r/WarofTheWorlds

I will definitely add more to my Jeff Wayne tripod in the future to make it look better (I am taking suggestions). Order them best to worst/rate all of them out of 10?

It was going to be a short suspenseful thing where someone would visit the surgeon and gradually find out what's wrong with his 'daughter'.

I did make a lil fella in their

I just want making my analog horror twotw so much

I made this for fun you can use it on your custom movie Poster or something else I don't know

I needed an excuse to do something with this model so here's a quick walk test with the heatray thrown in for funsies

When Ray looks up at the sky the lightning is being generated by the alien mothership and the cloud is being generated by the alien mothership as camouflage

No-one would’ve believed, in the 27th year of the 21st century, that human affairs were being watched from the timeless worlds of space. No-one could have dreamed we were being scrutinised, as perhaps someone with a microscope studies created that swarm and multiply in a drop of water. Few sane men took seriously the thought of life on other planets. And yet, across the gulf of space, minds immeasurably superior to ours regarded this Earth with envious eyes. And slowly, and surely, they drew their plans against us.

At midnight, on the twelfth of July,, a huge mass of green, luminous gas erupted from Mars. Across 140 million miles of void, invisibly hurtling toward us, came the first of the missiles that would bring such horrors to Earth. My friend Ogilvy, a trusted astronomer, promised me we were in no danger. “We’ve sent many rovers up there, and they’ve shown no life on Mars. There could be no dangerous life on that remote, forbidding planet”. He assured me “The chances of anything coming from Mars are lower than a million to one”. And that’s how it was, for the next month. A few of these explosions on Mars. When we did see one, it was bright green, drawing a green mist behind it. A beautiful, but deeply disturbing sight. On the fifteenth of August, I was out for a walk in Horsell Common, admiring the sandpit. Then, I saw a green flash in the sky, and sand, salt, and water kept upwards, as a massive explosion rocked me. When the smoke cleared, I saw it. A cylinder, 30 yards across, glowing white hot. 

Ogilvy came to examine it later. He thought it was a weird meteorite, until he heard movement. Faint, barely audible. “Hello? Anybody there? Do you need help?” Ogilvy called, but no response was heard. He approached the cylinder, but the immense heat stopped him before he could burn himself on the still-glowing metal. Then, we heard the sound of metal grinding on metal. We looked to the cylinder. A dent caused by a rock hitting the metal was suddenly on the other side of the top. Now we notice, the top has a rim. I came to the conclusion first. “Is it unscrewing?” Ogilvy gasped “holy hell it is! You stay here, I’m going into town to get Stent” (a close friend of Ogilvy’s). I called my assistant, Henderson, to get over here.

When Ogilvy and Stent came, Henderson and I were examining the Cylinder. Stent ordered us away. The police had set up a perimeter, and I was restricted, but Ogilvy and Stent were well known astronomers, and given this was from space, they were let in. By now a crowd had gathered. Henderson noted how much of the screw was visible.

