Once inside the apartment, Melly received them with a smile. "Hello, big brother, Hello grandpa." This time, she used her mouth to speak.
Rachel was getting ready for a date with Marcus. "Mark, Dad, I'm going out soon. I need you to watch over Melly. Is that ok?
Mark answers his mother's questions. "Yeah, sure thing, Mom. Go have some fun."
With Rachel out on a date, Mark was ready to start configuring Melly's new VR headset. However, Bart wanted to spend some time with the girl. "Mark, why don't you go play with your friends? I can configure Melly's VR headset."
Mark considered his grandfather's proposal. "Are you sure, Grandpa? I can configure the headset."
Bart looked at Melly and smiled. "Sure thing, I have to configure mine too. It's not a problem." Little did Mark know that his grandfather had ulterior motives for doing this.
Mark accepted his grandfather's proposition. "OK, but if you change your mind, just call me."
Mark was about to log in to his A.M.S. account. He wanted to register the new Reaper and see if he could achieve an A-grade classification. A realization came to his mind. I have not designed a secondary weapon for the mech.
Mark entered the design space without delay. Thinking about the weapon he wanted to design, he decided to enhance certain skills to improve its quality. The first skill he upgraded was the field skill, Weapon Systems. Increasing it from a level 3 to a level 4, he spent 4,000 TP. Next, he bought a new sub skill, Laser Weapon Optimization. Purchasing 4 levels, he spent 5,000 TP. But still, he felt that something was missing.
Mark decided to upgrade his skills to manage temperatures better. For that, he would have to start by upgrading the Physics root skill from level 3 to level 4. He spent 8,000 TP. Next, it was his Thermodynamics field skill. Increasing it by one more level, he spent another 4,000 TP. Finally, Mark upgraded his Heat Dispersion skill from level 3 to level 4, spending an additional 2,000 TP.
The faithful system message displayed his new balance. "The amount of 23,000 TP has been deducted from your TP balance. Your new balance is 54,262 TP. Your Bank Balance is 0 TP.
Mark started to design a secondary weapon for the New Reaper. Having learned his limits at the blacksite, the young man knew he could spend a maximum of 50 hours in the design space before starting to feel the effects of his mental fatigue. Still, he decided to work for at least 35 hours. After all, Mark can not be pushing his limits every day.
The young man started by designing the components for the gun. The tricky part about this is that he had to use components equivalent to the level 1 era. If he used components from the modern era, the equipment could only be used from level 5 and above.
Looking through the archives, he found a weapon that was technically a failure. The model was called the Stinger heavy laser pistol. It used an experimental system to accumulate energy and launch a powerful laser beam. The problem was that the heat from the empower laser beam melted the components of the gun.
Mark decided to use equivalent materials enhanced by his metallurgy skills. This time, he had a new alloy solution in less than two hours. He wondered if professional Mech designers took as long as he did to develop their own solutions. He made a mental note to register the new alloy solution later.
Next came the crystal lenses that would generate the actual laser. Using his new laser optimization skill, he designed a set of lenses to amplify the strength of the beam. Compared to the weapon he took inspiration from, the beam was 15% weaker, but this configuration remained within the heat tolerances of the alloy he created.
Next, Mark had to decide if the gun generated its own power or leached power from the mech. While he tweaked the power generator for his new Reaper design, he was still using the power generator of the original McCain. Mark decided to use a mixture of both solutions. The gun will have a set of rechargeable battery packs. During battles, the gun will use the batteries first, then, when the batteries' power runs out, the energy from the mech will be used. Also, in passive time, the batteries will recharge using the power from the mech.
Finally, Mark worked on the heat management issues of the weapon. His upgraded skills were crucial in finding solutions to the heat problems. Like always, the Heat Dispersion channels were included along with new cooling coils made with his new alloy.
By the end of his design run, Mark had spent the equivalent of 34 hours. His secondary weapon was ready. The device was a bit bulky and unwieldy. Light mechs will have trouble using this equipment, but the new Reaper and other medium designs will do just fine.
