This World

by Lee, TD

  Sadie is the first to speak, but even before she does someone professes their love for her. She lightly giggles and says, “Hey everyone, I’m Sadie Garfield, pilot of the Mobile Knight Guinevere.” An even louder roar of applause erupts for Sadie. She must be really popular.

  “What’s up, I’m Hiro Watanabe, pilot of Mobile Knight Lancelot,” Hiro introduces himself with as much composure as he can possibly have. An equally loud roar of applause echoes in my ears.

  Lastly is Arthur who speaks with a rather upbeat tone, “Hey, hey all! Arthur Langley here, pilot of Mobile Knight Arthur!” There’s a standing ovation for this guy? Maybe it’s the way he presents himself, but wow is this guy getting a bunch of amazing reception.

  Dani speaks into her mic again after the audience calms down a bit, “We have such amazing guests from the Mobile Knights this year, wouldn’t you agree? So, we want this panel to mostly be Q and A, but I’m just going to have each of the pilots talk about their experiences and how it’s been being a pilot of the Mobile Knights ‘cause let’s be real everyone, that shit is hard. So let’s start off with the badass bitch herself, Sadie. How are you Sadie?”

  Sadie looks at Dani with a smile. “I’m good Dani, how about yourself?”

  “I’m wonderful, so tell us all about yourself. What your main role is as part of the Mobile Knights, your experiences, and interesting or funny stories, everything we want all of that shit don’t we?” Dani speaks as she looks at the crowd.

  The crowd in unison screams, “Yes!”

  Sadie laughs quietly again before she starts talking. Each of her words are so well composed and articulate. She carries herself in a very mature, yet graceful way. “Well, I play more of a supportive role when it comes to the Mobile Knights. I know many of you know this, but for those who don’t, there are a couple of Mobile Knights that are more support based. For example, other than Guinevere, we have Mobile Knights Vivian and Merlin that both excel in their own supportive role. With Guinevere, I’m pretty much a healer like in any co-op game. Guinevere has a lot of tools that she can use to do on site repairs as well as just simply supplying other Mobile Knights with fuel. I don’t necessarily take part in any direct combat which is why you don’t normally see me, but Guinevere is equipped with some weapons of her own. She can also project a barrier that can protect her while she’s doing repairs. As for my experiences, I would be lying if I didn’t say it was stressful, but it’s all worth it to be able to save my teammates and amazing people like you all. It’s honestly so thrilling piloting the Mobile Knight that it feels strange sometimes to not be in it. You know? Like, I would be in Guinevere all day, but when I’m out I feel really off. Kinda just detached from reality.”

  “Sounds like some hard hitting drugs to me,” Dani comments which garners a couple chuckles.

  “I mean, maybe,” Sadie laughs to herself, “but again, it’s all so rewarding in the end.”

  “I bet, you’re not just saving civilian lives, but also the lives of your fellow pilots which is something that I think a lot of people overlook when it comes to you guys. Because what we normally see are your Mobile Knights, some people forget to realize that there are actual people in those piloting. So you guys are in the thick of it all just as much as your Mobile Knights. It definitely has to be stressful, but a good stress because you know you’re doing good,” Dani responds.

  Sadie nods to each of Dani’s words. “Right, it’s all definitely worth it. While I’m more recognized by Guinevere, I feel like I am Guinevere. Maybe it’s some sort of problem, but I honestly do feel like I am my Mobile Knight and she is me.” Claps come from the audience from her last statement. It makes sense considering these pilots spend so much time with their mechs that it only makes sense that they feel like they’re one with the mech.

