To my utter frustration, I couldn't sleep. I sat on my bunk in my near-dark quarters, still fully dressed.The twin bunks across from me were empty tonight. Dan had dedicated himself to preparing every mech we had for battle, including the Spartan. He had his work cut out for him.Lucas was supposedly busy preparing Dropship 13 for battle, but I suspected that he was, in fact, busy geeking out over the sleek Korean dropships that now resided in the Firmament's hangars.The bunk above me had been empty since Yamantau. Its owner had been a spy.Taewi's intentions hadn't been malicious, but it made me wonder what else was being kept from me. It seemed that every time I answered a question, or thought I knew the side I was fighting for, something new tested my loyalty.It didn't matter now. Taewi had been my friend, no matter his intentions, and I missed him fiercely.I glanced around my quarters. I couldn't stay here, locked in with my thoughts. I had to go somewhere.***The moon above

The next few minutes were a blur. Goodbyes, gear checks, pats on the back, loading dropships. Martin winked at me before disappearing into the mass of pilots. He was heading to his dropship. I had to head to mine.Moments later I was marching across the catwalk, feeling dazed. I had to focus. The door to the dropship's airlock hissed open.Still in a daze, I wandered to the back of the ship, entering the hangar. The dropship's underbelly door was still wide open, my mechs hanging in the air from mechanical arms. They looked like bombs, ready to be dropped at a moment's notice. In a way, they were more dangerous. No bomb had human intellect. The latest mech, my Spartan, was pulled inside with a hiss, massive hydraulic lifting arms locking it into place with an iron grip.The Spartan, as deadly as it was, was a last resort. Without a command capsule, its destruction would be undoubtedly fatal for me. I had to use all of my other mechs before it came time to bring it into battle.I glanc

Report: QuinnThe Mojave Desert.United States of America.Crash site of an Axion warship.Designation: "Project Terminus"Six-hundred meters. Five-hundred. Four. Three. Two. One.A jarring impact and a flash of sensors, the crackle of my comms.My HUD booted up with a hum. I frowned. After experiencing the Spartan's intuitive display, my command capsule no longer felt as impressive. This Valkyrie would have to suffice.My cameras showed only sand, swirling clouds of dust kicked up by the impact of my landing. It blocked my view, shrouding me in darkness for a few moments, until at last it cleared, swept away by the desert winds.We'd arrived.The ground was pockmarked, cratered by fallen debris, and large clouds of dust marked where mechs were landing. Overhead, I could see the open squares of dropship hangars poking out from behind their stealth plating like hatches in the sky.Terminus' impact zone was even larger from the ground-the ship's back half jutted into the air like a topp

"Watch your step!" Martin called. "It's a bit treacherous in here.""Are we out of range?" I asked."Until those Aegis mechs get closer, yes," Alyx responded."Portable energy shields," Martin sighed. "What's next?""Damn laser," Kitt grumbled. "Blew a hole in my front shield.""Better your shield than any of us," I responded. "Keep moving."The interior of Terminus' vast hangar had appeared dim from the outside, but a massive hole in the ship's ceiling let sunlight into the space, filling it with an uncharacteristically welcoming glow. As my eyes adjusted I took in the space around me.Mechanical arms hung limply from their rails on the ceiling, as lifeless as the rest of the ship, and the twisted remains of scaffolding marked where mechs once resided. Like Terminus itself, the entire hangar was on a slight upwards angle towards the damaged front section of the vessel, making traversal dangerous. A single row of unbroken LED lights remained attached to the scorched ceiling, flickerin

That familiar square opening in the sky became visible and my command capsule entered through it, disappearing from the air. I hung inside the dropship's hangar, hidden from the battle below.My HUD flashed. I had to select a new mech, fast.I caught a glimpse of Dan watching me through my capsule's window as the mechanism placed me into my second mech. Moments later I was falling, strapped into the nimble green frame of a Veles, the mech that both Kedick and Taewi had used so effectively in our fight against Commander Harlow.The mech's weak armour and lack of heavy weapons made it largely useless in a battle of this size, but I was confident that its small stature and leaping ability would allow me to reach and disable any Aegis' shields unharmed.Or, at least that was my plan."I'm on my way!" I called.Six... four... three... one.The lightly-armoured Veles shuddered as it landed, and I took in my surroundings as my HUD flickered to life.I had landed on the north side of the crat