M216
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Bolt was currently at an intermediate point in his career now. Making new mechs and designs had become less of a priority if he wanted to improve. He could, but they wouldn't really advance him. As a Senior he was best served by refining his existing base and directing subordinates to explore other niche areas. This was actually rather new territory for him, and he wasn't sure how to proceed at the moment aside from doing the obvious.
His current plan, as barebones as it was, was mostly to get a update for all his models out this year and little else. This was because he felt like he as in a bit of a sweet spot market wise. He could sell his models without overwhelming local markets but also had enough of a spread that people could purchase a lot of what they wanted. Maintaining more lines would cost too much attention wise. He was also currently in the process of getting the Heart System approved for licensing in the Sector. The MTA wanted more data before a galactic release.
This was something Bolt agreed with. There were still a lot of edge cases around the system that needed to be addressed and smoothed out. Installation and compatibility with other designing philosophies was quite necessary and one of the areas that they really needed more testers in. He really felt he was best served by waiting for that and what innovations would occur from other designers.
Which actually brought him to another area he needed to keep a close eye on. His students had just built their next mechs. Sami had built a mech she'd named Lantern Witch. Herald had built a mech he' named Sword-Grunt.
Both were extremely interesting in their own way, despite being Third Rate and done by beginners.
Lantern Witch had two weapons. One hand held a lantern that sent out missiles. The other hand held a small handgun that fired lasers. Both on their own weren't particularly dangerous. Sami had made several alterations to make them worthy of consideration. The first was that the missiles looked like little fireflies and marked targets. The second was that the laser tended to bend to hit the marks. The combination made the Lantern Witch a surprisingly accurate and deadly little close range killer. It was a striker that didn't look like a striker.
Herald's Swordsman, named Sword-Grunt, functioned relatively normal in comparison. The mech had no outstanding features at all really. It was almost textbook as a swordsman. Had it not been reinforced all over with something like spiritual constructions Bolt would have actually been forced to talk with Herald about remedial lessons. Instead he had to actually study the new mech a bit to see what was had actually been done.
Bolt's conclusion was that Sword-Grunt was basically just more of a mech. That was the best description, as anemic as it was. Herald had taken cues from his lessons and just focused very hard on designing a good mech with spiritual power. Sword-Grunt was very obviously designed by a junior. It also showed a serious understanding of spiritual matters. It didn't do anything now, but it showed progress. Once the young man refined his work he'd have a relatively unique design philosophy that would likely do some very new and unique things!
This meant that his little students were both developing nicely in a way he hadn't anticipated and were learning the proper lessons! It also meant that Bolt needed to do some teaching again. The question was what? More lessons felt counterproductive truthfully. His students had the grounding in both mechs and spiritual matters. They needed refinement and experience, not more lessons. Making more mechs was the best way to do that. Having them make them in Iron Spirit didn't feel right though. It lacked a certain urgency that made one really push oneself. Neither of his students could go out and start up a company either. Their wealth and status made that a non-starter.
Bolt almost smacked himself when he recalled a possible solution. He then spent a few minutes trying to figure out how to order it before he sent a few messages. It was only after he got a reply from one of his contacts that he summoned both his students at once.
Sami was first naturally. Bolt gave her a nod and had her wait in one of the seats. Herald was next. The young man strolled in, glanced at Sami and then took a seat.
"So, this is the first time yer both meeting. Sami, meet Herald. Herald meet Sami. Yer both my direct students, and Sami's family is something we're keeping hush hush." Bolt began simply and without fanfare. "Consider her your junior Herald."
"Pleased to meet you." The young man said serenely without a hint of suspicion.
"Yeah." Sami responded uncomfortably. "We doing group lessons now?" She asked her teacher.
"Something like that." Bolt muttered and forwarded the two a comm message. "This is an invitation to visit a neighboring Sector. I want ya both to go there and do as many design contests as you think you can handle." He ordered. "Second Rate, Third Rate, doesn't matter. Just do contests. Take... Well a year max but no more than that."
Both students looked at their comms and frowned. "How am I going to get there?" Sami asked first.
"Herald, would you mind transporting her?" Bolt asked the young man.
The person in question glanced at Sami and gave a shrug then a smile. "I'm rather sure I have enough room. Anything for my junior."
"Hah." Sami breathed out. "Ok, I can handle this. It's a bit much and real sudden, but I can handle it."
"Do we need to win them all?" Herald asked.
"I ain't gonna be broken up if ya lose so long as you learn something. These orders are for you. You need practice and motivation. You now have both. Do contests, take contracts, travel and learn how they do mechs." Bolt ordered with a half smile on his face. "Yer past the point where you need direct instruction and new just need experience. Send me the mechs you want me to review and we'll go over them."
Both students nodded at him and Bolt let a few beats of silence hit them before he continued with a review on the mechs. "Now Sami, yer mech is good, but I'd suggest switching the handgun out for a shotgun and lean into the Striker aspect."
Sami frowned. "Can the arm handle that?"
"If you go with some of the lighter models yes." Bolt pointed out a few models. "Herald, your mech is structurally sound, but it's boring enough that it won't sell anywhere. After today I want you to focus on aesthetics."
"Aesthetics master?" The young man asked.
"This actually goes for Sami too, but you should make it a priority. Making mechs look striking helps with the Glow and sales." Bolt explained. "It will also let you set your mechs apart from mine. That'll be important later." He paused. "Or you could mimic my style too if you like. That again has implications."
