Who Will be the First to Fall?

[Nadia Donovan]

The battle had begun. It wasn't exactly hard to miss anything. This particular battle was displayed before the academics. Below the academics. Waiting on Orchid's roof, watching the carnage. The question was - who will be the first to fall. It was hard to say. The enemy had the advantage of surprise - Jack had had no time to come up with brilliant stratedgies; but on the other hand, Orchid was a force to be reckoned with.
It was impossible to tell who was winning down below. It was pretty much impossible to tell anything about what was going on below. Which made theur job so much harder. How were they supposed to come up with stratedgies for the Spies and Warriors if they couldn't tell what was happening. The only thing that seemed really clear that both sides' number were rapidly depleating. The range of skills and abilities was amazing. It was easy to see, in this battle situation, why Orchid was Orchid Hill Academy for the Gifted. Not hard at all. It was very unfortunate that the other side were also gifted. Nadia could see many things happening from either side which she couldn't explain or even tell what exactly they were doing.
It really was impossible to call. But the question remained - who would be the first to fall?

[Dimitri Hashfield]

Another battle.
Another bloodbath.
Another day filled with rage.
Another mindless game.
Another pointless loss of lives.
Dimitri would never understand why humans always tried to settle disputes in violence and the loss of lives. Apparantly every human on earth, and it didn't matter how dominant or how minuscule that part was, that thirsted for violence, blood and pain.
He was giving Jack a run down out of what was happening on around him while he was pre-occupied with disarming and probably breaking their noses. Dimitri had asked to be put in the Academics as he was tired of fighting and could probably do more with tactics and strategies.
Jack, your three o'clock! he suddenly spoke to the Dep. Head of Warriors. And while helping others out on the battlefield he ran through what had happened...what? nearly twenty minutes ago?
Jack stood on the stage clearly nervous and in pain. Sorting through his thoughts or thinking over what had just happened to Madeleine Baudelaire and himself.
Then he cleared his throat and started to speak.
Baudelaire and I… well, we were jogging together in the fields separating the school from the village. I… cannot say our exact location at the occurrence of the confrontation, but I believe we were further down south, facing westwards, towards the village. As we came along the path, we approached two people- a young, dark-haired man in his early twenties, and an older, smaller, blonde woman. Naturally, Baudelaire and I assumed they were villagers, and paid them no further attention as we continued on our jog…” another throat clear, “The woman… stepped out. She spoke to me; she said-” another pause, She said she wanted to talk to me. Baudelaire and I both slowed down… and that’s when the woman launched herself at me and attacked. She caught me in a grip, but before Baudelaire could react, the young man... pulled out a gun. Baudelaire told me not to move. She was held at gunpoint and I could do nothing to save her without risking her life. And I was not, about to take that risk."
Dimitri knew Jack had been right to do that. Some things were not worth it. But this war was worth it. This battle was worth it. More importantly, Madeleine Baudelaire was worth it. They, the Spies and Warriors, were out there risking and giving their lives for Miss Baudelaire.
He knew they had to.
No battle could be fought without a Head.
No war could be won without its leader.
No cause could be saved without a force.
And no force could function without someone to guide and take control of it.
And so they were fighting for that cause.
They were laying down their lives on a silver platter for their school, head, friends, family and what they thought was right. But more than this that Dimitri had a new found respect for Jack in was for the way he gave each of those individual lives out there hope and trust. He had not been prepared for this battle at all. The enemy had come on a surprise basis. Jack told the Warriors and Spies to grab their shields and weapons and he had led them into what was now a fight or die situation.
So many young lives being taken without being rewarded. Such a pitty.
He sighed.
How many more where going to die?
And if so, would they be dead in vain?
And as these questions kept swirling around in his head, the battle continued. Screaming, metal on metal, lights flared, the elements raged and many more awful but effective powers took or saved lives.
No, Orchid Hill was not going to fall. They would make sure of it.
Jack, watch out behind you!

