Recently in Episode 4: Secret of Wisconsin Category

Weeks went by without much excitement after we made it back. Sienna was able to pull the glass shards out of my hands, and they were feeling much better now. Jonathan though, spent much of his time in and out of the hospital, recovering from his injuries. Michael was able to repair his batteries to working order. Once Michael was better, Tobias joined him in helping the RDF analyze the data we retrieved from the dome. Sienna herself was fine, of course, but she was so busy I barely had a moment to chat with her.

That left Anna, who had returned to school. She was far beyond her age in intelligence, so she was placed in the high school. It was challenging for her, which was good, because it kept her mind off of our recent mission. She enjoyed it though, and that made me happy to see. She was growing up rapidly, and I wanted her to enjoy as much of her childhood as she could.

It seemed though, that I was alone. Everyone else had a job to do. I did my best to keep tabs on everyone, and to check in on Jonathan's progress each day. I tried to help the RDF where I could, but I was just in the way. I eventually decided to head topside and do some walking, to clear my mind.

I walked out of the hangar doors, and ran out away from the hustle and bustle of the RDF's various nightly activities. Moments later I reached a rocky hill on the outskirts of the camp, and plopped down. Looking up into the ink-black sky, I imagined I was looking at the stars. It was the one thing I missed from the dome; at night, the false ceiling displayed a beautiful rendition of Earth's old night sky. I couldn't believe that at one time, hundreds of years ago, this rocky cold desert was once a great city. I'd long since forgotten the name, but the dome's name, City Eternal, was certainly a tribute to the majesty of what had been. I continued to lay there, but I wasn't able to sit still. I was restless, so much was running through my mind.

Who would have thought it would have turned out like this?

I fiddled with my new running shoes, tightening the strings. The shoes were specially designed for me. At the speeds I could run at, the average shoe couldn't withstand the impact. More importantly, it tore my feet up terribly. So I had two pairs created. The running shoes I had with me, which had less traction (if the shoes had too much traction, I couldn't slide, and trying to stop at 60 miles per hour without sliding was a painful and long endeavour) and more support were perfect for high speed. The other pair was for more parkour-style running. They had better grip, especially in the toes, where the sole contained a special no-slip grip that allowed me to travel up walls and slick surfaces much easier than I could otherwise.

I pulled myself to my feet, and took off running, full out. Without a real destination in mind, I decided to make a large loop around the outskirts of the camp. The wind whipped through my hair, and pounded my chest, as I forced myself to go as fast as I could manage. I felt like an animal that was finally released from its cage, given the opportunity to run free without restraint. It was the first time I was truly allowed to run in the open air, without be scared or angry. Just peaceful.

My sprint around the camp was short lived, it only took me about ten minutes to reach exhaustion. But when I finally collapsed to the dirt again, I felt happy, for the first time in a long time. Too tired and too uninterested in heading back, I pulled my jacket closed, and watched the dark clouds roll by once more, as I drifted off to sleep.

A few hours later, I wasn't sure just how long, my phone began to ring. It startled me awake, and I quickly pulled it from my pocket.

"Jon, what's wrong?" I said breathlessly.

"I should ask you the same! It's 3AM, where are you?"

"Outside, taking a nap."

"Outside? Are you crazy? It's dangerous to just leisure about up there!"

"Seems pretty safe to me," I replied, confused.

"Will you get your butt back inside before Michael has a heart attack? He's practically ready to form a search party for you!" Jonathan said exasperated.

"Okay, okay! I'll be down in a few minutes."

Hanging up, I let out a deep sigh. It seemed my peace had run out for the day. Still, I came away from the time feeling refreshed, and I thanked God I had the chance.

