"If the world were to end, would it be in the hands of God or by the hands of Man?"
"To think it was a diary…It looks nothing of the sort." Aiden muttered to himself as he flipped through the pages of the book. There were a few photographs and several entries that ran through the entirety of the diary. It was of a man named Silvan Cobblestone.
Why was it disguised as an Encyclopedia? For the sake of privacy?
The first few pages were indeed stuff about the Great Division—irrelevant stuff that is. Rather than a comprehensive outline, it focused on the creatures and things that emerged after. It spoke of Zombies, Mutants, and even 'awakened humans' called Soul Walkers.
All these things were still foreign to him. And he began doubting whether the book was going to be of any help, till he got to a certain page. Rather than the usual write-ups about these strange existences, it was just a blank page—followed by another. Until it revealed a diary.
The book titled: The Great Division, didn't appear to be a historical record as Aiden had expected, but an accounting from this fellow's perspective. Silvan was a 26-year-old divorced man of American nationality who worked in the United States Army Military Police Corps before joining the Combat Arms. He never got into details of his life prior, but Aiden didn't care either. Just like Kayla had said, there was a war going on at the time—WWIII. But Aiden got to see how it all started…
Aiden skipped a few photos and entries, deeming them irrelevant. Then, he stopped on a certain page with a picture pinned above it.
The photograph was of a light-skinned man with a buzz cut in a casual light blue top, a white cap, sunglasses, and grey shorts. He was standing by a wooden chair, while pointing at the Eiffel Tower which stood a lot further behind him.
There was an entry beneath the photo:
<24th, July 2035>
"I feel like a Frenchman."
"Bonjour."
"The media is exploding. My ears couldn't even escape em here in France."
"Word's that Israel said some crazy shi. I swear their president is on drugs."
"Isreal is a crazy country, not gonna lie…"
...
Aiden flipped the page.
...
<26th, July 2035>
"Vacation is over. Meh…time ran too quickly"
....
<28th, July 2035>
"Platoon Sergeant is absent, words on the street. Something happened to him."
....
<30th, July, 2035>
"Crazy news! Boss is dead!! YESS!!! LET'S GOOOOO!!! F*CK THAT GUY!!!"
"Mayherestinpieces. Amen."
....
<1st, August, 2035>
"Can't believe he's actually gone. Best news I've ever heard."
...
<3rd, August, 2035>
"Weird operation. Schedule is chaotic."
...
<4th, August, 2035>
"Ruined day. I saw that b*tch again. She had some chopped ahh dipshit beside her. Guess she moved on quickly."
...
<12th, August, 2035>
"I slept for 8 hours today. Biggest achievement ever."
...
<13th, August, 2035>
"New boss is a woman. She seems nice. Maybe she's better than the dead ass bearded f*ck."
...
<15th, August, 2035>
"I was wrong."
...
<17th, August, 2035>
"No-Deodorant got a promotion. I'm happy for him. Fucker actually told me to call him 'Senior'."
...
Aiden stopped. He had gained some interest in Israel, but he wasn't seeing anything useful in these entries.
He skipped a few.
<21st, August, 2035>
"Isreal is saying crazy shi again…once again, that nation is jokes, not gonna lie."
....
<25th, August, 2035>
"One world government? Yeah sure. Israel is nuts."
...
<27th, August, 2035>
"Saved a rich dude's life. Might get promoted."
....
<30th, August, 2035>
"Israel wasn't joking…Mad!"
...
<13th, September, 2035>
"Dang! My life is sorta cooked…"
....
<15th, September, 2035>
"Fuck!"
...
<17th, September, 2035>
"Shitty day. Can't even sleep for 2 hours!"
...
<26th, September, 2035>
"God I'm all yours."
...
<4th, October, 2035>
"I think I prefer my former boss."
...
"Tch!"
Aiden jumped through a few pages once again.
<27th, October 2035>
"Russia and Ukraine are still going at it. Crazy shi. Our f*cking president still tryna butt in tho? But I get it…I guess? It's been over a f*cking decade now."
...
<1st, November, 2035>
"Heyyo, crazy news…Elon tryna build war robots"
…..
<1st, December, 2035>
"Things are happening too quickly. AU is rebelling."
...
<7th, December, 2035>
"World War three?"
...
<10th, December, 2035>
"Vacation! Here I come!"
...
<11th, December, 2035>
"US is forming an alliance with Israel? I don't think that's a good idea."
....
<12th, December, 2035>
"Zero Christmas hype."
....
<13th, December, 2035>
"I swear no one remembers Christmas at this point. Everyone is talking about Israel."
.....
