A Defensive War. ~

The year was 2036.

Humanity's celebrated as one, what was universally considered the next step of evolution.

People all around the globe woke up, with their pupils dyed white and exhibiting supernatural abilities.

Strength, Agility, Heightened senses, Elemental power's and off the charts Mental abilities were just a few traits to be considered a chosen one.

Among those with the Proof, their circumstances, ethnicity, social standing, were all different except their eyes changed on the day of their 15th birthday and if it did happen, they carried the Proof of Evolution.

These children were celebrated and treated with utmost care, nations measured their power and themselves by the quantity and quality of the abilities their children possessed.

With more and more child woken with special eyes each day, it became clear. The situation needed decisive rules and regulations.

The world was slowly changing and advancing, still in the process of settling, it changed again.

On a cold winter Monday, January 13th,2038 they appeared without warning.

Portals with various shapes and sizes even colours, they covered the planet like a plague.

On fields, highways, malls, basements of houses, in the sky ... they appeared seemingly at random.

Humanity was fascinated and cautious, some waited for little green man to come through, some heralding as the sign of the end, there were those who prayed to them.

The world respective governments declared Marshall Law and it allowed them to search and secure most of them, civilians evacuated around them.

Day's passed without change, after numerous attempts to probe and peak inside them ended in a loss of equipment worth millions, they might as well sent them inside a trash compactor.

We accepted at least for now that entering was impossible.

Week's passed and with the initial panic largely settled, the public demanded answers, instead they were told the same words of caution they been repeating endlessly.

The media were no help, headlines mostly repetitive and clueless, the so called experts theories were ridiculous and farfetched.

In their defense, it's hard to report anything legible, when your information is next to nothing. What the government did know eventually shared, their research mostly yielded numbers and colours.

In total there a 2873 Portals found and confirmed. Their numbers by colour.

1500 Light Blue.

1200 of them coloured black.

168 yellow.

5 purple.

Their sizes varied between an average sized human, to an 18 wheeler. The ones drawing the most attention by far were the 5 super massive ones Located in California, Bolivia, Hungary, Australia and Japan.

With each of of a size of a football stadium, their size and overall perfect shape sparked colourful stories from the masses, they were also the only ones located in the sky.

On sunny days the shadow they cast covered miles, full evacuation were out of the question, in California alone the population reached more than 50 million people not mention there was no where to put them.

After 6 month of their appearance, we were no closer to understand them, then we were on day one.

Humanity on the other hand learned to work around them, we went back to morning routines and paying taxes.

In those 6 months however, the world went through some changes.

Those with Proof of evolution now covered more than 30% of all those turned 15 in the last 2 year.

New schools were created with unique students quickly filling them and training their abilities vigorously, and like anything in this world worth a damn they were ranked.

Based on usefulness, their necessity or destructive nature.

They were placed in 5 different classes once finished with their studies there's only a single test that matters, at the end of their 4th year.

Their results decide their placements between 1st grade all the way 4th.

Special Grades, those awakening before or after their 15th birthday are so rare the public didn't need to know about them.

With the Evolved now in schools made for them, and the world and it's people returned to chasing dreams their own, there was very little chatter about the portals, we knew we couldn't enter, and nothing came out and that's it.

Humanity adapted, and only those specially in charge of them and those shouting about the end of world even before their arrival, still concerned themselves, for the rest they become a novelty, things they had too see as they drove to work or video shorts they scrolled over, while taking a dump.

Who could blame them?

With endless videos, and TV appearances Evolveds with their abilities performing 24/7 how could we not be entertained?

Those feats of strength previously only read in stories or created with computers were an everyday thing now. Those abilities in a different time would've been enough, to be worshipped as Gods.

Reality shows, music and movie careers, personalized cereals, superhero comic about existing people, clothing and accessories... we ate it all up, we wanted more.

Then .. on January 13th 2039.

On the first anniversary of their appearance, Light Blue Portals, all 1500 of them ripped open unleashing hell.

Creatures straight out of horror stories drowned the lands and surroundings, we named them Lupin.

Monsters the size of horses poured out in the thousands, with razor sharp teeth, two sets of eyes, muscular and agile they were terrifying predators.

Them hunting in packs made them all the more dangerous.

In the ensuing chaos first responding soldiers did learn about them in realtime.

Most firearms were useless, including small explosives, poor devil's might as well threw handfuls of rocks at them.

Their claws paired with speeds reaching 200m/h, tore apart our land based weaponry, our tanks and armoured trucks ended up barely recognisable scrap heaps.

Nearby towns and settlements were quickly reached, the warnings came late and their citizens shredded to pieces and devoured.

Some nations fared better then others. Mostly those with strong enough Evolveds who were able use their abilities to kill the Lupin.

Humanity's first true tests ended with devastation.

All told over 100 million lost their lives or gone missing in the 17 day's it took us to exterminate them. Body parts were still being found long after it ended.

