Raptors: Invasion

Humanity has spread out across the stars, colonizing countless planets and systems. Yet at the turning point of the 24th Century, the Sentinels appeared. A robotic race hell-bent on destroying them, the Sentinels pushed Humanity back, killing billions. 100 years later and only now has a defensive line been established. For Humanity, now under the banner of the Allied Systems Coalition, the time for an offensive is now.

“All Raptors, listen up!” shouted the commander, bringing up a display of a blue and green planet with many clouds. “You have been chosen for this because you are Humanity’s Spear. Today is the day Humanity makes its first offense against the Sentinel Scourge. Luvia Prime was chosen because our intel says it has the least ground resistance out of all possible targets. However, you know very well that the Sentinels aren’t defenseless.”

He waved toward the map, which zoomed in on key locations with red zones.

“These areas have a high concentration of planetary cannons. The Obliterator Class Cannons combined with the massive enemy fleet will inflict massive damage on ours. Your mission is to destroy key targets and establish a landing zone for our forces. Expect heavy resistance. Once you complete your mission, it will allow us to cut the Sentinels off from their nearest source of resources and create a staging ground to repel their fleet. Further details will be given by squad leaders. Understood?”

A chorus of “Yes Sir’s” rang out from the nearly one thousand armored soldiers in the hanger. On each of their shoulders was the same symbol: A stylized reptilian head with fangs and diamond eyes, surrounded by three claw marks. It was the insignia of the Raptors.

Raptors, the best infantry in all of Humanity. They were shock and special operations troopers, trained to drop from orbit and spearhead attacks on the Sentinels. From officers able to command any situation to specialists capable of eliminating the toughest of enemies, the Raptor Corps was truly a group to behold.

In hundreds of other Troop Cruisers, the exact same conversation played out. Legions upon legions of soldiers stood proud, ready to take back one of their planets for the first time in a century. Conversations filled the halls as they walked to their positions. Rookies bragged about who could kill the most Sentinels while Veterans did their best to reign them in. Squad leaders planned their first moves once they landed. The air of excitement was inescapable.

All except for one woman.

For Artemis, she couldn’t escape the snide comments from her new squad, how she would never live up to the last guy, Ripper.

For Artemis, she couldn’t escape the convoluted mess her father caused that led her here.

For Artemis, she couldn’t escape the mantra that had been repeating in her mind ever since she donned her armor: Survive at all costs.

And yet, she truly couldn’t escape the memory that brought her to this point. Digging through her father’s closet as a child, seeing his old Raptor armor, and thinking it looked really cool.

Childhood-me was a fucking dumbass.

Artemis swore at herself as she clutched the handles in her pod. Despite being relatively comfortable in her bulky yet light white armor, she knew any cannon would tear through the pod and her like paper. After all, it’s what happened to the rest of her newly-assigned squad.

She didn’t have time to process their deaths. Or any of the hundreds of soldiers who were blown up in orbit before even hitting the surface. Keeping an eye on the statistics in her Heads Up Display, she saw that only half of the first wave made it to the planet’s atmosphere. That wasn’t even considering-

The pod right next to hers exploded, bathing her in harsh, fiery light.

-the cannons on the ground.

The lush, green forests and calming rain could only do so much when the landscape was peppered with muzzle flashes. Artemis focused on the ground and her pod’s sensors, trying to ignore the fates of her fellow Raptors near her. She barely registered her current altitude, which is why the pod’s automatic deceleration flaps caused her to slam her head into a wall.

She cursed. Now the pod was against her! What next? A weapon jam? Her armor freezing up? Was her equipment against her just like everyone else? It’s not her fault that her father was secretly a-

Forgetting that she turned on automatic ejection, the pod unceremoniously launched her up into the air before being obliterated. The only thing that prevented her from breaking any limbs was her suit’s natural locking function. Thank God something was working. Still, that didn’t stop the scream of her limbs from the exertion. And her own scream of surprise.

Despite being disoriented, a whole year of training doesn’t go away easily. Artemis spread and moved her arms and legs until the world stopped spinning. She scanned the area to find a suitable place to land, but unfortunately, those weren’t in high supply.

The lucky Raptors who had landed on the surface were already fighting. Meeting them were two-meter-tall bipedal hulks armed with twin machine guns. Their bodies were covered in smooth, sleek armored plates that glistened in the water and light. A single black line with a moving red light for an eye sat on their heads. They were Brutes, the cornerstone of Sentinel Infantry. While the Raptors huddled around whatever cover they could, the Brutes merely stood or marched while they fired, paying no mind to the damage they sustained.

Artemis frantically looked for the place with the least Brutes. Seeing a group of Raptors fighting a small number of Brutes, she opened her parachute and started drifting toward them. Of course, opening a parachute surrounded by enemies made her an easy target. She tugged on the straps, willing them to lower her to the ground faster. If she could just get low enough-

A single shot made it through her shields and hit the cheaply made harness.

Oh, you gotta be kidding me!

Artemis held back her scream as she slipped out of the harness and plummeted to the ground. While her armor and shields could protect her from bullets, they weren’t so good at stopping death via falling. She really regretted not outfitting herself with some sort of booster pack earlier, but there was no point dwelling on past-Artemis’ mistakes.

