In the middle of the meal the teacher door opened and the groups fell silent as Lieutenant Anderson stepped in and looked over the group. When he located Ender he strode quickly across the room and whispered in Enders ear. Ender nodded, finished his glass of water, and left with the lieutenant. On the way out, Anderson handed a slip of paper to one of the older boys. The room became very noisy with conversation as Anderson and Ender left.
Ender was escorted down corridors he had never seen before. They didnt have the blue glow of the soldier corridors. Most were wood paneled, and the floors were carpeted. The doors were wood, with nameplates on them, and they stopped at one that said Captain Graff, supervisor. Anderson knocked softly, and a low voice said, Come in.
They went in. Captain Graff was seated behind a desk, his hands folded across his pot belly. He nodded, and Anderson sat. Ender also sat down. Graff cleared his throat and spoke.
Seven days since your first battle, Ender.
Ender did not reply.
Won seven battles, one every day.
Ender nodded.
Scores unusually high, too.
Ender blinked.
Why? Graff asked him.
Ender glanced at Anderson, and then spoke to the captain behind the desk. Two new tactics, sir. Legs doubled up as a shield, so that a flash doesnt immobilize. Jackknife takeoffs from the walls. Superior strategy, as Lieutenant Anderson taught, think places, not spaces. Five toons of eight instead of four of ten. Incompetent opponents. Excellent toon leaders, good soldiers.
Graff looked at Ender without expression. Waiting for what, Ender wondered. Lieutenant Anderson spoke up.
Ender, whats the condition of your army?
Do they want me to ask for relief? Not a chance, he decided. A little tired, in peak condition, morale high, learning fast. Anxious for the next battle.
Anderson looked at Graff. Graff shrugged slightly and turned to Ender.
Is there anything you want to know?
Ender held his hands loosely in his lap. When are you going to put us up against a good army?
Graffs laughter rang in the room, and when it stopped, Graff handed a piece of paper to Ender.
Now, the captain said, and Ender read the paper: Dragon Army against Leopard Army, Ender Wiggins and Pol Slattery, 2000.
Ender looked up at Captain Graff. Thats ten minutes from now, sir.
Graff smiled. Better hurry, then, boy.
As Ender left he realized Pol Slattery was the boy who had been handed his orders as Ender left the mess hall.
He got to his army five minutes later. Three toon leaders were already undressed and lying naked on their beds. He sent them all flying down the corridors to rouse their toons, and gathered up their suits himself. When all his boys were assembled in the corridor, most of them still getting dressed, Ender spoke to them.
This ones hot and theres no time. Well be late to the door, and the enemyll be deployed right outside our gate. Ambush, and Ive never heard of it happening before. So well take our time at the door. A and B toons, keep your belts loose, and give your flashers to the leaders and seconds of the other toons.
Puzzled, his soldiers complied. By then all were dressed, and Ender led them at a trot to the gate. When they reached it the forcefield was already on one-way, and some of his soldiers were panting. They had had one battle that day and a full workout. They were tired.
Ender stopped at the entrance and looked at the placement of the enemy soldiers. Some of them were grouped not more than twenty feet out from the gate. There was no grid, there were no stars. A big empty space. Where were most of the enemy soldiers? There should have been thirty more.
Theyre flat against this wall, Ender said, where we cant see them.
He took A and B toons and made them kneel, their hands on their hips. Then he flashed them, so that their bodies were frozen rigid.
Youre shields, Ender said, and then had boys from C and D kneel on their legs and hook both arms under the frozen boys belts. Each boy was holding two flashers. Then Ender and the members of E toon picked up the duos, three at a time, and threw them out the door.
Of course, the enemy opened fire immediately. But they mainly hit the boys who were already flashed, and in a few moments pandemonium broke out in the battleroom. All the soldiers of Leopard Army were easy targets as they lay pressed flat against the wall or floated, unprotected, in the middle of the battleroom; and Enders soldiers, armed with two flashers each, carved them up easily. Pol Slattery reacted quickly, ordering his men away from the wall, but not quickly enoughonly a few were able to move, and they were flashed before they could get a quarter of the way across the battleroom.
