RTS System in the Apocalypse-Chapter 122: End of an Onslaught
Zolyah swept through the western flank once again. Corpses after corpses filled her vision, scarcely seeing anything else.
Beside her, Mason and his M249 SAW was silent as a mute. The bright muzzle cooled down, finally taking a breather from prolonged fire and suppression.
"Place is deathly silent," he reminded Zolyah. "Call it in."
She rolled her eyes. "This is Eagle One from the watchtower. Sector clear."
Viktor lowered his missile launcher; his aching shoulder eased from the prolonged use.
"Roger, Eagle One. Hunter One on ammo check."
Under his feet, the missile pack remained full; his buffer ammunition reduced to zero. Beside him, Markus exhaled deeply, letting the breeze blow the smoke wafting out of the empty tube.
"Good hunting out there," Markus said.
"You did well too," Viktor nodded.
On his hand was a system-made cloth wipe. He gently squeezed on the metal lining, scrubbing the dirt and propellant residue away.
Below them, Big Rhino stood proudly alone in the darkness; its turret aimed where the horde had once been.
The thermal optics screen flashed brightly inside the pit; barely a signature reflected from the highway and plains. The radar blipped once, showing only blue and green dots around.
"This is Big Rhino," Big Rhino’s gunner spoke.
"Delta One, do you copy?"
"Copy, Big Rhino. Sitrep?"
"Horde on the western flank destroyed," Big Rhino’s gunner reported. "Send units for a clearing op."
"Received, Big Rhino. Sending units, now."
Matilda switched her comms channel.
"Frontline Alpha, this is Delta One," she ordered. "Send four squads forward. Confirm no residual movement. Clump the corpses and burn it when ready. We don’t want an infection to spread here."
"Copy, Delta One. Frontline Alpha Oscar Mike."
Four squads of Conscripts, Army Soldiers, and Scouts stepped past the sandbags.
Their boots sank into mud thick with blood.
One Conscript nudged a corpse with his feet: no reaction. Another fired a single round into a twitching brain behind the cracked skull.
"Double tap everything," an Army Soldier reminded.
Grenade fragments glittered under the floodlights, bullet shrapnel mixing in like an evil twin brother against the zombies.
A Scout dragged two bodies together with a hooked tool. "Stack them close by. We burn it all later."
Nobody complained nor celebrated. To them, it was just another Tuesday.
The battlefield soon smelled of iron and smoke, the fire burning brightly in the middle of the cold night.
Into the command room stood Hans by the window. He watched the blue dots move around, their formation intact and calm.
Minimal ammunition was used by the troops, but Hans didn’t become complacent. He zoomed the Radar far to the west; a long sigh left him as no additional wave arrived.
The vision panned northward then to the east—all as clear as the sky.
"Is it... over?" Kimmy asked, her fingers tightly interlocked together.
"At least," Hans replied, preoccupied with the Radar.
"Your troops has grown stronger," Kimmy added. "I believe most of them weren’t with you before."
Hans dropped the Radar interface; he smirked when he heard her words.
Kimmy’s sensory powers truly awed him. If anyone could decipher the existence of the RTS system, the first one would be this woman beside him. Yet despite all the evidence stacked from her, she hadn’t spoken to anyone regarding his secret.
Is she waiting, he pondered. Or is she afraid?
"You already know the answer to that."
Hans had no intention in explaining the mystery. Kimmy could do what she wanted—provided it did not cross a certain line.
He turned around, no longer interested about the current state of the battlefield.
"Where are you going?" Kimmy remained in place.
Hans glanced back at her, pausing his answer.
Kimmy stood still near the shattered window, her golden hair swaying gently under the draft. The yellow floral dress looked almost misplaced inside the ruined command room.
Her fingers slowly loosened.
"It’s quieter now," she murmured. "Do you not want this over the chaos that just happened?"
"I do but I must tend to my soldiers," Hans kept his voice flat. "And peace is only temporary in this world. Sooner or later, my soldiers will fight another battle. A little display would liven up their morale, don’t you think?"
"Is that so?"
She tilted her head, as if listening to something farther beyond the compound’s walls.
"The pressure from before is gone," she paused. "But not entirely as you deem it be."
Hans’s gaze focused on her; her words stirred something in his heart.
That sensation felt no different from a cold, dark omen—Kimmy being the prophet of it all.
She took a step forward to the north. The heels of her sandals brushed against the scattered papers and glass shards, yet she navigated without hesitation.
Her hands moved about as if something appeared in front of her.
"Something perilous lies deep to the north," her head slowly turned to him. "I cannot tell if it is your destination or not. I advise that you should be careful on your approach."
Hans embraced the silence; he took Kimmy’s words to heart.
Underestimating a superhuman’s words would prove fatal to him—better to be safe than sorry.
"Your powers has improved again," he commented.
"All thanks to you for giving me an opportunity."
Huh? Hans was taken aback. Opportunity... that battle was the opportunity for her?
He clicked his tongue and waved his hand. "No use thanking me. It was you who grabbed it yourself."
He turned around once again—no longer stopping this time.
"Do you really have to go?"
"Come with me if you want."
"I will stay here," Kimmy responded. "Sister Yunera will come and get to me soon."
She lied.
The ghastly images of those corpses haunted her; being closer to them would drive her insane.
Blindness may have spared her from all the visual atrocities of this world. But when her vision returned in a way she did not expect, she deemed it better to have remained blind of it all instead.
The carnage of war—ruthless in resolving victories between two sides.
Ignorance... is bliss.
She watched as Hans exited the command room, shrugging on the way out. Callum followed close behind, his hands at the ready.
"Oh, Hans Flemmens," Kimmy’s bright red lips parted as she whispered to the breeze. "This northern operation that you seek—what else do you hide from within?"
...
"Commander," Callum leaned over to Hans’s ears. "That woman is suspicious. Should I take care of her?"
Hans eyed Callum, chuckling at his words.
"She is indeed dangerous to keep," he didn’t object. "But she is more dangerous if kept by others. She and Tyrus are alike—both curious in their own ways. Leave her alone. She could prove useful in the future."
"I see," Callum retreated an entire step, no longer speaking of the topic.
Hans stopped at the building’s entrance. He lifted his head towards the sky.
"That battle may have drawn attraction," he narrowed his eyes. "Tell Matilda to tighten our formation and shifts."
"I will relay your orders, Commander."
"Hmm," Hans nodded once.
He shifted his attention into the nearby building where the hostages has been kept safe.
"Spare a Guardian APC or two for the hostages. I want them brought back to the colony. Do not let them stay here. Let Johannes tag along if he wants."
"And the compound?" Callum continued.
"It will become our forward base for the succeeding northern ops," Hans glanced at the still empty Radar.
"Better for us to occupy it now than leave it to the fate of others."
