Unlikely Heroes
Chapter 36: Traveling
Once the guns were finished being upgraded, it was time to move on. "We can't let Dirving get away," Sheva said. "We have to get to the station."
Chris then led the way out of the door after the group checked to see what could be found here. Ammo and money was found and taken. They then found themselves in some kind of port or harbor area as not only could they see water but also containers stacked in front of them. "Be careful, there might be things hiding in them," Nicholas growled. He sniffed the area.
"Smell anything?" Napoleon asked.
"Nothing out of the ordinary other than more locals up ahead."
The group began to move through the containers but Chris stopped them at one point. "What's that?" Uma asked, seeing some kind of line going across that was attached to a box.
"A trip kind of trap," Logan answered. The male human fired at it, causing the thing to explode. Shouts from the hostile locals were then heard.
"Was that a good idea?" Pachira asked.
"Better that than tripping the alarm," Napoleon replied.
The group then went forward and found a few locals to take out. But after going forward a bit after the kills, they came across some new enemies. These were local dogs, very different from Kratos and Venus. "Finally these appear," Cosmo said.
One of them suddenly convulsed and the head split down the middle, revealing tendrils and a few sharp teeth to create a mouth like structure. "What the-?!" Nicholas stated.
"Take 'em out!" Logan said.
It took a couple of blasts to take out the normal looking dogs while the one with the split head took a few more. These also melted away when killed. Then the group continued through the containers. A bit later, they emerged out in a bigger area which had some hostile locals, including a much bigger one that was much more resilient to damage than the regular ones. When this enemy was killed, the body didn't melt away. But a jewel bangle was taken off the corpse. Once all the enemies were killed Cosmo took a look ahead by climbing up a ladder on one of the containers. "Looks like there's a bridge of some kind up ahead," the android told the others.
The male came back down and Chris found a large gate that he and Sheva pushed to get it open. Everyone went through and approached the bridge. They saw that part of it was broken off in the center but it could be jumped across. As soon as they did, the group heard the sound of a horn from a vehicle. "What is that?!" Uma asked.
The answer was a truck with a flat front that came around a corner and towards them. "It's heading right for us!" Nicholas stated. "Shoot it!"
Chris saw some barrels that had been seen before that could explode. He show one on the truck's right and then left, causing it to flip to one side and come to a stop. The explosions were amazing. When the smoke and dust cleared, the group saw more local hostiles slowly heading towards them. There were two more barrels that were shot at to explode and took care of the small fry. Then it was on to checking out a small warehouse that had a few items to grab. Then it was back to the bridge and down some stairs. They could see a river to their left before seeing the path ahead lead to some kind of sewer. "Ugh… really?" Pachira groaned.
"This is going to hurt my nose," Nicholas growled. "No matter…"
"It's pretty dark in there, who knows what's in there," Logan stated.
They went in with Chris leading the way. Nicholas and Liru were breathing out of their mouths to help avoid the smell. Then a bit in, some infected dogs came out to attack. These were quickly killed. Then after going further, the group came across a door that led to a dry area with no water unlike what had been in the tunnel. This part seemed to be more for some of the wiring for the electricity. Then it was through another door. This led to an outside water way with damp ground. Looking to the right saw some dead bodies up ahead. "My god…" Sheva said.
They slowly went forward and the body closest to them began to gasp and move. The middle of the chest moved weirdly, like something was underneath the skin. It then flipped over and the movement could be seen from the back. "What's with that body?" Napoleon asked.
"Something's coming!" Chris stated, drawing his gun. "Watch out!"
What erupted from the body was some kind of winged creature with four wings. It seemed to have the head of a bat but the lower jaw was huge, and the body and legs were insect like. This were small though. Chris shot it down and when the body landed, it dissolved away into nothing. Another came out of another of the bodies which was quickly killed. The last body was just a regular local hostile person who was taken out by Nicholas. Then it was through another door and back into the sewer way. At the end of the path was a ladder which everyone climbed up. The group emerged and walked out to some kind of harbor and market area. "Someone's hear," Sheva then said.
"I hear them," Liru stated. The rest could hear the faint noises of the person.
"Stay alert," Nicholas growled.
The group went forward. As they did, they could hear other hostile locals but it was hard to tell where they were coming from. There were a number of stalls here and some buildings. One of these was locked and the lock was shot off. Inside besides some ammo was a dead body hanging from the ceiling. From the looks of it, the death had been some time ago. There was a key attached to a large ring on it that was shot off. "I wonder what they're for," Uma said after Chris picked them up.
The group went back outside where shouting was heard. They looked to the right and saw enemies were beginning to appear. More began to come out. "We're surrounded!" Sheva stated.
"Let's get out as quick as possible!" Napoleon said.
