Planet: AL-QAMAR

  System: SHAMS AL-NAHAR

  Sector: GREATER ARABIA

  Date: 03-OCT-2399

  The gray, tube shaped Federation Expedition Force ship named FINV Callahan glides above a planet on its last days. Bright blue exhaust bursts from its circular collection of engines, pushing it through the void. Below it is Al-Qamar.

  The planet is a tapestry of desolation. Ashen deserts and jagged mountains are broken by thin winding blue rivers bordered by vegetation. The grays and blacks of the planet are occasionally broken by flashes of fire, launching immeasurable amounts of dust into the atmosphere and creating rings of devastation.

  The Callahan trudges towards a graveyard of shattered ships. Twisted metal, broken skeletons, sparking chunks, and frozen bodies float in space. Trails of fire descend upon Al-Qamar as wreckage is tugged to the planet’s surface.

  Beyond the graveyard, flashes of electric fire and large explosions tear apart Federation ships that are exchanging missiles, lasers, and ballistics with their adversaries: the Drevi.

  The Drevi are piloting long black ships lined with red and yellow lights, and sharp bows colored gray and red. Red exhaust fumes pour from their sharp engines and their red shields flicker as Federation munitions strike them.

  Beyond the Drevi phalanx of ships is a massive ship with sharp rings connecting to a diamond shaped center. The rings and connecting tubes glow red, and the bottom tip of the diamond pulses.

  The Federation ships desperately try to break through the Drevi barrier, but it is a losing battle. The Federation navy is being torn to pieces by the Drevi.

  One vessel bursts from concentrated fire with an electric storm ripping apart its interior, flinging debris in every direction. The debris bounces off floating wreckage and nearby ships, and the Callahan speeds up and lobs a barrage of missiles at a Drevi ship before releasing a swarm of strike crafts.

  The missiles strike the Drevi ship, causing red ripples to spread from the balls of fire. The shield flickers out, and the jets swarm the craft, taking pot shots at it with their smaller missiles and gatling guns.

  The Callahan moves closer, launching another salvo of missiles at the Drevi while it makes an attempt to move. The missiles puncture holes in its shell, exposing its skeleton and corridors, launching bodies and supplies into space. But before the Callahan can make another volley, another Drevi ship speeds towards it, its red engines flaring.

  The Drevi's sharp bow tears the Callahan in half, sending the back half spinning away towards the void while the front spirals down to Al-Qamar’s surface. Burst of fire erupt along its edges and the gaping hole taking up its entire back.

  The ship’s hull burns orange, and pieces break off as it careens towards the planet, leaving a trail of fiery smoke. When it hits the planet, its nose crunches and larger chunks snap off with more fire bursting from its interior.

  The Callahan leaves a gash in the gray ground and tilts on its side, kicking up large clouds of dust and fire. When it comes to a stop, its exposed skeleton is glowing hot and the hull snaps with fire crackling and smoke rising.

  Inside the Callahan, the interior is dark, with only sparks, flames and failing emergency lights to give semblance of light.

  “Who’s not dead? Sound off!” barks Tobias Thornton, his figure a blob in the darkness.

  “Dumbass captain almost got me killed! And now that the ship is in half, we can officially say no more mission!” yells Mads Rochefort, also hidden in the dark.

  “We’re making a new mission. Who else is alive?” says Tobias.

  “I’m here!” says Cassandra Heights.

  “Where?”

  Sparks fall, and Cassandra, a mere shadowed figure at this time, waves. “Here. Where’s Anne?”

  “Behind you,” says Anne Backson.

  This makes Cassandra yelp and jump.

  “Good. We’re all here. Everyone, group up!” orders Tobias.

  The shadowed blobs move closer, and Tobias shakes his flashlight, illuminating the group. All of them are wearing armored vests with a musket and sword crossing over a shield as their sigil, helmets, shin guards, gauntlets, and thick gray, reinforced fabric underneath. They are also bloodied and bruised from the crash, and each have a custom weapon.

  Tobias has fair skin, blonde hair and blue eyes, and his weapon is a rifle with a large sword on its underside and a thin blade above the barrel.

  Mads, the largest and most muscular of the group, has brown hair and eyes, tan skin, and mechanized clobbering devices over his hands attached to batteries on his back; and his spine and limbs are supported by an exoskeleton. He is equipped with a large rifle attached to one of his devices. which looks comical in comparison to his bulky possession.

  Anne has light brown skin, dark hair and light brown eyes, and her weapon is a slender rifle with three barrels and three magazine wells.

  Last is Cassandra, who has curly brown hair, brown eyes, and light tan skin. Her weapon is a rifle with two small chainsaws underneath, and a large knife.

  “Can everyone walk?” asks Tobias.

  The group affirms they can.

  “How about run?” asks Tobias.

  “We don’t have a choice but to run,” says Mads.

  “Where did we crash, anyway?” asks Cassandra.

  “Mads, punch a hole,” orders Tobias.

  Mads retracts the rifle on his wrist, stomps towards the ship’s wall, and yells out profanities as he punches it until a piece of plating breaks off, flooding the smoky interior with dull light. The group crowds around the opening and sees a black mass settled distantly across the flat, gray land. The group steps aside so Anne can peer down the scope of her rifle. As she studies the mass, she adjusts her scope.

  “What do you see?” asks Tobias.

  “It’s a dome town. Roughly two miles from here,” says Anne.

  “Any sign of the enemy?”

  “I see smoke, but the gate is guarded by a team of Expedition soldiers.”

  “Good. Carry what you can and move fast. We're not stopping until we reach that dome,” says Tobias.

  A few minutes later, Tobias's team is sprinting across the gray landscape. Each step kicks up a faint cloud of dust. Distant thumps of explosions echo, and streaks of fire seep past the gray clouds.

  Their throats are dry, their lips are cracked, but they keep moving. Mads’ exosuit hisses and whines with every stomp, and Tobias's breathing is steady as he stays in the lead.

  The black structure of the dome gradually gets closer, but as they run, a sharply shaped aircraft speeds overhead, its engines emitting a red glow. The bottom opens up, dropping two round vehicles with sharp, circular saws protruding from stubby wings on their sides.

  The round vehicles hover a few feet off the ground and veer off in separate directions. They swerve back to Tobias's group as the aircraft flies off. The saws whir to life, and the crafts speed up.

