It Begins:
This past Sunday after going to the driving range with some friends, me and 3 others decided to have a water fight.  It was planned on the fly so one of my friends offered to have his house be the battleground.  Now, i'm not sure if my friends will let me use their real names so i'll just use their nicks.  So Skaha, Flex, Cloud and I (DePhiAnT) discussed how our fight was gonna be.  Most of them were in the midst of painting their weapons so they were limited in their choices.  Well, we decided to use only XP's and allow 1 weapon each.  So I drove home to get my guns and change and my other friends went to have some dinner and change before the fight.

The Plan:
While at home i brought out my XP 105 and XP110.  Just in case i filled up my CPS2000...if the fight went too out of control or if everyone decided to turn on me.  It never saw use though.  In any water fight i like to have an edge, i mean, it's war...anything goes right?  Well, because of that i also filled up about 20 water balloons and put them in my bag.  I was pretty sure my friends wouldn't have any.  By now it was about 7:45pm and the sun was beginning to set, and my friends were already at the house waiting for me.

The Arrival:
Well, i got to the house and after Skaha decided to stop play Starcraft we got set to have our fight.  I took possesion of my XP105, Flex brought along his XP310, Cloud used my XP110, and Skaha had a XP105 as well.  Ok ages: I'm 19, Skaha's 18, Flex's 16 and Cloud's 15.  We contemplated whether or not to fight in the nearby park, but it lacked a water supply so we decided to battle around the house.

THE SETTING:
The story will be much easier to follow if you have a layout of the area so:

In the front yard is a large driveway that takes up most of the space.  Cloud's parents minivan was parked in the driveway, along with my car.  A row of small trees lined the south side of the house while small bushes lined the north side.  A larger bush was on the northside of the house, this one grew right up against the house, this obstruction plays a key role later.  The backyard consisted of a large grass lawn.  A wooden fence lined the perimeter.  We setup a wooden foldout table sideways on the lawn.  This would help provide some cover.  A wheelbarrow was also setup in the same manner to provide some defensive cover.  A small roof also extended from the house providing a small uncovered area.  This too plays a key role later on.  There were too routes to and from the front and back yard, on each side of the house.  On the south side was a cement walkway, on one side was a wooden fence and the other side was the house.  This was basically no man's land.  Anyone trying to enter through that route would easily be seen.  On the north side of the house was a more obstructed entrance.  There was a small wooden shed (shed route) which we cleared out and allowed entry into the backyard.  A simple row boat layed overturned on the ground as well in front of the shed.  There was a hose located on the north side of the house and 1 in the backyard.

The Rules Of Engagement:
The first game we played was a simple "1 shot kills" style, sort of like "Killhouse" in Rainbow 6.  If a player was shot on any body part with a stream of water they would be considered hit.  That player would have to yell "OUT!" and remain where they were, with their gun in the air.  That player would not be allowed to talk either.  The hose in the backyard was the designated refill area and was a neutral zone, meaning, no one could be shot at or shoot while refilling.

The Battle:
Game 1:
Me and Skaha teamed up and Cloud and Flex made up the other team.  Cloud and Flex took the backyard for their base, while Me and Skaha took the frontyard/driveway.  We went to our bases and were to start in 5 minutes.  That's when i revealed to Skaha my stash of water balloons in the trunk of my car.  We each took 2 and planned our first attack to be a bombardment and rush tactic.  We yelled "start!" and were replied with an echoing yell.  The fight was on.  I'm the type of guy who likes to be agressive, i don't like to sit and wait for someone to stroll by, while i could go out and hunt.  So this showed in my style of play and my strategies.  Both me and Skaha proceeded to enter the backyard through "no man's land".  We were of course spotted instantly, as soon as i saw both Cloud and Flex readying to defend, i called to unleash the balloons.  They darted away and i heard them yelling out "Hey!"  "Oh man!".  They were obviously surprised.  We went back to the driveway and Skaha began to enter via the "shed route".  I went back through "no man's land".  I glanced down the path and no one was in sight so i proceeded slowly and quitely to the backyard.  I surmised that they were both preparing to defend the northside, expecting us to both attack from that side.  So i had the element of surprise.  I peeked around the house and saw Flex near the hose and Cloud next to him, they were discussing something.  I stepped back as i heard Cloud walking my way.  I readied my 105, he turned the corner and saw me...saw me as i sprayed off 3 shots at him catching him in the face and shoulder.  He was out.  I rushed in and shot towards Flex.  He fell back and hid behind the table.  I yelled out to Skaha letting him know there was only 1 of them left and we could double up on him.  He didn't show up in time though.  I continued to stay out of range of Flex's XP310.  We exchanged fire and the next time he ducked back down i moved in.  He popped his head out again and i fired and got him.  We all went to the hose and filled up.  Skaha then came into the backyard and fired at Flex.  We explained to him that the game had ended.

