*I am busy playing on my 3DS* (All of a sudden, a flash of light occurs as well as the sound of something breaking, and an awfully familiar figure is visible (hint; it wasn't anything related to the Fourth Wall))
Ninten: Hey PSIBoy, what are you doing?
PSIBoy: *Too focused on controlling 3 Links to notice*
Ninten: PSIBoy? Hello? You there? *Waves hand in front of my face* Ugh, there's no way he'll get the update out in time…Wait, unless he doesn't…*Grins smugly* OY! MEWTWO!
*Another flash of light accompanied by the sound of something breaking (totally not the Fourth Wall for the second time)*
Mewtwo: Yes? What is it Ness?
Ninten: *Deadpans*…Mewtwo, do I really look like Ness?
Mewtwo: Sorry, force of habit. So why did you summon me?
Ninten: I need your help with this. *Points at me* The author is too obsessed with his game to continue to write the story. And this chapter is so close to coming out.
Mewtwo: So I need to confiscate this? *Grabs my 3DS with his psychic powers*
PSIBoy: NOOOOOOOO! GIVE IT BACK!
Ninten: *Deadpans* If I wanted to do that I would've done it myself. Give it back Mewtwo.
Mewtwo: *Grumbles* Fine… *Gives back 3DS*
PSIBoy: Yay! *Continues trying to kill monsters*
Ninten: Anyway, what I want to ask you is try to help me apply the finishing touches to this chapter.
Mewtwo: Couldn't you technically do it yourself?
Ninten: I'm a warrior, not a writer! And you're one of the smartest Pokémon in existence! If there's anyone who can help me do this, it's you.
Mewtwo: On one condition. You will convince the author to write a fic on me one of these days.
Ninten: I'm not sure about an actual multi-chaptered fic, but maybe a oneshot? And it might take a while for the author to get that out.
Mewtwo: Acceptable.
Ninten: All right. We just gotta make the final edits, type up the ANs, respond to the reviews, and do the disclaimer. Ready?
Mewtwo: Yes.
Review Responses
Guest
Ninten: Well, glad you liked the author's work so far. We'll be sure to tell him about your compliment.
Mewtwo: The review went up on Tuesday. I'm pretty sure the author saw it for himself.
PSIBoy: *Looks up from game* Yeah, thanks for the compliment! Meant a lot to me, knowing people like my work. *Goes back to game*
Mewtwo: Why did I agree to do this...?
Connor the speling pro
Ninten: That's okay. To be honest, the author wasn't too proud of the chapter to be blunt.
Mewtwo: I guess the author has more potential than I thought if he managed to balance that out that you liked.
Ninten: *Shoots a warning glance at Mewtwo, then turns back to the screen* I shall thank you for the tip since the author...is quite busy right now. *Looks at me taking on a boss* I think the author just wanted Felix in just for that one scene, hence why he didn't go into detail. And thanks for the advice on Holland. And spoilers; she appears in this chapter too, so she doesn't meet Levins's fate in the prologue.
Unimportant
Ninten: First, don't view yourself as unimportant. The author values all advice that can be given to him.
Mewtwo: He is insignificant next to the most powerful Pokemon in existence.
Ninten: *Deadpans* Don't try to be another Darth Vader wannabe. Anyway, there's a perfectly logical explanation behind that.
Mewtwo: The Masked Man's lightning sword acts like a lightning rod, attracting all lightning to it. In addition, it absorbs the electricity, meaning that it becomes far more powerful. Stupid author for not making that clear...
Ninten: He was planning on explaining that later, and he thought he was explicit enough to suffice. I apologize on his behalf for the misunderstanding. Not exactly how it works as in Mother 3, since the Masked Man isn't weak against lighting, but this is an AU anyway, so it doesn't have to be entirely accurate. But even if he could deflect psychic lightning with his sword, getting stabbed through the heart or bashed on the head isn't a pleasant feeling anyway. Best to avoid that.
Mewtwo: Also, while it was stated that infusing weapons with PSI makes them more durable, but the author hasn't made clear that their power increases too nor the fact that shields won't stop the entire impact of an object if enough power is used. Like the arrows would simply bounce off the Masked Man's shield yet Lucas's bat could pose a great threat due to the PSI it was infused with...not to mention, it would be severely weakened by his impact with the ground. And the big reveal with the Claus/Masked Man relationship hasn't been confirmed. Granted, there's significant evidence, but he could pull something like 'Zelda isn't actually Shiek' or something.
