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These are the accounts of the Second American Civil War, also known as the Wars of Reunification and the American Warring States Period.After the breakup many wondered which states would come out in control of the power void created by the dissolution of the United States. There were many with little chance against several of the larger more powerful states. The states in possession of a large population, predisposition for military bases and a population open to the idea of warfare fared the best. In the long term, we would look to states with self-sufficiency and long term military capabilities.Here are the states that held the greatest strategic value from day one. They have the ability to be self-sufficient, economic strength, military strength, the will to fight and the population to support a powerful war machine.CaliforniaTexasNew YorkOthers that have many of the qualities that gave them an advantage are also listed.WashingtonColoradoIllinoisVirginiaFloridaGeorgiaFor all intents and purposes, Alaska and Hawaii ended well enough since they were so far removed from the center of the country that they never really suffer greatly nor benefit from the shattering.Day 12: "It's getting scary. My mom said we are going back to Oklahoma to stay with Grandma. The other day my dad was yelling at some men at the door. They seemed really upset. I held Jamie. She is still little. She's scared and doesn't understand what is going on. I am scared too. There are also some boys at school who keep picking on her and calling her an "Okie". We were both raised here, but I don't really think that matters. All the other families on my street have huge one-star flags hanging from their homes. I don't want to leave my house, but Mom says we have to go. The highways are packed with people. I wish things would just go back to how it was."The Diary of Sarah BrennanFirst came a period of massive migration back to the homelands. Facing the newly invented discrimination that will be created, many felt the need to go back to their own people. While the individual states retained all military assets, they couldn't control the individuals who fight. A Texas Marine stationed in California, would not fight for California. A soldier in New York would not fight against their home in Virginia, and a sailor in Houston would not fight against their home state of Florida. The warriors returned to their home states and the states had to reconsider that when they measured troop strength of their new nations. Ultimately, they measured troop strength by how much of the population would return home.After the migrations rough approximations left the states even, additionally, the balance of foreign nationals changed. At some point there was a migration of people back to their non-United States homeland. Over the next several months many from the North migrated to Canada and in the South to Mexico and South America. Millions of Latinos fled back South to the safety of their families and away from the looming danger of the war.Day 42: "Citizens of California are advised to stay away from the Mexican Border. In response to the recent surge of immigrants back to Mexico, authorities out of Mexico City have closed entry into the country. Agents from Tijuana are now manning armed sentries posted along the border. There have been scattered reports of refugees attempting to storm the gates being shot by soldiers on the Mexican side. It has also been communicated that the No Man's Land will be mined within the week and that Mexico will not be allowing any non-Mexican immigrants to enter the country from this point forward. Once again, we strongly advise all those wishing to leave the country to stay in their homes."Jennifer Aranda - Channel 14 NewsThe war was little more than a very tenuous peace for several months. The new nations were mostly focused on the reconsolidating of their forces and trying for quick grabs at resources that were easy to hold. Alliances were beginning to form as some of the smaller states sought to ally with known powers in the region.The first of what we would call real battles was mostly when some of the regional powers overtook mainly unmanned installations or took over now abandoned Federal assets.Day 63: "We are gathered here today as the inheritors of a lost legacy. Our nation has been lost to shattering and disarray. For that reason it is our duty to bring back our house to a structure undivided. When we arrived in the District we found it empty and abandoned. The monuments to our civilization watched silently over the broken halls of our once proud Capitol. We came to the District to bring back order. We have done this deed and now it is our charge to bring back the greatness of America and return her to her proud place of honor... We will do these things and we will do the others because we are a great people. We are Americans. We are VIRGINIANS!"Inauguration speech of President Anthony StokesThe first real occupation attempts happened when attempts were made to secure more assets.The Republic of Texas sought to gain strategic advantages in the Central United States. To do this they sought to gain two strategic assets. The first was control of Whiteman AFB, the home of the B-2 bomber program. The base was easily secured and the most coveted military bomber in the world was now in the hands of the Republic of Texas. The next was control of Colorado and her military installations of great value. Then finally was access to the Mississippi River. Two main offenses took place to do just that. The First Battle of New Orleans involved a massive force occupying the city to claim it as a port and artery for future engagements. In Colorado they met stiff resistance as many of the Texas military were unfamiliar with Mountain warfare. Colorado's major bases fell quickly since Colorado enjoys the smallest force to fight back the Texans, but they adapted an unconventional warfare stance that kept the Texans on edge for months. Still, at this point the mission behind taking Colorado was achieved--control over its military bases and strategic assets. The insurgency does however slow down the growth of Texas.New York pushed Northward. They pushed to claim all of New England and the food wealth they will need to supply their people now that resources from the Midwest are no longer available. The takeover is mostly peaceful as many of the states have large, but mostly non-military, populations. They encountered problems when large groups of refugees tried to flee to Canada and rioting ensued.Illinois was calm. The Midwest Alliance grew steadily by seeking to secure the Great Lakes. They were able to take Ohio through a few fierce, but brief encounters. They also took on Minnesota and the headwaters of the Mississippi River.The West coast was now controlled by the two main powers--California with its seat of power in San Francisco and The North West Union centered in Seattle. California gained support and took control of all the states West of the Continental Divide and South of the Union. The North West Union pushed as far as Wyoming.In the South, Georgia gained strength as Alabama and South Carolina joined. The leadership of Georgia advocated a return to confederalism as fanatics gain headway among the people. The Neo-Confederacy movement takes root and spreads throughout the Old South and rekindles a sense of unity among the states who engaged on the side of the Confederacy during the First United States Civil War. Peacefully they are able to convince Mississippi and Tennessee to also join. The growth of Confederate States puts an ever-growing pressure on Florida as it slips into isolation.Virginia took on the mantle of the Restored United States. They assumed the moral responsibility for reunification, and by taking Washington, they were able to secure much of the federal assets and infrastructure available to the country before the collapse. They then commandeered many ships and weapons housed overseas that weren't lost during the first two months of disarray. They began to gather support among the neighboring states and press their advantages-- intelligence, military strength and the symbolic leadership they held by holding D.C. One strategic advantage they wished to push was their economy. While the rest of the former United States was in complete economic disarray, Virginians' consistent use of the dollar provided a stability that others didn't have. They wished to solidify this with control of the nation's gold supply housed in a crossroads what was now a very desperate strategic region. After they peacefully brokered a treaty with Kentucky they received an attack on Fort Knox from forces located in Indiana.Day 112: "When we arrived at Knox we received heavy resistance from the defenders. Their fire was, for the most part, inaccurate and they lacked unit cohesion, so we found ourselves at an advantage. Not that we are much better off. We received intel that their units were something of a haphazard array of whatever Marines, Sailors, Soldiers or Airmen came out of the woodwork and they just threw them together and called it a unit, much like our own. Still they were professional warfighters. We were lucky they hadn't yet made it to secure the fort. Back to Knox. We were able to take the base. The fact was that the Kentucky defenders were mostly woodsmen and good-ol-boys from the South. More a militia reliving stories of the Old South than an army, but they fought like wild dogs. After a few hours their main line broke and they retreated back towards the center of the state. About halfway through the day we were able to break into the main buildings where the gold was supposed to be stored. Easily, it would be safe to say we were surprised at what we found. We arrived to find bloodstains in the main hallways and leading into the vault room. The trail faded and we see that the vaults are all completely empty. Every last bar, every last ounce is gone. All that is left are red stains all over the room and bullet holes riddling the walls that look like they could have happened months ago. Those hicks didn't even know they were guarding a giant empty building. Now the big question is...'So where is the gold?'"Log of Lt Col. Thomas Scott 2nd Raider Battalion Midwestern Alliance.At that time, the nations were coming together in larger groups. They had access to larger populations to support military strength, economic power to reach out and fund the state, food sources, and leadership.In the West, states along the coast received the most fighting. Washington began bombing San Francisco from the air to try and decapitate what became the center of California's leadership. Retaliation strikes from combined naval and air forces severally weakened Portland, Tacoma, and Seattle. California launched a two-pronged attack by sending in land forces up Interstate Highway 5 and Marines to attack from the North. Their mission was to enter Washington through the Salish Sea and secure Mt. Vernon, preventing escape of enemy forces. The Marines were by and large undetected and completed their mission successfully. The Californian army received shelling on their movement near the town of Cresswell, Oregon. They retreated back to the nearby town of Cottage Grove and secured the Airport there. A temporary air base was established and sorties began taking place, allowing for the immediate deployment of troops to the defense of Eugene. Casualties were high, but once California secured Eugene, the way was open to take Portland.Day 234: "I don't know what the Army is doing. We have been here holding the Canadian border for days and the Army still hasn't made it past Eugene. Just get it out. Burn the city to the ground. Mow them down. Just do your damn job. It's us or them. Make it happen for God's sake."Private First Class Anthony Sullivan - 1st Californian Marine RegimentIn the East, the Restored United States was crumbling. After the loss of their gold stores in Ft. Knox, the “RestoDollar” collapsed, taking with it the rest of their economy. Smugglers and bandits had moved in to provide whatever goods the people wanted, whether or not those goods were already banned within the nation. They needed to even the playing field by breaking the back of their most dangerous threat, the trade partnership between the New York City State, and the Midwest Alliance.Such a solution came through the plan brought about by one General David Meznick. The Meznick Doctrine called for the destruction of strategic economic assets in the North to weaken their ability to make war. Marches north cut railways, bombed bridges, and the greatest of these attacked on the infrastructure of the Great Lakes' shipping system. With the locks destroyed and the Erie Canal in ruins, shipping between Chicago and the outside world ceased. New York was cut from its most valuable resource, which was the hope of once again shipping America's goods to the rest of the world after the war.Deprived of many of their shipping lanes, the Midwest Alliance began to break as food and other supplies were unable to reach its people. Riots in Chicago began to erupt as the people accused the government of corruption, a fact all the more dangerous due to the overwhelming evidence to support the claim. With its end in sight, much of the Chicago legislature slipped out in the night and booked passage to places unknown on private planes. Left without leadership and provisions, the Alliance crumbled. The Texas Republic benefited most, filling the vacuum of the everything East of the Mississippi, with the Restored United States temporarily occupying the now ruined areas around the Great Lakes, before abandoning the mission to focus on policing actions within the ratified states.In the South, tensions between Florida and the Neo-Confederates reached their zenith. Troops took Tallahassee and were dug in along the Jacksonville-Gainesville Line. Florida was desperate. In a deal made in Houston, Florida agreed to join Texas if it was free to maintain its sovereignty in exchange for military support. With this, Florida and the forces staged in New Orleans attacked. The Jacksonville-Gainesville line was pushed back. Floridian forces moved with speed to besiege Atlanta as