Bassoe
Well-known member
Scenario: In an alternate universe, there was a martian civilization along the general lines theorized by Percival Lowell, Edgar Rice Burroughs, etc, technologically comparable to eighties humanity and divided into multiple power blocs who hated each other, but were prevented from outright conflict by MAD deterrence. This status quo continued until 1976, at which point ICBM detection radar grids in the Kingdom of Helium* picked up an unknown object on a suborbital trajectory toward a contrasted canal network hub/unidentified, potentially artificial structures photographed by the earlier mariner flybys and launched a retaliation strike at the Kingdom of Zodanga*. The viking lander proceeded to send back around a minute of video depicting lots of martians panickedly running around, an air raid siren and the last two frames before the probe was vaporized consisting of a motion blur in the sky, followed by a mushroom cloud. The remaining lightshow lasted approximately an hour and was visible to the naked eye from earth.
Consequences?
* The names were later assigned by earthlings, on account of the shortage of actual martians to ask.
Consequences?
* The names were later assigned by earthlings, on account of the shortage of actual martians to ask.