At long last, I am back! My other story has already been updated, and I
hope you read it and reviewed, not to mention liked it. Here is part four
of All Alone.
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General Ironfist strode the halls of his main fort restlessly, awaiting the report of one of his spies who was due back any moment. Then he would find out exactly what he needed to know...
"General, sir!" came the call, reviving him back to his senses. "Clay is back!"
"Good," he barked, turning immediately on his heal and heading for his office. "Send him to me with food and drink. Make sure that Monol is there, he can read minds and tell if he is lying or not."
"Yes sir!" The boy ran back as hard as he could, making sure to stop by the kitchen and Monol's cell before going on to fetch Clay and the shrouded visitor he had brought with him.
General Ironfist was less than pleased to find that Clay had brought someone along, and was about to chew him to bits when he begged for a chance to explain the was given one.
"This is an acquaintance I made on the way here," said Clay hurriedly, beckoning for the figure to remove his hood. He did to reveal a male pixie, a silhouette to be exact. "He can meld into the shadows and hide even better than I can. What if he were to go and spy on those under the Phoenix at night?"
"Well, what do you have to say about all this?" growled the General, keeping his hard gaze on monster. "Or are you mute and as dumb as you look?"
The silhouette melded into the back ground instantly and reappeared next to the General with a blade at his throat. "I am an accomplished assassin who wishes to help out in the cause," said the silhouette in s strong voice. "They call me The Shadow Striker, but I prefer just Striker if you will."
"Impressive, Striker," admitted the General, motioning to a servant boy who stood dumbly at the door. "Go get this fellow a uniform of the enemy and some traveling supplies. I'm assuming you want to start immediately, my good monster?"
"Of course," replied Striker, moving away quickly and going back to stand next to his jell/monol friend.
"What news have you," demanded Ironfist, his previous surprise gone. The Clay began to fidget slightly, not real sure about what to say next.
"Well, sir, I spied on that new fellow and his younger brother for you...
"And?"
"...the older one who saved the General...."
"Yeah, he is the one I wanted info about," said the General testily, his patience pushed almost to the limits.
"....he's the Phoenix boy..."
"HE'S WHAT?!?!?!?!"
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General Ironfist's army had taken a fort not far from the Phoenix army's camp a while ago, leaving the defenders with a hole in their defense and short several soldiers who had been taken with it. Holly had been meaning to take it back for sometime now, and with the appearance of Genki there would be no better time to try, the only thing they needed now was a plan...
Holly rolled out of bed an hour later than normal, her mind swirling with thoughts as she splashed some water on her face to wake her up. Quickly changing into fresh clothes and brushing her long hair back into a hair tie, Holly was surprised to hear someone moving around her outer room. She stuck her head out the flap that separated the two with a dagger in hand. It was Tori, with a tray of food that she was setting on a table with a plate and some silver ware.
She ducked her head when she saw Holly watching her. "Genki sent me with breakfast since you missed it," she explained quietly, finishing the job and leaving before Holly could react or reply.
{She's afraid of me...} Holly blinked and sheathed her dagger, running a hand through her hair. Normally that wouldn't bother her, but now... She remembered last night very clearly still, and soon after they had gotten back Pixie had given her a warn drink that was probably drugged and told her to go back to bed, which she had. But what bugged her the most was what she had felt...she hadn't felt like that since...since the day they lost in the bottom of that fort...when everyone had died...
"General Holly, ma'am!" Holly's head snapped up, her eyes automatically turning guarded and slightly indifferent.
"Report, Sam," she barked out of habit, taking a seat and starting on the food while looking on the maps of the area.
"The enemy still has made no move to force through the gap they made in our line, ma'am," said the Evil Hare before her while standing at attention. "There is some minor activity near their main base, but nothing more than is normal."
"What about the count of soldiers at the fort and the ones we lost?"
"They have five squads, our spies say there may be as many as 200 others that are ours trapped underneath it cells. They are well guarded and no one is allowed down there long enough to get a full count."
"Hmm, good work." Noticing a trail of saliva dribbling out of the monster's mouth from the food she was eating, she added, "Go report to the kitchen and tell them I said to give you double food for the information you gave me."
The Evil Hare's eyes widened in surprise. "D- double? Ma'am?"
"Yes, I said double." Holly looked him in the eyes levelly. "Is that a problem?"
"No ma'am!" His mouth split into a huge grin and he saluted smartly, throwing a, "Thank you, General Holly!" over his shoulder as he left.
Holly let a small smile come out for a moment, but it was quickly replaced by a frown. Fort Wellspring, the one Ironfist had taken from them, was only half a day's march from Jade springs, and the encampment they had there guarding it. It was their largest source of fresh water for miles around, and if the enemy where to take it... She threw her cape on and rolled up the maps, trying to remember where Pixie would be right about now. She would be done with watching over the kitchens an training the new recruits, so that's where Holly headed.
Striding through the crowds that parted to let her through, Holly went around a corner and ran smack dab into a monster with his nose buried in a book. She almost fell backwards, but a strong set of hands from behind caught her and pulled her back up quickly.
"Watch where you're going," she snapped, pushing the book down to reveal a young Golem.
