Chapter 1102:
The chaos and the unseen force ripping through their ranks pulled Brad back from slipping into darkness.
He couldn’t stand, let alone run. Instead, he dragged the commander’s fallen weapon toward himself and crawled behind a rock, firing whenever he had a chance to support her.
Someone noticed him. “Priority target—take Brad out! Now!”
Gunshots tore across the open ground. Rylie was already in motion, diving and twisting until a fallen log gave her cover.
She gathered the spare magazines Corbin had dropped, then pulled the pin on the smoke grenade, counted a quick two, and hurled it straight into the tightest cluster of enemy soldiers. Smoke rolled thick across the earth, blotting everything out. When it finally thinned, the rock Brad had hidden behind stood abandoned.
Rough coughing and angry swearing echoed from within the haze.
Rylie burst from the smoke, staying low and moving fast as she crashed straight into the chaos.
A soldier was yanking off his night-vision goggles when a dark blur cut across his neck—steel gleamed, then blood sprayed.
N𝗼𝘃еls 𝗶ո 𝘵𝘳e𝗇𝗱 о𝗻 𝘨𝖺𝗹ոo𝘷𝘦𝘭ѕ.c𝘰𝗺
Rylie snatched the pistol as it slipped from his hand and fired two quick shots into the moving silhouettes. A scream pierced the air.
An attack slammed in from her right. She ducked beneath the rifle swing, knocked his legs out, and smashed her knee into his chest. Bones gave way. She jammed the muzzle under his jaw and fired.
The smoke slowly started to break apart.
“Spread out! Don’t let her get close!” someone shouted in the East Islet tongue.
Rylie let the empty pistol drop, ripped a fresh magazine from her thigh holster, and slammed it into place.
She pressed her back against a thick tree, her hands shaking as her breathing sped up. Her body was hitting its limit while adrenaline still burned hard through her veins.
Rylie couldn’t afford to collapse now. Everything depended on her staying upright.
Fighting to stay aware, she pressed herself against the tree, quietly tracking how many enemies were still out there. At least four were still standing, spread out across the area.
Backup would come soon, but she didn’t have much time left.
Footsteps crept closer from both directions.
Rylie drew a steady breath, leaned left, and fired. A soldier who had just exposed himself dropped backward, a round tearing into his chest.
At nearly the same moment, a round slammed into her right shoulder.
A sharp, muted groan escaped her as she yanked herself back. Footsteps pounded closer from her right. She knew hesitation would get her killed.
Staying low, she shot around the opposite side of the tree, moving so close to the ground she nearly scraped it.
The soldier on the right froze, caught off guard by the sudden shift. Instantly, Rylie fired, the round shredding his knee. He screamed as he collapsed. She ended it with a second shot.
Three remained.
Gunfire crisscrossed from both sides, forcing her to stay put. One of them raised a shotgun, unleashing a booming blast that tore chunks out of the tree shielding her.
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