"From now, Leon will be part of the crew". Talia said.
Rex reacted excitedly while Brick simply looked at Talia without saying a word. Ghostwire was as eerily quiet as usual; only Daren failed to keep his quiet.
"Really?" He looked Leon up and down. "But he looks like a lab mouse. You sure he won't faint at the first spark?"
"He's with her," Kain's mechanical voice cut in at that moment. "Daren Kovak, that's all you need to know".
Daren quickly raised his hands in surrender. "Alright, if the boss believes in him, I believe in him too. You didn't have to call my full name, I was just saying you know," he shrugged.
Leon almost smiled. 'Awww, Kain actually defended me'.
Talia finally spoke up again. "You all know me, we've worked together for years and you know that I'll never make an impulsive decision".
"I wouldn't have made the decision if I didn't think it through and decide that it was worth it," she looked around at her crewmates.
"His full name is Leon Ardent, and like I said, he's a Mechanist. He's of a different breed," she said seriously without caring that Leon was here. "His mind and capabilities are the kind you pray for when everything stops working".
"And believe me, those times are not too far away".
Her tone silenced any other disagreement in the bunker, drawing all attention to her as even Ghostwire unplugged from his terminal where he saw through the eyes of the hidden drones outside.
He watched Talia with those unreadable teal blue eyes.
Talia didn't care about the comment or lack of it of the other members of the crew, but she especially looked at Brick after she was done speaking, forcing the oldest of the crew to comment.
"If you believe him, I believe him too". He grunted.
Well, that did it. The introductions were over and the crew warmed up to Leon's presence, showing just how much they respected Talia and believed in her.
Talia stood up the next moment, heading outside the cargo trailer even as Brick stood up and walked after her outside.
It seemed like they were about to discuss something serious.
With them gone and with a stool now available to him, Kain finally sat down. It was that moment when Rex suddenly tossed Leon a crude mug of synth-coffee.
"Don't spill it, it's worth a lot".
Leon chuckled and took it, chugging a mouthful down and he froze. 'W-what monstrosity is this?!'
He stared at the mug with wide eyes as the pepperish sensation burned his tongue. 'Gah! Is this supposed to be coffee? F*ck, it takes like raw pepper mixed with lime and Cappuccino!'
Rex smiled, staring at him with clear expectation and anticipation in his eyes. "How does it taste? Heavenly, right?"
Leon forced a smile. "Uh, ah, yes".
He looked away and grimaced. 'If by Heavenly you mean dying and going to heaven, yes, this f*cking coffee can indeed make someone die!'
Daren stood up at that moment and circled him like a predator assessing prey. "Ever killed a Neon Beast, mechanist?"
Leon didn't even flinch as he answered immediately. "I've killed worse things, Mr. man. Do you know? I once killed an Agama lizard with a small d*ck".
That earned a chuckle.
Daren froze, then he also chuckled. "It seems you do have some spine to you," he said as he scrutinized him, then he laughed loudly and slapped him on the back. "I change my mind, I like you!"
Leon almost choked on the synth-coffee that he was reluctant to swallow since. He grimaced. "Ah, thank you".
'God, just what kind of crew is this?'
Leon wanted to sneak away from Daren as quickly as possible, but then remembering something, his eyes sparkled as he suddenly turned and pointed at one of the Geneform's mechanical gauntlets.
"Can I study that?"
"Oh, this?" Daren flexed the gauntlets proudly. "I spent a chunk to get this bad boy, you know".
He looked at Leon and slapped him on the back again. "I like you, so you're my friend now! Haha, you can have it".
"I think it's also due for servicing as it is. You can study it while Rex tinker with it; we need to prepare for the big moment".
Leon nodded, knowing exactly where he was driving at.
"Your payment is 10 Neo credits this time". Rex quickly said.
"Get lost!" Daren snapped back.
Before the both of them could begin their bickering again, Leon quickly took the gauntlet away as he went to sit down beside Rex this time.
Kain secretly stole a glance at him from the side, then grimaced before looking away. He could already tell what was going to happen next.
'He's even going to steal Rex's admiration now, huh?' Facing the wall of the cargo trailer, he once again cried silent tears.
Leon sat down beside Rex, but he barely paid attention to the stocky Geneform as all his attention was focused on the mechanical gauntlet on his hand. He held it with such reverence like he was holding the key to a Lamborghini.
He caressed its surface, admiring the rough edges and the aesthetical craftsmanship of the weapon, and that was when the HUD screen lit up again.
DING!
~----~
[Snoop Function activated!]
[Target: Weaponized Gauntlet Unit (Dual-Mount)]
[Classification: Cyber Gladiator – ADE-Reactive Armament]
Name: VX-09 Emberfist
Rank: E
Manufacturer: Hekate Foundry Systems
Power Source: ADE Condenser Cell
Material Composition: Carbon-titanium frame and internal heat veins lined with micro-flux capillaries
Weight: 22.6kg per unit
Interface: Neural impulse driver (spinal plug link)
Compatibility: Cyber Gladiator-class only
Maintenance Grade: Red (unstable energy diffusion after 900 combat hours)
[CORE SYSTEMS:]
>Kinetic Amplification Layer: This converts user's muscular momentum into shock energy (×2.3 multiplier). Damage output scales with STR and ADE attributes, and overuse may fracture forearm bone structure if biological tissue present.
