Chapter 1: Landfall

Politics was complicated. During the 21st century, it was made even more complicated with the discovery of new technology, new ways to conserve and utilise natural resources, and the rise of new markets. Pandemics, skirmishes and resource shortages did nothing but to make the problem worse. Then at the turning over of the century, space exploration was made much more affordable, opening the way for space colonization. The problem of politics just got worse from there.

World War Three was almost triggered with the discovery of a habitable planet, code-named "Nova Terra-4". Armed forces around the world were mobilized, a new arms race was declared, and everyone held their breath. For ten long years, political blocs manoeuvred around each other, trying to undermine each other. The world was on the brink of new World war, one that (thankfully) never came.

A final solution was then agreed upon: the planet would be colonized by all political bloc, instead of a single one. Furthermore, any sabotage effort would be punished heavily, and co-operation between colonies would be highly encouraged. With this announcement, Earth had finally gotten a sigh of relief. The doomsday clock was turned back, and people poured to the street for celebration.

That, of course, was fifteen years ago. The prospect colonizers had little time for celebration, they were embarking on their respective spaceships. A dozen ships from 12 different political blocs on Earth would then begin their long and arduous journey to Terra Nova. The whole time would be spent under hibernation to preserve power and resources. Now, the period had finally ended, the colonisers were being awakened, some earlier than others.

Staring at the screen mounted on the wall, Nguyen Kien Vuong, a pioneer, watched over the planet: the jade green of the vegetation, the sapphire blue of the ocean, the snow-white of the cloud… It looked… primitive, but in a good way. He had no idea what the word would be in English, but perhaps the phrase "flushed with lives" would be a good start. Far cry from the polluted and over-populated Earth. Years of exploiting nature had left quite a toll on Mother Earth, making some areas become inhospitable. Then, humans just had to mess it up even more.

Well, no use in crying over spilt milk though. Time being grumpy and weeping could be better spent on more productive works. In this specific setting, it would be preparing for the landing on a new planet. It was quite a big deal, he was among the first echelon, more romantic, more prestige, more honour (and more pay, more chance to woe the chicks). However, it would also be the highest risk. The ride down would be a shuttle, less comfort, more bumps, and the flight attendant would definitely "not cute". And clearly, there would be always the chance for something to wrong.

Thus, the preparation process was not a quick and easy one. Two layers (or three, depending on how one might count it) of protection were applied here. The inner was a flame-retardant suit with camouflage patterns applied to it. This was for two birds in a single stone, first, it would increase the survival chance in case the shuttle crashed and burnt, and second, the camouflage pattern would be tremendously helpful in staying hidden on the ground. Sure, no advanced lifeform with a significant sense of social (ie intelligent species) had been found, but even a dumb one would need to see its prey first. The battle dress uniform was a god-sent in helping them stay hidden.

The second part was a powered exoskeleton suit. Though it was less protection and more utility. Even if he was a non-military, the job of pioneer still required physical prowess, or in his specific case, the ability to move over a long distance in the shortest time possible. Furthermore, he was also hauling some equipment for exploration, it was light-weight, but it would add up over time.

And then, the outer-most layer, a fully enclosed astronaut suit. Even if it had been made much lighter than the variant of late-20th and early-21st century, the suit was still somewhat bulky. It was not easy to put on and being an amateur, Vuong had to put it on early just so he could be ready in time. Well, it was half an hour ago, and he was waiting in the shuttle since. The helmet was by his side, and the seatbelt was not fastened, but other than that, he was ready to go.

Well, ready, because he still had to wait for the pilot and the team, and from the message on the screen on the wall, they were coming in a few minutes. Hmm, it might be a good time to check up on everything. The backpack, stuffed with provisions and other tools for exploration, was put in the container under his seat. There were also a few beacons and laser pointers, used to mark points of interest for future exploration and exploitation. The overhead locker contained three drones, one aerial and two ground, they would be his prime tool to expand the survey process. And last but not least, a rifle. Just in case, as the insurance policy of the Coalition. Shame that he was not allowed to customize it, because he preferred the reflector sight over the iron one.

