Disclaimer, I own nothing, don't sue me.
Chapter 10: Tabitha
Saito held the wheel in a loose grip as the APC trundled across the scenic country side. The sun was shining, the birds were singing and there were blue skies as far as he could see. It was a nice change of pace from all the paperwork.
Now if only the interior was as peaceful.
"Oooh… what does this button do?" Saito and Louise sighed in unison as Kirche's voice floated into their ears.
"Saito, remind me again why we have to bring her along? Tabitha is fine but Zerbst… really?" Louise complained as she slammed her head against the dashboard.
"She did help with Fouquet so we do owe her for that… even if she did technically invite herself on that mission. Then there is the fact that she is the owner of the treasure maps." Saito replied as he turned the APC down a winding road towards the lake.
"Hhrrghhh stupid Zerbst, I can't believe she bought every map in the shop. How does she even intend to visit every one of them?"
"Probably by 'borrowing' Sylphid as usual. Oh well, we're almost at Lagdorian Lake, let's deal with the flooding and then get to treasure hunting." Saito shrugged and proceeded to drop off Guiche and Montmorency at her family villa before continuing onwards.
Summer vacation had just begun and classes were out, most students had returned to their families for the holidays. Louise had elected to remain at school due to her extensive family issues but without lessons and Siesta on leave as well, she went stir crazy in short order.
Saito himself needed a break, paperwork was a chore as always and advancing the zone initiative was problematic to say the least. Agnes and Henrietta were amenable to the idea especially after a demonstration of what he could offer, convincing the rest of the brass was more complicated.
For now, the Zone initiative was still in phase 1 which was really just upgrading the musketeers to zone raiders. Their numbers were too small and most nobles still overlooked them for being composed entirely of peasants. It was vexing how close minded they could be.
Introducing the GDI arsenal as a mercenary force or as the private guard of a noble was easy since the burden of maintenance lay on whoever built them up. But as soon as the topic of integrating them into the standing army came up, the burden would fall on Tristain and most of the nobility would shut it down.
Saito needed Henrietta's open support for the Zone initiative to enter phase 2, the creation of a new division entirely. But to do that he needed concrete evidence of what his new technology could offer otherwise she would lose credibility.
Once the new unit had proven themselves, probably against Reconquista, they would advance to phase 3, the complete overhaul and modernisation of the entire military.
Louise's boredom had given him the idea on how to proceed. A treasure hunt across all of Tristain using the APC for transport. A tracker was on board the vehicle recording their progress across the country and they would bring back a local souvenir from each place as added proof of the APC's ability to transport items and people faster and further than using horses or a standard caravan.
There was a slight snag in that Kirche's idea of a fun vacation was roughly the same thing and she cleaned out the shop, taking every last scrap of information before they arrived. She agreed to share as long as they helped out with the flooding issue in Gallia's countryside that Tabitha had to deal with first.
Louise was hesitant about it but Saito accepted immediately. Their 'treasure hunt' was more a sightseeing tour while performing community service anyway. Instead of hunting orcs and goblins, they'd be aiding in flood relief efforts and would add another point in the APCs favour.
That it got him away from the paperwork was a bonus and he in no way, shape or form intended to dump everything on Agnes… honest.
As the APC pulled to a stop on a hill, Saito popped open the hatch and exited the vehicle. "We're here, everybody out. That means you Zerbst, quit poking around my ride, there's nothing inside for a spy."
"I AM NOT A SPY!" Kirche raged before abruptly shutting up when the devastation from the flooding could be seen. The green hills had given way to a waterlogged wasteland, the village that was supposed to be there had been washed away completely and the roofs of several houses could be seen floating on the water's surface.
"So, I get that Tabitha has a mission to kill the water spirit responsible for all the flooding but how exactly do we go about doing that?" Saito asked as the destruction stretched as far as the eye could see.
"Can't you just shoot it or blow it up? Military force solves everything doesn't it?" Louise replied snarkily.
"If I had an orbital ion cannon I could call on maybe, but I don't. Derf any ideas?"
"Don't ask me user, I'm a sword, I stab things. If it bleeds I can usually kill it but you ever tried stabbing water? Yeah…" Derflinger piped up from Saito's back before falling silent.
"Help villagers first." Tabitha dismounted from Sylphid and spoke in her usual quiet voice. There was a cold gleam in her eyes as she proceeded down the hill towards where the villagers were residing in makeshift tents.
