[1-200] THE MECH TOUCH

Chapter 128: Two Layers

First, he planned to spend an entire day to developing and refining a focused intent.

He dedicated three entire weeks to revamping the mech's entire internal structure.

After that, he allocated two weeks to revamping and optimizing the mech's armor.

The week after that consisted of tweaking and optimizing the remaining self-contained components such as the engines, power reactor, cockpit as well as the weapons.

Once he finished going through all of the components, he planned to subject his design to a barrage of tests for the next two weeks.

"Looks like a decent schedule." Ves nodded to himself as he drew back. "Hopefully, three weeks is enough to finish the enormous task of creating an entirely new internal structure."

Ves recently gained the Structural Pathway Configuration II sub-skill for this task. Still, he never specialized in Electrical Engineering, and only managed to reach Apprentice-level through the System. He did not wish to delay this project any further in order to spend a month in trying to raise it again.

He shook his head and redirected his thoughts to establishing a strong image for the Marc Antony Mk II.

In hindsight, Ves realized he constructed a rather chaotic image for the Marc Antony. After untangling the jumbled mess he initially composed, he realized he combined three separate images into one.

The first image consisted of the appearance of an Ancient Roman Legionnaire. He started with the standard knight form from the Caesar Augustus and adjusted its appearance to look like a Roman soldier. The most significant change was that he took the base model's kite shield and added enough bulk to turn it into a hefty tower shield.

The Roman Legionnaire contributed strongly to the defense portion of the image. The inspiration invoked a trust in the shield, a sense of martial discipline and a grit that never faltered.

The next image related to the names of the variant and its base model. Jason Kozlowski originally named his mech the Caesar Augustus due to its prominence in taking up an inspirational leadership role on the battlefield. Ves kept to the theme by taking the name of the Roman Emperor's defeated rival Marc Antony.

As an image, the name evoked a strong sense of daring and the willingness to seize opportunities. This fit with the style of a cavalry general, whose formations changed the course battle with a well-timed charge.

The last component had to do with the mech's intended role. As an advanced mech and a hybrid knight, the mech served as a pivotal lynchpin in the battlefield. It combined the defensive stance of a knight with the offensive tendencies of an aggressive frontline leader.

He slipped in the last image unintentionally. Ves tentatively concluded he added this last one in due to his exuberance in creating his first production design. The hybrid knight acted as the glue that bonded the two previous images together in a coherent whole.

From the information he gathered and the guesses he made, Ves came to a tentative conclusion on how to evoke the X-Factor. He couldn't prove his hypotheses, but he figured it didn't hurt to adjust his mindset.

"There's two layers to it. The primal layer absorbs the essence of my intent. It distills the most complex images into its core components."

For example, when he formed the inspiration of a Roman Legionnaire, the primal layer stripped all unnecessary elements. It only preserved the overarching meanings embedded in the image, such as defense, discipline and grit.

The second portion that made up the X-Factor consisted of the conscious layer. Ves only inferred the existence of this layer when he studied a lot of replays of past matches. The Unicorn, Marc Antony and Young Blood all exhibited signs that they affected the conscious judgement of their pilots.