Chapter 61: The Branches

Even now, David couldn't believe what was happening.

Three days ago, after John's abrupt end, the squad of soldiers that killed him stayed with David and the other survivors for a while. In just minutes, an aircraft descended from the skies, unloading squads of troopers with blue markings on their uniforms. David recognized the aircraft. He read it in a military magazine once, before everything went to hell.

Arbiter X low altitude support craft. Carries 15 people. 30 if adjustments were made.

As that squad, led by Lieutenant Hemingway, went on its way, the fresh soldiers from the Arbiter X escorted the survivors down the roads. Some of the soldiers even helped the survivors carry the old and the sick. That alone surprised David. This was a faction capable of slaying Mutants like sheep, yet they were willing to help ordinary people that even Mutants would snarl upon.

For the first time, David wondered if there was another side to these almost identical, expression-hidden warriors.

Finally, David and the other survivors reached what these soldiers called the Staging Ground. Honestly, when he saw the practical sea of people, he had his doubts. This amount of people here seemed to be too much for these soldiers to handle. That fear died down when fresh trucks arrived, unloading more of these uniformed soldiers and box after box of freshwater, food, and supply.

Medics with white armbands tended to the weaker survivors.

David himself got a bottle of plastic water, a box of biscuits, and a few chocolate bars. When a female soldier handed these things to him, he was almost in tears.

Three days have passed since then. These three days were the best days he has had in over a year. Yes. He had to sleep in a tent with seven other people. Yes. The nights were so cold he had to wrap his blanket around himself tightly, but for the first time, he was safe, fed, and healthy!

For the first time, he didn't have to worry about being ripped open by some stealthy Mutated Animal that sneaked into the settlement. For the first time, he didn't have to worry about where to look for food tomorrow.

But soon, David was worried again. These soldiers were good, but they were by no means invincible. Every day, he would watch as trucks drive past the barricades and bodies being unloaded. He counted at least a hundred dead, with god-knew how many more where he didn't see.

What if, one day, these soldiers pull out of the city? What would happen to him? Would he be taken along with them, or would he just be left here in New Sara? After three brief days in heaven, could he go back to the hell that he has been in for a full year?

Of course not. He would die before going back.

That was when he saw it.

There was a booth opened up in the middle where all the survivors' tents were. A few figures in black uniforms were sitting at a table. One of them, a woman, raised a speaker to her mouth.

"By the orders of Colonel Caity Hunter of Fortress Alpha, I, Katherine Loris, am here to recruit soldiers for the Alpha Support Battalions. Soldiers of the Alpha Support Battalion have a list of duties and compensations that will be listed out for intended applicants. The signup is open here!"

David quickly walked up to the booth, along with hundreds of other survivors.

His train of thought was simple. Obviously, David wasn't someone who would sacrifice his life because of gratitude. In fact, most of the survivors still alive this long into the apocalypse weren't that type of people. But if these survivors knew one thing, it was that there was no free lunches. At least not free lunches that would last forever.

Fortress Alpha has fed them, sheltered them, and protected them for now, but would they do that forever to people who offered no value? As far as David could see, the only way people like him could make himself valuable, useful, was by being a soldier. A combatant. This was the only way he wouldn't be straight up abandoned in the future.

Several lines formed up immediately. As the survivors signed up, Katherine found herself grinning. She was no fool. She knew these survivors, even after they were made into soldiers, would be no more than mercenaries who fought for the reward. No matter.

Soon, she would show them the truth. She would show them that only Caity Hunter could save World Alpha from the claws of the Mutants, and it was their most sacred honor to stand by her when that happens.

Soon, all would either agree with her, or they would die.

Caity made the decision to start the recruiting process on these survivors from New Sara for a reason. Several days into the campaign, with all their advantages and firepower, the Phasewalker casualties still reached 200. Most of them were fresh Generation IV recruits, but a number of precious veterans fell as well. Hidden Mutated Animals. Even hostile Mutated Humans. These weren't completely devastating losses, but they were still precious Phasewalkers who the Corps desperately needed.

In other words, the Phasewalkers needed some bodies to put between themselves and the Mutants.

