Date and time unknown - The climb down the mountain had been difficult despite the use of the advanced technology housed in their suits to traverse the cliff quickly.
The wind had picked up since they first crash-landed on the planet and passing through the clouds had been perilous due to not being able to see further than two metres below them.
Jason's rib had started to become a nuisance. Now though, he was getting warnings every time he administered more painkillers. However, despite the continuous, frustrating beeping he received on each medication request, Jason knew that the need to be at the peak of his abilities negated the risk of complete heart failure from an overdose.
Or that's what he kept telling himself as he pressed the necessary buttons.
All three of the soldiers had made good progress. They had managed to get to the rendezvous in less than an hour and most importantly they had done it quietly. As far as they were aware the Ceti's had not noticed that they had reached the foot of the mountain.
Aurora was the first to reach the bottom and immediately got into a covering position for the other two.
Jason placed his feet on the ground eager to make progress after the nauseating feeling of the turbulent winds and vertigo-inducing heights. Placing his rifle in the air he looked around to confirm that there were indeed no enemies. At the moment they had the element of surprise.
Confirming that it was all clear, the three of them found the nearest defensible position and hid behind it allowing them to work out their next plan of action.
Jason looked at the arid land around a heavily defended facility that stood menacingly near the precipice. There were plenty of large anti-air turrets all facing into the sky ready to rip apart anything that came into view. Scanning the walls, he could count a number of Ceti's in view already, at least twenty, all at various points to make any large-scale assault very likely to fail.
That also meant that they were not really prepared for an infiltration unit.
"Westwood, I'll need you on overwatch for Aurora and I as we infiltrate the southern part of the facility."
Westwood frowned "I know that the two of you get on well but Aurora is our best marksman..."
"Marks woman!" Aurora interrupted.
Westwood was taken aback by the comment "Marks woman," he continued "she should be providing cover."
There was a sigh through Jason's helmet. "Yes but I also trust her implicitly."
Not wanting to make too much of a scene Westwood pointed toward Jason's torso. "I don't like you Jason, that has not been a secret. You're arrogant, reckless and have a family advantage."
Aurora held Jason's arm to calm him down from the final comment, she shook her head slightly encouraging him to listen to what Westwood had to say.
Jason took a long hard breath even though the words felt like a dagger in his heart.
"However," Westwood continued, "I take my commitment to the Crazy Tigers and the war effort very seriously. I also want to get off this planet alive, therefore, we need to stick to the most successful strategy."
"Westwood is right, Jason." Aurora agreed unconventionally.
That really took the wind out of Jason's sails.
He looked towards the both of them trying to make a decision quickly. The pain killers were not necessarily making that task straightforward.
"Fine, Aurora, overwatch, Westwood with me. We'll get in, plant the explosives on the facility power unit and exit. We'll then detonate on our climb back up." Jason confirmed.
Westwood was the first to exit the rocks they had been hiding behind and made a dash for a ditch that ran along the side of the facility.
"Don't fire unless you absolutely have to," Jason ordered Aurora "we're too exposed out here as it is."
Aurora placed her rifle on the rock and positioned herself comfortably. "I've got your back." She responded.
"I know, but at the moment I don't have yours." Jason replied remorsefully. He then sprinted after Westwood sliding into the ditch before any of the Ceti's looked in their general direction.
Peering over the top of the ditch he used his HUD to mark all the visible Ceti's in the facility which, in turn, provided valuable data on their patrol patterns.
Crawling along the ditch Westwood took the lead followed by Jason, both examining their HUDs to make sure that they could not be easily seen.
The closer they got the more activity there was. He could hear two Ceti's casually talking to each other. One of them made a sound similar to a laugh. Looking above the ditch, briefly, he saw the two Ceti's sitting playing some sort of game involving pyramid-shaped dice.
It seemed strange seeing his enemy like this, talking, laughing, trying to have fun. Seeing the enemy on the other side of the battlefield working cohesively like an efficient fighting machine was one thing but realising that they weren't just robotic killers that valued entertainment like the Crazy Tigers, felt bizarre.
It was easy to consider them cold-hearted killers, but Jason couldn't help but admire their efficiency, abilities and mystery.
