The Great USSC Novel

[Vladimir Vova Ochiuriushka]

Greetings comrades.

I have been inspired by reading through old tales of Communist micronations and their activities to try out a cool little activity which proved very popular back in the day. The idea is that all the USSC comes together to write a Novel, one paragraph at a time; think of it as a One-Paragraph Story rather than a One-Word Story. Since our activity here is pretty low, I am introducing a rule that if there is not a reply in 7 days you may double post; but preferably lots of people would write it. You're not limited to one paragraph, so feel free to write several, but that's just a general guideline.

This activity is not limited to citizens of the USSC. If any guests, foreign dignitaries and visitors wish to make their mark on the story, feel free; I want this tale to be as literarily diverse as possible, with lots of contrasting styles to make it a very interesting read. We'll come up with the title at the end, by the way. But enough yappin', let's get crackin'!

---------------===========---------------

Dimitri looked out the window of his noisy train with a sombre face as it speeded across Col SSR's flat plains, the rain crashing against his carriage like a barrage of bullets against a tank. Here and there were the Great Factories, which had built the USSC, and before that Col, into the major industrial power it was today. Even now the factories still were producing their murky clouds of "industrial glory", as the Commissar for Economy had mentioned in a speech last week. He had seen too many factories on his travels from the far South, in Ertia. Ertia is a far more civilised place than this, Dimitri thought to himself, a Republic of Universities, Academic Advancements and Culture. Such things would certainly not be missed here, he thought.

[Grand Marshal Xenofontov]

The large heavy gates in front of the stopped train opened, the train pressed on for another quarter of a mile, then stopped, the carriage doors opened and the various passengers began to step onto the platform, it was dark but floodlights lit the area, he checked the time of his appointment with the Head of Operations, 22:45, bit late, Dimitri thought to himself as one of the heavily armed guards checked his pass, he was allowed to enter, a few of the passengers didn't have passes, Dimitri didn't want to think about where they were being escorted by one of the guards, the automatic doors opened after receiving a fingerprint from Dimitri and he walked inside.

[Vladimir Vova Ochiuriushka]

The Passengers without Passes looked anxiously down the corridor as the Automatic Doors slammed shut with Dimitri on the other side. One, an old man with glasses and a black suitcase grasped in both hands across his stomach, stood up from the long bench they were all sitting on and said, "I say! My Pass is valid! It was authorised just yesterday!" A guard walked up to the old man and said, "If your Pass isn't on the Authorised List, you don't get through. We've made that clear enough many times. This is a Maximum Security Facility. No pass, no entry." "But I simply must-" "NO!" The man sat down again, his face miserable. But he made the mistake of standing up again and shouted back at the guard, "This is ridiculous! I demand entry!" The guard, angered now by the old fool, hit him in the chest with his rifle butt and he collapsed to the floor. The guard said to two of his fellow guards, "Bring this chap into one of the Prison cells. He may have the entry he so unfairly was denied." He grinned and led the other Former Passengers away from the facility to wait for the next train.

[Grand Marshal Xenofontov]

Dimirti walked down the bright white corridor, rows of densely tinted windows on either side, he got to the end and another door opened before him, a guard was there, "What's you business here at Valokov Research Centre", "I'm here to see the Head of Operations" Dimitri responded, the guard immediately changed the look on his face, he looked pleased and was now speaking to Dimitri in a more polite way, "Very good sir, he's been expecting you".

[Vladimir Vova Ochiuriushka]

Dimitri entered the office of Aleksei Romanov, Head of Operations. He sat down in a comfortable leather chair placed on the opposite side of the desk to a large brown office seat, which span around to reveal a large, short man with a grotesque, battle-scarred face. He half-grunted, "Ah, Dimitri, you have arrived at last. I trust your studies in the Strait of Pearls were not interrupted at an inappropriate moment?" "No, they were not, Comrade Chief," Dimitri lied. Grigoriy had just made a breakthrough in his undersea drilling operation but before he could survey it, Dimitri had been whisked away to meet the Head of Operations back in Col SSR. "But I must ask," continued Dimitri, "Why have you called me here? I was given no explanation save that the matter was urgent. What is the matter, Aleksei?" Romanov sighed, and looked out his window at the long plain, surrounded by a prison-like gate on the horizon. "The President has issued a People's Decree to shut us down. Since we report only to him, no one else knows - but it will not be long before they discover I am ignoring his Decree."

