Tour de Allegheny

Roleplay Library Unsorted RP
,
61

Walking into the woman’s bathroom, Vaeda found Cassandra messaging Brandon. She smiled as Cassandra initially tried to conceal the conversation until she saw who had entered.

“Hello Miss Desanti,” Cassandra spoke, finishing her message to Brandon.

“What really happened to him? He could not have fallen, it is too traumatic of an injury. It seems more to me that he was beaten. But why? I am certain this was not a move against Mahanoy or whoever did this would have ensured Brandon died. It seems much more personal, something between him and…you, perhaps? I can see whatever is going on is meant to be keep private between you two, but I need to know Cassandra. I cannot file my official report clearing this incident unless I really know what is going on,” Vaeda smiled sadly, a look of empathy in her eyes. She felt remorse for them, felt their pain and the secrets kept between them, and it showed in the soft way she placed her hand over Cassandra’s wrist.

62

Cassandra didn’t know why she trusted these people, giving them secrets about herself and letting them have insight into her country. She was slipping, she thought about saying no but instead handed Vaeda the phone to let her read the messages.

“I don’t know whats happening here anymore, ever since we entered this alliance the status quo has changed. He was assaulted by my second in command who revealed what he thinks of foreign influence in Allegheny in a meeting not to long ago, i must tell you though that what I just said is nothing but an educated guess, I agree his injuries are to severe for it and he has also lied to me. The truth is Miss Desanti, I have gained a… I have… Well to put it quite simply I have fallen in love with Brandon and he with me. And now there are certain people who have taken offense, my second in command being one of them. I don’t know how deep this goes or what else is infected. All I know is that they are threatening him with hurting me and my sister.”

63

Vaeda handed the phone back to Cassandra and pulled the woman into a hug. “He loves you dearly Cassandra. I know that you believe this. Know though that for someone like him that is a very special bond to have. He has a special skill set in Mahanoy that has earned him his name. He is a master of deception, one of our best. Seeing the man experience a true feeling is quite astonishing. I know you must be a very special woman indeed to bring Brandon back to a truth. He has been playing facades for a long time, he needs someone like you. I am very glad to welcome you among our family. Mister Dinardeau worked very closely with my family for many years. I have come to know him personally. It warms my heart to see him happy. He may be in physical pain now, but I know he would have it no other way if it meant that you were around.”

Pulling away Vaeda smiled again, “My job as an ambassador is not official. I just happen to spend much of my time here in The East Pacific. I am actually a healer. I spent my younger years training to become a doctor. My childhood is haunted by war. It is why I believe so strongly in what Mahanoy is attempting to do here. I do not endorse war, but Mahanoy promotes bloodless wars. They believe in outsmarting their opponents rather than just crushing them with brute force. We are all not there yet but young men like Damon Diehl will bring us forward to a new style warfare. I will contact Damon to help your sister and her family and they will stay with me Cassandra. If all goes well I believe we can place them under the protection of EPTO. I know that Brandon is allying our nations under another alliance here. This places our nation in a difficult position but I have to trust Brandon is acting on something he believes strongly in and I can only hope it does not destroy us in the end. Know that while I may represent EPTO in our General’s absence that I am speaking as a Mahanionian foremost right now. The last thing I want to see our nations tear each other apart…not when Brandon is so confident there is much we can do to help each other. I respect the man. He may have not always been the most honest person, but he certainly always fought for what he believed in and that is the Mahanionian way. In some ways, we value the man who is wrong when he fights for what he believes in. Now I must return. Damon will take some time locating and prepping for the mission. His intel agent will contact you on this number. Her name is Tresia. She is a very trusted person, I can personally reassure you that you can trust her with any information you give her, but she is going to inquire about sensitive materials and information. I want to give you a warning so that you are not questioning her when this happens. The databases she uses are locked to even our own nation. Damon’s team operates as an independent unit and their resources are protected by technology that is not quite mainstream even in Mahanoy. I say this all to tell you that they can be trusted and that my government does not have access to the information you give them. If for some reason this mission fails, Damon will take responsibility…do not worry about the implications it might have on falling back on you,” Vaeda finished with a wink as she left the bathroom, leaving her phone with Cassandra so she could maintain private contact with Brandon.

64

“Master of deception?!” She screamed in her own head. “Have I been played? What if Shepherd was right?” The words played threw her head. A master of deception would have no problem manipulating her. But what if it was real, she certainly thought it to be real, the way he made her feel loved was to real too her to be fake, but if he was a master of deception then he would have no problem faking it. She had revealed her most vulnerable spots to him. She felt angry at how stupid she could be, she was a failure. “Master of deception you say? Is that what he is?” She said stopping Vaeda from leaving the bathroom. “So what, you send him here, order him to take advanatage of my vulnerabilities with his charm and what do you gain?”

“Bloodless war? Is that what this is? How could we have been so foolish. But… there must be some sort of catch. You wouldn’t reveal this information to me this early in the game. No.” The last sentence was her questioning herself out loud. She didn’t know if this was real or not. Her head spinned, she was angry at herself, she may have just handed her nation over to them all on account of her vulnerabilities.

65

Walking over, Vaeda gently took Cassandra’s hand who out of confusion only allowed the woman to touch her. Feeling Cassandra’s pulse increase as she tried to soothe the woman, she guided Cassandra to the ground to sit, “here, sit, it will help lower your blood pressure and calm you.”

Sitting aside Cassandra, Vaeda rubbed her back while Cassandra seemed to war within her mind. She could feel the tension in Cassandra, the energy radiating off her. She was taking a gamble, Cassandra might lash out on her, but she needed to try.

