Mike leads SGT Thompson and SPC Rivera rushing into the enemy line right after the explosion takes place. The feeling that they had just lost another member turns their stomachs when they notice Eva had taken the last moment of her energy to lock up her combat suit behind an enemy shield as far as she could from the explosion.

SGT Thompson rushes over, screaming, “EVA! EVA! RESPOND!” He reaches her and immediately checks her GECKO for damage. Worryingly, she is at 12% condition with multiple internal bleedings and second to third-degree burns over her body from the suit. Doc immediately begins to administer recovery nano cells along with coolant gel as he performs an emergency removal of her helmet, trying to stabilize her condition. “CALL MEDEVAC!” he screams at SPC Rivera, who responds on the comms terminal, requesting a medical evacuation along with Delta team arrival.

For a minute, Mike surveys the surrounding area. There are nothing but dead bodies, most of them cut down, and Eva’s suit is painted red. “What kind of monster is she?...” he wonders, only to realize Doc and SPC Rivera are looking at him in disdain. Such comments were normal for members of the Cybernetic Enhanced forces, yet to them, there was no tolerance when speaking about their team members.

“With all due respect, sir…” SPC Rivera replies, “I do not think you have the right to call us monsters. You requested from her to take down the enemy, and she did. The least you can do is address her with respect, sir.”

LT Stephen understands what the soldier is saying. “Don’t misunderstand, Specialist. I am just impressed… I have heard of Scarlet, but never did I imagine something like this.”

This tense and awkward moment is cut short by Doc’s screams. “EVA! THANK THE DIVINE!” as her eye opens. “Hey... Doc… don’t look like… I died yet…” she whispers, taking in every possible breath of air.

“Not today, Eva. I am not delivering the news of your death to your husband. Hang in there,” Doc says worryingly, as even when administering emergency medical procedures, her status keeps slowly declining and is now at 11.78%.

In life, there are moments when time feels like it stands still. An hour can feel like a second, and a minute can feel like an eternity. In these moments when a loved one, someone we care for, is suffering and we can do nothing, a minute can weigh down like hours. As a society, we are taught to never lose hope, but for experienced soldiers, this can be difficult since they know that in war, those we love may be lost.

In this endless minute, Eva gathers some strength. “Heeeeyy Doc… don’t cry… I can already hear the evac ship…,” she says. Doc realizes that she is indeed not delirious. An escorted medevac ship heads directly to their location along with Delta team. They were already prepared for the extraction because they knew war. They knew these operations have casualties and were prepared for the worst.

Immediately upon the airship’s landing, the medical extraction team rushes to Eva, strapping her receptors into a medical bed. One of the medical team members notes, “Alpha Compound?! What has she done?!”

Mike responds, “The soldier went on Overdrive and completed the mission, and I expect full emergency treatment of this soldier, or I will personally see to your termination. Is that clear?!” It was his way of redemption for calling her a monster previously, a weird state between guilt and pride.

The medical team gets Eva on the airship and begins the extraction by heavily sedating her and commencing suit removal. “Don’t worry, SSGT. We will not let you die today,” is the last thing Eva can hear before she begins to black out.

Mike asks SGT Thompson, “Will she be alright, Doc?”

Doc responds, “Overdrive is a mode of great power… only a few soldiers can actually use it and survive. However, I have never seen a soldier use it under 43% GECKO stats… honestly, the drawbacks from such a mode are horrible. I only hope she is alright by the time we get back from the mission.”

As they head in Delta's way, the reason is clear. The mission had not ended. Even if the main objective for the team was done, they still had a lab to infiltrate, and a soldier never abandons a mission halfway.