To be fair, these Australian recruits weren"t complete rookies. They"d finished all necessary basic training, met physical standards, and were proficient with personal weapons. In Staff Sergeant Hansen"s slightly caustic words: "They can run, shoot, and probably dig a mean latrine. But piloting a Gladiator? That"s a whole different beast, boys." The problem was they"d been rushed through as enhanced light infantry. Their virtual mech training hours were severely lacking. Now, they needed to be fast-tracked into mech pilots. "Well, no use crying about it," David addressed the assembled recruits, trying to sound like a steady veteran, not the green kid he was just nine months ago. "The Aussie taxpayers kindly shipped over the latest VR simulators. So we"re gonna dive right in. Consider this
