Chapter 15
Trust
A pair of explosions thundered over the waving ocean, spewing debris across the remains of Iron Grenadiers and Vipers floating in the bloody waters off the southern coast of Cobra Island. Heaping piles of trashed tanks and aircraft lay strewn across the surf, with the largest piles sitting farthest up the beach and burning the most intensely. The setting sun provided a vivid backdrop to the scenery of destruction.
Streaks of tracer-fire and the smoky exhaust trails from missiles poured back-and-forth through the air, obliterating even more crafts and taking down more soldiers. Despite their intense determination, the few remaining Iron Grenadiers could not make their way more than ankle-deep through the tide. Voltar stood at the side of a massive D.E.M.O.N., with his hand gripping the assault-vehicle's side almost as hard as his jaw was clamped together. Losses had just reached eighty-percent, and Cobra was still pushing him back. That was it. No more favors for Destro; it was time to go.
Picking up a small radio from his pocket, Voltar growled and pressed the transmission button. "This is Voltar, commander of the Iron Grenadier invasion force. To anyone under my command that is still alive: Retreat! I say again: Retreat! All Iron Grenadiers in the vicinity of Cobra Island must break for the ocean and rendezvous at the D.S.S. Anastasia. Retreat!"
Tightly gripping the radio, nearly to the point of crushing the small plastic device, Voltar shoved it back into his pocket and turned to face the sea. Sitting as a faint speck out on the horizon, the Anastasia looked completely impossible to reach, especially in the condition the Grenadiers were in. Times like these were rare. Times of…of failure; when he regretted being so damn loyal to that Scottish psychopath.
Voltar blew his whistle, then fired a volley of bullets with his golden assault rifle. Looking away from the shore, he watched as swarms of Iron Grenadiers—many of them limping or holding on to dangling arms—ran into the ocean waters. The last handful of Grenadier vehicles began popping out of the smoky cloud that hovered over the island.
A pair of A.G.P.s dove from the sky, closely followed by a rather beaten-looking F.A.N.G. II. The black Cobra prop-plane evidently had seen a lot of action today; it was down to its last two missiles, and was intent on using them on the Anti-Gravity Pods. With a deep hissing sound, a missile launched from the F.A.N.G. and raced toward the closest A.G.P. Less than a second later, the pod exploded, raining debris over the D.E.M.O.N. that Voltar still stood next to.
As chips of metal clanked upon his helmet, Destro's General looked behind him and saw his Vulture, Arbe, swoop down from the sky, flap its wings and land on the perch that Voltar kept on his backpack. It was responding to the whistle blow from a few minutes earlier, as it was trained to do. Voltar reached into his pocket and pulled out a food treat for his pet. It was always a little disturbing to see the fresh blood on the vulture's beak—had it come from friend or foe?—but that wasn't important right now.
Another explosion thundered from the sky. Voltar dared to look up, and was surprised to see that it was the F.A.N.G. II that had been destroyed. How the last A.G.P. survived was a mind-boggling question.
"General Voltar!" cried an Iron Grenadier running through the water, "Are we really in retreat?"
Destro's General padded the food treat crumbs from his glove and looked out towards the Anastasia. "Yes, Lieutenant. We are finally in retreat. You'd better drop all of your gear and start swimming."
As Voltar swam away from Cobra Island, the only refreshing thing he noticed was that there were no Cobras of any kind following the Iron Grenadiers.
1.
"Confirmed, Commander Xamot. The Iron Grenadiers are in full retreat!" stated a Tele-Viper holding a pair of very large binoculars.
"Then victory is ours, dear brother!" cheered Tomax from his comfortable position in the battlefield control section of a separated Maggot artillery vehicle.
Standing next to the 155mm artillery cannon station, Xamot did not carry the same enthusiasm that his brother did. "Then why do I feel like we have lost?"
Tomax looked up from the control station with a rare state of confusion over what his brother was thinking about. "Please explain."
