15 September 1975 CE: As of this date records indicate that Majestic has been completely absorbed by the covert elements of the Rosicrucian Order upon the death of Deputy Director Ingels in a plane crash whilst attempting to flee to Canada. {Sun in Kansas]
1st January 1985: A young drama student is recruited into the Agency after missing his A level grades to study at St. Martin’s College by two points. [Skipping through Shadows]
April 1st, 1994: Operation ‘Red Pile’ – an attempted assassination/kidnapping of Vampire assets in and around Paris by a UK Government Sigma Team led by Agent Brooker results in multiple fatalities and the return of the Sigma Team as a pile of bloody corpses with a warning from Master Serah to keep away from Vampire affairs.
9th March 2003 CE: The Congressional Committee on Foreign Affairs (Special Session on Arcane Risks) is forced to excuse Majestic Operatives Mu, Aleph and Kappa from giving further testimony after each suiffers some form of ischemic event that causes their eyes to bleed and their answers to synchronize in a highly unsettling way. Each operative dies later that day at Beth Hammon Hospital, Washington. Death benefits are voided when it becomes apparent that none of the Operatives are actually listed as ever having joined the Organization. [Sun in Kansas]
XXCORRUPTXX, 2003??: [Operation ‘Grey Nope’ – actual operational designation unknown] Ingress of Ministerial Team to engage in negotiations with Fae Courts under auspices of Senior Agent Brooker and the Herald of the Manor for cooperation against Vampire Masters. Negotiations fail. State of War between Fae Courts and United Kingdom. Loss of Minister. Termination of Herald. Remnants of team recovered by prompt action of Dr. Elizabet Anderson and Agent Isis. [That is not Dr. Anderson]. [Strange Allegiances].
June 1st, 2003: Sigma Team Three (consisting of Para and SBS secondees) conducts clearance operation at Manor, remaining Fae incursion elements eliminated. Manor quarantined and all active contents removed to storage including ‘Grandma’s Chair’. [Strange Allegiances/Shibboleth]
XXCORRUPTXX, 2007??: Thirty-Fourth report of the Special Committee on Esoteric Affairs published. AIA budget escalated year-on-year by approximately 15% plus CPI for the period of one decade. Dr. Elizabet Anderson transferred from DEFRA and appointed Director of AIA following exemplary performance during Operation Green Fingers. (Dr. Elizabet Anderson is dead). [Strange Allegiances].
1st January 2017 CE: Publication by the Agency of the third iteration of the fourth edition of its ‘Handbook for Agents’. Long term employees note a heavy emphasis on holistic medicine and horticulture in comparison to the second iteration’s obsession with Vampires. [Watcher on the Water]
May 1st, 2020 CE: Paperwork relating to Grandma’s Chair is misfiled resulting in the chair being deposited in a bedsit maintained by the DTIO for the use of visiting staff. Series of unexplained fire related deaths burns its way through the middle ranks of the visiting staff over the next decade leading to queries from housekeeping (also misfiled) and strike for higher hourly rates for outsourced cleaners (re-contracted). [Shibboleth]
2005-2026 CE: The War of Pages/4th and 5th Arab Israeli Wars. A series of brushfire wars fueled by advanced weapon purchases incorporating arcane elements burn through the Middle East. By the end of the War all that is left are the barrier cities and a large number of very angry military remnants holed up behind their defective missile defenses. [Repent, Humanity]
2025. Vampire Masters receive concerning reports from Adam around rumoured use of blood magic and other advanced techniques among Human Arcane investigation agencies – particularly the UK’s AIA and Majestic in the United States. They are already aware of Eastern Bloc co-operation with covens. Missile defense errors in the ongoing War of Pages investigated by on-site sources. [Repent, Humanity]
May 9th, 2026 CE: Following the destruction of Charles De Gaulle Airport at the tail-end of the War of Books by die-hard elements of the Algerian State, and noting rising tensions across its borders, the Single European Military is established and funding provided by the member states of the European Union. It aims to create a first rate, modern military, capable of defending Europe against the tide of disorder lapping against its borders. [Repent, Humanity]
May 2027 CE: ‘Dragun,’ an arms dealer with a dubious past meets with the Vampire Masters in Paris to discuss their future military needs. Sales are closed and the Vampires become the proud owners of a package of military assistance and equipment best described as ‘brittle’. Master Carlos Magnus disappears at this point in the records. {Repent, Humanity].
April 1st, 2030 CE: ‘Revelation Day’. Unknown agents release every net-accessible encrypted file on a generally available server. Information rapidly disseminated and reported on news networks. More than a dozen wars breakout across the world (including the Fifth Taiwan Straits crisis) leading to massive dislocation in all Human government organizations. Only information subject to Q-encryption (generally US, Russia and China dark clearance information) and magical barrier flensing (UK AIA and associated entities) is immune to the leak whose reverberations continue to be felt all the way to the Catastrophe. [Shibboleth]
2030-2034 CE. Dramatic decrease in Fae Activity outside of the oceans noted by those with an interest in such matters. When asked what they are doing, such of the Fae as are willing to communicate merely state ‘they are going on holiday until the weather improves’.
