"In other news, it appears the cure has completed human trials and will soon be ready for mass production and distribution. For more on that, we cross now to Nancy."

The screen transitioned from the newsroom to a woman standing in front of a large crowd of people clustered tightly together on the lawn of a massive structure with the words "Los Angeles Reanimation Research Institute" covering a good quarter of the building's front.

"Thank you Hank, behind me you can see large crowds of protestors standing in front of the institution responsible for the continuing breakthroughs in reversing the effects of reanimation."

LARRI was world famous for the strides they'd made in the field. We all called it zombification, but the research papers preferred the more polite term "reanimation". LARRI had created the formula that allowed zombies to regain their mental faculties, and their researchers had been instrumental in the development of the dozen or so medicines that combated the conditions of zombification. Zombies no longer rotted, they could sustain themselves on specially produced foods instead of having to resort to cannibalism, zombie birth control had prevented the issue of the always terminal pregnancies that arose from sexual activity, and a dozen other major advances besides. They had been able to not only rejoin society, but had become fully integrated.

"While the cure has been hailed by many as the greatest medical achievement in human history, it has also faced backlash over the social ramifications. Many business owners whose products cater to the reanimated demographic have begun to fear for their livelihoods. There's also the RAPT organisation, the well-known longstanding reanimated rights movement, who have held the position that a cure is not needed, and is in fact a violation of the human rights of reanimated people."

RAPT. Reanimated Are People Too. Probably the most controversial group in the news for the last fifty years. They had massive hills and valleys in their popularity, usually spiking when the issue of zombie rights resurfaced in politics every decade or so, and then cratering when they would turn around and propose some backwards ideas about progressive breakthroughs in technology or medicine that helped make zombies more human and less outcast.

"You can see behind me a number of signs expressing these opinions-"

She was right, I saw multiple RAPT logos, even just the words "Reanimated Are People Too".

"LARRI are no stranger to these protests, and have even faced the threat of violence from extremist factions, so you'll see that a mix of law enforcement and private security stand careful guard over today's activites."

One such officer, wearing heavy riot gear, walked past the camera as Nancy spoke.

"But despite the pushback, LARRI public spokesperson Jordan Clive reports that the cure will be ready for use by citizens by the end of the year. There were some previously suspected issues with the cure, such as potentially devastating side effects, but Clive assuaged all fears in the press release, stating that the cure has no notable long term side effects as yet. What happens once the cure is out there is anyone's guess, but for many this is the miracle they've been praying for. Back to you Hank."

I looked over at Brianna, sitting next to me on the couch. She was smiling ear to ear, her pallid, near-blue skin forming adorable dimples below her heavy lidded eyes. I knew she wanted the cure, she wanted it more than anything. But as I watched her swollen puffy lips express her joy, and the bloated form of her chest heave with quickened breaths, I saw in my memory how she had been before the change, and a guilty, selfish sadness washed over me.