A Marine equipped with the Remnant's new Prometheus Power Armor stood among the ashes of what was once been a thriving US town. Since the outbreak of the apocalypse nearly half a year ago, this town, like most populated areas in the world, had become ravaged by the Undead.
Though who weren't eaten outright , were turned into monsters that would hunt down the living without a second thought.
Today all the remained of this village was rubble and shell casings. After all, the Remnant had decided to reclaim the towns within the immediate vicinity of its bunkers, creating a relatively safe zone to begin expanding their power base.
For a small town like this, it was an easy affair for this company of 80 marines to effortlessly wipe out the undead who inhabited it. After all, they did not come across any undead stronger than a howler.
And for the 30mm chain guns which they carried into battle, such an enemy was hardly worthy of the shells spent to eliminate them. After thoroughly wiping out the undead within the town, a cleaning crew came in, where they "purified" the land with flame throwers.
Now little more than ash remained, ash and some concrete foundations for the buildings that had once been. The Marine stood in disbelief at what he saw. Was this the fate of the United States of America that he once knew and loved?
After all, he had chosen to join the Marine Corps specifically to combat the enemies of his home nation. And yet, would it really all be turned to ash? As if knowing exactly what the young marine was thinking of, his NCO placed a palm on his shoulder, which was coated in the same OD Green Power Armor that the rest of his company wore.
With an almost somber tone in his voice, the otherwise gruff and uncaring sergeant gave the Private First Class some proper hope for a better tomorrow.
"I know what you're thinking, but this, this is just the beginning. We shall retake this country for the American people, and we will rebuild from the ashes. You and I are the instruments of America's vengeance. Never forget that!"
This thought was just comforting enough that the Private First Class smirked as he thought about reclaiming the former United States, and perhaps its hat to the great white north from the decaying hands of the undead.
However, while the two soldiers shared a moment together, something peculiar happened. A blood-curdling scream resounded in the distance.
It was truly ear piercing, and even though they were insulated within their advanced suits of power armor, something which could reduce even the most deafening combat ambience to hearing safe levels, they still managed to fall to their knees and cover their ears as they tried their best to maintain their sanity.
Eventually, the screaming stopped, and somehow the two soldiers had survived. Perhaps because their Power Armor had lessened the blow. But their eardrums had most definitely burst, as there was a light trail of blood flowing out of their ear canals.
The young Marine reacted by unleashing a spray of shells towards the Banshee, but even the mighty weapons which were capable of taking down a juggernaut had utterly failed to harm the banshee, as they simply passed through her ghostly form.
However, the mere act of trying to shoot her caused the otherwise beautiful spirit to frown, where she then unleashed a blood-curdling shriek, one that caused the Marine's blood vessels to explode, killing him on the spot.
At such short range, even the insulation that his power armor provided him was utterly useless to defend against the Banshee's signature attack. The Banshee looked around at the aftermath of her assault and sighed heavily.
When she did so, the figure of a young woman, no older than twenty years of age, stepped out from behind a nearby tree. Evidently, she had been watching the massacre take place. This woman had silver hair and matching eyes.
Of course, the unnatural sheen of her silver eyes were shielded by the round glasses she wore. Glasses which she adjusted the position of with her index finger before speaking to the Banshee as if they were on close terms.
"You will have to give your master my thanks when you return to him. Without you and your sisters, I would not have been able to get rid of these pesky living soldiers so easily. Strange though, isn't it? I thought for sure we took care of humanity's militarized population long ago.
I mean, who exactly is paying these soldiers now that the world has collapsed, and why all of a sudden has their armament improved? These things will need to be reported to my siblings... Still, as impressive as their equipment may be, it appears that it is utterly incapable of dealing with your spectral types. So I suppose we have nothing to worry about..."
The Banshee looked over at Elenor and titled her head. Though she did not say anything out loud, Elenor's reaction proved that there was some other means of communication between the two of them.
"You would do that for me? But why?"
The Banshee silently nodding her head, proving that she would indeed do whatever it was that she had offered. As for why she would do so, only Elenor, who could converse with the spirit, knew what she had said. But whatever it was, it caused the young Horde King quite the difficulty, as she debated silently with herself for some time before finally answering with a heavy sigh.
"Far be it from me to reject such a rare opportunity for growth. It's just that... What you're asking me... The sacrifice I will have to make.... I will need to think about the pros and cons of your offer thoroughly before giving you and your sisters a proper answer, so please, wait until then..."
A slight smile formed upon the Banshee's gorgeous face. It was not the bone chilling and monstrous smile she had given the sergeant before removing his head, but rather a graceful and dignified one, like that of a noble lady in waiting.
After doing this she disappeared, leaving the young Tier I Horde king alone with her thoughts, specifically about the offer which the Banshee had made to her, the details of which only she knew.