Chapter 206: Meddling?
Luna Dawson frowned. "Company Commander Yates, how long has he been gone?"
As soon as she spoke, four or five members of the Omni Squad emerged from the tent. Their Captain Sharon had long declared within the squad that they were sworn enemies of the Sunset Squad, so their tone was naturally aggressive.
"What do you mean? When nature calls, isn’t it normal to go out and use the bathroom?"
"Exactly! Why is a little lady like you grilling us about our captain? You’re sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong!"
Before Luna could respond, Edward Eaton raised his hand and pressed it down, instantly exuding a fierce aura forged from years of fighting on the battlefield.
The Omni Squad members immediately shut their mouths, shrinking their necks and not daring to make another sound.
Edward looked at Luna, waiting for her to continue.
Meeting Edward’s eyes, Luna said bluntly, "My dog smelled human blood. If Vance’s captain has been gone for too long, there’s a high chance something happened to him."
"Tch, so you’re here to curse our Captain Cole, huh?"
"Captain Sharon was right. This woman has a truly black heart."
"She even has to poke her nose into someone taking a leak. Is she sick in the head?"
The team members began to mutter among themselves again. Their voices were low, but loud enough to be heard clearly.
Edward turned back and glared at them fiercely. "Shut up, all of you!" he ordered in a deep voice. "Tent Ten, attention! Spread out and find Ian Wyatt!"
Rollo’s nose twitched repeatedly as he kept stretching his head toward the distant woods, letting out two pitiful whimpers.
Seeing this, the people from Tent Ten immediately followed suit, looking toward the woods and beginning their search.
It didn’t take long before an exclamation rang out from behind a large tree in the distance. "We’ve got a situation over here!"
Luna, Shane Shaw, and Edward’s faces immediately darkened. Exchanging a glance, they sprinted toward the source of the voice without another word.
As Luna ran, she pulled out a flashlight. The beam swept toward the woods, just in time to catch a black shadow darting deep into the dense forest with a WHOOSH. It was so fast it only left behind an afterimage.
Arriving behind the large tree, they froze. A man was slumped lifelessly in the darkness, his belt dangling from his waist, clearly only half-buckled.
Luna held up the flashlight and shone it further into the woods. The beam swept back and forth, but she couldn’t find anything else.
She extended her Spirit threads into the area. Good lord, there were hundreds of mutated animals scattered within a radius of several kilometers. It was impossible to tell which one the black shadow had been. Even if she wanted to strike, she wouldn’t know where to start.
Looking back at the man on the ground, his face was as pale as paper. The sweater on his chest was soaked through, and a heavy stench of blood pierced their noses.
Luna stepped around to the other side of his twisted neck. Edward reacted instantly, stepping forward to turn the man’s neck and pressing two fingers against his carotid artery. Two hideous, bloody holes were startlingly exposed.
Shane gasped. "These wounds... Why do they look like a vampire bite?"
Edward had no time to dwell on the appearance of the wounds. He immediately pressed his earpiece, his voice urgent and grave. "Medics! Medics! Night Watch Tent Ten needs immediate backup! Bring blood bags and Healing System Superpower Users! Hurry!"
The surrounding team members had all caught a glimpse of that black shadow earlier. Now, smelling the blood and seeing those bloody holes, their hairs stood on end. They instinctively huddled together, timidly staring into the darkness of the deep woods without daring to breathe.
"Quick, help him onto my back!"
Shane immediately crouched down with his back to Ian.
Edward didn’t waste a second. He slipped his hands under Ian’s armpits, hoisted the man up with a grunt of effort, and draped him securely over Shane’s back.
A Third-tier Superpower User. Saving even one meant preserving a fraction more combat strength for humanity. At a critical juncture like this, maintaining their fighting force was paramount.
The group methodically brought Ian back to the tent and laid him out on a cot.
The wounds on his neck were still bleeding profusely. He hadn’t made a single sound while being moved; he was clearly in a deep coma.
"It’s a mutated bat," Luna added rapidly. "This thing’s saliva contains a venom that induces comas and acts as an anticoagulant. Once it bites into its prey, it drinks until it’s full. One feeding can keep it from going hungry for half a month."
With that, she crouched down and pressed her fingers against Ian’s wrist. His pulse was so weak it was barely perceptible.
She wondered, "He’s from Vance? Then should I save him or not?"
Edward gave her a surprised look. "You’ve encountered these things before?"
"I’ve scrolled past information about them on my wristband before."
Luna fabricated a casual excuse, using the wristband as a convenient cover.
The men from Military Command, along with Shane and the others, nodded in understanding. They all knew it was a new type of communication device recently introduced in Kensington. It just hadn’t been widely popularized yet. They hadn’t expected Luna to already be using one.
Having said that, Luna looked at Shane in confusion. "He’s Vance’s captain? How come I didn’t see him at the meeting?"
Shane hastily explained, "At the time, several squads needed to stand guard by the wall with the people from Military Command. Because of that, there were still six Third-tier Superpower Users who didn’t attend the meeting. Ian Wyatt was one of them."
Hearing this, Luna nodded in realization and didn’t dwell on the matter. She turned to look outside the tent and deliberately raised her voice a bit. "His pulse is almost gone! When exactly are the medics getting here?"
Prompted by her words, the crowd followed her gaze, looking out into the distance.
Seizing the opportunity, Luna quietly brought her fingertips to the corner of Ian’s mouth. A drop of spirit spring water slid off her fingertip and carefully glided into his mouth.
A second later, Ian suddenly frowned. His tightly shut eyes opened a sliver. In his blurred vision, he only caught the profile of a woman wearing a mask. Before he could take another look, his head lolled back, and he fell completely into a coma.
Suddenly, as if recalling something, Luna shot to her feet, a wave of intense panic washing over her.
In her past life, the Southen Base had suffered an airstrike from mutated bats during its second year. Not only were these things terrifyingly bloodthirsty, but their most lethal trait was that they lived in swarms.
Right now, hundreds of thousands of people were gathered here, practically serving as a massive, ready-made blood bag. Once targeted, the consequences would be unimaginable!
Her mind went blank with a BUZZ, her vision darkened in waves, and her body swayed backward uncontrollably.
Just then, two strong hands firmly supported her from either side.
Luna turned her head to see Kevin Keane and Evan Olson hurrying over. Kevin’s palm was warm, and his sharp eyes were full of reassurance. "Don’t be afraid," he said.
Upon seeing Kevin and Evan’s arrival, the panic in Luna’s heart—stemming from her previous life—was instantly suppressed.
Evan gently patted her back, giving her a reassuring look.
She thought, "That’s right, this isn’t my past life anymore. I have a family now. I have comrades to fight alongside. I’m not facing these monsters all alone!"
Steading her nerves, she immediately pressed her communication earpiece. Her voice was deliberately kept steady, yet it carried an unquestionable urgency. Her very first sentence caused everyone present to freeze in shock. "Colonel Grant! Get up and deploy the troops immediately! A swarm of mutated bats will be arriving shortly!"
Fast asleep, Francis Grant felt his heart jolt the instant he heard Luna’s voice, as if triggering a bout of PTSD.
He thought, "Whenever this woman comes looking for me in the middle of the night, it’s definitely nothing good!"
Before his eyes were even fully open, his body reacted faster than his brain, and he shot up into a sitting position with a SWISH.
His brain buzzing and still in a daze, Francis haphazardly patted his body. He didn’t even have time to put on his shoes.