All Things Considered, Saturday, April 20th 2052 "Hellbase Alpha: A Toehold in Hell"

On April 25th of 2031, mankind learned the answer to one of the most important questions posed to philosophers, theologians, and man as a whole. We learned, without a shadow of a doubt, that Hell is real.



Details are still sparse regarding the London-based facility responsible for first making contact with what is now referred to in official documentation as "The Infernal Plane." What we do know is that it began with a project spearheaded by a man named Dr. Edward Kingston, who was apparently researching wormholes as a potential form of transportation. We have no indication that Dr. Kingston had the intention of purposefully opening a wormhole at all, let alone opening a gateway to Hell.

What we know for certain is that London was entirely devastated by the first wave of attacks within 4 hours of initial contact. Refugees began evacuating from the UK almost immediately, with most of their foreign neighbors rushing to provide aid.

The next 11 years would prove to be the most trying in human history, as is already covered extensively in modern history classes throughout the Coalition on the Infernal Crisis. But today we aren't going to talk about those times, instead focusing on the bright new future being explored by the bravest men and women mankind has to offer: The specialist Coalition soldiers known as Helldivers.

"Ok, so when you step into the portal you'll probably fall over on the other side."
That's the voice of Corporal Gunn, who was assisting us in our first Helldive.
"Plant your foot here...uhuh... and then you'll put your other foot out and let yourself fall forward as if to fall on your face. Let the momentum carry you until your foot hits the other end." 

The Portal itself is, shockingly, only a few feet wide thanks to newly refurbished containment fields, but according to Corporal Gunn it can be expanded depending on what needs to get through.

"Of course, when you need to put a tank through there it gets a lot tricker."

The reason for the seemingly strange entry method is that just like in our plane, the portal in the infernal plane is also on the floor. An object falling from our plane into that one is going to be sent upwards from the conserved momentum, but will eventually come right back down. This means that a fall that would normally land you on your face will just put you on your feet on the other side.

"Don't worry, falling over happens the first few times. It takes a while to get used to."

What I'm greeted with on the other side is decidedly plain for being hell, thanks to Hellbase Alpha being constructed around the portal itself. I left one sterile room and fell into another. Already I could hear the cracking reports of automated gun turrets somewhere outside, and was surprised to find most of the Helldivers around me were entirely nonplussed by the situation.

"Oh, that? Pest control, really. Minor imps are as common here as pigeons in New York," Gunnery Sergeant Riviera informs me, "Biggest difference is that they have teeth and a much worse attitude." I was lead up the stairs and into the base proper, where the constant gunshots were much louder. Too loud to even record audio without it being flooded by the sound.

So what exactly is the purpose behind Hellbase Alpha? I decided to ask the base's commander, General Alexander Popov.

"The primary function of Hellbase Alpha is to provide a heavy first line of defense against further infernal invasion. The secondary goal is to study this new world and learn how to use its resources to the betterment of mankind, especially to our ability to defend ourselves. Already we have made many discoveries around Demonic Iron and a substance we're now calling Jadebone."

As we spoke, the General showed me samples of the materials in question. The Demonic Iron had been harvested directly from a Class 4 Demon. A dark rusty color despite being smooth and free from rust entirely. It was heavy and felt quite dense. According to the technicians near the samples, Demonic Iron is several times stronger than Tungsten Carbide, while being as workable as normal iron, hence the name.

Jadebone, on the other hand, was presented in a glass box. The sample was small, and looked almost like a broken piece of an antler that had been dyed a deep green. The technicians were still exploring the nature of Jadebone, but they had high hopes for its purposes as a superconductor.

After a short tour of the top secret facilities, the General had one last thing to say to us.
"If there is one thing that needs to be understood, it is that the Infernal War is not over. We are simply gaining a foothold for a larger offensive. Make no mistake: Mankind will conquer Hell itself. We will make every last demon here wish they had never been foolish enough to mess with us." 

Oorah, General.

Matthew Seinbach, NPR News