Codex/Story of Earth

Remaining Human Populations - Part I
Nearly 60% of the planet has been consumed by the demons with the rate of expansion increasing each day. The majority of the world population died in the first month of the Hell invasion, following the catastrophic failure of virtually every man-made system. Military response was immediate but only marginally effective at providing safe retreat to civilians, with many fortified locations cut-off from outside communication.

Facing overwhelming opposition, these makeshift fortresses have gradually fallen to the growing demon presence one after the other. Larger portions of the Earth's surface have become uninhabitable, with swarms of demons scouting the globe and most regions suffering from an atmosphere that has become infected and poisonous by process of some form of alien terraformation.

Remaining Human Populations - Part II
Although several hundred thousand more were safely evacuated out-of-orbit in the mass exodus following the invasion, the expected odds of survival is considered unlikely for many of these lifeboats carrying cryogenically frozen passengers.

Religions iconography and communes are now commonplace amongst survivors, with the collective perception of events taking on a biblical nature. Many seek authority from a higher power to rationalize the sudden destruction of their world, believing these events represent a form of divine punishment.

Formation of the ARC
Following the total collapse of international civilization, nations and boundaries as we know them have ceased to exist. A handful of remaining bureaucrats, government officials and military leaders have managed to survive by use of protective bunkers kept secret to the greater population. Convening under the flag of the Allied Nations, this governing body represents all that remains of the rule of law, forming what would essentially become a single world government.

Military bases in communication with the AN have made efforts to regroup and centralize their areas of command - establishing fortified safe-havens for survivors, stockpiling food and scavenging for supplies. Only proprietary military-use communications remain functional, enabling military entities under command of the Allied Nations to coordinate in humanitarian aid and defense operations.

By 2151, the formation of the ARC has taken highest priority and is considered to be, in all practical terms, the last hope for humanity.

Cultist Base
Led by the elusive Hell Priest Deag Ranak, the Cultists operate from a remote facility located in the Arctic tundra. As overseer, Ranak exerts absolute control over the facility and its legions of possessed acolytes. Instrumental in sowing the seeds of the Cultist uprising, Ranak worked briefly with Olivia Pierce at the Mars facility before departing to Earth with orders to prepare the groundwork for the imminent Hell invasion.

A recently declassified UAC biography for Ranak indicates that he is a surviving member of the original Order of the Deag, the ancient Argenta clerics. He now serves the forces of Hell and is rumored to have personal knowledge of the Doom Slayer, suggesting a shared history between the two. Wielding total power over the Cultists under his supervision, he uses his growing influence to advance the consumption and corruption of Earth.

Built over the ruins of an ancient Argenta settlement, the Cultist facility has been designed as both a gothic monument to the ancient architecture and a state-of-the art science facility. Tablets and memory banks found at the settlement indicate that the Order of the Deag discovered Earth millennia ago and found it to be populated with powerful, primeval beasts. They named these creatures 'Agaddons', due to their similarity to the mythic cyclopean giant from Argent D'Nur's past, the Aggaddian.

Doom Hunter Base
The UAC's polar cultist facility is built around the ruins of an ancient Argenta settlement constructed over 60 million years ago, during Argent D'Nur's extraterrestrial expansion. Frozen carcasses of the Agaddon Hunters have been located in the glacial wastes surrounding the complex, and though their DNA structure reveals them to be indigenous to Earth there is no fossilized record of these creatures beyond the frozen territories of the Argenta settlement. Carbon dating of the remarkably well-preserved beasts suggests they are nearly 80 million years old, pre-dating all other known forms of complex Earth-based life.

Continuing the cyber-demonic experimentation that began on Mars, the Cultists study the Agaddon's potential for resurrection and cyber-augmentation. A similar program occurred at this location millennia ago, when Deag Priests (often cited as Hell Priests) bred the creatures and genetically modified them to function as 'Doom Hunters' - fearsome mutants designed to battle the Doom Slayer and his Night Sentinels during the Unholy Crusades on Argent D'Nur. Sentinel records corroborate this through their military texts, with many reports of these creatures among the ranks of the demonic forces assaulting the armies of the North during the Argenta civil war.

Once the UAC Cultist movement publicly announced its intentions for Earth, the cyber-demonic program was revealed to be focused on updating the Doom Hunter schematics, upgrading their combat prowess. A new assembly center was constructed near the Cultist facility, and a powerful grav-tram allowed UAC workers to safely transport the biological and mechanical components needed for the process. The resurrection of an Agaddon Hunter requires cutting-edge technology be used in conjunction with occult rituals conducted by the UAC's necro-surgeons, an unholy fusion of science and sorcery.

The Hellgrowth - Part I
The Hellgrowth formations on Earth have undergone great scrutiny by experts at the Allied Nations. These cancer-like growths exhibit alarming cellular reproduction rates, outpacing any biological lifeform previously known.

Their structural pattern is chaotic, almost random, with only one identifiable constant - the emergence of totem-like nests, which at full maturity, resonate with powerful electromagnetic frequencies capable of producing a form of inverse quantum field. These fields, once activated, result in the fabrication of Hell portals; tears in space-time which serve as gateways between dimensions.

The Hellgrowth - Part II
The growth exhibits certain pre-determined qualities. In the consumption of our ecosystem, it creates environmental conditions more conducive for its own continued formation; in effect, employing an organic method of terraformation. The resulting environment is hostile to terrestrial life, producing atmospheric toxins and a multitude of environmental hazards.

Although it is understood that the growth accelerates the arrival of demon life on Earth, it is not clear how the growths themselves originated, or whether there was some sort of catalyst that created the conditions necessary for their existence. It is believed that if the source of the growth can be identified, there may be a means of uprooting the entire formation.

