Checking systems on my mech for the upcoming mission. It’s actually turning out to be a pretty large scale mission. Women are being transferred in mobile cages. Weapons, mech and other equipment are also being transported. It will be in a reverse V-formation unless we decide otherwise later. I’m almost done and over the intercom "Czar Reaux has alerted us that he will be over here in 10 minutes". I start putting up my torque wrenches and crescent wrenches down the ladder, I have 10, maybe 20 different tools up with me. The intercom starts up again, "He lied, get to the pad he is here." I drop everything and leap off the ladder and bolt to the pad on this floor. 

I get in my spot and stand at attention next to my superior. He takes count really quick and goes to the front center of the group making me known second in command. Bōkun walks by us and keeps going. "Men it is 0640 and today might only be a support mission for another state of this NonUnited States but my son and those whores who he calls friends and family have become a pain in my ass. So I have decided to make their base a secondary mission for this and they are to be bombed. Some other men have tried to take them down only to be captured and killed. At present time my son and his village has 14 mech and the payloads of 3 different planes. But I have never tried a large team against them." 

Someone in another team asks "what about our payloads? How are we going to put bombs in there? And if we are bombing them then how are we keeping the cargo that we are trading and where are we meeting their transport for a trade off?" 

"That was many questions hero, but each of them valid. I have kept this secret from the main ones on the mission because people I kept sending to destroy my son’s base kept getting captured. Only they and the night crew knew they were doing maintenance on their own vehicles getting them ready. They should be arriving any minute now to get loaded onto their bombers. They will have holograms to look just like more transporters. Pretend they are and protect them. And as for the actual trading of the woman after you bomb my son’s base until it is off the topographic maps we have. Then you go about 50 km north to an open clearing and they will be waiting there." Someone else raises their hand, and Bōkun teleports to them "oh check this out a sir has a question. Yes, sir what do you need?" 

"I noticed that since the beginning when we started talking about this mission a few months ago we had 8 mech and experienced pilots for them we are currently down to 2 of each, I would feel more comfortable with this mission if we had two more minimal. Is that an unreasonable request?" 

"Absolutely not. Do you have someone in mind?" 

"No I do not, I was hoping you knew someone, my job is keeping track of the ammo and power reserves for all energy weapons, I don’t know the users I apologize." 

"Thank you for doing your job, I’ll find someone." 

"Anyone else?" He starts to be louder, "Anyone. Anyone at all." He teleports to the front. "Ok if you are a pilot, engineer or mech pilot you are dismissed to finish your lists of maintenance and equipment tests. I need everyone else to talk to them." 

I walk away and finish what I need to on my mech. near the end, we are just talking amongst each other. A young buck "Private first class Healy 3" walks up to me saying he has been voluntold to go on today’s mission for 25,000 points to be the 5th mech pilot because it was such short notice. He is bright eyed like he has never seen anything but the base he is only 3 months out of basic and he will not shut up. I help him with his mech, this little shit has become my backup, I don’t understand how I can trust someone, how I can be friends with someone who is pretty much smaller than my shits. He also tells me that the new formation is the rotating pyramid because now there are 5 mech to be defenders of the other "freights" 

Before I know it even though I’m not going through the lists of tests and maintaining for his mech or a mech of one of his buddies we are forced to go through and start up our mech and get on top of our perspective fighters as our personal gliders. I’m not having a good feeling about it, two privates pretty fresh out of basic training no real training out of the holograms for these and it’s predicted to be the most dangerous mission of the quarter. Possibly the year, I am glad I have Hero Adam West as my 3rd in the formation and I’m 2nd in formation. West has proven himself and I was a young buck when he was already and Alto he’s slowed down in his old age. But he has some amazing highlights of skills in his prime so he hasn’t needed to keep up with himself even though in his private life he doesn’t seem to be all there anymore. 

I step on my fighter to allow him to latch me in and I have no idea who the pilot of my fighter is, I was never told I didn’t have the time to choose someone seasoned. I could not be any less prepared for everything excluding my equipment. Through my rear view camera, I see a bunch of young bucks going into all the fighters and I am terrified. I search up my available frequencies looking for who is my fighter. I find him and he has only been out of the flight simulators for the fighter for 20 minutes and 0 hours of flight time, and he is only 10 days out of basic training. I yell at him telling him to follow my directions, years ago I had his job so I knew how to fly. I offer to trade with him and he refuses because he has never even been inside a mech, he was sick that week of training he was having issues with his muscles making him unable to move. 