“My dear, please…” Vaeda’s tone was soft, barely above a whisper, "he is not fooling you, he is fooling the others. The only facade Brandon is playing right now is being weak. The man is a Mahanionian and he passed our yearly reviews at the top bar since he first joined the military. I say this because the only person he is attempting to fool has to be the person who did this to him. He wants whoever did this to think he is weak. My dear, I can tell you one thing for certain, he loves you. He was so disappointed when he thought I was you and only found that I was not. When he heard your voice, I could feel his own heart skip a beat in anticipation. Cassandra, that is real, that cannot be faked.

Vaeda smiled softly, “I have nothing to hide from you. I may have been taken in by Mahanoy, but I was never born there and I never quite felt at home there. I feel more comfortable about the world, not trapped within the confines of that military nation. I have no particular loyalty to Mahanoy but I am grateful that they gave me the opportunities in my life. I just want you to know that you have nothing to fear from me. And I believe Brandon may have been more honest to you than he has ever been to even me. He loves you and I am sure he told you why he was here. I cannot speak for him or my government, I was only asked to come in and assess the situation. But I know he is not faking much with you. Tell me, how often does he nervously run his hand through his hair?”

Looking to Vaeda in a new light, Cassandra watched the woman with a curiosity as if this were a revelation. She had seen him do this often, much more recently since they were beginning to become closer. Ever since their drunken night it was a pattern of behavior she too could not help but notice, like Brandon were fighting something in himself.

The moment of understanding passed between them and Vaeda one again smiled and held Cassandra’s hand, “he never does that back in Mahanoy. I have only seen him do that in the privacy of my own home when he was in talks with my adopted mother. I have come to believe it is when he is being the most honest with whomever he is with and himself. He questions himself. Guilt and concern have a way of manifesting itself in quirks. For Brandon he runs his hands through his hair. And based on your reaction, I believe you know exactly what I am talking about.”

66

“You right, he is always nervous about something. I am sorry, I just… there is too much going on now. I never thought my sister and her family could get involved in something like this. When it was just me it was ok, i could handle it. I can’t live knowing she died because someone wanted to get to me. I’ll do what your team asks, only because despite the nagging in the back of my head you and your nation only want to be friends not enemies.”

Cassandra left with Vaeda to see Brandon in the infirmary. Most of the doctors and nurses had left leaving one to check in on Brandon every so often. The room was empty except for the three of them and the machines. Brandon was partially awake, his skin was yellow from the damage to his liver. She grabbed his hand. “Brandon, we have this figured out. We will find him and stop him from ruining our nations and from ruining us. I love you.” She said kissing him on the forehead.

67

Brandon smiled weakly, using what energy he had to hold onto Cassandra’s hand. He wanted to be laying aside of her, holding her as he drifted into his fatigued sleep, but found himself alone in the bed and asleep before his thoughts could humor him.

Allowing Cassandra a moment with Brandon, Vaeda looked about the room casually before joining Cassandra’s side. She was still holding his hand for a moment even though Brandon had fallen asleep again. “He will pull through if he gets his rest,” Vaeda reassured herself more than Cassandra with the words as she looked how little it took to exhaust Brandon. If this was an attack against him, she knew he would be unable to survive against an opponent. She could only hope that he knew what he was doing and this was part of his plan.

Being ushered back to the plane, Vaeda found her flight back to FPS longer and more foreboding this time around. Usually she approached these situations with a sense of calmed reassurance. She had spent much time dealing with such affairs but something about Brandon bothered her. He had fallen in love with Cassandra, allowed himself to be beaten so badly, and even then was complacent with being helpless before them. The only thing he seemed to care about was a woman and her husband who were but strangers to him.

Returning back to the EPTO headquarters, she found herself retiring to bed without an explanation to anyone. Normally she enjoyed the company of others but as she curled up in bed, holding the pillow, she preferred to be alone at that moment. They wanted to bring Damon in…the thought of meeting the man again brought a flurry of emotions ranging from happiness to sadness and those emotions were more than she could deal with at that moment. Pulling the spare phone from her case, her hands trembled as she texted the number she knew well.

“Damon, you have been requested for a high priority mission. Need to meet to discuss details.”

Nervously anticipating the response, she fell into a restless sleep.

68

Allegheny - Somewhere in the northern Laurel Mountains
Alleghenian CENTCOM

«It’s the twentieth time you walk along this corridor. It’s becoming a bit annoying» smirked the Rezielan Archangel, glancing at the nervous man.

«It’s just… we have no news. Miss Desanti… we were assigned to her. Bodyguards, I mean. And we… we’re here on this plane doing nothing. What if… what if something happens?»

Grinning, the Archangel observed the other man for a rather long while before shaking his head in disapproval.

«You come from the Imperial Guard, right? I mean… Eindhoven, the Imperial Palace» he asked. When the man nodded hesitantly, he grinned even deeper «I had figured… you’re so ceremonialistic. Even more than Rezielans, I mean… at Vaeda’s side… doing what? We’re in the middle of an Alleghenian base. Three Archangels, two of you Michelslandians… and the pilots. I suppose you can easily understand we’re a… yup, ceremonial escort. Not an active one. So, if we’re told to wait here… there’s nothing else we can do aside waiting here. Unless you’re proposing something like rushing out of the plan, neutralizing as many Alleghenians as possible and then… uhm… rush at Vaeda’s side yelling we’re there for her safety. And then be shot by a couple of Alleghenian regiments»

«So… we do nothing?» cried the Michelslandian, astonished by the Rezielan’s indifference.

