//------------------------------// // GDI-Evacuation of Santa Cruz 1/2 // Story: The Conversion Bureau: Tiberium Wars // by Jack of Tales //------------------------------// Skies over The Atlantic Ocean. Andrew was sitting in the command chair of the Kodiak, his face in his hands as he waited for the ship’s computers to connect with high command so he could receive updates on what to do next. It had been nearly 3 hours since the attack on the outskirts of France by an alien race of creatures who called themselves ‘ponies’. He had been fortunate enough to evacuate his base during the attack and escape with his life, and humanity. Lots of Pegasus ponies had swarmed in like locusts above the sky and bombarded the place with the strange liquid that turned humans into ponies within a minute. He barely got out of there alive. Some GDI and Nod soldiers volunteered to hold back the ponies for as long as possible. He wanted to help them, he really did, but it was necessary to relay what was happening to GDI Command. Ironically the last he had seen of the base was a Nod extremist, strapped with Tiberium explosives shouting out ‘I will be remembered!’ before killing himself and several ponies around him, with ponies left screaming as shrapnel tore them apart or left them crippled. He was currently onboard the Orca Command Vehicle, a large VTOL craft capable of entering low Earth orbit. It possesses facilities to transport and support troops, including armories and medical bays. It also has a large cargo bay located in the rear section of the ship, with an access ramp located between the aft engines that was modified to be able to hold his Kodiak. The Kodiak was once used by famous GDI Commander Michael McNeil during the Second Tiberium War as a mobile command post and a way to transport his team around the world as needed. During the Firestorm Crisis, the Kodiak was assigned to transport an alien device, known as the Tacitus, from the Nod pyramid in Cairo to the Philadelphia in support of Project Daedalus. The Kodiak crashed in Northern Egypt in the Mediterranean Sea. Its starboard engines were destroyed by a lighting strike. Firestorm Taskforce found no survivors but recovered the Tacitus intact from the aft section. For some unknown reason, Michael McNeil was not recovered from the crash, no trace of him had been found at all, as if he faded into thin air. The ship was recovered years later after the Firestorm Crisis. It was put back together by a handful of engineers then put on display in honor of McNeil. The Kodiak was supposed to be displayed at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington for all time, but Commander Andrew 'borrowed' it during the attack on Washington. Since then, he used it to get around places and to support his troops from above. No one had told Andrew to stop using the Kodiak so he assumed everything was alright or General Granger had cleared it for him. "Connection established, Commander." ATHENA said in its monotone voice as the GDI symbol on the screen before of him flashed several times. "Good. Patch it through." Andrew said relieved as something finally went right. The screen changed to the GDI Command Center in Washington, the familiar blue lighting of the facility putting Andrew’s nerves at ease. Jack Granger’s stone serious face appeared on the screen. "General, my men just got attacked by some strange creatures and their all either dead or changed. I barely made it out of France with half my boys gone and-." Andrew didn’t get the chance to tell the General that he had a few Nod troopers with him as General Granger interrupted him. "I know, Commander." Jack said as he stood by a view screen and it showed a map or Earth, with a new continent. "Just eight hours ago, a new continent appeared in the Pacific Ocean. We sent some forces to investigate this phenomenon for the possibility of some Nod trick, but lost all transmission upon landing. Two hours later this damn pink shield surrounded the continent. It soon started growing. It’s at a slow rate but it's completely decimating Blue and Yellow Zones in the Pacific. We tried everything short of the Ion Cannon to slow it down but it's still growing." "What about the Ion Cannon?" Andrew said. The General shook his head. "We tried to use the cannon, but there was a malfunction in the Ion Control Center in Norway and the cannon is offline for several hours. We suspect Nod sabotage but it’s still unconfirmed. I'll make sure to use it when it's back online. It may just be our last hope of stopping that barrier." His face looked fearful for a moment before he shifted into one of pure determination. "Commander, this is a threat beyond our capabilities and for the moment we are fully on the defensive. We can't strike back against them because of the shield and they are attacking Blue Zones and Yellow Zones everywhere, whether their