Chapter 36: The Massacre
The ceiling of Rockhill Valley continued to tremble and collapse as the drill neared. It was clear that the drill would soon break through, and the residents were growing increasingly panicked.
Meanwhile, the rebels were busy in their camp, quickly moving their stored weapons, especially explosives and smoke grenades, and collecting all the fireworks from around Rockhill Valley. They seemed to have a plan.
The rebels distributed guns to the civilians and guided some of the people into the tunnels that led to the surface, preparing for what was to come.
Over with Chad and the others, they worked together to help Dylan and John create small drones as quickly as possible.
Leo wasn’t idle either. He led a group in setting up a massive fireworks display, arranging them in a large formation. They also packed the explosives into individual firecracker-like devices. This had been Ryan’s idea.
Ryan had told them during the strategy meeting:
"Disruption is our only chance. If we can hold off the machines for just a bit, more civilians can escape."
Everyone in the rebel group was working together toward that goal.
However, just then, a panting rebel rushed up to Leo with bad news:
"Sorry... We've searched all over Rockhill Valley... There’s no sign of Alex."
Leo had been searching for Alex since earlier, and hearing this news made him feel despair, though he didn’t blame Alex. After all, it had been his decision to use Alex to drive Leonardo away, and that was something Alex had brought upon himself.
"Ugh... What do we do now?" Leo sighed, hanging his head.
Ryan, seeing Leo's dejection, walked up and patted his shoulder.
"Kid, you’ll be in charge now," he said calmly.
Leo, feeling unworthy, tried to decline.
"But you’re the commander of Rockhill Valley... I can’t take that responsibility... I’ve made too many mistakes..."
Leo hung his head, feeling ashamed and lacking confidence.
But Ryan remained patient, saying to Leo:
"Being a commander doesn’t mean you won’t make mistakes. I’ve made plenty myself... Like not passing the command over to our hero, Leo Oester. Even after making so many mistakes, what matters is learning from them and moving forward... That’s the path of a leader."
Ryan’s words seemed to snap Leo out of his despair. He straightened up and, with a pale-faced Ryan leaning on him, looked at the ceiling that was about to collapse, saying:
"Then let this last time be without regret."
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Maggie, pushing the elderly woman, reached the overcrowded shelter's entrance. Though Alex had broken her heart, she still couldn’t stop worrying about him. She crouched down to speak to the elderly woman:
"Grandma, I’m going to find my friend. Stay here, okay?"
The elderly woman nervously clutched Maggie’s hand, afraid of being left behind. Maggie, unsure of how to comfort her, hesitated.
"Maggie!"
Just then, a voice called out. It was Max. He had abandoned his post to help the rebels and was searching for Maggie.
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"Max, what are you doing here? Aren’t you supposed to be supporting the rebels?"
Maggie asked in confusion, but Max, unusually determined, said:
"At a time like this, you’re the one who matters most!"
Hearing this, Maggie smiled with gratitude. At least, in that moment, she still had a good friend by her side.
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However, the moment of comfort quickly passed.
Finally, the ceiling of Rockhill Valley began to crack under the tremors. The crack grew larger and larger, until the entire ceiling caved in, revealing a massive drill emerging from the hole.
All the rebels took their positions, and the civilians crouched along the streets, with some already waiting in the tunnels leading to the surface. Even though the ceiling had been breached, they remained silent.
As the drill quickly withdrew, the underground shelter of Rockhill Valley was fully opened. The terrifying moment was about to begin.
At that moment, the 3rd and 4th nests opened their doors, unleashing countless mechanical spiders that flooded into the large hole, rapidly advancing toward Rockhill Valley.
The terrifying frequency emitted by the spiders echoed from the hole, signaling their arrival.
"They’re here! Light the fireworks!"
The rebels positioned themselves at the fireworks display, aiming their guns at the hole in the ceiling, and ignited the fireworks.
The mechanical spiders reached the valley and poured out of the hole. The fireworks shot up, immediately disrupting the spiders’ sensors.
"Open fire!"
The rebels and armed civilians began shooting at the mechanical spiders and igniting smoke grenades. The smoke rose and filled the air, eventually covering the entire surface.
This forced the nests to send all their mechanical spiders into the hole, achieving their intended goal.
"Let’s go! Hurry!"
The rebels who were already in the tunnels leading to the surface saw the opportunity and quickly opened the entrance, guiding the civilians to safety. Covered by smoke, they headed south to escape.
Below, in Rockhill Valley, chaos reigned. The mechanical spiders kept pouring in, but the rebels fought valiantly, firing their guns and throwing firecrackers to disrupt the machines. Even the drones built by Holden and John helped to interfere with the spiders, and for a time, it worked.
Leo showed his true heroism, destroying dozens of mechanical spiders and protecting Ryan from their attacks.
Everything seemed to be going according to plan. However, Rockhill Valley was just a small shelter with limited resources, unlike the heavily equipped Terra Bunker. Their limits were quickly reached.
With the endless waves of mechanical spiders pouring in, their ammunition began to run low. The rebels could only throw firecrackers to slow them down. Worse, the tunnel to the surface couldn’t evacuate the civilians quickly enough, and the crowd in the square began to panic and scatter.
Finally, the Medusa from the 3rd nest sent out biological robots to quickly suppress Rockhill Valley.
These cold-blooded, skeletal-like robots descended into the valley and ruthlessly gunned down civilians and rebels alike, causing massive casualties in an instant.
"Damn it!"
Leo, witnessing the massacre, wanted to take revenge but realized that his bullets couldn’t penetrate the robots’ armor. At that moment, the rebels were clearly at a disadvantage.
The bio-robots pushed forward mercilessly, mowing down anyone in their path. People fell one after another, and the rebels were quickly overwhelmed.
"What do we do? Should we keep fighting?"
In the midst of the chaos, Joey and the others nervously asked Chad, who saw that things were lost. He grabbed them and said:
"It looks like we can’t hold them off anymore. Go find your families and escape!"
Hearing Chad’s words, they could only reluctantly say their goodbyes and rush off to find their families.
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At Alex’s home, his parents, Brian and Camilla, hadn’t evacuated with the crowd. They couldn’t let go of everything in Rockhill Valley, and they had resigned themselves to dying there. They embraced each other as the bio-robot stood before them.
Brian, looking at the robot calmly, said sarcastically:
"You know, you machines have no manners... You don’t even turn away when you see a couple embracing. No wonder you’re called heartless... I’d love to see the day when humans wipe you out."
The bio-robot didn’t respond to Brian’s words. It raised its machine gun and was about to end their lives. Brian wasn’t afraid. He simply placed a letter on the table, saying to his wife Camilla:
"To have been able to marry you in this end-of-world time... I have no regrets. The future of this world is now in our son’s hands."
Camilla, deeply moved by his words, smiled and kissed him. And as the bio-robot fired, the two fell together, ending their lives.
When the robot left, the only thing remaining was the letter, titled "To My Dearest Son," lying alone on the table, waiting for someone to read...
Alex... will you wake up soon...?