DAY 1: THE FLARE

At 08:43 Universal Time, observatories detected a burst from the Sun unlike anything seen before. The flare expanded faster than prediction models allowed, a wall of charged particles racing toward Earth. Every satellite went silent. Twelve minutes later, the storm reached the planet.

The first sign was color. The sky ignited in violent red and green ribbons that stretched from pole to pole. The air hummed with static. Compasses spun. Then came the surge. Power grids overloaded, transformers blew apart, and entire cities fell into darkness. Aircraft lost control as navigation systems failed. Pilots saw the ground rise toward them through sheets of light.

On the surface, light felt heavy. Skin burned beneath it. Plastic warped. Streetlights exploded. Every radio went dead. For six minutes, civilization as it had been ended.

When the storm passed, silence followed. The night that came after was not black but dimly red, as if the atmosphere still smoldered. The auroras stayed overhead for hours, painting the sky with an unbroken glow. Satellites fell like meteors, streaking fire through the upper clouds.

By morning, the world was split between those who saw the light and those who never woke again. No one understood what had happened, only that the Sun had turned against them.

Status: Year Zero begins. Global power loss confirmed. Atmospheric interference ongoing.

[END TRANSMISSION]