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."

[totallytrustworthy]

"You sound confident." Which isn't said with any particular inflection or tone; it's an observation, a neutral one at that. But Chloe gives in, tugs her jacket up around her shoulders and slips past Ros to slide a finger in the other woman's belt loop, tugging her along as she starts off for the Hold.

[boughtabookstore]

"I choose to be." But for the moment, she is willing to be tugged along, following Chloe without a hesitation or stumble.

"I haven't seen you much lately."

[totallytrustworthy]

"I haven't been around much lately."

Which is true. Out in the woods she's restless, in the city she's-- well, even more so. This fiasco only makes it worse. Only makes her want to run without any particular place to run to. At least back home there was always a somewhat habitable hole to crawl into, but here...

"At this point I'm starting to feel like being scarce is the better option."

[boughtabookstore]

"That's a shame."

But at the same time Ros can understand the urge well enough. It seems like a reasonable reaction to the general area they're trapped in.

"You may well be right. But we'll have to see."

[totallytrustworthy]

The walk back is quiet, for the most part. Chloe doesn't make any real attempts to talk if only because what's on her mind-- or more specifically what she has to say-- isn't for the general public's ears.

She doesn't stop till they hit the lobby, pausing only briefly to tap one toe against the ground in thought.

"Your place or mine, darling?"

[boughtabookstore]

The quiet isn't minded on Ros' side. It's a welcome break, really, from the constant hustle and bustle of the Hold for the past long while.

"Have anything to drink at your place?" To which the answer is likely a yes, but she'll leave the choice up to Chloe.

[totallytrustworthy]

"Mmm, more or less." Because she does, in a manner of speaking, have a stash out here stowed away on the rooftop for when she's in town. Small, poorly kept, but it gets the job done instead of repeatedly dragging anyone that's thirsty out into the woods.

"Not enough to get you thoroughly pissed, but..." Chloe shrugs, completely impartial and absolutely helpful.

[boughtabookstore]

A pause of consideration, and then she shakes her head and heads towards the elevator.

"My place, then. I likely have a slightly better collection stored here." She's cut back on her drinking, lately, but that doesn't mean she doesn't make a habit of keeping the good stuff in her apartment.