The Supervisor was never a pleasant mind to deal with, and the various Foremen present didn’t make the situation any better. Threshold construction was delayed, Ichor harvesting was going normally and yet not fast enough for The Supervisor’s liking, and the indigenous populations were organizing resistance together despite all projections and probabilities.

And then there was the Overlord.

“I said I wanted a progress report, Supervisor.” the Overlord’s voice boomed in everyone’s skulls as he shared his thoughts, “Excuses and interruptions are not part of that report. You will let the Foremen finish, and then we will listen to The Overseer.”

“I…. yes, Overlord.” the glowing head representing the Supervisor in the Overseer’s mind replied, mouth tendrils closing and brightness dimming in shame.

“Good… now then, Foremen-912, I expected faster construction in Ichor-heavy sectors, explain the delay.” the Overlord ordered. Sheepishly, another glowing head took prominence in the Overseer’s view. Unlike the Supervisor’s insectoid head with tendrils coming from the mouth, the Foremen had a more subdued appearance during these conferences. Instead of insectoid, they looked more like automatons with no discernible mouth. With their large forward-facing eyes and brighter colors, it was clear that they were better for their duties as construction workers, not soldiers.

“Overlord, localized resistance continues to strike at construction sites with orbit-based energy weapons. While we’re aware that they have little effect on military forces in immediate proximity, construction efforts will continue to be delayed while the indigenous population poses resistance to our harvesting operations.” the floating head stated. Its voice was without emotion or inflection, holding a mechanical quality to it that always made the Overseer wonder if there really was any difference between the Foremen and their AI Assistants.

“Overseer-29, report on indigenous military response.”

“Overlord, our initial diversionary strike was devastating for the local population. Intelligence gathered by Traveler-59 proved immeasurably useful and all but one of the indigenous facilities capable of producing capital ships were neutralized within the first hour of the invasion. Orbital defenses are holding against all strikes we make due to the…. Magic, that the equine species possesses.”

“Magic? Clarify.”

“Equine species, sub-species C, has a conical extension from the cranium with properties that Traveler-59 has yet to discern.” the Overseer explained, “With this power, they’ve created shields similar to our own technology for their heavy vehicles, capital ships, orbital installations, and even some population centers. Requesting permission to begin Rift Operations in proximity of Planet Designation E-359 in order to combat orbital threat.”

“Calculations?”

“Mission hindrance with all orbital facilities still active still holding at 42%, disposal of facilities will decrease operational hindrance by up to 25%.”

“Very well, Overseer.” the Overlord stated, his voice rumbling with satisfaction as he literally absorbed the data being sent to him, “You will have your Rift Permissions. Use them wisely, but something else is troubling your thoughts; explain.”

“Kane is here.”

“Impossible!” the Supervisor exclaimed. “Entity known as Kane disappeared after unauthorized activation of only remaining Sol Threshold, 19!”

“Genetic markers are too similar, as is the indigenous response to ichor harvesting and military operations. Despite variances in physical form, entity known as Kane is present on this planet.”

“Observe his movements, and contain him if possible.” the Overlord replied, “Military operations are now secondary objectives, gathering data on Kane and completing the archive is now our primary goal. Do not disappoint me.”

And with that, the Overlord cut out, leaving the Overseer and the Foremen alone in the Hub. Without ceremony, the Overseer disseminated orders to them and then retracted from the Hub until finally he was back in his body. With little effort he stood up from the command chair he had been plugged into and the cables retracted back into the base of his skull.

Like all servants pressed into service of the Overlord from the various worlds that the Scrin visited, Overseer-29 was explicitly built for the purpose that the Hierarchy had for him, and 29 was built to lead armies that conquered and destroyed entire star systems. Metal claws lead to cybernetic, digitigrade legs and metal joints that were fused seamlessly with his few remaining organic parts at the waist. These plugged directly into the armor, which fused with his chest and had replaced his original shell before processing. His arms were cybernetics as well, with his right arm leading to a hand with five digits and two opposable thumbs, and his left leading to a bundle of tendrils that could interface with the ship’s systems.

