Chapter 262:Attack II
Silver shook his head.
"I don’t know."
A soldier shouted.
"Above!"
Silver looked up.
The creature had emerged directly above the observation centre. It had used the dust to conceal its movement.
Its wings were folded, as it was falling. Straight toward them.
"Move!"
The Rank Four contractors reacted immediately. Several barriers appeared. A massive dome of energy formed above the outer perimeter.
The beast struck it. The entire structure shook, cracks spread across the barrier.
Silver felt the pressure from where he stood. The force alone was terrifying, still the barrier held, barely. The beast slammed into it again and the cracks spread farther.
A Rank Four contractor shouted.
"Maintain the barrier!"
Three others immediately reinforced it. The creature pulled back, then struck again. Unfortunately, the barrier exploded and the contractors were thrown backward.
The Rank Five beast broke through.
Silver’s body tensed.
The creature was inside the perimeter but the military didn’t panic; instead, several contractors immediately moved into position.
One group attacked the wings, another targeted the legs, and a third moved behind it. The beast turned its head, its eyes locking onto the group behind it, then it moved.
Silver barely followed the motion.
The creature spun around, its wing sweeping outward. The force of the attack sent several contractors flying. One crashed through a vehicle, another hit the ground and rolled several meters.
The beast turned toward the next group. A Rank Four contractor rushed forward and struck the creature’s chest but the impact barely moved it.
The beast retaliated.
Its claw swung downward almost dwarfing the man. The contractor raised his weapon above him. The collision created a shockwave.
The man was pushed backward but he remained standing. Another contractor attacked from the side, then another, and another.
Silver’s eyes narrowed.
They were testing it. Every attack was forcing the beast to reveal something; its speed, reaction time, attack patterns, abilities, and weaknesses.
It was exactly the same thing Silver had learned to do in smaller fights. Except these people were doing it against a Rank Five beast.
The creature suddenly opened its jaws and a strange glow appeared inside its mouth.
Silver’s instincts screamed.
"Get down!"
The Rank Four contractors immediately reacted. The creature released a concentrated blast, it was something closer to compressed energy. The beam tore across the battlefield.
Several barriers appeared. The first shattered, the second cracked, and the third managed to divert part of the attack upward. The remaining force slammed into one of the outer walls. The reinforced structure shook violently.
Silver’s expression became grim. If that attack had hit a person directly, he doubted even a Rank Four could survive.
The creature rose again, its wings spreading. It attempted to leave the perimeter.
"Don’t let it escape!" The commander shouted.
Silver frowned.
Why?
Then he realized. If it escaped, it could attack again from another direction. The soldiers were trying to control the battlefield.
Several contractors moved toward the eastern side, others moved west. They weren’t chasing the creature but creating a box.
The Rank Five beast suddenly turned. It attempted to fly through the northern opening but a massive chain of energy appeared which the beast struck.
The chain stretched outwards, then another appeared. The creature struggled forcefully and the chains began to break.
A Rank Four contractor shouted.
"Now!"
Three attacks struck simultaneously. The first pierced the beast’s wing, the second struck its leg, and the third hit its chest.
The beast roared.
Its body dropped several meters but it recovered before hitting the ground. Silver watched with growing fascination.
The Rank Five creature wasn’t simply taking damage, it was adapting. After every failed attack, it changed its approach. After the chains trapped it, it stopped attempting to fly directly through the same direction.
After the energy beam was blocked, it changed its angle. After the contractors surrounded it, it attacked the weakest point of their formation.
It was learning.
Silver’s expression slowly became serious.
"This is completely different."
Ravenna looked at him.
"What?"
"The thing is adapting to every of their attacks."
She stared at the beast, then she understood. The creature wasn’t simply reacting. It was thinking, saw patterns, recognized abilities, understood threats, and it was making decisions.
A Rank Four contractor attempted to use the same attack that had wounded it earlier but the beast immediately dodged.
Silver noticed, his eyes widening.
"It remembered."
Ravenna’s voice became quiet.
"Remembered what?"
"The attack."
That realization sent a chill through Silver.
The fight continued as minutes passed. The observation centre became a battlefield. The Rank Five beast destroyed several structures but the military contractors continuously pushed it back.
Every time it attempted to reach the inner buildings, someone intercepted it. Every time it attempted to escape, another group blocked the path.
The coordination was extraordinary.
Silver couldn’t even imagine attempting something similar with his current team. He and Ravenna had excellent coordination but this was another level entirely. These people had probably fought together for years and understood each other’s abilities.
They knew where everyone would move before they moved and didn’t need to speak. A contractor would dodge, and another would immediately attack the opening. Someone else would protect the first while another would prepare the next attack.
The entire battle moved like a single organism. Silver found himself memorizing their movements. If he ever reached that level of strength, he wanted to fight like this.
Ravenna leaned closer.
"How long has it been?"
Silver looked toward the observation tower.
"Almost ten minutes."
Her eyes widened.
"Only ten?"
Silver nodded.
It felt much longer. The Rank Five beast suddenly screamed.
Its body was covered in wounds now; one wing was damaged,blood covered its chest, and several scales had been ripped away,but it was still fighting.
The commander raised his hand and the entire formation changed.
Silver immediately noticed.
Everyone stopped attacking. For one brief moment, the battlefield became strangely quiet. The Rank Five beast hovered above them but it looked wounded and exhausted but its eyes were still sharp.
The commander spoke.
"Prepare the final formation."
The Rank Four contractors moved.
Silver watched.
They weren’t going to overpower the beast but were going to trap it. The next few seconds would determine everything. The Rank Five beast suddenly folded its wings and began another dive.
The commander lowered his hand.
"Wait."
The beast descended faster with each second. The contractors held their positions the tension in the air almost palpable.
Silver’s heartbeat increased.
The creature was heading directly toward them. At the last possible moment, the commander shouted.
"NOW!"
The battlefield exploded. Multiple abilities activated simultaneously; walls of stone rose, chains of energy wrapped around the beast, and a massive wind current forced it downward.
Several Rank Four attackers launched their strongest attacks at the same time. The Rank Five beast tried to twist away mid air but it couldn’t, because it’s damaged wing failed.
The chains tightened around it. The final attack struck a mixture of all abilities, filled with a sense of desperation and courage. The creature released one last painful roar, then the entire valley shook.
Silver stared as the enormous body was hurled toward the ground pulled down by the chains. The Rank Five beast crashed outside the defensive perimeter. Dust exploded outward from the weight.
For several seconds, nobody moved, then the commander looked toward the crater.
"Confirm the kill."
Two contractors immediately moved forward. The observation centre was quite in high tension as the two walked towards it. The contract themselves seemed too scared to hurriedly step forward, as though they were expecting it to suddenly jump up.
Silver remained silent. His eyes stayed fixed on the enormous birds. He had seen Rank Four beasts before and had fought them but that creature had been something else entirely.
Ravenna stood beside him.
"You understand now, don’t you?"
Silver slowly nodded.
"Yeah."
His expression was unusually serious.
"I understand."