WHiV Session 0: A Signal in the Desert
General Summary
August, 1994
It was hard to escape the news, a constant stream of speculation and paranoia. The spectacle the media made of OJ Simpson that summer pushed it from the front page, but you'd still hear conspiracy theories on the evening news about Soviets or the FBI. But despite so much talk, nobody was able to give an answer to the simple question at the heart of things:
What happened at the Vegas World Casino on New Year's Eve?
Viv Media did the most to keep the paranoia going, Jenny Slater on the TV every night sharing new 'revelations' in maddening detail. One night it'd be about Satanic rituals found in the casino, another night it'd be a Soviet fifth column operation to overthrow the US government. FBI agent Julia Rothman became a frequent villain, especially as the deadline for her report to Congress drew closer and closer.
I sympathized with those obsessively following every broadcast, searching for the clue that would answer all their questions about that night. Whether it was Soviets or Satanists didn't matter, just someone to point at and blame the tragedy on. But for me the answers were never satisfying, nothing Jenny said would bring my friends home from that night.
So I focused on work, keeping the tv turned off at nights and tuning out the news on the radio. That must have been how I discovered that station, the one that gave me something I'd been looking for all those months.
The voice never introduced herself, but that never bothered me as I tuned in every morning and evening to hear her broadcasts. She spoke in abstractions, refusing to humor any of the outrageous conspiracy theories while she focused on a central message:
"Whoever did this can be brought to justice,"
By the time August and the desert heat rolled around a feeling started to replace the fear and paranoia I'd been carrying around for months: hope. Instead of waiting on some reporter or agent to explain everything, I could go out and find the answers for myself. My education or skills didn't matter, I'd figure things out along the way while I hunted down the bastards who killed my friends.
Nobody knew I was headed to Vegas until I was already driving up the Strip, the less they knew about my mission the better. I tried bringing up the radio show with some friends but quickly learned to keep it to myself when they insisted that the station was nothing but dead air. It didn't matter: the same way I knew there was a way to bring the killers to justice, I knew there were other people waiting for me in Vegas who'd heard the broadcast and wanted the same things I did.
To hunt.
Report Date
08 Apr 2023
Primary Location
Featured Hunters
Comments