Fortifications

"Everyone retreat! Retreat to the fortifications!" Realizing the terrifying power of these small orange balls, the commander hurriedly gave the order.

Retreating into the fortifications was not a good idea; the commander wouldn't have given such an order if there were other options. While the fortifications offered stronger protection, this also resulted in very poor visibility inside. Furthermore, there weren't many firing positions, making it impossible for everyone to have a place to attack.

Most importantly, retreating into the fortifications means cutting off all other escape routes, leaving only the option of holding out to the death.

However, the number of Zerg is countless, and their abilities are bizarre. They have no hope of winning; doing this is merely delaying their demise.

However, the best opportunity to relocate had already been lost. Without air superiority, even if they retreated, they would be exposed to the firepower of these hateful Flying Bug the entire time. Once their protective suits were breached, it would be the end for them.

It seems that both paths are dead ends, but retreating into the fortifications should allow them to hold out for longer.

"Request reinforcements. Send them a video of these Flying Bug and tell them we can't hold out much longer. If they still want this Outpost, send reinforcements immediately!"

Under the cover of flamethrowers, the Meto soldiers began to retreat into their fortifications one by one. Although flamethrowers had a limited range, they were a powerful defensive weapon, extremely effective against the Swarm's cannon fodder units, and effectively prevented the Raider from taking advantage of the chaos.

But accidents always happen unexpectedly. A Meto soldier retreated while firing. Little did he know that although the Outpost was not built with shoddy materials, it was only constructed with ordinary materials. Even firearms made of special alloys could not resist the corrosive effects of the Zerg toxins, let alone these ordinary building materials.

Therefore, without anyone noticing, the ground had already been corroded into numerous pits. The soldier, not paying attention, stepped into one of the pits and immediately lost his balance. Caught off guard, he didn't release the trigger. As he fell backward, he instinctively tried to brace himself with his arm, but the gun barrel turned and fired a burst of bullets directly at the flamethrower soldier next to him from behind.

The flamethrower soldier's fuel canister was shattered, and the soldier himself fell to the ground. Fortunately, the flamethrower used separate containers for fuel and oxidizer, so even with the containers broken, it did not explode. But the Meto soldier did not get up again.

"Watch your step!" The commander, who was not far away, keenly noticed the unexpected incident. Although he was furious, there was no time to hold the soldier accountable at this moment.

However, without the suppression of the flamethrower soldiers, the Raider immediately rushed up. The soldier who had mistakenly shot his teammate regained his senses, cursed loudly, got up, and quickly ran to the fallen flamethrower soldier.

The flamethrower soldier lay prone on the ground as a soldier ripped off the broken fuel canister. The soldier's back was already soaked with an unknown liquid. Several wounds inflicted by the energy beams were charred black, gruesome and emitting a pungent aroma of flesh.

"Hey! How are you? Wake up!" Although he had a pretty good idea of what was going on, the soldier still shook his comrade, but no matter how he called out, his teammate didn't respond at all.

At that moment, a Raider seized the opportunity to get close and pounced on the soldier's back, raising its segmented limbs to stab at the back of his head. At the critical moment, the soldier tilted his head, dodging the attack, but the segmented limb pierced through his protective suit, leaving a wound on his ear.

But at this moment, his immense guilt and grief caused his adrenaline to surge, his gums to bleed, his ears to ring, and his voice to seem to leave him, as well as the pain.

He suddenly reached with his left hand to his right shoulder, grabbing one of the Raider's limbs and pulling hard, trying to yank it off. But the Raider's other limbs gripped his back firmly and had already pierced his protective suit, penetrating his body. Blood flowed from the gaps between the limbs and his skin.

But he felt no pain. He roared and reached for his shoulder with his right hand, pulling hard with both hands. The Raider, being a downgraded cannon fodder, was crudely made and couldn't withstand the pull, being ripped off. The soldier roared again, grabbed several limbs on one side of the Raider with his right hand, and slammed it into the ground.

Bursting with juice!

The Raider was smashed to pieces, his bodily fluids splattered everywhere; he was dead beyond dead.

However, this soldier didn't come away empty-handed, as the Raider's limbs had already pierced his muscles. The limbs had claws at the front that hooked into the muscles from the inside. So, when the Raider was ripped off, it tore several large chunks of the soldier's flesh along with it.

Even soldiers whose pain receptors were paralyzed by adrenaline twitched their lips slightly from the pain.

But the Raider didn't fight alone; the significance of cannon fodder lies in their numbers. So, just as the soldiers finished venting their anger, even more Raider pounced on them.

His recent slip had sprained his ankle, and even though he couldn't feel the pain, walking was still very difficult. He looked back at the entrance to the fortifications and saw his comrades waving at him. He could also hear a call coming from the communicator, but the ringing in his ears made it impossible for him to understand what was being said.

He turned back to look at the onrushing Raider, as if he had made a decision. He bent down to hug the broken fuel canister to his chest, and at the same time pulled two grenades from his waist.

He bit off the pull tab hard, his bloodshot eyes wide, and roared, "Die, you damned bugs!" Then, he leaped forward and charged into the Swarm.

"Boom! Boom!" Two loud explosions occurred almost simultaneously. Although the fuel tanks had been isolated, the two high-explosive grenades still ignited them. The fire spread across the ground, blocking the Raider once again.

The commander watched all this from afar, sighed with mixed feelings, and felt a mix of emotions welling up inside him.

After the other soldiers paid attention to their footing, no further accidents occurred. Except for a few who were slow to run and were overwhelmed by the Swarm, the rest of them successfully retreated into the fortifications.

The cannon fodder insects were temporarily unable to penetrate the solid and thick fortifications, and their attempts to break through through observation posts and firing ports were also repelled by the Meto Race.

The situation suddenly reached a stalemate.

The fortifications were quite large, and even with all the soldiers inside, it didn't feel crowded. The large lights covering the ceiling illuminated the interior with meticulous detail. The Meto soldiers were quite professional; they found their positions, occupying various observation and firing ports, and sniping at the advancing Zerg.

The remaining soldiers lay down on the ground to rest. Everyone remained silent, and in the quiet space, only the sizzling sound of corrosion was exceptionally clear.

White smoke rose up, and soon the room was filled with smoke.