  “Scatter!” barks Tobias.

  They group splits, and Tobias rolls to the side, the gritty soil of Al-Qamar filling his mouth. The saw slices the air above him, and as quickly as it passes over, he rolls to the kneeling position and shoots at its backside. Sparks fly from the bullet hitting its shell, but it does nothing.

  Then there is Mads. The pistons and gears of his exoskeleton pump and grind, and he leaps and lands on the second craft. His fingers dig into the hovercraft’s hull, and he punches the cockpit’s window. The ship veers side to side, trying to shake him off, but to no avail. A few more punches and the glass shatters. Then Mads shoots inside the ship with his attachment, shredding the pilot's chest and head in gunfire.

  The hovercraft sways and dips, and Mads jumps off, tucking and rolling upon impact. The hovercraft clips the ground, bounces, rolls and skids across the ground, flinging broken ground and broken metal. It stops upside down, smoking and crackling.

  The second hovercraft moves in for a kill, and Tobias shoots one of the connectors on its wing. The connector snaps, the wing drops and anchors into the ground, snapping the craft into the air. A gash is ripped into the hovercraft's side, and it slams into the ground with a loud bang. It bounces across the barren landscape and comes to an abrupt stop when it hits a rock.

  Tobias stares at the wreckage, panting heavily. The smoke glows red from the fire, and he swallows and looks at his team as the vehicle burns from the inside out.

  “Keep moving,” orders Tobias.

  ***

  A while later, they reach the gate of the domed settlement. The six Expedition soldiers guarding the post stand behind a barrier of sandbags, concrete, and razor wire. One is manning a large machine gun turret, and the other has a rocket launcher, and both of them have a stash of ammunition. They are dirty, exhausted, and their armor is battered, but their smiles are bright when they see Tobias's group running towards them.

  “Looks like Christmas came early!” says the soldier operating the turret.

  Tobias's group slows to a stop in front of the group, panting heavily. Mads in particular leans against the dome settlement's wall. The soldiers offer Tobias’s group water, which they graciously take.

  “We need to get inside and speak with your commanding officer. Our ship was shot down,” says Tobias as he returns the canteen.

  “We saw the crash,” says the turret operator. “And Command Sergeant Major Sebastian Sire is in the precinct.”

  “Can he get us to your CO?”

  “Not unless he knows how to talk to the dead.”

  Tobias’s group is silent, and the gunner turns to one of his squad mates.

  “Radio the precinct. We need an escort to take some Eqos militia to Sire.”

  ***

  A little while later, an escort comes for Tobias's group. They put them in a truck, with Mads and Anne riding in the bed. As they drive through the street, Tobias looks up, noting the gaping holes in the dome. They pass crumbled buildings, burnt out vehicles belonging to humans and Drevi, and dead aliens in a pile while the humans are lined up and covered in weighed tarp.

  When they pulled up to the precinct building, the soldiers led Tobias and his team up the stairs leading to the large structure pocketed with battle scars. Some areas have been fortified with sandbags, razor wire, and rubble fitted to make walls.

  Federation soldiers are guiding worn-faced civilians through the barricade, and inside a razor-wired wall is a line of transportation crafts being loaded up with civilians.

  Tobias chooses to quietly follow his escort inside the building rather than inquire about the obvious. They go through the broken doorway, passing fire damaged tile and walls dotted with bullet holes and shrapnel damage, as well as more Federation soldiers herding worn-faced civilians through the dimly lit corridors that echo with the stern voice of an evacuation order.

  The escort takes Tobias’s group to the top floor and leads them to an office barricaded with sandbags. He knocks on the door and presses his ear against it.

  “Who is it?” says a muffled voice from the other side.

  “Sergeant Al-Barachir. I have the Eqos militiamen with me, sir,” says the escort.

  The door clicks. “Bring them in.”

  The escort opens the door and waves the group forward. “Sire will see you now.”

  Tobias enters the office, followed by Cassandra, and then Anne. Unfortunately for Mads, his exosuit is stopped by the doorframe.

  “Freaking kidding me,” grunts Mads.

  He steps back and takes a quick, heavy step forward, breaking the doorframe, but not enough to let him through.

  “Rochefort, stop!” orders Tobias.

  Mads stops and glowers at him, and Tobias points past his suit’s shoulder.

  “Stand guard out there. You can’t fit in here, and I don’t want you damaging property unnecessarily,” says Tobias.

  “Oh, yeah, we can’t have that,” grumbles Mads as he steps away from the doorframe.

  Tobias shakes his head and turns to Command Sergeant Major Sebastian Sire. He is a well-built man with tan skin, dark hair, and thin glasses. But his glasses are cracked, his face is bruised, and his Federation officer’s uniform is stained with grime and blood, has its fair share of tears, and is covered by a vest that has been shot a few times. He is hunched over a makeshift desk littered with trash, and a touchscreen is propped up in the desk’s corner.

  Sire looks up from the touchscreen and offers a weak smile. “Hello there. I heard you had a nasty fall not too long ago.”

  “That’s an understatement. Team Lead Tobias Thornton of the Eqos Irregular Defense Force,” says Tobias, saluting.

  Sire returns the salute. “Command Sergeant Major Sebastian Sire. The person who was in charge took a spiker to his torso. He’s dead, and I am now the highest-ranking person here, so if you have any problems, speak now or forever hold your peace.”

  Cassandra and Anne glance at each other, and Tobias clears his throat.

  “I find it hard to believe that there isn’t someone higher than you. No offense intended,” says Tobias.

  “I wouldn’t believe it either, but the Drevi destroyed our command structure,” says Sire. He turns the touchscreen to the group, revealing a chart of pictures with names, ranks, and locations. “They launched synchronized attacks specifically to kill ranking officers all over this entire region. Ninety-three percent of the senior officers were killed within three hours. All that’s left for any sort of the senior officer command structure is out there at Fort Alsiyadiu.”

  Sire points out the window, to a large mountain in the distance, nestled in a chain stretching east to west as far as the eye can see.

  “And Fort Alsiyadiu has given us the order to evacuate Al-Qamar,” continues Sire.

  Tobias’s jaw tightens, and Anne narrows her eyes.

  “We’re retreating again?” says Anne harshly.