"Ah hey! Tabitha wait up!" Kirche shouted when the blue haired girl started leaving them behind, chasing after her with Louise and Saito following behind.
The next few hours passed in the blink of an eye as the students used magic wherever they could to ease the villagers' suffering while Saito ferried supplies back and forth from the APC.
"Let's see, everyone has blankets, a warm meal and enough water to last awhile. Louise hasn't killed anyone with her cooking, I think we've done all we can here." Saito spoke while holding his partner at arm's length, her fists flailing uselessly at the air unable to hit her target.
"What do you mean by that stupid familiar! I'm a great cook!"
"Now now, your misguided confidence aside, we're here to help people not poison them." Saito ignored Louise's protests and took in the state of the camp. The mood was far better than it had been when they arrived but their situation remained dire all the same. If the floodwaters continued to rise, not even the camp would be safe.
"So… Tabitha, do you a plan for dealing with the water spirit?"
"Hit it until it dies." Tabitha spoke in a monotone that brooked no argument.
"How very direct." Saito shrugged and jimmied open a crate, he pulled out several masks and handed them out to the mages.
"These are rebreathers, if you get washed away or end up trapped underwater, they will allow you to breathe for up to 90 minutes. Just in case."
Kirche inspected the mask before wearing it, the gel underlayer moulded itself to fit her face and it was surprisingly light, if she didn't think about it, she might even forget it was there. "My, my, you come prepared for everything don't you."
"Never hurts to be prepared." He had finished assembling the Merlin and was busy attaching grenades wherever he could fit them.
"Still, I don't suppose we could try negotiating? Much as I love the direct approach, a little diplomacy wouldn't hurt."
"That wouldn't work user, spirits don't behave like you humans. Unless you have a pact with one, even get its attention is unlikely no matter how much you call out to it. The only way to draw it out…"
"Is to attack until it shows up personally huh."
-line break
Tossing another grenade into the churning waters, Saito watched as the resulting plume of water shift into a massive arm that rapidly came down on his position. Firing the Merlin at it, the arm exploded when the beam vaporised everything in its path.
As the mass of water came down as rain, they coalesced into ice spikes and peppered the area, threatening to impale him.
Hacking down any spike that came to close with Derflinger, he cut apart the water tendrils seeking to ensnare his legs and leapt away again. Firing the Merlin again, a blue beam cut across the lake and caused multiple steam explosions.
The churning waters erupted into a frenzy and a body began to rise out of the water, a giant made out of the befouled waters towering over everything. It staggered backwards when the top half of its torso was instantly evaporated by one of Louise's explosions. Ice and fire blasts slammed into what was left of it and the being collapsed back into the lake.
Saito glanced at the water surface again and noted that the churning had been reduced and the giant was reforming at a slower pace. "I think it's working. Keep hitting it!"
No sooner had he finished that sentence then the water surface swelled and a tidal wave struck him dead on, only by stabbing Derflinger into the ground as an anchor did he avoid being washed away. Breathing through the rebreather as he waited for the surge to end, he felt himself yanked out of the water when Sylphid grabbed him by his jacket's collar.
Calling out his thanks, he tossed the Merlin over his shoulder and started dropping more grenades into the lake before being deposited back on dry land. Cursing the fact that the Merlin wouldn't be able to recharge while wet and his stock of grenades was being depleted rapidly, his eyes were drawn to an orb of water that shot out of the lake and seemed to be aimed directly at him.
"Oh crap." Grasping Derflinger with both hands, he used the sword as a shield as a high-pressure jet of water shot at him. A bright light shot out of the blade and the water jet lost power upon contact, splashing to the floor harmlessly.
"What the?" The incredulity in Saito's voice was tangible.
"Oh hey user! I just remembered I can absorb magic. Not bad huh?" Derflinger's overly cheerful voice grated on Saito's nerves and his eyebrow started twitching.
"What. The. Hell. Do. You. Mean. You. Just. Remembered."
"Oh you know, I've been around for 6000 years, you forget things from time to time."
"How the heck do you forget something like being able to absorb magic!?" Any further bickering was cut off when the lake erupted again, this time instead of a featureless giant it was a giant copy of Saito.
"Gandalfr. Why do you attack us?" The spirit asked in a distorted copy of his own while continuing to fend off attacks from Louise, Kirche and Tabitha.