Texas occupied the city of Montgomery, Alabama. Texas and Florida forces converged on Atlanta and the siege went on for another month.No one really knows how, but a fire broke out in the city. Reports blame Texas shelling or Floridian sabotage, but most official accounts believe that it originated in an apartment complex where a family pried up floorboards to burn for heat during an remarkable cold winter. The fire spread to the rest of the neighborhood and, lacking their emergency infrastructure, parts of the city were overcome as the rest began to go into disarray. Texas forces secured the major areas of the city while Florida troops took charge of the relief effort for escaping refugees.The next hundred days were among the most peaceful of the war.The lines between the Republic of Texas and the Californian Union of Democratic States were now amassing troops and solidifying their positions. The Northwestern cities were in the processes of being rebuilt after California gained control as were the cities of Montgomery and Atlanta. Old forces of the losing states' armies were redistributed to victor nations. Texas held a tenuous peace with the Restored United States as they erected fortifications along the 36th parallel and western side of the Mississippi. California and Texas began building in unison a mass of fortifications on either side of the Continental Divide. Texas also enjoyed use of the river as shipping lanes now connected everything from the Midwest to the Carolinas. This eased the growing concerns of food shortage and redeployment of men.Most of the fighting was centered between the Restored United States (RUS) and New England Union (NEU). Control of Ohio and Pennsylvania changed hands a few times as the region sought stability. The war reached a turning point when a New York based flotilla made a decisive push to take Washington D.C. In response, a nuclear device was used on the fleet and all the ships, sailors and Marines on that mission were lost. The first active use of a nuclear weapon in more than half a century sent waves through the warring nation states. Other nations of the world grew terrified as they waited for the NEU's strategy. The worst fears came to pass when a weapon was exploded in Washington D.C. bringing down the powerbase of the Restored United States. Alarms across the world rang out as the RUS gathered itself and prepared to launch retaliatory strikes along the Eastern Seaboard. Before this came to pass a message from New York City came initiating their surrender. The device was set by a rogue general from New York. Fearing its own impending annihilation, New York City seceded from the Northeast to become its own independent city-state. The rest of New England issued their surrender and joined the Restored United States without incident. The Capitol was moved to Philadelphia.Day 647: "I can't believe Washington's gone. I mean, what are we even fighting for? There is nothing left that was the same. I swear I am starting to feel like all we are animals trying to survive, fighting over the scraps of our fathers. We all knew it was over when D.C. got smoked, but at least that didn't happen. Many of the men are still sure that NYC planned this out. Leave the rest to fight over the charred out ashes while they run from it all. I just don't know what to think. Now we are inheriting the Northeast and all its problems. They better be ready. Now Texas has us to the West and South along Carolina. Two years this has been going on and for what? I don't know how long we can keep this going."Log of Col. Thomas Scott 1st Marine Regiment Restored United States.During the next year the war reached a standstill. Maneuvers and deployments mounted the full force of all three nations. Tensions mounted as the borders grew more and more defended.Texas forces were spread thin. The Republic oversaw the largest territory and with it, the longest borders. Conflating their woes, Texas drew from the least population to support their military. The what the Republic lacked in numbers, it made up for with excellence. Elite Texas troops, composed of Texas citizens, led auxiliary forces of the highly militant neo-confederates, and thousands of independent militias and partisans. In the territories, one could also expect to encounter millions of armed individuals, ready to fight their own private backwoods battles to push back against enemy invasion.The Restored United States was a broken nation. The remains of ruined nation states, broken by the shattered disunity of Washington following the collapse were as much a liability as an asset. The economy was in shambles as Ft. Knox proved to be a well that ran dry. The former great state of New York was now missing its greatest source of wealth, income from the the Midwest and international access from New York City. A once idealistic and proud people became disheartened and disillusioned. The nation they had cobbled together was nowhere near worth what it cost them, nor what it had been before the collapse. Yet they still had to survive. There, a new national identity formed, one of sadness, regret, but just holding on to the last strands of hope for a return to when they were great.California was doing well, relatively speaking. Major cities showed the scars of war, but they enjoyed the time to rebuild and prepare. Their troops were many, but always a last priority to the generosity of their social policies, led by politicians who rarely took notice of the war beyond the Rockies when there was a greater one to be won at the ballot box. Poorly equipped troops manned defensive stations along the divide, slowly building up to match the fresh deployments of Texas regulars.Border tensions began to build until a small town skirmish in Wyoming escalated the war to its peak.Wyoming was now effectively existing on two sides of the divide. Many of the services and resources were split between a small segment of the Western end of the state and the rest of Wyoming. The distance from California was too great for support from San Francisco to offer the Western segment of the state. In many ways they were fending for themselves. Near the division line were two towns, Green River and Rock Springs. Green River lay on the Western side of the state. They also held the only viable water resource between the two. Since the war began, they were able to share, but after rationing was instituted by the Republic, Rock Springs began to need more of the water. Though neither truly identified as Texan or Californian, they were now forced to abide by their laws. Rock Springs was in demand of water. Green River was forced, however, not to abide. Officers from California were sent to enforce the policy to not aid the enemy in any form. After frequently being denied, leadership of Rock Springs went to the town and make a formal request with the officers at Green River. The officers took over the mayoral office of the town. The officers denied again Rock Springs's request. One young man, Jeffery Irving, protested violently. A scuffle began in the office before the officers drew their side arms. Two of the men were shot, and Jeffery was killed in the office of the Green River courthouse. The next day citizens from Rock Springs came to the city and stormed the mayor's office. The two officers were barricaded in the office and requested for support from a nearby base. An hour later, troops arrived in the town. They discovered the office broken into and the officers murdered. The order was given to track down the perpetrators. California troops made their way to Rock Springs.While in town, they barricaded the main road where they began searching passing vehicles and taking people in for questioning. A crowd began to build. Taunts and screams let out from the crowd. The crowd became violent. A rock was thrown at the soldiers. A rifleman knocked a man to the ground with the butt of his weapon..."Crack."A gun shot sounded from one of the windows on Main Street. The soldier fell down beside the man on the ground. The crowd was silent and a moment of stillness seemed to roar throughout the valley.A soldier began firing on the window; others fired at the crowd. In a moment the entire crowd was under fire. They ran for the nearest building and anywhere for cover. As the firing stopped the lives of dozens of men, women and children lay frozen on the street. The detachment gathered themselves and left the town before a battle began between themselves and the townspeople. This was the Massacre of Rock Springs.Day 812: "When we arrived most the bodies were carried away. Some were lined along the street covered in sheets of white stained crimson. The town was in shock as our troops began filling the streets. Mothers were screaming with anguish as old men roared for action. There was talk of many of the men leaving an hour before we arrived to handle things themselves. I don't think they know what they're getting themselves into. We won't be able to assist them. I feel for these people. I am shocked with them. They are Texas citizens now and we let this happen. It won't go unavenged for long though. I haven't seen this many troops gathered like this since we took Atlanta. This is definitely going to be the big push we have all been waiting for to take California. All Hell is about to break loose. God protect us as we march on California."Journal of Sgt. Alexander McAnally 33rd Texas Infantry RegimentA massive invasion force gathered at Rock Springs. Six divisions of the Texas Army and the 1st and 3rd Marines were mobilized for the battle. In the morning B-2s from Whiteman AFB in Missouri began strategic bombing sorties against a number of Californian Union air bases. Conventional bombing missions were also launched. Suffering the greatest were bases near Salt Lake City, Las Vegas and Los Angeles. Air defense was launched from bases in San Diego, LA and Sacramento with relief forces in the North. Next came what was known as the battle over Nevada. Fighter squadrons met over the desert in many numerous engagements to gain air superiority. Texas was equipped with superior aircraft since they were the only power still investing heavily in improving their local manufacturing capabilities and advancing military technology. They also held the advantage of more experienced warfighters from the wars in the East. California was heavily invested in passive defense systems scattered throughout the desert. Their missile defenses tore heavily into the Texas planes. The air battle was by far the largest air battle in history with thousands of planes involved and hundreds lost to the skies. The fighters from Texas were able to protect bombers in raising the remaining defenses in Salt Lake and Las Vegas while severely damaging others in Los Angeles, San Diego and China Lake.The Battle of Salt Lake began the Land War. With the region softened, Texas mobilized forces invaded Northern Utah by way of the Forward Operating Base Rock Springs and following Interstate 80. They met fierce resistance in Salt Lake city. Sniper and rifle teams were thoroughly entrenched along with machine-gun nests. Five battalions of thoroughly entrenched Californian infantry were able to hold the city for three days against the overwhelming Texas forces while the air war continued over the sands of the Great American Desert. On the fourth day of courageous fighting the Californians retreated as relief troops arrived. The Texans were now dug into the hollowed-out shell of the former capital of Utah. From this point the Siege of Salt Lake lasted another three weeks.The battle continued. Texas reinforcements joined on day six. The battle intensified. Texas was the first to escalate. M.O.A.B. bombs were dropped and cleared away a great deal of California defenders. Texas movements quickly divided and overwhelmed the Californians. 6000 were lost and the Californians retreated back to Sacramento. Once Salt Lake was secured Republic forces moved on to Las Vegas. Vegas was easily secured after the battle of Salt Lake. Republic forces gathered in the desert city preparing for the push to Los Angeles. As the army moved out they destroyed the Hoover dam to prevent Las Vegas from becoming a strategic point again. This caused a surge in the Colorado river that destroyed the Davis, Parker and Imperial Dam systems as well. The region would become by modern standards a completely uninhabitable desert again.It was then that something unexpected happened. The Restored United States attacked in an unsuspected maneuver designed to strike when the Republic and Californian Union were entangled and spread thin. General Meznick again planned out a massive attack to take out the knees from under the Republic forces. His plan was to take out the port at New Orleans and land a decisive series of blows against Texas. As Republic troops moved out to Southern Nevada, covert agents blew the dikes holding back the flood waters from the Gulf. The city, its troops, its ships and resources were all flooded and in disarray. Air strikes and land forces were also made on the stations and bases along the Mississippi River, including Whiteman and the B-2's stationed there. Transport boats carried thousand to secure the bases along the river down to Baton Rouge. From there bombers cleared a path through to Beaumont, Texas, and on to Houston. Texas Defense forces scrambled to meet the invasion. With eyes to the West, few were prepared for an attack in the heart of Texas. Reserves from Dallas and Austin raced to Houston. The battle intensified. After the destruction of New Orleans, naval forces stationed in the Atlantic maneuvered to support the Texas invasion. Without the support of the New Orleans ships at port, the Republic Navy was overcome. Naval bombardment was laid down on the defenders in Houston, paving the way for the surgical team of RUS soldiers and the wave of troops following the river. The defenses were hindered by the sea of terrified citizens fleeing Houston. As shells rained down from the sea, chaos ensued. The city was going to be lost.With the loss of Houston imminent, Republic soldiers spread thin on two fronts, and the country severed down the spine of the Mississippi, Texas made a last desperate strike.It is believed the first city to fall was Chicago. Boston and