  “We have no choice. The Callahan was supposed to get EIDF soldiers close enough to infiltrate and destroy that weapon up there. But that didn’t happen. You failed. Just like we failed this planet and the ones before it,” says Sire.

  Tobias remains quiet, and Sire looks down, sighing heavily and presses his palms heavily into the desk.

  “We can’t stop the Drevi war machine. We have no choice but to retreat or more of us will die,” says Sire.

  “Understood,” says Tobias. “Our mission may have failed, but we’re here now. We will help you evacuate. Just tell us what you need us to do.”

  Sire looks up. “Well, since you’re inclined to help-”

  Sire is cut off from a rapid thread of thunderous explosions that rattle the station’s foundation. Steel groans and snaps, and loud thuds reverberate through the dome.

  Tobias shoves Sire to the floor, and he, Anne and Cassandra move towards the windows, peeking outside. The remnants of the dome have been destroyed, and smoke lingers in the air. Bits of the dome snap and crash below, breaking more roofs of the buildings below.

  Soon, sharply shaped Drevi ships descend through the smoke, blowing their war horns and spreading out.

  “Shit,” says Tobias.

  “Talk to me, boss! What's going on out there?” says Mads from the hallway.

  “The dome is completely destroyed and now the Drevi ships are coming in.”

  “We can take them.”

  A Drevi airship hovers near the station. Its bottom opens up, dropping pair of bulky, bipedal mechs, kicking up dirt and cracking the ground. Their gears and pistons hiss, white, and click as they rise from the crouching position. Gatling guns on their large arms spin, and rockets slide into launchers on their other arms. Large horns roll out of their backs, and black smoke puffs from the exhaust pipes on their backs. Their rectangular cockpit is lined with red lights, and the tinted glass is protected by the caged bars. The red lights intensify, and their horns blow, signaling other horns to bellow further inside the dome.

  “They sent mechs,” says Tobias.

  Mads hesitates. “We can take them.”

  Another Drevi airship zooms overhead, and Tobias hears its loud whining engines hovering over the roof of the station.

  “They’re on the roof! Mads, hold the line!” orders Tobias.

  “Yes sir!” says Mads.

  Tobias hauls Sire to his feet and presses his pistol against the officer’s chest.

  “Stay behind me. We’ll get everyone out of here,” says Tobias.

  Sire nods, and Mads’ shouts profanities and taunts as his weapons scream. Bullet casings clatter to the floor, and bits of brick and plaster rain down from the broken walls, bouncing down the stairs. Behind him is Sergeant Al-Barachir, he is aiming his rifle towards the stairs and carefully backing up.

  Another explosion rocks the building and a multitude of shrieks and bloodcurdling screams echo in the halls. Gunfire rattles in the halls, and Tobias runs to the corner and peeks out to see Federation Expedition soldiers stepping back while firing their weapons. Civilians are fleeing down the main hallway, and advancing on the soldiers is a phalanx of metal shields with eye slots and crescent shaped cuts on the side to allow their barrels to poke through.

  The stocky beasts behind the shield wall open fire, piercing the Expedition soldiers with sharp bolts. Mads and Al-Barachir shoot down the hallway again, and Tobias chucks a grenade behind the phalanx in the lobby.

  Their explosion breaks their formation, revealing the Drevi soldiers. Stocky creatures in bulky blue and gray suits with dark quills peeking out from under their helmets. Their faces are covered by red goggles and breathing apparatuses connected to cold blue packs on their backs, all connected by small tubes to their armor.

  “Let them have it!” shouts Tobias.

  Tobias, Cassandra, and Anne shoot down on the Drevi. The bullets ping off the Drevi armor and some regain their holding on their shields while others drop from the rounds penetrating weak spots.

  The capable Drevi soldiers shoot back, forcing the three into cover, and the building shakes from another explosion. The sharp rounds from the Drevi weapons snap apart the railing and break bits of brick off the wall, flinging sharp shrapnel.

  “We need another way out!” shouts Cassandra.

  “The fire escape down the hall to the left. There's emergency exit that leads to emergency stairs,” says Sire.

  Tobias nods and waves his team forward. "You heard the man. Move!"

  They sprint down the hallway, their boots pounding against the cracked tiles. The building shudders again as another explosion rocks its foundation. Plaster rains down from the ceiling and the lights flicker sporadically.

  As they round the corner, a group of Drevi soldiers bursts through a doorway.

  One accidentally rams Cassandra to the wall, and Anne pivots, narrowly avoiding another Drevi soldier.

  The wall explodes next to Tobias, flinging him and Sire to the floor. They both cough, their ears ring, and Drevi soldiers swings in on cables, wielding stubby shotguns.

  Tobias scrambles to his feet and rushes to push up the weapon as the Drevi fires, blowing a hole in the wall just above Sire’s head. Tobias plunges his knife in the Drevi's neck while drawing his pistol and putting a bullet through the eye of the next one. Both soldiers drop, and Al-Barachir helps Sire up while Mads gets between them and the Drevi going up the stairs.

  “Get to the evac site!” barks Mads.

  Sire and Al-Barachir run down the hallway, and Mads charges forward and punches a Drevi into the wall, leaving it stuck in there with its chest caved in and blood pouring past its breathing apparatus. His mechanized fists ruthlessly pummel the other Drevi soldiers, and the chainsaws on Cassandra's rifle rev.

  Cassandra angles her weapon against the Drevi's shoulder. Its agonizing howl clashes with the ripping of metal, fabric, flesh, and bone. Blood sprays out, coating her face and body. As this happens, Anne kills two more Drevi with well placed shots, and Tobias joins Mads and fires short, controlled bursts from his rifle, dropping any Drevi still standing.

  By the time they are done, the air is thick with the acrid stench of gunpowder and blood.

  Tobias helps Cassandra up, and the group rushes to the emergency exit, where Sire and Al-Barachir are waiting. The door is opened, and Al-Barachir is peeking down with his rifle at the ready while Sire remains in cover.

  “How is it?” asks Tobias.

  “Clear for now,” says Al-Barachir.

  “Alright, get moving.”

  The group makes their way down the narrow concrete stairwell, their boots echoing in the confined space. The building groans and shifts around them, chunks of concrete cracking off the walls from the vibrations of explosives striking the building.

