The most anticipated moment for all the cadets arrived: it was the time to enter the academy's large hangar for the first time, and thus begin their movement practices with Mecha.
Having an implant that could assimilate the systems needed to drive one of those monster robots was one thing; getting the system to follow its instructions precisely was another.
The doors of the large hangar opened, and all the cadets of group B entered with their eyes wide open, however, all their enthusiasm fell at their feet when they saw the dilapidated and old mechs that were there.
"But didn't the Cyclopes stop being in service more than 30 years ago?" Ajax looked at the more than 20-meter-tall robots with reluctance.
An officer came out from behind one of them; he was older, much older than the average officer, due to his long beard, and he must have looked about seventy years old.
"And what did you guys expect that the navy was going to let you experiment with their best equipment so you could destroy it?"
The officer who spoke was easily recognizable, one of those old glories that the generation of Admiral Zeus had relegated to a golden retirement, Admiral Uranus.
"Well, as you can see, these are Cyclops, the oldest model of Mecha in the Hellenic Navy, and luckily for our officers, as you have already said, they have been retired from service for more than 50 years. The question you should ask yourself is: Why are we going to use Cyclopes, precisely? Does anyone know?
"My admiral, the synchronization system of the first Cyclopes was not very perfected, so it required a great mental burden and skill to move them properly. I think I assume that we will start with this model due to its difficulty."
Having a bookworm as a telemachus in the group saved them long minutes of questions and incorrect answers, although no one could remove the smartass label.
"Bravo! Cadet Telemachus, that is precisely the point. After a month of learning to ride with these old things, when you pick up one of the modern matchlocks, it will seem like you are taking a walk in the park. And now everyone chooses a Cyclops and lets the game begin.
Admiral Urano did not stand still and looked; he also addressed one, who managed to move; one of those metal monsters was already a symbol of the time he had been in the navy.
The Ciclope mecha model was named after him because the designer placed a large-caliber gaus cannon in the place where the head should be, so that they really looked like one-eyed monsters.
Eneas's mecha was unit AR3443, it had patches everywhere, and it was a feat that it remained standing. Eneas climbed the ladder to get into the cabin, and once inside, he realized that most of the systems were operated manually, a true relic of the old days.
Admiral Urano's voice sounded on communication channel 1.
"Okay, and now, cadets, before anyone tries to take a step with the robot, once the neural device is completely synchronized, the first thing is to try to move the arms, not the legs. I repeat, if someone tries to move first, they will lose 10 points"
Inside the cabin, Eneas concentrated while the different systems were downloaded and synchronized with his mind; there were many fewer than in the entrance exam, so the cadet was hopeful.
But when the process finished, Eneas found himself with the strange sensation of having his mind divided between the perceptions of two bodies: on the one hand, his physical body inside the cabin, and on the other, a new body, with nerves that sent signals. Strangers had joined.
He tried to move his hand, but he only managed to make his own move in the cabin; no matter how much he tried to imagine the Mecha moving his hand, absolutely nothing happened. The rest of the class was more or less the same since no one moved; only the admiral strutted, walking in front of all the Cyclops
There had to be a trick...the sensation of false nerves that he had felt, he had to get to imagine how those sensor signals that he received in his mind corresponded to a part or point of the Cyclops. I load the technical diagram of the Cyclops into his viewfinder, jumping directly to the motion sensor system.
Once he understood it, he stopped trying to move his body, or imagine the Mecha moving; the question was being able to send the signal back to the appropriate sensor so that it could move. There were 20 sensors on one arm of the cyclops.
The robot did not have hands, so the group of three last sensors only served to close the enormous clamps. It began slowly sending or trying to send signals to the sensors at the tips and the one in the central axis, although it did not manage to close them at first. On the contrary, the truth is that its pincers moved.
"Bravo! Keep it up, Cadet Eneas, focus on controlling the flow of movements first in the gripper and then gradually moving down the arm"
Eneas had been the first to manage to move his fuse, although in a matter of minutes, the rest of the class were already moving them too. Not for nothing were they the elite of the navy.
By the time Eneas managed to move both arms more or less in sync, most of the class had barely managed to move the arm of their mecha from the shoulder joint.
"Well, when you feel safe, try to start walking, no running."
It didn't take long when the robot piloted by Eneas walked towards the general. At first, they only moved in circles, gradually increasing the speed of their movements.
Some other cadets began to take their first hesitant steps...
At that moment, Ajax's voice was heard on channel 1.
"I can't control it!!!"
The robot piloted by cadet Ajax began to run with long strides, until finally crashing into poor Jason's Mecha, the mechas fell to the ground but knocked down Cassandra's mecha in the process. In the end, it was a domino effect where most of the highlights of the class ended up on the floor.
"And this is why, cadets, we are not going to let you practice with more expensive models until a long time has passed." The truth is that the old man had a sense of humor.