Chris led the way to a gate that lucky the new key was used to unlock. They went through this to get around the enemies that had appeared. Even though these hostile locals followed, the group use a couple of grenades to get rid of them. After going across a couple of docked boats that were small, they made it around the other side of the wall the enemies had climbed over. Then someone contacted them on their communicators. "You okay?" asked the voice. The group looked to see a helicopter had arrived and was hovering over them. "HQ sent me in to provide air support. It's gonna get hot down there so watch out!"
"Roger, thanks Kirk," Sheva replied to him through hers.
"Now let's see some fireworks!" Napoleon stated.
"Wow, I didn't think HQ actually cared," said Chris.
With Kirk's help, the group was able to progress quicker since the helicopter took care of badies and cleared the way forward. Eventually they made it to a gate. "Stay frosty down there," Kirk told them on their communicators. "You're almost at the station."
The group went through the gate and found themselves behind some more buildings. Chris led the way through a smaller gate. The group went forward and then disaster struck. They saw the helicopter with Kirk in it being attacked by some of the flying enemies seen before. "What the fuck are those things?!" came a different voice on the communicators. "Matheson to HQ! I'm under attack by flying B.O.W.s! I'm losing engine power! Oh shit! I'm out of control! I'm going down! Mayday! Mayday!"
"Kirk!" Chris stated into his communicator as the helicopter vanished from sight by going behind some buildings. "What's going on?!" There was no reply. "Come in! Kirk!" The group heard his screams and then there was silence.
"Shit…" Nicholas growled. Then HQ contacted them on the communicators.
"This is HQ. The helicopter has been downed. All nearby units proceed to the crash site. Repeat. ALL nearby units proceed to the crash site."
"You heard 'em, let's move!" Logan stated.
More hostile locals began to show up. "Let's take these out!" Napoleon said.
The group fought through these until they reached a building that had some stairs leading upstairs and had multiple floors. Everyone fought their way up these until they reached the top. Here they saw the way forward to the next building, the path wasn't there. "I think we can get some across by throwing them," Nicholas said.
"So who's going to go?" Liru asked.
"I'm down," Napoleon replied. "You with me Pachira?"
"Sure," she replied.
"I'll come to," Sheva commented.
"Count me and Akio in," Cosmo said and the female android nodded in agreement.
The human was tossed over while the others were strong enough to jump to the other side on their own. Immediately hostile locals came out to attack them. The others provided support by firing from a distance. Sheva and her small group fought through the enemies down to the bottom floor. From there they were able to get the door open on the previous building at the ground floor so the rest of the group could join them. Once all the enemies had been killed, Chris led the way up a path to a small gate. Kratos and Venus then growled, causing everyone to look at them. "What is it?" Uma asked.
Nicholas and Liru sniffed the air. "Something's coming," she stated.
Then they heard the sound of something clinking like metal. The source appeared and it was keys attached to a new enemy. "Wait he looks kinda like…" began Cosmo.
This looked like a hostile local and definitely a male human. He wore only pants and chunks of flesh was missing from the arms, chest, and torso. A bloody burlap sack covered his head with one eye hole to help him see. He was carrying a chainsaw that was bloody. With a grunt he turned the tool on and then let out a shout as the enemy took the chainsaw to cut through the bar that stopped the gate from being opened. The hostile local kicked the gate open. Raising the tool up, he slowly began to approach the group. It was similar to the enemies with chainsaws found in Spain. "A chainsaw?" Sheva exclaimed. "As if things weren't bad enough already!"
Chris and some of the others fired and even though they saw the bullets hit, the enemy kept coming. "Fall back!" Nicholas growled. "This one is just too resilient to damage!"
"What a pain in the ass," Napoleon grumbled.
There were barrels in the area that had been seen before. The kind that could explode. "Lure him over to them!" Uma said.
Other local hostiles then showed up. "Some of you focus on the small fry, the rest take care of the main threat!" Nicholas barked.
Chris and Sheva focused on the enemy with the chain saw. She fired at one of the barrels and it exploded, causing the person to falter. Chris rushed up and did an uppercut with all his strength. But this seemed to do nothing and the enemy let out a mad giggle. "Damn," the male human mumbled.
However when the second barrel that was shot at exploded, this really seemed to stop the chainsaw wielding enemy. Chris did the uppercut again and the hostile local didn't giggle this time. Just then Nicholas came out with Liru and the dogs. "Thought you two could use a hand!" the male werewolf stated.
Kratos and Venus ran up, barking at the chainsaw wielding enemy. It worked and the male human went after them, but the canines were too quick for him to catch. This provided perfect opportunities for the werewolves and the humans to attack. Finally after a couple of minutes, the enemy was killed and fell to the ground. Chris took the keys from the corpse. "He's got them; let's get out of here!" Liru yelled to the others.