"We need to stop the flooding. People are being hurt by it." Saito was unfazed by the show of power and stared down the water spirit.
"The lives of mortals do not concern us, we will reclaim what was stolen."
"And how does flooding the land help?" Saito queried as he motioned for the others to stop attacking for the moment. The spirit of the lake was finally willing to talk, no sense in driving it off again. Time to negotiate.
"Once we have raised the water levels, all land will be submerged and our treasure will return to us."
"That will take centuries, if not millenniums. And you would destroy everything else just to get your property back!?"
"Time is off no consequence for us. Once we have retrieved our treasure, we will allow the water to recede. The world will continue as it is."
"Okay… lemme try this again. What could be so important that you would flood the entire world to retrieve it."
The spirit raised its hand and conjured up the image of a ring in its palm. "This is the ring of Andvari, it is an artefact that allows one to raise the dead by forcing spirits into a fresh corpse. We have guarded it ever since the mage known as Brimir entrusted it to us."
Ignoring the three gasps from the mages at the mention of their revered founder, the water spirit continued. "It was stolen from us by a wind mage while we were asleep and we shall reclaim it to prevent the abuse of its power."
Saito took a moment to put his thoughts in order as he came up with multiple avenues he could pursue in this negotiation and settled on the simplest one possible. "Alright, I understand your need to retrieve that ring but by the time you've flooded the world, the ring's power will definitely have been abused. Since you're willing to spend an eternity to retrieve that ring, how about you allow us to try retrieving it for you. If we succeed everyone wins, if we fail you don't lose anything, what's a few months compared to a few thousand years."
"Saito what are you doing!? You can't bargain with spirits!" Louise hissed at her familiar as he tried to negotiate.
"And you can't promise it anything either! They'll never forget and bad things happen to those who break their promises."
"Do we have a choice in the matter partner? I recall what the books said about spirits, they never lie. Do you really want to leave a ring that can reanimate the dead in the hands of someone mad enough to steal from a spirit but smart enough to actually succeed? Way I see it, we'll have to deal with it sooner or later so why not now. Raising the dead for any purpose never ends well."
"…I just hope you know what you're doing."
"So do I partner, so do I." Saito replied as they lapsed into silence while waiting for the water spirit to come to a decision.
"We find your suggestion acceptable Gandalfr. We will allow the water to recede. Should you die before our treasure is returned, we will raise the waters again." Having said its piece, the giant burst like a balloon and the water cascaded back into the lake.
Already the floodwater was beginning to go down and at the rate it was doing so, Saito estimated that the lake would return to its original state by dawn. After that would begin the difficult process of rebuilding.
-line break
It was with a heavy heart that Tabitha invited her… friends… over to her manor. After dealing with the water spirit, they needed a place to rest for the night and the manor happened to be in the area.
Making her way deeper into the manor, the plain white walls felt cold and unwelcoming. Even with the others occupying the main hall, the place lost none of its depressiveness. It hadn't been her home in a very long time and possibly never would again.
Knocking on the door at the end of the hall, there was no response just like there hadn't been one for the past five years. "I'm coming in mother."
Pushing it open, the room hadn't changed much since the last time she was here. It was still as spartan as she remembered it, a bed, a table and a chair, that was all the furniture there was in the room. An open window allowed a cool breeze in as the plain curtains fluttered gently in the wind.
The last rays of the sunset painted the room a warm orange and embraced a tired looking figure in their glow. "Who's there?"
Terrified eyes met Tabitha's and the woman clutched a small doll to her chest tightly. After wasting away for five years, she was skin and bones now, any beauty she once possessed had been worn away by the ravages of the poison.
Tabitha hated it, she hated the plain looking room, she hated the fact that the once proud woman she called mother had been reduced to this wreck, she hated the uncle that did this to her and most of all she hated her own powerlessness to do anything to fix things.
"It's me, mother."
"Who are you!? Are you a spy from the royal family? NO! I won't let you take my daughter!" Hugging the doll even tighter, the fear in her eyes faded away as it was replaced with the light of madness.
Tabitha smiled sadly as her mother's insanity reared its ugly head again. She didn't flinch when her mother picked up a glass of water and hurled it at her. The now empty cup bounced of her head and rolled on the floor.
It barely even hurt. More testament to how much of her strength had been sapped away.
