"Mechs are launching in ten minutes." The voice roused him from his light sleep. Martin got up, checked that the docking tube was still fed to his Mech before punching a button near the hatch. Cyan liquid poured down into the capsule, quickly flooding the small cockpit. He leaned down, inhaling deeply. He coughed, once, twice, thrice, dispelling the air from his lungs. He pushed his fingers into his ears releasing the trapped air before opening his eyes. He snatched up the corded earpiece which had gotten loose while he was "drowning" himself in the breathable liquid and replaced it. The sounds outside were repeated, into his ears. The only thing different was that the freezing liquid made sped things up for his connection to the Mech. Before the Mech was an instrument of war, something he could wield, not as clunky as a vehicle. Now, it felt as though it was part of his body, every minute movement of his mind, the Mech followed.<br/><br/>There was a slight lurch as the motion algorithm came into play and the once-opaque panels at their feet made way for a view of Earth from orbit. "The simulation specifics will be established." The male synthesized voice paused, "Time allocated, two hours. Location designation, urban. Participating parties, three. Simulated battle specifics will be established." The voice paused again, "Company A-3, you are to land from orbit via landing pads. Victory conditions, establish a beachhead and hold it by the end of the time limit or eliminate company R-3 from the battlefield at any one time. Defeat conditions, no surviving team members on the battlefield at any one time or beachhead not established and held by the end of the time limit."<br/><br/>"Company R-3, you will enter via land transport from the north as a response to the A-3's orbital landing. Victory conditions, all landing pads are destroyed, no beachheads are left by the end of the battle or the elimination of A-3 from the battlefield at any one time. Defeat conditions, no surviving team members on the battlefield at any one time or a beachhead are established by the end of the battle."<br/><br/>"Experimental unit, this is an individual assignment, you will enter via orbital drop with A-3 without their knowledge. You are to eliminate as many Mechs prior to your inevitable demise, gaining points as you do so, bonus points for completing any of the other two team's objectives. Victory conditions, none. Defeat conditions, individual elimination."<br/><br/>"All soldiers, standby for deployment." The voice fell silent, and a cyan arrow appeared on the floor, towards the loading bay.<br/><br/>Martin followed, his Mech rolling its shoulders as he stepped into a Minimalist drop pod.<br/><br/>------<br/><br/>Ericka allowed the locks to secure her Mech onto the landing pad, the battlecruiser lurching slightly without warning. She arched an eyebrow but said nothing over the comms. "A-3, Ericka Lee, B3274. Ready." A few seconds later the ground gave way and they were falling. The pod rattled, the heat beginning burn against the protective plating of the pod.<br/><br/>Then someone screamed on the radio before being cut off from the comms.<br/><br/>She looked up, seeing a lone figure leaping from a burning wreck which was her teammate's landing pod. "Ambush!" She shouted, the volume of her voice alone was enough to raise the static in the comms.<br/><br/>"Ignore it! We can deal with it when we're on the ground!" He was right, the Mech was much less armored than they were, but still...<br/><br/>"I'll deal with it. Ericka, come with me." Came a female voice.<br/><br/>"Wait- Don't give orders!" The voice came as the Natasha deployed her landing pad prematurely and leaped up, a ball of fire surrounding her quickly. Ericka followed suit; To wait was weakness. The landing pad deployed and a small drone turret on the center of it began to power up in preparation for static defense. "Fuck!" Her company leader screamed into the comms before addressing the rest, "Keep moving, once we land, we spread outwards and get positions, face towards the north west. I want C3619, F3231, and C2136 to guard the landing pads. No one is to act on their own decisions. If you see the enemy once we're on the ground, fire at will."<br/><br/>------<br/><br/>Judas waited until the girl fell limp before reading off a list of instructions while she lay on the tile floor in a comatose state. "... You will only switch your allegiance, attitude, personality, and behavior only when you hear the words, 'It is right that what is just should be obeyed; it is necessary that what is strongest should be obeyed'. " He straightened up stowing the list and device away as he made to move back to his table. Craning his neck to look out the window as a police siren wailed in the distance.<br/><br/>------<br/><br/>Back on the main street, a car swerved, its tire creating rubber marks on the road as the errant driver ran a red light and nearly running over a pedestrian and her child in a stroller. Heads turned to watch as this madman ripped down the road with a wailing police car not far behind. Then there was a gunshot, the cop swerved, coming to a halt as the criminal continued to tear down the street.