She was preparing to head to the airport in her hotel room when the rumbling began. Queen Elizabeth had radioed her earlier that evening, instructing her to prepare for their arrival the next morning. And like a good maid she had prepared a long time beforehand, preparing her outfit immaculately to receive her ruler and reducing her rigging to a single turret that fitted easily in a suitcase.

She was about to finish packing and change into her pyjamas when the entire building moved under her, knocking her night-light to the floor and sending the bed flying across the room.

Sheffield grabbed her suitcase and leapt nimbly, avoiding the sliding furniture, and landed silently. Crouched over, she coiled her body like a spring, listening for the slightest sound that might betray what might happen next.

The sound she was waiting for was anything but slight though, as the superstructure of the building groaned, metal screeching as it was bent and twisted. Then the floor under her feet cracked, and only her years of training in the choppy North Sea saved Sheffield as she leapt from the crumbling structure, running for the window.

Just as Sheffield burst through the window, swinging her rigging-suitcase to break the glass, the entire building came away, cascading downwards into a thousand fragments. Sheffield slipped, tripped and plummeted fifteen metres to the ground.

The maid landed square on her feet, cracking the asphalt road where she impacted and wincing as her legs flared with pain at the shock of being dropped from eight stories high.

What's going on?

Sheffield looked up and saw a world on fire. There was not a single whole building in her vision, rubble and smoke carpeting all of Wilhelmshaven. She heard an electric twang and leapt aside instinctively, just as a power line whipsawed down into the position she was standing in just scant moments ago, slamming into the ground and discharging a shower of bright blue sparks.

The night horizon was dyed red and orange with hues of flame, the screams of civilians and the whine of ambulance sirens already beginning to permeate the air. The ground continued rumbling, causing Sheffield to stagger from side to side as she sought footholds that would simply crumble away as soon as she stepped on them.

Airport—have to get to the airport—

She ran through the streets of Wilhelmshaven, footsteps spattering on the pavements wet with water from broken water pipes. The stench of cooking meat rose from several burning buildings, tickling the light cruiser's nose.

So much like the smell at the kitchens at home.

She wrinkled her brow as something exploded in the distance.

I must find the airport. I need to tell the queen-

She stumbled into a narrow alley, untouched by the fire. Ripping out the portable radio she carried in the suitcase, Sheffield quickly set it up on the floor, trying to dial an accurate tone on the vibrating ground.

"Hello?"

"My queen."

"Oh, it's you, Sheff."

"Wilhelmshaven is in the throes of a massive earthquake. I believe that the airport will be compromised. I advise you to land outside the city."

"What the-"

Sheffield didn't hear anything else as she cut off the call abruptly and shoved the radio set haphazardly back into place. Picking up the suitcase, the light cruiser continued running.

I need to find out something, something to tell us what's going on here-

"Sir?"

A man stood in a puddle of water, his back arched at an odd angle.

"Sir, are you okay?"

Sheffield approached the strange standing man.

"Sir, can you hear me?"

Sheffield reached a hand out to grab the man's shoulder, throwing up a shower of sparks as soon as her hand made contact.

"Ah!"

She drew back her hand immediately, noting that it was numb and tingling. Now that she was next to him, she could see that he was standing in a pool of sizzling water, his eyes glassy and unfocused and his chest rigid. Smoke was slowly rising from his body, and an acrid tang permeated Sheffield's nose.

Electrocution.

"Fraulein!"

Sheffield whipped her head around to see a police officer running towards her.

"Fraulein, you cannot be here-"

Ah.

Sheffield broke and ran.

"Fraulein, come back! It is dangerous! Civilians are to enter the shelters at once!"

The entire city continued to shake to its roots, dislodging signs from building and sending them screaming down to the ground, throwing up huge fountains of orange sparks. The police officer was fast, but the KAN-SEN was faster, and sooner or later his voice was lost amidst the cacophony of crackling flames and sizzling electricity. She sped past huge flaming effigies of houses, power lines contracting from the heat and writhing over the reddened background like hellish snakes. Huge, blackened cross-beams smouldered on the roads before being consumed by the ravenous flames

As Sheffield ran, she could see fire engines and wailing ambulances speed past. Following behind them was a column of odd green-looking trucks, bristling with what appeared to be rocket launchers on their backs and nearly totally plated with thick, angled armor. On their doors were emblazoned the Iron Cross of the Wehrmacht.

Armored combat vehicles from the army? During a natural disaster?

Just what is happening here?

The ambulances turned off two at a time into side roads, following the fire engines, but the convoy of weapon-laden juggernauts continued blithely on their course, speeding towards the centre of Wilhelmshaven, heading straight for the looming silhouette of the War Memorial.