Operation Black Dawn

Mission 5 - Settling in

September ? - 1995/1097

Forty minutes after mass Disappearances of GDI and Nod Forces

"Our governments... appear united in its determination to take all necessary measures... in support of freedom, and in defense of peace in Europe."

- General Mark Sheppard, 1995

Pvt. Alvin S. Payne - Camp Tiber - September 29, 1995.

"...And after that, we tried looking for the other camps, Riverbed included, but nothing would respond to our constant hails." The Chinese General, whose nametag read Wenli Yang, finished the explanation of the current situation to me, worried that Camp Tiber would be permanently isolated. No way to contact other GDI or Nod outposts. That would mean everyone in this camp, GDI, Nod, and Humanitarian, are stuck, alone, and without any reinforcements.

"Have you sent people to take a look at comms?" I asked, rather idiotically.

General Yang nodded. "We did, eventually, but when they checked it, everything was fine... even things which are supposed to be so fragile that this storm should've torn 'em off." The Chinese man then crossed his arms. "We double-checked comms, and yet, we still couldn't raise Camp Riverbed, or any of the other camps. And as you've probably heard, Global Operations HQ and Temple 1 are out of the question." Yang took a minute to breathe.

"So, we're stuck, without knowing what the hell's going on." The French General, nametag reading Jean Fitzgerald, said. "I plan on organizing a search operation for these camps. Just because we lost comms with them doesn't mean they're a total loss." Jean says, before going to fetch something, heading off.

And just a minute after that, Jean comes back with a whiteboard covered by a map of Camp Tiber and the approximate locations of many of the friendly camps. He pulls out a pointer stick and starts tapping the map. "This is here, Tiber." He moves the pointer northwestward, before circling it and tapping it three times. "This is the approximate location of Riverbed." He then starts tapping at the edge of Tiber. "A search team will make their way to Riverbed, and confirm if it's a total loss or if it's still active, but with faulty comms." He says, moving the pointer as if it was a military convoy, then stops just a bit off where he marked Riverbed. "The team will get off and spread out, searching for the camp. If it's found, they'll report back."

Jean then put away the pointer stick, then Yang spoke up. "This Search team will comprise of Nod and GDI troops, with some Humanitarian support. We'll be arming the Humanitarian workers who're going along with the trip. Just as a precaution." The last words gave him the feeling that Yang was paranoid about certain things... but then again, this is Nod I'm talking about. I recall rumors that Nod literally has everyone killing each other to attain ranks, so Yang has some reason to be paranoid... I think.

I nodded, and asked a question. "May I join the Search Team?" I wanted to know what was up with Riverbed, so I asked to throw myself into the team. They'll probably need the additional manpower. I think.

Jean and Yang nodded simultaneously. "We're going to need some hands, so any volunteers are welcome." Yang smiled, knowing that there were people who were willing to risk their lives just to find out what happened to anything, really.

"I'll be making an announcement soon, so gather anyone you can and get them to assemble outside the Barracks. The GDI one, not the Hand of Nod." Was spoken by Jean, who was adjusting his helmet straps. "Damn, this strap's too tight for me..." was all I heard him mumble about. I mean, he's correct. GDI helmet straps aren't really known to be very loose and forgiving to anyone with big faces. It seems to me that some soldiers aren't informed of that, but then again, who the fuck would expect helmet straps to be unforgiving to someone with an unfortunate weight problem?

"May I go now?"

"Yes." Both of them replied.

I nodded and walked away, back to the stairs. As I was heading down, the Sergeant called for my attention.

"Hey, Maggot."

Ah, there's the classic Sarge. Calling people Maggots.

"I have to say, you might just be one of the luckiest guys around here. Most people don't get to meet the Commanders in person, but you? Well, if I'll be damned, you deserve a medal for simply managing to hold a conversation with them." Well if I'll be damned, the Sarge's giving me basically the military equivalent of a high-five. "You are one damn fine son of a bitch. You're probably born with a platinum tongue, platinum enough to get you to General with just two questions." The Sergeant let off a laugh, and honestly, I did too.

