BXBX NOVEL Chapter 94: Call me a lunatic.
"Pull up everything Graveyard has on the Imps and the Corpse Eaters. Is it also possible that you become my spotter? Can you warn me if something attacks me?"
Snipers usually worked in teams, due to the large number of complex tasks required of a marksman. Calculations, area protection, and a wide field of view were required in addition to the actual shooting.
But because the sniper would be focused on the target at the other end of his scope, it would be difficult for him to see anything else.
So a sniper is assigned a spotter. The spotter's job is to do whatever it takes to keep the sniper focused on his target. Since I was operating alone, I was susceptible to being caught off guard. Since my role today was anti-air, I needed protection.
However, the Yuddha Rakshas were inferior to me in terms of skill. Although the Wraiths were skilled with swords, they could not withstand the damage. My {Fate}, on the other hand, could allow me to survive.
Therefore, I thought the sacrifice of the Rajput warrior was unnecessary and stupid. However, the fact is that he took a blow for me, no matter how minor it might have been.
[My Lord, as for the request for information, I have it ready for you. As for being your spotter: Even if I wanted to, I cannot. I only exist in your cyberspace and have my source code in your GRI. The most I can see is what your eyes see. I need a peripheral like a 360 camera or a drone if you want to use me as a second pair of eyes].
I guess that's the next thing I need to get. Fortunately, Aira could work independently. If I could give her drone a gun, like in sci-fi games, she could fight like an extra limb.
But that would be in the future. For now, the main goal is to ensure the death of the remaining flyers.
"Then let us park that for now and resolve it for the future. For this battle, mute all messages except for the Imps and the Corpse Eater. Send me any information you have, I will read it now. {Mage} Cancel. {Connect}!"
I deactivated the {Kismet} class and went into my cyberspace. Aira probably knew I was in a hurry, because when I arrived, she just made a small bow and had a summary list of details about my targets.
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Name: Imp (Demonkin)
Rank: Middle E
Soul: 50
Known abilities: {Flight}, {Sting}
Background: A low-level demonkin with the ability to fly and a powerful poison in its sting. Travels and hunts in large groups. Can fly at speeds of over 100 miles per hour and reach altitudes of over 10,000 feet. Normally subservient to a Rank D, these demonkin require protection to grow thus increasing their subordination.
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Name: Corpse Eater (Undead)
Rank: Middle D
Soul: 1375
Known Abilities: {Thunderbolt}, {Soul Absorption}, {Flight}
Background Info: A mid-level undead, its body is an amalgamation of corpses that focuses on being able to eat. Academics have discovered that its body cannot fly on its own, so it uses souls to invoke {Flight}. It grows larger the more it consumes a corpse.
Usually intimidates Imps or Harpies to become its escorts. Possesses a powerful lightning-based ability, {Thunderbolt}, which generates nearly four gigajoules of energy, four times the power of an average lightning strike.
___
When I read the information, I understood that the Imps were basically humanoid eagles with stings. Nevertheless, they hunted in packs like wolves.
The Corpse Eater was a bastard that could think. It knew that it would be blind once it got big enough. So it forced weaklings to become its guards. Surprisingly, unlike the other undead, the Corpse Eater did not control its own kind, but monsters and demonkin.
The normal behavior for agitated VIPs would be to leave or send their thugs to fix the problem, but since the D rank could not leave until all the reapers were dead, it had to use the imps.
This explained why the demonkin flew low enough for me to kill them. They had no choice but to be good little morons for the oversized undead fish that they were following.
The Imps were in range of the M24, but the Corpse Eater was still too high. I had to find a way to climb up or bring it down. My kills unfortunately kept the Imps close to the corpse eater.
"But holy shit, you are obese. You are fat enough to make Americans look skinny," I praised ironically.
I didn't stay long and googled about the Yuddha Rakshas then disconnected. When I returned, I found myself crouched down again with the M24 sniper rifle in my hands.
"I should start casting {Fates} on the weapons. Let's see. {Aim}, {Snipe}, {Withstand}, {Dampen}, {Carry}."
I called the five fates that I found most useful for weapons on the M24. Originally, the {Kismet} classes was meant to be a combination of perks for one role, but the more I used them, the more they felt limiting.
By casting {Fate} directly on the weapon, I was able to combine the weapon with my classes for a more dynamic fighting style.
Since my guns were going to be with me for a long time, it worked better to upgrade them than to force all the {Fates} onto my body.
Switching classes may have sounded cool, but it was incredibly wasteful. Once I got back to Earth, I planned to rethink how I used my {Fates}.
Loud guttural roars and war cries could be heard from the undead and the Yuddha Rakshas. The intensity of the battle slowly increased as it raged on.