"My apologies, General!" he cried, snapping to attention. "I should have been may more attention. It will not happen again!"
"Report to Captain Yammer for two hours, tell him it's code 4 from me," rapped out Holly without further thought, turning to see Genki behind her with a mixed look on his face.
"Are you alright?" he asked, refusing to look her in the eye. "That Golem must've been pretty solid to make you lose your balance like that. Still..."
"Still what?" she asked harshly, regretting it when she say him flinch like she had just struck him with her hand.
"Must you be so harsh about simple mistakes like running into someone?"
"Genki, you're now 2nd in Command in this army, and there's some things you should know," said Holly tersely, bringing him along as she went on in search of Pixie. "1st off, an army is only as strong as its weakest soldiers, so everyone has to be the best they can which leaves little room for mistakes."
"But that's saying that 'human nature' doesn't exist, Holly," countered Genki, frowning slightly. "Everyone's going to mess up eventually."
"That brings us to the 2nd point," ground out Holly between her teeth as her temples began to throb. "Never, ever, question your superior's actions, decisions, or motivations and always address them properly."
"And you're my superior?"
"Exactly." Holly gave him a cold glance, making him feel he had truly lost his friend. "I am General Holly, General, or Ma'am unless told otherwise."
".....oh."
"3rd, an army's inner wheels are greased by the fact their commander can make decisions, carry them out, and be strong for them. To show any mercy is weakness, Genki, that I have learned."
"Then you learned-"
"Not another word about it. I don't care what life was like last time you were here, nothing from that time is still the same. Nothing can every stay the same so there is no use trying to force it to. This is war, Genki."
"What did you call our battle against Moo?"
"A crusade of a small group who got extremely lucky."
"Really? Because I would call it friends and family banding together to fight for their homes, lives, and freedom. And that is what I would call this as well, General Holly." With that he left her and headed back to his tent, fresh tears threatening to fall from his eyes...
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Striker stood in the shadows by General Ironfist's desk, waiting for his new orders to come. The moment news of the Phoenix boy had been validated by a Monol using Clay's mind the General had told him to stay put and stormed off, taking Clay and the Monol with him. That had been three hours ago...
'SLAM!' The General strode purposefully into the room, ignoring the fact that he had just knocked his door off its hinges, followed by Clay and the Monol who were both carrying some supplies.
"You said you were once an assassin, right?" It was more of a statement than a question, and Striker just nodded as Ironfist barreled on. "I need you to kill two people for me...General Holly and the Phoenix boy!"
Striker raised an eyebrow, his dark and patterned face confused. "How can I do that without actually joining the army and gaining their confidence over time?"
"You can't."
"...sir?"
"See that Monol over there? He's going to implant some new memories of a young silhouette we destroyed in you mind. That way if they search your memory to see if you're a spy or not-"
"They won't be able to tell the difference."
"Exactly." General Ironfist grinned evilly, taking the supplies from Clay and Monol and handing them to Striker. "You'll be given four months to complete your mission by moving up the ranks and proving yourself as a good soldier until you're close enough to the two to kill them. Any more than that and I'll consider you a traitor and send assassins after you, understand?"
"Yes, sir." Striker saluted jauntily and walked confidently out of the room.
"And Striker?"
"Yeah?"
"Make sure that Holly girl dies a very slow and painful death."
"Trust me sir," he replied, fangs flashing momentarily. "I will."
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Pixie was more than surprised when Holly stalked up to her in the middle of her morning training sessions, lightning flashing in her eyes angrily. "Sleep well?" she asked after saluting, wondering if she remembered anything from the night before...
"Very well after that stuff you gave me," Holly replied shortly, her brow furrowed. "We have a problem on our hands. Bring those 'invasion experts' to my tent with you after you're done here. We have to get Wellspring back, *now*."
"What's the problem, Holly?"
"I'll explain everything later, ok?"
"Yeah," said Pixie, saluting as Holly turned and left quickly. {I wonder what's bugging her...} thought Pixie, turning back to her trainees. {Oh well, I guess it'll just have to wait...}
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Tai sat up quickly in surprise as ice cold water was dumped over his head, effectively bringing him out of his dreams. "What was that for?" he grumbled, trying to wipe the water out of his eyes.
"Genki said to wake you up before he got back and since you refuse to respond to yelling or being slapped around I resorted to this," explained Tori calmly, standing beside his bed holding an empty basin in her hands.
"Great, another dictator..."
"Just get up."
Tai growled, but did as he was told, swinging his legs out of bed as Tori went to the other room. He noticed she was already wearing a uniform, and had left one, as well as a towel, for him on a chair. Sighing, he toweled off, pulled on the breeches, shirt, and tunic before running his hands through his messy hair a few times and shuffling out to the main room.
Genki walked in about that time, frowning slightly as he rubbed at his eyes with a sleeve. He looked like he had been crying, but Tori wisely didn't say anything and Tai was too tired to notice.
"How'd you get him to wake up?" asked Genki, pointing at Tai who was now rummaging around a tray on a table for something to eat. "I usually have to put ice on him or something when he sleeps at my house."