"Coming!" Pachira called as the rest joined up with the dogs and other four.
The group went back to where they had tried to go through. A little bit later they found the gate to use the key on. Right behind this was a chest that not only had money but some small gems that could be sold for quite a bit. These were quickly grabbed and then it was through another gate. Going through it and slamming it shut, everyone saw this was a quiet area. "Let's get our breath back here really quick," Nicholas said.
"That was hairy," Uma stated.
"Let's hope next time we run into a chainsaw like enemy, they'll be easier to kill," Akio commented.
The group then went forward and soon they found a gate. Smoke was rising up from behind it. "Over there!" Sheva stated.
"That must be the crash site," Napoleon commented.
"Let's move," Chris sated.
They group got the gate open and ran forward. But they then came to a stop when they saw the burning wreckage of the helicopter as well as the burning figure on top. "Oh my god…" Sheva said softly.
"Oh Kirk…" Chris commented sadly.
"He was a good man," Nicholas stated. "I hope he finds comfort on the other side."
Suddenly the sound of cawing crows made the group look up to see them which made them uneasy. The birds then scattered as a new sound was heard. "What's that?" Aiko asked.
"It sounds like…" Nicholas began but then he barred his teeth and whipped out his gun.
"It's bikes; and they sound like they're coming from all direction!" Napoleon snarled.
Everyone began to look in different directions the sound was coming from. It seemed to last forever with the waiting. Then suddenly a hostile local on a bike emerged from the side with a long chain in the right hand. The vehicle had jumped something so the enemy was in the air. Everyone turned to see the enemy coming in. "Look out!" Chris shouted, grabbing Sheva and throwing them to the side just as the bike came down right where they had been. Those from the nether also rolled out of the way. The chain managed to wrap around his ankle and the male human began to be dragged along the ground. Sheva took aim with her gun and fired at the chain, breaking it and freeing Chris.
He rolled a little and then stopped, shaking his head to clear the pain. The female human ran to his side while the rest rose up. They saw the hostile local on the bike throw his head to the side and saw from his mouth the same mouth like structure seen before seen with that female human erupt. Just then another bike came in. "More of them!" Logan stated.
"Great…" Cosmo said sarcastically.
Then even more came in. Nobody knew where to shoot first. Kratos and Venus were barking at the enemies. The bikes were circling and then two came charging in. They went after Aiko and Cosmo who managed to move out of the way. Another then began to come in. Just then a shot was heard and the bullet got the enemy in the head, knocking the local off the bike and killing him. "That wasn't us!" Logan exclaimed.
Chris looked around with everyone else. Another shot was heard and that took out a second enemy. Uma then spotted who had done it. It was a snipper on a nearby roof wearing army clothes like the group had seen before since coming here. "There!" she exclaimed pointing. The rest then saw this person.
"Looks like help has arrived," Nicholas stated with a grin.
The sniper took care of another enemy who fell. This caused another to run into him, and sent the enemy flying and impaled on one of the helicopter bits that was part of the burning wreckage. Others dressed similar began to show up with guns at the ready. With their help, the ones riding the bikes were all killed. In total, there were ten of these new individuals. "The timing couldn't have been better," Napoleon said as these ten humans came up to the group.
"They might also know something," Pachira commented.
"I was thinking that exact same thing."
They all met in a nearby place that had a roof. "Man are we glad to see you guys," Chris said as they all saluted these newcomers.
"Delta Team, Captain Storm," their leader said. He was dressed like the others and dark skinned. He to spoke with an accent like Sheva. They all shook hands. He then looked to the female human in the group. "Sheva."
"Thanks Josh, I owe you one," she commented.
"You guys know each other!" Chris commented with interest.
"I trained under Josh. He taught me everything that I know."
"Sheva became little sister of the team," the said guy said. He then got serious. "Now Sheva, you must continue your search for Dirving. According to the data we retrieved from the hard drive, we believe he has moved on to the mining area." The human pulled a computer chip out of his pocket. "There's more info inside. We'll follow after taking care of business here. And keep your radio handy just in case."
"Thanks Josh," Sheva told him.
"See ya later," Liru commented.
Josh and his team left the building while Chris took the chip that had been handed over and plugged it into his PDA. He found the files and opened them up. What came on the screen were some pictures. But the one that made him stop was one of Jill who appeared to be asleep. It just showed her head but it was enough to shock him. "Jill…" he said softly.
The memories of how the guy lost her flashed through his mind. "Chris, are you okay?" Sheva asked, seeing his look.
"This picture it's…" the male human began but then stopped. "Forget it, it's nothing."
"So Sheva, you know where the mines are?" Logan then asked the female human. Those from the nether hadn't heard the name or noticed the picture as they were busy tending to their weapons.
