Shi Lang stood in front of a laser barrier. The test will start when this laser disappears. The invigilating Commander Aries had his red Mech standing in the center of the field. He spoke on a radio channel.
"Since you are participating in the assessment for the first time, I will now have you go through the rules one more time."
Shi Lang replied, "Thank you, sir."
...
The field was accessible only to Mech pilots, that too one at a time. However, the assessment was still watched by a lot of high officials and college board via live telecast. Adjacent to the test field was a building. Here every non-participant student can observe the proceedings of the exam.
The whole technology class stood there with Rosa Blues and the rest of the teaching faculty. Surprisingly enough this time the battle-class geniuses were also here. They had never taken interest in any class other than themselves, but this was the first time any class was allowed to watch another class perform. Although this broke the precedent, but the Technical Class invited these guys personally to show them that the technical class was not lagging behind and crush Jenkin's pride.
Jenkins Edwards stood in front of the people and Amelia was watching all this from the back of the class. The atmosphere was tense. After all, the technology class was taking the assessment for the first time. The two groups had a lot of bad blood.
The technological class was also aware of the other group's presence they were unaffected. Jane asked, "Headteacher, can you tell us how the exam will proceed?"
Rosa nodded and said, "The participants will be assessed in their piloting skills in various conditions. The field inside is a mix-up of all those scenarios. The first zone, basic piloting. The one who can complete basic maneuvers in the straight path sprint in the shortest time will get the best result."
...
As soon as Rosa stopped speaking, Commander Aries said, "Begin."
The laser barrier in front of Shi Lang vanished. Unlike the slow approach on the campus, he floored the pedal and the mech shot. The reverse joint legs had one extra feature. This round was to test the pilot's command over speed and maneuverability skills. Shi Lang pressed a button on the console and a spring mechanism deployed from the foot of the mechs.
The mechanism was simple, a high durability spring was placed between a high-quality metal. As soon as the mechanism was deployed the speed of the mech was multiplied by two times. The reverse joint leg was placed on the weight of the body forward and the spring mechanism converted the potential discharged from the weight shift into kinetic energy.
The speed increased not by two folds but three folds in a few seconds. Shi Lang's mech was taking a step that was thrice the normal size. The mech was nine feet tall, so it covered five feet in one step at a slow pace. However, the mechanism changed the picture, by providing the whole thing a bounce and making the speed high.
Humanoid Mechs could never do that.
...
The battle class was surprised while the technology class was enjoying bliss. The faculty members have all taken note of the design and nodded in admiration. This was way better than the humanoid mechs.
Jane smirked as she looked at Jenkins's surprised expression sneakily.
...
On the field. Shi Lang controlled the mech with his mind to make a swift zig-zag between the high pillars. These pillars all had strong electricity following through them. On the side of the track, a few broken mech limbs were visible. This was the result of getting too close to the pillars.
After crossing the pillars, Shi Lang was to leap over a wall. The wall was twenty feet high. As soon as, Egg was just fifteen feet away from the wall, Shi Lang made it jump, the mech landed five feet away from the wall, both legs bent in reverse a bit and then the springs on the feet gave him a high bounce.
Shi Lang did not use any other leverage and he got past the wall, clear of any obstructions. As he landed on the ground he again initiated the sprint. This was the end of the basic movements. The next round was upon him but he had no intention to slow down.
...
The observation center erupted in cheers as Shi Lang crossed the wall. The cheers were obviously, technology class. Only, Amelia among the battle class had a smile on her face. She was looking forward to what the boy will do ahead. She wished to have a fruitful deal with him.
Jane asked, "Teacher Rosa, what is the second round?"
Rosa Blues smiled and said, "Mech combat. The enemy will be the invigilator."
...
Shi Lang was now rushing towards the center of the field where stood Aries. The egg came and stopped twenty meters away from the Invigilator. The red mech pilot said, "You have to last against my attacks for five minutes. You can pick any weapon."
From inside the cockpit, Shi Lang looked at the weapons rack at a distance. However, he did not approach it. He asked, "Sir, can I use my own Mech weapons?"
Aries was surprised and then gave him verbal permission. Shi Lang pressed the button on the control panel and a couple of braids on the head of the mech detached and fell on the ground. The braids were all as thick as a newborn baby's arm. The hands of the mech were made in such a way that it could wield the weapons and switch between them quickly too.
The hands were unlike human hands, they were Robo claws. They only had one purpose, grasping and grabbing onto things. The guns of mechs were operated like olf fighter planes. The claws opened wide and picked up the wire. The wires were all magnetized in a certain manner and they formed a stick.
Aries asked, "Are you ready?"
Shi Lang held the stick within his claws and replied, "Yes, sir."
Aries took out a giant ax and charged at Shi Lang.
...
Inside the observation room, Jenkins mumbled, "This is over." he was very optimistic that the Commander will be able to break this ugly egg to pieces. Well, whatever helped him sleep better worked.