Aurora sat back in the driver seat, one hand loose on the controls and the other resting on her thigh. Towers slid past but she barely saw them.
"Incoming call from: Second-in-Command, Jace Holloway." the car's AI announced in a smooth tone.
"Put him through." Aurora exhaled slowly. "Jace. What can I do for you?"
"Morning, Captain." Jace's voice crackled through the speakers – sounding tired. "Is the first few hours of the morning treating you well?"
"Not at all." Aurora replied without missing a beat.
"Well, we're in the same boat then." Jace replied with a heavy sigh. "I just got a call from Director Wallace. We're being deployed on a ground mission in Europe – hitting bases the Elyrians just took.
Aurora's grip tightened slightly on the control bar. "Europe?"
"Yeah. He said he would've told you himself." Jace added. "But apparently you were busy biting the whole council's heads off."
Aurora was quiet for a moment. "We're pilots." she said. "Not infantry."
"I know." Jace said. "And I know you don't like this."
"That's not the point." she replied. "Pulling Clyck Squad off the sky right now feels like a mistake."
There was a pause on the line. "Captain, remember what you always tell us?" Jace said quietly. "No matter what happens, saving lives is the first priority. Well, in this deployment, there are lives to be saved."
Aurora closed her eyes for half a second. "Damn it." she muttered and opened them again. "Where are you?"
"Sector 8 Base." Jace said. "That's where transport to Europe is staging."
"I'll be there." Aurora said. "And I want a full brief when I arrive."
"You got it, Captain."
The call ended.
Aurora leaned back in her seat and let out a slow breath. "Sector 8 Base." she said to the AI.
"Route confirmed." the car replied. "Estimated arrival in one hour."
The drive felt longer than that. Sector 8 Base was built more for transport than defense. Heavy carriers lined the runways and soldiers moved in tight groups.
As soon as her car touched down, personnel were already waiting. Salutes snapped up and she returned them without slowing, following the guide through corridors and into a briefing hall deep inside the base.
When the doors hissed open, her entire squad was already there – all nine of them.
Aurora stepped in fully. "Morning, everyone."
"Morning, Captain." the squad answered back, almost in unison.
Layla leaned against the wall, a cigarette between her lips. She took one last drag – crushed it under her boot and smirked. "There's really never a time to rest for us, is there?"
"Sleep is for the dead." Knox said, already pulling out a chair and sitting down.
Aurora shook her head faintly and took her seat.
Mike glanced around, then raised an eyebrow. "Wait. Hold on. We're getting a briefing from Jace and not the Captain?" He leaned back. "Oh, God. We are definitely sleeping through this one."
Laughter rippled through the room.
Jace rolled his eyes, though he couldn't hide a small smirk. "Haha. Very funny." His face went serious a second later. "Bad joke though, Mike."
The laughter died instantly. And silence fell as Jace enlarged a map of the European sector.
"Right." Jace began. "Since the Elyrians appeared five years ago, the European government has been the lead on biological research. And a few hours ago, the primary research base was infiltrated but the data they were working on is still in the vaults. So, the council wants us to go in and retrieve it."
"Data retrieval?" Layla asked, crossing her arms. "That's easy. We're the Clyck Squad after all."
Jace nodded slightly. "Yeah. We are but this isn't just one job."
The map shifted again. And a city appeared nearby, its edges marked in red.
"During the infiltration, the Elyrians also hit a nearby city." Jace said. "The Europeans had an underground tunnel in case of emergencies but it has no long-term resources."
Dave leaned forward. "That's a massive tunnel. And if we've got civilians trapped in it, then we don't have enough eyes to protect every everyone of them."
"The British Ground Forces are already on site for the very same search and rescue." Jace explained. "They just need more arms and the where the Clyck Squad comes in."
Aurora stood up. "Alright. Like Jace said, this means splitting up." She looked around the room. "One under me and the other under Jace."
She gestured to the hologram map. "And if you look at the retrieval site, there's a nest close by. If we take the long route we might avoid the bloodbath but we've got to be prepared for any possibilities. I won't be picking who should follow me, you'll decide amongst yourselves."
Jace checked his watch. "And you've got less than two hours to make up your minds. We're wheels up at 1600." He shut down the display. "Meeting dismissed."
The squad broke apart, voices low as choices began to form. And Jace walked over to Aurora as the room cleared out. He leaned in and whispered. "I've always wanted to say that."
They shared a short laugh.
Aurora smiled faintly. "You're a dork, Jace."
Jace smiled, then his expression turned curious. "Are you okay, though? It's not often I hear about you losing your cool with the superiors."
Aurora sighed, leaning back against a wall. "The whole council was looking down on my father's plan. So, I lost it. He's spent years trying to come up with a way to help us all and they treated him like a child playing with toys."
"What is the plan, exactly?" Jace asked.
"He built a space jump." she said. "The device can send a messenger to the far side of the universe to find help." She looked down at her boots.
Jace waited a beat. "But?"
She looked up. "It's a one-way jump, Jace. If the pilot goes through and doesn't find anyone or if the help isn't there... there's no coming back."
Jace looked at her thoughtfully. "I'm sure the council wasn't looking down on the science, Aurora. They were probably just thinking about who would be sent. That would be someone's child and if they don't come back, it's a permanent loss to a family. That's a heavy call for any Director to make."
"The job we do every day is no different, Jace." Aurora said firmly. "But... I get it."
Jace sighed and patted her shoulder. "Come on. Go get some rest, we've got a big job ahead of us and I need my Captain sharp."