[All of my content is detailed and heavy with layering. Want the sexy stuff immediately? Start skipping paragraphs. Sexy stuff starts at paragraph 39. LONGBURN]
The ship creaked as we passed through the gateway, launching us at speeds unknown to any other type of travel. We were safe from the speed outside, but soon we would arrive in a warzone. Our Captain had agreed to help the Minister of War under a contract guaranteeing our services for at least the next 0.6 cycles. In basic terms, we'd be helping the Sol System Authority [Referred to as SSA or just 'The Authority'] for a little over 6 and a half years. It was the longest contract we'd taken on yet, but our Captain had faith in us and we had faith in him.
This was the first time we were traveling outside the Milkdromeda Galaxy, though we had no love for it, it still felt like home. Familiar. Every fight inside it was like we were on home territory. But now, we were traveling to a small cluster of a significantly smaller galaxy orbiting around Milkdromeda. Its leadership had recently rebelled against the Authority, propping up its new government to lead their worlds. It didn't sound half bad, the kind of government they were forming. Intergalactic information didn't travel as fast as it used to in the old times, so they had a few years before the Authority found out about their treachery. By that time, they had already armed themselves and overthrown their overseers.
An announcement comes over the coms, ringing in every room, including Orbitar's quarters. "ETA is 10 minutes. Prepare your gear if you haven't already, we don't know what kind of forces we'll be facing." Our information was hazy at best. We were traveling to the closest jump point from our side of the galaxy, meaning we'll likely be walking into the most fortified position they have. The only consolation was that we were told we'd likely already have backup there, considering we were just Mercenaries. The Navy of the Authority was most likely already giving the fortifications a good knockdown... Or at least one could hope.
Equipping his armored suit, Orbitar holstered his las-revolver in its holster and slung his Ballistic Rifle over his shoulder. He wasn't the most experienced veteran of the crew, far from it. He had recently enlisted while their ship was visiting his world, and his father did his part to convince him that there was nothing to be gained from staying on it. He was likely right, given that without combat experience, it was unlikely anyone would ever pay him a considerable wage in the future.
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The vacuum of space sucked out all sound in the expanse, leaving us with only the sounds of our jumbling warship to tell us how utterly screwed we were. The Naval Fleet of the Authority had encountered heavy defenses and were already in the process of destroying the orbiting star fortress for the past several days. Our arrival forced the rebel forces to launch an offensive against our forces before we were able to establish a firmer foothold. It would be a few hours before I, or any of my other infantrymen, were deployed into battle. We'd first need to wait on our Navy to take care of our entrance and secure a safe drop point.
Several Hours Later
It took longer than expected, but we managed to punch through their defenses. After receiving our orders from the SSA Fleet, it was clear we'd be the first to launch our ground invasion. There was little incentive for them to utilize their Marines when they had perfectly capable, expendable mercenaries to throw at the problem. So, for the measly pay he was offered, Orbitar loaded into a jumppod. Specially designed to break through orbit and withstand common arms fire both in-air and on the ground. The rest of his squad was loaded up, he was the last to pile into his craft.
After giving the thumbs up to his Squad Leader, he pressed a button that launched all their pods together. They were ejected above the planet, floating downwards from space as glass that allowed him to peak into the outside showed very little besides emptiness. The illumination of the distant stars was dulled by the cover that prevented the brightness from the nearby sun from blinding him. He couldn't see downwards, there was no turning on the jumppod. The only window was directly in front of him.
Orbitar's planet had been dusty, a bowl of industrial filth that had destroyed their atmosphere which in turn had made its color orange. This planet seemed to have a purplish atmosphere, wisps of lavender rushed by as we entered. It seemed as if we'd have a good entry point, our communications systems were still working, and the trackers that kept us in place were still functioning properly. With our current estimates, we'd link up with the rest of the Jump-Force and be able to assault the primary compound to which we were assigned too.
Just as Orbitar was thinking this, he felt the crash of an explosion. Despite their assault and destruction of their star fortress, they still had multiple defenses that would make it much more difficult for them to take the planet. It seemed Anti-Air was one of them. Immediately, his pod spun out of control and took a drastically different descent pattern. He was jostled, barely able to read any of the sensors that were still working. Before his location tracker shut off, he could see the rest of his teammates being shot off in a completely different direction. When he landed, he'd be on his own.
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It was only a few thousand more feet before he hit the ground. Orbitar was trying not to panic, it was only his third operation and he was separated from the rest of the soldiers. From what he could tell on the scattered remains of the map display, he was going to be dropping far into enemy territory. Somewhere around the point of 3 miles behind enemy lines, cut off from help until the force of Mercenaries took the compound. He would have to wait till after they took the compound. Or, even worse, longer if they failed and had to wait for assistance.
