Batman/Command & Conquer: Red Gotham

By Christopher W. Blaine

e-mail: darth_yoshi@yahoo.com

http://darthyoshi.topcities.com

DISCLAIMER: Batman and related characters and situations are ©2003 by DC Comics Inc./Yuri and related characters and situations are ©2003 by Westwood Games. All are used here without permission for fan-related entertainment purposes only. All original content is ©2003 by Christopher W. Blaine.

CHAPTER 7

Private Jones popped a piece of chewing gum into his mouth and offered the pack to Corporal Stein. The senior man begged off and turned to Corporal Nadir. "You want some gum?" he asked.

Nadir checked his weapon for the hundredth time and shook his head. "Got no time to chew," he said in his best impression of the 80's actor Mr. T. They were hold up inside a small concrete bunker at the very edge of the Allied sphere of influence. Outside was the Korean flag. Allied protocol called for flags of all member states to be flown on bases when possible. In the week and a half that the Commander had been in charge of what was now known as the "Bat Base", he had made an effort to put some legitimacy into the command. "You two morons had better be keeping an eye out," Nadir reminded them. He was the senior man in the bunker and therefore by default the man in charge. "Those Soviet dogs are out there, I can smell them."

Nadir, like the other two men, had a passionate hatred for the Soviets. Originally from Egypt, he had watched in horror as the communist war machine had overrun his country's defenses and forced what soldiers that could escape to flee into hated Israel. Even though the two nations had been officially at peace since the 1970's it did nothing to overcome thousands of years of cultural differences.

Then the Soviets had attacked Israel and now Nadir and Stein, neither of them Americans, were now helping a young black man from Harlem protect Gotham City. "I don't see how you can smell anything with that harbor air," Jones commented as he took a whiff. Gotham harbor was close enough that its scent carried well. Never the cleanest of places, the Soviets had used it as a dumping ground for everything from industrial waste to dead bodies. The water wasn't fit to drink much less smell. Jones smacked his lips. "I swear, it tastes like old pus—"

"Enough, private," Stein warned with a smile. He liked Jones and he had to admit that he liked Nadir. Unfortunately, they were all grunts and their likes and dislikes would never make national policy. "You hear that?"

Nadir brought his rifle up and put it at one of the gun ports while he looked through a small viewfinder. Ahead of them was the highway leading into Gotham proper and some woods on either side. It was late enough in the morning that there was no fog and he considered radioing to headquarters to ask for a check of the area. The spy satellite link had been established the day before and the entire area was open to them.

As of on cue, the Commander's voice came over the small radio in the bunker. "Point Alpha, this is Command: something is coming your way. I've got some little red dots swarming towards your position and to the west. Let me know what you see."

Nadir responded and then ordered the other two men to check their weapons. "Sounds like drones," he said coldly. Terror Drones were small, four-legged robots that were programmed to read the bioelectric fields of living creatures and the magnetic signatures of vehicles. In the case of Allied soldiers, they were quite adept at living up to their name. Once they came within range of their target, they would leap into the air and drive their legs deep into the flesh of their victim. They would them stab at over a hundred times a minute with each one, reducing the screaming soldier, citizen or even the occasional cow into a bloody paste.

In vehicles, they normally attached themselves to the outer shell and dug their way inside. Sometimes they killed the occupants before dropping small explosives throughout the machine until it exploded. Fortunately, they were often times destroyed at that time, but sometimes they weren't. It wasn't uncommon to have a single Terror Drone taking down four or five tanks before being turned into burnt parts.

You could always tell when the drones were around, though, because their little legs made the most awful scurrying sound as the moved around. Then, as they attacked, a special audio file played that sounded like a pig being slaughtered. All in all, they were mechanical demons from a Russian hell.

It was only a minute or so later that a pack of six of the drones came up over a small rise in the highway. Nadir took careful aim even as he brought his radio up and made a report. The Commander acknowledged. "I'm issuing orders to three combat patrols to move forward along with some machine-gun IFV's."

"Acknowledged," Nadir whispered. It was natural for him not to speak for that was the first reaction of anyone who was terrified. He would not shirk his duty and he was glad to feel Stein's hand on his shoulder.

