Dawn of the Dead (2004) timeline - based on the fanfic "Biggest Fear"

Originally posted on the AH wiki (click here) and based on the fanfiction Biggest Fear, here is a timeline I wrote on the universe of the 2004 remake of Dawn of the Dead.

1964
- March 19th: Michael Powell is born.

1978
- Ana Clark is born.

1985
- Terry is born.

1986
- Nicole is born.

1980s-1990s
- Kenneth serves in the United States Marine Corps, seeing action in Lebanon, Panama, the Persian Gulf, and Bosnia.

1994
- Ana works in department store right before taking up nursing for college.

2001
- September 11th: American Airlines Flight 11 and United Airlines Flight 175 are hijacked and crash into the World Trade Center's Twin Towers, American Airlines Flight 77 is hijacked and crashes into the Pentagon, and United Airlines Flight 93 is hijacked and crashes into grassland in Shanksville, due to the passengers fighting to regain control of the airplane. The World Trade Center towers collapse as a result of the crashes. The War on Terror has effectively begun.
- October 7th: The United States and NATO invade Afghanistan and dispose of the Taliban.
- Ana Clark marries Luis Setzer.

2003
- March 20th: The U.S. and Britain invade Iraq and dispose of Saddam Hussein's regime.
- August 23rd: Andy films her daughter's birthday with his wife near Lake Michigan.
- December: Ana and Luis go Christmas shopping in the Crossroads Mall.

2004
- Early: A certain woman calls Ana's home claiming to be a friend of Luis. Ana immediately knows that Luis has an affair with another woman but decides not to bring it up to Luis.
- March 11th: A terrorist attack occurs in Madrid, Spain.
- March 31st: Iraqi insurgents in Fallujah ambushed a convoy containing four American private military contractors from Blackwater USA who were conducting delivery for food caterers ESS. All four contractors are killed.
- April 4th: The first Battle of Fallujah begins.
- May 1st: The first Battle of Fallujah ends in U.S. operational failure.
- May 7th:
---Evening: Heartland region of the United States reports riots with initial injuries to be within 1,000-3,000 individuals. Reports confirm that attacks were made from bites and scratches instead of weapons such as guns, knives, and blunt objects. In regards to the phenonmenon, rumors spread it is caused by an airborne plague, a toxic chemical spill, bioterrorism, and even a space-borne virus. Personnel from FEMA, the CDC, and the Office of Emergency Preparedness deployed to Chicago, Madison, and the Twin Cities of Minneapolis-St. Paul. Governors of the three states of Illinois, Wisconsin, and Minnesota urge citizens to return home as quickly as possible. The U.S. President returns to the White House from a fishing trip in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. In a midwestern suburb, Ana Setzer returns home from work and has a date night with Luis despite the thought of her being cheated on.
---Hour 3 (A Nation in Chaos): The White House Press Secretary assures that the crisis will be resolved in 24 hours or less and that foreign U.S. military deployments around the world remain in place. A tape is sent to a new channel showing a random attacks of a group of teens trying to rape a naked woman. The woman attacks the teen by biting his throat before it is cut-off by the producers. Power outages are reported in Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.
- May 8th
---Hour 10: A renowned psychologist states that the entire riots are caused by mass hysteria. Riots are reported in New Delhi, India and Istanbul, Turkey. Footage in London, United Kingdom shows a group of people being chased by some drugged-up people shouting and screaming. Australia declares a quarantine and diverts flights away from its territory. Ana wakes up to see her neighbor Vivian suddenly enter their home and attack Luis, biting his neck open. Luis dies and suddenly reanimates, attacking Ana and forcing her to escape through the bathroom. Ana sees her neighborhood in chaos as people are chasing other people, some attempting to flee, while some attempting to fight back. She escapes passing by several accidents, hitchhikers, and emergency vehicles. The radio on her vehicle states that the Greater Milwaukee Area is experiencing civil unrest. A carjacker attempts to steal her car, causing her to swerve off the highway and end up crashing into a tree. Hours later, she wakes up to see a police officer pointing a shotgun at her. The police officer introduces his name as Kenneth and the two tag along to find a group of survivors named Michael, Andre, and his pregnant Russian wife named Luda. The group enter the mall after being chased by some Infected. Inside the mall, Luda is minorly bitten by a stray Infected while Michael kills an Infected in a sports store. Three security guards then hold them at gun point before the leader CJ reluctantly lets them stay. Across the mall, gun store owner Andy barricades his shop, hunkers down with whatever supplies he stored, and begins recording a video journal. A helicopter passes above the survivors in which they hope for rescue.
- May 9th
---Hour 15: New York City is cutoff as all bridges and tunnels into Manhattan have been destroyed while the U.S. Navy and the Coast Guard patrol the waters surrounding the island. In Monroeville, Pennsylvania, residents composed of armed civilians and state police form clean-and-sweep teams to eradicate the town of Infected. A sheriff states that a headshot would take the Infected down for good. The world "zombie" is then used as a captured specimen that is clinically dead but is moving is filmed live attacking a fellow doctor. Reanimation is acknowledged. The "zombies" are then known as "Reanimated Life Forms."
---Hour 17: The CDC makes an official statement regarding the epidemic. Victims are acknowledged as clinically deceased.
---Hour 19: Los Angeles is overrun by Reanimated Life Forms. The White House announces a national state of emergency declared throughout the United States, Puerto Rico, and all overseas territories. The phenomena has been declared as pandemic. The Secretary of Defense announces a general mobilization of the entire United States Armed Forces while closing the borders between Canada and Mexico. Vatican makes no comment with regards to the phenomena. Mass suicides occurs in the Middle East as religious fundamentalists like Al Qaeda and the Taliban blow themselves up against crowds of non-infected and RLFs, claiming the whole thing is brought up by the Great Satan (USA) and the Lesser Satan (Israel).
---Hour 20: 10 million are estimated dead in the United States. Millions more follow around the world. Blackwater USA releases an instructional video how to kill a zombie. The U.S. Army base of Fort Pastor opens itself for evacuees.
- May 10th
---Hour 27: A nuclear exchange is reported to occur in the Sino-Russian border, possibly in an attempt to stop Chinese refugees from crossing into the Russian Far East. Shanghai and Hong Kong are reported nuked. Speculation put its either with the Chinese Communist Party itself, a rogue PLA regiment controlling the Second Artillery Corps, or if it were the Russians themselves. The U.S. President gives one last speech just as officials in Washington, D.C. is evacuated to undisclosed locations throughout the country (perhaps Mount Weather, Raven Rock, Cheyenne Mountain, STRATCOM bunker, or elsewhere):

