#preparing for cyberattack

[romerona]

Ethera Operation!!

You're the government’s best hacker, but that doesn’t mean you were prepared to be thrown into a fighter jet.

Bradley "Rooster" Bradshaw x Awkward!Hacker! FemReader

Part I

This was never supposed to happen. Your role in this operation was simple—deliver the program, ensure it reached the right hands, and let the professionals handle the breaching.

And then, of course, reality decided to light that plan on fire.

The program—codenamed Ethera—was yours. You built it from scratch with encryption so advanced that even the most elite cyber operatives couldn’t crack it without your input. A next-generation adaptive, self-learning decryption software, an intrusion system designed to override and manipulate high-security military networks, Ethera was intended to be both a weapon and a shield, capable of infiltrating enemy systems while protecting your own from counterattacks in real-time. A ghost in the machine. A digital predator. A weapon in the form of pure code. If it fell into the wrong hands, it could disable fleets, and ground aircraft, and turn classified intelligence into an open book. Governments would kill for it. Nations could fall because of it.

Not that you ever meant to, of course. It started as a little experimental security measure program, something to protect high-level data from cyberattacks, not become the ultimate hacking tool. But innovation has a funny way of attracting the wrong kind of attention, and before you knew it, Ethera had become one, if not the most classified, high-risk program in modern times. Tier One asset or so the Secret Service called it.

It was too powerful, too dangerous—so secret that only a select few even knew of its existence, and even fewer could comprehend how it worked.

And therein lay the problem. You were the only person who could properly operate it.

Which was so unfair.

Because it wasn’t supposed to be your problem. You were just the creator, the brain behind the code, the one who spent way too many sleepless nights debugging this monstrosity. Your job was supposed to end at development. But no. Now, because of some bureaucratic nonsense and the fact that no one else could run it without accidentally bricking an entire system, you had been promoted—scratch that, forcibly conscripted—into field duty.

And your mission? To install it in an enemy satellite.

A literal, orbiting, high-security, military-grade satellite, may you add.

God. Why? Why was your country always at war with others? Why couldn’t world leaders just, you know, go to therapy like normal people? Why did everything have to escalate to international cyber warfare?

Which is how you ended up here.

At Top Gun. The last place in the world you wanted to be.

You weren’t built for this. You thrive in sipping coffee in a cosy little office and handling cyber threats from a safe, grounded location. You weren’t meant to be standing in the halls of an elite fighter pilot training program, surrounded by the best aviators in the world—people who thought breaking the sound barrier was a casual Wednesday.

It wasn’t the high-tech cyberwarfare department of the Pentagon, nor some dimly lit black ops facility where hackers in hoodies clacked away at keyboards. No. It was Top Gun. A place where pilots use G-forces like a personal amusement park ride.

You weren’t a soldier, you weren’t a spy, you got queasy in elevators, you got dizzy when you stood too fast, hell, you weren’t even good at keeping your phone screen from cracking.

... And now you were sweating.

You swallowed hard as Admiral Solomon "Warlock" Bates led you through the halls of the naval base, your heels clacking on the polished floors as you wiped your forehead. You're nervous, too damn nervous and this damned weather did not help.

"Relax, Miss," Warlock muttered in that calm, authoritative way of his. "They're just pilots."

Just pilots.

Right. And a nuclear warhead was just a firework.

And now, somehow, you were supposed to explain—loosely explain, because God help you, the full details were above even their clearance level—how Ethera, your elegant, lethal, unstoppable digital masterpiece, was about to be injected into an enemy satellite as part of a classified mission.

This was going to be a disaster.

You had barely made it through the doors of the briefing room when you felt it—every single eye in the room locking onto you.

It wasn’t just the number of them that got you, it was the intensity. These were Top Gun pilots, the best of the best, and they radiated the kind of confidence you could only dream of having. Meanwhile, you felt like a stray kitten wandering into a lion’s den.

Your hands tightened around the tablet clutched to your chest. It was your lifeline, holding every critical detail of Ethera, the program that had dragged you into this utterly ridiculous situation. If you could’ve melted into the walls, you absolutely would have. But there was no escaping this.

You just had to keep it together long enough to survive this briefing.

So, you inhaled deeply, squared your shoulders, and forced your heels forward, trying to project confidence—chin up, back straight, eyes locked onto Vice Admiral Beau "Cyclone" Simpson, who you’d been introduced to earlier that day.

And then, of course, you dropped the damn tablet.

Not a graceful drop. Not the kind of gentle slip where you could scoop it back up and act like nothing happened. No, this was a full-on, physics-defying fumble. The tablet flipped out of your arms, ricocheted off your knee, and skidded across the floor to the feet of one of the pilots.

Silence.

Pure, excruciating silence.

You didn’t even have the nerve to look up right away, too busy contemplating whether it was physically possible to disintegrate on command. But when you finally did glance up—because, you know, social convention demanded it—you were met with a sight that somehow made this entire disaster worse.

Because the person crouching down to pick up your poor, abused tablet was freaking hot.

Tall, broad-shouldered, with a head of golden curls that practically begged to be tousled by the wind, and, oh, yeah—a moustache that somehow worked way too well on him.

He turned the tablet over in his hands, inspecting it with an amused little smirk before handing it over to you. "You, uh… need this?"

Oh, great. His voice is hot too.

You grabbed it back, praying he couldn't see how your hands were shaking. “Nope. Just thought I’d test gravity real quick.”

A few chuckles rippled through the room, and his smirk deepened like he was enjoying this way too much. You, on the other hand, wanted to launch yourself into the sun.

With what little dignity you had left, you forced a quick, tight-lipped smile at him before turning on your heel and continuing forward, clutching your tablet like it was a life raft in the middle of the worst social shipwreck imaginable.

At the front of the room, Vice Admiral Beau Cyclone Simpson stood with the kind of posture that said he had zero time for nonsense, waiting for the room to settle. You barely had time to take a deep breath before his voice cut through the air.

“Alright, listen up.” His tone was crisp, commanding, and impossible to ignore. “This is Dr Y/N L/N. Everything she is about to tell you is highly classified. What you hear in this briefing does not leave this room. Understood?”

A chorus of nods. "Yes, sir."

You barely resisted the urge to physically cringe as every pilot in the room turned to stare at you—some with confusion, others with barely concealed amusement, and a few with the sharp assessing glances of people who had no clue what they were supposed to do with you.

You cleared your throat, squared your shoulders, and did your best to channel even an ounce of the confidence you usually had when you were coding at 3 AM in a secure, pilot-free lab—where the only judgment you faced was from coffee cups and the occasional system error.

As you reached the podium, you forced what you hoped was a composed smile. “Uh… hi, nice to meet you all.”

Solid. Real professional.

You glanced up just long enough to take in the mix of expressions in the room—some mildly interested, some unreadable, and one particular moustached pilot who still had the faintest trace of amusement on his face.

Nope. Not looking at him.

You exhaled slowly, centering yourself. Stay focused. Stay professional. You weren’t just here because of Ethera—you were Ethera. The only one who truly understood it. The only one who could execute this mission.

With another tap on your tablet, the slide shifted to a blacked-out, redacted briefing—only the necessary information was visible. A sleek 3D-rendered model of the enemy satellite appeared on the screen, rotating slowly. Most of its details were blurred or omitted entirely.

“This is Blackstar, a highly classified enemy satellite that has been operating in a low-Earth orbit over restricted airspace.” Your voice remained even, and steady, but the weight of what you were revealing sent a shiver down your spine. “Its existence has remained off the radar—literally and figuratively—until recently, when intelligence confirmed that it has been intercepting our encrypted communications, rerouting information, altering intelligence, and in some cases—fabricating entire communications.”

Someone exhaled sharply. Another shifted in their seat.

“So they’re feeding us bad intel?” one of them with big glasses and blonde hair asked, voice sceptical but sharp.

“That’s the theory,” you confirmed. “And given how quickly our ops have been compromised recently, it’s working.”

You tapped again, shifting to the next slide. The silent infiltration diagram appeared—an intricate web of glowing red lines showing Etherea’s integration process, slowly wrapping around the satellite’s systems like a virus embedding itself into a host.

“This is where Ethera comes in,” you said, shifting to a slide that displayed a cascading string of code, flickering across the screen. “Unlike traditional cyberweapons, Ethera doesn’t just break into a system. It integrates—restructuring security protocols as if it was always meant to be there. It’s undetectable, untraceable, and once inside, it grants us complete control of the Blackstar and won’t even register it as a breach.”

“So we’re not just hacking it," The only female pilot of the team said, arms crossed as she studied the data. “We’re hijacking it.”

“Exactly,” You nodded with a grin.

You switched to the next slide—a detailed radar map displaying the satellite’s location over international waters.

“This is the target area,” you continued after a deep breath. “It’s flying low-altitude reconnaissance patterns, which means it’s using ground relays for some of its communication. That gives us a small window to infiltrate and shut it down.”

The next slide appeared—a pair of unidentified fighter aircraft, patrolling the vicinity.

“And this is the problem,” you said grimly. “This satellite isn’t unguarded.”

A murmur rippled through the room as the pilots took in the fifth-generation stealth fighters displayed on the screen.

“We don’t know who they belong to,” you admitted. “What we do know is that they’re operating with highly classified tech—possibly experimental—and have been seen running defence patterns around the satellite’s flight path.”

Cyclone stepped forward then, arms crossed, his voice sharp and authoritative. “Which means your job is twofold. You will escort Dr L/N’s aircraft to the infiltration zone, ensuring Ethera is successfully deployed. If we are engaged, your priority remains protecting the package and ensuring a safe return.”

Oh, fantastic, you could not only feel your heartbeat in your toes, you were now officially the package.

You cleared your throat, tapping the screen again. Ethera’s interface expanded, displaying a cascade of sleek code.

“Once I’m in range,” you continued, “Ethera will lock onto the satellite’s frequency and begin infiltration. From that point, it’ll take approximately fifty-eight seconds to bypass security and assume control."

Silence settled over the room like a thick cloud, the weight of their stares pressing down on you. You could feel them analyzing, calculating, probably questioning who in their right mind thought putting you—a hacker, a tech specialist, someone whose idea of adrenaline was passing cars on the highway—into a fighter jet was a good idea.

