Revelations (Main Lore)

# The Revelations

*The first angel of seven sounded his trumpet: "And hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth"* - “Book of Revelation, New Testament”

## Setting the Scene (Pre-War)

### Setting the Scene (Prelude)

The story begins in 1981, and just several months after the U.S Presidential election. Ronald Reagan was sworn into office, and tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union were at an all time high. His approach and relations with the USSR are widely blamed for the disastrous end, and collapse of society across the world.

Though the world would end several years after, the early 1980s marked a significant shift in technological advancements such as chemical and synthetic fields. The loss was a tragic adjustment to the world of science, and technological progress to come.

### Rising Tensions

*June 12th, 1981 - November 6th, 1983*

Following already icy relations between the Kremlin and the United States, the election of U.S President Reagan meant the Cold War was going to get warmer with time. Reagan denounced the Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan, seeking to aid Mujahideen forces in their defense against Soviet liberation. Reagan furthermore attacked the Soviet Union with policies targeting the Eastern Bloc’s economy.

This included the cutoff of the gas pipelines from western Europe to the east. Hurting the Soviet relations seemed to backfire against Reagan's administration however, and that next year was marked by massive military buildup on both sides. This, along with a staunch rejection to START (Strategic Arms Reduction Talks) talks in Geneva, led to serious tensions between NATO and the Soviet Bloc, the latter of which thought that war was on the horizon.

In the United States, movements in opposition of the war were popular, though suppressed by the government, and many within the Soviet Bloc saw war as an opportunity to remove the economic sanctions imposed by Reagan’s presidency. Open diplomatic relations between the two superpowers would dissolve early in June, 1983, and would not resume.

### The Last War

*November 7th, 1983 - October 18th, 1985*

On November 7th, 1983, an underground cache of nuclear weapons was detonated outside of Magdeburg, East Germany. Mass casualties ensued in the city and surrounding towns, whereas more than a hundred thousand perished immediately, or shortly after the blast. Though the circumstances of this disaster was unknown, mass-mobilization was initiated under the Kremlin’s authority, and a state of emergency was declared behind the curtain.

Soviet personnel had already begun evacuations in Magdeburg when a second blast destroyed the Balakovo Nuclear Power Plant, located in the Saratov Oblast, Russian SFSR. Soviet Authorities, hailing with upmost certainty that the Western World was behind this, furthermore retaliated with their nuclear arsenal, sending the clear for a preemptive strike.

Major cities throughout the United States and allied countries were targeted, though the bombshell disaster of thermonuclear war was smeared and blurry as to who was struck where and by whom. For several weeks did conventional fighting apply, though by early December the war had ceased entirely, and the cool-off began with silence.

## The Post-War

### Aftermath Period

*Late October, 1985  - Early March, 1986*

Loc. Eastern Bloc

Cooling began as early as six weeks after the war, and millions everywhere would succumb either to starvation or lethal doses of radiation. Aftershock set-in, though the onset of nuclear winter was delayed and casualties began to pile fast, as many whom made their homes in the countryside had died when resources wore thin. Food shortage was  immediate en mass, and crop failures in the Russia’s Far East, led many migrants Westward, where the winter wasn’t as harsh.

In many places, predominantly in larger cities and urban areas, the power vacuum of a de-militarized Soviet state meant the rise of regional warlords, anarchists, and the abandonment of civil law. The war had broken society, and it was being rebuilt less favorably than many had hoped. Violence was oftentimes the go-to solution without authority, and until the Soviet Army would migrate back en-mass, whoever held power would oftentimes use it or fear as leverage. Not to say the Soviets would do it better.

Some cities, primarily those with a large deal of military infrastructure or cutting-edge facilities, were hit specifically to deny ground. British Sodium bombing or ‘Salting’ was infamously utilized in Novosibirsk and St. Petersburg, though the Americans detonated their own Cobalt weapons in Berlin, disregarding the safety of their allies. Though the radiation was meant to deter and destroy most forms of life, it only became a breeding ground for something sinister.

### Red Summer

*Early March, 1986  - Mid November, 1986*

Loc. Eastern Bloc

It’s unclear as to whether ‘they’ emerged out of a forebearers intention, or rather it was mere coincidence that they’d come after the disaster, though their presence alone was enough for many to fear Humanity’s final extinction. They had no name, or frankly, a language comprehensible by human means, so the people gave them nicknames instead. Some called them ‘Monsters’ while others would call them ‘Nightmares.’ In Russia, the name of “Uzhastik” would stick to them best.

