Project Skylar

We Are Screwed II

The large piece of land they were on was like an island, connected to a mountain range.

Awooooo!~

Multiple howls surged in from different directions surrounding the rocky outcroppings.

Over a dozen creatures appeared before them. Packs of pitch-black wolves with glowing red eyes. Blood mist exuded from their forms like smoke.

These three-meter-tall creatures were highly intelligent. Despite their impressive individual strengths, they were known to hunt in packs with ambush tactics.

[Bloodshadow Wolves! No wonder those centipedes avoided this area] Veyra exclaimed through the comms.

Bloodshadow Wolves were High-Tier 1 Lesser Beasts with power levels ranging from Level 11 to 15. Equivalent to the Eryndor races' late-stage Emergents. And compared to the previous centipedes, they were significantly stronger individually and as a group.

Emergent, also known as Initial Awakened was a tier representing the first evolution every race undergoes or the initial stages of genetic integration. It is a foundational stage where the latent power called a 'Gene-Seed', is first activated in the body.

While the users are much stronger and faster than normal humans, they are still fundamentally human but have taken the first step into enhanced existence.

[Hold your positions and do not engage] Captain Voss ordered. His voice was low.

They slowly retreated toward a large rock close by.

[Captain, there's something fishy about these beasts] Skylar's eyes narrowed as he watched the Bloodshadow Wolves close the distance. He spotted a fairly discernible red mark on their heads.

The mark was of two overlapped triangles facing opposite directions. Six-pointed angles formed the shape of a six-pointed star. A Hexagram.

[What's on your visuals, Skylar?] the captain asked.

[There are traces of spiritual marks from a Beast Master on their heads] Skylar's grip tightened on his weapon. [I think we've walked right into a trap]

Right after he said that—

Awooooo!~

Grrraaowwrr!~

The Bloodshadow Wolves attacked.

[ENGAGE!!!] Captain Voss shouted. His fist clenched tight as he pointed at the inbound Bloodshadow Wolves.

Skylar, Ren, and Voss sprang into action. Veyra and Lyra stayed behind. Lyra was the team's advance medic with a foldable energy shield strapped to her back.

She was their last defensive option if things went south. The compact energy shield was designed to deploy instantly. Provide cover for both herself and her team during an escape. They'd been reluctant to use it previously.

VREEEEEE-CHAK!!!

The sharp high-pitched sound of Skylar's dual Helix Blasters building up plasma resonated. Then released with a faint hum, like static electricity dispersing into the air.

SHRRZZT!

Plasma seared through flesh. An inbound Bloodshadow Wolf was split in half from the middle down. Blood dyed the ground red like raindrops falling from the sky.

---

[System Notification]

[Beast Eliminated: Lvl 12 Bloodshadow Wolf

Kill Points (KP) Gained: +12]

---

[Bronze Tier Kill Rankings Update]

Current Rank: 529th in Beastslayer Leaderboard

Next Rank: 528 (Requires 117 points)

Overall KP: 3,528

---

The kill ranking system of the Nova Vanguards was divided into five tiers: Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Diamond. Each tier holds a set number of soldiers.

The Bronze Tier included 50,000 elite soldiers ranked based on their combat experience and kill points earned through missions. Each level represented a threshold of confirmed kills or significant victories during battle.

On the battlefield, the Bloodshadow Wolves were slowly dwindling in numbers. Blood dyed the desert sands red. A metallic smell filled the air as the team gained the upper hand.

Blue-white spirals of energy streaked across the battlefield as Skylar reaped lives with his Helix Blaster pistols.

He moved nimbly with deadly precision despite being in a battlesuit. Rolling under the swipes from the sharp claws of a Bloodshadow Wolf that came within inches of his chest. The claws glinted in cold light.

Skylar's breath hitched as one lunged at him from a blind spot. Still regaining his balance, he turned to block its attack with his left arm.

His battlesuit's defense mode activated. A red energy shield projected outward from his forearm in the direction of the inbound Bloodshadow Wolf.

SPLAT!

The impact Skylar was expecting never came. Instead, a faint splatter of blood and brain matter was accompanied by an eerie silence that followed.

He glanced at the now headless carcass of the Bloodshadow Wolf. Blood pools on the ground beneath it.

"You almost got yourself killed, Skylar" Veyra's mocking voice came through the comms. "For a Bronze Tier Vanguard, that's very disappointing. You can keep the thanks by the way"

Skylar's brow raised in disbelief. He was a little taken aback by her shamelessness. But then he shook his head. Deeming her unworthy of a reply.

But that didn't mean someone else would let that play through.

"For a Bronze Tier sniper, you sure must be very thoughtful for letting one slip through your nose undetected" Lyra's ridiculing voice fired back without pause. "Or was that intentional, Veyra?"

She was also surprised that Skylar had committed such an amateur error. But after thinking it through, she had a slight recollection of the beast charging over from Veyra's side of the battlefield.

Which meant that Veyra had either done it unintentionally or out of spite for some reason unknown to them. Or... she still held Skylar accountable for the glaring scar on her face.

"Ever the lap dog, Lyra..." Veyra didn't back down. "He must be a well-hung young man for you to act this way, huh?"

"You b***h!" Lyra bared her teeth angrily. Looking ready to pounce on Veyra at any moment's notice.

Skylar, who had been watching them go tit for tat, couldn't look on any longer. He decided to put a stop to their antics.

He placed a hand on Lyra's shoulder to calm her down. Totally ignored Veyra, whose brows scrunched up in annoyance at being ignored.

"What's our next course of action, Captain?" He asked, turning to face Voss who was squatting close to a dead Bloodshadow Wolf. Observing the blood mark on its head.

"This is the Blood Veil Art" He said, standing up with his multi-barrel rotary energy gun held like a light tool. "It's unique to Beast Masters of the Eclipse Syndicate"

He paused. Looked at each of them.

"If I remember correctly, only a Beast Master of at least peak-stage Emergent can control High-Tier 1 Beasts without being close by" His jaw tightened. "If there's only one or two of them, they're manageable. Any more than that would be dangerous for us"

"So what do we do now? Try reaching out to HQ?" Ren chimed in gruffly. "The orders were clear from the higher-ups. Do not return until you've taken hold of the objective"

"Comms are still unresponsive. We can't reach out to HQ, and we also can't locate Team-B." Veyra shook her head at their fate. "Moving blindly into an uncharted world like Oblivion's Verge is basically suicide... We're well and truly screwed"

"We have no choice but to continue our search" Captain Voss said. His voice firm. "Stopping now would only derail our chances of finding something useful"

Seeing his teammates nod in agreement, he continued.

"Ren, Lyra, and I will head toward the direction the Bloodshadow Wolves came from. Skylar and Veyra, you both should search through the Hollow Expanse. Then we'll rendezvous at the next region. Any objections?"

Veyra mumbled incoherently. Clearly dissatisfied with being paired with Skylar. But one glare from the captain was all it took for her to accept her fate.

"Move out in five" Captain Voss checked his equipment. "Conserve ammo and stay alert. If you encounter anything you can't handle, retreat and regroup"

The team split up.