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  Suddenly, a large blast demolishes a chunk of the wall, leading to a section of the stairs to crumble away, creating a gaping chasm. The metal stairs tumble down, crashing to the floor below, and hot air rolls in while the chaos of gunfire, explosions and shouts flood into the stairwell.

  Cassandra leaps forward without hesitation, gracefully landing on the other side.

  "Show off," Anne mutters as she eyes the gap warily.

  “Need help?” asks Tobias.

  “No sir.”

  Anne takes a few places back, hesitates, and then runs and leaps across. Her feet barely make the ledge and Cassandra grabs Anne's arm, tugs her forward and smiles wearily at her before looking at the men.

  “Next!” says Cassandra.

  “Sire,” says Tobias, nodding to the officer.

  “Can he even make it?” asks Mads.

  Sire scoffs, discards his hat and makes a large, running leap that safely lands him in the other side. Al-Barachir follows soon after, and both females nod approvingly.

  “We were on the same track team in school,” says Sire proudly.

  Cassandra nods again and looks at Tobias. “Can you make it, sir?”

  Tobias looks at Mads. “Want to jump together?”

  “This could end badly for us,” says Mads.

  The building shakes again, and pieces of the ceiling collapse, narrowly missing the two. With dust and pebbles raining down on them, Mads takes a couple of steps back.

  “One second thought, hop on and hold on tight,” says Mads.

  Tobias climbs on the back of Mads’ exosuit and holds on to the back rack tightly. Mads backs up a few more steps, the concrete snapping and popping beneath his steps.

  Mads takes a deep breath and then runs. Each lumbering step shakes and cracks the floor, and when he leaps over the chasm, the group on the other side steps back.

  As his foot hits the edge, the concrete crumbles away, but his momentum carries him on. For a breathless instant he seems to hang suspended, then he crashes down on the other side heavily, the exosuit hydraulics whining and the concrete shattering.

  Tobias tightened his grip on the exosuit and Mads stumbles forward, having to brace himself against the wall with one large, mechanized hand. The rest of the group retreated a few steps as this happened, and after Mads stopped, Tobias slid off and aimed his rifle at the stair well entrance as he backed up. Meanwhile, Sire and Al-Barachir headed down the stairs.

  “We need to hurry. Those crafts are filling up fast and the Drevi are swarming in,” says Sire.

  Sire and Al-Barachir hurry down the remaining stairs, their boots clanging loudly on the metal steps. Tobias, Mads, Anne and Cassandra follow close behind, constantly glancing over their shoulders for any sign of pursuing Drevi forces. The stairwell shakes again from another nearby explosion, raining dust and bits of concrete down on them.

  They burst out of the emergency exit door into a scene of barely controlled chaos. The precinct courtyard has been converted into a makeshift evacuation center, with clusters of frightened civilians huddled near idling transport crafts. Federation soldiers try to maintain order, herding people into lines to board the vessels in an orderly fashion while the civilians are being ordered to drop everything but their IDs and the clothes on their backs. But panic simmers in the air, threatening to boil over at any moment.

  Squads of Expedition soldiers fire back with rockets and heavy guns mounted on barricades, trying to keep the enemy mechs at bay while others used small arms to keep the Drevi pinned indoors at the conquered station.

  Tobias scans the frantic scene, looking for the best path to the evacuation ships. Throngs of people clog the courtyard, some crying, some shouting, some just wearing shell-shocked expressions. A group of children huddled next to an overturned bench, tear streaks cutting through the gray dust caking their faces.

  Tobias's heart clenches at the sight, but his attention is wrenched away as a thunderous explosion rocks the courtyard. One of the large civilian transport crafts, laden with refugees, has just lifted off and is banking to escape the chaos below. But a crackling missile streaks out from one of the Drevi mechs, slamming directly into one of the transport's engines with devastating force.

  The craft seems to hang suspended for a moment, wreathed in a blossoming fireball, before it breaks apart and plummets into a building. Flaming wreckage bursts from the building, leading to the structure to collapse soon after in a burning cloud of rolling dust and rubble, crushing and burning the survivors alive.

  Tobias watches in horror, the world muted and the flash of the explosion searing into his vision, as the twisted metal remains of the transport craft settle into the rubble, small fires still flickering within. Dark smoke pours out, and the mech lumbers forward, briefly being stalled and forced to back up as Federation rockets strike it. But even with all the carnage around him, Tobias cannot take his eyes off the wreckage engulfed in flames, and his ears cannot hear anything besides his heavy breaths and heart.

  A sudden hand on his shoulder snaps Tobias out of it, slamming his ears with screams, rattling gunfire, and distant thud of explosions. Her turns to see Cassandra, her face set in a grim mask, eyes glittering with unshed tears.

  "Tobias, we need to go. Sire found a transport for us," says Cassandra.

  Tobias looks at Sire, who is pointing towards a cluster of boxy crafts with stubby wings at the far side of the courtyard.

  "There! Those transports are our ticket out of here. But we'll have to move fast. It looks like they're almost loaded up," says Sire.

  Mads flexed his mechanical hands, servos whirring. "Then let's not waste any more time. I'll clear a path."

  Tobias furrows his brow, his lips tight and fists clenched. Cassandra steps away from him, her wet eyes worried, but Tobias is focused on Mads. Disgust bubbles inside him like a boiling sludge as the big man lumbered forward, using his armored exosuit like a battering ram to force a way through the press of bodies. People stumbled back, equal parts awed and frightened by his hulking mechanized form. Tobias shrugs Cassandra off him and stomps forward, a rocket from a Drevi mech destroying another airborne transportation craft attempting to escaping.

  “ROCHEFORT! STOP!” bellows Tobias.

  Mads stops, and the shot transport careens out of sight, its crash creating a rolling explosion over the roofline. The shooting continues, and Anne, Cassandra, Sire and Al-Barachir looked at Tobias as he glares at the large man. Mads took a moment, but when he turned around, he met Tobias’s glare.

  “Something wrong, Thornton?” says Mads.

  “Drevi mechs is what’s wrong. Leaving while civilians are still in danger is what’s wrong. Leaving without securing the evacuation site is what’s wrong,” says Tobias, each word few words met with steps. He stops in front of Mads and holds his glare, tilting his head up so they are looking into each other’s eyes. “We’re not leaving until these problems are rectified. Is that clear?”

  “We’re a rock trying to stop the sea, Thornton,” growls Mads.

