The Mech Touch

It usually took a lot of effort for Ves to explain any failures and shortcomings to other people.

This time was different. He was in august company at the moment. Master Xena Wintress and Master Vayro Goldstein were both the top authorities in their respective fields and had accumulated far more knowledge and experience than any Senior.

The Mace of Retaliation was not as intellectually gifted, but what he lacked in knowledge, he made up for it with unnaturally high perception and the ability to understand the state of other mech pilots.

At this time, the two Masters silently communicated with each other as they analyzed the data and tried to form solid conclusions based on a single attempt.

The Mace occasionally provided his input on what his highly attuned senses perceived from Pilot Tina Eckland.

Despite the fact that he was not in the cockpit of his ace mech at the moment, he was still only a few steps He had hovered around the peak of his rank for so long that his domain field was able to cover the entire chamber without relying on any external sources of amplification!

The man possessed the best ability to observe the functioning of the Blood Pact.

As much as the Red Association made a lot of progress in figuring out both new and ancient methods to harness the power of E energy, it was still far behind when it came to developing precise instruments that could observe and record it in an accurate manner.

This was why the ace pilot presented the best analysis of the three.

"Piloting a mech is not easy." The powerful ace pilot spoke as he crossed his arms. "The neural interface is one of the most important miracles of modern times. The man-machine connection bond that is defined by more than just bandwidth or data. It is a way to enable an analog human mind to merge itself, if only partially, with the digital mind of a mech. Interfacing with a mech is like integrating with a cranial implant that you occasionally activate and deactivate."

That was an odd way to describe the man-machine connection. Nonetheless, Ves and the other mech designers did not discount the ace pilot's words. He was speaking from a lifetime of personal experience.

The Mace of Retaliation gestured his arm towards the Carmine Trooper. "From what I have seen, the 'Blood Pact' formed by this little fellow's new invention is like a newborn child. It doesn't have the highly developed strength and robustness of the man-machine connection. It works in a completely different way. I am not surprised that Pilot Ekland got overwhelmed. Yet... there is potential in this new type of connection."

Master Wintress looked intrigued. "In what way?"

"It's alive." The Mace said with a hint of admiration in his tone. "The Blood Pact formed just a moment ago is worse than the man-machine connection that we are familiar with in almost every way. However, I can sense a monstrous amount of potential from it. It is similar to the companion spirits that I have started to encounter here and there. They are all so weak and fragile, but that is not so strange anymore if you regard them as newborns."

Ves nodded in agreement. "Without any exceptional input or investment, most of my living products start off weak. It is one of the negative characteristics of my design philosophy."

The powerful pilot turned and smiled directly at the young Senior. "We were all infants once. My father was not born a god. He grew and fought and fought his way to defy his weakness and succeeded in doing so. Throughout his struggle, he never complained about his bad strokes of fortune or how others had it better. No. He gritted his teeth and worked himself to the bone to advance to his current rank! What he taught to me and so many others is that mech pilots such as ourselves all have a chance of becoming a god. The only requirements are that we have the will to fight for what we want and the potential to reach our ultimate goal."

"Are you suggesting that the Blood Pact can better facilitate the breakthroughs of a mech pilot?" Master Goldstein asked with a serious expression.

"I cannot form that conclusion right away." The Mace of Retaliation shook his head. "I don't have any proof. Yet from what I have seen from this thin and fragile Blood Pact, I see that it has the potential that the man-machine connection lacks. The neural interface is like a manufactured toy. Once it rolls off the production line, it remains static and unchanging for the most part. You can change its settings and you can even hire an expert to modify it, but my point remains. The man-machine connection that our entire mech industry has all depended on for at least 400 years has never made any drastic evolutionary leaps. Mech designers such as yourselves may have improved it on an incremental basis over the centuries, but... pilots like myself are still in a similar position as before."

The ace pilot gazed back at the Carmine Trooper. The growing shine in his eyes suggested that he did not regard the relatively shabby and unassuming machine to be an experimental second-class hero mech anymore.

In his eyes, this hastily developed mech turned into a treasure. The partially organic tech contained beneath its metallic exterior presented a wealth of new possibilities to mech pilots who deserved to have more but always got held back by the limitations of current technology.

"The Blood Pact formed between the Carmine Trooper and Pilot Ekland may be as weak as a kitten at the moment, but it is already showing signs of recovery and adaptation. I have no doubt that as long as we give it enough time, it can grow as strong as a lion! That is an outcome that I can never imagine for the man-machine connection. Do not get me wrong. It has its strong points. It is far stabler and more consistent than what we have just witnessed. It has been studied by so many brilliant minds that it can still run adequately even if the entire mech is falling apart around the pilot. Yet... if someone wants to attain more... he has to put in the effort and take on greater risks."

