War (5)

Thump, thump.

Han's heart raced. Alpha and Easy team had come to this place due to his own command. Everything was for naught. Heavy guilt sat on his heart. It felt like he'd been dropped down into despair.

"Calm down, Han! It's okay. Nobody is dead." Corporal Zhai said. Han listened to Corporal Zhai's words and snapped back to his senses.

OOOWWuuu!

The werewolves thumping steps could be heard. Elus and grunts screamed as they trailed just behind the werewolves. 

"Alert for Psychoframe support. We need to call them before it's too late." 

Corporal Zhai said to the Alpha team squad leader. The Alpha team squad leader agreed and nodded. They needed to call for a psychoframe before they were completely surrounded. 

"Wait, for a moment." 

Han scanned his surroundings. Something caught his eye. There was a cistern water tank which was a bit sunken down due to the passage of time. It was covered in tree vines and thickets. If it wasn't for Han's habitual behavior of observing everything in his surrounding, nobody would have discovered it.

The water tank was about three floors tall. Han observed the direction the minions were charging from and the angle of the water tank's legs. He roughly estimated various calculations in his mind. The whole battle operation was calculated in a matter of seconds. The entire plan cemented into his mind. Han called out commands quickly.

"Silence, carve out the top portion of the water tank, then confirm that there is still water inside. It's enough for it to be filled two-thirds of the way. Psykers, come help me. The rest of you should build a blockade line. Hurry." Han said quickly. 

Silence only discovered the water tank after hearing Han's command.

'I can't despair over failure.'

Han mumbled silently to himself. Silence followed Han's command and blinked to the top of the water tank. He used his twin swords to slice off a portion of the top. Water splashed out from the impact. The water had been kept inside for a long time and let off putrid rancid fumes.

Fwip! 

Silence signed a thumbs up for Han. 

"They're coming!"

The soldiers who built a blockade line shouted while shooting their guns. They won't be able to hold up for very long. Han and the remaining psykers combined their strength to break the cistern water tank tower legs.

"Not yet, stand by!" 

The psykers used their telekinesis to hold the water tank. The minions drew closer every second. Han patiently waited for the right moment without rushing.

"Let go!" 

The psykers let go of their telekinesis. The water tank tilted to the side and fell on top of the minions. The water completely drenched the minions who were charging forward, and the water pooled on the floor.

"Electric barbeque sounds good for dinner tonight!" 

The Alpha team squad leader placed his hand on the water. His eyes lit up into a blinding yellow. It seemed as if lightning was shooting out his eyes. His unique skill was lightning. He could control lightning. 

PaJik!

Sparks flew. Electric currents flowed through his fingertips like he was starting a car engine. The squad leader took a deep breath and roared out to the top of his lungs.

Pajijiji-jik! 

The electricity shot through the water to the minions. The drenched minions were shocked almost simultaneously. There was no way for the minions to escape because the entire floor of the area was covered like a swamp. Smoke rose from the electric shock charging through all the minions. Even the werewolves who had a high regeneration ability couldn't put a fight against the shock that attacked their bodies. 

Pajik, pajik.

Sparks exploded everywhere. The minions convulsed and fell to the floor. The minions who managed to avoid the water had bullets shot through their heads. 

"Haa."

Alpha team squad leader faltered backwards. He roughly wiped the blood from his nose and grabbed his gun. He depleted all his psychic energy so that he wouldn't miss this huge chance to deal a blow. He felt dizzy and exhausted.

"We must keep moving."

Han supported the Alpha team squad leader and said. His tone of voice didn't have a shred of joy or emotion. Even with this sweeping success, Han didn't display a bit of joy. The military operation had not concluded yet. They simply managed to escape the worst situation, and there was no time to feel relieved. 

Squad leader of Alpha team observed Han's expression.

