Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

Not every soldier from this convoy and the harbor were elite soldiers to be completely honest. Unlike my squad, Morales' main group, or Artem's team which were all composed of elites, battle-tested veterans, or outliers like myself, most of them were just regular soldiers that enlisted for the benefits that came with being a soldier, had nowhere else to go, or just plain-old patriotic.

The reason I was explaining this because almost all of them, plus a select few were the ones that roared the moment I proposed a wager. The ones that just shook their head, scoffed, or remained expressionless were the ones I kept an eye on.

'Found you, motherfuckers.' I grinned inwardly.

Whether I like it or not, a small power struggle had already formed the moment Morales arrived at this island group. He was one of the president's high-ranking officers and he wouldn't come here with the bulk of his troops without a few aces he spent life-and-death battles with. For now, I just remembered their faces and planned my next steps because I still haven't taken into account the people he left in the harbor while being in this convoy.

'We're actually losing in numbers if they're all as good as what I expect them to be… Fuck it, that's why I planned to make everyone fight from the get-go so I could already gauge them… It's all or nothing once we get home… If they don't want to fight, I'll make the president make them… good thing he has vices I could tick off...'

"Hey, you're too quiet just watching them. You're thinking of something big, aren't you?" Kaley tapped me, making me turn to face her.

"Shh… Something like that, yes. It will be a long night, I'm telling you." I just chuckled and grinned, listening to everyone's conversation and watching how each of them move.

"Don't forget about me though, okay?"

"I won't, don't worry."

"Could you two please stop talking about sex in the middle of work? It's distracting." Tatiana sarcastically chimed in.

"It's not- nevermind." Kaley and I said at the same time but Tatiana was just grinning the whole time, we stopped replying halfway.

After a few hours, we have swept through a quarter of the city we were in with the president's convoy. If we wanted, we would've been able to reach a third of the way but I decided to make our movements slower. Not only doing that would let us loot each place we came across and kill each body we encountered, but it also lets us put more pressure on the main base of the people on the other side of the city.

There was nothing worse than receiving news of a threat coming and having no idea on what exact time it would actually come. Aside from that, knowing that they were slowly creeping in with force and the psychological state of their troops would also suffer, rendering them unable to act generally than they usually would resorting to a lot of problems like desertion, mutiny, or something much worse.

I for one had no actual clue as to what was happening on their side but I already have a few educated guesses based on how our minds work. It could start from simple fear and nervousness turning maybe into insomnia and paranoia as time goes by. It would get worse and worse until the situation is resolved but the longer it took for one to get closure, the more the person suffering from it gets closer to their breaking point.

'However, how their situation would come to a resolution was entirely different than what they were expecting...'

We were now in the high school area where the DDR Camp was located because my house would be cramped if we invited over not only close to a hundred soldiers from Morales' camp, but also the people that caught wind of what was about to go down and wanted to either watch, bet, or join in.

A huge space was created for us to hold the event and the soldiers wanting to have a taste of luxury had already formed a line. The rule for my event was that they only need to knock me out in 5 minutes and what I promised would be theirs plus what remained of the prize pool. I'll continue to face each challenger until 9:00 PM, where the grand finale between Artem and Morales would commence.

"Kid, you're fucking ready? A weird choice just to assert dominance, don't ya think?" Oscar tapped me.

"Oh, that counts as another reason too, I suppose. I just wanted to hit something because Artem got to fight Morales."

"Cheh, shut the fuck up. I know you planned for this all along. But still, can't complain. Beat the shit out of them fast so we get to take more of the Ahi you took home. Your unc made some ceviche and hot damn that was delicious!"

"I don't think they have a 100 Ahi Tunas lying around, old man. They only had a few dozen and I took half home."

"It's an example! Quick! Get out there!"

As soon as I walked inside the ring, the crowd eagerly waiting for it to start went wild. I was wearing my gym clothes paired with the gloves we always use when we spar but my equipment was just by our vehicles, closely guarded by my team still in gear.

The first soldier facing me got shocked at the support I was receiving but it seemed like he was just there to have some fun. He even waved at the ones cheering for me and he actually got a small audience to cheer him on aside from the soldiers that came with him.

'I like this guy.'

"Sky Ishiyama." I walked up to him.

"Richard Donito Cruz." he replied.

"FIGHT!!!" Bing wearing a referee's uniform shouted at the top of his lungs, forgetting to actually announce us.

As soon as the two of us touched our open-fingered gloves, we stared at each other but he was grinning the whole time. He looked younger than most of the soldiers that came with him but he was eager to be the first one in line. He started weaving and bobbing in place but he suddenly went forward. I saw his right shoulder tighten but I was still patiently waiting if it was a fake to lure me out.

"You're going down!" Richard instead started trash-talking.

"Not exactly." I said as I actually went up.

"Huh?"

I lifted up from the ground as I delivered a crescent kick after a spin. He was like a deer in front of headlights as he received my kick with his head dead-on. I was planning it to be just a cool opener but he just sprawled sideways, unconscious.

Everyone was momentarily stunned before it erupted with cheers, jeering, and playful mockery from both sides.

"Son of a fucking bitch, got me excited for nothing..." the president was facepalming on his seat.

Bing just stared at Richard for a few moments before he crossed his arms together, waving it around then grabbing my arm and raising it up, "THE WINNER!!! SKY~~~~~!!! ISHIYAMA~~~~~!!!"

Richard was later escorted after he was brought to consciousness but he started waving at the audience like he won.

"Nice fight!" Richard offered a handshake.

"Nice fight. Thanks for the 1911." I replied, returning his handshake.

"Shit! I just- fuck it, it's just an extra… I'll get it back next time!"

'At least not all of them are uptight like their CO...'

After a few moments, the next challenger walked up to me and he was actually from my side. I was surprised he was here because he was supposed to be in the DDR Camp in Meycauayan but the news of the event actually brought him here.

"You sure about this Brian? Haven't you had enough?" Bing almost disqualified Brian when he saw him come inside the ring.

"SHUT UP! NO ONE SAID IT'S NOT ALLOWED!" Brian roared, almost wanting to start a fight with Bing instead.

"Okay, in the blue corner~ the bald-headed idiot that didn't know when to give up~ Brian~" Bing actually introduced him to everyone like an announcer would.

"Fuck you." Brian just made his neck crack then he stared at me, focusing.

"Also, he's a virgin~" Bing added more fuel to the fire.

The crowd started laughing and Brian actually did a good job of hanging on.

"BING!!! JUST FUCKING START THE FIGHT!!!"

As soon as Bing gave the signal, Brian rushed at me like he always would with his guard raised up. He opened with a crisp jab and then followed it up with a right straight but I weaved my head and delivered a sudden low kick. I let out a smile to mess with his head but he relentlessly tried to get me into an in-fight.

'You need to do a better job than that...'

It was then that he pretended to perform another crisp jab but he actually grabbed my shirt and was just about to throw a right hook on my face.

'Always the dirty tricks...'

Instead of dodging it by a hair's breadth, I slammed my head right on his nose then I sent a left knee towards his abdomen. His nose was already bleeding profusely as his body buckled forwards but before he managed to recover, my arms already wrapped around his neck, choking him in the process.

As soon as he dropped unconscious, I wiped the blood on my forehead and said, "Next."