Forensatha
TNPer
================
Special Imperial Bulletin
House of Cats
================
Until further notice, the city of Uritar is hereby under full medical and military quarantine. No civilians are allowed to approach the city without government authorization and anyone caught sneaking in will be arrested.
All citizens of Uritar, if you can read this, are encouraged to immediately evactuate the city and report to the military on what is going on. We will try to clear you as fast as we can, while making sure you're not infected with whatever is plaguing the city. If you are found by a military team, please go with them to safety. We will do what we can to help you.
============
End Transmission
============
Throneroom of the Imperial Family Complex in the Imperial Palace
"Alright, go over the details again," Catalia said, not believing what she was hearing.
General Gorgon sighed, saying, "At four hundred hours, several people started showing up in hospitals, each one reporting the sight of horrors. Several came in gravely wounded, and the doctors quickly determined nothing natural could have made those wounds. At six hundred hours, after talking with each other, the hospitals of the city determined there was some kind of disease going around. At seven hundred hours, as per the Geta Protocol, they declared a state of medical emergency for the entire city and contacted the military. Thirty minutes later, the military units in the city called for reinforcements, with some reporting they were under fire by 'things not of this world.' The city was put under medical quarantine at eight hundred hours. At nine hundred hours all communication was lost to those inside the city and the mist that now covers it appeared at ten hundred hours. The mist stopped expanding once it covered the city and hasn't moved in the last four hours."
"And tell me again about this mist," Catalia said.
Gorgon groaned, saying, "We don't know anything about it. But, it covers the city and doesn't move. It's like a very thick fog. Visibility is only thirty feet while inside it and for some reason, only hand-held electronics work. Portable radios, PDAs, cell phones, and flashlights mostly. Anything larger, including a car battery, is automatically shut down while inside the city's limits. As such, all exploration has to be done on foot. And that's where the problems come in."
"Tell me about them," Catalia said.
"The official maps, taken back in 2010, place the city at 66.2 square miles. Considering its placement in one of the rare large clearings in the western section of the nation, that's very large. From the outside, this is confirmed. Inside, however, maps from exploratory teams sent in since the fog blanketed the city give different numbers, with the largest being four hundred square miles. Some of them swear the landscape changed on them while they were exploring," Gorgon said.
"Hallucinations?" Catalia asked.
"No. We've done every test we can. There's no signs of hallucinogens in their blood, no alterations to the brain, and EMF readers don't pick up anything strange. If it is some kind of hallucinogen, it manages to affect the brain in a way that doesn't leave behind signs and doesn't affect blood chemistry," Gorgon answered.
"And video cameras?" Catalia asked.
"They, um..." Gorgon fidgetted. "They were corrupted."
Gorgon was lying. After what he had seen on those tapes, he hadn't been able to help himself. The horror of seeing his own mother, pocketed with sores that wept a horrible mucus and crying for him to save her... The psychiatrist called his reaction mere shock. But, that didn't change the fact that he had emptied his pistol into the camera until both it and the recording were unsalvageable. Agreeing to pull the plug on her while she was in the hospital had always haunted him and the last thing he needed was that damned city reminding him of it.
"Pity," Catalia said, not believing him for an instant but not pressing the issue. "And the people who were inside when the mist arrived?"
"We've found seven. Four are sane. The three that are not keep babbling about monsters and other horrors. Two of those three have injuries that the doctors conclude could not have come from any creature known on record," was the answer.
"Keep the city under lockdown. And get me copies of those maps," Catalia ordered, already thinking of ways to investigate a general who suddenly felt a need to lie.
Somewhere Inside Uritar
Melody was running as fast as she could, her breath puffing out in even bursts as her legs continued to thrust, her toes barely touching the street. She was currently fumbling to get the magazine in her hand inside the USP, her movement over the cracked and uneven street almost causing her to drop it several times. Once she felt it finally slide fully in place, she grinned and pulled the trigger once to chamber a round. All she needed to do was kill the three chasing her and she would be able to enter the police station safely.
