Distress Signal

Edwin and the others kept firing at the enemies as best as they could. They were many of them and in as much as they killed a great number, they also lost their comrades.

The majority of the recruits were still shaken by the incident so much so that they couldn't fire their guns properly.

Soon no more Zeros came out again and they assumed that it was the last of them. Arianna pointed into the forest. "Let's scout ahead."

"What about the others?" another recruit asked.

"We'll come back. We can't wait here for them to regroup and come back."

Just as they made their way towards the thick forest area, buzzing sounds came from above the thick tree branches. More bullets rained down and splattered wood fragments as they hit the tree branches.

The bullets were soon followed by loud explosions that came from random areas. The recruits abandoned their idea ad sought refuge from the onslaught.

….

Richard pivoted on his heels under the pursuit of the last metal soldier. He shot his electrocutor randomly and the exoskeleton didn't bother to dodge since it just went past him at a wide margin. It focused his weapons and aimed.

The only limitations to the exoskeletons were their power cells. The bulk of which sat in their chest regions which was also the cockpit for the pilots. That meant that one exoskeleton couldn't pack more energy cells so that the weight wouldn't cripple it.

Richard was inclined to believe that this one was near its limit point unless it had another supply. The next limitation was that firing too many magazines would leave it accumulating heat which it needed to expel through its feet.

Too much firing meant too much heat and ultimately this could either lead to the weapons malfunction or disruption of the energy cells making it to drain faster. The overall effect would be the frying of all circuitry.

This metal soldier had been firing at him nonstop. Richard jumped behind another tree that had been battered by bullets to the point that only one thick root firmly rooted to the soil was keeping it from toppling to the side.

More Zeros came at him and began to fire. Richard dashed out again and their bullets rained into the tree making the only root support snap. The tree fell towards the metal soldier but it jumped out of the way quicker than the falling three. A huge crash sounded followed by debris being thrown up. Richard emerged and used his grappler to shoot at the Zeros. The grappler produced three thin metal strings that hooked themselves to his targets.

He retracted the grappler forcefully pulling the three Zero members towards himself. During the process their guns had fallen from tier hands. Richard used them as meat shields to block the gunfire while also using the opportunity to shoot at their companions.

At the last minute he jumped and followed up with a small roll to the side, just barely avoiding the barrage of projectiles that landed where he stood. The explosion consumed the three Zeros he had grappled.

Richard shot three more rounds from his electrocutor and they went wide as well but he wasn't bothered. He dashed forward towards the exoskeleton.

The metal soldier detached the slug and the grenades from his shoulders and became a bit lighter. It rushed at Richard with its muzzle aimed at him. The moment he was about to fire, three metal fragments latched onto its metallic surface.

The spiralling electric arcs spread around its body quickly frying the systems. Richard, using the momentum of his run, jumped into the air and smashed his gun's barrel into the helmet. He rolled on the ground wincing.

His waist still hurt so much. He struggled to his feet and aimed his electromagnetic weapon and fired a projectile so powerful that it slammed the metal soldier to the nearest tree trunk. Sparks flew and a loud explosion followed.

Richard heaved a sigh. 'Now I have to get everyone out of here.' He rushed to the direction the recruits were but then he switched directions and headed for the nearest tree.

….

Marco aimed his gun with gritted teeth but the other three didn't flinch. Marco said his last prayers silently. He had made an oath to die while protecting his country. He felt peaceful even in the face of death knowing that he didn't back down.

He had promised his best friend that he would never back down. Never. Even to his last breath.

As he prepared to be hit, he heard gun shots but none was directed at him. He quickly opened his eyes to see Richard drawing their fire.

Richard let his gun rattle as he ran past, showering the three Zeros with a barrage of bullets. Richard paled when he noticed that his efforts had yielded no effects.

The only thing the three felt was pain from the kinetic energy carried by the many bullets that hit them. They were bullet-proofed from head to toe.

Richard quickly hid behind a tree giving Marco the chance to crawl to his feet. The moment he turned away, he fired at the three as well.

Richard peeked out from behind the tree and ordered. "Lieutenant Marco, Get the students out of here. I'll handle them."

Marco hesitated for a bit but he knew it was a direct order from a superior. He quickly limped towards the students and waved them to come with him. He led the way as they ran towards the small clearing they had passed to arrive here.

They were heading for the trucks from where they could escape. Things had escalated quickly. The sun had set and it was almost evening.

Just as they passed the thick bushes, the fighter jet loomed over them again with the buzzing sounds. Marco clenched his teeth….

….

Richard quickly tapped his wrist watch while under the enemy fire. The tree he was hiding in would soon collapse over him.

The wrist watch was the device he used to communicate with and send distress signals to Lily. He pressed the side and twisted the face a bit. A small icon appeared indicating that the signal had been sent.

Richard dropped the machine gun he had picked up not sure how many bullets it had left. He drew his hand gun and grappler, ready to attack.