*Bzzt-*
*Krsht-*
W- *Kzzat*-Welcome to the P.S.A. PSA! With the following information, you will be equipped with the knowledge to navigate through the new and unfamiliar state of the world, as well as its potential threats. The Preternatural Survival Association, abbreviated as P.S.A., is an organization dedicated to safeguarding the survival of our species. The world has now become host to an anomalous group of creatures known as the Bray. The Bray are a group of incredibly hostile life forms, whose origins and biology are a mystery to the world of natural sciences.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Panting heavily, Dennis sprinted as fast as he could through the decrepit ruins of the mall while carrying Logan, who was groaning in pain.
“We’re almost there, Logan, stay with us, man!” Dennis said, trying to reassure Logan, but more so himself, that he would survive. “Guys, hurry up, we can’t let ‘em find us.” Dennis exhaled while glancing over his big muscular shoulder, his fear-filled brown eyes seeing his three other acquaintances. A man with a similar muscular build to that of Dennis, albeit slightly taller and slimmer, was running behind him. “You got those food packets, Quinny?”
“Yeah, keep running!” Quinn answered hastily, with a twinge of frustration.
“Shar, you got the ammo, from the hunting store?”
“Got some, mostly some 9-millimeters, but I found some heavy caliber too!” Shar responded, her shaking voice and rapid steps accompanied by the jingling of assorted bullets and weaponry stuffed in a backpack.
“Got some, mostly some 9-millimeters, but I found some heavy caliber too!” Shar responded, her shaking voice and rapid steps accompanied by the jingling of assorted bullets and weaponry stuffed in a backpack.
“First aid kits, Ryan?” Dennis asked the young man holding three off-white, scratched-up boxes of first aid.
“Yeah, I got three kits, should be-”
A pair of hoofbeats got closer and faster as Ryan gave his reply, ending with a horrible noise resembling an ungodly hybrid of human screams of fury and animalistic growling. The source of the sound pounced upon Ryan. A humanoid form with ungulate-like legs and a hunched form wrapped in corded muscle and shaggy fur lept from a wide corridor, landing on Ryan. Ryan’s first aid kits fell and clattered to the floor, with one sliding to Shar’s feet.
“Oh, hell!” Quinn exclaimed, as he and the others whipped their heads around to see the creature on top of their friend.
It closed its large, clawed hand on Ryan’s face, pulling him upward to its elongated, yet somewhat human-like face. Shar scrambled for her pistol, but before she or her colleagues could do anything to stop the beast, they could already hear the pulling of skin and crunching and popping of bones. Ryan struggled in agonizing fruitlessness.
“No, please- no, NO—
~~~~~~~~~~~
*Tzzzt*
The creatures known as the “Bray” started as humans before transforming into the monsters that now run rampant worldwide. Usually, their higher functioning skills are deteriorated, but some do retain the ability to underst human language, and fewer still are able to speak coherently. However, their aggression, physical strength, and senses have been amplified far beyond that of an average human. An increased appetite for flesh has also been observed across captured specimens, particularly that of humans, due to their initial abundance at the first confirmed outbreak. However, the Bray will not only target humans as a food source. The Bray do not reproduce like animals; instead, they transform humans into bray. These transformations are triggered by a fluid substance now known as ichor. The ichor is typically delivered into a – *KZZT* a victim’s bloodstream via bites or scratches, so wearing many layers when venturing outside the bunkers is heavily advised.
~~~~~~~~~~~
The monster stood atop Ryan’s beheaded and bloodied corpse, its mouth drenched in blood and viscera. A piece of Ryan’s brain was caught on one of the Bray’s long and pointed canines. The others stared in horror for what felt like ages to them, mouths agape and jaws quivering. Frantically, Shar snatched up the med kit at her feet with her free hand before taking a shot at the monster with her pistol. The monster moved forward. The first shot missed. The second shot hit its forehead, making it step back and groan before continuing forward. It raised its elongated and heavily muscled arm high as its mouth opened with a roar of anger, ready to swing down at Shar. Her third shot hit it in its mouth, causing inky blood to spray out as it let out an ear-splitting raspy squeal. Still, it followed through on its claw swipe, albeit with less strength than intended, dashing its claws across Shar’s face and knocking her to the dusty, cracked tile floor. Dennis and Quinn had also reached for their guns, with Dennis patting his leg desperately for his holster while also trying not to drop Logan. In what felt like an eternity, Dennis managed to point his gun at the monster. The beast roared again, with specks of blood and strands of saliva flying out of its widely opened mouth. Dennis and Quinn unloaded wildly, with Dennis landing a shot in the monster’s mouth. The blood-spewing bullet wound in its mouth, courtesy of Shar, helped his aim.
