Hours after Calamity Zero….

There is nothing that can be the pure amount of tension that exists just after a disaster strikes. You don't know what happened, you don't know what to do next, you most likely don't even know what you're doing in the moment. All you do know is that something /will/ happen, and all you can do is sit back and watch.

Thankfully, for some miraculous reason, the lock that Kimiko's mother, Tomoya Minami, of the door that she had broken into was still intact and usable. Thus, the pair did not need to worry of anyone coming in.

Well, yet.

As such, Minami would whisper, some minutes after the last aftershock of falling objects ceased, to the ravenette girl.

"Shh, it's all over. You look tired, no? You should go to sleep~"

Of course, the little Kimiko couldn't help but obey, as the crisis left her emotionally exhausted. And within seconds, the little girl closed her eyes and drifted out of consciousness….

"Zzzzzz…"

"...Oh my child. I'll keep you safe…"

Minami would then lift Kimiko on a conveniently nearby bed, lay the child inside, and tuck her into bed. Her daughter would need the rest.

Now then, to search for whatever was inside here…

Minami would walk throughout the basement, finding whatever was hidden inside. In the basement, there wasn't much. Just a bed that Kimiko was currently occupying, a few extra sheets, a bathroom in the end, some medicine, a pistol, a dumbbell, batteries, a-

Wait, pistol, medicine, batteries?

She walked back to the drawer she had missed and looked back inside. An M1911. Taking the pistol into her hands, Minami examined it. It seemed in working condition, but it wasn't loaded. The ammunition must be somewhere else.

Wait, why was she taking this? Come on, world hasn't fallen to pieces just yet. Still though, Calamity did happen, so there's no telling what would be the aftermath.

The ammunition for the M1911 was not even a drawer away. 50 bullets, and two empty magazines of 7.

'I have to protect Kimiko. Nothing else to it.'

As such, the woman loaded two cartridges, then put the rest of the ammo into the drawer. She loaded one clip into the 1911 with a sharp click, and she pocketed the other clip in her front pocket. To holster it, she would place the weapon in her back pocket and hide the weapon with her baggy jacket.

'Time to search for more of whatever this place ha-'

[ATTENTION, ATTENTION! ALL THOSE AFFECTED BY THE RECENT DISASTER, AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT IS TO BE MADE!]

Something on the loudspeaker was blaring outside, so Minami headed to the door, before stopping to look at Kimiko...still sleeping? Even with the loud blaring of the previous announcement. Not only that, but there was the loud movement of air that seemed to be the source of a...helicopter? Yes, that was it. It must be. And yet, Kimiko was still asleep? If so...then Minami would not interrupt her.

'Yes, continue resting, Kimiko. I won't be gone for long.'

With opening the door, Minami saw all the destruction that laid before her. A mile away on her right, she saw...lifelessness. Cataclysm. Endless brown of the Earth, laid bare and barren, with no evidence of the vibrant life that existed. Didn't in that distance did Kimiko's father told him to wai-

Of course, he must've gotten caught in the blast. No, there was no way he could've survived that. But, the time to mourn for him would be later.

Amidst the central street, where there were still some large objects still littered among the land, a large group of people were looking up into the sky, where a military helicopter was flying above. Every person in the street was either bleeding or dilapidated, likely from dodging death itself falling from the sky and just barely making it out alive. Their faces, though...even though most of them looked pale from previous despair, they were now brightened from this perceived salvation.

"HEY!" One of the people on the ground began to speak. "WHY IS THE EXIT TO THIS CITY BLOCKADED?! WE ALL WANT TO GET TO SAFETY!"

This started a massive uproar among the crowd, as others had begun to shout at the helicopter, coercing whoever was inside for an answer. To which the helicopter responded by using its loudspeaker to yell…

[SILENCE! Now listen and cooperate to what the People's Liberation Army has to say to you. We want to help you, but you have to listen!]

"Oh yeah? What if we don't want to list-"

BANG!

A sniper shot resounded throughout the air, and the offending male that spoke was shot in the head. This caused massive panic amidst the crowd, including Minami who was on the outside of the crowd. Though...no one moved. Everyone remained frozen, in fear. Paralyzed, unable to do anything else…

[Any others? Anyone, and I mean ANYONE that does not cooperate with us. WILL. BE. SHOT. Now then, stay quiet, or you will follow that man's poor fate.

