Creeptober Horror Spree: Volume One

Virus

No explanation exists as to why people stopped dying. It went unnoticed for a brief time until it became apparent. Grandma clinging on was one thing, but when an out of control truck slammed into a hapless pedestrian, folks began to wonder. The man should have exploded into meat and bone on impact, after all. The giant vehicle was speeding in a school zone. According to the report, the driver had hit the man at 120 MPH.

And the man stood up, staggered, and sat down on a bench to wait for the ambulance. That alone was outrageous, but the subsequent examination showed that he suffered no broken bones, no organ damage, no injuries at all. It made no sense to anyone. Most would have thought it fake had there been no witnesses, no traffic camera footage to prove the impossible had happened. Afterward, like an avalanche, case after case of extraordinary survival flooded the news.

Global testing efforts on the unlikely survivors revealed something that shook the world. Inexplicably, a highly contagious virus was spreading through humanity like wildfire. As it hijacked cells to replicate itself, the unusual side effect took hold. On a cellular level, the infection rendered the host body indestructible. Regenerative properties were not the culprit: the cells and tissue could not take damage. Somehow, decay and aging became a thing of the past. They no longer needed to eat, drink, or sleep. Hunger pains ceased to exist. Thirst was a long lost memory. Pain was a bad dream, fading away at the morning sun.

For months, the world rejoiced. While technically a global pandemic, the only symptom of the virus was true immortality. There was no panic, no grief, no concerns. Suddenly, everyone alive had all the time in the world. Stress melted away. The struggles and fears washed clean. Curiously, control began to slip. The obscenely wealthy people that pulled all the strings found themselves losing influence. With no one afraid, there was no way to control them. Nothing could kill anyone anymore. Material possessions slowly grew meaningless.

Anyone at any time could gain whatever they wanted out of life if they were patient. Even the poorest of the world could finally see a brighter future. For the citizens, the virus was a godsend. The religious felt that sentiment literally, convinced that the rapture had occurred. Even the most monstrous criminals began to see there was little point to their malicious actions. They were the first to sink into what came to be called The Slump. Their purpose in life stolen out from under them, a strange phenomenon spread. They grew increasingly sedentary until they sat or stood, rooted in place, staring glassy-eyed at nothing in particular.

Once again, the world rejoiced. The virus reduced the worst of society to living statues. Most people reasoned that the phenomenon would start and end with them. Since they existed purely to harm others, it made sense. Now that it was impossible to murder or mutilate, the will to live slowly left their minds and, unable to die, they disassociated. Then, of course, the horror set in with the parents of the world: couples trapped with infants that would not grow up, children that couldn't age. Forms of life normally immortalized in photographs and videos were instead frozen in time right before their eyes.

The idea of caring for a baby, toddler, or small child for eternity set into them slowly with a weight that only got heavier as time went on. Before long, they too grew still and glassy-eyed, gazing off with babies in their arms crying out in neglect. Toddlers roamed, wailing for their inactive parents; small children occupied themselves with endless play. Yet, inevitably, they sat still in their playrooms and parents' arms, gazing. The world uneasy, those remaining tried to occupy themselves, clinging to the slipping will to live.

The end of humanity was unexpected. Nuclear war never erupted. Zombies never rose from their graves. The scales never tipped too far. Humans were simply given paradise and learned that there was no meaning without something to struggle against or strive for. Earth forgot the cities and their people in the coming decades, reclaiming everything they had taken in time. The humans, still there and still alive, sit and stare.