The Aftermath

Now, that was quite eventful. I thought.

With Kevin's condition stabilizing, I glanced up the on-ramp back to where the Stryker's had been fighting the horde of demons. To my horror however, the Stryker's had begun to pull back, retreating across the bridge that spanned the Turnpike. This left the Horde behind, and without the Stryker's to contend with, they now had free reign on myself, Kevin, and the rest of the evacuating citizens.

Just as I thought this however, I heard a slow rumble, that was getting exponentially louder with each passing second. Even as the Horde slowly began to advance towards myself and Kevin, it would appear that we might not have to worry after all. An A-10 Thunderbolt flew straight over head, and in its wake several deafening whistles pierced the air. Knowing what was likely about to happen, I covered my eyes, just in time, as I felt the quakes of explosions ahead of me, as well as a blast of sweltering heat. After a few seconds, I uncovered my eyes, and in front of me I saw that everything was in ruin. The buildings, and trees of the pavilion were suddenly bursting in flames, the demons caught right up in it. While the [Imp]'s were largely resistant to fire, they were not resident however to concussion waves, and it showed as limps of the demons littered the entrance to the highway everywhere. It was at that point that I realized what that flare had originally been for. The Sergeant had called in an air strike in their position during his last moments alive.

If he were still alive, I would literally grovel at his feat in thanks, I thought. That selfless, and frankly insightful order had saved the lives of hundreds of civilians. I watched as the two Stryker's moved back forward and picked off any stragglers that the air strike failed to obliterate. There wasn't much work to be had however, as the air strike had successfully performed its job.

And just as the last of the [Imp]'s fell, the Quest was fulfilled, and surprisingly enough a bright flash erupted in front of me, after sheltering my eyes with the back of my hand, I slowly looked over as the light dissipated. In front of me, in place of the light was a sword, held floating in the air by a golden glow. I activated Appraisal.

I was surprised, my previous sword was likely extremely useless at this point in its deteriorated state, as such it was an incredibly welcomed gift. The attack and durability values were quite good for a sword of this level. It'll definitely be put to good use.

Grabbing the blade, I then turned around, I could see that the hysterical mob of people on the Turnpike heading West had slowed down, looking back in awe and visible relief as the billowing clouds of fire soared into the sky. It was clear that the imminent threat to their lives had been ended just in time.

I also saw that Jackson had stopped holding Rachel back, as she had begun running towards me. Tears were still visibly streaming down her cheeks, and her face was contorted in complexions showing both despair, as well as anger.

She ran towards me and fell into my arms. My face contorted into a slight grimace as I held her, the dull aches and pains across my body intensifying as she began pounding on my chest. In-between sobs, she yelled out in anger, "What. The. Hell. Thomas!?" she cried out. "What would you have done if all of those monsters hadn't been killed and they came after you!?" she yelled. "What would you have done then!?"

She was clearly freaking out.

"R- Rachel.." I stammered out.

"No!" She yelled, "I don't want to hear your excuses!" She sobbed out. "Just promise me you won't do something so reckless and dangerous again!"

I stayed silent. Not because I didn't want to promise her that, but because I knew I couldn't. There was no way I could ever keep that promise, particularly considering what Astia had told me earlier in the day. If what he said was true. Humanity would not survive without me. While it may have seemed self-absorbing, and frankly quite narcissistic, it was something I honestly believed. Especially as I looked at my sizeable increase in stats.

Only being level 4, I was already at least several times stronger than a [Human] of the same level. It was immensely clear that the power gap would likely only increase as I leveled more and more. It was ridiculous to even think about. Exactly what type of power had I been given access to? I questioned.

I knew, however, that I was still a long way from being able to pose any real threat to a Demon Lord or even a Demon Champion at that. Demon Champions would likely have [attributes] broaching nearly into the thousands if Holy Arc Online was anything to go by. Demon Champions were Tier 4 evolutions of Demons. Demon Lords were even more terrifying, usually extending into the Tier 5 & Tier 6 range. Meaning their stats were already in the tens of thousands. It would be a long road for me if I really decided to take my path as a [High-Human Paragon] seriously. But who else could even reasonably do it? I thought to myself. In just a few short hours the invasion forces have already begun reaching the outskirts of the Boston Metropolitan area. While the military might be able to take out Tier 1, 2, & possibly 3 monsters. Tier 4 and above would likely begin broaching the realm of unbeatable. Anything short of a tactical nuclear strike would likely even be insufficient. I knew at that point that I would have to make a clear-cut decision relatively soon. As I glanced down at my new sword, I knew that the job of actually defending, and fighting would become a much easier affair. The [Imp]'s would likely pose much less of an issue with the near-doubling of my [attributes] from previously.

After having gone through my first relatively major battle, I was a tad bit more confident in my abilities.

Still holding onto Rachel, I noticed as the two Stryker's that had finished off the remaining [Imp]'s began making their way towards us, only stopping just a dozen feet away. The hatch on top of the Stryker's rose as a Staff Sergeant climbed out of the vehicle. The man looked grim. Likely a result of the battle that had resulted in a majority of the Platoon being wiped out. With just the squad left manning the Stryker's, and likely the other Fire Team that had been inside the disabled M1 Abrams, the Staff Sergeant had assumed command. Looking towards us, he noticed Kevin still laying on the ground as well as myself, and, taking our wounds into account, rose his hand to the headset that donned his helmet. "Davis, get out here, we have some injured civilians that need medical detail. Over." the Staff Sergeant radioed out. After a few seconds he replied to who I could only assume was 'Davis' on the other end, "Copy that".