~~~~~~~~~~~
*Bzzt*
In the event that you or another human is infected by a Bray’s ichor, it is important to not panic and remain as calm as possible. The transformation can take hou- *krsht* days to complete, and there is time between then to stop it. The Preternatural Survival Association has worked with the remaining world governments and health organizations to develop and distribute an antidote across the globe. By now, most bunker complexes have been given the means to synthesize and produce the antidote. In the event that you must venture out of a bunker complex, it is heavily advised to take P.S.A. Med kits, each containing-among other supplies- a pair of syringes, with both containing a dose of the antidote required to stal- *tzzat* stop the transformation.
~~~~~~~~~~~
What about the food- and-and the other med kits?” Quinn asked, carrying Shar via piggyback while trying to keep up with Dennis. The right side of Shar’s head still bleeding and bruised from the slash.
“ Gotta leave it. We can ration a little longer.” Dennis replied.
Logan groaned, his muscles cramping and rippling in unnerving, worming patterns of aching and pinching pain across his body.
“Hang in there, Logan, we gotcha, dude.” Dennis reassured Logan hastily.
“It’s his fault we couldn’t go for food on this run!” Quinn said angrily, glancing back at the fresh corpse of the Bray getting farther away as they ran. “Now Shar got scratched, and we’re out of bullets!”
“It’s not his fault those things are everywhere nowadays,” Dennis retorted. “We can’t blame each other for stuff like that.”
Quinn grimaced in annoyance, mumbling inaudible curses at Dennis. “Wouldn’t kill ’em to be more careful!”
Dennis shook his head in frustration, trying to be as patient as one can in a world filled with giant goat-people-monsters.
“L-look, just get to the safe spot, alright? We’re almost there; just hurry up!”
“I swear to God, you and your-”
* ROOOOAAAAAAAEEUUURGH*
An earsplitting, wretched howl could be heard from behind them.
“Go, go, go, get to the safe spot––NOW!”
~~~~~~~~~~~
*Bsssht*
There are multiple stages to the *tzzrt* to the -transformation.
Stage one: The victim suffers worsened motor skills, muscle cramping across the body, and a high fever. Eyes go bloodshot, and veins darken and reposition, causing further pain.
Stage two: The victim’s motor skills begin to return, albeit slowly, to previous functionality, as aggression increases. Coarse fur begins to cover the victim’s skin as well, and eyes become bloodshot as the iris and pupils expand. The pupils also begin to take on unusual shapes such as rectangles or triangles, disorienting the victim further. There is a small chance that the victim’s immune system can fight off the transformation at this stage and the former.
Stage three: The skeletal system of the victim begins to elongate and develop a second layer of hardened bone and vascular tissue. It is at this point that antidote must be administered, as the body’s immune system will have failed to fight off the transformation.
Stage four: The chosen’s- *BZZZT*- The victim’s skeleton begins to lengthen and grow, their arms and legs morphing drastically. Jagged keratinous horns also sprout during this stage. It is at this point that the transformation is irreversible.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Dennis, Quinn, Shar, and Logan managed to return to the safe spot. The storage facility of a Dick’s Sporting Goods was a far cry from the bunker complexes they had heard about on those tapes. Dennis couldn’t believe people still made those before the outbreaks. He, Quinn, and Shar could stand, though Shar had to lean on a locker for support. Dennis patched up the right side of her face. Meanwhile, Logan was laying in a fetal position on a blowup mattress placed halfway inside a tent. He was covered with a garishly green and black blanket with dinosaurs on it.
“We’re all safe now, Logan, we gotcha,” Dennis said, patting Logan’s side while crouching. “We got some antidote!” He exclaimed softly, trying to lift his incapacitated friend’s spirits.
“Oh, thank God, dude.” Logan groaned with great effort. “Th-thank you.”
“Ah don’t mention it, man!” Dennis nodded, nudging him gently. “We gotta look out for each other, ya know?”
Logan let out a labored sigh of melancholy, his body curling up tight and shivering. He grasped the undersized blanket tightly in his fists. Dennis noticed the veins in his hands looked darker and viciously angular.
“You all right, dude?” Dennis asked with a nervous, sympathetic tone in his voice, kneeling as close as he felt safe to do so.
“I’m- I- I’m fine” Logan responded, trying to save face. “I just- feel like I’m- wait, is Ryan-”
“Dammit,” Logan winced with a defeated sigh. “Its all my fault he’s dead.”
“Yeah,” Dennis responded with a nod and pursed lips “Ryan’s gone.”
“Dammit,” Logan winced with a defeated sigh. “Its all my fault he’s dead.”