GDI or Nod. But right now we need to evacuate as many civilians as possible before they get pushed into the Red zones trying to escape the barriers. I'm sending you to Santa Cruz to help in the evacuation of the populace. In-Ops has more on the matter and will send it to you. Good Luck, Commander." With one short salute, the feed was cut. Andrew turned to one of his officers. "Get me a connection to In-Ops." The officer saluted and ran off. Andrew slumped down his chair as he thought. The continent of Equestria was on Earth and the ponies that lived there wanted to completely decimate Humanity, no matter what faction they were of, and convert them into ponies. It didn’t matter how many ponies they killed more would take their place. It was like trying to fight Nod. Suddenly Andrew got an idea. The only way they had ever been able to truly beat Nod had been to kill, or at least supposedly kill, Kane. ‘Maybe if we take out their royal family, we can make the ponies end the war.’ Andrew thought and filed the thought away for another time. "Sir, connection to In-Ops established." He was interrupted from his thoughts by the sound of his subordinate next to him. His left hand danced at the left armrest for a second, typing in a small keypad. The screen in front of him changed to the Combat Intelligent Center, where Kirce James was sitting at a desk. "What do you got for me?" He asked, straightening his clothes quickly to look more presentable for the lovely lady that was before him. A small smile adored her beautiful face. "Commander, I wasn't expecting to hear from you soon." "Surprised?" "Hardly." Her smile soon changed to a frown. "I heard what happen at No Man's Land from the reports. I'm sorry for your loss. I know it’s never easy to lose so many good soldiers." "They did all they could, you can't blame them for their deaths." He sighed and shook his head. "They sacrificed their lives just to get me out. I just wish I was there was more I could do." His face was now more determined. "I won't let their deaths be in vain. I will win this war." "Right." She finally said. "Anyway. Your next mission is simple enough: evacuate the population from Santa Cruz before the Barrier hits. Recon reports show that a large fleet of old Colonial style ships are approaching Santa Cruz harbor, so expect a firefight later on. Several Orcas were able to destroy three ships before the Aircraft Carrier went out of range to avoid the barrier so the enemy threat has been decreased slightly. Other than that, get as many people out as possible." "Thanks Kirce. Andrew out." The screen change to a light blue with a line across it. "ATHENA, direct a course to Santa Cruz. "Affirmative, Commander. Rerouting a course to Santa Cruz. ETA in two hours." “Alright, see if we can’t get some uniforms for the Nod troopers among us and make sure that they know we will return them to Nod turf whenever we can, they have my word on that.” Andrew relaxed a bit on his chair, closing his eyes and letting darkness overtake him. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Santa Cruz California, North America Blue Zone B-2 Not all of North America had been consumed by Tiberium when it first arrived and spread back in 1995. Beside the Eastern Seaboard, the North Western Seaboard was also a large Blue Zone and the only zone that connects to other Blue Zones in the Pacific. It was once a state called California in the North American union called the ‘United States’, otherwise known as the 'Golden State', due to the California Gold Rush of 1847. When Tiberium was first discovered in 1995, its rapid growth threated much of the world. Before GDI found a way to suppress the growth of Tiberium, much of America was covered in Tiberium, with much of the Midwest suffering greatly from Tiberium poisoning. California was the last refuge for the people of America, seeing as most of the other states became either Red or Yellow Zones. This forced many homes to be redesigned and for even artificial islands to be made with the first one being called “Olympus.” It was able to float above water despite its size and weight, thanks to powerful Tiberium powered engines. On the mainland tall, futuristic buildings dominate the city skyline of Santa Cruz. Homes were also futuristic as well, ranging from strange to exotic. But now many of these homes were empty and abandoned. The tall office buildings that once had people working were now devoid of life. The streets that had the sounds of the hustle and bustle of the city had become as silent as a cemetery. At the outskirts of the city, a small outpost was set up, with GDI infantry guiding the remaining civilians to their vehicles. Luckily most of the civilians had been evacuated when the artificial islands just off the coast were warned by GDI high command of what was coming and this advanced warning had allowed the islands to