Concept Stories - Modern Warfare - Chapter 2

Previous – Next

When the white light cleared, Reo immediately tried to take in his surroundings. He appeared to be standing in a wide dirt road. There were grass fields on either side of the road and forests beyond that. Reo himself was wearing the clothing he had died in. It even included the tears, dirt, and blood that had accumulated during his fight with Kaito. Was the blood Kaito’s, Akari’s, or his own? It was probably a mixture of all three.

Was this god seriously so lazy that he sent him to this world with nothing but what was on him? Wait, this could be a good thing. He felt his pockets, and then let out a laugh. The Glock 19 he had been holding when he died had come with him as well. He checked the chamber. His weapon was modified to use 19 rounds per magazine, and he had a spare magazine. He had used up five bullets earlier, mostly because he had been so angry and stupid, even firing once just to scare them. That meant he had 33 bullets. These 33 bullets were currently his only protection in this world.

“Get the hell out of the way!”

No sooner did he think that than he heard a scream. Was this something god had planned for him? No, that guy was far too lazy. This was just pure bad luck, huh? He turned around to see a wagon pulled by four horses barreling down the road at him. Now that he thought about it, the road did have a lot of wheel markings that would suggest this was a well-traveled route. As for this particular wagon, it was heading in his direction, the man behind the wheel whipping the horses and not appearing to stop.

Reo had always had a strange kind of ability. When it came to threats to his life, he became extremely observant and time seemed to slow. He had experienced a similar moment just before his death, but he had been so emotionally distraught that all he had been able to do is identify the gun, and never even thought to duck.

At this moment, he called on this ability again, getting a quick feel for the situation. The man wasn’t dressed as a servant or a wealthy man. He looked to be rather low-class. This wagon was likely the most expensive thing he owned, and something necessary for him. He wasn’t traveling at this speed because he wanted to, but because he had to. Reo noticed that there was a girl in the seat next to him, and she was similarly gesturing at him. However, she wasn’t telling him to get out of the way, but to run.

His eyes went to the sides of the wagon, and that’s when he saw the problem. There was a pack of wild wolves, and they had seemingly attacked the wagon. The horses were out of control, fleeing from the snapping wolves. However, even if the horses were in control, he’d still be encouraging them to move as quickly as possible, as these wolves looked like they meant business. They were rather large things, the size of mastiffs, and had red eyes that made them look even more menacing.

The letter from god had implied that this world wasn’t going to be easy. It looked like from the start, Reo was already going to have this thrown at him. He hadn’t even had a chance to summon a single soldier, and now he was already in combat.

Reo’s brief period of observation was coming to a quick end, and he had to make a choice immediately. That choice was to jump to the side and avoid the passing wagon. However, knowing what he knew, Reo did a diving roll, and when he came back up, he was at his knees. The wagon had given him cover, and so the wolves hadn’t noticed him as they chased the wagon. He immediately aimed for the one that was on his side, aiming low so he didn’t hit the horse.

A bang rang out, and he managed to clip the wolf’s leg. He stumbled, and while it wasn’t a killing shot, the wagon wheel that rolled over him a moment later definitely was. He died with a single yelp. As for the sound of my gunfire, it was enough to startle the horses even more. Rather than speeding up, they started to slow down, unsure of where the sound came from. In this wide area, it was difficult to pinpoint the direction of the shot, as it bounced off the trees.

Reo no longer minded the passing wagon and instead focused on the wolves that were his greatest threat. Keeping low on one knee, he scanned for the other one he had seen on the other side of the wagon.

“Behind you!” A shout caused him to look just in time to see a wolf running at him.

His slow time kicked in just enough that he was able to bring up the gun and fire. It could have been a miss just as much as a success, but luck was on his side and he shot the wolf in the face. It reeled back, and he used the opportunity to load too many shots into its head. It fell over dead in a heap. Gasping for breath, he stood back up. That had been close.

These wolves weren’t just fast, they were very clever. Seeing him take out the first one, the second hadn’t hesitated to run into the grass, made a wide berth around his line of sight, and then give an ambush. Had he not been warned, Reo would have been wolf food. Looking in the direction of the shout, he could see the cart had slowed to a stop, the man managed to get control of it. The girl was sitting at the back, and she’s the one who had called out to him.

Leaving his Glock down in one hand, he raised the other in what he hoped was a friendly gesture for this world. “Hello!”

Just as he spoke, his expression faltered. Text began to pop up in his vision, forcing him to look at it.

You have made it to level 1.

Name: Reo Trevik

Level: 1

Rank: Citizen

Armament: Glock 19

God’s Skill:

Modern Warfare – Kill enemies, fulfilling god’s missions, and leveling award points. Points can be used in-store to purchase military personal, armaments, and items. The higher your level, the more items you can summon.

