Static crackled over the comms once more, and the relaxed voice of the pilots came through, "Breaking atmo, standby."
The rode went from uneventfully smooth to quite rough very quickly, and the roar inside the shuttles grew, if possible, even louder. The Mech pilots would feel their stomachs turn as they went from acceleration of the ship, to the gravity assisted drop to the planet.
Once through the atmosphere, the pilots all quite quickly unhooked harnesses, and filed back into holding bays, their mechs hanging securely from the ceiling. Once inside, they each began their start up sequences for the immense machines.
"One minute to drop point."
Fusion reactors fired up, bringing tiny stars to life deep within the armored chassis of the various Mechs, breathing life into the artificial muscles of the immense machines.
"30 seconds."
Sensors and weapons came online next, and as the various HUDs came up in front of each pilot, immense doors opened below each mech, allowing fresh, swampy air to rush into the space.
"10 seconds"
Finally, it was time. The end of the airstrip, a dull grey permacrete surface, rose to meet the machines as they were released from their berths, impacting the ground with force enough to shake the earth. Brown and green stretched as far as the eye could see, trees that reached to a mech's chest sprouting from the murky swamps that covered the planet.
Audible even over the Mechs engines was the unending drone of insects and animals all clawing for survival in the muck.
