“The count approaches!” The recruits crouch with their right knee on the ground, their left leg straight back, their heads tilted down in a sigh of subservience and their M16A3 Rifle with the stock on the found for support with the left hand gripping the hand guard of the rifle. Chiara follows these orders like every other recruit in her training batch.
There is no tolerance for individuality for low ranking Vampires, let alone inexperienced recruits. Those who couldn’t keep up or failed to comply with Vampire Squad’s orders were forced to perform the “Hanging Bat” in the courtyard of the base. Chiara recalls how recruits and even some vampires who showed cowardliness or disobedience would have their legs hanged over a high iron bar and would be suspended upside down while being forced to do 100 pull ups with their arms crossed across their chest. Doing that for extended periods of time would drain a player's stamina and those who couldn’t do 100 pull ups would not be allowed to walk around the base without doing them. Logging off and logging back in the game would not alter this punishment.
Their training was demanding and far beyond anything Chiara had experienced with basic training from Drill Sergeant Perry’s camp. She, along with all of the other recruits partaking in this training, were strictly schooled in the art of room clearing, assaulting positions, using stealth (ie following the masquerade) before attacking, and field skills like basic medical care, trench construction, and espionage with timed explosives. Recruits were not trained for particular roles other than to be a jack of all trades, but at the very core are little more than just infantry. Only those who have proven their worth as soldiers or by special request from a high ranking counts, countess or even by Asura herself will have the privilege of receiving a pair of night vision goggles or mononuclear. Referred to as NODs (night observation devices), they are considered some of the most expensive equipment that can ever be issued to a player in Mil-Sim Story apart from high level body armor or helmets. For Chiara and the recruits who made it through training the previous afternoon, their acceptance into the squad has one more trial to overcome: a proper skirmish.
Vlad, the red headed minion and elite sapper for Asura’s vampire squad has overseen their training since yesterday. He walks into the briefing room, carrying a tablet with a rugged case and a cable to connect to the monitor featured in the center of the room, which is setup like a classroom without desks or seats. “At ease!” He orders the recruits to get back up on their two feet at shoulder distance, rifles sling over the shoulder, and hands at parade rest (left hand by the sling, right hand by the waistline and bent. Vlad connects his tablet to monitor with the cable and waits for the Mil-OS operating system to boot while he addresses his recruits.
“You have proven yourselves to be capable of doing advance combat techniques. Unlike some recruits, somehow you managed to pull through everything we have thrown at you so far. Perhaps this batch of prey might not be so useless after all. But making it through our training process is not enough to be considered a brother or sister of Vampire Squad.” The operating system finally boots up and Vlad opens up a powerpoint style presentation with the title “Operation: Extinction.” The title of the power point in question would be humorous if it were not for the strict seriousness that the recruits were trained to maintain while listening to a count speak. “Now, you’re probably wondering about the name of this presentation. Would anyone dare be wise to speak about why I am showing you this slide?”
“Count Vlad! Permission to speak!” A male recruit with glasses answers from the back row.
“Permission granted, prey.”
“Count Vlad! The name is suggesting a combat operation for us to prove our worth to the squad!”
“Nicely done, prey!” He points to the words “Extinction” with his tablet digitizer, highlighting the word on screen. “The Highness herself coined this operation for you all specifically. In order to prove yourselves worthy of being part of Vampire Squad, we’ll have to see what you can do in combat. We have arranged something particularly special tonight. We’re going to be hunting “Raptors” tonight. The group of recruits have a look of surprise on their face and some gasps and mutters to themselves which Vlad allows for a brief moment so they can let it sink in.
“Count Vlad. Permission to ask?” A female recruit bows her head.
“Granted.”
“Count Vlad. Do you mean that we’ll be going up against THE Raptor Squad?”
“Correct, although we won’t be facing Seth and his band of elitist scum. We’ll be facing off their own batch of recruits. In other words, they aren’t sending their best, but neither are we.”