"I have had enough of your accursed court! Just leave us alone!"
"…I will be leaving now, but I will see you cured. Until that day, please wait for me." Tabitha bowed and left the room before the tears could fall.
-line break
Louise and Kirche sat quietly on the sofa while Saito leaned against windowsill and stared out into the darkness. The good mood from resolving the water spirit issue had crashed and burned after hearing Percerin's explanation of their friend's situation.
After the death of the old king, a succession crisis had gripped Gallia. The crown would go to the older brother but it was the younger who enjoyed popular support. Despite placing his support behind his brother, the younger still wound up assassinated via hunting accident.
Unwilling to let things be, the faction supporting the elder tried offing his daughter as well. An invitation to a banquet, a glass of poison wine, a mother who willingly took the drink to spare her daughter.
And even all that wasn't enough. Suicide mission after suicide mission, that was to be the fate of the unfortunate child who had already been robbed of her parents. Sent out with zero support and training, the child prevailed, returning each time victorious but more broken than before.
Deeds that would have merited the awarding of a territory were brushed aside out of spite and the title of chevalier was only given with great reluctance. Even after five years nothing had changed, the missions kept coming, only halting when she was in school.
And they would keep coming until one of them finally lived up to the word.
"This is unfair. Tabitha shouldn't have to deal with this." Kirche's calm voice belied the raw anger burning beneath the surface at the sheer injustice.
"And what do you propose we do Kirche? The king of Gallia himself is the enemy." Louise spoke softly, her fists clenched tightly.
"I don't know… hey, Saito has all these new gadgets and what not, maybe he has something that can help?" Both girls turned to the familiar who just sighed.
"Poison isn't my speciality and there was magic involved so I don't know how much I can help, if at all." His honest reply caused both to hang their heads and sigh.
"There is one thing that bothers me though, Percerin, you said Tabitha's mother was only poisoned once?"
"Yes. Only during that banquet five years ago. Why?" The aged butler replied, unsure of where he was going.
"And her condition has been pretty much constant except for a few days every three months where it worsens before returning to 'normal'?"
"Yes. What are you suggesting?"
"…How sure are you that she was only poisoned once? From what I know, most poisons lead to a steady decline in condition or at least stabilizing at a point assuming they don't kill outright. They don't cause brief bursts of deterioration before restabilising, that sounds more like someone dosing her every now and then to maintain the effect."
"That's… not possible. Everything the madam consumes is thoroughly checked and tested. All the staff here have been vetted and are above suspicion. There is no way for her to be poisoned again… although King Joseph's aid does visit from time to time to check up on the Madam…"
"And I assume her visits happen to coincide with the madness getting worse?"
"Well yes. But she never interacts with the madam directly and we make sure everything she comes in contact with is replaced so there's no chance of poison there."
"What about magic?"
"To the best of my knowledge, the king's aide isn't a mage. Even if she is, she doesn't carry a wand of any sort."
Saito snorted lightly. "I highly doubt that. Once is chance, twice is a coincidence, every time? that's enemy action."
"So the king is behind it all! That's proof isn't it? Can we do something about it now? Where's that bitch anyway, Flame likes his meat burnt." Kirche blurted out, unable to remain silent any longer and itching for something to direct her fury at.
"Calm down, all we have is a probable cause. Even if we brought this issue to another nation, they have no jurisdiction here, this is Gallia, the king's word is law. Tabitha is Gallian after all, this is an internal issue and short of going to war, there isn't much we can do about it." Saito shut her down before she could do something rash.
When Kirche went back to fuming in silence, Louise was the next to speak up. Addressing the butler with a calculating look, a plan was beginning to form inside her mind. "You said this house was like a prison for her… but is she free to leave?"
"Wha? Of course not! Her physical condition is-" Percerin sputtered before being cut off by Louise.
"I'm not asking if she can move, I'm asking if the king laid down an order for her to stay here."
"Well no. but-" The butler began again and was cut off once more.
"Excellent. Familiar! Ready the APC for transport. Make it comfortable!" Louise's order caused Saito to raise one eyebrow quizzically.
"What exactly do you have in mind partner?"
"Hehehe, behold my genius!" Puffing out her chest in pride, Louise lay out her masterpiece.
"Tabitha's mother is free to leave, it's just that her body can't handle a trip normally. So, if we put her in the APC we can bring her back to Tristain! Then her highness can grant asylum or we can hide her where the king will never find her!"
