"You two are surprisingly late," Hayato said as he was wiping the dust off his Skull Mask or rather the dust off Memento Mori as Alon and Marina hurried into the Bridge where the rest of the Operators were waiting for them.
"Right so time for work," Hayato said putting on his mask, while Alon turned to find Marina who was wearing his inside shirt underneath her jacket while he only wore his jacket.
"We have a message from a contact on the union that Elesfor Trias, the owner of Trinity Electronics, has been hearing messages from Principality agents expressing interest in siding with the oligarchs of the union so they can access their Solar Furnaces." Memento Mori explained to them. The Solar Furnaces are a commodity that only the Ercurians use under the pretence of how those are sacred to their culture and how their life is surrounded it.
Or at least that's how it is for the lower class citizens of the wider galaxy because to anyone else it's clear that the Oligarchs, the families that own the corporations that control the Solar Furnaces, use that excuse to make sure that nobody will take the Furnaces from them. If they are willing to give them access to the Solar Furnaces then it's clear that the Principality is paying a large sum to get them to change sides.
A far larger upgrade than say getting an entire planet to side with them if they overthrow the current head.
"So what's the plan?" Tsuna asked.
"The five of you will be conducting a false flag operation by exposing the Principality in their goal of inducting the Union Troops into their own. Because right everyone knows that the Union is Neutral like most of the planets even after the Istarian Civil War." Memento Mori said showing secret footage of Principality Soldiers putting on Union Armor and beginning to drill them with the plans and tactics they have both on the ground but the Mechs.
So we're on a False Flag Operation to expose another False Flag Operation, Alon thought finding the situation almost comical if not for the fact that the Ercurians are planning on sharing their Solar Furnace arsenal with the Principality. Unlike most beam weaponry, solar powered weapons are far faster to recharge and can deal far stronger damage to the enemy.
Alon had learned from the archives that the Solar Furnaces were originally part of Project Prometheus where they would be mass produced to allow the Colonies in the Galaxy to become self-sufficient so the entire galaxy can fully rely on Solar Energy instead of Fusion Energy. However, with the collapse of the Terran Federation, that plan never came to fruition resulting in the Union taking the furnaces all for themselves.
"For now your objective is to undermine the Principality's efforts in incorporating the soldiers into their Army." Memento Mori finished as he handed them additional notes regarding their next mission and then walked away to communicate with his contacts and dismissed all of them.
"They wouldn't happen to be waiting for us to come over there are they?" Alon asked as the five of them boarded a shuttle as loaded up a handful of Guns and Knives into it. The plan was that they would sneak into a massive freighter that contained various construction materials bound for Mercury.
"As much as we'd love to have a red carpet waiting for us in that sun-scorched hell hole, we have no choices but to take a long way around." Tsuna scoffed as he threw a helmet to Alon who caught it. He raised an eyebrow as the Helmet had dark blue and aquamarine designs to make the helmet resemble that of a Snake's head.
"Really?" Alon raised the helmet with a mildly amused look on his face causing both Henri and Marina to scoff.
"Made by the Istar-Zuhayirs as gifts for the three of us," Tsuna said pulling out a red and gold helmet designed to look like a Hawk and wearing it on.
"I think it suits you on account that you're Naga, the Serpent of Venus," Dain said putting his helmet on which is an all white helmet designed to look like a Wolf.
"Did you guys get one?" Alon asked Henri and Marina who gave him shook their heads in amusement. "Ugh, this is just asking for a headshot."
"At least they can brag that they shot the famed Serpent of Venus in the head." Henri teased as they all took their seats while she and Marina took control of the Shuttle and flew out of the Luna Sea.
According to Tsuna, Henri and Marina would fly their way towards the Freighter and their objective is to sneak into the hold they would wait inside as the ship made its way to the Surface and they would make contact with the informant.
"Get ready we're getting close. You guys have one shot at this, I can only get near close and then it's all up to you three." Henri said as she and Marina put on their helmets as the Shuttle while Alon, Dain and Tsuna made their way to the back to the airlocks.