Crash

The lid fell off. Two glowing, disc-like eyes appeared from inside. A large, rounded bulk, larger than a small car, rose up slowly, glistening like wet leather. Its eyes surveyed the fearful crowd. Those who have not seen a living Martian could never comprehend how simply alien this thing was. No picture, or even video could truly capture how grotesque yet mesmerising the creature on the rim of the Cylinder is. No camera could show how its tentacles moved, how its skin lit up in the sun, how simply alien it was. As it surveyed the crowd, it saw the people closest, the Police, Ogilvy, and Stent. Then, it looked up, staring at the sun, the sky, the clouds. Its gorgon tentacles shifted, its eyes widened, as it fell. With a wet thud, it hit the ground. Ogilvy approached. Then, out of the darkness of the Cylinder, something rose. Not a Martian, but a machine. It looked part like a pipette, part like a Victorian Camera. A Martian was clinging to its side. Ogilvy approached, waving a white flag, and saying “We do not wish to harm you. We want to talk. We want peace. No matter what, you can talk with us. You want resources, we can make an offer, you want-“ he was interrupted by a loud, electronic cry, as he was instantly turned to fire. I feel I cannot put to words what the Heat Ray sounded like. Part like a distorted guitar, part like a scream, part like nothing Earth has heard before. But Ogilvy was incinerated. The Heat Ray turned, and instantly burned Stent and the police, the two Police Cars exploding. Every tree and bush became a mass of flames at the touch of this savage, unearthly weapon. Then it turned to the crowd. The cry sounded again, and men and women were turned to ash in moments. People clawed and ran off the Common, and I ran too. I felt I was being toyed with, that right when I was on the very verge of safety, this mysterious death would leap after me and strike me down. Eventually, I reached Maybury Hill. I felt so full of something I can’t describe. Despair? Fear? Hunger? I knew not what. After a few hours, I checked online. “Breaking News: Dozens killed after Alien in Horsell Common fires incendiary weapon”. I repeated the term “Incendiary Weapon” in my mind. I guess it could be described like that. I found no photos, only a few sketches, each showing the Martians, the weapon differently. In the distance, I heard a rhythmic “Clank, Clank, Clank” from the distance. I listened for a bit. No construction work was going on, but either way it was different. I know now it was the Martians, but I had no clue. After a few more hours, I managed to drink a glass of water, watched in dread as another green flash lit the sky, as I sank into a restless, haunted sleep….

When I awoke, I checked my phone, then gasped. During the attack yesterday, Henderson was killed. I couldn’t get out of bed for a good few minutes after that. Ogilvy, Stent, Henderson. All dead. All men I knew. Gone in an instant. Then I heard someone creeping into the house. I looked over the banister, and saw it was a young soldier. Weary. Streaked with blood and dirt. “Anyone here?” He sounded hurt. I grabbed  a bottle of wine, and went down. “I am, here, drink this”. “Thank you” “Since when was the army involved?” “Since yesterday” “What happened?” “They wiped us out. Hundreds dead, maybe thousands. We didn’t even take one down. We hit it, I swear we hit one. But it turned, and destroyed the Tank I was driving. I barely made it out” “The Heat Ray?” “Something different. A… Fighting Machine. They fired at us, picked up men and bashed them against trees, stepped on them.” “Did you see the second cylinder last night?” “Yes, said it landed in London” “London… Carrie! My wife lives in London! I must go to London at once!” “And me! Got to report to headquarters, if it’s still intact….”

We drove to Byfleet. We looked everywhere, but couldn’t find a single soul anywhere. It’s always strange in a Ghost Town, and this was no different. We found an inn, but it too was deserted. The Solider talked me into taking some food, though I only did it so he trusted me.

Weybridge was no different. But we did find a small group of soldiers. Six tanks, a helicopter or two, we even saw a Fighter Jet. “Bows and Arrows against the Lightning, they haven’t even seen the Heat Ray yet-“

He was cut off by a heavy explosion. The ground heaved, windows shattered, and gusts of smoke erupted into the air. Then we saw one. A Fighting Machine. A monstrous Tripod higher than the tallest building. It turned its massive head, and stared toward town. A mess of articulate cables writhed beneath it, blending with its 3 massive legs. Its body was small, and seemed to split into three, the middle split looking like a Rocket Launcher. Above its slender neck was its head. Two massive, green eyes stared, unblinking. A pair of funnels spewed a Black Smoke from behind it, and between the green eyes, and some red dots we haven’t found the purpose of even today, was a Heat Ray. With massive thuds, it strode toward Weybridge. Another one followed, and another, and another. A fifth machine appeared on the far bank. It raised itself to full height, flourished the Weapon high in the air, and the ghostly, terrible Heat Ray struck the town. Its fire spread fast, and in a second, the Soldier and I were surrounded by flame. As it struck, all five Fighting Machines exulted, emitting deafening howls which roared like thunder. I know I am saying this a lot, but I cannot fully describe the noises Tripods make, other than one, a siren, which they employed when marching to their next target a day or so later. But this… war cry, it’s more alien than the mute Martian. Witnesses either say it’s “Aloo”, some hear “Ulla”, or even a resonating horn. Perhaps it’s different for everybody. What I heard was like nothing I can describe, but I fear it. It sounds like death. Anyway, as the Fighting Machines sounded, the military fired. Most of the shells and missiles bounced off the rounded Machine, but one shell hit one in the joint. Its leg was split in two, and it fell backward. The explosion caught the attention of the Fighting Machines, who retaliated with the Heat Ray. The tanks were gone in an instant, followed by the helicopters. The Jet held on for a bit, even hitting a Fighting Machine, but it did nothing. It crashed into the Machine, to no prevail. As the 4 Monsters advanced, people ran away blindly, the Solider among them. But I jumped into the River Wey, and hid, until forced up to breathe. I swam away, but the terrible sound of the Heat Ray swept across the river. Scalded, half blinded and agonised, I staggered through leaping hissing water toward the shore. I looked up helplessly in full sight of the Martians, expecting nothing but death. The foot of a Fighting Machine came down inches from my head, then lifted again as the 4 Martians carried away the debris of their fallen comrade. By a miracle, I had escaped….After I was sure the Martians had gone, I recuperated. The Martians had massive machines. I saw their black smoke getting awfully close, so decided to get moving.