"Thanks, Sarge." I replied, giving him a salute and a smile.

He responded with one of the rarest things imaginable. A sincere, non-sadistic, happy smile. "Just don't screw up, maggot. Got that?" He asks, the last words said in a joking manner. "Haha, I'll keep that in mind, Sarge."

And with that, I headed off. Passing by the cacophony known as communications officers scrambling in a panic. I paid no mind to the orders being given, and just hurried to get out of there as fast as possible. I didn't want to have my ears severely fucked by men in urban or desert-colored hats screaming orders at poor grunts. Both the comms guys and the grunts can't seem to catch a break, huh.

Walking out of the communications outpost, I stepped foot into the outside world to find gray weather. A few minutes before, the sky was... brighter. As in, it was more lively and actually pleasant to look at. Now it's dark, and while it still is pleasant to look at, it's not as satisfying as seeing the sun in three-thousand-years. Aside from the darker-and-less-lively-than-Stalin sky, the base was also lively. GDI and Nod vehicles were gathered and being produced at a rapid pace. I counted seven Abrams tanks being produced, and fourteen Bradley light tanks. Nod really knows how to make shit cheaper, ay?

After making it out of the communications outpost and passing by the base getting ready to produce enough munitions and vehicles to start several guerrilla wars, I made my way to find Harma. Well, General Jean did say that he could gather as many hands as he could for the search team, so, fuck it, why not? Better bring along the fucker, plus, he also gets clued in as to what the fuck happened at Riverbed. It's like killing a flock of birds with a rocket launcher, he's tacking a lot of problems just by dragging Harma into the search team.

As I walked my way to Harma, I couldn't help but notice some of the conversations other GDI, Nod, and Humanitarian staff were having. In particular the GDI and Nod ones. It's interesting seeing the two factions who hate each other on a personal level interact with each other like they were just co-workers. Some of their conversations were of either great importance or no importance. I'll try to gather more useful conversations.

"Hey, Noddie." I heard one GDI Serviceman say, with jackhammer noises as well. He was probably one of the poor guys assigned to construction work. Remember, MCV tech makes construction near-instant, so I think this was done out of spite, probably by his Superior Officer.

"Yeah?" A voice answered back, dressed in a completely gray service uniform, and with a black beret.

"You hear about the shit that we do in Iberia?" A completely random question, but still sort of relevant.

"Kind of. I do know that you're funding Francoist child soldiers, at least in Portugal. The Falangists're still clinging onto power, and you set 'em up. That's basically it."

"Well, the shit goes beyond simply funding the Falangist remnants." The GDI serviceman sighed. "Do you want me to go on a tangent?"

"Well, sort of. Summarize what's going on in Iberia for me?"

"It goes way back. During the original founding of the United Nations, the 1960s, the United Nations had almost no hold in Iberia. Though as time went on, the UN did get into Iberia. And in the late 1960s, the UN had finally cracked Western Iberia. Portugal, to be specific. After infiltrating the country and its systems, the UN held a gun to the head of the leader of the country. Antonio Salazar or something. He tried to negotiate with the UN, and it seemed like negotiations were going to commence, but then the UN just up and authorized the assassination mission on him."

"Wait, but why?"

"UN high command said it was because that he was too much of a liability to the organization, and after a 12-3 vote in the War Room, the UN ordered the guy dead. D-e-a-d. Two large holes were found in his head, shot by a sniper rifle. Portuguese sources used to claim he died of natural causes, but now that it's 1993, everyone knows he was shot in the head. After that, a puppet cadre was set up. Led by officers under his regime, it was, like many smaller governments, held hostage by the UN, metaphorically speaking. But then, after years, the UN decided the Cadre outlived its usefulness. And they instilled the Falangist remnants, you know, from the 1936 war, in power. So yeah, Portugal's history in the modern day is mostly the country counting down before the UN occupation eventually subsumes all form of government."

"Huh... fucking hell. What drove the UN to do this shit? Assassinating leaders, disposing of 'liabilities', what the fuck happened?"