"Past the station," she replied. "Not too far from here. Follow me."
"Good then," Napoleon commented.
It was here first that upgrades for weapons happened. Sheva then led the way out of the building which took the group to a small train yard. There were box cars here on the tracks that looked worn down but well used. Nicholas sniffed the air as did Liru. "There could be enemies hiding here," the male werewolf growled. "These cars provide good cover."
Kratos and Venus then caught a scent and then both growled. "Yep, like he just said," the female werewolf commented.
Just then some infected dogs appeared. "Here we go!" Uma stated.
The hostile dogs were quickly killed. More then came out after going a bit forward along with a couple of local hostiles which were all dealt with. Then the group had to climb up a ladder onto some of the boxcars to reach the next area. Here they jumped down and found some tracks that led right to the mine. "Here we go again," Logan said with a grin.
Those from the nether knew he was talking about that mine from that area in Spain they had been to. Sheva found the button for the elevator shaft and pressed it, taking everyone down below. When they arrived they saw it was very different than the one there. Besides the stone found here, the lighting was much different to in that there didn't seem to be as much. Sheva found a nearby lantern and picked it up while those from the Nether along with Kratos and Venus were fine thanks to those ruins. The group began to slowly move ahead along the path which had minecart tracks as there was no telling what was down here and up ahead. After a bit a split happened but lucky the path on the right had a dead end and was short so it was to the left. The group then reached some water that wasn't deep so they could go on ahead. But then a local hostile appeared and when the head was shot off, the same limb seen before erupted from the neck. "Take it out!" Nicholas stated in a hush whisper.
"Be careful, not much room here!" Cosmo said.
This time the limb wasn't as hard to destroy. Then up ahead were a few more hostile locals that were quickly killed. Once these enemies were killed, it was then further into the mine. The group passed over a small bridge that had water falling on either side of it. They then had to deal with more enemies including one that had the limb emerge. The group kept going, just taking care of enemies until finally they reached a place that had a handle that Chris had to push at so it went around in the circle it was placed in. This caused a gate to open and allow him and the rest to pass. They entered a place that was huge and open and had lighting like the place where the handle was. "Whoa…" Liru commented.
"Look at this!" Pachira whispered.
"Amazing…" Akio said.
Suddenly shots were heard. "I think we've got company!" Napoleon stated.
They saw hostile locals begin to appear from different levels from passageways in the walls. "Here they come!" Uma said.
"Let's go!" Nicholas commented, drawing his katana from his back.
The fight began and there were quiet a number of enemies. Many of them had the limbs erupt out of their necks. But here the group learned that using a flash grenade on these finished the job much quicker than the amount of bullets it took. It took a couple of minutes before all the hostiles were dead. All fall items like ammunition were picked up. "Huh, those things seem to be very similar to what we encountered in Spain," Cosmo said. "They even have the same weakness to bright flashes of light."
"But they're different at the same time," Akio pointed out.
"What's it mean I wonder?" Uma asked.
"Don't know but we'll find out," Nicholas replied.
The group continued through the mine, eventually reaching the lift that would take them to the surface. They got on and rode it up. The elevators soon made it and the group stepped outside in what appeared to be the where the boss that oversaw this mine was. There was a single building here that had some stairs leading up to what appeared to be an office. "Fresh air again!" Uma declared happily.
"Looks like the sun's setting," Napoleon added. Everyone else could see it. "It'll be dark soon and that's a dangerous time I bet. Let's hurry."
Chris led the way up the stairs to the door of the office. The group paused for a few moments and then they burst right on in. "FREEZE!" he stated.
"Oh shit!" went the person in here. It was the guy that had been in the car with the laptop that had been observing the group on that camera. The inside of this place was basic along that had a table and shelving with files and other documents on them. The man himself was wearing dark colored pants with stripes, boots with a fancy design on them, his shirt was light grey in color, and underneath this was a dull colored orange shirt. His blonde colored hair was short. The guy grabbed a gun nearby and pointed it at the group.
"So you must be Dirving," Nicholas stated.
"Wow, perceptive, aren't 'cha?" the guy replied.
"You think this is a joke?" Sheva snapped. "You're just like all the other pieces of scum terrorists."
"Oh I'm not like them! I'm a business man with standards." Dirving was pointing his gun back and forth between everyone.
"Drop the weapon!" Chris ordered.
"Or… how 'bout you drop yours," the enemy said.
"You can't think you'll be able to get all of us," Cosmo stated.