Vlad cuts to a new slide in his power point presentation showing off the gear of the average Raptor Squad recruit. The standard recruit is dressed in gray fatigues, blue jeans, a gray baseball cap with a velcro patch of the squad’s logo, a gray color minimalist chest rig with pouches for magazines, med packs, grenades, and handheld radios. His primary arm is an M4A1 with an adjustable SOPMOD stock, flip up rear iron sights over a Picatinny rail, and a front iron sight post which is the same as that found in the M16A3 rifle. Other than being shorter than the M16 with a barrel length of 14.5 inches, the M4A1 is on par with the Vampire Squad’s weapons.
“Your enemy will be decently equipped and well trained. Raptor Squad does not skimp on their recruits. They will be determined to be just as good as Seth, so I expect everyone in this room to handle the combat zone with extreme caution and precision. Your M16A3 is longer than their M4A1, but they are using a carbine gas system and thus greater recoil than your rifles. We force you to use the M16 for a reason and having a controllable weapon is the price we pay for maneuverability. Her highness ensured us a good deal with these rifles, so don’t disrespect your equipment.” He cuts to a new slide showing the fire controls on the receiver of their M16A3. “We expect you to use your semi-auto firing mode at all times, even in close quarters battle. You’ll all be issued 20 round magazines as opposed to the 30 round magazines your opponents will be using with their M4s. Your magazines will not last with full auto so only use that firing mode if you can scavenge some magazines from the enemy. Otherwise, you will use good trigger discipline, make your shots count for every room you clear and don’t waste ammo on taking out an enemy if they are already eliminated.”
The next slide reveals the location of the area the recruits will be fighting Raptor squad. It’s an oil rig platform in the middle of the sea. The map description on the side indicates this is going to be an assault during the middle of the night. Several arrows from four directions directly point towards the oil rig and each level is labeled on the rig with several important locales on the oil rig platform mentioned. “Now onto our operation. We’ll first assault the rig with rigid hull inflatable boats and a lucky few of you will descend on the platform with our Blackhawk helicopter. We are expecting weather conditions to be stormy and raining so take precaution when approaching the rig. There will be lookouts expecting our assault so be prepared to take action as soon as you are fired upon, but those rappelling from the Blackhawk will do what they can to draw fire from the enemy from above.”
The lines are animated in the powerpoint, drawing closer to the oil rig. The line indicating the helicopter is shown to circle around the oil rig. “Most of you won’t make it to the platform so those coming in with boats will have to dodge incoming fire to prevent your teammates from sinking into the bottom of the sea. The waves will be violent with the wind, so you will have to contend with the elements. Don’t think you can swim your way to the oil rig, the waves will overtake you and you have no chance to survive.”
The next slide shows a rough diagram of the structure beneath the rig. “Once you make contact with the rig, you must use the grappling hook launcher on the boat to reach the first level of the rig. Alternatively, you might find some ladders around the support columns. The enemy will use this as a choke point so prepare to fire back from your boats while your squad mates ascend into the first level. One at a time.” From there, you will proceed each level and clean out the defenders till the very last foe. Watch out for the interiors and catwalks. It is easy to be ambushed in these areas. You won’t have the luxury of cover or distance so fighting will be tight. Stack up but don’t make yourself an easy target. Smaller stature recruits in the center, rear and front should check those corners. You must be weary of all angles, high and low. Don’t forget to watch your fire. You are on an oil rig so it’s easy to create fireballs that will easily consume everyone including yourselves. So don’t be reckless. Does anyone have questions?”
“No, Count Vlad!” The recruits answer in unison.
“Excellent. We’ll be observing your performance in this match. Do not embarrass yourself or your squad mates. As I said before, some of you will not make it till the end of the match. Depending on the situation of your demise, it can be something that can be judged as necessary or the result of poor tactical maneuvering. If our squad manages to defeat the enemy, those who survived will be taken into consideration into our elite program. For the rest, we’ll carefully consider your actions in this match to be worthy of taking you into our vampire family. Those who don’t qualify will have to undergo more training until the next opportunity.” He closes off the powerpoint and moves to the front center of his room. He places his hands crossed on his chest like a vampire at rest. “Fight with the shadows, show no mercy, and prove your devotion to her highness.” He lowers his hands. “Line up at the courtyard, you’ll be organized into groups of four. Expect to teleport into the combat zone in 10 minutes. Don’t waste our time. Get moving, and slay us some raptors.”
