“Deputy,” Lt. Debisono said, scanning the street. “I see some problems here. Everyone, put your guns on the ground and step away from them. You can have them back if everyone stays peaceful.”

  Their response was laughter from the people ahead of us.

  That bought us a little time.

  [Vaneski:] [William of Brinsford] [I’m here. At the back of the convoy. What’s happening?]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Vaneski] [Just got stopped in town. Have Airmann go high to film and find our university Mentalists first for a protective CHARM spell before you move up. Mentalists on the other side. Get him one too.]

  [Vaneski:] [William of Brinsford] [Will do. Coming as fast as I can. Don’t start the party without me.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Vaneski] [Too late for that. They captured Blaze. I’m getting her back.]

  [Vaneski:] [William of Brinsford] [Wait for me. Almost there. We gotta get this recorded. Going live.]

  I turned and looked back at Falstaff and his parents. Also, MathMamm and NiceIce standing next to them.

  “Reporter coming in,” I said. “Protect her, her cameraman, and yourselves first. If my protection drops, put up shields.”

  Bhaarrt was lumbering toward us at his version of a run, bare feet thudding against asphalt. No sign of Shadow…which meant she was exactly where she wanted to be. More people followed Bhaarrt, some of them Irregulars, weapons and spells ready, eyes sharp.

  I sent join-party requests to Bhaarrt and Shadow. Both accepted immediately.

  [William of Brinsford:] [PARTY] [Bhaarrt and Yoshi, front line. Ingrid and me next. Shadow, find Blaze. Her car’s on the right at this intersection. She might be the building next to us.]

  That was when the system message I’d been hoping for appeared in front of all of us.

  PVP BATTLEGROUND ENTERED

  The shocked looks on the faces across from us told me that most of them didn’t understand what had just happened. A couple of them froze, eyes unfocused, clearly game chatting with someone. Or checking the rules for what a battleground is.

  We’d warned our people this might happen…and what to do.

  I took control of our side of the battleground, the same way I had outside City Hall.

  A second later, MASS CHARM PERSONs slammed into our front ranks.

  None of them affected me or my party.

  Further back, I saw several dots flicker, their status updating. When I mentally poked one, it confirmed CHARMED.

  [William of Brinsford:] [BATTLEGROUND] [If someone is CHARMed, break them out of it or disarm and subdue until one of our Mentalists can take over the CHARM.]

  Enemy dots were moving in from the sides now.

  I froze just long enough to cast COMBAT STATS on the people directly ahead of us.

  The deputy sheriff was Level 5. Most of the others were lower…Level 2s and 3s.

  To my left and forward were scattered enemy dots. To my right, inside the building beside us, were a lot of dots…including several large ones. Higher-level signatures.

  That matched the building Blaze’s car was next to from the photo.

  I cast a wide MANA SHIELD from the edge of the building to the middle Stryker, angling it back about 45 degrees so it leaned over us like a slanted roof. Reaching into my pouch, I triggered a MANA BATTERY. Then a second one. 50 points of MANA Returned.

  Casting DETECT MANA, showed a Ley Line going through that building. “Maybe they’re using it for a headquarters?” I guessed.

  There was an old stone plaque just below the roofline.

  “Odd Fellows Lodge, 1912”.

  I didn’t know how long Townsend had been around. Late 1700s, early 1800s, like most towns in this part of the state…maybe later. That didn’t matter now.

  There were too many people clustered near the upper windows for them not to be planning to fire down on us.

  Forgetting the question of whether the lodge was still operating, there were more important things to deal with.

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  [William of Brinsford:] [BATTLEGROUND] [Watch upper stories. Odd Fellows building is loaded with dots. Shield for overhead fire. Don’t let them shoot down on us.]

  I threw a quick MANA SHIELD across the upper-floor windows. It shimmered into place, Cherenkov blue, faintly glowing in daylight.

  The Miller County deputy looked up as the shield formed…then back at me. I had the bad feeling he recognized me.

  Fame’s a liability when you always wear the same uniform. It makes me a target. A big one.

  Then a Level 5 CHARM PERSON hit me.

  As hoped, it failed. I was more than twice his level, with much higher Stats.

  The spell level matched the deputy. He stumbled back half a step, eyes wide, staring at me.

  I smiled as I saw him probably cast a DISPLAY STATS on me. The shocked look on his face was worth it.

  Returning the favor, I hit him with my Level 3 CHARM PERSON. Two levels below his spell…but nine levels above him in raw power. Our eyes locked on each other as he fought my spell.

  I leaned into it, forcing it with my INTELLIGENCE, WISDOM, and EGO that dwarfed his.

  We stood there, staring at each other, long enough for others to notice.

  A pistol shot rang out from farther back behind the barricade.

  My MANA ARMOR stopped it. The bullet hung in the air two inches from my chest.

  It was a good snap shot with a pistol from that distance. I multitasked, pointing my cane at him and firing a basic MANA BOLT. It hit the shooter square in his chest. We were even.

  He flew backward, arms flung wide, collapsing hard. There was a hole in his chest. I didn’t think he’d be getting up any time soon. If ever.