I wandered alone to Carrie’s house, the Soldier gone, and my car destroyed with Weybridge. She didn’t answer my calls, so I eventually gave up. Not much happened that day of walking. The Martians had retreated to Horsell Common, and meeting up with the second cylinder. 

By the time I reached her little red-bricked house, I was aching. I went in, called her name, but she was nowhere to be seen. I left the house sad and unfulfilled. I just decided to wander east. Maybe the Ocean will be safe?

Some hours into my trek, I found a line of people. I asked one what’s going on. “Tripods attacked London. Destroyed everything. I have no clue where we’re going, but it’s better than here” “Same. I was there when the first cylinder landed, when the Heat Ray first struck, when they destroyed Weybridge. My wife is gone too, I think she may be dead” “Well, anywhere’s better than here” “agreed”

For 3 days I wandered among roads packed with refugees, the homeless, burdened with boxes and bundles containing their valuables. All that was of value to me was gone. I contemplated what to do next. Do I make a new life overseas? Do I wait until England is safe? My thoughts were interrupted, as Fire leapt from house to house. The population panicked, and ran. And I was swept along with them, aimless and lost without Carrie. Finally, I set my sights on getting a boat out of England.

In Putney, we saw the Martians engaging the army again, inside the hood of Fighting Machines. The tanks fired, one hitting the joint, but it didn’t collapse. I noted how the joints were more armoured. They adapted. My thoughts were once again interrupted by the Heat Ray, destroying the tanks in one ghostly blast. Then, we saw a new machine. In the sky. A Flying Machine. It too had those green eyes, even if they were more like slits, and silver plating, but the rest was different. It had no body, though it did have 3 legs, one having been merged with the Heat Ray (made sense in my mind, didn’t need to land if it could hover). It didn’t have the hood either, but it did have a ring. Like the Ring of Saturn. It most definitely was connected, but at the same time, had no visible connection. It also had two… propulsors, on the sides. They worked similar to a VTOL Jet, like an Osprey. The glowing green bits facing down to hover, behind to move. But because of this, I have no idea for the purpose of the ring. Possibly it was for defence, or steering, or some unworldly reason I can’t even think to imagine. There were three of them. One was hovering, occasionally firing a Heat Ray at solders to assist the three Fighting Machines, and the other two were chasing down Fighter Jets. It was haunting seeing them go. They were faster than the Jets, and it was accurate. A single shot hit instantly, no need for a lead. And they were efficient. One hovered briefly to fire at a shot from the opposite bank of the Thames, then started again, The sonic boom was instantaneous.

I heard more of the invasion elsewhere too. They were as west as Oxford, as north as Cambridge. Their black smoke killed you instantly upon inhalation. Gas masks worked for an extra few moments, but were useless.

Later, we saw the two machines wailing up the Thames. They cut through bridges as though they were paper. Waterloo bridge was taken out before I got there, Westminster Bridge when I was just feeling safe. As I looked to the Heat Ray, I saw a Tripod cry above Big Ben. It sounded, then fired once, destroying the tower. It then fired at the crowd. It’s a wonder I didn’t burst into flames.

