Ch. 2 - Test of Courage

Within the subway, they would hear the zapping of broken lights and wires that hung, it was utterly dark, without a flashlight, they would surrounded by the darkness.

There was a natural mist at feet level of pure dark magic, they walked with every step feeling heavy. The subway station was still decorated in the time before the fallout, and so they headed down, Michele and his team. They saw the abandoned train with their lights and then jumped down onto the tracks.

"Fuck... the dark magic here is high... masks on , we don't want magic poisoning." He then put on his mask. "Nvg's on too. This this turf got it... no messing around..." he said and then turned off his flashlite.

They all followed and did as told as they began to take turns moving, with let last along with Charlie watching their backs.

Michele looking around it began.

A boy whimpering can be heard.

A woman pleas for help.

Sudden shadows began to move along the wall.

"Sir..."

"Ignore them... focus on what you can see with your own eyes... don't let your mind play tricks on you, or panic... they love fear... and if you piss yourself that also lures them..." he make a slight joke.

The mean looked at one another pausing.

"That's a joke..." he confirmed.

They went on and followed close.

The captian was seeing them on their magical sonar and maps. "Proxy... you need to pick up the pace."

"Your having me lead a bunch of kids dammit... I am doing my damn best with what I got" he grunted back.

"I'm pulling your leg... anyways... your making already good pace...we're watching above." He said. "We'll keep coming clear for you... but check every 15 minutes."

"Understood..." he then looked at his own write pad and looked at his personal sonar and wouldn't find anything.

It was grueling. And haunting. Enemies were everywhere, making noises of the dead. Yet nowhere in site.

"Alright, everyone hear me...? Leaders check in."

"Alpha check"

"beta check"

"Charlie check"

"delta good too."

"Good, now... you all need to know something.... we're far from home base now... we just been walking yeah... but it'll take to long for back up to help, and we're easily able to get ambushed... so back teams... Charlie amd delta, your gonna need to set a stage one checkpoint right here..." he told them.

"We have those lights and with magic you can make old school barricade... so get to it... cover both sides of the tracks and lay out those lights... lucky enough everything down here hates light... amd We'll clear up some.of this dark mist that's slowing us down... can you two teams handle?" He asked.

"Yeah, we got the first checkpoint. And we'll hold our best here for you." They then stayed put and began to lay down their back packs and began to set up a checkpoint.

"Right in... alpha, beta, move... beta your rear now." Michele said and walked again leading.

More walking happened, as they stopped at a another subway. However, this area had a nest.

"Oh shit..." Michele said, stopping his team

"We got a Jumper nest." He then looked at his team.

"Finally some action." One soilder said.

"Shut it... set up a line.. and lace the trap magic... you idiots can handle that right?" He said as he then went into his pouches getting a magic talisman to use on his weapons ammo. Applying the fire attribute to his shells.

"Done sir..." beta lead said.

"Use your talismans to load flame rounds with your ammo... once we shoot, and since it's a nest... were gonna get overwhelmed and fast. And likely, well see those baddies I told you about... luckily our talismans handle everything, but we only have so many. Do not spare ammo." He told.them. "form a line... one me."

Michele took aim. Once everyone else also was ready, they waited. "Fire..." they opened fire, and a hail or bullets were used to clear the nest, burning it and killing, shredding the beast with every bit of ammo used.

Then yells from behind started. "Beta team, watch backs... alpha and omega move slowly up." He said reloading slowly taking stepped forward.

"Wait! Your jot leaving us!."

"I said don't panic, focus!" He yelled on coms. And then the nightmares showed up behind them and they began to run on fours sprinting for beta team, a small pack of them but they were quickly killed and taken out.

Once at the nest hive, Michele tossed fire spells. "Spells and burn every bit." He told them. Making sure the hive was cleared and the path was back open to them on the tracks. "Aid beta team, alpha team and set up second checkpoint... omega, were gonna keep pushing, half point isn't far."

"Yes sir!" They then stayed and helped opening fire and then setting up camp.

"I hope to..." just before he finished that, he then remembered the overlord he met. "Hmmm.."

"You alright sir?" A woman asked.

"Yes... keep going, I hope my men are gonna fine is all..." he said expressing his thoughts.

"They will, you've been an excellent leader." She said to him and smiled under her mask.

"That voice... and you the caps daughter?" He asked.

"Yes. I am. Nice to work with you again Proxy." She said.

"I didn't notice you, sorry..."

"With how worked up you are... don't blame you sir..." she had no issue.

"We're almost at half point... let's stay on top." He said.

"Understood..." she agreeded staying now by his side.

After some more walking. They were at the mid way point. "No one.here yet... set up finally checkpoint." He told them.