I checked and found that Yuddha Rakshas meant "War Demons" in Hindi. The country that spoke Hindi was India. The most prominent combat style in India was Kalaripayattu. It specialized in defensive formations and brutal hand-to-hand combat.
The Yuddha Rakshas, was a unit that practiced this fighting style. Their weapons sets were the scimitar and buckler, and dual scimitar.
These two combinations were wielded in two overlapping circles. It allowed Krishna's forces to move and cut through targets like the teeth of a saw.
Similar to the Spartan phalanx, Kalaripayattu was a martial art used for warfare in large numbers. Because they specialized in large groups, the colosseum fortifications in this zone utilized their strengths very well.
The Yuddha Rakshas controlled the battlefield by creating a situation where the undead had no choice but to surround them. They did not react, but proactively chose how the battle would unfold. It was proof that even when besieged, they were not the hunted, but the hunter.
"The only thing they couldn't anticipate were the flying enemies."
From what I learned in the last ten minutes, and the members of this group, I figured out their ethnicity.
"They are Pajeets. But they do not look like American Indians, so they must be from Asia. Then why are they here?"
They had dark skin, black hair, and large eyes. Then I wondered why a large force of Reapers who couldn't even speak English was on the North American battlefront. I remember the words of Krishna the moment I arrived.
Hmm. An American? I never thought one of you would come to my domain. Not after the last time. Tell me, Death Seeker, has your king changed his mind?
Did David have any problems with Krishna's group? Perhaps it was because they were from Asia?
But why? The world was going to shit and we still had time to deal with racism? Did it really matter what color you were or what language you spoke?
I get that it would matter on Earth, but how the hell does it matter here?
"Hell, no wonder the reapers have their backs against the wall. Even in the face of annihilation, they still pride themselves on such division."
Annoyed by the Reapers' stupidity, I just assumed that, like most things in Hellsgates, there must be a deeper story behind it. Such things were not what I needed to focus on right now.
As my mind returned to the task at hand, I gave the Indians the benefit of the doubt and let them have my back.
"Hmm... Now. How do I get the Corpse Eater? Even if I killed all the Imps, I would still not be able to reach it, it is in a place too high for me. Aira any good ideas?"
[My Lord, the only options are for you to go up or for it to go down. Both seem difficult to achieve with what is available.]
"With Thief, I could jump higher, but I need footholds if I want to climb past 100 feet. Either that or I need to drag the corpse bastard down to earth."
[Indeed, my lord, it seems to be able to resist the pull of souls. I suppose this is a natural occurrence, the higher the classification of the enemy. As for footholds, only the flying Imps would be viable.]
I then wondered if there was any way I could force the Imps to take me to the D rank. The usual way to get what you wanted was either through negotiation, intimidation, or force.
'If I could not ask or scare them to fly higher, then the only option was to use elbow grease.'
"{Draw} Honey Trap."
A white vase in the shape of a succubus' curves appeared in my free hand. Being stupid, there was only one way I could think of to climb up to the corpse eater. Like the Yuddha Rakshas, I will now force them to follow what I wanted.
"{Thief}, {Regen}, {Sheath} M24, If the girls were here, they would call me a lunatic. {Honey Trap}!"
As I poured souls into the Soulgear I was holding, the same narcotic-like substance was released into the air. I felt its hold on me, grabbing my very being.
The desire was like lust, addiction, hunger all in one. My mind was filled with nothing but the need to bask in that sweet, sweet scent. A second later, the high vanished and the low began.
Irritation, annoyance, anger, frustration drove my mind almost to madness. Even though the Soulgear was already in my hand, I felt enraged.
Of course, if I felt the pull with such intensity, what more could the dumb demonkin flying above me feel?
The entire colosseum shrieked and screamed like a wild zoo. Howls and groans echoed not only from the sky, but from all around. The steel of the Yuddha Rakshas answered the wild fervor of the monsters. My focus, however, remained in the sky.
"SHIEEEEEEKK!!!"
Three Imps dive-bombed me, their stingers primed to strike my vitals. I didn't dodge all of them and allowed one to drive its stinger into my collarbone.
I then grabbed the stinger and used it to hurl the Imp into the air. At the same time, I was trampling on the Imps that passed by as their attacks missed.
Like a dance, I moved upward, using the demonkin as footholds More and more Imps rushed to assist my ascent. I repeatedly dodged or threw them upward before using their bodies to defy gravity.
Like steps on a ladder, I climbed up a staircase made of flesh. The poison from their attacks began to battle with {Regen}, scorching my veins like molten metal, but I could not stop now.
Thus while assaulted by over twenty Imps I climbed.