Mack was waiting for me at the base of the building with a number of others in a loose group of more close-ranged people. I decided to get straight to the point. "I have good news and bad news. The good news is that they didn't bring the tank to attack us and the largest part of the army is still celebrating their victory back at the bunker. The bad news is that they beat everyone at the bunker without really using the tank except for intimidation and the same is likely true for the aliens at the old police station. Not the tank part, mostly the victory part. They used some sort of artillery to blast a hole in the back of the fortified building and then rushed in through the gap. So yeah, apparently not hunkering down was a good idea. Changing locations also seemed to delay their approach, but they have squads spreading through the entire area so hiding probably wouldn't work with a group our size. They seem to be cautious of return fire, even if it can't really hurt most of them, so some sort of fighting retreat is probably best."

There was some commotion at my words but nobody spoke directly to me. I had already passed on the information that I had gotten from my first tower, so the overwhelming odds shouldn't have been a surprise. I mean, what part of 'it is a highly trained army, capable of building a fort and an entire freaking tank in mere minutes, who also outnumbers our entire group combined even when you include the aliens' isn't clear enough?

Mack was the one to finally clear the silence, unintentionally answering my question back in a less than inspiring manner. "So, everyone. This, um, it sounds really bad. But all we can do is stick to the plan and it all should work out. Just try not to loose hope. We will make it through this together, somehow." He didn't sound too confident of that, but tried to steady his voice. "We will make it through."

I glanced over at the two history buffs in the group with a questioning look. One of them looked dumbfounded, but the other just looked confused. I figured that they, if anyone, would know what casualty statistics looked like. I had been very sure to tell everyone that the enemy was intending to knock out 90% of our original group, accounting for the people lost during the first round, so the only thing unexpected about this was the speed at which the army would hit that target number. We had lost a lot fewer people during round one than expected, though, so maybe they were overly optimistic?

Mack spent a few moments calming people down, before turning back to me and pulling me aside so that fewer people were around to hear what came next. The leaders of the various groups were all invited in, and they were followed by a few of the more adventurous onlookers, but most of the people were happy to remain with the group and away from the harsh revelations. "Is it really that bad? Our other spotters didn't have nearly as bad a report, are you sure you aren't exaggerating a little? What do the groups look like?"

I sighed and went to answer. "Yeah, it is just as bad as I made it out to be. At least, from what I saw of it and I have pretty good eyes now." A few stiffened or cringed at my words, but most took it with a look of defeat. I quickly moved on. "The groups are mostly made up of three different types of enemies that all have their own jobs, but how they do those tasks varies a lot. The ones at the front with the bubble shields are the tanks. Nothing I have seen has hurt that outer shield and they have a second shield just above their armor and the armor itself. Most of them either use indirect fire or mele weapons. They are dangerous in the same way that a steamroller is dangerous. You can probably outrun them but if they catch you than you won't be able to stop them. They aren't super lethal, though."

There were a few nods and people seemed to relax at the thought of an enemy that wouldn't kill them. I started with that group, though, because they were the most straightforward of the three. "The second group that you will notice are the ones in the heavier armor with no shields. It isn't a lot heavier, it's more like they just have a really solid build than anything else, but it is noticeable. These are the ones who focus on offense above everything else. Some of them even have enough firepower to temporarily punch through that giant shield the people back at the bunker were using, though it closed up right afterward. They use mostly energy weapons, some mele but most are some flavor of ranged. They are defensively the weakest, and the only ones that actually seemed to take real damage, but if they aim in your direction than try to dodge and hope you get lucky."