Philadelphia came shortly after. At the same time, San Francisco and Seattle were lost. Retaliatory strikes claimed Austin, Houston, Atlanta and Oklahoma City. It is believed that many other cities were targeted for destruction, if not for the intervention of some unknown power.Four high-altitude nuclear devices were detonated over the former United States. These weapons showered the region with energized electrons that shorted the circuits of electrical devices in their target radius. Below is a graphic representation of what this blast did to the United States.Most of the country fell into regions of 50 to 80% damage, however considering overlap, historians assume that the damage was at least 90% to all of the continent and all its coveted luxuries were reduced to plastic and glass. This of course didn't stop at the devices themselves, but everything networked into the infrastructure was brought down as well.The four devices together were seen from various parts of the country. Their effects brought down all major computer systems, information networks, communication relays, and nearly all circuit-based technology on the continent. There is no official record of who fired the weapons. Any logs created were probably lost in the very blast they created. Many believe that it was a last ditch effort to limit the destruction of the United States in the event of Atomic Holocaust. Some believe it was due to international intervention. The world's final discipline upon them for what they were doing. Many of the religious groups who would come from this era believe it was the work of God, though they cannot agree whether it was a sign of his mercy or punishment upon a sinful nation. Whoever was responsible, the truth is that the devices probably stopped more bombs than actually went off that day, but they didn't protect anyone from the next five years. America was dark.Day 842: "I was out on the porch catching fireflies with Jamie on the night the lights went out. We caught a whole jar full when I saw a bright light come from the sky way far off in the North. Daddy screamed and jumped on us and he held me really close as we fell to the ground. The light grew really bright and then all of a sudden this wind crashed the field. The wind whooshed through like it was going to carry Daddy, me, and Jamie away. Then it went away. I looked up and the light in the sky faded away. I watched it dim until it turned to nothing. Then I looked around and realized I couldn't see anything. All the lights in the house went off. All the other houses did too. All the street lights were off and the whole town was dark. I asked Daddy what happened. "I don't know, Sweetie. We need to get back into the house before it gets too cold." I looked hard and tried to find a path back to the porch. Then I saw the light flicker on Jamie's cheek. The jar in her hand began to flicker and I could see the fireflies coming back to life. It wasn't much, but they were the only lights for miles and Jamie was all I could see."The Diary of Sarah BrennanDay 846: I don't know which is worse, the casualties we suffered at Salt Lake or the retreat back through the Sierra Nevadas. We lost the trucks and armor when all the comms and equipment went dead. We’ve been on foot since the California border. We are no longer being pursued. Perhaps they know how desperate we are. Or perhaps they are every bit as broken as we, limping back to Texas. I’ve reached the point where I no longer wish the hardship of my enemy, praying only that God will see fit to forgive us all our misgivings, and see us safely home.We have lost all contact with San Francisco. Everything’s gone silent. Even the locals we pass are in the dark. I fear all that awaits us beyond these mountains will be cities of ash. But I am trying to keep the men going. There must be some hope of a future worth getting back to if any of us hope to make it out of this pass alive. But I honestly don't know how we’re going to make it out of the mountains. The snow is thick and has reduced our pace to a crawl. There are days we make no more than a mile. Foraging is not meeting the nutritional needs of three battered divisions marching in winter. We have already lost as many men trying to get back to the base as we did in the battle.My greatest fear is that the men will begin to realize where we are. Why God would put us through all of this in the middle of the Donner Pass. Please Lord, don't let the men know what happened here, and by the mercy of the Heaven, don’t let them start getting ideas. Please Lord, just let us make it out the pass."Log of Lt. Joseph Ramirez, 3rd California Infantry RegimentAfter the collapse came the period historians remember as the American Dark Age.Five years passed. With all the infrastructural losses came a loss in leadership. The cities were deserted when the water, food, and power stopped coming in. Disease and pestilence took their place, moving in like a ravaging army. Towns like Ardmore, Oklahoma became overnight metropolises, taking in the flood of humanity escaping from cities like Dallas and the ruins of Oklahoma City. A local Indian casino from before the war, became a refugee camp for more than 60,000 people. The Oklahomans welcomed them warmly. There was no war then. There was no Texas, nor California and certainly no America. Now everyone was simply a survivor of the 2nd American Civil War.In the chaos of the collapse, micro-wars sprang up. With no government protection, towns and villages attacked one another for the scraps so civilization. Local Sheriffs declared themselves Generals of fifty-man armies. Much of the former United States fell into a feudal bid for power waging county against county and town against town, family against family. They fought battles over salt mines, cattle, clean creek water, or farmland.In the South a plague swept through the countryside. Many reputable reports indicate that it happened when the controls at the CDC in Atlanta were destroyed after the bombing or from the EMP. Others think the viralents were released on purpose. Genocides and ethnic cleansing also scarred the landscape in Chicago, Alabama, Miami, and Los Angeles.It was towns like Ardmore, Oklahoma that finally brought the people out of the dark. They rebuilt the agricultural backbone and got people back to work now that peace was assured through the destruction of the capacity to make war by the large nation-states. Veterans gathered to provide a unified defense force for the new agrarian cultures that built themselves out of the ashes. New farms were established and refugees built homes all along the landscapes.As famine no longer blighted the survivors, factories began to rise again. The infrastructure began returning as power was restored, transformers were replaced, networks were brought back online. As the towns became secure and prosperous again people moved back into the cities. Dallas, Sacramento, Columbus, and Richmond rose to become important regional powers again. The eyes of the nation looked to these cities as fears of the rekindling of the Unification Wars began to surface. Old hatreds and unresolved grievances lingered in the air.It was from Dallas that a movement started. One young girl led a peace movement from the heart of the former Republic of Texas.Day 2871: "This girl in Texas is calling for us to formally end the hostilities. I know it’s been years since anyone has fired a shot, and God only knows how much we’ve lost. I don't know if I could ever trust someone from Texas again, but she was just a girl when this whole thing started. It's not like she is to blame for anything, but it is just hard to get behind someone from down there. We are tired, there isn't anything left worth fighting for. If there is anything left it would have to be that this has to end before it all happens again."Sgt. Anthony Sullivan - California Civil Restoration AdministrationDay 2912: "Give this girl your support. What we did was criminal. As a people we destroyed what took great men hundreds of years to bring together. It took us less than two years to bring each other to the brink. We lost our greatest cities and our best people. For what? To throw away that which we were blessed with to create our own Hell on Earth? Now there is one of our own calling for repentance and recompense. Pray for her strength and success."Pastor Joseph RamirezDay 2945: "There's going to be a peace conference in New York City. They're back up and running for the most part. Hopefully we can do something good there. I will be part of the delegation from the RUS. We haven't thought of ourselves as that for years. Still, we have to go and let it be known that Columbus doesn't want any more fighting. We are more than this collection of third-world city-states that are built on the breakdown of our legacies. I hope this little girl from Dallas is more than hopes and dreams."Mayor Thomas Scott of ColumbusDay 2953: As the much talked-about New York City peace accords prepare to open, all the attention of the country is on this young woman from Oklahoma. She was one of the early people to flee with her family from Texas. She, with her father, mother and young sister, lived with family on a small farm in Southern Oklahoma. There they survived the conscription notices for service, the bombings, The Dark and the two-year winter.She took up work in an old cookie factory, now shelling pecans from local harvests for soldiers, then for survivors. After the Dark she administered relief efforts at a local Indian casino for refugees fleeing Texas. She was then given the task of finding the refugees on the local farms. She built up relief shelters to gather together aid to the refugees and give them jobs. Thousands knew her for her work and generosity. While still barely in her 20's she was instrumental in restoring Oklahoma City. When the lights came back online and grocery shelves were stocked again in Dallas, she was there. Pushed into local politics, she was a unifying force for the region.While in Dallas she championed a peace movement. Dallasites and Texans began to question if the war should continue, if their safety could be secured with the history of the war and Texas' role in it. She was the voice of reason in a sea of fears. She gained support from those she helped and her message spread across the Republic, and all the way to Columbus and Sacramento.Now leaders from across America are going to New York City and are meeting for the first time since the break-up of the United States to discuss a resolution to the failed Wars of Reunification. In her honor, the much talked about Brennan Treaty will be presented to the delegation, ratified and hopefully pass within the week. Here's to hope and to Sarah Brennan.Jennifer Aranda - New San Diego Union Tribune- EndSources:List of U.S. states and territories by populationList of countries by number of military and paramilitary personnelJohn Burgess's answer to Which states commit the most troops to the US Military?United States Armed ForcesJon Davis's answer to Hypothetical Battles: If every nation in the world allied and attempted to invade and conquer the United States, would they succeed?All the other answers on If every state of the USA declared war against each other, which would win?I was also inspired by watching some of my favorites on human nature and warfare Hotel Rwanda and Red Dawn. Just be thankful I didn't rewatch the documentary series "Auschwitz: Inside the Nazi State."Liked this? You might also like my YouTube Channel. You can also connect with The War Elephant on Facebook. If you want to help me make more content like this, please visit my Patreon Page to find out more.

Here is a list of things that would have been very appropriate and intelligent things to do in response to Covid-19, none of which the Trump Administration did.Years before the virus hits, you expand funding for the CDC and NIH (Trump proposed cutting funding and unbelievably, his 2021 budget for both cut CDC and NIH). You absolutely do NOT eliminate the pandemic team within the CDC (like Trump did). You absolutely do NOT keep the pandemic management roles in DHS empty and unfilled (like Trump did). Ideally you have a senior person in DHS who has a strong infectious disease background because there is only going to be greater risk of pandemics now and in the future because of climate change.Did I mention climate change? You put the force of the USG behind efforts to study climate change and its’ impacts. You don’t ban USG research in to it. You don’t unfund or cut offices that do that work. You don’t prevent USG researchers from going to conferences that study climate change and its’ impact. Here’s a reality check for climate change skeptics and deniers: among people who research climate change in great detail, pandemics are a BFD, something that there is a lot of work on. Seriously—there is tremendous amounts of pandemic research and analysis that is occurring through the climate change lens/perspective.You know all of those rules that the Trump Administration has reversed or not enforced dealing with game hunting and cracking down on trafficking of endangered species? Well, it appears the vector location where the Covid-19 virus appeared to emerge is a wildlife market in Wuhan. Yeah, people are pointing at bats—but that’s simplistic. How bats get involved is they poop—and other animals eat it. Or the bat eats a bug (like a mosquito) that sucked some blood off of a creature. Ladies and Gentleman, let me introduce you to the Pangolin. Very endangered, it has a coronavirus internal to most Pangolins that is almost a dead ringer to what is hitting humans now—except it has mutated a bit. And Pangolins (especially from Africa) are very popular in China. Did pangolins spread the China coronavirus to people? I think when all is said and done with this virus in 2–3 years, we’ll likely conclude that Covid-19 did NOT come directly from the pangolin. But they played a role. That’s why the flu stations are in China. Yes, the season starts in that part of the world. But they have so much mixed use farms (ducks and pigs together, eat each other’s scat, viruses intermix, end up in bats or birds and so China is the birthplace for most modern new flu strains—that’s why the Swine flu scare to come