Chapter 08 – Thick but Narrow, Thin but Wide
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*beeeeeeeeep*

"Rewinding log..."

"Week 1"
"Tuesday"
"0015 hrs."
"Somewhere in the Eastern Part of the forest."
"Gargan Forest"

...

...

...

Under the bright full-moon night, werewolves with three eyes are now starting to howl and look for their hunt and prey. They sniff on the ground, tracking their smell. When suddenly, they stop and stare at a dark area as if they've noticed something strange. Seconds later, faint footsteps resonate inside the dark area, and the wolves began to gnarl while standing their ground to confront the seemingly dangerous creature. The footsteps became more and more clear, as they now revealed two HOTEL Operators in ghillie suits and ghillied rifles. The two scan their surroundings in the area when they also suddenly notice the wolves in front of them. The wolves began gnarling even harder. The two operators slowly approach the wolves with now rifles drawn to them.  As they stare at the glowing tubes of the operators and at the front of their barrels, it was as if their instinct told them to run away, the wolves indeed run away and whimper. The operators then slowly resume their operation after the area is clear while scanning their surroundings with their improved dual-tubes-NODs of AN/PVS-5s.

"HOTEL Group Three. Proceeding with Waypoint Three-C." one of them whispered on his attached radio.

"Roger. HOTEL Group Two E-T-A. twenty-mikes at Waypoint Two-C." another group whispered in their frequency and earpieces. 

"Waypoint Four-D, HOTEL Group Four." another on their frequency. The ten HOTEL Operators were grouped into five groups, two operators each, for their recon operation to lay up traps and motion sensors on the path leading to the main camp of the bandits that attacked Arksonville two days ago. Going to their respective waypoints, they attach motion sensors to detect any possible enemy movements and traps like mines and claymores. One will do the setting and attaching while the other one will provide cover and security. In their next waypoint, they will switch places until they've reached their respective final waypoints.

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...

After three hours, all of the groups finished laying up sensors and traps on the path leading to the bandit camp. They rendezvous together and observe the main bandit camp down over a hill just now hundreds of meters away from them. As they look at their AN/PVS-2 Starlight scopes that they also brought from the armory, they begin observing people at an established and fortified cave entrance. Some were patrolling and some were just playing cards. They also begin to take pictures of them using also the said starlight scopes for better evaluation. After their quick and final procedure, they slowly exit their positions like ghosts disappearing into the dark woods and make their way back to the Cathedral.

...

Another two hours have passed, and they finally make it back to the Cathedral. They were greeted by the patrolling units from the Able Company in the forest near the Cathedral. It was now 0613hrs. The first thing the HOTEL Operators noticed are the trees that were now cut off by the new units from the Baker Company using chainsaws. They also heard loud thumps resonating on the back of the Cathedral and decided to check it out. What greeted them was the deafening rotors of the Cobra helicopter hovering a few feet above ground doing testing runs.

"HEY! WHERE'S THE SIR?!" HOTEL 01 shouted to a nearby Able Unit and tapped his shoulder.

"HE'S INSIDE WITH THE OTHERS!" the unit replied. The ten operators unhood their ghillie hoods as they walk inside the Cathedral. Some of the Able Units welcomed them from their operation during their duty. 

"Where is Sir Harvey?" HOTEL 01 asked another Able Unit guarding inside the Cathedral.

"Oh, he's inside the main hall with some other three. The angel is also with them for some reason." 

"I see. Thanks." HOTEL 01, with HOTEL 02 and HOTEL 03 leave the others going inside the basement for them to unload their gear in the armory, to meet with Harvey for mission evaluation. Inside the main hall with the big broken statue, the operators see Harvey and the others in front of the said statue. Harvey and Fruchiel are in front of three peasants that lined up standing in attention.

"Alright. Now that I made myself clear about the things I said, I will now have you three join me on our operations." Harvey grinned. Hearing this as they approach them, the operators were surprised and asked him about this.

"Sir Harvey. We're back." HOTEL 01 and the other two saluted casually to Harvey. The three peasants look behind to see who is it.

"Oh hey. How's the operation?" Harvey also casually saluted back.

"Yes sir. It went well. We've spent all of the equipment on the waypoints. I'll have the notes and pictures of the bandit site in the basement."

"Neat. You will now monitor the sensors by the main panel installed in the basement, HOTEL One." Harvey smiled with crossed arms.

"Roger that, sir." HOTEL 01 saluted with the other two as they walk out of the main hall. The three peasants look at each other wondering what was all that about.

"Sorry about that. Don't worry. They just came back from an operation." Harvey said to the three peasants.

"O-Operation? You mean, we will have to join them someday with you, Sir Harvey?" Isabella asked him.

