Ren and his assigned groups highest-ranking cadets all sat in a room together, spread out across a meeting table with a holographic display placed in the middle. Each of them had a bottle of water and a notepad to make plans for.
The others at the table were Riley Barrett, the number-four ranked pilot. Scarlet Lister, who was ranked fifth. Rachel Rosales, who was ranked eighth, Darian Meyer, who was ranked tenth, and of course Ren himself, who was first in the entire academy. The academy made this mock battle as equal as possible by placing five of the top ten students on each side. Meaning the second, third, sixth, seventh, and ninth-ranked cadets were on the other side.
Meanwhile, Captain Marshall sat at the head of the table, looking at the cadets discussing the game plan. He was a well-decorated officer and one of the rare captains to have had three confirmed enemy shit detonations and two assisted detonations. There were few better captains than him.
"Listen up everyone." Captain Marshall said loudly to make his voice heard among the cadets. "This meeting will be to discuss our strategy you will use against your fellow cadets and my friend Captain Davies. Be assured, he will not hold back in his strategy. Do not underestimate him just because this is a simulation. Now let's discuss our opponents. First up, the second-ranked student, Callum Jenkins. What can you tell me about him, Ren?"
Ren nodded. "He doesn't like me one bit. He's had it out for me ever since I beat his ass in the final exams of our first year. He's a good fighter, but he's horrible when it comes to squad work. When he's focused, he tends to get tunnel visioned on a single objective instead of seeing the big picture and ends up leaving his squad for dead."
"Hmm...would you say he would make a good pilot on a ship?" Captain Marshall asked.
"If he had stern leadership...maybe." Ren said honestly. He personally had nothing against Callum, but he never helped matters. Ren would also make certain comments against him whenever Callum tried to start something. The two even once got physical only to be pulled apart by other students.
"Could you take him out?" Captain asked.
"Give me four good troops, and I think we can take him out early." Ren said.
"Alright. Next we have. the third-ranked Skye Turner, the sixth-ranked Cason Watts, the seventh-ranked Lily Holmes, and the ninth-ranked Autumn Chambers. What do we know?"
Ren was the first to speak up. "Lily is an ace sniper. In simulations, she stays away from the main battlefield as she picks off HVT opponents from afar. She'll probably target squad leaders first. She usually has two or three guards at all times to make sure he's defended. Not to mention she has great vision seeing the battlefield and tends to make calls when she notices something."
"How do you suggest we handle her?" Captain Marshall asked.
"Could we use our own sniper?" Rachel suggested.
"No...Markus is a good shot, but he's nowhere near Lily's level." Ren said. "Lily would spot him quickly."
"If we manage to get an advantage by eliminating the other teams captains... we may force her to take command." Ren said. "She'd start becoming flustered and panic."
"Are you sure targeting her like that is a good idea, Ren?" Scarlet asked with some nerves.
"Yes. More than likely, she and Tyler are telling them all our tendencies too. All is fair in love and war." Ren said. "We agreed not to hold back, and I don't intend to do so."
"If your sure..." Scarlet said. "What about Tyler's weakness?"
"Simple. He's good in one-on-one situations, but he cracks under pressure if there's too much going on."
Captain then spoke up. "This Tyler...he's the twelfth rank, right?"
"Yes, sir, and my best friend." Ren said.
"I like how you work, Ren, not holding back. You impress me." Captain Marshall said with a smile.
The meeting continued going down the rundown of the opponents top cadets.
"Alright, now that we've identified our opponents weaknesses...now I want to know our own. Ren, you're first."
"He doesn't have one—at least none that we know of." Scarlet said, sighing.
"None?" Captain Marshall spoke.
"Everyone in the top 30 has even tried challenging him, one-on-one, one-on-two, even one-on-five. Nobody has managed to beat him." Scarlet explained.
"No, I have a weakness." Ren said, chiming into the conversation. "I just don't let mine show, no matter what. Rest assured, Captain, it won't affect the battle today."
