Part 13.1: Counterattack, POV: Sage

Adam clapped his hands "alright team… what now?"

"Since Sam did a good chunk of work for us and Andrew's still out," Zack started to speak, "gah, I wish there was a chalkboard here in front of me it would make the plan so much easier to explain but it's okay," he took a deep breath, "Alright so I'm thinking here that Cyrus should expand the barricades." 

"What do ya mean 'expand'?" Cyrus asked. 

"Go out to the street and make more of them, do you get what I mean?" Zack tweaked. 

"So just run out there and raise the street up more? Why." 

Zack was going to say something, "Because at the moment we're-" 

[BOOM]

An explosion burst through the front of the fort, "what the hell!?" I managed to cough through the smoke. I quickly grabbed my bow and held it close to me. I began to sway my right hand from left to right, drawing out the shape of an arrow and my bright yellowy-white magic started forming into an actual arrow. Once the frame of the arrow actually formed, I grabbed the rod so the arrowhead and fletchlings could be made and then finally nocked the arrow onto my bow. 

"Is everyone alright!?" I heard Will shout in the small fort. 

Zack was fanning the smoke from the debris out, "clearly Sage is alright since she made an arrow. Use the light of the arrow as a focal point to clear out the dust!" Oh it's… not smoke its dust. 

"I'll check on the situation!" I volunteered myself and leaped out of the fort to the closest barricade. I peered my eyes just over the barricade. 

My thoughts were starting to run, "how did they blow up the fort? There's no catapult or the other launch-y thing, no tanks or anything either…" 

But there is a man much bulkier at the center of the army leading them forward towards us right now! He is huge like at least six-foot kinda big and it looks like he has a sword on his back? His right hand is glowing…

"We got company, and a new one at that," I told everyone in the fort.

"Define new?" Sam asked as he stepped out of the now-blown up and dusty fort. He had his left arm around Cyrus's upper body holding him up. 

"Still tired huh?" I joked. 

"Very, but at least my brain is still cooking," he stated. 

"That's good," oh right! I have to tell them the important news, "Right right uhhh there front and center." I pointed at the big guy, "That guy, yeah him! it looks like he's the one that blew up the front of our fort!" 

"Which one is it?" Will stupidly asked. 

"I don't know, maybe the one with the GLOWING HAND!!" Sheila's always there to back up my ideas~!

Adam then asked while scratching his head, "So how the hell do we deal with him?" 

"At a range." Sam declared, "That's the best move right now, that right? Zack?" 

"That'd be correct," he sighed, "we know exactly nothing about him so distancing ourselves is almost always the objectively better play." 

"Sage, you're up for the job then!" Adam slapped my back.

"... Thanks," I blankly stared at him. He's a little awkward, "Alright I'll shoot a couple of light arrows at him." 

"Wait," Sam put his left arm in front of my bow, "Where's Andrew and Xeno? We NEED to know where all of our cards are so we can check what're the best ones to play."

"Do not fret!" Xeno said over the mic, "I have been listening in this entire time. I have destroyed multiple ships and am currently floating down a really wide river near the city." he informed us.

"Which river?" I asked. 

"Unknown. I haven't memorized the maritime geography of this metropolis." Xeno uses too many big words…

"There are literally two rivers that all become one if you head South! How do you NOT know!!?" Sheila yelled. 

"I'll be with you shortly. I must deliver Quinn the liquid alloy of which he desires." Xeno assured us. 

"Could you just bottle it and keep it safe somewhere then come back for it!?" Sheila posed a possible move.

"That'd be great actually, we would highly appreciate your help!" Zack commented. 

"It's… possible," Xeno recognized, "Alright I shall do that, I'll join the fight as hastily as my body will carry my soul!" 

"Andrew, where are you then?" Adam asked.

He reported over the mic that he's "On the other side of your current location. On the other end of Chinatown to be exact. I'm currently picking off troops within my own barriers I made. I'm in a shit situation at the moment but I will get out. Use that machete well," and he signed off. 

Adam gripped the machete that he got from Andrew harder, "I won't let you down," he seethed through his teeth. 

"Dude, there's no way that bro heard allat!" Cyrus reminded Adam. 

"... right," he lowered the machete. He is being pretty awkward right now, a bit more than usual. 

"So basically shoot at the guy, right?" I checked just to be safe. 

Zack and a few others nodded. I understood the agenda now. I swayed my hand again to make another arrow and then nocked it on my bow. I aimed right between the two eyes of the guy and let the bowstring go. The arrow sped through the air and what did it do to the guy? NOTHING! He blocked my arrow with his arm! My arrow just faded into a yellow mist when it impacted his arm! The army kept marching forward right to us, they were getting closer and closer…

I started to freak out, "OKAY UHH WHAT NOW!?" 

Sheila patted my back calmly, "Deep breath, inhale in with your nose and out with your mouth." I did as she said. 

"Now?" I wondered out loud. 

"Keep firing, our thinkers will cook up something," she nodded towards Zack and Sam drawing in the dirt from the debris. They were using their fingers to draw stick figures indicating who is who with arrows moving to where. 