"Nod happened."

"Come again?"

"Well, the Cold War. The Brotherhood swept through most of Eurasia like a hot knife through butter. The United Nations, desperate to cling onto 'the free world' and its interests, grew more like an authoritarian regime than the original intention, an alliance of nations, united and free, and mutually defending each other. Then the UN internally fractured and everyone started pointing guns at each other. But they all agreed to point the guns at Nod, and that's how the story goes. Russia hates America's guts, America hates Europe's guts, Europe hates Russia, and the cycle repeats. The only one spared of this hate is the Tokyo Pact, but that's because they only joined recently."

"So the Tokyo Pact's basically geopolitically irrelevant?"

"Yeah. The only reason I know of the TP in fact is that they downed a Chinese plane over Seoul and massacred the survivors. Thankfully it was military, but goddamn, does the TP really have to be harsh on Nod planes coming out of the 'containment zone'?"

"Sounds like the TP have some internal problems with ROE."

"Yeah. The Allies treat prisoners and civvies with respect, and so do the Russians. We Americans just shoot the prisoners but take care of the civvies, though the Tokyo Pact... Yeesh. They leave nobody alive. Not even noncombatants."

"No shit, Sherlock. At least, that's how you foreigners say it. The Tokyo Pact might just be the most volatile of GDI members. Killing civilians as part of their engagement policy, leaving no noncombatants alive, is it really right to say that GDI fights for freedom and peace?"

"Not really. We kind of do, but at the same time, there's the whole 'Nod' issue. Your organization's been stirring up unrest in France. That's why you see more AA guns stationed in the streets. But hey, you're not the one calling the shots. That Kane retard is. Fucking bitchass can't even grow a proper hairline, fuckin' hell."

"You Americans like your vulgarity, huh."

"Yeah, what's it like there in Syria?"

Closing that train of thought off, I decided to go check up on others as well.

"So, you ever heard of Nod's inner relationships?" A Nod serviceman, displaying the Estonian flag, asked.

"No, I have not. What about it?" A GDI serviceman, Egyptian, asked.

"Well, let's just say that there's sort of a schism in-between Nod."

"Really?"

"Yeah. My home, Estonia, isn't really into the Brotherhood's politics, so it'd be independent if it weren't for, well, you know, the scorpion tail. But some nations, though, are completely hopeless and buy into the propaganda. Iran? Hah, don't even fucking go there. That place is a religious shithole, corrupted by the teachings of rambling madmen who wish to see a 'day of reckoning' or some super-distorted bullshit that I don't even care about."

"Huh..."

"Yeah. In Nod, you've got three types of states. The fanatic, the semi-fanatic, and the non-fanatic. A few countries make up the most. Iran one of them. They're hopeless theocracies that're so shit you might as well be living in the middle of a nuclear wasteland. The middle one we've got more of, some of them comprise of, say, China, and Venezuela. Both of them are Red states, first and foremost, not religious scorpion tail-brandishing cultists. And the last one, you've got a majority of Nod... kinda? A lot of the nations don't really buy into the political and religious bullshit. Like Estonia, or the Baltics, really. We could hardly give a shit about some crazy schizophrenic bald man's statements."

"So I take it that some people don't like Kane?"

"That's an understatement, buddy. Some of us in Nod just want him gone. He's caused more problems than solutions for us, fuckin' hell..."

"I see."

Some more light shed upon Nod, eh? Never really liked 'em, fucking terrorists, what they are, but interesting to hear their side of the coin being that too similar of GDI. Divided, and some people want the leader gone. More paramilitary than cult. I'd rather they stay a paramilitary.

And that one's over, time to actually focus on getting Harma...

...After I listen to the Humanitarian staff. There are two of them talking about random topics, awfully convenient for me to eavesdrop and see if they have anything interesting.

One of them was speaking, and I got into hearing range.

"... So you were deployed into Iran, right? Have you ever cleared landmines?"

"Yeah. I was part of an IDAP EOD Team."

"I see, I see."