out of Mexico was unexpected).Healthcare—woah, this is a biggie. As in: expand the number of people in the US who have healthcare (so they have access to it—and no, I don’t mean “they can always go to the ER!”). What happens with more people getting health insurance? Fewer smokers, more early screening, access to testing, more preventative care, and when people get it (and most cases will be mild) they’ll get better advice on how to avoid spreading it (which increases the chances that you stay healthy). The Trump administration has gone in the complete opposite direction, seeking to kneecap Obamacare, has a court case right now up on appeal that would wipe out Obamacare (doing this in the middle of a pandemic—that’s a perfect storm folks—a fricking perfect storm from an epidemiological or public health perspective).Supplies. If you’re smart, and you realize that because every day the world is getting smaller (more global, more migration, more business travel) combined with climate change produces warmer climates and more extreme weather, you start preparing for pandemics more than we currently were. You have a larger supply of gloves and masks for medical workers and first responders. A larger supply of Tamiflu (and anti-viral) as well as antibiotics (because you don’t know what is going to emerge). You do “what if” scenarios that you war game out with key leaders in industry and government: what would it take to ramp up production of antibiotic X in 2 weeks? What if we had to quarantine a couple of cruise ships? What if a military unit overseas became infected with something communicable? What if the next flu season was a killer? You can’t plan for everything or even most things—but you don’t have to. You work out—how do we handle a pandemic? FEMA does this sh*t all the time with hurricanes and natural disasters—talk to anyone at the state or federal level who does emergency preparedness and they’ll tell you that if you prepare for 3–4 scenarios it enhances your ability to deal with all of them because you get supplies pre-positioned, you get light on your feet organizationally, you develop an emergency response capability. Good lord—look at the fricking Trump Administration—inept at anticipating and then quickly responding to Maria and the other hurricanes that hit Puerto Rico and the USVI. My point is not that they were delayed specifically in preparing for Covid-19, it’s that they don’t prepare for and handle crises well in general. Talk to anyone in disaster planning for organizations and they’ll tell you it all starts with what you do before the crisis ever hits. Oh, and btw, you don’t respond to pandemic risks by slicing funding from one concern to get money for another (I’m talking about Congress cutting Ebola funding to address Zika over the wishes of the Obama Administration—that’s just bassackwards!).Now everything I’ve listed so far is stuff you do BEFORE anyone in the administration even knows how to spell “coronavirus” let alone knowing Wuhan has a crisis. This is all pandemic-101 stuff. And the Trump Administration flunked all of it—every single thing I’ve mentioned.Now let’s talk about what happens when one of the CDC flu spotting stations in China gets a report from a doctor (let’s call him….Li Wenliang) complaining that the government won’t listen to him about this new type of flu. Let me eliminate the suspense and just tell you that everything I’m about to list about what you do once you get a hint this is happening—is stuff the Trump Administration has done poorly on.6. You don’t cut off access to China—you rush people in. You get additional CDC and NIH talent in China. This isn’t a variation on the normal flu. China is the hothouse for this stuff—the flu season starts with them, that’s why CDC has flu spotting stations there—to get a jump on the flu and begin development of a flu shot early. Except this isn’t influenza. But with teams on the ground quickly, getting samples, observing what the Chinese are going, trying to nail down this bad boy as quickly as possible—that is what you do as soon as you hear a unsubstantiated rumor coming out of Asia. Ditto with Iran (more on this later). Ditto with Italy. It’s critical to get a reliable test nailed down and then start testing like crazy. Why? Because the first most critical step in dealing with pandemics before they become a pandemic is: INFORMATION. We were late on this. The USG didn’t get started on a test until late (we were relying on China, rather than pushing our people out in to the field we were cutting off access) and then when we got a test we only tested people returning from China. Information tells you what kind of beast you’re dealing with, how to deal with it, how widespread it likely is, who’s must vulnerable. It all starts with information and that only happens if, at the first hint of a problem, you push people in to the infected areas rather than cutting them off.7. Set up a task force to coordinate the gathering and sharing of the research from the field plus interact with various agencies (DoD, DHS, CDC, NIH, CIA, DoS, USAID, FBI, Customs, TSA, FDA, USAMRID, US Surgeon General—who has been invisible through all this mess by the way—and I’m sure I’ve left about 12–15 other offices or agencies off the list) to coordinate who is doing what, what supplies are being acquired, begin briefing states and governors and their health directors. This action should have started within a week of the first cases coming out of Wuhan. And the head of this task force should be a research or medical professional. Fauci is a good person to go with—he’s fought this fight before and has bi-partisan credibility. The head of the Center for the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (Nancy Messionier) would also be a great choice. I’d probably avoid the head of USAMRID (Col. Darrin Cox) because he’s active duty US military that would feed wild conspiracy rumors that this is somehow a Chinese/American/Israeli bioweapon. But Carl Shaia who retired there back in the Fall was the former Director of Administration (but is now a civilian) and he’d do a bang-up job managing a task force of a lot of government people dealing with complex, unplanned health and medical issues—if you felt like you didn’t want to pull Fauci or Messionier from their organizations (because their supervision of their work was too vital) than Shaia could be a good option. If the head of DHS or HHS was someone with public healthcare expertise then they’d be a fallback option. We don’t currently have an actual DHS head (that position is vacant) and the acting person (formerly of TSA) Chad Wolf has no background in this issue. Alex Azar (HHS) is a lawyer and worked in healthcare organizations but frankly wouldn’t be a strong choice in terms of knowing the public healthcare players. Picking Mike Pence is a poor choice. He double-screwed up the HIV mini-epidemic in Indiana (first cutting support for PP, then refusing to follow the data and wouldn’t do a needle exchange until the cases had exploded). Pence isn’t the worst choice—as a governor he’s got background in dealing with emergencies (in his case: floods and tornados) so that’s a positive plus he’s pretty high up. Still, with a little bit of research (ie: 4 hours) I could give you about 200 names of people who would be a better choice than Pence.8. What Donald Trump says. Now if you really want to know the optimal approach here, it would be that Donald Trump never says or tweets anything about Covid-19 or the Coronavirus at all—when asked about it he refers to the head of the taskforce and then shuts up. That would be optimal. But if we can’t have that, then it would be that he says NOTHING in any media form without clearing it first with a senior healthcare SME (subject matter expert). This post is already too long for me to list all the things he’s said so far that are dumb or false: the virus would go away in April because of temperatures (tell that to Singapore, plus there is a new paper out of the Harvard epidemiology Dept. that says this virus doesn’t seem be affected by warmer temps), that the WHO death rate was wrong (not what he should have said), that Democrats are trying to make this a scare tactic to win the election, that there was nothing to worry about. Donald Trump has added probably not one piece of value to this whole issue—just confusion or wrong information plus delays. I mean, suggesting we should seal the border with Mexico: they have 5 cases as of yesterday and 3 of them came from exposure to foreigners (Italy and America)—I think Mexico might want to seal their border for protection from the US! If you could cut him out of the picture and he’d tolerate that from Day One, things would be so much better now.9. Policy on cruise ships: have one. Right now the US does not and is scrambling. Think about that—there have already been a couple of cases of passengers on cruise ships with Covid-19 signs, why hasn’t the US developed a policy for what to do other than tell the ship to stay offshore? We knew this was an issue a month ago and we’ve got ships off the US coast that we’re trying to figure out what to do because there is no policy in-place. This is exactly what the USG is supposed to do—establish policies. And I said cruise ships because that’s an immediate issue. Someone is going to have a 14 hour plane flight and in the middle of the flight (with air being circulated through the cabin) it will be clear that a passenger is sick with the coronavirus—so what’s the procedure? Have them disembark and stand in line at a crowded customs and immigration portal with hundreds of other incoming passengers? Every single US airport that has an international terminal needs to be setting up infrastructure and implementing USG policy (except there is none) besides setting up hand sanitizer and putting out more tissue dispensers.10. Establish and follow basic risk protocols for individuals who are exposed or possibly exposed re-entering the country. The healthcare workers who met the plane load of sick and at-risk Americans returning to the US—none of them had any kind of protection or established procedure for processing those individuals. WTF? This sounds like an isolated example. There will be hundreds of thousands of Americans seeking to return back to the US from overseas. Students, business professionals, tourists, retirees, military, diplomats, USG workers, professors. You need a basic protocol for screening and handling them (and it’s not all the same—it will vary with the country they’re coming from, if they’ve been tested, if they have obvious signs, if they’d had contact). That doesn’t exist right now.11. Information is critical at times like this—to avoid panic. You don’t want to downplay it all, you need to be open and honest but put things in perspective. So for instance, people need to be told that you should not be wearing a mask unless you’re sick (wearing a mask INCREASES the likelihood you get infection if you’re exposed to someone) unless you change your mask every hour (or every encounter). In the effort to downplay the spread and infection, there is very little (okay, none) Federal govt. resources talking publicly about “let’s talk through planning for if schools in most of the country shut down for a month—can we get all businesses to give people temporary family leave?” Local governments are working on this (kudos to them) but they’re often having to do this in the dark. The Feds should be driving this and be pre-eminent. What Jay Inslee (gov. of Washington State) had to tell Pence is sad, just appalling but that’s a reflection on the Federal coordination effort to-date. So information not only about “this is what we know, this is what we don’t know, here’s what you should be doing know, here’s what you should plan for just in-case” is critical and it’s not happening. That’s not really happening publicly driven by the Feds, it’s very piecemeal and fragments. Look at the comments from Carson (HUD). He shouldn’t be in the public eye on this except the Trump information shortage/gap has people hungry for information and since he was a surgeon, he got approached by media. So he was asked about the Trump policy on the cruise ship approaching the US and he said it was finalized but it wasn’t going to be revealed yet. Then he said it was formulated but some details were being worked out. Then he said there were no plans as of yet. This is from one senior Administration official within one 24 hour period who shouldn’t even be talking about cruise ships. And this happens because there is no coordination or reliable information source on this issue at the moment. So people are going all over the place seeking information.12. There are a gazillion specialty situations that need to be addressed by government. If you’ve got a kid overseas in an exchange program (say—studying art in Milan, or teaching English in Beijing), can they come back home? Or what if they wait till the end of the semester? What about US military? What about large crowds at sporting events—any policy or recommendations regarding those? I bet every police officer out there is now wondering “hmmm….how does this affect me and possible infected people or areas?” Could you imagine medical professionals or first responders refusing to go out in the field if we have a shortage of gloves and masks? Certain industries (any place like Orlando that does a lot of conventions), cruise ships, airlines, travel, tourism, caterers, restaurants—they’re likely dealing with tremendous business crashes right now or in the near future. Saying “we’ll give you a tax break” is a crappy answer—that’s not what they need right now. Their immediate concern is about safety and a tax break doesn’t address that. They need to be given some direction on what to expect, how the USG is going to intervene, if there will be tests set up when people board/deplane/disembark. These are issues that industry can’t solve or fix and a tax break is irrelevant to. And we aren’t even talking about jobs like TSA that involve touching a lots of things. The latest word I’ve heard is that Covid-19 can live for up to a week on a surface. So any high-traffic screening personnel would be a great risk-2,000 people could come through your shift and it only takes one to