Chapter 117: Assault – I

Night embraced the silence after a long day in Grefort City.

The colony’s citizens retreated to their homes, taking a good rest for their work. A peaceful atmosphere surrounded the small enclave.

People merrily tended to their dinner as if they have no recollection of the apocalypse that struck them.

Far to the west, an invisible tension gripped the hearts of the raider group.

A small party down south was wiped out; the leaders having no idea of the perpetrators.

The entire base plunged into the highest alertness—sandbags were placed, traps were set, their guns cleaned and ready for a fight.

Headlights spilled into the dark highway from the south; generators thrummed inside, their low growl keeping the place alive.

A raider slowly climbed on the ladder, his limbs shivering under the cold breath of the night. When he reached the top, light snores reached his calloused ears.

On his right, a young man leaned comfortably on the chair, his expression reaching a level of comfort he never had on his life.

With a slap, the young man was stirred awake.

“Tilt that light properly! Do you want those people to slip through?”

The beam of the portable floodlight jittered as the young raider adjusted the generator cable.

A crude perimeter had been assembled in haste—burned-out vehicles positioned together into a barricade.

Military sandbags were stacked unevenly along the gate and some corners.

The old checkpoint still stood, but it no longer looked like one.

The flagpole had been cut down.

The insignia scarped off of some doors and guardhouse walls.

Inside the compound, the tension bled into everything. Men argued in hushed tones.

Someone checked their ammunition for the fourth time.

Someone else sharpened a machete against the concrete.

But one thing was common in all of them—they weren’t soldiers, but people who pretended to be one.

The young raider finally positioned the floodlight in its correct place.

“You idiot,” the older raider cussed. “If I wasn’t here, those people would have—”

Something whistled in the air, but their visions blacked out before the two could react.

Blood splattered from their neck, oozing silently into the floorboards of the watch tower.

Their bodies slumped; muffled by the sound of the still whining generator.

Four shadows appeared under the floodlight. One of them grabbed a fence cutter and tore through the barricade.

Within seconds, a large hole gaped into an entrance.

“Echo One-One in place,” Dmitri spoke to the comms. “Southeastern watch tower neutralized.”

“Echo Two-One in place,” Adrian lagged. “Southwestern watch tower also neutralized.”

“Delta One and Two approaching the main checkpoint,” Matilda’s voice echoed.

After a pause, bodies thudded into the concrete. “Checkpoint is clear. Kill their sight.”

A volley of suppressed shots cracked in sequence. The remaining floodlights died one by one.

A raider felt the air rustle into chaos. As he looked around, he realized that everything turned dark.

“Ah! We’re—argghfafafa…”

A bullet struck his neck, halting the shout from leaving his mouth.

Dmitri and his squad followed along the dark, narrow pathways.

His finger tugged on the ground; slightly below the surface was a wire connected to someplace else.

He grabbed his combat knife and snapped it into two.

At the same time, another generator sputtered into death.

Then the entire perimeter fell into darkness.

Inside the compound, confusion and fear sparked.

“Why did the lights go out?”

“Fuck, check the generators!”

“Tower Three, report!”

No answer came from the radio; only the whisper of death remained.

…

“Switching to NVGs,” Dmitri muttered in the comms.

His squad treaded carefully on the grass.

At that moment, a raider jogged near their position. With a squeeze of the trigger, he never made it past the second sandbag wall.

A gloved hand dragged his corpse behind the truck.

“Contact, right.”

Another raider found himself stepping near the area as well.

In a corner blind to his vision, a venomous hand reached to his neck; a blade flashed once.

Silence returned to the scene.

Dmitri exhaled slowly.

“Outer perimeter clean. Advancing to the inner gate.”

They moved between abandoned transport trucks. One of the younger scouts paused.

“Movement, second floor. Main office.”

Dmitri raised two fingers—hold.

Through his NVG, a silhouette leaned near a mounted a light machine gun.

The raider didn’t panic; his mind was full of thoughts.

“Delta One,” Dmitri whispered. “Possible heavy gunner inside.”

“Copy,” Matilda replied calmly, dropping more bodies on the other side.

“Delta One and Two are closing in.”

The silhouette disappeared from the window, followed by the grinding metallic sound of a charging handle.

Dmitri’s jaw tightened.

“Shit, we’re on its FOV. Move!”

The LMG started a burst of fire, covering the streets below with deadly lead.

Metals clinked in despair as the blind fire hit anything it pointed at—trucks, wall, and the ground itself.

“Shots fired, shots fired,” Dmitri took cover behind a sturdy concrete wall.

“Someone better shut that thing up!” Adrian complained.

“Delta One on the approach. Cover me, Echo One-One.”

Dmitri grabbed a flashbang hanging on his waist. With a twirl, he pulled the pin and let it loose.

The LMG gunner felt the air above him whistle. He quickly raised his gun and looked at that object.

“Oh no—”

His entire vision flashed into complete whiteness. His body staggered backward; ears bled profusely from the intense shockwave of the grenade.

Delta One crashed into the wall and tore a big hole. Without hesitation, she grabbed her sidearm and fired at the downed gunner.

Bang!

His head exploded into a pulp.

“Gunner down. Proceed to next objective.”

“Thanks for the assist, Delta One. Echo One-One is moving.”

Delta One stood up, arms slightly pointed forward.

Her boots barely made a sound on the tiled floor, cautiously taking her steps in the hollow corridors of the main office.

Two to my left, her sight shifted. Armed and waiting.

A weird glow reflected off her emerald eyes, blinking brightly like a star in the night.

Three to my right. All scared, cowering. Are they… civilians?

She holstered her side arm and switched to her HCMAR.

The large barrel hovered an inch from the wall; the muzzle pointed straight at the two targets.

On the other side of the wall, the two raiders gripped their weapons in fright.

“They will come here… I will shoot them… They will come here… I will shoot them… they…”

Words were spoken blankly in repeat—the mind losing long before the battle had started.

His acquaintance already aimed his gun at the entrance, waiting for something to come out.

“Please don’t kill me. Please don’t kill me.”

He muttered phrases no different from the other raider.

But alas, their aims were too far from their target.

Delta One steadied her breath and slowly placed her finger on the trigger.

The first two rounds punched into the wall, splintering the concrete and opening a jagged gap.

The next pair slipped through the breach and dropped both targets, splattering blood into the furniture.

“Targets neutralized.”

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