The lights suddenly snapped on, blindingly bright, disrupting my sleep.

  “Good morning, Soldiers. You must arrive at the exit in ten minutes. Lateness will not be tolerated.”

  Only this time, it was Sentra’s voice booming through the speakers, mechanical and cold.

  “I prefer the old version,” Becca groaned, shielding her eyes as she sat up.

  “We better hurry,” Alicia muttered, already moving.

  I waited for Becca to clap back with a sharp retort, but she just rubbed her temples and stayed silent. That was a surprise. She must have been too tired—or maybe, just like the rest of us, the reality of today was finally sinking in.

  The room was surprisingly silent while we pulled on our gear.

  There was no protective plating or reinforced padding today. Instead, we wore simple, skintight bodysuits. They were a striking combination of metallic silver and deep blue, made of a smooth, synthetic nano-weave that hugged every muscle and joint like a second skin. Our nation’s logo was emblazoned on the left side of the chest, gleaming under the lights. It felt exposed, almost naked, compared to the loose training outfits we were used to, but Vance had said we needed maximum agility for the jungle terrain.

  Once the suit was on, I sat on the edge of my bunk to braid my hair. I wove the strands tight against my scalp—a warrior’s plait. It wasn't about style; it was about survival. Loose hair that could easily get caught was a recipe for disaster.

  Just as I was tying it off, Katherine walked up to me, looking hesitant. The tight fabric made her look even smaller than usual.

  “Can you do mine as well?” she asked softly. “I’d do it myself, but it always ends up getting in my face.”

  “Sure,” I replied.

  She sat on the edge of the bed, and I worked her red hair into a single, tight braid. It felt grounding to do something so normal before something so dangerous.

  “Pretty…” she said, touching the braid. “Where’d you learn to tie it like that?”

  “My mom taught me.”

  “That’s sweet,” she replied, a faint smile touching her lips.

  We finished getting ready and met the guys in the common corridor. They looked just as grim as we felt.

  “Let’s go, shall we?” Vance said.

  We all nodded. The walk to the exit was eerily silent. I guessed everyone was reviewing tactics and battle formations in their heads. Honestly, though, I was just glad no one was fighting pointlessly. Perhaps Vance had talked to Ray and Aaron and managed to convince them to call a truce.

  When we arrived at the hangar exit—the same spot where we had first boarded the Stellarion—Sentra was already waiting.

  Beside the droid, ten silver field packs, each emblazoned with our nation’s logo, were arranged in a neat row. Each bag was surrounded by our respective weapons, laid out like surgical tools.

  We stood in a single horizontal line, facing Sentra. The contrast was stark—our sleek blue-and-silver silhouettes against the bulky machinery of the packs.

  It looked at us with its red blinking eye and spoke. “Good morning, Soldiers. Kindly pick up the bags placed below. They contain basic survival essentials. They have been labeled according to your numbers.”

  We stepped forward, scrambling slightly to grab our respective gear.

  I opened my pack to check the contents. It wasn't much: meal pills, a pocket knife, a water sieve, thermal sheets, and grenades.

  Yes, grenades. Even though we were technically discouraged from using them to preserve the "natural state" of the extraction zone, the fact that they gave them to us said everything I needed to know about what was waiting down there.

  I shrugged on the field pack. The weight was sudden and jarring. The heavy metal frame pressed hard against the thin fabric of my suit, the cold steel chilling my spine. I tightened the straps across my chest until they dug in.

  Then, I reached down and lifted the hilts of my swords. I snapped them onto the magnetic plates on my hips—click, click.

  I don’t know if it was my imagination or the fear, but they felt heavier this time.

  After we were done gearing up, we turned back to Sentra.

  “As mentioned before, you will be jumping out of the ship since the terrain is unsuitable for landing,” Sentra announced. “You will be using the Gravity Depressors attached to your field packs. Once you are 500 meters from the ground, you must push the button on the side of the field pack. Position yourself to land in the optimum position from a height. Are there any questions?”

  Theo raised his hand.

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  Sentra turned its beady eye to him and said coldly, “Yes?”

  “Has this been done before? And how much gravity will it be canceling?”

  Sentra stared at him for a few seconds before answering. “The fall will feel like one from 15 feet. As long as you adhere to the steps, you should land without any major injury.”

  Theo nodded quietly, looking pale.

  “We will be jumping in T-minus 30 seconds. Kindly prepare yourselves accordingly,” Sentra said, turning its back to us.

  Sentra began a countdown. Red lights began flashing in the room, bathing us in an emergency glow. I felt a knot in my stomach. For some reason, everything was looking hazy now, the edges of my vision blurring.

  “You okay Cass?” Lexie asked me, placing a hand on my shoulder.

  “Wha—yeah, I’m fine,” I replied, shaking my head to clear the fog.

  “I’ve always wanted to go skydiving, you know,” she said with a grin that didn't quite reach her eyes. She was carrying her bow in one hand, and her arrows had been placed in a specialized quiver attached to the side of her field pack.

  I didn’t really know what to say in response to her statement. Only ten seconds were left now. I had to focus on the landing. One wrong move and I’d become the next ‘example’.

  “Let’s nail this,” I said, forcing confidence into my voice.

  “I'm with you, sister,” Becca replied, gripping her axe handle.

  “PREPARE FOR JUMP,” a computerized voice echoed through the hangar.

  We put on our masks as the massive rear hatch began to hiss and lower. A gust of violent air hit my face, smelling of ozone and storm clouds.

  “JUMP ON 3 EVERYONE,” Vance yelled out over the roar of the wind. “1… 2… 3!”

