NOVEL FROG Chapter 102: The Urgency
A few minutes before Candy and Priscilla left the castle, Tricky and Nitro had done the same but headed straight back to the suburban area. They ran together in silence, glancing back here and there as they tried to make sense of what was going on. They couldn’t help but notice that no one other than them had managed to escape the castle, but after turning the corner in the upper-class district, they focused solely on getting their gear back to be able to fight. For that reason, they ignored everything else, including the startled people around as they ran through a rather busy market to reach the shops on the first commercial street.
The citizens were oblivious to what was going on in the castle, but since the market was closing, they were already heading back home, blocking the way for Nitro and Tricky, who eventually reached Charlotte shops before they closed. While the owner was tending a few clients in the flower shop, Tricky sneaked to the back of the hardware store, with Nitro following her but waiting outside to keep an eye on the streets. But as she rummaged through her stuff, Nitro couldn’t contain his curiosity and entered the shop to look over the counter, taking a peek at Tricky, who was sitting down on the floor, holding one of her many strange devices while looking around.
–What are you searching for? We need to get our weapons!– Nitro exclaimed impatiently, immediately annoying Tricky, who tried to ignore him until he tried to jump over the counter to enter the workshop.
–I need to make sure no one gets their hands on this stuff. We would be in much greater danger if they found out about the EMD– Tricky replied irritated, continuing to secure her creations by hiding them behind and under the counter while also clearing some space to grab the EMD and stash it somewhere.
–Well, can’t you just pass me one of your gadgets to get out there and fight?– Nitro asked with a slightly playful tone as he stepped into the workshop to look for which invention of hers could be useful. But before he got a good look, she pulled him out of the workshop and closed the door in anger.
–No, just grab a sword like you are supposed to– Tricky responded, growing furious by his presence and refusal to leave as he continued fooling around during an emergency.
–But you have all that cool stuff just waiting to be used…– Nitro argued with a bit of disappointment, but his begging only tested Tricky’s patience, and she was not in the mood to discuss these matters at the moment, so he pushed him away.
–They are not finished! Now stop annoying me and go help out, I need to lock this place up– Tricky yelled in frustration before turning her back to him and grabbing some equipment from the counter, including a bag with her clothes.
–Ughh, fine. But you are wasting my potential by not giving me a good weapon…– Nitro sighed in discontent but continued taking the situation lightly as he casually walked out of the hardware store to go look for a weapon while Tricky stayed at the workshop, now seemingly salvaging some of her creations.
Despite the urgency, Nitro was indecisive and only looked for a sword before waiting for Tricky at the intersection with the main road. Shortly after leaving the story, the two regrouped there, and while Tricky was frustrated to see him so unprepared, she had changed clothes and grabbed her toolbox and backpack, so they started heading back up the main road without saying a word. But before they could go help at the castle, they noticed more people around them getting startled, and this time, it wasn’t because they were running. They looked around to see if the enemies had already come down to the rest of the city, and for a moment, it seemed like it, but they were then relieved when they realized it was the princess running down the main road alongside Candy.
–Is that?...– Nitro asked himself, bewildered, trying to make out who was approaching since Candy and Priscilla were almost unrecognizable with their ruined and dirty dresses. He and Tricky were speechless until they got closer and saw Candy immediately running for a hug, though only for Tricky.
–Thank goodness you are safe! I thought you were still trapped in there– Candy exclaimed in relief, with a big, bright smile and a few tears, which prompted an awkward reaction from Nitro, who just stood next to them while trying to check on the princess. Tricky was also relieved to see her sister safe and sound, but she was a bit more worried about the fact that only she and Priscilla were able to escape.
–What happened? What is going on in the castle?– Tricky asked nervously, but kept her composure to not panic and let the girls catch their breath. Priscilla ignored her as she was busier being surrounded by the concerned citizens and easing their worries, but she only sparked more questions, letting Candy explain the current situation.
–Spook broke in… They are now fighting with the rest, but I think the guests are still there. There were so many omens, I didn’t know what to do but run and-...!– Candy replied, growing anxious the more she explained and talking rapidly to explain everything despite running out of breath quickly. Tricky tried to calm her down as her sister crumbled under the pressure, especially with most of the people gathering around now fearing the worst. All of a sudden, Tricky found herself taking the lead to control the panic, and while she wasn’t comfortable doing so, she got help from Nitro to start leading all the people away to safety.
–Alright, calm down. We are heading there right now…– Tricky replied firmly, turning her focus to the castle to help the rest of the team as soon as possible. But while Candy calmed herself down, Nitro urged the citizens to leave, and after distracting himself by looking around the road, he noticed another big commotion coming from further down, around the fountain, and it seemed like it wasn’t due to the princess’ presence.
–Wait, what is that?– Nitro asked while staring at the entrance of the city with slight concern, but he was dubious of the people gathered near the gate, almost dismissive of them if it weren’t for the few guards frantically picking up their weapons and their alarming call to assume their positions. Tricky took a moment to notice, but once she and Candy saw what the guards were doing, they instantly got the idea of what was to come.
–Oh no, they are trying to get in. They are going to surround us… We have to protect the citizens!– Candy exclaimed in fright, already panicking at the sheer sight of the city being broken into. They couldn’t see if the enemy was really behind, but the thought of the city coming under an assault was enough to make her, Priscilla, and the people around her freak out, though it was the princess who took it the worst and started screaming.
–Everyone take shelter right now. We are under attack!– Priscilla yelled at her people, who were in disbelief at first, but as she kept screaming and being straightforward with her warning, they took the order seriously and started running for their lives in all directions. They mainly headed away from the gate, but since they also couldn’t go to the castle, they formed a stampede around the intersection with the market and commercial streets, scattering in search of hiding spots.
