Aurora stared at the web-like structure inside of the garage, between two military trucks. In the middle of what she was looking at was something that looked like a bunch of eggs, though the size of the eggs was what was troubling her. Instinct was screaming at her that those things belonged to the creatures they were likely to encounter, but her mentality as a Blade allowed her to analyze the situation calmly.
"What should we do?" Opal asked her. "Do we keep looking for survivors, or check out that?" She pointed to the eggs.
Shaking her head, Aurora said, "We need to focus on what we can do, right now. There's no telling what'll happen if we get near that. If those things are eggs, approaching those eggs could alert the monsters of our presence." Turning her head and scanning at the nearby buildings, she continued, "I'm starting to get the feeling that things aren't as peaceful as it appears."
"You picking up anything?" Yazmin asked.
"No. Just call it a feeling, especially after seeing that thing," she replied. There was a tingling feeling at the base of her neck, after witnessing the new development. "Vera, I want you to connect me to Lexi." With the distance between the two, the general comm wouldn't automatically allow her to communicate with Lexi.
"What's up?" Lexi's voice was heard.
Sending the image of the eggs to Lexi, Aurora waited.
"Is that what I think that is?" was all Lexi said in response to the image.
"I have no idea. I'm going to keep looking for survivors, but I think we should think that things could go wrong really quickly if we're not careful." Aurora said.
Lexi didn't immediately respond to Aurora's thoughts. "I think you may be right. Continue with what you're doing, but be ready to withdraw at a moment's notice."
"Jill, inform your Knights to be extra careful. We may be going into something beyond what we projected." Aurora informed the young team leader.
"Yes, Fifth Blade," Jill quickly answered, though her voice gave away her nervousness.
Hearing the young Knight's voice, Aurora felt the urge to reassure the girl that things were going to work out. The problem was that she, herself, didn't feel the same about the situation. A part of her was thankful to Zara for putting her into the Pit so regularly. Having to relive countless deaths and overwhelming odds tempered her mind for this exact type of scenario.
As they continued down the path towards where the residential area was mapped to be located, Aurora would find herself looking into any areas that were exposed. There were no bundles of mysteries to be seen inside of the hangars and storage areas.
In front of them, there was a small convenience store. A large 'Open 24-Hours' sign was visible. It looked to be the size of four houses grouped together, likely being an accessible location to pick up items as soldiers made their way back home or to the barracks.
"What do you want us to do?" Macy asked.
Thinking about what they needed to do, Aurora sighed in frustration. Luckily her sigh wasn't transmitted to the others, though her moving shoulders likely gave it away. "We're going to need to enter that store. I'll go in with several of the Knights and see if there are any signs of survivors."
"Do you think that's a good idea, Princess? I think it may be better for one of us to go in with the Knights." Opal advised.
"No. I understand what you're getting at, but we've had no experience with those monsters. For first contact, it'll be better to have me go in." Aurora replied.
"Princess, you just want to show off how much better you are, right?" Opal teased her.
"I guess there's a reason why she's the Fifth Blade," Yazmin piled on more teasing.
Aurora felt her face redden, hearing her friends teasing her about her abilities.
"Probably the reason why Zara considers you, her successor," Macy added.
Trying to stop them from continuing, Aurora said, "Stop it, you guys. You three know that isn't why I'm going in."
"No. You're right. Out of all of us, you're better at dealing with unexpected factors. On top of that, you outperform us in the Pit, making you an even better choice for going into a situation we don't have information on." Opal said in a firm voice. Next, to her, the others were nodding their heads in agreement with Opal's words.
"Jill, I want you to pick out two Knights who you think are the best at dealing with quickly escalating fights. The rest of you will stay with the others three blades and set up a perimeter." Aurora commanded Jill.
"Fifth Blade, allow me to be one of the Knights that comes with you," Jill answered immediately.
Aurora was startled by the sudden demand. "Jill, you're the team leader. I need you here with the other Knights and making sure that no surprises occur."
"I'm one of the best fighters on my team, and in this situation having someone that can adapt is essential. I know that I likely put doubt in you, earlier, but I know that I can do this." Jill adamantly voiced her thoughts.
As they were closing in on the convenience store, Aurora said, "Find the second person that's going in."