All was good then, everything he needed was where he needed them to be. He would just to have to wait for the military escort to arrive then. Better to arrive early than to arrive late, at least that was what he had been taught in the university. And besides, if his ears were not deceiving him, he had caught some chattering getting louder by the seconds.

Then, a head peaked through the drop ramp of the shuttle, another young man, mid-20s. Vuong could not know for sure if this was a thin or a muscular guy, the astronaut suit did a good job in hiding such feature. However, from the insignia on his chest, this guy was also a pioneer like him, though focus more on the bio-chem route than actual mechanical or physical like himself.

"Yo, is this Flight Lima-004 of Recon Team Bravo?"

"Yep, it is, and you are…?"

"Lee Huang Fu, Singaporean, pioneer, specialized in bio-chem researches. Preliminary work to see if the plants, animals and water down there are safe to consume. And you?"

"Nguyen Kien Vuong, Vietnamese, pioneer, though I'm specialized in mechatronics, drones and terrain investigation."

The Singaporean got in the shuttle and quickly settled in, and it was not hard for Vuong to see that Huang Fu was very careful with his bio-chem kits. Sure, the kits were secured in a sturdy container, but it was always better to be careful. Those were not only expensive shit, but also equipment provided by the Coalition, so extra care must be taken. Meanwhile, Vuong made his own drones, so he could take more liberty in handling them.

Of course, Vuong did not voice out his thoughts, there was simply no use in doing so. Besides, he was not the talkative type, to begin with, he would rather let the result of his work speak for itself. Besides, if he bragged at the beginning and failed to deliver the required output, it would be very shameful. Not enough for seppuku like the Japanese, but it would be somewhere close.

He went back to stare at the screen on the wall of the shuttle again. This time, it was switching to something new. Details on the mission are being updated. The pioneers would investigate the feasibility of setting down at various sites, while the military escorts would make sure they got back in one piece. The site tasked to Vuong and Huang Fu would be a jungle site with a few clearings and a river running through.

Details were sparse, and there were only a few pictures put together from the last survey probe sent here. The probe itself had been lost due to an accident, flying straight into a hurricane and crashed to the ground. It was only able to transmit a few images back before expiration. Still, those few short clips were enough for the Coalition to identify a few potential sites for their colony. Now, it was up to all Recon Team to verify that information.

And speaking of Recon Team, it looked like Team Bravo had finally arrived. There was a total off five soldiers moving towards the shuttle. All of them were dressed in the same way as the two pioneers, albeit that their astronaut suits were coloured in a dark green colour. Furthermore, their suits seemed to be armoured, somehow. Well, they were the armed forces, high-end and elite infantry, just shy of actual special operation units. Furthermore, in order to promote cooperation within the Coalition, the team was made up of soldiers of different nationalities – based on the flags imprinted on their chests. Paperwork for that would be a bitch, though if the team could do its job, Vuong would not complain.

Though he kept his gaze lingered on the central figure. A girl. A young female officer, whose face looked very familiar to him. Still, other than squeezing his eyes and staring at her, he kept his mouth shut. He was not completely sure (even if he usually trusted himself), and speaking out loud was not precisely helpful. The girl got a full assault rifle there, which was more than sufficient to puncture his head a few times over.

"O, hi! You guys must be Recon Team Bravo?"

The other pioneer had another idea though, he quickly snapped off a dazzling smile at the newcomers. For strange reasons, somehow, Vuong felt annoyance at this. Still, the feeling was forcefully squashed down. Professionalism and all that stuff. One should not be hostile or discriminate or indiscriminate to his coworkers. Be friendly, not fraternizing. Be respectful, but not close-off. Or at least, he would be trying. Years in engineering school made his social skills stunt, he was okay with discussing technical and scientific matters, but not small talk and romancing stuff.

"Yes, we are. You must be Lee Huang Fu, and you Nguyen Kien Vuong?"

Hmm, it got to be her definitely. Years had passed, but Vuong still remembered that smooth voice clearly. Her voice was bit rougher and harsher, but the pleasant and light tone was still present. Her obsidian eyes were still sparkled like a dew, even if they were now carrying a scent of iron. The once-long black hair tied into a bun was now cut short, just reaching shoulder-length. Somehow, it looked better on her though. The Singaporean man, completely missing Vuong's eyes (or ignoring it), was the one opening his mouth:

"Yes, yes we are. Pioneers tasked with recon and investigation. I'm in bio-chem, the dude there is in mechanical and other physical fields."