The streets erupted in chaos since the citizens of Rysemery didn’t know where to go. There wasn’t a protocol for them to follow, so they instinctively went for the high ground, or as high as they could go, as well as the very edges of the mountain, at the end of the market or the park. Crisis avoided getting in the way by staying close to the left side of the road, but they had to wait for the people from the fields and lower houses to run up since they took up the whole road to escape.
But during this, some took advantage of the unfolding mayhem to loot shops as much as possible. Seeing this, the princess tried her best to control the population, though she only got the help of a couple of guards standing by, so she only ran after the panicked citizens to force everyone home. She only seemed to instill more terror in the streets, but at least she allowed Nitro, Tricky, and Candy to deal with the situation properly, even though they were confused at first and didn’t know if she would be safe with the little company she had.
–That’s a way to do it I guess…– Nitro commented with a puzzled but impressed expression as he watched the princess run away with the rest of the people. She didn’t pay much attention to it, but Candy tried to chase after her, only to turn around when she saw the bigger threat waiting for them at the gate. They knew they had to head there to assess the situation, but they had to hurry up since the guards were struggling to keep the gate closed, as it looked like the enemies were trying to break it from the top.
–Can they break in? They can’t get in here if we keep this close, right?– Candy asked in disbelief, searching for some reassurance to justify the panic since it looked like the gate was strong enough to keep everyone out. But as much as she tried to stay optimistic and worry about the problem, the guards painted a widely different picture.
–They are coming from the bridge, but they might be climbing th-... AHH! I DON’T WANNA DIE!– one of the guards responded in anguish but then screamed as one large chunk of rock from the top of the gate dropped next to him, almost crushing him and one of his partners.
Somehow, the enemy managed to shoot through and knock a big block off the sturdy wall, and it looked like it wouldn’t stop there as the gate began trembling and slowly cracking up in various parts. Unlike the rest of the walls, the gate was thinner, and while the giant rock was too heavy for the omens to move from the other side, they resorted to their heavy equipment to breach in.
All of a sudden, the situation was much more intense than Crisis thought. Hearing even more soldiers than in the castle coming through the breach, as well as knowing that the enemy could now break the gate easily, created a sense of urgency that made them even more anxious than the guards. But despite the stress of being the only ones able to help them hold out against the powerful omens, Tricky managed to regain her composure and think of some sort of plan.
–We can’t leave now. If we let them in, it’s all over– Tricky claimed tenaciously, already pulling out some gadgets out of her toolbox to set up traps at the gate. But unlike her, Nitro and Candy didn’t seem too eager to stay here and fight with the bare minimum against the possible army waiting outside.
–But we have to help Frost and Indie, they are fighting all alone! We’ll need them, we can’t fight like this!– Candy exclaimed in frustration, turning to Nitro for some sort of response, which he gave in the form of a silent and nervous nod. They both tried running back to the castle to group up with the rest of the squad, but before they got a chance to, Tricky grabbed their arms and pulled them back to the gate to help her out.
–No, they can fight on their own. We have to focus on defending the gate and stalling them for as long as possible. I’m sure they’ll get here and help us soon, but for now, we need to come up with something…– Tricky responded adamantly, adopting a determined look that inspired some hope in the guards. She looked more willing to defend the city than them, so they had to psych themselves up to gain the same level of resolve. And while it was admirable to give it all without Frost, Kiwy, or Indie’s help, Candy and Nitro weren’t too pleased with their chances.
–Come up with what?– Nitro asked in confusion, giving in to the pressure of the gate being rocked and the faint cheers of the enemy behind. Tricky remained silent for a moment, completely ignoring him and her sister since she tried to focus on setting up some metal plates in the ground after cutting both steel ropes used to open the gate.
The mechanism required pretty much all the guards to keep the gate secured as the ground below them was becoming unstable, so with the ropes gone, the gate was permanently closed, though Tricky still made sure to block it by welding the metal plates to the ground and setting up a knee-high barrier for them. Some guards helped her after grabbing some tools and locking the gate in place, but with Nitro persisting with his question, Tricky let the guards do all the work after running out of patience.
–Anything! Just think!– Tricky yelled exasperatedly after the disarray overwhelmed her, but she was still able to lock the gate in place successfully now that all the heavy metal plates she brought were steadily fixed to the ground. While her orders forced Candy and Nitro to figure out a way to help out with more than just the barrier, they didn’t seem capable of coming up with any ideas due to the stress. But it was only after trying to use his sword to dig a hole in the ground for a guard to set up a plate that Nitro appeared to have something in mind, even when he hesitated for a long time to share it.
–Actually, I have been working on something just in case this happened…– Nitro mentioned quietly, almost muttering as he became too anxious to even speak near Tricky while she was in this state. But as he still garnered her attention since Candy had nothing to say, Nitro looked away to not face her reaction as Tricky became skeptical for the most part.
–What are you talking about?– Tricky asked with slight confusion, turning to Candy, who had no idea what he was talking about and stored all the tools back with the help of the guards to keep herself busy. As it was now only Tricky staring at him, Nitro became nervous to respond, but since she didn’t have the patience to wait for him, he didn’t waste any more time and begrudgingly revealed what he had planned.
–You’ll probably get mad, but just hear me out… Here, follow me…– Nitro replied, still hesitant but being concise enough with his explanation to win Tricky’s attention for a brief moment. She didn’t want to follow him, but since he was going to show him what he was talking about instead of telling it, she brought Candy over as they followed him to the field on their left, opposite the barracks and training area.
They were cautious to leave the guards behind, but once Nitro led them through a straight path from the fountain to an area with a few big barns and storage silos, they hurried up and headed directly into the nearest barn. It was one encrusted in the mountain, partially hidden from the rest, and quite dark from the inside, but it was there that they found their only risky but useful option.