Chapter 20: Arac Attack, pt. 1

Three days ago...

May 24, 2020

Laura, Chris, Sam and David stood inside the hangar of their training facility. Each of them were dressed in their HERC suit and armed with their weapons and equipment. The four soldiers were issued a standard Sig Sauer P320 MHS pistol sidearm and the Nett Warrior system.

The Nett Warrior system was a next-gen augmented reality system that allows a soldier to display a wide variety of combat information on their goggles. It also connects the soldiers to one another by giving them the ability to see what others in their squad see. The built in GPS is also able to create a small map on their display and show where their fellow soldiers are located.

The weapon that Laura was equipped with the HK MR556A1 assault rifle with a mounted laser-dot sight. Chris' weapon was the IWI Tavor SAR rifle. On his right arm was a personal computer module that can be used for a variety purposes such as hacking, receiving Intel from Command, and controlling the two drones that are currently folded up on his back forming a backpack.

Sam's arsenal consisted of the XM25 grenade launcher and the M26 MASS shotgun. She had a reinforced backpack that contained all her ammunition. David's sniper was the Cheytac .408 cal sniper rifle equipped with the Tracking Point scope. The Tracking Point was a specialized scope that uses a laser viewfinder that compensates for factors that affect accuracy such as wind resistance and temperature. This, in turn, provides the sniper with unparalleled accuracy.

The four were called into the hangar bay with very little time to equip their gear. They didn't wait long before the General came in through a door to the hangar. He was the same man they first met when they arrived at the Slayer facility. The General had dark rings under his eyes and struggled to keep his dignified stance.

"General Williams," Laura greeted while saluting. With their heads fully encased inside their suit's helmet, their voices were spoken through the helmet's external speaker making it sound modulated.

The rest of the squad moved their feet together and saluted the General.

"At ease," he said.

The squad placed their hands behind their backs, and placed their feet a little over a foot apart. General Williams was placed in charged of the SLAYER program by the President. He had previous experience in working closely with a variety of research and development branches.

"I am sorry for the short notice, but we have an opportunity we cannot ignore. We have reports of a new monster attack. Trevor's Peak, Colorado. Local law enforcement have reported giant spiders attacking their town. While you all managed to just recently adjust to one hundred percent of the suit's power, we believe this is a good chance to test the HERC's abilities."

Williams pulled out a PDA from a carrying case that was attached to his belt. A holographic image of a map appeared above it.

"Satellite images of the town has shown that it is covered in a white substance."

"Webbing," Laura concluded.

Williams nodded before putting the PDA away. "According to descriptions of the creatures, they greatly resemble tarantulas. Acting on this information, we are going to assume that they will act in a similar manner. Tarantulas are nocturnal hunters so we are going to clear the town during the day while the spiders are still lethargic."

"A sound strategy, sir."

"Sir, may I ask a question?" Chris interjected.

"You may," Williams replied.

"Has Thunder or Aurora arrived at the AO?"

"That's the odd part. They haven't."

"Any idea why they haven't shown up, sir?" Laura asked.

"No," he replied. "We currently have no idea why those two have not made an appearance. Regardless, we have a chance to test out your capabilities in handling these circumstances. All of you have reached one-hundred percent with your HERC suits. We can test out how well these suits act in the field. Now rest assured, we are not sending you all out there alone. An army detachment will meet you on the outskirts of this town. They will aid you in clearing this town of these giant spiders. A group of scientists will be in the area as well. They will be going into the town after the 'all clear' to gather samples. This leads into what your objectives are for this mission. Your primary objectives are to eliminate the giant spiders and to find and assist survivors. Now what I'm about to ask you is purely optional. If at all possible, we would like it if you can capture a living specimen."

"Sir?" Laura muttered.

Like her, the rest of Laura's team was unsettled by the request. Military professionalism kept them quiet and allowed their squad leader to do all the talking.

"As I said," the General reminded. "It is optional but it would help us a great deal to understand what we're up against."

"If we come across the opportunity to capture a live specimen, we will, sir," Laura replied.

"That's all I ask for. Now all of you get on the jet behind me. The pilot will take you to your destination."

