The Eternal Commander
Chapter 8
The Dance of the Sandworms
"I think we are ready. You guys feel ready?"
"Of course, Commander."
The V-35 Ox transport flew high above the air, giving a great view of the surrounding wasteland while the rest had a narrow window. Although there was nothing too interesting to see anyways when it comes to the environment. As far the eyes can see, there was only sand. The view reminded the Commander of the Sahara Desert.
Thankfully, Chris could use his power to better understand the area. But instead of observing the environment around him, he was deep in thought about their current mission.
Being close to the action, arrangements were made for a 'combat' outfit this time. The clothes were similar to a rifleman's uniform, with the bullet-resistant vest and helmet, but it had an insignia of a six-star general at the shoulders.
However, his thoughts were not on his clothes nor the view.
The preparation for this mission took longer than expected.
First off, the GDI needed to scout the region and get a sense of it. His Radar Scan ability and aircraft were a great help for the Commander.
Secondly, the GDI needs a temporary base. Thankfully, the island was not entirely sand; plenty of areas with rocky land, so the Commander established a Surveyor and a mini base near the coast. The structure had 3 landing pads and automated watchtowers since he planned to relocate the base after the mission.
After that, Chris needed to transport his forces to defeat the worms. This task was difficult nor time-consuming, but at the moment, the most potent vehicles he could transport by air at the moment were MBT-6 Predator tanks. Thankfully, his current air force can assist with a strike if necessary.
During the journey to the mission location, the GDI encountered a horde of lesser Grimm. However, the Air Force made quick work of them, so the ground force proceeded without interruption.
On the ground, other than Predator tanks were Pitbulls. They were there for one reason: they were equipped with sensors to detect cloaked units. So, the Commander hoped that these support vehicles could detect the worms.
Chris quickly adjusted himself on the plane and switched to RTS mode to have a birds-eye view of the events. He was hopeful that this would go as smoothly as he planned.
"All right, everyone. Keep your eyes and ears open. Stick to the plan, and we will get through. Got it?"
"Of course, Commander! Still sucks that I have to drive this instead of my usual baby, but I will crush those bastards all the same!" A soldier bellowed over the communication channel.
"Whatever, I just hope we can make it." So said another voice, louder than all of the others. It belonged to a middle-aged man with an American accent, who goes by the name of Walker Blackstone.
Walker belonged to the same group of his soldiers as Lt. Fullerton in terms of behaviour. While all of his subordinates had unique personalities, this group was assertive and willing to express themselves. For example, Walker came with the first Mammoth tank the Commander created, and the first he did was to pimp it to his liking with a flame paint job. But most importantly, he replaced the AA rocket pods with Anti-infantry weaponry.
Like Fullerton, Chris observed that he became the 'bro' of many amongst many in the GDI. Walker even became a household name amongst the newly formed armoured divisions.
He also bragged about his service during the Second Tiberium War. Chris hoped that he would reflect the boasts he claimed.
"Thanks. All ground units, report! Is there any activity?"
"Negative. Pitbull units show no enemy movements so far." A Pitbull unit responded. Dirt kicked up on the windshield as his thumb twitched above several buttons built into the steering wheel. One press and a series of missiles will be eager to introduce themselves to any poor bastard in their way.
The tanks were spaced out in a circle, which surrounded the Pitbulls, forming a defensive line.
The following two minutes went without anything happening. Other than that, the periodic unit reported no activities; the only sounds were the sounds of the wind rolling through the desert and carrying sand particles, making it challenging to see distant objects on the ground.
It was oddly quiet for a military operation of this size. But it was finally interrupted by a familiar feminine voice.
"Enemy Units Spotted!" Said EVA.
"Sandworm from the northeast!" Shouted one of the scout Pitbulls. Every unit turned around as fast as possible, just in time to witness the gigantic beast emerging over the horizon.
Chris couldn't help but stare in awe as the top half of the worm emerged from the sand and swam across the desert at an alarmingly fast speed.
Back on earth, Chris heard about the sandworms from the Dune universe, although he did not read the books. Gigantic beasts who roamed the deserts without any meaningful opposition. They were the subject of reverence of the local freemen for a reason.
This one, however, was different. Instead of orange, this one's skin was black, just like all Grimm. Its size was also less than half of the other. A visual appeared in RTS mode; EVA estimated the beasts were 225 meters long. From RTS mode, the Pitbulls detected the worms, but only sections of the body and not in their entirety.