"Yes. But not on all kinds of operations. I will decide on what roles you three are capable of before attaching you guys to my forces." Harvey replied.

"Hm. Isn't that having weapons and gears like you will be enough for them?" Fruchiel asked Harvey with a curious face.

"You mean just like the infantry units?" Harvey asked back.

"Infantry?"

"Y-Yeah. Well, if they proved enough to be in my group of forces, which is very different from the infantry forces, they will also have to specialize in some sort of roles like recon, ambush, etcetera. Otherwise, I can probably be content on just letting them join the infantry units." Harvey replied as he look at the three peasants.

"Si-Sir Harvey!" Glenn in the middle suddenly called. 

"Hm? What is it?" 

"I-I don't want to be just a normal unit in the eyes of you! I-I want to prove to myself that I can do better!" he said in determination. Herman on the right of him, smirks and chuckles at Harvey.

"Hahaha! Sir Harvey! I'm sorry about that. But we are also tired of getting looked down upon." Herman said also with a determined and eager face. Harvey posed his hand on his chin as he thinks about it.

"That's right. Ever since we lived in our village, we've been under constant abuse by high-ranking and powerful people because we have no magic attributes especially. We've endured most of it, and most of ours died as well." Isabella added with a serious face.

"Herman was one of the guards, Glenn was one of the farmers contributing to our labor, and myself was one of the hunters." she added.

"Hm. Ah, I see!" Harvey, quickly finally decided their probable groups in the future.

"Okay. I will trust your words. After we've decided on what we'll do to that bandit camp, I'm gonna have you three come with us." he added.

"Bandit camp?" Glenn asked.

"Yes. You three are going to watch how we operate in real missions. Haha." Harvey chuckled with a little excitement. Fruchiel looks at him with annoyance while the three look at him with curiosity.

"For now, we're gonna go to the shooting range." Harvey grinned. He then uses the radio on his vest to call someone.

"FOXTROT Actual here. is the shooting range finished?"

"Yes sir. The units from the Baker Company cleaned the area earlier."

"Nice. Also, tell them to make shooting targets. They can use the wood from the trees they cut."

"Understood, sir."

*psssh*

"FOXTROT Actual?" Herman asked.

"Hm? Ah yes. That's my callsign. It originated from my team group called the "59th Foxtrot Jumpers" back in my world." 

"O-Oh I see." Herman was in awe.

"Alright! That will be all. Let's go outside to the shooting range! But, what about you, dimwit?" Harvey asked the angel on his left.

"Huh? What did you just say to me?"

"Dimwit?"

"Hey! Argh. Nevermind! I'll just help the other peasants recover while you four do your thingy-majingy. See ya guys later!" Fruchiel as she waved them and leaves the main hall. The four look at her and chuckle awkwardly. 

"Aight. Follow me." Harvey, with the three, goes outside to the back of the Cathedral. In the area, the shooting range is already finished up by the Able Units. There are already circle shooting boards made out of wood from the trees that were cut down. For the backstop, a wall of soil is placed behind the shooting boards. Harvey goes to a nearby table and starts spawning weapons and ammo for the practice as the tree behind him watches in awe.

After a few minutes, Harvey spawned three Colt M1911s, three M16A1s, and boxes of their ammunition. The three look at each other with anxiety. This is their first try at shooting a modern weapon.

"Here, is what we call a "pistol"." Harvey said as he grabs and presents an M1911.

"It shoots cartridges that came from inside - these." he added as he unloads the magazine.

"They are called "magazines". These types can only carry about seven rounds. In bigger weapons, they can carry up to a hundred. But we call them "boxes" or "drum" magazines."

"Oohhh" the three commented in awe.

"Now, let's proceed with the rifle. Here, is what we call the "M16A1". They are like crossbows function-wise. But they also shoot bullets and have a faster shooting rate than the crossbows." Harvey continued as he switches to the rifle and proceeded to explain its various functions, proper grip, and safety.

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...

After half an hour, Harvey is finished with the explanations. They then proceed for the live fire practice. Harvey orders them to stand and line up to their respective shooting board in the distance.

"Alright. Let's go with the pistol first." Harvey as he gives the three M1911 to them. 

"Don't forget to grip them tight while keeping your finger off the trigger, aight? Make it steady." 

The three hold the pistol grip firmly as they begin to aim toward their shooting boards. Adrenaline starts to rush in them as they feel excitement and anxiety at the same time. Nonetheless, they continue steadying their grip and aim.

"Good. Fire whenever ready!" Harvey, as he focuses his gaze on their grips like an instructor. Slowly, the three put their fingers on the trigger. Glenn and Isabella are shaking, while Herman keeps his nerves and fires first.