Another month passed. Jon's injuries had finally healed, and the RDF's researchers had finished analyzing the disk. Jon, Sienna, and myself were called down to meet Tobias and Michael in the war room to discuss the findings. Jon and I were official members of the RDF now, complete with our own badges, so obtaining access to the war room was uneventful. Once we arrived, Michael had us take a seat at the table, while he turned on the projector. The table already had many other officers of the RDF seated. General Ratkins walked in moments later, with Tobias and Sienna directly behind. Tobias joined Michael at the front of the room, while Ratkins and Sienna joined us at the table.

"To begin, our research team has finished their work on the data disk obtained from City Eternal. We've processed every last bit, and unfortunately, what we found was sparse. It seems we were had."

"What do you mean, 'had'? We pulled that straight from their stupid computer!" I yelled, angry at the wasted effort, the pain and suffering we endured.

"It seems that the information contained within the CARMEL system was not quite what we expected. Very little of the military's documents and data existed in the system," Michael informed us.

"Then we went in there for no reason, what a crock of shit!" Jon yelled.

"Don't get too excited. We were able to obtain one small interesting piece of information. This was pulled from their dock itinerary of the past month," Michael said, pressing a button to advance the presentation.

On the screen was an activity list for City Eternal's external docks. Anything that went in or out of the city was listed there.

"We were most interested in this section," Michael added, highlighting a small part of the log.

The log seemed to talk about various military equipment coming in through the docks.

"This record shows an incredible amount of military equipment, far more than we ever speculated existed. Not great news. However, this log also had one other bit of detail to reveal to us," Michael spoke curiously. He eliminated the rest of the log, and zoomed in on a specific area of the military equipment record.

The record said, "Wisconsin Dome".

"Wisconsin Dome? What does that mean?" an officer in the back asked.

"That record reveals the origins of the equipment coming from the docks. This equipment here came from a place called the Wisconsin Dome, possibly the location of some military exercise. The research team was puzzled by the name, so they looked into it. Wisconsin, it seems, was a name of one of the 50 states of America, this country. Wisconsin's borders are far east of here, beyond the Appalachian Divide," Tobias explained.

"We're not sure what to make of this, but the research team seems to believe, and I concur, that this Wisconsin Dome is another dome, just like City Eternal's. We've heard much speculation about the existence of other domes, but City Eternal has had plenty of time to modify historical record, so it's not surprising that they could keep this a secret."

"So what if this is another dome, what does that mean for us?" another officer asked.

"Well, it could either be another area City Eternal controls, and uses for their military. Or, more likely, it's a dome that City Eternal is fighting," Tobias replied.

"If they're fighting City Eternal, then we could use their help," Jon said.

"Right you are, which is why I want to send a ship out to investigate," General Ratkins said, as he rose from his seat. "We've been lucky so far. Based on these records, City Eternal has more than enough firepower to destroy us without a second thought. But if they are at war, then it would explain their general disinterest in our various activities. And if they are at war, we need to talk to this Wisconsin Dome, if City Eternal hasn't already obliterated it. Michael, I want you to organize a small team to travel out east and find this Wisconsin Dome. If they're friendly, organize an alliance, and if they're not, report back immediately."

"I've already started preparations, I hope to leave tonight."

"Good. Take whatever supplies and equipment you deem necessary. This could be the breakthrough we've been waiting for," General Ratkins smiled.

"Okay, everyone, meeting's over. I'll be talking to each of you later to discuss our plans. Don't go too far," Michael instructed.

I couldn't believe what I had seen. Everyone else had begun returning to their stations throughout headquarters, but I was still planted in my seat. How could another dome go unnoticed for so long? And then I was reminded of Mr. Fisher. He said something during our meeting months ago, about the possible existence of other domes. Did he know something we didn't? I had to find out.

"Michael, I'll be back in a little bit. I need to look into something," I said anxiously, and took off for the door.

