Attack

Attack, also called Noelle Williams Convinces the Army that the To'kustar is on Their Side, is the twentieth volume of Attack on To'kustar. It is the fourth volume of Attack on Teviv, the fifth chapter of the series.

Plot
[The camera shows Teviv just after midnight. It is very dark, with clouds covering the sky; the clouds pour rain down onto the city. On top of the north wall surrounding the city, Maxwell Wagner stands, looking outside the city at the large horde of Forever Knights approaching the city. After a few moments, he hears the sound of someone flying towards him on Skywings, so he turns around, but no one is there. Suddenly, Penny Blair flies up over the top of the wall, behind Max, and then drops down behind him and holds a sword at his neck.]

[Max]: There's no way you could have survived that fall. I saw you smash into the ground.

[Penny]: Come on, you know what Espers are?

[Max, surprised]: Another one?

[Penny, stern]: You're going to tell that horde to turn around or--

[She grabs his neck, spins around, and holds him over the edge of the wall.]

[Penny]: ...And you and I both know that you won't survive such a fall.

[Max]: Ha, you think I'm going to call it off? I don't need to worry about you.

[Penny]: I'll do it.

[Max, confident]: No you won't.

[Penny]: You know why you don't have a base in town? Because of me.

[Max]: Oh, but you didn't kill anyone I'm sure.

[Penny]: Fine; kill number one.

[She lets go of Max, sending him into a free fall down the outside of the wall. After a few moments, she bursts down on her Skywings and rushes down level with him.]

[Penny]: Call it off.

[Max]: I don't need you.

[Suddenly, Max stops falls as Penny comes to a halt about 10 feet below him. She turns around and sees Vance Grace floating on Skywings, holding Max.]

[Max]: Now you're on the clock.

[He chuckles as Vance silently carries him away. Penny turns to the horde, which is still probably 15 minutes away. She takes out a flare gun, loads it, points it upwards, and fires a red flare.]

[The camera shows the field near the police station where the military is keeping its equipment for the Explorer Division's expedition. Due to the events of the previous episode, a large amount of the equipment has burned down. Towards the center of the field, Tobias Clay, Richard Turner, and Connor Yan stand in a small circle. Near them, Lawrence Carter and Ryan Thames stand over Michael James and Lily Scott. After a couple seconds, Penny's flare can be seen over the top of the wall.]

[Connor]: Now what?

[Tobias, urgently]: Lawrence, take the kids back to the station and wake the rest of them. Connor, go get Krista; Wynne and Kathryn should be with her. I'm afraid Revirik and Ziegler have already left, however.

[Lawrence]: Wait, you want me to wake the children?

[Tobias]: We need them right now.

[Richard]: I disagree.

[Tobias]: I don't care, that's an order.

[Richard grunts. Connor runs off towards Krista's house, and Lawrence runs off towards the station. Ryan helps Michael and Lily off the ground, and then heads back to the station with them as well.]

[Richard]: What do you think the issue is?

[Tobias]: I can't be certain, but this might be the start of a war.

[Theme Song]

[The camera shows Parran Revirik and John Ziegler, riding away from Teviv on horseback. They continue to ride forwards as the red flare starts to dissipate in the sky behind them.]

[John]: Shouldn't we respond to the flare, sir?

[Parran]: I'm needed back at the capital--

[John]: But sir

[Parran]: So I won't be going back there-- you go back.

[They continue to ride for a few moments in silence before John stops to turn around. Parran stops a bit ahead to turn around.]

[Parran]: Actually, let's see what we can do from here.

[They start to ride back towards Teviv. The city cannot be directly seen from their position, due to the top of a hill in front of them. They ride to the top of the hill and then stop to look down at the city. They see the horde of Forever Knights riding towards the city, from a different angle than they left at.]

[Parran]: Okay, that's bad. Actually, that's really bad.

[John]: So what are we going to do?

[Parran]: To tell you the truth... I don't know.

[The camera cuts to Ryan, Michael, and Lily arriving back at the police station. They go inside and start to head upstairs.]

[Ryan]: Don't even get me started on why you two disobeyed orders and left your ream.

[Michael]: You were supposed to be keeping guard?

[Lily]: And I was just following Michael! Buddy system, you know?

[Ryan, angry]: That doesn't make it okay.