The worm ducked into the sand before launching itself toward the armoured vehicles in from of it. Its mouth was circular, full of teeth, and three appendages were open outwards. It let out a deep, menacing roar, unlike anything Chris had heard. Chris snarled in disgust from its foul smell in the transport, which was a least a hundred meters up in the air.
In short, it had everything to be the most terrifying of all the Grimm lifeforms ever created. Deadly and indestructible at the same time.
At least would be against the people of Remnant. But not against the GDI.
The Predators and Pitbulls already faced the worms when they emerged again and readied their weapons. But, before the task, Chris made sure the Predator cannons were replaced with railguns.
"Fire."
A barrage of erupting beams of light and missile smoke jets raced skyward at the beast.
The cannons fired fast-moving projectiles, which looked blue to an average onlooker. The speed was not anything this world had ever seen. Before Chris could realize it, the munitions punched through the sandworm without any problem. The thick hides, which would deflect the local's small arms, now gave no protection against the weapon designed by the genius minds of another universe. Thanks to their timing, many tank shells punched through the creature's mouth, making it even more effective. The rockets fired from the Pitbulls were also a great help.
Not expecting this much firepower from its would-be prey and already being a hardly manurable being, the worm was unable to take any evasive action and was hit with the full firepower from the armoured division. The magnetically accelerated projectiles entered and left its body without slowing down, along with a large amount of the creature's red blood. The impacts, combined with the instant blood loss, were more than enough to kill the sandworm on the spot.
The lifeless corpse of the giant fell to the ground. Then, a large wave of sand violently lashed against the GDI vehicles. The impact was significant enough to turn over some of the nearby vehicles, which caused some stir amongst the people on the earth. But soon, after that, it went quiet.
After a second or two, everyone erupted with cheer. Both from the ground and the air.
"Yeah, we won!"
"That was easy!"
"Take that, you stupid worm! This is what you get for messing us!" Walker cheered. Considering this was his first serious combat deployment, his fellow soldiers did not reprimand him.
The same could be said about the people in the transport.
"Good one, boss! Hopefully, next time, I can show you my worth more." So said Fullerton while high on victory. Although he was a bit sad deep down that he couldn't get to show his fighting prowess more.
"I agree. This was quick, easy, and successful. Just the way I like it." Added Yuri.
"It appears that your doctrine of Overwhelming Firepower paid off, Chris. Allow me to congratulate you." Commented Raquel.
Chris, who returned to his body meantime, was glad that this battle was easy. It may be boring for a warrior, but a live bird's eye view is a blessing for a wanna-be general. But before the Commander could appropriately react to the others, he heard a concerning voice in his earpiece. It was a Pitbull driver.
"Sir, there is something else in the ground. Wait, right on top of-AAAAAAAA!" After the scream, there was only static for a second, but suddenly many other voices expressed surprise.
"Unit Lost." Added EVA. It was a voice line the Commander did not hear for a while now and hoped he would not need to again.
Chris descended down to observe the situation on the ground closer. Unfortunately, what he saw was worse than he could expect it.
Another giant worm emerged from the ground. However, this time was in the middle of the formation, launching itself straight up, then angled itself down towards one of the other vehicles and slowly falling towards it.
"Everyone, evasive maneuverers! If you have a clear shot, then go for it! But until then, do whatever it takes to avoid that damn thing!" Shouted the Commander.
The ground units immediately started to do everything to avoid the sandworm. A Predator tank reversed while its side was scrapped violently by the worm. A sinkhole formed and an eventual sand trap. The impact was still enough to knock over many other vehicles near it. The gunner of the Predator take grew overzealous as it escaped and fired too early, which overshot the worm.
Other units tried to take a shot at it, and occasionally, they managed to hit it, especially the tanks. However, the shot did not damage the worm enough to slow it down. In fact, it almost seemed like it started to become faster out of anger. If the Grimm could even feel anger.
Less than a minute after the emergence of the second sandworm, the situation on the ground caused more and more panic. The tank crews were most affected, as their vehicles had a more challenging time avoiding the enemy, so most of them were already turned over. The Pitbulls were quick enough to avoid them. Their sounds of distress, combined with the occasional "Unit Lost" notification from EVA, clear that victory cannot be achieved in these conditions.