I flew through the hallways of headquarters, finally reaching the camp side. I burst through the entrance to the stairs, and climbed as fast as I could. What floor was he on? I couldn't remember. I checked every floor starting at 100. Finally, breathlessly, I burst through the door where the culture festival had occurred. The area had changed rapidly since then; most of the decorations and booths were now gone. But the one building that mattered most still sat there. I ran up to the entrance, when I noticed it was dark inside. There was a note pinned to the frame of the entrance. I looked at it, and saw it was addressed to us, everyone who had visited that day. It read as follows:

I regret that I must leave, but I have overstayed my welcome. I hope that our talk was fruitful, and that you all find what you are looking for. If you are reading this it means you must have realized that everything I said was the truth. My intent was not to deceive. Hopefully my motivations might become clear at a later time, but for now all I can do is wish you all luck. I wish that we might meet again, but I hope that we do not.

I will leave you with one last piece of advice: do not trust your past experiences. The basis by which we live our lives now is a farce. I hope the truth will become evident in your travels. I am sorry I cannot explain further, but I pray you will understand soon enough.

Fisher

P.S.: Please keep watch over Anna.

What the hell was that supposed to mean? I ripped the note from the frame and stuffed it in my pocket. Michael needed to see this.

I sat on a bench outside the restaurant, and gave my poor legs a chance to recover. After a few minutes, I fell asleep. I was rudely awakened hours later by a phone call. It was Michael.

"Yukari, we're almost finished down here, you need to start packing. We leave in four hours."

"I found a note at Mr. Fisher's place. You need to hear what he said."

"Bring the note with you when you come down. I'll read it then."

"Okay, I will. Can't believe we're leaving so soon."

"I know, seems like we were just finally settling back into routine around here. Welcome to the RDF," he chuckled.

"See you soon," I said.

"Make it quick," he replied, hanging up.

Four hours later, I was in the docking area, baggage in hand. I saw Anna and Sienna sitting against the wall at the back of the dock. I walked over to meet them.

"Hey Yuki!" Anna greeted me, jumping up and hugging.

"Ready for your trip?" I asked.

"Yep! Mikey and Jon are getting the boat."

"Gotcha. Where's Tobias? Is he not coming?"

"No, he's going to be our contact while we're traveling, keeping track of our route and keeping a close eye on us," Sienna answered.

I pulled Anna off of me, and we sat down next to Sienna. We talked about Anna's schoolwork, Sienna's job, and the task ahead. For once I felt excited, instead of scared. We were going to travel to someplace new, somewhere no one around has gone. It was hard not to be excited.

An alert played over the PA system, announcing the docking of a ship. We looked to the docking bay door, and saw a large ship approaching.

"That's it! That's our ship!" Anna called out.

"What? That big thing? No way," I said exasperated.

"Yes it is! I can feel Mikey and Jon!"

"A little overkill, isn't it?" I asked.

"Jon practically begged the general to allow us to use it. That's all I know," Sienna replied.

"Great," I rolled my eyes.

The ship sailed in, narrowly avoiding the top of the giant gateway. It was a mammoth in comparison to the other small boats in the docking area. It featured a single TURING cannon on the rear of the ship, but also had the distinctive extended railings of all the City Eternal military ships. No doubt they were mad about missing this one. Also near the back was the second navigation pod. Besides that, the only other thing that came off the deck was the large room in the center, which I assumed led under the deck. The whole ship was a dark metallic color, but this room actually had windows. Windows were a rare sight, most ships didn't have any at all, for added protection. I immediately recognized that this ship was indeed special, even among other ships of its size.

As the landing gear took the weight of the ship, the docking bay grew quiet. I hadn't realized, but the ship's lift system was actually audible. A testament to its size and weight, for sure. A steep stairway extended from the side to the ground, and Jon peaked his head out from inside.

"Well, you guys going to just sit there or are you going to check it out?" he called.

Anna took off like a bolt. Sienna and I followed her, actually interested in this new toy of theirs. It had a majestic feel to it, something truly epic. We climbed up the steep stairs into the cabin. Inside it was far more spacious than I imagined. Pipes and machinery ran along the ceiling and various walls, but much of the cabin itself was open. The stairs led up directly into a bathroom with a shower. Beyond that was a kitchen. The oven was small but functional, and there was a large sink and a microwave as well. Cabinets lined the walls wherever they could be placed, while soft lighting gave it a surprisingly homey feel.