When they first emerged in Prague and Berlin, a massacre would follow as they crossed eastward and through the countryside. By cruel design, our bullets did little to stop their advance, and needlessly without weapons, did the ‘Uzhastik’ tear their victims to bits. They were the apex predator - built to outclass humans in every shape and form. Things were bleak, but nature offered us an opportunity.

Though the Summer was harsh, it was nowhere near as harsh as the Winter was to follow it. Snowstorms began forcing people underground. Sewers, Metros, and underground installations had all become networks for the remainder of humanity. Because of this, the Uzhastik had lost their main source of food, enforcing a direness for the shrinking species. Winter became an equalizer, and while they couldn’t be eradicated entirely, Humans could finally breathe.

### The Long Dark

*Mid December, 1986  - Late April, 2000*

Loc. Eastern Bloc

Life was… hard following the transition underground. For over a decade had winter hindered the re-emergence of Humans, while sentient Mutants and ‘Runners’ would scavenge or forage for what they could, shakily improving the direness of many lives. Since the Uzhastik were nocturnal and the storms would worsen during the night, it became a mainstay to be indoors before the sun went down.

Underground, life was a struggle, but nowhere near as hostile as it was above. Lifestock, dry-goods, and artificial farms became the only sustainable source of food that many could find. In places with limited space and facilities; entire families would be exiled into the cold, and it led to heightened rates of desperation and violence. In the Metros, many stations would be fortified or cut-off and resources wore thin. Some would trade, but inevitably there would be conflicts. Life was a struggle to say the least, but the adverse impact was nothing to shy away from. The Uzhastik began to starve.

By the twelfth year, population control was in full effect. The number of Uzhastik dwindled significantly, but the Humans became harder and harder to manage. Population booms seemed to periodically apply, and many whom survived the war as children, became adults with children of their own. Basic overcrowding led to severe problems, while sickness and sanitation problems began heightening.

The fourteenth year had upsides, as the weather was significantly improved by the settling of soot from the skies. The sun, which had disappeared for quite some time, was finally revealed and it began to show. Little by little had the world began to change, though it was healing nonetheless. Humans would begin their exodus back into the world, where they’d be greeted with a challenge once more; Co-existence.

### The Thaw (Fear the Winter)

*Late October, 2008 - Early March, 2009*

Loc. Eastern Bloc

Throughout the bombed out buildings and abandoned city blocks, large blooms of wildlife and vegetation has completely overtaken the city buildings and skeletons alike. Where many years of snow, sleet, and vicious hailstorms had pelted, grow hardy, poisonous lichen and moss that glows vibrantly in the wake of spring. The struggles had softened, but not disappeared completely.

The world was getting warmer each day. Not that it hadn’t for years, except this time you could actually see it. Blooms of wildlife appeared everywhere, and even the cities pelted with bombs had a chance to heal. Desperation shrunk as the winter began it’s end, and springtime was optimistic for many. That is, until news of the ‘Hive’ would re-emerge.

For many years, their presence had shrunk to mere whispers after the Humans were driven underground. Attacks on traders or minor groups were common, but dissipated as the years went by. It was though that they’d fallen off the Earth by the sixteenth year, though their re-emergence was more than a couple minor attacks. Stories surfaced that entire settlements were overrun and their inhabitants massacred. Fleetingly, many ran from the confrontation, while others gave their lives in retaliation. In the end, an entire ‘Hive’ was destroyed by partisans, and the city of Warsaw was buried with it. It would quell them - for now.

### The Contingency

*Late August, 2010 - Present*

Loc. Byelorussian SSR

It’s been almost two years since the Warsaw Hive sunk beneath the city. Though the victory is credited to a vigilante group - “Dresden’s Specters,” it did fall upon local forces in Belarus to soak any retaliations forced by the Uzhastik. It was like someone kicked a hornets nest and it seriously pissed them off. Viezas Tower and Reignwolf were both infamous examples of the fury. Fires broke out during the initial attacks, and while they were eventually repelled, both settlements succumbed to the massacre.

Though it wasn’t unheard of during the “Red Summer”, the loss of two major trade-centers crippled the region’s economy and drove everyone into a frenzy to fill the vacuum. Disturbances between the fragile peace sent the region into an all-out war, further hindering the region’s development. With fears that an even more destabilized Minsk might disrupt things in other regions, influence from across the borders have risen exponentially.