Gunfire cracked through the silence. First was short bursts, test shots almost to make sure they are actually effective.
Then it picked up.
Rounds leaving hot barrels lodging themselves dead center at the target.
No hesitation needed, whatever could be called warning shots was thrown out the window after the first thing started moving.
The figure jerked as rounds tore into it, slicing cloth off their bodies, exposing what lay underneath.
Pale skin was the first thing the group noticed until they let themselves take a closer look.
Blotched, uneven in a way jerky feels between your fingers. Dried chunks that was left out in the sun too long to rot.
Parts of the body had holes punched through, not like a wound caused by a gunshot. But more like what a rabid dog would cause from extreme hunger, not caring about the consequences that followed.
Blood painted on skin, old and fresh mixed together.
The weirdest part is the nails driven into their bodies.
Nails as big as railroad spikes lodged deep through the shoulders, others in the chest, some even lodged in thighs.
Spikes that should constrict movement looked like it had no effect whatsoever.
Chains wrapped around torsos. Rusted plates strapped in uneven layers. Some wore old helmets. Medieval in origin yet warped, barely holding together.
____
"Keep firing!" Price shouted over the gunfire.
More rounds hit, bodies staggering not all dropping from only a few rounds.
Whatever they were without a doubt could be called resilient.
____
Soap stood next to a wall delivering shots into the closest thing he could see.
The body staggered, not enough to take it down.
Suddenly the thing's body moved fast. Faster than they thought was possible.
It lunged forward with a rusted weapon behind it, a spiked club, blood staining more than half of it. It was heavy from it being made entirely of iron. the craftsmanship was crude but it still did its job.
"DOWN!"
Soap dropped as a club swung wide, smashing into a wall and cracking concrete.
"Bloody hell..."
____
Over time more figures pushed in, weapons varied.
Axes, hatchets, and clubs with spikes hammered through.
Oddly all were rusted and looked used.
____
"They don't go down easy! What the hell is even going on?" Roach shouted.
"I don't know, might be a virus. Either way don't let them get close." Price shouted back.
Rounds kept flying. Bodies dropped, however not all stayed down.
A few would rise back up after a few seconds.
Like how one took three rounds to the chest, dropped for a bit before rising again.
____
"Headshots!" someone yelled.
And that worked... most of the time.
Fisher's team moved tighter, less fire but their shots were more precise
One of his men stepped forward, knife out.
The kill was quick and clean slice to the neck. Leading to it dropping like a sack of potatoes with no more movement.
Yet after that kill, another grabbed the marine by the arm, it was fast... too fast.
Swoosh.
The sound of an axe coming down fast, slicing off the marine's arm before he could pull it back.
The marine fell to the ground right after losing his arm.
The thing took a second before throwing the arm aside and raising his axe again to finish him off.
But before that could happen a Five-seveN was leveled to the thing's head before firing point blank.
After a second Fisher looks at his team before saying.
"Stay off them," Fisher said. "Don't let them touch you."
____
As everyone was in the midst of their own battles, the comm link flared up.
"Demolition's in position!" came over comms.
A second later the sound of mounted guns spun up.
Then.
A wall of fire.
Tracers ripped through the street. Chunks of concrete blew apart. Bodies got torn in half. Limbs flew.
Haggard's voice cut in, loud and almost laughing.
"Told you we'd make it loud!"
"Keep it steady!" Price snapped. "Don't hit friendlies!"
"Relax, I got it!"
____
With the addition from the demo team, the pressure on the other squads eased a considerable amount.
And from further back, sharp cracks echoed.
Snipers were mounted on a different cliff side giving precise shots on targets that get too close to others.
This came from the reserve team.
Snake didn't speak. There was no need they had a job to do.
The fight dragged.
Minutes stretched.
Ten turned into fifteen
Sweat mixed with dust and blood.
Ammo ran low, then got swapped. Barrels overheated, hands starting to shake from the constant firing.
But no matter what no one stopped.
____
By the twentieth minute the numbers thinned. They weren't all gone but fewer showing up.
Then...
Everything changed. First came a sound, it was heavy but slow. Or would it be slow but heavy?
What sounded like metal dragging. Sounds of clinks louder, thicker than from the things already in front of them.
____
"Hold" Price stated. Shots still leaving barrels when needed. But everyone's focus was on the new arrival.
And from the corner of a building, already crumbling from the constant fire.
Stepped a figure.
It was huge. Both in height and width.
Seven, maybe eight feet tall.
Its lower body was wrapped in chains. Thick ones at that. Layered over the armor platings it had. Skulls and bones with demonic symbols carved into each one.
From stomach and lower was armor covered in markings and blood. Arms covered in thick gauntlets with a shoulder plate with an upside down cross etched into it.
The chest had 2 large nail plates covering its nipples with the middle of his chest having an arrow/cross pointed up branded deeply.
And its head... It wasn't even human at this point. It had the shape of a goat's skull with varying shapes, jaws wide and teeth uneven. But the horrifying thing is the skull was fused together with another similar, creating one jumbled mess of horns and skulls. And its feet are goat shaped in nature made of also thick armor. If anything it was fiendish in nature.
It carried a massive axe at its side. Also shaped like an arrow.
It carried a stench that all could smell. Almost like brimstone. Its breaths heavy and wet.
And in its other hand, slightly tucked further back than the other was a person being dragged.
"Rover?" Soap said, almost not believing it.
____
His body hung limp. One arm missing, left side torn off completely.
Fresh blood ran down his side. Almost like it just happened.
With closer inspection you could see his head move, slightly.
And with Fisher's clear eyesight he caught that slight movement.
____
Even while crossing the corner the fiend still didn't notice them until...
"Contact front!" Someone shouted.
With that the fiend stopped and looked right at them.
Then with no warning dropped Guss.
Like some inconvenience.
Took a breath and charged. Fast, way too fast for its size.
"OPEN FIRE!"
Rounds hit, head, chest, shoulders, it didn't matter though it wasn't enough.
Not nearly enough.
It slammed into the line.
One Marine didn't get clear in time. And the impact from it was brutal.
He was thrown back, armor platings cracked, blood spraying in multiple directions. After a few seconds the body hit a nearby wall embedding him for a few seconds before falling to the floor. Unclear if still alive.
"Medic!"
The fiend didn't give anyone any time to go check on the downed Marine, for it swung its massive axe in a wide arc.
Chains rattled from the force, Price was the first to duck before aiming upwards and firing everything he had.
"Focus fire! Bring it down!"
Rounds hit again and again.
Still no matter what they gave, it kept coming.
Behind it the rest of the mutants started moving again.
No retreating nor hesitating.
Like they were waiting for this moment.
And in the middle of it all Guss.
Bleeding not moving but watching.
He wasn't dead, not yet at least.
____
____
That's all for this chapter. I hope you enjoyed.
Well I can say this if you know what they are fighting good on you.
Cuz this is going to be one hard and crazy story to write.
I'll bring out one more chap in an hour or so. This one took a lot of time to write.
Leave some powerstones and maybe a comment.