Braxton came to as the sun crested the sky. He was pinned under the body of a nightstalker. It's head had been disintegrated. The shadows were longer and he could feel the presence of the one across the street. He shifted into the one beside the body that had been his target. His head was still fuzzy from the close contact of the pulse rifle detonating. It had hit big cat's head right above him the night before. He wasn't sure if it was warm enough to negate the night vision or if he was being watched.
The gamble paid off as he reached the body. He placed his hand above the wrist watch on Rascal's arm and absorbed his gear. "Regal sniper rifle acquired, chain sword acquired, blood vials acquired x 5, barrens rat remains x 5 acquired, hunting data acquired, journal acquired. Empty power cells acquired x 10."
"Alpha does the Regal sniper rifle have any ammo?" Braxton thought.
"Inspecting... Regal power cell has enough power for one shot. Line of sight weapon details unclear." Alpha responded.
Braxton low crawled to the end of the wall he was hugging. Then he waited for the daily barrage of shellfire and attacking creatures to begin. If his enemy was preoccupied with hitting the bunker he would be less likely to notice a counter sniper.
When the first round hit and the blasts began, he slipped around the edge of the wall slowly with the Combat Camouflage active. He isolated the target using the trails left from the shells. His target had made the same mistake he himself had made when he entered the dumpster. He kept returning to the same location. The scope on this weapon was perfect. It zoomed in so close he could see the creature's third eye clearly. There was only one issue, he saw two rifle barrels. He focused on the target he could see, the second one wasn't visible at all. He would have to reposition the get a bead on Braxton at any rate.
Braxton line up his shot on the first target. Zoomed in on its third eye. Then gently he squeezed the trigger. There was no recoil and the target's head dropped a second later. There was no noise. The second barrel shifted uneasily in the tower, scanning for the source that took out his friend.
Braxton swapped his sniper rifles. The difference was night and day between the two. This scope sucked but he had a full clip of five rounds. He could see the second sniper adjusting but, it looked like a spec on he tower. The wind would also play a factor combined with the elevation differences and drop rates of the bullet. The UI calculated the data automatically and sorted it out for him. He locked his sight on the target area and waited. The second sniper needed reposition to try and find him and his weapon. Patience was a sniper's virtue, he had to remain calm and wait for the perfect shot.
There were two pulse rifles up for grabs, if he could clear them out. It wasn't without risks. They were two miles away but Braxton wanted one at least. Collecting the creatures blood he killed was another driving force.
Braxton was completely focus on his scope but he was aware of his surroundings. The training Blaze gave him opened his mind up. He knew someone was closing in on his position. The head appeared for a second atop the tower and he squeezed he trigger. Less then two seconds later he saw the impact and the head snap back. The blood splatter was much more graphic with this weapon, thankfully the scope wasn't as detailed.
Slowly Braxton looked at the approaching person or creature. "Damnit Blackjack. What the fuck are you doing creeping up on me when I'm sniping for. I guess you just volunteered to join me on a trip across the no man's land. There are two weapons looking for a new owner and I got dibs on one."
"What kind?" Blackjack asked.
"Both looked to be pulse rifles. One is for sure. Either way better scopes would be wonderful. Are you up for it?" Braxton stated.
"Sounds risky. What kind of hardware are you packing?" Blackjack asked.
"I've got five grenades, this sniper rifle, my bow and melee weapons." Braxton responded.
"Let's get some backup. Give me a few minutes. Keep and eye on that tower. We can get you Moonshadow's 9mm handguns she's sleeping anyway. My lady can use your sniper rifle. Our resources are limited but, we can probably get a few snipers to cover our assault easy. As long as I can talk the Major into backing our play. It shouldn't be hard, after I tell him we can grab the two weapons that have driven us underground for the last two years. Wait here I'll be back soon." Blackjack walked over to the body of the second mule and collected the resources. Then went down into the base camp again.
About fifteen minutes later a dozen people emerged from the base. Sniper rifles in hand, they took up positions around the camp. "Looks like you can keep your weapons. That kid had a bunch of weapons on him. I got you a set of 9mm for yourself. He had ammo too but, he wasn't carrying clips. So you only got two with the guns."
Blackjack placed his hand over Braxton's wristwatch and transferred the guns and a hundred rounds off 9mm ammo to him. "9mm acquired x two. One hundred 9mm rounds acquired." Like clockwork Alpha reported the acquisition of new hardware.
"Let's get moving. The two miles won't be all that easy. We have to clear and climb a tower. There are a dozen snipers covering our backs so that is a huge plus. We have a chance to fight back like soldiers. That is something we haven't had for quite a while. We need this and if it's following some punk ass kid, no one cares." Blackjack slapped Braxton on the back.
The couple walked across the two miles creeping. Blackjack was much more exposed. He didn't have camouflage hiding him and had to rely on training. He had years of combat experience to back it up. Shots rang out periodically as they wandered across the expanse. "If you get close to their bodies and can touch them collect the corpse. We can collect their blood later. They don't spoil in the storage compartment of the watches." Blackjack informed Braxton.
"Good info." Braxton replied.
It took an hour to reach the tower. Braxton summoned both 9mm pistols before entering the tower. The pair climbed the tower to the third floor without incident. They collected three bodies each on the way. They were all humanoid creatures they looked like lizards in many regards. Their skin was covered with red and white scales. They also collected an assortment of melee and ranged weapons.
When they neared the fourth floor, they could hear a commotion on the floor. It wasn't massive but it was movement. There was little doubt something was still alive inside the rooms. The roof was only one floor above and the pair decided to bypass the current obstacle. Opting to reach the roof and the cause of their lingering distress first.
When the pair slipped onto the roof, they saw the two dead snipers and found an odd looking tower. They collected the bodies and the weapons first. "Pulse rifle acquired. Energy crystals x 3 acquired. Power cells x 5 acquired. Railgun acquired."
"What do you think that tower might be?" Braxton questioned Blackjack.
"Only one way to find out. You should do the honors." Blackjack replied.
"Okay." Braxton said as he approached to tower.
"Energy charging station located. Would you like to absorb charging station?" Alpha queried.
"Absolutely!" Braxton responded. The energy tower vanished and entered the watch.
"What was it?" Blackjack asked.
"A charging station for power cells I think. We can power up cells and have unlimited ammo for energy weapons if my guess is right." Braxton replied.
"Holy sheep shit! We need to get back. This could be a serious game changer." Blackjack said in hushed tones.
"Let's try and slip back out as quiet as we came in. It's less important to clear the tower than returning with this treasure. They can't recharge and continue to hit everyday this way without it." Braxton mused.
"Agreed." Blackjack responded.
The pair slipped silently back to the ground floor and returned under the protection of the snipers. The return trip only took a half hour.