'I wanna back out.'
Currently, Zephyr was sitting in his room, with a spec sheet of the Spectre SP-01 pulled up on his laptop. Like Christina said, it was a ranged specialist that was unique due to its ability to use heavy weapons.
He pulled up the spec sheet of the squire and compared them side by side. Zephyr's initial plan was to take advantage of the fact that he was able to determine the rules of the duel, forcing Nia into a melee battle that was disadvantageous for her mech.
And then the first issue revealed itself. Despite being a ranged mech with less power in its motors compared to melee specialists, the Spectre had at least a 25 percent advantage over the Squire in the amount of force it was able to exert on its limbs.
'How does that make any sense! I get that the Squire was a modular mech, but still!'
The gap between last gen and current gen mechs were wider than he thought. Fighting a stronger mech with a weaker mech required the pilot of the lower specced machine to possess an overwhelming skill advantage over their opponent. It just so happened that his opponent wasn't exactly a pushover.
'I do have the ability to refuse duels up to five times. Should I just reject it at the last minute?'
No…that wouldn't be optimal. Even if he didn't accept, eventually Nia would figure out that he only needed to use up all of his refusals before challenging him again. Plenty of students were willing to do a favor for her. In theory, he could save one last rejection for her, but it meant going against a long list of opponents that he would be unprepared for, destroying his chances at ranking highly. He had to make a stand.
Zephyr brushed back his white hair with both hands as his eyes darted across the screen looking for a piece of information he could take advantage of.
'There's gotta be something! Anything!'
After several hours of researching the Spectre, finally a small clue revealed itself.
"The thermal sensors used on the Spectre are a last gen model that are not comparable to other models the Theocracy utilizes in efforts to cut costs," he read aloud.
Although it might sound like something that wouldn't matter much, to Zephyr it was a sign of hope.
'I can work with this!'
***
"So you're telling me…your first opponent is Nia Sterling; the top pilot in your year."
Zephyr nodded.
"And you are planning on using a Squire to take her on."
Zephyr nodded again.
"Are you messing with me?"
Kenny looked at the student standing before him, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. It had only been a day since Zephyr had visited him, and although he did agree to allow him to use the Squire outside of normal hours, the fact that the young man already found himself in trouble was out of his expectations.
Zephyr sighed, rubbing his temples. "I know I might sound a little crazy…"
Kenny raised his brow skeptically.
"...okay, I might be crazy… but still! It's not like I didn't do any research before coming to you." Zephyr sent the files of Nia's mech to Kenny through his comm.
The mechanic briefly glanced over them before looking up from his device.
"The girl has good taste. It's a well-rounded mech that specializes in ranged combat. Not to mention it has the Squire beat in pretty much every parameter. I'm assuming you won't challenge her in ranged combat, correct?"
"That would be suicidal, so no."
Kenny chuckled. "Hey, I guess you have a brain after all!"
"Since I was the one challenged, I get to dictate the rules of our duel to force her into a melee battle."
"That's a good start," he mused, "Which makes me wonder…if you were the one challenged, couldn't you simply refuse the duel?"
"Did you know how many challenges I got on the first day?"
Kenny tilted his head confused at the question.
"Why would that matter? You only need to refuse that princess's challenge."
"I was challenged 57 times, Kenny. I am only allowed to refuse up to five times per session. If I fight against opponents I haven't prepared for in a last gen mech, how do you think that would turn out?"
"Badly."
"Exactly."
"Even though you said that you would have no trouble facing off against most of your peers." Kenny added with a smug expression.
"I meant that with enough preparation I could," Zephyr corrected himself. "For now, look at the thermal sensors the Spectre is currently using."
Kenny scrolled through the spec sheet again and frowned.
"It's a last gen model. I guess their design team was trying to cut costs."
"That particular model isn't very good at detecting past thermal smoke. Because the Squire is a modular mech, I should be able to mount some shoulder smoke launchers right?"
"Well…yes, but wasn't this supposed to be a melee duel? Wouldn't thermal smoke be considered a ranged weapon?"
"I'll just add in the rules that ranged weapons that don't cause direct damage are fair play."
"That's dirty…"
Zephyr patted the mechanic on the shoulder.
"Haven't you heard the saying that the result matters more than the process?"
"I can't imagine that Sterling girl will be pleased with your technicalities," Kenny remarked, unamused.
Zephyr walked towards the towering Squire placing his hand on its dull armor.
"I can't solely rely on thermal smoke to pull out a victory though. If I'm in a situation where I have to trade blow for blow, I need to be able to win."
"So, what are you suggesting?"
Zephyr looked at the mechanic and contemplated.
"We turn off the safety parameters."
After a minute or so, Kenny finally responded.
"No way."
"It's the only way!" Zephyr shot back while gritting his teeth.
