History of the world: part one

The year is 2089, and civilization of the twentieth century is not even a dream anymore. The global population has been reduced to a mere remanent of its former glory, and a new breed of creature introduced into the equation.

The first of the changes began back in 2003, when Iraq, a small country with big ambitions, started to wage war on its neighbors. At first, the fighting was confined to just a few small areas surrounding Iraq as it tried to force its way out of its boarders.

The beleaguered countries quickly requested help from their allies, which was quickly provided, making Iraq's plans on expansion an uncertain thing. It was then that Iraq started using the forbidden chemical weapons.

The war escalated from there, with retaliation returned with more retaliation. The death toll quickly rose, horrifying the civilized world over.

Unknown to either side, a small privately funded laboratory was busy working upon the next strain of virus that was to help the world over. Unfortunately, eco-terrorists broke into the laboratory and stole the viruses from their sealed incubators. It was their intention at the time to threaten the world with it if hostilities were not stopped everywhere on the world.

And that was the beginning of the end for modern civilization. The virus had not been fully explored and tested before being stolen, and once out of their sealed environment, soon began to mutate and adapt, easily escaping the prison of the petri dishes. While initially engineered for animals, it soon found a ready host in humans.

At first, it was only a small breakout, contracted by contact with an infected person. Death was swift and painful to those infected. Doctors around the world scrambled to try to find a cure, but to no avail as the virus inexorably spread.

But that wasn't the last of it. The virus was still mutating, changing as time when on. Within a year, it had become an airborne virus, spread so easily that the epidemic spread all over the globe. That was also when the first of the 'changelings' appeared.

For some reason, while the virus killed most it had contact with, a certain few people in the population reacted differently to it. Instead of dying off quickly, they were laid low for months on end, during which the livestock part of the virus started to change them. Soon after, they were changed into something resembling a human, but only from far away and in low light.

Now the survivors of the virus had become covered in fur, and found that their entire bodies had been changed from the form they had known from birth. In place of a flat face and round ears they found a muzzle extending from their face and their ears extended and changed. At first, many were mistaken as were-wolves and other were-creatures, hunted and killed when found by surviving humans that were immune to the viruses effects.

This lasted for more than a decade, until the human population had been reduced so much that the few that remained gathered into the last vestiges of civilization, the great cities of old days. It was only with grudging acceptance that the changed, or 'Furfolk' as they preferred to be called, were allowed to integrate into the surviving human population.

It only took a short time before the apprehensive humans wondered how they had ever gotten along without some of the unique abilities the furfolk brought with them.

Some of the more amazing things that were brought along was a seemingly magical ability to heal others of the ailments, although that was one of the rarest of them. Another was the enhanced senses the furfolk had, helpful in areas such as divining for water, (Yes, a real ability, and not like those that used sticks or such to find it.)

There were other, lesser things that were used, but that will be covered later. For now, just let it be known that they finally made peace with each other. Or at least, as much as there is with any concentration of population. There were hate groups on both sides, all concerned with removing the presence of the other. Gangs roved freely through the ruins of the old cities, taking slaves and killing as they pleased.

It was far from any utopia that was imagined, but most were content with it. Trade between the enclaves, as they were now called, was brisk and profitable. Though it gave rise to a new breed of criminal and a new way to deal with them.

Most trade was conducted with large convoys of tractor-trucks pulling several trailers each, all loaded with goods meant for trade to get needed items not easily manufactured or gotten in their own enclave. But trucks such as these, even with weapon mounts and turrets welded onto the top of each trailer, just weren't enough to repel raiders intent on getting the goods for themselves.

For a while, losses were high as the raiders grew bolder with each attack. Escort vehicles soon became commonplace around the convoys. Several escorts were not uncommon for extremely valuable cargo, and soon enough being an escort driver was one of the most lucrative, if not most dangerous, jobs available in the new world.

The world as it currently is, will be expanded upon in more detail in later sections of the history and geography of the cities and places of importance that exist at the moment. Be sure to check in for updates and changes.