After the Pandemic: Resistance (Part One) (1072 hits)
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Submitted by Genko (View user info) at 2005-03-08 23:05:19 EST
Admiral Nixon inhaled deeply, burning away what was probably the last cigarette he'd ever smoke. The cloud of smoke he exhaled wafted slowly toward the glass wall in front of him, obscuring his view of the flight deck and the fleet that lay beyond it. Nixon was the commanding officer of the U.S.S. William Jefferson Clinton, the last American aircraft carrier in existence. He'd commanded the vessel since the days of the outbreak, when a suspicious plague in the Americas forced him to order his ship out to sea. His grasp of the severity of the disease saved the lives of his crew.
That was two decades ago. Since then, the Clinton and its supporting fleet had sailed the waters of the North Atlantic, searching desperately for any information about the state of the mainland. Summers were when the crew enjoyed the most freedom. They usually dropped anchor far enough north that the nights only lasted a few hours. They'd learned that whatever these things were (Nixon refused to allow his crew to call them vampires. They were simply "the enemy".), they couldn't stand daylight. That and the absence of summer sea ice due to the recent spike in global warming give Nixon's crew the freedom to sit and wait for anything of interest to crackle across the radios.
Winter was a lonely time for the crew. The longer nights demanded constant movement and complete radio silence. The only thing keeping the ships from being attacked was the constant cold. The enemy hadn't been heard on radio when temperatures where below -5 Celsius. Nixon still assumed the enemy was capable of an attack on his fleet, and the assumption demanded that the winter months be spent drifting in the darkness.
Over the past few years, it had become apparent that the crew couldn't function at sea forever. The carrier was powered by hydrogen fusion, and the smaller vessels ran on a mix of solar cells and hydrogen combustion. They usually ate cod, but overfishing even before the plague had depleted the Arctic of its aquatic life and Nixon didn't dare send his vessels as far south as the Grand Banks. The ships would be out of food within a year and the ocean had no more to give up.
The command tower of the carrier had been the site where the invasion plans were made. The fleet didn't have the manpower to launch even a small ground assault, but enemy coastal defenses were too tight to permit any type of recon. The only solution was to pound a hole in the coastal defenses, land there, search for stranded military forces within, and begin what would be a long and tiresome war.
The attack would begin four hours before daybreak. Canadian-designed B4 bombers would reach Boston and Hartford at dawn, escorted by ancient F-22 fighters and a squadron of F-42 ground attack aircraft. The plan called for fusion-bombing 600 miles of coast, up to 35 miles inland. If the attack was successful, it would leave in its wake a trail of death and destruction not seen since the outbreak itself and the great riots that followed.
While the fleet moved south at maximum speed, the 75 year old Admiral Shawn Nixon sat in a darkened room with a few anxious teenagers.
"You are the pilots that will begin our liberation." He said.
"You may be wondering why I've chosen you young men as our "ambassadors" to the enemy. Are you the best pilots on board? Not even close. But you have one advantage over the older men: you were born aboard this vessel. All you have ever known is the steel and fibreglass of the U.S.S. Clinton. You don't remember America. The America that men like me remember doesn't exist anymore. I don't know what lies there in its stead, but I implore you, don't hesitate to drop your payloads. The memories we've shared with you all your lives have no roots in that place." He continued.
"Today will be remembered for one of two reasons. It will either be the day that the tide turned, and humankind finally began to take back its genetic identity, or it will be the day the last human resistance disappeared and the enemy finally won."
Nixon looked at the young men and shivered.
"You will decide what this day is to become."
The Admiral walked out of the room shaking and gave the order to launch the largest aerial strike in the history of mankind.
