Other Worlds: V 2.0

[initiates]

Date & Time: May 21st, beginning at 0900.
Location: The Initiative Hold and all throughout Elmer's world
Characters: Anyone participating in the fighting, anyone staying behind.
Summary: Elmer's world is fought for and lost.
Warnings: Violence, death.

They reopen the portal at 0900, May 21st. The first scientist who stepped through was killed within thirty seconds; the rest who followed made it back through to Exsilium, albeit not unscathed. The portal was shut again by a panicked operator, although a second operator knew to keep the coordinates locked.

Within ten minutes, the alert had been sent out. There's no time to wait for the Transports to gather en masse; as soon as they have a sizable enough force to stand a chance at fighting through and clearing their gateway's location, the door is opened again.

Immediately inside the door is a desolate, grim scene. What had previously been the coast of Japan is now scorched earth, blasted sand, and little else. As the first point of contact for this world, it has undoubtedly suffered the worst. Here, the UE didn't stop at governments, financial centers, and capitols — the UE destroyed everything in sight. There are enough UE soldiers remaining in the broken country to give the Transports a difficult battle, although by now the bulk of their forces have moved on.

The Initiative will soon realize the necessity of opening more gateways, just as the UE had done. Transports will be deployed to London, Berlin, Paris, DC Washington, Moscow, Beijing, New York City, Hong Kong, Madrid. Through each of these windows, the destruction is staggering. Buildings are more husks than structures, everything that can burn is alight, and the death toll is off the charts. Blackened bodies seem to line every street, while pieces litter the ground among the rubble. There's no doubt that the UE has no need of the people of this world. They're after resources only, and anything and anyone already here is to be removed.

You can find UE soldiers everywhere. They move in coordinated squadrons of 20, and each of them carries a small arsenal. Even without their incredibly advanced and destructive weaponry, they're fearfully formidable. Each soldier, while still only human, is a genetically perfect clone, further enhanced by technological implants. They're all highly trained in physical combat. Even if you can disarm one of them, don't count on close-range attacks being any easier to handle. They've brought along cannons, small flying craft, and lightweight tanks. Each of these is the top of the line in terms of technology, geared toward destroying as much as it can, as quickly as it can. The United Earth is here to destroy, and they won't stop to wonder why their targets go from being civilians and scrambling, off-guard, comparatively primitive militaries, to trained and powered Transports.

For anyone staying at home, they'll find that any Initiative presence has withdrawn fully to the Hold. All Initiative employees are needed, and most of them in the med bays. The majority of the Initiative focus is on recalling and resurrecting fallen Transports, but attention is still needed for the living-but-wounded. Any Transports who stay in Exsilium and offer their help will have it immediately accepted; they'll be put to work in the medical wings, runnings supplies, or simply set at a machine and told to keep an eye on the numbers: Transport vitals, UE movements, and maps upon maps of changing statistics and colors.

At 1500, the Initiative will recall all Transport soldiers back to Exsilium and seal shut the gateway. The UE numbers are too great, their soldiers too powerful, and Elmer's world is lost.

Comments

[boughtabookstore]

"I think perhaps being out of the Hold would be a good idea."

There's too much tension in here - in every moment she's not actively doing something she feels it settling over everything like a blanket, the quiet growing certainty of oncoming defeat.

"We'll win the war. Just not this battle."

[boughtabookstore]

People are using the hallway.

[ A quick shake of her head. It's not really her business, but still. ]

If you intend to go out, you should get yourself looked at first.

[boughtabookstore]

It takes only a little while for her to grow concerned again, not sure anymore if he's been injured or is just confused by the panic and rush of everything and everyone around him.

"Yes, me." Her tone is crisp but not unkind, looking to get clearer answers from him, and at that second one she breathes a sigh of relief and nods.

Good. That's definitely for the best.

"Good. Where's Bariyan?" Her second concern.

[medusalith]

If I asked, perhaps. She has managed public relations for the Fantastic Four for as long as I have known her.

[ Which is something like 60+ years. I mean what. ]

[anklets]

[It is like talking a cat down from a tree, she thinks; she is sure of one wrong move which will turn him on her, because this is not Oz as she has grown to know Oz, there is charcoal in his eyes, smudging out all things recognizable.

She wants to pluck it from them and smear it over those cuts so they don't bleed so red.]

