I Am The Swarm

The flares that rose into the sky illuminated a large area in front of the sentry post, turning the night into day. However, the expected enemy did not appear. The ground remained eerily calm.

“I told you that piece of junk we cobbled together was useless. Scared the hell out of me,” one Moto soldier muttered, his heart having nearly jumped out of his throat moments ago. Seeing that nothing seemed to be happening, he let out a sigh of relief.

Boom! A sudden explosion erupted in the distance, accompanied by a deafening roar. The soldier who had just spoken let out a startled cry, crouching down with one hand covering his head while the other nearly dropped his weapon.

But no one paid attention to his panicked reaction, as more explosions followed in quick succession, lighting up the night with bursts of fire.

Over the past few days, the Moto had buried numerous landmines around the sentry post, clearing out their stockpile of various models. The explosions were triggered by the more sensitive types of mines.

One Moto soldier quickly realized what was happening and shouted, “Watch out! They’re underground!”

The other soldiers, now alerted, understood that the vibrations from underground had set off the sensitive mines.

“The explosions mark their positions! Fire grenades!” a commander barked.

Thud! Thud! Thud! Muffled launching sounds rang out as grenades were fired, landing precisely around the explosion zones. The ensuing detonations were even more intense, as the grenades not only exploded on their own but also triggered the less sensitive mines, which were designed for heavier vehicles and packed a much larger punch.@@novelbin@@

After a relentless bombardment, the soldiers stopped firing in unison.

“Did we get them?”

“I don’t know. Maybe you should go check.”

“Go to hell!”

“Is the equipment still working?”

“No, the explosions caused too much interference. The instruments are down.”

“Damn it!” the commander grumbled, about to assign a few men to investigate. Suddenly, the explosions started again, this time moving rapidly toward the sentry post.

Now there was no need to send anyone to check, but this was hardly good news.

“Open fire!”

A torrent of shells rained down on the area ahead, but the results were the same as before—utterly ineffective. As the underground enemy breached the minefield, the commander shouted, “Be careful! Everyone, stay off the ground!” 𝖗âŊȎBĘs̈

The soldiers weren’t fools. Without needing to be told, they scrambled to higher ground, quickly securing vantage points and setting up their weapons. Those who couldn’t find a spot even rigged makeshift zip lines between walls, hanging themselves in midair.

Boom! A massive impact shook the sentry post. The Moto’s engineering held up well, as the structure only swayed violently without collapsing. However, several soldiers, caught off guard, tumbled from their perches with cries of pain.

At that moment, the ground suddenly gave way, revealing a deep, dark hole. Faint glimmers of light reflected off something metallic inside.

One Moto soldier fell into the hole and disappeared, while the others were luckier, landing on the ground with only minor injuries.

“Get a team over there and pull them back!” The hole emitted an eerie glow, like the gaze of an abyss, sending chills down everyone’s spines.

A few soldiers closest to the wounded bravely descended the steps, intending to drag their comrades to safety.

But just then, a rustling sound came from the hole. It seemed as though whatever was supporting the hole had moved away, causing the ground around the entrance to sink slightly without collapsing.

Next came the sound of scraping and the hissing of unknown creatures, growing louder as if amplified by the hole itself.

“Prepare to fire!” The commander was the first to sense the impending danger and shouted a warning to the soldiers.

A massive spider, over twenty centimeters in diameter, suddenly leaped out of the hole. But before it could take in its surroundings, it was obliterated by a hail of gunfire. Despite its best efforts to dodge, the sheer volume of firepower reduced it to pulp in just 0.1 seconds.

But as one Raider fell, more emerged from the hole.

The Moto soldiers, however, had already set up their weapons, unleashing a devastating barrage. Countless “giant spiders” were torn apart the moment they appeared, their limbs and fluids scattering in all directions.

Boom!

Boom!

More holes opened up, and within moments, Burrowing Worms solidified the tunnels before retreating, allowing swarms of Raiders to pour out.

“Fire! Don’t let them out!” the Moto commander yelled.

But the multiple holes inevitably dispersed the soldiers’ firepower, and some soldiers hesitated, unsure which target to prioritize. Soon, gaps began to appear in the once-impenetrable wall of fire.

These gaps allowed more Raiders to slip through, further thinning the defensive line. Like a snowball effect, the Moto soldiers quickly found themselves overwhelmed by the Swarm’s assault.

“Incendiary bombs!”

At this critical moment, the dangerous napalm bombs were finally brought to the front lines. Several soldiers hurled them into the holes, and the ensuing flames forced the Raiders back.

Although Raiders were cannon fodder, they had ways to deal with fire. Their acidic, toxic bodily fluids could extinguish flames by displacing oxygen and forming a gel-like seal over the fuel.

As the flames died down, the Raiders began to emerge once more.

“Bring all the incendiary bombs! And explosives! Get some sharpshooters to collapse these holes!” the commander ordered. But another hole opened up, and more Raiders poured out, pushing the Moto defense to its limits. Some Raiders even began scaling the walls of the sentry post.

Suddenly, a barrage of missiles streaked down from the sky, their powerful explosions and shockwaves wiping out a large portion of the Raiders on the ground.

“Our air support is here!”

“Keep fighting! Victory will be ours!”

But before the Moto could celebrate, a massive Vulturehawk swooped down from above, its sharp claws seizing a Moto gunship.

The Vulturehawk showed no signs of slowing down, its immense strength dragging the gunship toward the ground. The gunship’s return fire bounced harmlessly off the Vulturehawk’s metallic feathers.

Boom! The gunship was slammed into the ground, sending up a cloud of dust. Its warning lights flickered and died as it sustained heavy damage. The Vulturehawk’s claws were also deformed, with blood oozing from some areas.

But the bleeding quickly stopped, and the claws began to regenerate. By the time the Vulturehawk took off again, its injuries were mostly healed.

The Moto soldiers watched in stunned silence.

“What the hell is that thing???”