  “Oh and I do have one funny story, that might be a little too personal or TMI, but I think it’s funny.” As soon as Sadie announces the story she’s about to tell, Hiro’s face flushes to red. Now I gotta hear this. “So this story is about Hiro here, who is the sweetest, nicest person you’ll ever meet, but he also has an air of innocence to him. It’s his first day moving into the Mobile Knights facility. Hiro and I also go to the same school together and have been friends for years now, so it’s not like we’re strangers or anything. So, thinking that I can just go in and welcome him, what I find is Hiro in the middle of changing into his pilot suit! And I mean I started seeing him at the beginning of him changing so there was definitely a lot more I saw than I thought I would. Not only that, he was stuck and confused put his legs in the arm sleeves! Of course he told me to get out as nicely as he could. So I come back later to find him posing in front of his poster of Meteor just announcing a bunch of different catchphrases. Like, you guys have no idea just how awkwardly hilarious it was just listening in on him because he would say stuff like, ‘Your Hiro of justice has arrived!’ Or even better, ‘Your friendly neighborhood Hiro is here to save the day!’ It was all so cute and by the time he realized I was in the room he immediately shooed me out with a face filled with embarrassment.”

  “No way!” Dani manages to say in between her laughing. The audience laughs too. Not gonna lie, I even cracked a smile even though I didn’t find the story all that hilarious. But I do think that Sadie catching Hiro in the middle of changing pretty entertaining. “So you say you saw more than what you thought you would. Is it something that you like?” Dani gives Sadie, Hiro, and the audience a devious smirk.

  Sadie laughs loudly. It takes her a moment before she can reply with an embarrassed, yet proud, “Oh yes, yes I did. And might I say, I’m proud to be his girlfriend.” Holy shit did she just say that!?

  “Ah!” Dani laughs loudly at Sadie’s response. She fans herself rapidly as the audience cheers and whistles. “Oh my, well girl, we gotta talk some more after this. Maybe with you too Hiro.” She shoots Hiro a wink and a smile. Hiro’s face is painted red with a gaped mouth. He’s staring blankly into the audience, unsure how to respond. “But this is the perfect segue to talk about Hiro, so everyone please give a round of applause for Sadie because she’s a badass bitch.” The audience claps vigorously as they all continue whistle and cheer. When the audience quiets down, Dani says, “Let’s go to Hiro who is the newest asshole of the Mobile Knights who we definitely heard a story about from Sadie. How are you doing Hiro, especially after what Sadie just told us all?”

  Hiro pauses a bit before he answers, taken aback by Dani’s comment and Sadie’s story. “Uh, yeah, I’m the newest recruit and uh, I really don’t know how to respond after what Sadie just said.” Anyone can tell that he’s nervous and embarrassed.

  “Don’t be nervous or embarrassed now. Be proud of yourself! As personal as it is, your girlfriend said she’s proud. But anyways, I’m sure you have amazing things to tell us. So, what’s your main role with the Mobile Knights, experiences, stories, and all of the fun shit we love to hear” Dani asks, facilitating the panel in a concise manner. I’m noticing that she’s pretty good at reading the panelists as she knows what to play off of.

  Hiro slowly starts talking, “Uh, well my main role in the Mobile Knights is to be the lead aggressor in any combat situation involving the Mobile Knights. I don’t know if people know this or not, but Lancelot is equipped with a lot of weaponry and defense mechanisms that helps protect the armor and myself. Most of the other pilots would follow my lead as a lot of the strategies revolve around what I do and where I go. Of course, I’m under the commands issued by the bosses back at the facility or Jasper who pilots Merlin. I am super new to Mobile Knights though so I don’t really have that many stories or experiences to talk about. I’ve been in some big fights though. Like on my ceremony day I fought off some Sefirots.”

  “How cool! First day on the job and you’re already kicking ass, I love it!” Dani chimes in. “I’m sure many are asking this question, how did you end up getting recruited by the Mobile Knights?”

  “Er, well I was contacted by the Mobile Knight
s the day after my school went to the facility on a fieldtrip. They said they saw potential in me so they had me come in, take some tests which were both physical and mental tests and they recruited me on the spot. It was a pretty simple process,” Hiro answers.