The transporters get shot out first. Followed by the bombers who scan and copy the transporters and this guy under me gets ready and we shoot out of the base next and for most of the flight, I am upside down scraping my head on the launching pad. I can no longer see out the mech peripherals or the rear view because of wires snapping but that doesn’t excuse me from the mission. 4 more disgusting looking launches later. We get into our loose rotating pyramid formation and they can barely move the fighters correctly. 

Non-constant speed, sometimes going diagonal, stalling out constantly we are a mess. Overall we as a formation is going an average speed of 60 kph I can literally run faster than this without the mech. And when we see the mech laying on the ground propped up against steel formations I officially know, today is the day that I die. 

Soon afterward the bombers go under the formation to break it. And zoom forth going approximately 800 kph then slowing down shortly afterward. But one does something very strange. It has three people fly out of it for no reason with any release of compressed air so it wasn’t an ejection. And that plan continues flying full speed going south with no one in it but a full payload of bombs. Who knows what’s going to happen to it since it was sent forth going about 25 degrees up in a southern heading. The other one starts coming back to us and people fly out of that one too, above the formation which just isn’t called for at all. Hero West comes over the intercom "Bomber 1, what is wrong why did you break formation? Why did you defy orders? Answer your superior officer immediately!" 

Over the radio, we hear a little girl say "so which button do I push sir?" 

A familiar voice I can’t quite recognize "this one honey, press it and take me onto any of the fighters below." 

Explosions erupt from above as the full payload of the bomber I can feel the concussions behind me. And I hear over the radio. "Healy 3 here, my pilot is unresponsive. My mech is hit and my vision is disabled and so is my right arm on my mech, what do I do?" 

Hero West "If it’s a screwed contest you want, it’s a screwed contest you got." He turns the video camera on so everyone can see him as he turns off his mech and pulls a lever he installed in his personal mech as an escape. And he goes, "you want screwed? Look at this!" As he ejects himself out. And through the window of one of the transporters behind him. 

Afterward, he goes "looks like I’m not so screwed, there are two intruders on here. I can take them. His mech is now dead weight with no controls at all except for that of the wind and the fighter and his old mech go flying behind the formation as a slave to the wind. The other three mech are firing wildly at the transporter that he flew in. I’m still trying to understand what is going on. As the transport smokes up, spits out some fire and starts going down.

The other two transporters stall out and drop from the sky completely. I see people under the other three fighters clad in cloth and foliage instead of hemp made from spiders to make armor. Women and men together. Women holding onto the planes and the men so the men are working under the planes control panels. 

I get on my radio from my fighter pilot. "The control panel is officially open and they are routing for control. With my last bit of control, I’m going to release you if I can remember how to do It." 

"No offense but fuck you. I don’t think you can find the button so I’m going to shoot off my legs, you want me to shoot you out of the sky on my way down?" 

"Yes they have and they now have your frequency by the way." A loud hiss comes over the radio as I turn on my rifle and fire as fast as I can at the feet of my mech. I don’t get both done fast enough and I’m coming out of the sky sideways. I shoot at my other foot so I have a chance of survival but I am landing in the center of the mech graveyard. I just position myself like a dart straight down and get ready to be a turret until I run out of ammo take as many of them as I can with me until I die or my mech is disabled. I also get to watch the other 2 fighters crash and our cargo raining from the sky. To me, this could not have gone worse. 

I land and I say over the radio to my main frequency, "mission failed, I repeat mission failed. Cargo everywhere. Well prepared, unseen enemy. 7 ships and 5 mech have fallen out of the sky Confirmed 15 dead. Unknown condition of the other 3 transport vehicles unknown condition of remaining 9 assumed dead. I do not expect to live much longer either. Complete failure of mission number time of report 40 minutes 32 seconds into the mission." 

Over the radio, I hear a cheer "confirmed mech 3. You have 15 dead, 9 unknowns and without losing a ship or mech. Congratulations this will be a very quick day for you and a fast 8000 points for you congratulations future captain!" 

My radio cuts out even before I can change out my weapon. Only to find out, I no longer have any control of my mech at all. Without me being able to drop my weapon inside my mech it opens up from the bottom and I see a younger version of the Czar. Take my weapon from me. Along with dozens of women behind him. I see a very young girl appear next to him. Then disappear. Before I know it without a word. My mech is gone from behind me and I’m left with no weapon and the dozens of women are advancing on me. 

I am throwing them off me and into each other. I’m actually doing pretty good every single one of these women are super weak like they are missing the muscle mass that we usually fight through once a year. All of a sudden I see that girl again I touch here and suddenly I’m flying through the air. I see a bright beam of light and I’m just in an intense burning pain in my chest as I hit the ground and the women stare at me from afar as my world grows darker and darker. 

Next Chapter: Chapter 20: Supplies Mission: Marie: September 11, 4996