Sathur, Alliance Colony,

Gemini Sigma cluster, Earth Systems Alliance Space

[Time Frame: ‘97 line + Vivi aboard the SSV LOONA. Space Cadet babies have 2 days left until UWUS Graduation.]

/

“EAT LEAD, YOU BASTARDS!” 

Kim Jiwoo shot out of cover, blasted a few incendiary shotgun rounds, before ducking behind a stationary kinetic shield. The kinetic barrier rippled as thermal bullets were deflected. It did its job, keeping Jiwoo safe. She managed to hit a unit of mercenaries, and a couple more by proximity of the blast range.

Smoke curled out of her shotgun barrel, as visible as the light sheen of sweat on her temple. She ejected the empty thermal sink before slapping a fresh one in. Her harsh breathing, fueled by adrenaline, was miniscule among the raging bullets and booms of the battlefield. Despite the ongoing battle, an unrestrained smile was stretched across her face.

I should move. Can’t risk staying in one spot for too long.

Leaping out from the shield, Jiwoo ran and fired a few shots. She rolled forward and ducked behind a cluster of boulders. Jiwoo was about to move again when her communicator chimed. 

“Jiwoo, you there?”

“Still kicking , Jungeun!” Jiwoo shoved her shotgun around the corner and fired aimlessly. What she couldn’t see, her shotgun’s wide spread would catch. A number of heavy thuds hit the ground soon enough.

“Good. I need a distraction, managed to sneak behind enemy lines. I’m trying to get into their compound but there’s too many against our small infiltration unit.”

“Distraction…?”

An Alliance Kodiak flew over her head. It dropped off another unit of Alliance soldiers and a few crates of ammo before retreating to ally space.

“...I might have a plan. You’ll know the signal when you see it!”

Over the line, there was a quick exchange of muffled words. Jiwoo could hear a faint thud in the background followed by what sounded like dragging. Then, she heard her partner’s voice again.

“Affirmative, Jungeun out.”

A groan made Jiwoo snap out of her planning. The source was a nearby Alliance soldier, currently down holding his side. The sight made her furrow her brow.

Jiwoo swapped her shotgun out with her heavy pistol. She ran and slid over to the slumped soldier, luckily he was already behind cover.

“Chae! I need cover towards the medic tent, got a man down! Sending you my location.”

“Roger!”

Her eyes scanned the soldier’s injured side, “Hey, you’ll be alright. It’s not too deep.”

The soldier groaned in a mix of relief and pain. Even if it wasn’t deep, a bullet in the side still hurt like hell.

“INCOMING!”

A heavy blast shook the ground, kicking up smoke and heat. Jiwoo took that as her signal. She lifted the soldier up, performing a fireman’s carry. With this method, she still had her pistol arm free to defend them.

Jiwoo began running towards the Alliance’s side of the battlefield. She weaved in and out of the planet’s rocky landscape, using it as cover from the encompassing firefight.

A figure dashed out of the smoke from the blast. Jiwoo raised her pistol but it was unnecessary once she saw the streak of blue Alliance armor.

“Thanks for the cover.” Jiwoo nodded at her fellow team member.

“No worries. I’ll cover your back.” Chaeyoung held a small grin as she reloaded her assault rifle before tailing behind Jiwoo.

The two doubled their speed. The medic tent was near and Jiwoo really didn’t want the fallen soldier to get a battlefield infection. Those types of injuries could be nasty .

Chaeyoung held the tent flap open for her. Jiwoo placed the soldier down on one of the cots.

“He’s got a bullet in his side. I already applied medi-gel but the bullet’s still lodged in there.”

She reported the info to one of the field medics. Their eyes scanned the injury in an almost mechanical manner, “‘preciate it, we’ll take it from here.”

She was about to leave when the soldier clasped her forearm. He winced at the movement before saying, “Thanks, really. Give ‘em hell, will ya.”

Jiwoo tightened their clasp and replied with something akin to a shark grin, “It’s what the 6th Regiment does best.”

Leaving the medic tent, she found Chaeyoung over by the crates of ammo, replenishing her grenade belt.

“You down for an assault? Jungeun’s waiting for a distraction, said she could infiltrate the enemy compound.”

Chaeyoung snapped her head over to Jiwoo, surprise etched on her face. “She’s that deep in enemy territory?!”

“Yup. I got a plan though.” Jiwoo stocked up on a couple of thermal clips. More like pocketing them by the handful like they were free candy at a receptionist’s desk. “But we’re gonna need something BIG. She mentioned a significant number of troops holed up in there.”

Chaeyoung hummed as she contemplated their options. They couldn’t take a bunch of soldiers for a ground assault. That would just leave what little ground they’ve gained completely defenseless. Plus, they’d get nowhere near the frontlines. At this point, it was almost like a trench battle.

Jiwoo could see the light bulb moment on Chaeyoung’s face when it happened.

“Tzuyu’s still manning the MAKO.”

“ Ooh, yes! ” Jiwoo’s grin grew, matching Chaeyoung’s. “Are you thinking what I think you’re thinking!!”

“If you need firepower , then the MAKO’s got you covered.”

“LET’S DO IT.”

Chaeyoung radioed Tzuyu as soon as she agreed to the idea.

“Hey Yoda, come in Yoda. You still in the MAKO?”

Bzzt. Click.

“Yes, I am. ...why?”

“We need a distraction, one of our own needs cover so they can get into that hideous looking compound.”

Jiwoo chuckled. Chaeyoung had an artistic vision and she never shied away from expressing it.

“If you need the MAKO, then this sounds like another reckless plan of yours… I’m in.”