Immediately next to that, with an open counter separating them, was the living area, with wrap-around couch circling a low table. It had enough room to seat all of us comfortably. Past it was the stairwell, which went both up on deck, as well as below deck. The ceiling above the living area and stairwell was raised, providing space for the only windows on the ship. It let in a lot of light, and really made it feel less cramped. It was amazing how large the ship felt from the inside.

Along the opposite side of the kitchen, there was a simple pantry closet. Next to it was the navigation room. That room had many monitors and controls, and also contained the various computer devices needed to run the ship. The engine and lift systems were further below deck, but this room was still loud. Luckily it had a thick door to keep the noise out of the living area.

Michael lead us down the stairwell, to the next floor. The ceiling was lower here, to the point that Michael had to duck his head down to avoid banging his head on various pipes and cables running along it. There were five rooms total down here. Michael explained that him and Jonathan would share a bedroom, as he didn't sleep. The other three bedrooms were for us girls, which I was happy about. The final room was originally two rooms by the look of it, but were merged into one large living area, much like the one above.

Before we headed back up, Michael pointed out that the stairs continued downwards. Below the bedrooms was the engine room, where the jet engine and lift system was held. He mentioned that Anna was the only one who could actually stand upright in there, as the bottom deck was short and cramped.

Just before we headed back up, Jonathan and a couple of dock workers came down from above, carrying our luggage. I thanked them for the help, and we settled into our respective bedrooms. Once we were unpacked, Michael called from above over the intercom, informing us that we were about to get underway. I hurried out of my room up the stairs to the surface deck, and joined the others in saying goodbye to the refugee camp.

Anna waved vigorously to the crew on the ground, and we began to float out of the hangar. Michael handled the navigation this time, instead of allowing the autopilot the honors. Tobias also arrived at the last second to see us off.

"I'll be in constant contact, and monitoring your progress! You guys be careful!" he called out to us over the hum of the lift system.

"If we get lost, it's your fault!" Jonathan yelled back, laughing.

The ship emerged from the hangar, and proceeded to unroll the sails. It unfurled a magnificent main sail, which looked far larger than I thought possible. Once it had opened and grasped the wind, a headsail also began to open near the front of the ship, displaying the RDF insignia. It wasn't the first time I'd seen it, but I hadn't really paid attention to it before. The insignia featured three men placing a flag on top of some rubble. Michael walked up next to me, as I continued to look at the sail.

"That insignia came from an old photograph, from before the apocalyptic event. We're not sure when it was taken, but it was very inspirational. The RDF protects what we've built from the ashes and dust of the old world. It's fitting, don't you think?"

I nodded.

Michael walked back to the ship controls, and received final clearance for departure from the camp. The sails caught a strong gust, and the ship lurched forward out of the camp. I looked back at the camp one last time. My gut wrenched; it felt like this was the last time I'd see the camp. I could only hope I was wrong.

We were seven hours into our trip. It was two o'clock in the morning, but I couldn't sleep, so I joined Michael on the upper deck to keep him company. He seemed to appreciate it, as nights were typically a lonely time for him. I leaned on the railing, letting the wind blow through my hair. We were making good time so far, having traveled nearly a hundred miles already. If the wind continued to cooperate, we could be there in a week.

Thanks to the lift system as well as the ship's natural water faring ability, we could take a direct route over the great lakes. We hadn't reached them yet, but I was overjoyed at the thought. The ocean water near the refugee camp was treacherous to put it mildly, so I couldn't help but imagine how beautiful the calm waters of the lakes must be.

