Sci fi. Boy is part of a school of assassins, fails his mission, grows more powerful, exposes the leaders of the school. Read around 1990-1995.

[Howl]

I read this (probably) at some point between 1990 and 1995. I *think* that it was from Baen. It was a paperback.

It featured an assassin school on a low-atmosphere world where they would go out into the forest with respirators. There was also psychic/psionic training. Eventually they would go out into the galaxy as body-guards/assassins.

The protagonist failed his mission in some way (there was an arena and he didn't succeed in either protecting/assassinating his target). He ends up back on the planet after some additional training and is hiding out in the forest using his training to survive on the oxygen in his lungs long after his respirator would have given out.

The climax of the book is that the teachers for the school are exposed as aliens on the run from some very powerful cosmic/galactic police force and get all stretched out and head towards Andromeda.

Hope someone can help me out, I've been wondering about this one for yeeeears.

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

Howl, are you still looking for this or did you find it?

[Howl]

Still looking, though I have little hope at this point :P

[Lobstergirl, au gratin]

How about now?