As the 579th platoon neared Mars, the excitement was palpable.
"Ladies and Gentlemen," the captain said over the intercom. "The Alba Mons base is within sight, so please stay seated and buckle your seat belts. An unexpected dust storm is currently running rampant on the surface, I suggest you brace yourself."
"Dust storm?" Thomas asked. "What are we supposed to do about that?"
"There's nothing we can do about it," Nathan answered, trying to keep a calm face.
"We're all gonna die," Alexa whispered, too scared to scream. Her face was deadly pale and her knuckles were bone white from clutching her chair.
"Don't worry so much," Alfredus said, crossing his arms. "If it were really that dangerous, the captain would've sounded more wor-"
The words hadn't even left his mouth yet when the ship was hit with incredible violence, flinging every passenger aboard the vessel around in their seats.
"Hold on to your seats," the captain warned.
The ship was shaking violently, and the cabin was filled with screaming.
"It's an attack!" a recruit yelled. "We're being shot down!"
"Of course it's not," another recruit responded. "Why would there be an attack right above the base, it must be the storm!"
Then another tremor went through the ship, and a loud screeching sound could be heard.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I suggest you put on your emergency oxygen mask." The captain said over the intercom. "The hull has been breached."
Nathan quickly grabbed the oxygen flask attached to his uniform and strapped the mouthpiece to his head.
"The emergency oxygen supply is limited, so try to save as much air as possible."
"What do we do?!" Alexa screamed. "We're gonna die, we're gonna di-"
"Shut the fuck up," Mikhail yelled. "Your screaming isn't helping." His eyes were bloodshot and his face pale as the moon.
"Listen, everyone," the captain continued, "I advise you all to head to the escape pods. They're located below deck, just follow the signs."
"You heard him, move," Alfredus ordered the rest of his squad with a stern voice, his friendly demeanor all but gone.
As the group rushed down the stairs to the lower level, a few of the recruits were already coughing from the lack of oxygen.
The lower decks were a chaotic mess. Some of the recruits had decided to ignore the captain's orders, and were trying to return to their seats.
Others had decided to make a run for the escape pods, pushing their comrades out of the way in the process.
Nathan and the rest of his squad headed to the escape pods, doing their best to ignore the commotion.
"Out of the way!" Mikhail shouted to a bunch of scrawny recruits blocking the entryway.
"No way dude," One of them responded. "No one is getting in before we are."
"Listen here, you little maggot." Mikhail spat, pushing him against the wall. "Either you scram and let everyone through, or I'll make you"
"You'll do nothi-.." The recruit answered before his face was quickly met by Mikhail's fist.
"You were saying?" Mikhail said as the scrawny recruit fell to the ground, unconscious.
The rest of the recruits stepped aside in a hurry.
"Someone get this excuse of a man into an escape pod!" Mikhail shouted. "And that is more than he deserves," he softly followed up.
After a few minutes, they finally reached the escape pods.
"Let's get inside quickly, before the oxygen runs out!" Nathan yelled, struggling to speak through his mask.
"Agreed," Alfredus and Mikhail said.
Nathan looked behind him, only to find Alexa and Thomas still struggling through the chaos.
"Alexa! Thomas!" He shouted, trying to catch their attention. "What's wrong, are you hurt?!"
Alexa's face was deathly pale, her eyes wide open in terror.
Thomas had a similar expression, but his was tainted with a hint of madness.
"Alexa, snap out of it!" he shouted, trying to get her attention.
"We're going to die. We're going to die. WE'RE GOING TO DIE!" she screamed, clutching her face. "WE'RE GOING TO DIE DAMN IT"
"We're not gonna die," Thomas said, his voice strangely calm. "We're not going to die," He repeated, his face emotionless.
"Please, just snap out of it," Nathan shouted. "Mikhail, can you get them through the crowd?"
"Not easily," he answered. "They're both panicking, I don't know if I can do this without hurting someone."
"Then hurt someone damn it!" Nathan bit his teeth.
"Fine," Mikhail said. "But if either of you are hurt in the process, that's not on me."
"Just go," Nathan said.
"Alright." Mikhail responded.
He rushed into the crowd and dragged Alexa and Thomas through the mob, ignoring the screams of pain and rage that ensued. Punches flew and people dropped, but after about a minute Mikhail returned with Thomas and Alexa standing behind him.
"You really are monstrously strong," Nathan gulped, looking at the trail of carnage in his wake.
"I didn't hurt them," Mikhail said. "This was the lesser evil."
Nathan nodded, and they entered the escape pod.
