“Steel Rain, Steel Rain, this is Warlord, fire for effect, over.” Shawn glanced between the map on the rock in front of him and the artillery spotter’s handbook in his left hand.

            “Warlord, this is Steel Rain, fire for effect, out.” The male voice responded over the radio receiver held up to Shawn’s ear.

            Shawn leaned over the map, careful to read exactly what was written in the dim lighting. “Grid, 12T VL 2479 1258, over.”

            “Grid, 12T VL 2479 1258, out.” Steel Rain rattled back perfectly.

            “Goblin camp, twenty plus hostiles in the open, danger close, at my command, over.” Shawn reported as he gazed at the large bonfire in the distance.

            “Goblin camp, twenty plus hostiles in the open, danger close, at your command, out.” Steel Rain repeated.

            Shawn glanced back down at the handbook to confirm that his portion of the call for fire was complete. As his eyes skimmed down the page, Steel Rain’s voice came back on the radio.

            “Message to observer.” Steel Rain’s monotone voice crackled over the radio. “HE in effect, one tube, three rounds, target number AA 1111, ready to fire, over.”

            Shawn nodded and prepared to repeat the message back. 

“Message to observer, HE in effect, one tube, three rounds, target number AA 1111, ready to fire, out.”

            Shawn shot a look at his companions crouched low to his right. Both Anisha, in her black plate armor, and Kaylish, now wearing the typical brown clothing of combat personnel, gave Shawn a quick nod to signal they were prepared for what came next. Shawn took a deep breath and thumbed the transmit button on the radio.

            “Fire.”

            A moment passed before the receiver crackled with traffic.

            “Shot, over.”

            “Shot, out.” Shawn replied.

            Shawn lifted his hand above his shoulder, palm down, and lowered it quickly down to his waist. Anisha and Kaylish ducked all the way to the ground and braced themselves against the rocks.

            “Splash, over.”

            “Splash, out.” Shawn tensed but kept his eyes up to witness the shells landing.

            Just over three hundred meters away, a large bonfire slowly dimmed in brightness as its fuel continued to burn away. Shawn could just make out the dark lumps of sleeping goblins sprawled out around the blaze. Several stripped cow carcasses were strewn all around the scene, a horrendous testament to the violent feast the creatures had just a few hours prior. Though nocturnal in nature, the sun had yet to rise over the distant horizon. The small creatures had gorged themselves on the stolen cattle before turning in early to sleep off their meal. Shawn just had to thank his luck that the goblins had selected a campsite across a wide-open field, giving him plenty of space and time to calculate his skill. This early in the morning, the morning light was little more than a faint red glow in the distance. It didn’t matter, even if it was broad daylight, the small creatures would never see the shells coming.

            Five seconds after the call ‘splash’ came over his radio, the first of three highly explosive artillery shells rocked the slumbering camp. All three of the shells landed within ten meters of Shawn’s designated target. There were no cries. No shouts of alarm. Just three concussive waves from the explosions, then silence. Shawn and his two companions rose to their feet and inspected the distant campsite that had been reduced to a smoking crater. A familiar chime sounded in Shawn’s ears.

Skill ‘Steel Rain’ has leveled up to level 2. Range bonus increased. Number of shells available increased by three.

            “Impressive.” Anisha noted. “I doubt anyone survived.”

            “Why did you refer to yourself as ‘Warlord’?” Kaylish leaned over sideways as she inspected Shawn. “Do you want us all to call you that?”

            “No.” Shawn stated firmly with a hint of embarrassment. “My skill needed me to pick a call sign, a nickname that I only use when I call on that skill. That’s all.”

            “Oh.” Kaylish grinned. “So why did you pick ‘Warlord’?”

            Shawn felt the redness in his face deepen. “It’s… it’s just something I heard in a game one time. I thought it was cool... so…”

            Kaylish laughed and even Anisha let out a small chuckle.

            “Come on.” Shawn lifted himself over their rocky cover and slid down the short hill to the field below. “Our task was to clear out all of the goblins. We can’t leave until we’re sure they’re all dead.”