However, his eyes were still his most prominent feature. They gave off an eerie blue light similar to certain parts of his armor and other cybernetics, drawing the view of those in person and in the Hivemind away from what was left of his original face.

“Organizer, link to all Hive Minds.” 29 ordered tonelessly. As he spoke, the tendrils that composed his left “hand” snaked out to the nearest console and with a jolt, his consciousness was coursing through the Hive Mind that was the Scrin Military presence on this meager dust ball. He was about to give out a new string of orders when he felt a tingling at the back of his mind.

“Not a Hive…. Not a Foreman…” he thought, exploring the disturbance, “You’re much more than that, aren’t you…?”

“AREN’T YOU!?”
______________

Luna recoiled as if she had been struck, but did not open her eyes. Whatever was leading the alien invasion force was mentally more powerful than she had anticipated, and what little she’d been able to glean from his subconscious was useless. In the dream realm, she stood back up and shook her head clear, scowling. The question was practically burned into her skull now and she could feel the residual presence of this “Overseer”s mind.

“Yes…” she murmured to herself as orbs representing dreams began to drift by once more, “I am much more than your drones…”

Luna held her scowl as she sifted through dreams and nightmares alike. The sheer number of nightmares that the population had since the first town was consumed by Tiberium was staggering, even for her practiced hoof. Ever since the invasion started, that number had tripled. Even so, true dreams were rare these days. Almost everyone fighting the war was sleep deprived, and their spheres nothing but darkness as their minds either could not or would not properly process the horrors that this global conflict put them through on a daily basis.

One sphere however was always active. One pony constantly plagued by nightmares as the war went on and as her psyche began to falter. She was never a creature of conflict and something this persistent, this destructive, was beyond even her worst nightmares when the sacred crystal first made landfall.

“Celestia….” Luna growled, peering into the sphere but not opening the doorway to it.

The nightmare was the same as always; Equestria gone, the planet ravaged, and only tiberium remained. Canterlot lay in ruins at the bottom of the mountain, the castle that Luna had previously called home seeded with green crystal and littered with bodies from both sides of the war. Luna was about to pull away when a laugh caught her attention, and soon after, magical blasts started crisscrossing the smog-filled sky. Upon closer inspection, it looked like Celestia was in a fight for her life against Nightmare Moon, and she was losing badly.

“Some things never change, do they?” the Night Queen mused, and despite her own wishes, eased into the dream and enjoyed the show from the sidelines, invisible to Celestia as the Solar Goddess continued to fight her age-old enemy.

“I’ll never let you take me!” Celestia cried out, “You may have taken our world but you shall never make me falter!”

“If you’re going to have a nightmare about me, sister, you should at least use me as I am, not as you fear.” the real Luna answered, banishing her other self with a whim, and making the weary Celestia jump in surprise. With little effort, the setting of this titanic battle faded away and soon enough, Queen Luna was face to face with Princess Celestia in the Canterlot Gardens.

“How dare you call me that… you are not my sister.” Celestia seethed.

“We both know that’s not true. You know full well that I am not Nightmare Moon, you can see it plainly before you that I am not that monster that still haunts the minds of Equestria even to this day. The sooner you accept that fact, the sooner we can return to the true mission of Nod… and your GDI, even if you’ve handled it poorly.”

“And what mission is that, ‘sister’?”

“The whole reason I founded the Brotherhood; to save the planet.” Luna replied, “That was the initial point of my research division when GDI’s charter was signed, was it not?”

“And yet here you are, the queen you always wanted to be, spreading a cancer in your wake as your subjects blindly follow a mad earth pony like he’s some sort of god.”

“Is that not how the Brotherhood sees you, sister? A goddess with absolute power and authority who abandoned the world while they suffered. The goddess who ordered the only research that could save tiberium-infested ponies to be burned.”

“Never going to let me live that one down, are you, Luna?” Celestia sighed, “Tiberium is not like Discord, or Scorpan, or any of the petty villains of the world. Compromise with it only delays an inevitable end. It doesn’t avoid it.”