"I got your back, my friend."

Nadir suppressed a giggle as he could only imagine what his brother, Allah protect him, who was now recovering in a Syrian hospital, would think about this. All of his life, Nadir had been taught to hate the Zionists and he had very little respect for Americans. When they had first been put together, the three men had not spoken a word to each other. Combat, spilling enemy blood and the realization that getting closer to God was more of a reality than you liked to admit made strange bedfellows indeed.

Yet, Nadir, who had been decorated twice for bravery in battle, could think of no other people he would rather slaughter Soviet scum with. "Best to watch my front; that is where the Terror Drones are at."

"Mother…damn!" Jones said in an excited voice. He was on their left, looking out into the woods. They all heard the hum of internal combustion engines and they could just make out the red and white paint of some sort of Soviet vehicle. "Flak trucks!"

Nothing more than a heavy-duty truck with a small troop compartment and a large gun mounted in the back, the flak vehicles were common in the Soviet arsenal. Normally they were sent in first to establish an air defense perimeter or to take in engineers who would try to overtake structures. Because most structures were automated, it made them extremely vulnerable to being commandeered. There was no other way, however, there simply were not enough people to continue the war effort with their blood and sweat.

Nadir radioed the presence of the trucks and then returned his attention to the drones, which had stopped just outside his firing range. "I wish we had a sniper," he whispered. The British trained the best snipers in the world but that did them no good right now.

"We could call in an air strike," Jones suggested. Nadir was ahead of him but the Commander denied the request. "Eye in the sky says there is a whole squad of flak troops sneaking up as well. I'm moving a reserve squad of tanks…"

The transmission was cut off as several Soviet conscripts leapt out of the flak trucks and scrambled over the bushes and fallen trees that were only a few yards from their position. "Incoming!" Stein cried out as he returned fire. A lucky shot had taken out Nadir's radio. "We're under attack!"

Both sides started trading gunfire but it was the Allied troops that had the advantage of walls and other protection, while the poor Russian draftees had only their uniforms to keep the hot lead from their hearts. The Allied soldiers kept firing and enemy soldier after enemy soldier fell to the ground.

Little did the three men know that the common footmen being thrown at them were nothing more than a diversion as several more Terror Drones raced by in the confusion.

The second line of defense before getting to the actual property that Wayne Manor sat on was a horse farm that had once belonged to a member of the Du Pont family. The buildings were mostly gone, having been brought down as target practice for the Soviet tank brigade stationed in Gotham City.

Here the Commander had stationed a fire line consisting of several tanks and IFV's. There was also a small airfield on the property that the Commander had been using to secretly ferry in paratroopers to supplement his forces. He had been trying to get the materials together to build another MCV (Mobile Construction Vehicle) to create what he coined as a "Diversionary Base". The idea was to build a base that would be an inviting target and would cause the Soviets to deviate away from the true base. Unfortunately, it appeared that the raw materials in this part of Gotham County had already been stripped for the most part. Their only hope was to find real funds to purchase the materials needed and have them air-lifted in. Those materials would be dropped in large crates that would later be gathered up by Allied forces.

The Terror Drones, fifteen in all, stopped a good hundred yards from the line of vehicles. Behind the tanks and IFV's, soldiers scurried about, jumping into small sandbag barricades. There were no buildings here for protection; this was simply a line fashioned in the style of the battles of old. Two sets of forces facing each other down.

Suddenly overhead four Harrier jets came down out of the clouds and headed towards the line of Terror Drones. They launched their surface-to-ground missiles and then, in unison, veered off to head back towards Wayne Manor and their landing pad where they would be immediately reloaded.

Three of the little robots exploded and several more were damaged. The fourth set of missiles struck a tank that was coming up over a rise, slowing it down.

In his command headquarters, with the Batman standing next to him, the Commander used his computer to relay orders to various forces spread out over a large area. Batman was silent next to the Commander, realizing that there was very little he could do at this moment. He knew he was out of his league as far as this battle and to be sure, he had no desire to simply sit back and let the Soviets overrun his ancestral home.