This city, and others on the outside of this catastrophic event, has been placed under martial law until the situation is considered defused and order can be restored. We will be dropping supplies such as food, clothing, and medicine at the market at the center of town weekly. Any attempts to disrupt in such an activity will result in execution.

Curfew from now on will be from 8 AM till 10 PM. If anyone is found outside during this time, they will be summarily shot.

Anyone suspected for doing treasonous or defective behavior will be warned once, then shot on sight.

Any attempt to escape the city will be seen as an act of aggression, and will be treated accordingly.

Hiding illegal personnel or cargo at anytime will also be seen as an act of aggression.

Remember, citizens, this is all to protect you and your safety while we work to defuse and recover from this calamity. That is all we are trying to do.]

Silence would resound, as the helicopter continued to roar, and the message it gave hung heavily in the air. It would then be broken by one person…

"BULLSHIT"

A young female teenager, of blonde hair and purple eyes, would stare defiantly into the helicopter's cockpit and point towards the helicopter.

"What you're describing is not going to 'protect' us. What you're describing is tyranny of the highest, fucking level. You're going to shoot us all down, like animals in a cage, unless we all act like inhuman machines. You can't do that to us, not when we lost so much in this disaster. Do you /understand/ what we're going through? We lost our homes, we lost our friends, WE LOST OUR FAMILY, AND NOW YOU'RE JUST GOING TO IGNORE THAT BY SHOOTING ANY THREAT THAT COMES IN YOUR WAY?!"

The blonde would then turn around from the helicopter and put one fist up into the air. "If ANYONE ELSE thinks what these….'Liberators' are doing to us is wrong, then join me! If you join me, we will gain new order here in this hell. We'll drive these cretins out if they don't change their ways. It'll be called...Invictus! Yes, Invictus!"

The air would then grow deathly silent. Even the helicopter's rotating blades seemed to have dulled in their auditory magnitude.

[Command, what should we do?]

{Kill her, by any means necessary.}

...The sound of a minigun spooling….

"RUN!"

The tail rotor….if that were to be taken out, then...surely…

Minami did not even realize what she was doing until the motions played themselves out. In an instant, the 1911 was in her hands, and with two shots aimed at the tail rotor, the helicopter that began to spool...was now starting to spin.

[MAYDAY, MAYDAY! WE ARE GOING DOWN IN SECTOR H-2-7! REQUESTING BACK-]

As the chopper spun out of control, the minigun that had started to fire missed its mark, now shooting sporadically, hitting the tops of buildings and sometimes sweeping the streets, killing those unfortunately in the way. Into ribbons…..mutilated, cut-up, humanoid ribbons, with crimson pouring from their bodies…

The helicopter would finally crash into a rather tall building, causing the chopper to explode and the building to fall backwards, causing a rather great noise and shake. In the meanwhile, loud sniper shots could be heard, shooting in the direction of the blonde that had spoken earlier.

Though, even though the shots were aimed at her, there were those that would...act as human shield, protecting the proclaimed 'savior' and leader of an organization named...Invictus from harm. The blonde would then disappear through an alleyway, way out of sightline for the faraway sniper.

Minami, in the meanwhile, would take a moment to realize what she had done and then hurry back to the basement.

'KIMIKO! I have to get to her!'

Fortunately, the sniper was occupied on other people, shooting them down with a swift shot to the head. Thus, Minami was able to reach the door to the basement unharmed. Locking the door behind her, she saw Kimiko on the bed, hugging the pillow with tears in her eyes.

"Mommy! MOMMY! WHERE WERE YOU?! I'M SO SCARED! WHAT'S HAPPENING?!"

"Shh, shh! Mommy's here, mommy's here! Now come on, come with me. We can't stay here. We have to find somewhere else to rest. This place has gotten far too dangerous, so you need to stay with me. At, all times. Got it, Kimiko?"

With a mumble of a 'uh-huh', the ravenette girl would follow her mother, who was currently gathering supplies. The extra ammunition, medicine, flashlight, batteries...it would make do. Putting them all into a rather intact backpack, Minami would grab Kimiko into her arms and make it out the back way, to somehow find a way now in this human-created hell….