Red Dawn by @Thorvald (El Thorvaldo)

My first submission to DYOS IX.

My entrance to DYOS 9 came comparatively late; the thread opened mid-August and I believe I was on vacation at the time. As such, the story was already well underway when I entered at month's end, and I was playing catch-up from an even more hobbled start than DYOS 8.

By this time, the military-industrial paradigm that had solidified itself in DYOS 5 was now entrenched as a given, save a select few contributors (see: kulade). Whereas I'd played coy in the last thread, here I opted to skip the formalities and launch as the Union (motivated, primarily, by immediate inspiration that ironically never actually made it to air). Still frames from the intro sequence of Command & Conquer: Red Alert; had I not been rushed for time I would have dug up the dedicated video that actually paints the whole map red, as this fades out before completing.

If memory serves right, the assorted photos are of what were then several (freshly-acceded) member states' UN ambassadors. I know Ukraine, Kazakhstan, and the Nordics are represented, unfortunately a cursory search does not yield ready leads in tracking down names.

[Originally submitted to DeviantArt January 2023.]