The Recruitment: Rise of the Free Fleet

by Michael Chatfield

  “Also see if you could get a few people working on the upgrades on the Mecha.”

  “You’re lucky us Kuruvians need a quarter of the sleep you humans do.” It was his turn to look thoughtful before continuing.

  “Well at least the others of your species, you seem to stay awake even more than us.” He said pointing to me.

  “Got to keep people on their toes.” I said with a wink.

  “Alright I’ll try and get some help with the other armourers and see if I can get some people from engineering Eddie will probably be happy to hand me a few lay abouts. Though where he’s got a shoe I have a rail gun.” He said with an evil grin me and Henry returned in kind as he walked out into a maintenance shaft and through the wild maze that was the realm of the all-powerful Eddie.

  “Reminds me that we need to get a complete outlay of the ships.” My data pad beeped with it. I could get used to having a ship AI.

  “First get some damned sleep sir.”

  “Sir? I was never a sir.”

  “Well you are now. You’re leading our ragtag group which makes you a sir in my books.”

  “Well let’s see if I can actually produce before you start saying sir, sounds weird.”

  “Sure Commander. Sleep? You’ve been awake for four days now.”

  “Well then, I think that’s a new record.” I said with a yawn.

  “Alright wake me up in a few needs to…” I trailed off.

  “Yes commander, let’s get you home.” With a guiding hand he brought me to my door.

  “Thanks Henry.”

  “No problem boss.”

  As I walked in I heard him talking to someone.

  “No one is to disturb him until I say so, understood?”

  “Yes commander!” I heard Henry growl as the door closed behind me.

  I basked in the dark my eyes finally resting. The lights came on with blinding brightness.

  “OH GOD! TURN THEM OFF!” I yelled as the lights quickly turned off.

  “Damn!” I felt my head pounding from the assault on my eyes. I laid down finding my pillow missing.

  “You got a pillow?” One sailed out of the darkness with an oompf.

  “Thanks Yasu.” I muttered as I lay down comfortably as the wake up wore off. As I quickly passed out.

  I woke up pulling my data pad from its pouch on my back seeing the time I jumped up with a start pulling down reports and scanning through them. The door opened and I found a team outside my door in their Mechas which gave me a start as they saluted me. I returned it quickly my face becoming a mask making it appeared like I expected two Mechas standing guard outside my door. I made my way to the mess grabbing a few tubes. It was the same as thegoop we ate in training, but in squeezable packets.

  Many agreed it was an improvement just because it made eating them faster.

  Had quickly become our command centre and where I practically lived. The other armouries were being used to refit the Mechas with the kill switch disabler. It was a terrible name I know.

  I moved on out to the hangar where groups of Mechas were in their suits using weaponry from pistols to heavy crew serviced plasma and bead cannons. Others were going through a series of movements that depicted wielding a sword and fighting hand to hand.

  I walked around talking to people here and there looking as if I knew what they meant about plasma blow off, heat relay replacers.

  “You’re wife’s training has helped immensely, people’s co-ordination’s improved and we’re now nearly as good as you and your squad were.” One woman said as I saw a gleam of worship in her eyes.

  I smiled making a comment about how she was great at training people before moving off.

  Great, now the Mechas like her. I thought to myself as they complimented her more and I moved on to the melee weapons and hand to hand teachers.

  Again I saw the glow of worship in these people’s eyes.

  “Oh yes your wife said that you’d be able to help with the more advanced fighters. She did tell us to make sure you keep to one fighting style.” I scratched my head awkwardly.

  “Aish. Alright which style was she using?”

  “Ninjitsu with the revolutionary moves. As well as Mecha adapted ones.”

  “She would go with the ones she came up with.” I said sighing. “Alright I’ll grab my Mecha.”

  I quickly did so having them go through what they’d already learnt I was surprised to see how much they’d improved in such a short time. They also had healthy determination to learn more, which is what I needed more than anything.

  In most games and even the military on Earth fighting with melee weapons and hand to hand was seen as wasteful when people could be training with weapon systems and adapting to the hardware. Now in close quarters and possibly on a ship we didn’t want a rogue round going through a hull or a fusion core so hand to hand had again become a much desired skill.

  “Alright, stop, this is as painful to watch as I would expect stabbing myself in the eyes with a pair of blunt knives would be! Yes you’re following the moves, but that’s it. You aren’t using the Mecha’s power to make those hits hit like a freight train, or spinning and flipping so fast you can hit an enemy before they’ve completed their attack.

  Today I want you to fight by landing the most damage on a target, hammer them down, don’t piss on them! Again!” I had them run through it stopping them again shortly afterwards.