Giving the weapon a name, he decided to submit the design for system evaluation.
Device Name: Laser Sting Heavy Pistol
Technology Type: Weapon, Mech (Bellicose Technology).
Original Component: 100% TP Awarded: 10,000 TP.
Modified component: 0% TP Awarded 0 TP.
Technology Impact: B First Use Bonus: 100 TP/ Bonus added daily.
Special Notes: This pistol is capable of charging shots. Pew Pew.
Mark was happy with the result. In fact, he was tempted to revise his Waren rifle design. But in the end, he decided against doing so. If he started now, his new reaper would never be ready. Besides, he could always make a new design.
The system message displayed the balance once again. Your new balance is 64,262 TP. Your bank balance is 0 TP.
Having finished the new weapon, Mark decided to submit the new McCain Reaper. Since this was a variant of his previous design, the young man expected very little TP.
Device Name: McCain Reaper Ver. 2 (Variant Design) (Simulated).
Technology Type: Mech. (Bellicose Technology).
Neuronal Load: D+.
Original Components 48%. TP Awarded: 4,800 TP.
Modified components: 37%. TP Awarded: 370 TP.
Technology Impact: A. First use Bonus: 52 TP/ Bonus added daily.
Special Note(s):
1. Revision of a previous design. -50% TP awarded by design. The user should strive to make original designs.
2. This technology will cause a technical revolution. Bonus of 10,000 TP awarded.
Mark was confused. On one hand, the system penalized him, a result that he was expecting. On the other hand, the system complemented his design. Feeling a light headache, Mark left the design space.
The system once again presented the change to the TP balance. "Your new balance is 76,847 TP. Your bank balance is 0 TP.
Mark ignored the message and logged on to A.M.S. The cat butler spawned in the design lab. He started walking to the repair shop. The young man was hoping to meet his friends, as he had not seen them since their visit to the hospital a few days ago.
Walking down the stairs and into the hangar, he was met by a busy place. All of the mech docks had machines being worked on. Most of the players were upstairs in The Waiting Room, but some were dotted around. They watched with amazement as the mechs were being worked on.
Entering the control room, he found Steve and Alex hard at work. "Hello Steve and Alex, how are you doing today?"
Steve turned to look at the cat butler. "Hey, Marksman, I'm doing fine. How are you?"
Alex, on her part, walked up to Mark and hugged him. A text bubble appeared soon after. "Hello Mark!"
Mark returned her hug. Ever since the incident at The Pit, Alex felt more comfortable around him. "Hey, I'm done with the new Reaper. Would you like to register it with me?
Alex lets go of Mark and nods with her head vigorously. Steve turns on the automated settings. All of the repairs had already been planned. "YEAH BABY! Let's do this. ...wait, we need to get Scarlet."
Agreeing to Steve's request, the trio of friends moved to the waiting room. As they walked into the place, A new sign greeted them. On top of the cafeteria, the sign read The Waiting Room.
They found Scarlet in the middle of a small performance. She sang, dancing around the tables. Her hair was arranged differently. It was styled in two pigtails, one on each side of her head. A red and white pom-pom adorned the top of each one. Her audience, captivated, followed every move of her bouncing ...personality. Some of them had glowing sticks, moving them around with excitement.
After her performance, she spots the trio. "Hello, guys, what's up?"
Mark, looking at the happy crowd, wonders if these guys came for mech repairs or to see Scarlet's bouncing ...personality. Shaking his head, he lets go of the thought. "Scarlet, we are about to submit the new McCain Reaper for A.M.S. Review. Do you want to come with us?"
Since Scarlet was still using her voice-enhancing app, everyone heard this. The room quieted down almost instantly. Some whispers could be heard. They all expressed anticipation.
In a short time, the McCain Reaper had gained a cult following. With his product, Mark fulfilled the needs of a group of people mostly forgotten by the mech community. People with low neuronal capacity. The cheap mech allowed a lot of pilots to gain vouchers experience and reputation. These factors were the reason Mark's design became popular overnight.
