The dropship descended through thick clouds of the gas giant kaelara.
And inside the ship, heat was rising fast as they descended the heavy atmosphere.
They've been assigned to a special mission, farther than the normal hovering stations 50 miles in the gas giant..
Their target is to steal a lot of gas 350 miles down.
Kaelara is mostly gasses and hydrogen with intense pressure.
It was deemed impossible to even go 50 meters deep.
But due to rising techs and new elements made and discovered.
They were able to send artificial platforms.
The strongest element needed down was promethium.
It can survive intense heat, but 350 miles inside kaelara, it has to be supercooled up to -5000 degree celsius to survive.
It's forged by the energy of the sun, to melt it the temp must be 1200 degree Celsius and it'll only yield in 150,000 ATM.
Because the new gen scientist has managed to make a fusion arc that can exceed old world limits.
And the thrusters there are heavily overworked.
Trying to stand is barely possible.
Intense weight was needed to stay.
Barely.
And in the main part of the ship sits-
Two squads.
Two objectives.
One location.
Their specialized pressured suits allow them to descend the gas giant kaelara's atmosphere.
But there's one rule... Never stay in one place for 15 seconds.
Or they'll die by the lightning strikes that happen widely.
And they use specialized boots to stick to the ground.
Though they can't go farther than 350 miles deep, or they get crushed.
Squad Seven stood on one side.
Across from them—
another unit.
Different insignia.
Different look.
As they reached deeper in kaelara their lights became dimmer, sound waves harder to recognize.
among them—
Hoshimi.
No words were exchanged.
Just glances.
Measured.
Professional.
Aira stepped forward.
"This is a joint operation" she said.
"We secure the district and take kaelara back" the other squad leader replied.
"Expect heavy resistance"
Slowly their voices become more unrecognizable.
Both squad members nodded.
"We're in charge of clashing the mercenaries" Aira said.
"We'll cover from behind" the other squad leader added.
And on the window.
The skies were just... orange and white.
It's impossible to imagine.
Silence filled the ship.
The ship violently descended the artificial ground of kaelara.
The mechanical legs extended and landed.
Catching the weight of the ship and stabilizing it.
The weight caused the artificial platform to sink.
The platform was always frequently striked by lighting every second.
Before entering kaelara, aira warned them to never lose any weight or they'll fly off.
As they landed massive tubes opened in the ship.
And the tubes reached the liquid hydrogen and started to collect the gas and filter it.
The ramp opened.
Gas filled the air.
The view is nothing but orange and white.
They had to rely on AI detectors.
Like a blind man walking.
The platform is wide, dozens of defenses scattered around.
Destroyed.
To protect their ears the builders had to create a special device to block out the hearing.
Still... They kept hearing a strange hum.
Kaelara artificial district 1.
Aira noticed that signals can't reach this place.
And even though their suits were heavily cooled.
The heat always burns more.
And since signals can't reach this space they have to use Thick cables.
"Move in!" The chat Aira sent.
Both squads deployed.
Coordinated.
Heavy.
Slow.
And separate.
Behind them ships of the same team but different factions dropped down in other directions breaching kaelara's gassy atmosphere.
Squad Seven pushed forward
Weapons raised.
Clearing structures.
It felt slow.
Awfully slow.
No sound was heard.
Their lights were extremely dim.
The second squad moved behind—
scanning.
Searching.
Recovering.
Hoshimi stayed with them.
At first.
Akane moved through a collapsed build.
The platform was moving fast.
Too fast.
That they can barely stand.
Their movement was highly restricted.
akane fell down because of the intense pressure and weight.
Tanako helped akane up.
Guns here aren't long ranged weapons.
They're only swords.
heat is only your usage.
"Contact!" Hakamo sent.
From above—
mercenaries dropped in.
Slow.
Precise.
They weren't wandering.
They were waiting.
"Prepare" Aira chatted
As the mercenary ships landed..
Squad Seven reacted instantly.
Returning fire.
Taking cover.
Pushing back.
The battle was close quarters.
The plasma blasters could only penetrate up to 6 ft before melting.
Across the street—
the second squad got hit harder.
Less combat-focused.
More exposed.
"Fall back" their leader chatted furiously.
But it was already breaking.
Hoshimi crouched beside a fallen comrade.
Trying to stabilize them—
even as plasmas tore through the walls around her.
"Move hoshimi!" someone chatted at her.
She didn't.
Couldn't.
Akane saw it.
Since their Ai. can only penetrate up to 20ft.
Location is a mess.
But it didn't matter for akane.
He moved.
Crossing open ground—
dodging fire—
closing the gap.
And near akane.
He saw a friendly member die and fly out the platform.
And one friendly member get striked done by lighting.
The mercenaries easily overpowered their squad.
But before hoshimi was caught-
He reached her in time
just as rounds slammed into the wall behind her.
He grabbed her—
pulled her down hard.
"Stay with me"
First time—
direct.
Close.
Hoshimi looked at him—
surprised.
But she didn't argue.
Didn't hesitate.
She moved when he moved.
Adapted instantly.
"You're not in my squad" she chatted.
"I know" akane chatted back.
Akane fired—
precise.
Two targets dropped.
Her squad leader chatted from behind—
"Hoshimi fall back now!"
Hoshimi informed akane.
He hesitated for a bit but agreed.
just for a second.
Then—
"Don't get surrounded, akane" hoshimi chatted.
Akane reloaded.
"I won't"
Another lie.
Or maybe not.
Akane can only reload 2 times before running out.
He had to get to the gas filtration system.
A dozen rounds destroyed the street.
Forcing both squads apart.
Akane lost sight of his squad.
Just like that.
Gone in the chaos.
"A-.k" Aira's message came in... Distorted.
And before he knew it.
His cord had already snapped.
The drugs that kept their brain sane is gone.
Only 5 minutes to live.
He didn't move immediately.
His gaze scanned the smoke.
Looking.
For a second too long.
Then—
Near him, lightning struck.
Destroying his posture.
Pushing him down.