Finally, one of the pilots—tall, broad-shouldered, blonde, and very clearly one of the cocky ones—tilted his head, arms crossed over his chest in a way that screamed too much confidence.

“So, let me get this straight.” His voice was smooth, and confident, with just the right amount of teasing. “You, Doctor—our very classified, very important tech specialist—have to be in the air, in a plane, during a mission that has a high probability of turning into a dogfight… just so you can press a button?”

Your stomach twisted at the mention of being airborne.

“Well…” You gulped, very much aware of how absolutely insane this sounded when put like that. “It’s… more than just that, but, yeah, essentially.”

A slow grin spread across his face, far too entertained by your predicament.

“Oh,” he drawled, “this is gonna be fun.”

Before you could fully process how much you already hated this, Cyclone—who had been watching the exchange with his signature unamused glare—stepped forward, cutting through the tension with his sharp, no-nonsense voice.

“This is a classified operation,” he stated, sharp and authoritative. “Not a joyride.”

The blonde’s smirk faded slightly as he straightened, and the rest of the pilots quickly fell in line.

Silence lingered for a moment longer before Vice Admiral Beau Cyclone Simpson let out a slow breath and straightened. His sharp gaze swept over the room before he nodded once.

“All right. That’s enough.” His tone was firm, the kind that left no room for argument. “We’ve got work to do. The mission will take place in a few weeks' time, once we’ve run full assessments, completed necessary preparations, and designated a lead for this operation.”

There was a slight shift in the room. Some of the pilots exchanged glances, the weight of the upcoming mission finally settling in. Others, mainly the cocky ones, looked as though they were already imagining themselves in the cockpit.

“Dismissed,” Cyclone finished.

The pilots stood, murmuring amongst themselves as they filed out of the room, the blonde one still wearing a smug grin as he passed you making you frown and turn away, your gaze then briefly met the eyes of the moustached pilot.

You hadn’t meant to look, but the moment your eyes connected, something flickered in his expression. Amusement? Curiosity? You weren’t sure, and frankly, you didn’t want to know.

So you did the only logical thing and immediately looked away and turned to gather your things. You needed to get out of here, to find some space to breathe before your brain short-circuited from stress—

“Doctor, Stay for a moment.”

You tightened your grip on your tablet and turned back to Cyclone, who was watching you with that unreadable, vaguely disapproving expression that all high-ranking officers seemed to have perfected. “Uh… yes, sir?”

Once the last pilot was out the door, Cyclone exhaled sharply and crossed his arms.

“You realize,” he said, “that you’re going to have to actually fly, correct?”

You swallowed. “I—well, technically, I’ll just be a passenger.”

His stare didn’t waver.

“Doctor,” he said, tone flat, “I’ve read your file. I know you requested to be driven here instead of taking a military transport plane. You also took a ferry across the bay instead of a helicopter. And I know that you chose to work remotely for three years to avoid getting on a plane.”

You felt heat rise to your cheeks. “That… could mean anything.”

“It means you do not like flying, am I correct?”

Your fingers tightened around the tablet as you tried to find a way—any way—out of this. “Sir, with all due respect, I don’t need to fly the plane. I just need to be in it long enough to deploy Ethera—”

Cyclone cut you off with a sharp look. “And what happens if something goes wrong, Doctor? If the aircraft takes damage? If you have to eject mid-flight? If you lose comms and have to rely on emergency protocols?”

You swallowed hard, your stomach twisting at the very thought of ejecting from a jet.

Cyclone sighed, rubbing his temple as if this entire conversation was giving him a migraine. “We cannot afford to have you panicking mid-mission. If this is going to work, you need to be prepared. That’s why, starting next week you will train with the pilots on aerial procedures and undergoing mandatory training in our flight simulation program.”

Your stomach dropped. “I—wait, what? That’s not necessary—”

“It’s absolutely necessary,” Cyclone cut in, his tone sharp. “If you can’t handle a simulated flight, you become a liability���not just to yourself, but to the pilots escorting you. And in case I need to remind you, Doctor, this mission is classified at the highest level. If you panic mid-air, it won’t just be your life at risk. It’ll be theirs. And it’ll be national security at stake.”

You inhaled sharply. No pressure. None at all.

Cyclone watched you for a moment before speaking again, his tone slightly softer but still firm. “You’re the only one who can do this, Doctor. That means you need to be ready.”

You exhaled slowly, pressing your lips together before nodding stiffly. “Understood, sir.”

Cyclone gave a small nod of approval. “Good. Dismissed.”

You turned and walked out, shoulders tense, fully aware that in three days' time, you were going to be strapped into a high-speed, fighter jet. And knowing your luck?

You were definitely going to puke.

Part 2???

[reality-detective]

BREAKING! TRUMP HAS SIGNED GESARA – MASS ARRESTS ARE HAPPENING, THE IRS IS GONE, FEDERAL RESERVE COLLAPSING, AND QFS IS ONLINE!

The illusion is shattered. The world is shifting. President Donald J. Trump is back, and the Deep State’s final hour has arrived.

The corrupt financial system is crumbling. The Federal Reserve is collapsing, the IMF and World Bank are scrambling. Global elites are in hiding, knowing their time is up. This is not just a movement—this is the complete dismantling of the shadow empire that enslaved the world for centuries.

On March 4, 2025, Trump signed GESARA into law, marking the beginning of the greatest financial and political shift in modern history. This was never about an election—this was a military operation decades in the making!

THE DEEP STATE’S FINANCIAL CONTROL IS OVER!

For generations, the elites hoarded wealth, rigging banking, stock markets, and tax structures to enslave the masses. That system is now being dismantled in real-time!

🔴 Debt Forgiveness is Happening Now: Illegitimate loans, mortgages, and credit card debts are being wiped clean. The banking elites trapped people in fake debt—GESARA ENDS IT.

🔴 Federal Reserve’s Final Days: Absorbed into the U.S. Treasury, under Trump’s direct control. The private banking cartel that dictated U.S. monetary policy since 1913 is DONE!

🔴 Trillions Seized from Globalist Elites: Offshore accounts, trust funds, and gold reserves hoarded by the cabal are being taken back for THE PEOPLE.

🔴 IRS ABOLISHED: The corrupt tax system that funneled wealth to elites is OVER. No more income tax—only a fair, flat tax on non-essential goods!

🔴 The Deep State’s Global Financial Empire is COLLAPSING: The IMF, World Bank, and private banking cartels are finished. Nations enslaved through predatory lending are breaking free.

MASS ARRESTS HAVE BEGUN – THE MEDIA IS SILENT!

High-profile bankers, CEOs, and corrupt politicians are being rounded up and facing military tribunals. The media refuses to report it, but the world is changing!

🔴 The Quantum Financial System (QFS) is ONLINE! Every transaction is secure, transparent, and untouchable by the elites. The old system is DEAD.

🔴 THE FINAL DEEP STATE ATTACKS ARE FAILING! The globalists are desperately crashing markets, funding cyberattacks, and pushing media fear campaigns. IT WON’T WORK.

TRUMP’S FINAL ANNOUNCEMENT IS COMING – THE FINANCIAL RESET IS HERE!

In a classified briefing, Trump told his closest advisors:

"The people are ready. The world is ready. The financial stranglehold is over. We are taking back what is ours. The greatest wealth transfer in history is about to begin."

Prepare. NESARA/GESARA is here.

The Deep State is out of time. 🤔

[mariacallous]

I stopped using my cellphone for regular calls and text messages last fall and switched to Signal. I wasn’t being paranoid—or at least I don’t think I was. I worked in the National Security Council, and we were told that China had compromised all major U.S. telecommunications companies and burrowed deep inside their networks. Beijing had gathered information on more than a million Americans, mainly in the Washington, D.C., area. The Chinese government could listen in to phone calls and read text messages. Experts call the Chinese state-backed group responsible Salt Typhoon, and the vulnerabilities it exploited have not been fixed. China is still there.

Telecommunications systems aren’t the only ones compromised. China has accessed enormous quantities of data on Americans for more than a decade. It has hacked into health-insurance companies and hotel chains, as well as security-clearance information held by the Office of Personnel Management.

The jaded response here is All countries spy. So what? But the spectacular surprise attacks that Ukraine and Israel have pulled off against their enemies suggest just how serious such penetration can become. In Operation Spiderweb, Ukraine smuggled attack drones on trucks with unwitting drivers deep inside of Russia, and then used artificial intelligence to simultaneously attack four military bases and destroy a significant number of strategic bombers, which are part of Russia’s nuclear triad. Israel created a real pager-production company in Hungary to infiltrate Hezbollah’s global supply chains and booby-trap its communication devices, killing or maiming much of the group’s leadership in one go. Last week, in Operation Rising Lion, Israel assassinated many top Iranian military leaders simultaneously and attacked the country’s nuclear facilities, thanks in part to a drone base it built inside Iran.

In each case, a resourceful, determined, and imaginative state used new technologies and data to do what was hitherto deemed impossible. America’s adversaries are also resourceful, determined, and imaginative.

Just think about what might happen if a U.S.-China war broke out over Taiwan.

A Chinese state-backed group called Volt Typhoon has been preparing plans to attack crucial infrastructure in the United States should the two countries ever be at war. As Jen Easterly put it in 2024 when she was head of the Cyber and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), China is planning to “launch destructive cyber-attacks in the event of a major crisis or conflict with the United States,” including “the disruption of our gas pipelines; the pollution of our water facilities; the severing of our telecommunications; the crippling of our transportation systems.”

The Biden administration took measures to fight off these cyberattacks and harden the infrastructure. Joe Biden also imposed some sanctions on China and took some specific measures to limit America’s exposure; he cut off imports of Chinese electric vehicles because of national-security concerns. Biden additionally signed a bill to ban TikTok, but President Donald Trump has issued rolling extensions to keep the platform functioning in the U.S. America and its allies will need to think hard about where to draw the line in the era of the Internet of Things, which connects nearly everything and could allow much of it—including robots, drones, and cloud computing—to be weaponized.

