1 Prologue

People fear death for many reasons. For some, the fear of what comes after, the fear of being forgotten. A threat to the meaningfulness of life. Being forced to stop life's projects.

This is what the world feared before. Now, what we fear is what we become After Death.

I can't really remember all the details; it's been so long. But I do know enough. I remember the important parts.

A few years prior, in 2019, a deadly virus took over. During the next few months, countries seemed to be re-adapting, and soon everyone believed the pandemic was over. However, little did we know that the virus had mutated into something far more sinister. In 2022, it unleashed its full wrath upon humanity, plunging the world into an abyss of chaos and despair.

When the virus came back, it was nothing like it was before. People didn't get sick like they used to. This was much worse. When people were bitten by a creature of unhuman nature—uncontrollable, terrifying creatures—they'd come back. They'd come back as mindless, undead assholes, the same as the ones they were bit by. I've heard that the fever was the worst part. There was nothing anyone could do to stop it; the infection spread like wildfire inside the body every time. It only took a few hours until they were gone. Destroying the brain was the only way to keep them gone. The world became a constant battle for survival, as these undead creatures roamed the streets, searching for their next victim. Society collapsed under the weight of fear and desperation, forcing people to band together in small groups for protection. It was a grim existence, where every day brought the risk of encountering one of these mindless monsters and having to make the difficult choice between fight or flight.

I lost my entire family to this plague, we all did. Our mothers, our fathers, and our siblings never even bothered to look for any of us. I imagine a few tried, but there's no escaping them. I told Ethan an island would be nice for us after everything we've lost and all we've been through, and we tried but-

We should have killed ourselves from the start.

---------------------------------------------------------------------

⚠Warning⚠ This story contains graphic descriptive content, strong language, sexual themes, the use of alcohol and tobacco, and disturbing descriptive images. Not recommended for young children.