Attendance at Fortescue Military Academy M1 Y:2142
House Thoth, Squad Leader, Squad Zero
M1 Rank: 1/1275, Tier 3 M-Rank: Null
Term: 2, Round: (Holiday)
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The announcer roared, “He slices past King Zi’s guard – it rocks him back on his heels! There had to be some devastating internals done there, folks! Feisty Troll is on his game today!”
The six remaining cadets from Squad Zero were in the stands watching two six-metre mechs duke it out with either large two-handed swords or ‘sword and board,’ which was a one-handed sword and shield. The two-handed swords were known as claymores. It was visceral combat at its finest. Augmented reality was not used in the professional leagues. Which was probably why the mechs were limited to melee weapons and weren’t firing off missiles at each other. Or into the crowd for that matter.
The mechs and their melee weapons followed strict rules including limitations to size and weight. The result was that the claymores, swords, and shields looked very similar while the mechs themselves were diverse.
There were shorter, wider mechs, or thin mechs with a long reach. Some mechs had half a dozen joints in their arms, while others had two. One mech was lopsided with a single thick arm, and yet another had over twenty segments joined together acting as an arm instead of joints and strut.
“Yar, Feisty Troll!” Barran yelled, getting into the swing of things. It was fortunate the cadets were too young to bet or Barran would have been betting and losing on most matches. “My mech is going to win this time,” he proclaimed loudly to his squaddies. “I can’t wait until I’m in U1.”
Daedo was at a loss, and so was Axel-Zero. “Uh, why?” she asked.
“Because U1 cadets can vote, drink, get married, and … bet!” Barran said with a shout.
Mace whispered to Daedo, “Business manager.” And then she raised her eyebrows to indicate her reluctance about the whole idea.
Due to the EUDF accords, cadets from U1and onwards could be sent to battle in the occurrence of an alien invasion or war. They were considered part of the EUDF until they graduated, when they would either join a military arm or leave for civilian life. Because of this commitment, the EUDF granted sixteen-year-old cadets full citizenship rights.
Feisty Troll’s blow with the claymore forced King Zi’s right arm to stop working. This was of interest to Daedo because the claymore hit the body of King Zi. Feisty Troll must have impacted an important power delivery conduit or control circuit.
“It’s over,” Picard said. King Zi had lost its ability to wield a claymore. One arm was not strong enough to swing the heavy blade.
The mechs topped out at six metres in height. Some were quick, some strong, while others were heavily armoured. No mech was all three unless it was a compromised balance.
Daedo could almost tell by looking at them which category they should fit into. Sometimes a mech looked like it should be strong and was actually quick, or just not well-made at all. Heavily armoured was immediately obvious.
“I win again!” Barran exclaimed.
“You’re wrong seventy-five per cent of the time,” Picard told him.
All the cadets were enjoying the spectacle, but Barran’s behaviour was embarrassing. Especially since they were all in matching bodysuits. Axel-Zero had gifted the squad with new Axel customs, which were black and red with ‘Daedalus’ written in red on the front and back.
“Thanks again for the wonderful gift, Axel-Zero,” Vannier said for the third time while admiring the elegant red stripes following the contours of her body.
As expected of Axel Corp., the bodysuit contained all the latest sensors and invisible gadgets. Myrmidon was already making use of the extra storage capacity woven into the neck, organising sensor data processing programs to operate from that location using the direct feeds from the bodysuit itself. The bodysuits were all linked together the same as the squad had done at the academy.
“Thanks, Axel-Zero,” Daedo said, mimicking Vannier. She had taken his old academy bodysuit and would return it at the beginning of the term with every mod in Axel Corp.’s arsenal. “And thanks for upgrading my Thoth bodysuit.”
“I promised, didn’t I?” she said.
Daedo nodded and smiled. “Yes. Yes, you did.”
“I keep my word, Etana Daedo,” Axel-Zero stated seriously, poking him gently in the chest with her finger to emphasise the point.
The cadets referred to each other with their surnames, out of habit, but sometimes slipped in a first name since they were on break.
“Who’s up next?” Picard asked, looking up the schedule.
“Angry Rex versus Demon Butler,” Barran said. “Hmm … I think Demon Butler’s form looks best. I’m backing him.”
“Both claymores again?” Daedo asked as he read the synopsis on the two mechs. There were also short vids of their best wins, but it didn’t mean the pilot wouldn’t change loadout based on a specific fight strategy.
As the mechs exited from the north and south entrance, Picard said, “Sword and board on Angry Rex.”
“Claymore on Demon Butler – yes!” Barran exclaimed.
“Claymores are losing more than half their fights against sword and boards,” Vannier reminded him.
“Yes, but Demon Butler is a demon mech. He won’t lose,” Barran said confidently.
The arena was quite small compared to the academy mech arenas. It was circular with a diameter of 150 metres. The mechs would meet near the centre, where they would begin fighting, employing either a dodging strategy, parrying, or trading blow for blow.
