Dead London Instant

It was the cry of a Martian Fighting Machine, but it lacked its usual predatory sharp edge. It sounded like a sob. George climbed the earthen ramparts near Primrose Hill, his breath coming in ragged gasps. He expected to see the flash of a Heat-Ray or the sweep of a metallic tentacle. Instead, he saw the end of the world's end.

He walked toward the center of the metropolis, his boots making a hollow, rhythmic sound against the asphalt that seemed to echo for miles. To his left, a red weed—thick, fleshy, and alien—had begun to climb the walls of the Natural History Museum, its vascular tendrils pulsing with a faint, sickly light. It was a parasitic vine from another world, claiming the architecture of the old one. Dead London

: A pivotal chapter where the narrator discovers the Martians have died from Earthly infections ( Lit2Go ). It was the cry of a Martian Fighting