BXBX NOVEL Chapter 18: Let's put that to the test.
No matter how impressive her arm strength was, the longbow in her hand could never shoot past 250 yards. Meanwhile, a typical sniper rifle, for example the M24, had a range of over half a mile. If she could not manifest a weapon, I should get her one as soon as possible.
For the rest of us AR15s would be enough. I should ask Bella later. While I never got to enlist in the military, because of my childish wish of earning my drunk father's recognition I learned a lot about guns.
"Uwah! Look at that! That's impossible to stop without a shielder column. They should already be forming one. Why haven't they made one yet when we are already six hours in?" Josephine complained.
Not missing a beat, her sister gave her two cents. "You need at least two dozen shielders for such a long battle line. Even if the commander is competent, without enough talents the best he would be able to do is form an arrow. Currently they are using soul form reapers to serve as the tip."
Once again, I marveled at what these two spouted out when idle. Descendants were taught not only martial arts, but also military science and tactics. They were extremely similar to child soldiers in war-torn countries.
When I scanned the area in front the platform, I saw the towering black gorilla. The beast stood over 10 ft tall and looked as heavy as a tank. Around it, I saw half a dozen wolf-human hybrids with violet fur.
The humans were gathered around the gorilla as it gestured like it was explaining something. So, the gorilla served as the leader? If we suddenly walked towards them, would they welcome us? What would we do if they didn't? I had the same questions from earlier, and till now I had no answer.
Knowing how intense the dislike for Formless was, it felt like the reapers as a whole just hated on them to make the manifested feel better. If it was me, the only way to get my goodwill would be to prove you could pull your own weight.
"Jo, Jas, explain what this arrow is, if you please," I requested.
Jo smiled.
"Sure, darling, basically, if you lack enough walls, the next best thing to do would be to create an arrow shaped breakwall. The shape would protect the sides and rear of those at the front. Meanwhile, the wings only focus on what is in front of them," she explained gleefully.
"If you had a large rear guard, you could place them inside the arrow so they could shoot unhindered. By supplementing the shielders with either swordsmen or spearmen, you would have a more robust group that is resistant to being surrounded," Jasmine then added.
"But it's not perfect, you know? If at any point one of the wings break, the whole thing would collapse. And without knowing everybody's abilities, it's a really big gamble, darling."
Hmm. How insightful. So, the ape used the best option available to them with limited information. He seemed like a good guy if he took the forefront. But then again, even Bigfoots would be helpless in front of such a massive ape.
"Then won't they break the moment the boss comes? Such a formation would be for numbers. It's too rigid and hard to maneuver," Bella questioned.
"Indeed. This is why reaper combat is divided into two disciplines. Defenders and Assault. The former is for protecting the floors from being overrun, while the latter are small elite groups that kill the boss and liberate floors."
Jasmine's answer lit up lightbulbs in my head. So, they copied the principle of a general-purpose army and a commando unit. This could be our ticket in. If we proved we were an excellent commando unit, they would need to think twice before throwing us away.
"Hmm. Personally, I think their commander is an ass. No Descendant would use the arrow formation like this. It is just stupid," Josephine rebuked.
Bella then chipped in before I could even wonder the reason for Jo's poor evaluation.
"Is it because they are intentionally fighting a distance from the platform? It seems like he wants his rear to take damage. If they fought with their back to the platform, the entire thing would be stronger and more compact. There is no need to intentionally keep the ranged fighters in the middle if you have an elevated platform. It's not like they are moving."
Hmm. Indeed, I came here to use the platform for shooting. They weren't charging, so why did they intentionally leave behind the platform? If you wanted to reduce your numbers, however, this would be the way to go.
"Probably because of the Descendant among them. The sponsors do not care about reapers who just survive, only those that dominate. The ape is just waiting for the boss to arrive. Once it does, he should abandon the formation with just his assault team. Killing the boss gives honor to both the sponsor and the reaper," Jas said with a troubled face.
So, the ape intended to use the entire group as zombie bait? What a smart way to do it! I would have probably done the same. I felt like this gorilla and I would be great friends. Why die for a bunch of nobodies, right?
With a group like ours, going in when it was quiet would bring too much attention. It would be better to go after the combat starts up again, preferably when the boss arrived. Now, what action could I do to kick this ape in the balls… I got it.
"Girls. Let's crash the party when the gorilla goes after the boss," I suggested.
"What? But why, darling?"
"You intend to aim for the top honors? But you aren't even sponsored. Why would you take the risk?"
"Haha, as expected of honey, I'm in."
With a smile I grinned towards the sister as I answered. "I am not here to just survive. I will become the strongest Revenant. If they are that hungry for achievement, how would they feel if they got shit on by the Formless?"
Jo and Jas couldn't even respond and remained silent. After a few moments they replied differently.
"Hahaha! This is so crazy! I love it. Let's do it, darling! I will follow you!"
"You are a lunatic. A foolhardy imbecile who has not a shred of common sense. Yet. I feel you would actually do it."
Bella gave me a simple thumbs up. "Make me fall for you all over again, honey!"
The mob of zombies continued moving toward the spear formation of the ape. There were so many that it looked like a tsunami, even though they didn't run. The ground trembled with their steps. Despite my bravado, I couldn't help but feel a trail of cold sweat run down my back.
Just them I saw a giant of an undead, a zombie that looked like he had coral reefs for shoulders. What the hell was that thing? Its entire skin was gray and he made the Bigfoots look like children. How tall was this fucker? Like a lord over his realm, the extremely tall monster walked with gigantic steps while the zombie horde ran after him.
"Boss confirmed. Undead Brute. D Rank undead. Strong points: durability and near infinite stamina. Weakness, slow movement and abnormal sized shoulders serve as blind spots. Normally taken down by a team of Phantoms," Jasmine anxiously assessed.
At that point, Josephine and Bella began to tremble from fear. The Brute was even taller than a fucking elephant. What we had were just steel blades and my gun. With a build like that, it could definitely flatten a man like how one swatted a fly.
The endeavor seemed hopeless, an army of undead was between it and us. We weren't even sure if we could kill this big lug. While I did tremble, it was not from fear, but excitement. How would it feel to triumph over such a monster?
Even if I died today, taking down such a freak would make me satisfied. Nothing in my past life compared to this. I licked my lips in anticipation. I took out my gun and performed checks on it. My mind got shifted to that of a warrior when I did such drills.
Right, this was it. If I could not kill this fucker, I would never become a Revenant. I had over 500 souls, so I could {Rewind} a number of times. My aim, vision and hearing were superhuman. The question was if all that was enough.
Without a word, I began walking forward with my gun, only to be stopped by a hand on my shoulder.
"Honey! What are you doing!" Bella challenged.
"What? I am going," I replied, annoyed by her question.
This time even Jo and Jas grabbed my forearms.
"Darling. The brute is too strong, we can't!"
"Only Phantoms can kill such a monster."
To their concerns I replied with a savage grin. "Then let's put that to the test."