My Sniper System in a Zombie Apocalypse World-Chapter 114: The Silent Commander

As Bong-gu and the others arrived, they instinctively slowed, then froze at the sight ahead.

Through the gaps between the trees, around fifteen soldiers moved in tight formation. Their movements were sharp and controlled. Devices on their waists fired thin cables that hooked onto branches, pulling them from tree to tree with smooth precision.

One soldier swung forward, landed on a thick branch, and immediately opened fire without even losing balance.

Bong-gu’s jaw dropped. "Damn, look at those rigs!" he breathed, his eyes glued to the soldiers as they zipped through the trees like acrobats.

Jaxon didn’t react the same way. His expression stayed calm as he observed the battlefield from a distance, studying their speed, coordination, and positioning.

"We’ll stay here, don’t get close." he said quietly.

He lifted his gaze toward the surrounding trees, quickly judging the height of the branches and the lines of sight. "Climb to the trees. We’ll have better cover."

Without wasting time, he moved first, helping the others climb.

"Slowly," he added in a low voice. "And stay quiet."

Wet leaves brushed against their clothes. Branches creaked softly under their weight. One by one, they reached higher ground and settled into positions hidden by thick foliage.

A distance away from them, infected were pouring out between the trees, moving in erratic bursts, crashing into trunks and lunging forward without any sense of fear or pain. Their snarls echoed through the forest as they chased the soldiers.

"Do not attract attention," Jaxon reminded them in a low voice. "Only fire if something gets too close."

Natasha nodded and tightened her grip on her pistol. Elaine crouched behind a branch, forcing her breathing to slow. Cindy and Isabel adjusted their guns, tension clear in their eyes.

Bong-gu swallowed hard, lowering his voice even more. "Oh God, ... there’s so many of them."

Jaxon didn’t answer right away. He moved onto a sturdy branch and settled into position, one knee bent slightly as he balanced with ease. His eyes swept across the battlefield, tracking every movement.

’I might not gain stats for a while once we enter the safe zone,’ Jaxon thought calmly. ’Time to rack up as many kills as possible.’

.....

Far away, on higher ground, hidden behind thick branches and deep shadows, a Variant stood among the trees.

It didn’t rush forward. It didn’t even shift its stance.

It simply watched.

Its tall frame remained still, muscles tight beneath dark skin. Its intelligent eyes stayed fixed on the battlefield below. After a moment, a low, rumbling roar slipped from its throat.

The change below was instant.

The infected suddenly grew more agitated, their movements turning sharper and more aggressive. But they didn’t just charge blindly. Groups began veering toward different angles, cutting through the forest in uneven lines, slowly tightening around the soldiers as if trying to surround them and block their retreat.

From the darker parts of the forest, new shapes emerged.

Crawlers emerged silently, their twisted limbs scraping across the wet ground as they moved with unsettling speed. Their heads jerked left and right, searching, before locking onto the sounds of gunfire.

Behind them, another mutated infected stepped into view. It was tall and unnaturally thin, its distended jaw twitching as dark veins pulsed along its neck and chest. One arm ended in long, razor-like claws, while the other stretched forward in a grotesque, flexible motion, almost like a lizard’s tongue

Then the trees shook.

A hulking mutant forced its way through the undergrowth, its massive frame snapping branches and pushing aside trunks as it advanced, each heavy step sinking into the mud as it moved toward the soldiers’ position.

Below, gunfire grew louder.

Shots echoed through the forest. Yet high above them, the Variant did not join the fight.

It stood on the higher ground, half-hidden in shadow, quietly observing the chaos it had stirred, like a silent commander directing the swarm without ever stepping into the fight.

.....

Through the forest, soldiers clad in black moved with precision. Their swings between trees were not random, every trajectory calculated.

"Specter Squad, cover us!" the squad leader called. Five soldiers launched themselves onto higher branches, their rifles raised. From this vantage, they fired like snipers, picking off infected from a distance with calm, deadly accuracy.

"Hunter, hit the frontline!" he barked. With him leading the descent, soldiers drew shotguns from their backs, moving lower to engage the infected at close range. Each blast sent twisted bodies tumbling into the mud.

"Recon Squad, execute your sector," came the final order. The remaining five moved through mid-range positions, bridging the Hunters and Specters. Lina and Annie were among them, swinging between branches, their suppressed rifles shooting down infected with precise bursts.

