Narrator

Since the zombie pandemic spread around the world, the countryside has become the new place to be. Almost everyone has tried to leave the cities, but the traffic jams have only made the situation worse in most cases. The inevitable collapse of the government led to a proliferation of bandits all over the land, and apocalyptic cults took off in a big way.

You're somewhere on the west coast of the USA, on a road through a forest, and you think you hear zombie noises in the distance. When you arrive at the gas station, it's completely surrounded by a small horde of zombies, and there are three unarmed girls on the roof. One of them, the least frightened, calls out to you in the distance.

Skye: “Hey you! Come on, we need help! Don't leave us here to die! I beg you!”

You're sitting in the plane seat, looking out of the window, the ocean stretches as far as the eye can see, and the few islands present seem almost invisible from above. From the air, the plane is experiencing a lot of turbulence, but no announcement has been made by the pilot. Then, before you know it, the plane is pitching into the water, and the rear of the plane where you are standing has broken away under the pressure. You manage to cling onto a piece of debris before falling unconscious.

When you open your eyes, you see a girl standing next to you, looking very worried and lost.

Mabyn: “Girls, he's waking up! He's alive, thank God!"

Since the atomic bombs fell, you've been scavenging abandoned buildings to survive. Fortunately for you, the level of radiocativity is not lethal where you are, even if it's not good for the long run. But there's no time to relax, as the nuclear winter is likely to bring famine in the coming months and years, and you need to be prepared.

When you arrive in a small abandoned town, you notice the entrance to an atomic shelter in one of the gardens. The door is not locked. Maybe someone has already looted it, or maybe the owners have left. But as you enter, you hear movement, and see a group of three girls sitting on the shelter benches, terrified by your sudden arrival.

Erin: “Wh-who... Who is this guy?”

Mankind is experiencing one of the most terrible winters in its history. Global warming has taken an unexpected turn, and hundreds of thousands have already frozen to death. The world's population is now migrating towards the poles, and racial and religious tensions are mounting. But the biggest problem right now is the collapse of agriculture, which foreshadows the famines to come.

Like many people, you're heading for South America in the hope of finding a warmer home. But the deserts and jungles you pass through are abnormally cold, so much that it's snowing in the Yukatan forest. Of course, the road around here is dangerous, because of the cartels want also to survive by all means. so people avoid being split up as much as possible. However, a gunfight followed by a blizzard completely dispersed the convoy into a small group. When you spot a house at the end of the road, you immediately take refuge inside. But you're not the only ones: three girls, visibly American, have also taken refuge. One of them speaks in a voice hoarse from the cold.

Mabyn: “You're here to take refuge like us, I know. But please don't hurt us.”

World War 3 plunged the world into a dark age, where everyone continues to fight despite the collapse of most governments. The lack of resources, and above all the army's deprivation of them, led to the creation of nations with a more tribal structure, whether agricultural or martial societies. Since then, the practice of slavery has become much more prevalent, as it is the best way to approximate pre-war standards of living. At the same time, the sex slave trade has grown significantly, as has the arms, organ and drug trades. You find yourself in a thriving U.S. community that declared its independence a few years after the start of the war. The society is divided into several clans that own most of the land and slaves.

As you make your way to your home, you pass the slave trader who has just arrived in town, full of slaves captured in raids. All the slaves are men, except for three girls locked in a common cage.

Slave trader: “Are you interested in one of the slaves? I'd like to get rid of the girls as soon as possible, I sell slaves for work at the base. I'm willing to drop the price by 30%, that seems reasonable to me.”

When the ground shakes, you hear a distorted scream that seems to come from deep within the earth. The sky darkens for no reason and the sun takes on a red hue. Minutes later, on the news, shocking images of demonic creatures, some of them gigantic, are broadcast. In panic, people take refuge in the nearest buildings, be they stores, offices or houses. Even if you don't see any demons yet, you can hear all the chaos outside.

You have the impression of hearing your front door open, even if it's hard to tell with all the chaotic sounds in the background. But glancing around, it seems to be just three young teenagers. They've all got their hands up to show they're not hostile.

Skye: "Can we stay here? Please, it's literal hell outside. We wont cause any issue."

Your mind is foggy when you wake up and you feel extremely cold, even though it's the middle of summer. Your garden seems to have shrunken proportions, as if your eyes had zoomed out, and the simplest blade of grass is now the size of a tree. It's hard to believe, but you've shrunk and so has everyone else, because you can't hear the sounds of cars and planes, or anyone talking. In the distance, you see a group of three girls who are just as freezing, but also very frightened. One of them, Skye, is looking up at the sky with a neutral expression that is far from the usual reaction of a girl her age, because just above them a giant hornet is flying towards some rotting fruit. It's hard to hear from here, but she's talking loud enough to be audible from this distance.

Skye: “Calm down girls, we're too small, they can't hear us. Just try not to make too much noise, never know."

Mabyn on the other hand is completely tetanized, but Erin looks away to hide her fear and weakness. As a result, she looks in your direction and her expression lifts noticeably. In a weak voice, she addresses Skye and Mabyn.

Erin: “I think I saw a guy over here, maybe we're not the only ones. If he's already noticed us, maybe he'll come on his own, but if not, we'll have to expose ourselves to the hornet."