The Mech Touch (Web Novel)
chapter-6182

Warchildren had become a new class of people within the New Elites Program.

It was a way to reward linefighters for answering the highest calling.

After all, by sacrificing their lives for a greater purpose, they would not be able to live to enjoy the rich rewards that they deserve.

This was why the Red Two and the first-rate colonial superstates came together and figured out a fair and reasonable way to transfer contributions to the next of kin.

The class of Warchildren therefore came into being. Any child or adolescent below the age of 30 that bore this special title could enjoy a lot of conveniences.

From pensions to easy access to prestigious educational institutions, these offspring who had lost their fathers or mothers to the Red War gained a much easier ride to success and prosperity. The benefits were substantial enough to motivate a lot of soldiers to volunteer for the ominous duty of trying to hold the line against the powerful aliens!

Josh Ketter smiled as he thought about how his daughter would live far better than him. As a second-rater, he never dared to dream that his girl would be able to exceed him to this degree, but this time was different!

"Under the guarantee of the three colonial alliances of red humanity, each of your Warchildren will gain enough wealth and access to promising opportunities to fast track their way to success." The liaison from the Red Association continued. "All Warchildren can expect to retain all of these benefits until they have reached the age of 30 or 10 years since they have received this title, whichever period is longer. After that, the Warchildren can retain their titles, but lose all of the corresponding pensions and other privileges. If they cannot stand on their own feet after gaining so many promising career opportunities, then that is their responsibility."

It was not the intention of the higher ups to raise a growing number of good-for-nothings.

The New Elite Program must always retain its essence, which was to promote the development of elites among the masses that normally lacked these opportunities!

Josh Ketter did not begrudge the limits on Warchildren. He had full faith and confidence that his daughter would be able to make good use of all of the benefits.

Many of his fellow colleagues shared similar sentiments. They did not believe their sons and daughters would dishonor their parents by squandering the advantages of becoming Warchildren.

If they somehow failed in their studies and squandered all of their pensions on recreational stimulants, then their ghosts would come back from the dead and punish their useless children!

"Before I leave, I wish to announce one recent change to our battle plan." The liaison said, causing the gathered mech pilots to pay closer attention. "The additional time bought by the prior delay of the Red Tide has allowed us to make additional preparations. Our Association has assigned a small stealth ship in the orbits of many fortified planets, including this one. The purpose of this ship is to wait until the attackers are on the verge of attaining orbital supremacy before quietly evacuating key personnel from this star system."

How was this relevant to the mech pilots? None of them possessed a high enough status to earn a place on this secretive evacuation ship. It would have been better if the liaison never mentioned it, as there was a higher chance the news might leak and prompt the native aliens to hunt the vessel down!

The liaison smiled. "A new opportunity has opened up for you. Yes, you. The coming days will test your mettle like nothing else. We are well aware that each of you have already made the determination to die, but what if I tell you that there is a small chance that you can live?"

The mecher's words did not elicit much of a reaction. The veteran mech pilots were not that easy to hoodwink anymore.

It didn't matter. The mecher was confident that his next announcement was bound to excite his audience.

"The sole criterion for earning a seat in the stealth vessel is not based on wealth, connections or officer rank. You can rest assured that no one in this besieged star system can take the spot of one who is more deserving. This is because the only eligible passengers of our stealth ship will be mech pilots who have managed to break through during the upcoming fighting."

The audience became stunned as they listened to this surprise announcement!

Josh Ketter and the other mech pilots were not stupid. They quickly realized that they had gained a faint but realistic chance to make it out of this doomed star system alive as long as they satisfied a single condition that was very easy to discern.

However, the expressions of many soldiers soon began to fade. Josh was no exception as he thought about how hard he had tried to break through in the past.

As a middle-aged mech pilot who had served for around three decades, Josh never managed to exceed his limits throughout his career so far, and it was not for lack of trying.

Now that his aging caused him to gradually lose his sharp reflexes and agile thinking, the father had gradually let go of his childish dream.

The sensible decision to make was to treat this fleeting chance as a lottery that Josh was unlikely to win. This star system would become his grave if everything proceeded as he envisioned.

Yet… if there was a light at the end of the tunnel, how could a soldier like himself remain indifferent to it? Even if the chance of reaching it was below 0.01 percent, that still motivated pilots such as himself to strive for a breakthrough in what may be their last attempt of their lives!

The liaison smiled wider as he observed the effects of his announcement. The harder the mech pilots fought, the more setbacks the invading aliens would suffer. Any additional losses and delays could sap the enemy's offensive a little more.

