Compared to Outpost Thor-Frey 12, the new Outpost that I was visiting was more of a combat front compared to a supply depot, and that showed by the myriad of mechs that lumbered around the area preparing the Outpost for the wave to come.
My comms crackled to life again as a member of Outpost Surtr-Frey 01 asked "Einherjar Hrefna, what brings such illustrious company to this side of the world?", their curiosity tempered by whatever it was they were doing.
My driver lowered the grav-truck to the ground and allowed me to disembark as I replied "Chief Borimir gave me a slate of missions, and I believe all of these mechs could be better used if given time to properly deploy. Is this landing pad being utilized for anything important?"
"It is not, Einherjar. Will you be requesting an orbital drop?"
"Affirmative. Patch me through to the 'Vessel of Gymir' for immediate orbital drop."
The loaders around me hurried up at that, and the driver even began to aid them as they hopped out and started lifting the crates off themselves, making me smile slightly even as I waited for the comm signal to switch over to an orbital channel.
"This is the 'Vessel of Gymir'; what do you require, Einherjar Hrefna?"
"Launch pod Tyr-Hrefna 02 to my coordinates for an immediate orbital drop."
"Affirmative; pod Tyr-Hrefna 02 is being launched, t-minus 86 seconds before delivery."
The comm crackled as they disconnected, and I shouted "T-minus 70 seconds before drop!", giving everyone a sense of urgency as I helped clear the pad for the delivery of my pod, and we moved swiftly before clearing the way, with the drive saluting me before making their way back to the other Outpost.
I turned my gaze towards the sky and watched as a glittering star fell from orbit, and everyone stepped back even more as it rocketed down towards our position, before we all raised our arms to cover our faces as my pod initiated its landing system and kicked up a large amount of dust before plopping down onto the landing pad.
Four giant sheets of steel alloy dropped to the ground as soon as it stabilized itself, and that revealed the beautifully crafted piece of mechanics that I had painstakingly earned and perfected with the help of the Company's engineers.
Fifteen feet tall and rather limber despite the size, my own personalized Tyr Class Mech was very different from my usual preference of fighting style; equipped with a 30mm Aesir Chaingun and a Gungnir Heavy Spear, my Tyr Mech was entirely geared for close quarters combat and swift attacks.
Very different from the patience that I usually made use of as a sniper, and something that always surprised my peers whenever we had to utilize our mechs in combat, but it worked and it was what I was most comfortable with.
Climbing up the thin, multi jointed leg to reach the boxy cockpit that made up most of the mech and opened the hatch, revealing the four foot wide, six foot tall box that I was going to be occupying.
I took a seat and stowed my weapons in the compartment beside myself before closing the hatch and turning the mech's reactor on, powering it up and sending energy traveling through it's 'veins' as my mech was activated completely.
Hooking the cables up to the sockets I had in my wrists, neck and back of the skull, I synchronized myself with the mech's internal functions and 'became one with it', as many other mech pilots loved to claim.
The control module - an artificial intelligence whose entire purpose was to manage the smaller tasks inside of the mech - woke up as soon as I was connected, and I let out a sigh as I felt the familiar 'caress' inside of my mind as the synchronization was finalized.
"Welcome back, Operator Hrefna. What is our mission?"
It's flat voice was soothing to hear once more, and as I settled into the controls of the mech and familiarized myself with them once more I said "There's a new wave of Chukanid's assaulting the planet, Mimir 14. Our mission is to simply kill as many as we can before being reinforced by the rest of Outpost Surtr-Frey 01."
"Affirmative Operator. Please remain stationary as I finalize the calibrations."
The screen that covered the entire panel in front of me turned on, revealing the sight directly in front of me while two boxes appeared in the corners, revealing the sides and back via cameras that were wired into the cockpit.
Making my own adjustments, I eventually was able to control the mech freely and move around, so I turned towards the extra crates of ammunition for my 30mm Aesir Chaingun and began to load up the rest of the rounds into both my gun and into the storage of my mech.
Each bullet was registered via Mimir 14, giving me a counter for how many rounds I had while the durability of the mech was given it's own screen, telling me about everything I needed to know as all systems turned on one after another.
The information overlay on the screen was perfect for me as I checked all of the systems myself before I began to make my way towards the location of the brewing wave, leaving the Outpost behind after informing them of my intentions.
Two other Tyr Class Mechs joined me alongside a larger, much heavier Jotunn Class Mech, forming a squad around me as we made our way to meet the Chukanid's earlier than they anticipated.
If we could disrupt this portion of the wave before they began their rush out into the world, then maybe the rest of the mechs could be properly equipped and deployed for the rest of the nearby bases, providing the much needed support to the Outposts that weren't supplied with a large amount of armor and artillery to rely on.
That was where I came in, and as I rushed back into the jungle to take on this threat earlier than the rest of Vel Risi, I couldn't help but grin inside the cockpit as the familiar rush of adrenaline began to flow through my veins once more.