"Everyone strap yourself in," Alfredus ordered. "We don't know what the landing is going to be like."
"Agreed," Nathan nodded.
After they had strapped themselves in, the captain spoke up again.
"The ship is going down. We've drifted off course and have been ambushed." He sounded tired. "Prepare yourself for combat. Each pod contains basic weaponry and survival supplies."
"It's been a pleasure to be your captain," the captain finished. "We are going down. May all of you survive."
A loud explosion echoed through the ship, and every escape pod was ejected. More than half the recruits were left behind.
"Goodbye, and good luck," the captain said, before his transmission ended.
The pod shook, and Nathan felt his body being pushed back. The pods were shot out of the ship at twice the speed of sound, and it didn't take long for the friction from the atmosphere to heat up the pod.
"Is everyone alright?!" Nathan yelled, his ears popping from the sudden pressure.
"Yeah!" The rest of his squad answered, all of their faces pale.
[Parachute system failed. Falling back to thrusters]
"Hold on to your seats everyone," Alfredus shouted, gripping his armrest tightly.
"Why what's going to hap-" Mikhail asked before abruptly being cut off by a sudden jolt.
Nathan felt the entire pod shake, and a sudden pressure crushed his entire body.
"AAAAHHH," he screamed, unable to hear his own voice.
Nathan's vision blurred, and everything turned black.
*****
Nathan woke up amidst total chaos.
The first thing he noticed was the excruciating pain throughout his entire body.
"Urgh..." he groaned, clutching his head. "What happened?"
Nathan's head was spinning, and his thoughts were clouded.
He suddenly felt a hand grabbing his shoulder.
"Thank god, you're awake."
Nathan recognized the voice as that of Alfredus.
"Alfredus?" He groaned. "What happened?"
"We crashed, but it wasn't bad enough to kill us," Alfredus replied. "The real trouble is what came after the crash."
An explosion shot up dust right next to them.
"What's going on?" Nathan asked, his voice trembling.
"We're under attack," Alfredus responded, his face tense.
"What?!"
"It started right after the escape pods landed."
Nathan stood up, ignoring the pain in his legs.
"Where are the others?" He asked.
"I'm right here," Mikhail said, standing a few meters away, wielding an assault rifle. He was continuously firing into the distance, though Nathan couldn't quite make out at what.
"Where are Thomas and Alexa?" Nathan heaved.
"They're both hiding under the wreck," Alfredus pointed to a piece of metal nearby. "They broke their legs and are unfit for combat."
"What about you?" Nathan asked. "You're bleeding everywhere!"
"Don't worry, it's not as bad as it looks," Alfredus said, wiping some blood off his face.
"Are you sure?" Nathan asked, his eyebrows furrowed.
"Positive," Alfredus said, reloading his assault rifle. "Are you able to fight?"
"I think so," Nathan responded.
"Good," Alfredus said, throwing him a rifle. "Now go support Mikhail!"
"Understood," Nathan responded.
Nathan quickly joined Mikhail's side, who had been hiding behind a large rock.
"Good to see you're awake," he said, not taking his eyes off the horizon. "I could use some backup."
"What's going on?" Nathan asked, his chest heaving up and down.
"We're surrounded, that's what," Mikhail answered, his breathing labored.
"How many are there?"
"I don't know, I haven't had time to count." Mikhail coughed. Blood spat out from his mouth, filling the inside of his mask.
"Mikhail!" Nathan screamed. "You're injured."
"Yeah," Mikhail groaned, "but nothing we can do about that now."
A green beam of light penetrated the rock, shooting right between them. For a second nothing happened, then the rock exploded in a cloud of dust and debris.
"Shit," Mikhail cursed.
"What was that?!" Nathan yelled.
"I don't know, but we have to get out of here!" Mikhail coughed again. "Run to that rock near the ravine when I tell you to. I'll provide you with cover fire."
"What?! Why would I-" Nathan protested.
"No time to explain," Mikhail said. "NOW!"
He began to unload his weapon, firing blindly into the smoke.
Nathan started running, running like he never had before. He ran despite the pain in his legs, he ran despite the explosions all around him, and he ran despite the dust clouds covering his vision. He ran as fast as he could, and soon reached the rock. He was about to dive behind it, when suddenly, another green beam of light struck right in front of his feet.
"Fuck!"
Before he could respond in any way, the ground below him collapsed, revealing the ravine. He tried to grab onto something, anything, but alas, the dirt just slid right off his hands.
"Help!" He screamed. "HELP!"
No matter how hard he tried, no one could help him.
He was falling, and he knew there was no stopping him.