The Mech Touch

Master Willix didn't lie. The examination didn't last more than half an hour. Even though all sorts of hyper-advanced medical equipment scanned her body inside and out, making her feel as if she exposed all of her secrets, the mechers never made her feel too uncomfortable.

Obviously, the focus of the scans was definitely on her head, or more specifically her brain cavity. As the center of power for both swordmasters and mech designer, her noggin had definitely developed in an abnormal direction.

Still, Ketis was aware that the MTA might not be able to find what they were looking for. She had quietly kept Sharpie locked within Bloodsinger, which she had temporarily stowed in locker. This meant that her mind only contained a fraction of the power of a swordmaster at the moment.

Perhaps the results of all of their examinations would make the MTA doctors conclude that Ketis was not really comparable to a true Swordmaster.

This was fine by Ketis. She did not forget about the remarks made by Heavensworders of how the MTA did not think well of swordmasters. Though she could rely on her mech designer identity to remain in good standing with the Association, she did not wish to push her boundaries too much.

She could already see the faces of the doctors and scientists behind the projected consoles looking a bit disappointed by the results they were getting. Maybe Ketis wasn't entirely living up the hype to them. The will she exuded did not even match the strength of a typical newly-advanced expert pilot.

Once all of the examinations came to a close, Master Willix allowed her to retrieve her weapon before leading her to a large but mostly-empty office.

Ketis looked at the artful display of projected fishes as she sat down on a floating chair.

"Miss Ketis, let us begin with the basics." The Master soothingly said. "Please describe your design philosophy to me. It is best to be as forthcoming as possible. The more we know, the more guidance we can offer you. Do not be afraid of sharing your trade secrets with us. We always respect confidentiality."

"My design philosophy is straightforward. I chose to specialize in designing swordsman mechs, with a special eye towards arming them with the sharpest swords that I can make."

Ketis was already prepared for this round of questioning. Ves had once given her a brief description on what she would face if she made her pilgrimage to a sector headquarters.

Though he did not tell her much, he made sure to emphasize that she should reveal as little she could get away with. Ketis didn't know why he felt it was important for her to avoid entrusting too much information to the MTA, but he had never led her astray so far, so she made sure to understate her capabilities as much as possible.

It helped a lot that Ketis barely knew what she could do these days. Not a lot of time had passed since her breakthrough and she had yet to engage in any mech design activities.

Still, she instinctively felt she was capable of accomplishing some feats that she wasn't able to do when she was still an Apprentice. She did not mind sharing them since her work in the near future would doubtlessly incorporate her new capabilities.

After answering a lot of routine questions, the MTA gathered enough information to draft a shallow profile of her capabilities as a Journeyman Mech Designer.

Master Willix also benefited from what she learned about Ketis. Prior to the young woman's breakthrough, the Swordmaiden mech designer had never registered on anyone's radar.

Even the MTA itself never thought that the Larkinson Clan had hid such a treasure! The questioning that took place was very necessary for that reason.

As one of the senior dignitaries in the region who possessed a special interest in the Larkinson Clan, Master Willix had also generated a considerable degree of personal interest in Ketis' career.

Compared to a conventional and classically-trained Journeyman like Gloriana Wodin, Ketis presented a much more interesting puzzle to the MTA!

The deep investigations into the Swordmaiden mech designer's background easily picked up a lot of suspicious signs. Her physical examination also revealed a considerable number of abnormalities outside of her abnormal brain development.

Still, the MTA did not have any reason to confront Ketis on these notable abnormalities. Master Willix was much more interested in establishing a friendly relationship with the latest notable Journeyman from the Larkinson Clan.

"I think quite highly of your decision to pursue a narrow focus in your mech design career." Willix spoke with a hint of appreciation in her tone. "Though the mech industry does not look highly upon mech designers who overspecialize, it is less difficult for you to develop powerful new methods that can greatly enhance the strength of a specific type of mechs. Having big and broad dreams is also good, but too many mech designers overestimate their capabilities and pursue ambitions that are far too unattainable."

"I know what I'm good at and what I'm not good at, ma'am. I'm not interested in designing mechs that don't wield swords, so I don't feel the need to force myself to branch out. There are so many mech designers out there that I don't have to shoulder every burden. Someone else can design rifleman mechs. Nobody wants one that is designed by a mech designer who isn't passionate about ranged mechs."

"Well said. You have the right idea, Miss Ketis. I do have to warn you that your approach is only viable if you are a purely commercial mech designer or if you are part of an organization that is able to employ multiple mech designers. When the people around you have no choice but depend solely on you for their mechs, your self-imposed limitations will become a major hindrance."

Ketis felt pleased at being flattered, but she did not take it too seriously. Master Willix was just putting a positive spin on a very severe restriction.

"Do you have any advice on how I should progress as a Journeyman? I'm kind of new to this and I don't have a clear idea on what it takes to become a Senior."

"Oh, you don't need to worry too much about that. Journeymen are considered mature mech designers by our standards. Compared to Apprentices, you are much more capable of taking care of yourselves. However, our Association also considers Journeymen to be beginners who are just starting to explore their unique research direction. You need to develop a foundation by creating powerful new methods that tie into your design philosophy. The mechs you will design from now on must reflect your unique advantages in order to reflect your identity as a Journeyman. The more you are able to translate your design philosophy into more powerful mech designs, the closer you are to becoming a Senior."