After another few seconds, the second Stryker's hatch opened, and another soldier climbed out, this one with a red cross band wrapped onto his upper arm, as such I assumed the man was Davis.

"Davis!" The Staff Sergeant called out once again, this time yelling over to the man instead of talking over their communications device.

The man ran over, then immediately stiffened straight up, and rose his right arm, saluting the Staff Sergeant. "Yes, Staff Sergeant!" The man yelled out in reply.

"Go and see to these two civilians, while we round up the rest of the evacuees. I doubt we'll be seeing much more making their way over here, considering that the threat has already manifested itself this far out of the city." The Staff Sergeant said.

"Yes Sir!" the soldier named Davis replied. Then, looking between myself and Kevin, quickly went over and knelt by Kevin, and, pulling out some bandages and an alcoholic solution from the pack went ahead and began cursory medical treatments. "This may hurt a bit," The combat warned Kevin as he poured some of the solution over the more severe wounds, and then he quickly began bandaging the wounds across his arms, legs, and torso, having to lift up his shirt in the process. It all only took a few minutes, which appeared to be just enough time for Rachel to begin calming down, as she slowly let go of me.

"I'm sorry Thomas," she whispered. "I just... Got scared."

"I know Rachel, but honestly, things like what happened today are likely to only continue happening. I doubt once we get to Shrewsbury, we'll actually be safe, but at the very least we can settle down a bit and make more long-term plans with my family." I responded to her.

The Combat Medic, Davis, after finishing up with Kevin proceeded to make his way over to me. At this point though, my health points had already started ticking up a bit, as I noticed they read 86/132, having gone up just slightly. Of course, the wounds were still evident.

The Combat Medic began to look over me, and then he surprised me by saying, "I assume those dead beasts were the work of you and your friend there?" Davis said. I simply nodded in response as he the continued, "That was one hell of a brave thing to do; and stupid, but what you did saved lives. We didn't even realize a group had broken off until you lot had already engaged them. So thanks to you I only had to treat minor injuries today." He smiled slightly, however it was clear that it wasn't only the Staff Sergeant that felt the weight of the losses of their Platoon today. All of them likely had some friend or other that they lost due to the surprise attack.

"Well... I know it likely hurts, but if it's any consolation, the sacrifice that the other soldiers made were the only reason I think any of us managed to pull through it." I said.

Davis only nodded, and in reply he said, "Everyone who enlists with the military goes in with the understanding that someday we may be asked to perform the greatest sacrifice. They died knowing that they did so protecting hundreds from being massacred. It's only our duty".

Silence then permeated, as Davis finished checking me. "You know, i'm surprised, considering what you went through, you are actually in remarkable shape, and whatever damage you sustained, all the wounds and scratches are literally closing up before my eyes. If it wasn't for the amount of crazy I've seen today, then I wouldn't believe it."

In reply I simply said, "Well, starting today, I think crazy is going to be the new normal."

"You might be right about that," he responded. "Anyways, if you lot are good to walk, then we better make our way and follow the Staff Sergeant. We are no longer in a position to defend the bridge, and considering that the chances of further evacuees making it this far is pretty miniscule at best, we are going to proceed to escort all of you over to Riverside Station. From there we'll rendezvous with the Battalion." He said as he addressed all of us.

We followed Davis to where the two Stryker's had advanced towards the once again crowing group of people. The group had mellowed out quite a lot, and we joined in just as the Staff Sergeant finished addressing all of them. "-and then we'll be seeing you to Riverside Station. We'll be moving out in just a few minutes." he concluded.

Turning around the Staff Sergeant noticed all of us following Davis. Kevin, while still somewhat hurt, only had a slight limp in his step. Most of his injuries had occurred on his arms and torso, but even those appeared to be doing much better than just a half hour ago. "How are they doing Davis?" The Staff Sergeant said, addressing the Combat Medic.

"As good as I can expect at the moment, sir!" he replied. "Give them a week or two and they should expect a full recovery!"

The Staff Sergeant nodded, pleased. "Wonderful. Now then, like I just told everyone else, we'll be attempting to reach Riverside Station before nightfall. I'd hate to be stuck out here when visibility conditions begin to worsen."

The Staff Sergeant then walked away. He proceeded to take one of the Stryker's and return to where the disabled M1 Abrams now lay, the soldiers had long since climbed out, and appeared to be attempting to unjam the tracks at the moment.

After a few minutes of waiting around, the M1 Abrams loudly lurched forward and sputtered back to life, the immediate issues having been fixed.

"Well then!" Davis announced, "It's about time we make our way towards Riverside Station." he said as he turned to leave and return to his own Fire Team.

After a few moments, our own group silently glanced at each other. Breaking the silence, I smiled and shattered the tension, "I don't know about you guys, but I'm sure grateful to still be alive." in response, our small group laughed, and a small moment was shared between the lot of us. After today's events, and the short time that has passed. Our bond had noticeably strengthened. In a way, it was clear that even Jackson was a welcome member of our group now.

"Let's get heading to Riverside Station!" I announced, as we all began making our way forward, following the departing group, and the two Stryker's and M1 Abrams Tank escorting them.