Don't worry, story's not dead, I'm just working on whatever fanfiction I feel like I can make progress on.
From now on, any story officially dead will have "(Abandoned)" in the title.
Also please trust me, i'll try to add less combat to slow things down in the next chapter.
No mission briefing available
"I don't get it," Jonathan said. "Why would someone attack this town in particular?"
Jarmen had relayed the news of some foreign-looking soldiers that appeared to of have been scouting out the town from a distance to them, so now they were preparing, just in case.
A black-haired man of Asian descent paced around the room in deep thought. This was Kuraima, the team's tactician. If you needed to figure out the best spots for a possible enemy ambush or to predict the route of an enemy convoy, he was the guy you went to.
He stopped pacing, looking at the map on the table.
"This place is surrounded by wide plains, which is not an optimum ambush zone, provided that they do not have stealth capabilities that we are aware of. Bandits would not have easy access to such, so it may be possible to cross that out."
He paused, thinking for a moment.
"The plateau that covers our west side would be the fairly dangerous if the cliff-face kept going, but luckily, it dips down to meet the otherwise flat ground. I'd say that we position some of our troops up here. But still, why this town?"
"That's because this town is located on a trade route." The village elder finally answered.
"A trade route?" Jonathan asked, intrigued. "But this town's relatively small."
"Yes," he replied. "But this lord's territory is mostly self-sufficient, and large-scale monster attacks are extremely rare. Most of the traders are selling materials from our territory such as blast powder."
"Blast...powder?"
"Ah...yes. It's a some sort of strange dust that explodes when ignited. The materials to make it are plentiful within the territory of Nyx. He has done well in monopolizing such dangerous things, though I'm afraid that his non-aggression will one day lead to his downfall."
"Where are the guards? He would at least have guards, right?"
"The giant beast wiped them out," the elder states matter-of-factly.
"Oh. Now that I think about it, this village is rather sparsely protected despite being on a trade route."
"Normally, this village is under the protection of massive bug-like creatures commanded by one of Nyx's elite guards. However, ever since she went to kill the beast, she nor they have returned. It would've been impossible for her to lose, for Nyx's guards are easily comparable to the gods' Apostles."
"Apostles?" Kuraima asked, curious.
"Ah, it's a long story, one that we do not have time for. To put it simply, she would've been able to defeat that creature easily, yet it has been three days since she left."
"Damn. Do we know where the beast's nest is?"
"We have plenty of hunters who go into the nearby woods, they'd be able to track it with ease."
Suddenly, a message came over the radio. "They're here, sir! All troops are in position!"
Jack looked down the sights of his M16 at the incoming "bandits".
He wanted to call them bandits, but something about them was just...off.
'Maybe it's the fact that they're walking like organized soldiers.'
"About a dozen or so, at your twelve! Nest One," Jack asked, calling one of their Pathfinders, "Any civilian contacts?"
"Negative."
"Alright then, let's show them that we mean business!"
General Rice watched as his men marched towards the town, decked in leather and other generic bandit gear, a hideous grin on his face.
"My lord will be pleased with this! Exotic women, ripe for the cherrypicking!"
Rice wore a rather bulky set of armor, made out of a mysterious white metal with a marble-like appearance.
As far he knew, nothing could ever hope to pierce his armor, for it was enchanted with dozens of multi-leveled spells and even blessed by some of the Falmarian gods.
While most of his men were currently attacking the front, several archers would flank them and start picking the village's defenders.
If they somehow failed, he'd have his "partner" use a spell to empower himself, and he would show them his true power.
A flawless plan!
If he were to show his strength, then just maybe he could become an Apostle!
No plan survives first contact.
None of the soldiers noticed fake patches of grass rising up where some Sentry Drones were hidden, silently lining up their shots with their 20mm auto-cannons.
-Rat tat tat tat tat!-
The attackers were caught a devastating wave of hot lead as they are mercilessly cut down. Some of the bandits manage to make it through unscathed purely by chance, and foolishly started running with all of their strength in fear of being next.
The five archers were weary when they heard strange sounds coming from the village's general direction, but they ignored them and diligently pressed forwards.
In fact, they failed to notice one of the Pathfinders in their ghillie suits who was only inches away from being stepped on.
"Hey, wait, where's Apollo? He was just behind me!"
"You know how he is, always lagging behind. Just focus on the task at hand!"
Steadily, they came upon the plateau's edge, arrows nocked.
They witnessed not the slaughter they expected, but a slaughter nonetheless. Off in the distance, only a small number of men they had started with charged the village. Bewildered, they hesitated and held their fire.
A fatal error, considering that they lost their stealth advantage to a recon drone.
"Attack! Attack!"
Five GLA men came out of the bushes behind the startled archers, aiming their Ak-47s and shouting aggressively in Arabic. Bullets tore through their targets, their bodies twitching violently.