________________________________________________
Current ATP Index
After the Pandemic: Intro
By Jack McCallum http://www.ubersite.com/m/61238
After the Pandemic: Corrigan
By Jack McCallum http://www.ubersite.com/m/61296
After the Pandemic: Variant C
By Jack McCallum http://www.ubersite.com/m/61350
After the Pandemic - The Onion Run - Part 1
By Snark http://www.ubersite.com/m/61446
After the Pandemic: Outbreak
By spedmonkey http://www.ubersite.com/m/61453
After the Pandemic: Rebirth
By kre8rix http://www.ubersite.com/m/61490
After the Pandemic: Warriors of Fire
By hpark http://www.ubersite.com/m/61495
After the Pandemic: Origins of a Conflict
By Adamdidit2u http://www.ubersite.com/m/61496
After the Pandemic: Apocalypse
By Dannie M http://www.ubersite.com/m/61498
After the Pandemic: The Enemy of My Enemy (Part 1 of 2)
By Thecaes http://www.ubersite.com/m/61505
Before* the Pandemic: Briarwood Academy
By stardamage* http://www.ubersite.com/m/61510
(*smartass!)
After the Pandemic: Archangels (Part One)
By Jack McCallum http://www.ubersite.com/m/61513
After the Pandemic: The Tragic Fall of Lord Bart
By Freakmagnet http://www.ubersite.com/m/61518
User Reviews
Submitted by notyou (user info) at 2005-07-07 18:22:26 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by nrduncan (user info) at 2005-05-12 17:43:13 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
I have just got done reading these all and I have enjoyed them all. Great work everyone, +2's for all!
Submitted by User10030 (user info) at 2005-04-23 20:22:28 EDT (#)
Ranking: 2
Good job!!!
Submitted by Professional_Peon (user info) at 2005-03-12 11:56:32 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Here is my contribution - http://www.ubersite.com/m/61730
Submitted by Genko (user info) at 2005-03-12 03:10:52 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
I know, I figured it'd be a strech but I named it after him because I think he's the greatest president you Yankees have ever had.
Submitted by JonnyX (user info) at 2005-03-11 18:39:37 EST (#)
Ranking: 1
one pretty big flaw - Clinton presided over the dismantling over much the American military in the 90s, killed off two carriers, no way in hell anything bigger than a rowboat's getting named for Clinton.
Submitted by Avals (user info) at 2005-03-10 05:44:55 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
That was pretty goddamn sweet!
Submitted by Spam (user info) at 2005-03-10 03:38:24 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Like the idea, and I thought that his speech was great.
Submitted by TimeCop (user info) at 2005-03-10 01:24:39 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
nice.
Submitted by stardamage (user info) at 2005-03-09 21:32:44 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
What? I swear I +2ed this already...
I liked this one especially. All of these have been kickass, I agree.
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-03-09 16:34:13 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
After re-reading this, I'm gonna plus two it again. You hit so many merks in this short piece that I can't begin to list them. Let's have the rest!
Submitted by munkeypants (user info) at 2005-03-09 14:37:50 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by engine13 (user info) at 2005-03-09 12:49:00 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I finally got caught up on this series from yesterday and you fuckers just keep posting.
I know it has been said already, but this was a great idea and luckily almost every post that has come out on it has been great.
Right, now to go read the rest. . .
Submitted by Thored (user info) at 2005-03-09 07:12:07 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I love these posts.
Submitted by MyNameIsTim (user info) at 2005-03-09 07:03:49 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
this series fucking rocks
Submitted by thecaes (user info) at 2005-03-09 01:11:04 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-03-08 23:46:22 (#)
Ranking: 2
Excellent addition, this can explain all the leech 'rebuilding' in later years.
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Yes, it can.
Gawd dammit. Now I have to do some tweaking...
Great post, by the way. I liked the military details.
Submitted by LadyPlural (user info) at 2005-03-08 23:59:13 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/03/08/high_school_zombie_threat/
Kickass.
Submitted by spedmonkey (user info) at 2005-03-08 23:50:36 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Nice.
Submitted by Jack_McCallum (user info) at 2005-03-08 23:46:22 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Excellent addition, this can explain all the leech 'rebuilding' in later years.
Submitted by DavyJones (user info) at 2005-03-08 23:14:43 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
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