The next morning they were briefed on the next stage of the plan. They sat before a holographic map, where a general was explaining the plan.
"Your squad will cut west through the rainforest, to the western coast, then cut south along the Andes to the tip of south America. You are to destroy their forces there before turning north to help us finish off the remaining forces on the continent. Any questions?" Everyone shook their heads. "No? Good. Dismissed, you embark in 2 hours so get your shit prepped and move out."
With that the squad headed to their tent and threw on their armor and packed what little they had with them before embarking on their journey.
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The rainforest wasn't very dangerous to them, but it was uncomfortable. Hot and humid. Predators trying to kill them, unsuccessfully, but still annoying to deal with. Rivers so wide they had no choice but to wade through them. Mud that clung to their boots and tried to stick them in place. Trees so dense they had to move slowly (100 miles a day, which to them felt like a crawl).
They had been traveling for 10 days, and still had at least 2 more before they reached the Andes. And thats if nothing went wrong.
"Ugh, I think a mosquito got into my chest plate and bit me right under my ribs." Justin complained.
"I think one got me behind my knee." Victor added.
"They've gotten us all. We're almost to the mountains, so just keep moving." Taylor chided them.
A panther jumped out and tried to get Rebecca who was trying to get her boots unstuck for the 8th time that day.
Lance struck like a viper. Slashing a kukri down and the panther's neck, beheading it cleanly before returning the blade to his waist.
"Thanks love. That ambush was a little too close for comfort." She said.
"Of course my queen. Now let's get you moving." Lance responded, before grabbing her waist and lifting her out of the mud with practiced ease.
○○○
They continued for another day and a half and finally reached the mountains, following them down for 50 miles before setting up camp for the night.
Taylor addressed the group. "Alright everyone, we are out of the rainforest, another 2 weeks and we will reach the bottom of South America. We are going to pick up the pace considerably, and it is highly likely we will run into the enemy before we reach objective alpha."
"As long as I dont have to get attacked by all of nature, I'll take whatever they throw at us." Travis said, itchy from all the bug bites.
"Don't jynx us like that." Kiara scolded. "It would be soooo annoying to fight them like this."
"Anyway. Lance, you're on hunting duty today. Travis, firewood. Kiara youre going to help me cook because Justin's cooking makes me wish I never had to eat food again. Rebecca find us a clean place to sleep. Justin find water, we are running low. Bravo team go with Rebecca, once she finds a suitable place, I want 360° security." Taylor cut in before anyone could set another flag.
○○○
Travis found some wood that was thankfully dry, Justin found a stream with clean water, and Lance found a deer in the mountains that would feed them all. Barely.
They all met up at the place Rebecca had found. A clearing covered by trees that would make it difficult to spot them from the air.
They ate and joked, trying to keep the mood light. Afterwards, they settled in for the night. Victor ran around ensuring they had no threats nearby, then returned to sleep.
Travis leaned up against a tree, Lance was on his left shoulder holding Rebecca. Kiara settled into what she had claimed as her spot (leaning up against Travis' chest with his arm around her), Taylor lay on the duos lap with Justin beside her between Kiara's legs (because her thighs were more comfortable than Travis' according to him), and Victor leaning on kiara.
They slept like that most nights, allowing Travis' enhanced senses to ensure nothing got too close. Bravo team slept similarly, although they declined to join alpha teams cuddle puddle because "there were too many people".
As they continued south, they occasionally ran into Empire soldiers. They were dispatched with brutal efficiency, and the couple times they attempted to sneak up on the squad while they slept they learned just how quickly super soldiers could go from dead asleep to full combat readiness.
○○○
After a long and brain numbing 2 weeks they reached the southern tip of South America.
Travis pointed out towards Antarctica. "They're put there, across the sea."
"What the fuck are you talking about?" Justin asked.
"Its nothing, don't worry about it."
"Don't tell me you're going crazy on us."
Victor walked up beside the two of them. "Almost a month of having to listen to your ramble is enough to make anyone crazy."
"Shut up Gonzales."
"First squad, gather around." Taylor called.
They did and she pulled up a map of the encampments and bases in the area.
"You'll split into your duos, and we are going to strike all of these at once. Travis and Kiara, you are going to come with me to strike the main base here."
She gave out the rest of the assignments and they all set off towards their targets. The Millers and Kiara reached their objective and were scouting from a hill nearby.
"Honestly, I think the three of us should split up and hit from different angles." Travis said
"Yeah, its our best bet. The three of us can handle anything they-"
BOOM!
Kiara's sentence was cut short as Travis whipped around and activated his shield just in time as something impacted against it with such force it kicked up dust all around them. The shield cracked, but held strong.
As the dust cleared they saw four people standing before them in brilliant white armor. They held weapons not unlike their own, and the leader held a massive hammer.
He spoke, addressing the trio. His voive deep and melodic. "I didn't expect you to be able to defend yourselves from that, you must be competent in suppose."
"Who are you?" Kiara asked, fishing for information.
"We are like you." The leader said. "Super soldiers of the Empire."