He’d taken one of the enemy down, maybe two…he wasn’t sure if he’d hit the second trooper or if his target had just dived to the ground for cover. But now they were in a protracted firefight, and that was bad news. The enemy would be getting reinforcements any minute now, and his Marines were on their own.

He stared out across the scrubby grass growing up and around the clusters of rocks. He was looking for movement, for any sign that he had a shot at an enemy. But it was clear they weren’t facing poor quality troops. Whoever they were, they were as good as the Marines…almost. And that meant they weren’t going to make any mistakes.

Hargraves was frustrated, angry. He had to get his people to the refinery, somehow. But he had no idea how that was possible now. He’d be lucky to get anyone out of here alive.

“Sergeant…” It was Tomas Rivera.

“Tomas, you need to get back. You and your techs need to stay…”

“There’s another way to get to the refinery.”

Hargraves was focused mostly on the soldiers to his front, the ones shooting at him. But Rivera’s words got his attention.

“How? Where?” He reached out and grabbed Rivera, pulling him down closer to the ground as a series of bullets whizzed by overhead.

“Down along the sea. At the bottom of the cliff.”

“There’s a path down there? I thought the water came right against the cliff.”

“No, not for most of the way, at least. There’s a narrow spur of rock. There’s only one stretch, maybe a hundred meters where we’d have to go through the water.”

“Do you realize how cold that water is, Tomas?” Santis’s sea was mostly ice this far north, and it was liquid here only because of the massive refinery and the immense heat it produced. That was enough to melt the ice, but barely. “You would freeze to death.”

“Not if we can get across quickly enough, Sergeant.”

“But you’ll be soaking wet…it will freeze on you as soon as you get out. You’ll die, Tomas.”

“Not if we can get to the refinery. It’s warm in there…we could heat up while we plant the bombs.”

“How will you even get down there? It doesn’t look like an easy climb.”

“What’s the alternative, Sergeant? Die here? At least this way we have a chance to accomplish something.” The technician paused. “We both know none of us are getting off Santis, Sergeant.”

Hargraves paused. He tended to look at civilians as soft, useless. But Rivera was showing him a side he rarely saw in those outside the Marines. Guts. Real hardassed, bloody guts.

“You sure, Tomas?”

“Yeah, Sarge. I’m sure. Give me two of your Marines with the explosives. My people and I will do our best.”