Level 7

Level 7 is a 1959 science fiction novel by the American writer Mordecai Roshwald. It is told from the first person perspective (diary) of a modern soldier X-127 living in the underground military complex Level 7, where he was expected to reside permanently, fulfilling the role of commanding his nation's nuclear weapons. During his forced residence, X-127 is ordered to push the bomb buttons to begin World War III (which lasts a total of 2 hours an... more

Level 7 is a 1959 science fiction novel by the American writer Mordecai Roshwald. It is told from the first person perspective (diary) of a modern soldier X-127 living in the underground military complex Level 7, where he was expected to reside permanently, fulfilling the role of commanding his nation's nuclear weapons. During his forced residence, X-127 is ordered to push the bomb buttons to begin World War III (which lasts a total of 2 hours and 58 minutes). From that point, all civilian life (for military personnel already occupy Level 6 and 7) moves from the surface of the earth to a collection of underground shelter complexes (levels 1 - 5). It later emerges that the orders given had been wholly automatic, and the war had taken place as a series of electronic responses to an initial accident. Toward the end of the novel, the inhabitants of the surviving shelters gradually die, as the surface contamination makes its way down past air filters and into ground water sources. In the... less