Four bodies fell over the edge hitting the ground with a sickening thump.
Rice cringed when he saw his men fall victim to this underhanded magic. Utterly despicable!
Looks like he'd have to show his hand and pull out his own magic.
He pulled up a small glass bottle that was chained to his waist. Inside of it, a tiny female figure with bright glowing cyan wings.
"Oh, boo hoo hoo!" She immediately begins with a wave of sarcastic remarks. "You and your little group of men need my help again! Cry me a river, why don't you~?"
He glared at her. "Save it, little shit! Just shut up and cast your specialty magic!" Slobber spilled out, cascading down his disgusting chin.
"Ugh. Fine!" The little fairy rolled her eyes. Blue fairy dust sprinkled across Rice's magical armor, enveloping it in a glowing aura.
"Hahaha! These fools don't know who they're messing with!" He laughed with a boisterous manner, filled with a sense of entitlement.
-Crash!-
"Hm?!" He heard glass shatter, but could not find where the sound came from. That was, until he looked down at the glass bottle, or at least what was left of it. Stray pixie dust particles fluttered to the ground where they faded away.
"...What?"
The crack of a rifle resounded once more, and General Rice's unprotected face exploded.
Another job done by Jarman Kell.
Jack and several other rangers were busy cleaning up the dead bodies. Flies buzzed around the cadavers as the smell of iron filled the air. Being longtime veterans, however, meant that they were hardened to this kind of stuff. High above, the Comanche helicopter was on patrol, steadily circling around the field.
"They found a straggler in the woods. Apparently he got lost." One Ranger attempted to brighten the mood with some small talk.
"Sucks to be him." Jack replied, dumping the looted body of a fallen bandit into a shallow grave dug out by the Bulldozer. He turned to face the body of General Rice, whose head was now a pile of mush. When someone pulled the helmet off, the moist flesh slid out and hit the ground with a sick plop, a flattened sniper bullet following shortly after.
What had happened is that the head had simply collapsed in on itself when the bullet struck. However, the armor itself proved to be bullet-proof, so much that even the powerful sniper rifle used by Jarman couldn't penetrate it.
"Damn. This guy got fucked up." Another Ranger commented, pinching a small bit of blue fairy dust between his fingers.
"Tell me about it."
"Myuun?" Jack looked down when he heard the familiar babbling of the little fox girl, who was tugging on his pant leg.
"Aw, what is it? You shouldn't be out here right, we're cleaning up a nasty mess!"
"Myuun." She tugged even harder, pointing back at the village. "Myuummy!"
"Your mommy wants to see me?" He asked, to which the little girl nodded.
"In that case, lead the way!"
[Somewhere...]
"Lord Nyx? It's me, Captain Diesel."
"Oh, do come in."
The door opens to reveal a lumbering "metal man", around 7 feet tall. Dark green armor plated his forearms and lower legs. The rest of his body was covered in a layer of stretchy metallic fabric. Around his neck rested a large thick red scarf.
Across from him was a lavishly dressed man, wearing brightly-colored silk robes. Four large tails, and three smaller "tails" blending in with his hair. Cyan-colored eyes focused on the metal man, firmly filled with attention.
"I've come with the hourly report." Diesel said, pulling a large steel chair from the side and sitting in it. "Jenna's physical health has stabilized, unfortunately, we cannot risk releasing her back into the daylight because her mental health is still quite uncertain. Our enemies have been snooping around, unaware that my kind can see them in bright daylight."
"Poor woman. No one person should be subjected to the screams and pain of dozens. Is there anything else?"
Diesel's gaze turned down, as he sighed.
"It's...your daughter."
Lord Nyx jumped, scrambling to sit up, knocking papers off of his desk.
"W-WHAT?!"
"It was an explosion. Some men in old vehicles-...metal horseless carriages...sped past her, and her entire shipment was blown up."
The Lord's face whitened, a trembling hand reaching for a drawer.
"Nononono...what about my granddaughter?!"
"She's fine. Her mother shielded her from the blast. Some more men in…'Stranger horseless carriages' as you call them stopped to help. It appears that they were chasing after the first group, and may in fact be from beyond the Gate."
"Ah...ah...!" Nyx put his hands to his temples, sweating profusely yet feeling relieved. "T-Thank the Gods..."
"Speaking of which, the Gate was destroyed shortly after several of these carriages passed through it. So we may not be asked to send troops."
"Thank god…It's hard enough the way it is. Captain, I want you to send a messenger." The fox-man reached into another drawer, hauling out a small bag filled with gold coins.
"Yes sir!"
"Also, please..."kindly" escort Hardy's messenger off of the mansion grounds. I don't need any more of that goddess's requests."