Super Gore Nest
Report File: #ARC-AAR-CO37// COMMSEC: Red// Analyst: TWashington-043

//report starts

Operation Locke AAR follows:

Following reports of UAC Cultist presence at the Locke reactor (#ARC-AAR0-A291), recon teams Infil-Gamma and Infil-Hector attempted to gain entry to Locke and assess the situation. Their final transmission indicated a massive demonic presence entering the reactor facility through Continuum Gates (sic: Hell portals).

An emergency Global Council meeting approved an immediate ARC response to the situation at the Locke reactor. The Assembled Coalition Strike Force included 4 US Battle Mech divisions, the Con-EUR Long Range Naval Artillery Barrage Fleet, 27 US Night Bird Apaches, 3 NATO Shock Troop battalions, 2 CON-EUR Rapid Response Levi-Tank divisions, and 18 thousand coalition Special Forces units,

The initial bombardment from the LRNAB was met with immediate response from invasion forces. An estimated 8 thousand DP-013G units (sic: Gargoyles) attacked the fleet, sinking 32 vessels and disabling a further 78% of the fleet. The remaining ships retreated to a position approximately 32 miles off shore, beyond the reach of the Gargoyles, but also out of artillery range.

With the Fleet out of action, the Battle Mechs and Apaches initiated a Danger Close salvo against the reactor, as Shock Troops and Special Forces attempted to rearward infiltration. Several platoons made it inside the reactor, where the demons had already established a DP-136Nest (sic: Super Gore Nest). Although gore nests have been reported at various invasion sites, this was the largest so far observed. The nest has been built around the reactor core itself. Several thousand IFF beacons are amassed at the nest location, suggesting the Demons are using our fallen forces as part of their bio-organic Continuum Gate.

At the time of writing, the DP-136Nest is considered to be ground zero of the invading force. Unless the continuum gate is destroyed, this analyst sees no way to stem the influx of aggressors.

Recommended response: TNA (Total Nuclear Annihilation).

//report ends

The Return of Dr. Samuel Hayden - Part I
The destruction of the Argent wellspring on Mars meant chaos for planet Earth. Following the loss of communication between Earth and Mars-based facilities, the collapse of the Argent-dependent energy grid consumed the planet in crisis. It was during this time that UAC director Dr. Samuel Hayden suddenly resurfaced on Earth before the AN Council, wielding that which might offer salvation to mankind - the Crucible

After recounting the events that had transpired on the red planet, Hayden agreed to cooperate with the AN, providing access to the various UAC facilities on Earth and by extension the full range of technologies at his disposal. Paramount among these was the Crucible, the last remaining source of Argent energy in existence.

The Return of Dr. Samuel Hayden - Part II
Believing it possible to solve the energy crisis which now devastated the planet, Dr. Hayden sought to invent a method of Argent-Synthesis, a synthetic replication that could recreate the high-yield capability of Argent energy. With the destruction of the Argent energy across the solar system, all that remained of Argent existed now within the Crucible, the fabled Hell artifact which Dr. Hayden had acquired on Mars. Knowing full well the Crucible's hidden power, Samuel devised a method to utilize the artifact as an Argent conductor, a process that would in time produce the miracle of synthetic, man-made Argent energy, restoring the production of Argent energy to Earth.

Hayden became a mythical figure among Earth's survivors - in no small part due to his abnormal physical condition. Having returned to Earth when most sought a means to escape, bringing with him the Crucible that would grant the people a second chance at survival - for the common person he had become the stuff of legends.

The ARC - Part I
A global military crisis-relief initiative established by the Allied Nations in 2151. The Armored Response Coalition is designed with the sole purpose to combat and contain the Hell invasion, to succeed where modern militaries are ineffective, utilizing cutting-edge Argent-powered technology.

Hayden, overseeing all aspects of ARC weapon and tech development, set about repurposing the UAC facilities on Earth, many of which were unaffected by the invasion due to their remote locations and high levels of automated security. These facilities, operated by powerful AI, are already designed for weapon development and mass production, meaning they could be repurposed overnight.

The ARC - Part II
By 2151 the ARC began running operations from the Mobile Command Carrier, a seaborne command center designed for long-range strike operations which would serve as ARC HQ. Their primary objective - to locate the source of the Hellgrowth infestation, and in doing so, shutting down the emergence of Hell portals and closing the gate between dimensions.

At the heart of the Armored Response Coalition is an aggressive research and development program in pursuit of new technologies. As part of Dr. Hayden's commitment, UAC resources under his direction, including some of the most powerful AI ever created, have been deployed in service of weapon development designed to face the Hell threat head-on.

Samuel Hayden
In 2150, following the loss communication between Earth and Mars-based facilities, UAC director Dr. Samuel Hayden suddenly resurfaced on Earth before the AN Council. The demonic invasion of Earth had already begun, and Dr. Hayden had arrived just in time to provide aid. He supplied the resistance armies with Argent technology and advanced armaments, taking helm of the newly-formed ARC as Lead Director.

Dr. Hayden's tactical and scientific acumen were invaluable to the war effort, and he was soon given full command over all resistance efforts by the Global Council. The ARC engaged the demons with bleeding-edge tech, exosuits and Heavy Frame battle-mechs, but found themselves fighting a losing battle. Operation Hellbreaker was Samuel's final plan, a powerful counterattack that ultimately ended in failure.

His robotic torso was retrieved by ARC soldiers, Samuel is now tended to and monitored by a skeleton crew of scientists. They had been given contingency orders, to safeguard his body along with the Crucible obtained on Mars.