The three chasing Melody appeared, at a distance, to be female samurai, dressed stereotypically for that role. The only problem was they all had the same face, that of Melody's dead sister. The girl had suffered a mental illness, coming to believe she was a samurai and that Melody was a demon. Melody had been forced to kill the girl in order to save her own life, which later served as the reason why she entered the military. And in the last three hours, she'd killed her sister another 23 times.
The movement was simple: Jump and spin, pulling the trigger as soon as they came into sight. She ignored the recoil, both of her hands easily compensating for it, as the pistol fired three rounds while she was airborn. She landed correctly, having had more than enough time to practice it today, and kept running. Just as she opened the door to go inside, she heard their death screams; the same scream her sister had uttered as Melody killed her. It had taken years of therapy to get that to stop bothering her and this place had undone all of it in a single night.
"Melody?" came the voice of the young girl Melody was protecting as the woman shut the door.
"It's alright, Misako. Just old ghosts," Melody answered, stopping to look at the candle.
One of the first things they had found that that candles kept the creatures away. Melody had spent quite some time raiding local stores, gathering together ammunition, food, clothes, and candles. And, after dealing with the skinned dog she was forced to fight hand to hand, roses. For some reason, roses instantly killed the creatures, those the rose was turned to dust by it. Melody was sure there were other things they could use, but she didn't have time to hunt them down before she had to return.
The scratching began almost immediately. It was dog-like, including the growling and snarling. It was also coming from outside the building. Yet, Melody was sure that no dog she knew of would ever reach the size that creature sounded. She frowned, moving to huddle protectively with Misako, keeping her pistol aimed towards the door with one hand while reloading her other magazine from her backpack with the other.
"It's alright, Misako. He won't be able to hurt you," Melody said, trying to calm the crying girl, yet surprising herself and the steel within her own voice. "He won't be able to hurt you at all."
The one thing that occured to Melody was how like her own sister this was. Her sister had also been named Misako. When they were little, they had been cornered by a large dog while playing in a shed. Back then, as now, Melody had ended up protecting her sister. So odd to be in the same situation yet again.
As the door began to open from the giant canine's insistance, Melody's frown deepened and her finger grew tighter on the trigger. This time, she wouldn't let the girl get partially hurt by the animal. This time, she'd stop it entirely...
Special Imperial Bulletin
House of Cats
================
Until further notice, the city of Uritar is hereby under full medical and military quarantine. No civilians are allowed to approach the city without government authorization and anyone caught sneaking in will be arrested.
All citizens of Uritar, if you can read this, are encouraged to immediately evactuate the city and report to the military on what is going on. We will try to clear you as fast as we can, while making sure you're not infected with whatever is plaguing the city. If you are found by a military team, please go with them to safety. We will do what we can to help you.
============
End Transmission
============
Throneroom of the Imperial Family Complex in the Imperial Palace
"Alright, go over the details again," Catalia said, not believing what she was hearing.
General Gorgon sighed, saying, "At four hundred hours, several people started showing up in hospitals, each one reporting the sight of horrors. Several came in gravely wounded, and the doctors quickly determined nothing natural could have made those wounds. At six hundred hours, after talking with each other, the hospitals of the city determined there was some kind of disease going around. At seven hundred hours, as per the Geta Protocol, they declared a state of medical emergency for the entire city and contacted the military. Thirty minutes later, the military units in the city called for reinforcements, with some reporting they were under fire by 'things not of this world.' The city was put under medical quarantine at eight hundred hours. At nine hundred hours all communication was lost to those inside the city and the mist that now covers it appeared at ten hundred hours. The mist stopped expanding once it covered the city and hasn't moved in the last four hours."
"And tell me again about this mist," Catalia said.
Gorgon groaned, saying, "We don't know anything about it. But, it covers the city and doesn't move. It's like a very thick fog. Visibility is only thirty feet while inside it and for some reason, only hand-held electronics work. Portable radios, PDAs, cell phones, and flashlights mostly. Anything larger, including a car battery, is automatically shut down while inside the city's limits. As such, all exploration has to be done on foot. And that's where the problems come in."
"Tell me about them," Catalia said.
"The official maps, taken back in 2010, place the city at 66.2 square miles. Considering its placement in one of the rare large clearings in the western section of the nation, that's very large. From the outside, this is confirmed. Inside, however, maps from exploratory teams sent in since the fog blanketed the city give different numbers, with the largest being four hundred square miles. Some of them swear the landscape changed on them while they were exploring," Gorgon said.