“No,no,no,no- don’t say that.” Dennis interjected. “It’s not your-” Dennis held his tongue for a tiny moment. “It’s not all your fault,” Dennis continued “A lot of bad stuff happened today.” Dennis Shrugged. “Just the world we live in right now.”
“God, I’m just weighing you guys down, aren’t I?” Logan shook his head weakly.
“Hey, you can’t say stuff like that, man!” Dennis reassured Logan. “We’re in this together. We look out for each other!” He continued, gently thumping his chest with his fist.
“And besides,” Dennis added, leaning in just a wee bit closer, trying to hide his anxiety from doing so. “I know you’ll make it up to me later.” He said, half joking in an amicable manner, trying to add a little levity to their conversation.” Dennis and Logan shared a weak chuckle and a grin. “You get some rest, now.” Dennis started again “I’m gonna check on Shar and Quinn.” Dennis stood up, turned around, and let out a quiet yet long exhale when he had walked out of earshot of Logan. He walked over to Shar, who was massaging her head while also trying to avoid messing with the bandages.
“Shar, how are you doing?” Dennis said with open arms trying to lift spirits.
“I-I’m alright” Shar stammered with a mix of exhaustion and anxiety. She was shaking. “R-Ryan is dead. I can’t-I can’t believe Ryan’s dead.” She stammered.
“I know, it’s hard for me too,” Dennis responded solemnly, gently placing a hand on Shar’s shoulder.
“Why did we think we’d all make it? The only people who knew each other before all this happened were you and Quinn,” Shar said with a combination of anxiety, hopelessness, and dread. “And we only have one med kit!” Her head pulsed with a horrendous throbbing pain, causing her to hunch over and clutch her head in her hand. Her other hand hung onto the locker.
Dennis crouched down halfway to support Shar, gently grabbing her elbow and her other shoulder. “We’re gonna keep Ryan in hour hearts, and we’re gonna keep surviving in memory of him, understand?” Dennis nodded, trying to comfort his compatriot. “And look, Shar, it doesn’t matter if we hadn’t met before the world went to shit. We’ll keep trucking on.” He continued, starting to gently get her back upright. “Thats what Me and Quinn used to say to our hockey team!” Dennis smiled gently. “The trucking on part, not the world-went-to-shit part.” He clarified.
“Y-yeah, you’re right,” Shar nodded with a tired puff of air. “We’re-we’re gonna make it.”
“Atta girl!” Dennis said, patting her shoulder before standing up straight again. “Anyways, you want me to give you some antidote after I give some to Logan.” Dennis offered Shar as he made his way towards the med kit.
“Oh, N-not now, Dennis, we should wait” Shar interjected politely, catching Dennis’s arm. Dennis turned his head to the side, slightly confused. “I watched one of those P.S.A. Tap. a while back- before I met you all.” She continued. “I-I don’t remember much, but I do remember that it said to wait until like stage 3 to use the antidote on a person.” Shar shrugged. “Said something like—
~~~~~~~~~~~
*Zzzrtz*
To conserve vital medical resources, it is advised to only administer a dosage of the antidote once symptoms seen in stage three of a transformation start to occur in a victim. Antidote is a priceless resource and should only be used in absolutely dire situations.
*Kvzzzt*
~~~~~~~~~~~
“That’s what it said?” Dennis asked genuinely. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah,” Shar responded, “That’s-That is what it said.” She finished raising her forearms and shrugging.
“Well, alright then,” Dennis said, scratching the back of his head, “Guess we’ll wait till-”
Dennis noticed Quinn a couple feet away from both Shar and him, as well as Logan’s tent. He was pacing around loudly whispering with both anger and worry. It looked like he was arguing with a ghost that wouldn’t sit still. Dennis exhaled tiredly and shook his head while he put his hands on his hips.
“Sorry, just gimme a sec, Shar.” Dennis said, shaking his head whilst walking toward his old friend.
“Oh, um, okay.” Shar replied, confused and little bit worried about what was going to go down. Her head throbbed again for a moment, making her groan and clench her teeth. “Dammit, that hurts.”
Quinn paced around the storage room, his arms shaking, as he spoke to himself.
“We can’t keep letting this stuff happen— every time we do these things— something goes wrong— why weren’t there any complexes built in—”
“Quinn,” He felt a hand on his shoulder. “Let’s not beat each other up over this run, alright?”
“Look, Dennis, we have to do something different. We have to set goals and stick with them- no more of this ‘go with the flow’ shit!” Quinn retorted, spinning around to face Dennis. “You told us stuff like that back in hockey,” he finished, poking his finger into Dennis’s sternum.
“Dude, those were hockey games. That,” Dennis gestured toward the barricaded steel doors and what lurked outside, “is life and death stuff.”