  The distraction broke my focus just enough for the deputy to shake off my spell. He staggered back another step, sweat pouring down his face.

  “Care to try again?” I called, pointing both hand and cane at him like I was about to fire more bolts.

  “Kill them!” he screamed. “Kill them all!”

  The State Patrol lieutenant had ducked behind her cruiser when the first shots were fired, scanning for untargeted threats. She yanked a pump-action shotgun from the front seat and fired several rounds of shot down the left side of the street ahead of her.

  A blue MANA SHIELD bloomed over our heads, spanning the street from side to side and back farther than I could judge. It stopped bullets…but not CHARM PERSONs or MASS CHARM PERSONs.

  My first thought was SandB. It looked just like what they said she’d done at the quarry.

  The spells and bullets coming from directly ahead slammed into my MANA SHIELD and failed. The ones from the sides and behind didn’t. Neither did those from second- and third-story

  Finally, the rear hatches on the angled Strykers slammed open.

  The Army had joined the fight.

  [MarmariL:] [BATTLEGROUND] [Deploying units into cross streets. Do not target our uniforms. Please!]

  People poured out, not into firing lines, but into tight party formations of soldiers followed by Irregulars and others, charging the enemy on the ground. Their mages threw up layered shields in overlapping fields of protection.

  They’d packed extra people into the lead vehicles…four full parties of five per Stryker. Then two more from the command Stryker. They looked to be mostly medics and mages for protection.

  One soldier in each popped up, swinging a heavy gun toward the opposite cross street and firing short bursts.

  I think they call it suppression fire. I’d call it annihilation fire. Shields shattered. Sometimes the person behind them did too.

  “Damn,” I muttered. “Those might actually hurt a World Boss.”

  Screams of pain followed.

  From the shouting for help behind their barricades, I was certain they hadn’t expected this.

  Shots and spells came from farther buildings, upper windows, and rooftops. Every now and then, a figure that moved like a leader dropped from a sniper round. Large-caliber hits don’t leave ambiguity. They were dead.

  Then I saw it. A powerful FIRE SHIELD flared across the upper windows of the Odd Fellows building, protecting it.

  My gut clenched. Blaze! Alive! Controlled.

  “Gotcha” I muttered mostly to myself.

  [MarmariL:] [William of Brinsford] [We’d been hit by enough bullets, spells and Charm attempts we can justify self-defense. We’re clearing the cross streets.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [MarmariL] [Odd Fellows on our right is likely where Blaze is. I’m going after her.]

  SandB’s shield overhead kept being refreshed. A glance back showed an ICE SHIELD in front and to the sides of them and another two casters that looked like Falstaff's parents. That gave them a Healer as well.

  I looked back to the building. The FIRE SHIELD was gone. Two weaker shields replaced it.

  I doubled the cost of a MANA BOLT all in extra damage and fired at where they overlapped.

  The shields collapsed.

  The remaining window blew out, glass cascading inward. At that angle, it would hit the ceiling…but the shouting inside told me the BOLT connected with someone.

  Heavy engines rumbled from our left and right…the other two Strykers.

  Shots and spells still flared from our rear as the expected ambush from there was held by our reserves.

  Looking back, I spotted Airmann hovering above the street a block behind us. Vaneski crouched near a building, microphone and notepad in hand. She read something…and a page vanished.

  An AIR BOLT snapped from her position, slamming into a man peeking from a doorway.

  He vanished backward.

  “Reporting and shooting at the same time. Damn! Hope they don’t edit it out. That takes real guts and determination to do both.” My impression of her went up a notch or three. For both of them.

  [William of Brinsford:] [Airmann] [Can anyone else use your AIR STEPS? Can they hold Bhaarrt and more?]

  Waiting for his reply was a nervous two minutes. I fired two MANA BOLTS while I watched and waited.

  Two agonizingly slow minutes later, the answer came.

  [Airmann:] [William of Brinsford] [Rules say yes with a buff. Leveled yesterday. No weight limit listed. Want steps to the shields on the building to your right?]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Airmann] [I think Blaze is there, mind-controlled. Stairs likely trapped or a shooting gallery. If it’s like most old lodges, it’s one big room. Do your steps have handrails?]

  [Airmann:] [William of Brinsford] [No rails. I’ve got FEATHER FALL. I can run them next to the building and up to the window next to the blown-out one. Visible up close.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [Airmann] [Make it two windows down, along the building edge. We’ll shift there and signal when we need it. Thanks.]

  [William of Brinsford:] [PARTY] [Time to attack. Blaze is likely on the 3rd floor of the Odd Fellows building to our right. Airmann will create steps. Ingrid, allow others to HEAL. Order is Shadow first, then Bhaarrt, Yoshi, me, Ingrid. Shift to the building edge and watch for snipers across the street.]

  I waited for acknowledgments from our party. As they came in, we started moving.

  Ready Player One to the music from the battle. Twisted Sister's We Aren't Gonna Take It.

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j-kSEX8O9HE

  Read 15 chapters ahead.