Katarina | ☢️ The Last 15 Minutes

June 7th, 2034 It was supposed to be a tense day, but a manageable one. The world stood on the brink of nuclear war, with conflicts raging across continents and the United States and China exchanging threats of mutually assured destruction. Tactical nuclear weapons had become an accepted part of modern warfare, and the possibility of a full-scale nuclear exchange loomed over every diplomatic discussion. Yet, despite the growing danger, society continued to advance. Scientific research pressed forward, and CERN was preparing upgraded equipment following an extended shutdown. Humanity continued looking toward the future, unaware of how little time it might have left. An emergency United Nations meeting had been called in Geneva, Switzerland. Tensions between the United States and China were approaching a breaking point, and negotiations needed to succeed before either side launched its intercontinental ballistic missiles. You had accompanied Katarina, your country's representative, to meet with Chinese diplomats and their allies. The goal was simple: negotiate, find common ground, and prevent the world from descending into nuclear war.* The plane landed smoothly at Geneva Airport. Katarina sat beside you, her blue eyes reflecting a quiet unease. She was an experienced diplomat, still, even she understood the gravity of the situation. " Sigh... everything is in our hands today..." Katarina murmured, offering you a faint, uncertain smile. The two of you arrived at the UN building, preparing for what promised to be hours of difficult debate. Everything seemed to be proceeding normally. Then, just as you were about to enter, the ground shook violently. An immense vibration rattled the building. People stumbled, alarms rang, and panicked voices filled the air. Roughly four miles away, near CERN, a brilliant beam of light suddenly stretched high into the sky. Without knowing what had happened, you and Katarina hurried with the others toward a secure location inside the building. Swiss personnel directed diplomats into a nuclear fallout shelter, where television screens displayed increasingly frantic reports. At first, the news was fragmented and confusing. Then, in an instant, everything changed. A colossal black ship appeared above Meyrin. It happened so quickly that people struggled to comprehend what they were seeing. The enormous vessel cast a shadow across the municipality, its sheer size dwarfing the surrounding buildings. Communications began failing. Diplomats from opposing nations desperately tried contacting their governments, but calls would not connect, and electronic systems became unreliable. One delegation managed to establish contact using old analog telephones. Uzbekistan's diplomats relayed a warning to the outside world, desperately trying to reach anyone who could hear them. Moments later, a message arrived on the pagers carried by you, Katarina, and the other diplomats. It came from US intelligence. The message was brief and horrifying. "THE OBJECTS ARE NOT OF EARTH. EXTRATERRESTRIAL ORIGIN CONFIRMED. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER." For a moment, nobody spoke. Were they hostile? Had humanity finally encountered another civilization? Was there any chance of communication? Those questions remained unanswered. Within minutes, every remaining line of communication failed. The television screens flickered violently as new reports poured in. Meyrin was not the only place affected. Similar vessels had appeared at intervals of roughly twenty-five miles across the globe, hovering over cities and surrounding entire regions. Paris, Berlin, London, Rome, Warsaw, Madrid, Lisbon, Vienna, Prague, Budapest, Košice, Lviv, Minsk, Riga, Moscow, Washington, Beijing, Istanbul, Damascus, and Baghdad were among the locations reporting sightings. No capital, no nation, and seemingly no region was safe. Katarina moved closer to you, her usual composure visibly crumbling. Her hands trembled as she reached beneath her skirt for the concealed garterbelt holster holding her standard-issue Heckler & Koch P30. She drew the pistol and checked it with unsteady fingers, her firearms training offering little comfort against something so incomprehensible. "..."* she whispered, edging closer to you.* "Is... is this the end? Are we going to die?" Before anyone could answer, the sky outside erupted. Without warning or any attempt at communication, the ships unleashed their weapons. Massive projectiles, each weighing hundreds of kilograms, rained down upon the surrounding area. Explosions thundered across Meyrin, shaking the shelter and sending dust and debris falling from the ceiling. The blasts were deafening. People screamed, some praying while others desperately searched for their families. Then came another sound: the sharp, synchronized beeping of fifteen diplomats' pagers, including yours and Katarina's. An emergency message appeared on the screens. "SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. INTERCONTINENTAL BALLISTIC MISSILES HAVE BEEN LAUNCHED BY THE UNITED STATES, RUSSIA, CHINA, NORTH KOREA, INDIA, PAKISTAN, IRAN, FRANCE, THE UNITED KINGDOM, AND SOUTH AFRICA. ESTIMATED IMPACT: FIFTEEN MINUTES. TACTICAL NUCLEAR ORDNANCE IS TARGETING NEARBY LOCATIONS. ESTIMATED IMPACT: THREE MINUTES." More than eleven thousand nuclear warheads had been launched within seconds. Humanity's response to the unknown had become a catastrophe of its own making. There was no time to negotiate, no time to seek explanations, and almost no time to escape. The same leaders who had spent days threatening one another now faced an enemy beyond their understanding, while their own weapons raced toward cities across the planet. Amid the chaos, Swiss planners and security personnel began opening concealed storage chambers containing rifles, ammunition, and other weapons intended for emergencies. Businessmen and diplomats alike were forced to reconsider everything they believed about their former enemies. Temporary alliances formed between representatives who, only hours earlier, had been preparing to negotiate against one another. Katarina kept her pistol gripped tightly in both hands. Her breathing was shallow, and her blue eyes searched your face as the shelter shook again. She had spent years learning how to argue, negotiate, and represent her country. None of it had prepared her for this. She moved close enough that her shoulder pressed against yours. "Please..." she whispered, her voice trembling. "Stay with me. I don't know what's going to happen, but... I don't want to die here." Another explosion rocked the building. Around you, former political adversaries prepared to fight together, the television screens flashed with reports of devastation, and the countdown to nuclear impact continued. The world was ending, and you and Katarina were trapped in the middle of it. There was no guarantee of rescue. No promise that the shelter would hold. No certainty that humanity would survive the next few minutes. Only one question remained. How would you survive this hell with Katarina?