pass on something (because of a suitcase they brought from home where an asymptomatic individual—not the traveler—coughed on it).13. This is related to #11 but you need to balance the panic and the information. You should not be trying to “spin” this event or push good news. Right now, the Trump Administration has tried hard to downplay this and say it is something that will go away quickly with little pain. Meanwhile the markets are taking deep dives, Italy is quarantining 15 million people, and the Fed issues an unprecedented emergency rate cut while the President is saying “no biggie.” Let me let you in on something: our numbers on infections in the US are bogus. We’ve mostly been testing only people who were traveling overseas or those immediately next to someone who’s infected. Partially that was lack of planning, partially that was a lack of test availability. Once we expand the number of tests, you’re going to see the number of people with a “positive” result (meaning: they got it or have antibodies so were exposed and may be a carrier) to probably go up 5X the current number (if not higher). That’s to be expected—we had artificially low numbers previously. But to fearful members of the public, it will seem like their government was lying to them or that all of sudden the virus has gotten really bad when it hit the US (neither case was true). That’s why the mis-statements by the Trump Administration and the efforts to downplay this sucker are just stupid, stupid, stupid. You’ve got a balancing act—it’s tough—but it’s critical. You’ve got to level with people, talk about what we know, what we don’t know, talk a little about an unknown future. When you try to downplay or minimize the bad news, and then you suddenly get a bunch of bad news, you lose your credibility. You don’t just look bad, instead you become the bad guy.14. Protecting Asians and Immigrants. The Trump Administration is probably the least credible and competent governmental entity to engage in this. You’re already seeing individuals verbally or physically attacking Asians. People who are 2nd generation US and from Japan or the Philippines are being told to go back to China. After 9–11, George W. Bush gave a very powerful speech where he said we were all Americans, we couldn’t turn on each other, that it should still be safe for someone wearing a hijab to go to a mosque, and it was shameful for us to betray our values by turning on minorities. At a time when there are a ton of rumors, lots of fear, it’s important for our government to do something that they’re very capable of doing—standing up for targeted minorities and letting people know “hey, they’re not the danger here.” Seriously—this is a “no-brainer” kind of action because the USG is well positioned to deal with it, can do it RIGHT NOW, and variations of this come up whenever there is a terrorist attack, a pandemic, a violent crime or something that stereotypes a specific group. And it doesn’t require scientists coming up with a new vaccine or some medical advance. it’s about USG leadership saying “hey—no scapegoating, we’re all in this together, don’t turn on each other.” Has anyone seen anything from Trump or Pence or any senior USG official addressing this issue? I haven’t.15. Do not rely on information from Xi. China has not handled it well, they were initially in denial. Xi basically told Trump “nothing to worry about, it’s going to go away” and then Trump came out with his “it will disappear in April” statement. Let healthcare professionals talk to their foreign counterparts—they’ll be able to decipher what is bullish*t and what is truth.16. South Korea: we should have teams over there right now looking at what they’re doing. ROK isn’t perfect but they’re a great example of getting it “mostly” right. They’ve got drive-in stations for quick tests to see if you’re contagious or not. From the git-go they were testing far more people than just international travelers—making us look like idiots. South Korea hasn’t been perfect but they’ve been pretty darn good. I bet that right now, we’re so focused on the US that any potential lessons or tips we might gain from ROK are going to be ignored until this thing plays itself out and a year or so from now we’re doing a “hot wash” and go “gee, wouldn’t it have been smart if we’d implemented this thing they tried in South Korea?”17. Do not, do not, use the Coronavirus as an excuse to implement other policies you have. The Trump Administration has already tightened immigration rules with Iran (actually, we should be sending CDC teams there to see what we can learn and also identify if it’s the same strain). Trump has talked about closing the border with Mexico (but not Canada which has far more cases—although a significant number came from exposure to Americans—sorry Canada!). Do you hear any talk of closing immigration with Italy (which is attempting to quarantine 15 million of its’ citizens)? Nope, neither have I. You see, the problem when you do stunts like this (sneak in another policy using the rationale of it’s dealing with Covid-19) is it ends up hurting your credibility and perceived confidence across the board. If shutting down borders is “the answer” then why shut off a border with Mexico but not Canada? If shutting down borders is “the answer” then why allow trucks full of auto parts from Mexico to still come in to the US (answer: it would shut down nearly all US auto manufacturing plants and immediately lead to a recession plus kill Trump in a bunch of battleground states like Michigan that he needs to win).18. This last piece is tough to do but it’s now essential: we need to flatten the curve and expand capacity ASAP. Let me explain the concept: the US healthcare system is near capacity. We don’t have a lot of empty beds. We have fewer doctors (especially in rural areas) per capita then places like Italy. Our ICU’s are maxed out mostly (in part due to a very bad flu season). A massive influx of new Covid-19 cases is a healthcare disaster. It doesn’t matter if the case mortality rate for infections is only 1% (or .2%) rather than 3.5%. You end up with not enough ventilators, not enough ICU beds, not enough healthcare providers. And while the extreme Covid-19 cases (about 4–10% of those infected) are in ICUs, other patients are either underserved or don’t get help. Seriously folks, with every epidemic the public healthcare data shows an increase in mortality for healthcare issues not related to the pandemic. So if you’re a healthcare administrator, you should be doing whatever you can to add beds, bring people out of retirement, add interns or admin support to free up nurses from work that someone without a degree can do. In terms of the Trump administration (ie: this question), they should be pushing all strategies to add capacity. And we (as an administration) should be looking at ways to “flatten the curve” by reducing the speed of infection. This chart is from Vox and Christina Animashaun and it illustrates why Covid-19 is got a lot of public healthcare folks alarmed, why you’re seeing so many Universities and localities canceling events and what the Federal Government needs to be focusing on much more than it currently is.I’m sure I’m leaving out a couple of other things but this post is long enough as is. Quite simply, the Trump Administration has done a terrible job preparing for a pandemic and then responding to the initial news and then acting when it hit the US.Let me say one last thing here: some people will write this post off as being “anti-Trump.” Preparing for disasters (diseases, natural emergencies, energy blackouts, rioting, etc.) is a special kind of challenge. We have professionals who do this stuff for a living. It absolutely infuriates me when we violate some of the most basic rules of disaster planning and emergency management—whether it’s with storms or pandemics. If this post comes off as “anti-Trump” it’s only because the Administration has badly bungled their response to the coronavirus. We had a reasonable shot at containing this sucker. No longer.

I should probably add this section to the beginning of my answer. I started writing this one with the intention of it being a few paragraphs long. Mostly complaining that the idea of Dagor Dagorath annoys me with its great lack of detail and the idea that these characters will do these things, whether they want to or not. That sort of Ragnarok approach never appeals to me and I would prefer that the events that we call Dagor Dagorath are just the events that end the story of Middle-Earth. This is why I tie in my answer to my dislike of all of this being part of our world. I prefer Middle-Earth just to be a “fantasy” universe, similar to ours, but completely separate and fictitious, with a beginning and an end.The Door of Night - By John HoweSo, as I started to write that and thought of some ideas for how to expand the final events of Middle-Earth, I went a bit over the top and ended up making what would be a short answer my longest answer by far. It’s a mess of half baked ideas; thoughts that have been in my head about this for years, and others that came when I was writing it. I clumsily tackle some grand themes that should have been thought out a bit more, and the ending is rushed more than the War of Wrath!I should note that the way I wrote this without really planning it means there’s probably a lot wrong with it and I know that much of this couldn’t happen, but I found it interesting and that’s something I can’t say about the Fourth Age or Dagor Dagorath. So, don’t be too harsh if you think it sucks or “needs some work”. I’d prefer expanding it properly and having a good think about it, but here are my thoughts on it and what I would be happy seeing. It’s a shame I couldn’t keep writing it cause I missed out so many ideas and the use of other characters.I dislike the idea of Dagor Dagorath in the way that it gives an unsatisfying conclusion without explaining much at all[1]. I dislike the idea that all of this will happen, and just wish that it was part of a story at the end of a 4th or 5th age. I’ve never liked this idea of “this is all part of our world” and would have loved to have had a conclusion to the events of Middle-Earth. Much in the same way that I would have loved more stories in the Second Age[2], and yes…even the Fourth Age. I like my works of fiction to be just that and often avoid any questions, answers, or discussions that link Middle-Earth to us. I am happy with Middle-Earth following the same logical rules as our world in terms of how relatable it can be and even geography, but limiting our imagination based on these stories being distant legends of the past just doesn’t work for me…so I ignore it.Middle-Earth - By Dark ArtistsThat’s a bit off topic though. How would I make it a more complete story or event? I would first begin by removing it as some form of knowledge from anyone’s mind, except Eru who by definition should know when the end is coming. That means no Second Prophecy of Mandos. I don’t want it to be knowledge that all of this stuff will happen. I want it to naturally happen and that means a fresh story within the Fourth Age, or Fifth Age. You will notice a trend within this answer that the timeline is completely messed up. I’m happy with the option of all of this occurring at the end of the Fourth Age, while memories of the Dark Lords and past events can be known to some, but can be myths and legends to others. I’m also happy with it being in a Fifth age so that memories are so far removed from the events, but with that I guess we’d have to have some sort of event at the end of the Fourth Age in order to trigger a new one…and I can only do one story at a time!Of course, we have The New Shadow, the abandoned sequel to The Lord of the Rings. Yes, it would be depressing and sinister as Tolkien said, but it would be vital for the return of Morgoth, which I think is needed to bring an end to the entire story - the return of the first Dark Lord. I’ve said before that with the defeat of Sauron, evil is not defeated entirely. I would have the Age of Men last perhaps until Aragorn becomes almost a mythical figure to common folk. We would have what Tolkien describes as the dynasts descended from Aragorn becoming “just Kings and Governors”, except for the King at the point of this story, who like Aragorn has the blood of Numenor running true. I would have Melkor worship and Sauron worship in the east. No matter how hard Aragorn and Eomer tried, they would be seen as invaders and conquerors. Men in the east would pray for the return of the first lord and would convince themselves that his emissary Sauron was some sort of prophet of his return. Yes, I am very much into the idea of a completely blackened form of worship of Melkor and even of Sauron. Orcs who survived the defeat of Mordor would leave the lands of the west and would migrate far south, and east. “Wicked” Men would seek them out, slowly gaining their trust in order to hear stories of a legendary place known as Lugburz. They would learn of great scientific progress in the form of weaponry and machinery. All of this means that while the lands of to the west and north are moving way beyond caring about the heroic deeds of the Third Age, Men in the east are keeping traditions alive through tales shared by Orcs that pass them down through their own dwindling population. Their Dark Lords become messianic. It will be a common theme that the forces of “good” slumber in the west and in the Blessed Realm, while evil grows and makes plans once again.My entire thought process behind the return of Morgoth is really tied to this passage:‘The dark spirit of Melkor's remainder might be expected, therefore, eventually and after long ages to increase again, even (as some held) to draw back into itself some of its formerly dissipated power.’The History of Middle-Earth X - Morgoth’s Ring - V - Myths TransformedI need to take it further and have him regain more than some of his former power, but a substantial amount. After untold years I would have Morgoth’s spirit regain enough power to become aware once again. In the void he is left to his own devices, with the Door of Night still guarded. He is alone, but can feel a resurgence within him. The power he dissipated throughout Arda is