A large formation of soldiers gathered hundreds of meters from the northern mall. Their eyes sharp, their backs straight, their guns hot and ready.
The Light APC and the armored SUV were parked on the sides, waiting to be unleashed into the battlefield.
"What’s the situation?" Hans stood at the forefront, watching as two pairs of black-clothed troops and dogs walk over.
"Zombies are dormant, unaware of our approach." Dmitri answered.
"Any specials?" Hans asked.
"Quite a few," Dmitri looked at his wrist, "One brute on the outside. Child zombies lurking with their parents. A few lashers and their disgusting figures."
"Troublesome," Hans frowned. "The previous report didn’t specify that."
He faced the rest of the troops. The looks on their face instilled confidence within him—eagerness, loyalty, pride.
The sheer mentality that nothing could ever stop their advance.
"Continue with the operation," he ordered. "Follow what has been planned."
The soldiers moved along the dirtied asphalt, tossing leaves and dirt aside with their combat boots. Their feet marched as one, disciplined and focused.
Upon arrival at the intersection, the Light APC and four squads of soldiers separated from the group. They continued along the highway and left the rest who headed into the mall.
Dmitri led the front, followed by his trusted aides. One carried a large machine gun on their arms; bullets already fed on its side into the tray.
The squad suddenly halted as Dmitri raised his arm.
"Contact ahead. Drop them."
A group of zombies loitered near the entrance booth. Bullets whizzed by, splashing blood from their heads.
The first squad trampled over their corpses—succeeded by the rest.
"Dense formation on the left. Open fire."
Gunshots rang loud and wide on the open expanse. Bodies fell to the ground every second the triggers were pulled.
"Rargh!"
A zombie lunged, hitting air and mud. On its desperate attempt to crawl up, another bullet struck its eye. Their mouths hung open, mournful cries leaving the rotting throat.
Dmitri snorted, pulling back his gun. He glanced back, watching the machine gun’s bipod claw to the ground.
"Spear Actual in position." He buzzed into the comms.
"Copy, Spear Actual. Spear One on the move." Adrian responded.
"Boys, get your asses moving," a woman interjected. "The floor here is a little itchy."
Far from their position, a pair of Scout and Sniper lay prone under the decayed foliage. The sniper’s teeth bit hard on the branch, eyeing the target on her scope.
Thin body, elongated arms, and what looks like a dangling piece of flesh from its neck. The soldiers called them the lasher.
Despite its long-range threat, it couldn’t match up to Zolyah’s reach.
"Shots fired," she grinned. "Target acquired. Hey, say something on the radio, Sofia."
The spotter beside her remained silent, surveying the wide area with caution.
"How long until deployment?" Sofia spoke after a while.
"Should be anytime now," Zolyah glanced at her watch that slowly ticked to the next minute of the tenth hour.
"Spear One in position," Adrian radioed in. "Waiting for signal, over."
"Copy that Spear One," Zolyah responded. "Big bang on the way."
Her fingers shifted into the trigger. She took a deep breath and centered on the right below the target’s neck.
With a pull, the Barrett jolted, stirring dust around.
The bullet zipped through the horizon.
As her eyes blinked, the lasher’s body exploded into fragments, crashing further to the zombies behind. Bits of meat and blood splattered around.
Death rang first before the Barrett’s gun shot could reach. Once it did, the machine guns bellowed at the entrance.
The endless calibers reaped through the horde as if it was a field.
"Raaarrrgghhh!"
The scream of a brute reverberated from the entrance. Its muscles bulged, about to charge into Dmitri’s formation.
Then, a .50 Cal whistled past through its head, blood splashing further behind. The large body jostled through the crowd of zombies, still frozen from the chaos it was suddenly plunged into.
As realizations struck their rotting mind, the machine guns had already piled a mountain of zombie corpse. Filled with raging intent, the remaining thousand-zombie horde rampaged on the concrete.
"Provide additional fire." Dmitri shouted.
The Conscripts and the Army Soldiers rose to action, their line of fire switching to the flanks.
A large group of zombies broke down the fence on the left. They all huddled to the ground, battered and helpless. Before the zombies could recover, a barrage of bullets sieved their bodies.
"Reloading!"
The first shout came, followed by the next. Watching their comrades switch to a fresh mag, the others grabbed the grenades hanging on their sides.
"Throwing grenade!"
With a strong pull of the pin and a good throw to the air, the deadly frags landed at the center of the zombies’ formations.
The thunderous explosions blasted the zombies into pieces. Their bodies fell, fragments piercing their skin.
Casualties rose yet those who remain were oblivious, continuing the charge into their deaths.
By bullets or grenades, the large population of zombies thinned.
Just as the soldiers felt relieved, the mall rumbled into chaos. Another wave of the zombie horde dashed like mad men—all attracted to the gunfire.
Doors forcefully torn open. Limbs crushing as zombies fell from the higher floors. Wherever they came, they didn’t stop. To reach the enemy was their goal, whether it was through their hands or feet.
The machine gunners pulled on the trigger, only to find it clicking on an empty tray. They glanced over the hollow belts and realized the ammo had been spent.
Sweat rolled on the soldiers’ faces when their hands met the fabric of their uniforms. The magazines and grenades were gone—far too quickly.
Their eyes shifted to those who kept pulling the trigger—lucky soldiers who savored the might of a star promotion to the next level.
