Board Thread:Writer's Workshop/@comment-32764586-20170806214502

The day it happened was just another day. Nobody suspected what would happen that day. Then again, why would anybody think that an uneventful evening would lead to, well, it.

It was Saturday evening. The roads were full of busy men and women. Vendors and travelers crowded the streets. This was just normal for everybody. There were places to be and things to do. Everything was fine. And just like that, everything wasn't fine. It took a while for people to notice it. Anything displaying a time mechanically changed. Whether it be a watch or a smartphone, the numbers inexplicably changed. Even technology that had been previously shut down or disconnected turned. They all turned to the number 12, and then 11:23:59:59. The time remaining ticked down second by second. Some sort of countdown had started. It didn’t take long for people to realize that what was happening wasn’t a simple problem with their own watches or phones. Other people had it. People started to take notice and awaited an answer. Everyone cut their television and radios on searching for a sufficient answer. It was then realized even the television and radios were affected. The screens displayed the time as well, and the radios blared static.

Electricity and machinery began shutting down. Cars and motorcycles stopped working without cause. There was a cutoff of communication. The news ceased to exist. Newspapers could no longer be delivered. Questions quickly arose as to what was happening. Theories spread like wildfire suggesting many things. Some were concerned a massive hack was responsible. Others had assumed this was a prank or some sort of public stunt. There was even word of aliens tampering with earth. Nobody knew what to believe. Just a day in and people began panicking. The night was plunged in total darkness. Not a single light lit any neighborhood street or home. Come early morning the timer still counted down. Nothing had changed from the previous day. The sense of fear and isolation has grown substantially. Those who seemed answers marched the streets. Some piled into churches searching for a more religious reason. With the breakdown of machinery came obvious problems. The refrigerators and freezers had stopped working. Water systems failed and ovens and microwaves could no longer be used. And although everyone was concerned, people began to turn against one another. Tension rose as more and more people became frightened. Nobody knew what the countdown was for, and what would happen if it hit zero. Crime rose everywhere and the police could do little to stop it. Without cars or communication the cops were limited in recourses, and they cared more about their family than upholding the law.

It was when they realized nobody was coming to save them that all hell broke loose. Shops were torn apart and looted. Those deprived of their needs the most assaulted others and stole whatever they could. In the short span of two days people had already began to act like animals. The streets were no longer safe. It was no longer safe to travel anymore. The nights became even worse than before. Screams echoed through neighborhoods. Homes were broken into and cars were busted open. What was happening was inhuman. Places that had once been safe were now home to acts of violence and crime. Those who were once good men and women of society had became so focused with survival that in a few days of deprivation they had changed completely. The clock continues its steady pace toward zero. Days passed and the time remaining passed with it. Every second that passed was a second closer to something, but that was all anybody knew. Stores and churches previously full of hopeful people were vandalized and empty. Those lucky enough to live close to their loved ones stayed with them. As time progressed gangs ran the streets. Men brutally murdered each other. They thought the world was ending. It seemed almost everybody believed this to be true. Self proclaimed messengers and messiahs preached the end of days. Some wanted to be saved by the grace of a god. The world at this point had became almost post apocalyptic. There was no matnience at all. Bodies lay covering sidewalks. Some starved to death or does of dehydration. The odor that came with it was unbearable. Many took their own lives to escape what might happen soon. Law enforcement was now gone. Nobody cared to be sneaky about committing crimes. Cries for help became common. People were no longer people. Humans seemingly became ruthless animals.

The final day arrived. The silence was almost as terrible as the cries that used to frequently fill the air. The dead became the decayed. The clock counter down the hours. Those still alive prepared for the worst. No-one dared to do anything at all but watch the clock. The last hour had started. The countdown was nearly over. The world has lost its mind because of a timer. Humanity had destroyed itself. Everybody sat, watching the clock. Tick, tock, tick, tock. They had destroyed themselves out of terror. Hope was lost. The world has became hell.

And nobody knew why. 