[Combine] 0004 – Arriving in Moscow

It took approximately four hours to drive to the outskirts of Moscow, and the terrain had changed significantly as we approached the city. It went from a marshy landscape with bountiful forests to one filled with death. The roads were broken and shattered, with rusted cars scattered across the streets and along the ditches. Skeletons were found everywhere we drove, as we got closer and closer to Moscow.

We've had to take several detours already, as the landscape was torn. Apart from and entirely restructured from the bombs dropped on and around the city, many streets no longer even exist or are connected anymore due to the change in the land around Moscow. It would all be fixed and repaired with time, especially when the Combine has fully taken the city of Moscow under its rule. Still, until then, we'd need to carefully navigate and take our time driving deeper and deeper into the ruins of Moscow, where the radiation already began to make our Geiger Counters tick.

It took hours of circling the city's edge for us to find a suitable route to drive deeper into the city without abandoning our vehicles. Eventually, we found a set of railroad tracks that led out of the city, which were relatively stable and flat enough for our vehicles to drive deeper into Moscow. 

I had us take a road up and away from the tracks as soon as I saw it, as I did not want to risk running into any of the fake shadow government that lay on the surface before we were ready.

I had the driver keep to the edges of the city, specifically looking for a remote area in which we could set up a FOB and start preparing our expeditions into Moscow. 

Since we did not have a map of Moscow, nor did we understand the local language and any dialects that may have developed in the decades since the war, it was better that we set up camp somewhere we could easily defend ourselves, rather than immediately driving into Moscow in the hopes of finding the library. 

About ten minutes into our mission of finding a suitable FOB, we were attacked by a rather large pack of Watchers. 

Quadrupedal mammals with long claws, big maws, fur, and a lot of muscle, leading to just one of these beats being able to take down an unaware human. 

Luckily for us, each vehicle was equipped with anti-infantry weaponry, two machine guns on both APCs, and a mounted machine gun at the top of the Troop Carrier. Though the APCs were also equipped with cannons that could tear through anything this world may have to offer.  Though the machine guns easily felled the Watchers, the sound alone would draw everything towards our location for miles, as humans found themselves easy prey on the surface. 

Knowing the dangers to come, I ordered the driver and the convoy as a whole to pick up the pace and get us out of there while I switched to ride the Troop Transport and manned the gun personally to prevent a Demon from swooping down and taking one of my men. 

As I expected, we were soon beset by even more Watchers and even a few Demons which I focused on first, despite several crawlers leaping atop the Troop Transport to attack me but a single shot to the face with the magnum I had grabbed from one of the Civil Protection dealt with any foolish Watchers that drew tried to take out what they perceived to be an easy target. 

The convoy quickly picked up speed, our lead APC easily ramming through every obstacle that dared block our path, while its machine guns tore through every beast that lay in our path. Eventually, the beasts stopped coming, and the Demons stopped circling above us, but I had us continue at our current speed nonetheless. I did not want any Ranger or enemy force catching sight of us after they tried investigating the commotion. 

It was paramount that we remain undetected for as long as possible until we secured a position in Moscow and began the process of making new Overwatch Combine Soldiers, which I expected would happen with any humans we found and captured, with the Red Line, Fourth Reich, and Bandits being the prioritized target for capture as they would cause the most issues while also being likely the most numerous for capture.

And half an hour later, a perfect target for setting up a FOB appeared, a lone factory with razor wire fences, ample space, and what seemed to be some sort of metalworks. Finding it to be the perfect place for an FOB for the short term, I ordered the convoy forward, and once we pulled up, I disembarked, before cutting my radio on to life.

"Elites, gather six Combine Soldiers and regroup with me at the entrance to this building. Bring a few manhacks with you. All other Soldiers and Civil Protection remain alert and protect the civilians," I ordered, holding my assault rifle and calmly walking forward towards the Metalworks.

Before I would even think about setting up shop, I wanted to clear out the building first of any potential beasts nesting inside. 

As the Elites began disembarking the APCs and the Troop Transport, I reached the metal doors of what was likely a way directly into the warehouse. I raised my assault rifle, waiting as I heard the footsteps approach from behind.

I gestured for one of them to hand me a Manhack and felt it be placed in my hand.

Holstering my gun on my back, I reached out to the door and, despite it being locked, forced it open, and after clicking a single button, tossed the Manhack inside before drawing my rifle again and shoving the door open with all my mass, feeling the door snap open as the hinges hadnt been cleaned or replaced since before the war, I was just surprised the door remained on the frame.

My gun raised, I swept the whole room looking for any threat, as the Elites and the Soldiers accompanying them filed in behind me.

I gestured for half of them to go left and the other right while I looked around, wary of any sudden ambushes as the Manhack I threw inside began flying around searching for any dissidents.

Hopefully, there wasn't anything calling this building home; if there were, they would soon meet God.