"Battle stations!"
Lu Yuan froze for a second, then sprang up and shouted, "Alert! Paratroopers! Combat gear on!"
The assembly area erupted as everyone scrambled to the equipment room, hurriedly slipping on their space combat suits. Lu Yuan urged the crowd on, quickly grabbing an emergency comm button and attaching it to his helmet. Seizing his rifle, he shouted, "Hurry! Hurry! Move!"
Fully equipped, Lu Yuan rushed back to the assembly area and began roll call. Halfway through, a murmur spread through the crowd. Someone exclaimed in disbelief, "A zero-point disruptor bomb!"
Without turning, without even glancing at the holographic display behind him, Lu Yuan roared, "Shut up! Keep responding. Zhang Chengzhao!"
"Here!"
"Shen Qiuyi!"
"Here!"
The ship shuddered under continuous bombardment, but that didn't concern Lu Yuan. His mission was clear: gather his unit and prepare to follow orders.
The ship's broadcast crackled on, "Our vessel is under enemy fire. Red alert! All personnel—"
Suddenly, the broadcast cut off, and the lights in the assembly area went out. After a pause, emergency power kicked in. The blinking red lights cast eerie shadows, while Lu Yuan listened to the chaotic comms chatter, hearing one phrase repeated—a phrase that made his blood run cold.
"Prepare for impact!" Lu Yuan shouted.
The words had barely left his mouth when a massive force threw everyone off their feet. The whole space seemed to tilt backward, and even the high-gravity restraints couldn't stop the paratroopers from being flung around. Those in combat suits struggled to stay afloat, but others crashed helplessly into walls, battered by the overwhelming impact. Even Lu Yuan was swept away, slamming into a wall of fallen comrades.
…
"Self-check: Commander of the 28th Paratrooper Battalion, Captain Tang Ning, serial number 106684398. Health status: poor. Multiple fractures. Approved for 200mg fentanyl injection."
A sharp, distant sound grew louder, pulling Lu Yuan back to consciousness. Gasping for air, he shook his head against the throbbing pain and forced himself to stand, using his rifle as support.
"Get up, paratroopers, get up," he coughed, his voice ragged. When his vision finally cleared, he saw his squad strewn across the floor, some barely moving. Helmets and red-white streaks stained the far wall, marking where his comrades had fallen. Lu Yuan knelt and lifted one soldier with a crushed chest; he was still warm but no longer breathing.
The silence that followed was broken by sparks scattering across the assembly area as Lu Yuan staggered forward, wondering why those who had been alive just moments ago were suddenly gone. His shouts echoed back at him until, finally, another voice called out.
"Boss!" It was Zhang Yueyang. Lu Yuan felt a surge of relief—he'd known that one would pull through. "Get everyone up! Emergency aid!"
"On it, Boss!"
The surviving paratroopers worked frantically to revive their fallen comrades, ignoring the renewed blaring of the broadcast. They pulled each wounded soldier from the piles, giving aid to any who still had a pulse.
Lu Yuan injected a heavy sedative into a critically injured soldier and yanked out a medical pack. He pulled away the soldier's hand from his throat, which had been slashed open, but the man's attempts to speak came out as only gurgles. Lu Yuan pressed a tourniquet and rummaged frantically for a nano-healer. "Medic! Medic! Who's got a nano-healer?"
Turning from one paratrooper to another, he tried to reassure the soldier, saying, "You're going to be okay. We'll be home soon, just hold on!" With no other options, he ran to a medic, grabbed a nano-healer, and rushed back, but by then, the man had stopped breathing.
Lu Yuan dropped to his knees, trying CPR, giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation as he called the soldier's name repeatedly. But there was only silence in response, his eyes glazed over.
The emergency lights cast a dull glow over Lu Yuan's gray face as the broadcast grew louder. "Warning! Black alert! The pressurization in this zone has failed. All personnel must evacuate immediately. Repeat, black alert!"
Lu Yuan froze, looked up, swallowed his sorrow, and pulled the soldier's tag from his body. Then he shouted, "Everyone, move out with me!"
