Utterly Mad

Timeline: 3 days after the cataclysm

People involved: President Kyle Harkness

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In an Air Force base near Cheyenne Mountain Complex, President Harkness and his general staff monitored the situation, regarding an array of monitors and a steady, intermittant stream of communications from what few units had weathered the mess that was zero day.

"What do we have left, men?" the president asked, a man seemingly in his fifties, though in truth he was still in his early forties. Going through a term or two always seemed to age someone poorly, but he felt like he'd get another year older by the day at this point.

"Still nothing from any of the forces operating with SPDs XI through XV, not since day one. Checking on status of IX." answered one of the men gathered there, another person perking up afterward.

"No more ICBMs in the air either since day before yesterday, looks like the PRC spent 90% of its nuclear assets on quarantine protocol. No signs of any attempted launches elsewhere since yesterday." she said, before the two looked at a monitor displaying an array of information, a report coming up on it.

Special Projects Division IV (Xenoform Studies)
Operation Windchime

All units are in place, subsonic projector arrays estimated to be 98% operational and awaiting final configuration.

Several of the installations are already compromised to varying degrees by fungimorphic X-rays (Designation: Mycus), and emergency protocols have only barely delayed the spread from Breach Site Alpha Eagle 12. We estimate less than five hours to get the arrays going, or they'll get around the Rockies and have the whole continent by the end of the day.

Secondary breaches seem to be under control, atmospheric analysis suggests secondary breaches originating somewhere in Australia and a possible breach in the Sahara Desert, conditions suspected to make containment by any survivors more feasible than AE12.

Casualty rate of SPD-IX at 68% as of this message. We almost lost 12-IV and 7-IV outright due to heavy fungimorph infestation, as well as Site 16's proximity to Research Directive X-231, which has been compromised by nephropomorphic X-rays (designation: Mi-go).

The president gave a heavy sigh as he looked to the men and woman assembled nearby, in heavily-armored MOPP gear, bearing shoulder patches depicting a swirling galactic disc and the designation IX. "Mister president. 1-IX is ready and awaiting your orders. We've secured the entrance to the secondary command center at Cheyenne, but innards are looking heavily infested by X-rays. There's a full-scale conflict under there between fungal hosts and what's left of the base staff, whole lot of them have been re-animated."

Kyle simply nodded as he stepped up, being led to the armory to suit up and make ready. It had been well over a decade since his time in the Army, and it was hard for him to hide how impressed he was with the way equipment had changed since then. Try as Rivtech might to emulate the look and feel of the old M4 series, there was no hiding the ambidextrous bullpup design, nor the complete absence of a traditional ejection port that the caseless design warranted.

The suit of power armor reserved for him was unlike anything he could recall being in common use back then either. Some engineering units had the suit's immediate predecessors, but this thing made them seem downright medieval in comparison.

He would prepare a final message in the hope of reaching anyone that might be left, then go with the remainder of company 1-IX to secure NORAD's secondary command center, requiring his biometric information to authorize and initiate what would become known as the howling towers. Then finally upload any vital info left in the mil-net database and rig the place to blow so the network couldn't be tampered with.

Given the risk that the command center itself would by a Mycus-infested mess, this was a suicide mission and he knew it. For the sake of morale, he had the message recorded and prepared in private.

"My fellow Americans. No, more than that. To all of humanity that may receive this message. I will keep the remainder of this message as brief as I can.

By the time this message is received, I will most likely be dead. Know that I died fighting, alongside the men and women here with me. I am hopeful that this final mission will contain the worst threat to come out of these portals. Might as well end with at least one success.

Do not attempt to open up the Cheyenne Mountain Complex, it will be either compromised or scuttled by the end of the day. Its purpose will have been fulfilled.

The history of The United States of America, and that of the entire human race, has been one of tenacity and resourcefulness in the face of adversity. Never forget that. And never forget the principles on which this country was founded.

To any remaining military assets that may receive this, make use of whatever protocols prove useful in the dark days ahead, and dismiss by your discretion any that will not serve the needs of humanity.

God bless America, and God bless humanity. President Kyle Harkness, signing off."