86 Now You See Me (1/2)

”Do you see Luca's squad?” I asked to whoever could hear me through the screaming of soldiers and the clanking of steel against steel.

The battle of the two center armies had been going on for a while now, and from my vantage point right behind our army's vanguard, I'd lost sight of the other units I was in charge of. I couldn't help it. I was distracted by all the carnage around me.

Aura rode to my side and immediately raised her Hearthwood staff in front of her. She took aim, and after saying the command, ”Firebolt!” launched a bolt of flames from the staff's glowing red orb into the melee of soldiers at our front. The flames streaked past the Darah soldiers and exploded onto the face of an ugly hobgoblin who'd been eyeing me like I was a piece of steak it wanted to gut.

I gave Aura the thumbs up. ”Thanks… that guy was ugly. You have eyes on the other teams?”

Aura raised a hand forward. ”Ten O'clock, Dean… I think that's Luca and Ashley's group.”

My gaze searched the area Aura pointed out. They were about thirty yards away when I found them, but they were definitely the Foolhardies. It wasn't just our Flag of Fools raised high above them, but I could clearly see several of our veterans engaged in a fight with a clump of Magesong soldiers.

Luca, in particular, was showing some real recklessness as he waded into the sea of gray, cutting wide sweeps through the enemies with Shaqs' battle-ax. Ashley ran behind him, covering his back with her shield while hacking at any stray soldier Luca had missed.

”Looks like they're in the thick of things,” I said annoyed.

I know it was my plan to create as much carnage as possible while they raised our flag, but I was resistant to putting my little brother in this much danger. If only Qwipps wasn't milking his injuries, I wouldn't have asked Luca to step up like he did now.

”They're certainly getting attention from the Magesong soldiers clustered around them,” Aura agreed. ”They really must not like you, Dean.”

I grimaced at her words because she was right. The soldiers we were fighting now were the remnants of Jimmy Jonas' forces. They probably thought Luca was me and were dead set on getting payback.

As I watched my brother send another pretty elf boy's head flying, I couldn't help but feel annoyed with how insistent he was to put himself in danger.

”How much longer do you think can they keep this up?” I asked.

Aura's eyes squinted. ”Not much longer, I think.” Ashley pointed to the sky above Luca's troops. ”It was a good idea to send Varda's magicians to support them.”

My gaze followed the direction Aura had pointed at, and what I saw made my eyes widen. ”Holy shit!”

A heavy round object was flying toward them. It looked suspiciously like a cannon ball, but was more like a comet with a tail of water trailing behind it.

”Varda do something!” I yelled, although I hadn't expected a response from where I was. I certainly didn't expect to see Varda's earthen wall appear out of nowhere and rise to about fifteen feet to block the projectile's path toward Luca's squad. This pleasant surprise made me pump a fist in the air. ”Way to go, you talented little dwarf!”

The enemy's projectile exploded onto the earthen wall in a shower of rain and mist. The impact was so strong it crumbled the top half of Varda's Earth Wall.

Debris and scalding droplets of water fell onto Luca's troops. Thankfully, Ashley's shield squad had been prepared and blocked most of the falling projectiles with their raised shields.

I let out a relieved sigh. ”Spell cannons are such a cheat. Remind me to steal one if we ever we get through the enemy's lines.”

Aura didn't have time to answer. Her hand shot up and pointed past Luca's squad.

A good thirty yards away, a wave of enemy soldiers marched underneath a gray banner with a Japanese Kanji at its center.

I recognized the symbol that stood for Bushido and immediately felt chills rise up my spine.

”That's not the Dagger Spell's flag, but…” Aura's voice sounded strained. Almost like she was having difficulty finding her next words. ”...that flag belongs to Azuma's Immortals… Looks like your plan worked, Dean. We got their attention.”