"I am pleased that Destro's forces are leaving, but at what cost to us? We have lost three times what the Iron Grenadiers have. They may not know it, but our defenses were about to break. If they had stayed just an hour longer…"
Jumping down from the control vehicle, Tomax wrapped his arm around his twin. "My brother, you cannot dwell on 'What If's?' We survived! The fact is they did not stay, and we won! Enjoy our victory and use it to our advantage!"
Xamot smiled. "I do not think Cobra Commander will be enjoying our victory."
Tomax' joyous mood dampened. "Indeed. Perhaps it would be best for us to return to our offices at Extensive Enterprises…"
"…and leave this debacle for our magnificent leader to clean up? I couldn't agree with you more, dear brother!"
The twins began laughing, and locked arm-in-arm, walked off toward the western shore, where they had wisely kept a Mamba ready to take them home.
Looking at each other in shock, the Cobra Officers now left in charge at the scene threw down their rifles and ran towards the jungle.
It will be months before order is restored in the Cobra armed forces.
2.
Snake Eyes walked briskly through the rain forest, and kept an eye open for crocodiles. Now that there were no longer any explosions coming from the south, he could listen for anything moving through the brush.
His wounds were still tearing at him. They had been mildly repaired during his flight to Guantanamo, but not on the Coast Guard helicopter. The pain-killers he had been given had worn off hours ago. At least now it was over. The Matrix Cannon was destroyed. Cobra Commander was possibly dead. And most importantly of all—at least to Snake Eyes—Storm Shadow was no longer hunting him. Things weren't totally resolved between the "brothers", but at least they could rest for a while and let their wounds heal—at least the physical ones.
And Scarlett. How he missed Scarlett. He would do everything he could to—a hissing sound!
Turning to his right, Snake Eyes caught sight of a black arrow hissing through the air, but he could not escape its path before it stabbed into his right shoulder. Grabbing the arrow, the Joe commando tore it out and aimed his Uzi to the right. Another arrow whisked through the air, but this time Snake Eyes was ready for it, and stepped out of its way, just barely in time. Taking a calculated guess as to where the arrows were being launched from, he fired his sub-machine-gun. A third arrow flew in, but this time he couldn't fully escape it, and it scraped his chest.
Running to a tree for cover, Snake Eyes fired another shot, and watched another arrow fly past him. Feeling that his Uzi was almost out of ammo, he unloaded one more short burst, and this time heard a cry of pain. Knowing for sure where the assailant was now, Snake Eyes dropped the Uzi and slowly unsheathed his katana. He stepped out from behind the tree and was immediately shot in the foot. Now bolted to the ground, Snake Eyes chopped the arrow and slid his foot off of it. Ignoring the pain, the Joe commando ran through the forest towards a large tree about thirty-yards away. Another arrow fired, but the black ninja rolled forward and pinned himself to the trunk of the tree.
A great rustle shook the branches, and a loud thud could be heard on the other side. Snake Eyes raced around the trunk and before the archer could get away, he slashed his back. Screaming out in pain, the assailant fell face-first to the ground.
He was wearing gray camouflage.
Using his unharmed foot, Snake Eyes rolled the body over and confirmed that it was indeed Firefly.
But something didn't seem right.
First of all, Firefly had gotten his ribs shattered by Snake Eyes back in Peru. And second, the Cobra Saboteur had never used bows and arrows before. Something was wrong here.
Looking over to the bow that Firefly had been using, Snake Eyes immediately got his answer. It was a Sonic Bow!
Turning around, Snake Eyes saw Firefly standing behind him. The saboteur pulled his hood off and revealed himself to be Zartan.
"You are quite a difficult shot, Snake Eyes. All Arashikage are, I guess. Still, it's nice to know that I gave your foot quite a scar!"
Gripping his katana even tighter, the Joe Ninja fought the temptation to strike.
"Believe me, I had no desire to attack you. Let's just say Cobra Commander made me an offer I couldn't refuse."
Snake Eyes took a step forward, and Zartan held up his hands. "Hold on, hold on! I can make you a deal! I have some information that you will find very, very useful. Let me go, and you can have it."
Snake Eyes waved his sword, indicating he wanted to listen.
"Good, good." Zartan told Snake Eyes his little secrets, and the masked Joe stepped back in shock.
