Free Warlord's Revenge by Zac Harrison Page B

scholars in the bus. The students threw themselves back into the fight, and Lishtig whipped the hoverbus round, slamming it into a dented droid that was trying to get to its feet. As he drove away, Lishtig whooped, his purple ponytail streaming behind him.
    Quickly, John counted the broken droids. Listhig had taken out three.
    Only nine left.
    “John, help!” A few metres away, Kritta rolled away from a blast of red laser fire.
    John hit the attacking droid from behind before it could fire again. Instantly, a metal hand gripped his wrist with unbelievable strength. Feeling as though his arm would break, he shouted in agony.
    From the corner of his eye, John caught a blur of motion. With an elegant backflip, Emmie suddenly rose in front of the droid, her fists smashing into its face.
    Forced to defend itself, the droid released John’s arm and threw itself at its new opponent. But Emmie was too quick. Metal hands grabbed at thin air as she cartwheeled to one side.
    The distraction was all John needed. His fingers found bare wires. He yanked, feeling grim satisfaction as sparks fountained and the twitching droid fell.
    Eight . Quickly, John rose to his knees, yelling, “Thanks, Emmie!”
    “You can owe me dinner at Seefood!” the Silaran girlshouted back, breathing heavily as she dropped into a crouch and sprung at another droid.
    John glanced around, looking to see if any of his classmates needed help. Emmie was now helping Kritta fight. Even with the desperate battle raging all around, John couldn’t help but admire the way the Silaran girl moved with effortless grace.
    More laser fire hissed through the air, narrowly missing Raytanna, who ducked behind the remaining hoverbus. A droid began walking towards her. Picking up a fallen rifle, John pulled the trigger. A laser beam hit the droid full in the back. John expected the droid to fall, but nothing happened. It carried on pacing towards Raytanna.
    The gun must be broken.
    The droid was almost on Raytanna now, shouldering its rifle again as it stalked around the hoverbus.
    “Noooo!” Turning the weapon in his hands, John ran forward, swinging it like a baseball bat and smashing it into the machine’s head.
    It turned, bringing its own rifle up to aim at John.
    He dived to one side as it fired. A red beam flashed past his head. John crawled backward, fingers clutching at the grass. The droid was already taking aim again. As its metal finger tightened on the trigger, John squeezed his eyes closed.
    A second passed. Two.
    John opened his eyes.
    The droid had stopped. It was standing like a statue with its rifle pointing at John’s heart.
    He blinked as Raytanna stepped out from behind it.
    “Every robot has an off switch,” she said.
    John scrambled to his feet, looking around quickly. Five droids remained, each armed with a deadly laser rifle. Now, however, the scholars were fighting back as well. With robes flapping, Silva launched himself over the side of the hoverbus, metal clashing on metal, as his own fists lashed out at a droid that was threatening to overwhelm Werril. Following Kaal’s example, Deem was lifting another into the sky. Not as quickly as Kaal, John noticed. In old age, the scholar’s wings had lost their strength.
    Dodging past Kaal and Emmie, John threw himself at a droid that was attacking Queelin. She had managed to disarm it and was fighting with grim intensity, but her arm was hanging uselessly by her side. She ducked as the machine swung a crushing metal fist at her head.
    “Gobi!” John shouted. “Catch this.”
    The droid stumbled to one side as John’s body slammed into it – straight into Gobi’s massive fist. The huge punch shattered armour. The robot jerked twice and was still.
    “John! Look out!”
    John whirled at Emmie’s shout. One of the droids he had thought was finished had climbed to its feet behind him. Horror clutched his stomach as he found himself staring down the barrel of laser rifle again.
    A green