Demon Butler, in his resplendent black and white colouring, leapt and swung downwards at Angry Rex as soon as they were within fifteen metres of each other. Impressively, for a six-metre mech, Demon Butler was able to jump three metres in the air with no jumpjets, just using the spring from his legs.
Angry Rex was quick and brought his shield up to block the incoming claymore. Demon Butler altered the path of his downward swing, but Angry Rex was still able to counter and block. The blade smashed into the shield, making an amazingly loud sound, vibrations reverberating through the stands.
This was what the fans came for. Other than the betting.
Angry Rex attempted to sweep low with his longsword after he was able to absorb the impact of Demon Butler’s claymore.
Demon Butler was expecting the move and took one step backwards, bringing his lead leg behind himself. He used the momentum to turn and angle a blow at Angry Rex’s right flank. The claymore had to travel a lot farther than the shield, and despite his speed, which was impressive, Angry Rex was easily able to block. Chunks of metal flew off both the claymore and shield. They must have been some sort of plastic metal blend because they didn’t spark much when they clashed.
The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.
Both mechs were equal in terms of build technology, and both pilots were skilled. When this eventuated, it turned into a war of attrition. Which mech would break down first?
Demon Butler had excellent speed and was able to swing the claymore with strength, but it came at a price. As soon as Angry Rex traded blows to the body, Demon Butler suffered. The mech’s defence was below par. Its movement was hindered, with one leg unable to move forward, only backwards. This put a strain on its offence. The pilot had no chance of getting past Angry Rex’s shield. He began to take risks, and as soon as he overreached, Angry Rex jumped on the opportunity and plunged his sword into Demon Butler’s white torso. His black arms went limp, and a red light indicating surrender began to spin.
“That’s going to cost a wad of bitcreds to fix,” Mace said quietly. Daedo hadn’t been able to shut her up during the week, and now that they were with the squad again, she reverted to her old self. The change was significant, although she did offer an opinion now and then.
“Argh!” Barran cried.
Picard thumped him on the back, perhaps too hard. “Sword and board,” she said firmly, ignoring his hurt look.
What remained of Thoth Squad Zero – the six cadets – had been watching mech battles all day. Most lasted twenty minutes, including the time it took the mechs to walk out and the crane lift to pull the loser – and sometimes the winner – out. A massive three hundred-tonne crane sat behind the stadium, lifting any mechs that couldn’t walk out of the arena and into the mech bay behind.
“Tomorrow is hand-to-hand combat,” Axel-Zero informed the squad.
“What are the rules for that?” Vannier asked as she pulled up a screen large enough for everyone to see. There were specific rules about the size and weight of a mech’s hand and another set for the closed fist.
“Look at the end of the day; there’s a four versus four competition for melee combat,” Picard said. “Only two matches though.”
“Prize money probably isn’t worth it for the repairs,” Barran said.
Vannier looked at Daedo and smiled brightly. “Did we learn anything useful today?”
“Yes. Mechs hit hard and sword and board all the way, just ask Picard,” he said.
In reality, it was good to have a look at different structures and how effective they were or were not. His only concern was that the design could have merit, but if the parts were poor, the merit would be lost. As usual, he would have to build, test, and analyse. Then build, test, and analyse again, and again, and again, to ensure he explored all avenues. A costly endeavour. Exos were a fraction of the cost of a mech. However, he could take what he learned from the exos to the mechs in terms of armour composites and power delivery.
“Let’s have our Daedalus meeting,” Vannier suggested.
The squad had planned to see the expo on Saturday after another day of mech arena combat, but they also wanted to catch up on Daedalus and squad business before and/or after dinner on the first day.
An auto was ordered, and in moments a hovercar arrived to pick them up; in Munich they were always less than a minute away. The on-holiday cadets in their black and red Daedalus bodysuits jumped into the hovercar, which scooted off to Axel-Zero’s aunty’s place.
Daedo knew Axel-Zero was well off, but he had never been in a home as large as her aunty’s. She was also a member of Axel Corp., holding down a board seat, and – as she put it – ‘Making sure idiots didn’t ruin the company.’ In fact, she wasn’t Axel-Zero’s aunty, she was her great aunty; Axel-Zero just referred to her as Aunty Sabine.
The home had four wings, and Aunty Sabine made only one off-limits to the cadets. She was also very strict, insisting they go to bed at 2300 and shower before. Dinner was at 1800 sharp, and she expected them to wash before dinner. The girls slept in one wing, Daedo and Barran another. Daedo wasn’t sure if Axel-Zero’s aunty understood that they’d lived together for ten weeks with no incidents of misbehaviour. So why did she expect any now?
“Just bear with her; she’s old,” Axel-Zero said. “She is really nice though. Really.”
“We’re fine,” Daedo reassured her.
“My grandmother is the same,” Vannier said.
“And I thought Master Nader was strict,” Barran grumbled.
“In her day, everything was run to the minute,” Axel-Zero said gently. “Dinner at 1800 means just that, not 1801, not around 1800.”
