Chapter 226:Fighting.
The ground behind them exploded again. Silver saw the earth rise through the rearview mirror before the sound reached them.
A massive armored head burst through the road, followed by a portion of the creature’s thick body. Dirt and broken asphalt flew in every direction.
One of the convoy vehicles swerved to avoid it but the driver wasn’t fast enough. The beast slammed its head against the side of the vehicle, the metal folding inward with a deafening crash.
The car spun twice before coming to a stop.
"Another vehicle down!" someone shouted over the radio.
Silver tightened his grip on the steering wheel.
"Ravenna."
"I see it."
She already had the sniper rifle against the window. The beast lowered its head toward the damaged vehicle as several contractors jumped out.
One of them fired an explosive round directly into its face.
BOOM!
The explosion forced the creature backward. This gave the contractors time to drag their injured companions away.
Silver watched the beasts movements; it wasn’t moving randomly, its eyes were constantly scanning, and learning the convoys tactics.
"It doesn’t attack the strongest target first," Silver said.
Ravenna looked at him.
"What?"
"It attacks whoever is isolated."
Another tremor passed beneath the road. Silver immediately turned the vehicle.
"Hold on."
The ground erupted beside them and the beast emerged. Ravenna immediately fired and the bullet struck its eye. The creature recoiled violently, giving way.
Silver accelerated past it.
"Did you get it?"
"Not the eye." She chambered another round. "But close."
Silver glanced at her.
"Good enough."
The beast roared behind them, then disappeared underground again.
Silver frowned.
The entire battlefield had become a game of waiting. The convoy couldn’t simply drive away since several vehicles had been damaged, the road itself had been torn apart, and the beast was constantly attacking from underground.
Every time they tried to concentrate their firepower on it, it vanished, and every time they relaxed, it emerged somewhere else.
"Harry."
Silver pressed the radio.
"Do we have everyone accounted for?"
"Not yet."
Harry’s response came quickly.
"Several vehicles are damaged. We’re trying to regroup."
Silver looked ahead.
The convoy had become stretched out; some cars were thirty meters ahead while others were behind. The beast had effectively broken their formation.
"We need to pull everyone together."
"Agreed." Harry paused. "Can you help clear the road?"
Silver looked at the massive holes.
"Maybe."
He turned toward Ravenna.
"Get ready."
"For what?"
"I’m going to draw it toward us."
Ravenna’s eyes widened.
"You’re doing what?"
"Drawing it toward us."
"Silver, you want us to be bait! That’s ridiculous."
"It’s targeting isolated vehicles, if we make ourselves the most obvious target, it’ll come to us. It will be easier for the others to attack."
Ravenna stared at him.
"That’s a terrible plan, what if we don’t make it, then what?"
"It’s the best one we have."
She sighed.
"You really do have a talent for making terrible plans sound reasonable."
Silver smiled.
"You trust me."
"Unfortunately."
He accelerated, their vehicle moveingaway from the convoy. Ravenna immediately understood.
"Silver!"
"I’m fine."
The vehicle sped down the damaged road, for several seconds, nothing happened, then, the ground beneath them shook.
Silver smiled.
"Got it."
Ravenna raised her rifle, as the road exploded and the beast burst upward.
Silver swerved right sharply. The creature’s jaws snapped shut behind them, where they had been.
Ravenna fired simultaneously, the bullet striking the side of its head. Silver accelerated again, getting out of it’s range. The beast roared, then vanished.
Silver’s eyes narrowed.
"Again."
Ravenna reloaded as Silver moved to another path in the grasses, immediately after, the ground trembled.
"Right!"
Silver turned left as the creature erupted from the right side. Ravenna fired, and this time the bullet struck its mouth causing it to completely loose it’s balance, as the beast recoiled.
Silver slammed the brakes. While the creature’s enormous body slid across the road, he opened his door.
"Now."
He jumped out with Ravenna following. The beast turned toward them completely angry. Silver drew his sword as the creature began charging towards them.
[Short-Step Lv2 Activated]
His body vanished before it could get near him, the beast’s jaws closed on empty air. Silver appeared behind it his sword raised. He slashed towards it.
[Space Slash Lv2 Activated]
The attack tore across the creature’s armored back, causing blood to spill. The beast roared and whipped its tail around.
Silver barely blocked it, the impact sending him sliding several meters across the road. Pain shot through his arms from crossing his arms.
He gritted his teeth. The beast turned toward him sensing weakness.
