Marie Sanders: Planet Taraya, third cycle, the planetary year 2052

His hand was warm, but most things were when she touched them. With her not breathing and her heart not beating, she was usually as warm as the room temperature. The Elemental which resided inside her was very energy efficient, and heating her blood was not high on its to-do list. She could do it herself, but it was a waste of time and energy to do that only to satisfy her nostalgia for humanity. It was not like there were any biochemical processes left in her body that required warmth. She got to be human again on Falta, and it was not as fun an experience as she remembered it to be.

“ So, how will this play out? We go immediately? We hardly need more people. Two is more than enough, one to point his finger and me to retrieve the data. Dream team.” Marie tried to sound a little lighthearted because Marcus looked scared. Like his greatest fear was standing in front of him. What are you afraid of, little bear cub?

“They will hold a meeting first, a briefing if you have things like that on your homeworld. We will share what we know. Next comes planning the expedition, then we will talk about secondary objectives if the Board of directors has suggested any. We are then to gear up, and depart. It is a five days journey in our military vehicles.” Marcus responded, and he sounded nervous. He picked his words carefully and omitted all the details and pleasantries. It was like he was reporting to his fearsome commanding officer. She did not mind it, but she preferred to be on friendly terms with the locals, no matter the race or planet.

“I see. How did you get this job anyways? “

“I lived and worked in Nordis polis for a few years after the war. I was servicing their telescopes. I worked as an engineer before the war. “ Marcus responded while adding some personal stuff to his response. Marie was glad he relaxed a bit. Nobody wants to travel for five days with someone who talks like a news anchor reading of teleprompter.

Their short exchange was interrupted by an old bearded man asking for everyone to be seated.

“Thank you all for coming here to this vital gathering. Everyone should be informed to some extent of what we plan to set in motion today. “ the old man started his speech and his voice cracked a few times. He sounded overjoyed and on a verge of tears at the same time. He paused, then continued

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

“Thanks to our ally from the expanse, a lovely warrior lady Marie Sanders, we have a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fight back in a war that was brought upon us. An opportunity to smoke out the invaders who hid after the crime they committed and who still taint the soil of our home. We suspect vermin hid inside the walls of Nordis polis, after killing all its inhabitants. Their motive is unknown, but we will not be trampled over. Now, it is time to fight back. “the old man almost started screaming near the end of his speech, and everyone present started applauding.

Foot of the throttle, grandad. I only want the data. Your invaders are protected, by no-kill order issued by Adjusters. But, on the other hand, every Exonerated soldier was allowed to kill anyone that attacked them unprovoked. Marie hated the people who abused their power. She could still see the picture of Darnak turning into a smoking crater from one of her recovered memories, and she recovered quite a few while her Elemental was offline. Memories stopped coming back after Elemental returned to work. She decided to keep everything a secret from the Adjusters.

The old man had a lot to say. He talked about the Swift Sorrow war, praised the generals, soldiers, and scientists, and also said a few words about Marcus. If Marie could have fallen asleep, she would have. Her hatred for politicians and all other orators grew after being forced to sit through the granddad's speech. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, a young woman started talking. She was one of the scientists who pestered her before, but she was a welcome change to the old man’s patriotic sob story.

She talked about the technical details of the expedition, refueling, hiding spots during the day, and service spots for their environmental suits. The Board of directors, of course, asked for some random things, like water samples from the Ancestral river. Their expeditions were a rarity, and Marcus coming to Aegis was a grand endeavor at the time. People surviving the journey between polises on foot, even with a lot of advanced planning, and quality equipment, was near impossible.

“We are to depart after sundown. Good hunting soldiers.” the magic words were spoken. Marie sprung up from her chair and followed the four soldiers assigned to her. Marcus Pane was their commanding officer, who only knew the safe way back to Nordis. They gave her the folder with all the expedition details, and she threw it into her Oasis when no one was looking.

“Say, fellas, what do you do for fun around here?” Marie asked her companions to which they all stiffly turned like reacting to a lion sneaking up on them. Why is everyone so afraid of me? Scientists were like that at first too.

“We drink, we watch the old movies and Swift sorrow war recordings.” said one of them

“And then we cry.” said the other

“Maybe you cry Marstel. “ Carrie Tlen, the only girl in the squad responded, and everyone laughed.

Nice, this might turn out to be a fun journey after all Marie thought and allowed herself a little smile.