"Hq...." he talked to his mic. "Hq, checking in this is proxy over."

Broken coms were a he God. "Proxy?! Can... hear me?! Get! Multiple!!" Theh kept breaking.

He did his best until he then pieced it together. "Guns up! Multiples!"

"Isn't it the other party!" One asked.

"Guns up, you heard" the girl said grabbing hers at the ready.

"Oh shit..." Michele then saw on his own radar on his wrist. "We got a wraith... run! All of you" he then grabbed a grenade.

A massive abomination of corpses began to crawl, as it gurgled and whined. It had many mouths on its body, all deformed and letting out a black mist. It then locked its eyes on him and the rest if his team as then began to convulse until it threw up dead bodies, which reanimated as walking dead.

"Open fire and move back..." Michele unpinned the grenade and tossed it hard into the beast. Then used an explosive talisman to alter his ammo type again.

He yelled for them to back up and they did, but watched as he walked forward. Unloading every shell he had in his drum back into it blowing chuck that also blew up into doing massive damage.

"Support him!" The girl said shooting the walkers that went toward him to keep his path clear.

The beast tried to then grab him, but he just shot its shoulder and then pulverized its arm as it feel, he kept holding the trigger until the thing was chucks and quickly swapped mag's to make sure it was in chucks and dead.

Once it was dead and the path beyond the track was clear. He then looked at his radar. "How was it triggering so many reds?" He wondered and then heard more a microphone in a chuck of its body. He dug his hand into it amd heard a man in it calling for its strike team. "Who's strike team?" He asked the man over the mic.

"Who is this?"

"Fort rite..." Michele didn't say anything else.

"What happened to strike team did they meet with you? Why is no one answered? Were forman."

"Sorry... but... somehow it seems a wraith got to them first.. I killed the thing... but... no bodies... I'm Proxy... is there more of your team left?" Michele explained.

"I see... thank you for avenging them... yes, we have more teams... we set up checkpoints... follow the path straight ahead in front of you. If your really Fort Rite people. Then you shouldn't have a problem." The man said over the com.

"Gotcha, well, your my eyes now... I lost signal with my overarching, I have my team and were gonna keep pushing... let me know what see and let the other squads know we're pushing up... actually, second that... let me I alone am pushing, I'll my team set up a final checkpoint in the middle here." Michele said and looked at her other 4 members signaling them with a head nod to set up here.

"Understood... don't die. I'll try to convince one to meet you to be safe... not sure if you notice, but the monster activity has been out of control." The man said.

"What do you mean? On our end, we hardly ever saw any... we dealt with a Jumper , but no dark monsters." He brought up. "You four!" He spoke to his team. "Contact the other teams! Now!"

He then checked his ammo and swapped magazines. "We lost come because they around lurking, and waiting, let the other squads know..." he told both his team and the man on the earpiece. "I'm gonna b line and support your team, once me meet, get your standby team down so we can have a secure route" Michele said to the man and then ran down the train tunnel alone and in the dark.

For the next 30 minutes, he was alone and in the dark. And ignored the phantoms he was seeing against the walls of the tunnel. He also ignored the pleading cries for help of people he knew were not alive.

Those 30 minutes felt grueling, a long, even while in a light run. The path seemed long. He then snapped back to reality when he heard the woman in his head again.

"Your queit dependable... I'm glad I choose you. Or rather lucky, you've proven to be dependable." She chuckled.

"You are just a voice... a trick by these monsters... leave it be." He told himself.

"I will not be compared to a creature..." she then snapped her fingers and forced him to the wall almost like he was attacked by a poltergeist. "Apologize." She said, even seem to be pouting in her tone.

"What the!?" He then tried to resist. "Then what are you?"

"Did you forget our chat?" She then sighed .

"No... but that's not what I mean..." he tried to think what she was, aside from what she's told him.

"I told you idiot, I'm an overlord... but... I get the hint, that's not what you mean... did I assume right?" She asked.

"Yeah, whatever... not let me move dammit...!" He said reisting her supernatural magic somehow.

"Fine..." she then released him.

He would grab his gun and aim down looking around a second, and then check his radar. "Shit..." he then saw and heard Nightmares. He would start shooting, dodging and shoving any that pounced, making sure to divide the few in the ambush one at a time.

The battle would start, with him firing down forward, using the pillars of the subway that separated the tracks as a sort of cover to stop them from pouncing, and force them to charge at him. However as he shot a few down range, they begannto dig their claws into the walls and run along them trying to pin him down and corner him.

"Tch... so damn many of you..." he would run out of ammo, and couldn't exactly swap to a fresh magazine, so instead he pulled out his pistol and knife tossing the weight of his shotgun to he could freely move, as he began to take to close combat. Which. Was a far dangerous option.

