A deadly virus nestled in the walls of a bacterial cell. Dormant until you least expect it, dreaming of disease and the fall of a civilization.

The phage spawned first in livestock. It presented similar to tetanus; a puncture wound that lead to fevers and lock jaw.

The viral phase began three months later. Young and feeble animals died, but those who recovered were driven to strange and eerie behaviors. 

When it reached the Miller's farm in Blushington, their prized dairy cow caught everybody's attention. Annie was a social media star.

She died running through fence and colliding with traffic. A mess of blood and hair stained the road for days. The storm must have spooked her.

The elderly couple that raised Annie passed a month later. Nobody raised an eyebrow. They were old and heartbroken. The internet moved on.

Worse tragedies emerged. People ran into traffic, jumped off of buildings, bit strangers. It must be rabies. Keep your pets inside. Lock your doors. 

The city of Blushington was already at its knees when the phage began to evolve. City by city melted away. Quarantine, send food, send help.

Children were pulled from schools. Workers quit showing up. Behind closed doors, the phage claimed victim's in just seven days of pure hell.

A strain was put on food and goods. Doctors stopped appearing at hospitals. No police arrived when someone cried for help.

All that was needed to completely gut society was one more disaster. A flood, a catastrophic fire, a terrorist bombing of government reserves.

Then it came; the winter to end it all. The cold stopped time in its tracks. For a short while, survivors felt relief.

It seemed the phage didn't spread well in frigid temperatures. The sick couldn't pace the streets and the insane froze in their homes.

It's now been one year. The people of Blushington refuse to give up. After all, this is where the outbreak started.