  “Alright watch this.” I threw a flurry of slashes combination of attacking and parrying or blocking moves as fast as my Mecha could move my arms blurring at the incredible speed the Mecha moving as fast as my brain could think. I followed up a stabbing motion with a low kick, then a skip and a high kick my leg snapping out as the servos screeched I came back rolling turning the momentum into a spinning kick then flipping myself to my feet again going through blocks and attacks.

  I finished my breathing a little hard as my Mecha and battle suit cooled me off and kept me oxygenated taking off my helmet as I got close to them.

  “Fighting is about killing or incapacitating the other bastard, uses everything at your disposal, your Mecha’s power, their own momentum and your training. Your blade is an extension of yourself, you shouldn’t need to look where it is, you should know. We’ll continue with more advanced moves and into holds later. First I want to see you able to do what you know with your mecha at one hundred percent.” I said with finality my eyes like turrets as I scanned the group in front of me who said resoundingly.

  “Yes Sensei.” Great she even had them using Japanese terms. I growled internally. I have to work with what I’ve got.

  “I’m sorry I must be FUCKING DEAF. I CAN’T HEAR YOU!” I said putting a gauntleted hand next my ear turning it in a show to clear it.

  “Yes Sensei!”

  “What is the purpose of an armoured Marine Commandos?”

  “What?” One of the teachers asked as I mentally kicked myself. I’d been thinking of a name for the Mechas than other, well Mechas. I’d landed on armoured Marine Commandos. I was going to announce it later but a combination of lack of sleep and adrenaline had worked it out of me.

  I came to my full height as I saw the majority of people looking at me after my outburst.

  “On Earth as some of you might know there is a famous group that fights on water and land, they began when ships made out of wood and cloth sailed our oceans. They were called Marines. More of a brotherhood than a unit, formed from people all over the world fighting to protect their own countries rights and freedoms. They are the tip of the spear, in the countries called Australia and the United Kingdom these Marines are called Royal Marine Commandos in the United States they’re called Marines. They’re best of the best able to fight in any conditions and train to fight with their entirety.Emotion is fuel to their fire, anger is made to focus instead of let it turn into a barrier, pain is to clear the mind. Sorrow is to carry the burdens we have and continue. That is what we need you Mechas to be. armoured Marine Commandos,” I
rolled on over their confused faces as I paced, the entire hangar listening to my every word.

  “Marines are men and women that embrace the odds whatever they might be and dive into danger. They are hard people that will never expect to be thanked or praised. They will take on the jobs which look suicidal and snatch victory when all else seems lost.” I stood fast, looking out over them. “You will be the warrior soldiers of the human race that will make the enemy piss themselves when they hear of the armoured Marine Commandos!” I yelled, my eyes becoming hooded.

  “So when I ask what the purpose of the armoured Marine Commandos is, you will answer; to close with and destroy the enemy, no matter the odds, terrain or environment.” I growled.

  “What is the purpose of the armoured Marine Commandos?” I demanded, looking around the hangar which had filled up with more humans coming from the living quarters.

  “To close with and destroy the enemy, no matter the odds, terrain or environment.” They stumbled through it.

  “LOUDER MARINES!” I said through my speakers as they all seemed to stand straighter, determination carved on their faces.

  “To close with and destroy the enemy, no matter the odds, terrain or environment!”

  “I will say this once more. WHAT IS THE PURPOSE OF THE armourED MARINE COMMANDOS?”

  “TO CLOSE WITH AND DESTROY THE ENEMY NO MATTER THE ODDS, TERRAIN OR ENVIROMENT!”

  “DAMN FUCKING RIGHT!” I growled. “Make sure you never forget it.” I said as I scanned the room.

  “Trainers, back on your troops!” I turned back to my own group.

  “Show me half of the drive you just showed me there and you might be able to do some more advanced moves.” I pointed to one of the better fighters.

  “You come here, you’ve been elected human dummy!” I said in a voice that made my volun-told dummy and any others seriously doubt they wanted to be my practice partner.

  “Sir are you sure you don’t want to put your helmet on?” My dummy asked.

  Truth be told I was going too, but when a student asks a question like that it’s time to show him balls of platinum. So I tossed it to the side.

  It thumped down some distance away, as my brain finally engaged. Damn. That was a stupid Idea. I saw him swallow as sweat ran down his face as I felt beads of sweat on my neck.

  “Alright everyone we’re going to work on combining your hand to hand with sword fighting.” I clenched my hand around an invisible hilt unable to see my simulated sword as I wasn’t wearing my helmet. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Where the hell do I come up with these ideas?

  “Alright let’s begin.” It started slowly and after a few bouts I released the dummy. A look of relief coming over his face. I grabbed my helmet, quickly tucking it under my arm and telling him to spar with others. I wandered around giving advice between bouts.

  I was going to need some kind of matting to stop the Mechas getting beaten up so much mentally wincing at how Shrift was going to react to the half beaten suits.