Ninten: The author does not own Earthbound or anything in the fic other than the OCs and plot.
Mewtwo: And make sure you enjoy the chapter, or else… *Eyes start glowing*
Ninten: *Sigh* Mewtwo, don't threaten the readers. That will make them enjoy it less.
Mewtwo: Fine…But still, enjoy the chapter.
It seemed forever since they started to flee from the Pigmasks. Ninten was still leading the pack as they slogged back through parts of the swamp they had already traversed. Or was it a different part? Ninten tried to retain his sense of direction, but with the fatigue from the day's earlier events, it was becoming increasingly difficult to maintain his concentration.
Just as he was losing hope of any sort of a quick exit, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye. "There," he uttered, pointing at the wooden cabin he had spotted sitting on a dry bank.
"That's odd," Lucas observed. "Why would anyone want to live out here in the first place?"
"Hopefully they'll let us stay regardless," Paula replied.
"Only one way to find out," Ninten said as he got under way again, slogging in the direction of the cabin, knowing his friends were right behind him.
He quickly felt his feet on dry land once again, and he walked over to the nearby window to peek inside. "…Looks abandoned," he observed. "It's dark and from what little I can see there seems to be dust and a few cobwebs inside."
The door was right next to the window so Ninten was able to simply reach over and turn the knob. Fortunately, it wasn't locked and they were able to enter without having to mess with the lock.
He looked above and saw a single chandelier hanging with several candles. "Paula, do you mind lighting that up?" he asked, pointing at the chandelier.
"Not at all," the princess replied, easily lighting the candles, flooding the room with light.
He saw Ana practically collapse on the bed instantly. The veteran felt a small twinge of guilt of her suffering through this. She didn't have to come, and she was suffering because she did. 'She would've done so regardless of your consent,' his thoughts whispered to him.
Lucas was busy tending to his wounds on a chair, the green glow of his PSI lighting up the room even more as Paula saw next to Ana, tucking her under the covers.
"You holding up Lucas?" he asked.
"I'm okay," he replied neutrally. "But that was a disaster."
"We're lucky that all of us got out of there alive," Ninten observed.
"But how are we gonna reach Ellay now?" Lucas inquired. "We can't get through, the reinforcements have been crushed…We're in Pigmask territory and there's no way we can get through in our state!" Ninten let Lucas rant, knowing that it would probably be best if he let out his frustration now as opposed to holding it in, though another part of him kinda agreed with Lucas as ashamed of it he was.
"We'll have to figure something out after we get some rest," Ninten told him. "There's no way we're done yet…"
The Pigmask morale was quite high, having not only beaten off the reinforcement army, but also four PSI users. Despite suffering fairly heavy casualities, they were still in fighting condition and could expect quite the reward for their service today. Most of their forces were celebrating back at their camps, from ordinary grunts to Colonels. Only their Commander and a handful of his most trusted soldiers and officers remained alert, ready for any other dangers.
The latter group were justified in their position. They had a purpose for being in this forsaken swamp after all; preventing reinforcements from arriving. Even though they had destroyed the reinforcement effort as well as head off several powerful PSI users, they knew it was too early to relax.
They were both right and wrong. Right in the fact that it was unwise to let their guard down right then…But wrong for a reason that they had not foreseen.
The force they decimated was only the vanguard.
Yes, they had inflicted a crushing defeat on the Eagleland forces in that battle, but the main force was several hours behind the advance force. The vanguard was supposed to reach the Ellay garrison first and relieve them as well as determine the safety of the approach and to take out Pigmask reconnaissance forces in the area. But now the main force had received word of the battle, and opted for a different route through the swamp.
The route they had marched down wasn't as quick, but it had less grimy water to bog them down, meaning that they could bring their numerical strength to bear now that their forces were more mobile, and their cavalry could be used to greater effect due to their sheer mobility. And given the information relayed from the remnants of the vanguard, a plan was devised to catch that PSI user and neutralize him, as well as intelligence on those...creatures that they might run into.
The commander of the Eagleland forces stood on top of a small hill, silently observing one of the Pigmask camps through his telescope. He couldn't help but feel contempt for them; how they were neglecting their duty for celebration. They hadn't even considered the possibility of another attack, yet they felt like they could relax? Just goes to show the lack of discipline that runs through their army. Still, a number of Pigmasks remained observing among some of those...creatures from earlier.
He lowered the telescope as he crept back down, glad that he wasn't spotted. With what he gathered, his brain began to formulate a general attack strategy to take complete advantage of the surprise they would achieve.