"Understood." Captain Marshall said. "Now, we need a concrete plan."
"Could I make a suggestion?" Ren said, raising a hand.
"Go ahead, cadet."
Ren stood up and waved his hand on the holographic table placed in the middle of the meeting room. Suddenly the battlefield the simulation would be on popped up. After a press of a button, red dots began appearing.
"More than likely, Callum will be leading the frontal assault. Callum likes overwhelming his opponents with strength in numbers; he isn't exactly a master strategist. Now I propose a little it of guerrilla warfare, small skirmishes to dwindle their numbers, and when they are in position, I will get Callum's attention."
"How will you do that?" Riley asked.
"I know how to piss him off." Ren said with a smirk.
"Gaslighting then?" Rachel added.
"Exactly. Once he's away, the main enemy force will lose their best fighter; that is when our main force will attack. Scarlet is an ace at explosives; she will plant mines around the battlefield, and when their forces are in position, we light them up. Scarlet, Riley, and Darian will captain the assault squad while I lead Callum away. While you three attack the main group, focus on their captains, which then will make Lily panic. While this is happening, Rachel will be on defense; in case they have a small team sneak by our forces, we need to make sure our base is safe."
"I got it." Rachel said.
Ren nodded and continued "Now while Callum chases me, I will lead him to an ambush spot where those four troops I'll have will be at the ready and overwhelm him; once we take out the majority of their captains, we commit a full assault; Lily won't be able to take command, and we cut them down to the last man."
"What happens if we take casualties?" Riley asked.
"Adapt as needed. No plan survives first contact with the enemy." Ren said. "And luckily, I'm the best at adapting to any given situation."
"Alright, anyone oppose this plan?" Captain Marshall asked the group, and no one opposed it.
"Alright, you have two hours to study the strategy and prepare your machine for the sim. Code is Alpha-Nine-Zeta. Dismissed!"
Ren and Scarlet walked outside.
"What do you think about my plan?" Ren asked.
"I'm confident in it." Scarlet said. "I always have faith in your plans."
"Thanks...I always appreciate it how you have my back." Ren said as he placed a hand on Scarlet's shoulder.
"Of course, Ren. Always." Scarlet said with a blush on her face.
"Of course, by the way, want to make it a bet if our side wins, Lily and Tyler have to treat us to dinner?" Ren said with a sleek smile on his face.
"I'll let them know, but knowing Tyler, he'll say yes in a heartbeat." Scarlet said.
"Yeah, he could never say no to a good gamble." Ren said, smiling.
*Elsewhere on the Captain Observation Deck.*
The Principal of the Academy looked at the academy hangar, seeing the swarm of cadets begin their mech maintenance. Behind her was over a dozen ship captains, each reading tablets that were handed out to them with the files of each cadet.
The principal then turned around and faced the captains. "Alright. The simulated mock battle will begin shortly. On your tablets, you can watch the footage of certain students performances. You will be able to watch how they performed until it is time for the official graduation. You can also read the student bios placed in them as well, which hold the psychological evaluation and the performance history of each student."
"Excuse me." One of the captains said.
"Yes, Captain Aurora?" The principal responded.
The captain brushed her long black hair behind her ear, which allowed her beautiful blue eyes to shine brightly.
"The number one ranked student, Ren. What's his story?" Captain Aurora asked.
"Oh, good question. You can read-"
"No." Captain Aurora interrupted. "I don't care what some file says; what do you say?"
"Oh, uhm, Ren is, truth be told...a prodigy." The principal said. "He has exceptional grades in both combat and strategic classes as well as engineering. He's arguably the best student this school has ever seen."
"You know I went to this school, right, Principal Davis?" Captain Aurora said with a smile.
"Oh-I-uh..."
"I'm kidding." Captain Aurora said. "The kid just intrigues me, that's all."
Captain Aurora looked down at the cadets, specifically one who was inside one of the sentinel cockpits. "Ren...I can't wait to meet you."
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