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Jin pulled the slide back on his weapon and looked at the sun in the distance, his flight suit fully pressurized as he took breath after breath from his oxygen supply. He and Nio were within Mars's orbit sitting on a floating asteroid in the emptiness of space, their jets floating nearby and ready to be activated any moment and their only source of light coming from the sun in the distance.
They'd been conducting a practice drill of zero-g combat which soon turned into an actual engagement. As one of Mars's satellites detected a Xeno presence nearby.
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Nio looked into the direction Jin was pointing in. A red aura of light could be seen and it was growing brighter and brighter by the second, Jin realized at the last moment that it was heading right towards them. Jumping from the asteroid the two pilots were met with a violent spin as they drifted apart from one another further and further from the asteroids, Jin's arms swinging wildly as he used his jetpack to stabilize himself in the zero gravity.
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Jin looked up at the Xeno whose body was disformed and shaped almost like an oval with a head the size of a globe, six legs protruded from its body and a set of wings enabled it for flight. Jin boosted towards the creature as it extended one of its legs for another attack, firing his weapon the creatures limb was blown to pieces.
Of course Jin couldn't hear the bullets as they left his gun due to sound not being able to travel through space, nor did he have on his helmets artificial sound generator. Only the vibrations of the weapon and the flashes of light from its muzzle could be made out. Using his jetpacks maneuvering systems he was able to loop around the back of the Xeno and catch hold of one of its wings, using his pistol to fire into them in order for it to loose its mobility.
One of the Xeno's tentacles had caught Jin in a bear grip as he now found himself being thrown around like a rag doll, Jin knew he had to figure out something before it came close to cracking his suit and exposing himself to the vacuum.
"!" Nio said over comms.
Nio had jumped from a nearby rock and boosted down onto Jin's position as he fired his rifle, burst of energy covering the creatures back and causing it to thrash left and right, its hold on Jin was released and the later found himself floating once again. The Xeno was big, but it was also small enough for the two of them to take on together.
Jin reached for his vest and pulled a grenade from one of the clips. Pressing the button he flew towards the Xeno and shoved the device into the creatures mouth, quickly pulling his hand out the two pilots flew to safety as the creature behind them exploded into hundreds of pieces, becoming nothing more than meat floating about.
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Jin used his wrist computer and called forth his EX-35, after hopping inside and pressurizing the cockpit he gripped the controls of the jet and sped towards the waypoint he could see on his helmets HUD, with Nio following beside him. Along the route they took Amethyst Squadron eventually joined up with them.
***
The people watched from a safe distance on the coast as missiles from Norio's air defense system intercept insurgent missiles sent out from the Pacific towards Hokkaido, the alarm whaling throughout the air causing birds to fly away. Among the people situated on the boardwalk was Emma dressed in her diving gear and drinking a cup of coffee.
Given that Norio was a Japanese-based organization with multiple branches around the world, Japan had become one of the many targets for anti-UN groups. Every so often these insurgencies would fire missiles towards Hokkaido and other strategic points of Japan such as Osaka or Tokyo. All of which would be shot down my Norio's own missiles similar to how the Iron Dome defense system Israel use to operate would.
Even though their current situation was dangerous, people couldn't help but gaze in awe at the sight. A few of them even recording the assault with their phones.
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"?"
Emma lowered her cup and spoke.
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The group of people beside her let out an exasperated gasp. Emma chuckled at their faces.
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Emma nodded at their response. "
Before the crowds knew it the alarm had ceased function and the last set of missiles had ended. No damage had been done to the boardwalk, coastline, or any part of Kasane behind them. The crowd erupted in cheers and laughter, praising Norio for their efforts.
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***
"!" Jin said as he jumped from his jet and onto a nearby asteroid. Firing his weapon through the void he was able to kill two insurgents as they landed before him.
Both Demon and Amethyst Squadrons arrived at the mining outpost where the crew working their had taken shelter inside the small pressurized building within the crater. Jin recognized the logo the insurgents had on their arms, one of an bird with a knife clutched in its talons. They were the Screaming Eagles, one of the largest insurgency groups from Earth that operated several medium to large sized spaceships, and other low-budget technologies from EVA suits to weapons purchased on the black market.
"
Turning around Jin drew his knife and stabbed another one in his oxygen supply, air began to seep from his suit as he struggled to close the hole. Jin finished the job in a gruesome method by ripping off his mask and exposing his face to the vacuum. Dashing from a nearby crate he'd taken cover alongside the rest of Demon Squadron and returned fire, with Amethyst Squadron providing overwatch from above them.
Because of their jetpacks and gravity boots the Norio and Astrean pilots had greater mobility and endurance than the insurgents, capable of fighting in zero gravity against both human and Xeno targets.
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As the two squadrons soon found themselves overwhelmed by the insurgents within the crater, Jin tried to formulate a plan to get them out of the mess. The terrorist then began to cease fire and float over towards their position as Jin and the others hid behind the towering boulders of the asteroid. Their guns at the ready and waiting for the enemy to get closer.
Jin knew he had to be extremely cautious when fighting in space, regardless if the threat was human or Xeno. All they had to do was destroy his oxygen supply attached to his suit and he was done for. The mere thought of it sending chills down his spine and causing his heart rate to skyrocket. But he couldn't let that cloud his judgement, he had Emma back on Earth waiting for him.
"
Several of the insurgents were killed instantly as the rest tried to retreat to their remaining ship. Jin saw this as an opportunity and explained the plan to Takeo.
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Takeo nodded. "
Jin recalled his jet to their position and jumped into the cockpit. After assuming control he and Nio sped into the air and began to do what they did best, firing their missiles at the Xenos that tried to evade their paths of destruction. Executing a barrel role Jin shot down another one in his sights as the rest of Demon Squadron had spread out to widen their battlespace.
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Jin was a bit upset at the idea of letting the terrorist go for their actions, but following orders he complied and directed his anger towards the creatures. Activating his jets new laser system he fired a stream of energy at another incoming target. The stream tore through the Xenos body and its flesh melted apart. As Jin celebrated his short victory he soon found himself in more trouble as his jet violently shook, red alarms displaying on his dashboard.
"
A Xeno had latched itself onto Jin's EX-35 and had been pulling him down towards the planet, its sharp tentacle pounded on the canopy glass over and over as it tried to break through. Jin soon found himself spiraling towards Mars as his jet began to heat up around him, if he didn't act soon then he'd most likely fry in the atmosphere.
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He knew that what he was about to use would affect the pilot as well, but Jin had no choice if he was to survive this dogfight within space.
Pressing a red button on hios dashboard Jin's jet was soon surrounded by a field of electricity, while he could feel tiny bits of it as he gripped the controls, the Xeno had felt the most. It shrieked a high pitch cry to the top of its lungs and within moments, was reduced to nothing but meat and bone. Regaining control of the aircraft Jin came to a halt before flying up into space again.
Disengaging his plane he hovered through the void for a few moments to catch his breath.
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Jin slowly closed his eyes for a moment as he rested in the seat of his jet, floating above the red planet and listening to the laughter of his team. These were the moments Jin enjoyed within his line of work, knowing that their fighting was done for one day and now they could rest as soldiers do.
His lips curved into a smile as he pulled his phone out and turned on his front facing camera, after taking a photo he sent it back to Emma on Earth. Letter her know that he was okay.