«Uhm… every now and then, we throw a quick glance outside the window, just to be sure we’re not being surrounded by Alleghenians waving their machetes against the plane. Or stealing the tires… you know, that sort of thing. You never know what to expect, in countries like this»

«Mach… the tires? You’re not being serious, are you?»

69

But he was serious, more serious than he realized, as the Alleghenian special ops slipped under the plane and stole not one, not two, but one of every double tire the plane had. Sneaking away, they stowed away the tires, anything for an extra buck…that was the Alleghenian way. If you could get a dollar doing it, do it. If you could kill a man for his wallet, make sure to take the whole thing to sell the trifold to some up and coming new kid.

And that is when the Rezelians learned that capitalism meant having to pay Allegheny for the repairs to the plane so that they could taxi down the runway and take off without disaster to return home, buying their own tires back from the corporate money greedy capitalists.

70

OOC: LOL!

71

The flurry of activity woke Brandon from his fatigued sleep and he tried with all his energy to push himself up in the bed, looking about him as high ranking officers rushed past.

“We have a situation Commander,” another General spoke as he rushed into the room to retrieve Cassandra. “An unauthorized plane…or authorized plane…” he shook his head and threw up his hands, “a foreign VTOL plane in Allegheny. The plane was reported to take-off in the town of Laurel, rapid take-off, the kind you only see when someone is trying to haul ass. Interceptors engaged the plane approximately twenty minutes after reported take-off. It’s fast, he’s good, our best pilots are on it, but they are having trouble keeping up. We are still in pursuit but they are rapidly approaching the southern border and if he guns it now, we might lose him. Orders?”

“We are not authorized to enter Packlivanian air space. Disengage. I will join you in a moment,” Cassandra responded, her exterior calm and collected while her heart raced a hundred beats per minute. When the General nodded and departed, Cassandra shot a glance towards Brandon, who propped himself up on his elbow and looked at her with concern.

The thought passed between their head. Autumn. Cassandra looked at him, this Damon operative was fast, the response much faster than either had predicted. “I need to check the situation,” she spoke to Brandon, hoping against all odds that this man had succeeded.

Back in the command room, she watched the live feed of the plane zip through the sky. This Damon was fast, damn good, their best pilots losing sight of him several times. And the plane, it was nothing like they had seen. The design, the aerodynamics. What else was he capable of? But he never fired a shot. He only dodged their missiles, blinked out of existence, maneuvered in and out of their planes like this was a training exercise for him. Her first encounter with a real Mahanionian operative and he was good. Brandon was right, he could have walked away at any time, yet they stayed and here they were offering Allegheny a chance to become that…that pilot never firing a shot and still accomplishing his mission…or so she hoped.

“What is the situation?” Cassandra asked as she looked towards the Generals making calls and ensuring the pilots disengaged before entering Packlivanian air space.

“The plane took off from a small house in Laurel. There is no confirmation about why the plane was there or how it got there. Reports say it landed, but no unauthorized vehicles were reported in the vicinity prior to engagement. The pilot did not respond to landing commands. Preliminary reports over the radio’s in Laurel say something about men open fire on the house the plane landed at. A call to the police was intercepted talking about men coming out of the trees and laying down some heavy fire on that house. We have no idea who it is yet. shall I send a team to assist the police in investigating?” The officer asked.

“Yes,” Cassandra responded as she again looked up to the screen displaying the plane, “were their any causalities of the unknown team?”

“No Commander. The plane did not return fire.”

“What about the situation in Laurel?”

“There is a private residence that sustained damaged from the plane. A man dead from multiple gunshot wounds, a George Trent, officer of the Laurel metropolice. We could find no correlation why he would be the target of this attack.”

“And the plane? Did we identify where it came from?”

“Negative Commander. There was no identifying features on the plane.”

“And the pilot?”

“Negative Commander, the plane had a tinted cockpit. The pilot was obscured. We could not get a visual on him.”

“Do we know where he is heading?”

“No Commander, we do not. By the direction and estimated fuel reserves he may have had, we roughly guess that he might be heading towards Drakkengard, Free Pacific States, or East Malaysia. No one has confirmed an unauthorized vehicle in their airspace at this moment. We clipped him before he got out of the nation, it may have forced him to land in Packlivania.”

“Thank you officer,” Cassandra responded, her heart still racing as she again looked up at the best shot of the plane they received. “Print me those images. We need to confirm this plane.”

As she entered the room Brandon was in again, she looked to him with concern. Had they survived?

Brandon grinned though, oblivious to the reports, but confident in his operative. “So I heard he’s fast. Did you catch him?”

72

Cassandra grimaced at Brandon’s sarcasm. “She’s out, but…” She thought of George’s death, what was worse? Having them both dead or one of them grieving the senseless death of their partner. “Autumn’s husband was… he’s dead.” The grin was instantly wiped from his face because he knew what that could mean.

“This is my fault, I never should have let her get involved.” Cassandra lamented aloud. Brandon moved to say something but Cassandra cut him off. "Excuse me Brandon I have to cover this up. She quickly left the room to speak with her staff on the situation, Gordon had phoned and ordered a cover up of the situation. If other countries learned that Alleghenian airspace was busted like it was today then who knew if others would try the same. She did not usually make speeches but today was one that required her words. Straightening out her uniform and touching up her face to look less tired she soon found herself in front of several cameras.

