by Noah Michael
“We are honored by your proposal, but with all due respect, commander, do you not believe that assigning your fellow Readers as officers will incite jealousy and claims of favoritism among the men?”
“Isn’t it the skill of a Reader to deal exactly with those challenges? Sway their emotions. If we can’t be trained by others, then this will be our training. It will be your responsibility to extinguish the flames of jealousy and to motivate and maneuver your platoons to the best of their abilities.” She spoke to them not strictly as a commander, but also as a fellow tribesman.
“It would be our honor, commander. Who will we command?”
“Bane, you’re in charge of the Shifters. Pierce, you will command the Absorbers. Gospin, you have the Burners. In addition, each of you will command one Coder, as they can assist medically as well as offensively.” Alia had been careful to give Gospin command of the Burners. They seemed to be the roughest segment of the group, the hardest to control. Alia sensed a stronger sense of leadership in Gospin than in the other two. “Your first duty as officers shall be to inform your men of the new order and create a proper command atmosphere. You are dismissed.”
“Yes commander, we shall get right to it.” The Readers walked off, each of them to their respective groups. Alia walked back to David.
“Thanks for waiting, Sergeant. Leadership command has been slightly altered.” She recapped the conversation for him.
“Are you sure? It may have been a wise strategy to inspire the Readers, but I don’t know if they are up to the task. They have been incapable of integrating with the others throughout all our years of training. How do you expect them to lead?”
“They never succeeded in mixing with the other men because they weren’t meant to. A Reader is meant to be a leader of men, not an equal. Their gift gives them unique, natural leadership qualities, because they can see straight to the heart of problems and weaknesses in leaders as well as followers. Now please, describe the rest of the men to me.”
“Yes commander. Next, we have the Absorbers. There are four of them: Relix, Ron, Hask, and Spar. They are each equipped a glove.”
“And the Burners?”
“The Burners...” David sighed. “I have worked very hard with them. They are very hard to tame. They are quick to anger, slow to obey. They do not like orders, but they respect strength. They must know that you are not to be reckoned with. They are crucial in battle. They take pride in success and in every enemy killed. They fight with fury.”
Alia turned to look at the Burners. They were laughing at Nero and pushing him around.
I need to let Nero fix the situation himself.
Alia marched angrily toward the group of Burners. “Soldiers! Stop this immediately!”
The Burners quickly straightened up. Nero turned to his commander, his face flaring with hatred.
“Is this how the Burner tribe wants to be represented? Is this how problems are dealt with by your people? If one Burner wants to assert his dominance over another, he starts a pathetic gang-up with five against one?” Before any angry protests could erupt, Alia continued, “If you want a cockfight, at least do it fair, one on one.”
Alia looked at Nero. He stared heatedly at his fellow tribesmen, thirsty for a fight.
“Well, which one of you has the guts to fight him?”
The Burners were quiet.
“Well then,” Alia said derisively. “That clarifies things.”
Nero gazed at his commander with a sense of gratitude. Alia nodded at him, then turned and walked back to David.
“As soon as we start fighting, they’ll be much easier to command,” he said. “They need an outlet for their flames.”
Alia’s watch rang. “Excuse me Sergeant.” Alia brought the watch closer to her face.
“Hello Alia.” It was Marcus. “I hope you’ve succeeded in making friends. Now that you’ve had time to get acquainted with your men, you have exactly twenty-four hours to complete your mission and destroy the Shifter army. Your transformation into battle gear will commence shortly.”
As the call ended, David’s suit glowed and when it dimmed, he was dressed in full battle gear. A layer of light, rock armor spread over his lower legs, arms, and upper body. On his back was a long, granite staff. Six small stones were fastened around each wrist. Alia’s suit began to shine as well. Her armor was white and blue metal. Her boots had grown, enhanced with technology to enhance her speed and jump. A blue belt held a long, glowing laser knife fastened at each of her hips and laser guns were holstered above each of her arms. Her neck was armored from the back.
