Dark Apocalypse

The Transformation of the World  "I'm sorry, I truly did not mean to..." Gazing at the tear-streaked beauty before him, Adam felt a numbness overcome him. Was it anger? Sadness? Despair? No, in that moment, he was merely numb. Ever since he had been told that his fate was to languish in some cold cell, he had succumbed to this emotional void. It was not the sordid world around him that had numbed him, but rather his heart had perished. The moment he was betrayed by the woman he loved most, he felt as though he had died inside. Thus, when faced with a series of subsequent traps, he abandoned all resistance and struggle, accepting his fate in silence. "I do not blame you..." he murmured, turning to follow the guard back to his cell. At just twenty years old, Adam was an orphan. It was uncertain whether his parents had abandoned him or if there was some other reason for his forsaking. Regardless, he was left at the entrance of a small orphanage while still an infant. Had it not been for the kind-hearted matron of the orphanage, he would have bid farewell to this world before he could even form memories! Adam—this was the name bestowed upon him by the orphanage's director. Upon discovering him, she found a jade pendant hanging around his neck, inscribed with the character '*' (Ye). Perhaps this was the only legacy left to him by his parents. After that, he took on the matron's surname, and thus, he became Adam... His childhood could hardly be described as tragic; his companions at the orphanage, along with the kind aunts, treated him well. Under the matron's care, life was modest yet filled with joy. With the aid of the orphanage and state support, Adam completed his primary, secondary, and higher education, eventually enrolling in a prestigious university with respectable grades. As he matured, he rejected the orphanage's assistance, opting instead for self-reliance, juggling work and study. At that time, he was filled with aspirations, believing he would one day achieve success and find his parents. Then, he met her... It was the beginning of happiness... and tragedy. For an entire year, he considered himself the luckiest person in the world. Although fate had made him an orphan, it had blessed him with a benevolent matron to raise him, and later, bestowed upon him a measure of joy. But he had been too naive; this world relished in toying with the likes of him. When he discovered the truth, he merely laughed... He did not hate her; truly, he only despised himself for his innocence. He had read the tale of the Frog Prince and the Princess; those fairy tales were once the best distractions for him and the other orphans at the orphanage. Yet, Adam had known long before that fairy tales were mere fabrications. So why had he plunged headlong into it all when she appeared? He could not fathom it; perhaps one does not attain true wisdom until they have suffered genuine pain. On January 1, 2012, the dawn of a new year, Adam—a youth barely twenty, indeed not yet even fully into his twentieth year—was sent to prison on multiple charges: attempted murder, attempted r*p*, theft, and possession of a weapon. Perhaps it was the mercy of some unseen hand, or perhaps, people like him were deemed inconsequential. The sentence was bearable—merely ten years. Yet, for Adam, a decade might as well be the end of his life... "I'm sorry, Grandma..." he murmured, burdened by regret, knowing full well that the one who had cared for him the most had passed away two years prior. "Stop dawdling! Let's go!" Wherever there are people, there exists a hierarchy; prison was no different. Within those walls, there were so-called leaders and oppressed underlings. Adam certainly did not aspire to be a leader; he had become one of the enslaved... Living a life filled with humiliation and burden, he gradually became indifferent. Eventually, those who bullied him grew bored; over time, no one wished to prey on a living corpse, granting him a measure of peace. "Did you hear? The sun is consuming billions of years of life and is slowly expanding!" "I heard! Apparently, if the sun continues to expand at this rate, Mercury will be doomed in a few years. As for Earth, scientists predict we have a maximum of one hundred years before it becomes uninhabitable." "One hundred years? That's still quite some time!" "What do you know? That's just a prediction! Who knows if the sun will suddenly accelerate its expansion! The world is in a state of panic. Leaders across the globe are convening urgently." Having spent a month in prison, Adam sat quietly in a corner, eating substandard food, eavesdropping on their conversations. The sun expanding? Some learned notions flickered in his mind, yet he quickly dismissed them. What did it matter to him? Days turned into weeks, and rumors began to circulate. It seemed that all nations were uniting to confront the impending crisis, forming research teams and sharing technology in hopes of developing interstellar spacecraft and travel capabilities before Earth succumbed to the sun's wrath. Half a year later, reports emerged that a small exploratory vessel, equipped with the world's combined scientific prowess, had successfully traveled at faster-than-light speeds to find a planet resembling Earth. The planet was a mere hundred seventy light-years away. "I heard that the exploratory ship has returned, bringing back biological specimens from that planet." Even within prison walls, everyone was captivated by this monumental news; both inmates and guards alike were fixated on the developments. Adam had spent over half a year in confinement, and now winter had arrived; it was already December. Even in prison, festive days like Christmas brought a modicum of cheer. Inmates had the right to celebrate. "Hey, kid! Come help me!" a burly inmate with some influence beckoned to Adam. Adam said nothing, having performed such labor numerous times before. After finishing the task, he returned to his cell and collapsed onto his bed, surrendering to sleep. "What is this?" He felt something resting against him in bed. As he reached out, he discovered an oddly shaped bracelet. Does such a thing even exist in prison? Adam pondered, perplexed. Suddenly, the bracelet burned against his palm like a red-hot iron, causing a searing pain. He tried to shake it off, only to find it inexplicably stuck. Just as he attempted to cry out, he felt as though a needle had pierced his brain, and then darkness enveloped him. Adam felt as though he were in a fever, his mind a haze; he was simultaneously awake yet unconscious. He was lost in a fog, unsure if he was awake or dreaming. He sensed a cacophony around him, as if many people were engaged in various activities. He wanted to rise and discover what was happening, but he found himself unable to move. "Has there been another riot in prison? Which lunatic has lost their mind this time?" Prison riots occasionally occurred, though they were swiftly quelled. However, during Adam's year there, such events had been infrequent. The collective focus had been on the turmoil unfolding outside. The noise persisted for what felt like an eternity, preventing Adam from opening his eyes. He sensed someone attempting to move his body but eventually gave up. Gradually, the din around him subsided, until silence prevailed. "Of course, no one would care if I fell ill..." Time eluded him, and at last, he regained a semblance of consciousness. Slowly, he opened his eyes, only to find the surroundings shrouded in darkness. Had the guards turned off the lights? It seemed odd that even at night, they would not have left some illumination. "It hurts..." As Adam rose from the bed, he realized a pounding headache accompanied his intense thirst; his throat felt as if it were ablaze. After a few moments of acclimating, he felt his body regain some strength. He glanced around his cell, which housed six inmates. To his dismay, he found himself alone. Had everyone gone outside for fresh air? But why was the cell in such disarray? It appeared as if it had been ransacked. "What is happening?" A sense of foreboding crept in as he noted the oppressive silence outside and the chaotic state of his cell. He surmised that something was amiss in the prison. Leaning against the wall, he made his way outside, and what he beheld confirmed his suspicions. Indeed, chaos had erupted! All the cell doors were ajar, and the interiors resembled Adam's—disorderly and empty. "Where is everyone? Where have they gone? What has happened to the inmates? The guards?" Panic surged within Adam. Why had everything changed so dramatically after his brief illness? He ventured towards the exit, traversing the corridor, and entered the mess hall—the usual dining area—but it, too, was in disarray, devoid of life. The darkness loomed, with only a few iron-barred windows allowing a sliver of daylight to seep in, indicating it was daytime. "What has transpired? What has become of the prison? Why is there not a soul in sight? What is going on?" Adam noticed that the once tightly locked gates...