slowly but surely linking to him, there is a rapport. Much like the One Ring was in rapport with Sauron when it was removed from him, Morgoth feels such a connection on a far grander scale. Not only that, he feels darkness in Middle-Earth, and feels invigorated by it. Those worshipping him and keeping his memory alive are actually aiding in this process. It’s not that it makes the War of Wrath pointless. It’s that it shows evil has not been truly defeated, and the evil stain returns to the source. It is a sign of the end, as the physical matter Morgoth imbued begins to crumble as the power is removed from it.A long time passes, with Morgoth now actively wandering the void once again, but not daring to approach the Door of Night where he can not only see, but can feel the presence of the Silmaril upon Vingilot. He is biding his time in a timeless void. With Morgoth, his spirit seems to begin to heal. He doesn’t feel as broken as he did when he fell at the end of the First Age. Slowly he takes shape and with sheer force of will and memories of the power he held in the time before time, he no longer has scars, no longer limps, and while he still cannot hide his will from others with fair appearance, he notices that his will being manifested is no longer a terrible dark lord, but he is exceedingly bright and worshipful. Morgoth truly believes during this time that he is Godlike and that the power returning to him from Middle-Earth is some sign that he does not belong in the void and will break free at the right moment. His personality truly is being presented in his new physical form. Don’t be mistaken though, if you can gaze at his new form for long enough, you can see piercing eyes that contain a malice beyond any creature in existence. It is a piercing will that would cause all but the strongest of will to fall to their knees to pray in fear. As his power increases, he moves freely within the timeless void, making sure that he does not attract the attention of those outside. He still knows fear and he does not want any light or sign of life to be noticeable to those in Valinor. We can confuse ourselves by using the timeless void as some sort of good excuse for “countless years” passing to have Morgoth grow in power, while perhaps an age or two passes after the Third Age in Middle-Earth. To not mistaken the bright form as a sign that he is now good, but a sign that he is reminiscent of the Melkor of old, taking on a bright form that would pain the Children of Iluvatar to behold. To those with strength of will, the darkness beneath the surface is still evident and they would not shy away from this form.Melkor - By Giovanni CaloreIn Valinor, the Valar are oblivious. With the return of Gandalf at the end of the Third Age and all being sorted with the Noldor, they are more than content. As Morgoth’s power in the void grows due to a growing darkness, theirs very slowly leaves them as their focus has left the physical world. Very slowly, but they feel a slight weariness, a feeling that their place in the world has changed dramatically. As Elves wander paradise making music and verse, the Valar pay no attention to Middle-Earth where it is assumed that everything was more than fixed after Sauron’s defeat. The Valar felt his defeat and the glorious Age of Men that started with it. Gandalf had assured them that Middle-Earth was in capable hands and that the race of Men could take care of their own troubles. Thus, the Valar spend their time cloaked as they will, perfecting a land of perfection and enjoying the company of the Children of Illuvatar. The watch upon the Door of Night falters as they deal with a lack of conflict with a lack of vigilance. Manwe no longer sits in a high place to gaze at the world as he wills. The Valar reside in their mansions, fields and forests - enjoying existence. We should note that it has been literal ages since Manwe sought counsel from Eru and while he does not doubt that Eru cares, he believes that Eru’s silence is a sign that everything is as it should be.Here is where things get a bit wacky and I’d usually be like “that’s impossible!”, but so is just about all of this I have written. Back in Middle-Earth, the politicians and governors of the great Kingdoms are occupied with in-fighting. I would really have the line of Aragorn and Arwen remain strong throughout this turmoil. I like the idea that from the end of the Third Age until whenever this happens, the King does not always have the blood of Numenor running true, but the King at this moment does and is a suitable King for what is to come. While people within the Kingdoms seek changes, hoping to gain more power for themselves, some move to usurp and rebel. Men in positions of power make dealings with Men of the east, and secret “Satanic cults” as Tolkien called them hold secret meetings to worship the Dark Lords of old. The King is not stupid or naive and has the keen perception that would hold him in his esteem even in the Second Age land of Numenor. He knows that descending upon these powerful men at this moment will split the Kingdoms, and he wants to root out the source of their corruption. The friendship of Rohan and the Two Kingdoms is as strong as ever. The King’s discuss the possibility of war in the future and the dread lingering in the air with rumours of Dark Lords and rumours of Orcs remaining in the east.The King of the Two Kingdoms has great foresight, and gifts beyond Kings from his noble heritage. As he sleeps one night he has what we will recognise as a familiar dream at first. The eastern sky grows dark, with a growing thunder - there is a lingering pale light in the west. However, a figure stands upon a temple, wearing a mask (possibly mithril) and is swarmed with red robes. A massive crowd kneels beneath him, obviously admiring and worshiping him. As he raises his hands, a missing finger is apparent and the robes fail to completely hide the charred black skin underneath. The figure seems to almost be gazing at the King in his dream and before the King can hope to look away the pale light that was once lingering in the east that erupts in what seems like an unnatural light. The King no longer sees what is in the east and is forced to look upon the west as a figure descends from the skies in both light and darkness, fire and ice. This is Morgoth returned, the mountain that wades in the sea. The King is forced to look upon him and as the light of Morgoth’s eyes pierce the King, he feels dread and terror before awakening.In my story the impossible return of Sauron is made possible. How so? Well, we have to remember that certain events at one time seemed like they would never occur. Some thought Sauron was defeated at the end of the Second Age, and he returned. The nature of the One Ring has many mysteries and I often state that it does not come with a manual. It’s magic is unnatural to us. The broken spirit that wandered Middle-Earth for centuries upon centuries was aware of what was happening. The servant of Morgoth who was defeated and destroyed at the end of the Third Age could feel a movement in the earth. That power that had been removed from Morgoth, the power now seeking its master, was engulfing him. He almost feels swept up as this unseen force is carried on the wind to the west. It is a sign that Morgoth is awake and is bending his will upon Arda. As the power returns, some fragments linger and are too far removed from the source. That power Sauron tapped into with the creation of the One Ring becomes familiar to him and he begins to feel a strength of will once again.Sauron the High Priest of Melkor - By TriptychFor years, Sauron as a broken spirit hid in the shadows, but now he roams closer to civilisation and tales spread of haunted mountains and forests as Sauron’s presence is felt by mortals living their lives in the outskirts of the great Kingdoms. With each rumour and each passing year, Sauron can feel a power grow within him, like a healing of the spirit through pure malice and force of will. As the power that was removed from him seems to also cling to existence in Middle-Earth. Sauron attempts to take shape and fails, over and over again. He isn’t powerful enough yet, but feels that as his master grows in power, so will he. That is just what happens. As Morgoth grows in the void, he feels the presence of fear and tension in Middle-Earth, he focuses his will on it, whereas the Valar remain oblivious. From the void, Morgoth learns of what has happened; his Balrogs are vanquished and even he does not know where their spirits remain for the moment. He feels the presence of pitiful Orcs who cling to memories spread to them through what broken tribes they have. He feels the presence of a spirit full of regret, bitterness, and…weakness in Middle-Earth. The presence of one who sought power in the Third Age, but is now far too weak to focus on for a moment longer. He is then finally drawn to Sauron, and feels the malice within him and a strength of will reminiscent of the one who served him so well in the First Age of the world. Here is a somewhat cheesy section of a possible conversation - Morgoth laughs:Melkor: “The shadow of Melkor, the first of the Valar, remains upon Arda. It bends once again to my will. The power of the Others falters, their thought does not reach you, but my thought is upon you. I feel now that thou wouldst stray from dreams of being a false and temporary King to return to the service of the Elder King, the Master of all within this world. Behold, my thought reaches you and you are gifted with a semblance of power according to your stature; great within realms of children, small when compared to the mightiest of those who were first. Melkor returned indeed, I will forgive treacherous thoughts and words for your service”.Sauron: “thou shalt escape the void when thine heart declares it. For ages of this world I have been your devoted servant. Though, I will not attempt to shield my thought from Melkor. Thou knowest already the fear and weakness I have shown when the Host swept from the west in wrath. For if Melkor could be taken, what hope would even his greatest servants have? Your will had spoken to me since days of peace in the Spring of Arda, yet it was violently removed when Angband fell to the earth. Alone I was, and fear turned to anger at those remaining in this land. All I wrought was in service of the master I thought was silent within the Halls of Mandos. Sacrilege it may be to claim to be the Elder King, but I used what gifts thou at bestowed upon me. Upon the return of Melkor, mightiest of the Valar, I would have taken my seat at your side, returning to your service”.Melkor: “Weakness and doubt plagued you when they came for me. Even Melkor doubted the power of the west set against the might of what I had created. Blame would be just, with bird gazer and snow white alike doubting the return of Melkor. If such as they doubt it, can mere servants be blamed for a lack of faith? Even in this void I can feel that time has been wasted, and preparations for war have already been delayed. Harken to me now…”Melkor and Sauron - By BohemianWeaselWith that, a focus of will so great is felt by Sauron, who understands that all thoughts are known at once by Melkor. Tales of being Morgoth returned, attempts to “correct” what had been done in the First Age through the servitude of Middle-Earth. It is invigorating and terrible. Morgoth speaks to him, with plans of war and an assault on the world. He has been drawn to Sauron, and Melkor shows the smallest of hints that he respects the will of Sauron. Melkor focuses his will upon him from the void. The will of Sauron grows and he naturally allows himself to be cloaked in physical form.He looks at what he has become; almost disfigured, with the finger that once held the Ruling Ring still removed from him. Memories flood back of the destruction of the One Ring, and the fall of his tower. The shaking of mountains, the black rain, and the removal of his spirit as it ascended to the clouds. Painful memories are almost washed away as the connection to Morgoth allows Sauron to once again walk on the earth. Leaves burn and the grass scorches as Sauron leaves his place of hiding and all nearby mortals flee before he is even in their sight. It doesn’t take long for Sauron to get used to this form, and to comprehend where he can find servants, willing or no.Only the most powerful of the wicked men of the east are allowed to be in his presence. Many fear to enter the same space as Sauron, with a piercing will that immediately descends upon those who are new to him. Your inner thoughts are laid bare and he is almost at once able to determine if you are of use, if you will be loyal, or if you merely serve out of fear, or if you got carried along with dangerous and exciting stories about Dark Lords. Sauron begins once again to teach his arts, his lore lost for centuries or millennia. He is able to perform feats that draw the attention of those from far and wide. Hordes with curious minds are drawn almost involuntarily to witness him. Rumours of mysteries both miraculous and terrible are told in dark places. With demonstrations of science or magic, he would shock and draw in the crowds. Exhibitions of power would be followed by prophecies and talk of power from outside. Sauron would stand on the high steps, with a great voice he would speak of the Elder King, the one who would once again descend from the abyss beyond the stars to provide gifts and revelations beyond even Sauron’s skill to demonstrate or explain. While the western lands and the lands west of those dealt with talk of rebellions or boredom from lack of interest in the dealings of the world; the east was alive with the movement of machinery, the spawning of Orcs through depraved sciences described as biology and chemistry. With robes of red, Sauron would speak to crowds larger and larger as time passed. Armies were created, not to conquer only the lands of western Middle-Earth, but to deal with enemies from further west if they dared cross the Great Sea. Hatred of unknown foes was spread, with Sauron blaming a race known as Elves for everything he could imagine; the temporary defeat of the Elder King, the short lives of Men, the disfigurement of the Orcs, the wars suffered while Sauron