A common tactic used for large-scale combat is to always let the heavy hitters attack with their strongest primary abilities which were known as the 'First Barrage', then follow up the 'Second Barrage' with a raid of secondary ability specialists so that the heavy hitters can restock in Xorlaz.
My fingers felt numb from the number of times I tried practicing my 'Blixt', but I still wanted to contribute to the First Barrage. As the Colorless revealed themselves behind the forcefield and began charging towards us, we awaited our leader's command. Emily and Zack stood behind me with their knees bent in preparation for a runout.
The silhouettes were all distanced from one another but they all seemed intimidating while advancing. There were at least 2 on every rooftop or hanging on the walls and there are about 30-45 different types of apartment buildings in that area.
I'll let you do the math.
"So you're the Jailbreaker kid, huh?" He remarked in his raspy voice.
I turned to my right to see an older-looking CoDa with a slicked-back hairstyle, he had a muscular physique and a masculine posture, his arms crossed while glaring at me. He continued, "Name's Darrell RainWave, Rank 67, Class K-Karkinos if you were wondering. I've been meaning to ask; people say that you're an anomaly, do you agree?"
"Darrell, Nathan's already stressed as he is, please don't make it any worse."
"Was I talking to you, Ms. PsyFlare?" He gave a sharp look at her as she returned the gesture, he continued, "Answer the question, Kid."
"I-I don't know, sir," I responded.
Darrell glared a little while longer then looked back towards the silhouettes, "heh, you're more genuine than I thought, most people would take pride in it and get cocky. Just because something is rare or an oddity does not always mean it's a good thing, I know from experience."
"Uh, Do you dislike me?"
Darrell chuckled a little, "Ah, no. Sorry if I sounded harsh." My shoulders relaxed while he chuckled, "I heard that your primary ability uses Storm Style combat, is that correct?" I nodded.
"Well, my primary ability is the manipulation of rainfall, what do you think about combining our attacks into one, hmm?" Darrell suggested with a grin.
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The Distant Storm Arc: Minimum
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"-As long as you can branch out the strike, then the rest can take care of itself. Got it?" Darrell explained.
"Understood."
Darrell took a deep breath before pulling out an item from his pocket. He closed his eyes while looking at the sky, feeling the rain shower upon his face. He remarked, "Hey kid, do you know what minimalism is?"
"Minimalism? I've heard about it. Isn't it some sort of art movement that expresses simplicity of art and music?" I guessed.
"Huh, close enough. Minimalism is not just art and music but lifestyle too. As Richard Holloway has once said, it's the simplicity, clarity, and singleness that gives our lives power and joy. Before I became a CoDa, I was a passionate minimalist; I still am but my interest has dimmed over the years." Darrell gently threw the item over to me as I caught it, upon catching I realized that they were headphones. "Nowadays, minimalism is a difficult thing to appreciate, our world has become complex and our need to give meaning to our everyday devices can often time forsake our own health and relationships. Sometimes, you just need to clear your mind and love the simple things in life."
Emily spoke in, "Darrell, what are you getting him into? He may become distracted with all that music."
"Calm down, I know that it's frowned upon but this is just the way I do things and I prefer to keep my collaborators in sync with my actions. Besides, I think I have a good sense of picking the right music for the mood. Nathan, if you want to take a glimpse of a world in a new light then go ahead and wear those headphones. Who knows, maybe you'll be able to perform better too." Darrell smirked and proceeded to wear his own headphones, I hesitantly followed his actions and wore the headphones as well.
I didn't notice how loud the sound of raindrops was until I wore the headphones, everything became muffled, almost silent. It was quiet, the sounds of rain and thunder were distant now. As if I was inside my house during a rainstorm.
I looked over to Darrell who stretched out both of his arms and crossed them over, his palm facing forth against the silhouettes. His eyes sharp with a wide grin across his face, his fingers tensed and trembled as if they would pop out of his hand at any moment. "Play 'Floe' by Philip Glass". Darrell mumbled a command.
That's when the first few tones of sound came through the speakers, I was listening to Minimal music for the first time.
(Song name: Floe by Philip Glass)
Time slowed down, I could see every speck of raindrops around me. Lightning slowly coursed through the clouds at the distance, branching out its path like a tree to find the quickest way to the ground. I began reminiscing about my youth, I saw my uncle working in his usual workshop, I saw Zack eating with me at the local cafeteria, laughing and smiling. I look at the puddle below me, seeing my own reflection. Since when did my eyes become so exhausted and sapped of life?
Sometimes, you just need to clear your mind and enjoy the simple things in life.
Time returned back to its usual state, the rain showering relentlessly upon me. The song began to pick up the rhythm as a flash of lightning came and disappeared, soon followed by a loud thunder. The dark silhouettes began rushing towards us like a wave, I stretched out my hand again, readied to snap my fingers. I could hear Avis' muffled voice commanding us, "All frontal units, initiate the first barrage!"
I looked at Darrell as he quickly pulled his hands back, raindrops piling up in the clouds and none reaching the ground. He gestured his arms across each other and brought them close to his chest as if putting on a guarding pose, turning his hands into fists. The song now fluently synchronizing with the heavy rain and the thunderclouds, every instrument adding to the atmosphere of the environment.