"Yeah. So, the team comprised of an attached journalist, guy named Norio Tomokawa, and accompanying him was the rest of the team, and me, Nathan MacDade. I was tasked with showing the Norio guy the status of IDAP and all humanitarian organizations in Iran. Thank God Nod let us through, otherwise I wouldn't be telling this story."

"What was it like?"

"Deploying into Iran... it was shit. I've visited warzones before, but Iran was just the worst. There's signs of the UN-Nod battles still standing or buried. Among them, the ungodly amount of landmines and IEDs deployed by both sides. Unexploded Ordnance dominated the streets, as M1 Abrams tanks, M2 Bradleys, Apaches, and Harriers lined up at the Desert of Death*. Ever hear about that fiasco?"

"Not really?"

"The Desert of Death was a shitshow. It was supposed to be a routine offensive, GDI armored units, with infantry, and air support backing them. They were making their way to link up with several GDI armored units. Back during the Iran War*. The GDI unit didn't have any recon, so they just blindly rushed in to link up with friendlies..."

"Then what happened?"

"...It devolved into a shitshow."

"Come again?"

"It devolved into an absolute shitfest. What happened was that the unit blindly charged in, and then encountered a Nod unit twice as large as them... It rapidly descended into hell as the Nod unit didn't expect anything, but so did the GDI unit. Medium Tanks and Light Tanks clashed without clear identification, and friendly fire was a risk. Harriers ganged up on Apaches, sending the poor things into a sandy grave, while Nod Apaches tore through some Harriers, while Light Tanks were still able to get a few lucky shots off."

"Shiiit..."

"Yeah. The Desert of Death still lingers to this day, and so does UXO. Several civilians were killed when they accidentally detonated one of the Apaches' Hellfire missiles. The poor bastards didn't know what hit 'em, at all. IDAP was called in to clean up the area, and we had to send a lot of our EOD boys just to clean over. I was one of the luckier guys who was placed in charge of clearing out unused ammunition. Ammo cookoff is no joke, and that's what my job is. Preventing Ammo cookoff."

"So what was it like?"

"Scavenging through wrecked APCs and Apaches to retrieve their autocannon ammunition? It was... actually hard. Having to weld open the ammunition storage is easy, the problem, however, is trying not to set off the ammunition while welding. I did that mostly well, but there were... cases where cookoff nearly got me. Just only burned me in the hand... just the hand, though."

"So not even the Humanitarians are safe from the shitfests that've going on?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

"I see."

"Providing aid to the NCID patients was also another fucking can of worms."

"What was it like, down in Italy?"

"Well, let me tell you. It was not fun. AT ALL. I was forced to wear a hazmat suit, and I walked through some of the contaminated cities... Let me describe the scene for you. A pristine Italian town, that, a week ago, was lively, had a whole community, and interacted with towns around it. Now imagine that, but now flash-forward to a week later. The town's been contaminated by NCID. Crystals've been growing everywhere, and I was part of an IDAP Hazardous Environmental Aid Unit* team. We had to burn the contaminated material... Good god, I've never seen crystals like that..."

"Man, things've been tough for us Aid Workers already as-is..."

"Yeah."

The two workers decided to smoke after ending that conversation, and I decided to cut my losses and now that it was time to actually go find Harma. That guy really needs something to do, and I might as well go with him.

Walking, I pass by the Private I met earlier, A. Gannon.

"Hello there, Gannon."

"Hey there, stranger."

"You heard of the news?" I asked, about to tell him of, well, you know, the whole search team.

"Hm?"

"The Commanders are organizing a search team, to find Camp Riverbed. Meet up by the GDI Barracks, we need some extra manpower for the team, so get anyone you can to join."

"Alright. I'll see what I can do. Better call up the rest of my squad."

"Farewell."

"Farewell!"

And with that, Gannon and I split off.