  “Then so be it.” Tobias looks at Anne. “Backson, you and Rochefort flank the mechs from the left.” He points at Cassandra. “Heights, you’re with me. We’ll take them from the right.” He looks at Sire and Al-Barachir. “You two stay put and keep the civilians protected. No one leaves until we destroy those mechs!”

  Sire and Al-Barachir nod, and Tobias marches away with Cassandra in tow while Anne and Mads remain in place for a few seconds. After shaking his head, Mads runs off in the direction Tobias directed him to, and Anne follows him.

  Tobias and Cassandra dash through the rubble-strewn streets, weaving through chunks of smoldering wreckage and piles of rubble from collapsed buildings.

  The air is thick with smoke, dust and the acrid stench of burning metal and flesh. Distant screams and the unsteady rattling pops of gunfire echo through the devastated settlement.

  As they round a corner, they come across one of the large war machines. Up close, the mech is even more intimidating - a hulking mass of sharp metal edges, whirring gears, and bristling weaponry. Its rectangular cockpit glows an ominous red, the Drevi pilot inside barely visible behind the caged bars and tinted glass.

  The mech is currently laying waste to a makeshift barricade manned by a squad of battered Expedition soldiers. The mech's arm-mounted Gatling gun spins up with a shrill whine, spitting out a hail of razor-sharp munitions that chew through concrete, metal and flesh with equal ease, leaving the broken concrete drenched in blood and shredded bodies.

  The mech launches a missile at the structure the soldiers were in, and Tobias signals Cassandra with a curt hand gesture. She nods, peeling off to the right as Tobias veers left.

  Tobias ducks into the shadow of a half-collapsed wall of a gutted Unity church, his heart hammering against his ribs. He risks a quick glance around the crumbling masonry, trying to spot Cassandra's position.

  A few seconds of scanning, and he sees a flash of movement by an overturned vehicle near the mech. The mech paces in a circle, and Cassandra ducks out of sight before it can see her. Each step creates a loud thuds and leaves cracks in the pavement, its gears and pistons whirring and hissing.

  Its horn bellows, and the other mech returns the signal.

  Tobias keys his comm."I'll draw its fire. You flank it, find a weak spot, and disable its weapons.”

  "Roger that. Be careful, Tobias," says Cassandra.

  “No promises.”

  “We're in position,” says Mads over the radio.

  “So am I. Engage when ready,” says Tobias.

  Tobias takes a deep breath, tasting the blood and burnt metal lingering in the air. Then he darts out from behind the wall, his boots pounding on the rubble-strewn ground. He raises his rifle and opens fire, the bullets sparking off the mech's thick armor plating. The mech swivels ponderously to face him, its glowing red pilot window facing hom directly. It raises its Gatling gun, the barrels already spinning up to speed with a ear splitting wail.

  Tobias throws himself to the side just as a storm of sharp munitions rip through the air where he'd been a heartbeat before. He rolls behind the dubious cover of a shattered fountain, bits of broken stone and concrete popping off around him like a hellish hailstorm. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees Cassandra making her move, darting from cover to cover as she circles around behind the mech.

  Nearby gunshots rattle, and the other mech releases a loud, drawn out horn while returning fire. The mech in Tobias sight turns to the noise and starts running, but Cassandra's shots penetrate tubes and pistons on its back, causing its Gatling gun arm to drop.

  It lumbers around and launches a rocket towards Cassandra as she darts to a new location. The resulting explosion kicks up a dark cloud of debris.

  Seizing the opportunity, Tobias sprints from cover, his eyes rapidly scanning the machine's hulking frame, searching for any vulnerability. There - a tangle of hoses and wires at the base of the mech's "spine", partially shielded by an armored plate.

  Tobias slides to cover behind a burnt out vehicle and carefully aims his rifle. The sword bayonet glints beneath the barrel as he lines up the shot.

  He exhales slowly, then squeezes the trigger. The rifle bucks against his shoulder as the armor-piercing round leaps from the muzzle with a crack.

  The bullet punches through the armored plate and buries itself deep in the mech's internal workings. Sparks erupt from the wound, and viscous fluid sprays out, hissing and steaming as it hits the ground. The mech stumbles, its movements turning jerky and uncoordinated as its horn sputters and drones to silence.

  Seeing her chance, Cassandra revs her chainsaw bayonet and charges at the crippled mech, her attachment making a loud, gutteral roar.

  The mech whines and its internal workings grind together as it whirls around, its glowing red cockpit light fixating on Cassandra as she charges. It raises its remaining arm, and large blade flips out from its forearm with a loud, metallic snap. It swings, and Cassandra ducks and rolls, barely avoiding the scything blow that cleaves through the air.

  Cassandra rolls into a crouching position, chainsaw bayonet roaring, and lunges for the mech's leg joint. Sparks explode as the whirling teeth bite into metal, shredding through layers of armor plating and into the inner mechanisms. The mech staggers, its damaged leg unable to bear its immense weight.

  With a guttural mechanical and grinding gears, it backhands Cassandra with its bladed arm, sending her flying. She crashes into a pile of rubble with a cry of pain and a large cut going down her face and armored vest, her rifle clattering away.

  "Cassandra!" yells Tobias, his heart clenching in his chest. He leaps from cover, firing as he runs, his shots pinging off the mech's battered frame.

  The machine stumbles towards Cassandra as she staggers up, face dripping thick glops blood and her armor hanging in pieces. The mech raises its blade for a killing blow. Tobias put on a desperate burst of speed, his lungs burning and muscles screaming.

  At the last possible second, he throws himself against Cassandra, knocking her away from the descending blade. The razor-sharp edge slammed into his left thigh with the sickening crunch of shattering bone and tearing flesh.

  Blinding agony explodes through Tobias's body and he screams, the sound raw and primal. His vision flashes white, then red, then tunnels into bleeding darkness. Hot blood pours from the gaping wound as the blade is yanked out, soaking his fatigues and pooling beneath him.

  Cassandra screams his name and shoots at the mech with her pistol, her voice and gunshots muted.

  Through the haze of pain, Tobias watches the mech loom over him, sparking and leaking hydraulic fluid from the damage Cassandra had inflicted. With a trembling hand, Tobias jams his rifle’s barrel into the gash Cassandra's bayonet had torn, right into the mech's core.