Never before in the history of the world had such a mass of human beings moved and suffered together. This was no disciplined march, it was a stampede. Without order and without a goal. 12 million people, unarmed and unprovisioned, driving headlong. This was the beginning of the rout of civilisation, of the massacre of mankind.

On the ninth day of the invasion, we reached a Cruise Ship. I knew I wouldn’t make it on, but I moved anyway, partly pushed by the crowd. I looked up enviously at those safely on board… straight into the eyes of my beloved Carrie! At sight of me she began to fight her way along the packed deck to the gangplank. At that very moment, it was raised, and I saw a last glimpse of her dispairing face as the crowd swept me away from her. I pleaded to be let through, but my cries fell on deaf ears, or drowned out by a cacophony from the crowd.

Then came heard the wailing of a Martian

On the far hill was 3 of the Fighting Machines. Another cry came out, and they walked to shore. A Heat Ray was fired at the port. The Cruise Ship had left already though, but yet to leave the Estuary, and it didn’t hit me, somehow. The Fighting Machines entered water, the sea swallowing most of their Tripod stilts. Then, we saw her. A single warship. Painted on her side was the name “HMS Thunder Child”. Slowly it moved toward shore, then with a deafening roar, and whoosh of spray, it sped up, and drove at full speed, towards the Waiting Martians! The Martians though seemed to not know what to make of her. One fired a canister from the Launcher in its body. It arced through the air, and hit the ship, only for it to bounce off, and make a cloud of Black Smoke in its place. Thunder Child drew closer. Then, a missile fired, from the ship. It arced through the air, and hit a Fighting Machine. You would think it would bounce off, but she hit directly between the eyes and the hood. It exploded, and the Tripod fell in a trail of Black Smoke and a ruddy-brown ichor. The splash was a ray of hope, instantly drained by the Heat Ray. Thunder Child’s bow was severed, and the ship exploded. The Tripods fired again, at the Cruise Ship (which hit but wasn’t fatal), only for the flaming Frigate to burst out of the explosion, and ram a Fighting Machine in the leg! The Machines were made to survive hits from shells, but Thunder Child was too big to be a shell, she was a thorn in the Martians’ side. The Martian inside the hood was slain, splashed to the four winds of hell, and the body, nothing now but an intricate device of metal, splashed into the bay. Instantly, the final one raised its Heat Ray, and melted the Thunder Child’s valiant heart. The ship didn’t survive a second hit. But, the explosion was very large (the Heat Ray having triggered the Thunder Child’s explosives), and the Tripod was awfully close. The Tripod splashed into the water, leaving an eerie silence. Thunder Child fought valiantly, but the Martians were too good. I was the first to speak, though no/one heard me. “Farewell Thunder Child” is all I could muster…. As the sun set, green flash after green flash lit the sky. Cylinder following cylinder, and no-one, and nothing was left now to fight them. England belonged to the Martians…….

The next day, the dawn was a brilliant, fiery red. The Martians had begun the next phase of their invasion. Spraying some kind of Red Mist from smaller machines. These were some kind of Seeding Machine given they left behind a kind of Red Weed. They had 5 legs, alternating which leg moved with which. The body was more rounded than the jagged Fighting Machine. The splits were gone, instead having a longer hull. The head was short, somewhat reminding me of the Flying Machine, though with 3, rounded eyes. It also had the Black Smoke funnels, spraying the Red Mist. Strangely, it didn’t seem to have a Heat Ray. It did have some lights attached behind the Red Dots, but that was it (that and I saw the Fighting Machine and the Flying Machine using the lights later on). Oddly, I felt drawn to the one I saw. I decided to follow it. It wouldn’t see me, I somehow knew it wouldn’t. The Red Weed was what’s behind it, not humans. So I followed it. 

For 6 straight hours I followed it. Then I saw the Flying Machine again. It hovered over the Seeding Machine, and spun, possibly checking the area. It didn’t see me due to me being hidden in a building covered in Red Weed. The Flying Machine then cried out, and jetted away, leaving nothing but a sonic boom in its wake. 