I was honestly really excited for the organization of the team. That sounds odd for my fatass to say, but let me ask a question, would I rather stay here and remain unaware of everything, or find out what the hell's going on out there? Since I'm a curious fuck who listens to ramblings, I've decided to join them. After all, while I may be just some Minigunner, but I'll be jumping at the chance to do something. Besides, I might scratch the finger that's near the trigger. Might get a kick out of that, neh?

After I walked through the other parts of the base, I had finally found him. Still at the same spot I remember being at. And he's just there, staying there.

Eh, not the time to ramble, but I suppose some rambling to preoccupy the mind is fun.

"Harma." I spoke up, and the Noddie turned his head to me.

"Yeah?" Well, I got the guy's attention. Time to break the news to him.

"We're gathering up a search team. For Camp Riverbed."

"Already?"

"Yeah. Pretty much, Command really wants to know what the fuck happened to Camp Riverbed in the first place, so they're sending in the grunts to do the dirty work for them. Aircraft are out of the question because the weather's about to be fucked, and we're going there by APC. I think. I hope they're sending us in via APC, I don't wanna fucking walk the way there..."

"Well, I mean, walking there is a good way to lose some weight. And your slightly-just-overweight-ass needs some exercise, clearly."

"Shut up."

"Yeah, yeah, so... what do we do now?"

"Well, since I don't think we're really equipped right now..."

"Weren't we supposed to be equipped after we did the bullshit with Doc Lars?"

"Yeah, but then this shitfest happened."

"Fair enough."

"Let's go to the GDI Barracks. They'll have both GDI and Nod equipment anyway. Wouldn't they?"

"Yeah, they normally would."

Harma and I had embarked on our joint venture to go grab some gear. After all, what sense is there to walk into the outside world without proper uniform?

On my way though, I couldn't help but notice that some GDI troops wore different equipment compared to me. Like, not the whole different weapons thing, I actually mean different equipment. One of the guys had a tan vest covering him. Looked bulky, but protective. Accompanying that was a helmet with a visor. I wonder what's that for? I mean, yes, the visor is valuable for saving my ass from getting blinded by dust while not obscuring my eyes ala-goggles-style.

Same goes for some of the Noddies actually. Some of them were wearing bulky vests, and shoulder pads. Those weren't really standard-issue, even during the Cold War's hottest phase. I wonder why the Noddies are suddenly wearing 'em? Well, I think it's good, because then, more PPE being passed around. After all, everyone needs their PPE, even the terrorists and authoritarian oppressors!

"New equipment?" I heard Harma say, audibly confused by the influx of vests and shoulder pads.

"I think so." I said, shrugging. "I've pretty much got no idea why though. Must be some new material that's being issued after the shitfest. Makes sense though. We're probably going to deal with some heavy combat, so we've got to don those new 'ballistic vests' and shoulder pads. Proper protection, if I say so myself. Looks great as well."

"Okay, okay, Payne. I think that's enough rambling about GDI and Nod military equipment. You've already ranted about how you think the M16A2 should've stayed the eternal service rifle of the US Military. I don't think rambling about tactical vests and pads is going to help much."

"Oh shut up you."

And with that, my rambling was shut down. Noooo, my rambling!

Ah well, less painful loss than losing my right ear.

"I think this is it." Harma said, noticing the United Nations flag flying near what was the GDI Barracks. A gold-colored building with two circular things, housing the beds, armory, mess hall, and firing ranges of the GDI's finest yet most fucking idiotic service branch. The infantry branch. A branch made up of stubborn, determined Peacekeepers. Tanhelms, as they're called.

"You know, Tanhelms got more conventional barracks. Us in Estonia have to make-do with weird hand-like structures."

"Hands of Nod?"

"Yeah. Those things. Look horrifying, if you ask me."

"I agree."

Harma and I made our way to the GDI Barracks, which, surprisingly, was bustling with activity. Minigunners, Rocketeers, Grenadiers, and Engineers made their appearance known by their distinctive uniforms and equipment. Well, the engineer uniform was distinctive. BDU with rolled-up sleeves and a hard hat. Everyone else had the same appearance though.

They were going about their lives, and I really wouldn't have cared about them if it weren't for the fact that I heard some of their conversations.

