Description: A collection of the headlines posted to the boards as the End of the World plot proceeded.
Mt. Fuji Suddenly Erupts - Sun Aug 17 2014 (posted by: Magaki)
Taking the citizens and scientists of Japan by complete surprise, Mt. Fuji, the tallest mountain on the main Japanese archipelago and a volcano which has been dormant for over 300 years, erupted today, spewing lava and ash dangerously close to Southtown and other major cities. Vulcanologists report that an unidentified geological disturbance produced a shockwave which shattered the rock deep within the mountain and released a tremendous amount of pressure, leading instantaneously to an unprecedented eruption.
Three years ago, French and Japanese researchers produced an ultrasound-like image using what is called "seismic noise" to determine that the pressure under Mt. Fuji was increasing, but concluded that it would not erupt without the intervention of a high-magnitude earthquake. Scientists remain baffled at what the highly localized impact which effectively detonated the volcano could be, and it is currently impossible to ascertain the cause.
Although the railroads and infrastructure in the vicinity of Mt. Fuji has been destroyed by the flow of molten rock, an evacuation plan developed in the wake of that prior research has facilitated the safe retreat of the area's 1.2 million inhabitants. The main threat, officials say, is not the lava but clouds of ash which are spreading toward major metropolitan areas. Residents of Southtown are advised to stay indoors in the coming days to avoid being choked or blinded by hot ash.
Storm Surge Threatens Metro - Sun Aug 17 2014 (posted by: Magaki)
In another bizarre natural phenomenon occurring almost simultaneously with the Mt. Fuji eruption, a massive storm surge has occurred in the Atlantic Ocean just off the eastern coast of the United States, flabbergasting meteorologists and the Coast Guard. The swelling tide is being pushed toward coastal cities all along the eastern seaboard including Metro City, which officials warn is likely to be heavily flooded, prompting a hasty and chaotic evacuation effort. Soon after the flooding, it is expected that hurricanes will hammer the coastline as well.
The sudden manifestation of a tropical cyclone so close to land is difficult to explain even under changing climate conditions. The heavy rains have already caused erosion and landslides and are complicated relief efforts and the logistics of evacuation. More troubling, some of the unruly inhabitants of Metro City have begun looting and rampaging around abandoned neighborhoods, ignoring calls to flee the oncoming waters. Officials state that once the floods hit, it will be difficult to recover those who have not yet evacuated from the air due to the powerful winds that will follow, raising the harrowing prospect that some may be stranded.
Fortunately, there remain some days before Metro City floods, so all effort is being made to get the word out among the citizenry about the evacuation, stabilize the situation, aid those in need, and ensure an orderly withdrawal. A call has gone out for charitable donations to support housing and necessities for evacuees.
Gaia Tournament Announced - Sun Aug 17 2014 (posted by: Magaki)
In the wake of multiple natural disasters, financier and combat sports promoter Magaki has announced the inaugural Gaia Tournament, a world-spanning tourney and charitable endeavor to which he is inviting fighters of all levels of skill and fame to attend. All proceeds will go to areas afflicted by the recent disasters, and all fights will be held in locations close to the devastation. Some have already questioned the necessity or the decency of hosting battles for entertainment in the proximity of humanitarian crises, but Magaki, who goes by one name, insists that it is those who are in fear or have suffered loss who most require such a show.
"The earth rebels against us," he stated at a press conference, "and seeks to undo what we have wrought. Should we allow ourselves to succumb to chaos, our works shall vanish without a trace. Only through displays of courage and tenacity do we demonstrate our virtues and our worthiness. Let those in need of succor take solace in the proof we give of the human spirit."
Magaki went on to suggest that should future disasters or strange phenomena occur, fights would be held in those locations as well, and all proceeds beyond prizes for the fighters would be donated to local relief efforts. Invitations have been sent to fighters around the world and an open call for participants has been announced.
Disappearances Plague Paris - Tue Aug 19 2014 (posted by Shion)
In the last twenty-four hours, at least one hundred individual missing persons reports have been filed in areas surrounding the Louvre Museum in Paris, France. Accounts range from bizarre kidnappings in broad daylight to children vanishing before their parents' very eyes.
Law enforcement officials have been baffled by these reports, where only scant details have been provided and believable witness accounts within the realm of possibility seem scarce. Numerous city-wide searches have been conducted, but investigators are left with more questions than answers.
"We're doing all we can during this time to discern the whereabouts of these missing persons and ask that the public remains calm," said Sgt. Paul-Henri Gaston in a statement earlier today. "We will not rest until they have been found."
Paranormal investigators claim that the Louvre Museum may be haunted, or that the cause is unprecedented paranormal rift activity in the region. When asked what he thought of these theories, Sgt. Gaston was quick to wave them off, "These people didn't just evaporate, disappear without a trace, or get kidnapped by ghosts and spectres. There is a very real and tangible explanation for this."
