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the signs had come to late. there was no time, nothing to prevent it. december 21 2012 wasn't the end, it was the beginning. from that day on the strength of the cataclysm began to build. when it came, it was like no one had expected...
we know not what happened, only that whatever it was destroyed everything. the plants began to die off, the animals went extinct, and so many human lives were lost in that terrible wake of destruction. shelter is few and far between, the desolation brought on by the cataclysm reaches everywhere. no one is safe even in its aftermath. and hope itself is as dead as a once flourishing world that is now dying. and soon it will die completely, and so will mankind...
in the ruins of civilization, a lone group of survivors struggle to survive in a hostile north america. they fight a war triggered by the cataclysm, a war with many sides. there are so many questions that linger like ash in the dark skies, none of them with answers. all we know is that the end is near, and someone or something wants it to come sooner rather than later.

and so the story begins...

nothing moved in the ravaged landscape save the ash and the wind. the countryside was a barren wash of dirt and snow and the lakes were empty bowls. the animals had died from starvation and the corpses lay dead in the decaying fields, the stench an acrid and putrid odor that lingered and would not go.
upon a hill looking down upon a ruin of civilization, a lone group of survivors survey the dyeing landscape in search of potential resources. a few beards were icy from the cold and the frost had settled in on the groups pale white flesh. a heavy snow had begun to fall and a fiery wind was picking up in the distance.
the group leader grunted through gritted yellow teeth and spat in the snow at his feet. "the land is as dead as any," he said. "we'll head through here quickly and find what we can on the coast. its only a few miles from here." the group was in silent agreement, all knowing that their grumbling stomachs could not be filled in this desolate place.
they made their way down the hillside and into farm country. the crops had long since died and were filled with chemical agents. the fields were blemished with ugly weeds that flourished even in the hostile conditions. beyond several more rows of crops were the ruined stables and the splintering barns, both a mess of fractured wood. to the west of the farm was a forest of dead trees, and just beyond that the small town that led to the coast.
they made their way through the burned trees, each one a scorched black with twisted branches and gnarled trunks. they resembled angry monsters, contorted with a raging posture and poised to lash out at all who came near with their claw like branches. through the mess of branches they could see the first of the obscured sunlight coming through the dust filled clouds. but the landscape lay gray still, as it always will, long dead and dyeing further.
the town on the other side of the forest was only a few miles long. in the distance they could see the coast, and at its edge was the shore break that led out into a vast bowl of emptiness. the lake was now a crater, devoid of anything but vastness and its decaying inhabitants. the smell of sea air still lingered, combined with the decaying aquatic bodies formed a putrid odor that could be smelled for miles.
they passed through a gaping hole in the barb wire chain link fence that once surrounded the town. even before the cataclysm there were dangers that required both towns and cities to be closed off from surrounding forests. had the cataclysm not destroyed the earth, there were other means, unspeakable ones. mentioning them is to re-open mental wounds that they inflicted, to once again unleash the horrors of minds gone bad.
bodies lined the streets and buildings were nothing more than mounds of concrete block and glass. a thick layer of dust and snow had settled over everything, making the ruins of the town look even filthier and dead. in the distant horizon there was a parting of two great thunder clouds between which a gray sun hung, its light shadowed. lightning began to strike, its vein like patterns streaking across the flesh of the sky. the group pressed on in silence.
some like the quiet. in a town, there is always a bustling chaos and a storm of bodies churning one massive storm of civilization. but a quiet in the storm is almost frightening, an eerie nothingness, a void that consumes hearts. you feel cowardly in the silence, like its draining you away. the group was used to the silence, but the unsettling quiet haunted even them. having the ability to keep your mind over matter was a difficult task, but nonetheless quite necessary even you want even the slightest chance of staying sane in an empty world.
"the coast isn't far," the leader said. his group need not respond, they merely pressed on and breathed a silent sigh of relief that they could abandon the silence for a while. a trail lead through a forest park out into the ocean, and once again they passed through the trees that were twisted menacingly. it was if the great cataclysm had claimed nature to make into its own personal minions, its monsters.
they had reached the coast. the stood at the edge of the great bowl of emptiness, in which they could not help but stare down into its depths. each one unpacked their belongings and laid them down on the snowy beach. they built a warm fire with glowing embers, and each one took turns marveling its warmth and enjoying a peaceful change in climate.
the group split into smaller groups to search for food. they gathered together the carcasses of dead animals as food and more wood for the fire. they burned the carcasses to rid them of infection, yet the meal bore an unpleasant feeling within ones stomach. nevertheless, they allowed themselves the satisfaction of having eaten and slept peacefully through the cold night with their blankets and tarps to sleep upon.
things had been good for a night. but in the morning, the group would discover that a new challenge awaited them. the great cataclysm had given them time to rest, but now it was time for a new obstacle to be presented. for in the shadows, a monster lurks. it will not stop until it too has been satisfied with the taste of flesh.

the end is near. and it is angry...

to be continued...