City Roulette Prologue I: Operation Dawn

(Also disclaimer it does get violent and has strong language) ~Saturday November 31st, 2025 6:15 pm ~ The rain outside the glass-paneled headquarters distorted the Neon City skyline, painting streaks of pink and blue light across the conference room walls. The city glowed like a heart that never stopped beating — unaware that its pulse was about to be cut open. Eleven members of the Neon City Secret Service surrounded a holographic display table. Each flickering light represented a possible threat. Every red point pulsed like a countdown. Guy 1: “All intel streams converge on the same coordinates. It’s the central sector. The tourist district.” Guy 2: “That can’t be right. We’ve been guarding the upper sectors for months. There’s no chatter, no movement—” Mitsuru Yamato, silent until now, leaned forward, his reflection fractured in the blue holographic glow. Mitsuru: “That’s why it makes sense. Nobody expects an attack where security is tightest. Neon Plaza is a symbol. They’ll strike there to send a message.” A murmur of unease spread across the room. The rain outside intensified. Tojo Yumaki: “If we respond too early, we risk mass panic. The mayor’s office won’t greenlight an evacuation without absolute proof.” Guy 4: “Proof? What more do you need, Tojo? We’ve got chatter, movement patterns, spikes in encrypted frequencies—” Sheila cut in sharply, voice cold but trembling underneath. Sheila: “Speculation won’t save lives. If Mitsuru’s right, we’re staring at another Black Night incident. We can’t afford indecision again.” A heavy silence fell. The holographic map zoomed in, showing Neon City Plaza, the most vibrant and crowded part of the city — now painted with a red, blinking ring. Guy 5: “If this is real… the entire plaza could turn into a graveyard.” Guy 6: “Then what’s the play? Evacuate a million civilians? Deploy agents in daylight? We’d start the panic ourselves.” Mitsuru folded his arms, eyes narrowing. Mitsuru: “We either act now… or regret it later.” The debate spiraled. Voices overlapped, orders and theories crashing like waves. Tojo slammed his fist on the table. Tojo: “Enough! We’re supposed to protect this city, not tear each other apart!” The holographic lights flickered — static ran through the system. For a moment, the red dots multiplied, as if the city itself was bleeding through the screen. ~ 7:15pm ~ The rain outside hadn’t stopped — it only fell harder. Each drop against the glass synced with the flicker of the holographic map as the eleven agents continued to argue, their voices clashing over the hum of the servers. Guy 3: “We’re running out of time, Mitsuru! You can’t act on assumptions!” Mitsuru: “Then tell me what we can act on, huh? The city’s bleeding warnings and we’re pretending not to see it.” The room was heavy with tension. The monitors along the wall suddenly pulsed red. Lines of encrypted code streamed across one screen before auto-decoding into location data. The main display zoomed closer — the Neon City Plaza glowed brighter than before, and new signals appeared in the surrounding districts. Guy 1: “Wait— that’s new. What the hell is that?” Guy 6: “Cross-check it with Sector 9’s intel feed!” A robotic voice from the main monitor cut in cold and mechanical: “⚠️ Urgent Priority Signal Detected. Predicted Attack Window: Under Six Hours.” The room froze. Tojo Yumaki took a step back, disbelief written across his face. Tojo: “…Six hours? That’s not possible. We just received a seventy-two-hour projection this morning!” Sheila stood still, her sharp eyes glued to the map. The cold blue light reflected off her earpiece as she spoke. Sheila: “The timetable’s changed. Whoever’s planning this is accelerating. That means they know we’re watching.” Mitsuru exhaled slowly, his composure slipping for the first time. Mitsuru: “Then it’s a race. And we’re already behind.” Sheila turned toward the others, voice firm and controlled — the kind of authority that cut through panic. Sheila: “Listen up. We don’t have the manpower for a direct assault. If we try to intercept, we risk turning the city into a war zone. The only plan that makes sense now—” She tapped the screen. The city map expanded into color-coded zones. Sheila: “—is a peaceful evacuation. We clear out the civilians first, district by district, under the guise of a maintenance lockdown. Once the city’s empty, we engage the threat.” Guy 5: “Evacuate the city? That’s millions of people! That’s—” Sheila: “Possible if we control the flow of information. We do this quietly. No alarms, no broadcasts. A calm lie saves lives.” Tojo lowered his gaze. Tojo: “…You’re suggesting we manipulate the public.” Sheila: “I’m suggesting we protect them.” For a moment, the rain stopped — or maybe no