"Then I can go?" asked the smiling Dreadnok leader. Snake Eyes nodded, but as Zartan walked away, almost laughing, the commando tapped his shoulder with the katana. "Yes?" growled Zartan as he turned. Snake Eyes' roundhouse kick leveled him to the ground.
The Commando ran back to the Terror Drome as fast as he could.
3.
"Out." ordered Destro as he stood in front of the Terror Drome's exit. The Scottish lord backed up as Overlord and Cobra Commander hesitantly obeyed his command and walked out onto the concrete roadway that encircled the battle station.
"Excellent. Now, Overlord, drop your weapon and step away from the Commander."
Pressing his Uzi harder against the Commander's head, Overlord glared at Destro. "You don't really think I'm going to let this bastard live, do you?" The sound of an assault rifle cocking forced Overlord to turn his head to the right, where he saw Baroness aiming a Viper rifle at him.
"Yes, actually, I do." replied Destro.
Desperately trying to ignore the feel of the sweat trickling down his forehead, Overlord stepped forward and wrapped his left arm around Cobra Commander's neck. "I'll make sure that if I go down, then so does he!"
"Tsk, tsk, Overlord! And I thought you were made of sterner stuff." teased Destro.
Overlord heard a scruff behind him, but before he could turn around to see what it was, Grunt smashed the butt of his rifle into the back of the Cobra traitor's head. Overlord slumped to the ground, and Cobra Commander hobbled away as fast as he could. Grunt stepped on Overlord's wrist, knelt down and pulled the Uzi out of his hand.
Cobra Commander weakly took a hunched stance at Destro's side. "Excellent work, my friend and eternal ally, Destro!" The Iron Grenadier Leader frowned. "Now, kill that traitorous fool immediately! And when you're done with him, finish off that Joe."
"Destro, you can't--!" griped the Baroness, but her lover raised his hand to silence her. He turned to his former ally and glared. Swinging the back of his left hand, he knocked the weakened Cobra ruler to the ground.
"What do you think you are doing?"
"Cobra Commander, do you honestly think I came here to save you? You truly are a fool." Aiming his pistol at the Head Snake, Destro's arm began to shiver. "You used me to build the Matrix Cannon, stole the design, nearly had me killed in Peru, then left me to my fate against the Joes."
"Destro, I would never--!"
"Shut up! I'm not even finished! I nearly lost the Baroness trying to build that infernal weapon for you. And worst of all, forgive me for saying this dear Baroness, but worst of all, my army lies in ruins thanks to this insipid assault on your accursed little island!"
"You attacked me! We could have made a deal!"
Destro grabbed the Commander by the neck. "Deal? Deal?" he screamed. "You did everything you could to keep me away from the Matrix Cannon! How do I know you didn't even try to kill me?"
"That's…that's absurd! I would never betray you…Destro."
"Ha!"
"P-please, Destro. I'll…I'll replace your army. For free!"
4.
Grunt shook his head as he listened to Destro scream with rage. He could swear he saw steam pouring from the big guy's ears. What was more impressive was watching Cobra Commander snivel like the coward he truly was.
Doing what he felt was his civil duty, the Infantry Trooper began dragging Overlord's limp body over to the Terror Drome and sat it up against the side. Looking over to the eastern roadway, Grunt jumped in surprise as he saw Hawk, Crankcase and Mainframe walking down the road. The Infantry Trooper ran over to his fellow Joes.
"Hawk!" whispered Grunt as he cautiously approached the General.
"Grunt! Good to see you."
"Shhh…" ushered Grunt as he put his finger to his lips. "It's getting nasty over there. I don't think we should be exciting things any."
Hawk studied the scene with a raised eyebrow. "What's the situation?"
Grunt turned around and sighed. "Destro is asking ol' Fang-Face to stand up for his crimes. I have to admit, I've never seen chrome-dome so mad before."
"It looks like the Matrix Cannon got taken out." said Crankcase.
"Yeah." confirmed Grunt. "Destro was not too happy about that."
"Good." said Hawk, who looked over to the fighting terrorists standing just a few yards away. "This is our chance, men. Cobra's leaders are right here, ready for arrest. Perfect."