'So this is why he was selected as a squad leader. I was wondering why they gave a rookie a squad leader position in this time of crisis…'

Han had all the qualities to become a field commander. This was an advantageous skill that could be used in all battles. Most importantly, he had the ability to quickly calm down. People's judgements become greatly dulled due to emotions. Whether it was happiness or sadness, any emotion to the extreme will narrow one's field of view and dull the judgment ability. 

"We will entrust the next operation location to Easy-1."

The Alpha team squad leader said. The Alpha squad members nodded. The squad leader of Alpha team had depleted his psychic energy and so his judgment had dulled a huge degree. There was a perfect substitute squad leader here, there was no reason for him to continue to push himself.

Han left the swimming pool area and attempted to communicate with the other squads. The majority of the squads managed to stop most of the ceremonial sites.

"You're doing well, Han." Corporal Zhai said. At this point, he felt even if he was not present, Han would do fine as a squad leader here.

'Honestly, he exceeded my expectations. He's the type to do well under high pressure.'

Squad Easy gradually joined forces with the rest of the squads. A good portion of the men were now psykers after three to four squads joined. Now the minions were the ones to become greatly pressured. Rather than hunting, the minions were busy trying to escape.

"The enemy is starting to gather in the same place."

"It's the last remaining point."

Another squad leader said. The minions stopped attacking them. The minions changed tactics to a passive defense. They just got the news that the Balkan Alliance were near victory.

'They are trying to summon a dragon even after suffering such large casualties.'

Han shivered upon the minion military force's persistence. 

Dragons had the power to change the tide of this battle. All of the modern weapons would become useless. Only psykers are able to kill dragons, and amongst psykers, only psychoframe pilots can achieve a chance of victory. Without a psychoframe, even if all the psykers in this place combined forces, it would be hard to inflict the smallest wound to the dragon. Even if they were able to win, there would be heavy casualties from both sides. 

"Do you have extra magazines?"

"Check with Squad Fox."

"We have a few grenades we can spare. You can take some if you need them."

The squads took an inventory of their gears before their last battle. They allocated the needed magazines, grenades, and necessary equipment. Squad Easy had used up a large portion of their grenades and restocked their supplies by receiving extras from the other squads.

"We'll take a break for five minutes."

The additional squads that Ark sent were infiltrating from the opposite side. They would join forces at the battle field. Before this time, they had a bit of time to catch their breath. The squads took turns keeping watch. The soldiers sat down exhausted.

"Simon, how's your condition?" Han asked. Simon used a majority of his psychic powers during battle.

"I can recover a fair amount after resting. I won't drag you down so you should stop concerning yourself with me." Simon said bluntly. 

Han nodded and walked over to Silence. Even though it was time for a break, Han went around to check his squad's condition. 

-I didn't push myself too hard so I'm okay. You should rest a bit.

Silence wrote out in his data bracelet. Han nodded and exchanged a look with Corporal Zhai. Even without Han's assistance, Corporal Zhai could perfectly take care of himself.

'It should be the end soon.'

Han took off his helmet and shook his hair. His hair was drenched in his own sweat and stuck to his forehead. Every muscle of his body cramped. The fatigue of battle was starting to weigh his body down.

Silence peered to Han. Han couldn't see Silence's eyes, but he could feel the other's stare.

"What?"

-Don't die. 

"I don't have a reason to."

Silence felt a bit fearful and terrified of Han's coldness during battle. Han looked like a person without the capability of feeling emotion. He didn't appear to be courageous, but because the other didn't have emotions, he could carry out battle tactics in the most ideal ways. Even if Han had to die, if this was the best method to carry out the plan, it seemed as if Han will select this route without batting an eye.

-Courage is not the absence of fear; overcoming fear is courage.

"Where did you see that?"

Han could easily conclude that these were borrowed words from somewhere. Silence often times took words from the movies he watched.

– A movie called, The Samurai Who Cut the Moon. I'll let you borrow it when we return to Ark.

Once their break ended, the squad leaders all stood. They opened a communication channel for all the squads here. Now, the last battle would begin.