"Two more targets, north axis, two hours!"
The feminine man's report rang within the group, instantly causing Fay to shift the direction she was leading the group in.
"Three hundred meters!"
The reports continued to come in.
"Two fifty!"
"Two hundred... Wait, isn't he... One fifty!"
"They are closing in fast," a punk-like Makary's soldier muttered while readying the heavy machine gun that he held in his hand and supported with two straps wrapped around his shoulders.
"One hundred!"
"Should I take them out?" Fay asked, turning her head sideways to sneak a quick glance even though the likely enemy was just about to slam into us.
"Leave them to Makary's men," I countered Fay's suggestion. "But stay on your toes in case things go bad," I added. "They need to get used to the combat of this world."
This was all but a test, in a sense.
A test for Makary to see what worked and what did not. To let him understand the intricacies of a battlefield in a world with aura, where people could reach heights much greater than back on earth.
Most importantly, it was a field test of standard, modern guns and how they would fare against the shields local humans could raise.
"Fifty," the feminine man announced in a much softer voice, already kneeling down on one knee while hiding most of his body behind one of the trees.
Following Fay, I retreated to a slightly thicker part of the forest. As we hid within the bushes, we only had to wait for two more moments before two humans, both covered in bloodied armor, came out from between the trees a bit deeper into the forest.
"Chris, fire."
The feminine man adjusted the barrel of his light machine gun and, without even a hint of hesitation, opened fire.
*Trrr*
After Madam robbed him of his balls, he had no other choice but to admit that he was weaker than her. Doing that, in turn, led to the bulk of his personal power vanishing, leaving him in an even worse state than Madam's punishment was supposed to put him in.
Still, he learned. He learned that he lacked the power to achieve his goals through raw power alone... So could I really blame him for trying his hand at different methods?
"It might look silly because they are still testing things out," I countered, strangely insulted by the lack of respect in Loraz's voice towards both the arms and the very men from my world.
"Two hundred!"
Chris reported once again.
This time, however, the formation of Makary's men changed, bringing them into three lines of five men each, all set at just the slightest angle to give everyone a free line of fire dead-ahead.
"Hundred and fifty!"
Makary's men started to rise up, stood still in place lowered themselves down on one knee. The three men at the very front went all the way and laid down on the ground, quickly finding some points to support the long barrels of their guns.
"Hundred!"
The entire group... No, the entire area of the forest around us turned silent.
Chris didn't utter the next command, opting to just raise his fist and shake it.
'Fifty,' I thought, right as a group of a bit more than ten human soldiers emerged from beyond the trees.
Just like in the encounter before. This time, however, all of Makary's men opened fire at the same time, covering the entire group with a hail of bullets so dense, that even some of the best armors of the modern world would struggle to withstand.
And before a single man could raise their barrier, the entire group fell to the ground, riddled with bloody holes, some ripped to shreds through a short series of the HMG held by the punk-like man.
Seeing the results of the slightly more intense test, I turned my head and looked at Loraz.
"Do you have anything else to say about those men and their arms?"
I just couldn't help but jeer right in Loraz's face.
Yet, my smile didn't last long.
"Two big groups, smaller one dead ahead, bigger one on the north axis, three hours!"