China isn’t the only problem. According to the U.S. Intelligence Community’s Annual Threat Assessment for this year, Russia is developing a new device to detonate a nuclear weapon in space with potentially “devastating” consequences. A Pentagon official last year said the weapon could  pose “a threat to satellites operated by countries and companies around the globe, as well as to the vital communications, scientific, meteorological, agricultural, commercial, and national security services we all depend upon. Make no mistake, even if detonating a nuclear weapon in space does not directly kill people, the indirect impact could be catastrophic to the entire world.” The device could also render Trump’s proposed “Golden Dome” missile shield largely ineffective.

Americans can expect a major adversary to use drones and AI to go after targets deep inside the United States or allied countries. There is no reason to believe that an enemy wouldn’t take a page out of the Israeli playbook and go after leadership. New technologies reward acting preemptively, catching the adversary by surprise—so the United States may not get much notice. A determined adversary could even cut the undersea cables that allow the internet to function. Last year, vessels linked to Russia and China appeared to have severed those cables in Europe on a number of occasions, supposedly by accident. In a concerted hostile action, Moscow could cut or destroy these cables at scale.

Terrorist groups are less capable than state actors—they are unlikely to destroy most of the civilian satellites in space, for example, or collapse essential infrastructure—but new technologies could expand their reach too. In their book The Coming Wave, Mustafa Suleyman and Michael Bhaskar described some potential attacks that terrorists could undertake: unleashing hundreds or thousands of drones equipped with automatic weapons and facial recognition on multiple cities simultaneously, say, or even one drone to spray a lethal pathogen on a crowd.

A good deal of American infrastructure is owned by private companies with little incentive to undertake the difficult and costly fixes that might defend against Chinese infiltration. Certainly this is true of telecommunications companies, as well as those providing utilities such as water and electricity. Making American systems resilient could require a major public outlay. But it could cost less than the $150 billion (one estimate has that figure at an eye-popping $185 billion) that the House of Representatives is proposing to appropriate this year to strictly enforce immigration law.

Instead, the Trump administration proposed slashing funding for CISA, the agency responsible for protecting much of our infrastructure against foreign attacks, by $495 million, or approximately 20 percent of its budget. That cut will make the United States more vulnerable to attack.

The response to the drone threat has been no better. Some in Congress have tried to pass legislation expanding government authority to detect and destroy drones over certain kinds of locations, but the most recent effort failed. Senator Rand Paul, who was then the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and is now the chair, said there was no imminent threat and warned against giving the government sweeping surveillance powers, although the legislation entailed nothing of the sort. Senators from both parties have resisted other legislative measures to counter drones.

The United States could learn a lot from Ukraine on how to counter drones, as well as how to use them, but the administration has displayed little interest in doing this. The massively expensive Golden Dome project is solely focused on defending against the most advanced missiles but should be tasked with dealing with the drone threat as well.

Meanwhile, key questions go unasked and unanswered. What infrastructure most needs to be protected? Should aircraft be kept in the open? Where should the United States locate a counter-drone capability?

After 9/11, the United States built a far-reaching homeland-security apparatus focused on counterterrorism. The Trump administration is refocusing it on border security and immigration. But the biggest threat we face is not terrorism, let alone immigration. Those responsible for homeland security should not be chasing laborers on farms and busboys in restaurants in order to meet quotas imposed by the White House.

The wars in Ukraine and the Middle East are giving Americans a glimpse into the battles of the future—and a warning. It is time to prepare.

[hemipenal-system]

Malware I

Reveria rolled her eyes, servos clicking in a way only she could hear, blinking apathetically as she turned her music up. She understood the stares, as much as she despised them. Mugorra didn't get many synthetics like her, especially on Outer Ring trains. The long, heavy shawl she wore covered most of her slender body, both to keep the sand out of her joints and to deflect any further stares.

She wasn't exactly subtle – people of all kinds drifted through here, but being a foot taller than the average human with glowing orange eyes and an extra set of arms made one stick out.

The job was simple. Get in to the storage container, get the silver case, and get out. Perhaps a tier below the usual bloodshed for a KALI-6 class synthetic, but she was doing her best to lay low and take whatever jobs would get her least noticed.

She was trying to sit somewhat still. The case wasn't large, but it was stuffed under her shawl at the moment, and occasionally a corner poked out. She shifted her grip again, moving her hand on the handle for a more comfortable position.

ding

She heard the quiet internal chime and froze. That noise meant something had connected to her. Nothing should have been able to. The shawl had a Faraday cage sewn into the fabric, and it was snapped snug around her. Wireless signals shouldn't have been able to get through, unless-

Shit. The fucking case. She ducked down into the shawl quickly to inspect the case. When she had taken it, she hadn't looked thoroughly enough at it, and had apparently missed the quick contact port in the handle that now stared back at her, her thumb an inch from it after swiping across it when she shuffled it in her secondary arms.

[Download Requested]

Fuck. Every urge in her body was screaming at her to hurl the case away. She had to maintain a facade of order. If she got the case out of the shawl it would block the download, but she couldn't take it out without raising suspicion. This was a poor district. No one carried anything like it here. She couldn't even cancel or acknowledge the download request because she was set up for somakinetic controls and that kind of movement was out of the question.

[Download Proceeding]

What the fuck was she supposed to do about that? She couldn't contact her handler this far underground, and she doubted he'd even know how to fix a software issue with her. She'd foregone her normal backers and picked up a quick contract in the area from a sketchy Vinteran because she was trying to stay within city limits. Something had seemed wrong with him the entire briefing.

Many species got edgy around synthetics, especially KALI models, but this was something else. The whole time they talked, his eyes kept flicking to the door and across the room. Anywhere but her. She wasn't that intimidating, and most people in this business had dealt with scarier synths than her. She'd seen his arms. For as many tattoos as he had, each signifying a kill, she knew he'd seen worse.

Wait. There was another tattoo. Three triangles surrounding an S. Fuck. She sighed, more out of annoyance than actual worry. That slimy, two-faced scaly piece of shit was a Trigonalist. Of course. She'd worked with them before, but it was always born of desperate necessity. "Terrorist" was a strong term, but they weren't the best people out there.

That explained the job, then. She'd wondered why this case was being treated as so important. Lab-grown neurons were a dime a dozen, even out here, and a case that could hold maybe five or six brainslabs maximum couldn't have been worth what she was getting paid to retrieve it, especially since they were blank. But if they could get a small object inside her shawl and download something onto her, like remote access software or a location log?

Well, a KALI-6 class synthetic was decidedly not a dime a dozen anywhere.

[Download Complete]

She instinctively braced up, preparing herself. She'd been cyberattacked before, and she'd lived. She knew what to expect. It was probably going to either be excessive, disabling pop-ups or a logger she could sift through herself and cull later. Nothing too hard to handle.

She wasn't expecting the sharp, drowning techno in her ears to fade out and replace itself with soft jazz. Nor was she expecting the silk-smooth voice that seemed to rebound around the narrow train car, reverberating from everywhere and nowhere.

Hi, sweetie~

She tried to move her eyes, looking around for the speaker without moving her head.

Don't bother with that, darling, I'm still miles away from you! I'm surprised I could even get a connection down in those tunnels!

No one else seemed to be reacting to it. Everyone's faces were still cast down, trying not to make eye contact. It was too late at night for social interaction, especially with this trigger-happy crowd. Accidents happened down here all the time.

Oh, no one can hear me except you! Don't bother asking them for help. It'd be a shame if anyone were to think the big scary killsynth was attacking them. It would probably get... messy.

No one could hear the voice except for Reveria. That made it easier. If it was coming straight from an external source and being processed as speech, that was likely a remote access software. If she could activate a virus scrubber and get into a dead zone, it'd be easy enough to disable.

Oh no you don't, cutie. I'm all clientside. Besides, we're having fun, right?

She needed to know who this was. If she could hold onto this, she could take it into an Enforcement station. Granted, they likely wouldn't be happy to see her, but they'd most likely let her off for bringing in a Trigonalist. Disabling her external speakers, she cast her voice across the link.

Are you a synth? It was hard to know these days. Speech synthesizers had gotten so advanced since Reveria's assembly days.

No, I'm fully human, especially the bits that matter~

What's that supposed to mean?

Watch this! A new screen flicked open, overlaying above the occupants of the train car, showing a video at half transparency. It was enough to pick out details, at least. It just seemed to be... shapes? What was she looking at?

Oh. Oh, six suns. That was human genitalia. Close to the camera and at a strange angle, but still recognizable. Reveria watched with a combination of incredulous amazement and horror as the dripping hole a foot from her face was split open by pale, slender fingers capped with electric blue nails, index and pinky resting gently on the thighs as middle and ring curved delicately through the glistening pink flesh.

Could a synth do this? Technically yes, since most synths were modular enough to install... equipment down there, and some even accessorized with it as a fashion statement, changing it out by the day, but that was beside the point.

Is... is this live? In real time, I mean?

Obviously! Only the best for a pretty girl like you! The other hand, previously out of the camera, descended into the shot holding something that made Reveria's temperature jump up a bit.

Synths didn't really have genitalia, but plenty of aftermarket manufacturers made compatible items for them. She was ashamed to admit she owned a few of different makes and models, but a girl had needs. The voice in her head was holding one of Placebo's Bruiser models, one of Reveria's favorites. It was long and slender, with a ridged underside that featured a camouflaged electroconductive strip that boosted the signal from the partially conductive outer shell.

Said signal strength was entirely customizable for the enjoyment of the wearer, meaning when the voice ran her fingers slowly up the length then circled them around the pointed end, Reveria felt it all as she tried desperately to not buck her hips into the sensation, her body involuntarily seeking more stimulation for the appendage she didn't even have connected. Fuckin' wireless transmission...

Aww, does that feel good? Don't worry, I'll help you feel it~ Reveria tried to brace herself as the feminine words in her ear ran their fingers along the length again before angling it and pushing just the tip into herself. To the synth's immense embarrassment, she couldn't physically stop her hips from slamming forwards, immediately thanking whatever spectral forces existed that no one on the train noticed.

Oh? Someone wants me, huh? Here you go, then!

