Julian walked out of the HQ Building, piloting the MD-101. Behind him was the EC-101 controlled by Avina.
"Successor, the Base Network Server Building has been fully repaired. Please see the relevant information on your VNI."
Julian wanted to smile but couldn't despite him supposedly being able to store more materials. The blaring energy consumption of the base had already reached nearly 760,000 units, jumping from 710,000 after the repair was finished.
"Intellus, the geothermal plants won't require villium ores, right?"
"That is correct. It can also generate up to 10 milion energy units per geothermal vent at the most basic level. This can be increased through researches."
Julian sighed and made his way into the Engineering Building. It was a four-storey building with a huge entrance that could fit almost seven MD-101s vertically stacked.
The inside was wide and empty, lit up by the large lighting up above. The floor was made of strenghtened steel with several closed compartments in various shapes scattered around. In front of him was what looked like a box-framed engineering station made up of complicated machinery.
When he walked closer, the two large metallic column frames connecting the four overhead bars and chicken-like legs adjusted its height enough for the four metallic claws on each overhead bar to hang the MD-101 in the air.
Julian exited the mecha suit and could see a prompt on his VNI detailing all the complicated information of the MD-101.
"Give me a simplified version of this data. I am not an all-knowing nerd guy."
The previous menus were closed and his VNI refreshed. Not long after, a digital frame copy of the MD-101 was presented. Julian could focus on each part of the suit and check the relevant information and the upgrades he could install.
"I can install 2 more modules on each arm, while one in the chest, back, and both legs. A shame that the mecha suit's core cannot be upgraded..."
"I cannot upgrade the armor. I need that dark-aqua solution for the darksteel alloy... And I need a damn villium ore for the energy-based weaponry modules!"
His resource crisis seems to never end.
"What about cold weapons?! Give me something!"
Another set of menus flashed on his VNI, providing him with a small list of cold weaponry that he could currently fabricate. Handheld spears, great axes, warhammers, great swords, all the big metal toys he could imagine were there.
"A large round curved shield won't hurt. Much better than going out there in a naked metallic suit."
He chose to install that module on his right hand while using the left hand to brandish a long retracting spear that could extend during an attack and shrink after.
Julian had to do this as certain situations would prevent him from using energy-based weaponry or running out of ballistic ammunition while in combat.
One can never have enough bullets for an entire journey.
"Include the arm grappler on the left hand. And a thermal vision module into the suit's head."
He wanted to add something into the chest component and found that nothing suited his taste.
"Damn, this stealth module could have come in handy... I really want to find this villium ore..."
He ignored the chest component and started browsing for the back. Two choices interested him as to whether he should add an additional 6-barrel rotary machine gun on one other side or a guided rocket launcher similar to those turrets.
"Guided rockets are always handy. These small blind payloads on the MD-101's arms aren't worth a thing when compared to that."
He tweaked a few more settings into the MD-101 such as increased mechanical reaction time based on pilot movement and enhanced cooling system for the machine gun at the back, increasing its up time and decreasing cooling time.
After all that prep, he looked at the MD-101's core energy usage and saw that his selected upgrades had almost filled the mecha suit's core energy meter.
"Avina, when can I upgrade any mecha suit's energy core?"
The EC-101 had been standing on his side all this time. Avina faced him and promptly answered.
"The successor may be able to do that once the Engineering Building's level is at a higher level and has also accomplished the Energy Manipulation I research."
"I thought only Intellus has information about the researches..."
Avina bowed, "Avina also has access to this information as the personal assistant of the succesor. However, Avina is unable to conduct these research projects in place of Intellus. Avina hopes that the successor forgives Avina's incompetence."
'I just questioned something and you're making it look like a big mess...'
Julian shook his head and chuckled, accepting the new settings of the MD-101.
"Mecha suit reconstruction is about to start. Please leave the building to begin the process."
The building's AI advised which made Julian speechless.
"You have such a huge room here, but it doesn't have any sort of cover for me to stay? It seems that I have to share this suit for a while."
Julian piloted the EC-101 and strode out of the Engineering Building. "Hey, Avina. Spare some thoughts?"
"Avina thinks that the successor is doing well. Avina also has more to learn from the successor."
"More to learn from me? What are you talking about?" Julian's lips twitched, dumbstruck.
