The Zero Hour | #Wattys2016

Chapter 21 - The Last Stand (Part 2)

Rei, Izumi and Onyx were also returning from their fights. They didn't look like they had any struggles in defending the commoners in their respective areas. Glancing at Rei's belt of icicles, Amadeus was impressed that he didn't have to expend any icicles to defeat the battle-wizards in his area. He must have done it solely with his frost dagger. Majority of the Nobles had been caught by surprise by the additional resistance provided by the Exiles that Amadeus had brought back with him. With only a handful of battle-wizards left, the scattered remnants started to flee in terror, only to be taken down by Old Jarbus' monstrous Eadren.

Loud cheers resounded from among the commoners, thrilled to have pushed their Noble attackers back. Amadeus didn't share their optimism. He knew it had been too easy. The Nobles were far from done. "Stand ready," he whispered to his team. They nodded back at him, ready for more.

"Stay alert," shouted Old Jarbus from above to his commoner troops. "Don't let your guard down. That was only the first wave. The Nobles always send in the rookies first to test the ability of the enemy. You only pushed back the sacrificial lambs!" At this reprimand, the field of commoners fell silent. "They will attack again with a stronger and more experienced force. Shields up, weapons ready and keep your brothers in arms alive. One weak link is all it takes for many deaths to happen."

As the commoner's raised their shields, another wave of battle-wizards surged from White Harrow. This time, the battle-wizards spread themselves out, and they filled up the sky as numerous as the stars. The second wave. Amadeus braced himself for the impending attack.

This time, the battle-wizards chose to spread out and formed a layer above the commoners, showering down a constant stream of flame, ice, and what looked like waves of concentrated air. The concentrated air split the earth upon impact, leaving deep grooves in the snowy ground. Old Jarbus, Bastian and Bianca weaved in and out of the Nobles, taking them down one at a time. Despite their efforts, they could not take out the Nobles fast enough and the commoners below paid the price by bearing the brunt of the attacks.

Amadeus gritted his teeth, frustrated that there was not much he could do without outright abandoning his defensive position outside the building which held all the women and children. Those commoners whose shields had shattered under the barrage of attacks were getting hit by the elemental attacks. Some of them screamed in agony as the fire engulfed them, while others were shattered into pieces and being frozen solid by the ice attacks.

"Close the gaps!" Old Jarbus roared desperately as he ran his spear through one of the battle-wizards. The Nobles were ignoring the three Avianath riders and instead focused their attacks towards the grounded commoners. The commoners below reacted to Old Jarbus' command immediately, scurrying together to close in the gaps left by the dead. Amadeus felt sick to his stomach when he thought of them stepping over the dead to close the gaps. The dead were without a doubt people whom he had known from as far as he could remember. The bakers, the smiths, the tailors; all of them people he had spoken to in passing throughout his lifetime in the commoner camp.

One grunted softly and looked at Amadeus with concern in his eyes. It was as if he could sense the turmoil within just by looking into his eyes. Amadeus was really surprised how well One understood him, even though they had only just met. It was as though One read his mind. One glanced quickly at the fray where the battle-wizards were showering down death from above before turning back to Amadeus, raising his eyebrows questioningly. Amadeus knew what he was asking and nodded without exchanging any words.

Immediately, One took off towards the heat of the battle, brushing off the fire and ice falling upon him without flinching. The fire turned to ash upon contact with his rocky skin and rolled harmlessly off his shoulders. The ice splintered into tiny chips as they struck with his back and pattered weakly onto the floor. Passing the group of commoners huddled together under their shields and fearing for their lives, he stepped over the bodies of the fallen.