(Libertatem 1, 59 / 3:55AM)

(Luke) For the team that will be stalling, you guys will be facing off against the monster right in the center of the industrial district.

Having his hands in front of him, his heels still gripping the edge of the back of the truck’s roof, he still had his attention amongst everyone who eyed him.

Seeing Luna, Miles, Gary, Diego, and Stan, he gave them a small smile, the cheekbones of his cheeks pushing upward. Smelling the smoke-filled air that roamed the area, followed by feeling the slight temperature increase despite being on the cool summer night, Luke cupped his hands over the area of his crotch.

(Luke) If the monster is taking its leisurely time, then you’ll have to use the surrounding industrial buildings for leverage. Don’t worry, Miles and Luna have blessings so the rest of you will be in safe hands.

Many of the soldiers let out sighs of relief as they placed their hands onto their chests.

Luna looked across the other soldiers who were sighing, letting out a cold frown on her face as she continued to fold her arms. Meanwhile, Miles straightened his back as he placed his right hand into his pocket, letting out a neutral face as he looked at every single soldier around him.

(Miles) Don’t worry. If you listen to me and Diego over there, you’ll all make it back home in one piece.

(50% of the soldiers) Yes sir!

Putting their feet together, all of the soldiers accompanying Miles and his group gave off a military salute, placing their right hand onto their right eyebrow. Miles wiped away the sweat dripping from his temple, his sleeve being coated by the hot sweat.

As for Diego, he truffled what little facial hair he had on his chin.

(Diego) I’ll lead the way. I can propose ambushes and set-ups for the soldiers to aim.

(Stan) And Gary and I will go with you guys. You’ll be surprised as to how much a person could achieve without using blessings.

Letting off a smirk, Luna tilted her head as the corner of her right lip reached toward her right ear. Placing her hands onto her hips, her eyes slanted as her face was lifted upward as she looked at Stan.

(Luna) Then it’s a bet then.

(Stan) Got it. Hey Luke!

Looking up at Luke who was on top of the truck, Stan waved his hand up high, causing many soldiers to glance at the ginger-haired elf. As well as getting Luke’s attention, Stan cleared his throat as he put both of his feet together, his hands on his thighs as he placed them straight.

(Stan) Good luck out there. You’re going to need it.

______________________________________________________________________________

(Libertatem 1, 59 / 4:35AM)

(Miles) Stop right here, this is the place.

A military jeep pulled right over to the tallest industrial building that they found, seeing the several stories high with their own eyes.

Opening the jeep doors, came open both a man and a woman, with the man holstering two dual-wielding sawed-off shotguns and the woman holstering two metal batons on each hip. Setting foot on the black asphalt, both of them started to run toward it as they looked toward the right of them, seeing the fiery monster now stomping its way into the center of the industrial district.

And in the back of them, two other men from the back seat also came out, one of them having ginger-brownish hair and the other had black spiky hair and a small mustache.

(Stan) Come on Gary, we got to catch up to them.

(Gary) I know just get me a second.

As the two men stalled on the jeep, Luna found a metal ladder being on the left-hand side of the building.

Both she and Miles reached toward it, they looked back to see that the two behind-the-scenes members were still in the back of the jeep, causing Luna to let out a huff.

(Luna) That fatass. Is he having trouble getting out?

(Miles) Come on, we gotta reach the roof. Let them handle it.

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

With Luna in front, she turned away with another huff as she placed her hands onto the ladder, using it to climb with her hands and feet. Digging herself onto each step along the way, she looked down to see that Miles was right behind her, his face looking straight toward the building as if he didn’t dare to look above him.

A vein popped out from her forehead. She halted climbing as she focused her attention downward onto the straight-faced Miles.

(Luna) Don’t even dare to look up! If you want to keep your teeth safe, then make sure your head doesn’t even tilt up an inch!

(Miles) I wasn’t even looking up…

(Luna) Whatever! I’ll kick your ass if you do!

Continuing to climb the ladder to the top, Luna managed to place both of her hands on the roof of the industrial building, setting herself so that her feet were stable on the metal floor. Along with Miles in tow, he also helped himself up, looking toward the sight that was right in front of him.

The air around them burned, with sweat dripping down onto the roof as they both holstered their weapon.

The sight of the monster was burned into their very eyes.

(Miles) So what now …

(Luna) We just do what we've always been doing.

The fiery feminine monster was only a mile away from them, setting its sights on the skyline as it stomped through the industrial center.

Each stomp that it took created a large dent in the poor cement and earth that laid bare, creating a small crater that burned through the asphalt. Miles and Luna looked towards one another.