“You really still believe that, don’t you?”

“Can you prove me wrong? These aliens we fight, they literally live off of tiberium, they can’t survive without it. That is the road your Brotherhood is taking.”

“It’s preferable to ending up like Discord, Celestia, like thousands of gryphons, diamond dogs, and ponies that now lay within tiberium tombs in the red zones.”

“And your Brotherhood can help them?”

“We can safeguard the living from tiberium better than you can, sister… Twilight can protect us better than anypony, and you already forced her to choose a side.” Luna retorted, causing Celestia to visibly recoil as if she’d been struck. Had Luna not blown her cover, she would have feigned sorrow or remorse for making such a comment, but the time for false affection was well and truly past.

“I had forgotten how cold you could be.” Celestia finally whispered.

“Necessity has made me many things, but I’ve always been blunt. The war has simply made me more honest with myself.”

“This form… this… is honesty?”

“I couldn’t stand idly by while you ruined any chance we had of a lasting peace just because Kane hurt your precious ego, Sister. And whether you like it or not, everything he said is true.”

“I did not kill Equestria, Luna!” Celestia barked.

“Not by yourself, no, but history will remember what caused half of the Element Bearers to defect… no amount of censorship will hide the choice you made that fateful day… the world will feel its effects long after this war ends, no matter who wins.”

“Being political with me, Sister? Why not say what you want to say if you’ve become more honest? Say that when your Brotherhood wins, I’ll be blamed for starting the war.”

“That would depend entirely on Nod winning, and even to this day, I am not completely certain of victory.” Luna retorted with a rather coy smile, “Time and time again, the ponies of GDI surprise me by pulling victory from the jaws of almost certain defeat, and almost always when it matters most.”

“You say that as if I have something to do with it.”

“We’re both too old to believe in something like divine intervention, and even if we did…” Luna trailed off, her tone taking a morose turn.

“The only one who could do it without evidence is a statue in Braylin.” Celestia finished quietly.

A moment of silence followed, spontaneous as it was and yet based on a feeling of unspoken respect towards their old enemy, and erstwhile friend.

“Regardless of who emerges victorious, sister, I want you to remember that our goal is the same. Even if our paths on the matter have differed.” said Luna, feeling the morning approach on the waking world.

“I just wish for this nightmare to end.” said Celestia, and with a flick of her hoof, Luna granted her wish.
__________

“Commander, we’re getting some strange readings.” the ops officer of the Ion Projection Satellite Independence stated.

“How strange?” the station’s commander asked, trotting over to the operations console.

“It’s like there’s an entirely new source of gravity just a few hundred meters from our position… but there’s nothing out there, just a minor distortion on visuals.”

“Distortion…” Commander Lancer muttered, galloping to the nearest viewport. Much to his dismay, there was indeed a distortion just off of their position in orbit, and it was growing at an alarming rate. Before he could even react, the station lurched violently, sending him muzzle first into the glass. By the time his vision cleared from the impact, the distortion was now a massive black mass where empty space was supposed to be, and the glass in front of him was cracking.

“Dear Celestia…” were his last words before the glass broke and he was sucked out into hard vacuum, mere seconds before the entire station followed him into the rift in space.
__________

The view from the Harmony was enough to make more than one intelligence officer swear under their breath as everypony in the briefing room watched a black hole appear from thin air and swallow up the Independence piece by piece. Metal plating was ripped from its frame, which in turn was warped soon after, and the high resolution available from the feeds made it all too clear that most of the “debris” being sucked into the vortex were ponies desperately grabbing at support beams, loose wires, and anything that could keep them from being swallowed up by the massive, spatial maw that had appeared before them.

The entire process took roughly 20 seconds, but it seemed like 20 hours for everypony watching. Once those seconds were up, the station was simply gone and the vortex disappeared as quickly as it had materialized.

