The interior of the Falcon-class dropship was packed with the scent of sweat, metal, and the faint burn of old oil. Private Daniels and Corporal Hayes strapped into their seats; their rifles locked onto their chest harnesses. Across from them sat Agent Lokei, his arms crossed, his face unreadable.


    Daniels muttered under his breath, nudging Hayes with his elbow. “I don’t like the look of the spook.”


    Hayes grunted in agreement. “Yeah, something about him just rubs me the wrong way. Creepy bastard just waltzed onto the ship, now suddenly he’s on mission with us?”


    Before they could continue, Sergeant Vance, their squad leader, shot them both a glare. “Cut the chatter, ladies. I don’t give a damn what you think of Agent Lokei. You’re soldiers, not a bunch of gossiping old women. Get your heads in the game.”


    The dropship jolted as the hangar bay doors opened, revealing the vast, unknown world below. The planet’s atmosphere shimmered with golden clouds, an ocean stretching beneath them, and in the distance, scattered land masses with thick jungles and towering mountains. But their target was a remote island, far from any visible urban centers.


    Sergeant Vance pulled down an old tactical holo map, a Marine in the back hurriedly ran to the back and put the cord in the wall in order for it to function which thankfully it did. “Alright, listen up! We’re dropping onto this island here—coordinates locked. No signs of major civilization, but there’s plenty of life down there. Command believes this area is a safe bet to start building our Forward Operating Base. The other dropships will land at predesignated positions, but we have a different assignment.”


    The marines focused in as he continued. “Our job? First contact. We are to locate, observe, and if possible, communicate with any native life forms. Command doesn’t want a repeat of previous Union screw-ups, where first contact meant plasma fire and orbital bombardment.”


    Lokei snorted, shaking his head. “Yeah, let’s not have another Gate Incident.”


    The entire dropship went silent. Some marines shifted in their seats, others clenched their weapons tighter.


    Daniels muttered, “Damn spook had to bring that up.”


    Even Sergeant Vance sighed, rubbing his temples. “Let’s avoid repeating history. The Union’s handling of first contact situations is not our standard.” He turned his gaze to Lokei. “That’s why you are here. You screw this up, it’s on your head.”


    Lokei smirked but said nothing.


    Vance continued, “Your secondary objective—keep an eye on the agent. Make sure he doesn’t do anything that puts us at risk. If it comes down to it, securing this island and our people comes first.”


    A red light flashed inside the dropship. Two minutes to drop.


    The squad tensed as the ship rocked from the atmospheric entry. The pilot’s voice crackled over the comms.


    “Hold tight, boys. It’s gonna be a bumpy ride.”


    Daniels exhaled and muttered, “Here we go.”


    Agent Lokei merely leaned back, smirking as the dropship began its descent toward the unknown.


    The dropship rattled violently as it cut through the atmosphere, the turbulence making even the most seasoned soldiers tighten their grips on their harnesses.


    Daniels turned to Hayes; his voice barely heard over the roaring engines. “Hey, uh… you ever done a drop before?”


    Hayes shot him a look. “Hell no. I spent most of the End War stuck in some backwater outpost guarding ammo depots.” He huffed. “Only time I got airlifted anywhere was when command needed some poor bastards to soak up bullets planetside.”


    <b></b>Daniels nodded. “Same. High command never gave a damn about grunts like us. We were just disposable assets to them.”


    Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.


    Across from them, another marine chuckled, shaking his head. He was a big guy, broad-shouldered, with a buzz cut and a scar across his cheek. “Wait—you two have never been on a combat drop?”


    Daniels and Hayes turned to him, both a little embarrassed. “Nope.”


    The marine whistled. “Damn, and here I thought everyone in the captain’s squad was a veteran dropper. You guys must be the Director’s chosen ones if you got this far without getting spaced or blown to bits.”


    Daniels and Hayes exchanged a look before both started laughing. The marine grinned, offering a fist bump to each of them.


    “Name’s Wallace, by the way,” the big guy said. “Been riding dropships since the war started. The frontlines? That was my home. Still, gotta say, I never expected to be dropping onto an uncharted alien world with a bunch of rookies.”


    Daniels cracked a grin. “Yeah, well, guess we’re lucky.”


    Hayes laughed, nudging Daniels. “Maybe we should start praying to the Director now, just in case.”


