The Leader's Decision

An alarm flashed over the grey-eyed armor's interface.

[MANA CRITICAL]

[Mana: 99 / 6430]

The armor descended gracefully through the air and landed by a stream which flowed in a densely wooded area.

Thud

The feet of the heavy machine sunk a few inches into the soft ground. The futuristic armor then knelt on one knee as a series of clicks and light whirring resounded. The back of the armor split open and a small hiss escaped with a stream of gas as the back's panels unfolded. Shortly after, the man inside stepped out of the armor and drew an old-age 1911 firearm to survey his surroundings.

He was a tall, young man with an athletic build and dark blond hair. He was fairly handsome, but perhaps not enough to turn heads. The dark outfit he wore made him look like some kind of special agent or perhaps a spy. After ensuring the area was safe, he holstered his gun and retrieved a survival pack from the armor's storage compartment. He then quickly prepared a basic camp and took the opportunity to bathe himself in the stream. While he sat and ate rations, he looked to the beautiful stars above, appreciating the beauty of the expanse.

The sun would rise in a few hours. He needed to rest in this place for the remainder of the night and resume once his mana replenished.

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A voice played over the strike team's voice channel, "You guys think we got him?"

"..."

Four mechanical bodies glided through the air at cruising altitude, each with its own set of glowing, blue eyes. They were following their teammate's marker when it suddenly plummeted to the earth. After a few short movements, it remained still. A few hours had passed since then and the sun was beginning to rise over the distant horizon. Those strange, final movements left the team concerned, but they could do nothing yet, as the range of the voice channel was quite limited.

"He still hasn't moved... The system says he's alive. Maybe he ran out of mana?"

Silence filled the air again. They were now closing in on their teammate's marker.

"There!"

Up ahead, they could see a large field with tall, swaying grass. The center of the field was scarred with craters and gashes. Smoke rose from what little grass remained in the area. The rising sun glinted off the damaged armor lying on its back, staring upwards into the sky with empty eyes. A mechanical arm lay in the field a few meters to the side of the armor, partially concealed by the burning underbrush.

"Bain! Bain, can you hear me?!"

The lead man rushed ahead to check on the downed teammate. The other three formed a defensive ring around the wreckage and held their weapons as they scanned the surroundings.

"We have to take him back!"

The downed man was in poor condition. The combat suit he wore sealed the bleeding, but he was in no condition to fight. He didn't respond to his teammates, but stared off into some unseen void as he mumbled incoherently. It was clear he couldn't continue with the mission.

They needed to take him back. Despite his arrogance, he was a good teammate, and they needed every man they could get.

Now the team leader needed to make a decision. The enemy could very well still be nearby, waiting for a chance to ambush them. It wasn't uncommon for an enemy to bait a team by leaving their comrade alive. It would take two men to drag their teammate all the way back to the base, which would leave only two to continue the pursuit.

However, they still had a chance to find the enemy. After stealing vital, classified information, he spent high amounts of mana to flee at an incredible speed. He also fired a high caliber magi-rifle multiple times to destroy some of the less-capable pursuers and hadn't rested for at least two days.

The team was sent to hunt down this enemy and keep him from escaping with the classified information, but if they continued the search, the two who went on would be at great risk. It was even possible the enemy was lurking nearby, watching them at this very moment.

Surely, this grey-eyed armor left their teammate alive for a reason. Did he want to deter the team, or did he want to lessen their numbers and ambush the remnants?

"... Well played, grey-eye."

The team captain thought for a moment before making his decision.

"We've taken too many losses today, we're heading back! Pack up Bain and move out!"

The team saluted and responded in unison, "Sir!"

Soon, the field was left empty again. It was the same as before, but now accompanied with battle scars and dying flames that marked some unknown, dangerous event. Silence returned to the field, but instead of peace, it brought a sense of foreboding.

One day later, a group of travellers passed by the site in haunting silence. A chilling shiver crept down their spines as they viewed the destruction. What on Earth happened in this field?

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"Hangar 6, dock 12 is clear for entry. Welcome back, Cayce."

A highly damaged armor flew smoothly through the contractor base's sixth hangar as it approached the appointed dock. Heads turned to watch the entry. Men flew in and out of these hangars all day, but this particular armor had recently become relatively famous across the base, as the agent's mana was grey.

This was never seen before. Of course, only a few years had passed since the Shattered Star event, which introduced mana to the modern world. Shortly after, the world built new technology to successfully harness the mysterious energy. Mana in this world couldn't cast "spells" like one would read in a story book. However, it had strange effects and could "fire" energy through specialized machinery as well as power special tools.

Mana was still barely understood, but seemed to have varying strengths depending on the color. For example, a red mana was more efficient in jet machinery, while blue mana delivered more power in "muscle" machinery.

The grey-eyed armor landed gracefully on a square-shaped landing pad and docked to a frame which would hold the machine in place where it stood.

[Docking procedure complete]

[Welcome home, Agent Cayce]