The eight heavily armored Marines sped off at a tactical sprint, rushing toward the cavern tunnel where the reptilian native had disappeared.
As they advanced, Sergeant Will opened a private comms channel to Private Leo, who was covering the rear. "We only have four hours of coolant gas left to mask our thermal signatures. We can dedicate a maximum of two hours to this pursuit. If we don't find anything by then, we fall back!"
"Also... whatever happens, do not expose our reliance on the coolant to the natives. Frost up everyone's armor beforehand, and do not pull the canisters out in front of those lizards. Understood?"
Private Leo immediately replied, "Don't worry, Sarge! I've got it covered!"
In truth, the strict time limit made Leo incredibly anxious. Four hours was practically nothing! He wasn't entirely sure why the squad was suddenly acting so bold. Under normal protocols, they would have hunkered down, dug into the rock, and waited for extraction.