Nightmares, are pack beasts. And ruthless. Sharp claws, fangs, deformed backs and open chest with broken rubs that act like a separate mouth along its underbelly. It was a four legged monsters and while it was physically equal to hyenas, it's pack mentality made it extremely dangerous. And he was dealing with a great number of them alone.

A few had already been killed, but they kept pushing as some began to pounce on him from walls, only to them meet his magical embedded fist, causing an explosion from the contact his fist made with it head. It was almost that like a shotgun blast with each punch. But his knife was also incredibly sharp and strong, in fact, special melee weapons are made now, magic embedded tools for easy and efficient killing of these beast. But they must be made by magical smiths, which are even rare along with weapons smiths. He would cut there limbs to forcefully cripple and kick away.

Every attack he landed packed a punch meant equal to a Cristal car crash. His attacked were heavy and fatal to each, as he didn't hold back.

He dodged, dived, parried and strike until he found himself over a small hill of bodies of his kills. Then, they began to pull back, the rest of the pack ran into hiding again along the subways system. He then wiped his blade, and put reloaded his pistol. "Hmph..." he didn't even break a sweat. And while what he did was impressive. He was the only one in his settlement that coukd do what he just did.

Running can be heard in his direction and the member from Foreman notice his work upon seeing him. "No way... a single man did this?" It was a woman, by her voice and the shock made her forgot a moment why she ran over.

He went and picked up his shotgun and finally slipped a new magazine and chambered a fresh shell. "Gonna stand there or report?" He said to her walking up to her and looked down at her.

"Oh! Sorry, yeah, I'm Trix... Forman, in squad two. I heard squad one was killed... I. Here to meet you and guide you with us... In fact now that we made contact, I'll let them know to role out the second team and we can connect out route." She said.

"Agreed, let's stay here... we'll be the checkpoint for this dark zone... no lights, so you go any fire starters." While trying to send a message out to his squad.

"This area is to dangerous... we." She then remembered. The sight of him. "I understand." She then got in contact with her squad behind her and relayed the same message.

Both would get conformation of the meeting, and so both side rolled out their second teams to help claim the tunnels and even set up more lights.

This operation would take time, but now they had to play defense in the dark.

Trix would start setting fire spots with her magic, as she began to set up also wall traps. "You just gonna stand their or help me out and at least set up a perimeter?"

"I don't know how... I'm better giving orders or killing something." He said. "And call me Proxy. That's my op name." He said to her.

"Right..." she was annoyed.

However, while both were seemingly working together. They had doubts of each other.

After all, she hadn't question how one man could wipe out half a pack of those monsters all alone. He naturally assumed they knew

About him somehow.

He also wondered who she was, she was clearly a magic Smith, based on her tools on her belt. Rare as those people are, sending them alone risky as she was a valuable resource in terms of power. He had to guess she was hiding her strengths or st least something about her was different from most soldiers.

"How are you in a fight... have to be good, if you get sent this far alone..." he said to her.

She felt like he was trying to get something out of her. "Well, naturally... girls aren't weak you know."

"Wasn't what I was getting at... I'm just saying... you had to on your own a pretty long time to get to me... our station are to far apart... making checkpoints make sense... and we are both far out from our teams to meet here... and your here alone. How did you not run into that pack that was in front of me first?" He asked. Wondering if she was trying to set them up. But of course he took that back. "Well... who knows how these monster could be thinking."

"I used Stealth magic..." she told him. "I'm no fighter... but I do use ambush tactics. I hope your not undermining me." She scoffed.

"I'm not." He cleared and let her know he was keeping an eye on her while she set up the checkpoint.

Light soon came to be in their area, and so they had their checkpoint. "We're pretty far out... think we can hold out?" She asked. "I guess that's silly to ask, since I saw you standing over so many of the Nightmares."

"It depends if I'm honest. I had to use a lot of my mana to fend off most. And I'm down to my last few talismans. And my ammo is almost ran through. I gotta thank Amanda for hooking me up with the best." He sighed and began to redistribute his ammo. Taking out the many in his small capacity magazines, to fill his two drums.

"No worries. Why not let me set up electric traps." She said wanting to help.

"Go right ahead, keep com's clear, and ring for me and I'll rush over" he told her, while laying out his gear as well. "Damn I wish this wasn't so heavy."

"For sure..." she then used her Stealth magic to start placing metal rods along the ground and another to the ceiling, as she threw with force to get them stuck. The string connecting them was also a sort of metal, amd using her magic she began to enchant them with lighting, set to go off once touched. She lined up many more as to make sure she proved herself. And luckily no disturbances for now. She would come back and still in her Stealth to watch him.

