Milo swiveled his head around to look at what Laytn had seen, watching the bright green flare drifting on a lazy parabolic arc.
"I see it! One moment..."
The young supply officer slowed his small vehicle, fishing a pair of powerful Neiss-Zikon binoculars out of his pocket. Bringing them up to his eyes, he scanned the horizon in the general direction of the flare. While he did this, Zel continued to nose at his chin insistently, tail thumping against his chest in the vulpine approximation of "I told you so".
Milo brought down the field glasses and couldn't help but raise his eyebrows.
"They're out there alright; heat shimmer is making visibility suck, but I count... three Mobile Suits, on a rise to the northwest. Two human types and a tank, possibly with a support truck."
He made a hand signal, and wheeled around his machine in the direction of the Federal position.
"They're not making any effort to hide themselves, and obviously that flare was to get our attention. We should go over and say hello, don't you think?"

[b]Meanwhile, at the Federal position:[/b]

Corporal Hobten tapped the zoom controls on his GM, the view of his main monitor taking in the two Wappa hover-bikes skimming toward them. At his range and magnification, he could see a Zeon soldier riding the lead machine waving at him.
He smiled.
"Alright, that's got their attention; they're coming this way, and they look friendly enough. Safeties on! Let's get set to welcome them."
Nearby, the team's GM Cannon and the Guntank retracted their weapons to storage positions, and Flint himself latched the Beam Spray Gun he carried to his Suit's skirt armor. Everything looked like it would go by routine; more than likely, these three were part of a larger force, and after formalities and pleasantries were exchanged by the two small emissary teams, Flint and his ground would likely be in charge of leading the larger group to the Federation encampment at the Jaghbub Oasis.
[i]I do wonder how Colonel Renfield will take [/i]that[i].[/i]

[b]Meanwhile, at the Jaghbub Oasis:[/b]

[i]"Colonel, this is far enough."[/i]
In his command tent, Colonel Dennet Renfield coolly stared down the muzzle of a service pistol, his expression as unconcerned as if someone had been pointing a water gun at him.
"You would kill me over some Zekes, would you?"
Dennet regarded the young man; he was one of his aids, one of the young soldiers who had risen through the ranks far too quickly during the war. He stood, visibly trembling, aiming sidearm at his superior, a look of mixed horror and resolve etched on his features.
[i]"For god's sake, Colonel! The war is [/i]over[i]! The enemy has [/i]surrendered[i]! These people wish us no harm![/i]
The young man shook his head.
[i]"I don't care what it costs me, sir, but I won't let you do this! This... this is [/i]insane[i], sir!"[/i]
Colonel Renfield's expression hardened.
"Insane, is it?!"
The officer rose to his feet, causing the aid to take a step back.
"The only thing that's [i]insane[/i], Corporal, is that our government has decided that the war is won, when it has only [i]just started[/i]! The Earth is still infested with spacenoids, who defile its soil and, at best, are only [i]pretending[/i] to lay down their arms so that they can stab us in the back later!"
The aid stared at his commanding officer, aghast.
[i]"Sir, you're talking about civil-"[/i]
"[i]Collaborators[/i], Corporal!! They supported the Zeon during the war, and they'll share their fate!"
Renfield advanced on the young man, but came up short when the aid reflexively raised his weapon to point at the tip of his nose.
[i]"I t-told you, sir."[/i] The aid said, his voice quavering. [i]"I won't let you do this...!"[/i]
Renfield gritted his teeth.
"Is that a fact."
The aid never had a chance.
Renfield was a blur of motion, ducking easily under the upraised pistol before the man holding it could register what was going on. With a flick, he withdrew an antique stiletto from a belt holster...
The gun fell from the young man's hand, clattering to the floor, before he sagged, hand raising to clutch at the oozing hole in his chest. The aid's khaki uniform stained red, and he was dead before he even hit the ground.
Renfield looked down at the corps with distaste.
The tent door fluttered, and a uniformed guard entered, saluting the Colonel smartly. If he noticed the dead body, he did not show it.
[i]"Sir, would like to report that we're almost ready. Artillery is already sighted in."[/i]
Dennet nodded, going back to his table and wiping his bloody knife off with a rag.
"Excellent. Tell the gun crews to stand ready, and..."
He nudged the dead aid with his foot.
"Get this thing out of my sight, will you?"