A third Ceti arrived, and the two stood up and gave what seemed to be some sort of salute. The third Ceti just placed his hand on their shoulders, got them to sit, talked and laughed briefly before walking away.
Jason realised he could not dwell on it for too long. They were the enemy and personifying them would make this and future tasks extremely difficult.
They reached a gap in the perimeter defence where no Ceti's were watching continuously. The laser wall had a biometric signature that would allow them to pass through freely unless the Ceti's had managed to hack that too.
Jason placed his hand on Westwood's shoulder to encourage him to wait and allow Jason to take the lead. He prepared himself, looking around at the enemy's positions, and then took a long deep breath. If the biometrics had been changed he was about to run directly into what felt like a brick wall. Knowing the coast was clear he sprinted into the wall.
He tripped over on the other side.
Sheepishly he dusted himself off and hid behind the closest building. It wasn't long before Westwood caught up with him trying to keep a snigger to himself.
"Wasn't planning the wall to let you through?" Westwood laughed.
"Shut up." Jason replied embarrassed by the situation but realising from the outside it probably looked quite amusing.
With a combination of tagging and carefully positioned manoeuvres, it wasn't long before the two of them had reached the base power generator. According to the briefing report, taking out the generator would be the most successful, but least damaging way to disable the facility and the anti-aircraft guns.
With Westwood providing cover, Jason placed explosives on various points ready to take it out with a touch of a button.
It wasn't long before they were making their way out of the facility again.
All too easy!
Clambering through the dusty ditch there was an element of satisfaction that was not really anticipated. They had been tasked with a difficult mission and were severely undermanned and excruciatingly tired, it somehow had gone without any complications. Not many units could claim such feats, including Special Forces.
Reaching the end of the ditch it was just a matter of retrieving Aurora and climbing back up the mountain. The only major issue was how long it would take to regain any type of radio contact while performing the climb.
Both Westwood and Jason stood from the ditch ready to make contact with their compatriot but both became severely alarmed by what they saw.
Aurora was engaged in close-quarter combat with two Ceti's, likely just returning from patrol, and it was obvious that she was being overwhelmed.
The dance they performed was one of grace with brutality. The flashes of metal against metal brought thoughts of fear and urgency and the clanging of the Sceptre being pushed back by the butt of the rifle meant that Jason and Westwood's pace had quickened to provide Aurora with the help she needed.
It didn't take the Ceti long to gain an advantage. It was simply too quick and agile. Pushing her back with a kick to the chest, the Sceptre quickly and efficiently followed, swiping gracefully across her leg. She crashed to the floor in a scream of agony leaving a deep splash of dark red along the dusty amber floor.
"AURORA!" Cried Jason instinctively.
He sprinted towards them raising his weapon up to his face and unleashing a barrage of laser fire toward one of the Ceti's. As the Ceti raised its arm up three sharp daggers extended from its arm ready to make the final strike-through Aurora's chest.
Jason frantically pressed down on the trigger more frequently with Westwood the following suit but the glowing blue of the energy shield seemed like it would not run out of energy in time.
Just as the blades were to descend towards their target the shield failed and multiple blasts burnt their way through the armour of the enemy making it collapse to the floor onto the screaming Aurora.
Jason hurtled his way through the back of the second Ceti before it could react, knocking it to the floor. It wasn't long before it was back on its feet and pointing its sceptre angrily towards him.
As Westwood sprinted over to Aurora to check on her Jason grabbed the dead Ceti's sceptre which had sprawled across the dust. Examining it quickly he noticed a groove with a button on its side so instinctively he pressed it.
Nothing.
He pressed again.
Nothing.
He quickly examined the smooth tube again, aware that the live Ceti was advancing on his position. Despite the quick observation, there was nothing else that appeared to make the sceptre react.
"God damn biometrics!" Jason cursed aware that the Sceptre would never work in the hands of a human.
He launched it at the Ceti's head which it quickly avoided but allowed Jason the time he needed to grab his combat knife from his back and prepare it to block the first swing of the menacing sceptre.
It wasn't just one swing, it was several, all skilfully executed with precision poise and speed. Above, below, to the sides, Jason had never encountered anything like it and on occasion was almost taken aback by the ferocity of the attack if it wasn't for his perfectly balanced footwork.
