The Bloodforged Kin

Chapter 200 - 194: Mason - Platoon 1: Blake, Seraphina, Rodrick, and Ravena

"Platoon, halt!" Jim cried out, his platoon coming to a neat stop. Their squad had gone south to where the houses gave way to large city buildings. To their left was Lake Michigan, all eyes flicking nervously to its icy shores. In front and to the right of them were tall skyscrapers, previously hotels, business parks, and apartments. If they moved any further south they'd be entering into the city of Milwaukee proper, but this area had become a no-man's land. The city tended to stay focused around the heart of downtown, which left a large gap between them and the rich area that Mason had usurped. Miles of vacant buildings stood in front of them, with only the occasional scavenger or lone survivor choosing to test their fate here.

Twilight was fast approaching and already they could see shadowy movements between and on top of the buildings.

"Okay, listen up!" Jim's voice carried across the force that was packed down a four-lane street. "Squads are going to post up in these locations," he pointed to intersections to all four sides of him. "Squad five will remain here with me. Squads one through four, you are defense. Keep the creatures off of us, defend yourselves and hold your positions. Call out for help if you find yourself getting overwhelmed. Squad five, you are support and will move between squads as needed. When not needed you will remain here as backup to the Lieutenants. Keep your heads on a swivel and don't forget to look up. We don't know what's coming, but we can be sure it's going to come from all directions."

He turned to face the Hellbound and Enchantresses. "Sirs, if I may make a recommendation?" Although he was in charge of this operation he knew that he wasn't truly in charge. His job was to let them fight and keep them alive.

"Go on," Blake said. Jim couldn't help but notice that the tall man's eyes had grown distinctly clearer since they had left the mansion, Mason's influence growing weaker the further away they got.

"I believe that we're going to face creatures from the streets and from above," he pointed to the tops of the buildings. "If you move to just beyond squad one you will have clear grassland to your left and us behind you, which means you'll only be facing attackers from in front and to the right of you. This will allow us to keep your flank clear while you focus on the immediate threats."

Blake looked around, paying attention to what Jim had noticed. To their east was a long, sloping hill that led to a now-shuttered Colectivo, beyond which was the shoreline of the Lake. In front of them was a single winding road with tall condominiums, and to their right were single and two-storied houses. Anything coming at them from the south would have to make its way down the buildings, which would make them visible with plenty of warning. Anything from the west would be coming from the houses. That wasn't ideal as far as visibility, but it gave a lot of maneuvering room for the motorcycles. He returned his gaze to Jim and nodded his agreement.

"Good," Jim nodded in return. "Squad one - pull back! You are to act as support, but only if the escorts call for it. If they come back to you, open ranks to let them pass and defend their retreat. All other squads, stay alert. If we have to flee we are going to conduct a fighting retreat to the shoreline and work north. Any creatures coming from the water will be able to be spotted from a distance which should give us time to react. If we go into full retreat I want squad one leading a sprinting charge north, squad two will guard the left flank, squad three the right, and squad four the rear. Squad five will remain at the heart of the formation and cover the escorts. Does everyone understand these orders?"

A resounding "YES SIR!" echoed across the buildings, followed quickly by loud keening and howling.

The attack came soon after and all squads were immediately fighting to hold their positions. Large spiders skittered down the sides of buildings, leaping between them with casual ease. The squads had been tested against large creatures and General Tom's guidance was serving them well now. The General's skill, Perfect Formation, allowed him to know the best formations for any situation, the number of formations growing as his levels did. He was able to impart knowledge of those formations to his army, giving them an innate understanding of how to best execute them.

They were currently in a Phalanx formation, a strong shield wall forming the perimeter of the squad with lance and spearmen on the inside, attacking between the shields or over the shoulders of the shield bearers. Perfect Formation gave them the knowledge of the most effective use of the formation, the Macedonian Phalanx. The inner squad was armed with sarissas - 12-foot spears that were tipped with sharp metal blades meant for piercing without allowing the weapons to get caught in the enemy. The squad could push forward, attack, and pull back, leaving impaled bodies in their wake. The formation was perfectly suited to the environment and the attackers, the horse-sized tarantula-looking creatures, proved easy to keep at bay. Even when the creatures fell from above, the squads would shift their shields to above their heads and the sarissas would impale the falling creatures on a bed of spikes, coordinated shouting followed by them hurling the spiders off of the spears in tandem as the squads regrouped.

Jim assessed the battlefield, growing more confident as his squads maintained control over the area. The escorts, on the other hand, were another matter.

Blake, with Seraphina, and Rodrick, with Ravena, roared randomly back and forth across the street on their motorcycles, charging into each group of spiders and devastating their attacks. Blake's Bullet Storm was catching them mid-air, their bodies exploding in a hail of bullets before they could hit the ground. Seraphina was lashing out with Shadow Lash, the smoky tendrils slicing legs off of bodies that fell to a roll as they passed.

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

Rodrick was similarly charging creatures, but his attacks had to get up close - all of his targets were on the ground. He wielded the bat with terrifying force, each hit knocking a deep pit into the spiders' bodies and sending them flying into the distance. Ravena's Nightfall Gaze froze the creatures just as Rodrick reached them, making them easy targets.