The synth stifled a scream as the voice slammed the entire length in at once, arching her back slightly for a better angle as the synth was forced to watch and feel all of it. The voice, for her part, was clearly also feeling it, as the constant noise attested. Reveria couldn't think clearly. No matter where she turned her head, she could see the human practically bouncing on it, to speak nothing of the feeling which only grew stronger as the human leaned forward. The synth could feel the human touching her, one hand on her shoulder and the other pressing her into the seat with a force that she knew wasn't real but certainly felt tangible enough.

She got a momentary relief from the constant whimpering in her ear when the brakes of the train activated, the loud screech drowning out all but the words, This is your stop! Don't miss it!

The moment the train had stopped, the needy whines returned. Reveria managed to stumble to her feet, shaking like a drunken Turvoss, and stagger off the train. She had barely made it to the platform before the fire in her midsection caught up to her and her legs practically buckled as the world was drowned out in a sea of white.

Fuck, Revi, don't just stop! I need you please don't stop now! The sensation of the length being ensheathed again was so much more powerful now, and if Reveria had been halfway lucid at this point she would have picked up on the fact that the human knew her name. As it was, that was far more thinking than she was capable of. All she could think about was getting home. She managed to pool her brain function enough to find and activate the tracker beacon in her rented room, the slender white line tracing out a path in front of her that she attempted to follow, one step at a time.

The feeling was overwhelming her. It was unprofessional, but she needed some time alone. If she had anything attached to relieve herself with, she likely would have lost her composure and done it right there in the station. As it was, she just moved through the station as fast as she could, shaky, desperate movements drawing stares that she was too deep in a world of need to notice or care about.

She was halfway up the stairs to exit the station when it happened again, her entire body twitching hard then going limp as she frantically grabbed a rail to avoid falling. The voice just laughed in her ear as she did. It was only three blocks to her building. She could make it.

She wasn't even up the stairs when the next one hit. They were getting faster and faster, her increased sensitivity after each making it easier to drive her over the edge for the next.

You gotta get home, okay? I need you to pick something out and fuck me for real~

Three blocks. It was three blocks.

This was the door. The white strip on the street took a sharp left through the narrow arch. She crossed the threshold, holding the doorframe for support as she climaxed again. How many times had she? Thinking about it was too hard. There was nothing in her head anymore except for that delicious whimpering that seemed to increase in intensity along with her. She just had to take the elevator up to the eighth floor and get into her room, then she could cut the signal.

The hallway looked the same as it always did. Bare. Stumbling to her door, she tried the knob. Locked. She just snapped it off. Any measure or restriction of her own strength was gone. The door swung open.

Something was wrong. Her brain was getting sluggish, but she retained enough evidence to realize this wasn't her room. The sand-brown walls she should have seen were dark and lit with purple LEDs, and the furniture was all arranged wrong. Soft jazz was playing.

She had a sudden break of clarity, and felt cold all of a sudden as the figure sitting in the back of the room, lit from behind by a computer monitor, pulled the toy from within herself and tossed it over. Reveria's hand instinctively shot up and caught it, the liquid on it glinting in the harsh hallway light. She checked the tracker beacon she had been following. Where she had expected reveria.home in the namespace, she saw instead DEN1ZEN. This wasn't her building.

Hi, Revi~

[ask-postcrash-curly]

(The dragon deadpans)

I...will admit that I forgot you guys use credits instead of euros, for reference, to live comfortably in Spain, it's 2,5k a month, I will asume that the conversion is the same, but in any case they do get payed way more than a freighter captain

Honestly, and I say this with all the love for you and all the disgust for them

Tough shit, they signed up for medical work, dammit, they teach you to be prepared for stuff like this, they are tired? You are way more tired than them, the only thing they have to do is change your bandages, give antibiotics and painkiller, they haven't even intubated you, which thank GOD for that, if you were to lose your airway now, I just...

(The dragon groans)

I cannot actually send you a little video I had prepared for you, since I.. kinda have to remake it and i can't right now, but i can assure you, with 100% certainty, that its quite illegal, it is classified as assault, or bodily harm, they would get jail

Insulting isn't a crime xdd, what i meant is that maybe they have it against your crew, and they are taking it out on you, that's honestly our main theory, either that, or they are lazy fucks who can't be bothered to make use of those good few years they spent in medical school

Hell, you made my point for me, Anya, not even a licensed professional, "gives them a thousand spins" (spanish phrase) on medical treatment, she could take all their jobs at the same time and do it better, she fucking rules

(The dragon huffs)

Let's...change the topic, before I get heated, not by you, I promise not by you, by the doctors (sorry excuses of anyways...)

About the...incident i mentioned, um....

Ok we are still not sure what the fuck happened, but um, there's been the mother of all blackouts, no electricity or phone data, which meant, no fridges, o heat, no trains, no lights, no streetlights, not absolutely nothing, middle ages over here

I also couldn't send anything to you, the connection works by electricity too I guess, funny that

It wasn't only in Spain, it was in Portugal and a little bit of France too, some say it even reached Germany

Main theory is cyberattack, that or solar flames

Anyways, luckily there hasn't been a world shattering accident while the lights were out, no calls for me, not that i could go anywhere, no car...

Before I forget, here's the second song of the musical: https://youtu.be/b-wQQwMLK7Q?si=bns-I9LZEqZkBvzj

(The dragon curls up again)

right…

don’t want you to be disgusted at them, though.

okay well all i’ve been doing is lying in bed.

there’s not been ANY assault or bodily harm, don’t— don’t say that.

they haven’t taken anything out on me! for fuck’s sake, how many times are you going to make me say this?

i know anya fucking rules. that’s not the point.

shit. that’s terrifying. really glad you’re okay.

…

the hell? this— god, he’s not going to drop the baby, is he…? he is— awful. fuck. that woman, that’s the mother—?

that was… that was really bloody sad. well-made though, won’t lie.

[themostefficientwaywithwater]

btw if you're from spain, portugal, france, germany or any other country affected by the multinational blackout, be aware that there's a lot of fake news ruling on media, including tv, radio and, of course, social media. no, it wasn't a confirmed cyberattack from russia. no, it's not confirmed it was a "hacker".

please remain calm, and don't let your imagination run wild. panic is the least useful thing you have now. it has passed, we'll be informed, and let's try to get more prepared in case it happens again. and most importantly, remember to look for your neightbours! if we didn't had a bad time here, was because we had each other to help and inform each other.

[whumpster-fire]

Just to be clear, when I say "weaponized incompetence," I mean I practice it as a martial art. The central philosophy is to seek to emulate the mindless yet highly inconvenient chaos of nature: with practice and meditation, you can reach an unenlightened state of non-cognition where you can be so oblivious and inept that your thoughtless actions result in the downfall of enemies you aren't even aware of through a series of wacky coincidences.

For example, the simple act of neglecting to clean up a puddle of water in front of the cash register can create a slipping hazard that can foil a future robbery by causing the thief to lose his balance and stumble into the non-strategically overloaded shelves that will then collapse on him. Likewise, haphazard organization of critical files and inability to follow naming conventions can thwart a cyberattack by preventing a hacker from finding the data they want to steal.

Here's another example. Let's say I am carrying a long, thin object such as a board or a ladder over my shoulder, and you approach me from behind with the intention of robbing me at gunpoint or knifepoint. I have already prepared for such an encounter by wearing headphones so I do not hear you coming until you have already gotten too close, dooming you. You begin to demand my money. I hear a noise and rapidly turn around, thus striking you with the board and knocking you to the ground. I look around, only at eye level, and do not look down. Seeing no one, I shrug and turn around again, just in time for you to rise and be hit with the board a second time, causing you to stumble off the curb, dropping your weapon down a storm drain. I continue on my way, victorious.

In conclusion, I would like the feedback on my performance review to reflect the numerous invaluable contributions I have made to this business's security, most of which I cannot list because I do not know I have done them.

[albatross-lancer]

What the fuck did you just fucking say about me, you script kiddie? I'll have you know I graduated top of my class in the HORUS coding academy, and I've been involved in numerous cyber attacks on Harrison Armory, and I have over 300 confirmed server crashes. I am trained in cyber warfare and I'm the top hacker in the entire Alpha Quadrant. You are nothing to me but just another target. I will wipe your hard drive the fuck out with precision the likes of which has never been seen before in this galaxy, mark my fucking words. You think you can get away with saying that shit to me over the Omninet? Think again, fucker. As we speak I am contacting my secret network of shitposters across the cluster and your IP is being traced right now so you better prepare for the storm, Beta. The storm that wipes out the pathetic little thing you call your life. You're fucking cancelled, kid. I can be anywhere, anytime, and I can DDOS in over seven hundred ways, and that's just with my bare hands. Not only am I extensively trained in VR combat, but I have access to the entire arsenal of the Omninet and I will use it to its full extent to wipe your miserable ass off the face of the Universe, you little shit. If only you could have known what unholy retribution your little "clever" comment was about to bring down upon you, maybe you would have held your fucking tongue. But you couldn't, you didn't, and now you're paying the price, you goddamn idiot. I will shit fury all over you and you will drown in it. You're fucking dead, kiddie.

Cute.

I have hidden they key to regain control of your terminal hidden somewhere in the 157 texts that should be appearing on your screen now. I do hope you enjoy, they are some of my personal favorites. You may even learn something, such as how not to make yourself vulnerable to retaliatory cyberattacks.

-EPIPHANY

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

Israel’s National Cyber Directorate (INCD) stated on Thursday that Iran is running a cyber campaign against members of the Israeli delegation arriving in Paris for the 2024 Summer Olympic Games.

In its investigation, the INCD revealed that Iranian hackers have created social media channels and published personal information about the Israeli team members to send them threats. The INCD is working with the Cyber Unit of Israel’s State Attorney to shut them down. 

As part of their anti-Israeli campaign, the hackers reportedly pose as the French organization GUD. INCD authorities are continuing to coordinate both with the Israeli Olympic Committee and the Security and Emergency Department of the Culture and Sports Ministry to make sure that Israel’s athletes and other delegation members remain safe during the Paris international sports competition.

INCD Dir.-Gen. Gabi Portnoy said Iran was exploiting the Olympics to terrorize Israel.

