Chapter 120: A tough call for Cody
( Cody's POV )
Cody was having a mini heart attack looking at the situation on the battlefield.
With about 60% of their long range weapons destroyed by the bone dragons, the blast zone was not as effective as it used to be and it was leading to a lot of stress forming on the front lines.
For as far as Cody could see, the humans were barely hanging on to their assigned battle lines and if the situation continued this way, he had no doubt in his mind that humans were fighting a losing war.
In his mind, he had already begun contemplating on giving the order to retreat slowly, however, he was waiting for God Cassius to perform a miracle and defeat the Lich, as he clanged on-to the hope that the situation would change once the Lich died.
Unfortunately however, instead of the Lich dying, Cassius seemed to be outmatched by his opponent and Guildmaster Karna had to get involved in his fight to balance the odds.
From the moment Karna left his post to help the God Cassius, Cody began contemplating the safest path to retreat and regroup as he wanted to reorganize the frontlines in a way that gave the fighters on the front the maximum chance of survival.
However, just as he was about to give the order for the backlines to charge and front lines to slowly start falling back, an unexpected situation arose on the front lines as the forces of the Church Of Gemini, and the True Elites Guild began to break rank and charge forwards.
"Guild master Maven to Command station…. This is Guild Master Maven to the command station…." A voice said over Cody's communication device as Cody answered immediately.
"This is Cody speaking…."
"Association leader what the fuck is going on? Why is the champion of Gemini leading the forces of the Church and Elites into a death match? This isn't part of the plan, them charging forwards puts unnecessary pressure on us ...."
"Command center! This is Guild master Andy speaking…."
"Command center, this is guild master Gary speaking…."
"Command center…."
"Command center…."
Cody was overwhelmed with front line guildmasters giving him a call, as even he had no idea as to what Neatwit or Cole were thinking, or why Rocky was leading them into the heart of enemy territory.
"Fuck….." muttered Cody, as sweat began dripping down his forehead.
As per their current trajectory, Rocky and his forces had crossed the Buffer zone and were going to enter the blast zone soon.
If Cody did not do anything, there was a real possibility of them being hit by the projectiles in a friendly fire, however, if he stopped the heavy machinery from firing, then the pressure on the front lines was sure to intensify several fold.
He had no idea what the Elites or the Church was thinking, however, he had a very small window to decide on the future course of action.
Under pressure, Cody took a deep breath and assessed the situation, before deciding to bet it all on whatever Rocky wished to achieve.
"Deactivate the weapons and tell the backlines and the support line to rush to the front.
We hold the front line for as long as we can. Fill in the shoes of those who are charging" Cody said calmly, as he relayed his orders over the communication device to everyone.
"Command center this is not part of the plan….. what the fuck is going on?" Asked guild master Gary, however, the answer he got wasn't what he was hoping for at all.
"I have no idea what is going on myself, however, I'm adapting to the situation as best as I can.
All of you can notice that the war isn't going as we hoped it would for us, so I'm hoping that whatever those guys are trying to do will help us win it.
So for once, let's stop arguing and have faith in the champion of Gemini, just like billions at home have too- " Cody said as he decided to bet it big on Rocky based on a simple gut-shot.
If he was wrong, it could lead to millions of climbers losing their life, however, at this point Cody was desperate to win the war anyway he could.
Trusting an eighteen year old climber was an utterly ridiculous concept, one that Cody himself would not have entertained had the situation been better, however, right now he felt like he had exhausted all other options and all he could do was hope for a miracle.
Since whatever Rocky was planning to do, he had the support of Pope Cole and Neatwit with him, Cody just decided to trust their better judgment and sincerely hope that it did not spell doom for Earth.
***********
( Meanwhile, Rocky )
"My lord, if we keep advancing at this pace, we will be caught by friendly fire once we enter the blast zone" Pope Cole said, as he worried that they would lose some of their own men if they charged headfirst into the blast zone.
"Tell him you won't…. The machines will be deactivated" Ravan replied, as Rocky listened to his words and spoke with confidence that they won't be hit.
For a moment Pope Cole was skeptical as he wished to suggest that they slow down and communicate with the backlines first, however, just as Rocky assured him that they wouldn't be hit, the fire from the backlines miraculously stopped.
"Oh? The artillery fire stopped?" Pope Cole said in surprise as he felt awestruck by his lord's foresight and judgment.
While he trusted Rocky because he was the Champion of Gemini, Cole did not respect him yet as a fighter and a leader.
Hence although he was ready to follow Rocky, he was slightly hesitant in following him without any questions, however, as he noticed Rocky leading them through the weakest of enemy patches and making superb judgment, his trust in him as a leader gradually increased.
A soft smile spread on his face…. As Cole silently began viewing Rocky as the next God Of War.