"Impressive. Though I'd like to make one thing clear…"

She was now approaching Vuong, who was still sitting in his seat and keeping silence. Looking down on the pioneer, the presumable commander of the Recon Team, sneered through her teeth.

"My name is Nguyen Le Bich Tam, Captain, of the Vietnamese People's Army, Recon, and I'm the commanding officer of this unit. What I say goes. Understood?"

The Singaporean pioneer still had the gall to drop a "Sure Miss Captain" cheesy line. The horny bastard. Meanwhile, Vuong, clinging to his stoicism to ward off the small disappointment, just replied curtly and shortly: "Crystal". At least he got the irrefutable proof that she was who she was. Still like the old days though, part of why it ended the way it ended, and part of why he still felt nostalgia remembering them.

The girl, seemingly satisfied with the two civilians, signalled her team to get in the shuttle. And then, it was time to introduce everyone in the team, just to make sure everyone was on the same page. The first was clearly the female commander. Nguyen Le Bich Tam, a Captain commissioned by the Vietnamese People's Army, recon. Somehow, he got the feeling that she was still having the same lean build years ago. A bit hard to see under the astronaut suit though.

The second was another girl, Angel Chiu, from Armed Forces of Philippines, a pilot. She would be the one in charge of landing the whole team on the planet. Furthermore, once ground-side, she will be acting as the radio-operator, the sole connecting them to the mother ship. Unlike Tam, she was tying her wavy black hair into a bun. Her skin was also a shade darker, more like bronze and less lightly tone.

The third one is a male, and looking at the Light machine gun he was carrying, he would be the Heavy weapon operator of the unit. Unlike the stereotype, he was not a burly giant of a man. He was just a bit taller than average, but not much. He was a Muslim coming from Indonesia, Try Sutaro. True to any soldiers working out on the field, he had quite a rich and dark skin tone. In fact, among the seven onboard, he was the one having the darkest colour.

The next one was another male soldier, but this time he came from Malaysia, a marksman once applying for the 10th Parachute Brigade, but failed to pass all the tests. However, the skills he gained there were still highly valuable, making him an elite infantryman. However, a bandana could be sported on his face. So he was shy, perhaps? Or he simply disliked showing his face. But nevertheless, Vuong was not particularly curious about that. As long as he does the job, well…

The last, thankfully, was a girl, the team's medic. Never landed on a new place without a medic. She was a Navy hospital corpsman of the Thai navy, well blue-water navy, not space navy. Nevertheless, her presence was a welcoming sight here. Nathaphon Thongprasom was cute, too, probably the most attractive woman on board. Being tall at model-height, and have a round face with smooth skin to boost, she might be a better fit for the catwalk, rather than colonization program. Still, being a young, red-blooded male, Vuong would not say no to a cute nurse backing him up.

And then, it was send-off time. Unlike the traditional method of the captain addressing his (or her) men. Recon Team Bravo (and nearly seven more teams) was directly bid by the Governor of the colony-to-be, a Cambodian whose name Vuong could not pronounce correctly. The old man was just repeating what everyone had known, that this was the greatest endeavour of the Pacific – Asian Coalition, that we must unite to see the day through, and some more equal political bull shit. From someone from the outside, it might sound good, driven and patriotic, even. But for someone "in" the business, it was not so good.

Vuong was anxious, even if he was doing his best to contain it. Well, he had only gone up through the atmosphere only once, and he had yet to come back to the ground after flying up. Furthermore, unlike the tanky shuttle used to ferry colonist, the shuttle of the Recon Team was smaller, not so well-armoured and with much less comfort. Sure, there was the minimum level achieved, but knowing it did little to ease down his mind. After all, he was dropping from the orbit here, hundreds of kilometres from ground. He would love to have an overkill measure in staying alive.

At least, if he did die here, his family would be looked after by the state, so not too bad in the end?