"I poured cold water on him," said Tori with a shrug.
"Which would explain why his hair's wet-"
"Yeah, but why did you ask me to wake him up if you knew it was nearly impossible?"
"Sometimes if you bug him long enough he'll wake up, and he'll generally do anything for a pretty girl..." Genki winked at Tori, getting her to blush slightly. Tai had been saying her name in his sleep last night so he knew his little brother had a crush on the girl.
"Hey, you're talking about me, aren't you?" said Tai accusingly, pointing a finger at them as he munched on a piece of bread he had found.
"He's not a morning person, is he?" asked Tori with a smirk.
"Nope."
"Will you stop talking about me like I'm not ever here? You could at least wait until I leave the room."
"Genki," said Pixie, sticking her head in. "Holly called an emergency meeting and I think she wants you there." Noticing Genki's blood shot eyes she added, "Hey, are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'll be there in a minute, ok?"
"Just don't take too long. Holly's not in the best of moods."
"I noticed." Genki washed his face in the other basin of water quickly, not noticing the two pairs of eyes staring at him until he was finished drying it with a towel. "What?"
"Can we come?" asked Tai and Tori at the same time.
"Huh?"
"We want to come with you to the meeting," said Tori slowly as if explaining something to a young child.
"I know that, but why?"
"It's not safe to leave us here alone," said Tori softly, eyes sad for a moment.
"And I wanna see what it's about," added Tai, "Please?"
"Oh, alright."
"Yes!"
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Holly was lying pout maps on her table and using little figures to mark them when Genki came in, Tai and Tori in tow. She glanced up for a moment, but immediately turned back to the Captain and Liquid Cube she was speaking to, ignoring them entirely.
"What's going on?" Genki whispered to Pixie, trying to make sense of the charts before him.
"We're taking back Wellspring," explained Pixie, taking one copy to the side and pointing out everything he should know, like what the symbols stood for and what their strengths and weaknesses were. Once she was done Genki stood there and started at the map for a minute, an idea forming in his head.
"What if you had Liquid Cubes sneak in through the moat into the grating that leads to the cellars, then have suezos teleport squads into the main area and gain and the gate post so they can lower the draw bridge and let the rest of the main force in. The capture as many of the troops as possible and use them as barter for some of our own that they probably have kept prisoner else where," suggested Genki, rattling off the first complete plan that came to mind.
Pixie pursed her lips and nodded, taking a pencil and writing it all out on the map complete with arrows and instructions. "Hey Holly," she said, still bent over the map.
"What?" snapped Holly, frigid eyes glaring at them. "We're trying to plan an invasion here."
"And Genki may've just found the key," replied Pixie, taking the map over to Holly. "Well?"
"..........not bad," admitted Holly with a shrug, cold eyes flitting back between them and the map. "How'd you think of this?"
"Oh, it just sort of popped out of my head..."
"Let me see that pencil, Pixie," said Holly, holding out her hand. Pixie handed it to her and watched as Holly modified some of her markings, putting the exact types of monsters and how many there would be in each squad. Genki watched from over her shoulder, surprising her with he stopped her hand with his own.
"Then numbers are wrong," he said, taking the pencil from her. "One suezo can transport 10 people/monsters; two working together, though, can take nearly 40..."
"So 40 per squad, 2 suezos and 38 fighters..." said the Captain, "All of the same breed so they'll work well together-"
"No," interrupted Genki, still writing down figures. "Squads should be made of different types of humans and monsters so they can work off each other's strengths and weaknesses. There is no one monster breed that can carry this army by itself, you have to work as a team." [Like me and Moochi..] The though crossed Genki's mind in a flash, and Pixie noticed him stop writing and smiled sadly just for a moment before continuing on.
"Are you sure you're alright?" she whispered, leaning close so only he could hear. He nodded shortly, giving the pencil back to Holly.
"When were you planning to put this in motion?" he asked, looking at Holly expectantly.
"Originally the plan was a frontal attack," she said calculatingly. "If we push everyone really hard we could execute this one in...about...a week."
"What's the rush?" asked Pixie, "Scouts haven't reported anything unusual and things have been relatively quiet lately other than that one skirmish..."
"What's the closest fort or encampment to Wellspring, Pixie?"
"....the Hornsdale Camp..."
"And what is the importance of that?"
".......oh crap." Pixie's eyes got huge as her jaw dropped almost to the floor in shock. "How did we not notice this before??"
"That's what I'd like to know." Holly began to pace and give orders at the same time, keeping a list of things to do in her head as she did. Genki occasionally put in an order of his own, much to Holly's surprise, but is was always for the safety of others.
"Call all fighters, Liquid Cubes, and suezos to the practice ground-"
"Make that any pixies who can heal as well."
"Grr...anyways, I want Squad leaders to turn in lists of the best fighters and supplies readied for the day's march to Wellspring. Don't take anymore than we need, failure is not an option this time. Have squad leaders also come up wit lists of their strengths and weaknesses so we know who to stick together. Humans are not excluded from this and will be combined with squads of monsters. Suezos who can teleport well need to step up and form themselves in pairs-"
"Pairs where they know each others are best."