She cleared her throat and reviewed her papers quickly before beginning. “Today many of you have heard the rumor that our airspace was breached by and unknown aircraft of foreign origin, The Alleghenian Armed Forces wishes to lay the rumors to rest because they are not true. The airplane in question was a test aircraft, the pilot experienced trouble during the test and two interceptors were sent up to destroy the jet should control be lost and endanger innocent civilian lives on the ground. Fortunately the pilot retained control and the jet and it’s crew have returned safely. Please do not be alarmed these tests are done all over the country and in this rare occasion you just happened to notice this one. The attack on the house in the town of Laurel was in no way related to the aircraft incident. Rest assured the incident in Laurel shall be looked into by both the Metropolitan Police Force and the Military as there is reason to suspect illegal mercenary operations are taking place within our borders. Alleghenian private military corporations are reminded that mercenary operations that directly put Alleghenian lives and property at risk are illegal as per the Drexel Agreement of 1993, paragraph 5 sub section A. Thank you.”

Cassandra stepped away from the podium and wiped a few beads of sweat from her brow. A few minutes later she returned to Brandon’s room. “Do you still have that secured link with Ambassador Desanti? I need you to get me any information on Autumn as soon as you can, I have to talk to her.” She said.

Brandon handed her the cellphone again, the number already dialed. Desanti answered and Cassandra asked to speak with her sister who was quickly put on the line.

“Autumn are you ok?!” Cassandra asked worriedly.

“Cassie? What’s going on? George is dead!.”

“I know, I am sorry about all of this Autumn.”

“You know?” She asked confusedly. “Who are these people? Why am I in FPS for Christ’s sake?”

“Autumn, listen. The man who saved you, he is Mahanionian, like Brandon remember? There are people here who have taken offense with our Alliance they are trying to get at me through any means possible. We had to stop them from getting you. I am sorry Autumn, I didn’t want it to be like this.”

“God dammit Cassandra, my husband is dead, my home destroyed. My whole life is destroyed because of you. The first time we get back together and not even a week later and I have lost everything. I should have never came when he called, at least then I would still have my family.” Autumn raged over the phone.

“Please Autumn, you are my sister, I love you. They would have come after you either way.”

“You don’t fucking know that!” Autumn quickly retorted. “You don’t know a fucking thing!” More yelling could be heard from her as a guard came to check on why Autumn was yelling. “Fuck you! Get the fuck away from me you blockhead!”

“Autumn, I am sorry, I promise the people who did this will pay with their lives.” Cassandra offered.

Autumn’s voice was calm yet still hostile now. “Yea? Well it won’t change anything. I wanted to have my own family with him and enjoy a tranquil life of teaching and raising my own children. But now… he’s gone and my life is nothing but a pitiful shell… just like you.” The phone clicked signaling the call was over.

Cassandra handed the phone back to Brandon her hands trembling. She almost cried before one of her staff burst into the room. “Commander a sitiuation has developed over Vekaiyu and Listonia. The Vekaiyun Premier has sent a message that requires your attention. There has been a missile launch from Dveria and there is movement all across the board from other nations.”

Cassandra nodded and left the room without looking or even saying goodbye to Brandon. She had a job to do, no time for emotion.

73

Her absence left him alone and alone to the thoughts running through his mind. Clutching his side, he pushed himself from the bed, the pain of the incision and recent trauma nearly collapsing him. Holding onto the bed for support, he pushed himself forward, clutching whatever item was closest as he pushed and pulled himself from the room.

The corridor would be tricky, he knew this based on the lack of supportive items. Holding the wall to the best of his ability, he used it to support his weight as he continued to brace his injured side and work slowly down the hall. The area was nearly empty, the attention of staff drawn elsewhere. No one had expected they would need to observe him. Not even he expected to be out of bed this soon.

He reached an exit, the closest one he could find, and knowing it was his only chance, he exited. Pressing his way out the light of the sun momentarily blinded him as he lost his support and collapsed to his knees vomiting bile. The effort was exhausting and all he could think to do was sleep, but he needed to push himself forward. Pulling himself back up, he made it only outside of the door before the fatigued exhaustion took hold. Pressing his back against the wall, he slid down it and slumped there. The injury was too serious and as he sat there holding his side, he knew that Shepherd had no intentions to kill him so fast, he wanted the man to suffer just as he was. This prolonged death would satisfy him more. The Interceptors above circled and he was reminded of vultures. Had they known he was too weak to defend himself?

Closing his eyes, he rested there, thinking of what he could have done to prevent all of this. Could he have? If he had not made that phone call, Autumn would have never came, would have never gotten involved. But what if Cassandra was right and she would have been a target regardless? But then what if he was never here? Would either of them be a target?

Had he had the ability to muster his energy, he would have ran his hand through his hair, but the exhaustion took its toll. Vomiting more bile, Brandon looked at his discolored hands. If he just died there, willed himself to death at that moment, could he save her?

Letting the cold air chill him, he continued to hang his head, staring at his scantly clothed body. Part of him wanted to go back to her house, to be in the warm of her house with Autumn and Cassandra as they talked over dinner. But he was here, a broken man, compromising everything for these emotions…destroying more lives than he was building. Was his own life worth the lives of others? Too many innocent well meaning people were dying for them…and he knew the crimes he committed did not deserve their deaths.

With his mind sluggishly slowing, he barely realized his body collapsed with the exhaustion, his face pressed against the cold ground. All he could think about was whether or not his life was worth them right now and all he could do was consider removing himself from the equation. He couldn’t bare to see her in this pain.

74

Cassandra was in the center of a flurry of activity as the satellite tracking system tracked the recently launched missiles. “Tracking missiles Commander, launch origin is from the nation of Dveria.” The technician reported.

“Anything more specific?” Cassandra asked.

“Not at the moment ma’am, the trails seem to be originating from the north but there is a storm system moving in there obscuring the point of origin, it could be from anywhere. Calculating trajectories.”

