We are the weak being led throught the valley of darkness

I remember when everything started to go wrong. Comcast, had been caught controlling their download rates, their network bandwidth and power. All, without congress' permission, and they had been caught. There was a whole big to-do about net neutrality, and how Comcast had undermined the citizens of the country. That's why we'd known about the invasion so early on. "They" had hacked our system. A young programmer in Japan was the first to notice. He was a member of an Internet watch-dog group that had been scanning and surveying the Internet for signs of cheating by the big companies. His group was one of the many that had been hot on Comcasts tail. I forget his name now, it seems like it was so long ago. I think it was Yamamoto, or something like that. He caught their signal. At first he thought it was one of the big corporations getting cocky. But as he and many others started to look closer, they realized this code was like nothing they had ever seen.

That is when the American Government jumped in. They shut down access to the Internet from any American IP address. They said it was for our safety. Do you know what happens when an investment banker can't check his or her stock in the morning, while in line for a cup of star schmucks? Chaos, that is what. There was looting in the streets for two days before things got turned back on. I am still unsure of how the US Government even did it. The Internet providers must have had more control than we thought at the time. Not that it made a difference in the end... I remember this article I read in the paper. It was an investigative report. I, I think I still have it somewhere around here... Here is something kind of similar. Even our own government was at the disposal of the telecoms. Everything I owned has been destroyed by the invasion or the elements. I have left so many pieces of me strewn about this city.

The bottom line was that people realized they were having control of their choices taken out of their hands. This was not okay. America was definitely not at the forefront of this movement. We should have been, but, we were too preoccupied with the war, and our economy to see the signs. Thankfully, there was a contingent of our population that was paying attention to this whole mess. It was the younger generation that saw the importance of ridding the world of net neutrality. They understood what a free internet meant to not just America, but the world and how we all communicate with each other. With the support of burgeoning companies like google, the US was slowly able to build a movement against the regulation of the Internet. By the time we had a strong enough movement to make a difference, "they" were already on their way.

Yamamoto, or, whatever his name was, recognized that there was something different about the interference that he was experiencing with his broadband connection. He had been a target of his provider for a while, and had become an active member in the fight against net neutrality. He and a few of his friends, some in fairly high places, started to break down the code. What they found confused them. It was not the advocates for regulation of the Internet. It wasn't hackers either. This was like nothing they had ever seen before. The math seemed to make sense, but it was so complex that they couldn't figure out what it meant. That is when the UN was brought in to recruit help from outside sources. Many people had a go at the code. We seemed to be getting closer. We started to understand what it all meant right as the invasion began. We were just too slow to react. They invaded so quickly we had no way of scrambling our defenses in time. The fight was over before it began.

The funny thing is, if more severe regulation of the Internet had been passed through congress and other governments, we would have probably had a better chance to defend ourselves. But, this is a double edge sword in and of itself. China, with its government regulated Internet access, was one of the first countries to intercept the code. They broke it down and secretly set up their defenses. This was both a blessing and a curse. China was able to put up the best fight against the aliens, but because they activated their military so early, they quickly became the primary target of the invasion. China was the first to be attacked. They were hit hard. The rest of the planet tried to scramble their defenses, but it was far too late. We were all caught off-guard. The rest, as you know, is history.

I came to a realization yesterday as the sun was setting. I have no defense. No protection. I am planning on running into a building that could very possibly be a trap. I need to protect myself. I need to protect what I may be. The last free human. I have been thinking for so long about hiding, cowering in the shadows. I can't continue with that frame of mind if I am going to get anything done besides starve to death. Laying awake every night staring at the ceiling. I am setting up some booby traps around the location I have been in for the last few days. I will set up a dummy, so that if I have been spied on by whoever that is in that building, I will have surprise on my side. I have found some flak jackets from soldiers who were either killed or taken prisoner. There is one just outside of the building I am staying in. There is a hole in one side but it is better than nothing. They are really heavy though. I will have to weigh my options.

These things are mortal. They can die. There were just so many of them when they invaded. They were like a swarm of bees. They powered through our defenses they broke through windows. Many of them died, but there were so many that we were never able to make any sort of dent in their offensive. I remember seeing footage of them running through the streets, trampling humans and their own not caring about who got in the way of their horde. The screams I heard then were terrifying, but the silence I hear now chills my blood. Where are they? Where are all of the aliens and all of the humans, where is anyone? I haven't heard a dog bark in three weeks. Tonight I cross the street, into the building where I saw the hand move.

Since I moved up those four blocks I have not been able to see up to the window. I am too close. I have been keeping a close eye on the building but I have not seen anyone or anything leave. Once I am in the building I will need to move slow and quiet. I may be out of communication for a few days. If someone receives this message, or finds it. Please follow the IP address I will either be here, with the computer, or in the building directly across on the 15th floor. Wish me luck.

I need this, I need this to be real. Someone is up there. I saw the signal. It was easier than I expected to go the four blocks to get this far. But I am so tired. So weak. I need this to be real. Where is the military? where are the other survivors? Are they all as scared as me, seeing silence as the only way to survive? I have scoured the land and the internet. I have been looking for recently updated anything. There is nothing. WHY!? Okay, okay. I am leaving, I will talk to you soon.

There is someone else. I mean, I think there is. Thats gotta be someone. There... There is a light down the street. I saw it a few days ago, when I was searching the building for food. I was on the 15th floor, making my way downstairs before dusk settled. The light, it flashes in some pattern. I thought it was morse code at first. But I checked online, and it just doesn't translate. But yesterday, I swear I saw someone adjust it. I saw an arm! I thought about yelling, but I know the way these things work.

They are out there during the day. I can't see them, but I know they are there. When a pebble comes loose in the middle of an empty street, I know what is there. I have heard terrible things during the day, as I hide... The light changed patterns last night. It is faster. More urgent. I need to communicate with this person. I plan on moving down the street tonight.

I have almost been caught twice. The first time, I hadn't slept for five days. I couldn't see straight. I was desperate for food. That was the only reason I even left my room. I had opened the door and was about to step out of the doorway, when one crossed right in front of me. It was across the street. But I saw its silhouette. Right in fucking front of me. I thought for sure it would see me. But it just kept moving along. I must have still been in the shadows.
That night I learned to stay in those shadows, and never to leave them.

The second time, was just an unlucky circumstance. I was well rested and well fed. It was near the beginning. That seems like it was so long ago. Shit. I was home with my fami... oh god. My family. My friends they are all gone. I saw them kill my parents. My father tried to protect us. He ran for his gun, but they were everywhere. I still am unsure of how I got away. My god they were everywhere. Like a swarm of bees... That was third day of the land invasion. They knew where to attack. Beijing, Tokyo, London, Sydney, Moscow, New York, all of the big cities with the large populations. They knew what they were doing. They overpowered us. All of us. I don't know why I'm alive.

I am going to leave just after sunset. I have found some food and I will eat so that I have enough energy to make it that far. I am going four blocks. I think I am going to set up camp directly across the street. So that I can scout the situation a bit better. I hope my mind isn't playing tricks on me. I am at my wits end anyways. This would be one of the last nails in the coffin. I need this to be real.

I need to go to that light. I'm leaving soon.I must prepare. If I can find one person, someone to keep hope alive. I am so close to loosing it. I can feel myself slipping. I just need help. I need something. Anything.