The silence lasted only five minutes.

Alarms suddenly began blaring throughout the entire launch facility, and red lights flashed. Jaune and Pyrrha stood up, and Nora let go of Ren, quickly getting into a ready stance. A computerized voice echoed throughout the entire facility.

"Attention! Attention! A nuclear attack is incoming. Several nuclear missiles have been launched from unknown locations. Two of them are on trajectories towards areas near the location of this launch facility. Impact is expected within the next few minutes."

Upon hearing this, Jaune and Ren turned off their consoles, then forced the blast door separating the office from the rest of the facility open. They ran out into the halls while Nora and Pyrrha were turning off the computer towers and taking inventory. As the four did this, they continued to listen to the alert.

"You are advised to take the following actions. Make sure that at least one other person is in your sight at all times. Close all blast doors. Turn off all computer and electronic equipment. Close all vents. Ensure the facility is stocked with enough food, water, and other supplies to last at least 30 days. Have a battery-powered radio transceiver with you so you can receive updates and call for help when it is available. Test the generator array to ensure that it is operational. Once these preparations have been made, return to the launch office and close the blast door, sealing it as tightly as possible. Once inside, turn off the main breaker, then get into a small, protected space and brace for impact."

"That's right, the vents!" Jaune shouted over the blaring alarm and the computer repeatedly reciting the emergency instructions.

"I'll get them," Ren said as they arrived at a spiraling staircase. "You make sure the main entrance is shut."

"We can't separate!" Jaune protested. "Here, I'll go with you. We can get it done faster together."

After just under a minute, both the main entrance and the vents had been closed and locked. Jaune and Ren sprinted back to the launch office, closing several doors behind them.

When they arrived, most of the lights had already been turned off, save for the red emergency lights flashing throughout the facility. "Our supplies are properly stocked and all equipment is functional!" Pyrrha shouted over the alarm.

Without a word, Jaune motioned Nora and Pyrrha over to the blast door. The four of them pulled it shut, then turned the large wheel to secure it in place.

The timing was almost too perfect; at that exact moment, the alarm seemed to blare louder, and the alert message changed.

"Attention! Attention! Nuclear impact is expected to begin now! Ensure that all crewmembers are inside the launch office, and the blast door is closed and secured. Turn off the main breaker and get into a small, protected space. Do not leave the office during impact. After impact, do not leave the facility for at least-"

The message was suddenly cut off as Jaune opened the main breaker. The room went dark and silent. Everything was still.

Jaune was sheltering under his control table with Pyrrha, while Ren and Nora were in an alcove in the wall. Jaune couldn't see a thing, but he was hugging Pyrrha tightly. He could feel her trembling, and was whispering comforting words to her in an attempt to calm her down. It wasn't working.

Only about a half a minute later, the first bomb exploded. A deafening rumble resounded throughout the entire launch complex, and the ground shook. Pyrrha let out a loud shriek as the lights flickered from the electromagnetic pulse. The binders and authenticator cards that Jaune and Ren had used only a few minutes ago fell off the tables.

The earthquake only lasted about 10 seconds, but right as it began to die down the second bomb made impact. This one was much closer, and the crew were almost thrown out of their shelters by the shaking. Jaune tightened his grip on Pyrrha, and she instinctively threw her arms around him. Bits of concrete and dust were falling out of the ceiling.

The second earthquake was twice as long as the first. When it finally died down, the crew waited for five more minutes before coming out of hiding.

Jaune removed a flashlight from a holster on his belt and clicked it on, shining it around the room. He located the main breaker and closed it. As expected, nothing happened. The missiles had taken out the power.

"Nora, get the generator started, will you?" Jaune asked as Nora and Ren came out of hiding.

"On it," Nora replied as she located a ripcord in the wall. She yanked it three times, then the generator was heard starting up. The lights came back on in the room.

Now that Jaune could see clearly, he noticed that Pyrrha was still curled up on the floor, clearly shaken from the experience of being hit with two nuclear bombs. He lay down next to her, hugging her tightly once again.

"Jaune..." she whispered. "...is it over?"

"As far as I can tell," Jaune answered.

Once Pyrrha had fully recovered, Jaune got up and moved towards a shelf with a radio transceiver on it. He removed the transceiver from the shelf, set it down on his table, plugged the communication wire into an antenna jack on the table, and then switched it on. There was no signal, even after he turned the frequency knob back and forth several times.

Regardless, he set the frequency to 18 kHz; that was the main emergency channel. He then plucked the microphone off the side of the box and sent a message.

"Emergency, this is Jaune Arc, manning launch complex Three-Three-Five-Romeo with Pyrrha Nikos, Lie Ren, and Nora Valkyrie. We have been hit with two nuclear bombs. Our inventory is full, the generator is functioning, and no one is under any life-threatening conditions. No significant damage to the complex has been observed. We are not in need of immediate rescue at this time, however our supplies are estimated to last us 30 days at most. I say again..." Jaune then repeated his message before turning the microphone off.

Now there was nothing much else to do but wait from a response from Emergency Command, if there even would be any. The only sounds that were audible were the soft hum of the generator and the hiss of the radio static. The crew had once again gone silent.