Sometimes, when I sleep, I saw you right next to me, the white sheets covering your naked body. Your lips pouted subconsciously and sometimes, you would let a 'nya~' out from your mouth. You were so close to me... yet when my hands reached out to comb that crimson hair of yours, you disappeared into the darkness.
My eyes jolted open and for a while, I gasped for breath, although from an outsider's perspective, I was merely breathing in. Hues of violet greeted me from my return to reality... a very harsh one. I managed to sleep, huh? I quietly coughed out of amazement at myself; after all, this plane isn't made to allow you to sleep. In fact, this plane was specifically designed to keep soldiers awake for most of the trip. That was what the violet lights were for, but surprisingly, I managed to sleep despite that. 'The sleepless days are getting to me, huh?' I thought to myself.
My fingers were pinching a piece of folded paper and once again, I unfolded it to reveal a photo... a very important one... An onyx-haired boy with eyes of the same color stood side-by-side with a cute girl with crimson hair and deep yellow eyes. Even if it was just an old photo that has seen better days, her eyes were still shining. As I looked at the girl, an invisible hand gripped my heart and began applying force. This pain... the reason why I hadn't slept for the past few days... It hurts... I can't stop it... No... Even if I could, this ache won't just stand up and leave. Only that girl could take it away. Only YOU can take it away...
"I'll find you. Just stay safe..."
I brought the photograph to where my lips would be if it wasn't for the helmet conjoined to my Exo and I folded it neatly once more.
"YO, EDWARD! WHOSE PICTURE DID YOU JUST KISS!?" a cheery voice that of a naive teenage boy called out to me, his voice very clear despite the deafening cacophony around me.
I pretended not to hear him. I do not want to talk about this, especially not with him.
"OH, IS IT..."
Here we go again...
"LYN...!?"
My mind clouded with anger. Using what remained of my rational consciousness, I managed to stop myself from sending him off to the slaughterhouse with a barely functioning Exo. I stayed quiet. There is no point in answering; he wouldn't believe me anyway.
PAK! My ears perked up and my eyes looked to the side; one of my fellow passengers had done a karate chop on that naive asshole's helmet.
"PRIVATE BAR! RESPECT!" the soldier scolded the asshole.
"HUH!? I AM, THOUGH!"
Like hell you were...
"CALLING YOUR SUPERIORS BY NAME DURING A MISSION IS NOT RESPECT, PRIVATE!"
"WE WENT TO THE SAME MIDDLE SCHOOL! I CAN CALL HIM WHATEVER I WANT!"
Half-true. Yes, we went to the same middle school, but since when did that mean you can call me whatever you want.
Although the lighting from the violet hues wasn't that good and that the soldier was wearing his helmet, I could tell that a bunch of veins had bulged on his forehead. I should step in before he does something that would seriously impact the squad's efficiency in the mission, despite the very tempting idea of that asshole getting beat up.
"Lieutenant Aman!" I bellowed.
The soldier's hand stopped midway from splitting the private's head open.
"Please refrain from disciplining your subordinates during the mission," I spoke, my volume high enough to hear over the plane's engine, "You may do it later once we return."
I turned my head to face the grinning Private Bar.
"Also! Please refer to me as Colonel, Private. That is an order. Failure to execute an order will not go unpunished. Understood?"
"Yes... Colonel," Private Bar replied.
I could tell there was a hint of annoyance and sarcasm in his voice, but I ignored it. I am not a simple teen that would get pissed off just by mere sarcasm.
Just as I had finished dealing with the situation, I heard a beep in my ears.
[Ahem... Colonel, we're near dropping point.]
[Understood.]
I cut off the connection and stood up from my seat, Lieutenant Aman and another soldier lifting the silhouette of a sniper rifle following suit. After a few minutes of indifferent staring from the three other soldiers, Lieutenant Aman ordered them to get up with a pissed attitude. The 'Aman' back then didn't have such an attitude carried along with him. It must have been eating at him too; that event three years ago. Good.
"Listen up, men. I am not gonna repeat what I will say after this, so you better not daydream about your perverse fantasies, Private Ari," I called out a soldier who jolted from his position when his name was spoken.
I sighed in disappointment before continuing.
"To the west, our fellow friends and colleagues are fighting the main enemy force. However, several klicks away from our landing zone is a Hive."
Hives... It is a tank that carries multiple MIRV launchers that bombard the enemy continuously. Just one MIRV would have an explosion radius of 1,500 meters. However, a Nest contains at least 10 to 15 MIRV launchers which would increase the blast radius to about 15,000 to 22,500 meters. Not to mention that isn't even the most dangerous aspect about it. A single Nest contains at least five missiles containing locust drones; a swarm of them is already enough to wipe out an entire platoon. That is why those tanks are called 'Hives' instead of their actual name, which I didn't bother remembering. Fortunately, Hives are too expensive for mass-production so they are scarce in numbers and when they do appear, there is usually only one.
"Our objective is to destroy the Hive. Thanks to Major Ricard's assistance and HQ, we were able to pinpoint the exact location of the Hive, and please do not bother asking what if we don't have their help, Private Leron."
A soldier who had raised his hand lowered it back down like a whimpering dog.
"Agent Setiady will be assisting us for this mission as our scout," I nodded to the soldier carrying the sniper rifle, giving him permission to speak.
"Don't do anything unnecessary while we're down there. If we lose the element of surprise, the Hive will change its location, and our mission to destroy it will turn into more of a hassle. Not to mention that this may be a key component to Chinese victory and if we blow our cover, a very experienced Summoner will come for certain. Of course, there should be a few Summoners accompanying the Hive, but they shouldn't be too much of a problem," Agent Setiady explained and nodded back to me when he finished.
"I believe that is all you need to know. In the case that there are two Hives, proceed to immediately search and destroy the target as quickly as possible," I added that last part for insurance.
I opened a connection with the pilot.
[Open the hangar.]
[Roger.]
As I disconnected, a stream of white light burst into the plane, momentarily blinding me. I blinked a few times to adapt to my new environment. Once the hangar fully opened, I ordered everyone to connect to a secure channel; we could not risk a leak in information.
[Good luck. Have fun.]
That unnecessary comment from the pilot ordered everyone to jump out of the plane. However, one stayed behind: Private Bar.
"HEY! I DON'T HAVE A PARACHUTE HERE!"
"You're not supposed to. You can do just fine without one," I said as I pushed him off the plane before following him.
======= TO BE CONTINUED =======