VVVVVV

The X-60 troop carrier jet, that the slayer squad used was built with a Scram Jet engine installed. The engine allowed the jet to reach Mach 7. The travel time from their training facility to the small Colorado town was less than ten minutes. When they arrived at their destination, the vehicle engaged its V/STOL function allowing the X-60 to vertically land.

"Landing successful," the pilot announced over the ship's comm. "Slayer is clear to exit."

The safety harness that was placed over each Slayer squad member's shoulders suddenly loosened and went up. The harness flipped upwards before retracting behind the seat.

Laura's squad pulled out the power plug that was attached to their suit before getting up from their seats. The cargo bay ramp door groaned as it opened. As they walked down the ramp, Slayer squad gave their weapons a quick inspection.

The sky outside was clear and the temperature was slightly cool. In front of the jet ramp was three dozen soldiers along with two APCs and three tanks. Laura's team approached the army detachment. As they did, one of the soldiers walked up to greet them.

The soldiers in the area were wearing the latest combat suit: the TALOS-3 suit. The suit was very similar to the HERC suit, that Slayer team wore, except that the exoskeleton was less powerful and the material was less durable. Each of them wore a helmet with a fabric face mask.

The soldier that approached Laura's team had goggles attached to his helmet and a design on his mouth mask to look like a mouth full of sharp teeth. His weapon was the XM8 assault rifle.

"Slayer squad?" he asked.

"We are," Laura replied.

"Lieutenant Weaver."

The two shook hands.

"We are here to help clear this town of the giant spiders and to find survivors."

"Has Thunder or Aurora been spotted?" Sam asked.

"I'm afraid not," Weaver replied. "Shame really. Look."

Looking ahead, Slayer squad saw the town was coated in a white substance. It was even thicker than the satellite image they saw fifteen minutes ago.

"Webbing," Weaver replied. "It's extremely tough and when its sticks to you, it really sticks. One of my scouts is still in medical because she stepped on some of the webbing. Got her legs tangled up in the stuff."

"What can you tell me about this town?" Laura asked.

"This town is basically a pit stop town on the way to the ski slopes. Nothing much more than a street filled with tourism stores along with some houses just around the corner. Population around five hundred. I had scouts check the perimeter of the town but other than the initial evacuation of civilians, no one else has managed to escape."

"How many are still unaccounted?" Laura asked.

"At least several hundred. Damn spiders worked fast. We were planning to do a sweep and clear operation. Check house by house and clear it of any hostiles."

"Sounds good. I'll have my team do some scouting down the street and cover your men."

"Alright." Weaver turned to face his detachment. He switched over to the radio and ordered, "We are going ahead with the sweep and clear. Kill any spiders you find and help any survivor. Alpha and Bravo team is to check the buildings on the right side of the street. Charlie and Delta team are to check the buildings on the left side. Alpha and Charlie will pick the first building and Bravo and Delta are to take the second. We're going to leap frog down this street while the tanks cover outside the buildings. If you run into more than you can handle, don't try to be a hero. Draw the creatures out of the house and we'll take it down in the open. Any questions?"

"Sir, no, sir!" the soldiers replied.

"Move out!"

As the soldiers flooded into the town street, Slayer squad moved alongside the tanks. Laura scanned the area as they entered the town. A lot of the buildings were covered in webbing. Her eyes soon rested upon a water tower in the center of the town that was still free of the webbing.

"David, Chris, I want you two on that water tower," Laura ordered. "David, watch our backs. Chris, use your drone to scout the area."

"Yes, Ma'am!" they both replied.

Chris and David ran ahead at a fast speed and jumped on top of the water tower in one leap. David took a knee and looked through his sniper scope. He panned his view from one side of town to the other.

"The streets appear to be clear, Ma'am," he announced over the radio. "No signs of the spiders."

Chris typed in several commands on his forearm computer. The drone that was embedded in the top of his backpack popped out and unfolded into a quadcopter.

"Sending drone out. I'll do some scouting of the buildings."

"Sam, stay close," Laura said. "We're going in with Alpha."

The first several buildings were uneventful. Most were filled with webbing and spider feces. In lucky cases, they found the buildings abandoned without any signs of disturbances.

The further down the street they went, the worse the condition the buildings were in. It was at the sixth building they found the first signs of civilians. They were wrapped up in cocoons.