Master Willix didn't give her any advice that was too specific because Journeyman were not children anymore. They may be new to higher-level mech design, but their level of ability, intelligence and creativity should have exceeded a minimum standard.

Incompetent Journeymen simply didn't exist!

As long as they found a good direction and didn't get distracted by other matters, it was not that difficult to advance to Senior. The difficulty of advancing from Apprentice to Journeyman was far greater than advancing from Journeyman to Senior!

After a bit of chatting, Ketis received a lot of general advice that would doubtlessly make her future advancement smoother.

At the end of the session, Master Willix stood up and invited Ketis to go on a small excursion.

"There is something that you should know. When Ves advanced to Journeyman, he earned the right to learn some secrets that our association has withheld from humanity. Now, you are entitled to learn the same secrets."

The Master brought Ketis on a tour through a large ceremonial hall where numerous impressive masterwork mechs were put on display.

Though many of them were outdated by modern standards, Ketis couldn't help but appreciate their craftsmanship. Willix even allowed her to stop in front of a masterwork swordsman mech that looked absolutely gorgeous to someone who specialized in designing this mech type!

At the end of the hall, they reached an enormous pit where an orb that consisted of pure antimatter was suspended in the center.

It was there that Ketis finally learned about psionics.

To be frank, she had already figured out some elements about this phenomenon. It was hard to remain ignorant when Ves relied so much on it. Even if he abided by the rules of the MTA and avoided the P-word, his design philosophy was so intricately tied to it that he had to reveal some aspects of it in order to explain his work to the Design Department.

What she learned also tied closely to expert pilots and swordmasters. Both of these professions developed psionics in a different direction, and Ketis found that she was able to understand her own state a lot better now! Though Master Willix refrained from delving too deep into the mechanics of psionic power, Ketis was able to derive plenty of guesses based on the scattered knowledge she held!

Master Willix looked knowingly at Ketis. "As a mech designer who worked extensively under Ves Larkinson, you should have already experienced how psionics can enhance conventional mech designers. They exist as a layer on top of purely mechanical creation and is one of the principal reasons why mechs are so much more powerful than other weapons of war. There is no other weapon system in human space that can derive as much empowerment from psionics as mechs."

"What is the purpose of this?" Ketis asked a question that many mech designers in her place would ask. "Don't get me wrong. I think it is wonderful that mechs have so much potential. What I am wondering about is why we humans devote so much effort to developing mechs when there are more powerful alternatives like warships. Is it really worth it to devote so much energy in developing better mechs when warships still remain our main weapons of war against hostile alien races?"

"Oh, it is very much worth it, Miss Ketis. I cannot divulge the full story to you, but I can share at least one angle to you. First, do you remember the mech designer's creed?"

Ketis briefly paused. "We exist to serve mech pilots, is that right?"

"Correct." Master Willix looked pleased. "Usually, this phrase is used to humble our profession and remind every mech designer that we are not the protagonists of this age. However, the other side of this expression is that mech pilots are an important group of people to humanity. Mech pilots and especially the ones who have transcended their humanity are of great value to our civilization. The clan you are a part of already boasts a handful of expert pilots, but it is rather regretful that none of them have yet to make use of their prowess."

"It's difficult to obtain expert mechs from scratch."

Master Willix let out a small sigh. "Indeed, but that is not an excuse to delay the progression of all of those promising expert pilots. It would be an enormous tragedy for them to succumb in battle too soon due to the Larkinson Clan's inability to supply them with adequate expert mechs. I predict that all of them have a great future ahead of them if they continue to fight alongside an interesting mech designer such as Ves, but they are wasting too much time now. If they continue to be deprived of their expert mechs for a couple more years, then I am afraid that they will have exhausted their potential in vain. That would be a grave tragedy. I hope that your mentor will not fail to uphold his responsibilities as a mech designer."

This matter deeply concerned Ketis as well. She wanted both Venerable Joshua and Venerable Dise to succeed, but that was a lot harder to do when they only had access to prime mechs.

"Is this why you offered to help Ves and Gloriana with designing the first batch of expert mechs for the clan?"

"Correct." Master Willix smiled. "There are several reasons why I have agreed to lend my aid. Still, as a general principle, I cannot stand by and allow the Larkinson Clan to underutilize its exceptional talents and waste its promising expert pilots. Every expert pilot deserves the opportunity to grow stronger. Although it is unlikely for an expert pilot to go further, I hope that one day your clan will welcome an ace pilot among your ranks. Our association celebrates the emergence of every new ace pilot because one more addition comprehensively strengthens the top-level combat power of the human race. Your clan will become renowned as long as it succeeds in pushing their expert pilots to greater heights."

Ketis grew eager after hearing this aspiration. "I hope to do my own part. My future contributions will definitely help them surpass their limits!"

This was what she was good at! She was confident that her unique experiences as a swordmaster would definitely provide her with an advantage with helping her fellow expert pilots grow stronger!