Linhart and the others watched as the military dropship that had brought them here ascended into the clouds, leaving them deep in enemy territory. The school had approved their battle skills, and the army had given them intensive training over the past week but, in the end, they were all young and inexperienced. And now they were all alone.

  “We will drop you as near to the tower as the dropship can fly without being detected by the wizards,” the dark-suited officer had stated in their final briefing, “Once you are there, proceed directly to your objective. No communication will be possible outside of the unit. You’ll be on your own.”

  Walking now down a disused cobblestone road, Linhart could see the wizard tower rising up through the hazy sky. He looked over the other recruits. Fifteen students in total, 8 of them seniors, seven of them juniors, and no freshmen among them.

  They all attended Nexus Military Academy, the most prestigious school in Eryndor. A school that ensured good pcement in the Eryndor Army or even a chance at joining the High Council someday.

  Drystan, the unit commander for this do-or-die mission, was a junior just like Linhart. The moment they nded he started barking orders through the short-wave, “Stay close and don’t go off the road. The wizards will have electric traps all over the fields around their tower.”

  “How long will the march take?”

  “Two or three hours, if all goes well. If we meet any resistance, Strikers and Courier units will proceed with haste and Heavy units engage. If there is any sign of electricity all units withdraw.”

  All of them were Fighter and Striker css, not a single Healer, Mage, or Utility. Most of the boys were huge and muscur, completely contained in bulky suits of Force Armor that were impossible to sneak around in, but a few others were lean or skinny, himself included. They wore highly maneuverable Light Armor with jump boosters.

  Drystan, one of the beefiest boys in the group, looked in his direction asking, “Hart, is the catalyst secure?”

  I took the small vial from my belt pouch and waved it at him. The gss was clear, showing it was a little over half-full of some glowing white goop. Drystan nodded and gravely said, “Keep it safe. Don’t screw this up.”

  “Yeah, Wimphart. Keep it safe or I’ll fuckin’ kill you,” Raxar, a titan-sized man with a brain the size of a walnut added. More muttered threats were shared, reminding Linhart how much he hated these fucking meatheads. It seemed most of them had been chosen on their Fighter score, a system that Nexus Academy used to grade and rank students against each other. Without even checking their ID Bracers, Linhart was certain he had the lowest score among them.

  The Fighters in Force Armor formed a circle with Linhart at its center as they plodded along the road.

  Girls were a rare breed in the Fighter css. The two girls who’d been recruited for the mission were famous among the boys for their high scores and even higher sex appeal. Both wore no armor, opting instead for flexigear. An energy absorbing material that resembled skintight clothing and allowed them to move completely unhindered. Looking now to either side, Linhart took a moment to enjoy the view. The two girls stayed within arm’s reach of him, like two shapely bodyguards.

  On his left was Tonya, a tall blonde with an hourgss build, who was a year older than him. Her flexisuit protected her from head to thigh like a dancer’s leotard, leaving her long, well-toned legs completely bare. During training, he’d had several opportunities to admire the provocative movements of her thighs and ass, swaying and jiggling as though they were chewing bubble gum.

  “Tonya, your sexy bod is distracting me from this mission.” one boy had quipped, “Can you help me out for a minute?”

  “One thing’s for sure. She’s not concealing any weapons,” another boy added.

  “These legs are my weapons,” she had replied, “Keep looking, if you like what you see.” The glint in her eye told Linhart that she was enjoying being eye candy for the most popur boys in school. Sporting a fme-bde and energy pistol, Tonya was well-known around the whole Academy for performing all sorts of warrior gymnastics and had brought many boys down in submission.

  Serapha on the other hand was small and athletic, dressed in a skintight flexisuit which blended into the surrounding grays of the road. Her long bck hair was pulled back in a ponytail and her arms were bare, showing off muscles that simultaneously aroused and intimidated Linhart. He found himself unable to resist gncing at her twin mounds, Linhart was certain that flexisuits did not allow the girls to wear bras. Across her ample chest, Seapha carried a hand-cannon. Weren’t those meant for disarming turrets or breaking open bunkers?

  She didn’t interact with the jocks very much, but she loved giving Linhart a hard time.

  “We’re nearly there, Linnie. Am I going to save your ass again today? I heard your orders are not to engage. Sounds perfect for you,” Serapha taunted, matching the tone that the boys were using with him. “How about you pass the catalyst to me and run home so you don’t get hurt?” Her piercing brown eyes reminded him of how far he had fallen beneath her.

  “The Commander was clear that Linhart will be the one to deliver the catalyst to the tower,” Drystan corrected her, “In case of his death, we will fall back and pray for a time slip.”

  Serapha was his own age, and they had once been friends: her, Linhart, and Drystan as well. But since arriving at the Nexus Academy, the three had parted ways. The other two had found new groups of friends and he was left by himself. Now, Linhart found himself treating Serapha just as rudely as she was treating him.

  A crackle from the sky above and the students stopped moving. “Incoming energy attack, turtle up!” shouted Drystan. And with that, the nine Heavy units raised their Force Shields, snapping them into one single impenetrable cover. The 3 Striker units pressed in beneath the protective field and Linhart was squished between Tonya and Serapha. Tonya's face was inches from his. Her breasts pressed up against his arm. The flexigear did nothing to hide their soft, yielding feel.

  A blue burst of magical energy pyed over their barrier. It ran into the ground and cracked the road around them, but the unit was secure. When the shaking stopped, Linhart was surprised to find Serapha hanging onto his arm. She must have lost her bance.

  All at once, enemy forces materialized from the shadows. They were practically on top of them, stepping from behind bushes and coming over rises in the nd on either side of the road. Linhart had just a moment to register that they were greatly outnumbered, before he was dodging energy bsts. Strangely, all the wizard’s soldiers were lightly armored and they moved in like lightning, pressing their unit hard.

  “For reasons unknown,” the dark-suited officer had told them, “this particur wizard, Lord Belfast, uses only female Fighters in his army. They might be brainwashed or under hypnosis, but do not hesitate to kill them on sight.”

  Now, lithe shapes raced towards them from both sides, fnking the slow-moving Heavy units and forcing Linhart, Tonya, and Serapha to break away from the group. Most of the students turned to face the onsught, while Linhart found himself sprinting in the direction of the tower.

  The attackers' energy bsts could’ve easily pierced his armor, but they seemed more intent on physically engaging the heavy infantry. They must have realized their energy caliber was too low to damage the heavy units, and so they id into the Force Armor with bdes and prybars.

  Perhaps the wizard’s pn was to overwhelm them with sheer numbers. Linhart faintly registered that the enemy warriors were attacking with complete fearlessness. He was shocked by the raw aggression that these women showed, their bodies dancing within arm’s reach of the rge muscur males of his unit, whose weapons fshed and bsted away.

  A minute into the attack, however, the Heavy units were being overwhelmed.