Curtain Call Mission

Destroyed US Navy fleet in the flooded bay of Muri's capital city.

**Curtain Call** is a bonus ending mission in the Ghost Stories series. The surviving members of the Sub-Continuum Force (SCF) engage in a recon mission out in the now flooded capital city of Muri. Using a modified Soviet Radio Spectrum Analyzer (SRSA), they are able to pick up short-range radios to either engage surviving Soviet camps or to find stranded civilians in need of assistance. The events of this mission ultimately lead to the beginning of the Sanctuary series.

## Synopsis

### Background

Once Kharov and the three other members of the SCF warp away from the now doomed Muri timeline, all hell is unleashed upon the earth and the casualties are immeasurable. In this final act, the surviving members of the SCF on the island have salvaged as much as they can and have set up camp high up in the hills away from the crumbled society. Despite the land becoming harsh and toxic, several Soviet units still remain in disorganized array on the island. They have also created camps to try and salvage as much as they can.

After examining the surrounding area near their camp, the SCF operators discovered there were camps of Soviet survivors in old war bunker ruins within the jungle. It was suspected that these forces would still remain hostile to the operators, so caution was advised whenever engaging with them.

### Capital Expedition

On a planned scavenging mission into the city, the team uses the SRSA to find localized radio transmission areas that can either be Soviet camps or distressed survivors. The first area that is investigated is a war bunker system in the hills to the east of the capital city. The team discovers Soviet survivors who are fully armed and ready to fight. Upon making contact, there is a brief firefight between the two forces as the SCF operators neutralize the threats. In the camps they discover Soviet soldiers still using weapons and equipment used at the radar station during the events of the Checkmate Mission.

Further exploring into the city, the team locates several small groups of civilians who are treating and aiding the injured survivors. These civilians inform the SCF operators that men in Soviet gear have been looting the city all day and shooting anyone they see. The team heads towards a last known location of one of the civilian search parties that was forced to hide due to looters in the area. Upon reaching this group, the SCF team is informed of a group of Soviet divers who have been expeditioning into the flooded city to scavenge for materials. The team moves to engage this group.

After a short engagement with the Soviet diver group, the SCF secures its own diving suits that they use to venture into the flooded areas of the city. The group notices a massive radio reading from the old US Affairs building, and so they decide to head in that direction to check the ruins for any sign of life. Inside, they encounter a radio transmission claiming that a US survivor camp caring for civilians and service members has been under siege for the last few hours. The transmission alleges that Soviet soldiers turned rogue raiders have been mounting assaults all morning long. The camp states that it cannot hold out much longer. The team exits the water, and uses the Soviet Ural truck to race back east to try and rescue the camp.

### Survivor Camp

Arriving near the coordinates of the survivor camp several hours later in the day, the team runs into a very small group of US marines and civilian survivors. The marines inform the team that the camp has been overrun by the raiders and that some hostages had been taken east by truck. Moving quickly, the group assaults the overrun camp and moves east to locate the missing captives.

Following a set of parked trucks up into the hills, the group manage to discover the rest of the Soviet raiders at an old temple ruin overgrown within the jungle. From inside they hear words of sacrificial rituals in Russian, claiming that the captives would be given as an atonement for humanity's sins to the great temple god. Before the captives are killed, the team burst into the temple and neutralize the captors. A voice rings in everyone's head:

*You feel betrayed. I know it. Promised salvation, but at what cost? She left you all here to die. I am forgiving. You are a spitting image of myself. I'll save you. I'll give you the tools to build your world anew. Raw chaotic perfection.*

By stepping into the glowing basalt gate in front of them (similar to The Time Dialer's Time Gate), the group is transported to a lookout cliff where they see the great Sanctuary walls off in the distance. The voice tells the group:

*Welcome... My Sanctuarian Apostles.*

## Aftermath

It is suggested that following the events of the Ghost Stories series, the surviving members of the Sub-Continuum Force become the first Sanctuarian Apostles who would go on to build the Sanctuary Cities in this new world destroyed by the effects of Talman's Comet. Despite getting their end of the deal to The Time Dialer, their world still devolved into an apocalyptic dystopia which would never again be the same.

The actions of the SCF throughout the Ghost Stories series would ultimately provide the last missing piece needed to find the Space Time Continuum Task Force and subsequently the Cogworks. Had they not delivered Kharov to the gate in time, their whole universe would have likely been torn apart and would cease to exist. Thus marks the bittersweet end to their tale in Ghost Stories, but the beginning of the Sanctuary universe.

## Trivia

* At the beginning of the mission, there are some marked graves just outside the bounds of the SCF's camp. These belong to Andrew Rothman and the rest of the ERU members.
* The US Navy was en route to the island in response to intelligence suggesting nefarious Soviet activity on Muri, but unfortunately were caught in the disasters caused by the Talman Comet's perigee.
* In the years following the disaster, most of the world was terraformed and submerged in water leaving only one large continent standing–Harscod.
* The World Builder gave the SCF members the power of the Sanctuary Cities to create "raw chaotic perfection" on this now imperfect timeline.