Earth: Hereafter
Or Chaos Earth as we all like to call it.
It's a very simple picture to paint for you. Where ever you are right now, and what ever you are doing, try to imagine doing what ever that is... without technology, gas, electricity, or anything controlled by a machine.
How rough are you living? Are you even living. Tough times before the Rifts came. From what we can tell, machines used to run everything. Every time I hear one of our youngster cry about how hard life is, all I have to say to them to straighten them out is is ask them how to cook, clean, and survive. They can and do and they suddenly realize how strong they are. They don't need a single machine to live.
Part of me seriously believes that you lot are the one's living in Hell. Many of the survivors of my age actually believe that that was the biggest reason that life on this planet almost went extinct. It wasn't the Apocalypse. Or cataclysm, or what ever people are calling it officially.
No.
Everyone died because they didn't know how to live without their sellofones. Or is it cellularfones? Without their God's- Teenymobl, Splint, and Elgee- they didn't know what to do. Hundreds of millions, found dead just staring at their hand, waiting for their Gods to save them.
Reality check from the Apocalypse; Gods do not save you. Neither do machines.
You have to save yourself.
And it's a sad and doomed society indeed that relies on machines for their every basic need.
But forgive me. It's not my intent to harp on the lot of you for wrecking everything. But I would like to tell you, at least in this world, in this dimension and reality, that the planet had finally taken enough for the team, and she finally snapped.
Wasn't just the digital fish bowl that ruined everything.
Someone finally created a military machine that was invincible. Not a flying thing. Oh no! The drones of the sky became easy to find. Easy to hack into with computers. Same with anything that could fly, or swim. It was a computer target. Men miles away controlled every decision, and it was a battle of who had the skieviest net diver.
No, the world needed something hard and sturdy. Something highly advanced, but not run by a artificial intelligence. A robot, but run by a man, not itself. Something capable of shooting drones, and subs, and anything else for that matter, but that was also sturdy enough to withstand any attack set against it.
The weapon human kind created, specifically, was a new kind of tank. A giant cannon with legs, that was solar powered and indestructible. It was the solar paneling that gave the unit it's name even; Glitterboy.
A weapon that was too powerful. AI governed all laser technology. So what was made? The worlds first H5 level shot gun shell. The cannon of the Glitterboy was (and still is) a mass driver that opens a shell the size of a water bottle, and magnetically accelerates 200 flechette rounds up to MACH 2 in one fourth of a second.
And no. The laws of physics have not been repealed. When the guns shoot, the shock wave comes first, flattening and deafening everything and everyone. Then there's no oxygen, as the incoming fruitless rounds burn up all the ambient minerals in the atmosphere. And then, those same converted energy particles carve a freight train sized hole through everything up to 20 miles down in a straight line.
Greatest range. Greatest destructive power. Required a human to operate it.
Which brings us to the next step.... who ever could afford one could do what ever they wanted and kill anyone that got in their way.
And they did.
And it was at this point in time, with petty dictators and hackers ruling the world, that the world had decided it had had enough.
So it exploded.
No other way to say it.
See, what most people believe to be .... magic, is usually just technology advanced beyond scientific explanation. There is, however, and energy that exists in the planet. And in people, and plants, and animals, and it's difficult to tap into. Or was, anyway.
When the planet decided to .... reclaim herself, that energy went everywhere. Up, and out, the veins of blue lightning and fire raced all across the planet face. Underground, through the sea, all across the sky, and the landscapes. Hell, the eruptions even extended far into the heavens. Far enough to vaporize all the machines surrounding her, anyway, turn gin them into cosmic dust. And with all of mans self-made Gods destroyed, to say nothing of all it's major edifices, technology, and civilized order as we know it, man had no choice but to start all over again.
Now, it wasn't quite the stone age. And things have gotten better (despite several very large volcanic eruptions ruining the automobile and gun industry).
Cars still run. Most of the roads have been destroyed beyond use, but the vehicles still work. Most are electrical though. Or they run on whiskey (look into it- it's epic). The internal combustion models have all been rendered impotent due to most of the fuel depots and oil reserves getting burned up. First in the petty Tyrant wars, and then in the cataclysm.
Radio towers were still around for the most part. Phones didn't work at first- cellular or land lined, but if you knew how to transmit radio signals, you could communicate all around still. And he have restored telephone lines in some places. But, by and large, we use radios. Radios are solid Ask anyone.
Guns still work too. Even after all the crap thats gone on. So hunting hasn't been, and wasn't, a problem.
And yes. All water and gas lines were wrecked beyond repair. This means you find a magnifying glass (or glass in general) to focus sunlight onto some dry newspaper, as well as be happy to see a Honey Bucket. No joke; port-o-John's are a true and glad sight. Lots of those survived the Earth electrically cleansing itself.
At any rate, hopefully you have some kind of picture of how the world has turned for us. Love of money and technology led to people being too divided to act in the face of tyranny, and too weak to survive a global cataclysm.
Maybe thats your world too. I hope not though.
Now-
In our world of chaos, where now we have to deal with eruptions of magic lightning, and volcanic smog blotting out the sun most of the time, survival in key. It may seen harsh, but fresh water, technology, weapons, shelter- it all has to be fought for. Share if you like, but the best case scenario for doing that is you have to go out and find more stuff the next day, and all too soon. Worst case... who ever you're sharing with slits your throat while your sleeping and takes all your stuff.
This is our world.
I get by in it with my kids.
My name is Lt. Paul Verge. I work for NEMA. We are the only piece of America that survived the cataclysm of the Rifts that created Chaos Earth.
And I will tell you what I can .... about Operation Ekidu.
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