Xiao navigated her cattlemech onto the arena floor. Even now, she still hadn’t adjusted to the big stage where the cheering would be deafening if her mech didn’t have any sound proofing. For her second match in the cattlemech, she was facing a hornet which possessed a larger arsenal than the ant. Her opposing mech also possessed more speed, making it quite dangerous if she couldn’t shake it off.

I should be fine! The mech is better than a standard cattlemech.

During her tuning before the match, Xiao checked the torso rotational speed and timed it. Compared to a standard cattlemech, hers could rotate twice as quickly which would catch her opponents off guard and provide her with an opening. After the check, she took a quick look at some of the hardware on her mech but she noticed nothing else out of the ordinary. With her mech ready now in the arena, she was about to get another taste of her mech in combat.

If I were my opponent, what would I do?

The young woman had gone through what-if scenarios with an ant mech but a hornet was on an entirely different level. She had to exhibit more caution until she was certain what was in store for her. SRMs might be on the table but, even going with the worst math, Xiao liked the odds of her mech surviving and still had plenty of armor left. The only scenario she could lose was a few direct hits to the cattlemech head but, surprisingly, it packed more armor there as well.

It would appear that the entire cattlemech was buffed with armor. Who knows what was needed to make that possible. Still, it lives up to being the tankiest light mech.

Despite lacking any knowledge on the person responsible for her cattlemech’s existence, Xiao pieced together some clues. The individual had to be extremely wealthy and influential as those were the minimal prerequisites to get involved with the fighting ring organization. Wealth and influence wasn’t enough when it came to design and construction of complicated mechs. Those with talents normally already had a job under some organization or were quickly recruited by the military. Therefore, the individual had to belong to an organization that developed its own talents or had connections with some high ranking military officer.

The latter does make sense given that this fighting ring is below a military academy.

Then, the person on the other end of the headset mentioned that the match had begun. Xiao urged her mech into combat and immediately ran at her opponent. Her ideal cattlemech would have two jump jets to provide slightly more maneuverability, though she questioned if two jump jets could do anything. The extra armor added a lot more weight which could be too much for two jump jets to handle. Additional ones would mean less armor and more heat generation, defeating the purpose of this cattlemech.

A few SRMs came her way but, due to the distance between the two mechs, Xiao had plenty of time to dodge them. She didn’t expect the SRMs to make a dent in her armor but the young woman didn’t want to get complacent. If she developed bad habits, she might carry it over to her matches with the ant and hornet. Unlike her cattlemech, those two mechs might not get a second chance after taking direct hits. After dodging a few volleys of SRMs, Xiao went in for the offensive. Her pitchfork was directed at the hornet’s joints which her opponent smartly avoided.

Good! This is a worthy opponent to beat!

Having faced a foe who wouldn’t just stand still, she could use the chance to practice using the pitchfork. After watching many videos, Xiao realized that there were certain techniques in using the weapon as it was a standard weapon. Lacking the template, she couldn’t train with the weapon on a MTS. Therefore, she had to work with the next best thing which was actual combat. With her armor easily holding up, the young woman could focus on mech’s thrusts to land a clean hit. The fact that the hornet wasn’t retaliating meant her opponent was focused entirely on dodging.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

It is truly terrifying to face a strong melee mech that has gotten into a good rhythm. I have to make sure I can handle being on the receiving end in the future.

Xiao did a practice run with her hornet template and faced up against an AI controlled cattlemech. When she kept the cattlemech at a distance, her mech could win easily. The moment her opponent got into melee range, it was quite a challenge to still fight effectively. Using weapons and dodging proved a lot tougher, especially when a single strike from the pitchfork exceeded the damage output of all of her weapons. The AI was given a better aim which saw it taking out her hornet's joints with ease. The young woman didn’t envy her opponent who had to face a better cattlemech that had few weaknesses.

Over time, the hornet lost its left torso and arm. Xiao was slowly getting used to attacking a foe that tried to actively dodge. The thing about the pitchfork was that, even if it missed the weak joints, it still did a number on the armor. As she attacked, the young woman could see the marks left behind by her pitchfork. She then tested a theory and attacked a spot she landed earlier on the right torso. The attack penetrated through the armor and an explosion ensued. The referee quickly called the match before casualty could occur, giving Xiao her second victory.

I see! The joints are weak, making them primary targets. If I can land repeated blows elsewhere, then even the thickest armor has to give. That’s incredible!

As Xiao navigated her mech back to the mechbay, she thought back to the books Vivian gave her. She hoped there was a melee build that she could try out. It would be a lot riskier on the ant mech as many direct hits would spell trouble. However, she was already getting addicted to fighting foes in melee and light mechs, the mechs her ant would be facing, lacked the armor to sustain a lot of melee hits, as seen with the hornet she just faced.

“Xiao, can you hear me?” came in from the headset.

“Yes, is it something of a matter?”

“No, that was a wonderful match! I would like to meet you personally as we have a slight change of plans.”

“Change of plans?” asked Xiao cautiously.

Among the many things she learned from her father, one of them was to be cautious when plans changed. Other people rarely had good intentions so they would change rules or agreements whenever it suited them. Xiao wasn’t sure what plans were changing but she had to a hunch that this might be unfavorable for her. She agreed to meet the individual but, before she exited her mech, she sent a coded message to Puhi. If something were to happen, she hoped her squadmate could at least find her, dead or alive.

“No need to be so cautious,” said the individual who hid behind a tinted screen. “I have some good news for you. Please sit down first.”

Xiao did as she was told but she was still not relaxed yet. She had to take many winding hallways to get to the room so she had no clue where she was.

“Due to your performance,” continued the man, “we will move ahead with the plan of pitting you against medium mechs. The sponsors have been very impressed and look forward to what you have to offer.”

She could see the man push down on something on the other side. Next, a panel to her left opened and out came a box. The box was about the size of a jewelry box used for rings but it contained a small key. The key had a small number engraved onto it.

“Take that key and go to the bay with the same number as the key. You will find your reward there.”

Reward?

Seeing that she was dismissed, Xiao went back the way she went until she found the bay doors. She originally thought all the bays served as mechbays for the various mechs to be participating that day. The key was proof that some of these bays possessed cargo bays meant to contain certain subcomponents. As she stood before the bay door, a technician approached her, asking about her purpose there.

“I was told to pick up my reward,” said Xiao as she showed the key in her hand. “What’s the procedure for this?”

“Before you pick anything up, do you have any moving company? There are subcomponents inside and you won’t be able to move them without help.”

“Let me make a few calls then! I’ll open the bay door once I have the proper transportation for the subcomponents.”