>Heat Vent Modulator: This vents excess charge/heat as thermal plasma between the knuckles. It generates a 3000 C field for 5 secs bursts with a visible orange flare effect.
>Impact Diffusion Shielding: A passive defense field triggered on counter-hit. It reduces incoming kinetic damage by 15% when active, and consumes 1% ADE cell capacity per trigger.
[WEAPON ADE SKILLS:]
>Arc Clutch (Passive): This generates a micro-magnetic grip for climbing or holding energized surfaces.
>Ember Burst (Active): This converts 60% charge into a directional flame-shock punch with a 2.5m cone range. [Cooldown: 20 secs]
>Overheat Drive (Active): Temporarily doubles STR for 10 secs when activated but locks cooling vents. Risk: thermal overload. Thermal overload = self-damage (-5% HP per 5 secs).
>Pulse Feedback (Defensive Counter): Emits a shock pulse when struck by high-impact attack, causing a 3m AOE knockback effect.
…
[Analyzing for faults… please wait…]
[Analysis complete!]
*Flux instability detected in right gauntlet's condenser node (repair needed).
*Heat dissipation efficiency 64%; prolonged activation risks joint fusion (repair needed).
*Neural link partially desynced due to ADE corruption; irregular feedback spikes during rage state (repair needed).
…
[System Analysis: E Rank Weapon – high craftsmanship, field-tuned beyond manufacturer limits.]
[Suitability for Replication: 71%]
[WARNING: Manual operation by baseline human may result in limb detachment.]
[Recommendation: Study condenser lattice and pulse regulator architecture for adaptive mech-limb design.]
~----~
Leon's eyes sparkled. 'I can replicate it!'
'Maybe not now, but definitely when my skills improve'.
He finally reacted as he turned to look at Daren with a feverish look in his eyes. "Daren!" His eyes twinkled. "Where'd you get this bad boy from?"
The specs of the weapon genuinely left him in awe.
The most overpowered skill of the weapon by far was definitely the Overheat Drive. The ability to double the STR stat of an Ascendant was just OP.
It made sense that the skill had such a lethal drawback, but still, with the Heat Vent Modulator system, the weapon had a practical system in place to slightly curb the effects of using the skill.
'Damn! The guy who created this thing must be a great engineer!'
Seeing his reaction, Daren chuckled. "Ah, I really like you now!" he grinned. "I got it from Hekate Foundry. Those bastards working for Hekate are some of the most ridiculous Mechanists I've ever seen, they're the best in the Freegrid network. Heck, to me, they're the best in the world!" He laughed.
"It took all my life savings and a favor or two, maybe a limb too, but carrying that bad boy into battle every time tells me that I made the right decision, hehe".
"I mean, who cares about being broke when I can carve my enemies' brain in, right?" He grinned in self-satisfaction.
"Right," Leon laughed. "You made the right decision my friend".
He caressed the gauntlet even more feverishly. "What a bad boy! The power source is an engine, it even has a neural impulse driver! And that Heat Vent Modulator system? That's Iron Man levels of cool! That's where you got your Spitfire nickname from right?"
Daren froze. "How'd you know?"
Rex's eyes widened. "Did you deduce all of that from just caressing and observing the gauntlet?"
Leon looked at him, thought for a moment, and then nodded without shame. "Of course!"
Rex stumbled and almost fell from his stool. "For real?!"
"Why would I ever lie to you?"
Rex's eyes sparkled. "I've never seen or even heard of anything like that before! Boss Leon, you're a f*cking God!"
"Hehe," Leon chuckled shamelessly.
Further away from them, Kain shifted. 'He's already calling him Boss, huh? Hah,' he sighed, feeling left out. 'Life is so f*cking unfair'.
"Also," Leon added. "From looking at it, I can already tell where the faults in this weapon are".
Rex's eyes widened even more like saucers. "Really??? Even without a scanner you can already tell?!"
Leon grinned. "Who do you take me for?"
He pointed at the right gauntlet and said confidently. "I can detect flux instability in its condenser node, it needs repair".
"Also, the heat dissipation efficiency of both gauntlets is at below 65%, prolonged activation risks joint fusion. That needs repair too".
"And the neural link for both gauntlets is partially desynched. It may lead to irregular feedback spikes especially when our resident Spitfire is raging".
Rex's jaw dropped. "All that without a scanner???!"
Leon shrugged. "You can scan it and confirm if you want".
Even Kain could not hide it anymore as he secretly looked at Leon with wide eyes. 'What the f*ck!'
"Are all pure humans this crazy?!" He mumbled to himself.
Leon smiled, basking on all the attention and noting the reaction of the Mechanists even as Daren literally started begging Leon to repair his gauntlets.
'Mission accomplished,' he thought.
Of course, he didn't just reveal all that for boasting sake, he had a practical reason and it was just accomplished.
The System already showed him the power source and material composition of this badass gauntlet, and it was suitable for replication.
If he could just spend more time with it, Leon believed that he could create a draft for a basic design blueprint for it, and maybe he could then tweak the blueprint to make the weapon usable by a Mechanist.
'Ah, I'm loving my stay in this crew already'.