Chp. 4: Combined Arms
Serenity Train Station
The first strike; it was supposed to be fast, precise, and it the aim was to do nothing less than down your enemy. Kyousuke had practiced the concept of the first strike innumerable times; for months his sensei has taught him nothing else. He drew his blade and cut the man across his torso as he brought it out. While his weapon's main asset was magical energy, a blade was still a blade. Kyousuke dropped back from his first opponent as the officer fell, using his boosted agility to make the reaction times of the other guards even slower. He glanced over his left shoulder to check Connie's position; the larger man, Sera in tow, was heading to his right. He went to the left and set his sights on more guards of this so-called Calamet. With blue lightning crackling up his trusty weapon, he sent them into the nearest wall, holding the weapon with two hands now.
Seraphim was greatly fascinated by his style up close, but she had little time to admire his form. The young woman pulled a pen from her bag so she could join the fight. However in the immediate sense of things, the fight would rely on the dedicated fighters. She used their cover to plan, and after a minute looked at Connie.
"Get me some breathing room; I'll lay out a smoke screen for when we exit the station. For now I'll try to trip them up." She announced. Connie beamed widely at the chance to use his strength.
"Steel Make…Steel Fists!" He bellowed enthusiastically.
The blonde connected his knuckles, which seemed to encase them in gleaming steel. Without hesitation he clocked the nearest guard, resulting in a satisfying crunch when his blow connected. Seraphim rushed to help Kyousuke.
"Kyousuke, stay in place!" She shouted.
The swordsman saw Kyousuke rushing to her side as he defeated two more guards. In all, Seraphim had counted at least twenty now that the fight had started. A number were coming to attack Kyousuke at once. Hoping to make herself useful, she brandished her pen like a weapon and cast a spell.
"Solid Script, Gust!" She called.
The word "gust" flew ahead of her, colored a mix of blue and white. The letters separated as they hit the charging attackers, throwing them back with the same effect a hurricane would have. Kyousuke watched in awe, and then looked at Sera.
"Well done, Sera!" He beamed. Seraphim said the only one-liner she could think.
"Connie and I got your back, Kyousuke."
The pony-taled one nodded. Could he have won against them? Easily, but it felt nice to fight alongside others. Behind them, Connie was busy keeping the path clear.
"Okay, I'll give us fog to make a smooth exit." The young woman announced, pen at the ready.
"I'll take our right." The swordsman declared. His Lightning Agility was waning, but he was no less ready.
"Left is mine. Which way to our little resistance movement?" the brawl-lover inquired.
"We'll go left, second block on the right, first intersection after that." Seraphim answered. Her partners nodded in unison and followed her forward.
"Solid Script, Fog!" Sera declared with a wave of her pen.
Like her attack using gust, the word appeared first, colored in the general appearance of the element. In dispersed in a quick explosion of gray, flooding the immediate area with a haze. Before it became hard to see, Kyousuke had noticed several teams of guards in their uniforms advancing to contain them on the stairs. Kyousuke rushed forward to meet them. He found that in the thick, his opponents also had the advantage of concealment, but it didn't matter. He applied the technique of occasionally lowering himself to give them less of a target. Now that the initial shock had worn away, his opponents would try to land blows. The sabers they carried APPEARED flimsier than his katana, but they felt solid when he connected his blade with theirs.
The young man pushed his weight into counteracting the blow of his latest foe that appeared particularly driven to stop him. Kyousuke brought his sword at the guard from the man's left, at a spot where it would be awkward to effectively stop him (the man's weapon was in his right fist). Naturally he moved forward, his trusty sword in both hands. Suddenly someone seized his collar; he whirled around, stopping only when he saw Seraphim's glasses and hair.
"Sera! I nearly cut you!" He gasped in surprise.
"We have to keep going or they'll bog us down." She insisted over Connie plowing through his share.
"Very true…Sera lead the way." He nodded.
The two ran after the hulking figure of Connor Logan as he cleared the way. The man employed the ability of his magic that allowed him to make objects of steel and produced a cylindrical rod as his next folly tried to charge him. Kyousuke was in awe of the man; he was like a war machine. Slow, untouchable, wiping out all before him. These guards certainly were no real challenge, either.
"Connie's lust for fighting is…unending." The swordsman gaped.
"It's why I keep him around." Sera winked.
The fog began to thin out, but Sera realized it had been largely a vain move. The guards had closed the gap immediately, and in being forced to fight they guided the rest towards the mages with the noises. Now, however, numbers were thin. Sera deployed more fog as they made their right and suggested they pick up the pace.
"Connie, I know you're enjoying this but we have to disappear somewhat." She added.
"Breakin mah heart, Sera. Breakin mah heart." He replied, Nonetheless the mage complied.
The café they sought was placed in the corner of the intersection. Along the way, the growing chaos had forced many off the streets as soon as possible. Many wagons and shops remained in place, but unmanned. If you looked hard enough, you could see a person or two. Kyousuke could hear a single message being repeated over and over as they hurried for the rendezvous across the cobblestone road.