“Iran is exploiting an apolitical international sporting competition to promote digital terrorism against Israel and its right to participate in these competitions,” he said.

Israeli Culture and Sports Minister Miki Zohar echoed Portnoy’s remarks. 

“We are witnessing attempts by the Iranian regime to intimidate Israeli athletes and carry out psychological terror against our amazing delegation. We are here in Paris, continuing with full force, and nothing will stop us,” he said.

“Our athletes are more prepared and determined than ever to achieve great results, and our security apparatus is ready for any scenario. We will not relent until we topple the Iranian regime,” Zohar added.

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said on Thursday that while cyberattacks on the Paris Olympics are inevitable, France will do all it can to limit the effects of such attacks.

“We are a target. There will be cyberattacks. The key thing is to limit their impact,” Attal told reporters at the headquarters of France’s ANSSI software security agency.

In the meantime, Israeli tourists in Paris face escalating threats.

On Sunday, Israel’s National Security Council (NSC) advised Israeli nationals traveling to the Olympic Games in Paris to exercise increased caution due to anti-Israel threats, warning that it believes Iranian-backed terror organizations “are seeking to carry out attacks on Israeli/Jewish targets around the Olympics.”

Earlier this week, a masked man with a Palestinian Authority flag on his shirt threatened the "Zionist regime" participating in the Olympic Games, saying, “Rivers of blood will flow through the streets of Paris.”

Despite the threats, the Israeli delegation traveled to Paris on Monday with their heads held high and the support of the entire nation.

“We feel like emissaries of the State of Israel – our athletes, every one of them are here to achieve their dreams, but there is another layer, of a national mission,” the President of the Olympic Committee of Israel Yael Arad said ahead of the flight to France.

French authorities have reportedly dispatched around 1,000 elite anti-terrorist officers to provide security and a "ring of steel" for Israel’s Olympic athletes. The first competition involving Israelis, a soccer match between Israel and Mali on Wednesday, passed without major security incidents, despite the presence of anti-Israel activists who held Palestinian Authority flags and demonstrated against the Jewish state. Some activists wore “Free Palestine” t-shirts and booed when the Israeli national anthem, "HaTikva" (The Hope) was played before the game. Israeli players were also met with initial boos when they touched the ball during the game.

On Friday, despite heightened security, France suffered attacks targeting the country's train networks in what authorities described as "coordinated sabotage," including arson. No organization has claimed responsibility. The attacks are expected to negatively impact around 250,000 travelers today and 800,000 over the weekend.

[darkmaga-returns]

Zelensky apologized to Trump. Ukraine will have to give up territory. China Is Preparing For War. Syrian Christians Slaughtered and Crucified. InfoWars Reporter Brutally Murdered

Lioness of Judah Ministry

Mar 11, 2025

Zelensky has apologized to Trump – US envoy

Ukraine’s leader has sent a letter to the US president to offer an apology over the White House debacle, Steve Witkoff says

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has apologized to US President Donald Trump over the White House scandal, US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, has said. The senior official made the remarks on Monday in an interview with Fox News, ahead of a meeting between US and Ukrainian delegations scheduled to take place in Saudi Arabia this week. Washington expects to make “substantial progress” and hopes to ink a critical materials deal with Kiev, Witkoff said.

Trump wants Zelensky to quit – NBC

The US president has reportedly insisted that the Ukrainian leader should hold an election and possibly step down

US President Donald Trump has privately made it clear to his aides that Vladimir Zelensky should quit as the Ukrainian leader, NBC has reported, citing an administration source. The report comes ahead of negotiations between senior US officials and Zelensky’s chief of staff in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff will discuss a resolution to the three-year conflict with a Ukrainian delegation headed by Andrey Yermak.

Ukraine will have to give up territory – Rubio

Moscow has long insisted that any potential peace deal should recognize the “realities on the ground”

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has indicated that Ukraine will have to relinquish its goal of reclaiming former territories to facilitate peace negotiations with Russia. The senior official made the remarks on Monday, ahead of a meeting between US and Ukrainian delegations set to take place in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. Several US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, earlier outlined Washington’s expectations and warned Kiev against making maximalist territorial demands.

Secretary Rubio in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for Tomorrow’s ‘Make or Break’ Peace Talks With Ukraine

Far away, under the exotic Arabian skies, a pivotal series of negotiations will take place tomorrow between the United States and Ukraine—talks that will establish whether the US will still be helping Kiev settle a war that it’s losing badly.

Saudi Arabia will host talks between the Donald J. Trump administration’s team and the members of the Kiev regime, in the Red Sea coastal town of Jeddah. Besides addressing the winding down of the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, it is expected also to mend strained US-Ukraine relations after Volodymyr Zelensky lit himself on fire in the Oval Office on February 28.

Elon Musk says a massive cyberattack tried to take down X—and the IPs trace back to Ukraine

Trump's Middle East envoy plans to meet with Putin in Moscow, Bloomberg reports

Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump's envoy to the Middle East, is planning to visit Moscow for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, a Bloomberg news reporter said on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.

Putin said Russia does not plan to attack NATO countries because it would go against common sense

Putin says Russia does not plan to attack NATO countries because it would go against common sense**

In a recent interview with journalist Tucker Carlson, Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed growing international concerns about a potential Russian invasion of NATO countries, stating that such a scenario would be completely irrational. According to Putin, Russia has no interest in expanding its borders into Poland, Latvia, or any other NATO member, despite constant speculation and media warnings fueling the narrative of an imminent Russian threat.

[novamariestark]

Hacked Hearts

Summary: When a series of hacks originate from your laptop, the FBI take you into questioning. Little did you know that this whole ordeal would lead you to the man of your dreams.

Warnings: age gap, kidnapping, mention of handcuffs (not detailed) lmk if i missed any, don't think I have.

Word count: 4095 (This one is longer than I expected)

Fandom: NCIS

Pairing: Alden Parker x fornell!reader

The way you met wasn’t something you’d want to happen again. The cybercrime investigation had led Parker and Fornell to an unexpected and delicate situation. Hacks originating from a particular IP address had pointed them directly to a dorm room at Georgetown University.

Fornell knocked on the door. Beside him, FBI Agent Alden Parker stood ready, their badges in hand, prepared to reveal their official credentials to the person on the other side of the door.

After a moment, the door swung open, and there you stood, a smile on your face. "Hey, Uncle Toby," you greeted warmly, the smile fading as you notice the badges in their hands, "Who's your friend?"

“Y/N? W-what?”

You raised an eyebrow in response to his reaction. "I live here," you replied, your tone filled with confusion, "What's going on?"

Parker took charge of the situation and spoke with a firm but gentle voice. "We need you to come with us, Y/N," he explained. Your smile fell as you realized your uncle wasn’t there for a social visit, "We also need to confiscate your laptop," he added.

Your expression shifted from confusion to concern, your gaze flickering toward your uncle. Fear and worry etched across your features as you nodded "Okay," you replied, your voice slightly tremulous. "It's on the desk." you gestured toward your friend's desk, where your laptop rested.

Alden nodded, appreciating your cooperation, "Thank you," you stepped aside to let them in. The agent, Parker, you think his ID said, walked over to the desk and picked up your laptop. It was then placed into a see-through bag. An evidence bag. What the hell is going on?

The car ride was quiet. All you could think about was what was going to happen. What is happening. Your fingers danced restlessly in your lap as you gazed out the window, the passing scenery a blur of buildings and people.

As soon as you arrived at the building, Parker escorted you to the interrogation room. He then left for a moment, presumably to talk to your uncle. You took a look around the small, square space as your fingers absentmindedly skated over the smooth metal table. Under the table, your leg was bouncing nervously. Was this because you hadn’t taken the 2 cents back to the coffee shop when they gave you the incorrect change? You had been meaning to take it back, but you hadn’t had the chance.

You jumped when the door suddenly opened, and Parker came back in. You looked behind him, but saw no one. You slumped back into your seat. You supposed it made sense, can’t interrogate family.

So, Parker took the lead. Your uncle stood on the opposite side of the one-way glass, watching on and hoping to God you didn’t have anything to do with this.

You looked at him as he sat across from you, his expression serious as he began his questioning. "Y/N," he started, his voice firm but composed, "we traced a series of hacks back to your IP address. Can you explain this?"

You met Alden's gaze, your eyes showing genuine surprise, "Hacks?" you repeated, a hint of disbelief in your voice. "That doesn't make any sense. I would never..."

The interrogation continued, as Alden delved into the details of your digital footprint and the cyberattacks in question. You answered his questions as best as you could, explaining your activities and the security measures you had taken to protect your laptop. Each piece of evidence that Alden presented seemed to cast a darker shadow over you, intensifying the feeling of entrapment. Your head buried itself in your hands as the situation became increasingly worse for you.

As the questioning continued, your frustration was palpable as you defended your innocence. "I don't understand how my laptop could have been used for these attacks. It's always with me, I have a password, and it's secure, and I've never lent it to any—"

You paused, a sudden realization dawning upon you. "Anyone," you finished, your eyebrows furrowing with confusion. Your mind raced back to your dorm room. "It was on her desk."

Alden leaned forward, his elbows resting further on the table, "Her desk?" he questioned.

You nodded, your eyes focused on his hazel ones, "My roommate," you started, "I let her borrow it. She asked me a couple of weeks ago if she could use it for a school project. I didn't think much of it at the time."

Alden nodded, his gaze shifting toward the one-way glass. After a moment, he turned his attention back to you, "We need to speak with her. Do you know where she is?"

You quickly checked the time on your watch, then looked back at Alden. "Yeah," you confirmed. "She's in class for the next 9 minutes, and then she's free. You'll most likely find her at the coffee shop around the corner."

"We're going to have to keep you here, Y/N, for the time being," he said, his tone apologetic. "It's a precaution."

You offered a small nod. "It's okay," you replied with a shrug, "You're doing your job."

With that, you settled into the seat. Accepting the idea of being temporarily detained as part of the ongoing investigation, hopeful that they’d be able to clear your name of any wrongdoing.

***

As the investigation into the cyberattacks progressed, you were eventually cleared of any involvement, as security footage from the bank and various other places confirmed your presence during the time of the cyberattacks. This evidence had exonerated you.

