Kyle too was aware of the tight deadline well beforehand. He was also receiving the same reports from his observers, relayed through messengers and arctech radios serving as repeaters.
Generally, the Versian Military was smaller than all three Counts’ forces combined, but if they focused all their firepower onto Count Leon and surrounded him, Kyle would lose the momentum and run the risk of being targeted within the city, left alone without allies.
Already his ADCON squads were ...
2023-06-10 07:16:17 +0000 UTC
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Riker fumbled his hands as he tried to pour the pellets into the canister from an ammo box, some of the pellets spilling out onto the floor. The small metallic pellets pinged off the rusted metallic sides of the machine gun, rolling towards a few cowering soldiers who held their helmets tightly.
A series of distant booms could be heard, causing them to flinch on instinct, knowing that it was another round of artillery fire from the Versian Military. The sergeant in charge of the platoon...
2023-06-10 03:44:09 +0000 UTC
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There were still a few stages in the plan that had to be sorted, but that was the gist of it. Feldon and Kyle organised the mercenary force under them to sortie out. A new name was given to the force as well to show a sense of solidarity amongst the people rather than just pivoting around Kyle as the figurehead.
“ADCON? What does that stand for?” Feldon was confused.
“Anaconda Defense Contractors.”
“You really got something for snakes, don’t you?”
“Have...
2023-06-08 23:47:20 +0000 UTC
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Johan stood outside the office and watched as the armoured man approached, escorted by two guards. He noticed the armoured man hardly even gave a glance to those suffering from the effects of Agent Black, as though he was completely undeterred by such maladies.
"Some water perhaps? We don't have tea nor potions, sorry about this mess." Johan smiled as Kyle sat opposite him, the two of them alone in their office.
"You seem quite calm about all of this. Are you not afraid that I wil...
2023-06-08 07:54:15 +0000 UTC
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The underground tunnel base of Desham was in a frenzy, with recruits gearing up and stocking up the stealth hovercrafts and mineral ants, preparing for the upcoming mission.
“Gas masks! Make sure you have your gas masks! Don’t forget your drills!” Feldon bellowed as he oversaw the movement, with the irregular military force now being reorganised into their various squads and platoons, becoming something akin to a private military company.
Many of them had been training since...
2023-06-08 00:56:13 +0000 UTC
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Count Leon fumed internally as he examined the war map. His generals were silent, afraid to antagonize the Count or fuel his rage any further.
“Explain to me again why we cannot pull back to Raktor.”
“Sir… our forces are already locked in battle at the front-lines towards Tenar. Giving up the invasion and retreating means wasting all of the lives, ammunition and equipment used so far.” A general meekly explained.
“Has the Duke responded?”
“He is willing...
2023-06-07 04:10:33 +0000 UTC
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[A slew of riots and gang violence has erupted all over Raktor – Enforcers are clashing with major gang members all over the various sectors.]
[Nobody knows the cause of this yet, but the civil unrest has been ongoing for more than a week, with more and more districts lost to gang control every day. We spoke to Bishop Vernette earlier today for an update on the situation.]
An interviewer appeared on a light-thrower film, thrown up on a screen in a quaint little upper-class café...
2023-06-06 23:53:59 +0000 UTC
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Sparks erupted as the lightning sword slammed against the arm shields of Nox, causing him to stagger backwards from the sheer force. Kyle did not give any chance for Nox to recover, hacking away as he swung rapidly.
The two fought across the raging battlefield, with the strikeforce under Kyle engaging in a brutal brawl with the guards and officers in the command area. Explosions and bonfires served as the backdrop as Nox desparatedly tried to block every single attack.
This time, ...
2023-06-06 04:45:42 +0000 UTC
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Kyle’s messengers never returned, throwing off alarm bells in his mind. It’s already been more than three days, and he had dropped them off at the border of the Yual Dominion.
He had handpicked the messengers to ensure that they would return. People with family in Desham or the refugee camp outside, with a slight undertone of threat and blackmail if they did not come back. He had sent more than fifteen of them, but all had not returned.
Something has gone terribly wrong, o...
2023-06-06 02:57:41 +0000 UTC
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“…and so the enforcers will like to fund a research project on the development of light-thrower paintings onto paper or parchment.” Mason explained as Keith sat opposite him in his office chair, looking at the proposal.
