“I know.” I told him. “Too busy saving the city and maybe the world to get back on time and put the kids to bed. Now move it. We have more incoming.”

  He laughed stood up quickly for a six-and-a-half-foot-tall, heavily muscled green warrior. “On my way, Warchief. Lok’tar ogar!” he shouted as he CHARGEd off toward a new target.

  Ingrid and another Healer had arrived and were already healing the man. When he woke up, I gave him the command to follow the healer with his people and do as they told him, including releasing his CHARM on his people…and then go to sleep.

  “Let me know when he’s out so I can release my CHARM. I need the slot,” I told them.

  “Got it,” Ingrid said. “Good thing you stopped Gar-Kosh when you did. A day ago, this guy might not have lived from a beating like that,”

  “I know. Do what you do best, then follow me to the other one.” I turned and ran to where Andrew was sitting on the controller. His guy looked in better shape than Gar’s.

  “Will,” he said, looking up at me, “I’ve never been happier than when that RESISTED message flashed at me. I don’t think this guy was expecting that.”

  “Or a knight in shining armor’s shield smashing into him.”

  Hitting the controller with a CHARM PERSON, I paused while Ingrid healed him. Afterwards, I gave him the same orders I’d given the others.

  A roar like a game-winning home team touchdown came out of the stadium, and Blaze shouted, “More shields!” It was the sound of many mage spells going off at the same time. Our shields took the brunt of it. Most went down.

  Looking into the stadium past the entryway, I saw three more groups abreast, and their front line was firing spells at us. It sounded like our side from our earlier battle today.

  Doing a quick head count, these were groups of sixteen. The last ones had been a maximum of twelve. That meant higher-level controllers. At least level two…probably three.

  [Blaze:] [BATTLEGROUND] [There’s someone behind those people. He may be controlling the controllers. Can someone get him? I think he’s out of range for my FIRE BOLT.]

  [PokerRun:] [BATTLEGROUND] [I got eyes on him. Take him?]

  [Blaze:] [BATTLEGROUND] [Can you take him down without killing him?]

  [PokerRun:] [BATTLEGROUND] [I can do ten for ten at twice the range. Can’t say he won’t bleed out.]

  [Blaze:] [BATTLEGROUND] [Roger that. Will, can you get to him?]

  [William of Brinsford:] [BATTLEGROUND] [Can do. Tanks, make me a hole in the right side. Bhaarrt, as soon as I shield you, you three make the hole. Healers heal the guy PokerRun shoots. I’m behind you as fast as I can run.]

  [Bartholomew Ironshaper:] [BATTLEGROUND] [Roger that. We ready.]

  Casting three quick shields at 100 points of DEFENSE each on the tanks, I saved Bhaarrt for last. I hoped it was enough for this one shot. I heard his war cry of “Bhaarrt SMASH!” and saw the Tanks CHARGE. Putting half my remaining Mana in a shield attached to me, I ran as fast as I could. “I hope it’s fast enough at least I had some rest” was my last thought before the spells started hitting my shield.

  We heard PokerRun’s shot from across the street behind us. Less than a second later, we heard a scream from behind the people I was running toward. Then, through a gap, I saw the controller of the closest group shooting an ICE BOLT at me.

  CHARM PERSON! Followed by my usual order for him and his group to stop shooting, go behind our lines, follow people’s instructions, release them, and go to sleep.

  My MANA SHIELD was on fumes. Rather than keep pumping Mana into it, I created a new one ahead of us just as the old one dropped. Then there was a FIRE SHIELD between the groups and where I was running. It gave me time to pop another Mana Battery.

  Finally, I saw Bhaarrt and Gar-Kosh, their shields up, protecting Andy and the man he was kneeling astride. My side and legs hurt from the run and I wasn’t there yet. I wasn’t sure I could make it.

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  That was the moment I felt a HEAL hit me, followed by a second and a third that healed over time. It gave me a momentary second wind, and I used it to get within my CHARM distance. A spell later, they stopped casting at me and the rest of our rag-tag army.

  We’re getting too much practice doing this.

  Bending over, hands on my thighs, I caught my breath as three riot-geared warriors passed me with Ingrid, Agra, and a doctor whose name didn't come to mind right behind them.

  “Will. You, OK?” Blaze asked, stopping next to me.

  “I’ll live. Thank you…and thank God for our Healers.”

  “Ingrid and Agra were keeping their husbands topped off, and the doctor has Sir Andrew,” Blaze told me. “I don’t know how they kept behind the cops and their shields, but they did it like they’d spent all day practicing it.”