"So, what do you think this whole Riverbed shindig is all about?"

"Search-and-rescue, then we come back, smellin' like shit."

"Well, no kidding. It's the outside world after all."

They were talking about the search team, I presume. Word spreads like wildfire around here, I should say. People're already getting word about Riverbed, and just a few minutes earlier, nobody gave a shit about Riverbed. Curious.

"Come on, Payne, let's go to the armory." I heard Harma nag to me as I sighed and tagged along with him.

"Fiiinee..."

Harma's nagging got me moving, and I noticed that there were quite a few people also wearing the new equipment in the Barracks. Some of them were even commenting and posing with the new gear.

Well, better double-time it to the armory then.

I broke out into a brisk walking speed as I hurried to get that nice equipment as well. Shoulder pads sound pretty cool.

Harma also followed, though probably just to make sure I didn't wander off and get arrested by an MP the second I do something absolutely damn stupid.

"Wait up!"

"Whoevergetstheequipmentlaststinks!" I fired off rapidly as I changed from simply walking fast into downright sprinting as if I was searching for secret treasure.

"WAIT UP!" Harma said, also breaking out into a sprint.

Surprisingly, Harma and I never broke anything on the way there, so that made for smooth sailing without getting arrested by the MPs for negligent damage and gross misconduct.

After finally reaching the Armory first, I took a minute to rest and pant.

The heavy breathing reflected how much energy I exerted just to get to this place. Damn, I was breathing like I was inhaling Nod's nerve gas bullshit.

"Goddamn..." I wheezed out.

Harma finally caught up to me, and took a minute to breathe, clearly also exhausted from running after my fat arse.

"There you are, goddamn..."

"Heh, sorry."

"Your fatass only goes when there's military equipment involved? Really?"

"Hey! I never said I was one to be lazy when it comes to that stuff!"

"Oh you blithering pillock."

"Hey! That's a British exclamation, not an Estonian one!"

"Don't care, still a blithering pillock."

"Damn."

That conversation ended just as the Armory guy called our attention.

"You boys in for the new gear as well?" He asked, arms crossed and with one eyebrow raised.

"Yeah, you can say that."

"Well, get over here then." The Armory attendant calls us over. I and Harma move and just stand idly outside his counter.

"I'll be back, give me a minute."

The Armory guy turns around, about to grab something, me and Harma just stare at each other and shrug. Worse things could happen, I guess.

"Eh?" I ask, randomly.

"Yeah." Harma responds, shrugging.

After that though, we gave all our attention to the armory guy, who came back with two large boxes that he appeared to be carrying one-handed for each one. How does he even lift that damn thing?

"For you, Tanhelm." The Armory guy slides one of the boxes onto the counter, and I picked it up, before putting it down on the floor below.

"And you, Noddie." He slides another box over the counter, Harma does the same and puts it on the floor.

"The new gear's arrived, and I've got some new shit as well."

Just as he said that, one of the armory staff behind him appears to be carrying a crate of some new weapons.

"Hey, uh, Quartermaster? What're those?" I pointed towards the rifles that one of the staff was carrying behind him.

"Ah, those? Those 're the new M8 assault rifles."

"M8?"

"Yeah. Mostly used by private security forces, so it's not really going to be part of our gear. This shit's goin' to the Humanitarians."

"IDAP Security Contractors?"

"Yeah. Their security's tired of old shit, so R&D shat out this new rifle, and voila. New replacement for the M16A2."

"I see."

And I ended the conversation with the quartermaster there. After that, I go about opening the box that he slid for me.

What was contained inside of it was one of those new-fangled ballistic vests. Tan in color too. It had the flag of the United States displayed on its front, and several pouches that were mostly for rifle ammunition. And by the looks of it, it's M3 Eliminator cylinders. Accompanying it was a helmet, with a visor, and two UN shoulder pads, prominently displaying the diving eagle of GDI and the words 'UN' emblazoned on it in white.

I put the vest on first, making sure to fit everything tightly and snugly, just to make sure that none of the important shit goes flying off.