  As soon as Vance yelled three, we ran toward the opening.

  I didn't let myself hesitate. I sprinted to the edge and threw myself into the void.

  The artificial gravity vanished instantly. For a heartbeat, I was floating. Then, the planet’s atmosphere grabbed me. The wind roared in my ears, a deafening scream that drowned out my own thoughts. I tumbled forward, the G-force pressing my eyes back into my skull.

  Below me, Planet 81 rushed up—a swirling bruise of purple clouds and jagged green land.

  I spread my arms, fighting to stabilize, just as we had practiced in the sims. The spinning slowed. I leveled out, belly-down against the storm, falling like a stone through the clouds.

  To my left, I saw Vance, a silver-and-blue bullet cutting through the air. To my right, Lexie was falling in a perfect arch.

  Suddenly, a shadow detached itself from the storm clouds.

  It wasn't a cloud. It was alive.

  A massive creature, like a pterodactyl made of leather and spikes, shrieked and dove straight for me. Its beak was open, revealing rows of serrated teeth.

  I reached for my swords, but the wind pressure pinned my arms. I couldn't draw in time. The beast’s talons extended, aiming for my face.

  Thwip.

  An arrow streaked through the air, moving faster than the wind.

  It struck the creature dead in the eye. The beast screeched, its wings seizing up, and it tumbled away into the grey mist, disappearing below us.

  I snapped my head to the right. Lexie was holding her bow, the string still vibrating. She winked at me through her visor, then tucked her bow back against her chest.

  She made that shot while in freefall, I thought, stunned. Remind me never to piss her off.

  “Altitude 600 meters,” my mask’s HUD flashed red. “Prepare for deceleration.”

  I reached for the button on my shoulder strap.

  “Mark!” Vance shouted over the comms.

  I slammed the button.

  WHAM.

  The Gravity Depressor kicked in. It felt like being yanked upward by a giant, invisible hand. The straps dug into my shoulders, bruising the skin as my velocity died instantly. I went from falling like a meteor to floating like a feather in the span of a second.

  But the jungle was right there.

  I crashed into the canopy. Leaves whipped my faceplate. Branches snapped against my nano-suit. I tumbled through the green darkness, bouncing off a thick limb before finally hitting the ground in a crouch, mud splashing up my legs.

  I stood up, drawing my swords immediately.

  To my left, a massive THUD shook the ground.

  Vance had landed like a meteor. He stood slowly, creating a small crater in the mud, his massive claymore already in his hand. He didn't wobble. He didn't flinch. He just stood there, a statue of war.

  Above us, a manic laugh echoed. Ray was free-falling from the canopy. At the last second, he dug his claws into a tree trunk, slowing his descent with a screech of tearing wood before flipping casually onto the grass.

  Then, the air pressure spiked. VWOOM.

  Sentra descended straight down, its internal thrusters firing a focused burst of blue ion. It didn't interact with the trees; it simply burned a hole through the canopy and landed with a heavy, metallic clang. It locked into the soil, perfectly upright, not a speck of dirt on its chassis.

  A few yards away, Aaron and Becca dropped through the leaves in unison. They hit the ground in a synchronized combat roll, dispersing the momentum before popping up into a fighting stance, weapons raised. It was efficient. Deadly.

  Then came the others.

  There was a frantic screaming, followed by the sound of breaking branches.

  “Ow! Ow! Watch out!”

  Katherine came spinning out of the tree line, completely out of control. Her dampener flared late, and she hit the ground hard, tumbling ass-over-teakettle until she slammed into a mossy rock.

  “Oof!” she groaned, sprawled in the mud.

  Before she could get up, Theo plummeted through a bush directly above her. He face-planted into a patch of wet ferns, his legs flailing in the air for a second before he collapsed with a pathetic whimper.

  “Graceful,” Aaron sneered, deactivating his mask and spitting on the ground. “Absolutely graceful. You two looked like sacks of potatoes with thrusters.”

  “I… my button got stuck,” Theo wheezed, rolling onto his back and wiping mud from his visor.

  “Excuses won’t stop you from dying,” Aaron snapped, walking over to them and looming over Katherine. “If that was a combat drop, you’d both be dead before you hit the floor. You’re liabilities.”

  “Status report,” Sentra interrupted, its head swiveling rapidly as it scanned us with a laser grid. “Heart rates elevated. Adrenaline levels at 120%. Katherine: minor bruising on left hip. Theo: mild contusions and ego damage. Combat efficiency: acceptable for first descent.”

  “Acceptable?” Aaron scoffed. “It was embarrassing.”

  “Back off, Aaron,” Becca stepped in, shoving Aaron’s shoulder with her forearm. “They made it down in one piece. That’s what matters.”

  Aaron shoved her hand away. “Don't touch me. I’m trying to keep us alive. If they can’t even land, how are they going to fight?”

  “Maybe if you helped them instead of acting like a superior prick, they’d do better,” Becca snarled, gripping her axe tighter.

  “Make me,” Aaron challenged, stepping into her personal space.

  Becca bared her teeth, her hand twitching toward the trigger on her axe handle. The air between them crackled with tension, hotter than the jungle heat.

  “Enough!” Vance barked, stepping forward.

  But before he could separate them, a sound cut through the clearing.

  Click-click-click.

  We all froze.

  It wasn't the sound of some small animal. It was the sound of something hard tapping against stone. Rhythmic. Deliberate.

  Click-click-click.

  It was coming from the walls.

  I tightened my grip on my swords. The argument was forgotten.

  Welcome to Planet 81.