As usual, we prepare for the mission with a quick smoke. I dole out the hand-rolled cigarettes, thin paper wrapped around a mixture made primarily of black Sanita leaves. They contain enough of the stimulant to get the blood pumping and take the edge off fear and pain and cold. When I first arrived here, I hated the stuff. In training, my first taste of it made my head spin so badly that I almost passed out, much to the amusement of the other recruits. Now, the pre-mission ritual is familiar and calming.

“No large machinery on this mission,” I tell my team as I finish my smoke and crush the smoldering remains under one bootheel. The numbing tingle of Sanita spreads through my veins.

Magda, our tank driver, groans in disappointment. I pause, waiting for everybody’s attention.

“But we’re taking the exosuits.”

My team draws a collective breath. Magda’s former disappointment disappears in an instant. Daniil’s eyes light up, and he bounces once on the balls of his feet like an excited child. Even Sverre grins. All three of them head for the rack of mechanical suits mounted on the far wall. Ivennie, on the other hand, goes faintly green in the face.

“An exosuit?” she asks, pausing at my side while the others carry on. “I haven’t… I’ve never… I mean, in training, but—”

I clap her on the back and propel her forward.

“You’ll be fine.”

She glances over her shoulder at me, and I falter at the look on her face. I’ve seen those wide, trusting eyes in the faces of many fresh recruits over the last few years, and too frequently watched the light die from them. I clear my throat and give her one last pat before removing my hand.

“Daniil will show you the ropes,” I say, gesturing to him. He waves her over and begins explaining, resting one hand on her arm, while I head over to my own suit.

The exosuits are mostly identical, but the one meant for me has a black slash across its dull metal to mark me as the team leader. I flip open the small hatch on its chest—marked Made in Pax in blocky letters—and tap out my passcode. The suit opens, metal peeling outward to allow me to step inside.