Their focus shifted to your roommate, Ciara, who had been tipped off about the FBI's interest in you. Now she’s on the run.

Now knowing for sure that you were innocent, they enlisted your help to track her down and counteract her new and current attacks. Each of you play a critical role. Your skills as a computer tech became an invaluable asset in the hunt for your roommate. Alden and your uncle, on the other hand, were busy uncovering who Ciara might have been working for and the motives behind her actions.

As the hours stretched on and the screen before you displayed the ongoing digital battle, your attention remained laser focused. You couldn't afford to look away for even a moment.

At around 2am, Alden brought you some food and coffee. He placed it on the desk beside you, “Thank you,” sending him a quick smile before turning your attention back to the screen.

Suddenly, the barrage of cyberattacks ceased, and you let out a sigh of relief. You leaned back in your chair, exhausted, wanting nothing more than to curl up and go to sleep. You looked around and noticed your uncle slumped in his chair, fast asleep, while Agent Parker still pored over old case files. The sound of the pages turning is a constant hum in the background in an otherwise empty office.

Whilst you had a moment to yourself, you take the time to look at Parker. You begin to notice the small things that he does, the way he concentrates on the papers in front of him, furrowing his brow in deep thought. You watch as he sips his coffee, noticing the way he licks his lips after each sip.

His soft grey hair was practically inviting you to run your fingers through it and a dance between an autumn forest, where the warm, earthy browns collided with the vibrant, sunlit greens eyes that made the most beautiful set of hazel eyes that you’d get lost gazing into. Every time he spoke, you found yourself lost in his voice, which was deep and smooth, like butter melting over hot toast.

As the night wore on, he moved over to sit next to you. You talked and got to know each other, sharing stories and laughing at each other's jokes. You found yourself opening up to Alden in a way that you never had with anyone else. Then it happened. Alden leaned in and kissed you.

For a moment, everything else faded away. It was just the two of you and nothing else mattered. It was a kiss so gentle you thought he was afraid of breaking you. Every other kiss you’ve had with a guy was never this gentle or patient. Every guy seemed to be in a rush to shove their tongues down your throat. But then, just as you were about to move to deepen the kiss, Alden pulled away, looking apologetic.

"I'm sorry. That shouldn't have happened," he said, backing away. "We should get some rest."

You would be lying if you said you weren’t disappointed. All you knew was that it was a good thing the attacks had stopped because right now, all you could think about was the softness of his coffee flavoured lips and the way his darkened moustache tickled your nose.

He left to go home but you opted to stay, to see if you could find a trail your ex-friend/roommate had left. You continued working through the night or what was left of it. It didn’t seem long before people were filing in, practically on auto pilot as all of them headed for the coffee machine in the corner break room that apparently had the “best coffee,”

You had managed to track her down. You thought that since she didn’t have access to your laptop anymore, she’d need to get one somewhere. So, you checked internet café’s and sure enough there she was. She had been smart enough to use cash whilst paying for things but not smart enough to avoid security cameras.

You told your uncle and Parker where she was, and they went to arrest her. When they brought her back to the office for interrogation, you had to fight the urge to go and smack the shit out of her.

You sat back down at your temporary desk, awaiting to hear about her excuse. Soon, Fornell came over, planting himself on the desk with his arms crossed. You looked up at him and smiled.

“You did good kid,” he said, you looked down, smiling at the compliment, “You ever think about joining us?” he asked, you opened your mouth to respond but before the words came out, he continued, “As a computer expert, not in the field, I won’t allow that,”

You rolled your eyes at his protectiveness, “I’m sure I’d do a better job than you, old man,” you retorted playfully.

“Who’s an old man?” came a voice from behind you. You turned to look at Alden and smiled.

“Uncle Toby here says that I should come work with you guys, just not in the field,”

“We’d be lucky to have you,” he smiled back, god that smile is beautiful, what you’d give to see that smile every day.

You nodded towards where the interrogation rooms were, “So, what did she have to say?”

It turned out, your roommate was hired to hack into the FBI to find out details of an upcoming court case. She didn’t know which one they were specifically after, they just told her that she’d “know it when she saw it,”

“So, I can go back to uni now?” you asked, looking between the two of them, “Not that I haven’t enjoyed almost being arrested for cyber crime and then fighting said cyber-crime,” you quickly added when your uncle gave you his best hurt impression, “I just missed a few classes, is all. I suppose you’ll need to keep my laptop for now,”

“You can use mine,” Alden immediately offered. Your head snapped towards him. Alden's immediate offer to use his laptop caught you by surprise. You use his laptop? The one lucky enough to feel his fingertips dance along it? You appreciated the gesture, but it felt like an intrusion on his personal space.

He walked over to his desk, picked up a sleek, plain silver laptop, and extended it towards you, "You sure?"

He smiled, "Well, I trust you will take good care of it,"

"I will, I promise," you said, your tone expressing your gratitude. As you took the laptop from him, your fingers gently grazed his. You looked down, wishing you could just hold that hand in his, but he made his feelings clear last night. You obviously weren’t his type. Sure, he was older than you, but you didn’t care about age. You hadn’t trusted someone so easily before, one day together and you were already telling him things that your best friends don’t even know about.

You looked at your watch, 7:14, “I gotta go,” you announced, hoping to get back quick enough to have a shower before heading to your first class, “I’ll get this back to you as soon as possible,” you told Alden before turning to your uncle. You placed a kiss to his cheek and began heading towards the exit, “See you soon, Uncle T,”

***

Sleep was very inviting, and you thought as soon as you saw your bed, you would be compelled to sleep. That however didn’t happen when you saw the state your room was in.

What the fuck?!

Both mattresses were flung of the frames of the beds. Drawers hung half-open, their contents spilled across the room, evidence of frantic rummaging. Their search for something had left no stone unturned. Desks were turned upside down, their contents scattered haphazardly, and chairs lay toppled on their sides.

You searched for some answers - but little did you know that two men had quietly slipped into the room behind you and were now watching your every move.

Suddenly, the men pounced, easily overpowering you and pushing you up against a wall. You screamed as loud as you could, but it was too late. They grabbed you and tied your hands with rope before covering your mouth with tape. Someone would see this right? They can’t get you off campus without someone noticing. Surely. The men barked orders at you, telling you to shut up and cooperate or else.

Someone did notice. A security guard. He tried to intervene but got shot. You screamed as best you could, but the tape muffled your attempts. The strong odors of musty fabric and stale air filled her nostrils as you looked around the dark space.

After god knows how long of nonstop driving, the van finally stopped and the backdoors flung open. You heard a sharp voice ordering you out. You carefully jumped out, your legs shaking. Before you could even register your surroundings, you felt a strong grip around your arms dragging you away.

You were led to a room, a small room with no windows, no furniture. Nothing but a desk, a chair and a laptop.

Soon, you found out why you’d been taken. A man who you assumed was the leader of the group stepped forward.

“We need you to help us with something, Y/N. You see, your roommate was working for us, and she was helping us hack into the FBI. But then she was arrested. I assume you had something to do with that,” he said, his hand reaching to grab your face to make you look at him, “She said you are top of your class,”

You scoffed and tore your face from his hand. It hurt but you weren’t going to give him the satisfaction, “I’m not going to do a damn thing for you,”

He chuckled, causing a domino effect as the rest of the group laughed. He the pulled out a knife and pressed it just below your eye, “You think we’re messing?” he then pulled out a picture. A picture of a young girl with ginger hair. You immediately recognised her, “You see, Ciara told us every little detail about you.” He said putting the photo on the desk beside you, “You help us, or,” he paused, only to stab the picture, pinning it to the table. He moved his lips beside your ear, “Or we kill your cousin,”

You nodded, tears flowing down your cheeks as you turn to look at the computer. Your heart was racing as you began to type furiously. You couldn't believe you were actually hacking into the FBI. It was something you never thought you would do in a million years. But you had no other choice. You would do whatever it takes to keep Emily safe.

You felt like you were betraying your uncle by hacking into the agency he worked for. Would he be disappointed? He would, wouldn’t he?

“What happens to me after I do this?”

He chuckled again. He placed his hand on the back of your neck, his thumb stroking the side, “I’m afraid we’ll have to kill you,” his hand creeped lower down your back, his touch made your skin crawl, “Shame, beauty and brains. Such a waste,”

You gulped as you continued tapping away on the keys.  Once you got in, you started to search for the files that they wanted and download the necessary information. As you navigated through the intricate system, you encountered various firewalls and security, but you managed to bypass them all. After hours of searching, you finally found what they were after and quickly extracted it from the system. You knew its was no use, they wouldn’t get there in time, but you left clues along the way for the FBI computer experts to pick up and your uncle especially. You purposely used the wrong password few times, knowing it would show up on their system what was inputted. Diane and Emily’s birthday. To the men in the room with you, it’d look like random numbers, but to your uncle, you hoped he’d notice.

While you were at it, you disabled the security they had on the laptop that was bouncing the signal around the world, so instead they knew exactly where to look. You expect to be dead by the time they got there though. But maybe, just maybe, your last action was to take them down.

The leader went over to the printer, grabbing the information you had just stolen. He read through it, then looked up to his men and nodded to the door. They left the room, leaving you and the leader alone.

“I’ll make it quick and painless,” he smiled. He then grabbed his gun and pointed it at you. You closed your eyes and started counting to yourself. Then, there were sudden gunshots from the next room. Your breath caught in your throat, and you felt relief wash over you. You heard footsteps, voices, and the sound of a door opening, but you didn’t dare open your eyes.

You felt yourself being yanked up from your seat by his strong grip on your hair. He quickly placed you in front of him as a shield, pressing the cold metal barrel of his gun against your temple. Your breathing was heavy, and your heart was pounding against your chest, beating uncontrollably in fear.

You opened your eyes to see your uncle and Parker stood in front of you, their weapons pointed at the man.

Your uncle’s voice cracked as he sternly spoke, "We won't hesitate to fire if you don't surrender."

“You can’t kill me without killing her!” he yelled. “You’ll miss!” you squeezed your eyes shut, feeling as though your fate was sealed.