When the battle was over Dragon Army had only twelve boys whole, the lowest score they had ever had. But Ender was satisfied. And during the ritual of surrender Pol Slattery broke form by shaking hands and asking, Why did you wait so long getting out of the gate?
Ender glanced at Anderson, who was floating nearby. I was informed late, he said. It was an ambush.
Slattery grinned, and gripped Enders hand again. Good game.
Ender didnt smile at Anderson this time. He knew that now the games would be arranged against him, to even up the odds. He didnt like it.
IT WAS 2150, nearly time for lights out, when Ender knocked at the door of the room shared by Bean and three other soldiers. One of the others opened the door, then stepped back and held it wide. Ender stood for a moment, then asked if he could come in. They answered, of course, of course, come in, and he walked to the upper bunk, where Bean had set down his book and was leaning on one elbow to look at Ender.
Bean, can you give me twenty minutes?
Near lights out, Bean answered.
My room, Ender answered. Ill cover for you.
Bean sat up and slid off his bed. Together he and Ender padded silently down the corridor to Enders room. Bean entered first, and Ender closed the door behind them.
Sit down, Ender said, and they both sat on the edge of the bed, looking at each other.
Remember four weeks ago, Bean? When you told me to make you a toon leader?
Yeah.
Ive made five toon leaders since then, havent I? And none of them was you.
Bean looked at him calmly.
Was I right? Ender asked.
Yes, sir, Bean answered.
Ender nodded. How have you done in these battles?
Bean cocked his head to one side. Ive never been immobilized, sir, and Ive immobilized forty-three of the enemy. Ive obeyed orders quickly, and Ive commanded a squad in mop-up and never lost a soldier.
Then youll understand this. Ender paused, then decided to back up and say something else first.
You know youre early, Bean, by a good half year. I was, too, and Ive been made a commander six months early. Now theyve put me into battles after only three weeks of training with my army. Theyve given me eight battles in seven days. Ive already had more battles than boys who were made commander four months ago. Ive won more battles than many whove been commanders for a year. And then tonight. You know what happened tonight.
Bean nodded. They told you late.
I dont know what the teachers are doing. But my army is getting tired, and Im getting tired, and now theyre changing the rules of the game. You see, Bean, Ive looked in the old charts. No one has ever destroyed so many enemies and kept so many of his own soldiers whole in the history of the game. Im uniqueand Im getting unique treatment.
Bean smiled. Youre the best, Ender.
Ender shook his head. Maybe. But it was no accident that I got the soldiers I got. My worst soldier could be a toon leader in another army. Ive got the best. Theyve loaded things my waybut now theyre loading it all against me. I dont know why. But I know I have to be ready for it. I need your help.
Why mine?
Because even though there are some better soldiers than you in Dragon Armynot many, but sometheres nobody who can think better and faster than you. Bean said nothing. They both knew it was true.
Ender continued, I need to be ready, but I cant retrain the whole army. So Im going to cut every toon down by one, including you. With four others youll be a special squad under me. And youll learn to do some new things. Most of the time youll be in the regular toons just like you are now. But when I need you. See?
Bean smiled and nodded. Thats right, thats good, can I pick them myself?
One from each toon except your own, and you cant take any toon leaders.
What do you want us to do?
Bean, I dont know. I dont know what theyll throw at us. What would you do if suddenly our flashers didnt work, and the enemys did? What would you do if we had to face two armies at once? The only thing I know isthere may be a game where we dont even try for score. Where we just go for the enemys gate. Thats when the battle is technically wonfour helmets at the corners of the gate. I want you ready to do that any time I call for it. Got it? You take them for two hours a day during regular workout. Then you and I and your soldiers, well work at night after dinner.
Well get tired.
I have a feeling we dont know what tired is. Ender reached out and took Beans hand, and gripped it. Even when its rigged against us, Bean. Well win.
Bean left in silence and padded down the corridor.
DRAGON ARMY WASNT the only army working out after hours now. The other commanders had finally realized they had some catching up to do. From early morning to lights out soldiers all over Training and Command Center, none of them over fourteen years old, were learning to jackknife off walls and use each other as living shields.
But while other commanders mastered the techniques that Ender had used to defeat them, Ender and Bean worked on solutions to problems that had never come up.