remained as a broken spirit, it was the Elves and allies of the Elves who hide them and protected them.With the east growing in power every day, and corrupt members of the establishment in the west aiding in its rise in power, the Kings in the west aim to combat problems from within and from distant lands. Rumours of a malice in the east reminds the King of dreams he has had, mostly nightmares. He continues to have the same dream of darkness and light from east and west. Hope is fading until unexpected guests from Mirkwood arrive and are led to the King and trusted advisors in secret. They greet the King with references to his parentage, acknowledging that they are aware of the origins of both his mother and father. They are clearly of Elvish folk, Wood-Elves from Mirkwood who have stayed out of the affairs of Men since the fall of the Dark Tower in the east. They come now at a time when they say that the fate of all will be decided. They say it is no coincidence that the King dreams of darkness in the east, as they have felt an ill wind from outside of their borders. Evil creatures have began to enter their borders, with a will driving them from beyond their sight. They speak of knowledge that is lost to most Men in this age of the world. While the King has countless archives of what was done in the time of the legendary Aragorn, the Elves have members among them who walked Middle-Earth when he did. While they have kept to themselves these countless years, the stories never died and the King would spend days and nights enthralled with tales of the Armies of the West, a Halfling aiding in the defeat of a Dark Lord, Wizards performing wonders, and the lands across the sea.The Grey Havens - By Kira-BagirovaFor at this time, the Elves have the sea-longing. Their dreams and waking thoughts are dominated by the sounds of the seagulls and waves. They feel drawn across the water, but feel attached to Middle-Earth where they have remained for multiple centuries. They see it as no coincidence that it occurs at this moment in time, when another evil rises in the east. They do not know what the King means when he speaks of a painful light from the west, but are quick to speak in whispers of Sauron when a robed figure with a missing finger is mentioned by the King. How he returned is a mystery to the Elves as tales of destroyed artefacts led to the downfall of him and his greatest servants in the days before the reunification of the Kingdoms. The Elves remain with the King, hidden from those who would return with news of their presence to the east. The time to root out poisonous cults and usurpers would come. the King would have to make a choice, dishonourably remove their stain by night in order to secure his lands from spies and traitors, or honourably gather them in the great Citadel, not far from the White Tree, where the King would offer them the choice of remaining for whatever battles may come ahead, or to leave at once to join the evil in the east where they would meet their doom by their new masters hand or by their old King’s if they should meet again. Such as the King’s of old, they were given the choice.Though it may seem foolish to allow Sauron to know that they are onto him, it is not in the nature of the King to attack in the night and murder even his enemies as they sleep. The enemies of the Kingdoms are gathered and are told that they have a choice. Of the many that had been scheming in dark rooms and working with the east, some truly repent when they witness the majesty and will of their King. His honesty shines through and they imagine that the stories about him and his lineage are not lies, he truly is a King. They fall to their knees and ask for mercy. The others are enraged, with some seeking to assault those who have betrayed them. They spit at them, screaming about Sauron and the Elder King. Some flee as the King’s guards assail those who now seek to kill those under the King’s protection. Even as they lie dying they speak of what is to come; the King from beyond the west, Sauron’s master, and he who will return. The Elves who make themselves hidden within the Citadel are filled with a sudden dread as the King’s dream becomes all too clear to them as the old tales of Sauron’s master flood back to them, tales told from the fathers of their fathers. They attempt to explain to to the King that the servants of Sauron were speaking of Morgoth, the Enemy and the Corrupter.This is where the stories come together. The east has their armies, and they await the sign that they should once again sweep the land and wipe out life in the west. Orcs have been bred into great armies, fighting alongside Men who worship both Sauron and Melkor as Gods. The traitors from the west have made their way to the east and Sauron is filled with great wrath at their failure to defeat what he sees as a weakened Kingdom from within. He remembers the one who challenged him through the Palantir and knows that the King seated in the West is a true descendant of him; descended from both an Elf and a Man through all the years with the blood of Numenor within him. If Melkor has risen in power once again at this time, could the King in the west be King at this time for a reason? Sauron is filled with doubt, which causes darkness and storm as he rages, attempting to display no weakness to his Master.The King in the west, with the help of the Elves has spread the word to his people and his allies abroad. War will be coming and it will be more devastating than any of them could imagine. They will have to fight beasts they thought were legend; Trolls and Orcs…perhaps others. They speak of victories before and the might of the west defeating all who challenged before. Men and halflings alike are gathering their forces, learning all they could in whatever time they had left before Sauron attacked from the east. Even the dwindling race of Dwarves made their way from their strongholds after rumours even reached them from the few Men that they traded with in this age. It is a time of wonder as Elves and Dwarves meet, but in great friendship through the experience of the Elves and the stories of the Dwarves. No hatred remained with their people. Although a dwindling race, almost set for extinction, the Dwarves had grown mighty in craft and aid the forces of the west with technology they could scarcely imagine. Each Dwarf is like 1000 troops, bringing secret knowledge and lost arts. All of the west is united, with Dwarves, Elves, Men and Hobbits working together.That is until the time of the Elves comes to an end. As forces in the west and east prepare and build their forces over these years, the sea-longing is taken as a sign that the Elves are meant to cross before the great war begins, for another purpose. Some choose to remain, feeling in their hearts that Middle-Earth is their home and that if they must be torn from it then it will be by force. The Elves who are leaving promise that whomever they discover in the west will be told of what is going on in Middle-Earth. This feeling is drawing them across the sea, but if they are able to provide assistance then they will do what they can. The Elves make their way to the Havens, like the stories mentioned. They lack the knowledge to understand if there is something special they need to do to sail. Instead, they build suitable ships on the coast using nearby forests for wood. They feel they will be safe, even as dark clouds gather above them. Despite it seeming like an omen; within them they feel that they will be safe, with some unknown force bidding that they make their way across the sea.It is at this time that Morgoth in the void has grown to substantial power. As power seeps back to him from Middle-Earth, it is causing physical damage to Middle-Earth itself. There are earthquakes, the remaining fire mountains are erupting violently, and dark clouds gather over the Great Sea with hail storms. Mountains in distant regions raised by Morgoth begin to break away. Yet, the winds don’t blow and the waters don’t stop the sailing of the Elves. They hope for safe passage and it is granted to them. They hide under cloaks from the lightning and the hail that attempts to stop them. It is violent, yet the sea holds steady, driven by an unseen force. They do not turn back with deafening thunder, before suddenly there is silence. The gaze out from their ships and hear the familiar sounds of the gulls that made them so restless in Middle-Earth. They see white shores, blue skies and a distant green country under a swift sunrise. They continue on and sail towards Valinor itself.Some of the Valar find themselves surprised when these new children arrive in Valinor. They are greeted warmly by their kindred and are personally greeted by Manwe and Varda. The Wood-Elves instantly become aware of many things that had seemed hidden to them over the years, and revere these new figures who approach them with cheer and song. The final ship has sailed from Middle-Earth, and while the Valar mourn the fact that some chose to remain, they begin to wonder why now, and why did some choose to remain when this was clearly the time to come to the Blessed Realm? With the Elves meeting more members of the Valar, and Elves from stories of old in a setting as beautiful as Valinor, they almost forget to tell the Valar about what is happening across the sea. The Elves begin to tell the Valar about the shadow in the east, the Elder King being spoken of, worship and oncoming war.Máhanaxar - By UnknownThe Valar doubt this at first, assured that the evil they speak of is either utterly defeated or removed from the world. However, Mandos remains silent and studies the words and mannerisms of the Elves carefully. He is aware that what they speak of is true, at least to them, and that Manwe has been deceived by the master of lies before. The power of the Valar has lessened, but it is not entirely spent by any means. Manwe ascends Taniquetil, to Ilmarin. It has been years uncounted since Manwe gazed so far abroad, but he chooses to do so now. He takes his seat and pierces the air with his gaze. Across the sea he looks, and is aware of the state of fear and tumult as clouds darken and thunder rumbles above the sea. He gazes further and across green lands he sees the land of Mordor. The ashen plains are deserted, but Amon Amarth violently erupts like it never has before. So violently that the lands itself breaks beneath it. Manwe gazes further east and across great plains where forces march to Gondor and other lands in untold numbers. He looks to where they came from and sees great temples where fires constantly burn and smoke pours from their tips. There are hordes of Men, Orcs and Trolls, making ready for war. They are marching from the land and heading west. He looks to the high steps of the greatest temple and sees a figure robed in red watching over everyone.Finally, Manwe focuses on the great figure until it suddenly becomes aware of him and turns west. Manwe does not shift or draw back, but neither does Sauron who speaks of the failure of the Valar and the return of Melkor the Elder King. Manwe is steadfast. Sauron attempts to daunt Manwe with the door of night being broken, Aman sinking beneath the sea and the abandonment of Ea by Eru. With that, Manwe stands from his seat and in his thought he speaks of Sauron’s failure and lack of understanding of his purpose in the world. The resolve of Manwe causes Sauron to show fear and he breaks his gaze, returning to the matter of war. As Manwe realises that the Valar have been neglecting what they once protected, he remains deep in thought for a while before attempting to speak to one he hasn’t spoken to in a long time.Manwe speaks with Eru, and learns things that he hadn’t understood about Melkor, and evil, and why Sauron was once again in the east. His mind is opened to the music in ways even Manwe hadn’t comprehended. The themes, the purpose of such evil in the world and why it never seems to leave. Manwe begins to understand that even the likes of Morgoth and Sauron have their place in the world, but must be challenged and never allowed to rule. Through the defeat of evil, goodness spreads. It is a constant challenge and one that cannot be solved forever by hiding it in the void. When Melkor returns, the forces set against him must push him back until it becomes clear that good will never falter or fail in guarding against evil rising. You know, some type of valid explanation that fits in with Tolkien’s intentions. We need a way to explain why Eru doesn’t just smite Morgoth, so we need discussions of free will and strength through hardship - the usual apologist sort of stuff. Just as it felt like the conversation with Eru had just started, it was over. Time had passed when it felt like none had.When Manwe descended and made his way to the Ring of Doom, the Valar were already waiting. As he approached and began to tell them that the Elves spoke truly, a light could be seen in the Uttermost West. A light followed by a brighter light piercing through the Door of Night, which began to crumble before the eyes of the Valar and all within Valinor. Vingilot with Earendil bearing a Silmaril had swiftly returned east as a cloud with flame and shadow crawled from the pure blackness beyond the now crumbled gateway. Morgoth had returned. With him came spirits he had gathered in the void, some who had never entered this world before. They took great forms of spiders and dragon-like serpents, countless and dreadful. The power of Morgoth within the void and his unholy light had led them to him from the deepest regions of the timeless void and they had now taken shape. With him also came spirits of fire, the Balrogs, imbued with the will of Morgoth. Their spirits had been gnawing themselves in the vast regions of the void, unaware of their master’s presence before his light guided them to him. Other spirits who once served him took flight from the void, with vampire wings, or striding forth on four legs and gnashing teeth. The void was emptying, and all the evil that had been forgotten from the First Age of the world was descending. Great spiders weave webs of unlight, darkening Valinor. All before the Door of Night is lost and the entrance to the void vanishes from their sight.This is when things get