"My fellow Americans. This republic faces a crisis no other in its history. While the lights across this great land dim and the darkness of an uncertain future descends, let us not forget the words that lead our country to another great challenge: We have nothing to fear but fear itself. We will endure, we will rebuild, we will drive away the night and warm our children on the dawn of a new day. God bless you all and God bless the United States of America"

---New survivors named Frank, his daughter Nicole, Steve, Glenn, Tucker, Monica, Norma, and an unnamed bloated woman are admitted into the Crossroads Mall. The survivors reveal the Fort Pastor has been overrun with the zombies. The bloated woman reanimates and is killed by Ana. Frank is revealed to have been bitten and spends his last moments with Nicole before he dies, reanimates, and his executed by Kenneth.

Between May 8th-June 6th: Events of the film. Survivors bond together and spoil themselves with material objects. Ana and Michael as well as Terry and Nicole develop a romantic relationship. One mall's rooftop, survivors play a game of Hollywood Squares in which Andy shoots a zombie that looks like a celebrity. Bart is killed when the power dies out in the basement which was harboring at least eight zombies since the start of the outbreak. However as time passes, it is revealed that Andy is dying from starvation and the group decides to supply him food using Chips as the transport since the zombies ignore animals. Mall shuttles are reinforced for their escape plan into Steve's yatch in the marina which they would later use to go to an island in Lake Michigan.

- June 5th: Ana and Michael have sex in the basement. Unknown to Ana, she becomes pregnant.

- June 6th: The botch rescue attempt fails. Andy is infected. Nicole foolishly tries to rescue Chips, causing her to be trapped by a zombified Andy. The group rescues her via the sewers but the plan fails as the zombies breach the sewers and eventually the mall. This forces the survivors to prematurely leave the mall via the reinforced shuttles into a sea of undead right before CJ detonates a propane tank and clears the way. The survivors then enter the dead city of Milwaukee, with the streets littered with papers and burnt-out car wrecks. One bus falls over and Steve is infected then is shot by Ana in the head, grabbing the keys. Unknowingly, Michael is bitten on the right arm trying to rescue Ana from the oncoming horde.
---Morning: Michael shoots himself in the head as he accepts his fate while the yatch leaves the marina. It is later revealed he survives the shot as it grazes his skull. It also revealed he is immune and is rescued by another immune survivor named New Jersey and his girlfriend Utopia.

- June 7th: the survivors reach a new island without zombies and settle there. Ana becomes depressed over Michael’s apparent “death” and pretends that he is alive, much to concern of Kenneth, Terry, and Nicole. (All of them are completely unaware of the fact that Michael survived his suicide attempt and is immune).

- July: Ana finds out she is pregnant with Michael's baby.

- July-August: Michael, New Jersey, and Utopia raid Milwaukee for supplies. By August, 70-80% of the zombies have died out of decomposition and the rest are reduced to shamblers. Michael contemplates to search for Ana but New Jersey tells him the chances are slim that they made it to Lake Michigan islands. On the radio, they hear that there is large survivor community in Pensylvannia. The three leave Milwaukee for the survivor community at East Buffalo Township. Zombies at this point become slow that they can be simply outmanoeuvred.