Jim appreciated the power but began to grow worried at their tactics. They were all strength, all power, but no strategy. They were growing more and more confident as the fight waged on, but Jim knew it was only a matter of time before they were overwhelmed.

The tide of battle turned, not unexpectedly for Jim, when the Shadow Wolves appeared. Black creatures that were almost lost to the darkness behind them, their glowing red eyes the only indicator that they were there, charged in silently.

"Watch your flank!" Jim yelled, his order immediately ignored by the Lieutenants. With a curse he watched a trio of wolves take Rodrick and Ravena off their bike in a yowl of triumphant yips, the bike rolling to a stop and falling to its side.

"Blake, cover Rodrick!" Again, Jim's order went unheeded as Blake and Seraphina found themselves surrounded by wolves and spiders alike.

"Squad one, move in and cover Rodrick!" The squad responded immediately, rushing forward to lend support. Yells, curses, and shouts of alarm reached his ears but he was unable to see past the men to what was happening beyond. Cries of alarm came and squad one began backing up.

"I said support!" He yelled and sprinted forward. Squad one was still backing up when he reached them. He grabbed a soldier by the shoulder. "What is happening?"

"He's going crazy, sir!"

Jim pushed through the crowd and saw Rodrick in a panic, swinging his bat wildly around him. Ravena was attempting to hypnotize the creatures with Nightfall Gaze, but there were too many and they were being overwhelmed. Rodrick was swinging his bat in wide arcs, the strikes hitting the men of squad one more than the attacking creatures. He lifted his bat high before swinging it down, Quake Slam sending ripples through the earth and knocking many of his squad off their feet.

"Damn it Rodrick, you're breaking up the formation! Get it together and get behind the lines!" That finally broke through the man's panic and he looked at Jim with wide eyes. His gaze narrowed and he swung his bat again, Shatter Strike sending another, more targeted ripple through the ground - straight at the squad. The men in its path were thrown into the air and Rodrick charged through them, reaching the other side before the men began hitting the ground. Ravena was in shock at suddenly finding herself alone, Eclipse Touch suddenly flowing out of her in a wave that pulled in all the darkness around her. Instead of using its healing powers on the men, though, she funneled it all into herself as she ran towards the squad as well, cuts and gashes healing as she did so.

Blake and Seraphina had seen Rodrick's escape and began a fighting retreat towards the squad as well. The ground between them and the squad was a writhing mass of legs, teeth, and mandibles, though. Seraphina's Midnight Embrace was healing her and Blake as quickly as they took damage, but the strain was wearing on her. Blake's pistols were in his hands, pointing forward - towards the way to safety, towards the squad that was meant to protect them.

He opened fire and the hailstorm of bullets ripped a path through the creatures. Blake continued firing as he ran through the gap, Seraphina close on his heels. He didn't stop firing until he was through the creatures, his gaze so focused on safety that he didn't notice the front ranks of soldiers that were on their knees, clutching at bodies that had been riddled with bullet holes.

As the two reached the squad Jim grabbed Seraphina, dragging her to a stop. She whipped around, hissing at him with bared teeth.

"You need to use your power to heal these men!"

Seraphina glanced down at his hand, then back at the creatures that were reforming for a charge. "No time! We need to flee!"

He grabbed her shirt and pulled her closer, shouting in her face. "If you don't heal them they'll die! You did this, fix it!"

She slashed at him, her sharp nails carving grooves down his face and forearms. "You dare touch me? You dare order me?"

He had no time for this. He needed to keep her alive, but, more importantly, he needed to keep his men alive. He knew he couldn't appeal to her humanity, there was none of that left. Instead, he appealed to her survival instinct. Without releasing his grip he said "Look, if these men die there are less of them to protect you. We're about to be rushed, and your main shield force is dying on the ground. There's no one between you and them. Fix it or we all die."

That broke through and Jim released her with a sigh of relief as she waved Ravena over.

"We need to heal the chattel so we can get out of here." The two women looked down at the bleeding men with disinterest.

"Quickly, please." If they heard Jim's plaintive request they showed no sign.

The monsters charged and the Enchantresses went to work. Seraphina summoned Shadow Lash, using it to catch the creatures rather than cut them, pulling them close enough for her to touch. She touched them and activated Midnight Embrace, then touched a soldier, his wounds closing over. She repeated this as she walked the line of men, the fallen ones climbing to shaky feet and covering her with their shields. Ravena used Nightfall Gaze to freeze the creatures that got too close, trapping them in illusions that made them attack the creatures close to them, then used Eclipse Touch to pull the darkness from around them - and directly out of the Shadow Wolves - before funneling it into the soldiers. With the last of the men back on their feet, and the shield wall in place, Jim could finally breathe.

"Squads, form up! Running retreat to the waterline, then north. Fall in!"

The squads responded quickly, their phalanxes more than a match for the creatures now that they were away from the buildings and fighting only on the ground. Their retreat slowed from a sprint to a slog, each step hard won and paid for. If they had been able to see themselves from above they would have seen five neat boxes of men surrounding four panicked people, and a sea of writhing bodies surrounding them on all sides.