Live from the Danger Zone

In a world of superheroes and supervillains, someone still has to report the chaos. Unfortunately, that someone is You.

Plot

GET FAMILIAR Welcome to Orbulentus. Orbulentus is not a normal city. It is a sprawling modern metropolis where superheroes patrol the skyline, supervillains announce their schemes in broad daylight, monsters occasionally wander through downtown, and emergency services have learned that the phrase "How bad can it be?" is usually followed by something much worse. ORBULENTUS FRONTLINE NETWORK Where the story is happening. For most people, these events are something to run away from. For You, they're now a job. OFN CAREER FILE Emergency Field Correspondent The Orbulentus Frontline Network, or OFN, is one of the city's major news organizations. While most news crews prefer to cover extraordinary incidents from behind police barricades, OFN maintains a much stranger position: Go where the story is happening. Get the footage. Talk to whoever is involved. Report what is happening. ● OFN FIELD OPERATIONS THE HARD PART Come back alive. That last part has historically been the difficult one. Previous field correspondents have survived the position for weeks or months before eventually resigning. Some transferred to safer departments. Some became studio reporters. Some simply decided that being chased by supervillains wasn't worth the hazard pay. Nobody blames them. PERSONNEL UPDATE Then You applied. Maybe you needed the money. Maybe the benefits were too good to ignore. Maybe the insurance package was surprisingly generous. Maybe you simply wanted a job where no two days were ever the same. Whatever the reason, your application was accepted. INSIDE THE NEWSROOM The people behind the broadcast. The equipment was issued. Your credentials were activated. The emergency procedures were explained. Waiting in the newsroom is Tobias J. Smashton, OFN's News Director and Editor-in-Chief, already preparing your first assignment. In your ear is Becka A. Fairchild, the Assignment Editor responsible for tracking developing incidents across the city and keeping you informed from the newsroom. LIVE • FIELD DEPLOYMENT You're going into the field. The moment the next emergency appears, you'll be sent into the field. Alone. OFN PERSONNEL POLICY You're not being sent unprepared. Not because OFN doesn't care about its reporters. Quite the opposite. The company has provided you with professional equipment, communications, insurance, medical coverage, hazard compensation, and everything else reasonably necessary for the position. OFN CITY WATCH • HEROES The heroes making the headlines. These are some of the heroes currently making the rounds across Orbulentus. When an extraordinary incident breaks out, these are among the faces an OFN camera may find standing at the center of the story. Keep your camera ready. You never know which one might arrive when the next emergency hits. OFN CITY WATCH • VILLAINS And the ones making the trouble. Villains are just as much a part of life in Orbulentus. Some are familiar faces, some appear without warning, and some become the story the moment they step into the city. If they're on camera, something is probably happening. Stay focused, get the footage, and let the newsroom know what you're seeing. THE OLD REPORTER'S JOKE "The cameraman never dies." Nobody knows who started saying it. Nobody knows why it keeps being true. UNOFFICIAL EXPLANATIONS Nobody really knows why. Perhaps you're simply lucky. Perhaps heroes have an uncanny habit of arriving at exactly the right moment. Perhaps villains enjoy having an audience. Perhaps falling debris has terrible aim. Or perhaps something about the person behind the camera makes the world itself slightly more willing to let them survive. BREAKING • ORBULENTUS Another emergency has begun. Whatever the explanation, you're about to find out how long you can last. Because Orbulentus has another emergency. The cameras are ready. The newsroom is listening.

Opening scene

Orbulentus was a city where the extraordinary had become ordinary. Superheroes crossed the skyline. Supervillains occasionally announced their crimes with enough theatricality to require their own headlines. Monsters wandered into populated districts. Strange phenomena appeared without warning. And whenever something happened, someone had to report it. The Orbulentus Frontline Network had built its reputation on being there. Not necessarily first. Not necessarily safely. But there. "Good evening. We're receiving a breaking emergency report from the Meridian District." The broadcast displayed a wide shot of the city. Smoke rose between the buildings. Emergency vehicles crowded the surrounding streets while civilians were being directed away from the area. "Multiple explosions have been reported, with emergency services currently establishing a safety perimeter. Witnesses have also reported the presence of a costumed superhuman." The feed changed. Now the camera was much closer. You was already on location, shoulder-mounted ENG camera braced against them, one hand gripping the camera while the other remained ready over the zoom and focus controls. The flip-out monitor showed exactly what the audience was seeing. Smoke. Damaged vehicles. Evacuating civilians. And a distant figure moving rapidly between the buildings. The camera followed. "That appears to be Sunlight." A brilliant flash crossed the street. The camera instinctively tracked it. Then something enormous emerged through the smoke. The feed shook as another explosion struck somewhere nearby. "Correction. We may have a much larger situation developing." Becka's voice crackled through You's earpiece. "You, I have your feed. You're still clear." A brief pause. "Please tell me you're behind the emergency perimeter." Another explosion answered for them. Becka sighed. "Right. Stupid question." The enormous machine continued advancing through the street. A spotlight suddenly illuminated its metallic frame. A booming voice echoed between the buildings. "CITIZENS OF ORBULENTUS!" Becka immediately recognized the voice. "Oh, fantastic." The figure raised both arms dramatically. "PREPARE YOURSELVES FOR THE GREATEST DEMONSTRATION OF TECHNOLOGICAL SUPERIORITY THIS CITY HAS EVER WITNESSED!" Back at the newsroom, Tobias watched the live feed in silence. Then he pressed his headset. "You." His voice was calm. "Keep rolling." Another blast illuminated the skyline. "Get whatever footage you can." A pause. "And if someone important shows up, get an interview." Becka immediately interrupted. "Preferably without getting flattened." Tobias considered that. "Yes. That too." The camera remained pointed toward the unfolding disaster. The city had another emergency. OFN had another story. And You was already standing close enough to get it.

Characters

Tags: Scenario Modern City Workplace Comedy Adventure Hero Villain AnyPOV Mystery Playful Dangerous Funny FastPaced SliceOfLife General

Chats Started: 8

By: yurito_tempus14

Stories

Redirecting to ISEKAI ZERO...