The group took one step forward with Dirving pointing his gun back and forth between everyone else really quickly. Suddenly a smoke bomb came flying from an open window. It was so sudden, even though from the nether were affected as everyone stumbled while coughing thanks to the white colored smoke that filled the small room. Then there was a crash of glass as a second person came in. It had been the one driving the car from before. Through the smoke and coughing, the group was able to get a glimpse and saw that the figure was cloaked in a dark blue colored one. They wore a mask that covered almost the entire face, had glowing red spots for the eyes and was curved like a bird's beak. There was also a sleek combat suit that was dark colored under the cloak. They saw them grab Dirving. "Hurry!" the new enemy stated, the voice sounding a little distorted but was clearly a female.
The group couldn't do anything to stop them from getting away. "Suckers!" the escaping male human told them before he and this new person slipped out of the broken window.
The smoke finally began to clear. "Shit!" Chris stated.
The group ran up to the window that had been broken and waited a few seconds before taking a careful look out of it. They only saw the mining equipment used here. "Great…" Napoleon said sarcastically.
"He got away," Liru said with a frown.
"Looks like Dirving has a partner," Sheva commented.
Cosmo and Aiko then went to the table and noticed there were documents on here. "There must be something here he didn't want us to see," the male android stated as he began to go through them and a folder in particular.
"What is it?" Liru asked as the rest joined them. Cosmo then stopped on one section.
"Oh my…" the female android whispered.
"Look at this," her guy commented.
The folder had some pictures of what appeared to be an oil refinery and a map of an area. It was circled with the words test case. There were small areas of land as well on the map. "The oil field… That's in the marshlands," Sheva said.
"Seems like we're headed there," Nicholas commented.
"Let's get out of this area before night really falls," Napoleon suggested.
Chris contacted Storm on his communicator. "Delta Team, Chris here," the male human said. "We located Dirving, but he got away."
"Do you know where he went?" came the reply.
"We think he's heading for an oil field in the marshlands."
"OK, I'm sending someone after him now. I need you and the others to head back this way."
"Roger that." Chris then ended the call. Shouts of local hostiles were then heard.
"Looks like we've got company again," Liru stated when looking out one of the windows to see enemies were outside and heading their way.
"Someone help me out, I'm snipping these things!" Cosmo said to the group and went to one of the windows after breaking the glass. The male android got ready and took aim. He fired and blew one of the enemy's heads clean off.
"BOOM HEADSHOT!" he declared.
Thanks to this most of the enemies were cleared out and then it was down some stairs and out a door. "Let's move," Nicholas said.
The items left behind were picked up and even a diamond was found in a chest. The group began to then make their way north along the dusty pathway. It was then up a ladder where more enemies were waiting. These hostile locals were taken out. Then it was down another ladder since it was the only way forward. Then it was up to a higher area and more badies to take out. "I think that's the last of them," Uma said after the final one was killed.
"We're running out of light," Napoleon stated. Everyone saw that the sun was almost gone.
"Let's get out of here before more show up," Aiko commented with a shudder.
The group jumped down a small ledge to the ground, and in the case of Kratos and Venus, the dogs jumped into Nicholas and Liru's arms. Everyone began to move ahead until a group of wild bats flew out from their nesting spot, causing the group to stop. The animals were coming from an area just ahead and somehow everyone began to get the bad feeling that something was coming. Then they heard a truck's horn and looked to see one heading towards them on the road. Looking at the cab showed it was a hostile local driving it. "That's not on our side," Nicholas growled, preparing his gun.
The truck had a hexagon shaped trailer as well. The driver suddenly swerved and turned the truck so that the cab was facing the rocky wall that had been on the right side was now in front of him and the edge of the road which had been on his left was now behind him. The cab crashed into the rock, the impact instantly killing the enemy. The vehicle came to a stop in front of the group, the trailer now blocking the way and having the back wheels hang over the edge. "I don't like this…" Liru whispered, going to her boyfriend's side.
"I'm getting a bad feeling," Logan said as everyone got their weapons ready and took a step forward towards the truck.
The trailer's door then slowly began to move up, opening thanks to some feature. For a second nothing happened when it was opened. Then something popped its head out with a roar coming from its mouth. The thing crawled out of the trailer and onto the roof of the vehicle. "What the hell is that?!" Logan exclaimed.
The head was like that of some huge bat with four wings, two long fangs were on the bottom of the mouth, and a horrible looking insect like thorax for the tail. This had several legs attached to it. The monster roared at the group before taking off on its wings, flying high up into the air. "Get ready, here it comes!" Cosmo stated.
"And no holding back!" Napoleon added.
Sheva and Chris backed away, trying to find anything else that could help in this fight. The monster then landed on the ground, causing it to shake a little. The humans did find a few proximity bombs that were round shape cylinders. How these worked was that if pressure was put on them, they would explode. Meanwhile those from the nether were firing at the creature who came towards them by walking on its wings. The tail end was up in the air. "Damn it!" Liru growled, taking a step back. "This thing is tough!"
