“Everybody spread out. I want eyes all around the camp.” Thebes called, stepping backwards slightly more as the Sacred Band fanned out around the transit station. 595 stepped out from behind the team leader’s armour to watch the Simrothians. They lay as one quivering mass on the onyx ground. “What are they so afraid of that they don’t even try to run...” She murmured, looking out across the valley.

“I’ll take your observations on board but i don’t think we can make any design changes to the mast [i]right[/i] this second.” Dr Wetherall grunted back at Nirann from the edge of the shield. The part of the mast protruding from it wobbled slightly. 595 could hear a faint hissing sound coming from nearby, growing louder despite the persistent rumble all around them. “The hillside is shifting!” Dr Ngata crackled. “I’m slipping!”

“Saddam, help them!” Thebes ordered. “On it, boss.” The sanguine coloured soldier peeled away from the perimeter and ran into the opaque shield. “There’s a heck of a lot of...something falling down the side of the valley this side.” Carthage called from her position next to Athena. “The earthquake must be causing a landslide. We need to move the mast, or it’s going to fall!” 595 realised. “Yes…please.” Dr Ngata groaned, from somewhere under the mast.

Just then, a deafening, synthetic [url=https://freesound.org/people/drzhnn/sounds/199938/]sound[/url] overlaid with that of the shifting, rumbling ground. 595’s suit filtered it down to an acceptable level, but the Simrothians couldn’t. They covered their ears and ululated as a single entity. “What the fuck was that?” Memnon asked, cycling his heavy repeater so it was primed to fire at a moment’s notice. “Wait, shut the hell up and let us listen.” 595 commanded. A couple of seconds later, another different [url=https://freesound.org/people/drzhnn/sounds/199935/]sound[/url] caused the Simrothians to wail even louder.