Earth fell in weeks. The invasion of the tentacled, pink and fleshy monsters that came in any assortment of limbs, eyes and mouths was swift and complete. The reason why humanity stood no chance was in the tentacle monster's ability to control the mind, or more accurately, block out certain thoughts. They could influence what people saw, heard, and felt based on their own whim. And because of this humanity as a whole didn't even know it had lost. Even today, there are people still taking part in their daily commute, apparently oblivious to the plethora of monsters they would pass by on a day to day basis. Buses ran, people took trains, they worked, watched television, made love... All the while ignoring the fleshy monsters they were sleeping slaves to. I was always a conspiracy nut, as they so rudely called me, but now I may be one of the few left on this planet who can even see the global scale takeover. Somehow, hunkering down in an abandoned apartment building in New York City saved me from the initial brainwashing, and now I can simply act as if I am also unaware of them. For if I faltered, gasped at one of their horrific forms, or otherwise acknowledged their existence, I know that my mind would have snapped like wet paper being ripped in half, and I would have become one of them too.

I live alone in the dilapidated building, just a mile away from Times Square. Sure, I could go rent an apartment, but living in a space where I'm free to act without worry of inspection eases my mind more than a nice bed would ever. I glanced out the dusty window, watching the evening commute. A few men walked as a group, chatting and laughing, unaware of the giant, crablike tentacle-covered beast lounging lazily nearby. An office woman waited for the bus, somehow ignoring the rough face-fucking of a latched tentacle monster sitting on a wall behind her. As the bus pulled up, the tentacle of the wall-mounted barnacle slowly receded, pulling out from the poor women's mouth to allow her to leave. This was the world now. The city itself had been transformed too. Most buildings were still standing, save for a few fleshy tumors here and there. Other buildings had been demolished, replaced with giant, pulsating spires of tentacles growing from every available surface. These hives were where the tentacle monsters lived, and I had never dared enter one. It seemed the mindless population occasionally walked in, under the impression it was a normal building, and they'd leave covered in slime, having been vigorously violated.

I looked back to my gloomy, broken down apartment. I had cleaned it as much as I felt comfortable to, knowing I didn't want to attract unwanted attention from humanity's new masters. Still, I had tried to make it livable. There was a table where I kept most of my possessions. My TV sat atop a card table covered in sheets, acting as both dinner and desk. I ate mostly takeout food from the quick trips I made outside and kept a variety of books around to stave off boredom. Today, I wanted to head out once again, since I had a list of supplies I wanted or needed to grab.

Heading out of the building, the sky was clear, unbroken blue of the evening sky. I breathed deep, enjoying the air to my stagnant apartment, and set out towards