15 minutes before 9:00am, Andrew was already at the hangar bay.
Unlike before when the hangar bay of the Lucius Mech Company was always busy with mech technicians tweaking mechs, and mech pilots interfacing with and piloting mechs, today, it was quieter.
Lucius Volstad already ordered most of the mech pilots out with their mechs.
Andrew felt weird, the hangar bay looked so empty.
At this moment, there were only 5 entirely different mechs still in the hangar bay and another mech, a uniquely designed one.
You could easily tell that the 6th and last mech was more expensive than the others.
"That is the Lombubos Knight III". The familiar voice of Lucius Volstad distracted Andrew from his thoughts.
The charismatic mech designer entered the hangar bay with a smile on his face. "The Lombubos Knight I was one of my very first designed mechs after graduating from the mech design academy".
"It is a mech that takes me back to my roots as a mech designer".
"After years of working on it and improving my skills, I designed the Lombubos Knight II and currently, the Lombubos Knight III is my magnum opus".
"It is the best Knight Mech in my catalogue".
"You know what a Knight Mech is right?" Lucius questioned.
Andrew nodded; he didn't spend the past 6 months in vain after all.
Mechs were not just mechs, to the professionals who actually deal with mechs, there are different categories of mechs based on different parameters.
In terms of size, there are 3 categories, light mechs, medium mechs, and heavy mechs.
In terms of weapon armaments and design, the 3 main categories of mechs are ranged mechs, close-combat mechs, and mid-range combat mechs.
A Rifleman Mech was a perfect example of a ranged mech.
A Swordsman Mech was an example of a close-combat mech.
And as for mid-range combat mechs, a perfect example would be hybrid mechs, hybrid Knight Mechs, hybrid Swordsman Mechs, and even the enigmatic unique blend called Hero Mechs.
Hero Mechs were unique and expensive mechs that had the ability to integrate both close-combat and ranged combat mech weapons.
Of the 6 mechs currently left in this hangar bay, there was a Swordsman Mech, a Spearman Mech, a Lancer Mech, a Rifleman Mech, and a Light Mech.
Light Mechs were under a sub category of close-combat mechs.
Lighter, sleeker, and swifter than all other mechs, they wield short light weapons that their frame can support like daggers and knives.
The Light Mech in this hangar bay was a dagger-wielding mech.
There was one missing though, the 6th mech, Andrew's ride.
The 6th mech was a medium Knight Mech armed with a single T-shaped hilt long sword and a sturdy knight shield.
Lucius looked at his test subject. "5 capable mech pilots will be entering the hangar bay shortly to take control of these 5 mechs".
"They are your opponents".
"But fret not," he smiled. "You're not required to defeat them today".
He looked his test subject in the eye. "Today, all I need from you is stable telemetry and interfacing data to confirm that you're safe piloting a real mech".
"If it's stable, simple body movements and weapon swings is enough for me".
"If you can do that, you've passed today's test".
"Beware that the next day's test will be harder though if you're able to pass today's test". He smiled at his test subject. "Andrew, you think you're up for this?"
Andrew took a deep breath. "Bring it on".
While the mech technicians made the final touches on the mechs, tweaking them to order, the 5 mech pilots who would be handling the other mechs entered.
After greeting him and the boss, they climbed the cockpit before smoothly booting their mechs to live.
HUM!
Hearing the deep hum of these machines that felt like the aggressive growl of a prowling predator, Andrew felt a chill crawl down his spine.
This chill didn't make him scared though, it rather excited him.
And finally, it was his turn.
Thud!
Taking the first step towards the clean Knight Mech, for some reason, Andrew felt like he was walking the walk of death but he didn't stop.
'I can't afford to stop now'.
'This is exactly what I wanted…, the excitement that I sought!'
'I mustn't stop now!'
He climbed the cockpit like he always imagined himself doing, and finally Andrew settled inside the cockpit of his mech.
The chair was comfy, but had an office chair vibe to it.
Afterall, this was a machine of war, the mech designers could not afford to make the cockpit too comfy to make the mech pilot feel in his comfort zone.
Sometimes, in battle, that sense of comfort may be the difference between victory and defeat.
Discomfort keeps the brain alert for signals.
"How are you feeling?" Lucius asked.
Andrew took a deep breath. "I'm ready".
"Close". He gave the order finally, and the door to the cockpit closed.
As soon as the door closed, stuck inside this metal monster, lights appeared before Andrew the next moment displaying different virtual screens.
~Booting process successful~
~Checking systems…, systems check~
~Trying to establish neural connection…, waiting for signal…~
At this moment, Andrew's internal computer system also lit up with multiple notifications corresponding with where he was at this moment.
{Property of Lucius Industries!}
{3rd Generation Modern Mech!}
{Lombubos Knight III}
{Weapon Systems: Knight Shield; Sword}
{Mech Data…}
{…}
{…}
At this moment, so much data was being dumped into his head by his computer system alone that Andrew had a hard time keeping his focus.
Yet, it was just starting.
Instinctively, his brain gave the signal that the mech had been waiting for as the neural connectivity process to interface with the mech started.
BZZZ!
Andrew felt dizzy.
He felt like his brain was just bombarded by 2 months' worth of information in one go, he felt like he would pass out.
He struggled, gasping for breath even as outside, the telemetry data and health readings of Lucius and his crew flew through the roof.
"Boss, he's too volatile, his brain signals are spiking".
"We need to unplug him now or his brain will be fried!"
"Boss, your orders?"
Lucius just kept quiet, observing his test subject attentively even as his assistants kept on agitating.
"Boss, your orders? His life is in danger!"
"Shut up!" Lucius snapped. "I'm trying to focus here".
In the end, they shut up even as they fidgeted awkwardly. At this moment, the subject's life was truly in danger.
If he died, what would they explain to the Philadelphus police?
What would they tell the media?
Was the boss going crazy?
He's definitely crazy!
He's done too many experiments and he's now insane!
"Wait," Lucius muttered. "Wait, just a little bit more".
He clenched his fists tightly till they bled a bit. "C'mon Andrew," he muttered to himself. "You can do this, you're almost there".
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The medical devices beeped alarms indicating that the subject's health status already reached critical levels, yet Lucius didn't pull the plug yet.
At its climax, when it felt more like a battle of life and death now, that was when it stopped suddenly.
All the commotion died down all of a sudden.
Inside the mech, the subject in question was no longer fully conscious but was now more like in a state of induced sleep.
~Neural connection established~
~Mech interfacing successful~