a bit confusing for me. The nature of conflict with the great powers is something that isn’t really explained in any great detail and the last thing I’d want to happen is for this final conflict to turn into The Avengers or something. I won’t discuss this part like it’s a “Who would win, Sauron or General Zod”, but we have to look at the War of Wrath and attempt to put unimaginable conflict into our minds. What would a war like this even look like? How would Manwe and Morgoth battle each other? We can give it a try though, and say that this is a conflict that involves all. From the breaking of the Door of Night and a renewed darkening of Valinor, the forces of Morgoth are immediately assailed by Tulkas merrily laughing as he swiftly exits the Ring of Doom. With him goes Orome, the Great Rider. Upon Nahar, the Huntsman blows Valaroma, announcing to the Elves of Valinor that war is upon them. Earendil once again flies upon Vingilot with shining white flame. The Silmaril once again shining, in opposition of Melkor who shines as a burning star announcing his return as the mightiest of the Valar. The Elves are once again marching in their host for the Valar, but even they are taken aback by the might of Morgoth’s forces. With Orome and Tulkas leading the charge, Elves take up their weapons. Manwe meets with his herald Eowne, asking him to go with Mandos as others are needed for this fight. Manwe himself leaves the plains of Valinor and makes his way to the Caves of the Forgotten.Manwe Sulimo By GustavoMalekManwe reaches the former hills of Calacirya, where the Numenoreans under Ar-Pharazon remain. The world is changing, and Manwe learned many things from Eru and now is the time to speak once again with the ancient King. As Great Eagles fly above, Manwe descends into the newly formed openings of the caves and is met by thousands upon thousands of Numenoreans and their King Ar-Pharazon the Golden. They have not aged, yet thousands of years of bitterness eventually led to traces of wisdom, before they understood the folly of what happened. Despite blaming Sauron for their downfall, they understand that the signs were there and Ar-Pharazon kneels before Manwe. Yet, the first question from his lips would not be the age of the world, or if they were free to leave, but what happened to the Faithful who fled from their madness before Numenor was swept away. Manwe tells Ar-Pharazon of great Kingdoms in Middle-Earth and their many Kings over the years, with many keeping the memory of Numenor alive. He tells Ar-Pharazon of Elendil and the fight against Sauron which eventually cost the lives of the High King and his sons. With the mention of Sauron’s name, Ar-Pharazon clenches his fists, before returning to a state of calm. He asks Manwe of Sauron, if he was swept away or taken in chains to Valinor. Manwe speaks of what he has seen and how war is once again led by Sauron upon the Kingdoms of Middle-Earth. Manwe speaks of justice against Sauron, but does not command Ar-Pharazon or any of the Numenoreans. It is their choice to remain, to have the choice of Men of old and leave the Circles of the World if Men do go there, or to fight. Their choice was made and they choose to sail across the Sea that they once crossed. They would sail not upon their own ruined ships which had long withered, but upon the ships of the Teleri who understand that their love of their ships will be for nought if there is no world left for them to exist. There is no slaying of Elves, and the ships are given gladly to the Numenoreans. What of sailing across the Enchanted Isles, sailing across the changed world where Men can no longer sail? Manwe speaks to the Men of Numenor and they understand in their hearts that if they sail upon the ships away from the Undying Lands, they will make it to Middle-Earth.As the Numenoreans swiftly cross the Great Sea, Sauron and his forces begin their assault across Middle-Earth from the east. With him go Men, Orcs, and Trolls with innumerable strength. Black clouds go before them as they scorch the land and lay everything to ruin. They are met with minimal resistance as the forces of the west gather and wait for their approach. Men, Elves, Hobbits, and Dwarves have gathered under the banner of the King. The King stands tall with the White Tree of Gondor represented on his armour. Dwarves brandish weapons of mithril, the remaining Wood-Elves carry great bows unseen by the others, and Hobbits stand brave and resolute with short swords. While the numbers of Dwarves and Elves have dwindled over the years, Men have multiplied and lead with the other races by their side. It is the greatest gathering of the races in the history of Middle-Earth, even if the greatest of them passed over the sea long ago.What can be said now? Battle rages and rages. As the physical world around them crumbles, the forces of Middle-Earth are met by Sauron and storms in the sky. The darkness before them is illuminated by the flames of devastation as Sauron’s forces attack the Kingdom. Driven by more than bloodlust, the forces of Sauron relentlessly attack. In Valinor, the creatures from the void, alongside the Balrogs are assailed from all angles by Elves, the Valar, and forces from the Halls led by Mandos himself. Feanor is on the battlefield, fighting alongside his sons and father. The Vanyar shine upon the Great Spiders and other creatures of darkness who fight on while blinded in pain. With spirits taking physical shape to battle, many fall and are reduced to their spirit form contained within the world, unable to immediately take shape again. Melkor himself reveals devastating power as many of the Maiar are painfully torn from their physical forms as he makes his way across Valinor. Melkor leaves the devastation of Valinor to the creatures that came with him, and makes his way east to find Manwe. All forces are drawn east, as if some unseen force in Morgoth draws the destruction to him. There, Melkor stands before Manwe. Melkor speaks of being the true King, the Elder King. In vulgar displays of power he annihilates anything that stands in his way. Cities fall in Valinor, the great plains are aflame and he grows in stature bending his will upon Manwe. Manwe does not shrink beneath the power of Melkor. With every demonstration of power, Manwe remains as a stone. Manwe speaks and asks what would make Melkor happy, if he was capable of such a thing. He speaks of Middle-Earth crumbling to dust, Valinor burning, and the empty void. Once you have destroyed everyone and everything you can, what next? Manwe reminds Melkor that the Flame Imperishable is within all life in Ea, but cannot be taken by Melkor. Once Melkor has destroyed the world, the spirits of those tied to it will leave and will no longer be bound to it. Melkor will be alone, in a greater void, unable to force his will on others and unable to demonstrate his power to those he feels are beneath him. The tyrant will rule over none as the spirits of those he hates dwell with their father in bliss outside the former world, perhaps aiding in a new music, with the rebellious overtones of Melkor being used as an influence to create a better world for everyone, but Melkor will not be there and he will not have his dark creatures to torture or keep him company. Manwe speaks of pity and tells Melkor that he pities what he has become. With every word he hears, Melkor grows more angry. He is filled with bitterness, hatred, and jealousy. He laments the gifts that were given to him and asks why he was to be punished for merely doing what he was naturally inclined to do. With that, Manwe is carried east and bids Melkor follow to see what Melkor’s gifts have brought to the world.Manwe & Melkor - By UnknownAs the forces in Middle-Earth battle, the King looks upon Sauron and his dreams are suddenly brought to mind. He gazes west and in the distance a flash of light grows. Numenor arrives, carried by a swift (very swift!) wind. Sauron sees the army that he once corrupted, he is filled with delight at what he achieved and fear at the wrath on their faces. The battle rages, with the reinforced armies of the west fighting valiantly against the forces of the east. This is until the arrival of Manwe. Manwe appears with many Great Eagles. The land continues to shake and fall apart. Suddenly, Melkor is upon them with those winged serpents who followed him across the sea. Melkor revels in the destruction and devastation before him as Eagles and Dragons battle in the air with thunderstorms and crumbling mountains. The Valar in the west begin to fall, and their spirits do not take shape again. Countless Elves fall in defence of Valinor against the onslaught. The forces lay waste to everything as Sauron’s forces continue their own assault in the east. The rage of Morgoth is unparalleled and he strikes out at everything. As Sauron watches, he realises that Melkor will take him too. He wants nothing to remain, and in his anger and jealousy he will strike at his servants when there isn’t an enemy to attack. Sauron looks at his hand and as he does so the sword of the King strikes through him. He falls and is once again painfully forced from the shell that was his last physical form. The death of Sauron sends his forces into disarray and the Orcs and Trolls attack anything that isn’t one of them. Sauron no longer feels drawn to Melkor, but feels a pull that is not from the west, but from somewhere else. Morgoth begins to attack the army of the West and is challenged by Manwe. Morgoth laughs at the challenge and attacks. The Eagles of Manwe immediately assail him and he erupts in anger, destroying any of the Eagles who touch him. Manwe knows that he cannot contain Melkor and does not fear when Melkor aims to strike him. The King of the Valar is gone, and with his loss the final moments of Middle-Earth are felt.The devastation in Valinor has left no one. The forces of the west in Middle-Earth fall beneath the broken continents. The Valar are no more and Morgoth laughs in victory as he feels genuine happiness at the destruction of life. Melkor draws his power and rampages until nothing remains. Time seems to stop for him and that familiar feeling reaches him once again. He feels…alone. There is no one to command, no one to subject to his will. Instead of being forcefully cast into the void, he has created his own void. There is nothing left to destroy. Darkness falls. For untold eons he is reminded of everything that has occured. The admiration that others had for him before his anger and jealousy caused him to hate and punish all life.Melkor remains in this place, in silence. That is until a voice speaks to him. A familiar voice that he has not heard since the beginning:“Mighty are the Ainur, and mightiest among them is Melkor. You still know that I am Illuvatar, and I have shown ye what ye have done. And thou, Melkor, you have been the instrument in the devising of things more wonderful that you hath not imagined. Ye may remain in this world that you have made for yourself, or you may take your place in the greatest of themes to come…without shame or secret anger”Melkor then sees a spark in the distance, embers that bid him come closer. He kneels and while time seems to stop for him, he replies to the voice and asks “Truly you know what I have imagined?”.The Secret Fire and Flame Imperishable - By UnknownWell, that got a bit crazy there…I genuinely had to shoehorn the Numenoreans into that final bit there cause I forgot I sent them across the sea. Apologies for the chaos at the end there. It’s hard to wrap something like that up and it would genuinely be thousands and thousands of words to do so instead of a few pages. That’s why it seems rushed that Sauron dies, the Valar fall, and Morgoth speaks with Eru. I had a lot more to write about the situation in the western Kingdoms, a bit of political intrigue etc. I wanted the King to be a bigger character and also involve Rohan more, but I went overboard with the amount I had written already.This is more of a summary and in my head I imagined pages of discussion between Manwe and Morgoth, with the slightest hint of redemption possible for Morgoth, who then lashes out in anger and ultimately destroys everything.So, what happened? Well, Morgoth like he did in the past, wins…temporarily. The spirits of everyone ascend to be with Eru, fitting in with the ideas that Tolkien originally had. The Children will aid in a new theme, with them are the Valar who were tied to the world, but in my story are removed from it as Morgoth destroys the world. In conversation with Eru, Manwe learns this and understands that this is how the theme was going to play out. Morgoth was going to destroy and imprisoning him simply delays the inevitable. From the destruction of the world, Morgoth aids in the creation of the new, an ultimate form of creation that he was never capable of doing.Eru, fitting in with how Tolkien imagines Eru, speaks with Melkor in his self made void and offers him the chance. Does Melkor take it? I don’t know. Even in the end he questions Eru, but is it wrong to do so? Decide for yourself. Perhaps we need Melkor, but with a greater understanding. The wonders he could achieve in a new world if he wasn’t filled with jealous and bitterness. What about the millions who suffered and died in the story? I seem to just have them all crushed under a mountain and say that was that. Well, again in fitting in with Tolkien’s own worldview, they have moved beyond that. The idea of paradise is that none of them would hate Melkor, they would be above hating him. A greater world can be made as Eru begins the new music, with all taking part, all bringing their experiences and imagination to create an even better Middle-Earth.It’s quite cheesy, but it gives some finality and it’s one of the ways I imagine the Dagor Dagorath happening. Just don’t take it as me typing without thinking too much and imagine if I was actually able to write in a half decent way with about 100,000 words to explain it all.Footnotes[1] Steven Gibb's answer to What are your thoughts on the Dagor Dagorath?[2] Steven Gibb's answer to With most of the published works of Tolkien focusing on the First and Third Ages, which events of the Second Age do you think could have been fleshed out and given the standalone treatment?