As he reached the foot of the hill, a group of soldiers; his personal guard and three cavalrymen as well as his executive officer and one of the commanders in the vanguard force awaited him. "You were right in how hideous those creatures are, captain," he said.
Captain Holland nodded. The colonel's executive moment spoke up. "What did you see?" he asked.
"Most of the Pigmasks are merely celebrating, thinking the battle's over," the colonel said. "There were some still on guard, mixed in with some of the creatures, but not many."
"So what's the plan, colonel?" Holland asked.
"We have to hit hard and fast," the colonel replied. "Captain Holland, I want you to go and organize what's left of the vanguard; have it join up with the reserves in the event we need them."
"Understood," she replied, saluting.
"You three," the colonel said, pointing at the three cavalrymen. "I want you all to relay this to the commanders of each part of the line. The flanks will move first, using the majority of their cavalry to break through the line and come around the back, encircling them. The center will attack head-on, pushing the Pigmasks back into the trap. Understood?"
"Yes sir," the messengers saluted, riding off on their horses.
The colonel turned towards his executive officer. "Well, let's get a move on. We've got a battle to win here," he said.
"Yes sir," his second replied, saluting as they began to head back to the main line.
Just before he melted back into the mass of soldiers, the colonel took one last look in the direction of the Pigmask soldiers. His gaze hardened as he mused to himself how this was the best chance to avenge many of the losses Eagleland's armies had sustained during the war.
"March up to the hill, but wait for the signal," the colonel ordered the commander of the center.
"Yes sir!" the central commander replied, saluting. Horns blew softly through the line as the soldiers began to march forward. It was an inspiring sight to the colonel as he fell behind the line.
As soon as they halted on the top of the hill, he heard battle horns from both flanks. He looked both ways to see the cavalry race ahead towards the areas with the various Pigmask camps. There was no going back now.
Lucas jerked up, looking around the room in panic. He shook his head, trying to think about what that sound was and where it came from.
"What was that?" he heard Paula ask. His ears perked up when he heard the sound of...yelling nearby. And the echoing of metals slamming into each other.
"War horns I'm guessing, given that there's a battle raging not too far from here," Ninten reasoned.
"I thought Eagleland's forces were destroyed!" Lucas countered.
"So did I," the veteran admitted. "It might not have been as much of a rout as I thought, but we should look anyway."
Lucas pondered over this new information as he got up off of the sofa. So Eagleland's forces really were still in the area? And they were still able to fight even after they had suffered a terrible defeat? How?
'I guess I'll find out soon enough,' he told himself as he followed the others out. He would just have to wait until he got the opportunity to ask.
The colonel barked out orders over the roar of battle as the two armies clashed. Well, the Pigmasks were not at their most efficient given that most of their forces were in the midst of celebrating and thus were taken completely by surprise. Psychologically, it was a major advantage for the Eagleland forces even though those that were on alert were putting up a stout defense, but those were in the minority. The panic among the Pigmask forces was so severe that several Pigmasks simply dropped their weapons and fled without the order to retreat.
Still, there was the occasional strange creature that would throw itself into the midst of battle, but a group of soldiers could easily take them down, and there weren't many of those left. The colonel watched as one such mechanical caribou fell from a multitude of spears and pikes piercing its hide.
But he also kept his eye on the sky, waiting for that boy in black that several of the survivors had warned about. And sure enough, there he was, advancing right towards him, eyes hidden by the visor jutting from his gray helmet.
The colonel turned towards the unit he specifically requested to be deployed right behind him and bellowed, "Fire!" The three PSI users with them fired off their attacks, each one using a different elemental attack as the archers, crossbowmen, and musketmen opened fire as well. The bullets and arrows simply bounced off of the shield doing little to no visible damage, but it was a nearly constant stream. The colonel knew that it had to be quite strained in the few seconds since they opened fire.
Of the PSI attacks, PK Thunder reached their enemy first. Unfortunately, it didn't destroy the boy's shield (it was a regular shield, not a PSI shield), and it was redirected into the Masked Man's sword. It seemed to radiate a yellow aura after the attack finished.
PK Fire was the second to hit home, burning the foe's skin and clothes with its fire. However, the enigmatic foe held back most of it with sheer telekinesis, extinguishing any fire the same way.
PK Freeze was the most effective. It didn't exactly hit its intended target, but froze one of the bat-like wings. Without its stabilization, the boy was unable to remain in the air, barely managing to save himself from another crash landing with telekinesis.
