Strike Team

Hector stood slightly apart from his team, their incessant chatting and nervous laughing didn’t help his concentration. Some Strike teams entered the Strike for fun, but his team’s livelihood depended on it. There was a harsh winter coming, and they needed enough money to get through it.

He could hear the vast crowds deadened roar above his head coupled with sounds of explosions and screams. The previous team were already in the bolthole ahead.

‘Enough’ said Hector sternly, turning his attention towards the rest of the team. Their laughter stopped and he could see relief that he was taking charge on some of their faces. ‘Archie, if I have to hear one more joke about that hoar you spent a weekend with last month I might tear an ear off just to have something to throw at you’ the smile on Archie’s face faded. Tilly threw Archie a playful grin at being told off which only served to hurt his pride more. ‘We have trained for this. We know and understand stages one and two well, stage five if we get there I know we have a good crack at, but we need focus and determination for stages three and four. If we pass stage three, with six men standing, we are set for winter, the winnings will be enough to carry us through.’ Hector was talking more to himself than the team here, but he could feel they wanted some rousing speech that would give them confidence like they had never experienced. ‘We are ready for this, remember, don’t rush in, use the cover provided, slow things down if needed and don’t take a shot if it means you will go down. If you are down, it takes another man to pick you up and we are two men down on the field all of a sudden.’

‘People Heck’ said Hattie

‘Ok People Hat, sorry, but you and Tils are worth two of any of the men on these other teams’ Hattie smiled at him. ‘Let’s get ready team, last year we barely passed stage one, but this year we are infinitely more prepared.’ With that the team dispersed to different corners of the room, checking their weapons, donning their armour and going through pre-fight rituals. Astor and Marlon, his sharp shooters over distance were examining their bows one last time and ensuring their quivers were in the right positions. Archer was a bowman too, but also a rusher, his bow was smaller, and he could bounce through the field taking enemy’s out at speed and up close, he played well with Tilly and Hattie who couldn’t hang back if they tried, small and agile, full of energy and eagerness to get up close and personal, the girls would spur each other on and were formidable in hand to hand combat too. She fought with two small swords and she would slice with lightening speed. Leo donned his holsters, full to the brim of vials, green, red and blue in colour. These vials all contained different gasses, which in the hologram above would smash as they hit the ground, healing, burning or exploding, sending shards of metal in the vicinity respectively. Leo would be key to keeping the team alive. Chase would mirror Hectors movements on the opposite side to him, both large built powerful men, they could sweep through enemies and rid the arena of those that the the girls and Archer couldn’t take down. Finally there was Quinn, Hector watched as he put on more armour than anyone else, and secured a curved shield on his left arm. Quinn would fight with nothing more than a dagger, but would be the first to dive head first into combat. He had three more daggers secured in sheaths down his right leg. He also had a few vials, but not many as his armour was so heavy. Donning his last piece of armour he turned to Hector and came over for a quiet word. Quinn was wise and astute. He took the role he did in the Strike not because he lacked skill where the others didn’t, but because it allowed him time to view the arena.

A Strike was a game that any team of nine could enter. There would be five rounds, each containing an enemy impossible to take down without co-ordination, skill, and sometimes brute force. The mages had created the arena above ground and the Teams would enter nine magical zones below the surface, which would project them and anything on them to be seen and tangible in the arena above. It was so realistic, that any damage that an individual would take would hurt as if it were a real wound. Dying above ground would end the projection, and you mind would end up forced back into your own body, safe. The projection was so strong though that a serious injury to a projection, would have consequences for the individual below, and quite often if you found that your projection gets their arm cut off, when back in your own body again, you will have a nasty wound where the sword sliced. It was not unusual to see teams hobbling out with black eyes, harsh cuts and looking like they had gone five rounds with a minator. Hector guessed this was to keep a certain level of fear in the competitors minds. No one wanted to rush in so hard that their projection would die or have a limb removed. five life vials were hidden in each arena, if you could find one and inject the liquid into a fallen team mates projection, you could bring them back to the arena. Once they were gone they were gone though. The arena’s were large, and each team was given nine communication devices, which were magically implanted in each competitors ear, when touched with a fore finger, these allowed you to hear your team mates as if they were standing right next to you.

‘We go right out the tunnel, we don't know what mechanics they have changed this year Hec’ Said Quinn

‘I hear you Quinn and I know you want to be cautious, but I don't want us all to get stuck in a zone together, we will be picked off.’

Each year, rounds one and two were the same, but the mechanics would be modified slight. Round one the boss was a minator, larger than it should be and ten times stronger. It was also invincible until the team had counteracted the magic making it so. To do this four team members had to get to the four corners of the arena and enter keys into hidden rocks at the same time. Seems easy, but this whilst this is going on there are waves of goblin like creatures pouring out for gaps in the floors and walls of the arena, some of which have bows as well. The minator, nicknames Rhino, would emerge slightly after the first wave of goblins, and would rush at whoever he takes a fancy to. On top of this, at any point if a key is removed, then Rhino would once again be invincible. Hectors tactics were to station Marlon and Astor up high on a rock just to the right of the door, they would scan the arena constantly and protect the team as much as possible. The girls and Archie would make their way as fast as they could to the opposite end of the arena. Their job was to hold the two keys at the back. Quinn would catch the attention of the minator which Chase and Hector would control the two keys in the foreground of the arena. Leo would stay with them, unless it looked like the rushers were in need of help. With the sharp shooters up-top though it was Hectors opinion and Quinn agreed with him, that actually the least protected area was the foreground below the sharp shooters. Hence why Hector and Chase took these zones. The first arena was rocky and covered in moss, boulders some three times as large as a human were scattered throughout, and foliage obscured vision. This was not easy, but they had worked at this.

‘I don’t think we should separate too soon, if someone goes down early, we could be out in minutes.’ Said Quinn

‘I agree’ replied Hector ‘I think we hold the foreground until the Minator appears, then the rushers can make their way forward once you have its attention.’

‘Ok’ said Quinn, looking satisfied in the plan.

‘Right, listen up everybody.’ Called Hector ‘If you are ready, it’s nearly our time’ Hector relayed the beginning stages of the plan and then reminded everyone of each mechanic, and their roles. As he was talking he heard the arena calm down and one of the Mage’s magical voices announcing the failure of the team ahead of them. Through the ornate doors behind Hector, he could hear what was left of the team returning, someone moaning in pain and an argument break out. That was what Hector loved about his team, no matter how bad things went, they still lifted each other up, there was no blame in this group. Carrying on he finished with ‘lets keep those keys in guys, and let’s not under any circumstances, be the idiots who let the Minator take a key’ there was a small amount of laughter, then the doors burst open, and out hobbled nine men, battered, bruised, bleeding and one being supported between two of his team mates.

‘Good luck’ one of them grumbled to Hector as he passed. Hector looked beyond him to a vast square room with nine thick beams of light cascading down from the ceiling. A surge of excitement ran through him. Ok they needed the money, but this was also a lot of fun. He grinned raised his sword and called ‘this is it team, hammer or nothing all the way’ the team let out a a cry and they broke into a run towards their starting positions fired up and ready to take down a mutilated Minator.