Monsters Read Free Page A

feet in length.
    Dog breeds like the German Shepherd reached the size of a small pony within a decade.
    Comparisons were made to studies on the recognized changes in feral animals, like the lengthening of the gut and thickening of the intestinal tract, but these had previously corresponded with dietary changes. That these new variations should arise in animals still reared on processed pet food was alarming. Little attention was paid to the issue, though, and it barely registered in the back sections of the newspapers.
    The advent of gigantism was gradual. It was an anomaly, a nuisance, nothing compared to the annual cycle of the Sparkles, with their driving snow and spring floods.
    Although the newspapers made fun of the scientific name for cats, Felis catus and Felis silvestris catus , joking about the similarity to Felix The Cat, Sylvester and Tweety Bird, serious research was undertaken using the common, household cat to examine the potential long-term effects of gigantism.
    Researchers at Cornell University conducted a controlled study of twenty five generations of cats from five distinct pedigrees over three years, in order to understand the phenomenon more precisely. Their findings were controversial. Not only were cats becoming progressively larger, but the composition of their physiology was subtly changing. Muscle tissue became more dense, nerve endings increased in frequency, hip bones morphed in shape, giving the cats more leverage when springing for prey, but the most controversial aspect of their findings was that the animal’s canine incisors were increasing in length and thickness.
    Time Magazine picked up on the implications of this research and ran a front page story titled, Our Future ? With a picture of cavemen using spears to battle saber tooth tigers, the imagery was inflammatory. Several prominent biologists spoke out against the article, saying it was speculative, that there was no reason to think animals were undergoing genomic regression, and yet there was no doubt gigantism wasn’t merely enlarging animals. Life on Earth was being subject to rapid genetic change, but the question was, how? The ability of scientists to investigate the problem was hampered by the seasonal impact of the dust trail left by Comet Holt.
    In spite of government warnings, large sections of the population fled to the equatorial regions to escape the extreme winter snow storms. The influx from Europe and the Americas inundated third-world resources. There was an expectation that the government or the military would be able to make everything right, but the scale of migration was unprecedented and quickly escalated out of control.
    Tribes formed within the various migration camps, mostly along ethnic lines as they always had, but a few were based on religious affiliation. With millions of people displaced, disease soon swept unchecked through the makeshift camps. Man preyed on man in a struggle for survival that was barbaric and cruel.
    Those newspapers that still survived were largely run by volunteers. They reported outbreaks of cannibalism. It seemed once that particular taboo lifted, once it was accepted by one tribe, it quickly became the norm in an area as food and medical supplies dwindled. The army and police were stretched too thin. They had to pick and choose which laws they could enforce, with their preference being to turn a blind eye where there was at least a semblance of civil order, regardless of what evil lay beneath.
    Political structures collapsed, leaving local fiefdoms in their place. The presumption of innocence was lost, and bitter feuds broke out between tribes vying for dominance of the camps. In the midst of the chaos, religious groups struggled to maintain their character, pleading with their followers to stay loyal, but the abuse of authority within their own ranks undermined their credibility. It seemed opportunity was the greatest temptation of all. When the animal attacks began, preying on the