Each person the soldiers found were shrivelled husks with three puncture wounds in their abdomens. The dry skin of the corpses made the heads of the bodies to tilt back. The mouth and empty eye sockets were forced open making the bodies look like they were screaming. It was like walking through a haunted house.

"Any sightings of giant spiders?" the LT asked over the comm. He walked alongside the tanks as he coordinated the different squads as they cleared the streets.

"Alpha, reporting in," the squad commander replied. "Nothing yet, sir."

"Bravo here, sir. No sign of them."

"Charlie. Only finding their, uh, remains."

"Delta, reporting. Nothing."

"We're getting close to the center of town," Laura said over the radio. "We're bound to find them soon. Li, Jones. Anything yet?"

"Nothing yet, Ma'am," Chris replied.

"Sergeant Garza," one of the army soldiers called out to her. "We have something."

Laura and Sam followed the voice and found two of the soldiers staring at one of the cocooned civilians: a woman. Their weapons were drawn upon it. Unlike many of the bodies they've run into before, this woman was not completely dried up.

"What is it?" Sam whispered.

Her question was immediately answered by the body shaking.

"She's still alive?"

One of the soldiers slowly approached her and slowly placed the tip of two of his fingers against the woman's neck.

"No pulse and the skin is cold. She can't be-"

A gargled noise came from the woman. Her shaking increased. The soldier quickly backed away from her and drew his weapon again. The woman's head moved around in a twitchy manner as a mass slowly moved up her throat bulging against the skin.

The mouth slowly opened. Two hairy legs emerged from her lips . The mouth opened wider until the cheeks started to tear apart revealing the large spider within. The lower jaw finally popped off the head.

The crimson-coloured spider crawled out of the cavity and onto the shoulder. The spider, with its legs stretched out, was the size of a dinner plate. It made a creaking noise as it moved. On top of its head were eight eyes. Two of them were large with six smaller eyes that dotted underneath them.

Once on the shoulder of the corpse, the spider turned to face the four soldiers. The five had a stare off. The spider didn't fully understand what the creatures were that stood in front of it. The humans were in shock from seeing such an unnatural and surreal display.

Not wanting to risk being attacked first, the spider raised its front four legs and bared its fangs at the soldiers. It hissed as it did. The spider leaped towards the four.

Laura fired a round from her assault rifle completely annihilating the spider. Its blood and guts splattered on the corpse's face.

"I've seen some disgusting things in my service," Sam said, "but that takes the cake."

The body starting shaking again after the spider was killed.

"Fucking more?" one of the soldiers muttered.

Another spider came out of the throat cavity. It was quickly followed by another. As they crawled out of the body, Laura noticed a large plastic square laundry basket at the corner of her eye. She saw an opportunity.

Laura grabbed the laundry basket and yelled to the others, "Hold your fire, I got this!"

The two arachnids reacted to her quick movement and leaped at her. Laura swung the laundry basket and scooped the two spiders out of the air and then slammed the basket onto the ground with its top facing down. She planted her foot on top of the basket to stop the spiders from escaping.

The spiders recovered from the sudden attack and struggled against the basket. They were strong enough to make the basket slightly budge. Laura kept her foot on top of the basket.

"Grab that wooden table and flip it," she order the two army men.

The soldiers grabbed the heavy table and did as she said. They knew what she wanted them to do. They slid the table on top of the laundry basket towards her foot. Laura moved her foot slowly and steadily.

"Almost, almost... there!" she said as they quickly slid the table over the laundry basket.

The two spiders made further attempts to escape but the basket didn't yield to their attacks. They were not strong enough to break the plastic sides. The addition of the oak table prevented them from flipping the basket.

"Alpha, I heard gunfire from your position, please respond," the LT called over the radio.

"Alpha here," one of the soldiers answered. "We ran into some giant spiders; however, they were were about a foot across in size. Too small to be responsible for all this webbing."

"Babies then?"

"Possibly."

"Lieutenant, we managed to capture two of them," Laura said to him. "Let the scientists know."

"Will do. Continue your search."

