“ | Alexa wasn't wrong about you or the reach of your power. Her fear, however, was misplaced, for you are the future! You are the One! You are LEGION! - Kane, to LEGION(src) |
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LEGION is an advanced artificial lifeform created by Kane himself in order to succeed CABAL as the Brotherhood of Nod's premier tactical AI, and to help him use the Tacitus. He is the player character in Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath.
Biography[]
Creation[]
“ | You and I are all that remain but are all that is necessary. For together we shall raise a great army... - Kane, to LEGION(src) |
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Inspiration for LEGION's creation occurred while Kane was confined in a medical tube after the Second Tiberium War and in the period immediately following his release. While formulating the Brotherhood's future, and ultimately the direction of the Third Tiberium War, Kane decided to create a new lifeform based on CABAL.[1][2]
The previous AI ultimately failed but provided a firm foundation for improvement, and Kane envisioned the new creation that would surpass the old. Kane used information gained from Tacitus shards to create the new AI. By 2034, the first version of LEGION was operational (though not named yet).[3]
Reunification[]
“ | ... and you my child, you must move to the next step in your evolution. Even CABAL will pale in comparison. For now, however, it is time to sleep. To sleep... perchance to dream... - Kane, deactivating LEGION in order to upgrade the AI(src) |
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Nod faced familiar difficulties after the Firestorm Conflict. Anton Slavik, leader of the Black Hand and Kane's chosen successor, was assassinated and usurped by Marcion. Forthwith the Brotherhood fragmented with Marcion leading the Black Hand, the strongest faction, with heretical beliefs. Effectively abandoned by all others, Kane turned to LEGION in 2034 to execute his plan to reunify Nod.
LEGION led the Rio de Janeiro insurrection against GDI, bringing the South American Nod factions under Kane's influence.[3] It then recovered the last remaining record of Nod's stealth technology from a GDI facility in Australia.[4] This was a lead up to assaulting Marcion's Australian stronghold and securing the heretic's and the Black Hand's loyalty. Marcion was thus forced to act as Kane's public face.[5] Finally LEGION destroyed a GDI Tiberium research facility in Australia. The cataclysmic aftermath turned much of the continent into Yellow and Red Zones. This "grand gesture" signaled Nod's resurgence to the world.[6]
LEGION was deactivated for upgrading as part of general preparations for the Third Tiberium War.
Third Tiberium War[]
“ | The signal of the Tacitus has returned, you must find the artifact. You must capture it for Kane... I fear, however, if you do, you will become something... obscene.... CABAL's cyborg army murdered many innocents, murdered my parents! I pray I am wrong about you LEGION. I pray for us all. - Alexa Kovacs, to LEGION(src) |
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During his period of slumber, Nod rebuilt, becoming a covert superpower. The development of the fledgling AI became one of the Brotherhood's most secret projects, headed by Abbess Alexa Kovacs, the designated ward of the initiative.[7] It awoke significantly enhanced and upgraded, in time for final preparations for the Third Tiberium War.
Under Kovacs' command, LEGION was crucial in securing access codes for the global defence matrix in Johannesburg, allowing them to identify weaknesses in the network of ion cannons protecting the Philadelphia.[8] Another success came when the AI successfully staged an incident at the GDI Treasury, forcing Director Redmond Boyle to remain planetside and assume command over GDI.[9] This was the first part of Kane's plan; the second was preventing Doctor Alphonse Giraud from convincing Boyle not to use the ion cannon to level Temple Prime, while also "recruiting" another great mind for the Brotherhood.[10] Another assignment it was given during this time was the destruction of the ZOCOM MARVs in the African Red Zone.[11]
Before the Temple Prime's destruction, LEGION was forced by Alexa to act against Kane and conduct a false-flag operation: an attack on the Temple in the guise of Kilian Qatar.[12] This was apparently achieved by a special module she used, which corrupted Kane's broadcasts and allowed only Alexa to come through. Curiously this problem was subverted when the Scrin invaded and Kane was able to contact LEGION directly, informing him about the Tacitus signals and their relevance to him.[13] When LEGION was finally ordered to capture the device in China, everything went wrong, as Alexas' paranoia finally made her snap. Her mistrust of the AI, which only grew deeper as she agonized over her parents' murder by CABAL years ago, developed into an obsession as she gradually understood the scope of the project she was a ward of.
In what she perceived a defense of Kane, she infected LEGION with a powerful virus, corrupting its systems and forcing into the digital equivalent of a coma. LEGION's final visual input before he shut down was her suicide, right in front of the Prophet.[14]
Evolution[]
“ | LEGION my child, you are my greatest creation. It is time for you to take center stage. Time for you to achieve the purpose for which you were created. One vision, one purpose! - Kane, connecting LEGION with the Tacitus(src) |
” |
LEGION was not permanently deactivated, however. It was upgraded with Scrin-derived technology while inactive and Kane was confident that LEGION would reactivate, and it did so independently in 2052 after the Third Tiberium War. Kane believed the AI was roused by signals from the Tacitus.[15]
Kane wasted no time directing LEGION to recapture the artifact; GDI experiments had rendered the data matrix dangerously unstable and it was imperative to recover it before it was too late. LEGION roused the Marked of Kane, a cyborg army developed but left dormant after the Second Tiberium War,[15] and used it to assault GDI's Rocky Mountains base where the Tacitus was stored.[16] With the Tacitus back in Kane's hands LEGION interfaced with the device, stabilizing it.[17]
Ascension[]
Following the interfacing with the Tacitus and the knowledge contained within, LEGION cemented his role as the governing intelligence of the Brotherhood. Serving as the command and control network for Nod leaders world-wide and the cyborg control system, his role in 2077 was just as vital to the Brotherhood as during the Third Tiberium War. It is unknown what happened to LEGION when Kane and Nod ascended.
Behind the scenes[]
- According to official Q&A from the developers of Command & Conquer 4: Tiberian Twilight, LEGION acts as Nod's EVA in the game.[18]
- Although the word "Legion" comes from the way it's called the standarized Roman army, LEGION's name is probably another reference to the Bible, specifically Mark 5:9 where Jesus asks a demon that is possessing a man it's name and it responds with "my name is Legion, for we are many".
References[]
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