"Don't interrupt me Genki."
"Sorry. Oh, and make sure you have one healing pixie in every squad."
"That's one less fighter, Genki." *twitch*
"That's also three or four monster's live who could be saved, Holly."
*twitch* "That's General Holly to you." *twitch*
"Whatever." Genki sighed, but shook his head and walked away, taking Tori and Tai back with him to their tents as Holly continued with her plans...
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Striker ambled up to the Phoenix Camp from the back, his clothes not all tattered and town with a beat-up pack on his back. Old sandals covered his dusty feet, and his many weapons traded for a single dagger and a staff.
[I wonder what Ironfist would do if I deserted and joined the Phoenix troops?] he wondered lazily as a butterfly fluttered past. [Better not, he'll probably win from the looks of things and I would like to keep my head attached to the rest of my body...]
"Who goes there?" called one of the guards when the spotted him, the jell on one side lowering his spear so it was level with Striker's chest.
"Hail to General Holly and her fine army," Striker called back, holding his hands up in a sign of peace. "I'm Striker, a wanderer who lost his home to the enemy, and wishes to join your cause against him."
The two monsters on duty whispered back and forth to each other, keeping their eyes trained on him in case it was a trick. "Come with me," said one of the troops as last, waving him in as a messenger was sent off. "Leave your things there, including all weapons, out there. If your story checks out you'll get everything back."
Striker grinned as he removed his pack and dagger, placing the staff beside it quickly. Everything was going exactly as planned...
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Pixie and Holly were still looking over the charts when the messenger ran in, all out of breath. "General Holly," he gasped, standing at attention. "There's a monster here to see you! Something about a destroyed village and being a survivor..."
"Pixie take care of this, will you?" asked Holly calmly, looking at the chart she was holding one last time. "I'll take care of the rest of the preparations. If you need any help, ask Genki."
"Yes, Holly." Pixie turned to the messenger. "Have him or her brought to my tent and send word for Commander Genki to join me there, without Tai and Tori present. I want him to learn something from this without having those two around..."
"Yes, ma'am!" The boy sped off, leaving Pixie to gather up her things and head back to her quarters.
[I wonder who it is and what they could want...]
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Striker was confused. The messenger had left him in a tent that was well furnished, but obviously not the General's. So where had he been taken? He started to poke around the room, but stopped when he heard someone outside. Quickly mussing up his hair and clothes a bit more, Striker arranged himself to look as tired and exhausted as possible.
Someone walked in behind him, shuffling through some papers and mumbling to herself quietly. Sitting up slightly like he had just heard her, he glanced up, surprise in his eyes. "...Pixie?"
"Yes...that's me..." Pixie looked up, surprise in her eyes. "...do I know you?" She searched her memory as he quickly made the surprise in his face a look of awe.
"No, you're just well known," he replied quickly, "I wasn't expecting to get to meet you..." [HOW IN THE WORLD DID SHE GET HERE???] his mind screamed, quickly running through everything he had known about her in Moo's army. They had been in the same unit until she had gotten promoted for some act of "valor" (it was really closer to mass murder, but we won't go into that....) and had never seen her again, only heard of her "great deeds" in the army until she had been defeated....by the Phoenix boy and his gang...
"Trust me, I'm no great war hero," she said stiffly, sitting in her chair and getting the feeling like she had seen him somewhere before. "Why have you come here?"
"To join the army," he said automatically, turning around when someone else walked in, a tall, brown-haired youth he had never seen before.
"Genki, this is-"
"Striker," he provided, knowing he hadn't given his name to her yet. "I want to join your army here."
"Well, welcome to the Phoenix army," said Genki, shrugging as he bowed slightly. "I'm Genki, as she said, second in command of this army." Striker's eyes widened, this was the boy he was supposed to kill. But how could so young a youth be a threat to Ironfist? First finding Pixie on the good guy side, and then this mere boy whom he was ordered to kill, Striker was really confused.
"Hello...Commander Genki..." For once, Striker was not his normally calm self and stumbled on his words a bit, trying to find his focus again. "Thanks...um, for welcoming me here..."
"You're welcome," said Genki, shrugging again. "Is there anything you need, Pixie?"
"No, that's alright, kid," said Pixie, smiling for the first time. Striker's heart melted, he had never realized how absolutely beautiful she was before when she smiled because, well, she had never smiled while under Moo....this was not good. Now he was falling for some one he shouldn't be falling for and would kill one of her good friends. Things was not turning out to well for him.
"Are you sure? I mean, I could take him around to uniform guys, get him fitted out and such..."
"Actually, that would be great," said Pixie, biting her lip. "I need to go check on Holly and make sure she's doing alright with the plans. Swing by there after you're done so she can meet him for herself."
"Ok. So you're sure you're with us for good?"
"What? Do I have to sign a paper or something?"
"No," said Genki, shaking his head and frowning, "But General Holly doesn't take too well to deserters..."
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That took a lot longer than I thought it would. Updates will be sooner than the last one, trust me on that. How do you like the plot twists? Please review, I really do enjoy your comments and any suggestions you have that I use you will be credited for. Have a nice day!
crosseyedbutterfly
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General Ironfist strode the halls of his main fort restlessly, awaiting the report of one of his spies who was due back any moment. Then he would find out exactly what he needed to know...