Current Points: 7

Reo couldn’t help but read the text. So, this was how his ability manifested? He had to earn points, and then he could spend those points. No sooner did he think of how than a menu popped up. There seemed to be five different areas. Personnel, Armaments, Buildings, Vehicles, and Food. There were military rations offered under food. Vehicles and buildings had nothing. There were only a few items in armaments, while military personal only contained one selection. It was called a Loyalist, and it cost 10 points.

Reo decided not to worry about cashing in immediately. Rather, the woman was gesturing to him frantically. It wasn’t until he heard a howl behind him that he realized that there was still a problem. One howl was met with many more howls. Those two wolves weren’t the only two in the forest. With a curse, Reo ran up to the wagon.

“Get on! We need to go.” The girl said.

“Madaline!” The man who had still been settling the horses until now noticed as she offered Reo a hand.

“Daddy, he got rid of those wolves on our heels. We wouldn’t be getting the break we are now if it wasn’t for him. We can’t leave him here. He’ll die.”

The man’s face flashed with uncertainty for a second before leveling on Reo, who had only just stepped up into the wagon. “What are you doing here? Don’t you know it’s dangerous out in the country this time of year?”

The wagon only provided just enough room to move from one side to the other. It was filled to the brim was barrels. By the smell, Reo was certain the barrels were filled with salted meat. It was no wonder that the wolves were chasing them down. Reo wondered if it was safer not being on the ground, but as he heard more and more howls answering the first, he immediately gave up on that notion.

“I was… betrayed.” Reo looked away.

It was the truth although it hadn’t been this world where he had been betrayed. His best friend and girl had betrayed him, and thus he had ended up here. Since he had spoken the truth, the expression on his face was also genuine. This must have been enough for the man, who gave a single sharp nod.

“I suppose the hands of a strong lad wouldn’t go amiss on an evening like this.” He responded, picking up the reigns. “I don’t know what sort of magic you used to kill those wolves before, but just know we’re simple folk and want nothing to do with it. If you’d like to help, then you see that pitchfork over there? Pick it up, and if you see a wolf get too close to the side of the wagon, give him a whack.”

He didn’t say anything else as he flicked the reins and started the wagon moving again. If they waited any longer, they’d be goners as the wolves surrounded them. He didn’t move fast, instead of aiming to keep a steady pace. The horses were exhausted after their previous fright, so that’s why he had stopped them in the first place. Unfortunately, he couldn’t give them more time to rest, but the least they could do is move at a more reasonable pace until they genuinely had to.

“Sir!” Reo nodded and then moved to grab the pitchfork.

He didn’t want to waste his bullets unless he had to as well. It was this man’s wagon, so it was his rules. Even if Reo wanted to take the wagon, he didn’t know the first thing about driving a wagon. He certainly couldn’t handle horses, so at the moment their chances of survival were dependent on working together. He took up a position scouting the sides and behind, looking for any wolf to appear.

The wolves were exceptionally clever, and they remained hidden in the forest. The sun was still out, but it was lowering quickly. Reo had an uneasy feeling that they were waiting for the sun to set before they attacked, using the cover of darkness. Reo didn’t like the feeling of being hunted one bit. Seeing Reo do what he was told, the man gave a nod of approval.

“M-my name is Madaline, this is my daddy Clem.” The girl sounded anxious and seemed to be speaking just to help her deal with her nerves.

“Reo,” Reo responded shortly.

Reo wasn’t a playboy. That was Kaito’s motif. After the mess with Akari, Reo had even less desire to deal with women. In his mind, women were treacherous sluts. Whether Madaline was pretty or not, Reo didn’t care in the slightest.

“I’m sorry we brought this on you, Reo.” The girl apologized.

Reo relaxed slightly. She was the reason he was allowed on the wagon. Just because he had issues with one woman, didn’t mean he should be completely rude to another.

“It seems like this issue was coming one way or another. If anything, I might have died if you didn’t come.” Reo admitted. “Do you know how far we’ve got until safety?”

Reo didn’t know anything about the directions of this world. He didn’t know where they were heading, and he didn’t know where he was. This was his way of asking without appearing too obvious.

“Our farm is about three hours away. A river runs right before it. Once we pass the bridge, the wolves won’t follow. ” The one who answered was the man, Clem. “Tsk… only about two hours left of light.”

“If that…” Reo nodded to himself. “We can’t get the horses moving any faster?”

“If we do, we risk injury.” Clem spit to the side. “If the horses get injured, then we’d be staying the night out here. You get?”

“Yeah…” Reo nodded, looking out into the forest where he swore he saw a flash of red eyes.

Mission: Successfully escort the farmer and his daughter back to their farm without casualties.

              Bonus: Kill the Wolf Pack Leader.

And so, the lazy god had given him his first mission. Reo hated escort missions.

Previous – Next