Ravenna fired. A flaming round struck its shoulder, causing the beast to stagger.
Silver rushed forward, his sword striking the same wound. The creature screamed, then its body suddenly dropped.
Silver’s eyes widened.
"Get back!"
Ravenna immediately retreated. The beast burrowed, the ground collapsing beneath it in the process.
Silver stared at the hole.
"It ran."
Ravenna lowered her rifle, a small sigh leaving her.
"I hate this thing, it takes the word fighting like a coward to a whole new level."
Silver laughed.
"It’s a useful skill to have in a fight."
The radio suddenly crackled.
"Silver!" Harry’s voice came. "What’s your position?"
"About fifty meters from the main convoy."
"Good." Harry’s voice became more serious. "We have a plan."
Silver looked toward the convoy.
"What is it?"
"We’re going to force it out."
Silver listened.
Harry explained quickly. Several contractors would create a defensive line around the damaged vehicles, while others would attack the ground whenever the beast approached.
The objective wasn’t to kill it immediately, they wanted to restrict its movement, and force it toward a specific section of the road.
Silver understood.
"You’re trying to make it predictable."
"Exactly."
Silver smiled.
"Let’s do it."
The convoy reorganized.
Damaged vehicles were moved away from the center. Contractors formed groups, fire users prepared attacks, earth users reinforced sections of the road, while lightning users spread their attacks across the ground.
The beast emerged again, and this time it was met by a wall of fire. The creature roared in pain and confusion, as expected, it attempted to burrow.
An earth Awakener immediately collapsed the tunnel behind it. The beast changed direction looking for another entry point but lightning struck the ground.
The creature recoiled. It attempted another direction but was met with more attacks, it was being pushed back.
Silver watched carefully.
"It doesn’t like the eastern side."
Ravenna looked at him.
"Why?"
"There’s a slope beneath the ground." He pointed. "The tunnels are deeper there."
Ravenna understood.
"So we push it toward the shallow section."
"Exactly."
They moved.
Silver fired several rounds, Ravenna’s rifle thundered beside him forcing the beast away from it’s usual burrowing places. It became increasingly frantic, as it tried to retreat underground.
Silver used Spatial Sense.
"There!" He pointed. "Thirty meters ahead!"
Several contractors fired simultaneously. The earth erupted, and the beast emerged halfway from the ground, wounded, blood covering its armored body.
Its movements were slower, but it wasn’t finished. It opened its jaws, and a powerful roar exploded across the battlefield. Several weaker contractors staggered.
Silver’s ears rang and Ravenna covered one ear.
The beast charged in their incapacitation.
"Move!"
Everyone scattered. Silver rushed forward, activating Short-Step. The creature’s head passed beneath him, as he landed on its back quickly stabilising himself.
His sword struck downward.
[Space Slash Lv2 Activated]
The attack tore through the armor directly, into the the flesh. The beast screamed and rolled in an attempt to crash him with it’s weight.
Silver jumped away as Ravenna fired. Her bullet struck the wound and the beast collapsed onto its side. For a second, everything went quiet, then its body moved.
It was still alive.
Silver raised his sword to finish it but yhe creature’s eyes opened and stared directly at him.
Silver felt something strange. The beast wasn’t simply attacking anymore was afraid.
He understood.
It had realized it couldn’t win, but that didn’t mean it would surrender. The creature suddenly twisted, its tail smashed into the ground.
The earth cracked. Silver jumped backward.
"Don’t let it burrow!"
Several Awakeners attacked. Fire engulfed the ground as lightning struck the creature. Ravenna fired again.
Silver rushed forward.
[Phantom Draw Lv3 Activated]
His pistol appeared in his hand.
Bang.
The bullet struck the beast’s wounded chest, the creature roared but didn’t stop it’s attempt at running away. Silver followed with another Space Slash, the attack cutting deeply into its torso. This caused it to stumble.
Ravenna’s final shot struck the same location, the creature collapsed, and this time, it didn’t move again.
Silence settled over the road. Silver stood still for several seconds, then he lowered his sword.
"Is it dead?"
Ravenna approached carefully. She looked at the beast, the unnatural stillness confirmed it all.
"It’s dead."
A collective sigh came from the convoy. Someone actually laughed, while another contractor sat down on the road.
"I hate burrowing beasts."
Someone else answered, "Everyone hates burrowing beasts."
Silver couldn’t help laughing. Ravenna looked at him.
"You okay?"
"Yeah."
He looked at the enormous corpse.
"Just tired."
Ravenna nodded.