*BANG!*

The sudden gunfire that came from him greatly surprised the other two who then had misfires on the ground.

*BANG! BANG!*

Immediately, Harvey halts the entire practice.

"STOP! STOP! CEASE FIRE!" Harvey shouted as he grips the two pistols by their slides from Glenn and Isabella to prevent further misfire. 

"O-Oh. I'm sorry!" Herman quickly lowers his pistol down on the table. 

"I-I-I-I'M SO SORRY, SIR HARVEY!" Glenn, breathing heavily because of shock. Isabella is also the same and her hands are shaking. The two let go of the pistols and Harvey sighed.

"Boy, that was scary! Hahaha!"

"We're really sorry, Sir Harvey." Isabella bowed.

"Haha. It's alright. I'm not blaming you. I should've just taught you guys one by one. I'm also sorry." Harvey also apologized as he then proceeds to teach them one by one. First, is Isabella. He helps her by maintaining a proper grip on the pistol and aiming down the sights. She stands up on her shooting board and aims the pistol at the board with Glenn and Herman now watching.

"Ok. Take your pace. You can fire when you're ready." Harvey instructed her. Isabella proceeds to put her index finger on the trigger and slowly put pressure on it. Heavy breathing and sweat begin to drop on her as she focuses the pistol sight on the shooting board. After a few more seconds, she finally shoots.

*BANG!*

Harvey looks at the board at sees that it nearly hit the center mark. Surprised, he compliments her, and the two others clap in admiration.

"Woooah! Good shot!" Harvey cheered.

"Wow! You really have good eyesight, aren't ya?" Herman added.

"N-Nice shot!" Glenn complimented. Isabella slowly controls her breathing back as she continues firing the remaining shots.

...

After the firing, five shots are near the center, while two are in the dead center. Harvey, Glenn, and Herman gasped in awe and surprise. They clap their hands and started complimenting her again. 

"Nice shots! Very! Now, do you want to fire a couple more rounds?" Harvey asked her. Controlling her breathing, she agrees.

"Ye-Yes, Sir Harvey! I can do this!" she said in determination. Harvey proceeds to give her three loaded magazines. He instructs her to press the mag release, and the mag drops off on the ground. Isabella grabs a magazine and carefully inserts it into the pistol grip. A metal clank pops up as a cartridge is now inserted into the barrel, indicating that it is ready to fire. Harvey focuses his gaze back on her grip and notifies her that she's ready to fire whenever she likes. After short seconds later, she fires in three-seconds intervals. Harvey nods in amazement as she observes the firm grip and finger position on her pistol as she fires. Done firing the seven .45 ACP rounds, Harvey looks back at her shooting board and was even more surprised when she hit four dead-center.

"Wo-woah! Are you kidding me? I think we have a new sharpshooter here!" Harvey looked at her in disbelief.

"Hehehe." Isabella casually laughed in reply. With that, she fires a couple more rounds. While she is practicing and knowing that Isabella is now keeping her posture and bearings carefully, Harvey decides to go with Glenn and Herman next.

"A-Are you sure?" Glenn nervously asked Harvey.

"It's alright! Don't worry. I will be supervising you two! Isabella can hold her own now!" Harvey replied.

"Hahaha! Thank you, Sir Harvey! You can focus more on Glenn! I'm used to tension and stress like these!" Herman confidently smiled and laughed.

"You sure? Don't blame me if you shot your finger, aight?" Herman jokingly said as he gives the two pistols to them.

"Hahahahaha! Don't worry!" Herman, as he grabs the M1911 pistol from Harvey. After grabbing the pistol, Herman stands firmly on his shooting range and grips his pistol tightly. Soon, he begins shooting and practicing with Isabella. This now leaves Glenn, still nervously standing, motionlessly staring at his shooting board in the distance. He begins to get anxious as his both legs and hands begin to shake. Harvey, noticing this, holds the pistol down on the ground to ensure safety. At the same time, he begins to doubt Glenn about using these kinds of weapons.

"Are you alright? Do you want to stop?" Harvey asked him as both gunfires from Isabella and Herman echo in the background, making his anxiety grow even further. He closes his both eyes as he thinks about how he is very useless and incompetent. He remembers the days when he was still in Arksonville as a farmer and the day when a high noble came to their village, only to take his beloved fiance and lover. He remembers how he just watch her helplessly. He can't do anything and it leaves a scar on his heart. But, as soon as she looks at her crying face in his memory, somehow, his anxiousness and nervousness fade a little, and he begins to control his bearings back again. He lifts up his head and looks at Harvey with determination.

"N-No. Si-Sir. I'm ready."

"Are you sure?" Harvey, still has his grip on Glenn's pistol.

"Yes, sir!" 