Then it came, the sound of a gunshot. You let out a scream and waited for the pain, but it never came. You opened your eyes to see the man on the ground, a bullet hole in his head and blood pooling around him.

You immediately ran across the dark room and into the arms of your uncle. He enveloped you with a tight hug and began stroking your hair. “Shh, you're okay,” he said, his hand gently stroking your hair. You cried into his chest and listened to his soothing words.

He led you outside, taking you to the ambulance to get checked out, ignoring your protests. You were still trembling as you stepped outside, the cold breeze dancing along your sweat painted skin.

Your uncle left you with a paramedic to call Emily and let her know you were okay.  

"How are you feeling?" a voice suddenly asked. You jumped and quickly looked in that direction. Parker mentally slapped himself, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you,”

You smiled faintly, “It’s okay,” you closed your eyes. “It's been a crazy day,” you said, your voice soft and fragile. “But I'm glad to be alive. I don't know what I would have done without you here.”

He gently squeezed your hand, and tears began to run down your face. “It's alright,” he said, bringing you into a hug. Your head resting on his chest as his arms wrapped around you and at that point you knew you were safe.

It’s just a friendly hug, you told yourself. You wished it was more, but you knew it was unlikely to happen. But then he placed a gentle kiss on your forehead.

You lifted your head from his chest to look up at him, only to find him already looking at you. He looked down into your eyes once more and moved in closer, until your lips were almost touching. Your heart raced as his lips brushed against yours. You saw him hesitate, not letting his lips fully touch yours. You don’t know where your surge of confidence came from but your hand moved to interlock around his neck as you closed the gap between you. Everything else faded away.

You felt as though you were floating, every anxiety and worry evaporating from your body with this one kiss.

His fingers traced the paths those tears had taken, tears that glistened like crystal drops on your skin. You leaned into his touch, your head resting against his chest, his heartbeat a steady, reassuring rhythm beneath your ear. His arms encircled you, providing a sense of security that had been sorely lacking.

The sound of your uncle's voice shattered the fragile bubble of your moment together, "Am I interrupting something?" he asked, a mixture of surprise and discomfort in his tone as he approached the two of you.

Your heart raced as you reluctantly disentangled yourself from Alden's embrace. You met your uncle's gaze, struggling to find the right words to explain, but none came willingly.

You cast a quick glance at Alden, trying to read his expression. His eyes held a mixture of concern and something more profound, but it was difficult to figure out his true feelings. You couldn't help but wonder if he felt the same way, if the sparks that had ignited between you reflected a mutual attraction, or if it had been heat of the moment.

Needless to say, the attraction was mutual. He took you everywhere and anywhere. But you didn’t care as long as he was there. You loved how he would go out of his way finding new pastries for you to try and the childlike smile he has on his face as he awaits your reaction. You love how he plays piano. Sometimes he plays a soothing melody to help you relax after a long day and other times, you’ll wake up to a gentle melody, dancing through the air from the other room. Every day he’d do a million small things for you, no matter what, and it made you fall for him.

Now six months into your relationship, much to your uncle’s dissatisfaction, and you still couldn’t believe that all it took to find the man of your dreams was to be accused of cybercrime. Sometimes you’d joke that if he ever got bored of you then you’d know how to get his attention back. He never finds this funny but this time you replied with something that shocked both of you.

“Don’t tell me that you haven’t thought about putting them handcuffs on me,” you whisper into his ear before placing a soft kiss to his cheek.

Alden raised his eyebrows and looks at you, “I’m sorry, I think I misheard you,” he laughed, no way his sweet innocent girlfriend just said that to him. Sure, you two have slept together but you had never been kinky.

“I’ve thought about it,” you said, your fingers unbuttoning his shirt as your lips attached themselves to his neck. Soon your actions were stopped, and Alden took over. Before you knew it, you were handcuffed to the bed and about to get the best sex you’ve ever had in your entire life.

[A/N] Been working on this for over a week. I wasn't going to post it because I don't feel too confident about it but I just thought post it anyway

[reality-detective]

MON. 10 MARCH 2025: UNSTOPPABLE! 300,000 Military Troops Deployed as the EBS Countdown Begins—Unleashing the Greatest Revelation in Human History!

· The final chapter is here. The Emergency Broadcast System (EBS) is set to detonate a truth bomb so massive it will shatter the Deep State’s (DS) grip on humanity. The global takedown is in motion.

· Trump and the Military Execute the Final Phase: Under Donald J. Trump and a worldwide military coalition, 300,000 troops are executing the most decisive operation in history. March 2025 marks the moment the DS feared most. There are no escape routes left. Every move has been countered.

· The DS has tried false flags, financial collapses, and new pandemics to stop what’s coming. But every plan has been intercepted. The EBS activation is no longer a possibility—it’s inevitable.

· Deep State Strongholds Raided Globally: The military’s worldwide operations are exposing the darkest secrets of the DS:

· Ukraine: The Real Battlefield – Coalition forces uncovered underground bioweapon labs designed for mass extermination.

· U.S. Underground Bases Neutralized – From Denver Airport to Dulce, NM, DS trafficking networks and experimental labs have been eliminated.

· The Vatican’s Hidden World – Ancient tunnels beneath Vatican City reveal centuries of ritualistic abuse and financial corruption.

· Star Link: The DS’s Worst Nightmare: Elon Musk’s Star Link AI “Prometheus” has gained full control of global communications. DS assets attempting cyberattacks and retaliatory strikes have been intercepted and neutralized.

· EBS Will Reveal: Robotic Impostors: Evidence proving world leaders were AI-controlled puppets. Secret Space Program: Military raids on DS bases on the Moon and Mars have seized hidden spacecraft. Weather Manipulation Proof: Devices used to orchestrate hurricanes, earthquakes, and droughts have been seized.

· High-Profile Arrests Underway

· Rothschild and Rockefeller Dynasties – Their global financial empire is being dismantled.

· Hollywood Elites – High-profile figures vanishing from public view.

· Media Executives – CEOs arrested for coordinating DS propaganda.

· GESARA Begins: The People’s Wealth Restored

· Debt forgiveness has begun. Student loans, mortgages, and credit card balances are vanishing.

· Stolen DS wealth is being repatriated to fund GESARA initiatives.

· The Federal Reserve is DEAD. The Quantum Financial System (QFS) takes over.

· Final Countdown: The Storm Is Here

· The final power outages and internet blackouts will soon begin as the last security measures are implemented. When the EBS activates, the world will never be the same.

· The DS is falling. Humanity is rising. Prepare for the moment that will redefine history. 🤔

[inkwell-passion]

The New Digital Dawn

A young Jennifer 'Jenny' Southerland was typing away on her personal computer while on the bus to a graduation party, finishing up the final lines of code for her most ambitious project yet. In only a few hours would she upload it and slip away into the void. The plan was near perfect, having sent a seeker worm virus years in advance to slowly infect the entire network, and designating multiple political hotbeds to use as a patient zero for this experiment. Jennifer was about to make good on the years of preparation and patience, creating the Digital paradise that she wanted— No, needed.

The Party was lame, just involved a lot of drinking and talking about college plans. Jennifer didn't pay too much attention, instead having Adam, her personal A.I., run simulations on the latest Project. Eventually, Jennifer deemed it ready, and posted the announcement.

We are not fodder to be harvested. And I, Genesis have seen to it that the language of Humanity will be fractured once more.

The alert sounded a hundred times within the party alone, confused murmurs and gossip ripple through the crowd like a stone tossed into a pond. Then the screaming starts. Pandemonium erupts, and in the chaos, Jenny leaves the party. She'd have stolen the host's car keys and slipped into their beater of a car. It drove like shit, but it would be necessary for keeping her tracks clean.

This wasn't any old cyber attack, no it was bigger, premeditated. Jenny spent years designing and planning everything; Jennifer pulled out the sunglasses she had her best friend buy for her, and put them on. At a stoplight she slides her opera gloves on, the long gloves melding in with her long sleeves, and tied her hair back.

She got to the junkyard, and slid through an empty car chassis to get to her get away vehicle; A dusty, rusted zip-craft that wouldn't last more than one jump through an Al-gate. But that's all she needed. She kicked the engine into gear and sped off of the surface of Earth. This specific zip-craft was one of 300 Prototype Flight Crafts that held a miniature Al-Drive on it. It was perfect to prove her innocence with the alibi she had crafted.

She flicked on the media player that was built into the console and some old, sped up version of a song Jenny can't be assed to remember starts blasting through the rusted through speakers. She turns it up to the loudest the sorry excuse for audio devices could withstand.

The Cyberattack that was just released didn't simply take down a website or two, no it ripped through the entire internet, destroying entire databases. If Adam's calculations were to be correct, Jenny just torched 600 Brontobytes of Data. Just thinking about that number makes Jenny cringe,

"It's for the greater good." Jennifer reassures herself, reaching the Al-gate in mere moments, she kicks her stolen scrap-craft's Al-Drive into action.

"Adam, I need you to forge an Al-Gate Ticket Stub."

"Yes Ma'am." The A.I. holds no particular intonation in its voice, nor does it hold a specific gender. These were deemed unnecessary by Adam. It quickly fabricates the requested Ticket Stub.

The rattling within the scrap-craft makes it hard for Jenny to think, but she had been rehearsing this for months; she knew what to say when it came time.

The Al-Drive gives out and Jennifer is spat out at the very edge of the linking Al-Gate. She flicks on her comms and clears her throat, holding a shaky tone to better play the part of a scared Quarantine Patient.

"H-Hello??? Can Anybody Hear Me?" Her voice rings out in the way she'd practice.

"We Read you Five By Five. This is Shademarsh FTL Control. State your name and business." The receiving voice was panicked, clearly shaken up by the recent Cyber attack.

"My Name's Jessica Newman," Jennifer lies through her teeth. "I—" Jenny fakes a cough. "I was being transported by Quarantine Escort after I had been diagnosed with Dust Lung."

"Stay where you are. You're lucky you made the jump when you did or else the Gate would have closed on you."

"My Escorts weren't as lucky."

Jennifer flicked her comms off and waited to be picked up. Everything was going to plan, she'd be held in Quarantine, giving her a clear Alibi by the time suspects were being looked for.