When Chris realised this, he decided to go for plan B. So the Commander's craft hovered higher in the air, and he selected the air units, who were circling around in the air the whole time. After that, he pointed towards the worm above the ground.
"Ready to firebomb!" Said one of the pilots as they bowed the nose of their aircraft and started their descent.
Their aircraft were Firehawks, the GDI's fighter-bomber. They were deadly in both aspects. This time, armed with Hellcat Firebombs, rapidly approached the ground. Their pilots knew that they controlled the most powerful vehicle in the GDI air force. This gave them a sense of pride only matched with those in control of Mammoth tanks. Even with only 12 of them, destruction is sure to follow.
The squadron's first 4 planes were quickly released their bombs as soon as they were near the sandworm. However, by then, the creature was already underground, and they did not cause any damage to it. Thankfully, friendly units were clear from the detention site.
The remaining 8, along with the Commander, honed their senses for an opening.
For the next 30 seconds, there was no movement from the enemy nor any attack on the ground units. Crews who escaped the destruction of their vehicles were picked up by the remaining Pitbulls for evacuation. After that, a bead of sweat streaked down Chris' forehead.
After that, one of the Pitbulls' sensors pinged. This was followed by a trembling, and the worm finally emerged from the ground.
"Kill that thing already!" shouted Chris to the Firehawks.
"Bombing sequence initiated." The bombs dropped, and they caught the sandworm immediately.
They landed and exploded one after another. The explosion, combined with the ensuing fire, blew the worm in two. It was the first time in history for something like this to happen on this scale. The blood-spattered everywhere, and the shockwaves shook the sands around the corpse of the creature. One Pitbull, unfortunately, was caked of innards as it swerved to the side; windshield wipers brushed some guts out of the driver's vision.
The silence returned to the battlefield. However, it was a different type of silence than before. This was unlike the easy victory over the first one. This was mainly from the aftermath of the panic, as the GDI slowly gathered their breath.
Chris was just as surprised. There was no mention of a second one in the report he got. Still, he was glad that plan B worked as intended.
"Return to base!" He ordered the pilots.
"Acknowledged." Replied one of them, then all of them flew towards the coast's temporary baseflow towards the coast's temporary base.
It looked like things started to settle. While most of the vehicles were turned over, only a couple were outright destroyed. Specifically, 5 Predator tanks and 2 Pitbulls.
Chris was ready to assess the situation when he felt something again and focused his vision toward the ground. The familiar smell was already in the air. The Commander could even see small tremors on the ground. Unfortunately, as soon as he made those observations, a third worm emerged from the sand. Since his aircraft hovered nearby, it was a deafening sound to hear. At least it would have made him deaf if it was not for his steel eardrums.
'Give me a break.' Chris groaned to himself.
However, unlike the previous worm, this one did not start its attack toward the ground units. Instead, it kept going and going straight upwards, without turning. Almost as it like it was aiming for…
Upon realising it, Chris returned to his original body as soon as possible. However, he felt almost exhausted the way he did.
"EVADE!" He shouted, stirring up everyone a little bit on board.
The pilots obeyed and were barely able to avoid the sandworm, which after aim towards the ground, fell. The passengers on board looked worried as far as he could tell. At least most of them.
"Woah, that was a close one!" So said Fullerton while he looked outside.
"But this begs the question: What should we do? I mean, I don't want to leave this thing while that worm is still alive." Added Yuri. The Commander did not chastise him. There was a reason he did not assign riflemen to this operation. Mentally kicking himself, the Zone Troopers would have been a great addition to this battle, possibly. However, they were more expensive than the tanks, so he went with the latter.
"Sadly, I believe my skills as a warrior are inadequate here. I want to apologize for that." Raquel looked down, feeling shunned while saying this.
Meanwhile, the worm launched itself up. The crew did not need order and avoided the beast.
The few remaining ground units, who were still capable of fighting, fired their weapons. However, the worm ignored them, even as he was hit twice. Sadly, it was not enough to slow it down. Even as the ground units kept firing, it aimed for the transport.
Meanwhile, Chris started to work on a solution. But, first, he contacted the Firehawks.
"When can you guys return? I need some air support here!"
"Sorry, sir. But we are unavailable at this time. Give us five minutes, and we will be back." Replied one of the pilots.
Chris tried to make them go faster by activating the Stratofighter Boosters, then he realized something: They did not have them since he never unlocked that upgrade. The Commander did not need them before, and he did not prepare a plan C since there was supposed to be only one sandworm, not three.
