Chapter 57 The Plan
THE FIFTH ELEMENT 🔥🌪️🌊⛰️🌀
SAGE’S POV ~
We all fell silent and exchanged looks. Cara wiggled her eyebrows while Phoebe raised hers, eyes wide with amusement. Madeline’s mouth hung open, her brows furrowed.
I tried to keep my expression completely blank.
Jake glanced at us after noticing the sudden quiet. “What?” he asked, clearly clueless about why we’d all gone silent.
“Nothing,” we all said in unison.
“Okay. If you say so. Anyway, you should all get back to your dorms. It’s pretty late to be out at this hour. We meet back here at nightfall. And don’t tell anyone else about this until we’ve got a solid plan. Goodnight, ladies. You can escort yourselves back to your dorms.” Jake left without looking back.
“Geez. Some would think he’s from the Water Tribe. So cold, leaving us girls to fend for ourselves,” Cara muttered. “Hey, Sage, are you sure he’s not your brother instead of mine?”
I rolled my eyes and left without turning back.
“See what I was talking about?!” I heard Cara call after me. I shook my head and pushed the door open.
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🌊
I didn’t sleep much. My mind kept running through the plan, if you could even call it a plan yet. It was half formed, risky, and if we messed up, we wouldn’t just fail Cassie. We’d get expelled, or worse. Punished severely.
But I trust Jake when it comes to this stuff. He’s reckless, but he’s good at staying alive outside these walls.
I dressed quickly and headed for Madeline’s room.
I knocked twice. The door swung open instantly. “Oh! Hi!” Madeline looked surprised to see me.
“Hey. What’s with the rush?” I asked.
“I thought you were Cassie,” she said, disappointment flickering across her face.
“Sorry to disappoint. We need to get back to the abandoned building. There’s a lot we still need to sort out.”
“Now?” she asked, and I just stared at her.
“Right. Sorry. Give me a second,” she said before shutting the door.
Fifteen minutes later she came rushing out.
“That was more than a second!” I snapped and headed for the abandoned building without waiting.
🌊
Jake and Cara were already there when Madeline and I arrived. Phoebe joined us a few minutes later.
“So, what’s the actual plan?” I asked Jake.
Jake spread out a rough map he’d sketched on the floor with a piece of charcoal. The school grounds, the outer forest, and the old road leading to the lower town were all marked in messy lines.
“First, we set out tonight at nightfall,” Jake said. “The gates are locked, we'll try to get past it somehow if it's safe enough but if it isn't, then we'll take another route. There’s a maintenance tunnel on the east side that the Earth elementals uses for supply runs. It’s unguarded after midnight.”
“Second, we need a tracker,” he continued. “Cassie could be anywhere by now. Madeline, do you know someone from your element that we can call on?”
“Yeah,” Madeline nodded. “Her name’s Gia. She’s one of the best trackers in the school. But she doesn’t do favors for free, and she definitely doesn’t trust all Academy students.”
“Then we make it worth her while,” Jake said. “We’ll offer her coin and protection.”
“Also, She’s been trying to get her younger brother into the Academy’s apprenticeship program. If we can get her a letter of recommendation from one of the Elementals, I think she’ll help us out.” Madeleine added.
"Then it's settled. We'll get her that letter after she helps us out."
“Thirdly,” Jake continued and tapped the map, “we need to move quietly. Whoever took Cassie isn’t some random bandit. They got past the school wards. That means they’re either powerful or they had inside help. If we go in loud, we’ll get ambushed.”
“So we split into two groups as we travel,” Cara said, leaning forward. “Stealth and backup.”
“Exactly,” Jake agreed. “Group one, me, Sage, and Gia, will move in the front. We track and scout the area we'll pass by. Group two, Cara, Phoebe, Madeline, and my friends Greg and Nick, stays a little farther behind us as backup and create a diversion if we need it.”
“Greg and Nick?” Phoebe asked, surprised.
“Yeah,” Jake said. “Greg’s Fire magic is in senior level skills now, solid for lethal attacks. Nick’s Fire magic is quiet, he can start small controlled burns to distract or block a path without setting the whole forest on fire. We'll be needing every help we can get.”