"Hawk!" called a voice from behind. The team turned around and saw Bazooka running up the road.
"Bazooka? What are you doing here?" asked the General. "You're wounded!"
"I…I had to help. You need all the help you can get."
Hawk looked at the panting missile trooper, then shrugged his shoulders. "Well, you're here. I don't want to grab these guys while they're so mad. Let's take a look inside that Terror Drome while Cobra Commander and Destro fight for a little while."
"D-Destro?" Bazooka began watching the confrontation with intense fascination.
The Joe team walked up to the entrance of the Drome, but before they entered, Grunt noticed something was wrong.
"Hey. Where are Mainframe and Bazooka?"
To add panic to a disturbing question, the sound of a woman screaming filled the air. The Joes spun around to see the Baroness running towards Mainframe and Bazooka—who had their arms wrapped around Destro and were strangling him!
"Get off of him you animals! Leave my precious Destro alone!" She started beating at Bazooka with the butt of her rifle, but he pushed her to the ground, where she smacked down hard on the concrete. Seeing his lover get hurt only enraged Destro further.
"I do not know why you have chosen to attack me like this, but I will not allow you to harm the Baroness!" Destro heaved off Mainframe and swung a hard punch into Bazooka's face. The Joes fell to the ground…but then stood right back up, as if nothing had happened to them. Bazooka wiped the blood from his mouth and ran for Destro's waist and latched on. Mainframe picked up a tree branch from the ground and smacked the Lord of Castle Destro hard in his metallic facemask.
"What is going on?" inquired Destro. "They're like zombies!"
Behind him, Cobra Commander began cackling. As he painfully picked up the Baroness' dropped assault rifle with one hand, he took a few steps back. "For all intents and purposes, they are, Destro."
"What are you talking about, you fool?"
"I knew that you would throw a fit about my use of the Matrix Cannon. I'm not the fool you take me for. As a safety plan, I took two of the Joes we captured in Peru and had them mentally programmed to kill you on sight. That way—"
"That way you could blame the Joe team and laugh all the way to the bank!" snarled Baroness.
Destro dropped to one knee as the weight of the Joes began to overwhelm him. "Damn…you…Cobra Commander."
"I am very proud of the Medi-Viper unit I had in Peru. They were very skilled in the art of brainwashing. But I'm afraid the Joes are of no more use to me now." The Head Snake aimed the rifle at the pile of fighters, and took aim.
Baroness attempted to step up and stop the Commander, but her pelvis was in too much pain for her to even stand up. "Stop, Commander! I'll give you whatever you want!"
"You don't have anything I want, you traitor." The Leader of Cobra began to squeeze the trigger, but as he did, a rock pelted the side of the rifle. The gun fired, but its aim was knocked far off.
"What the hell is going on?" barked Cobra Commander. He turned his head right to see who had thrown the rock, and was immediately smashed in the faceplate by a five-pound chunk of concrete. His head snapped back and he crashed to the ground; the assault rifle skidded away from him across the concrete.
Baroness turned to see who had thrown the rocks, and Snake Eyes ran past her. The commando grabbed Mainframe and threw him off of Destro. He then knocked him out with a swift kick. Bazooka was kicking the Iron Grenadier, when Snake Eyes grabbed him from behind, lifted him into the air and carried him over to Mainframe and pushed him to the ground. Before he could get back up, Snake Eyes punched him and he slumped onto Mainframe's body.
Hawk walked over to Snake Eyes, who was now hunched over and grabbing his stomach. "It's a good thing you came along when you did, Snake Eyes. I assume you knew about the Commander's brainwashing scheme?"
Snake Eyes nodded, then moved his finger in a "Z" motion.
"Z?" asked Grunt. "Zartan? He told you about the plan?" Nodding again, Snake Eyes looked over to Bazooka and Mainframe. Grunt walked to and knelt by his teammates. "When we found them in a medical lab back in Peru, I had wondered if Cobra had done something to them, but I never considered they'd be used for internal backstabbing; but I guess that's what the big snake is best at, right?"