She spotted one of the Brutes firing at her and imagined it was the one that shot her harness. With the built-up frustration over the last few minutes (and a scream for good measure), she smashed her feet into the Brute’s head and rode its body as it slid down a slope. She dropped into a roll, mud splattering everywhere, before whipping out her assault rifle and shooting two other nearby enemies. Between her quick attack and their preexisting targets, they were quickly dispatched.

For the first time in a while, Artemis could breathe. Her entire body was already sore, her shoulder was bruised from the roll, her insides were still jumbled, and her eyes witnessed more death in the last 20 minutes than her 20 years of life. But she was alive, and right now, that was all she could ask for. Funny how all the worries she had seemed trivial compared to losing her life.

“Nice moves! You okay?”

The voice came from a Raptor in red-orange light armor with black accents.

“Y-yeah…thanks!”

Artemis took her outstretched hand and climbed out of the trench. Right as she could finally breathe, she lost it all again. The sight was chaos, pure and simple. Countless AA cannons littered the blood, water, and oil-soaked field. Pods, destroyed and intact, were scattered all over, and more kept landing every few seconds. Flashes of gunfire erupted everywhere as Sentinels fired upon the Raptors who had just landed. As far as the human side went, there was little to no coordination, and Artemis knew it. Considering that her hastily-thrown-together squad was blown up in orbit, she doubted a single intact group landed, assuming anybody survived at all.

“Terrible, isn’t it?” said the orange Raptor, leading her back to the group. “All that training and some don’t even make it out of their pods. It makes me sick.” Artemis faintly heard gloves flexing from a hard grip.

“Remember that feeling, Corporal Vixen,” said another Raptor in black medium armor. His faceplate was completely red, and the tops and bottoms were painted with white spiky teeth. What really caught her eye was the ranking on his shoulder. “Once we become desensitized to death, we’re no better than the Sentinels.”

“Aye sir,” said Vixen as the two of them walked into their crater. “We got ourselves another Raptor. Managed to surf on a Brute, the madwoman.”

Remembering her manners, Artemis reached forward. “Second Lieutenant Artemis, reporting for duty.”

“Captain Ripper,” he replied, shaking her hand. “I remember your name somewhere…were you assigned to Bravo-1-1?”

His face was hidden behind his helmet visor, but Artemis could hear the hope in his voice. Despite sweating from the initial fight, Artemis felt her blood go cold. This was Ripper. The soldier who was a stellar leader and combatant. The same Ripper that her new squad would not shut up about. The same squad that was now…

“…Bravo-1-1 was killed in action in orbit,” said Artemis, gritting her teeth. “I was the only one who made it. I’m so sorry, sir.”

“…oh.”

Artemis wanted to close her eyes, but she forced herself to look. In a moment, Ripper went completely still. Artemis could only imagine the turmoil in his mind. Ripper was in his old squad for two years. The memories and bonds they formed were incomprehensible to Artemis, but at the very least, she could sympathize with him, having lost everything from something she had no control of.

“They spoke the world of you, sir,” said Artemis before becoming distracted by what was behind him. Gathered around a collection of supplies were ten additional Raptors. It was clear from their assorted loadouts that they weren’t in a squad. Ripper had already rallied forces together and kept them alive. Compared to her flailing in the air and falling on her face, he was a real soldier.

“And I can see that their praises weren’t unfounded. I’m amazed you gathered so many in such a short time. Your old squad would be proud.”

“…I appreciate the compliment, but I haven’t done anything yet,” said Ripper, snapping out of his daze. “We can mourn the fallen later. Right now, we’ve got more people to save.”

With that, he gathered everyone around a pod wreck and projected a map.

“Our objective remains unchanged: Taking out an Obliterator-class Planetary cannon,” he said, pointing to the display. “Every fifteen minutes, we lose an entire Battleship and hundreds of lives. There’s heavy resistance, so we’ll split up into two groups, support one another, and save anyone else on our way. Tsunami, MG, Crystal, Lancer, and Pike, you’re with me. Everyone else, Second Lieutenant Artemis will lead you. Understood?”

Wait, what?

Before Artemis could protest, everyone gave their affirmations and split off to prepare. Leader? Her? She was still a rookie! Hell, she barely managed to get to the ground alive. Overseeing other people’s lives was not something she was prepared for.

Then again, that is literally what officers do. They don’t just get a fatter paycheck for nothing. She should’ve thought this through a little more.

Past-Artemis is a dumbass, after all.

“Sir, are you sure-“

“Putting you in charge is a good idea?” he finished, handing her some ammo. “You’re the only other officer here, and not everyone here has actual experience either. I read your file when you were assigned to Bravo-1-1. Top three of your class, good marksmanship, and sound tactics.”

“That’s outside of actual combat. This is my first op,” she pleaded, trying to move in front of him as he walked around.

“One year of training doesn’t just go away the moment you drop. And the people here are good fighters. They’ll keep you safe. You just have to lead them.”

“Sir, I am a rookie. I’m…I’m not ready for this.”

