Cole could smell the undead long before he could even see them. And that was saying something of how intense the stench was, because he was not the only one who could. There was a small army gathered around him, roughly about 200, half of which were Aspirants, while the others were denizens of the fourth floor. They had gone on ahead to build a barricade that would stem the flow of the undead, or at least slow them down while sanctuary got it's defenses up.
This was a chokepoint though, they would slay the undead here first, holding the line as long as they could before retreating to some three other points before all that would be left was the walls of sanctuary itself. Cole was hoping these waves never got to the point where they all had no other choice but to defend from sanctuary's walls. So with any luck they would hold the line here and deal with the waves before it has the chance to get close to the base itself….. but when has anything ever gone the way it was planned.
Not that Cole wanted to jinx them but, this was the reality. And the undead in this fucking world were something unlike anything he has ever come across. But not to say he was afraid or anything, unlike any other of his previous fights, this time he had the personnel and the equipment to put up a fight against the waves that were coming their way. Apart from the barricade that was just about four feet in height, four massive rail guns were placed in different areas, each of them charging up for the fight that was coming.
Cole had been left in charge of the denizens and aspirants, and while not many of the denizens could understand why the fuck they had to answer to an aspirant, the aspirants fell in line really quickly much to Cole's surprise. He knew he was a little famous, but ultimately he had no idea just how famous he was. Equipment in the form of powerful assault rifles, capable of punching through Reinforced Kevlar armor or in some cases a steel plate had been distributed amongst them, giving Cole range to whittle down the zombies before they ever got close.
And then from afar, Cole could see them, their forms shambling in the desert dust as the hearing haze of the sun's heat beat down upon them. It was just after noon, which means they'd have to deal with the ridiculous amount of heat for A few more hours, Cole didn't like that, as they would be dealing with the zombies through it all. Never the less it was time for a fight, and also time for a speech…..perhaps he could skip that part, it really wasn't necessary.
"Target In Sight!" one of the denizens called out, as a lot of people quickly snapped into attention. Cole sighed as he got over the barricade and began to walk from one end of it to the other. The fact that he did that was more than enough to draw attention from everyone else, as they all wanted to see what he would do, or what he would say. Cole wasn't nervous, in times last that he's had to take care of something like this, the words just came on by themselves, so he was going to rely on his gut.
"So sorry for the heat today guys, it's turning out to be a real bitch, but I digress. If the sun is this merciless on us, imagine what it's like for the horde currently heading our way, but it doesn't matter because SANCTUARY! You fate now hangs in the balance!" his abrupt yelling was enough to fully snap all attention to himself, and perhaps Cole didn't know it yet, but his entire getup was one of mystique and danger, it made people wary of him, especially those who could feel the power bubbling underneath his mask.
But it also made him bloody fucking charismatic. Every step he took, the way he swung his arms, the way he tilted his head and leveled his piercing golden orbs at the people in front of him, each and every single one of them thinking that he was addressing them and anything other than absolute loyalty and attention to Cole was a quick way to an early grave, or such a loss that they would not be able to live with themselves for missing it. He oozed it and flexed it like no one they had ever seen before, Like a Legendary General and an A List celebrity in one package.
"Today it doesn't matter if you're denizens of this world or aspirants from another, shit's about to go down and if no one is ready to stand we're all going to get all kinds of fucked up. I will skip the bullshit and lay out the reality of our situation to you, it's not looking good. We know for a fact that we have to deal with multiple waves, we don't know how many Banelings are in a single wave of what level of strength they'll have.
But look to your right and look to your left, the men and women you see besides you, you might not see them again by the time this is over. But many of you, especially those of you who are denizens are here to protect something. To protect the home that has afforded you a chance to grow and be happy and be safe. You all stepped up to be first on the battlefield, first on the front, and for that I respect you. And because of that I and my people would give as much as we can to help you protect your home.
Aspirants! We're all gamers here, but we know the reality of the world we have found ourselves in. This is not a joke, lives are at stake, and an entire civilization will burn if we do Not Hold The Line here! Let's not kid ourselves or lie these people, we're not here out of nobility, we're here for power, and power you all will get. But give that power you seek meaning, because on this day, songs would be made. On this day history will remember each and every one of you as heroes who stood to fight for the survival of a civilization ….. we're no heroes.
What we do best since this entire event has started is fuck shit up, and without an Iota of doubt my lovelies I expect you to fuck shit up in a colossal way for them zombies. Humanity has a propensity for destruction that has never been seen or will ever be matched by any other race in the universe. Denizen or Aspirant we're all humans here, forget the scary looking demonic figure in front of you, what I am, at my Core is HUMAN! So these things that have forgotten what it's like to be human are to be pitied but not to be shown mercy.
Because it is times like this that we need to remind the world…. No! We need to remind the fucking universe that we're humans, we love, we hate, we create and we destroy and be God! We're the best fucking monsters at any given time, on any give battlefield, at any given day! So guys... try not to have too much fun, TO ARMS!"
There was a wave of smiles and chuckled that went around the ranks. Cole had at least lightened things up for them, and kit a fire under all of them. He brought the denizens and the aspirants together through humanity's shared love for violence. Especially when it is done in the name of protecting something you believe in, or in the case of the aspirants, gaining more levels and power and ascending to the next floor.
Either way Cole quickly got to work putting all of them in a formation, Creating three lines of attackers, that would switch amongst themselves. Letting the front like retreat to the back to restock and rest from the combat, while the line behind more fresh or a little rested would move to the front to pick up the slack. The first line was comprised completely of Aspirants, the second was a mix and the final one was fully denizens.
Cole did it this way because the Aspirants had a faster rate of recovery than the denizens, they were literally cheating by working on video game rules. Plus while not many people knew this, they had a cheat in the form of Cole who could absorb energy from one being and transfer it to another….. he just had to use this opportunity to learn how to do it in an extremely large scale. But no pressure the fight hadn't even begun yet.
The horde stopped when there was just about a hundred feet of separation between them and Cole's army. If that was not proof of a higher intelligence, then Cole did not know what is. They were completely still, letting off an eerie silence that shook everyone present to their core. Cole smiled, this was an intimidation tactic, they almost could not see the end of the line for the hordes in front of them, but ultimately Cole didn't give a shit, he gave his orders.
"Aim!"
As one the first line raised their rifles and pointed it at the zombies, it was that action alone that sent a ripple through the ranks and a series of moans rose into the air. Cole summoned his Raen Ranger Rifle out of his inventory and dropped a bag of bullets on the floor besides him, sinking his hands into it and fling more than half it's contents into his inventory for an easier access, while, sliding a few into the holster over his chest, while his gun belt had more bullets on it for his revolvers. There was also an extra assault rifle hanging from his back. It was at that point the first zombie took a step forward.
[Spiral Shot]
*Bang!*
The bullet drilled through the creature's skull, to burst out and take three others out. Silence filled the battlefield as they all traced the shot back to Cole's still smoking gun. Then before the zombies could even open their mouth to roar and charge Cole turned to his soldiers.
"Fire at will!" then all hell broke loose.
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