But what that explanation could possibly be, Sgt. Gaston said only that the police were working tirelessly to uncover the truth and urged that anyone with information regarding the disappearances step forward.
Several suspect individuals were taken into police custody for questioning while a candlelight vigil held by families and friends of the missing persons nearly erupted into a brawl when accusations began to fly between attendees. Officers stepped in and dispersed the gathering before tempers could flare any further. When interviewed regarding the validity of the accusations, one officer was heard to say, "A lot of people are scared and heartbroken right now, it's natural for them to want to find someone to blame. However pointing fingers like this isn't helping anyone, least of all their missing loved ones."
This statement was echoed by a young mother and her plea for her son's safe return, "Please, he's only nine years old. He hasn't done anything to deserve this. Why would anyone want to target an innocent child?"
Gulf of Thailand Freezes - Wed Aug 20 2014 (posted by: Magaki)
In what appears to be a truly impossible phenomenon, the Gulf of Thailand, which borders multiple southeastern Asian nations including Cambodia, Malaysia, and Vietnam, has frozen solid. As one of the most productive seas in the world, with large numbers of fish species and mineral resources, this is a catastrophic event for fishing and tourism and has Thailand reeling from the economic and environmental impact. The international community of scientists, already confused by improbable events in Japan and off the coast of the United States, is at a loss explain how an entire tropical sea could instantaneously turn to ice.
"This doesn't make sense," commented a local fisherman whose boat had been frozen just off-shore from Rayong, which is south along the coast from Bangkok. "What will I eat tonight? I cannot even dig my boat from the ice."
The Gulf of Thailand is famously shallow, and some excavation has revealed that the whole of the water has frozen, not just a surface sheen, likely entailing that all sea life in the vicinity has perished. "This is a tropical coastline," stated one oceanographer, looking from the shore in disbelief. "A monsoon would be one thing, but this is unthinkable."
Besides the human cost and damage to sea life, the natural disaster is sure to wreak havoc on the ecology of the mangrove, trees which grow only on tropical coastlines and are highly suspectible to environmental change. Non-profit organizations are attempting to thaw the ice by the coasts by whatever means are available, but the financial cost is enormous, and much of what has been donated in the wake of the disaster must go to feeding those fishermen and sailors who now find themselves out of a livelihood and wondering what is to come.
Mass Suicide at Justice High - Sun Aug 24 2014 (posted by: Jiro)
"This is Hiei Ishiwatari reporting. In tonight's news, we are reporting on several loss of lives at Justice High. A witness, a janitor, found the bodies when he went to handle the cleaning. Due to the sensitivity of the nature, he elicted not to give his name. It was described that the there were seven bodies within the basement. Even baffling was that all are suicide-related."
"There was a note written on the walls."
While the camera did not pan on the bodies, it panned on the walls with writing stained in blood.
IT IS COMING
NO HOPE
DESPAIR
"In the wake of the disasters, the city has been on edge. This is Hiei Ishiwatari, back to you."
"In other news, there have been reports a growing trend of congregation in the alleys. Please be aware of your surroundings and notify the police if you are being targeted."
( Themesong: 'Despair-Syndrome' by Masafumi Takada )
Mysterious Vortex Grows - Tue Sep 9 2014 (posted by: Magaki)
The chaos that wracks the world has drawn the frenzied investigation of the international scientific community, but none more than the 'stable wormhole' that has recently emerged in the center of the Grand Ise Shrine in Japan. The Japanese government has cordoned off the area, which was used as an evacuation point for refugees from the continuing Mt. Fuji eruption, but video has surfaced purporting to show the manifestation of the vortex, from which which a full-sized dinosaur emerged only to be forced back from whence it came by two fighters.
"It's difficult to believe in the veracity of a video that shows a ninja punching a dinosaur in the face in mid-air," stated a noted Japanese quantum physicist, "but the four pillars of light which preceded the appearance of the wormhole displayed similar residual effects to the four large-scale unexplained disasters currently afflicting the world."
Those experts who agree that the footage is credible have concurred with these thoughts as well, noting that the fire, ice, winds, and phantoms which are shown manifesting around each pillar suggest, however inconclusively, that all the strange phenomena could have a central cause and its key could be the vortex.
"If this link is demonstrable," a Japanese vulcanologist stated in an interview, "we could finally find an empirical explanation for Mt. Fuji's seemingly unceasing flow of lava and ash, which has otherwise stumped us."
Yet the Japanese government currently struggles with multiple crises, including mass protests and terrorist attacks on the ancient capital and cultural center of Kyoto. Even as Japanese politicans retreat into hiding to avoid possible attacks on their persons, other afflicted nations, such as the United States with its hurricane-ravaged eastern seaboard and Thailand with its still-frozen gulf, demand immediate attention from scientists as the disasters' effects spread with devastating economic and human consequences. It is unlikely that investigation of the wormhole in Ise will be able to proceed immediately.
"What I can tell you," stated one scientist allowed to examine the site at Ise but who requested anonymity to speak on the subject, "is that the portal is growing."