With an Italien-Spanish accent, he exclaimed, "Pluit Ignem!" Before pulling his hands down, pumping up his chest and roaring with his voice sending trembling shivers down my spine. Ahead of me, I could see the raindrops start pouring downwards at incredible speed, hitting every Colorless in the area like bullets. It was similar to seeing multiple hydro cutters shooting downwards and cutting through everything, living or not. I was in awe, seeing the world anew, although the clouds were grey and the sky dark, I felt in peace.
I realized that this was my cue to attack as well, I stretched my left hand in front of me with my palm facing the sky and brought my right hand close to it. I snap my fingers on my right hand as a discharge of sparks came out and touched my palm, followed by a bolt of lightning falling from the sky and hitting my palm. There was a brief moment of shockwave all around me before I noticed that my hand was enveloped in electricity. I looked ahead at the few Colorless who were managing to dodge and blocking the raindrops from hitting them, I pointed my left hands towards them and focused as a small bolt of lightning flew out of my finger, traveled through the hundreds of raindrops in the sky and struck on the target I was pointing at, making them tremble and shake in pain. I didn't fully damage them but simply incapacitated them until the real attack would come. There was a flash that blinded me for a brief moment but I tried not to look away from the display, a larger bolt of lightning struck the same target that I electrocuted and this time they were done for good.
Darrell was right, with the rain, my lightning bolts are able to course through it and hit the targets more easily. Sometimes even splitting off and hitting other Colorless as well. I then pointed with both my index and middle finger as two more tiny lightning strikes shot out, hit the target and incapacitated them before a thunderbolt fell from the sky and hit the two targets. I took out another finger and shot out bolts of electricity, then another and another until all five of my fingers were shooting out small bolts of electricity. Shooting out multiple shots of electricity like a machine gun, the bolts of lightning spread out like branches in a tree, hitting dozens more than it usually would.
I finally shouted, "Kluven...Blixt!"
Which meant Split Lightning.
Every Coda looked at the battlefield ahead of us, how I and Darrel had been completely in sync with each other, complementing each other's abilities. Soon we both had lost a heavy amount of Xorlaz too and were not able to continue, that was everyone else's cue to attack and initiate the Second Barrage. "That was amazing work, Nathan, you've done us a great favor." Emily complimented as she tapped on my shoulder then jumped from the rooftop, her feet bursting into flames as she trajected forward. Everyone else began to follow Emily's lead as they began rushing out from the ledges. Zack tapped on my shoulder but didn't look at me, instead, he slightly smiled as he created a slope made of ice and began skating down it.
Darrel and I, as well as everyone else who partook the First Barrage were exhausted as we backed away from the ledge. I took off my headphones as I panted and looked at Darrel who continued to look ahead at the battlefield with a grin.
For the first time in a long while, I genuinely smiled.
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When Nathan arrived at the tower, he expected fewer people to be waiting at the base floor, individuals who wanted to save their loved ones and friends and would do anything to get them out. But to his surprise, there were a lot more, he assumed that there were about 30-40 people. Many of them didn't notice Nathan's arrival and those who did never cared too much. In the base floor were two stairs leading up to the second platform from which hooded figures stood aiming with a lethal weapon. Ready to shoot if anyone ever attempts to make a rash choice. The center of the room had a counter with a marble wall behind it and a Holovision screen being displayed on the wall with the same symbol Nathan during the start of the broadcast. Nathan figured that that symbol was the terrorist signature symbol.
"You take an inch close to these stairs and I'll turn you into mincemeat!" Shouted one of the hooded figures followed by a slight cackle.
"Hey, can I pull the trigger? I really want to pull the trigger, I really want to spray 'em. Can I do it? They're just standing there like morons, it's like they're asking me to shoot!" Another one snickered.
Among the mumbling crowds, people shared ugly remarks in both English and Swedish, "De här jävla terrorister är galen, va fan?"
"Those bastards took my daughter."
There were a few minutes of mumbling and whispers while Nathan tried to be discrete about his appearance but it didn't matter. Nathan felt a strong grip placed on his shoulder as someone spoke in a begrudging tone.
"Why the hell are you doing here, demon?" Nathan did not seem to recognize this man and he didn't like him either, the person seemed to be older than Nathan and had quite the hateful glare. His green eyes were sharp with dark circles like he hasn't slept well in the last few days.
Nathan gripped the man's arm, returning the sharp glare, "I don't know who the hell you are but if you don't let go of me this instant, you will regret it."
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To Be Continued
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Thank you for reading this chapter!
Wow, a whole summer passed and I only published 2 chapters. Don't know what it is with me and motivation but whenever I need to do actual work like studying then that's where I get the mood to write and when I do have free time, I just waste it by playing games or watching movies. *Sigh*
Just so you all know, I've also started studying Maritime and Logistics at university so I am 'back to school' yet again.
Well, I hope you still enjoyed this quite short chapter, I'm thinking of making slightly shorter chapters from now on in order to publish more often.
Be sure to vote and leave a comment telling me what you thought of the chapter and the story so far! Until then.