Chapter 176: The Siege and the UFO
The warning hammer strikes echoed through Freedom Shelter. It was a crude alarm but effective.
Survivors scrambled to their stations, weapons in hand.
The farmers dropped their tools and grabbed the Signal Jammers Kai had trained them to use.
There was a total of 40 slaves they had freed before. After Kai managed them, only 18 people were assigned to tend to the crops that were being modified by Aurora one by one...
The others who seemed to look a bit better were placed as wall guards or helpers maintaining the cleanliness of the shelter.
Well, Kai had already used the Status Crystals on them, but they didn’t possess any remarkable skills or impressive stats as he had hoped. Their Health Points, Spirit Points, and Physique Ratings were all below average.
Russel could only trust the rest of the group to assist in this battle!
"Positions! Guards to the walls, farmers to the jammers! Don’t waste shots... wait for my signal!"
The freed workers scrambled.
Ten of the stronger ones hefted the Plasma Rifles Kai had issued, their faces were pale but determined to assist in this battle.
They had never thought of fighting back against the Sentinels before, so they were all a little nervous now that they had to fight!
The farmers, less suited for combat, clutched revolvers with trembling hands.
They weren’t soldiers, but they had trained enough to know where to stand and when to fire.
The Signal Jammers were then activated first.
Whom~
A low hum filled the air as the devices disrupted the A.I.’s network. Of course, it was just a simple jammer.
It only affected the enemies’ ability to connect with each other as the jammers disrupt their mode of communication.
The Dragoons kept flying and firing from a distance, but since they were too far and moving through the air, their accuracy was still quite terrible.
With their ability to communicate gone, they would become more like scattered units than a single machine. Russel grinned...
"Smoke!" he shouted..
Grenades hissed, releasing thick plumes that spread across the perimeter.
Just like that, the shelter vanished into a haze, obscuring the defenders from the Dragoons’ sensors. This would also protect the main buildings from being shot...
Well, even if the air stank of chemicals, it was better than being exposed.
Then the first plasma bolts screamed through the smoke.
Fwoosh~
The mounted guns on the Dragoons opened fire, searing holes into the barricades!
Because it was only a normal wall, it immediately buckled under the assault.
Thud! Thud!
One guard screamed as a bolt tore through his shoulder, dropping him instantly. Another fell behind the wall with his rifle clattering uselessly to the ground.
"Shoot at them! There are only ten of them!"
Now that the Dragoons were closer, even without training, they should be able to hit them!
Russel raised his Plasma Rifle and fired back. The weapon unleashed a burst of blue energy that struck a Dragoon mid‑flight.
The fused driver or Sentinel controlling it was hit, its half‑mechanical body sparked violently before the craft spiraled into the ground!
Boom!
The rider was thrown clear, rolling across the dirt before scrambling up with its Plasma Rifle.
"Sentinel on the ground!" Russel shouted. "Take it down!"
Two guards turned as they shot with their revolvers this time...
The shots weren’t strong enough to pierce armor, but they staggered the Sentinel long enough for Atom to move.
Well, they didn’t want to destroy the road where the Sentinel landed with their terrible aim using their Plasma Rifles.
Instead, they relied on Atom to finish the job!
Fwoosh~
The A‑Grade Sentinel shot once...
Boom!
The Sentinel rider was destroyed just like that!
[ Enemy Unit Destroyed: Sentinel (E) ]
[ +150 Experience Points ]
Of course, the Experience Points would go to Kai.
"Haha! Just like that! Destroy them, Atom!"
"There’s more!"
"Shoot them!"
The battle didn’t stop as they shot at the Dragoons!
Most of their shots missed, but it was the same for the enemies.
However, Atom’s advanced programming as an A‑Grade Sentinel set it apart from the rest. It carried two Plasma Rifles, one in each hand, firing in alternating bursts with incredibly high accuracy...
Kai trusted his creation so completely that he never hesitated to arm it with his best weapons.
With twelve shots per rifle, or twenty‑four in total, Atom was a force to be reckoned with. More than that, every round landed where it was aimed!
"Don’t stop shooting! Even if you don’t hit them! Just suppress them!" Russel shouted.
Though the Dragoons were hard to destroy since they had to perfectly aim at the driver, it would still go down after three or four shots on the vehicle itself.
As for the dismounted Sentinel, they were shredded before they could return fire. Atom could handle them easily!
Still, plasma bolts rained down from above, tearing through barricades and walls.
Freedom Shelter shook under the assault!
The smoke covered the defenders, but the Dragoons fired blindly and their shots were still deadly.
Boom!
Russel ducked as a bolt scorched the wall beside him. He fired again, hitting another Dragoon Unit...
The fused driver lit up in fire and soon, its systems overloaded as the Dragoon erupted mid‑air!
The rider behind was caught in the blast!
"Keep firing!" Russel shouted.
The remaining riflemen obeyed, unleashing their Plasma Rifles.
Unfortunately, even after exhausting all available shots, two Dragoons still hovered in the sky.
Worse, the larger flying vessel behind them had finally drawn closer to the shelter.
No one knew what it planned to do, but the farmers, revolvers in hand, fired wildly into the sky. Their shots lacked power, but they kept the two remaining enemies pinned until the others could switch their weapons.
Boom! Boom!
Thankfully, it didn’t take long before the two remaining Dragoons were also destroyed. This time, it wasn’t Atom, Russel, or the guards who shot them down.
"I arrived in time! Everyone, pull back! That UFO is charging up!"
Kai shouted, having hurried to the shelter as soon as Atom’s combat feed notified him of the Experience Points flowing through their system connection.