In 2076, a catastrophic event known as the Great Swallowing took place, completely altering the course of humanity. This phenomenon was inexplicable and occurred suddenly on a seemingly ordinary Thursday. The Earth split and shook for twenty-eight days, collapsing entire cities in its wake. The oceans rose and raged against the land, drowning everything it could touch, leaving countless wealthy and powerful nations destroyed, scarce, and fighting to recover.
It was chaos. People began looting, burning what buildings remained, and killing others over supplies. This devastation sparked different ideas on regaining power over land, people, and the remaining resources, which ultimately led to the Twenty-thousand War—coined because of the twenty-thousand lives lost in battle.
Although there was much death, many people made off with their lives and established themselves, whether that be as traders, nomads, or gang members. If they were lucky enough, they were able to get into the newly formed societies whose main goal was to preserve and maintain order.
New Haven, a once-bustling powerhouse of a city known as Carson, still stands tall with a quarter of its former population but has steadily grown in numbers in recent years. It is the only known functional society in the New World, but the downside is that nobody has been allowed in since they established themselves, and nobody has been allowed out besides a few scouts in their early days. Other than that, the doors and reinforced walls spanning hundreds of miles were closed to outsiders, which kept New Haven thriving.
There are plenty of people outside New Haven’s society who would do anything to live in their luxury, even murder. These feelings are to be expected, as the rest of the world lives in squalor while the people of New Haven enjoy the finer things on a daily basis and refuse to share them with anyone else.
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That is until one day, they are forced to open their doors and send three highly skilled investigators to find out what happened to a trader who was expected to arrive at New Haven with high-value Old World goods. These three investigators were chosen from each district: Albertine, Matthews, and Eaton. The two former made enormous sacrifices by sending their heirs.
The three embarked on a journey no one had taken in the one hundred and fifty years since New Haven was established.
While roughing the terrain, rationing their food, and finding a new place to stay every night, they ran into a problem none foresaw.
Bear of the Matthews district grew sick less than a month into the investigation and got sicker and sicker as they continued their journey, slowing them down immensely.
Eventually, the three reached a small village called ‘Knotting Hill’. It was a ghost town; most buildings were destroyed, but there was a clinic still standing near the center that they hoped wouldn’t be entirely picked clean of supplies.
Bear came from the most elite district; his status was equal to what was formerly the presidential family, and if they lost him, the other two would be as good as dead.
To their dismay, most of the important things were taken, leaving behind nothing but the occasional bandaid wrapper and empty antibacterial spray bottle. This was their last resort, as Bear was too sick to keep walking long distances in the heat, so they decided to settle in one of the few standing houses on the next street. This is where they stumble across the one thing that could save their entire mission and whom they didn’t expect to run into for much longer than just a hundred and eighty miles from home.
Another person.