<18th, December, 2035>
"Meh, I'll visit my mom. Best woman ever."
"Ladies come and go, but Mom never stops loving you."
....
<21st, December, 2035>
"Mom was happy to see me. Showered her with a lot of gifts."
"Mom's meal tastes like paradise."
"I wanna remain here for the rest of my life. But a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do."
"Mom says I should get a wife. How can I explain that I don't have the time?"
....
<22nd, December, 2035>
"Left too soon. I would love to meet her again."
....
<23rd, December, 2035>
"Drinks with the boys today. No-Deodorant didn't come. Meh!
"Other countries are forming alliances too. World war three might be inevitable at this point."
....
<24th, December, 2035>
"It's Christmas Eve. Let's fucking go!!!!"
"That b*tch dared to give me a Christmas invite. Does she want me to see her new fiance or what? Fine, I'll go."
"Changed my mind. I'm not going."
"Terrible mood rn."
"What should I get for Mom tomorrow?"
...
<25th, December, 2035>
"Mom passed."
"Merry Christmas, I guess…"
...
"Tragic." Aiden remarked. But he didn't care. Feeling impatient, he jumped through twenty pages at once.
<1st, November, 2036>
"There's a planet in the sky. I wonder how long it's been there."
"Eh?" Aiden was instantly overwhelmed. Obviously, he had skipped past way too much.
He backtracked ten pages.
This…
Aiden noticed that the entries had reduced by a drastic amount, as there was an increasingly significant time difference between each one. Unfortunately, this meant that it was harder to see the full picture.
The ten pages that he had abandoned were full of heartfelt, poetic writing that Silvan had made in respect to his mother. The other ten that he didn't skip, said a lot more.
So, he got promoted…then drafted to the Combat Arms?
That's quite..sudden..
This was how Aiden figured that out:
<4th, July, 2036>
"Surprise bombing in California. The news says it was Chinese bomber jets…"
"Most flashy independence day lol…"
...
<5th, July, 2036>
"Dang! Too many people died. Nothing is stopping WWIII now…"
....
<8th, July, 2036>
"The president said it was a deliberate mockery of the nation. China ain't saying nothing."
"Several countries are openly hostile against Israel. Shit's getting real."
...
<12th, July, 2036>
"I got promoted. Wish I could tell Mom."
"Not very excited though. Don't know why…"
....
<15th, July, 2036>
"America wants to rain thunder. Israel agreed to assist. China is cooked."
"Just discovered they've got an alliance too…"
....
<24th, July, 2036>
"Six major global alliances between nations now. The US has accepted Israel's one-world government scheme. Is our president on coke or something?"
....
<27th, July, 2036>
"Ex got divorced. Says she wants me back."
"Ha! In your dreams b*tch!"
....
<1st, August, 2036>
"Fuck!"
"I think I'm cooked."
....
<12th, August, 2036>
"World War three has officially started."
"I'm worried. No-Deodorant got drafted into Combat Arms."
"What are the higher-ups thinking? We've got plenty of soldiers??"
....
There was quite a gap at this point. After it, there were several other gaps. And the documented events got increasingly stranger.
....
<1st, October, 2036>
"Didn't think I'll write again. So much has happened."
"No-Deodorant died in battle last week, and I don't know what to say."
"Last month I was sent to the Combat Arms."
...
<3rd, October, 2036>
"I think I'm losing it."
...
<10th, October, 2036>
"I killed a person. A Russian Soldier."
...
Aiden was intrigued. "A Russian?"
He did mention six major alliances…Are they all at war? No, it's definitely more complicated.
But how come I have no memories of this event? They all seem….foreign to me.
...
<17th, October, 2036>
"I feel…empty.."
"One day, someone's going to pull a trigger and my story will end."
"I don't want to die. But I don't want to live either."
...
<21st, October, 2036>
"Strange events are happening. The government is silent about it."
...
<25th, October, 2036>
"We killed them all. Even the children."
....
<27th, October, 2036>
"Dead soldiers are moving."
"Strangely, I'm not scared."
"I wonder if I'm hallucinating or if this is real."
...
<30th, October, 2036>
"Too many strange things are happening."
"All six alliances have agreed to a ceasefire."
"I guess this means a few months without bloodshed."
...
<31st, October, 2036>
"I can still hear the guns, and the shouts, and the blasts. Even the heavy boots and breaths…"
...
<1st, November, 2036>
"There's a planet in the sky. I wonder how long it's been there."
...
<2nd, November, 2036>
"I only see it at night. Maybe I'm hallucinating."
...