"Hallucinations?" Catalia asked.
"No. We've done every test we can. There's no signs of hallucinogens in their blood, no alterations to the brain, and EMF readers don't pick up anything strange. If it is some kind of hallucinogen, it manages to affect the brain in a way that doesn't leave behind signs and doesn't affect blood chemistry," Gorgon answered.
"And video cameras?" Catalia asked.
"They, um..." Gorgon fidgetted. "They were corrupted."
Gorgon was lying. After what he had seen on those tapes, he hadn't been able to help himself. The horror of seeing his own mother, pocketed with sores that wept a horrible mucus and crying for him to save her... The psychiatrist called his reaction mere shock. But, that didn't change the fact that he had emptied his pistol into the camera until both it and the recording were unsalvageable. Agreeing to pull the plug on her while she was in the hospital had always haunted him and the last thing he needed was that damned city reminding him of it.
"Pity," Catalia said, not believing him for an instant but not pressing the issue. "And the people who were inside when the mist arrived?"
"We've found seven. Four are sane. The three that are not keep babbling about monsters and other horrors. Two of those three have injuries that the doctors conclude could not have come from any creature known on record," was the answer.
"Keep the city under lockdown. And get me copies of those maps," Catalia ordered, already thinking of ways to investigate a general who suddenly felt a need to lie.
Somewhere Inside Uritar
Melody was running as fast as she could, her breath puffing out in even bursts as her legs continued to thrust, her toes barely touching the street. She was currently fumbling to get the magazine in her hand inside the USP, her movement over the cracked and uneven street almost causing her to drop it several times. Once she felt it finally slide fully in place, she grinned and pulled the trigger once to chamber a round. All she needed to do was kill the three chasing her and she would be able to enter the police station safely.
The three chasing Melody appeared, at a distance, to be female samurai, dressed stereotypically for that role. The only problem was they all had the same face, that of Melody's dead sister. The girl had suffered a mental illness, coming to believe she was a samurai and that Melody was a demon. Melody had been forced to kill the girl in order to save her own life, which later served as the reason why she entered the military. And in the last three hours, she'd killed her sister another 23 times.
The movement was simple: Jump and spin, pulling the trigger as soon as they came into sight. She ignored the recoil, both of her hands easily compensating for it, as the pistol fired three rounds while she was airborn. She landed correctly, having had more than enough time to practice it today, and kept running. Just as she opened the door to go inside, she heard their death screams; the same scream her sister had uttered as Melody killed her. It had taken years of therapy to get that to stop bothering her and this place had undone all of it in a single night.
"Melody?" came the voice of the young girl Melody was protecting as the woman shut the door.
"It's alright, Misako. Just old ghosts," Melody answered, stopping to look at the candle.
One of the first things they had found that that candles kept the creatures away. Melody had spent quite some time raiding local stores, gathering together ammunition, food, clothes, and candles. And, after dealing with the skinned dog she was forced to fight hand to hand, roses. For some reason, roses instantly killed the creatures, those the rose was turned to dust by it. Melody was sure there were other things they could use, but she didn't have time to hunt them down before she had to return.
The scratching began almost immediately. It was dog-like, including the growling and snarling. It was also coming from outside the building. Yet, Melody was sure that no dog she knew of would ever reach the size that creature sounded. She frowned, moving to huddle protectively with Misako, keeping her pistol aimed towards the door with one hand while reloading her other magazine from her backpack with the other.
"It's alright, Misako. He won't be able to hurt you," Melody said, trying to calm the crying girl, yet surprising herself and the steel within her own voice. "He won't be able to hurt you at all."
The one thing that occured to Melody was how like her own sister this was. Her sister had also been named Misako. When they were little, they had been cornered by a large dog while playing in a shed. Back then, as now, Melody had ended up protecting her sister. So odd to be in the same situation yet again.
As the door began to open from the giant canine's insistance, Melody's frown deepened and her finger grew tighter on the trigger. This time, she wouldn't let the girl get partially hurt by the animal. This time, she'd stop it entirely...