In the deep darkness of the Dark Cataclysmic Era was a military convoy going through the southern highway of Goshen County. Heading towards the devastated and infamous bastion of the County, the convoy brimmed with four Vanguards, two H10 Armored Trucks, two Panther APCs, and a single Hammer IFV.
The military convoy was the seventh and eighth platoon of the Cerberus's Military second company. Led by two Cerberus Officers and an army of over a hundred soldiers, they were deployed to cleanse the entirety of the fallen bastion of any aberrant.
This will be a big battle for the two platoons.
And it wouldn't go unnoticed.
The unmaintained asphalt of the highway rumbled as the military convoy passed by. The convoy's engines roared while their lustrous headlights gleamed forward with brilliance unrivaled in the darkness of the wasteland.
The column of armored vehicles attracted numerous aberrants in the surrounding area. But when such abominations met the convoy. In a mere split second, a hole would emerge in their heads, making them fall to the ground like a lifeless statue. The accuracy of the Marksmen wasn't to be underestimated.
The military convoy pushed through in the pitch-black of the neverending wasteland. It was like an arrow piercing through the dark, confidently striding without care of those who may discover the ambers of their luster. And someone did come across the passing column of military vehicles.
It was from afar, but the radiance of the military convoy shone from miles away. They hid within the forest's darkness on a protruding hill and silently observed the convoy in the distance. Their hearts didn't know what to feel upon perceiving the military convoy. Only emptiness dwelled.
"Are they really a part of the military?" A shadowy figure of a middle-aged man questioned while hiding in the bushes. He wore ragged clothes with a bow in his arms and a sack of arrows behind him. Scars were all over his face, having stories of their own. Though, his eyes uttered disbelief.
He couldn't believe what he was seeing with his eyes. He thought of it as an illusion, but when others noticed the convoy. The middle-aged man understood that it was reality. The army had returned to the Goshen County.
"I don't think so... From the appearances of their armored vehicles, they don't seem to be from the Imperial Military. Though they might be an army of their own. Operating without the government's influence." Another man wearing a broken eyeglass muttered to the middle-aged man.
"They seem to be too strong for a private military force. The Imperial Military would have never allowed such an army to exist." A pony-tailed lady with brown jeans and a white t-shirt remarked. All of them nodded in agreement with her words.
"The Imperial Military doesn't matter now, to begin with. In this Dark Cataclysmic Era, there is no Imperial Military. Only random remnants of Imperial Divisions or Brigades. Besides, those bastards are cowards who protect those so-called nobles." A young lady expressed her annoyance.
"So, are they part of a remnant Brigade?" The middle-aged man asked, making the young lady, who was annoyed, shake her head in disagreement. "The vehicles the military convoy has don't belong to the Empire. I don't remember seeing such cars in the army."
"We can only conclude that it's a private military force operating in Goshen County. Though, I wonder why we only notice them now." The young lady squinted her eyes as numerous thoughts passed through her head. Several questions dwelled in her mind.
But she doubted her teammates would have any answers to any of it.
"Where do you think they are heading?" The pony-tailed lady wondered with curiosity in her eyes. The young lady glanced at her and was about to answer. But the middle-aged man intruded before she could utter her answer.
"With the route, they are going... There's a possibility that they will be heading to that warehouse."
"That warehouse!?" The man with glasses uttered with shock. The others also shivered upon hearing the warehouse from the middle-aged man's lips. They had no good memories of that place. There was only regret, suffering, and death. None of them wish to remember it.
"I can't believe an army is heading to that place."
"Is it about time for that hellhole to be liberated?" The pony-tailed lady exclaimed with excitement. While she feared the warehouse, she hated it deeply in her bones. She wanted its existence to crumble so that the others would find relief after what had happened a couple of months ago.
"Ever since the Dark Cataclysmic Era, humanity has been on a lose streak against the abominations that dwell in the darkness. I don't know the results of two forces fighting against one another. But I know it will cause waves throughout Goshen County."
"Countless groups like us roamed the wasteland after our homes fell. I'm sure that many others will take notice, and I'm confident that it wouldn't have positive reactions. Nonetheless, I hope they will succeed in liberating the warehouse. Humanity only needs one victory."
"After all, despair has been prevalent since the fall of the settlement, New Torrington. Some survivors in the Gathering came from that place and talked about how that place fell in the flood's devastation." The young lady sighed to herself.
"The stories, nightmares, and horrors they have seen caused a ripple that lowered the morale of the Gathering. So, a group fighting back is elevating to think about. But a large group like that also has tons of supplies, and what does a group of survivors do when hearing supplies?"
"I'm sure we'll hear massacres of numerous groups in the future. I'm sure this new force wouldn't be merciful to thugs and gangsters of the wasteland." She chuckled since she also wanted those thugs to die in one way or another.
"What should we do?" The man with glasses asked while looking at the young lady. The others also glanced at her, awaiting her decision. She just smirked at her group and waved her hands. The young lady had no plans of getting in trouble with the new force.
