Book 2 Chapter 36: Out of the Frying Pan

Book 2 Chapter 36: Out of the Frying Pan

I let the red haze that had been at the edge of my vision fully consume me. My limbs became a blur of motion as I cut and tore my way through the sharp toothed greenery that now surrounded me. I felt the pain of their bites and tears at me at the edge of my awareness, my only focused thought being to continue moving in a single direction. There was no way Id be able to destroy the entire forest after all, I needed to escape. While I was tearing my way through, wishing that the forest was made of soft flesh rather than hardwood, I found myself wondering how the Pilgrim had gotten through this obstacle. He had seemed to be the average deadman, and while we were more capable than the majority of humans on average, this seemed beyond the capabilities of most, maybe even me. He mustve had some clever way around it. This was the closest of the landmarks to his starting point after all, it was probable that he and his people dealt with it on a regular basis.

I was snapped back into consciousness by a number of branches suddenly managing to wrap themselves around my legs and chest. Up until that point I had been able to avoid them since they were moving so slowly, but now that I seemed to be in the thickest portion of the forest, I had stayed within reach for longer. I fell forward as the branches and vines slowly began to pull me back. I drove my sword into the ground in front of myself to keep myself from being pulled back further, but it was a losing battle. The branches and vines pulled slowly, but did so with an incredible amount of strength. Thinking quickly, I kept one hand on the sword handle while I reached into my pack. I struggled, holding on with all my strength while also trying to locate what I needed. Eventually I felt what I was looking for.

I pulled the laspistol out of my bag and started firing, aiming behind myself at the largest cluster of branches. The chattering sped up, and I thought I heard a low groan as I held down the trigger and watched as holes burned not only through what had grabbed onto me, but into the trees, and growth behind that, and even further beyond. Several small fires even began spreading. I felt the pull on my slacken, and made a push forward and out of the hold the woods had on me.

I started cutting the woods in front of me again, firing my pistol at the same time to keep the branches back, and eventually the resistance I was receiving actually started to slacken. Whether it was because the woods had somehow realized I was too spicy of a meal, or I was simply getting further from the forests center, I wasnt certain.

I felt the rads that had been buffeting me intensely since my trip into the cut begin to gently fade until they felt just like the level of a regular deadzone, then start to fall even below that. When I reached a point in which the trees and bushes werent taking even a single nibble, I slowed down, letting the red clear from my vision. A part of me wanted to take a few more spiteful shots into the brush, but I decided against it. I saw a few small hints of smoke rising behind me, and decided to move off the trail Id been making and find somewhere to rest.

I hiked until I felt I was far enough away from the smoke trail Id created to take a breather. I wasnt sure what Id encounter here, and what might be drawn to smoke. I took out and devoured more of the strange bird Id killed the day before, taking no time to savor and instead focusing on getting as much into my gullet as quickly as I possibly could. Healing and utilizing my Adaptive Empowerment ability both always left me with an incredible appetite.

I realized then, that she was the leader in the situation. Her chants were the orders she was relaying to her soldiers who followed them with gusto. Id met some Kaijin who had used drums, songs, and even birdsong as a method of signaling one another, but never anything so flashy as what I was witnessing then.

I was so distracted watching the Panthers that I forgot to see who their opponents were. On the other side of them, was a different group. They were dressed in much the same way as the others, but instead of Panthers, they were covered in symbols of hawks, and were primarily wearing clothes of brown and yellow rather than the black of their opponents. I saw no deadmen on either side, and as I had no idea what the stakes of their conflict was, I took careful cover and watched as their skirmish unfolded. It was a brutal battle of attrition, with one side gaining territory, only to be beaten back shortly afterward. There seemed to be a ritualistic method to how they exchanged fire and did battle, but I couldnt decipher the specifics beyond the feeling that that was the case. Eventually the battle seemed to be going for the Panthers, and then it suddenly ceased.

WE CALL FOR THE KICKERS! Yelled the Panthers leader.

WE ANSWER THE CALL! Yelled that of the Hawks.

Suddenly I saw a single man from either side of the field suddenly run up into the middle of things. No one fired on them, just watching anxiously or with stoic interest. I realized that both of the men were holding a small oddly shaped object. The Panthers kicker managed to kick the object first and I watched as it sailed into the ranks of the Hawks. The Hawks near it didnt move, though I watched their eyes widen in fear and a few of them grit their teeth. There was an explosion, and I wasnt able to see their reaction, as the Hawks kicker hit their own explosive. His went wide and to the right. I watched as it flew awkwardly through the air, and landed right in front of me.

Fuck.Read latest chapters at nov(e)lbin.com Only