Chapter 39: Arrival on Mars

  The ship made contact with the orange planet. As they entered the atmosphere, the air instantly felt lighter, thinner—almost insubstantial.

  Zhon, still piloting, said, "All right, we're almost down. I'm trying to get us as close as possible to the mining facility without getting caught."

  He pressed buttons on the control panel to engage autopilot, then moved to the holographic table and projected a map. He gestured for Roan and Ravine to come closer.

  "So, as you know, the plan is to capture one of the miners working in that facility to understand how to reactivate their emotional component." He looked at them seriously. "Once we do, we'll be able to do the same to the other squad members on this planet. But we have to do this quietly, which means Roan—no guns with you this time."

  Ravine nudged Roan. "Looks like we'll have to do it the way Mother Phoenix taught us, huh?"

  Roan turned to look at Mother Phoenix and crossed his arms. "You knew, didn't you?"

  Mother Phoenix, who had been gazing through the viewport, slowly turned around, her phoenix wings leaving trails of flame as she moved. She shrugged. "I have no idea what you could be talking about. After all, I did say it would come in handy for your coming enemies."

  Zhon cleared his throat to regain their attention. "Your bullets would do nothing down there, and unless you want to constantly use your railgun and hurt yourself, I highly do not recommend it." He turned to Ravine. "Luckily for us, sound won't be a problem since the air density is so thin—sound doesn't travel as well as on Earth. Ravine, we will need your slithering abilities to infiltrate the mine and take out enemies if necessary. Do you think you can handle it?"

  Ravine, shocked by his initiative, nodded.

  "Hold on," Roan said. "Since when do you ever take the lead in these situations? What happened while we were in there?"

  Zhon looked him in the eyes. "I'm just tired of seeing my squad getting hurt or dying because they're being reckless. I just want to have the safest plan for us to succeed and all live."

  Ravine and Roan looked at each other before nodding and touching Zhon's shoulders. "All right, we'll do things your way."

  A few moments later, the ship finally landed. As the gate opened, they felt a gust of wind, but it seemed strangely weak. As Roan prepared to jump onto the vast orange desert, Zhon caught him.

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  "I wouldn't do that if I were you—unless you feel like never touching the ground again."

  Roan's eyes widened. "Right. Thanks."

  As they stepped onto the surface, they felt the cold sand beneath them—finer and lighter than Earth's sand, almost like powder.

  "From now on, we will only communicate through our comms," Zhon said, looking around. "We do not know this place or where anyone is. Talking too loudly could cost us."

  "You said the facility isn't far, right?" Ravine asked through comms. "How about we split up to recon the area before proceeding?"

  Zhon rubbed his chin. "I think this could work, but who would be with whom?"

  Mother Phoenix suddenly entered their communication system with a glitch that made them wince. "You go with Roan. I will take Ravine."

  Zhon looked at her in disbelief. "What—"

  "I created you. Entering your minds is easy for me. Besides, I fear that having Roan and Ravine together might get us compromised quicker than necessary. Let's both look after them, okay?"

  Zhon nodded, his eyes determined.

  Ravine looked at Mother Phoenix. "Will you stay in or out of me?"

  "Out would catch too much attention. Sorry."

  Ravine scoffed. "Damn it."

  Mother Phoenix merged with her. "Come on, I thought we were bonding on that ship."

  "Just stay put, okay?"

  As they all clasped hands, Zhon said, "When night comes, we'll return to the ship. I know we've been built to sustain Earth's temperatures, but here it is completely different. To avoid any problems, I'd rather us all come back for checkups."

  "Yeah, yeah, got it," Roan said.

  "All right, you guys stay safe out there, yeah?"

  Ravine smiled. "You too, Captain."

  Zhon smiled back and saluted. They then headed out in different directions through the cold sand as wind transported fine particles through the thin air.

  As Ravine walked through the cold toward the facility, she kept thinking, What will we do once all this is over? I've been asked this question so many times, and yet I still can't think of anything to do past the mission. Am I just defective?

  She kept her head up, alert for any life forms on her enhanced vision.

  Suddenly, Mother Phoenix's voice appeared in her head. "Feeling hesitant?"

  Ravine stayed silent for a moment.

  "You don't have to stay silent. I can feel what you think, and well, I understand you. You of all people would know that, having seen my memories and all, right?"

  Ravine stopped and crossed her arms. "I don't know. The mission has changed so much since we arrived on Earth, and yet past every update, I don't know what I want to do. It's like I can't even fathom anything else." She chuckled bitterly. "I guess us being so close to the end makes me hate the fact that I will soon have no purpose."

  Mother Phoenix sighed. "Look, I'm not going to tell you some inspirational nonsense to try to lighten you up. I will just tell you this—everything will make sense once you see it. What you want to do or what you have to do at a certain moment will click. Until it does, just move forward. It's the only way for us to get this over with." She paused. "If you want to know for sure, I will tell you how things will end for me once that ship is destroyed, Ravine. I will immediately cease to exist."

  Ravine gasped at her words.

  For a moment, time seemed to slow down.