At that moment, Dmitri’s comms buzzed.
"This is Overlord," Hans spoke. "Spear Actual, change of plans. The Light APC has been sent to your location."
"Copy, Overlord," Dmitri replied. "ETA?"
"Should be arriving now."
The roar of an engine interrupted their talk. Eight wheels steered through the asphalt and stopped near the machine gunners’ positions.
An Army Soldier rose from the gun port and tightly held the mounted machine gun. The belt was secured. The ammo has been fed.
All that was needed was to pull the trigger.
"Die!"
As his mouth screamed, so did the gunfire. The .50 Cal bullets exploded bodies faster than the fragmentation grenades.
It rekindled the drowning hope amidst the blanket of the second zombie horde.
The loud cheers stimulated the mounted gunner’s resolve. I need this gun to fire faster. Faster!
On the side, Dmitri glanced at his watch.
The hour hand rested at the 11th mark. The minute hand rested at the 59th mark. And the second hand slowly ticked to 0th mark.
Ding!
"Ammunition refreshed!" He shouted. "Everyone, open fire!"
The soldiers felt their guns heavier, their uniforms sagging under the weight of the fresh grenades and magazines.
Guns were raised. Muzzles were aimed. Endless shots rang once more.
From the distance, Hans gazed at the enlarged Radar map. Two large red blimps blared from his vision—one to the northwest, the other further up north.
"Two fronts but it’s still too easy," Hans murmured. "The city exploration is when things will get rough. I don’t even need the Guardian GIs deployed for this battle."
He glanced at the two pairs of heavily armored and gunned personnel by his side. Equipped with the M16A4 assault rifle, one might mistake them as the regular Army Soldier.
However, the leg and the gun carried by each pair proved otherwise.
------
Pair: Jack Rowland, Victor Harlan
Unit: Guardian GI
Tier: 0
Star Promotion: 0 - 0 / 6000
Primary Weapon (Mobile Mode): M16A4 Assault Rifle (5.56 mm, 30 rounds per mag, 3 mags, 400 m effective range)
Secondary Weapon (Deployed Mode): MK19 40mm Grenade Launcher (M430 HEDP, 48-round belt, effective range 1-kilometer, explosive splash radius of 5 meters)
Sidearm: M9 Pistol (9mm, 15 rounds per mag, 2 mags)
Melee: Combat Knife (black coated 18 cm steel blade, indestructible)
Grenades: None
Special Equipment: Deployable ballistic shield (absorbs damage when deployed, recharges every 5 minutes), Stabilization tripod (locked during Deployed Mode), HUD-linked rangefinder for explosive trajectory correction (requires Radar)
Personal Kit: Heavy-weight tactical pack, 2-day field ration, 1.5-liter polymer flask
Uniform: Heavily reinforced kinetic armor; composite titanium plating with shock absorption, Mk-II reinforced combat helmet with ocular HUD, Heavy recoil-dampening boots
Auxiliary Gear: Shoulder generator for stabilization field, Multispectral Night Vision Device
Trait: None
Remarks: Elite heavy infantry capable of transforming between an assault configuration and a fortified artillery platform. Excels in area denial, base defense, and countering large zombie concentrations through explosive firepower.
------
MK19 Grenadde Launcher, huh? Hans pondered.
A single 40mm shell could devastate large groups of zombies far more than what a frag grenade could do. It was the perfect horde-clearing machine aside from the machine gunner’s M249 SAW.
This is very different from the game.
Hans mused. Guardian GIs in-game were individual personnel armed with a rifle and anti-tank rockets.
Now, it turned into the first troop trained in pairs, each carrying the ammunitions and parts of the MK19.
No need to place them now. Once the city clearing starts, they’ll prove useful against the cluster of zombies and buildings.
He shifted his focus back to the battlefield.
The red blimps had thinned considerably. Perking his ears, he realized that the gunfire had softened.
Then, his comms buzzed.
"This is Spear Actual," Dmitri echoed on the other side. "Entrance has been cleared. Moving into the mall, over."
"Copy, Spear Actual," Hans replied. "Vanguard Actual, what’s your status, over?"
"Vanguard Actual here," Jenkins responded. "We got a small situation on the bridge. Tomasz is already on it. Should be handled shortly. Vanguard Actual out."
He laid his back on a wooden pole, lazily ordering his subordinates with a wave of his hands.
"When can I go back to base..." he exhaled. "I miss that girl’s dishes already."
Meanwhile, Hans put down his comms and sighed in relief.
The operation was a successful with zero casualties. The momentum surged forward with inevitability.
The city was on his sights. The territory would soon expand again.
As for George, his superhuman threat could be put aside. If he decided to resurface, a single shot from the Sniper’s M82 would push him back to his dwelling place.
If not, Hans only needed to fire more.
"Let’s go."
The two pairs of Guardian GIs moved with him into the armored SUV.
A scout languidly waited on the hood. When he heard the door shut, he quickly extinguished the cigar on his mouth and trampled it with his feet.
"To where, Commander?" he asked, turning the key to ignition. The engine hummed. The exhaust coughed out a clean steam of gas.
"Back to base."
Hans gazed on the large parking space below where countless corpses lay sprawled across the area. The distant gunshots slowly faded as the mall vanished from his view.