Game 2:
We all discussed about the first game and went back to our bases to start the next.  Skaha and i started approaching down "no man's land" once again hoping for another bombardment opportunity.  I backtracked to the other side to see if they were going to try and advance on us.  It was clear, so i came back around.  I went down through "no man's land" and caught sight of Cloud.  He was apparently unarmed and retreated back to the end of the yard.  I approached slowly into the backyard and saw Skaha standing in the yard gun above his head, he was out.  Flex was no where to be seen.  I was baffled at what could have happened.  Being a bit overzealous i advanced towards Cloud who was unarmed and an easy target.  That mistake cost me as 2 streams of water smacked me in the head.  Flex had climbed onto the roof of the house just covering the back of the house.  He had both of the guns and picked of Skaha and of course myself.  I was pretty dissapointed that a fell for such an obvious ambush.

Game 3:
To make things fair i offered to give some balloons to Flex and Cloud.  This way things were a bit more even and exciting.  After returning to our start positions Me and Skaha started advancing once again.  I went the "shed route" and Skaha went through "no man's land".  Advancing with caution i stayed behind a bush and caught sight of Flex, still up on the roof, but trying to get down.  He had no gun in his hand so i rushed towards him, lobbing a water balloon at him, then firing several shots.  At the same time i heard Skaha firing at Cloud.  There were several shouts of "Wait!",  "We're Not Ready!".  It seems Skaha and i were a bit too impatient and started without Flex and Clouds acknowledgement.  Flex and Cloud asked if we wanted to trade sides and we accepted.  Now Flex and Cloud had the driveway.  While Skaha and i had the backyard.  "Start" was called and the fight began, we checked to make sure no one was approaching from "no man's land" and started advancing from the "shed route".  We were almost to the driveway when Skaha suggested to go through the bushes.  I started through, when Skaha spotted Flex.  I stayed hidden within the bush while Flex jumped out from the driveway and managed to spray some shots a Skaha, he was out.  I was getting edgy in my hideout, but i knew Flex had not seen me.  He moved back and forth a while, chatting with Skaha, trying to inquire about my whereabouts.  I held my position waiting for him to come just a bit closer...he took one step towards the bush and i sprung up firing off 5 shots at his head.  He fell to the ground and declared himself out.  At that moment Cloud ran through the shrubs firing rapidly.  I ducked down and fired back, we both sprayed each other and caused a double knock out.

Game 4:
We went back to our bases to start the next game.  This time Skaha and i chose to enter through "no man's land".  Skaha stayed behind me to provide cover, while i went ahead.  Skaha must have heard someone on the other side, becuase when i glanced back for him, he was gone.  I continued approaching through the side of the house slowly, when i heard the faint shuffle of feet.  I was alert now, as i went advanced closer making sure to be a silent as possible.  I reached the point where the wooden fence on my right made a sharp 90* turn to the right before continuing.  This provided a small space for someone to hide behind. I was sure someone was there.  Standing behind the wall, i turned the corner and fired, catching Flex in the chest.  He was crouched low against the fence and fired at me as well spraying my arm.  We were both out.  Flex and i walked around the house through the driveway, to see how Cloud and Skaha were doing.  We went through the "shed route" and saw them both standing there.  They told us that they had knocked each other out as well.  So in essence we tied.