“InOps is calling it a Rift Generator.” Stalwart Shield finally said after the footage repeated a few times. “ECU pinpointed an energy surge in a red zone that coincides perfectly with the destruction of the Independence… the Scrin seem to have started taking GDI seriously.”

“Troubling to say the least.” Ironsides growled, tapping his desk and getting the video to freeze, “We need a solution.”

“That’s a whole other story, sir.” one of the intel officers replied, bringing up a datapad and placing it on the main desk. Once it made contact, the global map that was on the pad projected itself on the table, “The energy surge’s location is in the middle of the San Palomino Red Zone… even if we could get Zone Troopers dropped right on the location, they’d never make it back to friendly lines.”

“And a Kodiak would draw too much attention and fire. We can’t spare three for a Fleet Action through enemy territory.” Stalwart added, scowling at the map, “EVA, any word on troop composition in the area from the Brotherhood?”

“No valid data, General. Sky Sentry surveillance feeds provide the only relevant information on the San Palomino Red Zone.” the AI stated.

“Meaning we’d be going in blind… complete suicide mission.” Ironsides said with a sigh that was followed by nearly a minute of rather tense silence. He finally spoke up a few moments later, his scowl still holding firm on his muzzle, “Consider this an open invitation for any and all ideas. The longer that machine is in operation, the longer our ability to strike at the Scrin is in danger.”

“Hyperion.” Stalwart said quietly, getting a raised eyebrow from her superior.

“Pardon?”

“Brigadier Hyperion, Brotherhood of Nod… I think he might be the answer we need.”

“And the fact that he’s your son has nothing to do with this decision, right?” Ironsides asked, leaning forwards in his chair.

“We’ve both seen his record with Nod, his tactics, his current assignment…” the green mare explained, “... what if we use him to launch a joint operation with Nod?”

“Quite the risk you’re willing to take.”

“If we can get enough troops on the Everfree, it can ferry a strike force deep into the Red Zone, land a decisive blow that knocks out that rift generator, and if Nod wants to double cross us, we’ll have plenty of ponies on board to do some serious damage to Nod’s only remaining airship.”

“And you’re willing to put your Zone Troopers on the line over a your hunch?” the grey stallion asked.

“I’d be willing to go myself, sir.”

Ironsides nodded slowly, leaning back in his chair as he looked back at the map, as well as the frozen video of the Independence simply ceasing to exist. He slowly rubbed his chin, knowing full well that Stalwart could see the wheels turning in his head as he thought things through.

It took nearly 10 minutes, but the old, grey stallion finally gave a simple nod to his most faithful branch commander.

“Make contact with Nod High Command… consider this my endorsement of your gamble, Stally.”
____________

Mantis trotted along the red-lit hallways of the Everfree with a bit more pep in her step than usual. A new offensive against the aliens was in the works and she got to participate. Hyperion was the overall Nod commander for the assault, and Maud Pie had command of the ship itself, but her swarm was going to be dropping in with the Zone Troopers on the first wave. It would be her first real chance for glory since her promotion to Ladybug and she was all too eager to prove herself as an officer.

For now though, she had another task to take care of, one that involved her oldest friend in this war. Once close enough, the sensors outside of Hyperion’s door recognized her, opened up, and she let herself in. The owner of the room was in front of a mirror, making sure his combat uniform was fitted properly when he noticed her barge inside.

“It’s usually polite to knock first.”

“I thought you liked it when made myself at home.” Mantis said, finding her way to his desk and claiming his chair for her own.

“In Mareajevo where the officers’ quarters are apartments, not crew compartments…” the stallion quipped, glancing over at her once he was sure his collar was straight, “What brings you here this time, anyway?”

“Given I’m your XO, it’s only fitting we meet our GDI counterparts together Hype. Or would you prefer not to be seen with me?”

Hyperion didn’t give her a reply other than to raise an eyebrow at her as he turned around. He was satisfied with his appearance and now only had to deal with his wonderfully belligerent executive officer. Without breaking the stride of his turn he walked over to her, leaning down to look her in the eyes. Most ponies would have been intimidated by his sheer size, but this little stare down was a regular ritual of theirs.

