INT. UNDERGROUND BUNKER – NIGHT

The alien sirens echo faintly through steel walls. Flickering monitors cast cold blue light on G.I. JOE and his two brothers, standing ready.

JACOB ROTHSCHILD enters, his cane tapping on the concrete floor. His voice carries the weight of scripture.

JACOB ROTHSCHILD
(quoting)
“They kill the widow and alien; the fatherless they murder.”
(Psalm 94:6)

He lowers the Bible and stares at Joe.

JACOB ROTHSCHILD
That verse… it’s about them. The invaders. They don’t just slaughter soldiers — they erase the weak, the forgotten, the innocent.

Joe’s jaw tightens.

G.I. JOE
So that’s why you put everything into XCOM?

JACOB ROTHSCHILD
In 1994, when the nations turned their backs, I mortgaged my legacy. I risked every Rothschild coin to keep the Project alive. Do you understand, Joe? The world abandoned the fight, but I could not.

He steps closer, his eyes fixed on Joe and his brothers.

JACOB ROTHSCHILD
I chose you three because you did what no one else could. You beat the game in record time. What was a simulation for others… was prophecy for you.

Joe looks down at the battered XCOM insignia Jacob presses into his palm.

JACOB ROTHSCHILD
This isn’t just war, Joe. This is scripture unfolding. And if we fail… Psalm 94 will be written in our blood.

The alien sirens rise to a scream.