Game 5:
Well after talking about that fight, Flex suggested we play CTF.  Skaha and i had a water bottle for our flag, while Flex and Cloud had a small hand broom/sweeper thing.  Our rules were the flag had to be at the base, in plain view.  (The teams were small so we didn't want to have to go looking for a hidden flag)  If you had the flag, you could not fire.  If you were shot you would have to return to your base and count aloud to 10.  If you were shot with the flag in your hands you would have to drop it.  The only way to win is if your team had both flags, yours and the enemies.
We placed our flag at the end of the yard in front of a bush, Flex and Cloud's flag would be behind my car.  We started off, Skaha went through the "shed route", while i went through "no man's land".  Midway through approaching i saw Cloud waiting for me on the other end.  We started a dog fight with him firing at me, and me firing back.  Neither of us were ever in range and no one gained an advantage.  So i decided to re-think my strategy and headed back towards my base hoping for Cloud to give chase.  I dashed around the house and waited behind the corner.  I heard his footsteps approach closer.  I pulled my gun around the corner and fired.  I heard him yell "out!".  I got him.  He started walking back to his base, i used this to my advantage and walked behind him, using him as a human shield.  When we got to the driveway i had to be extra careful, fearing Flex was hiding, either, under a car or behind a bush.  After a quick examination of the area i grabbed the flag while Cloud started his 10 count.  I ran back to my base ready to declare victory when i noticed our flag was missing.  I looked along the "shed route" and saw that Skaha was in the driveway still fighting.  So that meant he had hadn't been knocked out...so how did they get our flag?...both our routes were covered, this perplexed me during the rest of the game.  So now i had thier flag and was a sitting duck.  So i ducked behind a bush in the backyard waiting for Skaha to return, hopefully with our flag.  As i waited someone started firing at me through the bush, the shots nearly got me.  I stayed still hoping i was not seen and the attacker finally left.  I waited some more, when Skaha returned through "no man's land".  I didn't see our flag on him and i asked him where it was but he said nothing.  He walked back to our start position near the bush and he counted to 10, "oh", i thought to myself, he was shot.  He finished his count and told me Flex had our flag.  I was really confused at how he attained it, but we had a game to win, so i let it pass for now.  Skaha headed back through "no man's land" and i headed out from the "shed route".  I entered the drive way and saw Flex and Cloud in the street outside the driveway.  I tried to draw their fire long enough for Skaha to grab our flag which they had left behind my car.  He fired at them drawing them back and he grabbed our flag.  We both speeded bakc to our bases and placed both flags at our base.  We declared victory and the game was over.  Later on while discussing the battle, Flex told us that he had went around the neighborhood and jumped the back fence to grab our flag.  It was about 9:45pm now and Skaha had to go home.  I was also getting pretty dark...enough to pull out the flashlights.  We opted to call it a night though, and continue fighting another day.  We emptied our guns, moved the table and tools back into the shed.  Surprisingly we weren't that wet and none of us needed to change.  So that ended our first water war as we headed home.

Summary:
Being the first water war of the season, i'd have to say it was pretty successful.  Our next one should be even bigger, with other friends who are hyped about soakers to join in.  Our biggest problem is finding a large area with a water source in which to hold our next fight, but i'm sure something will come up.  We also talked about having set teams, and other such things, so i'm pretty happy that so many people are excited about the whole thing (better than last year when it was just me and Skaha)  I learned a lot from this first fight, and am looking forward to the battles to come.  Hope you all enjoyed my little war story!

"Strength And Honor"

DePhiAnT

Notice:  "All of the preceeding events were told from my point of view, so guys if some parts do not seem exact, it's cause i can't remember everything!"