Mysterious Metro City Reconstruction - Sun Sep 21 2014 (posted by: Duke)
Starling news emerge from the former site of Metro City, as construction has taken place at an alarming rate. Several nightclubs, casinos, and storefronts have been built almost overnight in the aftermath of the tsunami that consumed the city, and the lights that fill is evidence that the public works have returned to the city as well. Most noteworthy of the rapid reconstruction is the Capital 7, a prolific casino that was formerly on the outskirts of Metro City, and is now the centerpiece of the rapidly expanding urban zone. It is unknown who is behind this construction; it is currently speculated that the construction is being driven by the massive tower in the center of the new city, similar to the Geese Tower that existed before the disaster, with the difference being that it is both in the Neo-Classical architecture style, and significantly larger.
Refugees of the city have so far been forbidden from returning to the city by the US government. Evidence shows that many have bypassed the cordon around the city anyways to take advantage of the apparently free shelter and utilities. Despite this activity, no word has emerged yet on the nature of the city, nor the cause of the rapid rebuilding of the city.
Weird Vortex Scribblings Circulate - Wed Oct 1 2014 (posted by: Rust)
In news that would be simply put aside as more celebrity fighter nonsense were it not for the timing and location - or individual involved - renowned fighter Howard Rust reportedly breached the military barricades set up around the mysterious vortex that has formed around the Grand Ise Shrine in the newly-rechristened nation of Ezo.
No shots were reportedly fired, and no injuries recorded, though the atmosphere was reportedly "tense." His intent was soon revealed to be an attempt to study the vortex through observation and meditation, which he then recorded in pages on a notebook in statements that vary between English and Japanese.
Spanning roughly six pages, he likens the atmosphere and feelings to be reminiscent of that in the proximity of both Mt. Fuji's eruptions and Metro City's still-unnamed superstorm, whatever descriptors he has left being scattershot and even, based on the question marks, uncertain. Even so, he remains confident everything seems to lead up specifically to the vortex. Regardless, he had requested through this period that his findings be shared and distributed publically, which has been helped by the fledgling Ezo government.
"I'm... I'm not an expert at... uh, reading this," he admitted when he finally started to answer queries in wake of the strange decision to let himself within the security perimeter of the great vortex, "but, uh, when I did it, not... not a lot of people got a chance to really... look, given, ah... a lot of things, so I, I tried to put something together and say... uh, hey, can... can you all do something with this, if... if you can't come see it yourselves? 'Cause after just... bein' through a, a whole lot, just... the air of it, it's... well, it's what in I wrote."
Some corners of the social media landscape makes light of the presented information, with several parody edits already mistaken for the genuine article. Others further express frustration that someone is paying more attention to his thoughts on the matter with more weight than established experts in the field, with the credibility of the information strongly in question.
Nonetheless, if only in desperation for a lack of a better idea or lead, the military presence established around the growing vortex has started to set up outposts and stations at [LOCATIONS] for those who might be able to shed better light on Howard Rust's documentation - if any of it might present some sort of lead or clue - or otherwise help figure out how to at least get some sort of handle on the mysterious phenomenon now believed to be presently at the heart of the disasters that have plagued the world.
(OOC: This is more just a way to start getting people to gather in Japan for the finale, and/or some means to stumble towards people with their spheres... or, uh, to have people with spheres come on over. Maybe even have actual experts make fun of him.)
(Also OOC: This whole thing occupies a weird though still narrow time space before Honoka's assassination and Rolento's nuclear threat - who knows how the latter's resolving just yet, but, this is all setup to get everyone together.)
Paris Stands Empty - Mon Oct 6 2014 (posted by: Shion)
(You can thank Rust for this, because I am a lazy slacker.)
In ongoing coverage of the mysterious incidents that have ravaged planet Earth, the steady decline of the population of Paris, France that had begun shortly after - or even at the start of - the natural disasters that struck the United States, Thailand, and the Republic of Ezo appears to have come to its logical conclusion based on aerial surveillance conducted along the capital city of France.
"There is no one left in the streets," says a worried relative who reported having lost contact with a cousin who was native to Paris, "anyone who went to look for them never came back." Researchers and experts alike are baffled as to the nature of how this had all come to be, given there are no signs of forced entry or organized movement to remove people from the homes and streets of Paris. With no probable cause or explanation, the numbers continued to dwindle as time passed.
Now, weeks after the trouble began, with all available legal methods of attempting to find even a single human being walking the streets, it has been confirmed that no one is to be found even from satellite images... and no one has been answering phones, even with the essential structures for communication technology intact by all appearances.
"We'd take a closer look for anyone left, but no one knows where the people of Paris went... and few wish to risk finding out for themselves," says a speaker for the French government, "our thoughts and prayers are towards the affected families and we hope for their safe return."
Log created on 19:26:24 10/20/2014 by Honoka, and last modified on 19:32:49 10/20/2014.