“Place the military at situation level three, Code: 456-3421-NAC, alert General Burton in Iruk of the situation, full and hourly reports are to be sent to the President.” Cassandra said delivering orders.

“Commander, the President is on his way to Air Command One. He has the football.” Another officer reported.

“Acknowledged. Do we have trajectories?” Cassandra asked.

“Yes ma’am, trajectories have placed the missiles to hit at sites in Listonia and Vekaiyu.” The screen showed new blips coming out of sites in Listonia. “Listonia is firing missiles.”

“Nuclear?” General Metzger, Cassandra’s third in Command said as he entered the room with the other Joint Chiefs.

“No these ones are fast, most likely interceptors.” The officer replied. “The President has ordered a grounding of all air traffic.”

“Begin NAS shutdown order code: 231-1233-NRT, all flights are to be grounded as per Presidential order.” Cassandra said relaying the requested order to the Air Command section.

“The AFAA has responded an affirmative to the order. Country wide TFR has been sent out.” The Air Command Colonel replied.

“Good work people. Continue to track missiles, mobilizes secondary patrols and order anti-missiles systems to reactionary level one. These missiles aren’t for us but there might be more sent out.” Cassandra told the command center personnel.

All of a sudden another alert came over the system. “Emergency Code Blue, medical personnel please report to the flight deck.”

“Goddammit, what is it now? Someone find out who that code blue is ordered for.” General Metzger ordered."

"Yes sir!. A sergeant responded.

Someone had found Brandon lying face down outside near the hangars. Somehow he had made it up there without anyone bothering to see who he was and where he was going. The medics gingerly turned him over. “Shit! He tore open his stitches, we need to get him to the infirmary now!” The medics took care of him until a electric cart came with a stretcher to take him back to surgery.

The same Surgeon who had patched him up before prepared his hands by cleaning them and donned the appropriate apparel for the surgery. "This guy is a piece of work. "The Surgeon said as he put on his mask in the mirror. The glow of his eyes reflected back at him as he stared at himself for a second before leaving into the operating room. “I want the ass of the nurse who let the guy leave the room, who the hell just leaves a healing patient alone like that.” The doors to the operating room burst open and the Surgeon prepared to go to work surrounded by his aids. His ocular implants allowed him to work with the precision of a robot as he repaired the re-damaged organ.

Brandon was unconscious, periodically he would break out of the anesthesia mumbling something about someone named Autumn. A few hours passed before the procedure was complete.

A nurse approached the Surgeon. “Dr. Mullen, Command is ordering to know the reason for the code blue alert during a crisis alert, shall I write up a report?”

“Yes, also have Commander Phillips come down here as soon as she is able. She’ll be interested to hear about what has happened with the Ambassador.” Mullen ordered. " Doctor Mullen turned back to see Brandon hooked up to different medical apparatuses and sighed. “This guy is stupid.”

ooc:

NAS= National Air System
AFAA= Alleghenian Federal Aviation Administration
TFR= Temporary Flight Restriction.

75

The situation in the command room of CENTCOM was that of ordered chaos as men and women exchanged information to the different stations and the Generals in the room. All of the air traffic had been suspended and grounded except for Gordon’s command plane, this was the first time a national emergency had forced him on it with the nuclear football. Everyone was worried that more missiles could be launched at Allegheny and tensions were high as people periodically looked back at the massive satellite display screen.

Shepherd, even though he was ordered to take a vacation, returned back tot he base, he was angry that the attempted assassination of Cassandra’s sister had failed, it was the only way he saw that he could get her to resign without actually having to have her killed. Now he had to play the role of concerned general as he returned back to the command room and looked at the situation that had developed. “Commander Phillips, what is the situation? Have we taken action?”

Cassandra wheeled around surprised to see Shepherd standing there at the entrance to the room. “No we haven’t.” She said biting back anger at the man who had destroyed her sister’s family. Her anger increased because she knew he couldn’t do anything about it, not here at least. “Air traffic has been grounded and I have requested Gordon to not make any rash decisions. The attack seems to have been aimed at Listonia for the most part. Any suggestions?”

Shepherd shook his head. “No, none that would be any different. Looks like the vulps have finally pissed off the wrong people.”

“It would seem so.” Cassandra said turning back to a few of the other Joint Chiefs.

An aid walked up to Shepherd. “General Shepherd, I will relay this message to you since Commander Phillips seems busy. The infirmary has requested her presence, it has to deal with the Mahanionian Ambassador.”

Shepherd smiled. “Of course my dear, I will tell her as soon as possible.”

The aide left back to her duties passing information along to the different stations. As Shepherd watched her walk away, he sneaked out of the command room and strolled down to the infirmary. The surgeon who had gotten sick of waiting was finally relieved when someone finally showed up. “Oh, David. I asked for Cassandra but I suppose you will suffice. The Ambassador tore open his wound agai…” Shepherd interrupted him with a wave of his hand and asked to speak privately with Brandon.

The surgeon and the nurses left him alone. Shepherd walked up to Brandon’s bed side and smirked. “So, you rescued Autumn Trent from my grip, ruined my only chance of getting Cassandra to resign without causing a fiasco and still somehow lived through all your stupidity. Your kind will not control Allegheny, this stops here.”

Brandon’s eyes widened when he realized who was next to him. Shepherd laughed and took a needle and a vial with a danger sign on it and filled the needle all the way up. “Now if I give you some of this you should die of a heart attack… Well, thats what it will look like anyways.” Shepherd brought the needle up to the IV port and moved to insert the poison. Brandon gathered all of his strength and pushed himself toward Shepherd to stop him from poisoning him grabbing his shoulder and pulling him down with him. Shepherd fell with him, the needle flying out of his hand at the surprise attack from the weak man. The needle flipped a few times before coming to rest in Shepherd’s arm and depositing some of the poison into him.