This time, not everyone followed orders immediately. Some paratroopers were still trying to revive soldiers who would never wake. Lu Yuan grabbed a medic who was attempting chest compressions on a fallen soldier, only to be pushed away as the medic screamed, "I can save him! Just a bit more! Go ahead, I'll catch up!"
"He's already dead!" Lu Yuan shouted, needing three men to drag the medic away. The medic shouted back, "We're paratroopers! We don't leave anyone behind!"
Lu Yuan's heart felt like it was being torn apart as he forced one reluctant paratrooper after another out of the assembly hall. Hearing the heavy blast doors sealing behind them, he slammed a fist into the metal wall, knowing all eyes were on his back, looking to him for guidance. He clenched the doors, took a deep breath, and turned to face them, his voice steady as he looked each paratrooper in the eye.
"The black alert means the fleet is in close-quarters combat. The enemy must be trying to breach through the hole from the zero-point disruptor. We're heading to the nearest deployment base to take down any Empire bastards who try to get in."
He hammered his fist against the door, voice rough. "For our comrades behind that door—to bring them home in one piece, not in ashes!"
"Follow me, paratroopers."
The corridor shook as they pressed forward, passing sealed windows, eventually reaching the deployment base after maneuvering through countless blast doors. Inside, chaos reigned as personnel from adjacent sections sought shelter. Even the mech bay reeked of oil and panic, filled with civilian support staff who weren't accustomed to having the fight brought to their doorstep.
Lu Yuan fired a warning shot into the air, shouting, "Combat units! Clear a path!" Forcing their way through, he finally reached the beleaguered duty officer.
"Commander of the 28th Paratrooper Battalion, Captain Lu Yuan, reporting!" He saluted. The officer, clearly overwhelmed by the crowd control, returned the salute half-heartedly and ushered him up to the control panel.
The officer began to brief Lu Yuan on keeping order, but Lu Yuan scowled. "We're paratroopers, not a third-rate patrol squad! I need the combat report!"
Ignoring the officer's protest, he accessed the situation data, only to frown as he reviewed the ship's damage report. Pointing to the damage map, he demanded, "What are you doing here?"
The officer grimaced. "The zero-point disruptor hit reactor two in the rear; we're losing power to this section, and it may detach. I don't have the manpower to do more!"
"What about our escort fleet? How did the enemy get so close?"
"I don't know!" The officer's voice was desperate as he played the last surveillance clip: the Empire fleet emerging from a wormhole, unleashing a full assault on the Corona with ship 49, a standard Kyushu-class cruiser, leading the charge.
Lu Yuan gripped the officer's shoulder and asked, "You're sure the reactor is damaged but not destroyed?"
"Yes! If the bridge confirmed destruction, the reactor section, including this zone, would already have been jettisoned!"
"Good." Lu Yuan called another paratrooper over to gather heavy weapons from the base. He handed the officer his pistol and ordered, "Do your duty. Gather every available hand and get that reactor working. My men will keep the Empire scum off you."
The officer started to object, but Lu Yuan silenced him with a cutting gesture. "This is our ship. Either you do your job, or shoot yourself—I'll make the choice for you."
Turning, Lu Yuan grabbed his rifle and fired several bursts overhead. "All combat units! Assemble by the seal door at the deployment passage! Engineers, bring your tools and stay behind us!"
Seeing the paratroopers rallying, the crowd quieted and made way. Dozens of soldiers, some in mech suits, assembled by the seal door. Behind them stood engineers, driven more by discipline than courage.
As the door slowly lifted, revealing the dark path to the engine room, Lu Yuan summoned the ranking officers from each squad. Pointing to the map, he laid out their assignments. "The Empire's going to send boarding troops through here and here. Keep them out."
The officers nodded, and the white-helmeted security unit volunteered to secure the inner coolant chamber. The outermost, most dangerous waste lock fell to the paratroopers.
Lu Yuan drew lines and defensive points on the map, setting up staggered fire lines and fallback positions. With the door fully open, he sent out the updated map and said, "The reactor must stay safe. We may die, but we hold until reinforcements arrive. Remember, we serve the Alliance!"
"For the Alliance!" the soldiers shouted.
"Let's go!" Lu Yuan waved them forward, with scout mechs disappearing first into the dark, followed by the whole unit.