[He reaches the top of the stairs and turns to see Lawrence, already back at the station, waking up the trainees. One by one, Sven Schmidt, Arik Iverson, Teru Hikami, Hadria Carter, and Noelle Williams get into the hall. Lawrence exits the last room after Noelle, looks around, and sees that all the children are there.]

[Ryan]: Okay, that's all of them.

[Lawrence]: I still have to wake up Tuesday.

[Ryan]: Can we trust her?

[Lawrence]: We're going to have to.

[Michael]: Great, they trust a former Forever Knight, but not us.

[Ryan, angry]: We trust you to follow orders.

[Teru, annoyed]: Why are we awake this early anyway? And why are you all wet?

[He looks at Michael and Lily.]

[Michael]: It's raining outside, dude.

[Noelle]: I think he's asking why you were outside.

[Ryan, jokingly]: That's what I'd like to know.

[Lawrence, from the other end of the hallway]: Alright, now that's everyone.

[He exits the room at the end of the hallway with Tuesday Smith.]

[Lawrence]: Get your Skywings on, and because it's raining, you want cloaks as well; now move quickly, this is urgent.

[Teru]: Where are we going?

[Lawrence, annoyed]: Don't question my orders; I'll explain on the way.

[The camera cuts to the two police chiefs, Tuesday, and the seven children flying towards the north wall on their Skywings. The red flare can still be seen above the wall. Lawrence leads the group, and the rest are in no specific order.]

[Lawrence]: Do you see why this is urgent?

[Arik]: Red flares are the second most urgent kind.

[Ryan, interjecting]: At night, they might as well be the worst; you can't see the black ones this time of day.

[Lawrence]: We don't know who fired it or why, which is why we need to get there are soon as possible.

[He turns around and flies backwards as the group gets closer to the wall.]

[Lawrence]: Tuesday, did you hear anything about a possible Knights plan? I don't know how much they had planned, or how much of it you would've known.

[Tuesday]: I don't know anything, but that doesn't mean it's not the Knights. Knights and To'kustars, it has to be one of those two.

[Sven]: Or worse, both.

[The camera shows the side of the group. Connor flies up towards them, joined by Kathryn Wesley, Krista Renth and Wynne Holst.]

[Lawrence]: Connor...

[Connor]: What's the situation chief?

[Lawrence]: Don't know. We haven't heard anything.

[Connor]: I think Dick and Toby flew right to the wall; they haven't gotten back yet?

[Lawrence]: No, not yet.

[He turns around again to focus on where he is going. Since they started, they've covered about half the distance to the wall. After a few moments, Lawrence grins at the sight of Tobias, Richard, and Penny.]

[Lawrence]: Speak of the devil.

[He stops as the three soldiers approach the group. Ryan, Tuesday, and the trainees stop, as Connor, Kathryn, Krista, and Wynne float forward to meet up with Tobias, Richard, and Penny.]

[Lawrence]: How's it looking?

[Tobias]: Not good, but we have a few minutes; let's talk about a couple things.

[The camera cuts back to Parran and John, sitting on horseback at the top of the hill, overlooking the Forever Knights approaching Teviv. They sit motionless, unsure of what to do.]

[John]: Sir, we're running out of time. We need to make a decision, one way or the other.

[Parran]: Yes, well, there's positives and negatives to be considered here.

[John]: The matters in Percival aren't urgent, sir. Losing Teviv to the Forever Knights would be devastating.

[Parran]: I don't think you understand, Lieutenant Ziegler, it's not just a matter of--

[He suddenly stops at the sound of horses approaching the top of the hill. He looks behind him and sees Felix Upton, David Crawford, and Lucas Miller riding towards the top of the hill. Parran turns his horse around to face them, as does John.]

[Parran]: Well isn't this a surprise. I thought I was supposed to come to you?

[Felix]: I couldn't let you have all the fun.

[Parran]: Yes, about that.

[David]: We saw the flare; what's the issue?

[Parran]: Knights, and a lot of them.

[Felix]: Got it. What's the plan?

[John]: We don't have one.

[Parran]: We do now. The four of you ride towards the city and fight, help the forces inside the city defend it.

[Lucas]: And you, sir?

[Parran]: It's not that I don't trust Maya alone in Percival, but there really are important matters I must attend to there.

[He starts to slowly walk his horse away from Teviv.]