To make matter worse, the whole shuttle was rumbling with the sound of machinery. It was being moved from the hangar bay to the drop coil. And for the record, to deploy such shuttle, the bird would be first "shot" out of the mother ship. It was fast, it could give the shuttle a good angle of approach, but then it would be really frightening, thinking about it. No one would enjoy being shot out of something else.

And to make matter becoming even worse (yes, it was possible). Tam was sitting across the shuttle from Vuong, staring at him through her tinted helmet. It was only thanks to his own helmet that he could hide his troubled face and minute twitches of his lips. Being observed intensely by an old associate was not how he envisioned his new life would begin. At least she was not slapping in his face or blowing nose into his arm, or…

Vuong bit his lips hard, controlling his stray thoughts. Those were the worst days of his life, and he was in no rush to remember them. In fact, he really wanted to bury them forever into the bin of history. Damn shame that Tam just had to resurface, become a military officer, and in this case, his superior.

Fucking life.

The annoyance and bitter feeling swarmed his mind during the whole flight down. Still, being used to it, Vuong forcefully used his willpower to squash those negative feelings down. No use in dwelling in them, having those emotions were not productive. Hell, it was very counter-productive, especially when the target of those feelings was better armed and better trained than him. It did not fully work though. At least he had a distraction.

While the pilot Angel was manoeuvring the shuttle for the optimum landing angle, Captain Tam was briefing the team. Their primary objective was to investigate a delta region, which seemed to be flushed with life. There was a river running through the area, and the northern end was blocked by a flushed tropical jungle on elevated ground. The delta was opening all the way to the south, at least 50 kilometres until the river poured into the ocean from a sea gate. All in all, a good place to start any civilization – a primitive or a starfaring one.

The chosen landing zone was a fairly spacious and flat area near the jungle. Unlike the space shuttles of the late 20th century, the shuttles of the 22nd were equipped with VTOL capacity thanks to. The light ones, at least. With the usage of multi-vector thrusters, the shuttles were very much a transport helicopter mixed with a plane. Well, a plane with the aerodynamics of a brick and capable of travelling to orbit and back. The technical capability of the shuttle, nicknamed "Warden", was really impressive. However, its comfort left much for desire.

Well, suffering built characters, or at least that was the unsung motto of the Coalition. Considering the history of member-states of the Coalition, it might be more correct than one may think.

The shuttle was now starting to shake heavily. It had now officially entered the atmosphere of Terra Nova. The true test had already begun, no turning back from now on. If they died, they died, no question asked, no question given.

The vibration was getting stronger, seeping through the hull and into everyone's bones. Vuong's teeth were clattering unwillingly. He was not afraid, totally not. It was just due to the vibration of the shuttle getting into the atmosphere. In addition, he was grabbing tightly on his seat, but (again), it was not because he was scared, he just wanted to stay safe. Sure, for the same reason, he was controlling his breathing tempo, taking deep inhale and slow exhale. Not to quell his fear, but purely out of habit…

OK, scratch that, he was scared shitless. Dropping from the orbit into the ground of a completely new seemed to be more demanding than he had originally thought. No simulation, no mental prep, no written material could truly prepare him for this.

The light within the shuttle was dimly lit, with the LED light shining weakly. Vuong had read about this somewhere. It was a tradition from the 21st century. Firstly, it would tax the power sources less. Secondly, this would allow the passengers to pre-adapt to low-light conditions, just in case something went south. And the third point was not applicable here. On Earth, the passengers would have the change to gaze out of the windows, but all windows have been removed here on the shuttles. They were structural weakness, giving too little benefits for too much cost.

The worse part was that, well, the Captain was staring at him. Yeah, his old acquaintance was staring at him. Something stoke a fire of anger in his chest, embarrassment, shame, and anger. She was still looking at ease. Sure, he could not look at her face directly, the lowly lit bay and the helmet prevented that, but her body language was more than sufficient. She was chilled, while he was not.

Gritting his teeth, Vuong used every drop of his willpower to control his own emotion, he will not show any weakness, especially in front of her. Somehow, he was able to reign down his fear, even if he had already replaced with anger.