"Yes, Fifth Blade!" Jill said enthusiastically.
"You sure?" Yazmin signed to her.
Connecting a PCW to Yazmin, Aurora said, "Yeah. I'll try and keep an eye out for her, but considering how all the Knights lack the combat experience it'll be good to have someone that knows what they are getting into."
"Stay safe, Aurora. I know you're strong, but seeing those eggs is really bothering me. I feel like something is going to happen." Yazmin said.
Yanking the PCW from Yazmin, Aurora just signed, "It'll be okay."
Aurora could see Jill coming back with another Knight following close behind her.
"Fifth Blade, this is Alex. I know her skills are top-notch, so I'm confident she'll aide in the reconnaissance mission," Jill explained.
"Vera, create a group with just Jill, Alex, and me. Remove the group after the mission is completed." Aurora then addressed the two Knights. "Alex, I hope you understand that this mission is potentially dangerous and may have continually changing battle situations. I can have Jill switch you out with someone else if you're not ready for this."
"Fifth Blade, I'm ready for this. My reaction times may even be better than Jill's, which is what I think will be needed for this mission based on your words." Alex said. Compared to Jill, Alex seemed to have a grim determination about her.
Aurora nodded her head at Alex's words. "You'll be in charge of everything out here, Yazmin." She said. Opening up a general comm to everyone nearby, Aurora said, "Make sure to stay alert out here. Just because there's nothing dangerous seen, we are still in an environment that's hostile."
"Just go in and come right out, Princess," Opal said.
"Don't worry, I'll just do a superficial look around to see if there are any indications that there are survivors nearby," she said to the rest of the Blades. "Let's go," Aurora said to the two Knights.
Walking to the convenience store, she found it disconcerting the image of a cheerful looking store still standing. The hood that surrounded the store had bright and inviting colors, though there were some tears in the material. Considering this was a military base, Aurora figured that it was due to present conditions with the monsters roaming about and lack of people maintaining the property.
There were windows with signs stating various items that were on sale. One sign only had the words, 'until Continental Day! Come in!' The rest of the glass was shattered and had caused the advertisement to be damaged. Just from looking from the outside, Aurora could see dirt and leaves on the floor through the broken windows.
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"We'll be entering from the main entrance," she said to the two Knights.
"Understood," they responded.
She could hear the crunching of the asphalt as they stepped into the parking lot. The crunching and scattering of the pieces of rocks and broken off parts of the pavement seemed to echo. Making their way towards the front of the building.
On the door, there was a large 'X' and below it was the words 'Base Exchange Store: Helping our service people around the world."
"The powers out, so we're going to need to manually open this door," Aurora said. "Opening the door manually could cause a lot of noise, so get ready for potential engagement."
Jill took out a smaller energy rifle, compared to Aurora's, which is best for close to mid-range fights. With Alex, she took out dual pistols that each packed a serious punch. A blast from those pistols would likely punch a hole through anything it hit, though it was crap beyond anything close to the wielder.
After seeing them getting their weapons ready, Aurora moved towards the door. Grabbing the lock in the middle of the door, she yanked on it gently to create a small gap. With her other hand, Aurora wedged her hand in and pushed it. Before letting go of the lock, she placed her foot between the opening in case it closed.
Now with both hands, she opened up the door though it was jerky in the way it opened. A loud clicking noise was made while the door continued to open.
"Damn it, I bet the thing is off of its tracks," Aurora cursed at her luck. Quickly pushing open the door, she said, "Well... if they didn't know we were here, they probably do now."
A loud clattering was heard inside of the store, making Aurora pull out her rifle and aim in the direction of the sound. Her suit was picking up scrapping noises as the source moved from its original location.
"Jill and Alex, I want the two of you to stay by the entrance and keep an eye out. I'll make my way to see what caused that noise." Aurora commanded. Her eyes never left where the suit was estimating was
the location of the target. On her HUD, she saw a heat map that gave an estimation of where the objective was located based on the sounds being received. It wasn't entirely accurate, but the estimates helped Aurora to think of potential actions that needed to be taken.
Having the weapon in her hand, she pressed the charge button and armed the gun. A screen on her HUD appeared, showing that it would be activated in a couple of seconds. Seeing the screen display that the firearm was armed, she set it to a lower setting as a mean to gauge the strength of the enemy. It wouldn't be a good idea to just fire the weapon at full blast and use up all of her battery packs on the first day.
