Chapter 24

Chapter 24

Seconds past...

Then a minute...

Then one more minute...

And another...

It was at this time that the soldiers waiting for their impending doom on the truck realized something was wrong.

'Shouldn't they be besieged by the horde of monsters right now?'

In fact it was too quiet; quiet in a sense that there weren't mournful screams from their comrades. Besides the *poofs* and *euuk* sounds of monsters dying that could be heard, everything else was serene and peaceful.

The Captain's eyes suddenly bulged, he was sitting in the front seat of the truck. The veins in his sclera were pulsating. One could see how much shock he was in. The Deputy was dumbfounded when he saw this, but when he turned his sights to where his Captain was looking; he too made the same expression.

The same moment the two superiors' shock level reached the extreme, Titus' voice sounded.

"Why aren't you driving?!"

"Drive quickly!!!"

The reason why the two battle hardened superiors was so shocked was precisely because of Titus. Titus was currently like Moses who had split open the ocean of monsters as if it was the Red Sea¹.

[PR¹: The Crossing of the Red Sea is part of the biblical narrative from the Book of Exodus. The escape of the Israelites, led by Moses, from the pursuing Egyptians]

Utilizing the gun in his hand like a bat, he would strike each monster that came in his way as if he was playing baseball.

"What are you doing?! Drive!"

He shouted once again with greater urgency as the gap he painfully made was being mended with more monsters. He was already in the middle of the wave so if the gap near the truck was mended, not only would the truck lose the chance of escape but he would also be surrounded which would increase his own fatality rate to 90 percent! Most importantly, his sacrifice would be in vain.

Finally, the Captain regained his bearings and immediately ordered the Deputy to drive. *Vrooom* The engine roared like an angry cornered beast fighting for its life as it charged through. Since they were a bit slow to follow Titus' instructions, some monsters were already filling the gap he created and were bumped by the truck. Despite it being a military grade 'truck' one could see how strong the monsters were, their strength was twice of normal humans, they were also basically suicide bombers that used their own body as meat shields. Similar to wear and tear of technology, such impacts would eventually destroy the truck whether it be through engine failure or tipping it over from the monsters' sheer number.

Each collision would make the truck tremble, each tremble resonated within the shaking hearts of both the soldiers and volunteers alike. This was hope! If they could get out... It would be akin to a miracle.

Soon they were at the last stretch of the monsters' encirclement. Their hearts rejoiced as the Deputy went full throttle. He pressed down hard on the accelerator until the pedal touched the floorboard! The Captain peered his sight into that gap that was just big enough for their truck to pierce through. If this was needling a thread into the needle, it was a one time attempt. Their accuracy must not deviate from that gap otherwise, at their speed, they would crash if they miscalculated. Everyone in the back unconsciously tightened their hearts and closed their eyes. This was a make it or break it death game.

"..."

The truck was silent but the atmosphere was beyond heavy. It could almost solidify into existence like hail. Only the sound of the truck's engine and its tremors confirmed that they were still chasing their hope.

Time seemed very slow but all was well worth it when *shua*—

"We... We made it out!!!"

The shout of the Deputy marked the end of their treacherous wait. He was trembling while he said that, as if he himself really couldn't even believe it happened.

The Captain however became stern. He showed why he was the 'Captain' and ordered,

"Focus! We are not yet out of danger. Only if we arrive at the base can we truly celebrate."

"*Heukk* The Deputy almost choked. He realized his mistake.

The others who were about to celebrate suddenly quieted down as they started to feel nervous again.

*Bang!*

Suddenly a loud bang was heard above their heads! It made their hearts jump and almost melted their hearts into despair thinking that the monsters had probably caught up. Fortunately their guess was wrong, Titus suddenly popped in from the roof.

His upper body was bare. There were also scratches and wounds visible all over his body. He was also holding a bent and battered gun over his shoulder with his now red shirt, due to blood, tied to the end of it. He looked pale and exhausted. His arms looked especially bloody. His veins were also pulsating.

However, no one talked. No one asked. They just looked at him in silence. Nobody even minded the sh*t incident as the bloody smell long replaced that sh*tty stink. But they do have some guesses in their minds...

...

"Hoooray!"

Everyone rejoiced once they had arrived at the base. Even the Captain relaxed his nerves as he started to report the incident to the base personnel. Though some of the volunteers came ready to die in the first place, but to actually face death and get out safely really was an experience that could not be thought of as simple.

Some soldiers started hugging each other and were even laughing around with some volunteers. They became brothers in this instant as they had gone through such an ordeal together! After the official things were settled, the Captain asked them.

"Where's our hero?"

The soldier who was in charge of registration prior, added, "I believe he is called Titus, Captain." He knew because he tried his best to recall Titus' face during the registration when he saw Titus suddenly appear from the truck roof and because he had some guesses like the others. The Captain's question confirmed all their thoughts.

"Where is hero Titus?"

Soon an answer came, just that it wasn't exactly pleasing to hear.

"Captain, he has fainted in the truck!"

Such a thing caused an uproar.

Proofread by: @lynn

Author's Note:

The truck looks like this but a bit longer and less buff looking and with some modifications in design like the door etc. in the story:

https://www.google.com/search?q=military+truck&sxsrf=ALeKk02TCcO30N0XJjoDvuKehIPOGNeBIw:1591494259068&source=lnms&tbm=isch#imgrc=3MuU4OWkjPEgfM