Leave. Now.

[hostage]

[Meanwhile, Jesse's trying to see Saul's angle with the whole thing. Does he want Mr. White dead or doesn't he? One second he's trying to convince Jesse to do it, the next he's telling Jesse not to go. Maybe he knew the whole thing was going to be a disaster. Saul does have an instinct for that.

It'd just be nice to know if he's being used or not. He wishes people would just come out and say it: "Jesse, kill this person because I want them out of the way and it's easier for me to make you do it than to do it myself." Just like that. Is that so hard?]

Yeah. Whatever.

[5055034455]

[Saul considers that for a moment, then nods.]

Ask her. She might be our best bet.

[revelation]

[ this was a nightmare.

it was the only word madoka could find to describe what she was seeing as she leapt across damaged and broken buildings. her attention is not so much on the soldiers (though she is sure to avoid them, shooting the ones down that she cannot) but rather the civilians filling the streets. the voice are heartbreaking and she sure, even without the initiative technology it would be hard not to understand their cries.

it's one of these citizens that catches madoka's attention and send her jumping from the relative safety of the rooftops to the ground before. he's half pinned under the rubble of a fallen building, bleeding horribly and groaning in pain as loud as he can muster.

the rubble is numerous and some pieces prove to much even with her magic, so she goes to kneel but before she even has the chance something catches her eye- more soldiers.

she swallows hard and lifts her bow as a symbol begins to a form above her. turning her bow upwards, she fires a single arrow into its certain and lets the rain of arrows that appear come down atop the group of soldiers approaching.

would this ever get easier? ]

psh they're in a war he's entitled

[showmeyourwreath]

"No."

At any other time, there'd be more there. Defensive bite or perhaps patience, who could say? She was of no mind to give either, and so her answer was a simple one. This wasn't her first time in real combat. Hardly. But, this was different. She shouldn't look, but her eyes were drawn to the sight like a moth to a flame, and just like its inevitable end, the image too would be burned in her memory.

"No, of course--Spring Ring!" Movement flashed in the corner of her eye, and there was no time for thought, only action when she pivoted, shield forming at a moment's notice when they'd suddenly come under fire.

[ladyofrivendell]

[Too late, already said it. But she smiles, nods and goes with Galadriel outside. For once, she doesn't mind the lack of sunlight if only because she's outside where the air is slightly more fresh.]

[5055034455]

There's gotta be a better solution. It's probably staring us in the face.

[And Saul's just thinking, running scenarios through his head, thoughts flitting back and forth between the disaster here and the disaster back home. The initial solution would have been so easy, but now? Hell no.

He glances at his watch.]

Anyway, if you insist on sticking around, do you have anything to keep you busy? I've got... uh... [That pen Jesse was messing with earlier. And lots of paper. And papercl—] Ah! Here.

[Have a box of paperclips, Jesse.]

Go build something.

And this hits a bit close to home, because Miltia.

[misplacedxsheath]

Margulis sheathed his off sword and held out his hand in the direction of their assailants. Electricity briefly crackled between his fingers before spreading out in front of his palm in a wide net.

"But only of the sort where you could afford to show your enemy mercy, right?"

[solitaire]

<sub>( The voice, the change, is jarring. Even more so than the initial change, this final transformation is something he doesn’t expect. But oh, how many people—good, kind, honorable people—has he met who look and sound like monsters? He decides to brush past this, much as he would with anything else.

It takes them a matter of moments to cross the distance, get to this big threat. Remy pauses, considers. )</sub>

I can blow out the ground, ‘neath it. What’re you goin’ ta do?

[solitaire]

<sub>( A gentle flick of his wrist, and a handful of cards go flying in all directions. Each hits a mark, blows a man back yards and yards. It opens up the battlefield a bit for the both of them. At Cable’s question, Remy just rolls his eyes.

--better that, really, than explaining the gut feeling, the innate difference, of going into battle with someone he actually knows. An X-man, no less, no matter what Nate might claim. )</sub>

Lucky guess.

[galactically]

You'll just have to get creative, Asuka! You can do it!

[Yes, she's attempting to instill her brand of confidence into her roommate, okay.]

