I was halfway through sorting some shipping files when my screen flickered and went black.
'Huh.'
A second later, a live emergency broadcast hijacked everything. No workload to worry about, my spotify wasn't there.
'Is something broken?' I thought.
Appearing on my computer screen and phone, a bald guy in a wrinkled suit was sitting alone at a news desk. He looked despondent, like he hadn't slept in days.
"Uh... this is… an American Emergency Broadcast sent across all functioning devices." He started, his eyes darting between cameras like he couldn't figure out which one was real. Then he just gave up trying to be composed.
"To everyone in America, or whoever's watching... I need you to listen closely."
He took a shaky breath. "So… you know those cybernetic brain implants that've been rolling out everywhere? Yeah. Turns out... someone out there really doesn't like them."
Eyes opened wider than they were. My gut twisted in anxiety...
As I already had an idea of where this was going.
"The world's gonna end, right? Haven't seen one of these since I saw my first cell phone." I muttered under my breath.
And like a dissastours prophecy unfolding, he confirmed it.
"I know this sounds insane. I know. But this isn't a hoax. There's currently a massive alien megastructure, spacecraft-sized... hovering right outside Earth's orbit."
He paused, sweat beading on his forehead, each drop standing out like a testament to his growing tension. He lingered for a moment, as if his gaze was fixated on something only he could see, some unseen data mocking him in the most dreaded points in his pyche.
A crack, desperate and pitiful, slipped into his voice, "And that's why I'm here now."
With a sharp shift, a new, more determined look overtook him. He straightened up, the suited mans words becoming an urgent rush as he began informing the country.
"The aliens landed three minutes ago… in Arkansas. The government has deployed Cyber Officers of the law, but they're dropping like flies. Any and all Earth militaries aren't standing a chance. I don't think we've managed to kill a single one of their hundred of millions... And some of them, they're wielding swords, others are firing off these… otherworldly plasma rifles. They've got bombs, blades, guns… every kind of weapon you can imagine. But... coming from someone immersed in the depths of cybernetic research, I can tell you one thing. Those toys aren't the true threat. He jabbed a finger at his left temple, his eyes sharpening with unshakable seriousness. "That's where the real danger lies."
He slammed his palms onto the desk, eyes sent to a screen in front of him. His expression shifted from a tad bit nervous to borderline panic mode.
"Oh man, fuck… Texas too? California? Asia? Europe? I can't even remember the names of some of these countries anymore. The death count is in the tens of millions as I speak."
Leaning forward, he angled himself closer to the camera, as if trying to bridge the vast distance between us, "They're everywhere, and they look just like us. This isn't just a war. This won't be something we'll survive with a few casualties. This is chaos incarnate. The end of Earth as we know it."
And then the screen cut and returned back to normal.
I stood up instantly after the broadcast shut off, stepping back nervously untl i bumped into my cubicle wall. Looking around, I was clearly shocked and breathing a tad bit uneven... but...
Everyone else in my office was being... alot more reactive.
The office turned into a circus, mostly everyone I saw were screaming and panicking.
Shit shit, aliens? Are they already here? I inwardly wondered, anxiety stirring in my gut.
Fuck fuck, what do I do now?
I'd read about this online. How, eventually, whether the war started by aliens or by us, only the strong would survive.
In this world, real strength was godhood.
Random. Cruel. Never fair.
Only the implanted are gonna make it through this, I thought bitterly.
"Fuck, I'd rather die than have the government put a chip in my brain," I muttered, trying to keep my head on straight. But my words dissolved into the chaos around me.
That's when Frank found me.
He was a few cubes down, weaving through the madness, heading straight for me.
Frank. My best friend.
Dark bowl cut, pale skin, the kind of guy who never missed a chance to nerd out over some obscure sci-fi reference. Glasses always perched on his nose, looking like he was one sentence away from asking about the newest game drop.
He was about my height, a little chubby, but never out of shape. The kind of guy who might've gone unnoticed by your average American. But not now.
Words like "Average," and "Normal," inheartly turned pointless as a new normal was ermering.
Right now, Frank was the only familiar thing in a world that was screaming itself apart.
"Vett, man! What the fuck dude?!" Frank shouted, voice trembling. "Aliens... are treading the earth killing people."