<3rd, November, 2036>
"No one is talking about it. They're all hiding their faces in their legs and rambling weird stuff. I was definitely hallucinating."
"I feel sick.."
...
<4th, November, 2036>
"Nicholas killed himself."
"Sad. He was the only one that understood me."
"I feel very sick."
…..
<7th, November, 2036>
"We were attacked by dead soldiers. I wonder how they were moving."
"Weird growth on my face and back. Little squishy things."
...
<8th, November, 2036>
"We're moving camp. Higher-ups sent us back to base."
...
<9th, November, 2036>
"I was abandoned mid-journey with 16 others. I wonder why…"
…..
<10th, November, 2036>
"Barely escaped Undead. Where did the others go?"
…..
<13th, November, 2036>
"I've got a cool horn on my head and some on my back."
...
<15th, November, 2036>
"Feeling strangely energetic."
"It's like my life is coming back to me."
…..
<16th, November, 2036>
"This place seems strange. No one's here."
...
<17th, November, 2036>
"Was starving. Stumbled on some wild berries."
"Nearly got slimed by a viper lol."
…..
<21st, November, 2036>
"I had a really weird, long dream where my body was being crushed and twisted. But it didn't hurt."
"I liked it."
…..
<22nd, November, 2036>
"Just saw my reflection in a puddle. I look completely different."
…..
<23rd, November, 2036>
"Way too many Undeads following me lol."
"Saw a fat one. Couldn't even move."
…..
<28th, November, 2036>
"I met someone. It was a pregnant woman. She reminds me of Mom."
"How does Mom look like again?"
...
<30th, November, 2036>
"I saw a weird coffin in a crater. It's got blood leaking from it."
"Don't know why, but it freaks me out."
...
Aiden had to pause at that point. "A coffin with blood on it?"
He reasoned it for a while, before coming to a conclusion. "It could be it, or not. I might not be the only one to rise from a coffin."
"...."
Am I an Undead?
"...."
No, that's impossible…I think.
....
<8th, December, 2036>
"Been having nightmares of that bloody coffin for over a week now."
...
"What happened here?" Aiden wondered, as he read the content of the next page.
It had no date.
"Misplaced my diary, then found it again lol. Wonder if I should keep writing…"
"Don't know what today's date is. But I'm sure it's been years. Maybe decades.."
"Where do I even start?"
"I'm probably 50 or 60 years old, though I'm still looking quite young. But a lot has happened..dang!"
"Can't be bothered to write everything. I'll skip it."
....
"Motherf-!" Aiden really wished to punch him in the face.
After a few more, there weren't any further entries. The last pages of the book were simply a continuation of the encyclopedia's original content.
"Here's a summary of the past year."
"I met a human woman. I used the term 'human' because I, as well as all others of my kind are no longer recognised as one. Her name was Kayla. She had a bright boy named Timothy, and he was also human. But she was pregnant, and a few months after our encounter, she was in heavy labour."
"Timothy was killed by Corpse Reapers, and there were a couple of Soul Walkers among them. He was only 6 years old, and I could do nothing but watch him die."
"I loved Kayla. Although she's probably half my age. But I'll try not to get romantically attached. Instead, I'll help her with her kids."
"Apparently, she was r*ped by those same fucking Corpse Reapers and that's how she got pregnant. Those f*cking Mercenaries!!!"
"I wanted to protect her. I loved her even more. So I assumed the fatherly role."
"The last woman in my life left me. My mother passed. Two happenings that I was powerless against. This time, I'll keep her. I won't let her leave, or die. Those f*cking Corpse Reapers will probably come again, since the US government has flagged us as Subhuman. But I'll wait. I'll be ready."
"Ah and yes. WWIV has begun. It's now a scramble between those six alliances to weaponise Cursed Energy and overtake the world."
"Humans and their endless, twisted selfishness."
"Kayla gave birth to a girl. We named her 'Carla'. I actually chose this name because it rhymed with 'Kayla'."
"I have a family now. I have a daughter too. Kayla confessed to me three months ago, so she's officially my wife."
"I now have an actual life. I have a thing to commit to. So, this will be my last time writing in this diary. It was once my source of escapism, but now, I don't want to escape. I have a duty and a responsibility."
"Humans are vile creatures. I'll make sure not one gets even a little close to my wife and child."
"I'll hide this book in an Encyclopedia and dump it somewhere on the shelf. Kayla isn't fond of books so she would think it's just an Encyclopedia and will have no interest in it. If you find it, burn it. Don't embarrass me."
"...."
"Sigh…."
"But really, if I find a Human anywhere close to my family, I'ld fucking kill him or her."
"The End."