The colonel watched as his plan came to fruition as several swordsmen, pikemen, and longswordsmen surrounded the enemy PSI user as some cavalry rode on the outside to prevent the 'siege' from breaking.
However, they were all blown away by some sort of attack. The colonel's eyes widened as he took in the sight of the enemy standing in a miniature crater, virtually unharmed outside of the injuries he sustained from the PSI bombardment. Speaking of the PSI users, they had moved in front of the colonel, charging up more of their attacks.
The boy in black managed to evade the attacks as his arm transformed into its arm cannon to the colonel's disbelief, who barely prevented himself from opening his mouth in shock. The enemy took aim and fired, the blast slamming into one of the PSI users, sending him to the ground. However, between everything that was the only significant damage he was able to do as his regular shield finally broke from all the pressure.
The enigmatic foe charged up his PSI, forming some sort of hexagonal shape. "Get out of the way!" one of the soldiers shouted just as the colonel cracked the whip, making his horse sprint out of the way.
However, several others were not so lucky, as the stream of hexagons caught them and send them flying, man and horse alike.
With that final attack, the Pigmask boy turned around and sprinted into the undergrowth, disappearing from sight among the Pigmasks who had arrived to assist him. "Damn," the colonel muttered as he lost sight of him. He looked back over the destruction caused. "Medic!" he cried.
"We can take care of it Colonel Livingston." The Eagleland commander turned around to see the three PSI users that engaged the enemy.
"You sure?" Livingston asked one of them. "You did take a nasty hit from him, or did you already heal that?"
"It's taken care of," the PSI user replied. "But thank you for the concern."
"You're welcome. And thank you for taking care of them," Livingston said as he urged his horse forward, back to the front lines of the battle, which was drawing to a close.
"Sir!" a soldier ran up to the colonel. Our cavalry on each flank have reported counterattacks by these 'tanks'. They're taking heavy losses and they can't destroy them without the help of PSI users."
"Have them fall back; have our demolition units assist the PSI users in taking them out," Livingston quickly ordered. When the messenger left, Livingston grit his teeth. 'I guess battle doesn't work out the way you intend it at all,' he supposed, though that didn't alleviate his frustration at being unable to take out more of the enemy.
It wasn't easy for Lucas to keep up with their pace. Despite the rest they had gotten, it was hard to ignore how tired he felt already. He supposed the battle drained more out of them than they expected since even Ninten seemed rather strained.
In fact, they would've stayed behind at the cabin if this wasn't possibly their only chance to hook up with Eagleland's forces and help them against the Pigmasks. They were his enemy, and therefore they must fall.
They needed no map because the yelling and sounds of steel clashing drew them to the area. As they got closer, they could distinguish a battle cry from a cry of agony, which unnerved Lucas, but he didn't break. He noticed that the sounds seemed to die out, meaning that the battle was likely drawing to a close already. It was enough for them to instinctively pick up their pace in fear of losing them.
That's when a group of swordsmen emerged into the clearing they were just entering. Instead of immediately attacking, both groups merely stared at each other, as if they couldn't believe what they were seeing. It was quite surreal to Lucas.
One of the soldiers cleared his throat as he walked forward. "What business might a group of kids have in the middle of this swamp?" he asked.
'Kids?' Lucas nearly growled, but managed to keep the thought inside his head. Fortunately, he didn't need to reply to his rude behavior."
"Calm yourself corporal," another soldier rebuked. "Getting worked up like this will only make them less willing to cooperate."
"We need answers, private," the first soldier snapped. "There's no telling if these are Pigmask scum or not."
Lucas opened his mouth about to protest, but he saw Ninten shake his head. The village boy took a deep breath to calm himself.
"Will this suffice?" Ninten asked, plucking the badge the mayor gave them off his shirt and showing it off.
The first soldier merely frowned. "Who let kids like you fight?" he asked sharply.
"Mayor Felix," Ninten answered. "We're PSI users." A stick hovered above the ground just to prove his point.
"Oh," the first soldier stated. "I apologize. I didn't know that you four were PSI users."
"We just want to see the commander in charge of this force, that's all," Ninten explained.
"Well, it is truly a good thing you four have put your powers to use for. We can use more killers on our side," the soldier said.
Lucas heard Ana audibly gulp from that and he himself nervously fidgeted. "Will you please let us see your commander?" Ninten asked, trying to keep his cool.
"Private Wood, go and escort them to the colonel. Everyone else, continue pursuit of the enemy."