XXCORRUPTXX 2032 CE. Based on concerning reports around Vampire involvement in the SEM released during Revelation Day, Project Last Light proposed by AIA Deputy Director Brooker. Approved in principle by Director Anderson in an attempt to divert his attention from goings-on at the Agency. Brooker is accorded authority to negotiate agreements with the other Five Eyes participants for their participation in the project. ‘After all, in a case of induced mass mortality, why not make it mean something?‘ [Watcher on the Water]
2033. Approximately Quarterly like clockwork. Dozens of coastal sites across the Pacific Islands and in isolated coastal areas across the world are subject to sudden and unexpected flooding leading to the loss of all human populations therein. Pets and other domestic animals, untouched.
Unknown date, 2033: Adam emphatically breaks links with the Vampire Masters by murdering Master Ratnan in the Library under the Catacombs of Paris, and upon escape, engages in a series of travels with a heavy emphasis on the Americas and East Asia. Vampire agents are stymied in attempts to track him by geas relating to the Americas implemented by Master Albrecht in the 1820s and the vigilance of the Chinese Communists post Taiwan Crisis. [Iceland Cold]
9th October 2033 CE: Satellite [300 alpha-numeric signifier] ‘Tony’ launched from French Guiana. Causes approximately three dozen near misses and a handful of war threats due to erratic behavior. Impact only limited by destruction of majority of Earth’s satellite coverage in Taiwan Straits incident. [Watcher on the Water]
Winter 2033/Spring 2034 CE. Multiple Vampire agents of influence slain by Adam during attempts to catch the fugitive and disrupt his plan. Vampire capacity to intervene in India, China and the Eastern Bloc heavily degraded during these operations leading to cessation of Master’s attempts to prevent upcoming Catastrophe and reversion to alternative ‘Krakatoa’ contingencies. [Last Orders]
1st January, 2034. Ice contaminated with red dust discovered on the forward-time River, running through the World Woods. Grams, current chief of the western witches, begins investigation of causes. Uses World Woods to ask Anita in 1944 to join AIA in the 2020s. [Cryptic Crosswords]
1st January 2035 CE. Grams visits Anita at her flat in North London. Attends British Library. Raises hell and transforms Deputy Director Lawrence’s foot into a hoof. Is surprised that whole of the unpleasant man isn’t transformed. Irritating. [Cryptic Crosswords]
February 9th, 2035. Debrief of Agent Hermit by D.D. Brooker, relating to Operation Green Bracket, a partially successful attempt to prevent the destruction of the town of Fayrewich in which his partner, Agent Nightlight was [don’t go digging. you won’t like what you find.]. Meeting between Majestic and Director Anderson of the AIA. [Shibboleth (one)]
May Day 2035. Death of Grams and around one-third of the Western Witches in failed attempt to prevent Adam’s magical disaster taking place. Nan takes over as Coven Leader and orders all witches to remain in the World Woods [Cryptic Crosswords]
May 19th, 2035. Vampire Masters order all agents to return to base with immediate effect other than those involved in ‘stewardship’ operation triggered by expected catastrophic tectonic event within the next month. Eastern Bloc security forces activate Operation Nightjar to remove sympathizers in Eastern Bloc government organizations with the assistance of the Eastern Covens. [Last Orders]
Night of May 20rd, Morning May 21st, 2035.
Agents Hermit and Tinker board flight to Los Angeles originally planned for egress of Majestic Agent Nightlight.
Final virtual meeting of Five Eyes Alliance (Arcane branch). Directors agree to activate LastLight Protocols and clean house while they still can.
Majestic Operatives spread out across Federal Government. preparing to activate their own ‘stewardship’ protocols.
Adam executes remaining Vampire Agents in [you don’t want to know] in cooperation with East Bloc operatives, before killing his team and holes up to wait for propitious star alignment. His ability to calculate this accurately has been partially disrupted by damage done by Grams at the May Day events.
Vampire Agent Babeuf overrides his recall orders for Paris and attempts to contact AIA in London in last ditch attempt to notify it of location of Adam before catastrophe occurs, but is killed, along with trade delegation, by Agents Darwin and Thespian at the EU Trade Mission in St. James’ Park. [Last Orders]
6.47pm GMT, May 20th, Adam activates glyphs along tectonic plates triggering the Catastrophe. His calculations are approximately seven seconds off leading to certain areas around Anchorage and Seattle being unaffected. The impact is still sufficient for his short term purposes.
10pm GMT, May 20th through Nightfall May 24th. The Pacific Rim falls into the sea. Dust clouds blot out the sun. Vampires emerge.
The World, as it was, Ends.
May 22nd, 2035.
Ice Age in Scarlet 