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First Appearance: G.I. JOE #29 (July 1984)

    For Cobra to be successful, it needed undercover agents to subvert governments from the inside out. Soldiers were adequate for acts of terrorism and military attacks, but more subtlety and stealth was often needed. Money had to be raised to fund Cobra's operations and knowledge of the law was needed to circumvent government regulations and to influence politicians in America and elsewhere. Around 1984, Cobra Commander commissioned a new group of elite Cobra soldiers, the Crimson Guard. The Guard was unquestionably loyal to the Commander and most served as deep cover agents, infiltrating America's cities and towns, posing as average citizens. Businessmen, lawyers and accountants, they helped Cobra gain financial assets all over the world. The entire town of Springfield was, in essence, an undercover operation. All its citizens were a part of Cobra, but had to hide that fact from anyone from the outside world. The most powerful citizens in Springfield became the core of the Crimson Guard. Less than a year after the group's founding, the international businessman and mercenaries Tomax and Xamot became the Crimson Guard commanders, the group continued to be loyal primarily to Cobra Commander.

    All of the Siegies (C.G.'s) took on assumed names and new identities. Some groups even underwent cosmetic surgery to have the same face, the most famous being the Fred series. The identitical faces were designed to make it easy to replace one Guardsman with another if he was lost in battle or reassigned for some other reason. His standing in a community would not be lost, just passed on to another of his series. In most cases, an entire Siegie's family would also be working for Cobr ain some capacity. The first in the Fred Broca series -- aka Fred I -- and his wife and two children took up residence just outside of Fort Wadsworth, a suspected center for G.I. Joe activity (it was actually the location of the Pit). After gathering little evidence of Joe activity, Fred received a call from Cobra Commander himself, giving him the possible location of a Joe bae in the High Sierra mountains. Along with Destro and Firefly, Fred followed the bug to Snake-Eyes cabin in the wilderness. A long firefight began between Snake-Eyes and the three Cobra agents, and the Joe commando was soon joined by Spirit and Airborne. Fred was shot by Spirit and died in the aftermath of the battle. The Joes laid Fred to rest in a small cave under a nearby waterfall.

    Though Fred I had died, Cobra cared little about his demise. A short time later, his family met Fred II, another member of the Fred series. He pretended to be the original Fred, but his family knew he was an imposter, but eventually accepted him. Over the next few months, Fred (and family) evaded a group of Joes at the Staten Island shopping mall, then led a group of Siegies attacking Snake-Eyes and Scarlett on the Staten Island ferry. The Joes ambushed the Cobras, and Fred ended up falling into the freezing cold  river after being frightened from seeing Snake-Eyes true, disfigured face. Fred returned home with a terrible fever and argued with his family. Despite doctor's orders, he left the house after noticing a Joe vehicle leaving Fort Wadsworth. He followed them to Washington, DC and listened in on their conversation through a bug attached to their jeep. He learned that two of the Joes were Snake-Eyes and Stalker. He found them at the Vietnam Memorial and revealed his true identity: He was Wade Collins -- an old army buddy of the Joes who was presumed dead by them decades earlier. He had, in fact been a prisoner of war for years and eventually joined Cobra when his life fell apart at home. Collins intended to turn the Joes in, but Stalker convinced him that he still had a family that loved him, and that Cobra was using him. Wade packed up his family and moved somewhere in the United States, free from Cobra's influence.

    A Crimson Guard scientist, Prof. Appel, was so deep undercover that his own daughter, Candy had no idea he had joined Cobra. Appel was the mastermind behind the creation of Cobra Island. He surmised that if a certain faultline under the ocean floor was aggravated, a huge landmass would be thrust up above the waves. Cobra tricked the Joes into bombing a bunker on the bottom of the ocean, proving Appel's theory and creating a new sovereign land that Cobra claimed as their own. Appel was stationed on Cobra Island for a time, but was later killed.

    While Cobra Commander was presumed dead after a battle with the Joes, he arrived at Fred's Garage in Denver and surprised the garage's Siegie owner, Fred VII. This particular Fred was a mechanical engineer and helped build a highly-advanced cybernetic leg for Cobra Commander's son, Billy. Fred also designed a suit of battle armor for Cobra Commander and the Cobra vehicle known as the Pogo. For a time, Fred VII helped his Commander renew his fight with the Joes, but when the Commander decided to turn his back on Cobra for his son, Fred was furious. He angrily shot Cobra Commander through the back and buried him in the woods outside of Denver. Realizing that anyone could be inside the battle armor, Fred made his way to Cobra Island where he posed as the true Cobra Commander for a time with the Baroness' help. What Fred hadn't realized was that another member of the Fred series -- Fred VIII -- had kept a close eye on him. The loyal Siegie dug up the Commander's body and discovered he was still alive, just barely. With the help of his loyal Crimson Guard, the Commander built another financial empire. Meanwhile, a civil war had broken out on Cobra Island between Serpentor and Fred VII. The remaining Siegies sided with Serpentor, perhaps realizing that Fred was not truly Cobra Commander. If they knew of the Commander's true fate, they never let on. Almost four years after the Commander's presumed death, he returned to Cobra, making certain that Fred died for his treachery. With his full Crimson Guard behind him, the Commander started his new plans. He took over the town of Millville, backed by his Siegies, who continued to serve as undercover agents around the world, including Millville and Cobra's town of Broca Beach, New Jersey.

    The Crimson Guard remained loyal to the Commander through the Battle of Benzheen, to the takeover of Borovia and up to Cobra's military defeat in 1994. In 2001, Cobra Commander returned with a new army behind him. A new Crimson Guard was at his side, though the practice of undergoing cosmetic surgery had been abandoned. Surprisingly, when Destro forcibly took control of Cobra from the Commander, the Crimson Guard were on the weapon supplier's side. It has yet to be determined just how Destro swayed the once thought to be loyal Siegies. Undoubtedly, the Crimson Guard will continue to be a vital part of Cobra's plans for world domination, no matter who leads them.