"General, sir!" came the call, reviving him back to his senses. "Clay is back!"
"Good," he barked, turning immediately on his heal and heading for his office. "Send him to me with food and drink. Make sure that Monol is there, he can read minds and tell if he is lying or not."
"Yes sir!" The boy ran back as hard as he could, making sure to stop by the kitchen and Monol's cell before going on to fetch Clay and the shrouded visitor he had brought with him.
General Ironfist was less than pleased to find that Clay had brought someone along, and was about to chew him to bits when he begged for a chance to explain the was given one.
"This is an acquaintance I made on the way here," said Clay hurriedly, beckoning for the figure to remove his hood. He did to reveal a male pixie, a silhouette to be exact. "He can meld into the shadows and hide even better than I can. What if he were to go and spy on those under the Phoenix at night?"
"Well, what do you have to say about all this?" growled the General, keeping his hard gaze on monster. "Or are you mute and as dumb as you look?"
The silhouette melded into the back ground instantly and reappeared next to the General with a blade at his throat. "I am an accomplished assassin who wishes to help out in the cause," said the silhouette in s strong voice. "They call me The Shadow Striker, but I prefer just Striker if you will."
"Impressive, Striker," admitted the General, motioning to a servant boy who stood dumbly at the door. "Go get this fellow a uniform of the enemy and some traveling supplies. I'm assuming you want to start immediately, my good monster?"
"Of course," replied Striker, moving away quickly and going back to stand next to his jell/monol friend.
"What news have you," demanded Ironfist, his previous surprise gone. The Clay began to fidget slightly, not real sure about what to say next.
"Well, sir, I spied on that new fellow and his younger brother for you...
"And?"
"...the older one who saved the General...."
"Yeah, he is the one I wanted info about," said the General testily, his patience pushed almost to the limits.
"....he's the Phoenix boy..."
"HE'S WHAT?!?!?!?!"
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General Ironfist's army had taken a fort not far from the Phoenix army's camp a while ago, leaving the defenders with a hole in their defense and short several soldiers who had been taken with it. Holly had been meaning to take it back for sometime now, and with the appearance of Genki there would be no better time to try, the only thing they needed now was a plan...
Holly rolled out of bed an hour later than normal, her mind swirling with thoughts as she splashed some water on her face to wake her up. Quickly changing into fresh clothes and brushing her long hair back into a hair tie, Holly was surprised to hear someone moving around her outer room. She stuck her head out the flap that separated the two with a dagger in hand. It was Tori, with a tray of food that she was setting on a table with a plate and some silver ware.
She ducked her head when she saw Holly watching her. "Genki sent me with breakfast since you missed it," she explained quietly, finishing the job and leaving before Holly could react or reply.
{She's afraid of me...} Holly blinked and sheathed her dagger, running a hand through her hair. Normally that wouldn't bother her, but now... She remembered last night very clearly still, and soon after they had gotten back Pixie had given her a warn drink that was probably drugged and told her to go back to bed, which she had. But what bugged her the most was what she had felt...she hadn't felt like that since...since the day they lost in the bottom of that fort...when everyone had died...
"General Holly, ma'am!" Holly's head snapped up, her eyes automatically turning guarded and slightly indifferent.
"Report, Sam," she barked out of habit, taking a seat and starting on the food while looking on the maps of the area.
"The enemy still has made no move to force through the gap they made in our line, ma'am," said the Evil Hare before her while standing at attention. "There is some minor activity near their main base, but nothing more than is normal."
"What about the count of soldiers at the fort and the ones we lost?"
"They have five squads, our spies say there may be as many as 200 others that are ours trapped underneath it cells. They are well guarded and no one is allowed down there long enough to get a full count."
"Hmm, good work." Noticing a trail of saliva dribbling out of the monster's mouth from the food she was eating, she added, "Go report to the kitchen and tell them I said to give you double food for the information you gave me."
The Evil Hare's eyes widened in surprise. "D- double? Ma'am?"
"Yes, I said double." Holly looked him in the eyes levelly. "Is that a problem?"
"No ma'am!" His mouth split into a huge grin and he saluted smartly, throwing a, "Thank you, General Holly!" over his shoulder as he left.
Holly let a small smile come out for a moment, but it was quickly replaced by a frown. Fort Wellspring, the one Ironfist had taken from them, was only half a day's march from Jade springs, and the encampment they had there guarding it. It was their largest source of fresh water for miles around, and if the enemy where to take it... She threw her cape on and rolled up the maps, trying to remember where Pixie would be right about now. She would be done with watching over the kitchens an training the new recruits, so that's where Holly headed.
Striding through the crowds that parted to let her through, Holly went around a corner and ran smack dab into a monster with his nose buried in a book. She almost fell backwards, but a strong set of hands from behind caught her and pulled her back up quickly.
"Watch where you're going," she snapped, pushing the book down to reveal a young Golem.
"My apologies, General!" he cried, snapping to attention. "I should have been may more attention. It will not happen again!"
