June to July 1940 in Zero Point Achtung Cthulhu
Act Two: Operation Star Fish
Scene One: We Saved Churchill’s Brain!
1A. Churchill comes to his senses Saturday June 15th.
Section M scientists at Clemens Park Estate, near the town of Eden bridge, in the county of Kent, determine that YES the cylinder really does have a Human Brain in it. The tripod binoculars seem to have a microphone and the flat screen Video device has speakers. The power supply still hasn’t been determined yet and the scientists are worried about the Prime Minister’s “Shelf Life”. Everyone is ordered to stay put except Fleming who is re called to London for reassignment.
1B. Churchill Phones it In June 15th to July 14th
June 17th During the Monday morning session of the British Parliament, the British people find out that their Prime Minister Winston Churchill has been incapacity by a mysterious illness.
June 18th Winston Churchill makes a Radio Broadcast from a secret location in Kent, urging the British people to fight on; the “We shall fight them on the Beaches... Etc. Speech”, General de Gaulle tells the people of France on a broadcast from London on the BBC to resist the Germans.
June 19th Winston Churchill barely survives a vote of no-confidence in Parliament.
June 22 France signs an armistice with Germany.
June 23 Adolf Hitler begins to tour the capture city of Paris.
June 24th, the French officially surrender at Compiegne, the site of the German surrender of World War 1.
Operation Ariel: The evacuation of troops from Western and Southern France which started June 15th ends with a new Luftwaffe campaign that concentrates on all vital shipping lanes around southern and eastern Britain. Un-official evacuation of troops continues in southern France.
July 1, Churchill convinces the British War Cabinet to sink the ships if they would not be surrendered to Britain OR sail to the USA.
On July 3, the British surrounded the French Fleet at the port of Mers-el-Kebir right outside Oran, Algeria. Churchill’s message was clear: sail to Britain, sail to the USA, or scuttle your ships in the next six hours. The French refused. An hour and a half later, the British Fleet attacked.
In less than ten minutes, 1,297 French soldiers were dead and three battleships were sunk. One battleship and five destroyers managed to escape. The French were furious over the event. The day after (July 4th) attacking the French, Churchill Phoned in to the House of Commons with a speech over the loud speakers. Churchill declared, “However painful, the action we have already taken should be, in itself, sufficient to dispose once and for all of the lies and Fifth Column activities that we have the slightest intention of entering into negations. We shall prosecute the war with the utmost vigour by all the means that are open to us.” Parliament’s reaction to the speech was mixed.
July 12th At 23:59 The Luftwaffe begins a Blitz on RAF airfields and radar stations. On the 2nd day July 13th, “Day of the Eagle” the RAF suffers very heavy losses, mostly on the ground.
July 14th The Luftwaffe bombs Portand, Andover and Southampton.
1C. July 15th: A Visit from “N”.
An un announced visit from the Head of Section N with an entire platoon of Home Guards, and a half dozen MI5 agents. The team is informed that Section N and Section M have been fighting over possession of the captured tech from the Bruly de Pesche Bunker (The Prime Minister). M meets with N in a closed door meeting that lasts nearly an hour. Then N and his guards leave back to London. M then calls the team in for a meeting: they have a new mission.
Operation Star Fish
Background:
In an attempt to protect British Airfields from night attack from the Luftwaffe bombers, about a month ago Army Intelligence started to use decoy fires, lights and radio signals to try to throw the German Bomber aircraft off target. These decoys were code named “Special Fires” and the project was called “Starfish”.
However one of these newly setup sites has run into some difficulties. The Special Fires site on Black Down in Mendip Hills just south of Bristol was running some tests aimed at improving their RDF jamming (Radar and Radio jamming) technology when the staff noticed a highly unusual St. Elmo’s fire effect running along the wires of the antennae. The staff observed the phenomenon and continued with their work. All was well until someone turned off the power. The survivors are reluctant to discuss exactly what happened, but someone had the sense to turn the power back on again, revealing a strangely lit scene that left many of the team there deeply traumatized. Their generated gave out just after dawn, but by then the phenomenon had ceased.
The Team’s mission is to investigate the Black Down site.