'Well, I was never the best player in the first place. And apparently, playing Command & Conquer doesn't make you a real general. Well, that is the lesson for today: Always have a backup plan for your backup plan.' The Commander joked toward himself.
Since the worm kept trying to leap towards him, ignoring the remaining ground units. Since it seemed like the only logical thing was to go higher with his transport to avoid the attacks and wait for the air units to come back.
Before he could order that, the Commando stood up and faced him.
"Boss, I have an idea: Order the pilots to open the ramp!" His enthusiasm was through the roof.
Chris thought about this for a second. It was like the attack on Brighthill when the Commando charged the Deathstalker.
Well, after a second, Chris nodded and ordered the two pilots to lower the ramp.
Yuri had a worried expression behind his helmet. While he has known his 'buddy' for a while now, this was still a reckless thing to do. But he was too shy to express his disapproval.
The wind and sand grains flooded the passenger bay as the ramp lowered. The Commando approached the edge and waited for the next attack. The Commander and the rifleman stood behind him.
When the sandworm emerged again, the Commando turned around then walked backward as he gestured a brash salute before descending towards the worm's open mouth, which engulfed him.
"GABRIEL!" Cried out the Russian loud.
Chris was not sure what to think of this. Aware of Fullerton's personality, Chris should have expected something like this. But, there was also the question of will this work. The Commander looked down with a concerned look on his face.
After another unsuccessful attack, the sandworm returned to the ground and dug itself into the ground again. The crew could only wait for the next attack.
But instead of the next attack, the ground exploded. Sand flew everywhere and chunks of what used to be the upper half of the sandworm. Its size was at least half of the previous bomb explosion from the planes, and the only thing that dampened it was the worm's body and the sea of sand.
For the third and final time, the battlefield went quiet. Nobody was sure what to do since, at this point, anything was possible. So the GDI started to look at each other and towards the horizon, hoping that there were no more worms.
After taking a few breaths to get a clear head, the Commander started the after-battle clean-up.
"Land us to the ground. For every Mobile Repair Platform, please provide all support to the ground units. Everyone else, heal the wounded and establish a perimeter. Then, get repair crews to salvage those vehicles."
The GDI complied without a second of a doubt. They still remained calm, but all of them were bearing the marks from the recent battle. There was no victory cheer. Only the desire to return to base remained. Chris walked around with his companions to observe. Both of them were quiet, but the Russian was completely silent. The Rifleman did not shed tears or anything like that. Chris did not have to be a master of observation to notice the grief.
Suddenly, from the remains of the worm, a humanoid figure emerged. He was tall and muscular, bearing many acid burns on his skin, visible due to his armour full of holes. Under his broken helmet, however, a smile emerged, not caring about the circumstances around him.
Soldiers near the dead worm immediately stopped to observe the Commando. Almost everyone witnessed his latest achievement, and his survival astonished them. After the shock, the morale uplifted. Cheers erupted from all sides. They raised their guns and fists in unison.
"Oraahh!" They shouted.
Yuri sprinted forward and had trouble believing his own eyes to witness his partner's survival.
"You crazy Yankee! You could have died!" Yuri berated from worry.
"I wouldn't call it crazy. It was just an idea of mine, which worked. Isn't that what matters in the end? By the way, boss, I'd like to report the worm, is in fact, dead." Fullerton nodded to his Commander while raising a clenched fist to his buddy, who reluctantly bumped his fist back.
"How did you do this?" Chris overlooked the carcass of the beast.
"Well, you see Commander, back home, where I deal with monsters bigger than this all the time… I knew it had to be different. So when I was falling through that thing's throat, I placed as many detonation packs I had through its body, then I survived the explosion in its stomach." Fullerton flicked his arm free of worm guts.
As Fullerton reported, his wounds slowly healed, and his armour was repairing itself independently.
The Commando had already reached veteran status. Another feature that carried over from the game. It gave units the ability to self-heal on the highest level, amongst other upgrades. It was not powerful enough to make them unkillable, but it ensured that they would always recover after the battle.
Since Fullerton was on many missions since his arrival, he reached the highest possible veterancy.
"Not bad, not bad." After that, Chris turned around to speak to the other GDI forces. "When you're done, well return to base. I believe this victory calls for celebration."