"Report to Captain Yammer for two hours, tell him it's code 4 from me," rapped out Holly without further thought, turning to see Genki behind her with a mixed look on his face.
"Are you alright?" he asked, refusing to look her in the eye. "That Golem must've been pretty solid to make you lose your balance like that. Still..."
"Still what?" she asked harshly, regretting it when she say him flinch like she had just struck him with her hand.
"Must you be so harsh about simple mistakes like running into someone?"
"Genki, you're now 2nd in Command in this army, and there's some things you should know," said Holly tersely, bringing him along as she went on in search of Pixie. "1st off, an army is only as strong as its weakest soldiers, so everyone has to be the best they can which leaves little room for mistakes."
"But that's saying that 'human nature' doesn't exist, Holly," countered Genki, frowning slightly. "Everyone's going to mess up eventually."
"That brings us to the 2nd point," ground out Holly between her teeth as her temples began to throb. "Never, ever, question your superior's actions, decisions, or motivations and always address them properly."
"And you're my superior?"
"Exactly." Holly gave him a cold glance, making him feel he had truly lost his friend. "I am General Holly, General, or Ma'am unless told otherwise."
".....oh."
"3rd, an army's inner wheels are greased by the fact their commander can make decisions, carry them out, and be strong for them. To show any mercy is weakness, Genki, that I have learned."
"Then you learned-"
"Not another word about it. I don't care what life was like last time you were here, nothing from that time is still the same. Nothing can every stay the same so there is no use trying to force it to. This is war, Genki."
"What did you call our battle against Moo?"
"A crusade of a small group who got extremely lucky."
"Really? Because I would call it friends and family banding together to fight for their homes, lives, and freedom. And that is what I would call this as well, General Holly." With that he left her and headed back to his tent, fresh tears threatening to fall from his eyes...
*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*
Striker stood in the shadows by General Ironfist's desk, waiting for his new orders to come. The moment news of the Phoenix boy had been validated by a Monol using Clay's mind the General had told him to stay put and stormed off, taking Clay and the Monol with him. That had been three hours ago...
'SLAM!' The General strode purposefully into the room, ignoring the fact that he had just knocked his door off its hinges, followed by Clay and the Monol who were both carrying some supplies.
"You said you were once an assassin, right?" It was more of a statement than a question, and Striker just nodded as Ironfist barreled on. "I need you to kill two people for me...General Holly and the Phoenix boy!"
Striker raised an eyebrow, his dark and patterned face confused. "How can I do that without actually joining the army and gaining their confidence over time?"
"You can't."
"...sir?"
"See that Monol over there? He's going to implant some new memories of a young silhouette we destroyed in you mind. That way if they search your memory to see if you're a spy or not-"
"They won't be able to tell the difference."
"Exactly." General Ironfist grinned evilly, taking the supplies from Clay and Monol and handing them to Striker. "You'll be given four months to complete your mission by moving up the ranks and proving yourself as a good soldier until you're close enough to the two to kill them. Any more than that and I'll consider you a traitor and send assassins after you, understand?"
"Yes, sir." Striker saluted jauntily and walked confidently out of the room.
"And Striker?"
"Yeah?"
"Make sure that Holly girl dies a very slow and painful death."
"Trust me sir," he replied, fangs flashing momentarily. "I will."
*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*
Pixie was more than surprised when Holly stalked up to her in the middle of her morning training sessions, lightning flashing in her eyes angrily. "Sleep well?" she asked after saluting, wondering if she remembered anything from the night before...
"Very well after that stuff you gave me," Holly replied shortly, her brow furrowed. "We have a problem on our hands. Bring those 'invasion experts' to my tent with you after you're done here. We have to get Wellspring back, *now*."
"What's the problem, Holly?"
"I'll explain everything later, ok?"
"Yeah," said Pixie, saluting as Holly turned and left quickly. {I wonder what's bugging her...} thought Pixie, turning back to her trainees. {Oh well, I guess it'll just have to wait...}
*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*
Tai sat up quickly in surprise as ice cold water was dumped over his head, effectively bringing him out of his dreams. "What was that for?" he grumbled, trying to wipe the water out of his eyes.
"Genki said to wake you up before he got back and since you refuse to respond to yelling or being slapped around I resorted to this," explained Tori calmly, standing beside his bed holding an empty basin in her hands.
"Great, another dictator..."
"Just get up."
Tai growled, but did as he was told, swinging his legs out of bed as Tori went to the other room. He noticed she was already wearing a uniform, and had left one, as well as a towel, for him on a chair. Sighing, he toweled off, pulled on the breeches, shirt, and tunic before running his hands through his messy hair a few times and shuffling out to the main room.
Genki walked in about that time, frowning slightly as he rubbed at his eyes with a sleeve. He looked like he had been crying, but Tori wisely didn't say anything and Tai was too tired to notice.
"How'd you get him to wake up?" asked Genki, pointing at Tai who was now rummaging around a tray on a table for something to eat. "I usually have to put ice on him or something when he sleeps at my house."
"I poured cold water on him," said Tori with a shrug.