“What happened to meeting at the aircraft elevator?” he asked without looking away.

“Your room was closer than the lift, figured we’d enjoy a nice walk through a dark hallway before making nice with our guests.” she replied, matching his gaze and getting a grin from the usually composed stallion.

“One of these days you’re going to blink.” he finally said, “Come on, we have some Zone Troopers to meet.”
______________

The Everfree. The ship that had killed the Double Rainboom, created from scratch from the very mind behind the original Kodiak designs, Princess Twilight Sparkle, just without Rainbow Dash to influence their construction. She was the flagship for the Brotherhood of Nod’s fledgling aerial navy and even with the Scrin and Sky Admiral Spitfire doing their best to blow it out of the sky, she still refused to die.

And now Jet Deck was on a carryall orbiting it, waiting for landing clearance so that he could go through with General Shield’s crazy plan. Jet Deck had been hesitant about Nod soldiers and staff being allowed in Baltimare to begin with, but seeing the Everfree moored at one of the newly erected Sky Docks above Horseshoe Bay was troubling in ways he couldn’t quite find the words for, even if General Shield was sending Major Blizzard with enough firepower to blast the damn thing out of the sky from the inside if the Noddies got a little too uppity.

“You alright, son? You seem a bit off.” Blizzard asked, getting a slow nod from his First Sergeant.

“Just feels weird working with them after fighting for so long, especially given who they say the commander of the Everfree’s garrison is.” Jet Deck replied, his eyes never leaving the viewport.

“Brigadier General Hyperion… I’ve heard of him. Never lost a battle that he’s had command of from onset to finish, and he’s the only reason that any of Nod’s troops made it out of Baltimare alive.”

“Despite my best efforts.”

“I read that part too. Quite the career you’ve made yourself in such a short amount of time… I’d dare to say some of the younger troopers are envious.”

“They just want a piece of the action after being cooped up in class for so long… and they’re going to get it.. Flight Lieutenant, how soon?”

“On approach now, hold on.” the pilot replied and the aircraft answered soon after. The carryall banked gently towards the Nod airship, leading the way for the dozens of transports trailing close behind. Besides the Zone Trooper compliment being brought on board, an entirely new armor battalion created from the remains of various other units was being assigned to this Expeditionary Strike Force. Predators, Timberwolves, the new Pitbull Recon Vehicle, and even a platoon of Mammoths gifted from the Second Heavy Armored while Big Macintosh finished his recovery.

The sight would have usually caused the stallion on the primary flight deck to grab his sidearm, give firing orders, and take cover before firing on the transports himself, but now he was actually going to be depending on the troops they were bringing aboard his ship. The first transport touched down gently, a soft landing for such a monumental moment, and the side hatch opened up as soon as the landing struts were on the deck. Following the touchdown, Zone Troopers in full armor, with the exception of the three ponies at the front of the group who were lacking their helmets, disembarked and started moving towards the gryphons waving them over.

The three at the lead however walked up to Hyperion and Mantis.

“Brigadier Hyperion. These certainly are interesting times.” Blizzard said once they were face to face.

“Major Blizzard. I’ve heard a lot about you from General Shield. I believe you also served with my father.”

“I did, but those are stories for another day.” the old stallion replied before gesturing to Jet Deck and Apple Bloom, “You’ve never personally met my First Sergeant and Company Gunny, but you were on opposite sides at Baltimare.”

“Sir.” Jet Deck replied, giving a slight nod to the larger earth pony.

“Sergeant… do you mind me asking whether or not my handiwork is responsible for those scars?”

“Blueblood, actually.” the trooper stated, suppressing a grin as Hyperion’s eyes widened.

“I didn’t think anyone was left on the GDI side from that.” Mantis interjected, “Minor Queen Mantis, pleasure to be working with all of you.”

“Likewise, ma’am.” Blizzard replied, “It looks like your flight deck officers have things handled here, shall we head to the command center for the briefing with the rest of your staff?”