There were a few apprehensive faces and one guy who surprisingly looked like he had a new goal in life. Good for him, I guess. "The third group is the most dangerous, mainly because you can't predict what they will do. They are in some ways generalists between the tanks and the attackers, but only so far as they focus on other things. You can tell these apart because they have a shield glow around their armor and often carry equipment that isn't a weapon. I saw one of them use some equipment to pry open a hole on the giant shield at the old bunker, and then they held it open till the fight was done. The engineers and landmine specialists fall into this group, as well as the ones combing through the buildings to ensure that nobody is planning on attacking their rear flanks. These are the ones to be most warry of. They also seem to be more well trained than the others." I didn't mention it but the group of Cheaters who ran off into the woods was followed by only this type of enemy. I had a sneaking suspicion that their equipment was more varied than the appearance of the armor would suggest but I had no way of telling anything more from what little I had time to see.

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Finally I decided to give them some good news. "That's pretty much it. They didn't bring the tank and they don't seem to want to use the artillery unless they get stuck. I honestly think they are using this as a training exercise, so they aren't even taking this seriously. That gives us a chance but don't get too excited and open yourself up. It wouldn't do any good to get overconfident just because they don't take us seriously."

Mack nodded. "Are you sure you don't want to join us. Either of the mele groups would be happy to have you and your knife fighting beside us. I already have the flier up in the air to warn us when they approach, there is no need to go off on your own."

I nodded, accepting his words for what they were. "I know but, while I tend like supporting, I'm more of an offensive support. Harassing, split pushing, leading enemies into ambushes; that is more my style." I gave him a nod of my head and a relaxed two fingered salute. "I'll try not to die."

He nodded, accepting what I had said before, and let me go. I, for my part, left quickly before he could convince me to do otherwise.

Of all the positions I could take on the general team, offensive support was the safest and the best use of my skills and temperament. A team could survive and thrive without a support, but lose any of the DPS or the engager and it will be a short game in the enemy's favor. So if I suddenly 'found' the entire enemy team than it wouldn't be the end of the world. I'm too cautious to make a good chaser or assassin, too independent to make a good tank or defensive support, and too team oriented to be straight damage. But, when my job is to annoy the enemy team and set up good situations for my allies, I fit right in. My caution kept me from overextending, my independence allowed me to roam without needing a bodyguard, and my actions would help set things up for the team.

Or maybe this is all justification for that nagging feeling that the entire enemy army would stumble on our group in the most unlucky way possible if I didn't leave. Either way. It is too late to turn back now.

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I always thought that RPGs were weird in how an evil monster would be wondering around a field but it would completely ignore you unless you came within ten feet of where it is wondering about. Shouldn't they notice you and go running off to chase you down the moment you are no longer hidden by obstacles? And yet, here I am doing the exact same thing. I mean, maybe it isn't exactly the same thing. I'm mostly abusing my absurd senses and the fact that I can literally redirect the light from around corners to remain 'out of sight', but it feels the same. Maybe it is more like a stealth game where you can see the enemy but they only notice you when you stand directly in front of them?

Either way, phase 1 was an unfortunate success. I found a group of enemies with almost no trouble at all. Or rather they found me but didn't realize it because I heard them before they knew what was going on and ran off.

Phase 2 also has proven successful. I have observed them enough to notice that they don't have eyes in the back of their head and won't see me so long as they are turned in the other direction. Their fancy suits do have some sort of motion detection that alerts them when something moves within five feet of them or so. Phase 2 also included making the group paranoid by throwing things into the center of their group from hidden locations. Most of the things I threw were rocks and other trash, but I did get a very simple exploding ball to throw into their midst. It did absolutely nothing to the guy without a shield, let alone everyone else, but it did put them on alert and slow their advance.

Slowing their advance was good, considering that I 'found' three other groups not long after. I was searching for the enemy, so maybe you can call it good luck, but I really hadn't wanted to find them in so many numbers or converging on my location so quickly. In a related note: I think it is safe to assume that they can communicate with each other in some way that Tarrah's communications tech can't pick up.

While I would like to continue with Phase 2, the need for Phase 3 is quickly approaching. A lot of our old defenses at our first base were unused and couldn't be taken with us when we moved. Sure, there were more enemies sticking around the area and searching it for goodness knows what, but that should give them a false sense of security such that they won't even be looking for the traps! That is how it works, right? Right?

Ugh, I think I'm going to die now.