evacuate many people before moving away, leaving the GDI soldiers to take the rest. Onyx and Condor Transports loading up civilians and supplies. A mother was holding a crying baby, trying to calm the child down. She was next in line for the evacuation. Before she got on, a great gust of wind greeted her from behind, blowing her hair in all directions. She looked up to the skies and saw an Orca Command Vehicle making its way to the city with some of the GDI soldiers moving out to go reinforce the front. The Kodiak touched down at a cleared landing zone in a GDI encampment. The camp was bustling with activity as GDI infantry and vehicles preformed tasks. The ramp was lowered as the Kodiak landed and Andrew soon strolled out. The other troopers who evacuated with him walked out as well, along with several Nod soldiers clad in GDI armor and weapons, feeling very nervous surrounded by so many GDI soldiers. An MCV rolled out of the ramp. A GDI trooper ran to Andrew, the two V-shaped stripes on his shoulders indicated that he was a Sargent. He stopped and saluted, panting as if he had been running around all day. "Sir, Sgt. Zale reporting for duty." Andrew returned the salute. "At ease." The commander looked around the camp. "What do we got?" "You need to talk to the Lieutenant about that," Zale began. "I'm just here to take you to him. Follow me." Andrew followed Zale through the encampment, past the many tents that we're there. Not five minutes later, they reached another tent with two guards posted outside. He opened the flap and went inside. A big holographic map of Santa Cruz was displayed from a small table, showing positions of units, how many there were, and the time for the invaders to arrive. Standing next to the table is a red-haired man with blue eyes and grizzled features that looked carved of the finest GDI steel. The Lieutenant saluted him. "Helluva time to show up, Commander. Lieutenant Barron of the Santa Cruz Reserves." "Commander Andrew, 5th Division" Andrew said. Barron smiled. "No shit. The 'Steel Eagle'? Things must be pretty bad if they sent you here just to help me out instead of hunting Nod." He chuckled. "You could say that." His face soon became serious. "So what's the situation?" "We had a reconnaissance flight early and spotted an invasion fleet heading for Santa Cruz." Barron began. "From what they told me, they're old colonial ships made entirely out of wood. They appear to be heading to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk." Andrew raised an eyebrow. "The Boardwalk? Why not the harbor?" "We fortified the harbor with three costal guns and some artillery, but some flying ponies spotted our defenses and escaped. So now we think they're going to attack the Boardwalk." Barron finished. "How many ships?" "27 in total. It had been 30 but the navy took out some before retreating to avoid being surrounded." "When do they get here?" Barron looked the timer on the top left hand side of the holograph. "15 minutes, give or take." The Commander rubbed his chin with his hand in deep thought. "Alright, I want you to aid in the evacuation as much as you can. I'll make sure these 'Equestrian' don't bother you." Barron saluted. "Will do, Commander." Andrew looked at the holographic map while Barron walked out of the tent. "And Commander?" Andrew looked behind him, Barron barely visible through the flap. "Make sure you let them regret ever attacking GDI." Andrew nodded. "I will, Lieutenant." Barron soon left the tent. "I will." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk was and still is (For however long it takes the barrier to destroy it) an oceanfront amusement park in the city. Founded in 1907, it is California's oldest surviving amusement park and one of the few remaining seaside parks on the West Coast of the once glorious United States. People came and went out of the park, having good memories with them with family or friends. It was a spot where many couples met and where love was in the air just as much as enjoyment. Its fun rides, dazzling arcade machines and roller coasters lay abandon for what is to come. Historical landmarks of The Big Dipper and The 1911 Looff Carousel were silence, it's thrills or music never to play again. It was now a battlefield, a first battle between species, a 'survival of the fittest' to the fullest extend. History will be made at the Boardwalk. And whether victory or defeat comes, things will never be the same again. An MCV rolled into the parking lot of the boardwalk, destroying several cars in the process, before parking right outside the Neptune's Kingdom, the MCV unpacked into a Construction Yard. Several troopers from Andrew's command ran into the park, taking positions in various rides to use as cover. The Zone Troopers and riflemen took cover inside of the O'Neil Surf Shop, infantry occupied the Merry-Go-Round, with some of the