"Yes sir!" all of the soldier immediately barked, saluting as they headed off deeper into the swampland except for one.
The one Lucas assumed was Private Wood looked at them and said, "Well, come along," as he walked away.
Ninten turned around to face the group. "We have to talk later," he told them before he fell into line behind the private. Lucas sighed as he followed. This treatment wasn't what he had been expecting from the army.
Ninten kept his eyes on the soldier ahead of him, not out of suspicion, but because he didn't want to lose him in the pandemonium. He glanced to his right to see Pigmasks falling back into the woods. It relived him to see Eagleland's forces in good shape, but what with that defeat in the swamp?
"Commander!" the soldier cried, snapping Ninten out of his thoughts.
"Yes soldier?" the voice of the commander replied.
"I have four PSI users who want to speak with you," the soldier explained, gesturing to them.
The colonel took a look at them. "I don't believe you four are a part of my forces, are you?" he questioned.
"I got separated from my unit in the first days of the war and was lost," Ninten explained...not entirely a lie. "The others traveled with me as I tried to find my way back to friendly lines, though it was easier said than done."
The commander turned to their escort and said, "Thank you soldier. Go and return to your unit."
The soldier gave one last salute before marching off into the distance. Livingston watched him go with a sigh, then turned to them, fumbling around in his pocket.
"Which unit were you from?" Livingston asked.
"Royal Guard."
Livingston's eyes widened as he nearly dropped the thing he grabbed in his hand. "You're even younger than the one I heard is in Ellay right now..." he muttered to himself. "So how'd you make it out alive?" he inquired.
"I was tasked with escorting the princess to safety," Ninten explained. "I crossed swords with a high-ranking PSI user from the Pigmasks, and we were separated.
"So you don't know where she is?"
"She's right next to us," Ninten said, glancing at Paula. "We met up at a small town a few hours from Fiveopilis," he explained upon seeing the colonel's widening eyes.
"...This day certainly brought on far more events than I expected," Livingston remarked. "So did you get into any skirmishes on your way here?"
"We...ran into a Pigmask force, though they weren't that coordinated in engaging us," Ninten told him. "We were lucky to get out alive as it was, after evidence of a major defeat of Eagleland's forces...speaking of which, how is it that this force still intact after the defeat?"
"You ran into the same force that tore apart our vanguard," Livingston explained. "I know that normally the vanguard would be kept in closer proximity to the main force and only be sent out further ahead to secure ground when a battle is imminent, but the situation at Ellay was so dire that we sent our fastest foot soldiers ahead to reinforce quickly or at least assist with evacuations if we could not hold it. This is the main force," he finished as he popped the pipe in his hand into his mouth and lit what was in it.
Ninten glanced back to see Ana shuffling uncomfortably at the sight and Lucas scowling. But he made no comment; it wasn't like that he didn't get stressed during his time with the Royal Guard, especially when he was in charge of his own platoon before being made the bodyguard of the princess.
"So what are your orders?" he asked, dismissing the thought.
"Go to the reserves," Livingston instructed. "They're just over that hill. Report to Captain Holland; she's in overall command of what's left of the vanguard, which is around the center of the force, since the higher-ups of that were killed in battle. I'll see to it that a messenger will lead you to her."
"Understood," Ninten said, saluting as one of the horsemen next to Livingston dismounted as per his instructions.
"I am quite...uncomfortable," Ana whispered as they weaved through the ranks, trying to keep up with the messenger who seemed to only want to just get his job done and go back.
"That's an understatement," Lucas scoffed. Ninten glanced back to see him looking annoyed at everyone around him. "I feel like I'm on display, like some sort of animal! Just because of what we can do! Are people really this prejudiced?"
"Don't lose sight of what is good in this world," Ninten told him despite the attention. "There's us four and others worth fighting for, right?"
He heard Lucas grumble as the veteran saw him glare off to the side. He couldn't blame him given his reaction to his realization was very similar to that. He just adapted to it.
Finally, they squeezed through the last of the soldiers to find a woman next to a makeshift table with a book in hand. She evidently noticed their approach given that she glanced up and spotted them as they approached.
"Captain Holland," the messenger said as he saluted.
"Yes soldier?" she asked, standing up and saluting back.
"Colonel Livingston has assigned you these four PSI users to you until we get to Ellay," the messenger relayed.
The captain looked at each of them, a frown etched on her face. Ninten recognized the eyes and posture, instantly realizing that she had been in at least a few fights, and he had little doubt that she had earned the rank. He could also understand her misgivings about them, but as long as she wasn't blatantly rude because of that, he didn't mind.