Silence engulfed the room once she finished speaking. Percerin was staring at her as though she was speaking an alien language he couldn't comprehend while Kirche and Saito both had blank faces.
"What?" Unable to bear the silence any more, Louise shouted if only to draw out a reaction.
"It's not a bad plan zero… but what about Tabitha? She is still sworn to serve Gallia as a chevalier, what's to stop the king from coming after her personally once he finds out her mother is missing?" Kirche questioned while holding the hope that Louise would have an answer for that.
"Grr don't call me that stupid Zerbst! Ahem. Tabitha will be free from her uncle because she owes me a life debt now. According to the laws set down by the founder, a life debt between two nobles takes precedence over any loyalty to any nation. Supposedly that was put in place to prevent nobles from having any excuse not to honour a debt but eh, if it helps us screw the king over…"
"A life debt!? When the heck did that happen!?"
"Earlier today. When my familiar helped calm the water spirit and stop the flooding. She would have died if he wasn't there so she owes me her life now."
"That's… that's true I suppose. But what about school then? Her uncle will probably freeze her assets so there's no way she'll be able to afford the school fees anymore. B-but I suppose getting her free is worth it?"
"Nonsense, she'll continue schooling alright." Louise shot down Kirche's worry instantly.
"If she is to continue her studies, she will need a rich noble to sponsor her since the school doesn't have scholarships. Where are we supposed to find one that…" Saito halted when he saw the face splitting grin on Louise's face.
"Of course. How could I forget." Saito deadpanned and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"I'm speaking to Count Valliere right now. And with the casino, money isn't an issue. Exploiting all assets and loopholes to win… I have been a bad influence on you." He buried his face in his palm in mock shame, the grin spreading across his face mirroring his partner's own.
"What can I say partner, I learned from the best."
-line break
Tabitha watched quietly while Saito gently loaded her mother onto the vehicle, laying her down on a mattress inside, the doll still tightly clutched in her hands. A sleeping draught had been administered to knock her out for easy transport and all her belongings had already been tucked away.
The empty manor was even emptier now, Percerin, the maids and the groundskeeper had already left. They would go to ground lest Joseph's wrath fell upon them. What valuables that didn't possess any sentimental value, Tabitha had given them in lieu of pay, better than having them repossessed by her uncle at any rate.
The sun had yet to rise and a cold wind blew around them as they worked. Rubbing Sylphid's head as the dragon nudged her gently, she wondered if this would be it, the moment she would finally be free from her uncle's shadow.
After Louise had informed her of their plan, she had agreed hesitantly. The theory was sound, but doubts plagued her, what would happen if the king had her declared a traitor and ordered her arrest, what then?
Louise assured her that Tristain had no extradition treaty with Gallia and Saito had added that he knew a few trouble-shooters who could help her disappear. Despite all the things that could go wrong, this was still the best chance she had to be free.
Tabitha wasn't a fool, she knew she lived only because her uncle found her struggles amusing. Once he lost interest she'd be arrested and probably executed on trumped up charges. This was probably her one shot at securing a future for herself.
She gripped her staff tightly to reassure herself, now that departure was imminent, all the hope she'd locked away for five years was pushing to the surface. And the waiting was unbearable, fear of everything going wrong right at the end filled her heart.
But as the seconds and minutes ticked by, nothing happened. No army showed up to arrest them, no sudden monster attack happened to derail the plan, nothing but the sky beginning to lighten. Her heart felt like it was going to burst out of her chest any moment now from the sheer anxiety.
"That's it, everything's secure. Load up people, we're leaving once I leave a 'gift' for the aide." Saito motioned for the mages to enter the APC while he retrieved several mines from the weapons compartment.
Tabitha remained silent as Saito proceeded back into the house to plant the charges. They would demolish the entire building in a blaze of glory, erasing everything inside.
'Good, let it all burn.'
Once Sheffield showed up they would blow and hopefully finish her off. A letter would be left anonymously at the nearby village indicating that the house had been abandoned after the firestones buried beneath had become unstable and could blow at any time. It would find its way to the king eventually, but not before the aide's next scheduled visit.
Somehow though, Tabitha didn't think that would be enough to end her. She had met the woman in person only a few times over the years but the impression that something was off about her never changed.
