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He'd been chosen according to the message but for exactly what he didn't know, but then his phone started to light up.

Ding ding ding ding

Coworkers and friends were messaging to group chats like crazy all sharing what they were seeing or even asking if what was going on was real.

Ring Ring

But before he could respond to any of these his phone began to ring and looking down he could see who was calling.

Mom the display read and after accepting the call he raised the phone up to his ear.

Silence held for a few seconds.

"Carter! Thank god you're alright! Is it safe where you are? Have you seen what has been happening outside?"

He hadn't spoken to his mother in quite some time due to family drama but now it seems at the end of the world she'd finally broken down and chosen to reach out to him, if only to see if he was alright.

"I'm ok mom, but I'm not sure what's going on I just woke up a little bit ago to everything happening."

Her voice on the other end of the line trembled as she replied.

"We're safe here on the farm, but... i can't reach your brother or sister in the city can you tell are they all right?"

Ah here's the rub he thought, he had siblings and they were 'perfect' while he was the black sheep, just hearing that she had tried to reach them both first before him was just another nail in the proverbial coffin of their relationship.

As he stared out at the now burning city.

He could only reply coldly.

"I don't know, from what I can see the university looks to still be alright but it's chaos down on the street and I'm not even sure if she's still there, as for him... i can't see the Southend so I wouldn't know how he's doing."

She didn't seem to pick up on the tone of his voice nor the chill that it carried with it.

"He's probably barricading himself inside, he's good with his hands as I'm sure you know, but your sister if she's at school she wont be safe, you need to go and get her, get her somewhere safe."

All about them huh, no mention as to my own safety or protection during this trying time huh...

A knot began to form in his stomach, one that hadn't been there for quite some time since the last time he fought with his mother before they stopped speaking with one another.

What made her that much better and more deserving than him?

She and her husband lived in the same building so technically they were neighbors but even so, the number of times he got to see his mother over the last few years could be counted on one hand while you'd easily reach double digits if not triple for the times his sister had seen her.

"And just how am I supposed to get across downtown to get to her school exactly transportations a mess and it looks like all the cars are already wrecked."

"But... but its... Oh my god! Your poor sister! It's on the news, they're showing her school those creatures are pouring in through the doors. Your poor little sister."

she was becoming uncontrolled and aside from the sobbing on the other end of the phone she stopped responding all together.

"I'll try calling her, maybe a local call will still get through."

With that he hung up, dialing his sister's number and launching the call.

Perhaps because of the message or just because it was a local call after a single ring the call connected.

"Hello? Carter is that you?"

"Yeah it's me, where are you?"

"At school have you seen what's going on? Is this real?"

"Yes it's real, barricade yourself in somewhere safe for now, it might take a few days but I'll come and get you, at least for mom's sake, she worried about you."

"You too though right?"

"..."

"Ok we're in a room on the fourth floor, it doesn't have any windows and we're barring the door so we can stay here for a while what are you going to-"

Dee dee dee

The call disconnected and looking down he found that his phone displayed it no longer had any cellular signal.

Power was still on in the city and would probably remain for at least another week or two before everything shut down, and while the city was burning its not like the cell towers had been destroyed so something else must have happened.

Trying everything while the apps still opened no news was coming in, no messages nothing.

It was just like when the cutoff occurred an hour before but now they were cutoff from even each other.

"Shit..."

Once more he turned his gaze towards the city below.

The chaos had mostly moved on as the surge of the creatures had passed but now survivors in the buildings began trying to evacuate only to find a new threat waiting for them on the streets.

What looked like beasts were the second wave targeting anyone found on the cleaned streets, while aerial monsters that looked like human sized bats descended on them from the skies.

The thought of his little sister having to deal with this scenario alone and away from family was hard enough but knowing that there were these monsters out there hit him like a ton of bricks.

He was terrified to his core.

"What should I do... i can't possibly save her let alone myself."

Trying to think rationally he knew he was right, he was just a regular office drone, his home didn't have any real weapons, just decorative swords that would be good as a blunt weapon at best since it was the law to not have sharpened blades.

All he had was his technology and none of it was working properly now.

Bang Bang Bang

Then came some intense banging on his condo door.

Fuck

that was all he could think, what new problem was about to present itself and make my life even more difficult.