A generous bonus? That got Jim’s attention. A big chunk of money could fix everything for his parents, for the farm, maybe even his future. Was that why Tom had enlisted? After all, the Omers were even worse off than his folks.

He was about to ask the sergeant just how generous this lump sum would be, when his father frowned and gave an almost imperceptible shake of his head. Keep your mouth shut.

If Farley was aware of the interchange, he gave no sign of it as he turned to gesture at the goliath. “Then there’s training to think about,” he said. “You could learn to pilot a goliath, fly an Avenger, or drive a siege tank. Of course I’m a ground pounder myself—so I prefer the infantry. And that means wearing one of the new powered combat suits. There ain’t nothin’ like it, son… . Once you strap one of those bad boys on, you’ll be ready to kick ass and scan names! Come on, step onto that shovel-hand, and I’ll give you a peek at the cockpit.”

It wasn’t until Jim and the marine were off the ground and halfway up that he realized how skillfully his dad had been cut out of the conversation.

Now, some twelve feet off the ground, Jim Raynor was peering into the goliath’s well-padded cockpit. “See that cradle?” Farley inquired as he pointed downward. “Once you strap in, all you have to do is move the way you want the machine to move. Input from the sensors feeds into the onboard computer, which passes instructions along to the machine, mimicking what you did. It takes some practice, of course, and it’s more difficult when people are shooting at you, but so what? You can shoot back!

“This baby is retired now,” Farley continued, “but the pilots who rode her scored plenty of verified kills. And I don’t just mean infantry. We’re talking mechs, tanks, vultures, and Hellhounds… . So this honey deserves some easy livin’.”

As Jim leaned over the cockpit he saw a curved control panel, the worn cradle beyond, and could smell the combined odors of sweat, oil, and stale cigar smoke. All of which summoned up visions of what it would be like to strap in and stride across a cratered battlefield, as brave comrades marched on either side of him.