These pods were just barely human sized, enough to fit one person in and that''s it.
These were the drop pods the awakened used to enter the actuals themselves.
The shuttle never actually entered the atmosphere of any of thes.
They would position themselves over 200 kilometres above the chosen drop point on the, and then release the 100 pods at once, where the 100 awakened would fall rapidly through Eldaris''s atmosphere until they reached the surface.
It was the quickest and most efficient method to send reinforcements, as well as to drop awakened into battle.
Those pods would then return back to their original shuttle using their own self propulsion systems.
It was all very cost and time efficient, which was important to the federation in a war like this.
The trip from the main base to Eldaris only took 30 minutes, and Mira, along with the rest of the awakened in her batch, soon found themselves hovering above the location where they would soon be dropped into.
The shuttle''s interior was dim, the only lighting from the dull glow of the status panels next to each drop pod.
Mira stood inside her assigned pod, its narrow confines barelyrger than herself.
There was no room forfort, only efficiency.
Besides, the journey from space to surface only took a maximum of 45 seconds anyway, so the awakened would just have to endure 45 seconds of difort before they would be released.
Mira could feel the subtle vibrations of the shuttle as it hovered high above Eldaris.
A soft chime echoed throughout the shuttle just a few secondster, followed by a stern voice.
"Dropmencing in 60 seconds."
The officer piloting the shuttle started a countdown over thems, causing the first timer''s nerves to tense up, as this was going to be apletely new experience for them.
Mira did a final check of herself and her gear, making sure that everything was strapped in tightly.
She might be strong as an Awakened, but a 200 kilometre drop from space would still severely injure her if she wasn''t secured properly.
Her breathing was steady, her mind was focused, but she could feel the rush of adrenaline that apanied her first experience literally falling from space.
"Ten seconds to release." The pilot''s voice rang again, this time counting down each second that passed.
Until.
"...3 …2 …1… Dropmencing!"
Mira felt a sudden lurch as her pod was ejected from the shuttle, thetches holding her on being released and a door opening beneath her, sending her plummeting out of the shuttle and down onto the below.
The pod''s internal disy lit up, showing the rapidly approaching surface of Eldaris, the dense forest canopy appearing as just a dark green spec.
The world outside became a blur of motion as she plummeted through the''s atmosphere.
The pod''s shell heated up, the friction of entry causing mes to develop on the edges of the small window in front of her.
The pod''s advanced systems kept her steady, stabilising the descent and keeping her on course.
She could see the surface of Eldaris rushing into her vision, the forest spreading out as far as the eye could see.
''The description didn''t lie… this ce looks breathtaking…''
But Mira could only take the sight in for just a moment before everything went ck.
Booooom!
And her pod collided with the ground, not slowing down for a stop at all.
As awakened, they didn''t need to slow down the descent, as the pod itself would shield them from any harm from the fall.
They could handle the impact with their bodies when the pod did all the heavy lifting for them.
Hisss!
The door hissed open, and Mira unstrapped herself.
Light started to filter through the gaps of the pod as the doors opened onmand.
A little disoriented, Mira pushed the door away, as it was opening too slowly, and stepped out of the now grounded pod.
Her eyes adjusted to the sudden influx of light in an instant, and she looked around herself to examine her situation and the environment surrounding her.
The moment she felt her feet hit the soft grass below, she was on high alert, her senses keeping a keen watch on the environment around her.
Any sign of movement, and Mira would notice.
Her Spatial perception was much stronger and better than Alex''s, with her Space elemental talent being of S+ rank after all.
Her range extended for as far as 2 kilometres, until it started to put a strain on her mind.
Constant sonic booms echoed across the sky as the other pods from the other students all crashed through the atmosphere andnded in their own spots, dozens or possibly hundreds of kilometres away.
They may have dropped at the same time, but their pods all navigated towards different areas to each other.
On this, it was much better to hunt alone rather than as a group, as groups of people were much more noticeable in this forest environment.
Mira took a deep breath, feeling the cool, earthy air of Eldaris fill her lungs.
The dense forest around her was noticeablycking in any sounds.
Not the rustle of leaves, the distant calls of alien animals native to this, or the asional creak of the towering trees.
Mira was immediately rmed at this situation, as something like this was not natural at all.
But she had scanned the ce thoroughly with her spatial perception, and there was nothing within 2 kilometres of her, not a single living thing.
''Wait, not a single living thing in range? That doesn''t sound right?''
But then Mira was led further astray by her own abilities.
Considering how dense this forest was, and how lush the greenery was, it was almost impossible for there to be NOTHING living around her.
Not even any insects, small animals burrowed in the ground, or anything flying in the sky.
''Something isn''t right about this ce… Just where have I been dropped into?''
Mira had no clue just how dangerous of a ce she was dropped into right now.
Her instincts were only further put on edge when she noticed her drop pod wasn''t returning to the shuttle like it was supposed to.
In fact, all of the electricals inside it had all stopped working!