Both his students nodded at that and Bolt continued the lesson, moving onto more technical aspects.
His current plan, as barebones as it was, was mostly to get a update for all his models out this year and little else. This was because he felt like he as in a bit of a sweet spot market wise. He could sell his models without overwhelming local markets but also had enough of a spread that people could purchase a lot of what they wanted. Maintaining more lines would cost too much attention wise. He was also currently in the process of getting the Heart System approved for licensing in the Sector. The MTA wanted more data before a galactic release.
This was something Bolt agreed with. There were still a lot of edge cases around the system that needed to be addressed and smoothed out. Installation and compatibility with other designing philosophies was quite necessary and one of the areas that they really needed more testers in. He really felt he was best served by waiting for that and what innovations would occur from other designers.
Which actually brought him to another area he needed to keep a close eye on. His students had just built their next mechs. Sami had built a mech she'd named Lantern Witch. Herald had built a mech he' named Sword-Grunt.
Both were extremely interesting in their own way, despite being Third Rate and done by beginners.
Lantern Witch had two weapons. One hand held a lantern that sent out missiles. The other hand held a small handgun that fired lasers. Both on their own weren't particularly dangerous. Sami had made several alterations to make them worthy of consideration. The first was that the missiles looked like little fireflies and marked targets. The second was that the laser tended to bend to hit the marks. The combination made the Lantern Witch a surprisingly accurate and deadly little close range killer. It was a striker that didn't look like a striker.
Herald's Swordsman, named Sword-Grunt, functioned relatively normal in comparison. The mech had no outstanding features at all really. It was almost textbook as a swordsman. Had it not been reinforced all over with something like spiritual constructions Bolt would have actually been forced to talk with Herald about remedial lessons. Instead he had to actually study the new mech a bit to see what was had actually been done.
Bolt's conclusion was that Sword-Grunt was basically just more of a mech. That was the best description, as anemic as it was. Herald had taken cues from his lessons and just focused very hard on designing a good mech with spiritual power. Sword-Grunt was very obviously designed by a junior. It also showed a serious understanding of spiritual matters. It didn't do anything now, but it showed progress. Once the young man refined his work he'd have a relatively unique design philosophy that would likely do some very new and unique things!
This meant that his little students were both developing nicely in a way he hadn't anticipated and were learning the proper lessons! It also meant that Bolt needed to do some teaching again. The question was what? More lessons felt counterproductive truthfully. His students had the grounding in both mechs and spiritual matters. They needed refinement and experience, not more lessons. Making more mechs was the best way to do that. Having them make them in Iron Spirit didn't feel right though. It lacked a certain urgency that made one really push oneself. Neither of his students could go out and start up a company either. Their wealth and status made that a non-starter.
Bolt almost smacked himself when he recalled a possible solution. He then spent a few minutes trying to figure out how to order it before he sent a few messages. It was only after he got a reply from one of his contacts that he summoned both his students at once.
Sami was first naturally. Bolt gave her a nod and had her wait in one of the seats. Herald was next. The young man strolled in, glanced at Sami and then took a seat.
"So, this is the first time yer both meeting. Sami, meet Herald. Herald meet Sami. Yer both my direct students, and Sami's family is something we're keeping hush hush." Bolt began simply and without fanfare. "Consider her your junior Herald."
"Pleased to meet you." The young man said serenely without a hint of suspicion.
"Yeah." Sami responded uncomfortably. "We doing group lessons now?" She asked her teacher.
"Something like that." Bolt muttered and forwarded the two a comm message. "This is an invitation to visit a neighboring Sector. I want ya both to go there and do as many design contests as you think you can handle." He ordered. "Second Rate, Third Rate, doesn't matter. Just do contests. Take... Well a year max but no more than that."
Both students looked at their comms and frowned. "How am I going to get there?" Sami asked first.
"Herald, would you mind transporting her?" Bolt asked the young man.
The person in question glanced at Sami and gave a shrug then a smile. "I'm rather sure I have enough room. Anything for my junior."
"Hah." Sami breathed out. "Ok, I can handle this. It's a bit much and real sudden, but I can handle it."
"Do we need to win them all?" Herald asked.
"I ain't gonna be broken up if ya lose so long as you learn something. These orders are for you. You need practice and motivation. You now have both. Do contests, take contracts, travel and learn how they do mechs." Bolt ordered with a half smile on his face. "Yer past the point where you need direct instruction and new just need experience. Send me the mechs you want me to review and we'll go over them."
Both students nodded at him and Bolt let a few beats of silence hit them before he continued with a review on the mechs. "Now Sami, yer mech is good, but I'd suggest switching the handgun out for a shotgun and lean into the Striker aspect."
Sami frowned. "Can the arm handle that?"
"If you go with some of the lighter models yes." Bolt pointed out a few models. "Herald, your mech is structurally sound, but it's boring enough that it won't sell anywhere. After today I want you to focus on aesthetics."
"Aesthetics master?" The young man asked.
"This actually goes for Sami too, but you should make it a priority. Making mechs look striking helps with the Glow and sales." Bolt explained. "It will also let you set your mechs apart from mine. That'll be important later." He paused. "Or you could mimic my style too if you like. That again has implications."
Both his students nodded at that and Bolt continued the lesson, moving onto more technical aspects.