  He squeezes the trigger and holds it down until the loud bangs turn to quiet clicks, each shot thumping his shoulder and accompanied by a bright flash and the screech of breaking metal. The mech convulses, electricity snaking in and out, all over its frame as its internal systems overload and burst into flames.

  With a final shudder, it collapses, crashing to the ground in a tangled heap of wreckage burning from the inside out, the agonizing screams and desperate banging of its pilot muffled through its shell and fire.

  Tobias collapses back, his rifle slipping from his weak fingers. The pain in his leg clawing and burning.

  Cassandra rushes to his side, her lips moving, but Tobias can't hear any words past his heavy breathing and heartbeats.

  Cassandra quickly takes out her medkit and attached a tourniquet to Tobias’ leg. Then she sprays medical foam along his wound and injects him with adrenaline.

  Tobias' eyes snap wide and he releases a long exhale. His number leg throbs, and the foam hardens into a pink shell.

  A nearby explosion rolls around the corner, a chunk of a Drevi mech sailing through the air and crashing into the pavement. A moment later, Mads and Anne round the corner. They see Cassandra and Tobias, and immediately run to them.

  “What happened?” says Mads.

  “That mech nearly cut his leg off!” says Cassandra.

  “I'm fine,” winces Tobias.

  “No you're not,” snaps Cassandra. She turns to Mads and Anne. “We need to get him evacuated.”

  “No,” says Tobias. He grabs Cassandra's hand and struggles to stand up, even with her helping him. “Civilians first.”

  Tobias adjusts his communicator while Cassandra rummages through the rubble to find something she can use as a splint.

  “Sire to Thornton, the mechs are destroyed. What is your status? Over,” says Tobias heavily.

  “The Drevi are still taking potshots at us from the station. But the civilians are being loaded up. Over,” says Sire.

  “Get every last one of them out, and then evacuate your soldiers,” says Tobias.

  “You've got to be kidding me,” growls Mads.

  “What about you and your team?” asks Sire.

  “We can wait. The civilians are the priority.”

  A pocket of concrete suddenly pops near Cassandra's head as she scrounge the rubble. She shrieks and falls back, and more shots ring out, forcing the rest of the team into cover, with Mads dragging Tobias by his vest and Anne returning fire.

  Cassandra scrambles to cover inside the building as more pieces of its concrete wall pop off. Mads drags Tobias around the corner and tosses him down before taking pot shots with his suit’s large weapon. The rapid blasts of gunfire is deafening, and the muzzle flashes splash his shadow on the wall.

  “You must have a death wish, Thornton,” says Mads.

  Tobias winces and checks his rifle. “Our duty is clear, Rochefort.”

  Tobias leans out and sees Drevi soldiers scurrying through the streets. He aims, fires, and drops two of them with headshots.

  “Yeah, yeah, duty shmooty,” says Mads. He shoots another volley down the street. “If we get out of here alive I am going to kick your ass and get this shit upgraded!”

  Tobias shoots down the street, too. “You wouldn't hit a cripple, would you?”

  “Yes!”

  Tobias scoffs. “Of course you would. We need to get out of here. Find a better spot to hold up.”

  “There's a Klumsy K's nearby. I saw it when we were being escorted.”

  “Lead the way.” Tobias turns on his communicator. “Cassandra, Anne, on me! We're following Rochefort!”

  Cassandra and Anne run up to them, zigzagging to avoid the barrage of gunfire. When they reach them, Cassandra slinks Tobias' arm around her shoulder and helps him walk.

  The group speeds down the alley, keeping close to Mads, each of his steps making a loud this. Overhead, transport crafts fly out from the gaping hole in the dome.

  The sound of Drevi war horns reverberate through the air, and Mads stops by a corner, peeking out as he holds up his large robotic hand, bringing the group to stop next to him.

  “I see the diner. Just around the corner,” says Mads.

  “Is it clear?” asks Tobias.

  “For now.”

  “Then get moving.”

  Mads nods and rounds the corner, his heavy footfalls echoing off the cracked pavement. Tobias leans heavily on Cassandra as they follow, gritting his teeth against the searing pain in his mangled leg with each lurching step as halfway drags him. Anne brings up the rear, her eyes constantly scanning their surroundings, rifle at the ready.

  They travel down the debris-strewn street, lined with the burnt-out husks of vehicles and the shattered remains of storefronts, but up ahead, in their sights, is the weak neon sign of Klumsy K's, flickering erratically. The diner's windows are shattered, jagged shards of glass glinting in the weak light, and the front entrance door hangs crookedly on its hinges. But the structure itself appears mostly intact.

  As they approach, Tobias catches a glimpse of the interior through the broken windows. Overturned tables, shattered plates, spilled condiments and tipped over chairs litter the checkered floor, and the counter is pockmarked with bullet holes.

  Mads reaches the diner first, his hulking frame breaking through the front door. He sweeps his large rifle in a wide arc as he scans for threats and searches the interior with Anne.

  "Clear!” says Mads a moment later.

  Cassandra drags Tobias inside, carefully navigating the debris. She eases him into a booth, its cracked vinyl seat letting out a tired wheeze under his weight. Tobias leans his head back against the wall, his face pale and slick with sweat. Cassandra removes her broken vest and immediately sets to work on Tobias, rummaging through her medkit for supplies to properly tend to his wound. She has yet to treat the cut on her face, leaving her pale skin painted in red with a dark red gash from her forehead down to her nose and her cheek.

  “Anne, get on the roof,” says Tobias.

  Anne hurries off, taking a flight of stairs near the back.

  The distant sounds of battle still echo through the abandoned settlement - the rattle of gunfire, the bone-shaking thud of explosions, the mechanical war cries of the Drevi machines. But for the moment, their immediate surroundings are still.

  Tobias grits his teeth as Cassandra carefully makes an impromptu splint using a small metal pole and some fabric, her brow furrowed in concentration.

  "You got lucky, you know that?" says Cassandra as she works. "A few inches over and you would've bled out before we got here."

  Tobias lets out a strained chuckle. "Guess I should ask you out after this then, since my luck is so good."

  Cassandra looks at him with a quirked brow, but before she can say anything, Anne's urgent voice blurts through the communicator.

  "We've got company!" saya Anne. “Lots of Drevi movement heading out way!”

