Athanasia: My Hacker System-Chapter 277: Ricky and Elena - Part 5

"I expected more."

Ricky annoyingly said, his eyes narrowing as he looked past the Bulltors, searching for a familiar silhouette. "When is John coming here? We desperately need him to destroy the den. These numbers are getting out of control."

"He is finishing the last touches at the northern territory," the long-haired Bulltor, whose name was Darge, said with a low, vibrating rumble in his chest. He looked back toward the fog and then at the massive pile of scrap before him. "Your human leader... He is scary! I have never seen anyone who can bring one miracle after another like him."

"Hahaha! Tell me about it, hahaha!"

Hearing those words, a genuine admission of fear and respect from a Bulltor, one of the Twelve, made Elena break out in a fit of cheerful, almost hysterical laughter. It was the sound of pure relief.

It felt as if a great and heavy burden, one that had been crushing her for the past hours, was lifted off her chest the moment she confirmed John was not only doing fine but was actually doing great, as usual.

It wasn’t affection or simple loyalty. She and Ricky were pragmatists. They knew that while they had performed brilliantly so far, they were in reality just biding their time, burning through their resources and stamina to hold a crumbling line. The only one who could truly save them, the only one capable of putting a permanent end to this nightmare, was John.

Their biggest underlying worry had been that John would be strangled in the northern territory, trapped in a disastrous stalemate similar to their own, unable to break away to provide support anytime near.

Elena hadn’t been alone in that worry; Ricky had shared it, though he hid it behind his usual mask of arrogance. Even when Ricky had grumbled about expecting more than five hundred Bulltors, the truth was that in the depths of his mind, he hadn’t expected any help from John for at least several days.

"So he found a way to contain this nightmare and end it? That’s great!" Ricky said, a calm smile finally returning to his face. Then, as quickly as it appeared, the smile vanished, replaced by his usual focus. "Listen up, Darge. The situation here is as follows..."

Ricky began to narrate their struggle and the entire truth of the situation in this territory. He detailed the astronomical number of machines they had encountered, the specific behaviours of the S-1000s, their successful fog trap tactics, and the layout of the two ten-kilometre fortresses they had managed to lay down and maintain.

"Ah, before I forget," Darge interrupted, slapping a massive palm against his thigh. "John sent us with more than just us. He sent weapons; he called them evolved toys. He says these are going to make things much easier for you. Take them out!"

Darge issued a sharp command to his warriors. In the next instant, the previously empty ground was filled with tons of equipment.

Because the Bulltors couldn’t carry a vast number of activated items within their storage devices, each warrior had been limited to carrying one hundred of the most enhanced units John had crafted collectively. Yet, when multiplied by five hundred warriors, the haul was staggering.

"Wow! What are these behemoths on wheels? They look... Beautiful!"

Elena’s eyes were instantly glued to the Big Mobile Fortresses. John had sent a few hundred of the deadly behemoths, alongside a mountain of other items that neither Elena nor Ricky could immediately identify.

"This? Hahaha, it’s a cute baby indeed, hahaha!"

The moment Darge recalled how those mobile fortresses had performed back at the northern den, clearing the insane number of machines that gushed out of the den like water from a broken dam, he couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

"Let me explain what each item does and how to use it properly," Darge continued, gesturing toward the various items. "John showed us in a real battle how these could contain a huge army of machines without breaking a sweat. He called this the farming setup."

For the next ten minutes, Darge acted as the instructor. He explained the specifics about everything: the firing range of the Big Laser Cannons, the twenty-hour duration of the Anti-Air Traps, the Lightning Recharge passive of the new grenades, and the stealth-pulse capability of the Sensory Detector Systems.

Once the briefing was done, the reactions were split. Elena immediately jumped toward the nearest Mobile Fortress, running her hand along its massive reinforced wheels and the purple-golden gems atop its four pillars, as if she got her birthday best present ever. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Ricky, on the other hand, didn’t bother with the large vehicles; his eyes gleamed with a fierce light as he inspected the smaller, more complex items: the traps, the specialised grenades, and the sensory anchors. His mind worked on how to use these to kill more machines effectively, or as Darge said it, without breaking a sweat.

Unlike what John might have expected, Elena didn’t care much for the grenades this time; she had fallen in love with the idea of a moving castle. Ricky, conversely, saw the huge potential for the sensors and traps, especially against such a machine army awaiting them.

After seeing, hearing, and imagining the usage of all the new evolved toys, both of them knew the next fight against the million-unit wave would be a completely different story.

"Leave the next wave to us," Elena said, her vigour renewed.

Under Darge’s guidance, she began installing the walls, towers, and cannons onto the decks of the Mobile Fortresses, mimicking the tiered formation John had used before and proved its worth.

Meanwhile, Ricky ventured out to the edge of the fog line. He began seeding the territory between the two fortresses with a dense grid of Sensory Systems and Anti-Air Traps, creating a sophisticated dead zone that extended far and wide, even spreading enough into the machine territory.

As for the extras they didn’t use, the two stored them equally into their storage devices.

By the time they were finished, it was finally time for the two humans to rest. The adrenaline was fading, replaced by a bone-deep exhaustion.

"Wake us up the moment John arrives," Ricky said, his voice thick with sleep. He reached into his storage device and pulled out a heavy metallic tent. Elena did the same, pitching hers right against the inner wall of the fortress the two decided to sleep inside.

"And don’t forget, Darge, the next wave will be insanely big. Keep your people inside the fog fortresses. Use the luring tactics I showed you. Don’t try to be heroes, okay?"

"Hahaha! Don’t worry, my human friend, I know our limits," Darge laughed shortly, an ivory toothy grin appearing. "We aren’t as crazy as you are, humans! We will let the towers and other defences do most of the killing for us."

And just like that, the situation at the third den stabilised. The Bulltors took up their watches along the ramparts, their massive forms silhouetted against the white fog in the background.

Ricky and Elena finally succumbed to their well-earned share of rest, drifting into a deep, dreamy sleep while the defences thundered in the distance, while all were waiting for John to arrive.