"Very well then, you're excused," she said. The messenger saluted one last time as he turned around to head back to his own commander.
"So all four of you are PSI users?" she asked.
"Yes," Ninten replied.
"I guess I shouldn't be surprised that you four were dragged into this," she said. "Kids fighting in war...I guess I should know better, especially when I've seen kids under eighteen in the army. No doubt anyone, whether Eagleland or Pigmask, would want to get as many as they could, not actually viewing them as people," she stated, her tone bitter.
Ninten turned toward the other three. "Go and get some rest," he said. "You'll need it for later."
Lucas and Paula nodded as they settled down near the edge of camp, bags plunking onto the ground. Only Ana remained. "Well, if you want to stay, feel free," Ninten shrugged as he turned back to Holland.
"You seem like a fighter, especially with that big-ass blade on your back," she observed, noting the weapon in question.
"I was enlisted in the Royal Guard three years back; here," Ninten replied, slinging his sheath off his back.
Holland took it with wide eyes. "Well I'll be..."
"Yeah, not a lot believe me when I say it," Ninten chuckled. "Probably because they think I'm just so desperate for attention that I make up these wild fabrications that couldn't possibly be true. And then I show them that to make them cry."
"That's quite...dramatic," Holland smirked. "I think I'm starting to like you. Wait, what's your name?"
"Ninten. Lieutenant Ninten Fubiki," Ninten answered. "What's yours?"
"...Captain Maggie Holland," she replied after a moment of hesitation. Ninten could tell she wasn't too...fond of her first name, but he didn't comment on that. "So you been in a battle yet?" she asked.
"In this war or overall?"
"Overall."
"My first one was in Summers."
Holland actually cringed at that. "Was it as nasty as people say?" she asked.
"Yep," Ninten nodded. "By the time the Royal Guard was through, it was a bloodbath. I...lost a good friend on that day."
"I'm sorry," Holland said.
"It's fine. I've gotten better about it over the years," Ninten commented. "There were a few skirmishes with the Pigmasks prior to the war, but nothing major."
"They were around before the war?" Ana cringed.
"Yeah," Holland answered. "At that point, the Pigmasks were more of an extremist group of terrorists, but we didn't consider them a big threat. We had no idea how wrong we were..."
"So you're in Special Forces?" Ninten changed the subject, pointing out the insignia on one of her sleeves.
"Yep," Holland confirmed. "But they transferred me to lead a bunch of militiamen into the battle instead of the Special Forces contingent. Thought I could keep them in line in a fight."
"What about your old unit?"
"They just promoted one of the lieutenants to replace me," Holland replied. "Now I'm in charge of what's left of the vanguard because so many of the other commanders were killed."
"But aren't there other captains?" Ninten asked.
"Yes; it's just temporary," Holland explained. "When we get to Ellay, the units will be reorganized and probably will be sent back to be rebuilt."
"So how do you think we're faring in the war?" Ninten asked. "I've...been out of the loop for a while now, and I want someone else other than a mayor who probably has no military experience at all to give their two cents."
"We were taken by surprise by the initial attacks and lost a lot of ground," Holland analyzed, glancing at the map. "But the Pigmask commanders are not the most competent and their soldiers lack training. They seemed to be more concerned with fighting purely offensively even when we built up heavy resistance, which works to our advantage."
"What about the lives lost?" Ana asked, for the first time joining in on the conversation.
"Sadly, it's a part of war," Holland sighed. "When you're in command, you cannot afford to dwell on the deaths of others. I'm not saying that you shouldn't bat an eye when your soldiers do die, but if I grieved for every single soldier lost from the vanguard, I'd be an emotional wreck. I have enough stress to deal with as a commander. Make one mistake, and so many could wind up dead..."
"How do you deal with it? All the death and killing?" Ana inquired.
"Is this about the swamp?" Ninten asked, recalling how she reacted when she first saw the corpses. Ana nodded as she glanced away, evidently embarassed by her behavior.
"It's nothing to be embarrassed about," Ninten reassured her. "I admit, it...took me a while to learn how to cope after seeing action for the first time in Summers. I eventually began to tell myself that every person, Eagleland, Pigmask, rioter...they should know what they're getting into, and it was their choice to take the front lines of the war."
