After the End

Welcome to the apocalypse, well the post apocalypse to be specific. You know how the story goes, or at least you should. We had it all, the land, the knowledge, and the resources. Of course, what did we do? We screwed it up, that's what. It started with the "accidental" nuclear launches and just spiraled from there. Things aren't pretty, now, but I'm alive. I've got that going for me I guess. I'm alive and I'm not suffering the debilitating changes that other people are. So I really shouldn't complain.

Except that I will. That's just what I do. I can still remember the days before it all went to hell. When the internet was a guarantee and you could have anything if you tried hard enough for it. Not anymore. Now you've got to fight for what you want, and that's if you can even find an untarnished version of whatever it is. Internet is still around, somehow. I've got my theories on that. This apocalypse seems a little too planned out and functional if you ask me.

If you're reading this, I've clearly found some kind of internet access during one of my supply runs. I'm currently looking for some food. Preferably canned. That's the only stuff I trust these days. I haven't been super successful on that front, but I did find something a bit different today. That's what you're here for I'm sure. Lying outside of dilapidated convenience store, in some of the rubble was a locket. I only noticed it because the sun was catching it just right.

It's a curious artifact to find all by itself. Usually it would be attached to the body of an unfortunate soul. Not this one, or at least not any longer. Usually a find like this would be extremely exciting, but this one just makes me sad. The locket is a heart, so I anticipated some kind of couple picture inside. Not quite. Instead, it was a pet, and an inscription. An adorable little golden retriever, and the inscription reads "welcome to our family and our heart, Lilly 07/04/2022."

That was the last normal day. The next day marked the end of the world as we knew it. It began with the sirens going off. I would have assumed a tornado, but it was a cloudless day. Then the emergency alerts went off on every smart device across the country. "Attention please. This is not a drill. Seek shelter immediately. Due to a malfunction in the system, nuclear missiles have been launched. Their current trajectories are unknown. Seek shelter immediately."

As you can imagine, chaos erupted immediately. I think more lives were lost in the initial panic then when the bombs hit. I'm not sure that I've ever told you all the story of how I survived, so let me tell it to you now. I worked at an extremely old library, a building made of thick stone slabs. This library was special in the fact that it had archives that sprawled deep underground. I tried calling my family to have them meet me there.

I never heard from them.

I made it to the library and found it surprisingly empty. Everyone had fled to be with their families in their last moments. None of them had the thought of surviving, only me. I locked everything behind me, which was selfish, but I couldn't risk the crazies in a panic coming after me. I gathered whatever I could take from the upper floors that seemed useful. Food, water, supplies, anything at all. I didn't waste much time, since I didn't know how much I actually had to spend.

Then I went as deep as I could go into the archives. I had a specific spot in mind. The vault. That's where we kept the rarest of all our acquisitions. It was a large sealed vault, completely temperature controlled. I figured it was the best sealed place for seeking shelter. I was right. I don't know how long I was in the vault before the bombs hit.

I don't know how many bombs hit across the world that day. All I know is that one hit my city. Decimated it. It's nothing but a crater now. The blast was like nothing I'd ever heard. It was muted in the vault, but the lights went out and the whole room shook. I know had I not been in the vault, I would have died. I would have been incinerated where I stood, like so many other people.

Instead I survived. Most days I'm grateful for that, but somedays the deep pervasive sadness sets in and makes me question whether I should be grateful. Days like today, when I find artifacts of the past like the locket. The poor family had little to no time with their new pet. I can only assume that they didn't survive the blast. They may have been on the outskirts of the city, but even here, little is left standing.

It was months before I came out of the vault. Thank god the library was well stocked with food an water, otherwise I don't think I could have lasted that long. I know I'm suffering from the radiation, everyone is, but it would have been worse if I had left the safety of the vault right away.

As I type this, I'm still looking at the little locket. I'll take it home with me, as I do with every other artifact. It'll go on the shelf with every other reminder of what we used to have. I still think something else went on in this situation. The pieces don't line up correctly. Every artifact I find is a reminder of what I'm going to do. I will find out the truth, if it kills me. I've nothing else to live for anyway. That's the real reason you're all here, still reading my posts right?

I hope, if you're reading this and you're responsible for the downfall of humanity, you know that I am coming. I promise you that.