"Which would explain why his hair's wet-"
"Yeah, but why did you ask me to wake him up if you knew it was nearly impossible?"
"Sometimes if you bug him long enough he'll wake up, and he'll generally do anything for a pretty girl..." Genki winked at Tori, getting her to blush slightly. Tai had been saying her name in his sleep last night so he knew his little brother had a crush on the girl.
"Hey, you're talking about me, aren't you?" said Tai accusingly, pointing a finger at them as he munched on a piece of bread he had found.
"He's not a morning person, is he?" asked Tori with a smirk.
"Nope."
"Will you stop talking about me like I'm not ever here? You could at least wait until I leave the room."
"Genki," said Pixie, sticking her head in. "Holly called an emergency meeting and I think she wants you there." Noticing Genki's blood shot eyes she added, "Hey, are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I'll be there in a minute, ok?"
"Just don't take too long. Holly's not in the best of moods."
"I noticed." Genki washed his face in the other basin of water quickly, not noticing the two pairs of eyes staring at him until he was finished drying it with a towel. "What?"
"Can we come?" asked Tai and Tori at the same time.
"Huh?"
"We want to come with you to the meeting," said Tori slowly as if explaining something to a young child.
"I know that, but why?"
"It's not safe to leave us here alone," said Tori softly, eyes sad for a moment.
"And I wanna see what it's about," added Tai, "Please?"
"Oh, alright."
"Yes!"
*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*
Holly was lying pout maps on her table and using little figures to mark them when Genki came in, Tai and Tori in tow. She glanced up for a moment, but immediately turned back to the Captain and Liquid Cube she was speaking to, ignoring them entirely.
"What's going on?" Genki whispered to Pixie, trying to make sense of the charts before him.
"We're taking back Wellspring," explained Pixie, taking one copy to the side and pointing out everything he should know, like what the symbols stood for and what their strengths and weaknesses were. Once she was done Genki stood there and started at the map for a minute, an idea forming in his head.
"What if you had Liquid Cubes sneak in through the moat into the grating that leads to the cellars, then have suezos teleport squads into the main area and gain and the gate post so they can lower the draw bridge and let the rest of the main force in. The capture as many of the troops as possible and use them as barter for some of our own that they probably have kept prisoner else where," suggested Genki, rattling off the first complete plan that came to mind.
Pixie pursed her lips and nodded, taking a pencil and writing it all out on the map complete with arrows and instructions. "Hey Holly," she said, still bent over the map.
"What?" snapped Holly, frigid eyes glaring at them. "We're trying to plan an invasion here."
"And Genki may've just found the key," replied Pixie, taking the map over to Holly. "Well?"
"..........not bad," admitted Holly with a shrug, cold eyes flitting back between them and the map. "How'd you think of this?"
"Oh, it just sort of popped out of my head..."
"Let me see that pencil, Pixie," said Holly, holding out her hand. Pixie handed it to her and watched as Holly modified some of her markings, putting the exact types of monsters and how many there would be in each squad. Genki watched from over her shoulder, surprising her with he stopped her hand with his own.
"Then numbers are wrong," he said, taking the pencil from her. "One suezo can transport 10 people/monsters; two working together, though, can take nearly 40..."
"So 40 per squad, 2 suezos and 38 fighters..." said the Captain, "All of the same breed so they'll work well together-"
"No," interrupted Genki, still writing down figures. "Squads should be made of different types of humans and monsters so they can work off each other's strengths and weaknesses. There is no one monster breed that can carry this army by itself, you have to work as a team." [Like me and Moochi..] The though crossed Genki's mind in a flash, and Pixie noticed him stop writing and smiled sadly just for a moment before continuing on.
"Are you sure you're alright?" she whispered, leaning close so only he could hear. He nodded shortly, giving the pencil back to Holly.
"When were you planning to put this in motion?" he asked, looking at Holly expectantly.
"Originally the plan was a frontal attack," she said calculatingly. "If we push everyone really hard we could execute this one in...about...a week."
"What's the rush?" asked Pixie, "Scouts haven't reported anything unusual and things have been relatively quiet lately other than that one skirmish..."
"What's the closest fort or encampment to Wellspring, Pixie?"
"....the Hornsdale Camp..."
"And what is the importance of that?"
".......oh crap." Pixie's eyes got huge as her jaw dropped almost to the floor in shock. "How did we not notice this before??"
"That's what I'd like to know." Holly began to pace and give orders at the same time, keeping a list of things to do in her head as she did. Genki occasionally put in an order of his own, much to Holly's surprise, but is was always for the safety of others.
"Call all fighters, Liquid Cubes, and suezos to the practice ground-"
"Make that any pixies who can heal as well."
"Grr...anyways, I want Squad leaders to turn in lists of the best fighters and supplies readied for the day's march to Wellspring. Don't take anymore than we need, failure is not an option this time. Have squad leaders also come up wit lists of their strengths and weaknesses so we know who to stick together. Humans are not excluded from this and will be combined with squads of monsters. Suezos who can teleport well need to step up and form themselves in pairs-"
"Pairs where they know each others are best."
"Don't interrupt me Genki."
