Core of the Matter

Core of the Matter is the eighth mission in an alternated Soviet campaign of Command & Conquer: Red Alert.

Background
Both Croatia and Yugoslavia have been conquered, but the Premier wanted a mere turn by capturing more European lands and evenly take out two enemy theatre HQs in both Spain and Norway. Stavros turned to an Allied Commander to defend a research laboratory in outer Liecht from Soviet wave-in of military hardware. The Soviet Commander on the other hand gets to the border of Austria and Liecht in order to destroy an Allied Command Center in western Vienna. If this is destroyed, all Allied Forces stationed in the area will get into France and Spain in terrible retreat or stand up in remorse against the Red Army.

Aftermath
Joseph Stalin felt miserable over the Chronosphere research center incident in outer Liecht, but felt happy to hear his Commander's progress at western Vienna. Unbeknownst to both the Soviet Commander and his rival-in-arms, Soviet military officers backed a plan to assassinate or overthrow Stalin which eventually fails and the Premier finds out that his subordinates are behind it. Vladimir Kosygin decides to get out from Soviet exposure as Stalin (after an Allied tragedy at Elba island) finds out that Gradenko must be behind it, but Nadia Zelenkov poisons him with tea following orders to the Soviet leader.