"You trust them that much?" I asked her.

"To be frank, No, not all the time." she crossed her arm and took a deep breath herself, "But at this current moment, what is there left to do besides trust in each other?" 

"She's right," Cyrus excitedly nodded. He slammed his hammer down on a barricade, picked up the large rock debris from the barricade and tossed it SUPER far into the army, "Ya shouldn' be shootin' attem' alone!" 

Will joined in too making spell circles in the air that shot shards of ice, "I don't got a lot of energy left but I'll help where I can!" 

This time Sheila slapped my back! 

[WHAP!]

"Now just keep firing till we get a real plan," she declared. I looked up and saw some magic bolts passing over us. They had started firing at us and I don't know how long Cyrus's barricades would last, "Don't worry, I'll neutralize those shots."

I swayed my hands again, but did it a bit quickly because I rather make the arrow at all instead of making it more powerful and then I shot it right at him! He blocked it but it didn't matter, I kept firing and firing weaker but a lot more arrows. Sheila was making pools of water in the sky to block shots, Will kept shooting icicles while Cyrus levied large rocks. 

The army started to close in on the first of the five barricades, "AH!" Sam suddenly yelled from the back, "We have an idea! Sage! Keep targeting his arms!" 

"Why!? I mean he's kinda like blocking them with his arms so y'know if I like shoot at him at all he would block with his arms so-" I'm so confused that I started to ramble. 

"It might be straining his muscles every time he blocks one of your shots. If his arm movement is slower, so would his spell creation and we might be able to counter attack more effectively!" He explained. 

Zack directed Cyrus to, "stop throwing rocks, save your energy. Can you just raise the earth slightly a lot of times? Like break up the street almost to just stop their movement and make them fall? Do you have a spell that can do that?" 

Cyrus had a large chunk of debris held over his head, "I mean… I don't know any spells that'll get me to do allat cleanly. But," he threw the debris over in front of their path, "I can just make a ton of small bumps, that cool?" 

"Very," Sam put a thumbs up, "Everyone else, being just Adam, Sheila, Zack and Will are going head first right into them!" 

"Are you serious!?" Sheila shouted. 

"Not actually head first, we're going to flank around back and ambush the troops from the side like how Andrew would," 

"Won't they see us y'know… leave?" Sheila questioned. 

"That's why I'm staying here with Sage and Cyrus." Sam put his left hand on my head and had to reach up to put his right hand on Cyrus's shoulder. 

I flicked his hand away with my right arm, "What was that for!?" 

"Nothing," he smirked, "we're just the distraction team. The mini Rock-alanche, super bright arrows and flames." 

"Are you, like not tired at all?" I asked. 

"Yes but I think I have enough energy for just one large spell," he raised his right arm, "C'mon everyone into position!" he ran ahead to the next barricade up front while Zack was pulling the rest to get ready to run out back. 

"When will we know the timing?" Adam asked. 

Zack assured him, "you'll know." Then he said, "Sage stop firing arrows but keep an arrow nocked. Make this arrow a POWERFUL one." 

"Gotcha!" I started shaping the super strong arrow. The army was getting close now. They got to the second barrier while they kept firing and firing, "now!?" I asked Sam. I peaked over the barricade and saw Sam making a really BIG red spell circle. 

"Just wait," he told me. The army kept marching forward with the guy up front. 

"How much more!?" 

"Wait…" he put his hand out and grabbed the spell, "just drawback your bow and Cyrus are you ready?" 

"Ready as I'll ever be I guess," he said into the mic. Cyrus ran up front with Sam but he was at the barricade on the other side of the main lane in the center. 

I saw Zack's head peak out from the side and nodded to Sam. Sam nodded back, "NOW!" he yelled. I saw Sam roll and tumble into the main street, all the fire was focused on him but Sheila made a water circle in front of him. Cyrus started making tons of bumps into the ground and saw small groups fall to the ground bringing them all to a halt.

The fire of magic bolts stopped and Sam within a split second called out to Sheila to "lift the barrier!" he held his spell circle right in front of him as the water dried up, "Eat Heat Assholes!!" 

He cast the spell and a large wave of heat rushed right out of the circle and flames followed. The fire spread right to the front of the soldiers.

"I'm going on ahead, okay?" Sheila told Sam. 

"That's fine," he nodded and she ran over to Zack's group under the cover of smoke and fire. 

 I shot my arrow into the flames to where I last saw the big dude, "did I hit him?" I asked. There was a little wave of static silence in the voice chat.

"It seems you did!" Zack called out, "we're now engaging them in melee combat." 

"WAHOOOO!" I howled into the air knowing even though the fire was blocking my sight, I still hit my shot!

I felt a pat behind my back, It was Cyrus. "Seriously can't y'all just say my name?" I slapped Cyrus's hand away.

"C'mon, Sam told us to join the fight!" he raised his right arm clenching his hammer in excitement. 

"When?" 

"Just now. When your ass was shoutin' wahoo 'n allat, Sage." he enunciated. 

"Alright fine," I made another arrow, "let's go join the fight!" I leaped over the barricade and started moving around the fire.