- September: Michael, New Jersey, and Utopia reach the survivor enclave in East Buffalo Township composed of soldiers, policemen, and armed civilians roaming Pensylvannia in clearing the undead.

2005
- March: Ana gives birth to triplets but only one survives. They name him Hunter. For once Ana could move on from Michael’s “death”.

2005-2007
- Ana, Hunter, Nicole, Terry, and Kenneth live peacefully in the island with no contact with zombies or hostile survivors.

2007
- December 24th-25th: Hunter, now aware, spends his first Christmas.

2008
- March: The survivors are plagued by nightmares but they ensure themselves that everything will be alright.
- June 23rd: A rogue band of U.S. Army soldiers raids the island where Ana and the survivors. The rogue soldiers kill Nicole. Kenneth tries to hold them off in order for Anna, Hunter, and Terry to escape.
- Between June-August: Ana is raped 36 times by the rogue soldiers as they ferry her back to the Heartland. Having enough, she kills them all in their sleep right before she is rescued by a group of survivors named John, Billy, Miguel, and Sarah. They take her to bunker in Florida where a group of soldiers have been stationed since the start of the outbreak. Sarah reveals she is a scientist ordered by the U.S. government to search for a cure of the virus. Sarah falls in love with Captain Rhodes and have sex, thus impreganting her. However Ana soon plans to escape to look for Hunter. Meanwhile, Terry and Hunter arrive back the docks where they discover a note from a survivor named Michael about leaving for East Buffalo Township, Pennsylvania. Finding a car they drive towards the location. Unfortunately, they ran out of fuel as they reached Ohio. For roughly a year, they proceeded on foot avoiding slow zombies and raiders.

2009
- September-October: While nearing the camps, a raider group brutally kills Terry as he buys time for Hunter to escape. Hunter is rescued by the survivors. There he reunites with his long-lost and mistakenly thought to be dead father Michael, much to his shock. The gang later attacks the survivor camp. Utopia is raped by the bikers where she later dies of her wounds. New Jersey kills the leader of the bikers. Michael and Hunter escape Pennsylvania and head back to Milwaukee via pick up truck.

- November: Ana escapes the Florida bunker by faking her death, causing Captain Rhodes to snap. Rhodes is killed when the zombies breach the bunker. John, Billy, and Sarah escape via helicopter and head to Wisconsin. Ana returns first to the island where she finds Kenneth alone. Kenneth survived the rogue soldiers’ attack and lived alone for a year. Ana goes into labor and gives birth to a baby girl.
Back in the dock, Michael and Hunter prepare to head back to the island, entering the now desolate city of Milwaukee (described as a rotting rusty skeleton). 99% of the zombies have died out, only a few remain. Michael tells himself it's only a matter of time until the zombies die out for good. Once arriving there, Michael’s presence shocks Kenneth and the survivors as he was presumed dead for the last five years. After a long introduction and telling of his story, Michael and Ana reunite. To his dismay, Ana is dying of blood loss. The pair spend their last moments together saying goodbye before Ana dies peacefully. Michael is then tasked with taking care of his biological son Hunter and his half-daughter who has yet to be named.

2010
- After March 16th: The survivors live peacefully in the island and seemed to have moved on from Ana’s death. Unexpectedly, New Jersey arrives via boat using Michael’s directions prior to the biker gang attack. New Jersey and Sarah begin a relationship. Michael then asks New Jersey a favor of taking care of his step daughter as Michael is a 46 year old man in case he might die soon. New Jersey accepts the favor. They name the daughter Mary, in honor of the late Utopia whose real name was Mary. Sarah and John discuss on the beach if the virus will die off and zombies will rot, John says they will soon “but all they need to wait is forever”.

2011-2014
- The virus burns out within these years. All zombies around the world die out. Around the globe, the human race starts rebuilding small settlements that trade with nearby settlements. Raiders are problem but as societies expand, more manpower is added to the security forces to defend against rogue group of survivors. Humanity is far from technological advancements, with the best surviving states having pre-outbreak 2000s technologically while others have regressed into even earlier 20th century level of technology. Internet and telecommunications have been restored slowly within North America, thereby reaching even isolated survivor settlements throughout the former United States and Canada. What remains of the mighty warships U.S. Navy and the Royal Navy (plus other allied navies) scattered around the world may soon return home or may chose to settle in their new countries. The U.S. government emerges from the bunkers, where the newly President (the Secretary of Interior after his predecessors died of stress, committed suicide, or were unfit to fulfil their duties) assumes the title. He promises to reclaim the United States as whole, though due to the nature of political distrust between the remnants of the federal government and the survivors that were left behind, this may take decades. So far, only the states of Hawaii and Alaska weathered the Pandemic best, reporting little to no infections that were greatly dealt with. A general state of the world has yet to be determined but this may take decades as international travel has taken a big step back. The outbreak was the deadliest event faced by humanity, even deadlier than the meteor that killed the dinosaurs.