We finished the push North to the supply drop just after daylight, it was easy to find as the landing rockets were still standing tall and assisted with navigating. As we arrived we were greeted by only five men guarding the drop. However these men were in full Miltech suits, different to the more casual approach that the Southern Guard had adopted down on Biterra.
“Corporal Carter” one of the men nodded with his rolling southern accent before turning to Ro “Lieutenant Ro ma’am” and nodding again.
“Where’s everyone else? You guys drop down from Salvation?” Ro asked staunchly.
“Yes ma’am we dropped with the gear, as for everyone else they have partly dropped back to Ro’s Cove and the rest have made their way to the Northlands”
“The Northlands?, I exclaimed, “why the hell would we be pushing across the sea?”
“Hendersons orders sir, we’re hitting Solari camps tonight”
Henderson, of course. We all knew she had a short fuse and had already made it known she wanted us to control basically the whole universe if it were up to her. Her calls had progressively been getting more aggressive and although I could see the reasoning behind it, I started to get worried about where it would end up taking us.
“The best defence is offence,” whispered Ro, contemplating the logic whilst also answering my underlying question.
“Seems risky, they have larger numbers than us though,” I said.
“Well that’s not the case anymore sir, there was about a hundred extra Miltech officers dropped with the equipment”
“Fuckin’ hell.. a hundred? We can’t afford that many off of Salvation, what is Henderson thinking!” declared Ro.
“It’s the first tour, only temporary ma’am. Salvation will be back in a few years again after we get you to your rocket”
I was shocked at the loyalty and commitment shown by these Miltech Officers. They were totally willing to deploy and try to secure human stronghold on Biterra, for years until Salvation dropped back in again.
“Alright let’s move out. LT Ro and CPL Carter you’re with us. The rest of the men can stay here and guard the drop.”
In the drop was a Humvee style vehicle. Two of recently deployed Miltech Officers hopped in the front, with a third in the centre gunnery, and Ro and I in the back. It wasn’t long before we were making tracks and on our way back to Ro’s Cove. It was nice for once not having to walk or take a boat and make the trip in a half decent amount of time.
“So have you guys even seen the Solari yet?” I asked, raising my voice so the guys could hear me over the loud rattle of the humvee as it was knocking down brush making its way over the bumpy terrain”
“Ha no not yet, we’ve heard rumours though,” said the officer in the gunnery.”
“Yeah just humans on steroids basically,” chimed in the officer in the front passenger.
“You guys have no —“
An explosion hit the side of the humvee sending the back of the vehicle up and flipping it over several times before coming to a stop in some thick scrub on the edge of a forested area.
Lost in a daze and with heavy smoke all I can remember is hearing one of the officers calling over the radio that we had been ambushed. I was hanging upside down and looking next to me, Ro was hanging by her belt too, but she was limp, unconscious from the crash with blood dripping from her head.
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“Argh fuck. We gotta move!
“We gotta take cover and hide in the forest until backup arrives,” yelled one of the officers in panic as he tried to unbuckle himself.
I unbuckled myself and with a thud I hit the ground, well the now ceiling of the humvee. I grabbed hold of Ro, trying to support her weight while I cut her free of the belt, grabbing the shirt around her shoulders after she dropped.
I paused for a moment before pulling her out of the wreck. It was odd, despite the crackling of the wrecked humvee I couldn’t hear any shots or hums of Solari blades as we emerged. I could however, hear the sound of explosions and gunfire way off in the distance as it echoed its way through the gully’s and hills that surrounded us. Was this a trap or just a random mine laid by us or the Solari?
The other Miltech officer pulled his co passenger off to the forest edge and sat, a pool of blood soaked through one leg of his pants. I pulled Ro away from the wreckage and sat her down gently, running to the officer. I tore his pants leg to to find a large piece of shrapnel embedded into his leg. The pain had started to hit him and he was yelling with each throb of pain.
I ran over to the wreckage and managed to find a couple of medical kits then ran back to the officer first. I applied a pressure bandage around his injury then jabbed him with a single morphine shot before leaving him with the kit.