Shepherd shot up from the fallen position and ripped the needle out of his arm, reeling back he began to convulse and fell through the double door out into the hallway, all the while Brandon lie face down on the tile floor watching the older man begin to foam at the mouth. The Surgeon and the nurses Shepherd had sent out rushed back to the fallen General. “Holy shit! Get a stretcher over here now! He’s convulsing!” The medical team tried to stop him from smashing his head off the ground until the stretcher came. Someone had pulled the alarm and a general alert sounded off throughout the base as another team came to put Brandon back up on his bed and strapped him down.

76

The surgeon did what he could to save the General. He brought in another doctor to try and diagnose the problem as they tried different procedures to get his heart to slow down, but nothing was working. Shepherd flat lined on the gurney as foam leaked from his mouth. The surgeon and the doctor tried effortlessly to revive him, continuously shocking him with the paddles, but to no avail. One of the nurses he had sent to pick up the needle finally came back, the Surgeon took it from her. “It doesn’t matter now. Call the Supreme Commander. Tell her it’s urgent.”

Cassandra arrived shortly to see Shepherd’s beret lying in the hallway and then turned into the room to see him lying dead on the gurney. “Jesus Christ what happened here?”

“Ma’am we found the general convulsing on the ground and the Ambassador out of his bed. The General was poisoned.”

“How?” Cassandra asked in a commanding tone.

“The Mahanionian stuck him with the needle.” The doctor said.

“How is that possible? Look at him!” Cassandra said pointing at Brandon’s obvious incapacitation.

The doctor shook his head. “I don’t know ma’am… but somehow General Shepherd was stuck with that needle. I sent for you but he came instead, I have no idea why. You are correct however. There is no way the Ambassador could have gotten up and filled that needle with the drug.”

Cassandra walked over to Brandon and put her hand on his forehead. “Brandon, wake up.”

Brandon looked up at her and smiled when he saw her worried face. “He tried to poison me Cass…” Stopping short of saying her full first name as it hurt for him to speak.

Cassandra smiled. “He is dead now. Rest.” Brandon closed his eyes and fell asleep again.

We must conclude that Shepherd tried to poison Ambassador Dinardeau. Have the needle taken as evidence and dusted for prints, we must determine if this assumption is true." Cassandra ordered.

The surgeon came out. “I agree. I did the surgery on him, there is no way he could have stood up to get the drug out of the cabinet. He is strong but not that strong.”

77

The next few days were filled with hushed and secretive inquiries of how it had happened. All of a sudden the missile launch on Listonia was of secondary importance, Gordon had moved to quiet the reality of Shepherd’s death. If people knew he was trying to kill an Ambassador of the most important ally Allegheny had ever had then chaos would ensue. How deep was the conspiracy? Who else was involved? It didn’t matter, all that mattered was keeping the people who had been involved quiet. Cassandra had the witnesses spread away from each other in new posts throughout the country, camera footage and medical records were erased. No one but the President and the Supreme Commander needed to know that their were traitors amongst them.

The tests for fingerprints on the needle and medicine cabinet it had come from confirmed Shepherd’s treachery but like everything else the evidence was wiped away. Shepherd’s death would be classified as natural causes, a heart attack. His medical records were faked showing multiple complications that he never had, he would be given a proper military funeral despite the truth. Shepherd’s body was prepared for the funeral, he would be buried in his uniform and his open casket paraded on foot to the place all soldiers were buried in Allegheny, from the lowly private to the highest ranking generals, Thule.

Thousands of people and soldiers came to attend the funeral procession, even Cassandra who knew what Shepherd had done was there. They all sang the lament of the Armed Forces, I had a Comrade, dedicated to every Alleghenian soldier who had died in service to their country. The funeral was televised and played over every major national news channel in the country. The march was slow toward the fields of Thule, millions of white headstones could be seen in the distance, a reminder of how many had died in the civil war for their particular idea of what Allegheny was supposed to be. As they reached the place he would be buried no words were said and the singing had stopped. It was common practice to never say anything during the burial of a soldier, their actions in service would be their eulogy and epitaph. As the casket was closed and lowered into the ground everyone saluted until it was no longer visible.

Same time, Blackwater

“He’s dead, the fool.” Sinclair said slightly angry as he watched Shepherds body lowered into the ground on the television.

“We acted to fast and now we face this massive setback.” A shadowy figure replied.

Sinclair took a few puffs of his cigar. “No matter, there are other options. The violent one however was a failure. We still have three years until the elections take place, three years to whittle away Gordon’s high approval rating and three years to groom a new candidate. A coup by military will not work, I should have seen that before we joined with Shepherd. He was to risky and we paid the price. We have awaited thirty years to get to this point, I think a few more won’t hurt us.”

“Indeed.” The shadowy man said smiling. “Besides these new events with the Vulpines and the Dverians may play directly into our hands. It takes only a few scary moments to get the people to want to stay out of international affairs. Allegheny will be the nation it once was once again, the world will scare the idiotic populace back into isolationism for sure. Until then we continue grooming our candidates and this time wait for the right moment to strike.”

A few hours later, CENTCOM.

After the funeral Cassandra has returned back to Central Command and back to the infirmary to see Brandon. The nursing staff had left the two alone to speak privately. Brandon’s skin still had a yellowish hue to it, but he was looking better.

“Are they treating you well?” Cassandra asked.

“It could be better.” Brandon said with a sarcastic grin.

Cassandra smiled and shook her head. “We looked to see if anything could lead back to Shepherd’s involvement in a conspiracy against us but there was nothing.”