Then, slowly, but surely, the vibration of the shuttle decreased. The worst part of the drop was over, now, it was just like a standard commercial airliner on Earth. The acceleration toward the ground had decreased, bringing back a very small sense of comfort for the Recon Team. It was not enough for a standard colonist, but surely it was sufficient to calm down their racing hearts.

The screens mounted on the walls of the shuttle were showing an illustration of the flight path of the shuttle. The bird was dropping with an angle of 15 degrees to the horizontal with the nose pointing upward at an angle of 10 degrees, a tad sharper than normal airliners. Furthermore, the shuttle was also banking in a wide turn to kill off its high velocity and momentum gained from after being dropped in the orbit.

So far, so good. All would be dependent on the skill of the pilot for a nice and easy landing now. The whole shuttle was still shrouded in silence. The only sound its passengers could hear was the hum of the thrusters and the vibrations of the hull. The final process of landing would begin any moment now… Nothing to do but keep waiting. Luckily, Vuong knew the value of patience. Besides, most of his fear and anxiety had subsidized, for now, so he was much calmer for this final part.

Then, the intercom was buzzed with the voice from the pilot:

"Touch down in T-minus 90 seconds. Brace for a rough landing."

And what a rough landing it was. The thrusters were pointed downwards and blasted off, practically halting the whole shuttle dropping from the sky. The sudden deceleration put a strain on everyone, not as bad as when they first touched the atmosphere, but quite close. Furthermore, the air blast of the thrusters was kicking up dirt and debris, hitting the bottom of the shuttle. The minor vibrations were still in the safe side, but having your feet feeling the tremor of something was never a good feeling.

At least, the whole shuttle was now hovering on the ground, and the touchdown, while heavy, was still manageable. The last segment of the landfall ended quickly and easily, and Vuong suddenly felt at ease. The worst part had already past… A heavy weight had been left from his chest, and he exhaled a deep and long breath. The mist gathered on the screen of his helmet, briefly obscuring the sight of the female captain. He just wanted to savour this moment for a few more seconds, he would not likely to have them again. At least, not until the colony was up and running.

Damn shame that life gave him to respite. The whole team now was under the final preparation. The astronaut suits were discarded. A transparent, full-face respirator mask was given for each person on board. The exoskeleton suits were triggered and turned on. Backpacks full of tools and provisions were put on their bodies. Gun safeties and ammunition were checked.

"Men, ready to deploy. Radio check. This is Bravo-Actual. All call sign, reports."

The smooth voice of the female captain attracted Vuong's attention, and he had to say, he was impressed by the girl. She was still sporting the lean frame of the high school days, looked like she did not have much growth. Still, her aura had changed, she was now… more matured, perhaps?

"Bravo-Two, reporting in."

"Bravo-Three, loud and clear."

"Bravo-Four, I'm here."

"Bravo-Five, check."

The pilot, heavy gunner, marksman, and medic respectively reported after the command. Their voices were transmitted clearly over the radio net. Thanks to the technology for that. Then, it was the turn of the two pioneers.

"Bravo-Six, ready to rock and roll."

"Bravo-Seven, I'm green."

Unlike the Singaporean bio-chem pioneer, Vuong found no need to boast or to drop any cheesy line. Just be curt, polite and professional, his work would speak for itself. And, well, let reality see which approach was better.

He did not have much time to dwell on the matter though, Tam, or rather Bravo-Actual, had issued a new order:

"Bravo-Three and Five, lead the way. Six and Four, take the rear. Two and Seven, with me. Twenty-meter dispersion."

So, he would be sticking with the girl, standing in the middle of the formation. Not sure if it was a good thing or not. Well, things could be worse, like he was deployed as the lone point man, risking his neck for her amusement, for example. That was his cynical thoughts when he was loading himself with the tactical gear of the pioneers. Being the ones with the highest amount of (personal) gimmicks, he was the last one to finish loading up… Though it was quite a surprise to see Actual was still standing inside the shuttle.

"For what it's worth, you are handling it really well, much better than me the first time."

Huh? Did… did she just praise him? He was really confused about it. Not because his direct superior was praising him, but because his old flame was doing so.