GATE: The United Nations of Earth

Chapter 45: "Priority: A Spark of Fire"

A/N: Hi guys, I've been binge-playing Divinity 2 with my bf the last few weeks so I haven't been writing much. Boy did that game long lol. Anw, hope you'll enjoy this chapter. Thanks for reading!

--UNE Embassy, Rondel--

It is the next morning right after the beginning of the survival round of the tournament. The garrison commander is with his lieutenant, and a group of 10 town guards and a mage, heading towards the gate of the embassy. Only the commander is riding a horse. He watches closely at the gate for any suspicious sign or hint, and so far, he saw none. Just 3 UNE soldiers, 2 in the gate booth and 1 is patrolling along the gate, guarding the entrance which is perfectly normal.

While ambassador Noah is well aware of the intention of the garrison commander, the guarding marines are not. The UNE prefer nobody to know about GIA's spying activities, therefore, they insisted that the ambassador to prepare for it but not tell anyone. Despite his strong objection and warning that this could potentially spiral out of control, the order was given and he must follow.

Stopping in front of the gate, the lieutenant starts walking towards the guarding marines while the town guards are forming up into 2 lines behind the commander. The patrolling marine stops and turns towards the town guards while the 2 marines in the booth also walk outside.

"Hello, this is the UNE embassy" the marine says as his TAC suit scans the armed men in front of him then continues "Is there a problem, sirs?".

In a rude and arrogant manner, the lieutenant replies "We are here to search this building, you better stay out of the way".

Maintaining professionalism as training, the marine ignores his tone "I'm sorry but we were not informed of this visit, you will need to get approval from the Rondel council in writing or have your superior contact our ambassador for permission to enter. Until then, we cannot let you get past this gate" he says, not looking at the lieutenant but looking at the garrison commander.

The lieutenant looks back at his commander, and after receiving a slight nod from him, he turns back to the marine and speaks in a calmer voice "This is the garrison commander, he oversees the defenses and security of this city. His word is as good as the council's, you must comply".

"With all due respect, it is not in the agreement that the council signed with our government. I must ask you to keep away from the embassy for now" the marine replies.

"Then we have no choice but to force our way in" the lieutenant says then takes out his sword and ready his shield.

The town guards also do the same as the lieutenant. Their swords were unsheathed and shields at ready. Unlike the Imperial legionnaires rectangle shield that is made from 3 sheets of wood glued together and covered with canvas and leather, similar to the Roman's scutum, the town guards of Rondel use metal oval shields in combination with full body armor. Without the need to arm millions of soldiers, a rich city like Rondel could afford to fully arm its garrison with the best possible gear. In addition, the lack of need for long marches mean that their soldiers could wear heavy armor and shield for better protection.

Immediately, the marines raise their rifle against the group of town guards. 6 combat drones are launched from their port behind the wall and hover above the marines with their weapons pointing toward the potential hostiles. A few more marines run out of the embassy and take up their positions as the alarm is going off in the embassy. There are more marines taking up positions at the windows of the building.

"Put your weapon down, now!" the marine shouts commandingly.

Having never directly fought the UNE before, the town guards of Rondel have only heard rumors about these UNE soldiers. If the rumors are only half true, getting into a fight with these people would be a really bad situation to be in even when a battle mage is with them. Seeing faceless UNE soldiers in their full body armor with the matte color matching the marbles of the building, the town guards can't help but wonder, how do they see? How are they so agile in full-body armor? Are they even mortal or are they beastly creatures? And then their weapon, there is neither a pointy end nor a sharpened edge if visible, and there is no typical glowing of any kind of magic orbs or runes, what do they do? Why are they holding it like a crossbow, but there's no cross or string? And those flying beasts as well.