The Phantom Ace: Starcore’s Choice
In the interstellar age, mechs are a digital battlefield monopolized by AI, and “pilot instinct” has long been dismissed as a shattered wasteland legend.
The soul of a legendary classic-mech ace accidentally enters the body of a boy who is useless in both mental power and physical fitness. The military academy mocks his piloting as “contrary to data logic,” while the Federation sees him as an untamable anomaly. Then, at an abandoned space station on the edge of the galaxy, his fingertips awaken an ancient starcore glowing deep blue.
The instant the starcore shudders, the Federation’s entire defense network collapses. Fleets from the Orion Arm lay a vast, inescapable net, determined to seize the core and silence him. Colonial rebels kneel and hail him as their savior, demanding that he blast through the Federation’s central command so they can crown him. A seventy-two-hour countdown is etched into his nerves: will he wield the starcore to overthrow the old order, or sacrifice himself to activate the protection protocol?
AI cannot calculate his battlefield instincts, and data cannot measure the resonance between him and his mech. As his “outdated” mastery tears through the sea of stars, the misunderstood Phantom Ace finally realizes that his choice was never simply between destruction and protection. He must use his legend to rewrite the rules of mech warfare for this age.
The starcore’s whispers entwine with his consciousness, and the countdown ticks away, threatening to claim his life. Can he turn the tide before the cost comes due?