Nod troopers who had never been in a Blue Zone before admiring the Merry-Go-Round as it was something straight out of the childhood that had been stolen from them by the years of strife following the arrival of Tiberium. Two snipers quickly took positions on top of the Big Dipper, and missile squads occupied the roof of Neptune's Kingdom, ready to shoot down any pesky Pegasi. Sgt. Connor and his men took position on the roof of the Haunted Castle. He shouted to his men. "Alright, we need to hold this Boardwalk to prevent the ponies from breaking through. That means we need to shoot the bastards until they're all dead. Just pretend your breaking your little sister’s pony toys." Connor checked his rifle, as did his fellow men, he frowned and shook his head as he saw a few of the lesser trained Nod troopers looking down the barrels of their own guns. He slipped the magazine under the rifle and racked a round into the chamber. "COMING THROUGH!!!" A voice shouted from above him. He turned around and jumped away before he felt something land down where he had been moments before. Acting on instinct, he pulled out his rifle, expecting it to be an enemy, only to pull his rifle back in anger. The force in question that had knocked the wind out of him was a commando wearing heavy armor with a minigun-type rifle It landed on the roof next to him. "HOWEE!!! Crash and burn, just like my second marriage." "Well fuck me running, I knew you would show up, Anderson." Connor said to the Commando, shaking his head and standing back up. Lt. Anderson was somewhat of a wildcard hero to GDI. Some say that he was the 'Rambo' of GDI, only with a noticeable bloodlust for combat. His actions in fracturing Nod's supply routes in Hampton Roads and participating in the recapture of Washington D.C. earned him the Medal of Honor and GDI Falcon of Valor medal. Connor looked up and down at his new armor. "Now that is some fancy armor. Where did you get it?" "Some eggheads from R&R made this stuff for me." Anderson answered while flexing a muscle. He tapped the chest plate of his armor. "They said it was supposed to stop some of those laser towers Nod used so it should resist the blasts these Unicorns use, at least slightly." Connor sighed and looked towards the sunset. "Some crappy war this turned out to be. First we're fighting Nod again and now some adorable ponies from outer space attack us and try to turn us into more adorable ponies." He had been there when the attack began, leading a strike team away from the frontlines to strike the Nod base. The Pegasus ponies ambushed them, dropping serum on the men. He acted quickly and dropped four of them before retreating back to the base during the main retreat. He was the only survivor of the attack when the ponies swarmed the base. "I think I'm about to lose it. None of this feels real." "Son, don't give up hope just yet." Anderson said, patting Connor on the back. "We've been through a lot of shit together these past months. Remember when we stopped Nod from launching another nuclear warhead in Cairo? We would have lost a lot of people if we hadn't intervened. We lost great men trying to assault the base, but in the end, we did it. That’s just the way war is." He patted him on the shoulder. "What happened wasn't your fault. These ponies just appeared out of nowhere and attack us. You didn't know they would ambush you." If anyone would have seen his face, his face would have looked more determined. "But we can’t dwell on the past now buddy. We got to defend this boardwalk so people can escape. It's time we give them a taste of good old GDI courage." Connor looked at him. "Thanks, man." He turned to his men. "You heard him, let’s give them a taste of GDI courage. Let’s send them all crying back to their Queen crying ‘Mommy mommy! Protect me from the big bad GDI soldiers! Change my diaper mommy cause the big bad humans scared the shit out of me!’" The men cheered for Connor, one of the Nod soldiers firing his rifle in the air and jumping around wildly. Connor looked at the base that was being constructed outside the boardwalk and watched the Engineers running around to get the city systems working for them and Cameras to provide the commander with a better view. The Barracks and War Factory were already online and humming as they tapped into the city’s Tiberium power system. A Command Post was set up as well. Several Surveyors went into the boardwalk and set up in various positions along the boardwalk. Even if they lost the battle, they would make the ponies pay dearly for every inch of land they took. