2026...
The year it all started. The year the first ever gate opened.
The year had started abnormally already. There were more reoccurring natural disasters than normal.
Higher magnitude earthquakes, more frequent mini-tsunamis, floods, tornadoes. Name it.
And to add to it, even the actions of the wildlife on the planet became strange.
Animals that were normally docile began having violent outbursts. Animals known to be isolationists, began moving into the main cities.
Just as people were trying to wrap their heads around what was happening, the first gate was formed.
It's formation caused such a massive energy outbursts, it nearly took out half a city block worth of people.
Of course it was not just this one. More and more gates began forming in different countries around the world.
Each of them having their own casualty count as well as having different colours. The governments of the major countries immediately swung into action to investigate.
Within three days of the gate's formation, teams of soldiers and scientists had been assembled to investigate the gates.
The teams spent the first two days outside the gate, examining and studying what they could, but nothing.
Most of their investigation would be on halt until they got results back. But so far, they had not an inkling of what it was.
And then it happened on the sixth day of the gate's formation...
One of the scientists had fallen inside, and a team of soldiers had gone in after him but what they saw on the other side horrified them.
Massive outlandish beasts unlike anything they'd ever seen, lives within these gates, and they were definitely not friendly.
They pounced on the soldiers at first sight. The soldiers, who's rifles and other weapons didn't work on the beasts, were lamb to the slaughter.
They were all mauled save for a few who managed to escape the gate. They immediately reported what they saw to the higher ups who sent reinforcements immediately.
Fortunately tho, it seemed like the beasts couldn't escape the gates so it was a sigh of relief for the different government entities.
This relief however, would not last long. On the seventh day, much to the horror of everyone involved, especially the two soldiers whom had barely survived, the beasts began emerging from the gates worldwide.
It was a catastrophe unlike any seen before. Cities fell in minutes, countries in hours and their numbers just kept dwindling as time went on.
Modern weapons were useless against these powerful beasts. Infact the only weapons that were doing any real damage were explosives like grenades and missiles.
And even those were only doing any real damage against weaker beasts.
Infact the only reason humanity wasn't wiped out within the first week was because the beasts seemed to be antagonistic towards each other as well.
But even at that, humanity's population was reduced to forty percent of what it once was. Entire countries were erased after all.
Entire cultures gone in the blink of an eye, years worth of technological build up gone. Humanity had been reset to the dark ages.
But it wasn't all gloom tho. For those gates also released the energy within them into the planet, bathing it in this new energy.
Soon individuals with strange abilities began popping up. They introduced themselves as emissaries of the gods.
Their power was what preserved humanity until more gifted ones like them were born. And...
"... That's how humanity survived the dark ages." Ryan concluded.
[
'Well, not like we have much choice. The gates still open frequently afterall. And we have only a week to deal with each gate before it closes.' Ryan said inwardly to G.A.I.A.
[
'Yeah, tell me about it. Although the dark ages were even worse than this. By the time they gained a bit of stability, human population was down to about ten percent of what it originally was. As for their territory well...
...let's just say even now, a thousand years later, we're still just recovering territory.'
[You have arrived at the final destination for this train. Welcome to Oarwood station]
The announcer said over the radio, drawing Ryan's attention back to the real world.
'Welp, we're here.' Ryan announced with a shrug as he stood up.
[
'One of the only few outskirt towns out there. Oarwood.'