The recruits, along with Chiara grab their rifles and sling it at the low ready position before heading out of the briefing room. She is stopped by Vlad who halts her by calling her name. “Chiara, you are more experienced than many of the recruits joining you. Set up a good example and Asura might have more to offer you if you can prove your worth.”
“I-I’ll keep that in mind….Count Vlad.” She speaks hesitantly.
“Already giving me doubts…” Vlad sighs deeply. “I don’t even know what her highness sees in you, but whatever. You’re here on her call, not mine. Go out there and prove me wrong.”
“Affirmative, Count Vlad.” Chiara follows the other recruits who are then separated and grouped by a couple of low ranking vampires with tablets, going through an organized document placing recruits into groups of four.
“Kenny, you’re in team Alucard! Penny, go with team Bathory! You there! Go with team Carmilla. Henry! You on the helicopter team, Dracula! Move it!” The low ranking vampires command the recruits into the teams. One of them finally approaches Chiara. “Team Carmilla! You’re with them!” She lines up behind a group of three recruits; some male and some female players. Chiara remembers them from her training from yesterday. They are complete greenhorns to Mil-Sim Story, some of whom only got into the game through social media promises of fame and glory.
“Ah jeez, this is pretty nerve wrecking you guys.” One of them comments. “We’re totally going up against Raptor squad.”
“I can’t wait to slay some raptors! Dude, It’s going to be so sick! Perhaps we’ll be elite vampires after this.”
“Ah....that would be amazing. I want Asura to use me like a stool.” The guy gets a dirty look from the other two in Chiara’s squad. “Oh come on. That’s the main reason I even bothered joining Vampire Squad.”
“Well, it’s a good thing we have a hardened veteran on our side, even if she’s a recruit like the rest of us.” One of the male recruits brings up to the squad. “Chiara. You’ve been in combat before. What’s it like?”
Chiara hesitates to answer as she can’t think of a response. “You won’t be the same afterwards.” She puts it bluntly to her squad. Just talking to them already brings memories of her time with Armadillo Squad. She almost misses them. “Victory is going to feel like the most amazing thing you’d ever experience...but defeat will break you to the core. You may not feel pain, but you’ll feel terrible when you’re taken out. I don’t know if I would call it fun.”
Her squad mates seem to take in the information, perhaps as a sign to take this mission more seriously but the moment afterwards, they start joking around and fantasizing about defeating the enemy again, making Chiara sigh and look down to the ground. A helicopter approaches a landing site on the plaza. Team Dracula is getting ready to board it while everyone else is expected to teleport in 2 minutes. Judging by the number of teams in her squad, Chiara is expecting this to be one of the biggest battles she’ll experience yet.
Asura is not wearing her VR headset. Instead, she’s sitting by her desktop in her leather computer chair which has seen better days but is still holding up structurally. Her bedroom is not very expressive which would surprise those who know her as the leader of Vampire Squad. White plaster walls, wooden floors, a twin size bed, and a closet make her room appear more like a dorm or a hospital room. The only resemblance of personality to her room are the small succulent plants on her desk and the various sketches of art, drawn by Asura of things like nature, spiders, and people which are presented on a pin board on her left side of the room. She is sketching away at her paper pad while sitting on her chair in just her long wool khaki sweater, feeling too lazy to even put on pants. It’s not cold enough for her to justify doing so even in her home country of Canada. A notification emits from her desktop which prompts her to put on a headset and set down her sketch pad facing down on her desk. “Is the match with our recruits about to begin?”
“Just as we agreed, your highness.” Vlad’s voice calls back through her headset. “The recruits shall be transported to the combat zone in just a few minutes. You’ll be watching your highness? Your special recruit will be partaking in the event.”