The soldiers agreed then continued their previous activities. Their mood was once again cheerful. They were all happy that this nightmare was over, even if it lasted less than 20 minutes.
Chris looked up in the sky. He knew that small drones with cameras attached to them were up in the air. They were locally made. He used them to capture as much footage as possible. But, of course, the ground vehicles also had their cameras for this purpose.
Amongst other things, he wanted to spend most of the day editing the footage together, then send it to the Chieftain. He could possibly leak it online as well... Chris looked at his assistant. The angel gave him an approving smile for his most recent victory. The servant was proud once again.
What to next was unclear. But one thing was sure: This was his first actual battle in this world. Hopefully, the next one will be easier.
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It was late afternoon. The sun started to go down, and its orange beams streaked across the city. The streetlamps were not required yet. People have already started to go back to their homes after a long day of work. Despite this, the streets are not as crowded as before. Most of the tents were gone, and most locals remained, other than some refugees who decided to say in one of the homes in Kou Kuana.
In the Chieftain's mansion, the mood was jovial, to say the least.
"I have to say, this worked better than I expected." Boasted Ghira.
"When I took this job, I never thought I would see something epic like this." Chris sipped from a warm teacup.
"Still, I would like to apologize for not warning you enough. I genuinely thought that there was only one sandworm." The Chieftain poured tea for himself.
The Chieftain watched the video taken during the operation on a scroll while sitting on a carpet around the dinner table, drinking freshly made hot tea.
Those in attendance were currently watching Fullerton's wild feat. Ghira already saw the video, but he replayed this bit constantly. It was fascinating to see that the GDI forces overcame the situation despite the surprise attack by the two sandworms.
"Also, I want to thank you not just for taking out those two sandworms but also for providing additional escort and financial aid to the settlers. They have just recently called me back and said that they will be fine for now."
"Don't mention it. I just did what you asked me to." Said Chris while taking another sip from his tea.
Kali stepped out of the kitchen, bringing a big bowl of soup.
"I brought something for our guest!" Her face glowed.
"Oh, Miss Belladonna, that's too kind! I am only here for briefly on business." Chris quickly set his tea aside.
"Don't be so humble, young man! You did a great deed today!" She put the bowl in the middle of the table. "This right here is the Belladonna family special. I made it just for this occasion. Please, taste it! You won't regret it." She said it in an insistent but kind tone.
Not coveting to offend the lady of the house, Chris decided to taste the food given to him. It resembled gyulyás soup, something he tried once when visiting a friend's house. Apparently, he had Hungarian ancestry, so he decided to make one for a visit. It was rather delicious.
"Wow, this is… tasty! I really like it." The Commander said it after giving it a try. Not feigning interest, he genuinely enjoyed the soup.
"Thank you, dear. Do you want something else?" Kali inquired.
"Thanks, but this will be enough." Replied Chris.
"Thanks, pardon us, my love?" Ghira took his bowl of soup.
Mrs. Belladonna nodded and left the room smiling. Ghira and Chris continued to eat their soup for the next couple of minutes. Despite not talking to each other during this, the air did not feel tense. Instead, both of them gathered their thoughts for the following conversation.
"So, I believe it is time to discuss payment. What are you asking for?" Asked Ghira after putting his spoon into his empty plate.
"After careful consideration, I don't ask you for financial payment. Instead, I want to ask permission from you to establish a couple bases and outposts for the GDI." Answered Chris.
"Well, that is certainly an interesting offer. Give me a minute, and we can discuss the potential locations." Ghira stood up with the plates in his hand and headed towards the kitchen, and after two minutes, he came back with a map of the island and an unopened bottle of champagne, then he sat down next to the table again.
"Honestly, I was surprised when you said that you did not ask for money for the task. Still, I think there are several locations I am willing to lend you. Do you have any suggestions?"
Chris took a closer look at the map. At least two-thirds of the island was a desert with the occasional oasis. Therefore, most of the more significant settlements were in the western, greener, more liveable parts of Menagerie. The Commander thought about it for a second, but he decided that the locals needed those regions more than him.
After more looking around, he found a suitable location.
"I think that small peninsula in the north would be a perfect spot." He pointed at the location on the map with his index finger.
"Interesting. There is not much there, other than more desert. Are you sure you want that place? Other than more desert and hordes of Grimm, I can't offer you anything else there." The Chieftain raised an eyebrow.