Hawk put his hand on Grunt's shoulder. "Don't kick yourself too hard. There's no way you could have known what was going to happen." Looking over to Destro, who was slowly rising up from the ground, the General frowned. "So now what? I can't just leave you here to kill the Commander. You should all be taken prisoner."
Dusting himself off, Destro shook his head, then froze, grabbed his neck and groaned. "Don't worry, General. Despite what has happened to me, I have to intention of killing the fool. My business arrangement with him will change, however."
"Why stay tied with Cobra? M.A.R.S. could be a legitimate company."
"It's time for you to leave, General."
"Excuse me? You're not exactly in the position to make demands."
"Aren't I? For all intents and purposes, you and your team are stranded on this little hellhole, with no way off unless I provide you the transportation."
Hawk almost laughed. "I think we can find a method of transportation and 'borrow' it."
Destro smiled. "I think the hundreds of Cobra Vipers making their way up from the southern shore at this very time will make that a very difficult task. I can only assume that they are extremely frustrated from fighting my Iron Grenadiers for so long, and if they see a small, wounded group of G.I. Joes to pick on…"
Sighing, Hawk swung his rifle over his shoulder. "I get your point. We'll leave. Any transportation to offer us?"
Destro looked to the north. "There is a small airfield up north. There are no planes, but you may find some F.A.N.G. helicopters or Flight Pods."
"Thanks." Bazooka and Mainframe were picked up, and the Joe team began walking away, but Hawk stopped next to Destro and stared at him. "Just remember this: if you or Cobra Commander build another Matrix Cannon, we will hunt you down with a license to kill. No mercy."
"After what the Commander has done to me regarding the Matrix Cannon, I have no intention of allowing its construction ever again." promised Destro.
"Good." With that, the Joes began their retreat from Cobra Island.
Baroness crawled over to Destro and asked, "You mean that? You will never build another Matrix Cannon?"
Destro knelt next to his lover and picked her up. "Of course not, my dear. But I can't let my enemies…" He looked over to Cobra Commander. "Or even my 'friends' know that."
After kissing the Baroness, he walked over to the Commander, looked down at his twisted unconscious body, and smiled.
5.
Doc and Chuckles gently set Alpine behind the scrap metal wall that Law and the Navy Seamen had been constructing for the last hour. It was built of chunks of A.S.P. parts that the men had been breaking apart, and was finally large enough to protect Scarlett, Dial-Tone and Alpine from the sunlight. Of course, the sun was almost to the horizon now, but it had helped for a while.
Law was happy that Hawk had found him with Chuckles and the others on the roadway, but was disappointed that he was sent back to the beach to help Doc. He was itching for a good fight with some Cobras, although he'd never admit that to Grunt, especially after what he said to him by the road. One thing was for sure, Law really missed his dog, Order.
"How is everyone, Doc?" asked the MP.
"They're doing fine, now that the heat's going down."
"Great."
Doc sighed and looked toward the ground. "I should never have let Bazooka go. His wounds were too severe."
"He was determined to help Hawk find the others. You stopped his bleeding. I'm sure Hawk will keep him out of trouble."
"That guy…" sneered Alpine, "That guy is too much of a numbskull to…stay out of trouble."
"You stay quiet and get some rest. You're lucky you're not in a coma." warned Doc.
A soft humming noise caught Law's ear, and he looked north. A Trubble Bubble rose over the palm trees and closed in on the eastern shore. Following closely behind it was a pair of F.A.N.G. helicopters. They had been equipped with cots on both sides. Law drew his pistol, but a Navy ensign ran up to him and called out. "They're our guys! It's General Hawk!"
Law, Chuckles and Doc ran over to the Flight Pod as it landed, blowing sand in every direction. Hawk stepped out from the flight seat, trying to wave dust from the air.
"Hawk! It's great to see you!" cheered Chuckles. "But I didn't expect to see you in Cobra equipment!"
"No time for pleasantries, Chuckles. Cobra wants us off this island, fast. We've secured a hydrofoil and pair of Water Moccasins up on the north shore, but time is a factor. Let's get the injured secured onto the F.A.N.G.s and get them back first. Then we'll have to start shuttling everyone as fast as possible. Let's go!"