“Prepare the men for battle.” She ordered.
All over the cave, the men glowed, each wearing a uniform befitting his tribe.
“Commander,” David said. “The scouts have returned. They are waiting for you at the cave entrance.” Alia followed her Sergeant to the cave mouth, where the scouts were waiting.
“What do you boys have for me?”
“Commander, the opposition army is approaching our position from the north and holds base at a nearby stronghold. The stronghold is located through a narrow valley about an hour’s travel by foot from our current location. The mountaintops surrounding the valley are filled with about twenty Shifters armed with long-range weaponry. Beyond the valley, we must walk across a tremendously deep crevice, at the bottom of which are violent rapids. There’s a stone bridge stretching over the crevice to the stronghold, which rests on a massive metal pillar protruding from the crevice. Currently, their army has already made it over the crevice and they’re marching through the valley. It puzzles us as to why they have not made it further. Judging by the number of troops, they should be able to maintain a much faster pace. At their current pace, it should take them another hour and a half to make it through the valley. Perhaps this is just the simulation’s way of doing things. The valley is wide enough for about twenty soldiers side by side. We estimate their army at sixty Shifters.”
“Thank you. Take a quick rest and meet your officers. We will be moving out shortly.”
“Yes commander.”
The men ran off into the cave. Alia went to find David. She explained the situation and he listened carefully. “I want to discuss strategy. The enemy army is still in the valley, which gives us a great advantage. We could trap them from the front, climbing the mountains and using the advantage of height. You could go with the Coders and the Absorbers to the mountaintops, disabling the defensive troops up there. The Burners can advance straight at the enemy behind a wall of fire with our Shifters defending them on the ground like metal shields. The valley is thin enough for the Burners to fill the entire valley with a wall of fire, forcing the enemy army back onto the stone bridge, which you can collapse.”
“How are we to climb the mountains without being seen?” David asked.
“I was hoping you’d be able to help with that by transporting the troops?”
“I suppose I could. I could move rocks up the mountain while they hold on.”
“Perfect. When the enemy army is on the run, I will signal the Burners to blast flames into the air, which will be a sign to you to break the bridge. Clear?”
“Yes, commander.” Alia and David spent some more time discussing the details of the plan before sharing it with the officers. After an hour of preparation, they were ready to move. Alia led the way out of the cave. “We need to reach the valley in less than thirty minutes. David, build us a vehicle.”
David stepped forward. He lifted his staff and with two hands plunged it into the floor. His eyes began to glow. Suddenly, the earth burst before him, sending hundreds of large rocks flying straight up into the air, crashing down to the ground. They rolled into each other, molding into one massive boulder, which David deftly sculpted into a wide, flat platform with walls on every side and eight large, stone wheels. The soldiers watched in wonder at David’s incredible powers.
Next, the Coders stepped forward in their flexible, DNA-sensitive uniforms that r
eflected the color and nature of the wearer’s skin. Apion and Spade moved their watches near their faces. “Stallion,” they muttered. The watches buzzed as a diminutively thin needle pricked their skin, and the men transformed. Alia watched in wonder as they changed to resemble centaurs she had heard of only in legends. They would gallop ahead of the chariot as scouts.
“Now it’s my turn.” Ganger closed his eyes and clenched his fists in concentration. By the time he opened his eyes, he stood at a massive eight feet, with muscles rivaling those of the centaurs. His task was to ride in the front of the chariot, smashing away any boulders or thick shrubbery. He turned towards Alia. “Commander, we’re ready.”
“Good, let’s begin.”
The centaurs ran off, taking a head start. David plunged his staff into the chariot floor and it took off, wheels spinning. Ganger bashed away with super-human speed. The trees he failed to demolish were smashed to pieces by the stone chariot. As they rode, Alia watched the soldiers. They were excited, ready for battle. The coming hours would be crucial. If she passed this, she would be closer to gaining Roko’s full trust, which meant a step closer to saving Bella.