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 10 Minutes Later "Dear God Almighty....." A sniper whispered on the top of the Big Dipper, he kept his eye through the scope and seeing the swarm of ships coming in surrounded by smaller ships the ponies were using as landing craft. The small wooden rafts were being pushed along by a unicorn’s magic. On the horizon, a fleet of wooden ships can be seen through the sniper scope. They carried a flag with an emblem of the sun on the sails. He could also see some Pegasi flying around. The sniper turned on his radio. ""Eagles Nest to command, I'm seeing some ships coming at the boardwalk. There must be a hundred of them." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Affirmative, Eagles Nest. Stay in position and assist as much as possible." Commander Andrew responded. He was currently inside the Command Post at the base infront of a holo map. He brought up a visual holograph of the Boardwalk, showing his base and the enemy fleet. There weren't thirty ships like Barron had said when they first meet, but a hundred or more. “But how?...must be that teleportation thing.” Andrew thougth and inspected the ship images. Tiny red dots hover over the ship, indicating Pegasus ponies flying to and fro. Blue dots in the boardwalk indicate his forces as they set up defenses. "ATHENA, how are our defenses?" "Our defenses in the Boardwalk are online. Lieutenant Barron has turned over costal defenses to you." "Excellent." Andrew responded. He pressed a button on the left hand side. "Attention all units. This is Commander Andrew. The enemy is almost upon us. Our mission is to hold out until the evacuation is complete. Let’s show these aliens what GDI is made of." The sound of cheering was heard over the radio. Andrew looked over the holographic map. The ships almost reached the shore as some of the defense guns opened up farther up and distance away from the boardwalk, blowing three ships in half, sending the pegasi into the sky while the Unicorns teleported to safety, a few lucky Earth Ponies hopped into rafts and began paddling towards the humans, screaming for their blood. In response the ships moved away to be safe from the guns but kept launching wave after wave of ponies towards them. "God help us all now." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- All was quiet on the front, the sounds of the coastal guns was like a thunder storm off in the distance and the GDI soldiers on the boardwalk all kept quiet as they waited for the invaders to make landfall. Vulcan and RPG towers dotted the boardwalk, behind the concrete wall that was set up. Seven Titians and Three Wolverines stood guard at the front. Mammoth Tanks dug into the beachhead, along with several infantry units to keep them from being swarmed. Three Juggernauts stood at the side lines, ready to rain down hell on the ponies. The ships almost reached the shore. Every infantry check there ammo while others pray that they would survive. Men inside the Wolverines checked their twin gatling guns while Juggernauts loaded explosive shells. The first wave of ships soon landed on shore, while the others stayed behind. The first ship soon reached the shore, surprisingly with a white flag drawn, and eight golden armored ponies stepped out, with one silver armored pony taking the lead. Every gun was trained on him and several laser dots appeared on his chest. One pony was different from the others, his coat was light red with a green mane while his horn was a mixture of red and black. The pony cleared his throat. "Attention humans, your pitiful resistance can get you nowhere, it is a waste of time and pointless bloodshed. Surrender now and see Celestia's light and live happily, or perish like the barbarians you are. What say you!?" He called out, right before a sniper shot rang out and the pony dropped dead, a bullet between his eyes and his brains popping out the back and covering one of his subordinates in splatter. Connor looked up to where the shot was fired and saw the sniper inserting a new bullet. "Good shot, son." He said over the radio. The ponies were left shocked to see their commanding officer dead like it was nothing, killed by some invisible force. One pony recovered from the shock and drew his sword. "CHARGE!!!!!" He shouted at the top of his lungs. The ponies charge forward and the other rafts came forward. The dogs of war had been let loose and hell broke loose next. The three Juggernauts fired their rounds at the ponies, killing several in the process. Some weren’t so lucky and were left holding their bodies, crying out as they tried to keep their blood from leaking out. Despite the kills the Juggernauts were getting the swarm of ponies was getting closer and closer to the line, like a tidal wave they trampled over their own dead. Once the ponies were close, infantry opened fired. Mammoth Tanks fired their twin cannons and missiles at the ponies. A Disk Thrower threw a fragmentation disk at a pony, exploding it into a red mist and leaving several others around it confused from the blastwave or holding their ears. Vulcan Towers mowed down any unfortunate pony in it's sights. Some of the