"The successor had always reprimanded Avina during missions. As programmed to be your assistant, Avina is willing to endure the harsh remarks and improve Avina's construct to the successor's satisfaction."
Julian staggered in the middle of the base, wondering just how far these AIs would go for him. 'Damn, their loyalty overshadows the Psionic Faith of those Psions...'
"Is your programming the same with the rest of the constructs as well?"
"Successor, our constructs vary greatly but one thing is common, the more data that we gather during our lifetime, the better our actions and decisions will be. This will include our interaction with the successor and the successor's personal reactions to our actions as well, and any other experience that we may receive through our installed perceptions."
"So if I act the biggest baddie in the Universe, that will be ingrained in your data as well?" Julian randomly spouted.
"That should be the case." Avina's voice was full of excitement.
Julian aimlessly loitered around and stared at each neck-breaking building he would come across. All this technology under him... That concept seemed ridiculous until a little while ago.
There was also the question about what happened four years ago during the battle ceremony in the Star Sol Imperial University. Was their class valedictorian involved with the Ancien Regime one way or another?
If not, how did she manage to attain such a ridiculous amount of body control in her body?
Questions slowly spiralled out of his mind, even to the point that he started connecting the death of his parents with the Ancien Regime as well.
'That should not be the case, right?'
He shook his head and immediately blew this thought out of his mind.
"Avina, if I did not have the inheritance of the Ancien Regime, what would have happened to this place?"
Avina could detect the melancholy on her successor's question. She did not speak for a while and seemed to have gathered her words, knowing that what she would say next might affect the successor's mood.
"Avina is unsure of the exact details that may entail but the Base Complex Facility would have shut down and forcefully expel itself into the void for no one to ever know of its existence. According to the data from the database, this is termed as the Void Protocol."
Julian could vaguely remember the words 'Void Protocol' from a distant memory. Was it a chatter he heard during military training? Or was it something so significant that his brain started short-circuiting itself just like what would happen during exams?
"The PMS-MD-101 has been upgraded into the PMS-MD-102."
The VNI chatter pulled him out of the abyss and started heading back into the Engineering building. He will find the answers to these questions once he was done here.
The new MD-102 stood far away from where the box-framed engineering station was.
"Avina, get that EC-101 into the Engineering Station. See what we can upgrade for that."
Julian exited the EC-101 and re-piloted the MD-102, checking the newly installed upgrades on his favorite mecha suit.
< BIAAS initiated. >
< Detecting two compatible weapon modules in the PMS-MD-102 mecha suit. Please choose an option. >
Julian set the BIAAS integration into auto. He did not want to micromanage everything while in combat as that would be too distracting to do.
< BIAAS Integration has been set. Please choose the weapon priority for the BIAAS. >
"Set the MG as main. As if I would have to use the rocket launcher all the time."
< BIAAS weapon priority has been set. Finalizing BIAAS configuration. >
After dealing with the new MD-102, Julian set his sights into the EC-101. The upgrades were less exciting than the former, but he knew that he would have to rely on the EC-101 for exploring more about Planet Origin in the near future.
"Avina, do you want to do your own upgrade or me?"
"It is up to the successor's choice. Avina will follow."
"Then I'll leave you to your chores. Just make sure that that EC-101 comes out better than before."
Julian walked out of the Engineering Building again. Anyway, Avina had more experience in piloting that mecha suit than him. He connected to his VNI once again and accessed the fabrication tab.
"Give me all the available personal suits I can fabricate."
The Engineering building also provided him with the ability to fabricate personal suits, the type that were worn when using a mecha suit is either too big or too risky for the job. His current highly advanced spandex piloting suit only provided him comfort and nothing else.
"Successor, there are no available personal suits that can be fabricated.""
Julian stopped and carefully wondered about the AI's recent report. "How come I can't fabricate even these simplest of suits?"
To prevent arguing with its successor, the AI presented him with a list of personal suits that were unlocked after the Engineering building became operational.
Julian punched the ground in anger, 'Damn bioplastic! And just what kind of magic is this energy cell made of to need some bioplastic?!'
His bloodshot eyes stared at the lush jungle surrounding forest, "Avina, do you hear me?"
As bioplastics were made from biomass and plants and trees, Julian couldn't help but form a grudge on them.
"Avina is detecting a surge of emotional distress from the successor. Does the successor have any orders?"
"Once the EC-101's upgrade is done, deal with this bunch of trees around our base, ASAP!"