Wolf Heart

Chapter 27

Planet: Eteran

First Insurgency War

AVA

Snowflakes melted, and new life bloomed in the forest around Eastpoint. Starcross season started in earnest — which meant it drove their team into a competitive spirit. Ava observed James and Rayan practice on the field, with her own plans to make for the spring activity with the other student coordinators. Bleachers cleaned off of old slush, they sparkled in the sunlight, and she rifled through her school datapad.

"Coach Jora will be hosting the camp out this quad," Katie reported. "Sign-up sheets went onto the board yesterday."

"Does Coach Jora have anything in mind for activities?" Ava flicked through the students who signed up.

"Left some outlines for us." Yvonne waved her datapad in front of her face.

Ava jumped when Jon whistled from the center of the pitch, standing between his frontliners and backliners.

"What are they doing?" Ava questioned.

"He's been wanting to try a bait rebound," Katie replied.

Ava, not knowing every single play in Starcross, nodded in attentiveness. Katie smiled and pointed at Rayan when he settled himself on the vanguard line, tipping his netbat towards the ground, where the starball hummed in the protective casing. The other two frontliners flanked James on both sides, their movements telegraphed. Waves of painful familiarity swept over her, but none of them raced to take her brother off the field.

"You see, the vanguard frontliner preps the pass, and if all goes well, the backliner is the one who shoots," she said as James mirrored Rayan's subtle movements until they flowed in sync. Rayan steeled his back foot, then launched the ball out of his netbat. It cracked against her brother's netbat, where the purple pulse rebounded and it whizzed back to Rayan, who caught it within an inch of its flight. "Since Rayan's the vanguard frontliner, he's the one who has to set up all the complicated plays Jon has in mind — and he has to be in perfect sync with the anchor backliner — James — to put them in motion in quick succession. Like a pop. This play is a bait."

"What do you mean?" Ava asked as Rayan went back into his previous stance with a check on the dewy ground and his cleats.

Katie nodded when Rayan rebounded the shot right back at James, who planted himself as it picked up speed. Another crack sounded throughout the field, and it flew past the flanked frontliners, who stepped out of the way of the shot as it whizzed through the goal.

"Most people expect the vanguard to make a shot from a close distance," Katie explained while Jon did a celebratory Starcross dance and James lifted his hand to his brow with a wide grin. "Of course, James wouldn't be allowed to move during this — that does leave him vulnerable to a counter play."

Yvonne rubbed her temple. "Planning a camp out is more fun than whatever is going on down there."

Katie tsked with a waggle of her finger. "The thing about this play is you need to have your vanguard and anchor on the same page — the same wavelength. On the pitch, they need to be of one mind. If either of them slip, the play can fall flat." Katie leaned her elbows on her knees with a sigh. "Wonder how many times Jon will make them practice this."

"Rayan and James are best friends, Jon shouldn't be worried," Ava murmured.

"That's true, but I don't think that's what Jon is worried about." Katie poked Yvonne's shoulder. "You want to take a walk after this?"

"Sure?" Yvonne folded her legs. "I remember what happened last varsity, though. James got walloped pretty hard because the vanguard frontliner left him out to dry." In demonstration, she knocked her fist against her head.