Endless Swarm (Part 1)

Although Grant didn't have time to read through the notification in its entirety, he realized that something rather amazing had just occurred.

The shockwave that had been created by Tectonic Slam had ruptured the ground in front of him and forced the ground to splinter before the force flowing through the ground launched those splinters upward resulting in spikes protruding from the ground.

Although the spikes managed to impale and kill the ants instantly, it had also created obstacles that would make movement through the area difficult.

Although the skill clearly had its negatives, a major positive was that the skill basically cost Grant no mana to activate which meant that he could use it almost endlessly during a fight exactly like the one he was currently facing.

With the momentary reprieve that Tectonic Slam had created, Grant quickly observed his surroundings to try and get a better idea of the situation.

Although he had managed to fight back most of the ants that streamed through the gate, more and more ants were currently climbing over the wall and disappearing into the camp.

Grant could hear a cacophony of screams and gunfire coming from deep within the camp behind him, but he knew he couldn't help them and had to face the greater threat at the moment.

Taking a deep breathe, Grant activated Unbound Stats and pumped all of his agility into strength momentarily before activating Tectonic Slam once again.

{Current Strength: 728 | Area of effect increased to 35 feet.}

Although his ability to swing the sword quickly had been greatly reduced, Grant managed to force the blade to make contact with the ground before a massive and ear shattering explosion rang out and a shockwave surged outward.

Spikes taller than Grant immediately began to protrude from the ground as the shockwave moved forward, slaughtering and wiping out every ant in its trajectory.

Grant had purposefully positioned himself so that he would be facing the opening in the gate in order to produce maximum carnage.

However, what he had not expected, was as the shockwave reached the entrance and passed through, the spikes that the skill created managed to block off the gate to a large degree.

Although it achieved that, it also managed to destroy and subsequently replace part of the fence as well.

Seeing the sheer amount of power and destruction the skill caused, Grant was pleasantly surprised.

[Well shit, I think I've found my new favorite skill if only because of how completely destructive it is! What self respecting man doesn't love explosions?!]

{I can't wait for the day where you face someone that you are actually forced to take seriously. You young man, are becoming far too self righteous and cocky.}

[You know what Sherlock. When that day comes, I promise I will put my head on straight and focus. I have worked hard for my strength and I will enjoy it while I can.]

{I pray your lack of foresight and planning does not lead to your death.}

Although the exchange took mere moments, Grant knew that he didn't have the time to waste arguing with Sherlock, so he simply ignored the guide and quickly analyzed his next steps.

Even though the gate was somewhat blocked off, destroying a portion of the wall had opened other avenues for the ants to invade. It was nothing major, but ants continued to trickle through the openings and into the camp.

He knew that he was fighting a losing battle no matter how he handled the situation, but even so, he knew that he couldn't cease the fight.

Since Grant could only assume that the ants were invading simply to search for food and kill anything in their path, he knew that it was unlikely that he could force them to focus on himself alone which meant that his only option was to kill as many ants as fast as possible.

He quickly deactivated Unbound Stats to make sure that his stats were back to normal and prepared to jump over the wall and out into the oncoming hoard.

Before Grant could approach the wall though, he heard footsteps coming from behind him.

Grant briefly glanced over his shoulder to see Ethan and a few people following closely. Grant immediately recognized the people as the evolved people who had been working for Andrew.

The only logical explanation for their presence was that Ethan and Tom had decided to allow them free so that they could assist in handling the crisis.

The most surprising member of the group however, was Zach. Grant had literally just told the man a few hours ago that he no longer needed to fight and yet here he was, running head long into a literal flood of ants.

Seeing Grant looking at him with subtle surprise on his face, Zach spoke while running, "I know what you're thinking. But if these monsters overwhelm you, their is no way my family and I will be able to escape. And since I have the strength to help, I will do just that!"

Grant simply smiled before turning back towards the new wave that was fast approaching.

Eventually the group managed to reach his side and Ethan immediately handed over Grant's armor that he had packed away into the backpack.

Grant quickly threw the armor on and felt a surge of power flow through his body with the extra stats it provided. Finally feeling back to his usual self Grant hopped a few times to reacclimate himself to the armor.

Before reengaging the ants, he made sure to yell some instructions at the newcomers.

"Ethan, take Zach and the others and spread out along the wall to dispatch of any ants that manage to make it past me.

I am going over the wall to try and get a better idea of the scope of what we are up against and kill as many of them as I can!

Make sure you guys defend each other's backs! If you are about to be overwhelmed, do not hesitate to retreat and fall back to the hospital! It'll be easier to defend when they aren't so spread out!

Any questions?!"

Without even giving them a chance to reply, Grant answered his own question, "Good! Lets get too it!" and then immediately took off towards the wall before jumping over and out onto the street.

While Grant flew through the air, he was finally able to get a bigger picture of what they were facing.

Not only were the ants crowding the streets, they were also stuck to the walls and roofs of the surrounding buildings.

What concerned Grant more than the sheer amount of enemies, were five medium sized ants that were currently surrounding an absolutely massive ant.

The scene reminded Grant of a story he had read a few years back.

[Never thought I'd meet Anthony in real life... this isn't going to be fun...]

Since the road was so packed with enemies, Grant knew that if he landed in the middle of it, he would instantly be swarmed from all directions before he even had the chance to fight back.

Although the smaller ants seemed incapable of puncturing his skin, let alone his armor, eventually it would take a toll on his body and he would become susceptible to being whittled down one strike at a time.

In order to create an area where he could fight more freely, Grant prepared to activate Tectonic Slam.

Moments before he landed on the ground, Grant swung his sword downward.

As his sword impacted the ground he finally activated the skill instantly killing dozens of ants.

Having cleared a space, although momentarily, Grant stood up and turned his back in the direction that the shockwave had spread so that he only had to defend against three directions instead of four.

Reluctant to use any of his long cooldown skills because of the impending fight against the larger and stronger ants, Grant engaged the smaller ants in his vicinity using only his strength and Tectonic Slam.

As the fight progressed and knowing that Ethan and the rest had his back to the best of their abilities, Grant began to lose himself in the fight.

Although Grant had trained with Skit and honed his fighting skills in general, none of it was related to swords, so it meant that battle experience was the only way for Grant to improve that aspect of his strength.

However, the current situation meant that Grant had unending opportunities to hone his skills. With each passing sword strike, Grant's movements with the sword became more refined and minimalistic.

Lost in the sensations of the fight, he even began to imitate the movements of different sword fights that he had seen before. Although most of what he had seen related to sword fighting was fictional and useless, Grant's Jack of All Trades and Basic Swordsmanship skills assisted him in picking out the viable aspects of the movements.

As time passed by, he began to form a style all his own.

Unbeknownst to Grant, who was too absorbed in the fight to notice, he received a notification that would have surprised him but it quickly disappeared due to the overwhelming number of notifications pouring in.