Across the three days, the Phasewalkers have rescued over 5,000 locals. Many of them had at least some experience with combat. At the end of the day, over 2,000 locals signed up for the Alpha Support Battalion. After making some selection, there were still 1,800 recruits left.

The 1,800 fresh recruits were divided into two battalions.

3rd Alpha Support Battalion. Major Katherine. 900 Alpha Troopers. Leopard APC and attack chopper support.

4th Alpha Support Battalion. Major Leon. 900 Alpha Troopers. Leopard APC and attack chopper support.

After some brief coordination and training, these Alpha Troopers would be thrown into the meatgrinder than was New Sara and give their bodies and souls alike for the good of the Phasewalker Corps.

Some have questioned why Caity named two teenage locals with little prior military experience as the commanders of the two Battalions, especially when there were better choices such as former UEC military personnel available.

Caity's answer was simple. Loyalty. Recruiting straight from the locals was a good way to rally a large number of troops quickly, but the fact was the Alpha Support Battalions had little loyalty toward the Phasewalkers. Since their numbers were in the thousands, a single wrong appointment of the rank of Major could result in warlords among the Phasewalkers that didn't answer to Caity's orders.

Katherine and Leon weren't the wisest, but Caity could see they were loyal to her. In fact, they were blindly loyal to her, not surprising considering she saved them both from terrifying fates. The chances of them turning against the Corps was insignificant compared to if experienced former UEC personnel were chosen for the task.

Of course, that didn't mean Caity had to let the two Battalions go to waste due to poor leadership. She also selected a number of experienced Phasewalkers who have shown promises and inserted them into the two Alpha Support Battalions. Commissars. Officers. They were tasked with making the Alpha Troopers as effective as possible. Essentially, before they have proven their worth, Katherine and Leon were just a little better than puppetheads.

Alpha Troopers had yellow markings.

With many factors in their favor, the Phasewalkers found their influence growing. At this point, there were around 3,000 Phasewalkers in World Alpha, 800 Rebirth Troopers, and now 1,800 more Alpha Troopers. Gone were the days where companies of dozens were the standard units of operation.

Battalions of hundreds of elite combatants each have taken that role.

Usually, the proportion of civilians to soldiers in Fortress Alpha was a formula for disaster. Out of less than 9,000 people in Fortress Alpha, local and Phasewalker alike, nearly 6,000 were combatants. Most civilizations simply couldn't produce enough resources. But that wasn't a problem with the Phasewalkers. If they wanted, they could hand everyone a gun, a uniform, three magazines, and send them to the front.

Meanwhile, on the northern edge of New Sara, Eric and his squad of Stasis Troopers just took the life of a Mutated Pig.

The Mutated Pig was extremely durable. Despite being only Tier 1, its skin was nearly impenetrable, and whatever injuries the Stasis Troopers inflicted on it would mean nothing under its rapid regeneration capabilities. Before the Stasis Troopers were called in, the Pig massacred a squad of twelve Assault Troopers.

Usually, the Phasewalkers would just drop some bombs on the Mutated Animal, but the Pig wisely took shelter in an underground garage. Somehow, it was able to resist the temptation of charging out into Phasewalker tanks and get massacred like countless of its kind.

So the Stasis Troopers were called in once again. This has been their task all along. When artillery shells and tank wheels couldn't reach the Mutants, these Troopers would step in.

The Pig was definitely problematic. Gauss rounds bounced off its skin. Flashbangs had next to no effect. But Eric came up with an interesting idea. As his comrades occupied the Animal's attention with Gauss rounds, he and a few other Stasis Troopers went out of the garage and blew a large hole in the ground with explosives. They covered it as much as they could before working to lure the Mutated Pig into the trap.

The Mutated Pig walked right into the Phasewalkers' setup. When it realized something wrong, it was already too late. The Tier 1 Mutant fell into the hole. The opening wasn't wide enough for its entire body, so the Pig was stuck right in the middle.

The Phasewalkers unloaded their entire arsenal on the defenseless Mutated Pig for a whole ten minutes before killing it.

Now, the Stasis Troopers were taking a break. That was when an order came in from the satellite phone.