Shoulder pads go on the second, I attach the one on my right, and begin tightening the straps on it. It's a bit too tight, but it goes smoothly. No cramps, just protection. Awesome. Then I do the one on the left, same process, same result.

Then I put on the new helmet. I put the thing on my head, then begin tightening the straps like any normal soldier would, before putting the visor down first. All in all, I like it.

To top it off, an M3 Eliminator as well. The rifle's signature circular magazine denoted it from the old M16A2 used during the Second World War. I stood at the ready, with my new rifle.

And as I finish gearing up, Harma does as well.

Harma's new gear is actually pretty cool as well, if I were to be blunt though, it'd never reach the cool level of helmets with visors.

Harma was covered head-to-toe in the urban camouflage of Nod. Signature style.

What also covered him was a vest promptly displaying the Estonian flag, and covered in M16 magazine pouches. Accompanying that were two pistol magazine pouches, and a small medical pouch.

Two shoulder pads with the Brotherhood's scorpion tail proudly displayed themselves on the arms of Harma, though he looked a bit irked by that.

His headgear wasn't really my favorite, but it still looked good. Blue-tinted goggles, check. Communications headset, check. And PASGT helmet, complete with the signature scorpion tail? Check. Balaclava? Yipee, check.

Combine that with an M16A2 rifle, and you've got a good Noddie.

"Well, what do you think?" Harma asked me, clearly wanting to hear my opinion.

"I think it's quite cool. Though, it'll never reach my level. Helmets and visors are the best combo."

"I think it's helmet and balaclava that make the best combo."

"Shit, forgot about that."

"Well, now that that's over with..." Harma says, before shooting a quick glance at the door.

"LAST ONE TO REACH THE EXIT STINKS!" He said, before breaking out into a sprint like earlier.

"Hey, wait up!" I said, running after him.

After some running and more taking a break and catching breaths, we made it out of the barracks.

Just in time, too, as there were other UNGDI and Nod soldiers as well, all of them standing in front of a podium that was marked with the UN symbol on it. All of them had their rifles at the ready, many of them having their rifles ready as well. Some had it ready via slinging, some had it ready by keeping their hands on it, and some were ready by holding their rifle via the shoulder. They were prepared for anything, and that's what worried me. Did they really have to flagrantly violate gun safety rules? Come on, don't hold the finger near the trigger!

In come Generals Jean Fitzgerald and Wenli Yang, who march in like it's Georgia. Yang positions himself in backstage, but Jean? Well, he gets to the podium, then he turns on the microphone and coughs, bit irritating, but gathering everyone's attention, and causing them to shift their ready positions to a more unified 'rifle on the ground, barrel-facing-upwards' position. Cool, but still unsafe.

"May I have your attention please?" The General calls, and the GDI and Nod riflemen salute on command. So do I, and Harma.

"Now, you may all be wondering why you have been called here. You have been called here as part of a special task force of all volunteers that we need as we speak. Now, just a few hours earlier, we suffered a storm. And after that, all communications have been cut. Global Operations HQ can't be contacted, and Nod's command structure isn't reachable. We need you to venture out into the outside perimeters to find Camp Riverbed and re-establish contact with it. Accompanying you will be a squad of humanitarian workers, alongside some of IDAP's HEAU units. Make sure to support them, as they will be invaluable to your mission. You will be inserted by Armored Personnel Carrier into the last approximate location of Camp Riverbed, then you are to report, and return to base." Jean Fitzgerald finishes his speech with a cough, before continuing on.

"Now, any questions? No? Then let's go." Jean Fitzgerald says as he leaves the podium, and minutes later, the UN and Nod personnel all scramble to the ready position and form a single-file line.

And just after that, several UN and Nod M113 APCs arrive, and their doors open.

On queue, someone whistles, and the soldiers, I and Harma included, scramble to find an APC to get into.

This was the start of the operation. A chaotic scramble for APCs.

But I and Harma did find one, and we sat inside there, rifles at the ready.