"Attention citizens, attention citizens. There is an emergency situation occurring. Please seek shelter immediately and comply with all instructions given by officials."
He looked up towards the building's higher stories, trying to find a single sign of a threat. Or maybe the source of the announcement…the young man shook his head. The scale and complexity of this fight were several levels above his past experiences. Sera looked at him with worry as he did so.
"How're you holding up, Kyousuke?" The script mage asked. He looked at her.
"I feel like I'm entering a very new world of combat." He admitted. Sera nodded in understanding.
"Think of anything that can encourage you. A loved one or something. I'm sure they'd believe in you. I think you're doing well." She suggested.
Kyousuke nodded, and imagined Saeko for a brief moment. The image, clad in her (and his) favorite summer robes, pushed some of her hair back over her shoulder and smiled.
"So brave, my darling Kyousuke~"
Kyousuke got a dreamy smile on his face.
The building had the advantage of plant-holders to cover them, and what they assumed were a few resistance fighters as they closed in. Sera pulled up her sleeve covering her guild mark to show them they were friendly. The few that'd stood up to face them backed down. Inside the tables had been hastily used to fortify the areas near the windows, with more resistance fighters waiting for the town militia to come. They carried everything from magically-powered rifles to broom handles with broken glass on one end.
"We're from Fairy Tail! Who summoned us?" Kyousuke shouted as they entered the café. He took the lead and looked around.
"I did…excellent you came, but did your entrance have to be so damned noisy?"
A woman appeared from behind her cover, the counter, to address them. She was average in height but presented a very athletic and commanding demeanor. Her weapon was a glaive. Connie's expression formed into a grin at her entrance; he leaned towards Kyousuke.
"Well, there's something else round here I'd like to liberate." He muttered to his friend. One Seraphim Shin Kick was served up in rapid succession; the swordsmen ignored the event and approached her.
"Apologies miss, we were apparently found out as we exited the train." Kyousuke apologized with a bow.
"I am Ishuu Kyousuke of Fairy Tail. These are my companions Sera Chevalie and Connie Logan. How may we help you?" He added as he straightened up. She looked at the three and scratched the backside of her blonde hair.
"Morgana…Very well, we're going forth with the assault on Calamet's residence. We need you three to reinforce us against his militia and his administrators. The later are mages paid by him so many of us can't even touch them. Defeat them and powerless little Calamet is ours for the taking. You will be rewarded as we have mentioned. His palace is down this street; several blocks." She outlined, moving towards a window to observe it.
"Tell yer bars to stock up." Connie remarked as he stretched his arms and added a spearhead to the end of his pole. She looked at him.
"Alcohol is forbidden here." She revealed. Sera glanced nervously at Connie as he stopped midstride.
"…Do what now?" He asked, face losing its color.
"Calamet has banned it; he believes it incites dissent." Morgana explained.
Connie just stood there as members of Morgana's group reported militia were approaching from both ends of the street. Kyousuke and Sera hurried out to join them. The first elements were establishing blocking positions while the rest closed in.
"Surrender now! End this insurrection!" An amplified voice yelled as the others were getting into position. Kyousuke and Sera took cover with the fighters.
"Do you have any ideas, Sera? So far we can only hope to overpower them…but I count at least forty approaching us. Quite a big force for one town and we'll need our strength for those "administrators" our employer mentioned." Kyousuke spoke up.
"We have reinforcements now, we can use them…" Sera suggested.
"Do you know anything about these guards? You seem well-versed in the different kinds of warriors."
"I'm afraid I don't…"
"Very well, then we'll simply work through them."
Kyousuke drew his sword and was about to ask Sera for some more fog or wind, when Connie came charging from the café, spitting fire and venom.
"YAH DICTATORIAL MOTHERFUCKERS; I'LL TEACH YAH TO BAN BOOZE WHEN I'M AROUND!" He bellowed, face red.
The steel-make mage vaulted ahead of his allies, holding a table in one of his fists no less, and threw it into several oncoming guards. He then cracked another square in the face with a steel-encased fist. His next victim was thrown and the one after that head-butted.
"Connie is quite attached to his libations, isn't he?" the swordsman observed, mildly disturbed.
"Yes, yes he is." Seraphim could only answer.
The two decided to join the battle. Sera sent out a two-fold attack to cover their rear for a brief time, first deploying a line of oil with her solid script, and then lighting it on fire. The flames would take a serious effort to be extinguished. Sera watched the burn while Kyousuke kept her protected. The militia resorted to its firearms as a retort; Kyousuke grabbed Seraphim and requested she maintain the fire while he tended to those shooting. Using his skills, he jumped as high as he could.
"Lightning Wave!" He called out, barely clearing the flames. The heat ran up his legs and licked against his back.
As he landed a shockwave of his lightning was sent forth at nearby enemies. Kyousuke pushed up from the landing and sprinted at an enemy raising his rifle to fire. With little time to act, the swordsman attacked the weapon instead of the man. Kyousuke dashed to the right as those unaffected fired on him, heading for a storefront. Sera stayed down and then carefully retreated to a nearby bench for better cover. She'd lost sight of her guildmate…the young woman felt herself tensing in grave concern.