"Lieutenant Hemingway, you have new instructions. We have lost contact with a squad of Armored Troopers half a mile North of your current position. Your squad has been ordered to investigate their whereabouts. Act with extreme caution. That squad of Armored Troopers was being escorted by a Predator II. Now we can't even find them on our satellite pictures."

Eric nodded slowly. "Yes sir." Turning off the phone, he snapped to his squad and explained the situation to them. Anyone could see this would be dangerous, but not a single one of these veteran Phasewalkers turned away from their duty.

Bits and pieces of tiny rubble crumbled under the army boots of the Phasewalkers. As the twelve Stasis Troopers moved, they formed a small circle so every direction would be covered by one weapon or another.

Finally, they arrived at where the Armored Troopers were last seen, but there wasn't the threat that the Phasewalker High Command was referring to. There weren't any traces of Armored Troopers either.

"Wait." Eric suddenly knelt down. Distinctly, he could see some sort of trail dragged through the mud. Following the trail guided him to one of the office buildings to the side.

"Oh my god…���

One of the Stasis Troopers whispered, and Eric knew why.

There was a giant hole in the wall of the first floor of the building. Actually, slight correction. A hole wasn't as accurate. In reality, half of the wall itself was removed, as if something busted its way out of the skyscraper.

Eric looked up. The building was at least fifty stories tall. Usually, for these office buildings, the Phasewalkers would just set up a line of tanks outside and start blasting rock music. The Mutants would charge out into the open, thinking they were marching to a feast. Instead, all that they would find was death and destruction.

The manpower needed to clear the building floor by floor was something the Phasewalkers, even with their additional recruits and forces, couldn't afford.

"What do we do, sir?" A Stasis Trooper asked cautiously.

Eric was silent. He was no fool. This area wasn't cleared of Mutants. Even on the way here, random Mutated Animals would suddenly jump out into the open and be shot. But ever since his squad approached the building, he has never seen a single Mutant. Not even a bark or a growl. Whatever dominance this thing inside the office building had over the surrounding never seen before.

It was at least a Tier 2 Mutant, if not Tier 3.

Walk in, and he might never come out again.

If it was Ryan here, he would've had the entire office bombed to the ground, but Eric could never do such a thing. He was sent to find out what happened to these Armored Troopers. Blowing them up without even seeing them but just out of a suspicion felt a bit extreme for him.

"You two, stay here." He pointed at two Stasis Troopers. "If we don't come out in ten minutes, have High Command call in F-22s and level this building." He turned and nodded at the other nine Stasis Troopers, who proceeded to get ready to move into the building.

Inside the darkened halls of the office building, an Armored Trooper, grey marking on his uniform, snapped open his eyes. The first thing he felt was pain. And then, there was numbness. He looked down. His legs were perfectly fine. Perfectly intact. But...why wouldn't they move as he commanded?

It suddenly occurred to him that he was paralyzed. When that thing attacked, it broke his spine. Oh god...that thing!

Before his thoughts could continue, a loud thud suddenly rang out, and as the man turned around, he came face to face with a pair of soulless eyes. The Armored Trooper realized in horror that, dropped right next to him, was the body of one of his men. Except his helmet had been removed, and there was a gaping hole on his forehead. The man's face was twisted. It was obvious he didn't go down peacefully.

And then a green branch reached over, grabbed onto that body by its legs, and tossed it away into the shadows.

Memories suddenly flooded back to him. When his squad was carrying out its duty, they came across the office building, and suddenly countless brown branches came out of nowhere and struck down the Armored Troopers. Even the Predator II didn't survive two lashes from those branches as they tore through the armored platings and reached the Armored Troopers inside with ease. The rest of the Armored Troopers tried to resist, but there was little they could do. They couldn't even send out a message for help before being taken down.

This branch was a bit smaller than the ones that attacked them, but it obviously served the same master.

And now...it was cracking open their helmets and extracting their brains for whatever foul purpose. There was no way to go! The man reached down to his holster, looking for his sidearm but not finding it.

For a moment, even death became a luxury.

The same branch that sucked away the brain of a fellow Phasewalker slowly crept closer and closer to the trooper. Its tip was dangerously sharp. Spots of red blood and yellow goo could still be seen. It was ready for another feast.

And then, the sound of footsteps approached.