The holographic screen displayed a ruined city that was obviously the site of a battle. The image was accompanied with sound, and with that, the viewers could easily tell that whatever battle that had been going on was still underway.
The scene changed, to display a cloud of black objects raining down on a barely intact city district. The black objects were heavy artillery rounds. The large shells easily chewed through the metal buildings, bringing down one building after another.
A dark shadow flashed by the collapsing buildings, a trail of blue light following after it as it rushed out of that ruined district.
"There it is." William smiled and crossed his arms. With curiosity, Moses and the rest looked closer. The 'camera' moved in closer, and they were soon able to make out the figure of the dark shadow. The 'shadow' was a pitch black mech with a small frame. It wielded two daggers, and its speed was so fast that if this were not a simulation that was being constantly analyzed, the onlookers would probably not be able to see the mech's frame clearly.
"That is Manuel's Paladin, the Midnight Tragedy. It is a light mech that focuses on a more stealthy combat approach, sneaking around to assassinate and take out key targets in a battle. It seems he has chosen to simulate a situation where his position has already been exposed before he can take action and complete his mission." William gave the four a short rundown.
Moses watched the feed with a sharp and attentive gaze. The black assassin mech weaved between buildings like a wraith, vanishing from sight entirely every few seconds.
Boom!
Another volley struck the building some distance away from the mech, causing the building to topple to the side, blocking the flight path of them mech. Just when everyone thought that the black mech would have to slow down to fly around the building, a blue corona of light flared to life around it, causing its speed to double in an instant!
Whoosh!
The mech turned into a blur and darted past the falling building, leaving it in the dust. Its speed caused it to reach the location where the dozens of artillery mechs were firing from in just a few seconds. What happened next could only be considered a massacre.
What little melee mechs were present to protect the artillery mechs were unable to defend the artillery mechs against the deadly and precise attacks of the black Paladin mech. The black mech was so fast that it could only be described as a vengeful shadow that whizzed past the frames of the other mechs. In less than a minute, all the mechs were disabled, marking the end of that practice run. The holographic image fizzled out as Manuel disconnected from the simulation pod.
"Over here." William led the others to the simulation pod that was powering down. The top slid open and a brown haired, middle aged man stood up from it in a white piloting suit. He rubbed his head of wavy hair and looked around, spotting Manuel and the others.
"Ah, William." He waved with a soft smile. His eyes drifted to Moses and the others, and they widened. "Are these Paladin pilots?" He asked before William could even speak.
"Yes, your intuition is as sharp as ever." William nodded. "These are Moses, Richard, Anthony, and Bethany." William introduced each of them. "Guys, this is Manuel, a senior Paladin pilot who has been piloting for a couple of years now."
"Ah, some fresh blood. It is nice to meet you guys. As you have heard, I am Manuel." Manuel shook each of their hands. The man was very polite, and spoke with a constant smile on his face.
"If I might ask," Moses spoke up, "How did you know we were Paladin pilots?" He had wondered about that ever since Manuel guessed. While he could have already have been briefed on their transfer, he had no idea of knowing if the process was successful, and since their transfer was supposed to be on the down low, Moses doubted that the news had been passed so quickly to people. Only someone high up like the base commander would know. Plus, William had mentioned Manuel's intuition. So, Moses was curious.
"Ah, well, I felt it." Manuel smiled.
"Felt it?" Anthony was confused and asked, tilting his head to the side.
"Yes. You are probably new Paladins, so I guess you do not understand it yet. But as you continue to grow in strength, you will begin to notice it much more easily. I can explain a bit for you, but first, let us find somewhere to sit." Manuel said, motioning for everyone to follow him.
There was a door to the side that led to an expansive lounge area. The lounge was filled with a lot of people in piloting suits of different types. Both starship and mech pilots mingled about in the lounge. When the door Manuel walked through opened, the lounge quietened for a moment, before greetings came his way. The middle aged man exchanged a few greetings, but soon led the group to a more quiet corner.
"Sit, please. Let us discuss." He motioned to the other chairs around the table, and everyone sat. "Now, where were we?"
"You were going to educate us on the new fields open to us as Paladin pilots." Anthony reminded.
"Oh, yes. Let's get down to business."