[Parran]: Do not under estimate the importance of this battle. This is the first fight in many that will determine the future of human freedom.

[The camera cuts back to the large group of soldiers, trainees, and more gathered inside the city. Many of the soldiers stand in a circle, but Lawrence, Tobias, Richard, and Penny are at the center, with Ryan, Connor, Kathryn, Krista, and Wynne near them, and Tuesday and the trainees on the outside. The center four soldiers appear to be in an argument.]

[Lawrence]: Absolutely not! How could even suggest that?

[Richard]: It's absurd. One minute you're complying with Revirik's orders about not supporting the team of children, and the next you're suggesting we send the one we should trust the least charging into battle?

[Tobias]: The Knights will have their own transformers, I don't see why we shouldn't use our own.

[Lawrence]: He'll die if you send him out there alone.

[Penny]: It wouldn't be alone. We could protect him; alone, we're not powerful enough, and alone, he's too vulnerable, but together, we can win.

[Richard]: It would go directly against Revirik's orders.

[Tobias]: Why don't you ask the boy what he thinks?

[Ryan, Connor, Kathryn, Krista, and Wynne step to the side to clear a path between the center four and Sven. He holds his left arm, showing that the mysterious device is still attached to his wrist.]

[Sven]: I still don't know anything about this.

[He clenches his left hand into a fist in a sign of confidence.]

[Sven]: But this is exactly what we've been training for. If the Knights are going to try and take the city, then we have to do whatever it takes to stop them.

[Richard, still arguing]: The kid has a point, we still know very little about what's on his wrist, we shouldn't be counting on it to save us.

[Tobias]: Then be ready if something happens.

[Richard grunts. The camera cuts to the entire group standing on the top of the wall, looking at the group of Knights now only perhaps a minute away from the city wall. Sven stands between Tobias and Richard, with Penny off to the side as well.]

[Tobias]: Okay kid, you're up.

[Penny]: Just know that if you lose control, I will kill you myself.

[Sven, unsure]: Thanks.

He closes his eyes and takes a deep breath before jumping off the wall, falling for a bit, and then flying upwards, towards the group of Knights. After about 10 seconds, he is close enough to the Knights for them to be able to tell he is just a kid. Riding at the front of the group of Knights are Troy Dieter, Aaron Cross, and Lauren Haber.]

[Aaron, confused]: It's just a single kid.

[Sven, hearing Aaron's confusion, grins. He rolls up his left sleeve, revealing the device on his wrist, and he slams down his right hand onto the dial. A flash of green lightning strikes down from the sky, striking Sven, transforming him once again into his To'kustar form, complete with black skin and green features. He lands on the ground, as the horde of Knights in front of him comes to a halt. Troy, Aaron, and Lauren look at each, confused as to why their enemy is also able to turn into a To'kustar.]

[Troy]: How'd they--?

[Behind them, Felix, David, Lucas, and John ride towards the city. They notice the To'kustar emerge from the flash of lightning, unsure of what it is doing.]

[David]: I don't think this could get much worse.

[Felix, relaxed]: Just stay calm and focused. We're here to help the city, and so that's what we're going to do. I suggest we start by killing that To'kustar.

The Skywings have gone through many different forms, after first being invented during the First Age of To'kustars to assist humanity in fighting the giant aliens. The military's Science Corps is in charge of developing new versions of the Skywings. The most recent feature is the steering device that allows for smoother control.

[The camera shows Sven, in To'kustar form, standing across from the horde of Forever Knights. Behind him, on the wall, Tobias stands ready with the rest of the group. He draws a sword in his right hand and then points it forward.]

[Tobias]: CHARGE!

[He jumps off the wall and then boosts forward on his Skywings. Penny, Richard, Connor, Kathryn, Krista, and Wynne follow him. A few moments later, Tuesday jumps off as well. Lawrence looks to Ryan and then to the children.]

[Lawrence]: Just be careful.

[He jumps off, and is followed moments later by the rest of the group. Ahead of them, Tobias rushes forward on his Skywings. He dives downwards towards the horde, and spots Troy, Aaron, and Lauren. Troy gets off his horse, draws a sword, and prepares to duel with Tobias. Just like the Explorer Division Captain, Troy points his sword forward.]

[Troy]: Destroy them!