"Let's see what you look like," Aurora quietly said to herself as she neared the shopping aisle that the thing was hiding in. Passing by the registers, Aurora quickly glanced behind the counter to see if anything was there before looking back. The inside of the store was pretty chaotic looking, items strewn across the floor. Shopping carts and baskets were all over the place, letting her know that a decent number of people were shopping when everything went to shit.
Carefully pushing aside a shopping cart, she flinched from the crunching noise the wheels made as they rolled over leaves and food items. "Just keep staying right there," Aurora said as if she was talking to whatever was there. Pressing herself up against the endcap of the aisle, she counted down from three and turned into the corridor.
Lifting her rifle, she aimed right down the aisle while her eyes were quickly looking for the monster. What she was shocked her. In front of her was a young girl who seemed to be the age of a high schooler. She was on the ground clutching several cans of food, likely the source of the sound.
All Aurora could do was stare at the girl since it was the last thing she expected to see. On the girl's face was a look of terror, especially with Aurora pointing a weapon at her.
Slowly, Aurora lowered her weapon. The girl still looked terrified and not moving a muscle.
"Fifth Blade! Are you alright?!" Jill's voice was heard over the comm.
Hearing Jill's voice startled Aurora out of her shock, and she answered, "Yeah. The two of you come in, over to my position. Maintain high-alert as you make your way over."
"Vera, I'm going to need to you open an external line so I can talk to the girl. Make sure the sound isn't too loud. I don't want to frighten her more than I already have." Aurora said. Slowly she moved towards the startled girl. Placing her rifle on the back of her suit, she raised both hands to indicate that she was friendly.
"Everything is going to be fine. Sorry about aiming my weapon at you." Aurora gently said, looking for a reaction on the girl's face. The girl had blonde hair that went past her shoulders, with dirt and grime in it as if it hadn't been washed in ages. Aurora saw that the girl was wearing a school uniform, so likely went to a private school. Automatically focusing in on the emblem on the girl's dress, Aurora read, 'Sanctus Academy of Jegudiel.'
As she approached the girl, the girl flinched and looked like she was about to bolt.
"Wait. It's dangerous out there." Aurora quickly exclaimed in a low voice. Even though the suit wasn't picking up anything else other than the girl and two Knights, it wasn't a good idea to gamble.
The girl paused, no longer looking like a flight risk.
"We're here to look for people like you, to take back to a safe place." She tried to say it as soothingly as possible. "What's your name?"
The girl was about to answer when the two of them heard clicking noises.
Aurora quickly pulled out the rifle from her back and armed it and aimed it to where she heard the clicking noise. The noise seemed to come from the end of the store. Soon more clicking noises were heard but this time coming from the ceiling.
"Jill and Alex, I need the both of you to quietly guide the girl out of this place," Aurora commanded them. "Yazmin, I have potential contact with the monsters. Get ready for Jill and Alex to come out of the store with a little girl."
"What?! How many and you found a survivor?!" Opal's voice came over the comm.
"Yeah. She seems to be the only one here. Based on the sound, I estimate that there are two of them. I should be able to handle them by myself, but I need you to make sure I still have an exit out of this place." Aurora said as she looked at the ceiling and the rear of the store.
In front of her, Jill was carefully picking up the little girl while trying to keep her calm. Alex her dual pistols, each one pointed to where the sounds came from.
"Hurry it up, you two. I don't know when the party is going to start." Aurora urged them to move faster.
"Yes, Fifth Blade," Jill said passing her by and heading towards the entrance.
As Alex was moving backward, guarding Jill's rear chaos erupted around them.
"What's happening!" Aurora yelled.
"They're coming out of the ground!" Opal yelled. Over the comm, there were sounds of energy blasts being fired.
The ceiling tiles in front of her came crashing down. Dust blew out all over the place, obstructing her vision. Her HUD cycled through various sensory modes when she felt herself being pulled forward.
She felt a constricting force being applied around her neck, blocking her from breathing. The dust settled, and she soon was face to face with an insectoid looking face, its mandibles open wide. Aurora looked at the grinning face thought, "Finally, I get to see your ugly faces."