"I am certain." Said the Commander. The desert did not matter much since his soldiers did not require food, water, or sleep, and they had more excellent resistance to extreme temperatures than normal humans and Faunus. Still, Chris planned most of the bases on the coast, so the sea routes are also accessible. The headquarters in the desert will be connected with roads.
The other reason for choosing a desert location was opening new sites for Tiberium fissures. Chris observed that this Tiberium that he can make will not have the same devastating impact on the local ecology as in the original timeline. So, there are no ruins covered by green crystals, dead soil, mutated animals, toxic air, or radioactive rain. Instead, it acts as in gameplay, as in a green barrier, which hurts infantry units stationed on them. At least, he does not have to worry about ruining Remnant in this way. However, he still wants to avoid unneeded questions, so a more remote location is better, and no one cares about them in the desert, far away from civilization. At the moment, the two fissures he had were covered up by makeshift domes to avoid anyone noticing them.
Speaking of logistics, while more uncomplicated for him than any modern military back on earth, it Is still something to consider since he cannot transport every vehicle in his arsenal with air. This includes the mammoth tanks and the rig. So, slower naval transportation will be necessary.
Also, at the moment, he can only limit its spread with sonic technology. So, building a Tiberium Control Network or TCN would be on the list of things he wants to do.
"In this case, then I believe this is a deal is beneficial for the both of us. We can discuss the details later. But, for now, I think that is more than enough."
Ghira adjusted him to a more comfortable position before continuing. His expression was also changed from a professional to a more relaxed, almost impersonal.
"There is something I have wondered ever since I have seen your interview on VNN: What are your future plans regarding the Faunus? I felt like you did not want to reveal this during the interview, but now, I think you can tell me. Don't worry, I can keep them a secret."
Chris thought about this for a second. Revealing plans was usually not a wise idea in most situations. However, at the same time, having allies is also of great importance. And besides the current leader of the White Fang, he was the closest to a global figurehead of the white fang. So, winning him over seemed like a smart move.
"First of all, I would like to offer protection to as many Faunus villages as possible. Secondly, I will start a series of programs to help those in the ghettos. For example, schools, self-defence training, recovery groups, hospitals, outreach programs, better homes cheaper, job opportunities so they won't have to work for SDC, etc. I also want to create a charity to help them in general. And so on and so forth. I think you get the picture." Explained the Commander.
"I see." Ghira's gaze felt empty. Like the focused his thoughts on something else.
"Are you alright?" Chris wondered.
"Oh, of course! I just wanted to ask you something else as well."
"Go on!"
"Have you ever felt that no matter how good your intentions were, you have caused suffering to other people? That instead of good, the thing you have created end up being evil, and you felt that you are indirectly responsible for it" Ghira looked… different. He no longer had that friendly smile. Instead, he had a look of someone who just admitted doing a horrible crime.
"What an interesting question. But the answer is yes. I have done things that I am not proud of in the past. My good intentions ended up being harmful. So, I don't want to talk about it." Ghira straightened his posture while listening to the answer.
Chris was not sure how to answer the question. He actually wanted to tell Ghira about that memory haunting him for now. But at the same time, no matter how friendly and polite his new business partner was, at the moment, he was just that: A business partner. Not someone he wanted to share something personal right now.
The question itself was also a strange one. He wondered how it connected to the conversation they were having before. Finally, after a little bit of brainstorming, he realized it.
"Are you reflecting on the White Fang?" Chris turned away from the Menagerie map.
"…Yes." Sighed the Chieftain. The regret on his expression became more and torrent.
"I joined the organisation to help my people. I rose to the top to be the one leading the change. At first, I was hopeful. The Faunus rights revolution ended a couple of years ago. We hoped that we could change things for the better through peaceful means. But that didn't happen. Instead, we became our own antithesis."
"Was it the leadership change?" Asked Chris.
"It was long before that. Simply put, more and more, our members became bitter. They felt disappointed in both their leaders and the humans. They felt that they needed to do more than peacefully protest and boycott. Their anger became more noticeable, and their deeds bloodier and more destructive. Other leaders tried to hold them back, but some also joined in the aggression after a while. There was also the problem of fundings. So, we allied with several criminal organizations and syndicates, and joined them in various crimes. Riots, robberies, trading in illegal narcotics and guns; they felt it was for a righteous cause, it blinded them. "Ghira continued.