“Right this way,” Hyperion said with a nod, turning towards one of the personnel elevators, “We have much to discuss.”
______________

Red Zone maps tended to be quite different when compared to maps from any other region on the planet. While a normal map would show differing terrain elevations, varying types of terrain, along with strategic assets such as known settlements and natural defensive positions, a Red Zone’s map was a solid block of green, with different shades of it at points. Then again, given the holographic technology available to both Nod and GDI, it was likely that this was just the standard template for this particular area.

Apple Bloom’s hunch was proven correct as various markers were overlaid across the map itself, marking it with arrows and red dots at various points.

“Intelligence on the San Palomino Red Zone is limited, at best. The enemy’s troops composition is unknown, their active defensive positions and fortifications are unknown, and their current location is at best being guessed at.” began Major Blizzard, signaling to the holographic map in the middle of the room.

Those within it represented a varied selection of commanding officers from both Nod and GDI, each of them professionals who would have killed each other without hesitation merely weeks ago.

“We will go over the agreed-upon details for this operation in a moment, but first our Brotherhood friends have asked to carry out a PSA for us. Brigadier, the podium is yours.” said Blizzard, taking a step back as Hyperion stepped up towards the hologram. A single image appeared over the map, one familiar to all those present. A visceroid.

“I don’t believe I need to tell you what this is.” said Hyperion, looking around at the inquisitive GDI faces. “A visceroid, a mutated and deformed remnant of what once was a flesh and blood being. Could have been a rabbit, could have been a pony, but right now it’s just a mass of flesh with teeth.”

“Sir, are you implying we should worry about that?” asked a tank platoon lieutenant. “Because I can guarantee you, they ain’t getting any bites past our treads.” he finished, getting a chuckle from a few other GDI officers.

“Oh, it’s not those which you should be afraid of. That is just what you’re familiar with.” said Hyperion before the image of the visceroid disappeared, being replaced with images of black animals with tiberium growths on their backs and claws, a jellyfish-like creature floating around in the air, as well as a giant hole in the ground with what appeared to be giant teeth protruding out of it while being surrounded by barbed, orange veins all around.

“These, on the other hoof, should be your main concern aside from the aliens.”

“These black animals are referred to as Tiberium Fiends, a catch-all term for animals which have been able to, for lack of a better term, adapt to the effects of Tiberium infestation. As far as our scientists have been able to determine, they exist entirely off of Tiberium radiation, yet at the same time show elevated signs of aggression to non-Tiberium lifeforms. Their claws have been observed to pierce through light vehicle armor, and they tend to travel in packs. Any sighting is to be reported so as to avoid or eliminate them before they become a problem.”

“The second creature is known as a Floater. As the name implies, it floats through the air by propelling itself using a Tiberium-based gas. Said gas is extremely corrosive and possesses highly mutagenic properties. Although your Zone armor should protect you from it, avoiding the gas is to be the preferred course of action. Report any contact with it to ensure the integrity of your armor is maintained. Vehicles are to avoid it at all costs however.”

“Finally, Tartarus’ own asshole. This, believe it or not, is not just a hole in the ground. Named the Veinhole Monster by our most creative of research teams, the danger this being represents comes from its ability to deny terrain to vehicles. With sufficient care, infantry can safely traverse the vein-covered terrain. Under no circumstances however are vehicles to attempt to travel over such terrain. The veins react violently to pressure, actively lashing out against the source of it with enough force to outright break armored plating. In the worst case scenario, sufficient pressure applied over a large enough area will trigger some sort of devouring frenzy on the Veinhole itself, causing it to violently retract its veins into the central maw. Any personnel and vehicles caught amongst the veins when this occurs can be considered lost.”

With that, the map was overlaid with the known positions of veinholes, vein fields, and the known travel routes of observed fiends and floaters. The markers indicating them covered a disturbingly large portion of the map.

“With that, we can proceed unto the operational plan.” said Hyperion, before giving the stunned GDI officers a slight grin. “Oh, and welcome to a Red Zone.”