He turned around and placed his hands on her shoulders. “No one is ever ready for this. All the vids, all the training, nothing will prepare you for when you first drop. And you got it extra bad. This is the first time any of us are attacking like this.”

He waved to the landscape around them. “Every Raptor, past, present, and future, will go through this. That cannot stop our duty. Especially as Officers. There are people who need leadership, and it’s our responsibility to step up.”

He stepped back and seemed to flash her a smile. “You’re a Raptor, Artemis. You can do this.” With that, he ran off.

It was the first positive comment she heard in…forever. After a year of people ignoring or insulting her, another year of training where her own achievements were brushed off with comments saying how she’ll never be a good soldier, Ripper’s simple but powerful words filled her with warmth and confidence. She carried herself high as she met with the soldiers assigned to her.

“I need callsigns and weapon specializations.”

One by one, they answered.

“Vixen. You won’t find anyone better with a DMR,” said the orange Raptor.

High-damage at mid-range. A little overconfident.

“Husky, Cryo-grenades. Makes them weaker and slower.”

Crowd-control and brittle armor potential. Informative.

“R-Racoon, I use anti-armor.”

Self-explanatory. Young, a little nervous.

“Copper. Uh, machine-gun, I guess.”

Suppression and damage. Not his original weapon.

“Whiplash…assault rifle.”

All-rounder, like me. Quiet, focused.

And just like that, she was on autopilot. She organized their formations, established their methods of engagement, and a number of backup plans should things go wrong. She was concise and clear, and everyone else, to their credit, were good listeners. The moment she finished, everyone dispersed to prepare.

“Ripper said you were a rookie, right?” asked Vixen. “For someone so inexperienced, you sure sounded confident.”

“All a part of Officer’s training,” said Husky, double-checking Raccoon’s gear that seemed haphazardly strapped on. “They teach you how to sound cool since you might command soldiers older than you.”

“...And you know that how?” asked Whiplash.

“...I might’ve...flunked out of it.”

“Hah!” bellowed Copper. “Nothing wrong with that! Hell, I flunked out of college, and look at me now!”

“I didn’t go to college, and look at me!” said Vixen. She and Copper continued to banter while Whiplash sighed and shook her head.

“M-Ma’am?” asked Racoon.

Artemis turned to the young boy, who had taken his helmet off. He was barely nineteen, his brown, shaggy hair doing nothing to hide the trepidation in his eyes. At this moment, he looked so small in his black and brown armor.

“I...uh...wanted to say that it’s nice to know I’m not the only rookie in this group. I mean, sure, everyone else has one or two missions completed, but this is my first op. So...uh...don’t feel too nervous.”

He shook his head and breathed out, trying to work out his nerves. Artemis would’ve chuckled if she wasn’t as scared as he was right now. With his helmet off, she was rudely reminded that behind every set of powered armor was a person with their own thoughts, histories, and emotions. It was no longer a fact at the back of her mind. When she looked up, she could imagine hundreds of people just like Raccoon, sitting in their pods not knowing how long they would survive.

Which brought her back to the boy who did his best to soothe her despite his own fears.

“Thanks. I needed that,” she said. “I can’t make any promises, but if we all fight carefully, we should make it out of this alive. Take care of enemy groups for us, will you?”

He beamed, and Artemis finally noticed how the skin around his eyes was lighter than the rest of his face, almost like a tan line. “Yes Ma’am!”

As Raccoon continued his preparations, she quickly sought out Husky to do one of the more...unfavorable steps she learned. Before she said anything, the white and bluish-gray Raptor already turned toward her

“Need something, Ma’am?” he asked. She couldn’t see his face, but his voice had a smile in it. Just from his casual demeanor, she could tell he was one of the more experienced Raptors here. The sounds of battle didn’t seem to phase him as much as the others. He was perfect.

“I...I don’t want to say this, but…” She couldn’t help crossing her arms and holding them tight against her body as scenarios began to run in her head. “In the event that anything...happens to me, I want you to lead the squad.”

“That won’t happen, Ma’am.”

His voice snapped her out of her imagination.

“Ideally, all of us make it out of this battle alive, but if anyone needs to survive, it’s you.”

“But I’m a rookie-”

“Shut up about that rookie crap!” shouted Vixen from a distance away. “You’re here now! You got a gun! Point and shoot! The rest comes later!”

Husky chuckled. “A little curt, but she’s right. The war won’t end after this battle. We’re gonna need good officers for the future, and, well, you can’t get better if you’re dead.”

“Just do your job, and we’ll do ours,” said Whiplash, the black Raptor suddenly behind Artemis, causing her to jump. “If your orders suck, we won’t follow them.”

There was a mixture of emotions in Artemis. While the fear was still present, it wasn’t debilitating anymore. She had people under her command that would support her triumphs and question her mistakes. She could do this. They could do this.

After everyone’s final checks, Artemis finally turned towards Ripper’s group. He gave her a thumbs-up before switching his comms on.

“I know this is new for all of us, but fundamentally, it’s still what we trained for. Keep your eyes open, your reflexes sharp, and your allies close. I’ll see you at the first checkpoint. All Raptors, move out!”