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The Harbinger's Children

It was supposed to be the astronomical event of the century. The closest approach of a cometary object to Earth ever recorded. And it was going to be close.  By the best guestimates of Astronomers it would pass within 240,000 miles of Earth, almost within the orbit of the Moon. In fact there was wild speculation over whether the two celestial bodies would in fact collide.

Known as C2009 X4 to Astronomers It was coined Harbinger's Comet by the media and the name stuck. Specials and documentaries were rushed out about the It and the last time It had appeared in Earth's skies 10,000 years ago.  The usual crazies predicted the end of the world and bunkered up. Religious fanatics predicted the second coming of God and flocked to what ever religious center they believed in. NASA predicted spectacular meteor showers and the possibility of displays of the Norther Lights as far South as Mexico and posted time tables and locations for the best viewing.

NASA got it right.  Unfortunately the end of the world crazies were not far off either.  The Harbinger was visible even in the daytime sky as it passed, a pale green glow with a tail of fire, at night it was even more awe inspiring. It dominated the sky with its light, outshining the Moon and a continuous rain of sparkles filled the night as meteors some large but most small rained from it's tail only to burn up in the atmosphere.

The first indications of trouble appeared when satellite communications crashed.  The Internet went dead. GPS navigation systems all over the world stopped working. A frantic communication from the International Space Station ended with a pain filled scream.

It took three days for Earth to move fully out of the Harbinger's tail.  By the end of the sixth day an estimated 7,600,000 people were dead. Cause unknown. Every pregnant female, regardless of the stage of their pregnancy miscarried or aborted. Cause unknown.  This did not apply to just the Humans.

It was 18 months before the next Human child was born. There were dark rumors that many of them were Monsters.

It has been 26 years since Harbinger's passing and most of the World has mostly recovered.  Rumors still surface of Monster Children and Secret Government Laboratories but there is no proof although 1 in 20 child births are stillborn.

The newest rumor hitting the tabloids is of super humans appearing. Blurry pictures of a man flying. A shaky video of a person lifting a car. A story about someone walking through a bank vault and robbing the place.  But they are just rumors, right?