“Use these sparingly, I’ll be back for you and Lieutenant Ro.”
I ran over to Ro and cleaned up her head the best I could before dragging her over to some bushes and propping her up against a rock, hoping if any Solari came through that she would be hidden enough until I had returned.
—-
As I gained on Ro’s Cove, the sound of a range of weapon fire could be heard, they were fending off an attack. I picked up the pace to a sprint, using up my energy reserves trying to make it into the settlement to find any sort of vehicle to go back and get Ro.
I couldn’t tell where or who shots were being fired from, but on my run I saw a group of downed Solari that I dropped next to in search of any type of weapon. One of them was holding what looked like a rifle, it was extremely light weight for its size, a dull metallic colour, no obvious sign of traditional ammunition like we’d use, and I had no idea how it worked. At all. So I picked it up and ran with it anyway, it seemed to make me more confident in my dash.
Just as I was almost inside the town I started to take fire, I could feel cold chills slice across my back and torso as I was skimmed by whatever it was they were shooting. Out of reflex I aimed the rifle at the closest Solari I was approaching, I had totally forgotten this gun was useless to me. Until it wasn't.
As I raised the rifle, I had what seemed hundreds of thoughts all at once. The Solari is raising his weapon; it’s too late to shoot his chest; will I try for a headshot or should I hit his knees and drop him first. When I had settled on a headshot the rifle.. just…fired.
It was like it knew what I was thinking, it was somehow tapped into me. There was no trigger, no nothing. I had no other explanation on how it fired or how it kept on firing every time I went through the same process. Aim, think, fire.
Inside the town it was absolute chaos, people running everywhere trying to coordinate defences to keep the Solari at bay. I noticed a small ATV style vehicle ahead of me with a Miltech officer scrambling to get inside of it. It was not ideal but the best I could run into.
“Out out out,” I demanded as the officer was about to drive off again.
“No way, are you fucking crazy!?”
“I’m taking this fucking vehicle, I’ll shoot you if I have to,” I said in desperation as I kicked the officer out of the drivers seat.
I put my foot down, not even looking back. I couldn’t. On my drive out I started to get the hang of the Solari tech, holding the rifle in my armpit, aiming and just thinking how I’d shoot them as I drove past and the rifle took care of the rest.
I eventually made it back to the bushes where I laid Ro down, she was still there and was still alive to my relief. The Miltech officer though was no where to be found, with no tracks or trails of blood to be seen. I had to move out of there as fast as I could.
I was met with groans as I strapped Ro into the passenger, wrapping some extra restraints around her to keep her as still as possible for the sprint to the research station and our makeshift launchpad.
“Just hold on Ro, we’re gonna get out of here,” I reassured her before stepping on the gas.
Swerving in and around bushes, trees, and boulders, the ATV was more up to the task than I gave it credit for. I had made it to the research station in record time.
I zipped up to the main entrance beeping the horn to get the attention of the officers inside. It was quiet out there and it was the perfect time to get out.
“We’re launching now, and I need help getting Lieutenant Ro up to the capsule,” I ordered as the officers emerged from the building.
“But there’s a bunch of pre-launch activities we’d need to do before a launch, the Solari will be heading this way any moment,” said one of the men.
“Do the short version, we’ll be fucked either way if you all didn’t do you job properly anyway.”
They reluctantly agreed after they all denied any responsibility for our deaths if anything was to happen and before I knew it they had Ro and in the capsule and I was Strapping myself in ready to go back home aboard Salvation.
This time I had more of an idea of how this was going to go down, however, I had zero confidence in its construction and ability to get us into orbit even if I had been playing it cool with the officers earlier.
“Okay guys we’re launchin’ you in — five, four, three, two one. Good luck”
With the most casual launch countdown I’ve ever heard, the engines roared and we were flying up and away from Biterra in the most aggressively bumpy rocket imaginable. I couldn’t handle picturing what was happening down there now, and I didn’t want to know. All I hoped is that they could hold off the attacks and gain the upper hand so humans could remain on Biterra.