By all means the General is a practical nixen, but patience is not one of their strengths. If it can be done, it must be done as quickly and efficiently as possible. Two weeks after the induction of Ono Red-2, a mere fortnight in the training modules to learn the basics of the system and how not to blow up the precious seraphim, the General decided that Ono Red-2 was ready for their first baby jaunt in the real mech units. They wanted to see the potential of the Messiah for themself. Let the Larex Forge sort it out.

Let us, too, accelerate our storytelling. We don’t want the minutiae of every moment of the Messiah’s life. How they brushed their teeth and put their hair up before bed, and so on. We want the highlight reel. And so, we come to the juncture before the enlightenment of Misery Nomaki, before the advent of the miracles that live on in the chattering halls of history. Ahead lie the glittering and terrible fields, where there is apotheosis. Where there is destruction.

CHAPTER 15

Misery wakes. It’s 0430, the system reminds her, even behind closed lids. The blinking numbers smugly vanish from her vision as she lurches upright and shakes off the loose memories of dreams to emerge in the present, in the darkened and cramped confines of her quarters, which have shed the weight of unfamiliarity over the weeks. She runs hands over her face and takes several cooling breaths to steady herself.

Today’s the day. It’s been two weeks since Ono Red-2 started their journey together, and last evening the General approved them for usage of Angelsteeth’s precious seraph units. After training they were pulled into a private room and told the news, away from the other pilots-to-be. Regular servings have to go through three months of learning before being thrown into the gauntlet, a station-wide tournament of rolling virtual matchups where their performance determines their position on the leaderboard. The prize? Top three servings on the leaderboard get called to duty when the Heretics attack. But none of that for Ono Red-2. They get to skip over it all. The General is satisfied with their performance and wants them in the real thing. Never mind that the princess can barely steer the simulation units in a straight line. It’s not her the General has interest in. They want to see the Messiah in action.