2 hours later, and surrounded by the Seeding Machine, and 2 Fighting Machines, I sank into a rough, haunted sleep. I dreamt of surrendering to the Martians. Being captured in a machine I couldn’t see the details of. Becoming a pet. 

When I awoke, I saw the Red Weed sneaking in. I went to touch it. It felt rough, and wet. I drew my hand back at a sharp pain. I was bleeding? I wandered more after that. The Seeding Machine had gone, as had all the Martians. I understood, this wasn’t a camp, there wasn’t a Cylinder here. Why stay where there’s nothing?

So, I wandered. Red Weed was everywhere. Even touching it was painful, as it seemed to take your blood.

I found a house eventually, and decided to try to sleep, only to find the body of somebody who did sleep, but got eaten by the Red Weed. I didn’t sleep that night, or the next, or the next.

A few days later, I was beginning to lose track, I came across the body of a pastor. I decided I couldn’t leave him to the Red Weed, and decided to bury him, decently. As perplexing as it was that I didn’t look for a pulse, I was sleep deprived, unable to properly think. I snapped back to life by a woman shouting “Nathanael!!” Nathaaanael!!!” The Pastor’s eyes flickered open, he was alive! The woman came over “Nathanael, I saw the church burst into flame, are you alright?” “Don’t touch me”. His voice was hoarse, dry. He seemingly had just survived the Church fire. The woman spoke again. “But it’s me: Beth. Your wife” “No, you’re one of them, a devil!” She looked at me, and ushered “He’s delirious!” I looked at the Pastor, Nathanael “Pull yourself together man. What good is religion if it fails you under calamity?” “It was I who failed, after all my promises.” Beth looked around, and saw a cottage. “Look, a house still standing, come Nathanael, quickly!” My attention was drawn to the Black Smoke spreading, hemming us in. As we got into the house a Fighting Machine came across the field. A couple blasts from the Heat Ray and the smoke had become a thick, black dust. Nathanael spoke again. “Listen! Do you hear them drawing near, in their search for us sinners! Incarnation of Satan’s creation of all that we dread! The survivors shall envy the dead!” “Nathanael, there must be something worth living for. There must be something worth trying for. Even something’s worth dying for” she was cut off by Nathanael again. “What kind of weapon is love when it comes to the fight? How much protection is truth against all Satan’s might? Didn’t I warn them? Be on your guard I said, for the evil one never rests. I said to exorcise the devil! But no, they wouldn’t listen. The demons inside them grew and grew, until Satan gave his signal, and Destroyed the world we knew!” “No Nathanael. There must be more to life. There has to be a way that we can restore to life the Spirit of Man.” I felt hopeless in this moment. These two were arguing, while I was just here, paranoid about the approaching Martian.

Then a massive crash filled the house. A cylinder crashed through, turning the house to rubble. Nathanael and I made it safely, but Beth was not so lucky. “Beth… she’s dead! Buried under the rubble! Why!? Satan! Why did you take one of your own!? We’re doomed!! Doomed to let the Devil take the Spirit of Man!!!”

Nathanael and I hid in the house, watching the Martians. We watched the Martians building. It was surreal. I cannot put into words how they did it, it feels like forbidden knowledge. We were never meant to know how they made their machines, only how the Machines can kill us. The cylinder housed some more things too. Scattered between the working Martians were the bodies of humanoid things. 2 legs, 2 arms, a beak, a fat belly, thought still with the properties of the other Martians. Glistening skin, even in death, green eyes, tentacles. Alas, their bones were too brittle for Earth’s atmosphere and gravity. Bones broken in the crash. There also were 3 smaller machines, Embankment Machines, barely visible from this distance. Three legs, a flat body, and a funnel spraying Black Smoke. I had to look away after that. There was no Red Weed in the house, so Nathanael and I got to sleep just fine…. At least, for a time. I was awoken by Nathanael. Red Weed was creeping in. We moved to the basement, and made a plan if any Red Weed got in. We would burn it.