(Miles) I’m going to radio in Diego, and see if the convoy is up to speed.

Having a walkie-talkie on the collar of his black leather jacket, Miles leaned close toward the device. Miles had a slight shiver run down his back, his grip on his dual-wielding guns tightening.

His ears then perked up to the sound of static coming through the device, the sounds of a transmission letting out a low monotone frequency as it was soon picked up.

(Miles) Diego, how’s the setup going?

(Diego on the walkie-talkie) Good so far. Me and the Lieutenant and Sergeant are both in the same jeep. We’re getting close to the ambush point on the map.

(Miles) Sure thing. Godspeed Diego.

Hearing the sounds of the low-frequency transmission shutting off, Luna spotted Miles gripping the cross necklace he was wearing in his hands. She noticed his eyes closed as he mumbled words she could not quite hear.

Once he was done, Miles cleared his throat as he straightened his back.

(Luna) Are you religious?

(Miles) Of course. I was raised in a rural town. How about you?

(Luna) I was, before everything went to shit. I attended church, my father was religious and all.

(Miles) Well, it was my mom’s, and she never told me where she got it from, but she said it’s important to her.

Luna looked toward the monster that was soon coming, pushing the buttons on each baton. Upon inertia, both batons unleashed their twin double-edged blades, the metal reflecting her face and the monster in front of them.

Glaring at the hellish sight, as well as seeing the sky turning from a dim orange to a fiery red, Luna wielded both her hands in front of her.

(Luna) I just hope God is still looking down with a smile, cause I don’t know how long he could tolerate us.

(Miles) You and me both…

Taking in an exhale of air into their lungs, both of them looked up toward the clouds above, looking at the moon that was clouded by the clouds. They grited their teeth and readied their position until they heard a yell.

Jerking their heads in different directions, Miles and Luna ran toward the edge of the industrial building. They looked down in the direction of where the yell was and saw two men near the jeep, Miles squinted his eyes before he slapped a hand on his face.

(Miles) You gotta be kidding me…

(Luna) I thought you took care of him!

(Miles) We took care of Harold, but not him…

Near the jeep, a stretchy hand reached outward underneath the military jeep, grabbing a hold of Gary’s leather.

(Stan) Shit, Gary!

(Gary) What the hell is grabbing me!?

(???) Missed me?

Gary's entire body remained frozen as he widened his eyes. Gary didn’t dare to look behind him or to the ground as his face began to turn pale.

And then a body extorted out of the other side of the jeep, the head and body almost turning into a humanoid figure as it stopped being a stretchy substance.

The body turned into a figure that wasn’t fully human-like, as it had bunny features upon its face.

(Stan) So you’re planning to stop us…

Stan had his left hand etched into the back end of his back, his fingers brushing the cold metal object that was holstered. With his right hand inside his jacket’s pocket, he slowly moved his hand through his pockets as he remained in eye contact with the sudden appearance of the lich.

(Stan) You’re not getting away this time.

(Ryan) Guess Harold’s kill isn’t enough for you, is it? I never thought you would rub off his gruesome death like that.

(Gary) What…

Stan puckered her lips into his mouth, an abundance of sweat rolling down his face as he looked over toward Gary’s widened eyes.

The droplets of sweat hitting the cement, his hands continued to remain inside of his jacket. Unable to move his feet, Gary continued to stare into the abyss, his chest heaving up and down frantically as he swayed his head back and forth.

(Gary) You killed him …

(Stan) Look, Gary, I didn’t have a choice—

(Gary) Did you talk with him?

(Stan) I didn’t mean to—

(Gary) Don’t bullshit me, did you talk to him…?

Stan looked down onto the cold sidewalk that had ash played around during the beginning of the night, his eyes not able to peer into Gary’s as he kept to himself.

His throat jumping with every vowel that he said, Stan took a step back from Gary, followed by his breathing fastening as he continued to stare at Gary. Noticing that his fingers started to twitch, Stan placed his back against the wall, his hands gripping onto both metal objects from the innards of his jacket.

(Stan) We couldn’t. He surprisingly attacked us first, and we had a chance where he was wounded. Me and Miles tried to help him out, but he pulled one last attack, so I haggled him into a rope. One thing led to another, and … the rope managed to be stuck in between the highway and the tire…

Gary looked down as his hands were enclosed into fists, his knuckles sticking out as his chubby hands trembled.

His breathing turned erratic, his legs wobbling as his feet started to loosen their grip on the cement.

He looked toward the scared Stan, his eyes filled with tears.

(Gary) I’m tired…