So, the little robots and the Allied soldiers were going to fight and the Batman was completely useless. He could not stop the bloodshed and already he had engaged in several heated debates with both Batgirl and the Atom on the subject.

Batgirl wanted the restraints taken off. She argued that the laws of society did not apply when that society was no longer a factor. The Atom's argument was more pragmatic: the only way to end the violence was to use greater violence.

Robin said nothing, loyal as always, and simply stood in the back of the room. Several of the former GCPD officers that worked with Batman were also eager to join in the fighting. The Caped Crusader was sure that there was another way.

As the remaining Terror Drones scurried towards the defensive line, he just wasn't sure that was true anymore.

"This crap-trap is falling apart around us!" Jones cried out as he slammed a clip home into his assault rifle. The small bunker they were in was indeed in dire need of some major renovations, Nadir thought as another bullet managed to get in through one of the new holes in the wall. Their problem was the huge Apocalypse tank sitting outside.

There were also several troops still out there. Stein said a curse. "Damn it! Where are those IFV's?"

Jones stopped firing long enough to squint past the gun smoke. "I think I see some flames just on the other side of those trees. Looks like our reinforcements ain't coming!"

"Allah protect us because those vehicle-jocks cannot!" Nadir replied. He quickly surveyed the quickly decaying defenses and made a command decision. "We must pull back to the next defensive line!"

"I can see why you're in charge," Stein said with a wry grin as he threw down his rifle. It had jammed on him and he had been unable to clear it. He produced a 9mm Beretta. "Lead the way, Corporal."

Jones moved over to the heavy steel door that secured the bunker and quickly threw the four latches that held it in place. With a nod from Nadir, he yanked the door open and Stein hopped out, his weapon in front of him. A single Terror Drone was waiting for them, but it had a damaged front leg and simply stood there, sparking. Two shots ended its artificial life.

"Move!" Nadir called out, pushing Jones out of the bunker. Both men ran up the small stairs to ground level and were immediately met with gunfire. At least six more conscripts had joined the twenty or so that were already forming a skirmish line in front of them.

Jones ran towards the sandbags that they had put up just ahead of the Soviet fire. Stein was almost there when he took a bullet to the thigh. He went down hard and Nadir ran to pick him up. "I swear you are getting too fat!" Nadir cursed as he tried to heave his friend up.

More tanks drove by, ignoring the soldiers and moving to engage the other line that the Commander had put up. Nadir shoved Stein down into the sandbag pit and hopped down behind them as well. "This ain't good!" Jones cried out. He fired and two conscripts went down but several more were able to get by. "They're flanking us!"

Nadir reached for Stein's radio. "No batteries," the wounded soldier said with gritted teeth.

The Egyptian-born soldier was about to admonish the other man when he felt something intrude into his mind. It was like a dagger stabbing deep into the very center of his soul. He felt his memories and experiences pouring out as if he were bleeding.

He did not see the Yuri clone standing just behind a group conscripts, greedily rubbing his hands together as he supped upon Nadir's psyche.

To his credit, Nadir tried to fight off the artificial human's control over him. He prayed silently to Allah for power and strength, to allow him to remain a soldier in the cause of goodness. The Soviets represented a world devoid of God and therefore were the guardians of hell.

But he was only a man and he knew that there had been times in his life when his faith had faltered, when he had made the mistakes that a man inevitably would. The Yuri clone discovered Nadir's shame and amplified it a million times over. In a matter of seconds, the man that Nadir had been, a good man who loved his God and his people and his culture, a man who wanted to create a new world where everyone would have the opportunity to hear about the glories of Paradise, was gone and replaced with merely an extension of a most evil mind.

Nadir killed both Stein and Jones, a single shot from his own pistol to each man. The Yuri clone cackled with glee and sent a telepathic message to his "father". Yuri replied that he had no time to listen to reports about individual encounters. He needed to see the true strength of the Allied defenses around the mansions of Bristol and therefore evaluate the general in charge of the enemy forces.

The Yuri clone was not happy with the rebuke and sent a command to Nadir to shoot himself. Minutes later, several conscripts trampled over the three bodies on their way to engage the main Allied line.