The scenery so far had been drab. We occasionally came across remnants of towns and cities. Trees too, but they were exceptionally rare. The harsh elements, dark days, and significant wind across the planet had killed and eroded any plant life, except for the occasional hardy grass or weed. All of that, while depressing, was nothing compared to seeing destroyed villages, where signs mentioning evacuation areas and bunkers littered the roads. I could only imagine the number of people who had died trying. Over the hundreds of years that had gone by, erosion had left little for us to cherish of the old world, but also served to protect us from the horrible scenes after.

"Makes you wonder what life must have been like back then, doesn't it?" Michael asked.

"Peaceful, I would imagine."

"Call me crazy, but I'm somewhat glad I was born into this post-apocalyptic Earth. Not the Earth that was."

"Why?"    

"When you're born with so little, you learn to appreciate making do with what you have. But for those who lived during the event, it must have been deeply traumatizing. Having your perfect life ripped away from you in an instant? I can't imagine living through that."

"We're not so different. When I was pulled from my family, taken into the genetic farm, I was traumatized as well," I pointed out.

"You're right… I guess we do share something with our ancestors, in that regard."

"I don't think anyone's ever asked… how did you end up in the farm?" I asked curiously.

"I was in a hospital, suffering from a severe viral infection. One night, when I was asleep, they whisked me away. At the time, the farm was little more than your typical lab. They told me they had found a cure for the virus. I don't know what they gave me, but at first, I did feel better. But as I got better, I was more aware of what was going on. I soon realized I was trapped, and I wouldn't be seeing my parents again. They convinced my parents that I had died, and that my body was being disposed of to avoid contamination. After that, well, you know the rest."

"Their choices never made sense. Why were we selected?"

"I don't think we'll ever discover the answer to that."

"What do you think we'll find out there, in Wisconsin?" I asked after a brief pause.

"Unless those records lied to us, there's probably another dome out there."

"Do you think they're friendly?"

"I don't know. You're being really inquisitive tonight, is something wrong?"

"Just a bad feeling. But it's been with me for a while now."

"What's that?"

"Ever since we made it out of the dome the last time, I couldn't shake the feeling that it was only going to get worse."

"Just relax, we're not in any danger out here. You should try to get some sleep."

"I know," I replied, but stayed where I was.

I ended up staying with Michael the whole night.

The next day greeted us with a magnificent "sunrise". The clouds seemed thin that day, almost peeling away to reveal the sun itself. Although the dark dust in the clouds dimmed out the color, it wasn't hard to imagine what it must have looked like before the event that ruined the sky. Jon was the first up that morning, still in his pajamas.

"Mornin'" he called to us with a yawn.

"Bit cold out here to be walking around in PJs, don't you think?" I reminded him.

"Meh, a little cold air in the morning wakes you up!"

"Surprised to see you up, figured you'd be the last."

"Oh, Sienna's up too, she's been doing her hair for a while now. Told her it was pointless due to all the wind up here, but she insisted. What is it with you women and your hair, anyway?"

"I guess some of us don't enjoy looking like death warmed over in the morning," I joked.

"You don't look so hot yourself there miss!"

"Oh, thanks." I said with a glare.

A week passed, of peace and quiet. I mostly kept to myself, watching the dim rolling hills and plains of stone and sand. Lake Erie turned out to be just as amazing as I imagined, with an amazing thunderstorm off in the distance crashing down on the lake. We spent our time playing cards, swapping childhood stories, and going over the possibilities for what we might see in Wisconsin.

On the first night of our second week, I was rudely awakened to the ship violently swaying. I was tossed out of the bed and onto the cold steel floor. Slowly pulling myself up, I heard warning alarms blare over the PA system. I rushed my way up to the top deck, emerging into violent rain and winds. The ship shook again, as the lift system attempted to keep the ship upright.

I didn't know a thing about how to pilot this ship in such nasty weather, so I ducked back underside to figure out what was taking the others so long. I found Jon and Sienna next to Michael, who was sitting down, eyes closed, with a cable running to the ship.

"What the hell is he doing, sleeping?" I yelled over the roar of the storm.

"Pretty much, we can't wake him up! He must've shut down his systems to charge faster." Jon replied.