Her motto as a survivor was more avoidance and less contact. With this motto, her team's survival rate would be higher than ordinary groups. So there was only one thing they could do.
"Let's return to the Gathering and report the existence of a new army to others. We should also warn them to not contact the new force. It's better to observe first, then act later." The young lady stood up and walked away from her hiding spot.
The others followed her lead as they plunged deeper into the dark forest, returning to the so-called Gathering.
Meanwhile, an Officer within the H10 Armored Truck in the middle of the military convoy gazes at the darkness in the distance. His eyes furrowed as he instinctively felt being watched by several individuals. But he knew that this would be unavoidable. After all, this was a mass deployment of Cerberus Forces.
They were bound to attract some attention.
"It seems that some survivors are roaming in this area." The Officer furrowed his eyebrows while another Officer remarked. "The Director hasn't given us clear orders regarding civilians or survivors. I believe we shouldn't interact with them until the end of the operation."
"I have the same thoughts. It would be problematic if survivors and civilians bring trouble with them." The Officer nodded in agreement.
The military convoy continued piercing through the darkness, and it didn't take more than ten minutes for them to arrive at their destination. They have arrived at Target B, the warehouse considered the Bastion of Goshen County.
The Vanguards of the column separated from their position and went forward. The remaining vehicles of the convoy stayed behind to establish basic defensive fortifications. Numerous soldiers stepped out of the APCs and H10 Armored Trucks, preparing for the offensive.
The Drone Specialists took out their drones and threw them into the skies. Several drones hovered above the location as their cameras observed the surroundings of the warehouse. They noticed some aberrants aimlessly roaming around and reported their findings.
Everything appeared to be ordinary until they noticed a hole behind the warehouse. It was a deep hole surrounded by darkness. The drones couldn't get any readings about the pit, but the Drone Specialists felt it was dangerous. A possible variable in the Target B Operation.
Without delay, the Drone Specialists reported their new findings and worries about its existence. The Officers leading the two platoons nodded in understanding as they understood that a variable had emerged in Target B. So, an Officer glanced at the Communication Operator and ordered.
"Send a report to the FOB. Target B has a possible variable in the form of an unknown pit. Danger and hazard levels are not known. We will be attempting to check through grenade launchers. Flares will give us enough information about it."
Hearing his orders, the Communication Operator began encoding the message and sending it to the FOB. In mere seconds, the short response from the FOB entered the ears of the Communication Operator. He nodded and turned his head towards the Officer before reporting the reply.
"No related information about the pit has been discovered in the retrieved files of the southern shelter. Testing and recon approved! Retreat when danger level becomes company-rated." With the approval of the FOB, the Officer ordered the plan to be stepped forward.
On the other hand, the other Officer began ordering his platoon to prepare for battle. They were poking something unknown, so it was better to be ready for a confrontation. Who knows what may come out from the pits of darkness.
The two platoons began moving efficiently and swiftly. The Grenadiers pointed their grenade launchers to the skies. Their launchers were loaded with flares. The Officers stood in front of them while the Drone Specialists kept observing the deep hole of pitch-black.
""Fire!!!""
*Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!*
The flares launched up to the skies and pierced through the air. Whistles resounded throughout the air before a lustrous light brilliantly shone from above. The soldiers glanced to the heavens, where numerous stars gleamed. The radiant lights descended to the pits and gave light to its darkness.
The Drone Specialists who observed from afar saw something horrifying. It was a massive and disgusting nest of an Aberrant Flood where thousands of abominations slumber. The lustrous lights of the flares awoken the slumbering monsters, resulting in echoing cries.
*Graaahhh!* *Argh!* *Kayrrr!*
"Thousands of aberrants detected! All of them are awakening!" One of the Drone Specialists reported while the two Officers furrowed their eyebrows. They were in deep thought, wondering what they should do. Dozens of ideas went through their head until only one remained.
"Let's start an offensive!" The Officer expressed while the other one nodded in agreement. "The abominations are currently stuck in the hole. An unmoving enemy is an opportunity waiting to be taken. So let's make a move as immediate as possible."
"Prepare the Grenadiers and have them launch highly-flammable ordinance towards the pit."
"APCs, IFVs, and Vanguards will be structured in a formation."
"The soldiers will take cover using the vehicles or terrain. Be cautious in the battle. Your lives are a priority."
The Officers started giving several orders to the two platoons. The Grenadiers loaded their grenade launchers with a new ordinance. They pointed it toward the skies once again and awaited a firing command. The roars of the abominations echoed in the darkness, but the Cerberus soldiers were determined.
""Aim...""
""Fire!!!""
*Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!* *Bang!*
Echoes of explosives launching to the skies reverberated throughout the platoons. The balls of death propelled through the darkness and went directly to the interior of the pitch-black pit. It only took a second before a lustrous light escaped the grasp of the deep hole.
And what followed the gleaming light was the resounding fiery explosion.
*Boom!!!* *Boom!!!* *Boom!!!* *Boom!!!* *Boom!!!* *Boom!!!*