Chương 21: Ch. 19 - Luna's Forever Mech

I had to blink because I was so certain this was a joke. It had to be Caddie changing what I was seeing in real time. Or maybe a projection. There was no way Luna was in a quad unit. There was absolutely no way.

"You alright?" asked Luna. Her mech took an awkward step forward. It didn't move gracefully. It moved like a newborn giraffe finding it's footing. Each leg shook the earth, kicking up the pollen in the air. The thrusters that helped her with the Gatherer, weren't there on a quad unit to stabilize her footing.

"I guess…I guess I just have questions," I said.

"Why the quad unit? Was it the only choice?"

"No. I was given all three as an option. But I have an idea I had been working over in my head for a long time. And now, I can put it into action."

"This could prove educational," pinged Caddie.

"Please, enlighten us."

"No," I said.

"I want to know why you didn't pick a tank Frame to tank?"

"I'm getting to that. You seem angry," said Luna. Her mech just didn't stop shaking as she got closer. Caddie lept off and smacked into the chest unit which formed a pop-up on my menu. [Friends] [Online][Maya][Message]"I am not pleased," I said.

"What makes you believe a DPS Frame, not to mention the hardest to pilot, would be the best fit for you."

"Because I'll be right!" she snapped. I was genuinely caught off guard.

"I have floated this idea forever. But no one believes I could be right. It's not traditional. It doesn't fit neatly into the lines of what everyone expects. Screw everyone else! I'm right!" Her panted breaths were filled with a rage long needing escape.

"Alright," I said.

"What is this about? You got really defensive and I just want to know why you picked something that wasn't what we discussed."

"No. You said we'd get me a Tank. I agreed that I would help support you. But it's not going to be by following neatly what everyone else does. I think I can make the best support with the right equipment. It would take time, but I can do it. I can prove everyone wrong."

"It doesn't change the fact that you can't pilot that. Like at all." I could push her down and it would be like a turtle on it's back.

"What is your plan?"

"I'm telling you. I can do it. Right now, the current equipment is for DPS. I plan on changing that."

"And what is this plan?" asked Caddie.

"I can run the projected analysis on the probability of success in your endeavor."

"It's simple, Caddie," said Luna.

"A mix of shield modules and armor for integrity. A bubble shield and support drones for equipment. And one homing missile launcher system for weapon. The speed of the Frame will allow me to get into defensible positions faster and with the improved energy efficiency it would make bubble shields last longer. The biggest issue would be the repair drones which use a combination of energy and mana. But that would've been an issue anyway in a Tank mech.

Lastly, there is a rare equipment that allows for the hard shell ability. It would become literal cover for the squad because its impenetrable as long as I don't move. It's only available for this type of Frame." It was clear she had given this a long thought. That she didn't choose this unit to screw me but because she had something to prove. But it felt like it ran deeper than she was letting on.

"Having heard it all, I project the possibility of her success between 33 and 67 percent of becoming 'the best Tank.' The conservative estimate is assuming she doesn't die today." I obviously couldn't see her face, but I assumed she was smiling at the 67 percent. Those were still abysmal odds, but her logic was sound. The only problem was she had to get that stuff. As it stood, she had a plethora of equipment meant for dealing damage, not sustaining it.

[lvl 12]["Maya][Beast][E Rank] [Attachments] [lvl 4 Blast Cannon][lvl 3 Razor Claws] [lvl 5 Alert] The wiry connections, in this case both lean and the crap ton of wires, made the mech look frail. The cannon was affixed onto it's back and was more whole than the rest of the mech. The claws were retracted and probably needed to be activated for the effect. And the last thing, "Alert" wasn't one I was familiar with. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"I'm getting something," said Luna.

"Did that rock just move?" As soon as Luna brought attention to it, there it was, a rock Golem. It wasn't close, but it was inching closer. I took a step to the right and raised my forearm, blasting at the rocks. Chunks of earth fell to the ground. For a moment, it didn't move. Luna might have even been mistaken. The next, it roared up, rock and earth glued onto its large body. Each shot took a section of geode from its body, but no health bar appeared. Luna struggled to turn to face the monster.

She took a wide stance and fell onto the ground. The cannon on her back was moving and charging.

"What?" I asked, taking another step away. Her nails dug into the earth, red streaks forming on where she was bracing herself. I kept shooting, my eye wandering over to the large weapon reaching critical. It shrieked a high tone as the energy kept accumulating. I shot until my mana was about half-way down, exposing a small section of exposed skin. A health bar finally appeared.

"Luna?" I asked.

"One second," she said. Her mech's paws were sprawled out like a star.

"Cover your ears." I could barely hear her over the shrieking of her cannon.

"I believe she said, cover your-" Caddie started to say before the blast reached my ears. My body hit the seat and the cockpit rattled. My ears rang with a high pitched trill. I yelled and couldn't hear anything for a moment. Everything was white. It took several moments to see clearly. To hear.

