At dawn on the third day, the orderly woke Karen.

  "It's Yonic."

  Because the compass was unreliable due to Luni's influence, allowing only visual flight, the pilot lowered the altitude below the cloud layer.

  Karen got up and looked out the window. The faint boundary of the coastline was visible in the darkness. Behind it, mountainous terrain stretched deep inland.

  The altitude was low, but fortunately, it was night, so there seemed to be no risk of being detected by the enemy. However, since Yonic was a major city, surveillance was tight. Karen ordered a slightly more circuitous route.

  The vast fields spreading between Mahaten and Yonic were very sparsely populated. It looked like excellent terrain for a drop.

  The airship pilot turned his head back and said.

  "Arriving at the drop zone in 30 minutes. Get ready."

  Just before arriving here, they barely managed to make radio contact with the local team. But since the connection cut off after only receiving the rendezvous coordinates, he was anxious due to the lack of information on their progress.

  The altitude was getting lower and lower. With the easterly wind blowing, movement was quite fast now.

  Tyrn and Karen packed their parachutes. They put only minimal supplies in their backpacks. Weapons, ammunition, rations, water, maps, a compass. The rest was packed in other parachutes.

  The pilot said.

  "10 Cells to drop."

  The two stood in front of the airship door. Below was only darkness. A night drop. Shadows ran rampant on the ground.

  "5 Cells."

  Karen looked at Tyrn's face. He could see her skin reddening as blood vessels dilated from tension. Her eyes were now fully focused on preparing for the drop.

  "1 Cell."

  The pilot opened the door. Cold wind rushed into the cabin. Karen and Tyrn faced each other and checked each other's equipment one last time.

  "30 Picells."

  Deep breath. He still remembered how to do a high-altitude drop, but he was nervous since his last real jump was a year ago.

  "Jump!"

  Tyrn disappeared. The darkness swallowed her.

  Karen jumped.

  Tremendous downdraft hit his face.

  He couldn't breathe properly because of the wind, but he took as deep a breath as his body remembered.

  Since it was an enemy infiltration situation, the parachute had to be opened as late as possible.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  He counted in his head. When he thought it was about 100 Picells.

  He pulled the rip cord.

  Rapid deceleration. The parachute yanked his body sharply. His whole body ached from the shock, but he regained his senses, looked down, and scanned his surroundings.

  The terrain was faintly visible. Mountains, forests, rivers. He gauged his location by converting the contour lines and landmarks he had learned from the map. And he scanned the hill to his right.

  Far away from there, very far away, a faint light flickered.

  He maneuvered the parachute to get as far away from the light as possible.

  The ground approached.

  Impact. Roll. Stand up.

  Fortunately, his body remembered this too.

  He threw off the parachute and scanned the surroundings. He saw Tyrn land about 50 Ele away.

  The two approached each other.

  They quietly packed their parachutes and checked their supplies.

  Karen checked the compass. The needle trembled minutely due to Luni's influence, so he folded it for now; he could get a rough bearing from the landmarks he had seen from the sky.

  Thanks to spotting the light earlier, the goal was clear.

  The two began to move along the forest. Luni's reflected light faintly illuminated the path.

  After walking about 10 Cells, a road came into view.

  Tyrn raised her hand.

  Stopped.

  Listened. The sound of an engine was heard in the distance.

  "Patrol."

  Karen said in a low voice.

  The two hid their bodies behind trees.

  An internal combustion engine car passed slowly. It seemed to be civilian. Without any other signs, the light from the car passed by.

  Since coming out of the woods with backpacks at this hour would look suspicious to anyone, they hid quietly until the vehicle passed.

  Tyrn stood up.

  "Let's keep going."

  They set off again towards the light on the hill.

  The two arrived in front of a small farmhouse.

  After walking another 40 Cells, they arrived at the rendezvous point marked on the map.

  Karen scanned the surroundings. There seemed to be nothing unusual.

  He knocked twice on the door. Paused for a moment. Knocked three times again.

  Karen held his breath for a moment. And waited for a reaction.

  The door opened.

  A middle-aged man appeared. Fatigue was evident on his face.

  "Come in."

  The two went inside.

  The room was small. One table, two chairs.

  The man spread a map on the table.

  "This is Mahaten. There is a circular accelerator in the basin here."

  His finger pointed to a red circle.

  "Is direct infiltration possible?"

  Karen asked first.

  "The situation wasn't favorable. We barely managed to arrange this safe house in time."

  "What about security?"

  "It's tight. 12 guard posts on the perimeter. Patrols every 100 Cells. Sentries are posted inside all day. However, the intervals or operations have changed recently."

  "Reason?"

  "Internal circumstances seem to have changed, but we haven't found out why."

  Karen examined the map closely.

  "Infiltration route?"

  "Here."

  The man pointed to the south side of the mountain.

  "This side is relatively easy to observe."

  "What about approach via this river?"

  Karen said, looking at the river crossing the basin.

  "It's being used as a canal, so security is heavy. The mountain side is relatively less monitored. We don't have detailed information on the canal side because approach isn't easy."

  Karen nodded.

  The man took a bag out from under the table.

  "Explosives and extra ammunition. And funds."

  He opened the bag. He took out 10 explosives, 2 ammo boxes, and a pouch of gold coins.

  Karen picked up an explosive. Gauged the weight.

  "Enough."

  The man said.

  "We will depart at 4 a.m. tomorrow. I will guide you to the entrance of the southern slope of the mountain."

  "Good."

  Karen looked at Tyrn.

  "Let's rest for today."

  Tyrn nodded.

  After resting for a day, 4 a.m. the next morning.

  Karen opened his eyes. His body was already awake. A habit learned on the front lines.

  Tyrn was also awake and getting ready.

  The man handed over a small backpack.

  "Rations and water. Three days' worth."

  Karen took the backpack and shouldered it.

  The three quietly left the farmhouse.

  Luni's reflected light remained, but the sun had not yet risen. It was the darkest hour.

  They walked 100 Cells along the forest.

  The man stopped.

  "From here, you must go alone."

  His finger pointed to the foot of the mountain.

  "If you go behind that rock over there, there's a cliff good for observation."

  Karen nodded.

  "Thanks."

  Instead of answering, the man turned around. Disappeared into the forest.

  Karen and Tyrn headed for the foot of the mountain.