Unicorns threw up shields to protect themselves and their comrades, but Zone Troopers with railguns cut through the shield like butter, killing it's caster. After about 10 minutes, the second wave of ponies charged. The ponies let the Unicorn’s go first , creating one large and strong shield to protect the charge as they ran forth, but the shield was cracking and rounds were slipping through for the amount of fire being poured on it. Sgt. Connor killed another Pegasus, his magazine ran dry and he took cover to reload . He loaded in a new mag just before another Pegasus, with a sword in it's teeth, dived in for the kill. He aimed his rifle at the Pegasus and pulled the trigger. Several bullets whizzed past it but one got it in the wing. It went down to the ground screaming before impacting with a 'plop'. He turned around and saw his men and Anderson finishing off the rest of the Pegasi. He looked at the beach and saw the third wave of ponies charging the beachhead. Anderson tapped him on the shoulder. "Hey, check this out." He aimed his minigun at one of the ships coming in. A beam came out of the muzzle of the gun. After five seconds of waiting, a blue light came out of the sky and covered the ship, along with a couple of others. When it ended, there was nothing left but two ships with holes from the right bow and the left bow while the third one disappeared completely. Connor was beyond surprised, he was impressed. "How did you do that?" The Commando smirked under his helmet. "This little beauty has a Target Painter that unleashes an Orbital Bombardment on anything from satellites if they are in orbit. God, I love this gun." Connor watched as the second wave was fully repelled and a third wave began it's charge. "Those ponies must be either stupid or suicidal." "They're probably religious nutjobs like Nod.” “Hey! Not cool!” A Nod soldier shouted out and kept firing back at the ponies. “Either way, they aren't giving up anytime soon." Anderson said. Connor watched as the third wave was being repelled and another wave charged at the beachhead. 'At least this is better than going against Nod' -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN'T DO IT?!?!!??!" Blueblood yelled at a Unicorn who was part of the first wave. He wore a crown atop his head that glowed bright green and added a lime green tint to his eyes. He turned to the unicorn he was enraged at and waited for his excuses. The unicorn in question had a light green coat and a blue mane. His armor was bent and melted to the point it was fused to his skin in some places but he couldn’t feel it anymore, the nerves in those parts no longer worked. His left hoof was missing, leaving him with a bloody bandaged stump. His horn was broken as well. His cutie mark was so scorched that it wasn't visible anymore. He shook his head. "We tried sir, but the humans have the beachhead fortified with those metal beasts they have and some kind of strange magic." Blueblood punched him in the nose, getting his own foreleg coated in blood but unlike his old self he didn’t allow it to bother him. Getting dirty was part of the job. "You are an incompetent stallion, you just had one simple job to lead the troops forward and eliminate the inferior trash that halts our advance. Guards! I want this lot thrown overboard for his cowardice, at once." Two armored ponies grabbed the unicorn despite his protests and pleas for mercy. He was dragged to the left bow of the ship and thrown overboard, with cannonballs tied to his hooves. He yelled for his comrades to rescue him, but they stayed put with their heads down, only hearing a splash and a gurgle. Blueblood cleared his throat. "We have come here to show these barbarian that ponies are superior in every way to them, yet all of you are complaining that they're stronger. They may have technology on their side, but it hasn't stopped us once and I'll be damned if they win this fight." "Lieutenant!" Blueblood shouted and a pegasus pony ran up and saluted him. "I want waves five, six and seven to charge their fronts. Is that clear?" "Yes sir." The Lieutenant answered and flew off. "Captain!!" An earth pony ran up and saluted him. "Fire the cannons on the Boardwalk and the beachheads. I want them obliterated under a constant bombardment." The pony was wide eyed. "But sir, our stallions are down there. We can't kill them." Blueblood glared at the pony. "If you don't do as I say, I'll feed you to the sharks personally. Am I clear?" He said in a frighteningly calm tone the showed how sincere he was. "Y-Y-Yes sir." The pony ran off. Blueblood looked at the boardwalk. "Your time will come, humans. Just wait, soon I will be dancing on your corpses.” He said with a sly grin before holding his head with a headache again. “Soon, soon we will all be perfect.” He told himself over and over again as the battle raged on outside his command room.