With emergency plans put into action Evolved mixed with military support were stationed nearly every Portal and mankind waited like frightened children for the next wave.

It didn't came.

Those Light Blue Portals turned Grey and remained so.

Once people able to catch their breath, they demanded protection and answers. The government's of the world had little to offer in ways of both.

Instead of pulling together, we turned on each other.

In the following 12 months, several countries established for thousands of years were plunged into chaos and civil wars, overthrown by their own people those in charge of the world were gone, we needed new leaders, stronger ones.

In a single year the geography of the world changed more, than in the previous 100.

The age of alliances.

Those in the know, hypothesized that the next time those Grey Portals become active again will be the 2nd Anniversary of their arrival.

They were right, and it happened again.

Simultaneously all 1500 of them changed back to their original Light Blue colour and ripped open immediately after.

Lupin poured out like a tsunami, this time we were prepared and humanity watched in realtime our first true victory against the monsters.

This time several nations were able capture some of the Lupin alive, even a single one was invaluable. When killed their bodies disappeared ash and all. After their first attack, there was no way to study them.

Yet those nations who were capable of such a feat were far and wide. Most chose to exterminate them, in fear of replaying last year events.

Those watching it in the safety of their home, in the first time in a year felt at ease. The experts proven, the monsters paid back in full.

People of all ages and backgrounds celebrated, their happiness enveloped the planet.

They been patently waiting for this day of peace, their moment of quite.

On January 15th GRACE ripped open.

GRACE was the name given to the super massive Portal located above downtown Canberra, Australia.

Over the last 2 year GRACE became a popular tourist attraction that pulled people in like magnets, with celebrations still ongoing, the city was filled to the brim.

It happened in the early afternoon, it ripped without a sound and humanoid monsters, 8ft tall with retractable wings and crude intelligence blanketed the entire island in minutes.

Of course the Portal were monitored thoroughly all year around, but with a Portal being 7 miles up in air, there wasn't much to be done other than placing a few fighter jets near and pray.

Unfortunately their lack of precaution and greed cost them.

All those prayers, never answered or possibly even listened to.

The monsters slaughtered with efficiency as if they were programmed to do it. Civilians, military, Evolved... man, women and children they all perished.

The carnage was unimaginable, of the total population of 42 million only about 5% managed to make it off the Island. Those far enough, those rich enough... but it made very little difference in the overall picture.

Efforts were made by the international community for search and rescue but were abandoned soon, while official footage never showed to the public, first account details from those arrived described a place straight out of hell.

After footage was analysed, 24 hour after the initial Rip all rescue attempts were abandoned, and the Island of Australia left for the monsters.

Overnight millions died, lands forfeit and humanity humbled again.

For a nation like Australia, with one of the highest number of Evolveds to fall in just a few hours sobered up all those with hopes of victory.

Nearby countries such as New Zealand, Japan or Papua new Guinea waited anxiously for their turn.

This time they faced off against monsters with the ability to fly, but days past and the recently named Hyaky didn't seem all that interested in leaving.

Attempts at bombardment were made, but it only seemed to rile up the Hyaky, the planes sent were hunted down their pilot's killed.

Nuclear weapons were discussed, but decided against. Aside from the environmental issues, we didn't know if it would even work, we might destroy them, or piss them of enough to send them out in every direction risking another catastrophe.

With that the final effors to recover the land finished, and though observation outposts were built and well manned, Australia were well and truly left behind.

Humanity's celebration turned into a never ending wake.

Over the coming months no efforts were spared to do right by California, Bolivia, Hungary and Japan and evacuate the surrounding 50 miles of the remaining purple portals.

A high number of Evolveds stationed near at all times and every other measure they could think to effectively counter another Purple rip when it inevitably happen.

In the coming years, Black and on rare occasions Yellow Portals ripped and devastated its surroundings for a time,and when the last of the monsters killed or captured, it turned similarly Grey as those that opened annually.

On the other hand those 1500 Blue ones kept to schedule and reopened on January 13th like clockwork.

It soon turned into a lucrative enterprise for all nations who had them, other than the capture of priceless specimens, large companies paid Evolveds a fortune to appear in their annually hosted Anniversary Games and televised every moment on live.

Humanity's placed bets on the Children attempting to either capture or kill the monsters in a giant free for all.

With each year popularity, profits and compensation were rising rapidly, soon it became a most popular and anticipated event of the year.

A tournament with Evolveds competing each year, who can capture or kill the most, or survive the longest.

Watching children die.

What was once unthinkable, became entertainment.

Despite their continued threat, in their inability to close them, their fear and frustration turned something terrifying into something that somehow benefited them.

Leave it for us to find enjoyment in the worst crisis we as species had ever faced.

New generations were born, and with each the same questions were asked. Will they save us? Or just bystanders like the rest of us were?

How long humanity can survive under such circumstances, this ... this purely defense war, how are we supposed to ever win it?

...and those who created the Portals. Why? Why us?..

Why us?