After a short recess to rest and rehydrate, Team Scarlet was back in the Simnasium for Round 2 of the Team Free-for-All.

Nic furrowed his brow. Another brand-new mode we don’t know yet, he thought. We’ll need to be fast learners. Two or more. I wonder if we get more points for having three.

No one spoke at first. Then Jarek piped up. “Do we get more points for three or four zones than two?” You read my mind, Nic thought gratefully.

“So, we don’t get more points if we have more Scarlet members occupying the same zone?” Perri asked.

“So, we capture a zone by standing inside its boundaries,” said Maqsud. “What happens if another squad enters?”

“[What happens if we step outside the line?]” Shanti asked.

“I see,” said Nic. “I think I’m starting to get it. If you have any more questions, now’s the time.” Everyone seemed satisfied with the information given, so Nic nodded and slid his helmet down over his head. “Okay, RTIFIS. I think we’re ready!”

Nic opened his eyes to find himself out on Planet Nereus once again. This time, rather than the previous Arena battlefield, he saw a different one, a much flatter one with only a few astrosteel walls of cover and no towers whatsoever. Their shadows looked just a bit longer than they had earlier in the day; even with over 40 hours of daylight, night was bound to come at some point. He wondered if the three corporations overseeing today’s Wargame had planned ahead for artificial lighting.

He tried not to let the breathtaking, rocky beach aesthetic of Nereus distract him from the task at hand. Zone Control. He and his four squadmates were already standing in an uncaptured zone; the border was marked by a knee-high holographic “fence” of sorts, a translucent band of gray light wrapped around the square zone.

He watched red light bleed into the gray, traveling horizontally in a circle around the zone like the hand of an ancient analog clock. By the time he picked up on this detail, it was already halfway around its course and moving rapidly. Soon, the perimeter of the zone was changed completely from gray to red.

Looking at the bottom of his HUD, Nic saw that the total zones controlled by all squads were displayed. Team Tyrian had captured Zone Alpha; Xanthic had nabbed Zone Gamma.

“Delta’s open,” said Nic. “I’m guessing it’ll be a popular destination. Team Scarlet, let’s move out!”

All five members of the squad booked it in the direction of Zone Delta, the last remaining uncaptured zone.

“I don’t see any vehicles,” Perri huffed as she ran alongside Nic. “That would make getting there a lot quicker.”

“We’ll make it just fine on foot. Then, once we’re there, I say we hunker down and defend it.” Wait a minute... There was something off about Nic’s strategy, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on it yet. He wondered if he should have delegated defenders to keep an eye on Zone Beta before they left.

It was too late now. Besides, more squadmates would make for an easier capture of Zone Delta, fending off the other would-be captors. It would prevent an opposing squad from getting the majority they needed to start scoring. He opted to have Team Scarlet stay the course.

The gunfight that erupted in Zone Delta was... much easier than Nic thought it would be.

One member of Team Tyrian, and two of Team Xanthic, made a mad dash for the zone. Nic grinned triumphantly knowing that his squad could easily pick them off. “Focus on Xanthic first,” he instructed them. “Then mop up the purple one.”

They followed his lead, unloading their SMGs on the pair of yellow proxybots mid-capture. The red line started to creep around the zone’s perimeter—then froze. The purple competitor entered their zone and was quickly dispatched, allowing their capture to resume.

“Yes!” Nic whooped. “Good work, Team Scarlet!” He beamed at the scoreboard showing the fruits of their labor, their point total climbing slowly toward the 100-point goal.

>SCARLET: 7 | TYRIAN: 0 | XANTHIC: 0 (SCARLET: 2/4) | TYRIAN: 1/4 | XANTHIC: 1/4 SCARLET: 7 | >TYRIAN: 1 | XANTHIC: 0 SCARLET: 1/4 | (TYRIAN: 2/4) | XANTHIC: 1/4

And just like that, it was gone. Team Tyrian’s score climbed north of Team Scarlet’s until they began to carve a sizeable lead.

“Back to Zone Beta!” Nic barked. “Let’s go!”

The red proxybots bolted back to their original zone. “Should we split up?” Jarek asked. “Two here, three there, and defend?”

Nic considered this strategy for a moment but ultimately rejected it. “No. Fast captures are how we win this. If we always have the jump on the handful of proxies we come across, we can’t lose. We’ll defend Beta and Delta together. Hope you guys are ready to do some serious cardio.” He was already panting but trying not to let it show in his voice.

But by the time they reached Beta and were mid-capture, he got another disheartening notification.

“Nic, this isn’t working,” Perri told him gently.

“I know,” he answered. “I know, just... we need to think of a better strategy than running back and forth between the two zones. I was thinking that myself.”

“I say we dig our heels in and defend,” Jarek interjected. “Instead of running back and forth, we plant our feet. Don’t give ‘em an inch. Has to work, right?”

“That won’t help us if they adopt our strategy and roll five deep,” Nic countered. “But we’ll keep that as a backup option. Keep brainstorming, guys.”

SCARLET: 7 | >TYRIAN: 30 | XANTHIC: 9 SCARLET: 0/4 | (TYRIAN: 2/4) | XANTHIC: 1/4

“Don’t mind us,” Maqsud quipped cynically, “just run laps round the entire battlefield and rack up points without firing a shot.” He scoffed.

“That’s it!” he and Nic said simultaneously.

“What’s it?” Max asked. “It sounds like we both had similar simultaneous eureka moments, but you go first!”

“RTIFIS told us to capture and hold a majority of zones to win,” said Nic. “But they don’t have to be the same zones. All we need is two at a time.” “Team Tyrian is dominating just like they did last game. They’re pushing hard from zone to zone. What we need is a speed advantage. We keep moving as a unit, and we go after the zone that just got abandoned by one of the two other squads. Rinse and repeat.”

“I’m confused,” said Jarek. “So... You’re sayin’ we just ditch the ones we already got?” Nic could hear the realization dawn on him in real time. “Oh, I gotcha. So, by the time they’re takin’ the one we left behind...”

“...we’ve already got theirs,” Perri finished. “We’re basically in constant rotation—you weren’t kidding about cardio, Nic—but if we manage to get a majority, and we keep our timing just right, neither of the other squads will have a chance to catch up, right?”

“That’s the idea.”

There was only one problem: Team Tyrian was gaining on Zone Beta rapidly. They squeezed the triggers of their Submachine Guns.

“What was that about Tyrian not firing a shot?!” Perri hollered over the staccato of gunfire.

“Time for some fancy footwork!” Nic called out. “Perri, Max, fire at them and run backwards with me! Jarek and Shanti, push forward to Zone Gamma!”

“I thought we were moving as a unit?!” Maqsud protested, but he still played along, running backward and concentrating his SMG fire on the enemy proxies’ purple heads.

Nic answered while he switched to his Pistol. “We are! Division of labor! Jarek, Shanti, we’re right behind you! Don’t let up—we need all cylinders firing for the rest of this Wargame if we wanna win! Full sprint at all times!”

Come on, Team Scarlet, Nic thought. Dig deep and give me everything you’ve got! Let’s take back our majority!