“Attention! Officer on deck!” Grimes shouted and stood straight with a salute.

My squad mates responded instantly and rose. Captain Thorm Hanz was at the door to our barracks. He was a tall man, as tall as Rickard, thick-boned, and smelled of starch and cigars. He had squinty eyes, and whenever he smiled, he always looked nervous doing it.

“At ease,” he said, and we all relaxed.

Captain Thorm walked in, and like all seasoned military personnel, he had excellent posture and walked stiffly. “May I?” He asked as he stood before our access panel.

We all nodded, Thorm punched in some codes, and our room transformed with a series of loud clicks and vibrations. Thorm arranged for a conference table and chairs to be in the center of our barracks. He motioned for us to be seated. Since I had a tail, I had to adjust my chair into a stool, which I sat on like a saddle. One thing I liked about Captain Thorm was that he held briefings in our barracks. To me, it showed respect for the troops.

A holographic projector was located in the center of the table, and it displayed a three-dimensional image of Delta V, another miserable rock in space that we will probably be ordered to visit. On the plus side, this miserable rock was more temperate with deserts and jungles. More to my liking! The projector was linked to the Captain, and he could manipulate the image with his fingers. He could move it around and zoom in on points of interest.

Data appeared around the planet, listing names of cities, temperatures, and military hotspots. The Imperium controlled interspace commerce and travel. Rarely does it intervene with planetary politics, especially planets that were far out from the core planets, such as Delta V. In the core planets, there was more presence, more order, more technology, and more stability. Out on the fringe planets, it was more chaotic. I grew up on a core planet with culture, laws, arts, and music.

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“Military intelligence was able to analyze the information you discovered on the ice rock. It shows that the Galactic Federation is searching for something on Delta V.”

“What are they looking for?” Asked Grimes.

“Our sources indicate some old technology, and they think it is a weapon. The Brass believes it may be powerful enough to give the Federation a significant advantage, and that is why we are assigning your team to find out. Your mission is to be Stealth Dropped to the coordinates we deciphered from your findings to where this ancient technology is believed to be hidden,” Thorn answered.

“What kind of trouble will we face?” Asked Jimmy.

“We expect that you will encounter agents of the Federation. Plus, Delta V is a tumultuous planet, and where you will be dropped is in the middle of a civil war in the kingdom of Thayra,” the Captain replied.

“Great,” I muttered and was quickly silenced by a glare from Grimes.

“Delta V is a low technology planet with chemical ballistic weapons and fossil-fueled powered vehicles. Our TCG-15 suits should be more than sufficient to stand up against their firepower,” Tool observed while reading data through his thick silver goggles.

“I’m not worried about the inhabitants. I’m more worried about the Federation’s agents,” Grimes said.

“Unfortunately, we do not have enough reliable intel to prepare you,” Thorm stated.

“As usual,” grumbled Jimmy.

Thorm rose, and the rest of us followed.

“Good luck. You are to report to the shuttle bay Z30 at 0400 hours. Huzzah, soldiers!” Thorm cheered.

“Huzzah!” We all replied.