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Universe W3N9H7: LONDON, Sep 29, 2023 — Across the globe, panicked citizens are waking up to a chilling new phenomenon: personal time disparities. Reports are flooding in of people who are, quite literally, out of sync with the world around them. Dubbed the "Hourglass Epidemic", this mysterious affliction has affected a growing number of individuals, causing them to experience time at an altered pace.

Witnesses describe harrowing scenes where loved ones seemingly freeze in place while everything continues as normal, or in contrast, rush around in a frantic blur, as though living in fast forward. The affected individuals perceive time in its usual manner but find the world around them either accelerated or decelerated.

"We've never seen anything like this. Biological clocks have gone awry before, but this isn't just an internal perception. It's an actual, external shift in how these individuals interact with the temporal world."

- Dr. Eloise Hartman, a leading chronobiologist at the International Temporal Studies Institute in Geneva, expressed her alarm.

The reasons behind this epidemic remain murky. While some theorists speculate about a possible bio-terror attack or a yet-to-be-identified neurotoxin, others suspect a nefarious plot, noting that the majority of victims are key figures in political and corporate spheres.

One of the most publicized cases involves global financier Richard Kilbane, who is now trapped in a slower temporal state. "It's agonizing," described his wife, "He hears us, understands us, but by the time he responds, minutes have gone by for us, though mere seconds for him."

Law enforcement agencies and health organizations worldwide are collaborating to uncover the cause. The global economy has taken a nosedive, with stock markets crashing as key players in the financial world succumb to the Hourglass Epidemic.

While the world grapples with this new reality, a cryptic message surfaced on various deep web platforms: "Time is power, and power is now ours." The hunt is on to decode the meaning behind these words and to find a solution before the sands run out completely for those affected.