"The escalation of violence emboldened racist humans to form the Red Hand. We started to arm ourselves even more so because we felt that it was justified. We fought against them ever since, while our criminal empire became vast. While I understand that it started as self-defence, the situation escalated more and more after that. More and more of us were in for personal greed. The cause became secondary and a shield. In the end, we were another criminal gang with a different uniform."
The tale was not something Chris expected. But it was interesting how different the story was from one of its most essential members' mouths, compared to the human supremacist people on the Scrollnet.
"I couldn't take it anymore. No matter how much I tried, I couldn't stop the change. So, five years ago, I resigned from my position and decided to live a simpler life. The people wanted me to become the Chieftain, which after some thinking, I accepted. Since then, I had tried to keep order here, with more success than when I was the leader of the White Fang. At least the infighting is solved with words instead of knives." Ghira finished his tale. He barely even breathed while talking about it.
"Why did you tell me this?" Asked Chris. The Commander was surprised to hear all of this since he didn't expect it.
"I wanted you to understand my failure, so hopefully, you can do better than me. But, I admit, we need your help to achieve the life we deserve."
"Let me make one thing clear: I am helping the Faunus, not the White Fang. In my eyes, that organisation betrayed its principles and became nothing more than a gang of terrorists. I think we can agree on that. So, I will hunt them everywhere and stop them from committing terrorist and criminal acts. And if they decide to attack me, I will not only defend myself but also will retaliate." Chris ended up sounding harsher than he wanted, but he wanted to avoid misunderstandings by any means possible.
Chris also realized another detail to his grand vision. In the presentation to his troops, he described the White Fang as a more militant version of the Black Panthers. But after looking at them closely, their activities resembled the Irish Republican Army, minus the car bombs.
"I understand you, Mr. Turner. In recent years, the organization's deeds left a bad taste in many people's mouths. I just want to ask you one last time: Will you help the cause of the Faunus in every possible way? And will you be a protector of our people and the kingdom of Menagerie?" Asked Ghira while slowly lifting his hands.
"Of course. I will do everything in my power to do both of those things gladly. You have my promise. In return, I want to become allies with Menagerie officially, and you will lend me those lands I asked of you?" Chris clarified his conditions.
"I think we have an agreement here." Chris and Ghria's hands finally reached each other and shook them.
The room went quiet for a second or two. Both leaders felt content. Ghira's smile returned to his face.
"I believe this was an enlightening conversation for both of us." Said the Chieftain while ending the shake and started slowly standing up.
"I believe so. By the way, I think you need this." Chris stood up, reached into one of his pockets, and put a piece of paper on the table. "Call me directly if there is any problem you need me to take care of."
"Thank you."
"No problem. Now I have to go. I hope we can have more meetings like this in the future. I really enjoyed the food. Goodbye!" Chris waved with his hands and left the room. In his thought, the joy of this victory. It was a diplomatic victory, gaining much-needed allies and making him one step closer to his goal.
"Goodbye to you too, Mr. Turner!" Waved Ghira as he watched his guest leaving his mansion.
The room went quiet. Ghira waited for a couple of seconds, so the sound of the Commander's steps was no longer audible, before turning around to face the room next to the diner.
"Sienna, you can come out now. We need to have a discussion."
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Sienna emerged from a nearby room. Appearance-wise, he was the opposite of Ghira. Compared to the latter's tall, stocky build, she was very feminine, noticeable shorter with darker skin. Even their clothes stood in opposition of each other, with Ghira's blue and Sienna's red.
"You have funny ideas sometimes, Ghira. When you said that you have found a new ally for our cause, I never thought that you managed to 'recruit' a free military."
"We require an ally, Sienna. This is the thing we need the most. On our own, we lack the means to get what we want. But with some powerful friends from 'the other side,' I believe we can achieve what we seek." So explained Ghira while his new guest sat down next to the dinner table.
"You were always like this, Ghira. You always liked to be open-minded towards humans. But I have said it before, and I repeat it: Do you truly believe that? That we need to peacefully protest like a good second-class citizen, hoping that maybe they will give us the rights we deserve? In my experience, the only thing humans respond to and respect is violence. Otherwise, they pretend to hear us."
Ghira lowered his head a little bit and sighed before he replied.
