The Mech Touch novel Chapter 39

When Ves sent off the newly repaired and modified Kirby, his expression was mixed. The modification Charlotte suggested changed the Kirby in a way that hopefully would come as an unwelcome surprise to Alexander Steel. Michael Dumont must be thinking the same thing. The low-key fourth-ranked mech designer from the qualifications hadn’t raised eyebrows like Patricia or Edwin, but he possessed real capabilities to make it this far. The skirmisher’s smooth and practically undamaged form was a testament to his repair skills.

The Kirby’s heavy, burdened form stepped forward into the arena yet again. Its steps echoed the quiet arena as it beheld its opponent. The medium mech looked as spotless as ever, though it exchanged its twin submachine guns for double kite shields.

"Damn, this is ridiculous." Ves muttered to himself as his eyes widened at the ridiculous loadout.

It wasn’t unheard of for mechs to bring double shields to the battlefield. Two shields offered a great amount of protection against ranged damage. Knight type mechs holding a defensive position often made for great defenders for their more vulnerable comrades if they carried two shields for maximum cover. Some savvy manufacturers even got in on the action by selling purpose-built tower shields that weighed like a brick but could withstand incredible punishment.

That was why the notion that Alexander carried a pair of heavy shields for his swift and agile mech sounded ridiculous. Why give up his advantage in mobility to gain an average amount of durability? The shields may prove useful against the Kirby’s guns, but their weight turned the skirmisher into a sitting duck, allowing Charlotte to pound Alexander into a pulp before he’d even reach his enemy.

"Could it be that Alexander is carrying another weapon?"

The timer counted down. Plenty of people in the audience took note of this match. Not only did it determine which team entered the finals, it also signified a battle between two unusually modified mechs. The crowd was beginning to come around to the idea behind the Fusion Cup. It not only tested a pilot’s judgment and skill, it also involved his partner’s craftiness. The mech designer’s role might not be as flashy as the pilot’s, but his every move affected the battlefield in a way that was no less influential.

Ves feared Michael quite a bit for this reason. The man hid his competence well, for the skirmisher that he fixed up revealed no hints of what lurked beneath its spotless facade.

"Three, two, one, START!"

The match exploded into action as Charlotte fired all her guns without waiting to engage her targeting systems. Her manual aim proved sufficient as pretty much both of its explosive shells detonated squarely against the skirmisher’s shields.

Surprisingly, the shield held against the immense assaults. The lasers fired from the Kirby’s shoulders merely splashed the shield’s surface with ineffectual heat. The second volley of shells from the Kirby’s arm cannons failed to deal any substantial damage to the sturdy shields. The skirmisher calmly stepped forward, leaning its posture square against the shields just before Charlotte fired. While the shields contributed much to the Skirmisher’s unyielding pace, Alexander’s impeccable piloting skill made sure his mech maintained its balance.

"How can this... I don’t even..."

Ves tried to parse the sight in front of him. The shields were able to withstand incredible punishment far beyond the materials provided by the organizers should be able to withstand.

"Are they cheating?"

In front of a crowd of millions? Likely not. Such blatant rule breaking threw away all credibility for the Young Tigers Exhibition. Then considering all the state-of-the-art machinery the mech designers had at their disposal, then Michael must have treated an existing pair of shields with a highly advanced composition so far ahead that it must involve some secrets from a second-rate state.

He grimaced at the guess. "The organizers were probably overjoyed when they get to peek over Michaels’ shoulders. The technique he used might not be known to the higher ups at the Bright Republic. Perhaps the Bright Republic introduced the Fusion Cup for reasons other than allowing mech designers to gain some fame alongside pilots."

This implied the Republic was desperate to steal new technologies, which was ridiculous. Though it only ranked as a minor star country, it still possessed unimaginable wealth compared to most corporations. The income they made off Bentheim and the budding mech industry there insured they possessed the resources to enhance their tech base.

"There must be something else behind the Fusion Cup. Something I can’t see yet."

In any case, nothing Ves figured out could change the situation in the arena. The shielded skirmisher came quite close and only failed to reach the Kirby due to the kinetic force of the explosions pushed it back.

"HARGH! What does it take to crack open your shell?!" Charlotte shouted in frustration as she slowly stepped her mech backwards while continuing to fire her cannons. She kept her laser mounts silent. The lasers inflicted negligible damage to the shields. It hurt her more than the enemy if she kept shooting to the point of overheating.

When the Skirmisher finally came close enough to engage in melee, Alexander patiently waited for another pair of shells to impact his dented but still intact shield. The moment the cannons fired off their payload and loaded another round, the shields dropped and a twin pair of heated knives entered the mech’s hands.

"So that’s what you were hiding!" Charlotte yelled as she finally reengaged her lasers. At this range, a barrage of shots created a couple of awful burn holes in her opponent’s armor. Yet the lasers lacked the punching power to stop or hinder the skirmisher in any way. Mechs often used rapid-fire lasers to deal a great amount of constant damage in an efficient way, but such a narrow focus made them vulnerable to sudden strikes like the one Alexander performed.

The skirmisher jumped in the air and landed both ends of its knives into the Kirby’s shoulder mounts, instantly piercing them and rendering the lasers scrap.

Too impatient to wait for her next shells to reload, Charlotte simply based her cannon tubes against the hanging Skirmisher, successfully lodging it off her mech’s frame. Unfortunately, the shock dealt some damage to the internal modules of the cannons, causing their reloading process to stop.

Instead, Charlotte engaged her surprise. "See you, sucker!"

One of the three boxy rocket launchers started to flare as the boosters hidden within came to life. This was what Charlotte requested Ves to incorporate. In her opinion, three rocket launchers mounted to her back was a little excessive. She’d rather replace one of them with some boosters angled in such a way that it could help her turn her mech around rapidly.

Most heavy mechs turned like whales on land. Charlotte loved her new rocket launchers, but she was aware her opponents wouldn’t obediently stand behind her and let the rockets launch at them with a smile. So she conceived of the creative idea of hollowing out one of the launchers and stuff some acceleration boosters in its place.

As a pilot, she lacked the background to appreciate the challenges involved in such an operation, especially since they were short on time. Nevertheless, his budding jury rigging skill worked full tilt in order to produce a solution that turned the impossible into something that might work.

As the pilots exited their cockpits, they all met at the center of the arena to shake each other’s hands. _{freewёbnoνel.com}