[Tobias lands and then runs at Troy and slashes at him, but Troy also slashes, sending the two into a sword fight. Connor flies past them goes after a group of random Knights, but Aaron intercepts him. Connor slashes at Aaron, who ducks and then kicks the sword out of Connor's hand.]

[Aaron]: I do better without those nasty things.

[He charges at Connor and punches at him, but Connor backs away. He jumps and kicks at Connor's face, but he avoids again. Aaron quickly lands and then thrusts his body forward, landing a blow to Connor's gut. The fight between them continues as above them, Kathryn, Krista, and Wynne land to fight a group of Knights on horseback. Several of the Knights are equipped with bows and quivers full of arrows. One unloads three arrows in the ladies' direction, but Kathryn blocks all three of them with her sword. Wynne rushes forward and slashes at a Knight on a horse, knocking him off. Another Knight rides her horse into Wynne, causing her to back flip away, sending her right into the path of another Knight, who knocks her to the ground. Krista slashes at a standing Knight armed with a sword. They slash back and forth, but Krista punches the Knight in the gut to finish it off, leaving him on the ground. Behind her, Penny and Lauren are locked in a sword fight. Penny quickly overpowers Lauren, knocking both her swords out of her hands, and then sending her tumbling into three Knights behind her. Penny turns to Kathryn and then rushes at her to punch a Knight who was approaching her from behind.]

[Kathryn]: Thanks.

[Penny]: Don't worry.

[Back on the other side of the field, the fight between Tobias and Troy continues. They are locked in close sword combat.]

[Troy]: You're strong.

[Tobias]: I admit so are you, but I'm stronger.

[He pushes Troy off of him and then takes a step back to catch his breath.]

[Tobias]: I also have friends.

[He turns to the side, allowing Richard to charge from behind him and quickly knock back Troy. He slashes repeatedly at the Knight Proctor, slowly walking him backwards.]

[Troy]: Who says I don't have friends.

[Troy turns to the side, causing Richard to slash his sword right into a sword held by Vance. They start to slash back and forth in an even fight. Tobias watches for a moment, but then quickly reacts to Max jumping at him from the side. He slashes at an attack from Max and then slashes again in retaliation. The fights continue as the camera cuts to near Sven. He is not actively doing much, but the Knights do appear to be avoiding going near him. At his side, a group of Knights tries to ride around him, but Tuesday, Lawrence, and Ryan fly through the group, causing them to slow down. Tuesday knocks a few Knights off their horses before being tackled by a Knight from behind. Lawrence slashes at a Knight on the ground, eventually knocking it back. Ryan slashes at another Knight, knocking it down, but he then gets tackled by a group of three Knights. Above the fight, the children float, unsure of whether or not they need to join.]

[Michael]: Do we help?

[Before they need to, To'kustar Sven turns to the side and reaches his hands down to swat away many of the Knights attacking Lawrence, Ryan, and Tuesday. He swats again with his left hand and turns more to swat with his right hand. The trainees remain in the air, watching Sven fight the Knights.]

[Michael]: I guess not.

[The camera goes back to the other side of the field. Tobias fights Max, and just behind them, Connor continues his swordless match with Aaron. Tobias slashes his sword at Max, who catches the slash in his cybernetic hand. He delivers a shock through the sword, causing Tobias to drop to a knee. Further back in the horde, Richard and Vance interchange sword slashes. Richard slashes at Vance, who ducks, but then Richard draws another sword and slices at Vance's feet, causing him to jump back. He gets caught up in a group of the horde and knocked over. Richard relaxes for a second but then notices four cloaked figures fly past him overhead. He turns around them and watches them fly straight of Sven. One of the figures holds two swords at his right side and then flies behind Sven, striking him with both swords in the back. Sven lets out a roar and the trainees notice his four pursuers.]

[Noelle, urgently]: Go!

[She flies forward to towards Sven, who turns around to defend himself from where the first blow came from. Another one of the figures zooms in towards Sven's shoulder, but he moves his arm out of the way just in time. Another one of the soldiers boosts towards Sven's other arm, but Michael and Teru intercept him before he can. The figure takes off his hood; it is John, meaning the other three figures are likely Felix, David, and Lucas.]

[John]: Stand down... kids? What are the Forever Knights doing recruiting kids?

[Michael]: Forever Knights? Aren't you with the Forever Knights?

[John]: What?

