Valerie pulled ether into her optic nerves. Her irises flared purple. Ether Sight dissolved the concrete ceiling into glowing schematics. A concentrated energy signature throbbed on the tenth floor. The payload.

  ?Below her, Brook plowed through the mechanical horde. He moved like a runaway train, swatting iron chassis aside with raw momentum, ensuring nothing followed his squadmate.

  ?Jordan grinned at three charging security units. He kept the rhythm flowing, layering a secondary beat over his primary track. "Fists hit like a freight train, turn you all to scrap!" His knuckles glowed. He drove a punch into the center mass of the lead machine. Armor crumpled. Gears sprayed across the tile.

  ?Up in the stands, Ethan leaned over the railing. "Wait... he’s buffing them and keeping a self-buff running at the same time?!"

  ?Valerie didn't take the stairs. She halted at the open shaft.

  ?"Lasers on the steps. Right carriage holds residual voltage. I have three minutes."

  ?She dove into the darkness. Her bladed boot bit into the primary suspension cable. Jordan's speed enhancement combined with the tension of the wire. She shot upward like a bolt from a crossbow.

  ?"Jordan! Brook! I hit the target in forty seconds!" she barked over the comms.

  ?She blurred past the lower floors. Sparks showered from a severed wire above, forcing her to kick outward. She burst through the seventh-floor doors.

  ?"Three patrols. Blind spot." Valerie slid beneath a swinging baton.

  ?Then, the purple schematics in her vision violently hitched.

  ?The Toll collected its due.

  ?Thump-Pah... Crash! Jordan’s beat still hammered in her earpiece, but a terrifying void expanded inside her skull.

  ?"Mission... bomb... where am I going?" She shook her head. Her focus drifted. She bit her lip until it bled, forcing her body upward through a ventilation grate.

  ?Tenth floor.

  ?A Guardian-class unit blocked the control room. It didn't charge. It raised a heavy arm-cannon. The barrel glowed white.

  ?Valerie squeezed the last fumes of her Ether Sight.

  ?It fires in 1.5 seconds. She didn't dodge. She sprinted directly into the barrel. Her boot sheared upward a fraction of a second before the discharge. The ether-coated blade cleaved the Guardian’s chest cavity open. The machine convulsed and hit the floor.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  ?Valerie vaulted the wreckage. She tore the energy core from the wall console.

  ?"Payload... secure."

  ?Her knees buckled. She hit the wall, sliding down to the tile. Her chest heaved. The world drained to grayscale. Her gaze drifted to the earpiece lying on the floor nearby. The beatbox rhythm leaked from the speaker.

  ?"Whose... is that?" Her voice was hollow. The fire in her eyes vanished entirely. "Why am I here?"

  ?She looked down at her left hand. Thick marker ink stained her skin.

  ?License Exam.

  ?A contingency plan for her specific Toll.

  ?Her dry lips twitched. She couldn't remember the name of the boy rapping in the earpiece, but she looked at the bomb core. "Exam, huh... Guess I passed."

  ?Down in the lobby, the music died.

  ?Only sparks popped from the piles of ruined machines. Jordan stood panting. Then the simulation ended. The ether connection snapped.

  ?He dropped like a stone.

  ?His teeth ground together. Cold sweat flooded his face. Horrific bruises blossomed across his arms and legs. His muscles swelled, bulging as if tearing from the bone.

  ?His Toll wasn't simply losing breath. He squeezed the absolute physical limits out of Valerie's tendons and Brook's joints, and he took the receipt. He absorbed all their kinetic backlash and muscle tearing.

  ?Brook trudged through the scrap. One massive arm supported Valerie, who blinked aimlessly at the gray world.

  ?Jordan saw them. He refused to stay down. His arms shook violently as he pushed himself onto one knee. Blood leaked from his nose. He forced a grin and raised a trembling thumb.

  ?"I'm ok... I'm fine... Gwenchana..."

  ?"Simulation cleared. Status: Pass."

  ?Jordan’s eyes rolled back. He hit the concrete. Medical units rushed the floor, loading his battered body onto a stretcher. Brook remained silent, leading the confused Valerie after them.

  ?The evaluations rolled on. Teams fought, and more started passing. But the combat shifted.

  ?Marcus watched the current squad facing Guardian units. No flashing spells. No explosive fire. Just stances.

  ?A student stepped in. He punched. Steel crumpled inward. A perfect hole appeared in the armor.

  ?"How are they doing that?" Marcus frowned, leaning forward. "No ether flares. They're just punching solid steel like it's cheap tin."

  ?Vanessa crossed her arms. Her green eyes tracked the movements.

  ?"That is the Eastern methodology," she stated. "They do not waste reserves on wide-area elemental projections."

  ?She gestured as a recruit drove two fingers through a machine's power core.

  ?"They compress the ether entirely inward. They condense the energy to a singular point of impact at the exact moment of collision. A knuckle. A heel. It lacks visual spectacle, but the localized penetration is devastating. At close range, it is far more lethal than artillery."

  ?"Next team. Jin, Sun, Mei. Report to the simulation floor."

  ?Across the stands, three figures stood.

  ?"YES!" Sun roared, startling the students nearby. He threw a flurry of shadow-punches. "Finally! I thought my joints were rusting over! Time to break something!"

  ?Mei let out a feral shout. She launched a high kick, holding her leg vertically to stretch. Her eyes burned.

  ?"Sigh..."

  ?Jin rubbed his temples. He tugged Sun's sleeve. "Keep it down. Everyone is staring. Save the energy for the arena."

  ?They ignored him. Sun and Mei exchanged a look. Vicious grins stretched across their faces. Dense ether leaked from their skin, distorting the air around them.

  ?Without another word, they marched down the stairs. Jin shook his head and followed.