  Just a day after the fieldtrip? That soon? Wait, wasn’t that before we went to see Kirika’s street concert? So Hiro was recruited before the concert? He had all of that time to tell me and he didn’t. I wonder why he kept it a secret for so long. Even when we hung out during concert, he never even mentioned or hinted at being a pilot. It’s so weird that he had all of that time, but didn’t tell me.

  “What’s the recruiting process like? I know there’s tons of people that want to know about that especially if they’re trying to be pilots themselves,” Dani asks.

  “It’s a lot of tests and interviews. Like they do a pretty intensive physical test to make sure you’re fit enough to pilot and then they do some mental tests to make sure that there’s nothing entirely wrong with your brain processes and the way you think. They even throw in certain scenarios to find out what you might do in a situation. The mental test is really important though because your compatibility with any mech can be compromised if you’re not of sound mind. So even though they want you to be physically fit, they want your brain to be in tip top shape too,” Hiro answers thoroughly. Even though he’s still nervous, the way he’s talking reminds me of the sparkle he gets when he talks about heroes. The guy just has a lot of passion.

  Dani nods, smiling as she listens to Hiro. “That’s awesome and good to know. We all have heard about the physical test, but the mental test isn’t talked about that much. It’s good to know that they care about your mental wellbeing to make sure that you’re find and capable. For those who don’t know, these tests are done at least once a week so Mobile Knights can make sure that their pilots can be deployed. It’s really efficient. Anyways, thank you so much Hiro!” The audience applauses before Dani could speak again, “Now, we have Arthur who is a very special pilot. Not only is the mech named Arthur, his name is Arthur too! Arthur, you’re a pretty new pilot too, so how has your experiences been and just all of the great things your fellow pilots have answered here today?”

  Arthur strokes his blonde hair back a bit, and speaks with great composure and charm, but don’t forget about that smug smirk, “I am still pretty new considering the Mobile Knight Arthur is the newest built Mobile Knight, but it’s a great honor to pilot such an amazing and technologically revolutionary mech. With the Avalon Fibers, it just furthers more technology and so I’m definitely honored to be chosen to be the first pilot of such a fantastic mech.”

  “And we’re all glad that you can showcase such a great technological advancement in the form of a Mobile Knight! You’ve also been very important in a lot of battles recently. In the Omega level threat, you seemed to be the one that held a lot of the mechs together,” Dani responds, her eyes glazed on Arthur.

  Arthur was holding the mechs together? But it was Hiro who dealt a lot of the hits on the Hag. If it wasn’t for him, I don’t think anyone else would’ve known where the Hag’s core was. Maybe I just wasn’t paying attention to everyone else, but Arthur didn’t seem like he was doing too much.

  “You know Dani, I really promote teamwork. Not just to my fellow Mobile Knights, but to heroes all over the world. Teamwork really makes the dream work. If we don’t all work together then we would get nothing done. I think that’s something that’s lost in our world sometimes. Just sometimes people really need to set aside their differences and just work together because there are just so many more things to life than dwelling in a bad place,” Arthur speaks with such confidence that he almost draws me into his shitty lie. Teamwork? That coming from the guy who yelled at Hiro and forced Sadie to go with him to wherever it was? Of course, everyone else is completely enamored with Arthur. The guy is charming, so charming that I want to punch him in the face because he does seem like the perfect person right now. If it weren’t for me witnessing that incident, I may just be drawn into him as well.

  “What a heartthrob am I right everyone?” Dani announces with a huge smile on his face which prompts the audience to clap loudly.

  I take a brief glance over at Sadie and Hiro, both of which have bothered smiles on their faces as they clap with the audience. They know how Arthur is. It’s not surprising for them to just look a bit uncomfortable to Arthur’s words. They know he’s lying, but they won’t call him out on it. They shouldn’t anyway, this convention is supposed to be a place of happiness and celebration after all. I feel bad for them, not being able to say anything truthful because it would ruin the atmosphere.

