"The only people who know the details are either dead or not talking due to the trauma," Six answered, watching the conjured screwdriver with raised eyebrows. "The only thing we know for certain is that a group of scientists were working with nanites, presumably for medical purposes. There was a massive explosion which scattered the nanites across the globe within hours, their programming unfinished.

"Kiev was particularly hard-hit due to Earth's magnetic field concentrating a large number of nanites there. Almost every living thing transformed. Those unchanged were evacuated. The UN caved to public pressure and encased the entire city in a massive forcefield. Nobody's allowed in or out, not even Providence, the organization I work for which is the largest operation dealing with the nanite problem. Nowadays it's referred to as 'the Bug Jar'."