"Jon, you need to get your ass up there, this storm is going to kill us if someone isn't flying this thing," I commanded.

"Okay, I'm on it," he said loudly, and scurried up to the top deck.

"Michael's the only one who knows how to get out of this storm," Sienna told me.

"Have you tried unplugging him?" I asked.

"Is that a good idea? What if it turns him off for good?"

The ship moaned loudly and tipped dangerously far on its side. We grabbed whatever was closest and held on, trying not to fall over again.

"Well it's either that or we crash and burn at the hands of Jon's piloting!" I called back to Sienna.

She sighed loudly, and grabbed the power cable. I grabbed it as well.

"On three," she said. I nodded. "One, two, THREE!"

The plug came out cleanly from his back, and we closed the door. Michael suddenly snapped awake.

"What the hell are you two doing? You could have damaged my charging circuits!"

The ship rolled violently once again, tossing Michael to the floor.

"What the hell was that?" he asked in shock.

"That would be the reason we woke you up! The weather outside is crazy! The ship apparently can't compensate, and Jon's not doing too well either." I informed him.

Michael clambered up to the top deck, and we followed reluctantly, stepping back out into the wind and rain.

"About time you woke up, Mike, I can't get the stupid sails down! The ship's sail controls are locked up, and I can't manually override it!"

Michael pushed Jon out of the way of the control panel, and he typed furiously, attempting to fix the problem. I grabbed onto the rail, trying not to fall over, and looked up at the sails. They were starting to fray at the corners from the incredible stress, threatening to tear completely. The wind changed directions without a moment's notice, and the ship couldn't align the sails fast enough.

"It's not locked up; the stress is so high on the gears that they can't move. I'm going to initiate an emergency detachment of the sails." Michael told Jon.

With that, Michael punched in the code, and the sails suddenly disengaged, disconnecting from the masts. They swooped over the deck, the mainsail just barely passing over my head, and were carried off into the storm by the wind. The ship seemed to sigh with relief, as the lift system relaxed, no longer fighting the torque placed on them by the sails.

"Everyone below deck, there's nothing left to do now but to ride this out," Michael called out.

We all hurried back under, and rushed to our rooms to change into some dry clothing. After that, we joined Anna who was sitting in the den, comforting her as she gripped the couch's arm so hard that her hands turned white.

We rode out the storm for the next few hours in the living area, the wind rocking us just enough to keep us from attempting sleep. Jon and Michael discussed the issue with the sails, while Sienna tried to comfort Anna.

"The ship's computer says the gears still aren't moving…" Michael called over to Jon from the interior controls.

"You mean it wasn't just the constant stress?"

"I think the gears are stripped, actually."

"Can I make some new ones?"

"Probably, but we can't get to them. You'd have to melt down the whole mast and internals to get to it."

"Without understanding how that stuff's pieced together, there's no way I could just melt that down and back together. This isn't good."

"I know."

I walked over to Michael, and put my hand on his shoulder.

"So what do we do now?" I asked.

"Well, we're only about 100 miles away now. Without sails we have two methods of movement: the jet and the lift system. The lift system is abysmally slow, it maxes out at around 2 miles an hour over land, and it can't sustain movement for extended periods. The jet engine on the other hand maxes out around 50 miles an hour on this ship, but has limited fuel. If I optimize the jet's speed for maximum fuel efficiency, around 35 mph, we're looking at about 300 miles of range. We only had a month's worth of food to start, so even if we start back right now, we'd be cutting it really close."

"Then we keep going and hope there's a dome in Wisconsin where we can stock up and repair." I explained.

"Well, that is an option, yes…"

"No, that's what we're going to do." I demanded.

"Wait a second, I'm still captain of this ship, it's my decision!"

"That's fine, I'll go by myself then," I said, storming off towards my room.

"Oh, and how do you plan on crossing Lake Michigan?"

"I'll swim of course."

"Even with your speed, you'd die of hypothermia, or cramp up and drown before you got to the other side."