The mountain range moved into sight. In the center of the range were two parallel, straight lines of mountains. Between them was a long, thin valley. As they drew closer, the front lines of the Shifter army made their way towards the end of the valley.
“From here we walk,” Alia commanded. The trees above were thick enough to shield them from the Shifter sentries on the mountains above. As they drew closer, the sound and movement of falling trees would draw attention. Alia led the men to the foot of the mountain. She looked at David. “Ready?”
“Yes commander.”
“Pierce, bring your men forward.” Pierce walked out from among the ranks, followed by the Absorbers and Spade, who had turned back to his human form. “You and your men are to accompany David to the mountaintops. Your part in this operation is crucial. The second a shot is fired from a Shifter down into the valley, you are to locate its origin and eliminate him. There are six of you and many more of them, so you will have to move fast, and change your position after each kill to prevent being spotted. You must follow Pierce’s every command.” Alia turned to David. “Be careful Sergeant.”
David nodded. He placed his hands on the ground and closed his eyes. The earth shook and a platform rose beneath him, lifting him up onto a large boulder. The ground under Pierce and his men did the same. “Hold on!” Pierce yelled to his men. They quickly fell to the floor, digging their hands into the rock. David opened his eyes. The rocks blazed their way up the mountain, trees tumbling down in their wake.
“They will know we’re here soon! We must move, now!” Alia sprinted toward the opening of the valley, the men following right behind her. “Gospin, ready your men!” Gospin hurried forward with the Burners by his side. “This is your chance! Today, you will burn our way to victory! Now build me a wall of fire!”
They reached the valley entrance just as the Shifter army approached them. Each Shifter wore an arm brace of different material upon his wrist. They were all strongly built and moved in unison.
Where is their commander?
“Fire!”
The Burners extended their arms and filled the entire width of the valley with a wall of flames. The Shifters screamed as their front wave was consumed by the searing flames. The Burners marched forward, driving the Shifters back.
The Shifters quickly transformed into an army of metallic soldiers. Some attempted to charge at the wall, prepared to sacrifice themselves to break it. A few made it through, and Alia moved quickly to intercept them.
Two Shifters charged at Alia. The Shifter in front was about to strike.
“Stop!”
The Shifter froze, and Alia smashed into his metal stomach with her boots. He flew backwards into a second Shifter, knocking them both into the flames. Alia spotted another two Shifters trying to circumvent the wall of fire by climbing the steep mountainside.
“Bane! Have your men keep defending the Burners from the back! I want you to join me in front of the wall!”
“Yes commander!” Bane shouted the orders to his troops and quickly jumped onto the wall beside him to the right of the flames. He found himself face to face with the Shifters. “You need to jump down,” he commanded them. “Now! Trust me, jump! Now!”
The Shifters flew off the wall and into the flames, where they melted instantly. Bane continued climbing and then jumped to the other side, where he met up with Alia, who climbed from the other side.
“The mountaintop fire is increasing,” he reported. “I hope the Absorbers haven’t been taken out.” Alia and Bane continued to protect the line from the swarm of Shifters so that their line could march forward. They hypnotized five enemy Shifters to fight their fellow soldiers. As they marched on, a stone Shifter charged at Alia, but he was tackled from the side by a massive figure and smashed against the mountainside, rocks tumbling to the ground. Ganger had come to the front of the wall to help out. He gave her a thumbs up.
Alia, Bane, and Ganger fought off enemy Shifters from the front of the flames, and Alia’s Shifters followed in back, intercepting shots with their metal hands. They also had to fight off enemy Shifters occasionally sliding down from the mountaintops hoping to strike the Burners from behind. Apion fought alongside the Shifters in his plant form, his skin green and his hands taking the form of long, thick vines. He intercepted the shots with vines and branches, countering some as well by shooting thorns up into the mountaintops.
