War Game

"War Game" by Bryce Walton is a science fiction short story written in the mid-20th century. The narrative explores the grim topic of global nuclear annihilation through the lens of political and military leaders who engage in a deadly game of strategy, forcing a confrontation between competing ideologies in an intensely anxiety-ridden world. In the story, the Secretary of State, Chandler Thompson, prepares for the final act of Operation Push Button, a scheme designed to utilize nuclear powers in a decisive and shocking manner. As the leaders of major world powers gather in a secure U.N. bunker, they engage in a ritualistic series of speeches and button presses that lead to worldwide destruction. Thompson confidently discusses the conditioning of citizens to accept this violent fate as inevitable, while his valet Morten grapples with the chilling reality of the impending apocalypse. The tension culminates in a duel between Thompson and a Russian counterpart, where survival for one means the total annihilation of the other. Ultimately, as the narrative unfolds, the outside world reacts to the threat, leading to an unforeseen revolution against the very powers that sought to control it, leaving the bunker occupants oblivious to their impending fate.