The Martian’s pit was big enough and deep enough that we had a slit where we could see it, even from the basement. As they finished building their new machine, we saw the Handling Machine in full. It reminded me of the Seeding Machine. 5 legs, no Heat Ray, rounded body. But the body was adorned with baskets, and where the funnels were, were a pair of syringes, and where the Heat Ray should be, it had 2 huge, articulated claws. It spotted some people in a field. It caught them nimbly, and threw them into the basket on its back. It was a horrible sight. I couldn’t look for much longer, and went to see if I could get some food for us.

The next day, I awoke to see the door rattling. I awoke Nathanael, and we armed ourselves with some hairspray we found a few days ago. The door burst open, and an Embankment Machine came in. Up close it was very different. Its body looked like a flattened Fighting Machine head, but without the hood. It had 3 eyes, 2 large ones, and a smaller one. It moved jerkily… I feel that is all I can say. I encountered it twice in total, now and again later, and we were hiding from it most of the time, and when we weren’t it was dark. I saw it best when it was limping across the dead Martian camp, but my focus was on the Fighting Machines then, and wasn’t paying attention. Either way, we thought it would be Red Weed, but we had to fight a machine. Nathanael grabbed his crucifix, but I stopped him. I grabbed a Bread Knife, and a towel. He instantly got what I was saying. “We also need to block the window, in case any Martians see us” “Good idea. Now, let’s kill this thing”. We had to duck in order to not be choked by the Black Smoke, even if it was filtering out. Nathanael covered its eyes with the towel, and I cut off a leg, then the funnel, then I just hacked at the body for a good half a minute. We used the body to block the window, reinforced by some wood. 

The next day, I awoke to Nathanael looking through the window (through the gaps in the Embankment Machine). I joined him. The Martians were eating. The Handling Machine’s syringes were grabbing the men and women it captured, and stealing their blood. Nathanael turned away and threw up, I couldn’t stop staring. I forced myself to look away, but stopped when Nathanael started screaming. “It’s a sign! I’ve been given a sign! They must be cast out, and I have been chosen to do it! I must confront them now! I will destroy them with my prayers! I shall burn them with my holy cross! I shall-“ I hit him with the butt of the Bread Knife as hard as I could (I knew I wouldn’t kill him). Then, through the gaps through the Embankment Machine, the Handling Machine saw us. Or at least, it saw Nathanael, given how it didn’t bother to attack me, only him. I dragged him behind a box, and watched one of its claws enter the room. It felt around. It grabbed wood, metal, old furniture, it even grabbed my shoe. It held back a shriek, as I heard it grab something with a click. As if pulled it in front of me, I saw it had Nathanael! His unconscious body was dragged away, and there was nothing I could do to prevent it! I broke down in silence. I killed him! I shouldn’t have! I cried with no noise, Coughing and Sneezing among the tears.

Some hours later, I looked out the window slit. The Martians and all their machinery had gone! I pushed the Embankment Machine out the way, and got the Bread Knife, just in case. Trembling, I dug my way out, and clambered to the top of the mound, not a Martian in sight! The only Martians I could see was the dead Embankment Machine, the empty Cylinder, and the Red Weed. After that, I decided to wander to London. I might find other survivors where I could hold out like I did with Nathanael.

A few hours later, and I saw what seemed to be a man on the horizon. I came closer, still armed with the Bread Knife. When I saw it was nothing but a cluster of Red Weed, I slashed at it, beheading it. I went off after that. I found myself coughing and sneezing more. I think Nathanael was coming down with a cold before I killed him, an act I still regret today.

I wish I could say more about my 2-day trip to London, but there’s nothing to say. I didn’t see any Machines other than the ruins of the one lost at Weybridge weeks prior, and an empty Cylinder, both taken by the Red Weed. Speaking of the Red Weed, it’s the reason I couldn’t sleep. I was terrified that it would just sneak up on me, and kill me while I was powerless. Man’s Empire had passed away, taken swiftly, and without error by these creatures composed entirely of brain. Unhampered by the complex systems which make up man, they made and used different bodies according to their needs. They never tired, never slept, and never suffered, having long since eliminated from their planet the bacteria which cause all fevers (like my own) and other morbidities.