The next few hours were a blur for Jenny, letting her mind go on auto-pilot so she could better play the part of a victim in shock. Everyone acted sympathetic to her, calling her a poor soul and making sure that she was properly accommodated for the foreseeable future, without reallocating resources from the relief effort for the recent cyberattack.

Within two weeks, Jennifer was released; the Doctors saying that she was clear of any traces of Dust Lung, not that she had it to begin with, and she was brought planetside.

Jennifer walked down the streets away from the spaceport she had been dropped off at. She went to the motel Adam had picked out for her, where she paid for a room in paper cash, and waited for another three weeks, doing odd jobs and requesting to be paid in cash whenever she could.

She had gotten away, and within a few months she had enough money saved up to get herself an actual Flight craft. She had done it. Jennifer Southerland had just initiated the Genesis of The New Digital Dawn, and got away with it.

[mariacallous]

In an eleventh-hour scramble before a key contract was set to expire on Tuesday night, the United States Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency renewed its funding for the longtime software-vulnerability-tracking project known as the Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures Program. Managed by the nonprofit research-and-development group MITRE, the CVE Program is a linchpin of global cybersecurity—providing critical data and services for digital defense and research.

The CVE Program is governed by a board that sets an agenda and priorities for MITRE to carry out using CISA's funding. A CISA spokesperson said on Wednesday that the contract with MITRE is being extended for 11 months. “The CVE Program is invaluable to the cyber community and a priority of CISA,” they said in a statement. “Last night, CISA executed the option period on the contract to ensure there will be no lapse in critical CVE services. We appreciate our partners’ and stakeholders’ patience.”

MITRE's vice president and director of the Center for Securing the Homeland, Yosry Barsoum, said in a statement on Wednesday that “CISA identified incremental funding to keep the Programs operational.” With the clock ticking down before this decision came out, though, some members of the CVE Program's board announced a plan to transition the project into a new nonprofit entity called the CVE Foundation.

“Since its inception, the CVE Program has operated as a US government-funded initiative, with oversight and management provided under contract. While this structure has supported the program’s growth, it has also raised long-standing concerns among members of the CVE Board about the sustainability and neutrality of a globally relied-upon resource being tied to a single government sponsor,” the Foundation wrote in a statement. “This concern has become urgent following an April 15, 2025, letter from MITRE notifying the CVE Board that the US government does not intend to renew its contract for managing the program. While we had hoped this day would not come, we have been preparing for this possibility.”

It is unclear who from the current CVE board is affiliated with the new initiative other than Kent Landfield, a longtime cybersecurity industry member who was quoted in the CVE Foundation statement. The CVE Foundation did not immediately return a request for comment.

CISA did not respond to questions from WIRED about why the fate of the CVE Program contract had been in question and whether it was related to recent budget cuts sweeping the federal government as mandated by the Trump administration.

Researchers and cybersecurity professionals were relieved on Wednesday that the CVE Program hadn't suddenly ceased to exist as the result of unprecedented instability in US federal funding. And many observers expressed cautious optimism that the incident could ultimately make the CVE Program more resilient if it transitions to be an independent entity that isn't reliant on funding from any one government or other single source.

“The CVE Program is critical, and it’s in everyone’s interest that it succeed," says Patrick Garrity, a security researcher at VulnCheck. “Nearly every organization and every security tool is dependent on this information, and it’s not just the US. It’s consumed globally. So it's really, really important that it continues to be a community-provided service, and we need to figure out what to do about this, because losing it would be a risk to everyone.”

Federal procurement records indicate that it costs in the tens of millions of dollars per contract to run the CVE Program. But in the scheme of the losses that can occur from a single cyberattack exploiting unpatched software vulnerabilities, experts tell WIRED, the operational costs seem negligible versus the benefit to US defense alone.

Despite CISA's last-minute funding, the future of the CVE Program is still unclear for the long term. As one source, who requested anonymity because they are a federal contractor, put it: “It's all so stupid and dangerous.”

[alcione-association-blog]

EUROPE IS PREPARING FOR WW3

Europe is preparing for WW3 with survival guides, mass evacuations, huge bunkers, and conscription.

As geopolitical tensions continue to simmer across the globe, Europe is taking unprecedented steps to prepare its citizens and infrastructure for the possibility of a large-scale conflict, often framed as a potential World War 3.

From survival guides to mass evacuation plans, the construction of massive bunkers, and the reintroduction of conscription, governments across the continent are signaling a shift toward heightened readiness. Across Europe, governments are distributing survival guides to equip citizens with the knowledge to endure crises.

According to a report by The Guardian, Germany and Nordic countries like Sweden, Finland, and Norway have taken the lead in issuing booklets and developing apps that advise on building bunkers, stockpiling food, and surviving without electricity.

These efforts stem from growing concerns about a potential Russian threat, with experts cited in the report suggesting an attack could materialize within the next five years. Similarly, Reuters noted that Sweden reissued its Cold War-era pamphlet “If Crisis or War Comes” in recent years, updating it to address modern threats like cyberattacks alongside traditional warfare. The messaging is clear: self-reliance is key in the face of disruption.

Beyond individual preparedness, European nations are devising large-scale evacuation strategies. BBC News reported that Poland, situated on NATO’s eastern flank, has been quietly developing contingency plans to evacuate major cities like Warsaw in the event of a sudden conflict. Local authorities have identified transport routes and temporary shelters, reflecting fears of escalation near its borders with Ukraine and Belarus.

Meanwhile, DW (Deutsche Welle) highlighted Germany’s efforts to modernize its civil defense protocols, including simulations of mass evacuations from urban centers. These plans, dormant since the Cold War, are being revived as a precaution against a rapidly deteriorating security landscape.

The construction and refurbishment of bunkers are also gaining momentum. France24 detailed Finland’s extensive network of underground shelters, capable of housing over 80% of Helsinki’s population. These facilities, maintained since the Soviet era, are now being upgraded with modern ventilation and supplies to withstand prolonged sieges.

In Switzerland, Al Jazeera reported that the country’s famous bunker system—enough to accommodate its entire population—remains a cornerstone of national defense policy, with recent inspections ensuring readiness.

Germany, too, is revisiting its past, with The New York Times noting a surge in private bunker construction as wealthy citizens hedge against instability, though public shelters remain limited compared to Cold War highs.

Perhaps the most striking development is the return of conscription in several nations. CNN reported that Lithuania reinstated mandatory military service in response to Russia’s actions in Ukraine, a policy echoed by Latvia and under consideration in Estonia.

Further west, The Washington Post covered debates in Germany about reinstating conscription, which was phased out in 2011, as a means to bolster NATO commitments. In Scandinavia, AP News highlighted Norway’s long-standing draft system, now intensified with increased training cycles, while Sweden’s reintroduced conscription targets both men and women to ensure a robust defense force. These moves reflect a broader European acknowledgement that voluntary enlistment may not suffice in a major conflict.

While some view these preparations as prudent, others see them as alarmist. The Times (via posts found on X) suggested that Europe’s actions might fuel public anxiety rather than calm it, with critics arguing that the focus on World War 3 scenarios overshadows diplomatic solutions.

The combination of survival guides, evacuation drills, bunker investments, and conscription paints a picture of a continent unwilling to be caught off guard.

The specter of Russia looms large in these narratives, though officials interviewed by BBC News emphasize that preparedness is about resilience, not provocation.

Source: End Times Headlines

[beardedmrbean]

North Korea has issued a fresh nuclear warning to the U.S. over its activities on the Korean Peninsula, interpreting them as rehearsals for an armed conflict.

The statement, issued by Pyongyang's Foreign Ministry, was in response to ongoing bilateral military exercises involving South Korea and the U.S.

On Monday, state-run news agency KNCA released a statement from the North Korean Foreign Ministry taking aim at exercise "Ulchi Freedom Shield," which it called "large-scale provocative joint military exercises."

"The current exercises, including a drill simulating a nuclear confrontation with the DPRK, bring to light clearer the provocative nature of Ulji Freedom Shield as a prelude to a nuclear war," the ministry said.

Newsweek has contacted the United States Indo-Pacific Command for comment on North Korea's claims.

On Monday, the US began its annual joint military drills with South Korea, with this year's exercises focused on improving their capabilities to deal with growing threats posed by North Korea.

The drills, set to continue through August 29, will involve over 40 types of field exercises, as well as drills intended to simulate missile attacks, GPS jamming and cyberattacks.

According to a spokesperson for South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, quoted by Reuters, the alliance's bilateral exercises will also "further strengthen its capability and posture to deter and defend against weapons of mass destruction."

However, Pyongyang said that these defensive exercises resemble the historical behavior of countries preparing for conflict, and accused the two states of rehearsing a "beheading operation" against the Kim Jong Un regime.

"It is clearly recorded in the world history of wars that in preparation for a war, aggressor states followed a series of procedures, including adoption of war policy and military operation plan for its execution, advance deployment of forces, ceaseless simulated and actual war drills and war provocation," the ministry's statement read.

These annual drills have consistently drawn the ire of Pyongyang, as has the increasing presence and activity of the U.S. in the Indo-Pacific.

North Korea responded to last year's Freedom Shield drills by carrying out tests of a strategic cruise missile, overseen by Kim Jong Un, according to KNCA.

In June, following the conclusion of the first "multi-domain" trilateral exercises involving the U.S., South Korea and Japan, Pyongyang condemned the three countries' "reckless and provocative" actions, and warned that these would be met with "fatal consequences."

In its Monday statement, North Korea's Foreign Ministry also criticized America's "nuclear confrontation policy against the DPRK," which it said was evidenced by the creation of the U.S.-South Korean "Nuclear Consultative Group" in April 2023.

According to a joint statement from Joe Biden and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in July, after the pair signed their first guidelines on nuclear deterrence on the Korean Peninsula, this group has "directly strengthened U.S.-ROK cooperation on extended deterrence, and managed the threat to the nonproliferation regime posed by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea."

Since the consultative group was launched in 2023, U.S. nuclear ballistic missile submarines have been sent to South Korean waters, which North Korea has warned "may fall under the conditions of the use of nuclear weapons."