DEFCON 1
By testreader - bronze member
Submitted on May 27, 2025
Homecoming
The year is 7642. The fractured Earth has become virtually unrecognizable, as ominous signs of nuclear war have pervaded across the land. Atomic destruction has ravaged our once - beautiful planet, scarring the world. Nuclear war has occurred, with the United States and Russia emerging as the victors. The two countries have annihilated the others, decimating cities with a single press of a button. Broken remnants of metal lie discarded by travelers, and craters dot the barren land that was once so majestic. Bomber planes buzz menacingly above the decayed trees. Suddenly, a massive worm explodes out of the ground, releasing a mountain of dust and debris into the dreary air. A bomber overhead discharges a fatal bomb onto the creature, merely a second too late. Inside the cockpit, the pilot radios the headquarters of the U.S. Air Force. “Missed target,” the pilot reports. “Returning to base B-86.” The bomber turns around, and instead of lowering itself to the ground, it rises slowly into the air. A few hours later, the gray sky gradually becomes darker with the color of the massive aircraft that approaches quickly. The plane swoops down onto the runway of the prodigious ship, following the lights that gleam through the clouds of debris and dust. After landing with a jolting bump, the pilot alights and walks into a large tower beside his vehicle, ensuring that his gas mask has not been disturbed by the flight. Once inside, he removes his respirator and breathes in deeply.
Comments for this chapter
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I have never read a book that uses third person (he/she/them) and present tense (walks, talks, eats) together which makes the style really interesting!
Comment by rose on May 29, 2025Liked by 0
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Catastrophe
Suddenly, the floor violently jolts under his feet. He stumbles, then trips over a crack in the crystal floor. Luckily, he braces himself before he falls on a protruding piece of diamond. He quickly replaces his mask, then dashes out of the automatic laser screen. On the runway, he observes hundreds of other people emerging from the other identical doors. They sprint across the long runway before noticing the cause of the tremor: an unbelievably giant dragon creature smashing its ram-like head into the side of the carrier. The attack is causing alarm lights to flash and for the humans to retaliate. Emergency searchlights and projectiles sweep across the murky sky. Many frantic citizens scurry about while screaming from the monster, hoping to locate a hiding spot amongst the chaos. Only the pilot runs across the field, attempting to seize a discarded crystal taser along the way. Unfortunately, he skids right past the magical weapon as the monster uses its might to batter the unfortunate aircraft. He then turns around, grasps the taser and wheels around just as the creature’s mighty tail pummels him. He only has time to fire the weapon once before all transforms into black like the ebony night sky.
Comments for this chapter
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The sentence "all transforms into black like the ebony night sky" wow that's exactly the right description there it's really good so far
Comment by rose on May 29, 2025Liked by 0
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Comments for the Entire Story
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It feels almost like an action movie, but sometimes it can be a little bit much to process in my opinion. The writing is quite captivating though
Comment by flyingsaber on June 12, 2025Liked by 0
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