"Fall back!" Nicholas stated. "We need to do something else!"
"Over here!" Sheva called to them. "Lure it this way!"
Those from the nether did. The monster followed after them and they saw the bombs had been placed on the ground by the two humans. The enemy managed to walk on one and the blast caused it to fall to the ground. The group rushed over and saw that the insect like part had a fleshy section on the underside that was now exposed. They fired at that with each shot cause gooey yellow like blood to come out. After some hits, the enemy recovered, covering up the weak spot. "That's how we'll beat it!" Liru stated.
"Watch out!" Nicholas exclaimed as the thing struck with its tail. The group was able to roll out of the way of the attack.
The thing then took off in the air. "Keep sharp!" Cosmo said.
"Can't you use a ranged attack or something on it?!" Nicholas asked.
"It's too close!" the male android replied. "If I do, the explosion might get one of you caught up in it!"
"Damn it!"
The monster than landed and began to come towards the group. "Lure it to another bomb!" the male werewolf told Liru.
She nodded and tried getting the thing's attention by transforming into her four legged werewolf form. It must have worked because it went after her and the dogs. The enemy ran right into another bomb and fell to the ground. Everyone attacked it but that still wasn't enough. "Shouldn't be much longer," Napoleon said as he watched it get up. "This thing is on its last legs."
The rest then saw the thing was having trouble moving. "Time to finish this thing…" Cosmo stated and got an evil grin. He threw a grenade at the monster and it landed perfectly in front of the thing which exploded to draw the attention of the monster to the male Android.
"This way…" Cosmo taunted it and went pass the final bomb that had been placed by Sheva.
The monster stepped on it and the bomb exploded. The thing let out a roar, black liquid spewing out of its mouth. The movements were jerky as it roared again. "Did that do it?" Uma asked.
The creature took off into the air. It went up and circled around for another attack. Chris took aim and fired with his gun. The few shots caused the monster to fall on the truck. The weight caused the vehicle to start falling over the cliff and down below, taking the enemy with it. The thing let out one final roar before the truck exploded after hitting some rocks. The monster was caught in the explosion which killed it. The group looked over and the smoking remains. "That wasn't so bad," Liru said after turning back to her normal form.
"Considering what we've had to face before, I agree," Nicholas commented.
Just then a few army jeeps with two machine guns on the back end came up. "Hey! You guys!" the lead drive called which got the group's attention. "Get in!"
"Sweet, time to ride," Logan said.
Chris and Sheva got in the first vehicle while those from the nether divided themselves up among the others. Nicholas and Liru called Kratos and Venus to their ride. The male werewolf made sure to use his Creation and Manifestation ruin to create a harness and holder for the dogs so they could ride just fine. "We're ready!" he called when that was finished. The drivers hit the gas and pulled out from the mine.
"I heard about Dirving," the driver for Chris and Sheva's vehicle said to them. "Tough break."
"Yes, but there will be other opportunities," she stated. The female human then went for her communicator. "Sheva to headquarters."
"This is headquarters," came the reply. "What's your situation?"
"There's a high probability that Dirving is on his way to an oil field in the marshlands. We're rejoining Delta Team and heading there now."
"Understood." The call was then cut.
Just then those from the nether noticed something. "What's that?" Uma asked, squinting due to the setting sun making it hard to see.
Then everyone saw it. It was a group of hostile locals on motorcycles like the ones seen before heading towards them from a section of land above. The bikes made the jump and landed on the same level as the other vehicles. "Ah! We got company!" Chris stated.
"They don't let up, do they?" Sheva said.
"Time to lock and load," Cosmo commented as some went for the guns on their vehicles and the rest go ready with their guns.
"Do what you gotta do to stop 'em!" one of the drivers said. "But don't get too trigger happy or the guns'll overheat! If that happens, we'll be an easy target till they cool down!"
"Understood," Napoleon commented as he was at one of the weapons on his vehicle.
"Here they come!" Nicholas stated.
The race fight then began. Those on the guns were able to either hit the bikes or riders which did the trick. When the weapons needed to be cooled down, the others used their own guns to take out the enemy. Some of those on the bikes did have things to throw at the group and those were all shot down. "This isn't bad!" Liru exclaimed to her boyfriend after a number were easily taken out.
"We got some sharp turns ahead!" one of the drivers informed those in the group. "Hold on tight!"
The vehicles got around them just fine without anyone being thrown off. "I see more coming in!" Aiko stated seeing not only bikes but now a truck with an open bed filled with hostile locals approaching.
Just then Josh made contact with the group. "This is Captain Storm, Delta Team," he said on the communicators that the group had. "I just received word from HQ. Based on the data you uploaded from that hard drive, most of the townspeople have been infected by parasites know as Las Lagas. The data refers to the infected as Ajini."