[showmeyourwreath]

_{[Flora stops, stiffening. Hearing that hurts more than anything else that's happened to her, today--and a lot has happened--because she knows he's right. Her sight's going dark at the edges, but starts to blur with tears as well.]}

I'm sorry.

_{[Whether her apology is for him, for the people, for the stolen future of this world or all of these above is unclear, but she means it, deeply, with all that she is, though it does no good for anyone. She wasn't good enough to save anything, in the end. ]}

[whatsupcroc]

( One ear flicks around to focus on him as he speaks, Collette cautiously sticking her nose further out toward him, away from the wall. She apparently decides things are fine enough to approach, if fine enough meant ignoring the fact they were in a situation with no happy outcome for the people who lived here.

it's a heavy burden, and it's hanging over all their heads like the unwelcome weight it was. )

< Nope! Not this Earth, at any rate, and definitely not this part of the world. You're over from Exsilium too? >

( She laughs again, communicating that in the same mostly-emotional manner that the silent laughter of Thought Speak seemed to translate into. )

< 'Driel's not a place, she's a person! An elvish person. She's very pretty, and very strong, psychically speaking. >

[kungfublackfrog]

[There is one soldier ready to take aim at the singer but Adam is right behind him with a good blunt hit with the handle of his katana. Not like the swords he's handled before but he'd manage. Once the grunt was out like a light, he took the gun from his hands and slung it over his shoulder. Extra security measures.]

Are you hurt?

[whatsupcroc]

< Uh, hate to rain on this parade, but I don't think it is? Not unless you heal super fast or know something about healing magic that I don't. >

( She darts forward, daring to come closer to him. )

< Do you? >

[redheadcarrier]

Creative?

[Asuka's eye blinks and she's not sure whether to laugh, cry or just dismiss the idea. But - well, maybe she had a point. Asuka was smart (she liked to think so, anyway).

And more then that, it was the sheer amount of belief that Sheryl brought with her. She seemed to think that Asuka could still be worth something and that - well, that was more important to Asuka then anything else (even if she hated herself for needing someone's support). Her expression started to blossom into a slightly shy smile.]

You think so?

[And then she tried to cover up the fact that she appreciated the encouragement with a arrogant toss of her head.]

I mean, duh. Of course I can do it!

yay :D

[breakin_ur_lore]

Oh. Yes. [That isn't....a bad thing, is it? He was doing it instinctively, just out to help as many people as he could. It's just what he does. Maybe she just hasn't seen it done before, although that sounds so weird to him, being raised by a wizard and all...]

I'm a shaman...it's nature magic. Do you - feel better?

[gamora]

Just have a higher tolerance to pain than most. [ A half shrug, and then a triumphant smirk as she pulls the bullet out. ] Don't think it occurred to Thanos to destroy the pain receptors in my brain.

[ Said offhandedly - there are some parts of her past Gamora's more open about than others. Most things related to Thanos are fair game, if only because they're part of what makes her her. ]

[fintastic]

That's not really an answer.

[ She scoots over and takes a seat next to her. If she didn't want Feferi worrying... no that just wasn't ever an actual option. ]

What happened? Do you want to talk about it?

[debtor]

[Allen rams into one of them, knocking the man down, forcing the air out of the soldier as Allen tears the gun from his hands with his claws. The man's comrade fires at Allen's back— he can feel the heat of it, as his Innocence absorbs the shots, just as the man he's pinning slams his fist into Allen's face.

He staggers back, vision flashing, whirling around to find another target even as the world lurches under him. It's fine, it's fine, so long as the man's weapon is destroyed, they can escape. --It's at that point that he catches sight of a shoe whizzing through the air, knocking another soldier's helmet. He acts before he thinks, throws himself between Cat and the man she'd hit, throwing both hands up in the air. Green light flashes, lingers in the air, almost solid. A shield, but it only takes a single shot before shattering. Still, it buys him enough time to charge at this soldier like he had the other, to disarm him.

He has to be quick. Cat has no cover, and he can only take on one at a time.

It's at this point that there's the whir of engines, distant but growing closer. From above. Something that looks remarkably like some species of unmanned drone, if either of them had any idea what one was.]

[concealingeyes]

[She doesn't feel very impressive right now. She guess she does need a moment but she doesn't know what she can do. Kido bites her lip and then tries to find a bit of normalcy.]

...I'm Kido. Uhm, do you think we could find some water?