  Tobias's blood runs cold at Anne's warning. He pushes himself upright, ignoring Cassandra's protests and the searing pain tearing through his mangled leg.

  "Defensive positions, now!" barks Tobias.

  Mads lumbers towards the front of the diner, his heavy steps cracking the checkered tile floor. He takes up position near one of the shattered windows, the jagged glass shards framing his hulking silhouette. The gears and hydraulics of his exosuit whir as he raises his massive rifle.

  Cassandra shoves Tobias back into the booth and finishes tying off his splint with a grunt. Then she snatches her rifle and crouches behind an overturned table near the front door.

  Tobias drags himself to the end of the booth, propping his rifle on the table's edge and peering through the broken window. Each movement sends fresh agony ripping through his leg, but he grits his teeth and pushes through.

  A tense silence settles over the diner, broken only by the distant sounds of battle and their own ragged breathing. Tobias's heart pounds against his ribs as he stares out through the window, his finger resting on the trigger guard.

  Then he sees the Drevi soldiers marching towards their position, their stocky frames encased in bulky blue and gray armor, cold packs on their backs connected to their breathing apparatuses by snaking tubes. They move in a tight formation, their heavy boots crunching over the rubble-strewn street, quills peeking out from under their helmets.

  "Steady," says Tobias firmly. "Let them get closer."

  The Drevi continue their approach, their goggled eyes fixed on the battered diner. Tobias' mouth is dry as dust, his palms slick on the grip of his rifle.

  The Drevi aim their weapons, and Tobias shouts, “NOW!”

  Mads opens up with a deafening roar, his massive rifle spitting out a storm of razor-sharp rounds. The front rank of Drevi soldiers jerk and spasm as the hail of bullets chew through their armor, spraying viscous blood across the cracked pavement.

  Cassandra adds her fire to the onslaught, her rifle bucking against her shoulder.

  The Drevi continue forward, returning fire with a vengeance. Razor-sharp spikes and pulsing energy bolts rip through the diner's interior, shattering what's left of the windows, puncturing walls, and shredding furniture in explosions of stuffing and splinters.

  Tobias rolls off the booth as a hail of spikes tear through his location. He pops back up with a pained grunt and continues firing, dropping Drevi left and right with well-placed shots, the air thick with gunpowder and dust.

  Beside him, Cassandra lays down a withering stream of suppressive fire, her face a mask of grim determination beneath her sticky blood. Spent shell casings clatter around her boots as she methodically picks off targets, the malicious roar of her rifle never wavering.

  At the front of the diner, Mads unloads on the advancing Drevi with a storm of high-caliber rounds.

  "Thornton, you owe me a drink if we get out of this mess!” yells Mads over the thunder of suppressive fire.

  "You said you were going to try to kick my ass!" says Tobias, his voice tinged with pain and his vision tunneling as he fought off the resurging darkness.

  "I want both!”

  As they shoot at the Drevi soldiers, their cover it withered away by the aliens’ sharp munitions, flinging shrapnel of broken brick and mortar all around. Still, they fight on. Their ears ring, their visions are hazed with sweat, and adrenaline keeps their hearts pumping and lungs breathing.

  Tobias quickly hobbles to a new area in the cafe and shoots out the window, dropping a Drevi with a head shot.

  The Drevi's sharp ballistics tear through the wall, shattering glass and wood in retaliation, and Tobias slides to another spot. His leg, slick with fresh leaking blood, leaves trails of red, and he waves at Cassandra, his vision darkening and hearing failing.

  “Cassandra, give me an injection!” says Tobias.

  Cassandra runs low, narrowly avoiding the sharp munitions ripping into the building. She pops the cap off a small red tube, and Tobias props his weapon on a table to steady his aim. He fires off controlled bursts, dropping a Drevi soldier, who is quickly dragged to cover.

  Cassandra injects Tobias in the neck, and the darkness is ripped away as his senses snap back to normal. Which, unfortunately, leads to his ears ringing from all the gunshots and explosions tearing everything apart around them.

  “Please stop moving so much! You’re loosening the tourniquet,” says Cassandra.

  “Sounds like your tourniquet skills suck!” says Mads, still shooting outside.

  “Shut it!” snaps Cassandra.

  “We need to move to a new location! We’re about to be overrun!” says Anne over the radio.

  “Numbers?” asks Tobias.

  “Dozens spotted so far. That’s just infantry. I saw a Drevi ship drop off two more mechs.”

  “Shit.”

  “Well, we’re fucked,” says Mads.

  “Sire to Thornton, do you read?” says Sire over the radio.

  His sudden voice perks up Tobias and his team. Anne’s rifle shots still echo from the rooftop.

  “I hear you, Sire,” says Tobias.

  “The evacuation is complete. What is your location?” says Sire.

  “Klumsy K’s. I can’t read the street signs but there’s a lot of Drevi converging on us. Dozens of infantry units and two mechs inbound.”

  “I know where Klumsy K's is. I’m on my way right now. Get to the roof and hang tight. Over and out.”

  Tobias waves off Cassandra and Mads. “You heard him! Get to the roof! I’ll meet you up there!”

  Mads immediately runs to the stairs. The steps groan and creak under his exosuits weight, and Tobias pulls out his grenades, places them by the door and swiftly runs wire through them. He does the same for the staircase, being sure both sets are concealed. All while the Drevi continue to shoot inside the diner.

  After setting the second trap, he sees Cassandra waiting for him halfway up. She grabs his hand and helps him up the rest of the stairs and sets another grenade trap on the roof entrance.

  On the roof, Anne is taking more potshots, and Mads is laying down heavy fire. Sharp munitions chip away at the roof’s lip, and Mads curses and stumbles back as a few rounds strike his exosuit, leaving them poking out. Mads growls and shoots down again, forcing some Drevi soldiers into cover while his suit sparks.

  “I’m on my second to last drum, Thornton,” says Mads.

  “Make it count. How about you, Backson?” asks Tobias.

  Anne fires off two more shots, ejects her magazine, and cranks her rifle to put a new barrel in position.

  “I just used up my last ballistics. I’m now on my last twelve explosive rounds,” says Anne.

  “Don’t waste them. Use them only on the mechs.”

  “Roger that.”

  “Cassandra, keep your eyes on the roof entrance.”