  After I saw a few still not putting their full effort in I pointed at the first offender.

  “You’re my new dummy.” The new dummy walked with a cocky swagger of a person more sure of their importance and size and street fighting skill.

  “Come at me.” I said activating my sim sword, going to put my helmet on when he blindsided me.

  He made it look like he was going to use his sim sword, waiting for me to become distracted with my helmet. Before I had it on he came at me with fists. I had to throw my helmet and use the sim sword which was still invisible to me and working. My attacker hadn’t turned off his mecha simulation.

  I didn’t have much time to think on this as all of his blows were aimed at my head. I forgot the sword as I brought my fists to bear. Fighting with something I couldn’t see would only make it harder. I ducked and weaved from his fists seeing him getting tired.

  I could see by his movements he wasn’t here to fight he wanted to kill me and the blows aimed at my unhelmeted head drove that point home. I dropped, grabbing his lower thigh and under his arm and tossed him across the room. A second sooner and he would’ve closed his arm on my head and popped it like a grape.

  I flung myself after him stopping myself against the bulkhead that had stopped him.

  He was picking himself up grabbing a wrench he tossed at my head. It glanced off of my arm I used to deflect it. I dropped on him my hands and legs wrapping around him making him unable to move as I tightened my grip as his servos popped into uselessness.

  The room was quiet as training stopped. I rolled off of him ripping his helmet off. It was the leader of a squad that instead of accepting my rules which had now become known as Salchar’s code had tried to use the handshake as a pull to knock me out.

  “This is sword training, not melee training. You will learn to follow orders.” Iron filling my voice.

  “Fuck your orders; I didn’t sign up for this.”

  “You think any of us did? We’re making the best of a shitty situation without you trying to kill people.”

  “Isn’t that what we’re doing here?”

  “We’re training to kill the enemy, not one another.”

  “Fuck you Salchar, fuck you, fuck your goddamn code and the way you think we should scrap the shit off of your boots.”

  “I left one of your legs working; you will go to the armouries and fix your Mecha.”

  “That’s a Kuruvians job.” He spat dismissively. I grinned evilly.

  “It’s now your job.” I said my face inches from his.

  “You will be under chief engineer Eddie until he approves your transfer back to the AMC.” I turned to some Kuruvians doing work on a shuttle who’d heard what was going on.

  “Take him to Eddie.”

  One nodded to me and then talked to the others two still worked on the craft as four came to me still wrapped up. They pressed his immobilizer and carried him away.

  “Good luck, you’re going to need it.” I said in a sing song voice as I turned back to my group.

  “That’s how to immobilize a Mecha with holds.” I looked to the room as a whole.

  “Who said it was time to rest, we’re making planet fall in a day people!” My tone like iron as people rushed back into their lessons. As if to punctuate my point the overhead speakers started.

  “Prepare for worm jump.” A voice sounded. People pausing to look up until they caught my look as I stared at them pointedly as I walked back to my class. The crew started a countdown

  Everyone in the hangar paused briefly as the sensation of passing through a worm hole started and then we were violently shaken. Those with their Mechas boots connected to the ground staying upright. Those not taking a tumble as their squad leaders took care of them.

  The rest of the training time went well I worked through three groups before Yasu appeared her face thoughtful as she walked in until she saw me and became an icy mask.

  “I’ll leave them in your capable hands Yasu.” I said bowing to her; she made half of the motion back to me.

  I walked to the mess grabbing food, some people looked at me oddly as I clanked in, still in my Mecha. I didn’t pay them any attention I ate as I read my data pad. There always seemed to be more information to read.

  With my paranoia gained from being a gamer star and an orphan I liked the safety of the armour. I felt invincible and it had saved my life more than once already. I began to wonder if I could have it charged while I was in it.

  With that thought I wandered into armoury one, it and two were outfitting Mechas with human joints instead of the Mecha general joints as well as auto injectors and the kill switch disablers. The third was being used as a fitting station for the other Mechas and four was Min Hae’s base and meeting room for Henry and Yasu to teach the leaders and Commander strategy and tactics. It had put a hold on whatever marital issues we had, though I had a feeling they wouldn’t disappear as easily.

  It was a mad house, there was a mix of humans getting stuck
in and Kuruvians that were pulling apart and putting Mechas back in what resembled a factory line.

  I walked up to Shrift wrestling with a bent overlapping plate of armour that lay underneath the hardened outside shell, it dissipated the force of the projectile over a wider area making it harder to make a hole in the under layers of armour and kill the user or wound them, but it would still leave them bruised to all hell.

  “I heard you told them to start fighting in their top class Mechas!” He said brandishing the crowbar in his hand as I approached now my hands up in the air in surrender.

  “I might have done something like that.”