chiv-id: OMG, ANOTHER STORY? Pfffttttt...I'm a masochist. Derp, but getting more to the point, this is a new story! Been playing some Black Ops lately, so I just needed to get it out of my system! Oh, and if I don't update fast enough, remember to go to my home page here in to check out my other stories! Forgot to mention that in the other chapters I updated, eheh...

Anywho, enjoy the show! Here's my new fic: The Information Age!

The Information Age

Prologue: The Long Fight

MAZ Conference Room Meeting #69. Designate: Representative #43—Hiroto, Mizuki

Security Clearance-5. Presidential safety discussed. Present: Technician 413

Location: Schofield Barracks, Quad C, HI, USA.

1200 hours, January 21, 2012

"Representative Hiroto, the President has received our message aboard the Air Force One and has just replied on the secure channel. He and his members will refuel at Hickam and discuss our options there," a technician reported at her console, gathering her papers and legal documents before coming to Hiroto's side. The much older woman was sitting in her chair, thick glasses perched on her pointed nose and eyes squinting at the small lettering that detailed the security issues near Sector H, over in Waikiki. She sighed and moved her fingers to massage the bags and folds, lifting her glasses up slightly before looking tiredly to her young assistant.

"T'ank you, Stephanie," a mix of old Japanese and English colored her voice, as well as a bit of Hawaiian pidgin that progressed more and more with sleep-deprivation, "I don't know what I could have done without choo…" The young assistant looked over her superior and eyed the grey roots that peeked out from her thinning black hair, the baggy white undershirt and purple suit that wore too loosely around a woman her age, and the jade-green baubles on her ears that seemed to sag. Hiroto was being worn down tremendously by the responsibilities.

"I just run the numbers, Representative, but thank you for those kind words," Stephanie bowed politely, Hiroto smiling as she trembled, trying to get up from her seat with a koa cane firmly in her right hand. Stephanie came forward and helped her from her seat before guiding her down the quad's halls to the elevator that had been installed recently in light of her condition. One small, wrinkled and short-fingered hand held onto Stephanie's arm as they went, Stephanie patiently walking with Hiroto to go to the black limousine that waited for them. When she was settled in, the young assistant joined her and they drove off towards Hickam, Hiroto's face lined with worry and expectation.

"You know…" Hiroto wet her lips, remembering that she needed to put her teeth in, "I was supposed to retire this year, yeah?" She immediately began searching for the case with her false teeth.

"Yes, Representative?" it ended more in a question because she hadn't known that, easily getting Hiroto's teeth out of the old woman's enormous embroidered and slightly gaudy purse.

"Hmm…Shimotsuki…" she popped in her teeth, gumming her way to having them fit perfectly in her mouth, "My replacement was Lee Shimotsuki. Good boy…knew his fath'a well. Wanted to be like fath'a, so he did good in school and got good recommendations, yeah? He was such a good boy…" Stephanie knew where this was going and slowly took out a tissue, offering it to the old woman who had a single tear running down her powdered cheek.

"When…you as old as someone like me…" she took the tissue and dabbed a cheek, "Sad to see young ones go. Young ones like Lee…like my grandaught'a…like my grandson…all good kids…"

"It's hard to lose people who are close to you, obaasan," Stephanie called Hiroto 'grandmother' affectionately, hoping that Hiroto wouldn't feel sad anymore.

"Ohh…" Hiroto patted Stephanie's hand gently and with a sad smile, "T'ank you, Stephanie…but you don't have to worry 'bout an old Auntie like me…I'll be fine. I just saying you be careful. Don't want to lose anymore good kids…like you." Stephanie smiled back and gave a small hug, feeling close to the woman.

"Representative Hiroto, Miss Suzutani!" the driver opened the window between himself and the two in the back, "We have a situation! Sector E is being overrun right now!"

"That's Waipio! My sister's there!" Stephanie shot up and ran towards the front of the cabin, getting close to the window, "How bad is it?"

"I have reports of 15 cases within the last 8 minutes," the driver replied, frantically adjusting the radio to hear more, "It seems one of the survivors brought in was bitten!"

"Oh no…" Stephanie put a hand over her mouth and tears started welling up. A resounding thud of a cane hitting the bottom of the cabin caught both her and the driver's attention.

"Section off the infected, save as many as we can," Hiroto's voice, once feeble, was now strong and steely, "Tell the commanding officer '58WJD-HR209', under authorization of the Representative."

"Yes, ma'am, right away, ma'am," the driver started rambling off the code while Hiroto wobbled over to Stephanie on her cane, sitting besides the distraught girl and patting her on the back comfortingly.

"Shhh…Stephanie, it will be all right," Hiroto sympathized with her, but now was not the time to lose focus, "Do not worry. They will have weapons. And your sister is strong. Have faith." Stephanie looked up at Hiroto with a tear-stained face.

"I…I'm just so…oh God, it's starting all over," Stephanie gripped her head while Hiroto leaned closer, "My…my sister is the only one I have left! If I lose her, I just…I wouldn't know what to do…" Sobs wracked her small body as she tried to hold in the sounds of her anguish.

"I know…I know…but you must fight now, Stephanie," Hiroto grasped Stephanie's shoulder tightly, "You must be strong, as your sister must be strong. The President will be coming. Believe that they will be all right so that we can give them a future to look forward to."

"…Yes, ma'am," Stephanie wiped away her tears before Hiroto looked outside the window.

"We must all be strong, to survive this…" Hiroto uttered grimly. Outside, there was chain-link fence with barbed wire weaved into it and piled on heavy at the top, insuring that nothing would get in the way of the roads. What was more disturbing were the many groaning, bleeding corpses that were banging on the fence, uncaring that it ripped their flesh or tore off an arm. These creatures of abomination were wrought with maggots and stank of rotten meat and fluids, all clamoring to get beyond the fence to feast upon the driver, Stephanie, and Hiroto. And the fence that protected them went on for miles, the entire island of Oahu now looking like a barbed prison for these dead men, women, and children.

The dead walked the earth with the living. Apocalypse had come.

chiv-id: Derrrrrrppp, I know that was a God-awful short chapter, but it's the prologue! What you expect from me? And you might be wondering how this prologue fits into the story, why I picked this location, why these people, whether they're real (they're not, I just made them up, no offense to any Mizuki Hirotos or Stephanie Suzutanis), but you'll find out soon enough in the next chapter or so! And please! Reviewwwwwwwwwwww! Would love to know what you guys think of it! Then until next time, bye-bye!