1 Finale(1)

"This is the end of the human era."

Everyone on earth heard the voice at the same time, exactly at the start of the year 2020 at GMT+8. Some of them were out partying, some of them were sleeping, some of them were at work. It didn't matter.

Anyone who heard the voice became sober to understand the content behind the words. Their hearts started to pump extremely fast, as if they understood the events that were happening next. Then, the whole order of the world fell apart.

*****

"This is the end of the human era."

Herbert woke up from the peaceful dream he was having. He could hear a voice echoing inside his head, and screams were coming from outside of his home.

"What's going on?" He looked outside at the streets of Hong Kong, using the small shard of glass he called his window. A primal fear started stirring in his heart, as he looked at the organisms that now populated the streets, grabbing and devouring the people who had been wandering the streets in jubilation just seconds before. He collapsed back onto his back, shaking with shock.

Herbert was a hotel clerk that lived in a one room apartment in an old building with 5 floors. He had not much hope for his future, considering that he had just started work 1 year ago. The customers that he had encountered were simply horrendous, his boss was an uptight prick, and he got paid barely enough to maintain his pitiful living quarters. He could not even think of any way to fight back against these creatures.

He ran his fingers through his greasy black hair, as he wiped away the sweat that had gathered. He was still dressed in the Western suit that he used for work. Sweat dripped through the stuffy suit, as his whole body tensed up from the horrifying visage of the creatures.

The creatures struck fear into his heart in an unconventional way. When he looked at them, they looked like they were covered by mosaics, but the longer he stared, images of depravity began to flash through his head.

Could this have some relation to the phrase that spoke earlier? Herbert quickly took out his Xiaomi smartphone to check social media for any answers for what was going on in his area.

Herbert entered Twitter and scrolled through the various popular posts made by users. He mouth became dry as he saw the events that were happening around the world.

The event that was happening was not isolated to his area. Reports were coming in from Mexico, United States, Malaysia, and many more countries. Not only that, they were all encountering unique situations.

In some parts of the world, they were encountering earthquakes at unknown magnitudes and tsunamis. Even the buildings that were structurally sound fell apart like a house of cards.

In other places, inanimate objects were coming to life, attacking their human owners who had mistreated them relentlessly. Even the buildings and the ground underneath the people were attacking!

As he continued to look upon the events on his phone, his phone suddenly switched into "No Service" mode, as the internet connection was suddenly cut off. Not only that, the lights from every source around Herbert disappeared, except the moonlight and his smartphone.

"What's going on?" Herbert muttered to himself under his breath. He was fearful of the creatures outside, afraid that they would suddenly appear inside his second floor apartment and tear him apart.

As Herbert was currently curled up on his bed, he quickly turned off his phone, as it was the brightest object in the room. For all he knew, it could draw out the creatures from downstairs.

"What should I do, what should I do..." Herbert's eyes bulged out, as he looked around him cautiously, using the moonlight as his sole light source. He kept watch on his door the most, even though he had locked it tightly. Herbert coughed. There seemed to be something in the air irritating his throat.

Should I look outside using the window? Herbert briefly contemplated on whether he should check up on the current situation, but in the end, he was too scared to go through with the idea. However, things could not go on like this.

Herbert did not want to be at the mercy of these creatures. Even if he died, he wanted to die at his own terms. Since his apartment was small, his kitchen was very close to his bed. Even if he walked slowly, he should be able to get a cleaver within a minute.

Herbert cautiously stepped on the tips of his toes, slowly creeping across his apartment. There were no sounds anywhere, not even the screams of any humans. Could the creatures have run away? It was still best to arm himself with something.

As Herbert reached his kitchen, he suddenly heard a rattling sound from somewhere. He immediately froze up from shock, while his legs started to tremble unwillingly. Then, the rattling sound ended.

Herbert wiped the sweat from his forehead. He stretched out his hand towards the rack, before grasping the cleaver tightly. Now that he had a weapon, he felt a bit safer.

"Clang!"

Herbert's face went pale, as the cleaver hit the floor. His sweaty palms had betrayed him, allowing the cleaver to slip out from his hands. Then, the rattling sound returned intensely, except it was outside his own door this time! Herbert coughed again.

I can't hide anymore! Herbert's mind was scrambled in this moment, as the rattling sound grew louder and louder. He could already feel the lock giving way soon enough. It was not like he had installed a deadbolt. Confrontation was probably his only choice.

Sterling his nerves, Herbert grabbed the cleaver once more, raising it up as he unlocked the door for the monster to come in. The rattling sound stopped, as the Monster pushed to door inwards.

Herbert swung his cleaver down, praying that it would save him from the monster that was so close to him.

"Herbert? Are you oka—" Herbert's landlady spoke, as the cleaver slashed down her shoulder.