“Halt! Who goes there?” A voice interrupted by thoughts. “Err… a friend?” “Be on your way, this is my territory!” “Your territory?” “Wait a minute, it’s you! The man from Maybury Hill!” “Good heavens the Soldier! I thought you surely burned!” “I thought you surely drowned!” “Have you seen any Martians?” “They’re everywhere all right” “You mean the war is lost?” “There never was a war! There’s no war between men and ants! And that’s what we are now, ants!” “But what is there to live for?” “The breed man! We can’t let ourselves be caught, and fattened, like cattle! We won’t be reduced to the pet of a Martian! If we do, in the future everyone will wonder how anyone could live without their Martian! So, we hide. At least, until the Martians are ready….” “Ready for what?” “The next stage! Bringing over the rest of their people! They won’t go catching us one by one after that, they’ll do it systematically, laying traps and all that. But don’t you worry. I’ve got a plan” “Which is what?” “Take at look at the World, what was once our world, but is now the Martians’. It’s time to bid the aging empire of man a farewell” “Then where do we live” “underground” “What?” “Beneath us, beneath them, are hundreds of miles of drains. Sweet and clean now after the rain” I did remember it raining when we killed the Embankment Machine. I stopped thinking about it, it brought back memories of Nathanael. The soldier spoke again “We’ll build houses and everything! Start again from scratch! And what’s so bad about living underground? Not been so great living up here if you want my opinion…. Think! With just a handful of men, we can start all over again! We’ll build shops and hospitals and barracks! Right under their noses, right under their feet. Everything we need! Banks, prisons, and schools. Men like you will teach the kids. Not poems and rubbish, science! We can get everything working! We’ll build villages, and towns! Build a railway to the coast! Maybe one day we’ll capture a Fighting Machine! We’ll learn how to make them ourselves and then, wallop! Our turn to do some wiping out! Whoosh with our Heat Ray! Whoosh, and them running and dying! Beaten at their own game! Man on top again!” His voice was getting rather loud, and I thought I saw the green eyes of a Fighting Machine staring at us. “Sorry to interrupt, but I think we’ve been spotted” “Hell! Right, come with me”. In the cellar war a tunnel scarcely 10 yards long. “Took me a week to get to the sewer entrance”. I didn’t reply. I could have dug that much in a day. We sat in a house he made. “It’s doing the working and the thinking that wears a fellow out, I’m up for a bit of a rest. How about a drink? Nothing but champagne now I’m the boss!” We drank, then he insisted upon playing chess. “I don’t know how….” “I’ll teach you!” And so he did. I thought it was a fun game, even if he beat me every time. Afterwards, we played cards, and got talking. “How did we not find the Martians?” “What do you mean?” “I mean… surely one of NASA’s rovers would have found something, right?” “They could be hiding underground?” “Surely we would have looked there?” “Or maybe they’re just good at hiding” “You were with an astronomer when the first of the green flashes appeared on Mars, right?” “Ogilvy?” “Yes that’s the one. You told me about him in the car” “So I did, why do you mention him? He was the first casualty of the Wa- Invasion” “That was him, I’m so sorry” “It’s nothing. Ogilvy, Stent, Henderson, Nathanael, Beth… everyone I’m close to has died. Except my wife” “Do you want to tell me about any of them?” “Ogilvy was a great mind. He came up with the Hydrogen Acceleration theory” “I learned about that in Secondary School, that was him?!” “He did have help from his peers, but he got the credit” “Wow” “Ogilvy was friends with Stent, of the Royal Astronomical Society” “Prestigious” “Tell me about it. Ogilvy sometimes invited me to some of these things. It was at one of these things where I met m Prince William” “You’ve met the Prince William!?” “Yea. Nice guy” “I wonder what happened to the royalty” “I don’t know. I may be a journalist, but I’m cut off from my sources, to say the least. Anyway, my assistant was a lad called Henderson. Chipper, always coming up with fun ideas. I didn’t see how he died” “And your wife?” “Carrie. Wonderful woman. Pretty, fun to be around, with an amazing voice” “Sounds lovely” “She is. She’s currently in France, managed to escape. I couldn’t get on the ship, I was pushed away” “Then the whole fiasco with Thunder Child” “You heard about it?” “Yes, who hasn’t? A friend told me. He died after the Martians caught him and his friends drinking in Regents Square. Caught by a Handling Machine” “Nathanael was caught by one. He and I were trapped in a house” “Black Smoke?” “A whole cylinder! Killed Beth, his wife. He began to spiral when we saw them eating men. I knocked him out with the butt of this Bread Knife. They took him. I killed him” “No, you didn’t. There was nothing you could do” “I could have cut off the claw!” “Then you would be captured too” I couldn’t respond. I got up, and went to the house. I led in bed, and drifted to sleep