"I try to convince myself that for every death I save far more people," Holland added. "It's cold, but I was never that warm to begin with." She looked off into the distance, eyes seemingly far away. "Whatever their intent, I doubt the Pigmasks could care less about the people themselves...at least, their leaders. They only want to gain power, and if this war gets much larger or drags on for more than another month...humanity might not make it."
Ninten nodded gravely. "In battle, there is going to be death, a lot of it. I remember the time when someone got a bullet in their head because I wasn't fast enough to put up a shield, got a limb cut off because I arrived too late...there's things I regret, but there truly is nothing I could've done unless I could've foreseen it."
"Why would anyone want war then?" Ana whimpered.
"That's a question I cannot answer," Ninten said as he looked away. "Sometimes, that is the only option, like right now. The Pigmasks will not back down, so neither will we. We are enduring fine as it is, until they began to try to dictate how things are going," he growled, feeling rage build up in him.
"Not like we can walk up to them and ask them 'why' either," Holland remarked.
Ana nodded, eyes appearing melancholy. Ninten wished that she didn't have to be like this, but she had to learn what war was like. This was inevitable one way or another.
"Wait, is that actually a romance novel?" Ana asked, gesturing to the book on the table.
"It was the only book I could find before we marched," Holland said.
"We won't tell anyone," Ninten smirked.
Lucas glanced around the battered forces that comprised of what was left of the vanguard as they began to march, having just received orders to get underway since the main force had wrapped up the battle and was now moving on ahead. That captain was right when she said there wasn't a lot left. There were about fifty soldiers out of...what was it that she said? Two hundred? Three hundred? Just the thought of that many lives being taken was sufficient to make Lucas depressed. 'Am I even doing the right thing by doing this?' he wondered to himself.
Most of the forces seemed to be militiamen, dressed in attire that reminded him of the militia back in his home village prior to the battle. However, there were some regular soldiers with armor that was dirtied by the grime of the swamp or the blood that was spilled during the battle. One of them walked right next to the blonde boy, making him uncomfortable that he might try to start up a conversation.
"Hey," the soldier said.
Lucas resisted a groan, realizing that his desire for silence wouldn't be met. He regarded the soldier with a sidewards glance, and testily replied, "Yeah, what?" showing his aversion to conversation with him.
The soldier backed up, holding his hands in front of him. "Whoa there, I was just gonna ask for your name," he replied. "I'm James. James Mill."
"...Lucas," the boy hesitated a moment before answering.
"So Lucas," James proceeded, to Lucas's mounting irritation. "I heard you and a few others went up against a number of Pigmasks recently," he said.
"We did," Lucas replied dismissively, already fearing the outcome.
"So how did you pull it off?" Lucas glanced at James, surprised by the question. He would've expected him to start going fanboy over him instead of expressing genuine curiosity like he did right now.
Not that we was gonna let his guard down anyway.
"What I mean is that the force you went up against, it annihilated most of the vanguard force. Yet you and your friends not only inflicted heavy losses on them, but without permanent injury. How?"
"All four of us were PSI users," Lucas explained after a moment of pondering. "We worked as a team; one working primarily as hand-to-hand while the other providing support. But then their PSI user showed up...he turned the tide single-handedly in an instant, forcing me and one other to take him on while the Pigmask swamp began to overwhelm the other two."
"I know that guy," James said as he twirled a stick in his hand. Lucas perked up, intrigued by this new information. "He took out the commander of the vanguard and one of our PSI users in a single attack; an overpowered PK Thunder. I don't know how well we would've fared if he hadn't intervened, but that was a decisive blow regardless. With no commander, we could not coordinate and the rest of our morale collapsed when we saw what his attack did."
"It's that powerful?"
"Weren't you faced with that attack?" James asked. "I would think that he would use it on you four to kill you all for certain. Why waste such a good opportunity like that?"
"He was blasted out of the sky before he could," Lucas flatly stated. "He didn't have time to charge it after that."
"Ah, effective strategy."
"Why do you even care?" Lucas testily snapped. "For all I know, you view us PSI users as nothing more than tools to throw into battle, or we're not important like that mayor in Fiveopilis believed before he realized that one of us was a Royal Guard."
"Don't lump me together with them," James replied, evidently trying to keep his cool. "It's true that many of us do view PSI users as tools, but I don't. There are others as well that share my viewpoint." He sighed. "I don't think I can convince you with words, but please give me and the others a chance."
"Then stop talking to me," Lucas growled.
"Alright...I'll leave you alone," James backed down. "It was nice getting to know you, Lucas."
