The Collision (Sequel to The Division)

Chapter 26 (River)

Zayin stands on the white floor behind the trainees with a small army.

I mean talk about unexpected. I was just getting used to preparing for this war and thinking of it as something in the future. Not to mention these trainees aren't ready for this. They barely had a week of training.

I sigh and start barking out orders to the frightened triangles, "Break into your squadrons! Red squadron in the front, blue squadron in the middle and yellow squadron in the back! Let's go people! This is not a drill! I repeat this is not a drill!" I touch the com device in my ear, "Sound the alarms. Zayin has made it into simulation room."

"Yes, ma'am." The communication and surveillance officer replies. The alarms blare as background music of the battle.

The soldiers rush the army and I summon my fire and channel it into my sword at my hip. Autumn is already battling Zayin with her tree roots. Her roots burst from the ground and dodges them by shooting into the air. I jump and bounce off the wall, slamming my sword at him. He dodges my attack and I land on the ground.

"You'll have to do better than that." He laughs.

"So what's the plan, general?" Autumn asks.

"How about you trap, I hit?" I grin at her.

"Sounds good to me." She returns the grin.

Autumn pulls the ground from the side walls, forcing Zayin to land. I come around her and side swipe him. He dodges it and kicks my ankle making me fall. Autumn slams her rocks into his side. He lies in a heap on the wall. He fires a lazer beam at us as he gets up.

Autumn puts a rock wall up to block it. When the heat stops, I run around the stone and throw my fire at him. He dodges it and I swipe at him again. Autumn appears behind him to corner him, but he takes off and forces us to follow.

I look around us and see that the trainees aren't doing much better than we are. I estimate that the rest of the army won't arrive for another fifteen minutes. A rouge thought floats in my head, "How did he get in here?" I stop running with that thought. The walls of the room are made of four feet deep steel to block out any rays and there was no apparent entry hole. I look at the control board and see the red light blinking, meaning a simulation is in progress.

I touch the com again, "Do you see Zayin in this room?" I ask the surveillance officer.

There is a pause as she searches for the camera, "No, ma'am, there is a simulation going on."

I curse and scream over the sound of battle, "EVERYONE STOP!"

Autumn has her wrapped vines around Zayin and he gasps for air. "What the heck?" Autumn says, "Why are we stopping?"

Zayin laughs, "It seems that little River has figured out our trick."

"What?" Autumn questions me.

"This whole battle is pointless. It's a simulation. Zayin hacked the simulation control board." I answer and walk to the control board. I slam down on the button to halt the simulation and the enemy disappears.

"Why would he do that?" Autumn comes up to me.

"I don't know. If I were him, I would use it to distract us, but I don't know what for." I scratch my chin in thought.

Autumn gasps, "The tree, He's going for the tree."

I touch the com in my ear, "Tell everyone to head to the tree, not the simulation room. I repeat not the simulation room!" I order.