"Nothing happened, did it?" the other man said as he removed the devices hanging from his powered armor one by one and began replacing their batteries.
"Pah, don't fucking jinx it. That's bad luck!" his colleague spat. "I'll go take a look. Remember to reinforce the tent in a bit... Fuck, if this rain doesn't stop, I feel like this place will turn into a swamp soon enough."
"It already is a swamp." The man changing the batteries lifted his foot, and chunks of black muck slid off his shin, dropping onto the waterproof tarp spread across the tent floor.
"Once Old Li and the others get back, we need to apply to headquarters to move the observation post back a few more miles... I reckon this whole area will be flooded within half a day." A mechanical arm painted with yellow-and-black warning stripes lifted the tent flap, and the more than three-meter-tall powered armor stepped back into the rain curtain.
The moment he put his foot down, there was a squelch. The powered armor's boot immediately sank deep into the soft sludge, and mud and filthy water surged in from all sides, instantly swallowing his instep.
Fortunately, the mechanical joints of this powered armor had been specially waterproofed, with an additional sealing membrane made of polymer material covering the exterior. Let alone trudging through a swamp in a downpour—even operating underwater would not have posed any problem.
He glanced at the display projected onto the inside of his visor. His remaining oxygen was at 67%, more than enough for two round trips through the mission area.
He reached back to touch the spare oxygen tank hanging at his lower back, then continued onward, each step sinking deep into the mud.
The rain was heavy, and so was the wind.