When I awoke, the Soldier was dead. The Red Weed had gotten him in his sleep. But before it had gotten to me, it had died. I wondered to myself why, before I decided to move. I left the sewer, and began to wander London. I was shattered. Everything I loved had gone, with no promise of return. Everyone.

London was dead. The Black Dust was everywhere. It seemed to be less harmful as the Black Smoke, but still, I kept my distance. Looters had obviously helped themselves to food and drink, and outside a jewellers lay some gold chains and a watch. I halted when I heard a Martian. I looked up, staring toward the sound. It seemed as if this mighty desert of houses had found a voice for its fear and solitude. The cry came again. It was slower than normal, almost pained. I almost felt bad. It came again, and again, and again. I was transfixed. Whatever it was, it sounded hurt. Then I saw it. A Fighting Machine. Near Primrose Hill. Unmoving, upright. I crossed Regent’s Canal. I saw another, upright, but as still as the first. The cry came again. Abruptly, the sound ceased. Suddenly the desolation, the solitude, it became unendurable. While that voice sounded London had still seemed alive. Now there was a change, the passing of something. Now, all that remained was this gaunt quiet. I looked up, and saw a third machine! It was erect and motionless, like the others. A strange resolve possessed me, I would give my life to the Martians here and now. It was suicidal, but I wanted it. As I looked up, I saw that a multitude of Black Birds were circling and clustering above the hood. I began running along the road. I felt no fear, only a wild, trembling exultation as I scrambled up the hill toward the motionless monster. Out of the hood hung red shreds, at which the hungry birds now pecked and tore! I crested Primrose Hill, the Martians’ camp was below me. A mighty sight it was. And scattered about it, in their overturned machines, were the Martians. Dead. Slain after all man’s devices had failed by one thing they forgot about. Bacteria. Minute, invisible Bacteria. I slid down the hill. My suicidal thoughts had ceased, replaced by one emotion. Joy at the Martians’ death. No more men would be slain for their cruelty. The world was safe. I wandered through the camp. Fighting Machines, Handling Machines, Flying Machines, Seeding Machines, Embankment Machines, all dead. Things I had never noticed before were revealed up so close. The Fighting Machine’s lights on the top of the hood, the Flying Machine’s Ring’s indentations, the Handling Machine’s retracted tentacles. I climbed on top of a downed Fighting Machine. The sunrise was glorious. A tear escaped my eyes. A well deserved tear. The Red Weed too was dying. I saw it on Trafalgar Square. White, brittle. I can’t begin to describe the feeling of wandering London alone, filled with the joy of the Martian defeat. I simply can’t begin.

The days after the invasion were great. I returned to Maybury Hill, to find my home destroyed by the Heat Ray. While this upset me a lot, I was glad to find that not everything was gone at least. Then I came to welcome Carrie home. I can’t describe that feeling either, but it must have been even better for Carrie. “I thought you died” “I thought I died. Welcome home”. In the following months, we rebuilt. Streets named after survivors, books, movies, a musical. Technology advanced, people realised that war is pointless. A world of peace. There are still tensions, but we’re all preparing for the next Martian attack. Though, I hope I’ll be long gone by then. But maybe, across the gulf of space, minds immeasurably superior to ours regard our survival with envious eyes, and even still, they draw their plans against us….

based on the jeff wayne version of twotw