            Shawn didn’t look back but heard metal and rubber scrape against rocks as his companions clattered down the hill behind him.

            “I imagine this will make combat pretty easy for us.” Kaylish chattered as she fell into step on Shawn’s right.

            Shawn agreed hesitantly. “Well, yes and no. The skill has to be within a certain range of artillery pieces. Also, I can only use it once a day right now.”

            “I see.” Kaylish tilted her head to the west. “Is that why you brought us closer to the front lines? So their guns would be in range?”

            “That and we’re eventually going to cross over, right Shawn?” Anisha came up on his other side. “That’s why we came north. Because demons don’t like colder weather so we’ll have a better chance at crossing no-man’s land up here.”

            Kaylish’s smile widened. “Part of your, ‘ending the war’ plan Shawn?”

            “Yeah.” Shawn answered begrudgingly.

            Both young women had agreed to accompany him on his ultimate quest, despite knowing Shawn was making things up as he went along. They were supportive but took every advantage to poke a little fun at his expense.

            “What was the latest version?” Kaylish poked his shoulder as the trio walked through the grass field.

            “Same as the old plan.” Shawn let out an exasperated sigh. “Find whoever is in charge of the demon forces and make them surrender.”

            “Do you even know if they have a leader?” Anisha asked from his other side.

            “Well, no…”

            “I think it's a great plan.” Kaylish laughed.

            “Just focus on the task at hand.” Shawn grumbled. “We’re getting close to the camp.”

            The laughter died down, though Shawn could still see Kaylish’s playful smile as they approached the wrecked goblin camp. As part of his effort to continue to grow stronger, Shawn had begun to accept side quests as he came across them in his travels. Clearing out the goblins was one such quest. The trio silently fell into a predetermined formation, Anisha taking the lead while Shawn and Kaylish flanked either side from a distance. Both of the ranged fighters unslung their rifles, chambered a round, and turned off the safety.

            Although these monsters were responsible for terrorising a local village just east of here, Shawn felt a twinge of guilt when he discovered what was left of them. Dismembered green limbs, smoking torsos, and scattered pieces of clothing was all that could be found. Shawn held his nostrils closed to block out the terrible smell that permeated the ruined campsite. The group spent a quick minute searching for any signs of survivors.

            “Over here!” Anisha called out from the back end of the camp.

            Shawn and Kaylish rushed over to a small outcropping of rocks. Anisha had her sword out and used the tip to point to a dark hole carved into the base of one of the largest rocks.

            “Tunnel entrance.” Anisha sighed. “If we’re lucky, it will just lead to a one room cave.”

            “If we’re unlucky?” Kaylish peered closely at the entrance.

            “A deep and unforgiving labyrinth that is crawling with plenty more goblins.” Shawn reached back into his pack and pulled out a large handheld flashlight.

            The device was bulky, provided poor lighting, and only had a battery life for a couple hours at most. A far cry from the high-tech LED lights he was used to taking on campouts back on Earth. Anisha’s armored helm turned in his direction.

            “Are you sure you want to go down there?” She asked, her tone very serious. “It will be cramped and, if there are any goblins left, they’ll have a huge advantage over us.”

            Shawn ignited his flashlight as Kaylish brought her own out from her pack. “We told the mayor of that village that we’d see this task through. I’m not going to leave things half done.”

            “I know it’s just…” She sighed and ignited her sword in a holy white light.

            This wasn’t the bright flash that Shawn had seen before, this was a much subtler glow that Anisha could hold for much longer and use to see in the dark tunnels they were about to enter.

            “We’ll be careful.” Shawn looked between his companions meaningfully. “Stay close to one another and watch each other’s backs.”

            Lights in hand, the trio ducked into the narrow tunnel and followed it deep underground.

JTNestman

Sorry for the delay. I didn't get to this as soon as I had hoped. Should get another chapter out later this week so check back then. As always, thanks for reading. I didn't have as much time to edit so if you see any mistakes please let me know.