"You guys have done this before right?" Alon asked as they prepared their Maneuver Units, which were these bulky jet packs that are used to navigate through space a lot faster.
"Once."
"Nope."
Alon swallowed hard as they grew closer and closed the door behind them and they can see the freighter known as the Long Haul. It was roughly twice the size of the first Luna Sea and was contained several containers of Metals which is to be used for construction and development, the three gripped their controls tightly as they flew a lot closer and—
"Now!"
Upon the shout of Henri on the communications, the three activated their Maneuver Units and flew through space and towards the Long Haul and carefully manoeuvred into the side entrance that caused them to nearly crash into it with Tsuna being the first one to land and open the side entrance causing Alon and Dain to manoeuvre inside causing them to land safely.
"That was close," Tsuna said as he closed the airlock from the Side Entrance while Alon and Dain took off their Maneuver Units. "I've done this a few times and trust me a common way to die in these approaches is crashing into the side due to speed."
"I thought you said you've only done this once?" Alon asked as he loaded his gun and looked around and spotted a surveillance camera and unpinned a Seeker Grenade as it unfolded into a four legged drone and latched into the camera and blew up.
"I was always the getaway Pilot, never the Jumper," Tsuna said as he walked towards the door and activated his sabre and proceeded to destroy the lock and made their way towards the storage hold.
"Time to get comfy and—" Alon said but he heard footsteps causing him to pull out his gun while Dain and Tsuna activated their Sabers with an audible hum! As they turned to find the Security aiming their guns at them.
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"Hello there." The First Guard spoke. "Looks like we have—"
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Dain and Tsuna gave him a horrified look as Alon proceeded to open fire on the guards, he was able to kill the first guard by emptying an entire magazine into him. He pulled out a kinetic knife and threw it at the second guard who tried to run away and landed on the back of his neck then pulled out his handgun and executed the third guard who sat down in horror.
"Come one, let's take their uniforms and blend in?" Alon said turning to Dain and Tsuna who just stood there.
"What you just did…." Dain said deactivated his Saber and went along.
"I did what I had to do, if they alerted the others then our cover would be blown." Alon reasoned, that he found nothing wrong in killing the guards. The two were silent, that or they were having a conversation of their own regarding his actions. And Alon can't blame them, Hayato had made it clear that they must avoid killing people at a minimum.
But for Alon, it is a necessary evil.
[Legacy of Earth]
Wu was right, Mercury is a massive hellhole. Just standing still on the yellow ground their suits were detecting high counts of radiation that was enough to make someone develop cancer so the three had to keep moving or else they will end up getting cancer from the radiation and the water was barely considered drinkable, hell even sewage was a much refreshing drink compared to the actual water.
From what Alon had read, because Mercury is developed as an industrial planet the place is highly irradiated and toxic from all the waste that comes from each factory that was built, as a result, the people here either live short and miserable lives or become hardened workers that have developed a survival of the fittest mindset after being able to adapt to the environment.
When it comes to the latter they were told to avoid making fights with them as even with their training they cannot handle them.
However, when contact between planets was reestablished the Oligarchs were able to form trade deals with nearby planets for medicine and decent supplies. The other nations agreed out of kindness and pity, but the moment those supplies arrived the Oligarchs wasted no time in selling them to their people at an inflated price.
To this day, they still held a monopoly on those supplies.
"This place is a massive powder keg for a revolution," Alon commented as they sprinted through the wasteland. "How come nobody has ever tried to start one here?"
"Society here is best compared to prison gangs, they can't trust one another and the wealthy constantly pay them to pick fights with one another making sure they never unify or else a revolution will happen," Tsuna explained as they jogged through the place. "Keep the lower class divided and they'll be fine."
"Since we're here can we do something similar?" Alon asked as they slowed down and made their way to the Heliopolis Castemora as it became clearer from the distance. But just as Dain and Tsuna can answer that question or even let out a sigh of relief that they are getting closer, their suits began to let out an emergency alert as they hear the winds begin to pick up.
"What is that?" Alon asked worriedly as he turned around and saw a dark yellow cloud of what appeared to be sand begin to loom over the horizon.