"So, when do we arrive at Riverbed?" One of the soldiers asked.

"Sooner or later. I just hope this isn't one of those operations, you know, the boring kind." Another grunt responds.

"Yeah, yeah."

And with that, here we go.

Into the unknown.

Notes from Payne:

Desert of Death - Sand Dune in Iran, located in Tehran. Notable for being the sight of the bloodiest unit-against-unit battle during the Iran War, where GDI and Nod units chaotically opened fire on everybody without awareness of anything happening. GDI lost most of its unit, while Nod lost its entire force to either GDI fire or friendly fire.

Iran War - One of the earliest conflicts during the Cold War. Occurring after the founding of the Global Defense Initiative in the 1960s, the Iran War was an attempted intervention by the UN into Iran after the Brotherhood took over the government and launched a coup. The War was a loss for GDI, but a disastrous pyrrhic victory for Nod. GDI pulled out with minimal losses, while Nod lost a majority of its early army in Iran.

Hazardous Environmental Aid Unit - IDAP's security and biochemical research branch. The HEAU provides heavy security for IDAP, being made up of ex-GDI and sometimes Nod servicemen. Alongside security, it also offers decontamination, biochemical research, explosive ordnance disposal, and even sometimes acts like a pseudo-mercenary group within IDAP's interests.

Author's Notes:

Well, here I am. I promised that I'd get off my ass and actually write something. Guess what I did? Yipee.

This chapter was an excuse for me to worldbuild the world that GDI and Nod left behind. It's post-Soviet Victory in RA1, again, but at the same time, you've also got the complicated issues such as the USSR collapsing late into the 1950s as internal strife and struggle tear it down like the Berlin Wall.

The story goes something like this.

Einstein time travels into the past to kill Hitler, okay, and this sets off a chain reaction in which tech advances at a rate fuelled only by what I call 'C&CiumTM' which forms the basis for the RA1/RA2 tech hybrid in the past of this timeline. Allied Forces used the Prism and Mirage tanks alongside Harriers and Apaches. However the Soviets fought with T-80s and Tesla Troopers during the Second World War. Eventually, the war is lost by the Allies, and Einstein kills himself to make sure the Soviets never secure his research, while Generals von Esling and Stavros sacrifice themselves to delay the Soviets.

The Soviets win and take over Europe after nuking Chicago and forcing America out of the war. However, Stalin dies of tea poisoning, and this sets off a chain reaction within the USSR, leading to its rapid collapse and the freedom of Western Europe. The last state to be free of Soviet control is Portugal, after the Azur Revolution in the 1950s. A decade later, the United Nations is founded, with the original goal of forming a united military alliance to counter future imperialist aggression. However, in the same decade, the Brotherhood of Nod stages massive continental-wide coups across the third-and-second worlds. Africa falls under Nod influence, so does the ME, Southeast Asia too, and parts of South America too.

The UN forms GDI to counteract this global terrorism threat, and instead of staying black ops, it goes full public and exposes itself from the start. The GDI puts down coups in some countries, but fail in others, such as Iran. This kicks off the global proxy conflict known as the Cold War, which lasts until the 1990s. The Cold War was a time period where GDI and Nod fought using proxies, such as rebels, insurgents, or sometimes, public opinion, including rising unrest in France and many GDI nations. And then during the 1990s, the United Nations and Brotherhood of Nod 'cease' the Cold War as Tiberium makes impacts into Europe, then starts spreading a mysterious contamination known as NCID, a disease which crystallizes anything it touches, whether it be man or material.

A massive explosion in the Tiber River gets GDI and Nod to intervene in Italy and contain the spread of NCID, but it's only temporary.

Enter Camp Tiber, then this.

I plan on revisiting the Helicopter Pilot guy later on, but for now? It's adventure time with Harma and Payne. Off to finding out what the hell's outside there. Besides, this is the perfect opportunity to examine what happens when the two superpowers alongside their humanitarian support staff and Originum creatures clash together. Sounds fun.

I guess that's it for this chapter then.

Until next time, bye.