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"Diminished" Alpha Force seek to replace missing members
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Aaron Fonseca
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As investigations into the fate of Alpha Force superheroes Druid, Fissure and Zoom, who disappeared in November during an investigation into the appearance of an unexplained sinkhole in the Mojave Desert, continue without success, the team is officially seeking to replenish its numbers in their ongoing absence.

Queen Celestia of Equestria, the team’s de facto leader, described the team as “diminished” in the missing heroes’ absence and emphasized the need to fill these positions as soon as possible.

“We have not given up on finding Druid, Zoom or Fissure,” she said in an official statement issued this morning. “In my decades as a part of this team I have learned that Alpha Force members do not go down easily, and we can't dismiss the possibility that they have simply been trapped in an alternate plane of reality, or some kind of lost underground cave kingdom. However, this loss, even if it is temporary, has diminished our ranks tremendously, and I urge any would-be members, old or new, to make themselves known to us at the earliest convenience.”

She went on to instruct heroes interested in joining Alpha Force to present themselves to the reception desk at Alpha Force tower. “We will select the new roster based on interviews and trials with prospective members,” added Celestia, “so there is absolutely no need for anybody to break into the tower and kidnap our staff in order to demonstrate their skills. I have every faith that with the superhero community’s support we will be able to put together a team that Fissure, Zoom and Druid would be proud to see succeed them – and every hope that they will be returned home safely to see it.”

Tests into the origin of the unidentified crystalline mineral found at the site of the disappearance remain inconclusive.


( READ THE REST OF THE SUNDAY EDITION! )


[ooc: Capital H will be officially open for business in about an hour with our first event. In the meantime, check out the weekly news. This will be posted on a biweekly OOC basis (one for every IC week.)

Feel free to comment on these posts OOC!]

An enormous sinkhole has reportedly formed in the center of the UCLA Campus, swallowing enormous portions of the Fowler Museum and its patrons! Hundreds of artifacts and dozens of people have already been reported missing, and these numbers are only expected to grow as the dust settles. The hollowed out exterior of the museum threatens to topple into the hole's depths, and the injured are still being removed from the area.

Authorities are baffled by this phenomenon, stating that it should be geologically impossible. Citizens in the surrounding area are advised to keep their distance while the LAPD and registered heroes prepare to launch a search and rescue for survivors!

Similarities to the Mojave sinkhole are still being examined.

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And with that, Capital H is open!

The mods will make a log for the area surrounding the Fowler Museum, but everyone is free to make as many other related network and log threads as they like! Here are some helpful links about the real place this is happening:

THE FOWLER MUSEUM WEBSITE: For real life examples of its appearance and activities - everything is the same, except for the Land Apart exhibit, which was entirely consumed by the sinkhole.
GOOGLE MAPS: The location of the UCLA Campus in LA. We highly recommend using street view if you want to see what the surrounding area looks like!
A REAL SINKHOLE: While this is not the Guatemala Sinkhole, it is about the same size. That's right, you could fit two Statues of Liberty in that sucker.

THINGS YOU CAN DO:

Search for survivors in the rubble.

Help get the injured to safety.

VENTURE INTO THE EXACT SORT OF SINKHOLE THAT EFFORTLESSLY DEVOURED THREE MEMBERS OF THE ALPHA FORCE...?

If you do venture into the hole (and who are we kidding, we know some of you will) you will find that it terminates about 100m down. The earth there is very soft and malleable, like sand. If you search, you will be able to find six survivors in or on the sand, as well as a number of lost artifacts. You will also find a number of small, white crystals, about the size of a walnut. Characters who go into the hole are free to take as many as they find (realistically to a limit of a few dozen over all.) Let me know below if you are snatching some.

And that's it! You can NPC for any the police and survivors involved that you want - the mods will not be doing so. You have full liberty to make up whatever NPC drama you want. You can have your character know someone who might be lost, know some of the police officers, or have any other relations to this event that is reasonable.

If you are not sure what is reasonable, or if you have any questions about evidence, feel free to ask below!

Also, YOU ARE COMPLETELY FREE TO IGNORE THIS! If you have other stuff you would rather do, or if your character has no reason to get involved, then you are totally allowed to just comment from afar and move straight on to whatever other plot you'd rather deal with! This is a sandbox first and foremost, and the mod plot is not meant to overwhelm everything else. It's just something we can use to toss you guys some mystery once in a while. ;)

If you have any questions, please ask below! Also, let me know if and how many crystals you take if you find them, or who you give them to if you pass them off to someone else.