[He salutes.]

[John]: Lieutenant Captain John Ziegler, Explorer Division.

[Teru, surprised]: Oh, you're on our side!

[John, skeptical]: Yeah.

[Michael]: We're not going to let you hurt this To'kustar.

[John]: So now there are To'kustar sympathizers? You've got to be kidding me; I don't have time for this.

[He rushes forward to try and get towards Sven, but Michael and Teru block him again. David flies over and rushes right at Michael, who quickly draws a sword and blocks an attack from David. He draws another sword and pushes against the Wall Brigade Captain, eventually pushing him off of him. Teru draws to swords, ready to continue the fight.]

[Teru]: We're just trying to help. This To'kustar is on our side.

[John]: Prove it.

[Teru]: He's attacking the Knights.

[John and David turn to watch Sven. He is currently defending himself from Lucas, while Lily and Arik try to stop him. Lucas flies around his back, but Arik blocks him from hitting Sven in his neck. He flies upwards, towards the frill, but Lily flies down to cause him to turn around.]

[David]: Doesn't look like it to me.

[Noelle, flying over]: Michael, Teru, we need you? Who are you--?

[She stops and looks at David and John.]

[Michael]: They're military, Noelle.

[She grunts.]

[Noelle]: Well then tell them to get their fellow soldiers to stop attacking Sven.

[David, laughing]: What, you give To'kustars names, too? That's ridiculous.

[Noelle]: He transformed from a human, and he can transform back. He's on our side and he's too valuable for us to lose. Please, you need to call off this attack.

[David and John look at each other, skeptical of whether or not to trust the children.]

[John]: Alright.

[David, shouting]: UPTON, MILLER, FALL BACK!

[Lucas stops right before delivering a blow to Sven's leg. He stops, and he, Lily, and Arik all turn towards John and the others. Behind Sven, Hadria is locked in a duel with Felix. They don't appear to be stopping, even despite David's order. Realizing this, he flies over towards them, as Lucas, Lily, and Arik fly over towards John and the other trainees. Hadria and Felix slash their swords at each other, but David flies in and pushes Felix back.]

[David]: You can stop now, this one's on our side?

[Felix, confused]: The girl?

[David]: Yes, the girl, but the To'kustar as well.

[Felix]: Well holy shit. Parran said something about humans who could transform into To'kustars but I didn't realize there were any on our side.

[He spins around to check out the battle; a group of Knights has made it past the offensive and is now nearing the wall. In the main horde, many of the soldiers are still fighting the Knights; Tobias and Richard fight Max, Connor fights Aaron, Penny fights Lauren, and the rest of the soldiers deal with the other Knights. Off to the side, Lawrence, Ryan, and Tuesday continue their fight as well.]

[Felix]: Looks like this city is turning into quite a party.

[John, Lucas, and the trainees fly over as Sven stands watching the Knights approach the city. The groups containing Felix and John regroup and look towards the horde.]

[John]: What's the plan now?

[Felix]: Defending the city is more important, but I don't think it's a good idea for a To'kustar to do that. It may cause too much destruction... Can we communicate with it?

[Noelle]: We can try.

[Felix]: Okay, you get on that, and you two go with her as well.

[He points to Arik and Teru.]

[Felix]: Now.

[Noelle, Arik, and Teru fly over to Sven to get him to turn around and focus on the main horde.]

[Felix]: The rest of us should focus on keeping the Knights away from the wall. We definitely don't want--

[Suddenly, among the horde, a flash of red lightning strikes from the sky. A cloud of smoke quickly covers the battle and then dissipates, leaving a 60 foot tall To'kustar, complete with black skin and red features. The To'kustar was initially kneeling down, but now it stands up tall, the Knight and soldiers scattering away from it. Felix and the rest of his group turn at the To'kustar, as does Sven as he hears the lightning. Sven, standing at 50 feet tall, stands across from his 60 foot tall foe, with most of the Knight and soldiers in between them. Inexplicably, this new, red To'kustar, opens its mouth to speak.]

[Talking To'kustar, a booming voice]: Fools.

[All of the fighting on the ground and in the air between the two To'kustars stops. On the ground, Troy grins. In the air near Sven, the soldiers are completely dumbfounded.]

[David]: What the hell; they can talk, too?

[Talking To'kustar]: This battle is over.

[To Be Continued]