"Next up, we have Milsi and Thissa, crew members from The Pride of the Matriarchy," a female voice said.
The crowd around the main Combat Arena cheered as the interior shifted into new positions. Existing buildings, pathways, corridors, bunkers, and all floating platforms either moved or changed shape. Trees, bushes, grass, and hedgerows appeared, bright neon signs flickered into life, and fountains turned on. Ten minutes later, shortly before Milsi and Thissa stepped out, the Combat Arena had finished transforming.
"Are you ready?" Thissa asked as she slammed a magazine into her rifle.
"Remind me why I agreed to do this?" Milsi replied as she did a final status check on her armoured Nanosuit. The lights above reflected off her suit's Bevor and the raised section of her left pauldron.
"You'll have fun," Thissa said with a smile. She rolled her shoulders and then holstered a pistol. Unlike Milsi's armoured Nanosuit, Thissa's was designed with agility in mind.
"To be honest, I can't remember when I last entered a Combat Arena," Milsi said as she picked up her heavy weapon. She rotated the multiple barrels with her left hand.
"Considering you're one of the few heavies assigned to the Pride, I'm surprised we don't see you during training sessions," Thissa said, and then Milsi laughed. Before she could find out why, the lights inside the armoury changed to red, indicating it was time to head for the nearby doors.
Standing before the armoured doors, Milsi and Thissa waited patiently as they unlocked and slowly opened. A cheer went up as the two Vipers stepped out and into the Combat Arena. Walking up the grand staircase, Milsi gasped at the sight before her.
"You don't attend Arenas much, do you?" Thissa asked.
"No," Milsi replied, shaking her head.
"Come on, let's give the crowd something to cheer," Thissa said as she jogged up the staircase. Milsi rolled her eyes, pulled her heavy weapon close to her chest and raced after her.
Reaching the top of the grand staircase, Milsi stood next to Thissa and looked around the Combat Arena. In front of them was a grand causeway lined with tall trees, and a river snaked its way between the raised road. At the opposite wall of the arena, she spotted a large ziggurat-looking structure. To their left were small and medium-sized rectangular buildings, many of which were in various stages of disuse, and a smashed fountain in the middle. On their right were mainly gardens of various sizes, as well as several floating platforms. Garish neon signs lit the area in bright pinks, blues, and yellows.
"Did someone press the randomiser again?" Milsi said, and Thissa laughed.
"Yeah, it looks like it," she replied.
"I have a funny feeling that if John were here, he'd say we copied his home planet," Milsi said as the siren for the Combat Arena sounded.
"Well, the time for chatting is over," Thissa said, "I'll head for the causeway and snipe any of the targets that get too close to you. Just make sure you pay attention to their movements," she warned. Milsi watched as Thissa activated her helmet and jogged toward the causeway.
"I'm so going to ache after this," Milsi muttered to herself and activated her helmet. She was blinded momentarily as the Nanos inside her collar rushed out to build the rest of her armoured Nanosuit. Turning to her left, Milsi jogged towards a broken wall, her spare hand gripping the barrels of her gun and rotating them.
Reaching the wall, Milsi ducked as she spotted approaching enemy holograms. A whole pack of Lupine warriors, moving in pairs, they covered each other as they patrolled towards a nearby ruined building. One of the icons on Milsi's HUD started to flash, and after a quick double blink, the icon turned into a birdseye view of her position. Thissa, pointing her rifle at the Lupine pack, linked her scope to Milsi's Nanosuit.
"Looks like they're using their standard patrol sweep tactics," Thissa said.
"Have you spotted their heavy?" Milsi asked. She peered around the broken wall and spotted a pair of Lupines. The raised section of her left pauldron covered her face perfectly, with her eyes and the top part of her helmet sticking over the top.
"Not yet," Thissa replied, "however, I suspect when you open fire, he'll appear," she pointed out.
"I knew you'd say that," Milsi sighed, "fine, you better snipe any that get close," she warned.
Flipping a switch next to her right thumb, the barrels on Milsi's heavy weapon began to spin. The two nearest Lupine holograms heard the whine of the motors and turned to face Milsi as she rose from her position. Before they were able to react, she pulled the trigger on her heavy weapon, and both holograms were dead in seconds as her chaingun ripped them to shreds. Before their bodies hit the floor, Milsi had already switched targets to another pair of Lupine warriors. However, one of them was able to dive for cover while its partner died in a hail of bullets.
"Got him," Thissa said, and Milsi watched as her shot went through the surviving Lupine's head.
"Thanks. Have you seen the Heavy yet?" Milsi asked as she jogged over to a nearby building. Unlike the previous one, this ruin had an interior with most of the roof intact. Milsi carefully walked into the ruin, making sure her tail didn't knock anything over. Satisfied that there were no Lupines inside, Milsi walked over to a nearby window and looked out.