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Bestiary:

Giant Hairy Spider HatchlingLevel1RankDHealth4/4TypeCommonThe hatchling of a Giant Hairy Spider. Giant Hairy Spiders usually lay their eggs inside living bodies to allow their hatchlings to slowly consume the host from the inside. Their venom is extremely deadly.ResistancesPhysical0%Disease/Toxin0%Fire-15%Plant0%Ice-20%Earth0%Lightning0%Water0%Wind0%Spirit0%Light0%Darkness0%

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Character Stats:

Spoiler :

Thomas Everett

StatusNameThomas "Tom" EverettLevel22Experience13320/13850ClassMagic BladeRaceHumanAlignmentGoodCurrencyCanadian$10,686,171.27Xoth0 platinum 4 gold 66 silver 30 copperTitleClever One, Determined, Giant Slayer, Vaccinated, One Of The First, Sole Survivor, Generous Healer, Interpreter, Selfless LoverBuffsAgent of Kara2x experienceBestiary of Xoth+10% damage towards the creatures of XothBrief History of Xoth+10% persuasion chance and friendliness towards the inhabitants of XothDebuffs--Health1250Health Regeneration/min33.99Mana1190Mana Regeneration/min40.3Stamina1190Stamina Regeneration/min8.2Fame3900Infamy0Strength125Intelligence119Wisdom130Perception58Endurance119Vitality103Agility82Luck90Unallocated Points0

ResistancesPhysical44%Disease/Toxin89%Fire44%Plant44%Ice44%Earth44%Lightning44%Water44%Wind44%Spirit44%Light44%Darkness44%

SkillsIdentifyMaster Level 2PersuasionIntermediate Level 1Language ComprehensionMaster Level 10Book LearningMaster Level 10TeacherBeginner Level 4NonchalantMaster Level 10Lightning StrikeIntermediate Level 6Lightning EnchantIntermediate Level 6Lightning ShieldIntermediate Level 3HealIntermediate Level 4PurifyIntermediate Level 5Sword SkillIntermediate Level 6DisguiseIntermediate Level 8PrayerMaster Level 10Hero's CallMaster Level 10Fast TravelMaster Level 10Loot CollectorIntermediate Level 3Magical RepairMaster Level 2TacticianIntermediate Level 3CookIntermediate Level 4Mixed Martial ArtistBeginner Level 8Club SkillBeginner Level 2Trap MasterBeginner Level 7UnbreakableBeginner Level 5FireballIntermediate Level 1Fire EnchantBeginner Level 9Bow SkillBeginner Level 9Surge StrikeBeginner Level 10Enhanced BodyIntermediate Level 3Enhanced MindIntermediate Level 1Chain LightningBeginner Level 3Group HealBeginner Level 4Enhanced SpellsBeginner Level 9Enhanced ResistanceIntermediate Level 4SM TransferMaster Level 10Computer SkillBeginner Level 10MassageBeginner Level 1LoverBeginner Level 2

Reia Zyer

StatusNameReia ZyerLevel20Experience8835/8865ClassLancerRaceNagaAlignmentGoodCurrencyCanadian$0.00Xoth0 platinum 4 gold 45 silver 14 copperTitleUnknown, Giant Slayer, Determined, Life SaverBuffs--Debuffs--Health1600Health Regeneration/min9.7Mana450Mana Regeneration/min4.5Stamina1010Stamina Regeneration/min10.6Fame3900Infamy0Strength160Intelligence45Wisdom45Perception53Endurance101Vitality97Agility106Luck89Unallocated Points0

ResistancesPhysical24%Disease/Toxin100%Fire24%Plant24%Ice24%Earth24%Lightning24%Water24%Wind24%Spirit24%Light24%Darkness59%

SkillsIdentifyIntermediate Level 8Weapon RepairIntermediate Level 6Armour RepairIntermediate Level 3Weapon CraftingBeginner Level 9Armour CraftingBeginner Level 10Accessory CraftingIntermediate Level 1Spear SkillIntermediate Level 8Clothing ReformMaster Level 3Ice SpikeBeginner Level 6Wind ShieldIntermediate Level 3Wind BladeIntermediate Level 6HealIntermediate Level 4Club SkillBeginner Level 1Sword SkillBeginner Level 9PersuasionIntermediate Level 1Power StrikeBeginner Level 10Enhanced ResistanceBeginner Level 8Group HealBeginner Level 1FlurryBeginner Level 1Spiral ThrustBeginner Level 1Enhanced DodgeBeginner Level 1Language ComprehensionMaster Level 10