Those from the nether felt shock. They thought they wouldn't have to deal with those again since they had all been destroyed. Until they remembered one female human who had a sample taken from Leon. "Damn Ada," Nicholas growled. "Damn her to hell."
"There was nothing we could do at the time after that fight," Uma said bitterly.
"What does all that have to do with Drodoros?" Chris asked.
"You got me," Josh replied. "They didn't say."
"Looks like the only way we're getting answers is from Dirving."
Some more bumpy tight curves then happened and everyone had to hold on. The vehicles made it just fine. More enemies showed up and then a call came on the communicators about some group being attacked up ahead and that they were to hold. "Let's pick up the pace!" Logan said to the human driving on the vehicle he was on.
Then in a bit, the jeeps had to stop because an enemy roadblock was up ahead with a truck even. "There's no getting past that unless you guys do something about it!" one of the drivers in the jeep said.
Cosmo grinned and his right arm transformed into a powerful rocket like launcher. He fired and blew the barrier out of the way. "Piece of cake," the male android stated.
"Good work there!" Aiko commented.
By this point the sun had almost set and now the sky had become dark. It was quite a sight and beautiful. Or it would have been had the situation wasn't so hostile. And after crossing a bridge up ahead it became that again with more enemies showing up. Even one more truck as well. "He's trying to ram us into the river!" one of the drivers at the wheel of his jeep said. "Do something!"
It was Chris and Sheva with the guns who took that out. "Get them good!" Napoleon stated with a grin.
"Hopefully we're almost there," Pachira commented.
Night had now fallen and there were still some enemies left on bikes. Then up ahead the bridge was out with the middle section gone. "Hang on!" Chris and Sheva's driver told them. Those from the nether in the other vehicles saw the problem with the road.
"Oh boy…" Uma gulped and held on tight as did the rest.
The jeeps had the gas pedal pressed and they managed to jump the gap, making it. The enemies on the bikes couldn't follow and were left behind. Everyone let out a sigh of relief. They then noticed how dark it had gotten and how the moon was out. It wasn't a full one but beginning to wane. "Looks like we made it," Cosmo said.
The vehicles pulled into the next village area. But what was there to greet them left everyone shocked. They could see dead bodies of soldiers on their side spread out among the sides of the buildings. "What could've done this…?" Sheva asked.
Everyone got out of the vehicles. The humans who had been driving them went over to a couple of the dead bodies as did Chris and Sheva. "This is horrible…" Akio whispered.
"They were good men," Nicholas said. "At least they died fighting on our side."
Suddenly the ground shook, like some gigantic foot had taken a step. Everyone looked up quickly. It happened again. Then once more as the group began to look around quickly. Then a crash was heard. "Look out!" Chris shouted as he saw a different vehicle being tossed that almost hit Sheva.
The other humans then noticed a shadow loom over them. Looking up they saw a giant like foot. All they could do was let out a scream before they were crushed to death by it, becoming gooey gory paste. "Another one of these!" Nicholas growled as those who survived looked and saw the new monster.
"Like in that village!" Napoleon snarled.
It was another giant like monster. The thing had spiked cuffs on the ankles and wrists. Around the loin cloth were dead bodies of humans. There were stiches on certain sections of the arms and near both pectorals. The head had facial hair and overall, it looked similar to a horribly mutated gorilla. The thing let out a roar. Everyone went behind something with Chris and Sheva took cover behind the tossed vehicle. The enemy began to look around, grunting and growling as it looked for them. The monster then lifted up the jeep where the humans were at. "Oh shit!" Chris exclaimed.
The two fired at it but the shots didn't even phase the enemy. It raised its fists up to pound the ground where they were. The humans moved and ran between its legs to avoid this attack. "Go! Go! Go!" the male human shouted as they ran.
Those from the nether came out to distract this enemy. "Damn, our bullets aren't doing anything!" Nicholas stated after they fired.
"Get to the truck!" Chris told them and Sheva. She and him made it while those from the nether had to keep avoiding the monster.
The humans quickly were at the guns on the vehicle they had ridden and ready to fight. The others saw this out of the corner of their eyes. "Let's follow suit!" Napoleon said.
The ones from the nether made it while the giant monster let out a roar to show it was ready to take them on. "Take this, you ugly bastard!" Sheva exclaimed.
The monster stomped over to where the two humans were as they fired on it. The bullets were clearly hitting it and the blood was coming out but the giant wasn't stopping. The monster made it to the vehicle and raised a foot to crush them. But the barrage of bullets made it back off. Those from the nether made it to the other vehicles and got in position as well. "Let's help them out to!" Liru said.
"Wait, look out I see Ajini coming in!" Aiko exclaimed.
Indeed looking showed they were here to help out the giant. "We'll take care of them, you two focus on that big guy!" Nicholas told Chris and Sheva.