one heard it anymore. Each agent stared at the glowing city model before them, red lights spreading like infection veins across the grid. Guy 11: “...Then it’s settled.” He looked to Sheila, the faintest trace of grim respect in his tone. Guy 11: “You lead the operation.” Sheila nodded once. Sheila: “Codenamed Silent Dawn. Begin immediate preparations. Every second counts.” The team dispersed, their footsteps echoing in the metallic hallways as monitors tracked their movement. But as the lights dimmed, a faint static glimmered across one of the screens — a ghost signal flickering for less than a second. ~7:45 pm~ The storm had not let up. Outside the headquarters, lightning rippled through the skyline, washing the glass towers of Neon City in fractured light. Inside, the Secret Service members gathered around the main table again, their faces pale in the dim blue glow of the monitors. The air felt heavier now — like even the oxygen was waiting for permission to move. Tojo Yumaki stood at the communications console, hands hovering over the secure line. Tojo: “…This is Tojo Yumaki of the Secret Service. Requesting an immediate connection to Mayor Jerald White.” Static filled the room, then a faint click. The mayor’s voice came through, filtered and distant, like he was speaking from another world. Mayor White: “This is White. What’s the situation?” Tojo: “Sir, new intel confirms an imminent large-scale attack targeting the Neon Plaza district. We’re projecting the civilian casualty rate to be catastrophic unless we move now.” Mayor White: “How long do we have?” Tojo: “…Less than six hours.” A long pause. The sound of rain against the glass filled the silence. Mayor White: “Then begin a phased evacuation. Quietly. No media. No public alert.” Sheila: “Already in motion, sir. We’ll monitor the evacuation from headquarters. Once the last sector is cleared, we’ll contain the threat directly.” Mayor White: “Good. Make sure it stays quiet. If panic spreads, we lose control.” Sheila: “Understood.” The line went dead. Tojo lowered the receiver, his reflection flickering across the monitor. Nobody spoke for several seconds. They didn’t need to — they all understood what that silence meant. The main wall of the room came alive as the surveillance feeds switched to live broadcast mode — dozens of panels showing every sector of the city. The holographic map dimmed, replaced by raw video feeds: streets drenched in neon rain, crowds moving slowly under the false announcement of a “maintenance lockdown.” Guy 4: “They’re actually doing it…” He whispered, voice caught somewhere between disbelief and guilt. On the screens, families shuffled through the avenues — parents holding umbrellas over children, travelers pulling luggage, workers abandoning the night shift in confusion. The city that never slept was finally quiet. Guy 2: “They don’t even know what’s really happening…” Sheila: “That’s the point.” Sheila’s voice was firm, but her eyes lingered on one of the smaller screens — a close-up of a mother holding her child, the child staring curiously up at the glowing skyscrapers as if it were all part of the show. Mitsuru Yamato stood near the back of the room, hands in his pockets, watching the monitors without a word. His expression was unreadable — too calm for someone who just ordered the evacuation of a city. Guy 1: “Do you think this will work?” Mitsuru: “It has to.” The storm roared outside. Lightning illuminated the conference room again — for just an instant, their reflections overlapped across the glass wall, eleven silhouettes watching the city fall silent. Guy 11: “All districts are reporting compliance. Civilians are exiting in an orderly fashion.” Guy 6: “Good. Once the lower districts are empty, we can start scanning for anomalous energy signatures.” Sheila’s gaze didn’t leave the screen. Sheila: “Keep your eyes on the Plaza feed. That’s where it’ll start.” The city lights flickered. A momentary static interference ran through every monitor — a pulse of white light like a camera flash. Guy 5: “What the—? Was that from the broadcast?” Guy 3: “Could be the weather. The storm’s messing with the signal.” But Sheila didn’t move. She stared harder, leaning forward as the image of the Neon Plaza feed slowly stabilized. And on the far right corner of the frame — for less than a second — something moved. A shadow that didn’t belong. Sheila (quietly): “…Rewind that feed.” The room obeyed. The screens flickered back three seconds. The feed replayed — civilians walking, neon rain falling — nothing unusual. Guy 4: “You’re seeing things.” Sheila: “Maybe.” Sheila stepped back, exhaling through her nose. Her hand brushed against the edge of the console, tightening unconsciously. Tojo: “Keep recording everything. If there’s