"Nuclear Storm, we need to run now!" Tsuna said as the three of them picked up their pace. Thanks to the pollution on the planet, Nuclear Storms have become a random occurrence which is exactly why many people flee to the Heliopolises for safety as Mercury has no Agartha Vault.
"Over here!"
The three of them found a woman in a heavy radiation suit waving toward them as he waved his arms trying to get their attention.
"Should we—" Before Alon can finish his question the two had sprinted towards the man in the radiation suit without any hesitation. Fair enough I don't want to be flayed alive in a Nuclear Storm either so I'd take my chances with a random stranger, plus we can just kill him if he tries to double cross us. Alon concluded as he sprinted after them. The closer they got to the man in a radiation suit the more they found that he is standing behind what appeared to be a modified shelter with the door open behind them the dark yellow sandstorm was getting closer and closer that Alon's suit began to let out warnings that the radiation is getting into levels that his suit's protection can no longer provide.
"Hurry I can see it get closer!" The Woman shouted to them as he was slowly backing towards the door, eventually, Dain and Tsuna managed to get close to the door but only Alon remained.
"Hurry!" She, Dain and Tsuna shouted as Alon jumped towards the door as the three of them shut the door behind them and as Alon looked he saw that he was just a few feet from dying from radiation.
The four of them let out sighs of relief as Tsuna helped Alon up as he looked around. The bunker was small enough to provide ample protection from the elements but deeper inside was a much more secure looking set of doors which look almost military grade.
"Take this, it's Potassium Iodide, this should help with the radiation." The woman said as she handed the three bottles that contain pills. "Take them at least once or twice a day to lower the radiation exposure."
"Who are you anyway?" Alon asked him as the man asked them to follow inside.
"Gabrielle Ryza," He answered without even a beat as he opened the doors before them as it let out an old grating noise. "Sorry, this place is just an abandoned mine shaft that I and a bunch of friends managed to repurpose into a small hideout so some stuff tends to be a bit old and outdated."
"Are you part of the workers or the upper class?" Dain asked as Alon silently reached for his gun while Tsuna nudged him. But Gabrielle didn't answer which only made the gun he had in his hands all the more tempting to shoot her in the back.
"Neither, I ran away from the fighting between classes since all they care about is themselves." She told them as they enter the mines.
Unlike the outside which looked like a decrepit and abandoned site, the inside past the airlock and decontamination chamber was a cleaned out tunnel system that could easily look like an Agartha but smaller.
"I gotta say I rarely get the Memento Trio but with the way things are going this means something big is about to go down on this hellhole of a planet." Gabrielle took her helmet off revealing a woman in her early twenties with choppy dark brown hair and light green eyes behind a pair of goggles.
"How did you—" Dain asked in a confused tone.
"Helmet." Tsuna and Alon answered in unison with Alon even pointing at his helmet.
"Told you I'd be a dead giveaway on who we are," Alon said taking off his helmet and pulling out his tablet to see the location of the contact while Dain walked off with Gabrielle leaving him with Tsuna.
"So what was that? You've been acting weird and all." Tsuna asked in a low voice as he proceeded to take off his helmet and gave Alon a questioning look. "I'm fine," Alon said taking his off and narrowing his eyes at Tsuna.
"You had a breakdown in the hangar when you found out your parents are fighting for us, You killed three men in cold blood, and just now you're contemplating on trying to murder the woman who pretty much took us in," Tsuna said as he took a deep breath for a moment he had a concerned look on his face but then he went back to a neutral breath. "We shouldn't have had you join us in this operation, you're obviously under mental stress."
"I'm fine," Alon answered. As the conclusion that he had come to was that some things must be needed to be done to ensure the mission's success.
"No sane man shouldn't be doing that," he said in a low voice. "What you did could be grounded as a war crime."
"We're terrorists what difference does it make?" Alon argued back trying to maintain his calm. Tsuna wanted to argue back but Dain walked back towards them with a grim look on his face.
"We wait for the storm to pass and we move out."