The humans did and after a number of hits, the monster giant grabbed it's head and that went limp. From the shoulder areas two limbs emerged, looking very similar to what those from the nether had seen with the Las Lagas limbs in Spain. The humans fired at those but these were resilient to a lot of damage. The enemy raised both of its fists up and grabbed a huge chunk of the ground. It threw it at Chris and Sheva who managed to destroy it with their guns. It was hard to focus on the limbs as the thing stomped over and began to attack them again like before. But the two managed to destroy the limbs and the monster with a roar grabbed its head and went to one knee. From the middle of the back a huge limb emerged. Chris and Sheva fired at that but after a number of hits, the thing retreated back into the main body. "Good work; keep it up!" Cosmo told them.
"Can't we do anything to help them?" Aiko asked her man.
"We're a little busy keeping the locals off their backs!" Napoleon replied. It was true; there were too many small fry for those from the nether to create any big guns to just kill this giant with the ruins they had.
The monster in the meantime stomped over to the humans. This time it tried targeting them individually with its fists. But Sheva and Chris were able to dodge its moves. Then after a number of hits, four small limbs emerged from the main body. The enemy grabbed a nearby telephone pole and ripped it out of the ground, holding it like a giant, crude weapon. Despite using it the humans were able to avoid the blows. After shooting at it enough, the giant dropped its weapon, with one of the small limbs being destroyed. After a bit, all four were disposed of and the big limb from before emerged. This time that would be destroyed and burst into bits, causing the giant to roar in pain. "They did it!" Liru exclaimed, seeing this.
The locals who saw the defeat of this monster retreated. "That's the end of this," Napoleon said, getting off the vehicle he was on.
"That wasn't bad at all," Nicholas commented.
The giant monster let out some more roars, stumbling towards the vehicle Chris and Sheva were at. The two humans quickly rolled off their vehicle as the enemy fell, and failed to crush them. They picked themselves up as the thing went still. The ones from the Nether along with the dogs joined them. "That was good work you guys did," the male werewolf said to them.
"You did just as good as we did when facing something similar in Spain," Cosmo commented.
Seeing Chris's confused look, Nicholas got a serious look. "We can tell you about it later and the parasite you heard the name of. We know all about it despite this version seeming like an enhanced version," he said.
Sheva in the meantime was breathing hard as she went to one of the dead soldiers. She removed the dog tag from him. "Where are you Josh?" she whispered.
Chris went over to her. "Sheva, you don't have to do this; you can still back out," he told her.
"What about you?"
"I've got a personal stake in this."
"A 'personal stake'?" she replied. "Chris look around! We should all get the hell out of here!"
"I don't know about Chris, but after seeing this me and my friends won't abandon this place," Nicholas stated.
"And I'm not just here for the mission," the male human said.
"What are you talking about?" Sheva asked in distraught.
"It seems like you know something," Liru commented. "Stop beating around the bush; what is it?"
Chris paused a moment before speaking. "Awhile back I received some intel that my old partner may still be alive." Those from the nether knew he was talking about Jill and were shocked. "At first I didn't know what to think, but when I saw the data file from Delta Team, I knew for sure. Jill is still alive."
"That's impossible; we saw her fall," Uma whispered.
"But… no body was found," Cosmo said, not sure what to think.
"That woman in the data file?!" Sheva asked. "Are you even sure it's the same person?!"
"We were partners," Chris insisted. "I'm sure."
Those from the nether then took a look since he showed them and were stunned. "There might be a chance she survived," Nicholas said. "This is definitely Jill. Me and my friends like with Chris worked with her many times before."
He and the rest began to walk away. "Wait!" Sheva stated. "Wait! You're not going alone! Chris, wait!"
"We don't have much time," he replied. "We have to find her."
"I'm going with you!" This made everyone stop and turn to look at Sheva. "These are my people that are dying here."
"Are you sure about this?" Chris stated. "A second ago, you were ready to cut and run."
"I can't just turn my back and walk away," she replied.
"There are no more orders from here on in, it's just us."
"We're partners. To the end. Now let's get moving."
"Copy that," Chris stated. The resolve had been set.
"But before that, I think we need to share with you guys what we know about Las Lagas," Nicholas stated. "After that let's get some rest." He looked to Kratos and Venus. "These two are about to drop off. And I think it would be best. I know you want to find Jill and believe me I do to. But we won't succeed if we're so tired we can't do it." The group found a structure and those from the nether told the two humans what they knew and what the similarities were. Then those from the nether drifted off to sleep. But Chris didn't at all. At dawn, the group left the building and found at the edge there was water and a few swap skiffs with giant fans on the back to move them. It was time to head into the marshes and there they would find more than they bargained for.