“Are the rented light-throwers insufficient?”
“They are sufficient but it is impossible to expect every enforcer branch in Raktor to be able to transfer suspects information via light-throwers. Furthermore, having a list or book of wanted suspects is cr...
2023-06-05 04:10:40 +0000 UTC
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“For playing a significant role in stopping the escalating violence in the West Sector, we hereby award you with the White Heart Medal.”
A thunderous roar of applause erupted from the audience gathered while journalists filmed the scene with light-throwers, getting every angle they could as Kitana bowed to the Bishop, letting the old man hang a sparkling white crystal.
“This medal goes to those who exemplify hard work, steadfastness, and most of all, dedication to the Sanctu...
2023-06-05 00:37:10 +0000 UTC
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Just like this, over the next few weeks, Kyle had been boosting his own food reserves by attacking Count Leon’s supply routes, helping to stall the war.
However, he was a man of equality – attacking the Versian supply routes as well to ensure that he had a near monopoly of the black market nearby. This way, he could control the amount of firepower and strength each party had.
He did not hit too often, however, only striking when necessary. For the most part, he began to source...
2023-06-04 04:17:42 +0000 UTC
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The seat in the driver’s cab jostled as the arctech wagon rattled violently, the wheels rumbling over an uneven road. It was clearly made very recently, a simple road built through a small valley for convenience’s sake rather than out of comfort for anyone using it. The wagon commander had already lost count of how many times the driver had to swerve to avoid potholes and slopes of mud, loose from the torrential rain.
Suddenly, the entire cab jerked hard while the wagon came to a co...
2023-06-04 03:00:42 +0000 UTC
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“Get out of here now!” Kyle ordered his men urgently as Rayner raised his rifle, aiming at the others.
“We can figh-“ Before one of the braver hunters could finish, Rayner fired a single shot, killing the hunter in the head immediately.
“No one leaves without permission from Mother,” Rayner spoke coldly, prompting the two other humans to start firing as well. One of the humans had a shoulder-mounted grenade launcher – the same one that blasted him when he first exite...
2023-06-02 23:54:45 +0000 UTC
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A week later…
In a bombed-out section of Ocra, Masir waited with five other men, geared up in their full military gear and waiting in a clearing. Seven others were sweeping the perimeter, ensuring that no one else was within sight. “All clear, boss.”
“Good. The packages should be coming soon.”
As if on cue, five parachutes appeared from the middle of the sky just a kilometre up, attached to their respective crates as they slowed the fall, drifting slightly...
2023-06-02 22:20:29 +0000 UTC
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Kyle returned to Desham, pondering over the question. Now that he had obviously found a market for the products of the factory, he needed a good way to fly them over, preferably stealth.
While the venom-spitting hornet was good, it had a limited range with a short flight time than what Kyle would like. It’s ability to carry cargo was also already limited by the arcia fuel system that powered its stealth engraving. Furthermore, there was only a fixed number of mineral ants, meaning he ...
2023-06-02 03:40:07 +0000 UTC
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The dry shattered ground cracked beneath the rugged sole of Masir’s boots as he walked through the city, where the heat of day washed over his skin, the daylight glaring. It was his ‘day off’, but the town of Ocra was a far cry from the glamorous tourist destination that it used to be.
Instead of casinos, gambling dens and human trafficking rings, all that was propped up in its place now were soup kitchens run by the local town council and long queues for old wells that had recent...
2023-06-02 02:27:31 +0000 UTC
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Today is a public holiday, so I'm taking the time to relax a little. Chapter 127 will come out in two hours or so from this post.
The launch of my satellite is approaching pretty soon, which has left me with 12 hours work day. So the pattern is basically 10pm sleep, wake up 5am, write till 8+, go to work, come back at 8-9, sleep.
Another reason is I'm doing a bit more research onto smuggling. War smuggling is an interesting concept, and I believe once I'm done I should be able to ...
2023-06-01 23:27:29 +0000 UTC
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Kyle immediately flew out of the tunnel base again once he refuelled the hornet, this time wearing his Version 0 arctech exosuit, except it turned out that he did not need it.
By the time he made it back to the battlefield, the Versian Garrison had already managed to push the Yual forces out of the city and back onto the boats. Now, the battle was locked in a stalemate, with continuous, consistent artillery fire lobbed at each other as they fought for the trenches.
Kyle could also...