"Alright. Take your time ok? Make sure that your finger is off the trigger when you're not going to fire. Got that?"

"Ye-Yes, sir!"

 "Aight. Keep it steady!" Harvey, letting go of his pistol. Glenn now lifts his pistol up and starts aiming down at his target. He slowly controls his breathing and sight, before putting his index finger on the trigger to fire.

*BANG!*

After a shot, Harvey looks at his shooting board and compliments him for having his first shot hit the near-second circle away from the center. He gives a thumbs-up.

"Keep it up! You're doing a great job!"

After more seconds of controlled breathing later, Glenn continues firing until his first magazine is empty. He begins panting and sweat begins to drop on his head and hands. He looks at Harvey and he sees him thumbs up. 

"Good job! Wanna shoot more? Herman and Isabella seem to have a liking now! Hahaha!" Harvey said as he looks at the two others who are now casually shooting. Harvey also lets the two wear mag belts and mag pouches for their pistol mags. Glenn notices them and was surprised. At the same time, this makes him even more hyped up and eager to continue. He also requests Harvey the mag belt and mag pouch the other two also uses. Harvey nods and spawns the two attachments and he helps Glenn wear them on his waist. Done wearing the two attachments, Harvey puts the pistol mags on his mag belt while the empty ones inside the mag pouch. 

"Remember that the opening of each magazine is at the bottom, ok? So just grab them and insert on by the bottom!" Harvey instructed and demonstrated to Glenn on using the mag belt. 

"U-Understood! Got it!" 

Glenn continues firing with the other two on the shooting range. Their gunshots resonate in the area for minutes.

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Exhausted, the three finally stop. Harvey instructs them to check if their pistol is still loaded or not. 

"Rack the slide back and check if there is still a cartridge inside! If there is a cartridge, rack it back again to remove the cartridge! Also, make sure that your trigger finger is off the trigger!" Harvey shouted at them. The three carefully inspect their pistols to make sure that it is now unloaded. After ensuring that their pistols are now unloaded and clear, the three thumbs up at Harvey. 

"Good. Let's take a break first before proceeding next to these M16A1s!" Harvey as he presented the rifles on the table with their ammunition. The three sit on a nearby bench to rest. They can't believe what just happen and are still a little shaken.

"Hahaha! Your hands are still shakin', Glenn!" Herman patted Glenn.

"Hehe. What about your fidgeting legs, Herman?" Isabella smirked at Herman.

"Isabella, you're also sweating. Haha." Glenn also remarked at Isabella.

The three chuckle and laugh as they relax and take a break, while they watch Harvey inspect the pistol and the shooting range.

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After half an hour, Harvey approaches the three over the bench.

"Aight. Ready for round two?" Harvey said with a grin. The three look at each other and nod at Harvey. 

"Nice. Back to your positions!" 

The three stand up and went back to their firing positions as Harvey grabs an M16A1 on the table with a loaded mag and presents it to them. 

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After another explanation later, Harvey gives out the three M16A1s to the three. He also replaced the pistol mags on their belts with 20-round rifle mags for practice. The three stand firmly and properly grip their rifles as Harvey instructed earlier. This time, they can be more focused and relaxed now that they already practiced with pistols. So, their shooting is more accurate and fluid. They can't also believe that the rifle is more controllable than the pistol. It's because of the stock and grip placement on the handguard. The shooting range became lively again as the three continue their practice as Harvey carefully observe and inspect them from behind.

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Approximately two hours have passed, and they are now finished with all of the shooting. Harvey praises the three for their good performance and shooting. 

"Good job! You three can now rest inside while I clean this area with the Able Units." Harvey instructed the three. But suddenly, one of the HOTEL Operators approaches Harvey with an urgent message.

"Sir. HOTEL Actual reported a massive formation and movement detected by our motion sensors at thirteen-forty hours. "

"Huh? Are you sure that they aren't just wild animals migrating?"

"No sir. We put the motion sensor settings into the allowable frequency to detect humans or creatures of the same size." 

Still with Harvey behind him, the three hear this and are curious about what is it all about. They approach Harvey and ask him about it.

"What's going on, Sir Harvey?" Glenn asked. But Harvey looks at them while thinking of something. After a few seconds, he grins.

"Haha. It looks like you three will have an early duty. Isn't that right, HOTEL Two?" Harvey asked the operator. HOTEL 02 also looks at the three and chuckles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"Hehe. Indeed, sir."

"

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Soul Energy :

[ Level 1 ]

 

Soul Count :

[ 13 ]

 

Spawn Count:

[ 110 ]

= 80 Infantry Units

= 30 Special Forces 



UPCOMING NEXT CHAPTER:

Chapter 09 – Snake Stings

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