“He’s too smart to leave stuff like that behind… well somewhat smart I guess.” Brandon said referring to the second attempt on his life.

“It’s deeper that it looks thats for sure, especially if mercenaries were involved. Generals aren’t paid enough to hire crack assassination teams. The only reason Autumn got out alive was because of the surprise factor your operative had with the plane and even then they still killed her husband. Gordon has people secretly looking into it, but for now it’s over. I am sorry that this happened, I never would have guessed that something like this would happen.”

Brandon shook his head. “I got too close, I called her to come see you, it’s my fault.”

Cassandra smiled and ignored his apology, she stood up and leaned over kissing him. “It’s too late to stop it now. Get some rest, I need to you healthy if we are going to get the work we need done finished.” She left the room to let him sleep.

OOC: - YouTube

78

As the yellow hue of his skin began to slowly disperse, Brandon regained his energy more and more. The few bites he managed to eat, he kept down well as his health returned bit by bit. Days passed as Cassandra through, spending what time she could spare to stop and see him before disappearing again to her official duties.

He would have wished for more time with her, more intimacy, but the brief moments he was awake were short lived. His time was spent fatigued and exhausted, resting as recuperating. And it was days more that he was clutching onto the therapist in the room with him, holding him up as he weakly stood, his energy being consumed in the simplest of actions.

“When do you think I will walk again?” Brandon asked, his words barely spoken above a whisper, spoken so softly and slowly the therapist had to lean into listen.

“Well sir, you are making strides already, but for the degree of this type of injury, it is best not to push yourself. It can take months until you regain the functioning you had prior this injury,” he spoke, honest as he firmly held onto Brandon, fearing the man might fall in a moment.

“Get me back on my feet,” Brandon tried to order the therapist albeit weakly, “a Mahanionian who cannot walk is a dead man.”

“Sir, it is unwis-”

Seizing the man by his throat, Brandon held himself up, “I was nearly murdered here. You will get me back onto my feet and you will not talk about this to anyone, not even the Commander, do you understand?”

Surprised by the man’s strength, he nodded and almost immediately Brandon collapsed to the floor, exhausted of his energy.

“I need to walk and no one needs to that I am regaining my strength so soon,” he spoke, allowing the therapist to call for assistance to help him back to bed.

And it was just moments after that Cassandra returned to find Brandon again sleeping, exhausted from his efforts.

79

The yellowish hue Brandon’s skin had taken on was now completely gone and after a few unauthorized drug injections Brandon was able to walk albeit painfully, but since he was a Mahanionian he had been well versed in hiding his pain from others. The doctor’s were impressed with his recovery despite what they had said previously. Cassandra had stopped visiting for a while as she was now in the middle of choosing a new second in command, one she hoped would be much more trustworthy, her choice was very unorthodox.

Previously

Cassandra had taken the down time Brandon’s injury provided her to speak with her old mentor Colonel Patterson of the Special Operations Unit. Patterson had constantly denied every promotion they had tried to give him, saying that his need to be with his men was paramount and more important than his career advancements. Patterson was a man she could trust, the only one she could now that one of her closest trusted Generals had tried to take her position in a series of traitorous movements.

She explained everything that happened, including the assassination attempt on her sister.

“Now that you know what I have been through these past few weeks I come to my point.” Cassandra said after explaining her story to him. “I need you to be my second in command, it would mean actually having to take a promotion.”

Patterson coughed at Cassandra’s conclusion. “You know I have turned down every promotion for almost ten years now.”

“I know.” Cassandra said. “But James, you are more than qualified to take this position, I need someone who can back me up and not stab me in the back. I can’t trust Metzger or anyone on the High Command to do that for me. You aren’t a power grabbing greedy bastard. I took this position because my country called for me to do it, that and I am useless on the field anymore.” She confessed, nodding toward her leg. “You deserve this promotion more than anyone, and with you and I at the helm of this military we can make it more efficient than it has ever been. Shepherd, besides being a traitor, wasn’t willing to help me cut through the crap. I fear I am losing the respect of the commanders now and if they see your promotion than they will fear being put on the chopping block. It takes two to tango in this military and my last partner wasn’t very good at dancing.” Cassandra said smiling at her ridiculous comparison. “So will you dance?” She said, standing up and mockingly holding her hand out as if waiting to be taken to the dance floor.

Colonel Patterson stood up, took Cassandra’s hand and bowed mockingly. “For you my dear, anything.” He laughed as he returned from his bow. “I hope this pays better.” Patterson added.

Cassandra laughed. “Not much better actually.” She replied as they both turned to leave.

“Damn, oh well, hopefully it will be exciting!” Patterson said in a hopeful mocking voice.

Now, CENTCOM

“Commander Phillips, this is outrageous! I was pegged for that position!” Metzger raged.

Cassandra shot the newly promoted Commander General Patterson a look saying “I told you so.”

“General Metzger, you service to me in your current positions is too invaluable to replace you with someone else. General Patterson here fits the role as second in command much better than he would, say, in your position. You role in this military has been tailored to your strengths and weaknesses, to change it now would inherently weaken our very centralized command structure!” Cassandra explained filling Metzger’s ego.

“I understand that, but I was very much looking forward to serving you in a position that would show you more of my command abilities.” Metzger continued.

“General, this is non-negotiable and your questioning of my decisions of this military is damaging to all of us. This ‘whining’ is unacceptable. If you continue I will demote you to a forward field position in the eastern command. I’ve heard that this season’s air quality forecast to be quite hostile.” Cassandra said threateningly looking at a nearby data-pad as if she was uninterested.