“Don’t fuckin’ talk to me like that!” Quinn shouted, swatting Dennis’ arm off of him.
“Look, Quinn, you-”
“I’m tired of living like this! Why couldn’t we have tried to make it to one of the bunker cities?!”
“We tried that, but-”
“But what? You were gonna feel homesick?”
“Oh, piss off, Quinn!
“You piss off!”
“You know why I’m in charge, Quinn? Know why I was team captain and not you?!”
“Why?! Why?!”
“It’s ‘cause you flip your damn lid so easily.”
“I’m only mad ’cause you all keep screwing up.”
“I-and that’s another thing; it’s always someone else’s fault, isn’t it?!”
Shar was watching their argument, not sure whether or not to chime in. Her body felt like it was squeezing itself open.
“Yeah, you’re hearing it again, ‘because I don’t think you get it! You can’t help but blame people, even if it’s no one’s fault!”
“Stop being a therapist, you jackass.”
Shar was watching their argument, not sure whether or not to chime in. Her body felt like it was squeezing itself open.
“Guy’s, I-I’m not feeling great.”
Quinn snapped around to look at Shar, Dennis following suit. “What do you- oh no, no, no.”
~~~~~~~~~~~
*Ksssh*
It should be noted, however, that the time a victim goes through the stages of transformation into a Bray is not uniform. It is an erratic, and unpredictable process. One victim may spend hours showing symptoms of stage one before going through the remaining stages in less than a minute.
*Bzzzrt*
~~~~~~~~~~~
“Guys, hand me one of those syringes, NOW!” Shar pleaded with a mixture of fear, anger, and desperation.
Her muscles twitched and convulsed, her eyes bulged, looking ready to pop out of their sockets. Dennis and Quinn looked as the bandaging on her face started to slough away as bristly, almost quill-like fur, erupted from the skin around her face. Dennis scrambled for the Medkit, working quickly to open the pale yellowish white container. But the latches were stuck.
“C’mon, c’mon, COME ONNN.” Dennis pleaded to the kit.
“Gah, screw this!” Quinn grunted. Dennis was so focused on getting the med kit unstuck, he didn’t notice Quinn load a new magazine into his pistol and stomp up to Shar.
“Sorry, Shar.” *BLAM*
~~~~~~~~~~
*Zzzzzzzerrrt*
The most valuable advice that the P.S.A. can give you is to never be alone *pzzt* we *tazzrt* the Bray *frazzzt* are most confident when humans are alone or in conflict with other humans. Remember to *tzzrt* stay hidden *fsht* among them while in their territory *BRZZZZZZTTT* By undergoing the Predatory Skill Assessment, you too may guide your fellow Bray toward tomorrow and drive our fangs and claws deeper into the impure heart of humankind. The ones with promise shall be brought into our fold, and their wretches shall be devoured. *BRZZZZZZRT* And stay with those you trust. The Preternatural Survival Association thanks you for your continued work towards a better future for our species.
*KZZZZZZRT*
~~~~~~~~~~
The two were laying into each other. Grabbing, punching, kicking, head-butting, and shouting profanities. Quinn managed to get a leg sweep on Dennis, knocking him to the floor. Quinn straddled him, and tried pinning his arms, with Dennis putting up great resistance. Dennis noticed the med kit had been broken open during their commotion and grabbed a syringe. He swung desperately at Quinn’s face. Quinn managed to wrestle it out of Dennis’s grasp and jam it into Dennis’s eye.
Dennis wailed in agony before it was cut off by gasps for air. Quinn coiled his hands around Dennis’s throat, causing Dennis to writhe and gasp until the remainder of his breath and life left his body in an unceremonious sputtering croak. Taking deep, labored breaths, Quinn looked down at Dennis’s body, fixated on the discolored, bleeding face of his former…friend? Acquaintance made more sense to Quinn in hindsight.
“Won’t be telling me what to do anymore, eh?” Quinn said through heavy breaths and a sadistic twinge in his voice.
He hadn’t noticed the large figure standing above him. The Monster was covered in gray shaggy fur and had a prickly crown of horns on its head. A muscular, bipedal build rose up and down with its deep breaths. It took one step forward with its hairy hoofed legs and leaned down towards Quinn to look at him with its bulbous fish-like eyes, its triangular pupils somehow looking as if they were gazing at nothing and into Quinn’s soul. Paralyzed in terror, Quinn could only push a single thing out of his throat.
”L-Logan..?”
The Monster opened its mouth, revealing a cavernous darkness at the back of its throat. Quinn managed to get a good glimpse of what he could sworn were a set of human eyes and teeth as well. The greater set of teeth moved quickly and closed in on Quinn with a braying hiss.
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