Cara groaned. “Greg spends more time looking at himself in the mirror than training, and Nick’s practically a mute. But fine. We need more numbers, right?” She rolled her eyes.
“Fourth,” Jake said, ignoring Cara, “supplies. We can’t rely on the Academy. If we get caught leaving with our uniforms or potions, it’ll raise questions. So I'll handle everything about it before the time comes tonight.”
“And fifth,” Jake finished, “communication. Phoebe, that's where you'll be needed the most.’’
“Timing is everything,” Jake added. “We move at nightfall, travel through the forest along the old riverbed, less patrols there. It’ll take us about six hours to reach the outskirts of the lower town if we don’t get delayed. If Cassie’s still within ten miles, Gia should be able to pick up her scent by dawn. And most importantly, we must have each other's backs out there, there's plenty of strange creatures and monsters out there.”
“Okay. So we meet back here at nightfall,” Jake said. “Madeline, get Gia. Sage, keep practicing your stealth. Cara, Phoebe, practice your skills a little before then. And everyone, keep your eyes open for any security guard with a massive scar. That’s our only lead on who actually took Cassie.”
“Got it,” I said. “And Jake?”
“Yeah?”
“If this goes sideways, we don’t wait for the Elementals to save us,” I said. “We handle it ourselves.”
Jake gave me a small nod. “That’s the plan.”
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Later, I was walking down the hallway when it felt like someone was following me. I ducked into an alcove, pressing my back against the wall with a conjured sword in my hand.
Five… four… three… two… one!
I raised the sword to the stranger’s throat.
“Whoa, whoa! Easy, it’s me, Sage! Geez,” Damon said, hands raised.
“What the hell, Damon! I could’ve killed you!” I snapped.
“Yeah, sorry. Didn’t mean to startle you. Now lower the sword. My neck’s delicate,” he said with an uneasy grin.
“Why were you following me?” I asked.
“I wasn’t following you. I was following someone who was following you,” he replied.
“Damon, cut the crap. Did Mother put you up to this?” I asked.
“Of course not. I was just curious. Why are you hanging out with Jake? You and Cara, sure. But Jake? It doesn’t add up. Spill it,” he said. I let the sword vanish.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. When did I hang out with him?” I asked, keeping my face blank.
“This morning. Last night. You both came out of the same building twice. Almost at the same time. You, Jake, Madeline, Cara, and that Air girl, Phoebe. It’s not a coincidence. Twice in a row. Something’s up,” Damon said.
“Look, Damon, you’re being delusional,” I said.
“Sage, seriously, what’s going on?” he asked, now serious.
“I can’t tell you. Sorry,” I said.
“What do you mean you can’t tell me? I’m your brother,” he said.
“Exactly why I can’t. I don’t trust you to keep it quiet when you’re always running your mouth to Mother,” I said.
“Wait. Is this about Cassie?” he asked.
“No,” I said.
“So it is about her. I know she’s been kidnapped. Almost everyone knows. What are you guys planning?” he pressed.
“Damon, just stop,” I said.
“Seriously, Sage. Tell me. I could help. Cassie’s my friend too. If I can do anything to help her, I will,” he said.
He looked sincere. I sighed.
“Fine. I’ll tell you, but if you tell anyone, especially Mother, I’ll end you. Agreed?”
“Agreed,” he said.
I explained the plan to him and His eyes lit up.
“Okay. This is crazy, which is why I’m in,” he said.
“I don’t know, Damon. Jake might not like it,” I said.
“Who cares what Jake likes? This is about saving Cassie, not about him,” he said.
“You’re right. Just be at the abandoned building by nightfall. We won’t wait if you’re late,” I said.
“Well, of course. I better get ready. Haven’t done anything exciting like this in ages. See you later, sis. Oh, and I wasn’t lying about someone following you. I was following him, but he went the opposite direction from you. I guess it was nothing,” he said with a shrug before walking off.
I stood there, uneasy.
Was someone else really following me?