"You want to ruin the Squire's motors? Let's say we ignore the difficulties of piloting an overclocked mech for a second. A mech over exerting itself would only like for five minutes tops! Think about it. Five minutes for a brief increase of power that is nearly uncontrollable!"
"I know."
The parameters of a machine were typically always higher than what's actually advertised. If the safety parameters of the Squire were disabled, it would be able to briefly match the power of the Spectre. Although the motors would be capable of exerting more force, they were never designed to do so. It would shorten the lifespan of the mech significantly or even potentially take it out of commission until a major overhaul.
"It's too reckless. Disabling the safety parameters also disables the auto stabilizing software the Squire's operating system runs on. Forget battling, you won't even be able to walk."
"I'll just have to learn how to in two weeks. No problem."
"Are you listening to yourself right now? That's impossible no matter how you look at it." Kenny sighed before quickly adding: "Some mechs are built to overclock for short periods of time, but mass produced models like the Squire aren't one of them. I can add those shoulder mounted smoke launchers for you, but I won't be helping you disable the safety parameters."
"That's good enough for me, I'll turn them off myself. I'll be borrowing your computer for a while."
"This guy didn't hear a single thing I just said huh."
***
After taking one final look at the old mech's software, Zephyr closed the laptop satisfied.
Kenny peered over his shoulder clearly impressed.
"They don't teach you how to mess with a mech's code in the academy. Where did you pick that up from?"
"My father taught me."
"Is that so?"
Unplugging the cord from the mech's internal computer, Zephyr stepped back and took one last look at the old machine.
"Have you decided on what weaponry you wanted for the duel yet?" Kenny asked.
"Not yet," he admitted. "I'll practice walking first. Based on my progress, I'll adjust from there."
Moments later, Zephyr stepped into the cockpit ready to power up the Squire.
"Battery charge, check. Fuel rod capacity, check. IFF Systems operational. Head Up Display, activated. Ready for ignition."
"Don't blame me if something goes wrong, I warned you. Ready for ignition."
Kenny had already removed the arresting gear keeping the Squire in place prior to ignition as he stepped back watching the mech take its first step forward.
"I'll move to the practice grounds before disabling the stabilizing program. I won't turn off the safety parameters until I fully learn how to walk with this thing."
With each step the Squire took, Zephyr was surprised at how responsive it was compared to the old piece of junk he used to pilot. The limbs moved when he wanted them to. There were no unnatural creaks each time it took a step forward.
'Now this is a proper mech!'
***
If anyone was passing by the academy training grounds right now they would see what appeared to be an old mech on all fours, struggling to stand up. Each time it stood up again, the moment it took a step forward, a loud crash would accompany it as it toppled forward once more.
It had already been two hours since Zephyr had begun practicing and he wasn't even able to take a single step. Taking a deep breath, he wiped off a bead of sweat and continued.
"See? What did I tell you? There's no way you would be able to learn how to walk in a mere two weeks." Kenny's voice transmitted through.
"I've piloted mechs with their safety parameters disabled before. Don't worry, two weeks should be barely enough."
The only reason Zephyr had confidence in himself was due to the fact he often piloted his father's old mech without any restrictions. That was the reason it always required repairs after all.
By his own estimations, two weeks should give him enough room to at least deliver a few strong blows without losing balance. Zephyr was even planning on skipping all of his classes and assignments to only practice how to walk with the Squire.
"I don't know where you find your confidence from but alright. The sun is almost setting already. We should get ready to pack things up."
"I want to practice for a little longer. Don't worry Kenny, I'll make sure to put everything back to where it was."
"That's not the problem…"
Zephyr could hear the mechanic sigh over the transmission.
"The rules state that a mech cannot be operated unsupervised on school grounds. Currently I'm the one supervising you, but it's already way past my working hours. We can continue this tomorrow, Zephyr."
"It's the school's job to ensure that their students succeed, right? As one of the school's employees, shouldn't that be your main priority?"
Kenny clicked his tongue at Zephyr before giving in.
"I should've known you were going to be trouble the second you came to the academy's hangars," he paused for a minute as he watched the silhouette of the Squire continue to fall and stand back up.
"Forget it, I'll leave the hangar's spare access card on the worktable. If you get in trouble, I won't be held responsible."
Not waiting for Zephyr's reply, the mechanic simply turned around and left.
Something about seeing the mech that only collected dust in his hanger tugged at his heart. Every mechanic wanted to see the machines they've worked on being used; Kenny was no different.
The last time a student used one of the Squires prior to Zephyr, they didn't hold back any reservations on insulting every component from the lack of thrust to the outdated controls. It had been a long time since a student had genuinely decided to operate one knowing its disadvantages compared to their modern counterparts.
"I'll let him do what he wants. After all, if he loses that duel, I doubt I'll ever see these mechs in use again," Kenny muttered wistfully.