Dimitri, stunned into silence for a minute, then stammered, "B-but sir, do you know what you are doing?! Ignoring a direct decree from the President could get you killed!" Aleksei sighed again and said, "Yes, I know that! But our work is far too important, even for the President to shut down." Dimitri was puzzled. His work involved simply drilling in various out-of-the-way places, discovering the effects of the Sea Water paired with the extreme heat and pressure on various elements, and, of late, resources of energy. "Sir - I'm confused. Our work isn't that important." Romanov laughed and said, "Oh, Dimitri, you poor innocent fool. Follow me." Aleksei pulled a book entitled "Trotskyism for Beginners" halfway out of a bookcase near his chair and a seamless section of wall slid back and to the side to reveal a small, dark corridor. He walked into it, and Dimitri followed him.

[Grand Marshal Xenofontov]

They walked down several flights of stairs, at the bottom they emerged into what looked like a command room, there were desks everywhere all had people sat behind them looking busy, Dimitri glanced at a huge screen that displayed the locations of missle silos in the USSC and their range of firing, "What is this place?" Dimitri asked, "A command room for military intelligence and operations in the USSC" Romanov answered, "Does the President know about this place?" Dimitri said, "Yes, but he doesn't know it's true purpose" Romanov responded, "Which is?", "I can't tell you that yet Dimitri, in the mean time make yourself comfortable, I need to make a phone call".

The President picked up the phone, "Yes, this is the President speaking", "Comrade Premier" said the voice on the other end "The preparations are ready, he is at the base now", "Good work comrade" the President said, and then put the phone down.

[Vladimir Vova Ochiuriushka]

Aleksei pushed a button on his cell phone and replaced it in his pocket. "Comrade," he said, grabbing Dimitri with both arms on the shoulders, "My son is born today! Ah, what a wonderful world this is!" He walked towards a nearby screen displaying security footage of the outside entrance, which was currently still being drenched in rain water. "Not a good day for it, but..." He looked around, as though deep in thought, then saw Dimitri and his face lit up. "Dimitri! A fine, strong name, comrade! Yes, follower of the Corn and Harvest... a great title for my son. Now, follow me, we have much to discuss." They walked into a larger room with even more people before desks looking busy, this time with a large map of Micras projected onto the screen on the centre of the room. "Sir, what is this place?!" Dimitri looked at him, smiled, and said, "The future, dear Dimitri. The future of the Soviet Union!"

[Grand Marshal Xenofontov]

We have GOT to get this going again!

[Vladimir Vova Ochiuriushka]

Dimitri was lead further and further underground, down concrete stairs and in elevators. The wait was seemingly endless. What could be so sensitive that it required to be hidden so far underground? he thought to himself. He could contain himself no longer. In a room that resembled a steel works, ghostly empty but for the two men, Dimitri stopped following Aleksei and burst out, "Aleksei! What is this? Where are we going? What's going on?" Aleksei turned around and gave him a strange look before turning a cobwebbed valve on a nearby pipe and a metal grate beneath their feed slid painfully away. Beneath it was a few stone steps and a metal door.

Romanov sighed and said, "Dimitri, can you recall Commissariat Directive #56?" He thought for a moment and said, "Yes, I do remember it. Something about if any erroneous anomalous materials turn up we are to send them immediately to Department headquarters for processing. What relevance does that have?" Aleksei flashed his eyes and went down the stairs, took out a lone key and unlocked the metal door.