  “We can’t keep doing this. There are too many of them and I’m running out of MANA. They won’t give us time to rest and recharge. My CHARMing their boss stopped the other two bosses.”

  “We’re all running out of MANA. What do we do?” Blaze asked. “How do we stop them?”

  “Without killing people…mostly innocent people…I don’t think we can.”

  “I agree,” came a voice from behind us. Turning, I was face to face with Chief Brown.

  “So how do we do it, Chief? Or do we pull back and let them loose on the rest of the university and town?” I asked him.

  “I don’t know. You’re the Warchief. How we do it is your job,” he replied.

  “How many people die today to win this? We’re not facing the local gangs with guns and hostages. Except for whoever is behind this, I think every damn one of them is being controlled. We don’t know where the big boss is. Somewhere behind all of them, for all I know.”

  “He’s in the Athletic Director’s office,” Blaze told us.

  Twisting back towards her, I asked. “How do you know?”

  “Shadow messaged me. Lockout got Shadow, Samson, and Nurse Melissa into the security office. He has control of the security cameras. He found him. They’re on their way there.”

  “What’s she planning on doing?”

  “She said scout first, then whatever. That’s all she said.”

  “What about the rest of S&P?”

  “She didn’t say.”

  “Can she kill him? She’s changed from the Iceman.”

  “Ask her, not me. If she does, will it stop this?”

  “I don’t know. I don’t know if that releases control or what he can do because I don’t know his level. Only one way to find out. Take him out.”

  Turning back to Eddington’s Police Chief, I asked him, “If we kill him, what legally happens to us?”

  “I’m not going to arrest any of you, if that’s what you’re asking. If killing him releases all the controlled people, then do it. Otherwise, Blaze’s right. We can’t hold against this many people. We have more help coming, but don’t have an ETA. They’re trickling in. I don’t think they’ll get here in time.”

  “Got it. I hate to do this, but for the record, will you authorize Shadow to kill the one behind this if she has to? You deputized the five of us after we went out the first time.”

  “Yes. Do it. Just make sure she gets out of there alive.”

  “I do the best I can.”

  [William of Brinsford:] [Urako Sarutobi] [We hear from Lockout you’re on the way to the man you think is controlling this. Chief Brown authorized lethal force. You can kill him if you have to. Can you get out if you do? We can’t get to you for support.]

  [Urako Sarutobi:] [William of Brinsford] [got Mel wit me and Samson. we do this. Lockout gave us keys to get there.]

  [Lockout:] [William of Brinsford] [Update. I have Shadow and her crew on the security cameras. The hallway to the office is open w/no guards. Give them 2 minutes to get to the office. I’ll let you know what’s happening.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Lockout] [Are they showing on your cameras?]

  [Lockout:] [William of Brinsford] [Yeah. They’re running fast so I don’t think they STEALTHed yet.]

  A few seconds later, he updated me again.

  [Lockout:] [William of Brinsford] [They’re through the last gate and it's a straight run in. No guards outside.]

  Heaving a great sigh of relief, I looked at what was coming towards us. They’d be on us before Shadow could get there.

  [William of Brinsford:] [Lockout] [Can you see inside the office?]

  [Lockout:] [William of Brinsford] [1 camera but doesn’t cover all of it. Two rooms. Outer and inner offices. Camera in outer office.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Lockout] [Got it.]

  “Shadow’s outside the office,” I called out. “No one around. Boudoir’s charm dropped when we knocked her out. I hope his does too.”

  “It didn’t release her slaves when she went down. They just stopped,” Ingrid reminded me. “We think she has to release them, and we’re keeping her unconscious.”

  When I glanced at her, she didn't look happy. “I looked up the SLAVER skill, it didn’t say what it took to release them. It may only release if Boudoir dies,” she continued. “They’re at the hospital as well, but so far, they just sit there waiting for her.”

  “Got it,” I said. “Thanks for the info.”

  [William of Brinsford:] [Urako Sarutobi] [If the boss has a Slaver profession, knocking him out won’t release his slaves and all the controllers have a slave tag. Only the grunts are CHARMed.]

  [Urako Sarutobi:] [William of Brinsford] [roger that. we at door and lockout say 5 inside]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Urako Sarutobi] [REVEAL STATS will tell you who you can ignore and who to take out. Keep as many alive as you can.]

  [Urako Sarutobi:] [William of Brinsford] [boss is mine. we take the 2 in office then the boss. Shit! Someone commin dis way]

  [Lockout:] [William of Brinsford] [Got someone coming down the hall towards them from the inside of the stadium.]

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUiWnHgYw74

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