The Omega Variant — Sean O'Neil

It's late 2025 and the world has endured more than five years of the Covid virus. While it has survived, it has become fractured. In America, the fracture runs deep; so much so, that the country itself lives with county-by-county segregation based on a scoring system of red, yellow, and green zones based on virus infections and vaccination levels.When the Omega Variant emerges, it takes on the most efficient aspects of previous variants. It is highly infectious and carries with it a 17% mortality rate. As the virus sweeps across America, lines are drawn between red and green zones as well as friends and family. The government loses control of large portions of the country to the growing militia groups. People take sides, some believing the truth and some choosing to believe in conspiracy theories. Society itself, particularly in America, slowly breaks down.When civil war finally erupts, a dark storm begins to loom upon the horizon threatening to affect the balance of life not only in America but for the entire world.