Intergalactic Wizard Scout Chronicles 1: Wizard Defiant Read Free Page A

noncommittally, “it’s like I said. Somebody made a mistake.”
    “No one made a mistake, Richard,” Liz said emphatically. “You were setup. You were supposed to lose. Unfortunately for me, whoever set you up misjudged your combat abilities. I don’t mind telling you that when we were told you were a member of the other quad, we got very concerned. Scores aside, most of the cadets take it for granted you’re the best in the class at combat. If not the best, you’re certainly the luckiest. It was just my bad luck to get matched against you in the simulation.”
    “You were told who you would be fighting?” Richard said a little astonished. “It’s supposed to be a secret in order to simulate real combat. Who told you I was in the other quad?”
    “It was on my heads-up display,” Liz said. “I had access to full specs on everyone in your quad. The only thing I didn’t know was your exact location.”
    “Why would anyone want to stack the deck against me?” said Richard. “I guess I wouldn’t put it past TAC Officer Myers, but the quads for the simulation are determined by the central computer via the tele-network. I don’t think TAC Officer Myers has the resources to hack into the system. I know he hates me, but I doubt he hates me enough to beg, borrow, or steal the five million credits it would probably take to hire a team capable of hacking the selection program.”
    “I’ve said my piece,” Liz said, “so I’ll leave it at that. But let me give you a bit of advice, Richard, even though you haven’t asked for it. You should try to be a little friendlier with the other cadets every once in a while. They’re good people. You’ve always seemed a little standoffish. One day you may regret not having friends. They come in pretty handy sometimes.”
    Richard thought about her comment for a few seconds before answering. It was true he wasn’t the friendliest of cadets. It wasn’t that he was unfriendly, but just that he didn’t go out of his way to get to know the other cadets. If truth be known, he was probably scared to get close to people. During his short, twenty-two years of life, it seemed like every time he got close to someone, that person either died or had to leave.
    “Liz,” he continued. “I understand what you’re saying, but friends can be a liability at times. I had two good friends in my last unit, and both of them were killed in front of my eyes. Cadet 647 was a good friend during our initial training, but she got D.F.R.’d in our sixth month here.”
    “I’ve lost friends in combat too, Richard,” Liz said, “but being ‘Dropped From the Rolls’ is not the end of the world. You’ll probably see cadet 647 again someday. Almost anyone with prior military experience has lost friends. You’re no exception, and neither am I. Just because there’s a chance you could lose a friend doesn’t mean you shouldn’t let someone get close.”
    “Life’s strange, isn’t it?” said Richard. “We’ve talked more today than we have in the past two years. I’m sorry we didn’t get to know one another. I have a feeling you’d have made a good friend.”
    “I’m just D.F.R.’d, Richard. I’m not dead,” Liz said. “We were cadets together. If we ever meet again, I hope you’ll consider me a friend and buy me a drink. You owe me, after all, for getting me kicked out of the class.”
    “I’ll buy you all the drinks you can handle, Liz.”
    Liz laughed and said, “You may regret saying that. I can handle a lot.” Then more seriously, she said, “Goodbye, Richard.”
    “Goodbye, Liz,” said Richard.
    With that, she picked up her duffle bag, turned, and walked down the hallway to the stairs. Richard continued watching the stairs long after she had disappeared from sight.

Chapter 3 – The Inquiry
    ____________________
     
    Late in the afternoon, two security police came to Richard’s room. They escorted him to the commandant’s office on the far side of the parade