In less than an hour, the Joes and Navy Seamen were all crammed onto the Moray and Moccasins, splashing through the Gulf of Mexico back towards the United States of America.
6.
"Wha-what happened?"
"Ah, Cobra Commander! So good to see you up and around again."
"Destro? Oh no!"
"Oh yes!" The head of M.A.R.S. walked over to the table that the Commander was lying down upon. "We have some discussion to ensue."
Placing his shaky hand on his faceplate, the Head Snake tried to look away. "Look, I'm sorry about building a Matrix Cannon, honestly. Can we just let this whole thing go?"
Destro pounded his fist on the table. "Over eighty-percent of my private army is destroyed, and you want to let bygones be bygones? Absolutely not!"
Sitting up, Cobra Commander winced in pain and grabbed his leg. "Look, Destro, Despite what has happened between us today, I know that we can still be friends. After all, we are both men of abundant wealth and power. I happen to have a more generous supply of the former."
Destro slowly shook his head. "You have lost an important outpost in Peru, and your Cobra Island forces are nearly in ruins, yet you ignore these facts? What kind of a fool are you?
"As I said before, Destro, I am not the fool you take me for. With all the war going on in the world, I have become a very wealthy man, selling arms and provoking chaos wherever I can. Needless to say, Cobra is as rich and powerful as it has ever been, and…well, it needs to grow." The Commander reached out his hand. "It needs you, Destro. It needs your wonderful weapons. Don't abandon our alliance. Not yet. Not when you are so close to achieving your goal of keeping mankind in a constant state of war."
Destro stood in silence, studying the faceless titanium-steel plate looking back at him. Was there a sneer behind the metal, or an honest look of hope? Cobra Commander was not a man known for his honesty—after all, hadn't he just tried to kill Destro? And he knew how to manipulate men, that was for damn sure.
"One thing that always impresses me, Commander, is just how incredible of a salesman you are. It is a fact that I often forget, but you always remind me just when all my respect for you has vanished." Destro turned around and walked towards the door. "Our alliance stands, my dear Cobra Commander, but my price has gone up. You will replace my army, after which you will pay thirty-percent more for all future purchases from M.A.R.S."
After a short sigh, the Commander nodded. "Very well, Destro. But I hope that you remember Cobra is my organization, under my control. I am free to do with it as I so desire."
"Granted." Destro turned around to stare at the Cobra Leader. "But not with weapons that you steal from me. Understood?"
"Fine." Destro began walking out of the room, but before he was fully into the hallway, the Commander called out, "Get me a Medi-Viper!"
Destro punched the wall and proceeded out of the Terror Drome.
7.
Snake Eyes sat at the starboard-stern side of the Moray. Scarlett laid on his lap, but was not asleep. Rest really wasn't an option, considering how loud the hydrofoil's jet engine was; but at least they were moderately comfortable.
Scarlett looked up at her lover and feigned a smile. Snake Eyes wiped a tear from her eyes. "I'm…I'm sorry, Snake Eyes. It's just that…these last couple of weeks have been hell. On both of us. On the whole team. I'm just glad that it's over." She laughed at the ridiculous statement she just made. "Well, at least it's put on pause for a while." She looked back down. "I hope that things truly have calmed between you and Storm Shadow." Snake Eyes nodded and pet her hair.
Chuckles squirmed to the back of the boat and knelt down. "Hey guys. Man, there are just too many people on this thing. Walking around is a bit tight."
"What do you need, Chuckles?" asked Scarlett with a huff.
The Joe undercover trooper spread a huge grin across his face. "I just wanted to let you guys know that Hawk made contact with a cruiseship less than thirty knots away. Looks like we'll be goin' home in style."
Scarlett smiled back. "You know, that's the kind of news I really needed to hear." Chuckles looked at Snake Eyes, who gave him a "thumbs up".
"Alright then. I'll leave you two lovebirds alone." Chuckles stood up and walked away.
"Even better news." teased Scarlett, who dug her head deeper into Snake Eyes' chest, and managed to fall asleep.