Chaeyoung laughed at her response, “Great! Get dropped near us, Jiwoo and I are by the medic tent.”

/

Bzzt. Click.

“We’re closing in on the perimeters of the compound, picking off their outlying patrols.”

Bzzt. Click.

“We’re slowly closing in but there’s only so many we can take down without raising suspicion. Jiwoo, whatever you’re planning, try to hurry it along."

Jiwoo knew she didn’t need to reply to Jungeun. They’ve always kept their comms line open for each other, more out of habit than for reassurance by now. She didn’t know when it started… probably when they first had been assigned solo missions.

It was pretty funny, actually. The things you hear out on the field or while hidden in enemy territory. One time, Jungeun caught an enemy officer at a bad time in an outhouse. Sure, Jungeun was awkward and embarrassed and had to remain hidden until he finished his business. On the other hand, Jiwoo was dying with laughter back at their Regiment’s outpost. So was Chaeyoung after she linked their comms up.

It made sense; Jiwoo’s specialty was full-on guns-blazing frontline offense while Jungeun was more of the calculative and black-ops level sneaky sneak type.

But just because they were good at it didn’t mean they necessarily liked it. Jiwoo’s best position was when she was back-to-back with Jungeun of course. From their time at UWUS to all the countless assignments they’ve completed with their team.

(Even Jungeun preferred it too, her tsundere front didn't fool anybody.)

/

A clunk echoed through the air as the MAKO, an infantry fighting vehicle, was dropped a few yards away from the medic tent. Jiwoo and Chaeyoung ran towards it.

When they were near, the hatch rotated and opened with a pop. Air hissed out as the safety lock disengaged. A mop of brown hair popped out, revealing their teammate Tzuyu.

“Let’s go! I don’t think the mercenaries saw the MAKO getting dropped. We can take ‘em by surprise.”

Jiwoo and Chaeyoung climbed in through the side hatch. It was a bit cramped inside the MAKO but whatever, they were trading in a little space for heavy firepower.

Bzzt. Click.

“Geez! This entire compound is a huge fire hazard, do they just dump their cargo everywhere? ...wait a minute…”

As Tzuyu drove them towards the battlefield, the sound of gunfire grew louder and louder until they were in the thick of it all.

“Chaeng! Man the turret!”

Tzuyu shouted as the MAKO’s shield took the brunt of the attack. The MAKO was literally a moving target after grabbing almost all of the attention.

“Jiwoo, there’s a grenade launcher sitting right here. Do your thing.”

“My pleasure.” Jiwoo cheerfully grabbed the mentioned weapon. She opened the hatch and got on top of the MAKO, making sure to amp up her shields’ power. Tzuyu was now driving at a pace that wouldn’t throw her off. She still had to maintain balance though; the turret that Chaeyoung manned shook with every bullet fired.

“EAT DIRT, YOU FILTHY SCUMBAGS!”

Jiwoo laughed maniacally as she launched several grenades at clusters of enemy mercenaries. A series of explosions rang out, shaking the ground and scattering enemy numbers. Chaeyoung let out a bark of laughter when she heard what she said.

Where Chaeyoung couldn’t reach, Jiwoo would launch grenades to root out enemy troops. And when they came out of cover, Chaeyoung would shoot them down with the turret.

Tzuyu made sure to maneuver the MAKO so that the range of the girls’ weapons would reach. Other times, she would use the MAKO as a shield for Alliance soldiers stuck out in the open.

Alliance ground troops were quick to advance where the MAKO had struck. The Alliance was slowly gaining ground with this mixed tactic of offense and defense.

Bzzt. Click.

“You know... when I asked for a distraction, I should have known you’d make it excessively loud. Not that I’m complaining.”

The fighting continued on as they immersed themselves on the battlefield.

A huge explosion rattled off, coming from the direction of the enemy compound. Almost every head on the battlefield turned towards it.

In the distance, a column of dark smoke rose from the compound. All of its doors burst open, unleashing panic and chaos. Soldiers were crawling out, desperately trying to escape the massive fire that swept the interior.

The mercenaries that exited the building stood face-to-face with the opposing Alliance forces. The Alliance infiltration units also emerged from the compound, effectively surrounding the mercenaries.

Those smart enough to surrender did, and those that raised their weapons in hopes of a last stand were swiftly shot down.

The remaining criminals were rounded up. Kodiaks were arriving for extraction. Jiwoo and Chaeyoung helped a few injured soldiers on board. Other than the prisoners, the injured were the first priority.

More shuttles returned, this time for the active soldiers. Now that the threat was over, all Alliance troops were returning to the Colony or to wherever their respective commanding officer needed them to be.

Jiwoo felt a tap on her shoulder and turned around.

“Thanks for the assist. Somehow, I knew you were the reason why all those explosions were bigger than usual.”

It was Jungeun. Jiwoo enthusiastically patted her back. “Hey! You made it!”

Jungeun chuckled at her friend’s energy, wincing at a particularly hard thump. She turned to Chaeyoung with a knowing grin. “I’m assuming the MAKO was your idea then?”

Chaeyoung shrugged. Her cheeky smile gave away her nonchalant gesture. “Jiwoo said you needed a distraction. The MAKO fits that category.”

“Of course it does.” Jungeun waved to Tzuyu who was perched on top of said vehicle.

“Let’s get back to the colony. I don’t know about you guys but I could definitely go for some greasy burgers.” Tzuyu waved back before getting back in the MAKO.

“Oh, man, can we get milkshakes too?”

The three of them marched towards the MAKO, or rather they broke into a run, shoving each other like racing children. Tzuyu gave them a lift back to the Alliance colony, leaving behind the now-burnt and still hideous-looking compound.

/