(Untitled)

[green_earth_ace]

Eagle shuts the strange journal and slumps forward, leaning against the handlebars of his motorcycle.  He thought he'd seen everything...clones, meteors, crystals that sucked the life out of the land itself...and now here's one little book that's just as unbelievable as any of them.  It looked like a book, sounded like a book, felt like a book, but

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[commander_max]

The Orange Star delegation had traveled most of the way by chopper, but eventually they had to pick a landing spot outside the mess of weather. Thus they had traveled the rest of the way via a Humvee recon unit. As much as he would've liked to do so, Commander Max let one of his lieutenants do the driving. Fortunately the vehicle provided some warmth for the passengers, though Max was already dressed in a heavy coat and other attire. He had hoped when he left Hyrule after that whole business with the assassination that he wouldn't need to wear this outfit again.

The falling snow had made it difficult to find their way, but they had managed radio contact some half hour ago and that made narrowing down on the Green Earth encampment all the easier. All things considered, he felt like he was a Blue Moon soldier having to trek through all this snow all the time. He wondered how Olaf managed to make it look so easy.

An escort of Green Earth vehicles soon joined them and led them the rest of the way inside of a hangar. It was an airport base that had been pulled over, it seemed. That would explain why Eagle had so many soldiers with him. They looked pretty well supplied too. That could come in handy.

And there was Eagle, looking as uptight and wound up as ever. Max exited the vehicle and approached him. "Well Eagle, you're a sight for sore eyes," Max said with his usual friendly enthusiasm. "Damndest weather we're having, isn't it?"

[green_earth_ace]

"Oh yes," Eagle replied sardonically. "Appeared all of a sudden. No wait, that was [I]us[/I]." Eagle eyed Max carefully. It certainly [I]looked[/I] like the real thing, acted like him, sounded like him...even the Black Hole clones could be told apart from the originals if you could get a close enough look. Still...

"First things first," Eagle said, holding out his journal toward Max. "Everyone keeps telling me to look at the first page of this blasted thing. Would you mind demonstrating that's it's harmless? Pointing [I]away[/I] from my troops?" Eagle signaled his infantry to be ready for action.

[commander_max]

Max sighed and looked at the journal. He took it in his hands and after a moment deliberation, removed a glove, carefully licked his finger, and turned to page one. Then he loudly cleared his throat and began reading. "Greetings," he began. His other hand was used to make quotations for that. "There's a bit here where you add your name."

Max continued. "You have just discovered a journal. This device is designed to service you in conducting communications with other people in possession of these books. It will automatically produce a crude image of yourself to allow other readers to identify you beyond simple handwriting. Communication is instant and will appear in writing after you have finished writing your message. If you err in your writing, you can cover up your text before it can be seen. Be sure to cover it completely or people may still notice your writing."

Max looked back up and tossed the journal back to Eagle. "It goes on a bit like that. The person who makes these journals is rather bland."

[green_earth_ace]

Eagle wrinkled his nose briefly. Disgusting habit, that...though it was a count in favor of authenticity. Eagle could recall Max doing that on the campaigns they'd been in together.

Eagle caught the journal, then looked down at it. Carefully, he lifted the cover and peered at the first page. He took a minute to skim through the rest of the text. Well...it certainly explained a lot of the odd things people had said (or [I]been[/I]) in his first encounter through the journal...but it was pretty hard to swallow nonetheless. "This is...rubbish...isn't it?" Eagle closed the journal and stepped forward. "All right, I believe you're the real Max, but...what's going on here?"

[commander_max]

"Exactly what the book says," Max answered, carefully concealing his frustration that Eagle was making this so difficult. "This is an entirely different world. An artificial one, or so they say. A faction known as the Subspace Army have mastered the ability to travel between different universes. They use devices known as Subspace Bombs to tear away places and people from one world... and bring them here. Hell if I know why. To populate the planet? Either way, they're not content to just leave us here. They're trying to conquer those of us trapped here, though so far we've been resisting them."

He gave that a moment for it all to sink in. The whole story was far fetched and he'd hardly believed it if he hadn't spent the last year here. "That's just the tip of the iceberg there. Some of us, myself included, have been stuck in this place for a year. A lot of stuff has happened since then."

[green_earth_ace]

Eagle scowls. "Oh, wonderful. It's like another of Black Hole's crazy schemes, only crazier still." Eagle glances into the hangar. "Well, if conquest is what they want, they made a mighty big mistake pulling us in. They could hardly have chosen a harder target to subdue than a Green Earth battalion." Eagle glances upward. "Then again...we'd be sitting ducks if they attacked right now."