Lucas didn't even respond as he fell back to where Paula was in the line. She glanced at him, face showing concern. Evidently, she had overheard their conversation, but he found he did not care about what she thought of his interaction with that soldier. He found for the first time he did not understand Ninten's devotion to the army given how prejudiced many of its ranks were against PSI users. 'Just...why does he put up with that?'
It was less than a half an hour of marching when they finally saw buildings in the distance. "Ellay," Captain Holland remarked. "Wonder how the battle's going."
"We should find out one way or another," Ninten replied. "I just hope we aren't too late."
"We're not," Holland said, pointing at a small group of soldiers manning an outpost.
"Halt! Identify yourselves!" one of the soldiers demanded.
"I am Captain Holland of the third Threed company," the captain declared. "These are fellow PSI users that joined up with us."
"Ah, you're the ones Colonel Livingston had sent for," a different soldier remarked after he saluted. "He orders you to the command tent right outside the city, helping Colonel Lee and several other officers devise a plan to retake Ellay."
"Understood," Holland saluted back. "Well, let's not keep them waiting," she told the group, leading them where the soldiers pointed them to.
"So who is Colonel Lee?" Lucas asked after a few minutes of silence.
"He's the one in charge of the Ellay garrison the army left to keep the peace," Ninten said. "He was supposed to be transferred out a week ago, but they definately did not anticipate the siege."
"So we just wait outside until the meeting's finished, right?" Ana asked.
"No," Ninten answered, shaking his head. "All officers are briefed on the mission before an action, and PSI users count as officers...even if they are actually privates."
"That doesn't sound right," Lucas mused.
"PSI users have to go through rigorous enough exams and training that the sergeants can weed out any possible traitor, in theory," Ninten explained. "It's surprisingly efficient, and with so few PSI users in the military compared to ordinary soldiers, it makes sense to keep them informed."
"We're here," Holland announced, gesturing to the command tent.
"...So how do briefings work?" Ninten sighed at his friend's question.
"You'll find out in just a moment, Lucas," he informed. "First, we gotta get settled and prepared for the briefing," he added as they entered the room.
"Ah, Captain Holland. Welcome," the voice of Colonel Livingston greeted.
Ninten took a quick glance around the room. From numerous Lieutenants to the two Colonels to young PSI users stood around a single table. Ninten was able to squeeze into a spot, and glancing next to him he saw his companions managed to do the same.
"So this is the captain from the vanguard you spoke of?" the other colonel spoke up, scratching his brownish-white beard.
"Yes," Livinston replied. "She brought with her three PSI users to be briefed, one of them from the Royal Guard."
"Is that so?" the other man (whom Ninten presumed to be Colonel Lee) mused. "And where exactly is he?" he asked.
"He's right there," Livingston gestured. Ninten shuffled as he felt all eyes turn to him. He never was fond of being put in front of a crowd.
"Ninten?"
The veteran's ears perked up at the voice, instantly recognizing it. His eyes drifted to the source, landing on the all-too familiar person right beside the two Colonels.
"Poo?"
Ninten: Well, I'd say we did a pretty good job, right Mewtwo?
Mewtwo: Indeed. Compared to the author. *Looks at me darkly. It has no effect since I am still happily playing the game*
Ninten: Now, now, Mewtwo, no need to get a swelled head over this. Let's just wrap this chapter up, okay? It already exceeded the author's projections in terms of length, so we don't want him to get a heart attack because we added a thousand unnecessary words to this, okay?
Mewtwo: *Nods* Please review if you have any comments, or else-
Ninten: *Deadpans* Mewtwo, we went over this. No threatening the readers.
Mewtwo: Ugh, maybe you should do it then…
Ninten: Like Mewtwo said, please review if you have any comments, and have a great day!
PSI Encyclopedia
Battle Horns: These are a common method of communication for massive armies since voices are limited in volume. There are different sounds for each command signaling charge, defend, retreat, and other meanings.
Eagleland Military Formations: Typical Eagleland military doctrine breaks up each military formation into five separate parts; middle, left flank, right flank, vanguard, and reserves. Each section is commanded by an officer that is of lesser rank to the overall commander of the unit. Each area has their own PSI users, though each flank typically has the more mobile troops as opposed to the middle, though they aren't as fast as many of the vanguard troops. They are often kept with the main force and are only sent out when battle is imminent to cover for the main force, outside a few exceptions. The reserves are behind the line and are only committed when they are needed, often to prove extra support to exploit a breakthrough or to stem an enemy attack. Overall, a very effective though it is necessary to coordinate well to use to maximum effect.