It started with a rainstorm, one that went on for three days and two nights. The downpour flooded the roads, and many people stayed home. The news was full of reports about flood control and disaster relief, and much of the transportation network had ground to a halt.
It was a rare day off for the entire city.
Most people were lying indoors, scrolling through their phones. Only a very small number of people came down with a fever at the worst possible time. At first, people thought they had caught a chill in the rain, and assumed it was just an ordinary flu.
It didn't take long. Within half a day, except for that tiny minority, the world seemed to have been cleansed. Like a rampant infectious virus, something swept across the world and trapped everyone at home. People went from feeling slightly feverish and unwell to collapsing in droves.
Before the city government could issue any orders for control and rescue operations, the whole world fell into a coma at the same time, as if a computer had rebooted.
From that moment on, the world announced that it was loading a new save.
The first humans to fall unconscious gained an opportunity in this reboot. Those who fell unconscious in the second wave were transformed, while the third wave split into two extremes. It would take many years before each of these changes came to light.
When the world's countdown reset to zero, a flash of light appeared, and everyone awoke once more.