The noise of the metal gliding through the air with the occasional clash against the combat knife was exhilarating and seemed to make Jason move that extra bit quicker. Despite managing to gain a small advantage over his adversary twice, its reaction speed allowed the Ceti to recover almost instantly.
Time was short though. He could hear Aurora screaming in agony, a good sign, but the longer it continued the less chance for her recovery. The other problem was that the enemy could also hear her and at any time, provide his current foe with support.
This enemy needed to go down now!
Martial arts had taught Jason to fight with discipline and finesse, but this fight demanded that he do something extra to win. Avoiding another round of swings from the Sceptre, Jason pushed himself back grabbing a rock from the floor. He threw it with venom towards the Ceti which it successfully blocked but it allowed Jason the milliseconds he needed to get close and plunge the knife deep into its neck.
As blue blood oozed from the helmet of the Ceti and down the handle of the knife he didn't dwell on the enemy's lack of life as he was too occupied with the mumbles coming from the direction of Aurora. She had stopped screaming now, and Jason could see that she was in a state of shock.
He pushed the Ceti away, sliding the knife from its neck and wiping the blood on his sleeve, he watched as the Ceti limped to the floor.
Fear gripped him as he ran over to Aurora and Westwood seeing the severity of the damage for the first time. The pool of blood around the torn up calf muscle made Jason a little queasy, especially knowing that the cut was deep and likely to have even reached the bone. Aurora was looking directly at the wound holding onto Westwood tightly mumbling in between hyperventilating.
Westwood had already done what he could to place a tourniquet above the wound and administer painkillers but she would need to be evacuated as quickly as possible.
"I'm sorry for not being here." Jason commented as he held her hand tightly.
Westwood looked towards Jason and then towards the direction of the outpost. "Scharn, we need a plan now!" He commented forcefully knowing that the noise made would undoubtedly draw unwanted attention.
Jason stared at Aurora's squirming but almost lifeless response. Westwood had done a good job of reducing the risk to her but Jason was still anxious. It wasn't until Westwood hit him in the shoulder that he regained focus of the situation.
"Get her back up the mountain and keep calling for medevac. It's likely to be about 10 minutes of climbing before we will get into radio contact but we may get something sooner. I'm going to detonate now and make sure that no one follows. Hopefully the explosion will cause confusion. Get moving now".
Westwood didn't hold back, he stood straight away grabbing hold of Aurora and slinging her on his back. She screamed as he did it but he just ignored the noise concentrating on calling for help instead.
With the assistance of the armour, Westwood started to climb very quickly and even with Aurora strapped to his back he was hoping to make excellent progress.
Jason sighed in desperation hoping this wasn't the last time he saw his long term friend. It was a desperate situation, she would need medical attention as soon as she reached the top of the mountain, hopefully, the General would keep his word.
He flicked the switch and heard the explosion in the distance and the rumble on the ground gave confirmation that it was the correct explosion. Waiting for a few moments he had expected to receive some resistance but nothing came. Perhaps the explosion had come as a shock to the Ceti's.
Jason started the climb, occasionally looking down to make sure he wasn't followed. The climb was difficult, his hands were shaking, either because of Aurora's predicament or because of the realisation that he had become a harbinger of death since he arrived on this God-forsaken planet.
The aches and pains were starting again, either because the painkillers or adrenaline was wearing off but each time he pulled himself up to the next rock all he could think about was Aurora and whether there would be any help for them as they arrived at the outpost.
It wasn't supposed to be like this, the pain, the suffering, the loss of colleagues and friends. But remembering the gruesome state of Aurora's leg had for the first time made Jason question what this war was all about.
The Ceti's attacked first, but why? Were they just some warrior race who wanted galactic domination or was it something else? They fought with efficiency but nothing suggested that they were sinister and evil and to some degree, they seemed normal and a worthy adversary. However, they mauled Aurora's leg so really he should be angry. Despite this, all he could remember throughout this entire mission was how, when he had called for help it was denied and as a result, was then bribed to go on an even more dangerous mission in which it was unlikely that he would succeed.
Something didn't feel right about the enemy, about the war, about how every time he mentioned his name it was greeted with hostility. Aurora was his priority but after that, he needed to start asking questions, the right questions.
The first and possibly biggest question, why was his father, a bastion of tactical efficiency and military success, removed from his position of power so abruptly.