[The Delaney Twins]

ooc: The mere epicness of there being an Academic-focused post for this battle at all has made me want to post this with one of my random side characters =]

This was hell.
Everyone was out there. Everyone was out there doing something. The Warriors were gone, half the Carers were gone. Hell, even the Spies had managed to worm their way into this one!
But she wasn’t doing anything. Or at least, she wasn’t doing anything that about twenty other Academics would have been capable of doing. She wasn’t helping at all.
Jamie Mason had never thought in a million years that she would be jealous of the people out in battle, but she couldn’t deny that that was what she was feeling now. At least if she was out in the battle, she would be helping. She wouldn’t be stuck here, useless and redundant and terrified.
They were all out there; all her friends. They were all at risk, every last one of them. At least the last two battles she’d had Carmen and Delaney to keep her company (although the latter was no comfort at best and an utter annoyance at worst). And at least the last two battles, she’d known that Carmen and Delaney would be safe. She’d had the comfort of knowing that at least two of the people she cared about – or, well, one, anyway – wouldn’t die.
She had no such comfort now.
This was maddening, sitting up here on the roof, feeling the cold air bite her skin and watching the frenzied insect-warriors scurrying around below. She wasn’t of any use to anyone. From up here, she couldn’t even tell who was from Orchid; couldn’t tell who was the enemy.
All she saw were the rows upon rows of people falling.
She was so far away that she could barely hear their screams.
Another gust of wind blew into her face; a shrill sound came from behind.
She was so glad when she realised it was her phone ringing, despite the many glares she got from the people surrounding her. She didn’t care. She needed something to distract her. Anything. Turning away from the battle, she reached for her mobile, flipped it open, and held it to her ear.
“Hello?”
“Jamie?” asked a familiar voice. And immediately the familiar voice recognised the unfamiliar hysteria that was throbbing through Jamie’s own, and asked, “What’s wrong?”
She almost laughed with relief – would have laughed with relief, if she was the sort of person to do something like that. Instead, a sigh came out in shuddering gusts. “Cass,” she said, and relief hammered through the name. “Thank God.”
And hidden behind her words, Thank God you’re not in the battle. Thank God you left Orchid. Thank God you’re safe.
“Thank God for what? What’s going on? Why do you sound like that?”
And the relief left her. She didn’t want to have to explain this to him. But then, she didn’t have much of an option. “We’re at war. Again,” she said shortly, ignoring the further glares that she received.
Pause. Then a near-silent, “What?”
Her throat felt very dry. “It started a… I don’t know. It could have been an hour ago, or it could have been a minute. It’s all happened so fast.”
“Why are you at battle?” Cass asked, and Jamie could hear the agitation behind his words. “Wh – There hasn’t been a battle in – ”
“A long time. I know. But that just means we were due another one. And there wasn’t much of a choice – there isn’t much of a choice. Because they…” She hesitated. “Don’t panic.”
“Tell me what happened.”
“They took Madeleine.” Silence. “Kidnapped her.” Silence. “We had to go – we have to try to get her back.”
“They took Madeleine,” he repeated quietly, almost dazed. Then again, his voice suddenly urgent, “They took Madeleine and you’re going out to battle? How in hell are you going to win? How do you have a chance?”
Jamie looked around at the other Academics, and then spoke softly into the phone, admitted, “I don’t think we do.”
A moment of silence from Cass. “Oh God. Oh my God,” he muttered. He sounded almost as horrified as Jamie felt.
“Cass – Cass, don’t panic,” she said, authority seeping into her tone. “There’s nothing you can do.”
“None of you were answering their phones. I should have known that something was – Who’s out there?” he asked, his train of thought derailing mid-sentence.
“Everyone except me. Cardo, Carmen, Delaney, Lynn, Ari.”
“Kennedy and Carmen? Are you kidding me? The Spies are out?”
She winced at his tone. “We didn’t have any option,” Jamie said. “There was no choice. The Warriors aren’t enough. Nothing’s going to be –” And she cut off her words as she remembered the people standing around her, but she didn’t need to finish her sentence for Cass to know exactly what she meant.
Nothing’s going to be enough.
She heard nothing from him but heavy breathing for a few seconds, then just as she was about to ask him to say something, anything, he said shortly, “I’m coming.”
And he hung up.