose trembling from the cold tiles, his mind flooded with scenes from horror films he'd watched - Resident Evil, Saw - never imagining he'd witness such atrocities in reality.

  After half an hour slumped against the wall, his breathing steadied. Returning to the window, he found the cannibals had multiplied from three to a horde. Streetlights illuminated their stiff, shuffling movements as more silhouettes converged endlessly. The macabre procession resembled some profane ritual with living sacrifices, making him shiver uncontrolbly.

  His trembling fingers fumbled through multiple failed attempts to dial emergency services. When twelve calls went unanswered, he tried retives and friends - all lines busy. He nearly hurled his phone into the toilet bowl in frustration.

  Outside, the mob now clustered around the corpse reduced to bare bones. Dozens knelt licking bloodstains from pavement cracks. These were no longer human - just ravenous beasts driven by predatory instinct. Scuffles erupted constantly as figures knocked each other down only to rise and attack anew. Distant screams pierced the night before being abruptly silenced - unmistakable signs of survivors being hunted.

  Watching this hellscape unfold, Aric lit a cigarette. The nicotine steadied his hands. He needed answers. Returning to his computer, he found news sites flooded with "Virus Outbreak" headlines he'd previously dismissed as clickbait. Now the truth gred from the screen:

  Reports detailed global infections spanning from Aska to Argentina, Africa to Eurasia. Victims transformed into frenzied killers attacking indiscriminately. The timeline chilled him - starting at 10 AM nationwide, the infection spread exponentially before emergency protocols could activate. Governments and militaries colpsed as colleagues, family members, even soldiers turned without warning. A dinner companion might suddenly rip out your throat. Worse, bite or scratch victims mutated within an hour.

  European authorities had named it the Berserker Virus - B-Virus for short.