Jace Carter never thought much about the apocalypse. It was the kind of thing that belonged in movies and video games—not in his quiet little town. But when the world ended, it didn't happen in a slow, dramatic unraveling. It came all at once, like a tidal wave swallowing everything in its path.
It started as a flu. Or at least, that's what the news said. People got sick, stayed home, and then just... never got better. Schools closed, stores ran out of food, and the hospitals filled up faster than they could clear the beds. Then came the sirens. The screams. The gunshots in the streets.
By the time Jace realized how serious it was, it was already too late.
He sat in the living room, watching the chaos unfold on TV. A reporter stood in front of a burning gas station, her voice shaking as she spoke about mass riots, military quarantine zones, and something she only referred to as "violent aggression cases." Then, mid-sentence, she stopped. Her eyes widened. A man tackled her from the side, his mouth latching onto her neck. The camera hit the ground, and all that remained was a blur of motion and the wet, awful sounds of tearing flesh.
Jace turned off the TV.
He ran upstairs to his mother's room, heart pounding. "Mom, we have to go. We have to leave—now."
She was already packing. Clothes, water bottles, the emergency flashlight. Her hands were steady, but her face was pale. "Get your shoes on," she said. "We're going to your uncle's cabin. It's safe there."
Safe. He clung to the word like a lifeline.
But safety was an illusion. As soon as they stepped outside, reality hit them like a freight train. The street was in chaos—cars abandoned, doors left swinging open. Their neighbor, Mr. Dawson, stood in his driveway, his mouth slack, his skin gray. He turned toward them, his bloodshot eyes locking onto Jace.
And then he ran.
Jace had never seen an old man move that fast.
"Get in the car!" his mom screamed.
He barely had time to process what was happening before his mother shoved him into the passenger seat, jumped in the driver's side, and peeled out of the driveway. The last thing Jace saw before they sped away was Mr. Dawson slamming face-first into the car window, his teeth snapping against the glass.
The world was ending.
And Jace had no idea how to survive it.