“You need not say anymore Commander, I am wrong and your will is correct. It is foolish me to question your command decisions. Hail Allegheny.” Metzeger said saluting.

“Hail Allegheny. Continue your good work Metzger, I promise you that your work here is quite appreciated.” Cassandra added with a return salute.

Metzger left Cassandra’s office and Cassandra sighed with relief. “See what I am working with?” She asked Patterson.

“Nothing but a bunch of pompous assholes.” Patterson shook his head.

“Not all of them are like this. Some of them are still in a time when being a general was meant to be seen as a prestigious position given to them from dictators and kings. Others have worked for their positions and have shown their abilities to be exceptional. It’s worked well so far.” Cassandra said slouching back in her chair.

The door swung open revealing the black uniform the Mahanionians were known for wearing.

“Brandon!” Cassandra said, surprised to see him so soon.

Brandon grinned his usual grin. “I’ve made a full recovery!”

“That’s good to hear Ambassador Dinardeau.” Cassandra switched back to a more official form of addressing him after the shock of seeing him walking again subsided. “Ambassador I believe you have met James Patterson before in Rochester during the review.”

Patterson stood up and shook Brandon’s hand. “Yes we have, the horrible shot. Have you worked on your aim?”

Brandon laughed. “I knew you wouldn’t let me forget that. Sir, on what occasion brings you here?”

Cassandra answered for him. “I have promoted James to my second in command, Commander General Patterson will be Shepherd’s replacement and will be working in a much closer capacity with me to make the Alleghenian Armed Forces more efficient.”

“Congratulations General.” Brandon said. “Commander Phillips, I would like to return to the subject of the Kuro Institute.” He spoke through the pain.

“Indeed! If I remember correctly we were speaking about visiting Mahanoy so that we could see it in person.” Cassandra replied, remembering the meeting vividly. “General Patterson, take this file and review it, It will get you up to speed on the proposal.”

“Yes Commander.” Patterson saluted, took the file and left the office leaving Brandon and Cassandra alone.

Cassandra’s smile was exchanged for a look of genuine worry. She stood and walked to Brandon who had refused to sit. “I missed you.” She said embracing him. Brandon winced as pain shot up and down his abdomen, but he pushed it down so that he could return the embrace. “I am sorry I couldn’t see you more often than I did.”

“It’s okay, you had more important things to attend to.” Brandon replied, he waited for her to break the embrace before gently grabbing her chin and kissing her. “I missed you too by the way.”

“Okay thats enough of that.” Cassandra said jokingly. She returned to her chair behind her desk. “Why don’t you sit down?”

“I’d rather stand, thanks.” Brandon said pushing the offer away not wanting to bring more pain upon his healing wound.

Cassandra eyed him, raising her eyebrow inquisitively. “Are you sure you are alright? This isn’t that Mahanionian stubbornness I’ve seen before, right?”

“Of course, Cass. I am fine, don’t worry, please.” Brandon said waving the comment off.

“You are lying.” Cassandra said smugly. “But I suppose that doesn’t matter since you won’t say that yourself. Anyways, Kuro, you want to do this? Now?”

"Of course, at your earliest convenience. You remember what was discussed at the meeting, I still believe this will be quite the benefit for Allegheny. Brandon said restating his previous comments.

“Well.” Cassandra said thinking about the subject. “I can leave command to the Joint Chiefs for a while, I want Patterson with me so that we can both sign off on this should we decide to go ahead with it.”

“Then let’s go!” Brandon exclaimed, grinning his penchant grin.

80

En route to Mahanoy, The West Pacific

The flight to Mahanoy was accompanied by a high profile military escort, the Alleghenian and Mahanionian armed escort working together as one singular unit to protect their invested interest. Periodically a few Mahanionian pilots would break away from their official positions, cruising the air and engaging in war games as they spiraled and maneuvered, weaving in an out of flight. The rather odd display would have seemed dangerous for an escort if several hours into the flight other pilots were not beginning to tire of the mundane flight path.

Breaking through the communication system, a pilot spoke to one of the Alleghenian escorts, “see if you can keep up,” his friendly challenge engaging startling the sleepy eyed man.

“Orders are to protect this plane,” he responded.

“And you cannot protect a plane if you are falling asleep behind the controls. We make these trips often. Trust us…in three hours, you will be begging for any break in the mundane. Our pilots are engaged to keep an extra eye out when we break formation. I guess if we are going to be part of an alliance, time to bring you aboard on our flight patterns. Just relax, your Commander is aware of our ways,” he reassured as his plane sailed past the Alleghenian pilot and with a thumbs up indicated it was time to break formation and run free.

As the two pilots raced along the sky, the Mahanionian plane climbing, descending, spiraling, and rolling along, the communication system came to life with discussion and the Alleghenian realized he was just opened up to a private line of communication between the Mahanionian pilots. “Hey J, try to do that at Mach 1!”

“What’s in it for me?”

“Maintenance on your plane.”

And with a roar that broke through the system, the Alleghenian man watched as the pilot he was chasing broke into a fast acceleration before pulling a series of maneuvers, the man yelling with the force extracted on his body. And as he returned to the Alleghenian, the Mahanionians all began laughing and cheering.

“Next time you offer me maintenance, you might want to raise the stakes a little,” he laughed as the system filled with conversation and a cursing from the pilot of the lost bet.

“So Alleghenian…what’s your name?” the pilot asked, bringing his plane parallel to the man.

“Rhodes,” he responded, feeling a sense of welcoming into a nation that he barely knew.

“Alright Rhodes, they call me J. Let’s see what you have,” he said, banking off to let the man take the reigns.