  Cassandra nods and goes behind an AC unit, aiming her weapon at the doorway. With her eyes off Tobias, he lets his leg give out, and he crawls to the roof’s edge, props his rifle, and shoots down at the advancing Drevi.

  A pair of mechs lumber towards the Kulmsy K’s, and Anne shoots at them, but despite the round’s explosive nature, they keep approaching.

  Some Drevi enter the doorway, and flashes of flame, blood, and debris roll out with pained screams.

  Then an airship with the Sculptor sigil painted on speeds towards them from the direction of the precinct. It swoops low, a Gatling gun lowering from its underbelly. Sire's voice came over the comms. "Hold tight, EIDF. Coming in hot!"

  And then the world erupted. Sire's sweeping run of blazing guns is a chaotic thunderstorm of firepower. The hot stream of bullets tears apart the invaders with unrelenting fury. The two mech suits crumple or burst into flames under the rain of gunfire.

  "Move, move, move!" orders Cassandra as she helps Tobias to his feet.

  They hobble together towards the airship, and Sire's vessel touches down as a ramp lowers, and Sergeant Al-Barachir waves them on. The gatling gun continues laying suppressing fire on the Drevi trying to reach them from the front. As this happens, Cassandra and Tobias are the first to enter, followed by Anne, and Mads walks backwards as his large guns force Drevi soldiers back down the stairs. Once all of them are onboard, Al-Barachir closes the ramp and Tobias bangs on Sire’s chair.

  “We’re all on! Get us out of here!” orders Tobias.

  The ramp closes and Sire speeds through the gaping hole in the dome, the hum of ascending thrusters getting louder and the vehicle shaking as shots strike the craft.

  Al-Barachir runs back upfront to buckle in next to Sire, Mads and Anne grip what they can for stability, and Cassandra tears away the blood-soaked fabric from Tobias’s leg to reapply the tourniquet. After that, she further inspects Tobias’s leg, both gripping the seat when the airship shakes again. She sprays more medical foam on his wound, and Tobias’s face twitches as the clear liquid bubbles and pinkens.

  “How are you feeling?” asks Cassandra.

  Tobias shrugs. “Today could’ve been better.”

  “The good news is that we’re almost out.”

  “Not likely,” says Anne. “We’re losing more ground to the Drevi and the fight in orbit is going horrible. We might not get off this planet for a while.”

  “They might not leave for a while, but we’re getting out of here,” says Mads.

  “No, we’re staying for as long as it takes to ensure everyone is off this forsaken planet,” says Tobias.

  Mads turns to Tobias. “No offense, boss, but you’re in no position to fight, and our mission is a total bust. We are not Federation Expedition soldiers. We are here by charity, not oath. And we should not die for a lost cause.”

  Tobias uses Cassandra’s shoulder for support as he stands up, his face twitching from pain as he hobbles forward. He tilts his head up to meet Mads’ gaze.

  “The Eqos Irregular Defense Force is by oath sworn to assist the Federation in times of great need. This is a great need,” says Tobias.

  Mads steps forward, his gaze smoldering. “And how many more of our militiamen and women must die for these people? We’ve lost four systems, soon to be a fifth, to the Drevi. Our numbers are not limitless. This war is lost, and the sooner we accept that the sooner we can tell the Federation to pound sand, and we can go home!”

  “You do know I’m right here, right?” says Sire.

  Mads points at him. “I don’t care if you’re right there! You’re Federation, I’m Eqos!”

  “And we are staying until we get everyone off this planet!” says Tobias.

  “Then I’ll be leaving without you.”

  “Then it’s dereliction of duty.” Tobias takes a pained step forward, grabbing Cassandra’s pistol when she hands it to him. “And you know what that means?”

  Mads’ jaw tightens. Cassandra moves behind Tobias. Anne steps back, her finger on her trigger guard.

  “Don’t make me do it,” says Tobias, his eyes flicking to Anne when she slightly raises her rifle. “Don’t.”

  “Guys, we’re a team,” says Cassandra.

  “By random selection,” says Mads.

  “Guys, chill out!” says Al-Barachir.

  “Shut your mouth! This is between me and Thornton!” says Mads.

  “There is nothing to discuss. I will not tolerate dereliction of duty,” says Tobias.

  “So, you really are going to shoot me for a lost cause?”

  “If I have to, I will.”

  “Nobody shoot each other on my ship!” orders Sire.

  Suddenly, a loud, deep war horn bellows through the air, shaking the dirt and rippling the clouds. Tobias and his team look out the cockpit window, watching with wide eyes and pale faces as a large Drevi ship travels through the clouds, like a jagged shark in the water. The horn blows again, and green lights flash along its hull in a synchronized pattern. Smaller Drevi ships fly up from various areas of the landscape, also blowing horns and flashing green lights.

  Then a distant razor-sharp red beam from space tears through Al-Qamar’s clouds and strikes Fort Alsiyadiu. The mountain it resides in is obliterated in a flash.

  Dust and fire rolls in the air, followed by the sonic boom and screaming wind with a shock wave carrying tons of dirt and shattered rock. Fire rolls through the mountains and the sky is blocked by smoke and debris.

  “Get this ship moving!” barks Tobias.

  “Hold on! Barachir, helmet on! Now!” says Sire.

  Sire pushes the throttle all the way forward while he and Al-Barachir slip on sturdy, tinted helmets. Immediately, the transport’s engines cry out and everyone is pushed into their seats as the vehicle lurches forward. The outside world becomes a blur, but the fingers of shattered rock, dust, and flame stretch across the landscape, destroying everything in its path and bringing night to the landscape.

  The transport rattles and emergency lights and alarms flash and whine. Outside, Tobias sees other transports racing against the growing desolation. Some spiral out of control and crash into the ground in a ball of flame and others manage to pull past his transport.

  “Go! Go! Go!” orders Tobias.

  “I'm going as fast as I can!” says Sire as another transport speeds past them with engines red hot.

  “Obviously not!”

  “Sire, if we die because of you I swear to God I'm going to kick your ass!” yells Mads.

  The air darkens around them from the thick debris cloud, and the transport rattles with jets of flame bursting from the engines. One of the engines bursts and Cassandra grips Tobias's hand while he takes deep breaths and wills himself to relax.

  The ship dips, the gray ground rapidly approaches, and everything goes dark.