The low rumble of the plane’s engines was the only sound as they flew high above the earth. It wasn’t loud, just a steady vibration beneath their feet. No one spoke. No jokes. No nervous chatter. The silence between them was thick and heavy, like the weight of what they were about to do had sunk into their bones.

Hours later, when the sun had completely disappeared and the Southeast Asian sky turned into a sheet of pitch-black velvet, the dropship door opened. A wall of warm, humid air rushed in, carrying the scent of wet leaves and distant rain. Without a word, Ghost jumped first, vanishing into the thick...