Super Shorts

Breaking The News

"We're going live in five minutes!"

The news anchors were stock still as technicians and makeup artists bustled around them under the blinding lights. Not three minutes passed and most of the people withdrew and the two people relaxed and started flipping through the papers brought to them by a bright-eyed aide. Well-kept cameras were swiveled into position in preparation as everyone behind the scenes calmed down. The Producer held up an open hand and started counting down, getting quieter with every finger he curled into his palm.

At zero, the theme music played.

"Good evening everyone. Tonight we bring to you some strange news. Just twelve hours ago, as you might have already heard, there was a devastating attack in New York City's borough of Manhattan early last Saturday morning. Until today we had no way of knowing what was the cause, or even the reason of this senseless slaughter."

The other anchor picked up where she left off. "After thorough investigating and multiple confirmations, we have leaked footage of the attack that raises new and terrifying questions." He went quiet as the cameras switched to the footage playing on one of the green screens behind them.

It took less than a minute as a pedestrian had caught the floating man right before the blast, and the picture went black.

"There is no explanation and all sources confirm that this footage is indeed real. The terrifying questions posed by this new information are almost incomprehensible."

The Anchorwoman picked up where he left, "Does this mean that people are going to be exhibiting powers, and how is the government going to address this if thats the case? Stay tuned for a special..."

A dull boom cut her off and dust rained down from above the metal scaffolding. An air of foreboding fell upon everyone as the soft purring from the many machines was the only sound for roughly half a minute. No one was prepared for the floor in front of the anchors to warp, bubble, then slowly melt away. This finally snapped some out of their confusion and sent them scurrying for whatever might hide them.

The foreboding became tainted by the acrid odor of liquified linoleum and molten concrete and steel, and three hooded figures floated up through the irregular hole on a glowing neon green disk. Surveying the newsroom, the one at the head of the trio pointed at the camera, letting the other know the cameras were still rolling. At the back of the room, the producer calmly reached for a panic button hidden under small desk that was strewn with paperwork. Before his fingers even brushed the underside a flash of neon green burst out from the figure to the right, cutting across the room in the blink of an eye. The producer soundlessly dropped to the floor; a perfect circle an inch wide in the center of his forehead.

"Now that you've seen we do NOT mess around, No one is to move or make a sound without our say." The voice was deep and gritty, like it was speaking whilst chewing a spoonful of dirt or loam, and it sounded like it was speaking from every direction. "This station, and the entire city, is now under the direct control of Overlord. Resistance is Futile. Obey or die."

Anyone who hadn't taken cover had taken a knee and bowed. The hidden ones were slowly beginning to realize this was no longer a joke, one news anchor started making attempts to call the police, getting a busy signal. No doubt they were swamped with this threat that had emerged.

The figure on the left clapped their hands, releasing a cloud of pink that moved like it was sentient. It began splitting up and seeking out the frightened hidden people. Each one it found, it forced its way up their nostrils and took over all motor function. Bloodshot, hazy, and pink-eyed, the victims slowly emerged. Small, almost invisible threads of pink led back to the figure where they gleefully manipulated the people, bringing them out into the open and down on their knees.

All but one of the cameras exploded in a brilliant flash of neon green light and a cascade of sparks, and a twitch of the arm, the mind controlled workers flipped their switches simultaneously, cutting the live feed.