even a trace of a false signal, I want it flagged.” Mitsuru: “We’re out of time for second guesses. Once the evacuation finishes, we go in.” No one replied. They just watched — eleven shadows standing before the glow of a dying city — as the rain outside slowly buried Neon City’s heartbeat under thunder and static. ~ 8:30 pm~ For a while, the storm sounded almost gentle. Rain whispered across the glass, thunder rolled far away, and on the wall of monitors the evacuation moved like a slow-motion dream. Neon umbrellas. Street vendors packing up their carts. The flicker of traffic lights. Everything about it felt… almost peaceful. Guy 6: “It’s working. No panic, no crowding.” Tojo: “Keep it that way until the lower sectors clear.” Sheila’s fingers danced across the keyboard, eyes darting from one screen to the next. Sector 5—green. Sector 6—green. The plaza—still crowded, but thinning out. Then one of the smaller feeds blinked. A brief flash of light. At first they thought it was lightning. Mitsuru: “Rewind that.” Before anyone could react, a blinding white bloom filled the center monitor. A shockwave of fire tore across the image— The camera buckled— The feed fractured into lines of static and color. An enormous explosion ripped through the residential district on the edge of the map. Guy 2: “That was… sector one… that’s—” Sheila: “The mayor’s residence.” The next image came from a street-level surveillance drone. Flames bloomed upward, swallowing the skyline. Debris rained down like comets. A twisted shape crashed through the smoke, landing hard on the hood of a car below— a man in a torn white suit, his badge glinting once before sliding away into the gutter. Tojo (hoarse): “No… Mayor White—” The body didn’t move. The quiet city dissolved in seconds. People screamed. Cars swerved. Alarms blared across every feed. Crowds that had been calm a moment ago erupted into chaos, scattering beneath the neon rain. Then, from another camera angle, new figures appeared— shadows in armored vests, rifles raised. The first muzzle flash flared bright enough to turn the entire plaza white. Guy 3: “What the hell—? Who’s firing?!” Guy 11: “Those are security units! They’re— they’re shooting civilians!” The monitors filled with horror: bodies collapsing under strobing streetlights, blood washing into puddles, screams cutting through the static. Feed after feed blinked red as signal loss warnings filled the air. Sheila: “Shut it down! Kill the feeds!” Mitsuru: “No—keep it on!” For a moment they could still hear it— the chaos, the shouts, the desperate cries echoing through the speakers. Then everything died to snow. A hiss of white noise swallowed the room. Eleven agents stood frozen before the flickering wall of static, their reflections ghosting in the glass— the last witnesses to Neon City’s peace. Tojo’s voice cracked the silence. Tojo: “…We just lost the mayor.” Sheila: “And the city.” The rain outside fell harder, drowning out the soft hum of failing machines. ~ 8:59 pm ~ The sound of rain was the only thing that proved time hadn’t stopped. No one spoke. No one moved. The smell of burnt circuitry filled the air — monitors flickering with lifeless static, the ghostly afterglow of the city’s last screams still echoing through the speakers. Tojo Yumaki finally broke the silence, his voice trembling through the haze. Tojo: “…Check the connections. I want every live feed re-established— now!” Guy 4: “Systems are fried— whatever hit the network came from inside.” Mitsuru: “Try rerouting through the west relay. I don’t care how, just get visuals back.” Sheila’s hands moved across the console, her expression rigid but her breathing uneven. Lines of code scrolled across the secondary display, each attempt ending in failure. Sheila: “Every route’s dead… it’s like someone locked us out.” Guy 2: “Locked us out of our own system?” Sheila: “No. Like they’re already in it.” A low hum began to build — faint at first, then rising into a distorted mechanical whine. The static on the central monitor warped, reshaping into distorted lines. A flicker of white light pulsed across the room. Guy 6: “…What the hell is that?” Guy 1: “We didn’t restart the feed—” The lights overhead dimmed. Every monitor on the wall rebooted on its own. Their controls froze; the keyboard shorted out with a hiss of smoke. A faint, digital voice echoed through the speakers. It wasn’t human. It wasn’t even consistent. It shifted pitch, gender, and tone with every word, as though reality itself couldn’t decide what it was. ???: “Good evening, Agents.” Every gun in the room was drawn instantly. No one fired. Tojo: “Identify yourself!” Mitsuru: “Trace it, now!” Sheila tried, but the trace data spun in circles. The feed refused to stabilize. The voice came from nowhere— and