"Fine, I'll go around. It'll only take me a couple extra hours at full tilt."

"Oh for the love of… why do you want to go so bad in the first place?"

"Because they might have answers, Michael."

Michael ran his hand through his hair, obviously aggravated with my stubbornness.

"Okay, we'll keep going. It'd take you months to find it without the ship's scanning equipment, anyway."

The next day we crossed over Lake Michigan. We turned off the jet and instead placed the ship in the water, using all of the lift system's power for propulsion instead of floating. It doubled the speed it was capable of, but it still took us half a day to cross the lake. As we came close to the opposite shore, Michael scurried down the stairs into the cabin.

"Listen to this!" he yelled, and pressed a button at the inside control pad.

A crackle and lots of static came over the speakers. Jon looked at me, and I looked back at him, shrugging our shoulders in tandem.

"All I hear is static, Mike," I said.

"Obviously! Don't you know what that means?"

"Uh, nothing?" Jon replied.

"No! You only have static where there is a signal. Up until now, the radios have been completely silent, no static. Something is broadcasting near here, and that static is the proof."

"So there is something out there…" I said amazed. "Finally, we might get answers!"

"But how will we find the origin? According to the maps, Wisconsin is rather… big," Jon pointed out.

"I'm going to set up a directional antenna array below deck. By using that, we can figure out which direction that signal is coming from. Jon, I'll need you to get us out of the lake and floating again. I want to get this antenna up before we lose the signal."

"Sure thing," Jon replied, and scurried up to the deck.

A half hour later we were finally ashore. Michael had rigged up a directional filter for the ship's antenna, and relayed directions to Jon to drive towards. Over the next hour, the signal grew stronger. Before long, we were able to actually understand what was being said. Michael had Sienna, Anna and myself sit by the speaker and try to pick up on what was being said.

"Whatever the signal is, I did some analysis. It's a looping message. Try to figure out what its saying," he told us over the intercom.

We listened intensely, trying to pick out any words we could understand. Finally, the ship went over a hill, and the signal cleared up enough to understand. I yelled at Jon and Michael to hold their positions, and we focused on the message.

"Attention all Wisconsin dome residents: due to increased military activity from the New York dome, Wisconsin has been evacuated. If you still reside inside the dome, please evacuate to the pre-assigned encampment location. The dome has been placed under automated control. Life support and power is expected to last less than two weeks. The area is dangerous, and return access to the dome has been closed off due to the continually deteriorating infrastructure. Please make sure you have everything you need, and leave immediately. This is the final warning. This message will now repeat."

"They abandoned the dome?" Sienna asked.

"City Eternal must have really hurt them if they're abandoning the dome…" I replied.

Michael and Jon came into the room, and we explained what the message said.

"If that's true, there might not be any Wisconsin left to visit. Who knows how old that message really is," Jon said.

"Well it said the dome had two weeks of power remaining. Besides, if that message is still broadcasting, there has to be something left," Michael pointed out.

"Yeah, and since we know the general area the signal is coming from, we'll be able to locate the dome a lot easier."

Michael took the helm again, as we headed towards the direction of the transmission. It was only an hour later that Michael called down to us.

"Hey, I can see it, come look!"

We all scurried up to the deck, while Michael slowed the ship down to make it safe for us. Holding carefully to the railings as the ship slowed, we looked out towards the north, where Michael was pointing.

"My God… it's a disaster…" Sienna said fearfully.

The dome was in terrible shape. Two gaping holes were visible from our perspective, and a few patches of fire and smoke could be spotted as well. Like City Eternal, the original smooth plating shell no longer existed, but much of the inner structure also looked mangled and warped.

"No wonder that transmission said it wasn't safe inside. I'm surprised it's still standing," Jon remarked.

"Remember that bad feeling I told you about, Michael? It just became a whole lot worse," I said worryingly.

As the ship crept closer, we gathered our things in preparation.

"Should we pack the weapons?" I asked.