He couldn't see her, but sensed her. "I'm fine being the target of any baddies agro, but you better cover." He scolded.

"Are you even human?" She asked. "It's been bothering me... how one guy can take out both a wraith and a decently large pack of those nightmares." It was bothering her. The sheer accomplishment he did was never heard off. "Usually, you run... or even we abandon this mission... but because of you accomplishment, we can still pull this off... just who are you?"

He listened intently, as she would reveal herself again to speak. Once she finished he then narrowed his eyes in her direction. "I am human. I cried when I lost my niece just some days ago... I loved at one point too. I'm also angry, that everything I seem to find a people I care for, they die because I couldn't do anything." He had flashbacks, memories of those he cared for ever since he was born into this world. "So, I'm human. As for my accomplishments... they aren't as great as you think they are... I had good ammo, so I destoyed parts of the bodies. I used the fire attribute to also burn them and kill them faster... I just did what we naturally are taught." He explain.

"Hmm..." she thought. "I get there's truth to it... but... those monsters also distrup our magic... they do it because of the machine parts in them... its... a miracle what you did. Can't you see that? Magic cast time is reduced when so many of them are around you... and it's power." She argued. "And surely, you've must have be under the effects they also place on our minds... throughout that fight, you should have had a headache equal to your skull splitting, you should have died there and been eaten alive." She kept pointing out.

"She's right you know..." the woman in his head said to him. "Your mind... should have been playing tricks on you... those monsters do that thing, where they mimic voices... you also know... even though people know to run away from them... they still fall for such a rouse... it's because they also play with your mind. It didn't happen to you... because I'm harboring your soul... no mongrol will be strong enough to distract our thoughts."

The realization, that he indeed should be dead, shook him. He looked at the ground and couldn't speak up.

"Keep your secrets... but I will report this." She said to him.

"Well need to make it out alive first." He said. Getting ready for another fight.

She took it a threat and instinctively aimed at him with her submachine gun.

He looked at her and put on his equipment and then reached for his gun.

"Don't you dare move..." she said.

"I think you'll want me too... unless you haven't noticed... the rest of the pack is here... and what's worse." He then saw true form of ghouls bodies. His mind couldn't be played with, so instead of seeing what was suppose to be someone he cared for, he saw the true body of them. Walking slim shadows a face like a void as it dripped black fog.

She then looked and saw someone she cared about. "M-mat...?" She lowered her gun.

Which he then picked up his and used another fire talisman to kill it where it stood. Then also notice Nightmares, moving around and mimicking the voices of dead soldiers. Now using her words against her. "This ain't normal... monster hunt for themselves... or packs... why are two different creatures... working together?!" He then gut checked her. "Snap out of it, dammit!"

She then coughed and was looking at him after she witnessed for the second time her best freind killed. "Oh fuck...!" She tried to use her Stealth, buy as the pack got closer she couldn't. "No! No... !" She grabbed her gun and got her back against his.

"Focus you brat! I won't let you die here... so don't waist this chance... to let loose... fight with everything you have, with all your strength, fight with me.!" He yelled and raised her moral, as they then dashed apart from one another.

Gunfire was heard.

Both each party coukd hear. "Move! Move! Help them! Now!" Each side wanted to meet them. And the gunfire only got louder and louder dust kicked, fire was spread amd sparks from lightning magic was also dispersed.

Proxy, and trix used every bit of magic, ammo they had, both covering one another. Even though they just met, seemed to be each other's bad side. They knew. They rather put up a fight than die to the monsters. They pushed one another, shot past, even help combo magic as they caused such a scene by the time both respected parties met up with them. A small army form both sides would see them.

Purple flames, light sparks zapping in the old tunnels lights and along the metal rails. The camp look liked a battle field as they also had blood and guts on them like crazy and along their feet were the corpses of the many monsters they had to kill to stand their ground. At some point. Her machine gun was used as a bat, and it was broken around the stock. His shogun bitten in half and destoyed. They were on the ground together panting with her resting her head on his shoulder. He had his knife and would look at the group of soldiers from both factions.

She spoke up first "about time..." she was holding her waist as she was cut up, and he was also in the same condition, but he was more worried about her safety.

He then spoke up "is there a healer?"

He asked to which both teams brought there medical specialists to aid them both.

The captain of both squads met and began to initiate the trade route and make it viable. They brought up how they had to seal off all the other paths with gates if they wanted to use them in the future. But also to check the power rooms throughout the tunnels to clean hives or nest.

The other members of the second teams each gossips. The many corpses and many more they past and the hearing of the wraith and many nightmare corpses, they wandered too how they weren't dead. But it was summed up to them getting lucky, no actual skill.