"Captain, we still cannot get any comms traffic from the surface," the call came.

Jaya was not happy.

"Get their position fixed! And find out who the hell are firing on them!" she called.

She wanted to pound her fist into the arm of her chair. The Craton had launched satellites to watch their team, and she was seeing a birds-eye view of the field.

Which told her precious little. They could see the tracer rounds, they had seen a handful of Pirra's team moving in the tents, but everyone else was walking under the cover of heavy canopies. Their sensors could still pick them out, but only vaguely - and a heat signature didn't tell if it was friendly or hostile.

And some of them, she thought, were shielded even from their sensors. Which meant they had prepared positions, designed to be hard to find.

"Captain!" a shocked call came. "We're getting a signal!"

"Finally," Jaya said. "Put it through."

"It's not a radio call - it's a laser signal."

The screen shifted, focusing on a position, the cluster of heavy boulders.

A lone figure was there, their faceplate opened.

The computer identified it as Commander Pirra. Enemy fire was slamming the position, the coilgun ripping through, but missing Pirra.

She had taken the position to signal them, Jaya realized. A laser transceiver was placed in front of her looking like a cartoonish stubby model rocket, its beam shimmering in the dust-filled air, carrying with it a simple communication. One that might cost her her life.

"It's a basic code, Captain, but she's relaying their disposition and that of the enemy's! She's got approximate locations for their emplacements."

"Feed it in," Jaya ordered. "Once we know who's who, ready a splitter shell for the enemy troops. Target their entrenched positions with kinetic spikes - and then rain hell on them."

"Yes, Captain!"

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"We're almost enveloped!" Kiseleva yelled, as enemy fire continued to pour onto them from new angles. The enemy now had three positions on them, and they could scarcely lift their heads.

Sticking up her gun and firing blindly, Kiseleva let the sensor on it feed into her helmet, showing her where the enemy fire was now coming from.

A round hit her gun, and it jumped in her grasp. Yanking it back down, she saw that it was a ruined mess. Letting out a curse, she threw the weapon away, pulling her sidearm.

She did know the enemy positions, though. "Grenades, there!" she yelled, chopping her arm in a direction.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

Three others in earshot pulled grenades, and they threw them together. The rippling explosions went off, throwing up dirt. It might slow the enemy advance. The blast wave hit her like a fist, and she rocked forward.

She looked up again at Pirra, insanely exposed on the rock. Half of it had been blown away by enemy fire, and with their new angles, Pirra had precious little secure space left. Her legs were pulled up, one arm around them, head down, while she kept the laser in place with the other.

God damned fool, Kiseleva thought in admiration.

Pirra felt more rock chips hit her armor, leaving marks but not penetrating. She kept her face down - without her face shield, any one of these chips could incapacitate or even kill her.

She didn't realize she'd been hit, but suddenly she found herself rocked, almost knocked on her side. In a daze, she looked down, her leg burning.

No, not burning - she'd been hit. Her right leg, a round had hit, penetrated her armor - and her leg.

Gulping for air, she fought for calm, bunching her hand into a fist and pounding it into the rock. Rage would be better than fear, she knew innately that she had to keep her head and her spirit-

Then she saw the flash in the sky.

Her gaze was drawn up.

The shell streaked like a meteor, then blossomed open like a flower as it split.

"COVER!" she screamed. "HEADS DOWN!"

She threw herself off the rock, as the first bombardment from space came in on their enemies.

The ground beneath their feet heaved like a wounded animal, reminding her of the giant beast that they'd killed earlier.

But these shells were thousands of times more energetic than their bullets. Each strike hit with the power of a bomb, no explosives needed, just the colossal energy of an object traveling at tremendous speed.

Then, she felt more than heard the kinetic spikes impacting.

Sky, let them hit true on those bunkers, she thought, knowing they must be out there, holding that fucking coilgun that had been tearing away at them this whole time.

As the explosions and impacts faded, she was left hearing nothing, feeling nothing.

Was she deafened? For a moment she thought so, but she wasn't even sure. But there was no enemy fire incoming. Looking up, she saw no shots coming in on her old position. Looking down towards the others, she saw no dirt flying up around them.

Kiseleva was looking at her, her mouth agape and looking as stunned as Pirra felt.

She didn't know if her words would carry, and Dessei couldn't be lip-read. Pirra raised her arm, signalling with hand signs.

Attack.

Kiseleva picked herself up. "ON ME!" she yelled. "ATTACK! URRAAAAAAAH!"

She launched herself, and the rest of the squad charged with her.

Pirra rose, her leg then giving away, sending her tumbling back down to the ground. Her hand, she realized, had blood on it. Her blood.

She heard firing again, but it only sounded like the weapons of her side.

Dragging herself up towards the position where Hesson was still sitting, tending to the wounded frantically, she looked up. She couldn't get back up on the rock for the clearest signal, but hopefully they'd still see this.

Setting up the laser, she signaled again; medical assistance required, multiple wounded and KIA.

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Jaya watched, scarcely breathing, as Response Team One charged. Some of them could be seen from above, even if the enemy was still under cover.

There appeared to be no more fire at them.

"It seems like they were good hits!" someone yelled.

She'd believe it when she saw it. Not a moment sooner.

"Captain!" Shomari Eboh said. "The jamming has disappeared!"

"Connect me to Commander Pirra!" Jaya snapped.

The line opened, and Pirra's voice came through. It sounded strange, lacking the pitch and reverb of coming from a sealed helmet.

"The enemy have surrendered, Captain," Pirra said, her voice stiff.

"We received your call of casualties," Jaya said. "How many?"

"We have . . . uh, at least three KIA," Pirra said slowly. "And two- no, three wounded."

Jaya's mind raced. "And are you among them, Commander?"

"Yes," Pirra replied after a pause.

"We have medical teams on their way down, along with Response Teams Two and Three and heavy combat drones."

"Be sure they have facilities for prisoners," Pirra said. "We've got ten alive, including . . ." she swallowed hard. "One of their commanders."

The pauses were causing Jaya alarm. Just how badly wounded was Pirra? "Just hold on, Response Team One," Jaya said.

"Well, Captain," Pirra replied. "I'll do my best."