"WHAT IN THE HECK WAS THAT?!" I said.

"Dang. It's on cooldown for a whole solar now," said Luna. Her mech was on its side, the legs flailing in the air. The Golem was still alive, but the rocks that surrounded it were gone. I shot it until its health depleted. Caddie looted it. By the time I could hear again, Luna had corrected herself and was on her feet. The ringing in my ear had hushed to a whisper.

"What was that?" I asked again.

"The cannon. Long time to charge and fire. But it deals a bunch of damage. Only thing is I don't know how to position myself when it's firing. The blast still toppled me over." I sighed.

"That's because you're not supposed to do it like that. You have to push towards the blast. Not this weird catchall you were doing. It's probably why my ears are hurting so bad."

"Sorry. I'm still getting my bearings," she said.

"Don't worry about it now. It worked out. We'll figure out the rest. I hope."

"Also, is there a bathroom nearby? Its been a number of hours."

"No. We'd have to find a portal to the third floor."

"Oh. We marched towards a direction, my eyes scanning everywhere. Luna trailed behind me, finding a stride eventually. It still wasn't graceful but it was forward momentum, better than nothing. I was hoping we could find a portal without an exit boss. I wasn't too keen on our chances. We kept marching onwards, pushing through the fields, our frames painted in pollen green. After another hour, Luna was demanding we stop. Luckily we found an edge that led to a lake.

It stretched a long ways but you could make out the other side, if barely. It had an inviting clear transparency. So clean looking, so untouched. The strange fish swam underneath the surface, flowing in and out of the reefs. Stepping outside felt about a hundred pounds heavier. Still, I wanted to get a closer look while Luna did her business behind a small rocky mound. I had poked it before leaving the cockpit to be sure it wasn't another earth golem.

When I stepped out I got a warning that the air was breathable but it wasn't advisable. Probably all the pollen in the air. I made sure to have the rebreather helmet on and just kept an eye on it. The water didn't feel normal. It was more viscous than it should be. Probably a bad idea to jump in there, I thought.

"What is on your mind, Stefano," said Caddie. He hovered around me as I took a seat on the grass.

"A few things," I said.

"Like if this is what Earth was like. Standing by a lake and seeing a sun. How I wish uncle Wilhelm didn't die. Or that dad was able to send a message to me somehow. About my squad. Then there's the skipping floors thing. I'm eager to get that, but unless my Frame ranks up, I can't get down there."

"All true speculations. But there is no need to burden yourself with things you cannot control. In time you will find the answers you seek. And I am making a log that can be referenced in the future. You have the tools, all it will take is time." I pulled some grass and tossed it into the wind.

"What are you looking at?" asked Luna. She poured hand sanitizer on her hands, scrubbed them together and threw on her gloves.

"Just the lake," I said.

"I was hoping to find a filter or something. Or maybe we stumbled upon an exit portal without fighting. That would've been nice."

"You know. I heard somewhere that there might be settlements on every floor." She took a seat next to me but had to plant her hands with the extra weight.

"We've searched here for a while. What if it's true?"

"I haven't seen one. It would've been a thing they taught, no?"

"No, I think these settlements might be hidden? Like maybe you need an invitation? Or they move?"

"I don't think so." Getting up was hard. I had to get on one knee first to squat to my full height. I extended a hand to help Luna to her feet.

"After fifty solars, you'd think we'd have found something."

"People are finding stuff all the time. Why couldn't we?"

"So what, you want to explore to find one? We're not really equipped for that."

"Maybe, but if we find one, then we might be more likely to get stuff that no one has touched."

"And how do you suppose we start this search?"

"I don't know. I'm just throwing it out there. It's stupid. I'm sorry I mentioned it."

"No, stop apologizing. I appreciate you trying to help. But for now, we need to stick with what we know. And right now we need to find an exit portal to get to a repair bay." I walked to my Frame and took the line up to the cockpit, sealing it and decontaminating the interior and my suit. It booted up to greet me with the familiar screens.

"Caddie, is what she said true?"

"Yes. There are hidden settlements throughout. Finding one is a rare achievement."

"How do you find one?"

"I cannot answer that presently."

"Alright, why does it matter then? What is the benefit?"

"Hmm… For one, it would allow Luna to open loot caches and start outfitting her Frame instead of having to search for a repair bay on the next floor with higher level enemy encounters. Rare equipment for sale at a considerable discount. Quests that have not been completed by others. And potentially a shortcut that allows travel directly to that settlement upon entering the Cradle." That last one really got my attention. Luna building her Frame was a good enough reason to start searching. Now? Now it was mandatory.

Even skipping one floor was worth it.

"Luna, let's start searching," I said.

"Really?" she asked.

"Yeah, really. This will be the longest stint on the second floor ever."