2023-06-01 00:14:09 +0000 UTC
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The hornet soared above Ocra, where the battle for the town was raging. Fighting in the streets spread like wildfire as Yual Dominion troops pushed in hard, ferried in by concealed boats that were only spotted at the last minute.
Right now, the Versian garrison was scrambling to defend every inch of the town as much as possible, but they were now being pressured on both sides, with half of the Raktor corps pushing in from the front as well.
Kyle had no time to get his heavy armour...
2023-05-31 22:00:48 +0000 UTC
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“Wha-“
Before the Raktor guard could even shout, Kyle lunged and crushed his windpipe in an instant, killing the man on the spot.
He grabbed the body before it could make a sound, instead gently laying it on the floor, his eyes darting around to check his surroundings. Luckily for Kyle, the guard chose a good place to skive, hidden behind two makeshift rectangular tents...
2023-05-31 04:41:21 +0000 UTC
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Below Kyle, the supply logistic corps of the Raktor military ...
2023-05-30 23:37:12 +0000 UTC
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Masir grunted as he blocked a bayonet strike from a Yual knight, the two of them brawling in the mud as the rain began to pick up, turning into a light drizzle.
Pools mixed with blood and grime began to form on the floor, the contents splashing while the soldiers fought back hard, their morale buoyed by the bravery of Masir to attack the knights.
We need to hold them here – if they take down the point defence system and machine gun emplacement, they can breach the trenches! ...
2023-05-30 03:53:08 +0000 UTC
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A bead of water rasped against the shoddy metallic helmet with a clear thud, prompting Masir to look up to the sky. Above him, a few tendrils of dark clouds drifted over, stemming from mountains of thunderclouds looming in from the horizon.
“PICK UP THE PACE!” The voice that had plagued Masir’s life ever since he had been captured by Nest bellowed out with force. The Versian sergeant marched down through the trenches and fortifications built just five kilometres from Ocra.
B...
2023-05-29 23:30:56 +0000 UTC
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A collection of both old and new weapons were in front of Kyle now. Kyle still had the lightning sword from Soren as well as the pulveriser that was a reward from the first Trial of the Horde.
The weapons were good as a melee fighter, but for stopping Count Leon’s forces...
2023-05-28 18:58:15 +0000 UTC
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Kyle furrowed his brows as he listened to the old Nest informant in the council building. “Repeat what you just said, clearly.”
“The war has begun. Count Leon is on the move, having already crossed the border three hours ago. His forces are poised to attack Ocra in a day, and, subsequently Tenar.”
Faster than expected. Kyle checked the date on a nearby calendar. It has not been two months since he first got the order to build the weapons factory for Baron Cain, an...
2023-05-28 17:37:24 +0000 UTC
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“They killed our General?! But how!?”
“How dare those Versians do such a dastardly thing! We should beat them to a pulp!”
Emotions ran high in Raktor, as the lightcapturer film of the execution of General Xan by two random Versian soldiers was publicised everywhere on the streets and in every theatre. Even the Seven Snakes’ shopping mall was showing it on direct order by the Count.
The news took the Yual Dominion by storm, spreading like wildfire. People were riled...
2023-05-27 19:44:09 +0000 UTC
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The next day…
Not all the council members and sergeants of the military were executed, instead hauled in secret to the council building, awaiting trial under the new rulers of Desham.
“Why are we keeping them alive?” One of the newly-appointed leaders under Diya remarked with a tinge of frustration, earning a few nods from the gathered followers who eyed the former council members with clear hatred.
“It is a matter of survival. Imagine what the government wo...
2023-05-27 18:08:23 +0000 UTC
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The soldiers were decimated in minutes, unable to fight against the sheer strength and prowess of Kyle. Kyle continuously moved through the battlefield like a shadow, picking up fallen weapons and using them at various angles, keeping track in his mind of how much ammo each position had.
2023-05-27 02:51:11 +0000 UTC
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The town council of Desham was in complete chaos, with frantic members running across the entire building which hosted all of their arctech phone lines, none of it which was working.
“What’s going on? Why can’t we call Tenar for help?”
“Sir, the radios are working fine when tested at short range, but any long-range communication out of the city is completely unusable!”
“Someone or something is interrupting our communications. Could it be-“
“Do not pan...
2023-05-26 23:53:22 +0000 UTC
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