    The big guy smirked. “Name’s Wallace. Been riding dropships since the war started. The frontlines? That was my home. Still, gotta say, I never expected to be dropping onto an uncharted alien world with a bunch of rookies.”


    Daniels shook Wallace’s hand. “Daniels. Formerly cannon fodder, now apparently a space explorer.”


    Hayes followed suit. “Corporal Hayes. Guess we’re all in this mess together.


    A wiry soldier with a sharp, eagle-like face spoke up next, his or her face being hidden behind the massive wall of combat armor that lay on them and the interesting voice modulator. “Keller. Designated marksman. If anything moves that shouldn’t, I’ll put a hole in it.”


    Next was a woman with short black hair and a no-nonsense attitude. “Ramirez. Heavy weapons. If shooting doesn’t work, I shoot more.”


    Then came a quiet, broad-faced marine with a thick accent. “Tomas. Medic. Try not to die, I wouldn''t vant you to be my next science experiment.”


    Hayes looked at him with a credulous look "Damn what a creepy guy guess I don''t want to get on his bad side."


    Each marine gave a brief nod or handshake, their camaraderie forming in the moments before they hit the ground.


    Everyone except Agent Lokei, who remained silent, arms crossed, expression unreadable.


    Wallace nudged him. “What about you, spook? You got a name?”


    Lokei barely acknowledged him, only offering a short, dismissive, “Nope.”


    The squad exchanged glances, but no one pressed him further.


    Meanwhile, Sergeant Collins had his head leaned back, eyes closed. “Wake me when we land,” he muttered, clearly uninterested in the conversation.


    Daniels sighed. “Man, this is gonna be one hell of a mission.”


    The ship shook again as the pilot’s voice crackled over the intercom.


    “One minute to drop! Brace yourselves!”


    The Falcon rumbled as it hit the upper layers of the atmosphere, shaking violently as the heat shields did their job. The once smooth descent quickly turned into a rough ride, the ship rattling hard enough to make Daniels question whether they’d even make it down in one piece.


    “Hold on to your asses!” the pilot’s voice crackled over the intercom.


    A bright orange glow filled the windows as friction from reentry turned the ship into a fiery streak in the sky. Daniels gritted his teeth, gripping the straps of his harness so tight his knuckles turned white.


    Hayes, equally rattled, shouted over the chaos, “I thought you said we’d be fine!”


    Wallace just grinned. “We are! It’s just a little turbulence!”


    Lokei, for his part, remained eerily calm, arms crossed like he was just mildly inconvenienced by the shaking metal death trap they were in.


    As they punched through the last layer of atmosphere, the turbulence suddenly eased. The violent shaking turned into a steady hum, and the glow outside faded, revealing a clear blue sky dotted with wispy clouds.


    Daniels let out a breath he didn’t realize he’d been holding. “Well… that sucked.”


    “Welcome to atmospheric drops, kid,” Keller said with a chuckle. “That was a good one.”


    Ramirez nudged him. “Wait till we get shot at mid-drop. Then you’ll really have a story to tell.”


    Daniels paled. “That happens?!”


    Nobody answered.


    As they regained their composure, they looked out the viewing panels again. The once-distant landmasses were now in full view. Below them, a massive island stretched across the ocean, covered in dense forests, towering cliffs, and winding rivers. White sand beaches traced the edges, leading inland to a sprawling jungle with mountains piercing the sky in the distance.


    The comms crackled again.


    “All drop teams, confirm visual. Approach vector is clean. Landing in sixty seconds.”


    <b></b>Now that they were through the rough part, they could see the other dropships descending with them—dozens of Falcons and Director-class Gunships breaking through the clouds, their engines flaring as they maneuvered toward their designated landing zones. The coordinated descent looked like a well-rehearsed ballet of steel and fire, the Union forces setting the stage for their first steps on an unknown world.


    Sergeant Vance finally spoke up. “Alright, listen up. We hit dirt in one minute. Once we’re down, we <b>secure the area, </b>establish a perimeter, and locate any potential hostile<b>s</b>. Command wants this done clean. No screw-ups. Understood?”


    A chorus of “Yes, Sergeant<b>!</b>” filled the cabin.


    Daniels stole one last glance out the window as the landing thrusters engaged, slowing their descent.


    They were here.


    A new world, a fresh start, and a whole lot of unknowns waiting for them below.