The Recruitment: Rise of the Free Fleet by Michael Chatfield Page B

looked like a human made from metal sheeting. There were no flourishes or accents. It was built to keep it’s user alive, and their enemies dead. It’s visor was a blackened material.
     
    While it was deadly, it was also exciting. It gave everyone who saw it a sense of power. Everyone that wasn’t in it’s way.
     
    “Your Mecha enhances your strength and agility. It’s also armoured and can work in any damned environment you can find, including space. Its internal batteries will give you two days’ worth of power fighting full out. The Mechas also connect directly with your nerve ports to co-ordinate to your movements. Which means if your organics become compromised, say a breach in space on your arm, your nerve ports will turn your normal movement into action as if the Mecha wasn’t breached and your arm wasn’t expanding massively. It will take some time to map your neural pathways and what mitigates a response, but once we have that then we can upload it to every Mecha you’re in.” He paused to let them absorb this.
     
    “Now each of you will be getting a Mecha as well as the battle suit you’re wearing. The battle suit has an auto tourniquet feature, which also works when the Mecha is breached, and a medical emergency capability. Now make an orderly line, smallest first!” He jacked in again as he guessed the humans sizes in front of him and a Mecha rotated down.
     
    “Follow it.” The Mecha went to the bay, the human following it diligently. Shrift repeated the process for all of them.
     
    “Now time to put the Mecha on, I want to make sure that it fits, though through your training you will change so I will not be making any solid changes.”
     
    He then used Salchar as a demonstration for getting the Mecha on. Once they’d done it for the first time he had then repeat it for hours until he was pleased for the day. He passed out the extra battle suits which they put with their Mechas in their assigned lockers they’d come to call ‘coffins’
     
    “Alright tomorrow we’ll begin with Mecha training. It’s mostly to get you acquainted with the machines, and to map your neural pathways.” Salchar guided them out as another squad came in a few minutes later.
     
    He ran through the same things as they left. Shrift was able to get in a small nap, taking wake-up before Salchar’s squad returned. Taleel stayed this time, which agitated Shrift.
     
    Shrift watched them get suited up with now semi-proficient hands. In fifteen minutes they were ready. He felt proud even as he knew what coming.
     
    “We’re going to need to make that faster.” Taleel said, Shrift couldn’t miss the pleased tone in Taleel’s voice at their speed. Sarenmenti’s took hours to suit up on their first day. Shrift remembered all too well. He had no doubt that the officer would be bragging to his fellows as soon as possible.
     
    Shrift watched as Taleel had them go through the process for hours, smiling as the pain implants were activated. Soon the humans were too tired and numb to do anything but suit up and down.
     
    “They are yours Kuruvian.” Taleel said giving him the pain implant remote. Shrift took at, and as soon as he was gone deposited it behind his workbench. He ordered food for the squad, with added stimulants which was delivered minutes later by other Kuruvians.
     
    The anti-grav pallet could’ve taken the food, but the Kuruvians were a curious race, something as interesting as another race turned them into excited children.
     
    Shrift turned off his translator happily conversing with them as they discussed the humans and passed out food tubes. The humans drank them hungrily. A few Kuruvians put sensors on the squad members, who ripped them off as the entire squad reacted as one, they grouped together in two’s which looked out for another pair, and that four another four and so on.
     
    The group was highly protective Shrift saw, they also had a solid command structure, unlike the mess the