There were still battles every day, but for a while they were normal, with grids and stars and sudden plunges through the gate. And after the battles, Ender and Bean and four other soldiers would leave the main group and practice strange maneuvers. Attacks without flashers, using feet to physically disarm or disorient an enemy. Using four frozen soldiers to reverse the enemys gate in less than two seconds. And one day Bean came to workout with a 300-meter cord.
Whats that for?
I dont know yet. Absently Bean spun one end of the cord. It wasnt more than an eighth of an inch thick, but it could have lifted ten adults without breaking.
Where did you get it?
Commissary. They asked what for. I said to practice tying knots.
Bean tied a loop in the end of the rope and slid it over his shoulders.
Here, you two, hang on to the wall here. Now dont let go of the rope. Give me about fifty yards of slack. They complied, and Bean moved about ten feet from them along the wall. As soon as he was sure they were ready, he jackknifed off the wall and flew straight out, fifty yards. Then the rope snapped taut. It was so fine that it was virtually invisible, but it was strong enough to force Bean to veer off at almost a right angle. It happened so suddenly that he had inscribed a perfect arc and hit the wall hard before most of the other soldiers knew what had happened. Bean did a perfect rebound and drifted quickly back to where Ender and the others waited for him.
Many of the soldiers in the five regular squads hadnt noticed the rope, and were demanding to know how it was done. It was impossible to change direction that abruptly in nullo. Bean just laughed.
Wait till the next game without a grid! Theyll never know what hit them.
They never did. The next game was only two hours later, but Bean and two others had become pretty good at aiming and shooting while they flew at ridiculous speeds at the end of the rope. The slip of paper was delivered, and Dragon Army trotted off to the gate, to battle with Griffin Army. Bean coiled the rope all the way.
When the gate opened, all they could see was a large brown star only fifteen feet away, completely blocking their view of the enemys gate.
Ender didnt pause. Bean, give yourself fifty feet of rope and go around the star. Bean and his four soldiers dropped through the gate and in a moment Bean was launched sideways away from the star. The rope snapped taut, and Bean flew forward. As the rope was stopped by each edge of the star in turn, his arc became tighter and his speed greater, until when he hit the wall only a few feet away from the gate, he was barely able to control his rebound to end up behind the star. But he immediately moved all his arms and legs so that those waiting inside the gate would know that the enemy hadnt flashed him anywhere.
Ender dropped through the gate, and Bean quickly told him how Griffin Army was situated. Theyve got two squares of stars, all the way around the gate. All their soldiers are under cover, and theres no way to hit any of them until were clear to the bottom wall. Even with shields, wed get there at half strength and we wouldnt have a chance.
They moving? Ender asked.
Do they need to?
I would. Ender thought for a moment. This ones tough. Well go for the gate, Bean.
Griffin Army began to call out to them.
Hey, is anybody there!
Wake up, theres a war on!
We wanna join the picnic!
They were still calling when Enders army came out from behind their star with a shield of fourteen frozen soldiers. William Bee, Griffin Armys commander, waited patiently as the screen approached, his men waiting at the fringes of their stars for the moment when whatever was behind the screen became visible. About ten yards away the screen suddenly exploded as the soldiers behind it shoved the screen north. The momentum carried them south twice as fast, and at the same moment the rest of Dragon Army burst from behind their star at the opposite end of the room, firing rapidly.
William Bees boys joined battle immediately, of course, but William Bee was far more interested in what had been left behind when the shield disappeared. A formation of four frozen Dragon Army soldiers was moving headfirst toward the Griffin Army gate, held together by another frozen soldier whose feet and hands were hooked through their belts. A sixth soldier hung to his waist and trailed like the tail of a kite. Griffin Army was winning the battle easily, and William Bee concentrated on the formation as it approached the gate. Suddenly the soldier trailing in back movedhe wasnt frozen at all! And even though William Bee flashed him immediately, the damage was done. The formation drifted to the Griffin Army gate, and their helmets touched all four corners simultaneously. A buzzer sounded, the gate reversed, and the frozen soldier in the middle was carried by momentum right through the gate. All the flashers stopped working, and the game was over.