“We can just order a meal from a local bot-kitchen,” Barran suggested. “A bot could fly a meal in through a window. She wouldn’t even know.”
Axel-Zero frowned. “She would know you weren’t at dinner!”
“I don’t know what the fuss is about. We work to a schedule at the academy,” Vannier said.
“But it’s break!” Barran complained.
Daedo was leaning back in his chair and had a small smile on his face.
“What are you laughing at?” Barran accused Daedo.
“Nothing. I just thought you’d have learned by now,” Daedo retorted.
“Learned what?”
“Exactly!” Picard said, laughing loudly at Barran’s expression.
“Not to question or argue with …” Daedo answered and indicated the girls.
“Oh, my little dark genius, rest assured,” Barran said ominously, “I will never learn that!”
Everyone broke out in laughter while Barran protested it was not a joke.
With three wings and the main hall to choose from, it was not hard to find a room that sufficed for a Daedalus – and squad – meeting. The room they ended up choosing was called a sitting room and was similar to the ancient décor in the topside academy staff offices. The squad was able to lounge about in luxury surrounding a central display.
“First item,” Vannier announced. She had gone through the list with Daedo over comms the previous day. The squad could have easily conducted this meeting in a virtual room, at any place or time, but that moment was as good a time as any, and they were already together.
“Specialities and role allocation,” Vannier continued and brought up the two charts. “As you can see, each role has a description and subcategories.”
Daedo had written a role description for each speciality, so there was no doubt what the role pertained. It was an excellent tip from Cisse that prompted him.
“Are these negotiable?” Picard asked coyly.
“Yes,” Daedo said.
“Daedo has put a lot of thought and research into these responsibilities,” Vannier added.
“Oh, I’m fine. I just wasn’t sure,” Picard added.
“There is a lot of responsibility for a couple of people and not much for others,” Axel-Zero noticed. “I’m not complaining, but I am worried that it might be too much for some people.”
“It’s weighted to strengths,” Daedo stated. “For instance, melee weapons are extremely important, and this included developing anything from shields to sword lances, to photon blades. Picard only has this category plus logistics, which is not a small amount of work. Picard fulfils a role training everyone in physical and melee combat as well. It’s better she has only this one area to focus on and excel in. If anything, she has too much, like all of us.
“Axel-Zero, you have drones. It’s a major area of deficiency for us, and as we saw in our match against M3 Shu Squad Zero, it really hurt us. Having your focus on this area should see quicker results than if you were spread out.”
“I can’t help but feel I have less because I’m not as smart as Mace or Vannier and especially you,” Axel-Zero said sadly.
“That may be,” Daedo said harshly, “but I still expect to have the best damn drones in Tier 3.”
Vannier felt bad. “Axel-Zero, that didn’t come out the right way. We all have strengths, and you are way above the average cadet in all areas. It’s not a failure to not be a genius in physics. Picard and I have one specific area to focus on just like you.”
“Picard has logistics, and Vannier, you have communications – which you both are already doing,” Axel-Zero said. “I’ll work harder. I want to take on finance.”
“Are you sure?” Daedo asked. “That’s a lot of studying you’ll need to do to learn the area. Also, that person is responsible for keeping Barran in check.”
“I can do it,” she said assertively.
Daedo and Mace had discussed and considered asking Axel-Zero to take on finance because of the role she’d already played in relation to getting Daedalus created in the first place. In the end, they thought it was too much. But now she was insisting on taking it on.
Daedo looked her in the eyes. Axel-Zero had a determined expression he had seen on occasion. She never failed when she had that look.
“Okay, I’m convinced; you are finance manager, with all that entails,” Daedo stated. “Ensure you hire experts to assist. You are the manager, but you don’t have to do everything.”
“I understand,” she said seriously.
Barran raised his hand sheepishly. “Ah, I’m not complaining. Far from it. But I don’t have a sciency thing.”
“Because you have the unenviable task of making us a billion bitcreds,” Daedo said. “Before today, I had worked out that we’ll need a mountain of creds to do everything we need to over the next six years. The more, the better. The more you make, the more we’ll spend on facilities, R & D, equipment, vehicles, and materials.”
He paused, then said slowly in a soft but sincere voice, “Barran, this is a critical role. Other than our security, your own training and performance, I want you to do nothing other than making Daedalus a billion bitcreds. Enough bitcreds to buy a docking port on The Spiral. Enough bitcreds to build an R & D and manufacturing plant one hundred times the size of our current workshop. And fill that plant with materials and machines.”
Daedo had the ability to stun the squad and had achieved it once again.
“How do I do that?” Barran said.
“Just sell the stuff he invents,” Mace said matter-of-factly while pointing to Daedo.
Barran brightened. “Oh, that’s easy!”
“How do we fill the empty slots?” Picard asked.
“Master Nader asked me to update this list and assign specialities,” Daedo said. “She implied that with Gaumont taking over Squad One, she will bring someone in to fill these roles.”
“Where from?” Axel-Zero, Picard, and Barran asked.
Daedo shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine.”