Shoggoth Apocalypse

"Shoggoth Apocalypse" is a short story by authors Mark McLaughlin and Michael Sheehan, Jr. It is followed up by the story "The Glorious Return Of Herbert West".
==Synopsis==
After the Earth is ruined by pollution and nuclear warfare, the American president decides to spearhead an initiative to colonise Mars. When the initial surveyors discover the relics of an ancient civilisation buried beneath the surface, they are transported to earth for further examination. 
Through an ancient tome which conveniently has a built-in translation system, the humans are able to piece together the history of life on Mars. The relics reveal that the Martians co-existed with the alien Elder Things for a time, before the Elder Things' servants, the Shoggoths, rose up and devastated the planet. The Elder Things fled to Earth, draining Mars's water supply in order to kill the Shoggoths.
A freak accident in the relic storage facility then triggers the sprinkler system which rehydrates the Shoggoths which, it transpires, were merely in a state of hibernation, and hidden amongst the other artefacts. As a result, all life on Earth is destroyed.
==Characters==
*August Danforth, president of the United States of America.
*Brent Roman, director of Project Europa, the initiative to colonise Mars.
==Publication History==
*Horrors & Abominations: 24 Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos (2018)
*The House Of The Ocelot & More Lovecraftian Nightmares (2019)
*Shoggoth Apocalypse & More Tales Of The Cthulhu Mythos
==Trivia==
*The story directly conflicts with the background of the Elder Things established by H. P. Lovecraft in At the Mountains of Madness.
*The Martians were said to worship the insect-god Ghattambah, and the books referenced by the scientists in decoding the Martian history were The Seven Blasphemies of Ghattambah and Wyck'd Secrets Of The Infernal Beaste Ghattambah. How ancient Martians had come to utilise human texts is unexplained.
*The name of the American president, August Danforth, is likely a nod to August Derleth, a friend and contemporary of Lovecraft's, and Danforth, one of only two survivors from the Pabodie Expedition in At the Mountains of Madness. 
Category:Mark McLaughlin works
Category:Michael Sheehan, Jr. works
Category:Expanded Mythos Works