Location: Cydonia, Luna
Date/Time: 18 June 2081 || 03:41 A.M.
ROWAN BARCLAY: Search the area. Find anything, and I mean anything, contact us and we can meet there. Cyra?
CYRA ALYPIA: Unless you're the General, stay together. I don't care how much experience you have. If I catch anyone going off alone, you'll be dead long before whatever's out there can get you. Any questions?
ISOLDE KEELEY: Um, no. No, ma'am. I- er- ... no.
ROWAN BARCLAY: Then let's get going. Selene, you search the northern part of the city with Archer. Keeley, stick with Admiral Alypia in the southern part. I'll be looking on the outskirts of the city. This is our meeting point. If someone needs help, send an SOS and we'll be there as soon as possible.
----
001: General Rowan Barclay [First Ground Regiment] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
002: Ensign Isolde Keeley [Air Force] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
003: Lia Selene [position unknown] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
004: Fleet Admiral Cyra Alypia [Naval Forces] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
005: Lieutenant Tobias Archer [Air Force] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
----
Location: Cydonia, Luna
Date/Time: 18 June 2081 || 04:16 A.M.
TOBIAS ARCHER: Lia? You good back there?
LIA SELENE: I'm good. Let me just take a look at-
(clocks tick in the background)
TOBIAS ARCHER: What was that?
(silence)
TOBIAS ARCHER: Lia? Alright, I'm coming to look.
(silence, then high-pitched humming)
LIA SELENE: There's no time, Tobias. Run. Run for your-
TRANSMISSION CUT. PRESS "RETRY" TO RECONNECT.
----
001: General Rowan Barclay [First Ground Regiment] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
002: Ensign Isolde Keeley [Air Force] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
003: Lia Selene [position unknown] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
004: Fleet Admiral Cyra Alypia [Naval Forces] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
005: Lieutenant Tobias Archer [Air Force] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
----
Location: Cydonia, Luna
Date/Time: 18 June 2081 || 04:30 A.M.
TOBIAS ARCHER: This is an SOS. Lia (inaudible). We need urgent assistance. I repeat, this is a call for immediate assistance. Do you hear us?
CYRA ALYPIA: We hear you loud and clear, 005. We will be there immediately.
LIA SELENE: (quiet, hoarse voice) No- don't come-
CYRA ALYPIA: What is happening? Please explain the situation at hand.
TOBIAS ARCHER: We don't know what's happening. But something's very, very wrong.
CYRA ALYPIA: Is this a medical situation?
TOBIAS ARCHER: I do not-
(scraping sound in the distance)
TOBIAS ARCHER (cont.): It's back. We need-
CYRA ALYPIA: What's back? What's happening? I'll be there in a moment. Hold on.
(silence)
TRANSMISSION CUT. PRESS "RETRY" TO RECONNECT.
----
001: General Rowan Barclay [First Ground Regiment] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
002: Ensign Isolde Keeley [Air Force] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
003: Lia Selene [position unknown] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
004: Fleet Admiral Cyra Alypia [Naval Forces] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
005: Lieutenant Tobias Archer [Air Force] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
----
Location: Cydonia, Luna
Date/Time: 18 June 2081 || 06:03 A.M.
CYRA ALYPIA: Mission report to General Barclay. Do you copy?
ROWAN BARCLAY: Yes, I copy. What is the situation?
CYRA ALYPIA: Selene and Archer are MIA. Keeley and I are in a safe area. Our transmitters are connected. We need you to meet up with us at this area to help locate the rest of Squadron IX.
ROWAN BARCLAY: I will be there promptly. Stay in place and prepare to defend if something's out there.
CYRA ALYPIA: Confirmed.
----
Location: Cydonia, Luna
Date/Time: 18 June 2081 || 08:56 A.M.
ISOLDE KEELEY: Finally, our comms are back on- General Barclay? May I ask, sir, what is your ETA? We first made contact two hours prior.
ROWAN BARCLAY has disconnected from the communications unit.
CYRA ALYPIA: General Barclay? Selene and Archer are still MIA.
(static, then clock ticks)
ISOLDE KEELEY: Um, Admiral Alypia? I think that our comms might still be broken.
CYRA ALYPIA: No. They aren't. Something's not right with the General.
----
001: General Rowan Barclay [First Ground Regiment] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
002: Ensign Isolde Keeley [Air Force] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
003: Lia Selene [position unknown] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
004: Fleet Admiral Cyra Alypia [Naval Forces] | status: ALIVE [all vital signs showing]
005: Lieutenant Tobias Archer [Air Force] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
----
The time is 09:35 A.M. The two of them shiver in the abandoned building they shelter in, their anti-radiation suits not enough to keep them warm from the bitter cold of Cydonia. Even in June, cold gales cut through the room, with its windows shattered and its walls cracked from the impact of the bomb.
They do not lose hope, for they haven't confirmed that the others are gone; they're just missing... right?
After five unsuccessful attempts to contact the rest of Squadron IX, they come to an idea of sorts that they can find them. That they can search the ruins of Cydonia for their lost teammates and friends.
But the moment they step out of the building, a freezing wind chills them to the bone. The ground is bathed in an odd crimson light, and they look up to see that the skies are as red as blood. They rush to get back inside, but the door is locked. They still don't know what's happening, but they try their best to see-
Then the clocks begin to tick, and deep inside, they both know.
Time is running out.
----
001: General Rowan Barclay [First Ground Regiment] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
002: Ensign Isolde Keeley [Air Force] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
003: Lia Selene [position unknown] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
004: Fleet Admiral Cyra Alypia [Naval Forces] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
005: Lieutenant Tobias Archer [Air Force] | status: ??? [transmitter disconnected]
----
LIA SELENE: I am still here. I am still here. Can anyone hear me? I am still here. I AM STILL HERE! THIS IS AN URGENT MESSAGE! I AM STILL-
(static)
TRANSMISSION CUT. PRESS "RETRY" TO RECONNECT.
----
Note: This began with Eden's Gate's global collapse story, so thank you to Eden's Gate for creating that! This is a really interesting story to tell and to read about the different ways people are taking it!
Replies
Thanks! I also love reading and writing IRL, and I'd say this is probably one of the best bulletins I've written. I really enjoy reading your bulletins — they're always really interesting and well-written, and the collapse story is practically bringing bulletins from constant unrealistic wars that end with people getting insulted and stuff to a lot of creative ideas that are honestly really fun to read, so I'm glad you created that!
Really cool bulletin