"Kyousuke!" She shouted.
The pause was too long.
"Kyousuke, answer me!" She demanded, now risking her own safety.
"I'm okay! I'll find a way around! Get away from them!" He assured.
Kyousuke looked at the door to the store he'd taken refuge next to. Silently wishing the owner's forgiveness, he tried the knob. The second he found it to be locked he broke the window with the handle of his sword and fumbled around until he was able to give himself a way out. He moved quickly and kept low as he heard footfalls behind him. Kyousuke went up some stairs and onto the second level of the shop. He took a second to observe his surroundings, and saw a balcony at the end of the hall. Kyousuke began to run as fast as he could, the sounds of items for sale (dishes and cookware) being pushed aside as the militia tried to find him. After a minute one of them shouted he was upstairs.
"Lightning Agility!"
Kyousuke burst from the balcony like the very element he used and tumbled as he landed, getting to his feet quickly. Shots rang out behind him and he hurried for safety as two guards fired on him. He saw a pair of objects cut the air over him and sail towards his attackers. And examination of their source showed that Morgana had employed a type of cloning magic to make multiples of her glaive and throw them into the men firing on him. With no time to bow, Kyousuke held up a hand in thanks. She nodded and sent a second wave towards those trying to defeat the fire.
"Kyousuke, this way!" Sera ordered.
As they ran and the militia began tending to the fire even more, before it could spread, Kyousuke rejoined Seraphim and the resistance. Connie was leading the way for several up the street. Sera were busy sketching something using her tools, a sword. Kyousuke looked at the weapon, then her.
"Why are you drawing at a time like this?" He inquired.
"Reedus, a guild member, taught me how to draw one using Pict Magic. I use it sometimes to defend myself. It'll prove handy for just knocking down grunts until we meet the more skilled members of this little autocracy." She said.
He felt admiration for her newly-revealed skill. He wondered if she would tell him later what style she fought in. The two mages came up alongside Morgana; Kyousuke cleared his throat.
"We'll clear you a path, but we need all the help we can get." He said. Morgana nodded to them both.
"I have men attacking from other directions; they will distract much of Calamet's forces. We should meet the heaviest resistance, but relatively speaking it won't be much…" She explained. They looked ahead as Connie threw a militiaman into a streetlamp.
"…Especially with the brutish one behaving so violently." She added…
Calamet watched through his visual lacrimas as the streets of the city he'd worked so hard to build was falling apart. It wasn't completely gone, not yet; he still had a chance. He hadn't started this city with the intention of losing it. From the moment he'd broken ground on this valley, he knew that as he ruled longer he would have to find ways to keep his power. At first when restricting the people and handing them tokens to distract them from the desire for rule had stopped working, he switched to making them understand and not want to rule. He gave them fear of trying. Now that they were in open revolt he would give them new fear by beating them. This would be no simple punishment like dealing with a child who misbehaved; this would be like punishing a criminal. He would find the leader of the rebellion and behead them. To his advantage many were too scared to join thus far.
Calamet himself was not a warring man; he wasn't built for it. Short and stout with little physical strength, he instead relied on his diplomatic skills and inner tactician to help others and thus win. He was already playing that skill by pulling back many of his forces to his own residence to defend it. In the event they routed him, he had a plan to disappear. At the very least he would deny them one trophy. He could easily then paint them as dangerous to the Florian government by getting to outside locations before they did. With that, he would march right back in and retake his flourishing little kingdom. Status quo ante bellum would ensue; a state before this.
"Shall we meet them before they get to the grounds?" An accented voice asked.
Calamet looked towards a pair of figures across from the room, both seated and waiting. The one that'd spoken was a man in white and black colonial-era garb with well-groomed brown hair. He looked less suited for this place and more for a ball in the richest neighborhoods of Fiore's capital.
"Of course not; having them surround us simplifies our problems. We can attack them all at once and make a bigger example of the lot." Calamet replied with a wave of his hand.
"And if they cut us off? Why let the prey get closer when we can kill them now? They have those Fairy Tail mages with them, especially that uncouth one making a mess. He needs to learn manners." The younger man went on.
"They won't cut us off; I have planned around the many ways they may try to get at us. Besides we will meet and destroy them here. I don't pay you or Sheska to commentate on my tactics, Sergio, I apply you to carry them out." Calamet said, raising his voice.
The two "Administrators" exchanged glances but said nothing. The woman, Sheska, brushed aside the small bunch of silvery hair that hung near her left eye. Unlike her elegant counterpart, her garb reflected a much more militaristic look in its heavy-duty boots, tan cargo pants, and black sweater. She folded her arms in her lap.
"Pitiful rabble…" She remarked.
"…May we at least know where we are to meet them?" She added, looking at Calamet.
"Yes, in fact it's about time you head there." Calamet nodded.