"I wouldn't take any chances," Jon replied.

I nodded and grabbed my gear. Besides the weapons though, we packed light, intending to scavenge for food inside. Our ship's food supply was severely limited, and with the sail situation, it could take us much longer than planned to make it back, so we tried to ration as much as possible.

I stepped back out onto the deck, as the ship carefully slid up to one of the dome's entrances. It was similar to City Eternal, that much was obvious, but in a state of disrepair. Frankly, I was shocked when the control panel came to life and opened the door for Michael. We slowly stepped inside, but didn't proceed far, as Michael wanted to try and access the dome's network.

"The main server is down. All I'm seeing are some random backups for the dome's major systems, like power and water. Even the civilian information is unavailable," Michael informed us.

"So, we're on our own," Sienna said.

"Looks like it," Michael replied.

"What are we even looking for?"

"Same thing we were looking for at City Eternal: access to their server. Assuming they were both built similarly, they should both have the same core server with some valuable information."

Jon and I started walking forward a bit, until we reached an archway. Beyond was an impressive set of stairs. The stairs were in fact so impressively long that we couldn't even see the bottom.

"Is this really the entrance?" I asked, looking at Michael.

He shrugged, and we all proceeded to descendinto the depths of the dome.

"I just realized something. Remember back at City Eternal, there was that underground city? The abandoned one? Maybe this dome is the same." Jon pointed out.

"It's possible. It never made sense for City Eternal to build atop a perfectly good city, so it stands to reason that other domes wouldn't do the same." Michael replied.

Michael grabbed a flashlight from the hefty backpack he was carrying on our behalf. It revealed a large door in the darkness. We opened the door not sure what to expect, but in hindsight I don't think we could have ever prepared ourselves for what we saw.

The door opened up to reveal a city not unlike what we saw in the City Eternal underground. But for the first time we saw it open, bright and free. Much of the city looked war torn, but it still had as beauty of its own. The devastation was made more apparent by local fires, and gaping holes in the fake sky, but the fire mixed with the dim lit sky gave a sort of hue to the city that normally you'd only see in old photographs of sunsets.

"So much destruction…" I said in awe.

"I'm amazed the dome still stands in this condition," Michael replied. "Feel anyone out there, Anna?"

Anna shook her head, holding close to Sienna.

Jon stepped up to a railing in front of us. Our vantage point overlooked much of the city, as if high atop a mountain. The city itself sloped downward in from the edges, in stark contrast to the perfectly flat City Eternal main floor. This meant that our vantage point was just one of an endless number along the edges of the dome.

He looked over the railing, curiously searching for something from what I could tell.

"There's a tram down there, what do you think are the chances of it working?"

Michael walked up beside him to look as well.

"No, look, further down the line the rail is broken. Without a map of the city or access to the computer systems, we'll never find a working one."

"So we're walking the whole way?" I asked.

"It's only about five miles to the center, right? Shouldn't take us long," Sienna said.

"That isn't five miles of flat ground though. It's going to be difficult to find a path to the center," Michael explained.

Sienna stepped up to join the other two at the railing, Anna in tow.

"Maybe we should pick a spot to take a break and get our bearings then. Like a halfway point," she suggested, as she looked out across the city in front of them.

"There!" she pointed.

I decided to join the group and see what Sienna was pointing toward.

"That clearing should be a good place. Looks about halfway, and it looks like it has a good vantage point of the rest of the city as well."

"Yeah, that should work, good idea," Jon said.

Michael stepped away from the railing, heading towards the spiral stairs going down.

"Alright, enough gawking. We're not getting any younger here."

"More stairs?" Jon moaned.

"I have a feeling that's going to be a regular sight around here. At least with all the support systems down. Best start getting used to it," Michael quipped.

I silently agreed with Jonathan's sentiments, not just dreading the climb down, but the much more unsightly climb back as well. I reluctantly shuffled in behind Jon, while Sienna and Anna followed.