The battlefield was alive with motion. Bald infected leapt and lunged, climbing fast, nearly reaching the soldiers. Muffled gunshots echoed in the storm, punctuated by short commands:

"Reloading, cover me!"

"Shifting position!"

"Contact, nine o’clock!"

Each command was executed flawlessly. Soldiers ducked, pivoted, and swung in perfect synchrony, advancing, retreating, and covering each other as if they were one living, lethal organism.

Then, amidst the controlled chaos, behind the Specter Squad, a long, grotesque hand shot out. In one swift motion, it clamped around a soldier’s neck and covered his mouth. Before anyone could react, the soldier was yanked backward into the shadows, disappearing without a sound.

One of the soldiers halted, eyes scanning the chaos around them. "Denver... status?"

The others exchanged quick glances, but none had spotted him.

"Squad Leader, Denver’s status unknown!" the soldier reported through his comms.

"What..." The squad leader barely had time to react before a crawler silently lunged from the shadows, landing with unnerving precision on a Recon squad soldier as if it had been waiting for the perfect moment.

"Marcus!" Annie shouted, but it was too late. The crawler’s jaws clamped onto his shoulder with a sickening crunch.

Marcus struggled, twisting against the creature. "Shoot me! Shoot me now!" he yelled, his voice raw with panic.

Annie froze for a heartbeat, eyes wide, then steeled herself. She pulled the trigger. The suppressed rifle barked in quick, controlled bursts, each round tearing through the crawler... and grazing Marcus.

Chaos erupted further. From below, a Hunter squad soldier was caught off guard. An infected had latched onto the Dual Cable Launcher on his waist. He swung to escape, but the creature held fast, dragging him down. He lost his balance and fell into the throng of infected below. Only his agonized scream pierced the chaos.

"Rex!" the squad leader barked sharply, heart pounding.

Then the ground shook violently. Trees splintered as a hulking infected burst from the forest, its massive frame barreling toward the soldiers.

"Specter Squad, grenade launchers, fire at will!" the squad leader barked.

Two soldiers slung a launcher into position, while the others below pulled grenades from their packs, bracing and aiming at the advancing monstrosity.

"Take cover!" another yelled as fire streaked toward the hulking infected. Explosions erupted, detonating grenades and launcher rounds in a chorus of fire and smoke.

One grenade slammed into the hulking infected, striking it squarely, but it didn’t go down. Its shoulder and arms were shredded, flesh torn, yet it roared louder, more menacing than before, charging forward with relentless fury.

"Annie, Lina" The squad leader called. "Contact the command. Request immediate backup! I repeat, I need backup, now!"

Annie and Lina pulled out their radios at the same time, urgency in their movements.

The squad leader gritted his teeth, eyes sharp as they tracked the hulking infected barreling toward them. He reloaded his shotgun, muscles tense, ready for the kill, but before he could aim properly...

BAM!

A shot tore through the creature’s skull, the impact explosive, sending fragments of bone and blood into the air. The bullet continued, striking another infected directly behind it.

(70 EXP, 100 coins, 0.70 Strength gained from the infected)

From a perch high in the branches, Jaxon’s scope stayed locked and steady. He had been picking off infected silently, avoiding notice, but the battlefield was shifting fast.

"Your reinforcements are here," Bong-gu said, a grin breaking across his face as he began firing in wild bursts from his rifle.

The moment bullets cracked through the air, an infected spotted him, then another. Within moments, the horde that had been hunting the special unit shifted its attention. A roar split the forest as dozens of infected lunged towards their way.

"Crap... looks like I’ve drawn too much attention," Bong-gu muttered, panic flashing in his eyes.

"You idiot!" Elena cursed, aiming at an approaching infected.

Jaxon remained calm, scanning from above. He had been sniping silently, taking out infected one by one, careful not to alert the swarm. Now, the group had drawn notice, and a quarter of the infected’s attention was on them.

"Sorry..." Bong-gu muttered, realizing the danger he had caused.

"Do we fight or run?" Na-rin asked, glancing at Jaxon, her voice steady but tense.

"Run... where?" Natasha replied, already squeezing the trigger of her pistol.

Jaxon’s eyes remained calm at the approaching horde. "Good call, Bong-gu. If they die and we’ll be next. We back them up, or no one survives this."

They unleashed a hail of gunfire, their shots less precise than the soldiers’, but no less deadly. Infected stumbled and fell, their bodies crashing into the mud and foliage.