Everyone else fell silent for a few seconds as they took in the Mace of Retaliation's heartfelt words.

Although his description was not systematic, he provided enough information for everyone else to fill in the gaps.

"Time." Master Wintress began to frown. "Time is of the essence. We would all like to support our mech pilots and help them attain the breakthroughs that have eluded them for so long, but we cannot produce the desired results in a short amount of time. Given the results, it appears that the Carmine System cannot be utilized as a superior alternative of the neural interface for an extended amount of time."

"That only applies to the present." Ves couldn't help but interject to defend his work. "The circumstances that I am working with at the moment are anything but ideal. I designed and built the Carmine Trooper in a matter of hours. That is not enough to fortify its foundation and elevate the Blood Pact to a better starting position. In fact, given that I have found a way to make my living mechs strengthen themselves over time by absorbing E energy radiation, you can just fabricate entire batches and dump them in warehouses for a year or two. Once they have grown strong enough to pass your minimum requirements, you can bring them out and assign them to their intended mech pilots."

Master Goldstein looked thoughtful at that suggestion.

"That may be a wise choice for the Carmine Conscript and other mechs targeted towards norms, but it is not a necessary step for orthodox mech pilots. Do not forget that the neural interface and the Carmine System can both be utilized at the same time. As far as I am concerned, we can continue to allow our existing mech pilots to rely on the man-machine connection for most of their operations. The Blood Pact can be used as an additional feature that can help them deepen their immersion to their mechs. That is all that we should reveal if we decide to roll it out in the near future."

Ves quietly listened as the three high-ranked figures continued to swap theories and suggestions with each other.

He hardly felt the need to provide any additional input as they developed a better understanding of his new innovation.

From what it sounded like, all three had already leaned towards acceptance when it came to the Carmine System.

This did not mean that they were willing to make it available to the public right away. They were merely inclined to support it and remove a lot of obstacles that Ves would otherwise bump into due to the unclear risks and dangers associated with his experimental tech.

Nonetheless, this test alone pretty much secured the future of the Carmine System. Its utility to existing mech pilots alone was more than worth all of the baggage as far as the Mace of Retaliation was concerned!

They soon moved on to the next test after they made sure that Tina Ekland's condition had not deteriorated in any way after her fragile Blood Pact with her newly bonded mech endured a lot of stress.

Lieutenant Leon Di Maggio had spent enough minutes on adjusting his mentality for this historic experiment.

The man slowly approached the simple and nearly foolproof second-class knight mech that Ves especially conceived for a pilot who had no prior experience with handling real mechs.

Despite its cheap components, its unrefined appearance and its simplistic configuration, the man gazed at the machine as if it was a dream come true.

No. The Carmine Conscript did not just represent the fulfillment of a single man's dream.

It personified the strong desires of trillions of human beings who had grown up during the Age of Mechs!

Each of them hoped to become one of the valiant and glorious mech pilots that were ubiquitous across human society.

However, the limitations of genetic aptitude dealt a cruel hand to all of them. The vast majority simply couldn't get started no matter how much they paid or how hard they were willing to work.

Their genes and their brain chemistry had sealed their fates!

Though most people ultimately accepted the fact that they were resigned to live like ordinary people, not everyone was able to move past their childhood dreams and fantasies.

Leon Di Maggio was one of the many 'fools' who continued to obsess over mechs long after they acknowledged that they were not cut out to be mech pilots.

Some of them held the faint hope that a miraculous savior would come into their lives and present wonderful new tech that could improve everyone's genetic aptitudes or sidestep this requirement entirely!

Others weren't as optimistic about the future, but vainly clung to their dreams anyway because they would have nothing left to live for. The line between fantasy and reality became blurred to their eyes as they spent as much of their free time imagining an illusionary life of glory and splendor!

From what Ves had been able to glean from reading the tactical officer's profile and record, Leon Di Maggio likely fell into the second category of delusional fools.

This guy was a romantic and a dreamer. Although he was not as deep in denial as the most deranged idiots, he had definitely spent far more hours than was strictly healthy on his obsession!

Leon would have been able to attain considerably better grades in school and get promoted to higher positions if he applied himself fully in what he could actually do as opposed to chasing after a futile dream!

Yet if he had done what reality dictated to him, he would have never been qualified to become the first test pilot of a Carmine mech that was made for dreamers like himself!

The weight of history rested on his shoulders. The man had to take a few deep breaths and employ a few calming techniques in order to prevent any jitters from disqualifying him from this unique piloting opportunity.

Leon could not allow anything to stop him from becoming the first true mech pilot without the benefit of genetic aptitude!

As the man entered the cockpit, additional gazes fell onto him and his quaint Carmine mech.

Neither Ves nor anyone else in the secure testing hall were aware that additional people had chosen to observe this potential turning point in human history.