everywhere. ???: “You’ve done well. Truly. The evacuation was smooth. The casualties minimal— at least, for now.” Sheila: “…What are you talking about?” ???: “You’ve fulfilled your duty. And now… it’s time for the next stage.” The screens around the room flickered one by one, showing distorted images of the city — fire, sirens, crowds running in all directions. Then the view cut to black. Guy 3: “You son of a— who are you?!” ???: “Names are irrelevant in a world that’s ending. What matters is purpose. We are the architects of a new beginning.” Mitsuru stepped closer to the main screen, the light reflecting off his wet hair. Mitsuru: “A new beginning? You call this slaughter a beginning?” ???: “Every world needs a reset. You should be proud — you served well. But every service must come to an end.” A faint click echoed through the speakers — like a coin spinning across a table. The screens went dark again. Then a single phrase materialized across every monitor in bold white text: GAME OVER The agents froze, watching helplessly as more words appeared, typed out one by one in flickering red: The lights in the room cut out completely. The hum of the servers died. Only the rain remained — tapping softly against the glass like an audience applauding the end of the world. EXECUTION: ❈ 🎀 𝑔𝒶𝓈 𝒸𝒽𝒶𝓂𝒷𝑒𝓇, 𝐸𝓍𝒸𝓁𝒶𝒾𝓂𝑒𝓇 🎀 ❈ 11 members look at each other with confusion and fear. Most of the members faces turn pale as a ghost. With no hesitation blue gas comes pouring out of the vents and into the room. Most of the members covers their mouth and try to break down the door that leads to the hallway. Meanwhile guy 1,3,4,5, and 9 cough violently. The blue gas is more of a poision gas. Mitsuru, ToJo, Sheila, guy 6,2, and 11 manage to break down the doors and exit out to the hallway. But for the others...the poision already took them away, some of them threw up violently. There's no time to relax because the hallway vent blows out another gas, but this one is yellow. Tojo, Mitsuru, Sheila covers their mouth and make a run for it to the emergncy escape pods as for the others. The yellow gas isn't like the posion like the blue one. Instead Guy 2 and 11 began fighing violently at each other. Guy 11 breaks a chair leg and swings it around, guy 6 tries to break up the fight, but gets stabbed in the troat with a metal pipe from guy 2. Guy 2 and 6 continue with their brutal brawl. Guy 2 dies from blood lost from gettig hit with hard wood. Guy 6 dies from getting stabbed with a metal pipe to the stomach and blood loss. Mitsuru, Sheila, and Tojo manage to get to the escape pods, but somehow all of the escape pods look like it got tampered and exploded.....all except for one. ToJo: Why is there one! Their should be more!! While Mitsuru and Tojo are distracted, Sheila hits both of them in the head with a chair as orange gas pours out from the vents. Sheila gets into the escape pod and looks back at the two knocked out men. Sheila: I do believe the term is lady's first. Have fun dears. She closes the pod and escapes, what the men don't know is that Sheila was the one who sabotaged everything and gave the third party information about their plans on the evacuation and handlement on the next attack. Sheila sits comfortably in the pod as it moves. A note falls down on Sheila, she reads the note and her face goes pale. The pod explodes and roars with fire.....Sheila is no more. The note reads out " Dear Sheila, thank you for being the most useful member and want to partake in our new world....but what you don't know is that we were testing you. If you're not in the pod....then congratulations, you passed. The orange gas is only a knock out gas. But if you are in the pod.........then you're really a greedy bitch who only sees their own goal." ~ Prologue Ends~ Civilians: Heather Metal/ Ultimate VSCO Girl Kayegama Yoshe/Ultimate Freestyle rollerblader times_places Riko Hoyomisha/Ultimate Fencer paul Johnathan Coffee/Ultimate Barista Joshua Aruha Suguyama/ Ultimate violinist blue Arthur Smith/Ultimate male model Imprincearthur Jessie Kowalski/Ultimate Tarot Card reader Jessiekowalski Jake Belle/ Ultimate Scam Artist Will King/Ultimate Gamer Icebeast Mark Traverse/Ultimate Influencer evrtngbagel Mariah City/ Ultimate Livestreamer Myrtle Chang/Ultimate Swimmer stuartlittle16 Neely Pearl/ Ultimate Drag Queen Julian Merwin/ Ultimate male stripper Robert Finn/ Ultimate Technician Austin Sobriquet/Ultimate professor Sobriquet Chase Hallow/ Ultimate Mangaka Jackie Yamata/ Ultimate Pop Idol Emma Violet/ Ultimate Skateboarder Paulie Mae/ Ultimate Pottery Maker Seth Norway/ Ultimate Occultist Arthur Present/ Ultimate Knight Hue Trinity/ Ultimate Yo-yo Pro Paris Ross/ Ultimate Cat Lover Nicholas Sour/ Ultimate Candy Lover Pualie Louis/ Ultimate Seamstress