She had never seen Sheffield use magic before but the sense of wrongness and danger surrounding her never went away. In a way, she was more terrifying than every monster she'd ever put down in the past although she couldn't identify why that was the case.
In fact, now that she thought about it, only one other person had ever given off a similar feeling and that was the Valliere familiar. The first time she played chess against him on the roof, she was struck by the feeling that she was face to face with a storm, unpredictable and with the potential for great and terrible chaos.
That feeling had faded somewhat as time passed and she got to know him better. But considering what he was capable of and the fact that Sheffield gave off the same feeling except more… evil… she didn't know what to make of it yet, only that it left a sense of disquiet in her.
Her attention was drawn to the door as Saito emerged from the manor, having planted the gifts. He was speaking to Derflinger again and she could just barely make out the words.
"…Elven magic user. Bad stuff, really bad stuff."
"Is there a cure for this… potion of lost heart?"
"Ah bollocks, I'm not used to trying to remember so much."
"Try. Please."
"Hmm… unless I'm mistaken there's three parts to the potion. The physical poison that attacks the mind, magic that targets the most precious memories to subvert them and magic to keep the poison in the body so the mind can't heal. The elves might have an antidote but there's not much we can do unless we go ask them."
"Well damn, so much for a quick fix… hang on. Two parts magic?"
"That's right old chap."
"Don't you absorb magic?"
"Yes I… huh, you know I never thought of that. User, I've never even attempted anything like that before it might work or it might not."
"Cure?" Tabitha had walked over to the familiar and directed a questioning gaze at him.
"I don't know. Derflinger can absorb magic, since the poison is part magic he might be able to absorb that and nullify the poison. But your mother is a noble, I don't know how he'll affect her if he starts absorbing her magic as well."
"Try." Conveying her determination in that one word, she drew a small sigh and a nod from Saito.
"Very well, but if things look off I'm stopping."
Heading over to where her mother lay, trapped in some nightmare, Saito unsheathed his sword and laid it on her while she stood over them like a sentinel. "I'm usually against untested medical procedures but desperate times call for desperate measures. Here goes nothing."
Before the watchful eyes of everyone, the blade began to glow and slowly but surely, her breathing began to ease. They watched spellbound as some colour returned to her pallid face and she seemed slightly stronger than before.
"Derf?" Saito asked once the blade stopped glowing.
"I've done all I can user. Isolating and absorbing the foreign magic is hard work you know, haah… I'm tired. You owe me a good fight for this." The sword replied in a tired tone.
"So… is she… cured?" The million-dollar question.
"Not yet, but she's on the road to recovery. I can't absorb anymore magic without hurting her but her body should overcome it on its own. Just a matter of time now." And the million-dollar answer drew sighs of relief and laughs from everyone.
"Oh! Isn't that great Tabitha?" Unable to contain her excitement, Kirche wrapped the smaller girl in a big hug and started to dance on the spot.
"Alright, alright, we can celebrate once we're back in Tristain yes? Let's get while the getting's good, next stop, Count de la Valliere's estate." Saito wiped away the sweat from his brow and headed to the driver's seat, preparing for departure.
Once the door sealed behind the mages, the APC kicked into gear and drove off, Tabitha spared her old home one last glance before looking away. That place held nothing but bad memories, time to leave it behind.
Glancing at her mother, she was shocked when her eyes briefly fluttered open and met her own. instead of the madness from earlier, there was recognition. "…Char…lotte…"
Tabitha's mouth fell open in surprise as her mother acknowledged her for the first time since that terrible night. Her mother returned to slumber immediately after as the sleeping draught reasserted itself.
The princess of Gallia herself was left with a small genuine smile on her face. Perhaps the future was bright after all.
Author's notes: The life debt is based on the practice of ransom during the middle ages. Noblemen would be captured and only released once the ransom has been paid. And despite being from opposing sides, they could be civil to one another, it was just business, nothing personal.
On the topic of tactics though, most of my experience with the game is in campaign, skirmish and multiplayer don't appeal to me. Whenever I play nod, tactics usually boil down to strength in numbers since their units are so cheap. Scorpion/venom rush is a thing if the mission allows turtling and for missions that don't, like Kane's tower, black hand + rocket squad rush = win even on hard mode. To me, the factions break down this way.
Infantry superiority: NOD
Armour superiority: GDI
Air superiority: scrin.
And cookies for anyone who can guess who Sheffield actually is.