OmegaNet 37

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OmegaNet 
Logon: Ellison, Peter
Location: Zone 1, Northwestern NAU
Date/Time: 6.4.33; 7:18 p.m.
Hey, I just got this wacko report that about 120 Afflicted were sighted heading north, towards the Arctic circle. Don't believe everything you hear, though, that's what I always say. Somebody is just pulling our cumulative chains. By now, I think people are bored as hell all cramped together into these little outposts, and imaginations are running amok. Get this…..this guy says the Afflicted are supposedly in control of a bunch of big, tracked vehicles and that they're lugging tons of construction materials up to the north pole. What a bunch of bull! We all know that the Afflicted couldn't even steer a grocery cart! Tell me, when have any of you seen them riding around in bulldozers? This guy is loony.
Well, Dr. Gander isn't the only one who has been studying the Afflicted since the beginning. I've had my own little research project under wraps until now, but I'm prepared to say that I have finally figured them out. Like so many other mysteries in life, it's so obvious once you know the truth! 
Look, we all know that the Afflicted are not just monsters…..some of these people were our family and friends before they went psycho. Remember those three deep-space probes that were launched something like 25 years ago? They were called the Triad, and in our ignorance, we sent them off to find planets that we could terraform. Well, just last year NASA got pictures back from them when they reached the planet Gaia, and you know what they found? ET spacecraft were orbiting Gaia. Well, they didn't actually say that's what they were, but what else could they be? It's clear that the alien beings on the planet Gaia have somehow used our own Triad equipment to send neurological signals, faster than the speed of light, to the Earth. 
Think about it! We made it so easy for them, too! This signal has taken over the minds of one third of Earth's population, most likely all of the weak-minded and stupid people. And now they are remotely using our own people to accomplish their purposes…….whatever those are. Their control is limited, though, and that may be their Achilles heel. The Afflicted can't do any complex things like operate and steer vehicles, so maybe we can use that knowledge against the Gaians. It's good to know this isn't some plague, but we haven't really seen the face of our enemy just yet. And I believe it's something much worse than the Afflicted. 
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