  “Now that we all know our amazing pilots, we’ll move onto Q and A! So if you’ll all line up properly against the wall over there, you can ask your question. I will say that with our time limit, we may not get through all of your questions, so don’t be an asshole and take forever with your question just so we can get through more questions that way,” Dani directs the audience’s attention to a lonely standing microphone against a wall. Like a herd of wild animals, people rush to the wall in attempt to be the first to ask their questions.

  Somehow, the most petit boy makes it to the front of the line. He taps on the microphone and gets startled at the loud thud the shortly sounds off. He shyly speaks into the mic, “Um, h-hi, s-sorry, I’m so nervous.”

  “It’s okay, relax and ask you question,” Sadie speaks with a motherly-like calmness.

  The boy’s face perks up as he asks, “Y-yes! I was j-just curious about, um, how you all became pilots and what you would, um, have to d-do to become a pilot. I-I know this is a question you, uh, probably get a lot, but I-I’m very curious.”

  Sadie looked like she was about to answer, but Arthur answers instead, “I think two of us on here were sought after and recruited. I applied and got lucky that I made it. So it’s always worth just trying hard, being persistent, and hoping for the best. And what I did to apply was that I talked to a recruiter who then gave me the application. You also go through several interviews and tests, so you definitely have to be in your best condition going into it. You can definitely do it kid, you just have to try.”

  “Uh, what he said,” Hiro quickly chimes in.

  “Th-thank you!” the boy says with a bright smile as he returns to his seat.

  The next person up on the mic is a guy completely dressed as one of the Mobile Knights. He speaks into the mic, “Hi everyone, I just have to say that I think you’re all awesome. Anyway, my question is, what’s it like living in the Mobile Knight facility?”

  Hiro’s about to answer, but Arthur chimes in, again, “It’s awesome! There’s so many things to do, like the place has its own game room and everything! Just imagine the fanciest hotel, but with so much more stuff. There’s even room service that I don’t have to pay for! It’s great!”

  “That sounds awesome, thank you for answering,” the guy says before going back to his seat.

  Next is a girl who looks around my age. She’s dressed in a similar pilot suit like Sadie’s. She speaks into the mic, “Hi! I’m Paula, how are you guys? You guys are all so amazing! So I was wondering how exactly does it feel to be in the pilot seat?”

  Both Sadie and Hiro look like they want to answer, but they just shoot each other a look because, surprise, Arthur answers for them instead, “It’s really interesting. Depending on the Mobile Knight, your cockpit will be in a different location. But we have a bunch of these monitors that pretty much let us see what our Mobile Knight sees. When piloting it’s a lot of weird arm movements and contorting. It’s pretty funny if it ever gets recorded.”

  “Oh please, if there’s a recording of that, that would be amazing to watch,” Paula says, “thank you!”

  Throughout the entire panel Arthur kept answering questions, not even letting Sadie or Hiro chime in at all. I feel so bad for them, they’re just sitting there pretending like they’re enjoying being cut off by Arthur. The only times when
either of them answered was when the question was specifically for them, sometimes. A girl asked Sadie what kind of skin care products she uses since her skin looks so flawless. Hiro was able to answer a question about what kind of workouts he does, only to be cut off by Arthur putting in his two cents about the question too. No matter what, Arthur always seemed like he had something to say. No one in the audience is catching on either. They’re all just smiling.

  When the end of the panel hits, Dani chimes in which disappoints a lot of the remaining people who wanted to ask questions, “Sorry everyone, we do have to end this panel now.” There’s a bunch of audible disappointment in the air. “But let’s give a final round of applause for these wonderful pilots! Thank you for attending the Mobile Knights panel and enjoy the rest of Hero Con! And anyone who is interested, we will be doing signings and pictures now, so if you want either of those with your pilots, then definitely stay.”

  Even though the panel is over, people are lining alongside all of the walls just to get an autograph and picture with the pilots. It’s like watching a machine in a factory. As soon as one fan leaves, another one comes. Whatever is getting signed gets passed down, then a picture is taken. It’s all so robotic.

  When the signing finally ends, Hiro approaches me with a smile. “Hey, what’d you think of the panel?”