A laser blast made it past Alia’s Shifters, hitting one of the Burners in the back. He fell to the floor, breaking the firewall. The other Burners moved closer together, trying to fill in the space. But the wall’s power and width had decreased. Apion ran to the fallen Burner, quickly growing a variety of different leaves and berries from his arms, treating and wrapping the wound. Brass stood over the two of them, intercepting shots as Apion worked. Gospin took immediate control of the situation.
“Apion, Brass! There will be no medical attention now! We need all of our men defending the remainder of the line!”
Apion looked up, his expression torn. “We can’t just leave him! He’ll die!”
“Apion, if you don’t leave him, we will all die!”
Apion hesitated, but quickly sprinted back to his position defending the line, followed by Brass. As soon as they left the Burner out in the open, he was smothered by laser fire. Apion did not look back. Gospin thought of telling Apion not to worry, to remind him that it was just a simulation, but he decided against it. He would fight better this way.
Alia looked back at the stalled firewall. “Gospin! What’s going on back there!?”
“Soldiers, keep moving! He’ll have to catch up, keep the flames moving forward!”
The line moved again.
“Commander, what’s going on up on the mountaintops!? Where is our cover!?” Alia looked up towards the mountaintops where the swarms of enemy Shifters were clearly visible on the cliffs. Laser fire poured down like a heavy rain. Her armor was damaged, she had already been hit four times.
David, where are you?
A tremendous explosion resounded throughout the entire valley. Alia looked up in joyful relief as the mountaintop blew up, sending dozens of boulders and Shifters tumbling down the side of the mountain, smashing into the ground.
David waited on purpose. He wanted them to think they were alone on the mountaintops so that they would gather around the edges and he could take them all out in one shot.
Alia’s men cheered as the laser fire dropped off. The firewall moved much faster as the enemy army lost morale and fell into a full-fledged retreat. David looked down upon the fleeing army. He turned toward Pierce, who stood beside him. “The plan is really working, huh?”
“Indeed. She’s not too bad after all.”
“Pierce, I am putting you in official command of the mountaintop. There is no more need for me up here; I am going dow
n to help in the valley.”
“Yes, Sergeant.”
David summoned a boulder from the ground with his staff, riding down the hillside. He landed in front of the wall, smashing the boulder into a group of Shifters as he did so. A Shifter noticed him and lifted his gun. David snatched one of the stones from his wrist, morphed it into a blade, and whipped it straight through a layer of wooden skin and into the Shifter’s chest.
Alia noted David’s arrival on the ground and wanted to congratulate him on his timing, but it would have to wait. She needed to focus. The end of the valley was in sight. From where she stood, the fortress looked as though it was floating in midair in the middle of the crevice. It was huge and made completely of iron, consisting of five lofty towers.
That place could hold hundreds of soldiers, she thought with unease. Why only send out 60? And where in the world was their commander? Was this some kind of trap? Either way, the best option is to keep plowing forward. If we could break the bridge, reinforcements wouldn’t be able to get through. “Keep going!” she called. “We are almost there!”
The enemy Shifters began crowding onto the bridge, fleeing to the shelter of their fortress. A crowd of armed soldiers gathered by the fortress entrance, providing cover for their fleeing allies. Alia heard Bane shout in pain. From the edge of her sight, she watched him fall. Alia’s Shifters had joined her from behind the wall, defending the Burners from the lasers with their metal skin.
“They are almost in position!”
As the flames pushed forward, more Shifters began swarming the bridge. Alia’s heart raced as she filled with excitement, adrenaline, and determination. “This is our chance! David! Now!”
“I’m trying, but I’m taking heavy fire!” He fell back, hit in the shoulder.
“David!” Alia’s heart dropped. Ganger jumped in front of David only to be bombarded with a fury of lasers as he roared, his super-human thick skin taking the blows. David climbed to his feet, bloody and exhausted. With his last bit of energy, he drove his staff into the ground, focusing all his energy into the Earth. The ground began to shake. The bridge began to rumble.