[commander_max]

Oh, if only it was that easy. "Generally I'd agree, but you haven't seen them in action. They can create clones on a whim, adapt to any technology, attack at any time in any place without any warning, and seem to have an unlimited amount of troops. In fact, the only thing you have protecting you from Subspace Army... and some of the other unsavory factions around... is this blizzard here."

[green_earth_ace]

Eagle grimaced. "From the sound of things, it's a mystery why you've lasted a year. With advantages like that, Black Hole wouldn't have relented for one minute." Eagle folds his arms. "There's a lot more I'll need to ask you about, but for now, I think we should prioritize getting set up. You say this blizzard is protecting us. Do you think we should stay here? Can't say I like the idea myself."

[commander_max]

"Honestly, I don't know what their deal is. Aside from completely decimating the Cornerians, they've only claimed a few cities here and there," Max replied. Which while puzzling, was not something he spent too much time thinking about. The trick was to be ready when the time came, not sit around worrying about why.

"Anyways, as for this location... you're in between two other nations. Hyrule to the east and Pig Star - don't ask - to the north. While both are allies with Orange- err... the Ellay Forces, Pig Star aren't so understanding. Once this winter clears up, which should be happening rather soon, they're going to find this location and take a very keen interest in it."

It would be hard for Ellay to lay any claim to it, given how far away they were. There was a chance Hyrule could, but he wasn't sure that was such a good idea. "Fact of the matter is, an airbase out in the middle of nowhere like this isn't necessarily the most strategic location to be."

[green_earth_ace]

Eagle made a mental checklist of unfamiliar names. Cornerians, Hyrule (heard that one earlier but still didn't know much about it), Pig Star, Ellay...talk about your culture shock. Being dropped into a new universe sure is disorienting.

Eagle raised an eyebrow as Max finished his analysis. "You're thinking ahead more than you used to," he remarked. "Well, if you expect this blizzard to let up soon, then we can get the fliers up and away with everything else. As for the airbase itself..." Eagle looked over the buildings, then sighed. "I suppose we'd best not leave any careless gifts behind. We'll have to blow it."

[commander_max]

It was true. After learning to not be able to count on Nell due to her absence and later her duties, Max wasn't just the knucklehead commander he used to be. He still had a long way to go, but he was trying at least.

"Well, like I said... artificial planet. The Cornerian General is working on getting this weather cleared up," Max explained. "In any case, I think you're right. Hyrule doesn't have the manpower to staff this place, so chances are it would fall to Pig Star. That said, what do you intend to do? I'll be frank here, because there's no reason beating around the bush about it. Our airforce is in shambles. We've lost most of our pilots and planes to Pig Star. Even though we've started building more, we barely have enough to patrol our airspace. We could really use you back in Ellay."

[green_earth_ace]

Eagle smirked. "When have you ever been anything [I]but[/I] frank? If you've a place for us, then of course we'll join you. Far better than wandering around to who-knows-where with who-knows-what out there waiting for us." Eagle turned to his troops. "All right people, prepare for total evacuation! Tune up all craft, load up all the supplies you can, and get the demo squad to work on rigging a last hurrah for this old place!" The soldiers saluted, then broke into a flurry of organized chaos that would've done an ant colony proud.

Eagle looked back to Max. "At least there's one good thing coming from all this. I'm looking forward to working with you and the rest of the Orange Star crew again. I can already see that childish grin on Andy's f--" Eagle blinks. "...They are here, aren't they?"

[commander_max]

Max was impressed as he watched the soldiers get to it. There was no use sparing manpower and he sent his own men to do their bit as well. "Well, most of us are. You talked to Nell, so obviously she's here. So is Andy. We've even got Grit back into the fold, but really that's it. Unless you count Lash, but mostly I just ignore her."

Even though he knew it didn't work [i]that way[/i], he at least he could comfort himself with the thought that Sami, Jake, and Rachel were holding the fort down back home. Though of course he knew that they had no idea he or anyone else was even gone. "Of course, we're not technically Orange Star anymore. Ellay is from another world, but we took them under our protection, so it's not fair to say we're the ones in control."

[green_earth_ace]

Eagle's face fell. "Oh...I see." Eagle coughed and forced a chipper look. "Well, that's something at least. Shame Sami isn't here, though. From the sound of things, you're short on production capacity. You could use her genius for training foot soldiers." Eagle folded his hands behind his back. "Suppose I'd best...oversee the evacuation preparations. Thanks for coming out here to help us, Max." Eagle turned and wandered back into the hangar.

[commander_max]

Max quirked an eyebrow as he watched the Green Earth pilot walk off to get ready for departure. Somehow he never realized that he had a thing for Sami. He grinned in bemusement about that. Moments later, he put himself to work as well, doing the all important task of heavy lifting, a job that he was extremely well qualified for.