Chapter 4-1: Game Pieces
Still at the waterway of Fleur City, the gang have come up with a plan to get to the Bell of Solace and use it to destroy the fire lotus flowers.
"We'll let Trein and the others handle things in the city. Let us head for the bell tower," Malleus says.
Deuce turns to the twins, "And guys, take good care of Grim, Sereia, Trinket, and Professor Trein, okay?".
"Got it," The boys reply with nods.
But Grim huffs," Hmph! You don't gotta ask them. I got this covered!"
"From where we are, the south gate is the closest entrance to Noble Bell College. Head there first," Train ays.
"Be careful, everyone!" Sereia says, worried.
"We'll be okay," Briar says, "We'll see you soon."
With that, the group begins walking through one of the tunnels to get to the college or at least close to it.
Sebek says, "Malleus, we're coming up on the entrance now!"
"What in the world...?!" Silver says, shocked.
What they see is that the fire lotuses have engulfed the college as well.
"Oh man, there are firelotuses everywhere!" Deuce says, shocked.
"The once tidy, stately campus is in shambles…" Sebek says.
"I thought we'd head straight for the tower, but the flower infestation is worse than I'd imagined," Azul says.
"This takes 'the floor is lava' to a whole other level. It's all damage tiles and no safe spots!" Idia says, "We're fine now since we're far enough away, but if we YOLO this, we'll get weaker with every step and eventually it'll be game over."
"Hm. Perhaps we could take Shroud's advice and employ some sort of tool to solve this dilemma?" Malleus says.
"Good idea," Briar says.
Sebek smiles and says, "That's our Malleus! You waste no time putting feedback into practice! Your quick thinking never ceases to amaze me!"
"Y'know... I was wondering if we could fly on those cleaning brooms propped up against the wall. But I guess the flowers would pick up on our magic and swarm us, huh?" Ruggie says.
"Flight magic?" Azul says, "To be honest, I'd prefer exploring ANY other option."
"THANK YOU. Us introverts avoid flight class like the plague," Idia says.
"What do you mean, 'us'?" Azul questions, "Don't assume I'm a slacker like you! I put in a great deal of effort, thank you very much."
"I mean, I'd say it's sadder if you still can't do something after putting in the work. Regardless, I think Azul's got the right idea—for once," Jamil says.
"Indeed. Look at the firelotuses' supple vines. They're quick and grow and contract freely. They're like whips, really. You would need to be a very skilled flier to get through, otherwise they'd ensnare you at once," Rook says.
"Yeah, I'm not sure I could evade that many flowers in the air," Silver says.
"Then, what are we gonna do?" Epel asks.
Malleus then says, "I could use my magic to wilt all the flowers in the area. I couldn't do it all the time with my remaining reserves, but we need a way forward right now."
"No, please, don't do it!" Briar cries out.
Even Azul says, "Malleus, wait! We need to be cautious and formulate a proper plan. This battle is essentially a chess game. Even if we lose a few pieces along the way, as long as one of us can ring the bell at the end, we win. And who would risk their king to take a pawn in the first few turns?"
"Um…" Deuce says, trying to think, "Sorry, this whole chess analogy's going over my head."
Azul remains silent.
Riddle apologizes, "...I'm sorry about Deuce."
"Hey, I'm with him on that. How about spelling it out for the rest of us?" Ruggie says.
Idia then says, " PFFT. 'snicker' Nice try with the Board Game Club flex, Azul."
"Oh, shut up," Azul replies, annoyed.
Then Idia says, "Anyway, this is what Azul was trying to say… We gotta choose which game pieces we move forward and which ones we sacrifice."
"Sacrifice?!" Sebek exclaims.
Deuce realizes, "Wait, so you mean…"
"Somebody's gotta be the bait while the rest of us move on and conserve our energy," Idia says.
"But the person who acts as bait would definitely get injured," Silver points out.
"That's a sacrifice we gotta make if we wanna meet the win condition: ring the bell," Idia says.
Malleus thinks, "Hm... In chess terms, it would be called a gambit. By giving up one of their valuable game pieces, the player creates a more advantageous situation on the board."
"I just simplified this for you, and now we're going BACK to chess?!" Idia says, shocked.
"Must we truly make someone act as bait?" Silver says, "In that case, I volun—"
But someone calls out, "Wait."