“Of course. I want to see if Chiara has what it takes. I know she’s a step above everyone else from our pool of recruits, but I want to offer something more if she can get through this little trial we arranged.” She crosses her arms and leans back on her chair. “She must have seen some potential in our squad if she was so willing to abandon her friends for us. Our little practice match against them must have really demoralized them. They don’t stand a chance in our next tournament.”
“You’re not worried about Lonestar Team, your Highness?”
“I don't think about Longhorn or Armadillo Squad at all. They are merely a bunch of amateurs with no consensus of coordination and tactics. They are a bunch of college age brats with high hopes and no sense or reality. Chiara has come to those terms which is why she's with us now." Asura smiles slightly as she speaks. "Do you want to know why I accepted Chiara into our ranks, Vlad? It's because my squad is for those who lost all hope with this world. We are outcasts among outcasts. Men and women without family. We can be something to fear to our enemies, but among ourselves, we're brother and sisters."
“I understand your highness, but I still have my doubts about Chiara. She did fine in training but she comes off as too soft. But we’ll find out soon enough. The match is about to begin."
“Good. This is our first step to curb stomping Seth’s ego. The more I think about him, the more he annoys me. Nothing but a bunch of tactical sell out whores. Asura opens up a desktop client of Mil-Sim story and selects a live view management screen where she can watch the battle from the comfort of her bedroom without being in VR. She grabs her sketch pad and makes some finishing touches to her sketch before the match can begin. She places the sketchbook down by her desk. Her eyes alternated down at the sketch and up towards the monitor as she waited. "Show me what you can do..." She whispers to herself as she looks down at the sketch of Chiara's face which is highly detailed and has her smiling cutely." Her finger lingers on the sketch as she speaks. “Soon enough, you’ll be exactly what I want. The perfect vampire.”
A dense storm violently moves the waves against the wave of inflatable boats riding through the chaos. Thick gray clouds hinder visibility but the sound of a helicopter can be heard overhead the boats. Chiara and her squad hang onto the boat while another squad member controls the throttle and propeller as they navigate along with the other boats towards an imposing oil rig fortress ahead of them. Standing tall in the heavy winds and rain, they’ll have to ascend the rig and eliminate all of Raptor Squad. Chances are, their numbers will be equal in strength but they’ll have the defensive advantage. Chiara grips onto her M16A3. Her finger lingers on the safety of her fire control and her trigger finger sits at the side of the receiver. Nobody says anything during the ride. The waves feel like they can flip the boat overboard with the wrong turn. As the boats approach closer, some spotlights shine from above the oil rig, searching for the incoming assault. The team helicopter makes the first approach over the rig and before they know it, shots are taken at the helicopter and Team Dracula who is on board and firing from the air. Now is the other team’s chance to approach the rig for the assault. Suddenly, one of the spotlights lights up Chiara’s squad and their boat, before they are even close to the rig. “Look out! TURN!” One of the squad members shouts as the defenders on the rig start to fire upon the boats from afar. Their bullets are not getting enough velocity to reach them but they can certainly see the flashes from the gunfire on the oil rig. Just from the right of them, Team Bathory’s boat is suddenly hit with rifle fire and the boat’s inflatable rim starts to deflate. Their ship is instantly turned overboard and all the crew are thrown into the sea. They desperately try to stay afloat but the waves trash them and toss them around.
“HELP US!!! DON’T LEAVE US BEHIND!!! WAAAAIT!!!” They shout and scream as they desperately try to stay afloat. It’s a demoralizing sight to behold for Chiara and her squad.
“We have to rescue them.” Chiara suggests in the heat of the moment.
“What? No way!” One of her squad members protests. “They’ll make us go overboard.”
“Chiara’s right! We’re going to be outnumbered if we leave them behind. Turn the boat around!”
“Are you crazy?!! We’re going to die out here!”
“Screw this!” The squad member controlling the boat quickly turns tail and navigates the boat towards the marooned squad across them. They can feel the bullets flying above them as the spotlight desperately looks for survivors and other boats to gun down.