"Sorry. Oh, and make sure you have one healing pixie in every squad."
"That's one less fighter, Genki." *twitch*
"That's also three or four monster's live who could be saved, Holly."
*twitch* "That's General Holly to you." *twitch*
"Whatever." Genki sighed, but shook his head and walked away, taking Tori and Tai back with him to their tents as Holly continued with her plans...
*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*
Striker ambled up to the Phoenix Camp from the back, his clothes not all tattered and town with a beat-up pack on his back. Old sandals covered his dusty feet, and his many weapons traded for a single dagger and a staff.
[I wonder what Ironfist would do if I deserted and joined the Phoenix troops?] he wondered lazily as a butterfly fluttered past. [Better not, he'll probably win from the looks of things and I would like to keep my head attached to the rest of my body...]
"Who goes there?" called one of the guards when the spotted him, the jell on one side lowering his spear so it was level with Striker's chest.
"Hail to General Holly and her fine army," Striker called back, holding his hands up in a sign of peace. "I'm Striker, a wanderer who lost his home to the enemy, and wishes to join your cause against him."
The two monsters on duty whispered back and forth to each other, keeping their eyes trained on him in case it was a trick. "Come with me," said one of the troops as last, waving him in as a messenger was sent off. "Leave your things there, including all weapons, out there. If your story checks out you'll get everything back."
Striker grinned as he removed his pack and dagger, placing the staff beside it quickly. Everything was going exactly as planned...
*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*
Pixie and Holly were still looking over the charts when the messenger ran in, all out of breath. "General Holly," he gasped, standing at attention. "There's a monster here to see you! Something about a destroyed village and being a survivor..."
"Pixie take care of this, will you?" asked Holly calmly, looking at the chart she was holding one last time. "I'll take care of the rest of the preparations. If you need any help, ask Genki."
"Yes, Holly." Pixie turned to the messenger. "Have him or her brought to my tent and send word for Commander Genki to join me there, without Tai and Tori present. I want him to learn something from this without having those two around..."
"Yes, ma'am!" The boy sped off, leaving Pixie to gather up her things and head back to her quarters.
[I wonder who it is and what they could want...]
*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*
Striker was confused. The messenger had left him in a tent that was well furnished, but obviously not the General's. So where had he been taken? He started to poke around the room, but stopped when he heard someone outside. Quickly mussing up his hair and clothes a bit more, Striker arranged himself to look as tired and exhausted as possible.
Someone walked in behind him, shuffling through some papers and mumbling to herself quietly. Sitting up slightly like he had just heard her, he glanced up, surprise in his eyes. "...Pixie?"
"Yes...that's me..." Pixie looked up, surprise in her eyes. "...do I know you?" She searched her memory as he quickly made the surprise in his face a look of awe.
"No, you're just well known," he replied quickly, "I wasn't expecting to get to meet you..." [HOW IN THE WORLD DID SHE GET HERE???] his mind screamed, quickly running through everything he had known about her in Moo's army. They had been in the same unit until she had gotten promoted for some act of "valor" (it was really closer to mass murder, but we won't go into that....) and had never seen her again, only heard of her "great deeds" in the army until she had been defeated....by the Phoenix boy and his gang...
"Trust me, I'm no great war hero," she said stiffly, sitting in her chair and getting the feeling like she had seen him somewhere before. "Why have you come here?"
"To join the army," he said automatically, turning around when someone else walked in, a tall, brown-haired youth he had never seen before.
"Genki, this is-"
"Striker," he provided, knowing he hadn't given his name to her yet. "I want to join your army here."
"Well, welcome to the Phoenix army," said Genki, shrugging as he bowed slightly. "I'm Genki, as she said, second in command of this army." Striker's eyes widened, this was the boy he was supposed to kill. But how could so young a youth be a threat to Ironfist? First finding Pixie on the good guy side, and then this mere boy whom he was ordered to kill, Striker was really confused.
"Hello...Commander Genki..." For once, Striker was not his normally calm self and stumbled on his words a bit, trying to find his focus again. "Thanks...um, for welcoming me here..."
"You're welcome," said Genki, shrugging again. "Is there anything you need, Pixie?"
"No, that's alright, kid," said Pixie, smiling for the first time. Striker's heart melted, he had never realized how absolutely beautiful she was before when she smiled because, well, she had never smiled while under Moo....this was not good. Now he was falling for some one he shouldn't be falling for and would kill one of her good friends. Things was not turning out to well for him.
"Are you sure? I mean, I could take him around to uniform guys, get him fitted out and such..."
"Actually, that would be great," said Pixie, biting her lip. "I need to go check on Holly and make sure she's doing alright with the plans. Swing by there after you're done so she can meet him for herself."
"Ok. So you're sure you're with us for good?"
"What? Do I have to sign a paper or something?"
"No," said Genki, shaking his head and frowning, "But General Holly doesn't take too well to deserters..."
*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*~~~*
That took a lot longer than I thought it would. Updates will be sooner than the last one, trust me on that. How do you like the plot twists? Please review, I really do enjoy your comments and any suggestions you have that I use you will be credited for. Have a nice day!
crosseyedbutterfly