"I've already heard this speech, Sienna; you have your method, I have mine. We served the same cause in the end. So, I am not going to open an argument about this. My gut tells me the GDI will be the ally we need to finally accomplish our goal. They gave us not just sympathy, but they also showed a willingness to help in the long run. But, for this cooperation to work, I need to ask you a favour: I need you to not needlessly antagonize them or anything that could draw their ire." Ghira maintained eye contact while saying these words.
Sienna remained stoic.
"Ever the idealist one, I see. Fine, I will do for the cause. However, there is a problem. I know someone who would make my promise null."
"You are talking about Mr. Taurus, aren't you?" Ghira crossed his arms.
"Regrettably, yes. Recently, he became more radical and… unstable. He shifted from us and became less receptive to my orders. At this point, I nearly lost control over him, and he may do something to endanger your agreement." Sienna decided not to hide this from the Chieftain.
"Yes, I have rumours about something like this happening in the organisation."
"You know how Adam is. He doesn't like human sympathizers, and he'd sooner test the GDI's resolve." Sienna knew this enforcer well.
Adam Taurus was always the one who was willing to go the extra mile for anything. Even if that meant crossing certain lines that were never meant to be crossed.
"Truly unfortunate. However, this begs the question: Why hasn't the local White Fang attacked the GDI? They are pretty much everything he despises, yet there hasn't been an attack of any kind."
"Not only that but the members still loyal to me reported that he has no plans to do so shortly. Really odd. Either he is waiting for the perfect opportunity, or he knows something we don't." Sienna also had no explanation for this.
After this, the room went quiet. Sienna decided to leave now. She stood up and went towards the main entrance to leave the mansion.
"I hope to the gods that this gamble of yours pays off, Ghira. After all the recent events, our people need a victory. And if this works, then I guess you were right in the end." She waved at him before leaving the building.
The room went quiet again. But, after all the exchange in it, the silence was strange in contrast, which was only interrupted by wildlife since the night had finally come, signaling the nocturnal animals.
Ghira, however, had someone else in his mind. Someone that he didn't mention to either of his recent guests. Someone that he cherished more than anyone else.
"I just hope that you will be all right, Blake. Maybe, if everything comes to pass, I can finally see you again. "
Sorry about the delay. This chapter was more complicated than I expected it to be.
When I started to write this thing, I never thought I would get this far. As of right now, this story has 52 reviews, 92 favourites, and 131 followers. That is huge! At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if this story gets its own Tv Tropes Page. Wink Wink ;)!
But seriously, I am thankful to you all. Writing is tiring but an enriching experience. And I hope I can continue doing it in the future. Your feedback is an excellent source of motivation for me. And while I most likely won't be able to create the most excellent fanfiction of all time, maybe not even in the niche category of RWBY x Command & Conquer crossovers, hopefully, I can write something that will entertain as many people as possible.
Walker Blackstone is an OC belonging to TMDF-Artyom. He was the first to ask me to make room for their OC. If you have one, just send me through PM, and I will see what I can do. I can't guarantee anything, but I will make sure they make a cameo.
Here are the comment replies!
Monster King: Thank you!
frankieu: Thanks! Well, getting allies is something that every leader needs to do.
snipervtk4: Currently, the APC used is the one from Tiberium Wars. As for the others, I can't say anything for sure, but I will try to include as much technology from the other C&C games as possible.
Also, I will try to make room for more tank action in the future.
Dragoon725: Nice suggestions. I will try to implement them in the future.
Warmach1ne32: You helped me a lot when writing this chapter. Thank you! I hope you will have more ones in the future.
Janny092: Thank you for your suggestions. They were a great help in this chapter. The other one was, too.
As for your other comment: Don't worry, I am not planning to abandon my story, not without warning you first.
licklicklick123: Well, you know, a man hast, to be honest with his desires.
Joking aside, I am glad that you are enjoying the story. I hope that I will be able to live up to your expectations.
Existential ERROR: I am not going to hate you for hating the whole messiah thing. It's not everyone's cup of tea.
As for Ozpin: Well, I have to admit, I think RT could have handled him a lot better. Or, at the very least, make him greyer. I have some ideas regarding him, so keep an eye on that. I don't know if this will "fix" him, but I want to make him his own character.
Guest: Thank you!
UndeadLord22: Well, in the story's summary, I have mentioned that there is a possibility of smut in the future.
I have mentioned this to others before, but I have my ideas for Ozpin. Based on what you asked for, I think you will like it.
The next chapter will be released sometime in late February or early March. So, hopefully, I will be more precise at that time.
See you all around!