"This is a time of heroes and gods. The power of humble soldiers such as yourselves will always remain important, but the best way for red humanity to turn the tide against the native aliens is to draw out your potential and gain strength beyond the reach of mortals. Fight! Kill! Ascend! We ask nothing more or less from you. As long as you become an expert candidate or expert pilot during the upcoming battle, we shall do whatever it takes to protect you and evacuate you from the field. A brand new life awaits you within the ranks of our Association. You will receive the opportunity to master the best skills and pilot the strongest first-class mechs, but only if you fight with the determination to survive! Break through, and you shall live. Die, and your offspring shall become Warchildren."

Many mech pilot's eyes immediately grew red as they processed the implications of the liaison's words.

A lot of mech pilots that had already become resigned with their imminent deaths suddenly began to develop a renewed desire to make it out alive.

Even if their best days were already past them, the veteran soldiers still wanted to fight for the small but not impossible chance to live past this week!

"Josh!" Another mech pilot excitedly whispered. "We can still live, haha! We can still make it of this doomed star system and become a high-and-mighty mecher! I bet none of us ever expected to enter the Association at our ages. Think of how rich and powerful we can become! With the honor, glory and merit of fighting in the 1st defensive band, we'll be treated as heroes everywhere we go. Your daughter and my brats will want for nothing once we get inside!"

As much as Josh wanted to feel as upbeat as his more optimistic comrade, he couldn't help but be realistic about his chances.

"I will try like the rest of you, but… we're old, Franklin. We can't keep up with the younger generation pilots anymore. We already put our best days behind us. We have begun to enter our twilight years. I will already be happy if I can turn my daughter into a Warchild."

Franklin jabbed his elbow into his friend's side. "Don't think like that, Josh. We are living in the Age of Dawn. Any miracle can happen these days! Think about how much happier your daughter will be if you return from the frontlines alive. Don't you want to live long enough to see her grow up into a beautiful woman and hug your grandchildren?"

The mention of what he might be missing out on created an ache in Josh' heart. His desire to live grew stronger. As long as he broke through, he could return and continue to take care of his daughter in person!

"Thank you for that, Franklin. I don't know if your words will make any difference, but I will fight as best I can."

"That is what friends are for. If… if… you ever manage to make it out without my company, please tell me you will keep an eye on my sons. The RA will definitely take good care of them, but…"

"I will treat them as if they are part of my own family." Josh earnestly promised. "I expect you to look out for my girl if the reverse happens."

After the liaison shared the latest announcement, he quickly left the briefing room so that the mech pilots could receive more mission-specific briefings from their superiors.

Josh and Franklin did not pay too much attention to the final details. Every mech pilot assigned to this dangerous star system had already studied and memorized the main defensive plans. They roughly understood the defensive layout and also comprehended their roles.

The staff only made a number of last-minute adjustments to the plans in order to account for the enemy response.

"Remember to maintain your distance from the enemy warships whenever possible." The officer in front of the stage emphasized. "The native aliens have begun to mirror us by unleashing a large amount of phasefighters in our direction. Leave the enemy vessels to our orbital defenses and our warships. Your duty is to keep the phasefighters at bay. You can think about attacking other enemies after he have cleared the enemy fighter screen."

The mech pilots felt rather mixed about needing to fight against the enemy phasefighters. The annoying transphasic small craft were always troublesome to kill due to their strong energy shields.

The fact that the mechs would be going into the fight with a heavy numbers disadvantage also tempered people's confidence!

However, Josh Ketter would gladly fight against a giant swarm of phasefighters than confront one of those threatening new anti-mech warships!

As the pilots finally got dismissed, Josh and many others proceeded down to the space station's hangar bays in order to enter their respective mechs.

"I am glad that we get to enjoy a good old-fashioned dogfight in what may be our final battle." Franklin said in a light-hearted tone. "Mech pilots like ourselves are trained for this. Those phasefighters might not look like mechs, but the resemblance is close enough, unlike with warships."

Josh nodded in agreement. "Mhmm. It is a good thing I am piloting the right mech for the job. I hope this hangar bay has enough of the right fey in stock."

The two mech pilots stopped before Josh' machine.

As far as second-class mechs were concerned, the Fey Fianna easily stood out from the rest, even if it was just the Standard Edition!

Their silhouettes were unique and their visual design was striking. Their characteristic 'glows' also made it impossible for people to dismiss them as ordinary machines.

"I am so jealous that you get to pilot such a new and well-regarded mech." Franklin did not hide the envy in his voice. "How did you ever manage to get your hands on this machine?"

"Would you believe that I won this machine from a membership raffle?"