Another group that benefited from Mark's work was the new players of A.M.S. For new players, it was hard to acquire high-grade mechs. The McCain Reaper allowed them to gain more vouchers and acquire better equipment. This was slowly improving their odds of success in the different game modes.
Scarlet looked around. An idea came to her. Getting closer to the trio, she whispers her idea. "Guys, ...let's submit the mech here. We can make it into an event. These guys will love it."
Mark thought for a moment. Something like this can generate word of mouth and help the sales of his new product, generating more TP. "I think it's a good Idea. What do you have in mind?"
Scarlet smiles. "Follow my lead, Mark." She turns and walks to the table in the middle of the room. With a swift motion, Scarlet jumps on the table. Her bouncing ...personality made the passionate crowd cheer.
Lifting her hand, Scarlet called out for silence. "People! We at the Grease Monkey Workshop have an announcement to all of you. An upgraded Version Of the McCain Reaper is about to be submitted for A.M.S. review. We want all of you to bear witness to this event." With her hand, Scalet gestures to Mark. "Come up Here."
Mark walks up to the table. Steve and Alex followed him. With ease, he climbed onto the table. Steve and Alex struggle a bit to get onto the surface as well. With a hand gesture, he summoned his VR interface. Scarlet, behind him, uses a bot to record his actions. They were then projected on the large screen in The Waiting Room. Accessing his design lab remotely, Mark submits the design for review.
Scarlet decides to ask Mark A few questions while his design is reviewed. "So tell us, Guardian, what do you expect of your new design?"
Mark followed her lead and answered her question. "Well, my team and I have worked hard to develop our vision for this new design. Our goal is for the new reaper to be an A-grade machine for the first pilot level."
A second question followed: "At what price are you expecting to sell this new mech?"
Mark thinks for a moment. " Well, the goal here is not to make a profit, but to make a quality product accessible to players. This way, the players will improve, and their quality as pilots will increase as well. The young man takes a breath. "To answer your question, we might increase the suggested price a little. After all, the workshop needs to make a profit to justify its operations. But we are not going to raise it a lot."
The crowd cheers after Mark's answer. They were all filled with anticipation. The young man receives a message, the review was done. All that was left was to open the review board's response.
Mark moved his hand slowly, creating suspense. With a tap, he revealed the message. The young man read the message out loud. "To The Mark Guardian. We are pleased to inform you that your mech design, The McCain Reaper Version 2, has passed all prerequisites and has been added to your shop catalog. The performance reviews are as follows..." Mark's face turns, an expression of disbelief.
The crowd protested the silence. They all wanted to know the mechs' grading. Scarlet smiles and shakes Mark. Read it, boss, let them all know. With excitement showing in her face.
Mark continues to read the letter. "The performance reviews are as follows. For the first pilot level ...S-grade. For the second pilot level ...S-grade. For the third Pilot level ...S-grade. For the fourth pilot level ...A-grade. For the fifth pilot level ...B-grade.
While the list continued, Mark stopped reading. Instead, he read the note at the bottom of the letter. "Due to concern for the A.M.S. economic environment, the price of this mech may not go lower than 20,000 vouchers or 60,000 L-credits.
The crowd fell into silence, looking at each other. They could not believe their eyes and ears. Most of them had never even heard of S-grade mechs. In truth, this kind of mech existed passed the seventh pilot level. In his old life, Mark heard of them but never actually saw one.
A voice cut through the silence. "20,000 vouchers, I can make that in a few days with my Reaper!" The player flashes out. Another voice followed. "I have the vouchers right now!" A third one came after that one. "I'm 5,000 vouchers short, who wants to go play a few operations with me!?" The crowd started reacting with joy and expectation. An S-grade mech was in their reach.
Steve puts his hand on Mark's shoulder. "Marksman, you have made A.M.S. history today."
Mark received another achievement notice, Golden Hands. A picture of two golden hands showed in his view. The phrase "Creator Mirabilium" is shown underneath the picture.