The Mech Touch

h a simple approach.
He would design his mechs with two images in mind.

The first one would be the design spirit of the mech.
This was easy, as the design practically radiated its influence.

He imagined it as a clear glass of water.

At the same time, he would also hold another image in his mind that represented one of the six virtues.

The addition of this weaker image was akin to infusing the glass of water with one of six different tea flavors.

The water would still be water and retain all of its properties, but the slight tea flavor resulted in a very different taste!

While he hadn ’t tested out his theories, he felt confident enough about them that he didn ’t hesitate to put them into action.

”Courage, Justice, Perseverance, Zeal, Sacrifice, Devotion.
Six virtues.
Six mechs. ”

Ves began to start with the fabrication of Courage, the Transcendent Messenger mech that embodied this virtue.

It wasn ’t difficult to construct an image based on this virtue.
Ves knew what courage meant and he could draw on several experiences in his life.

However, he wanted Courage to exemplify the courage within the hearts of the Ylvainans.
Using his own brand of courage wouldn ’t be appropriate.

For this reason, he spent an hour browsing the galactic net.
He references the stories, parables and myths of the Ylvainan Faith.
The First Calamity and the Great Flight that happened hundreds of years ago offered many examples of Ylvainans stepping up to the plate while driven by courage.

”The Ylvainan refugees wouldn ’t have survived the flight to the Komodo Star Sector without courage.
They never gave up or cowered against adversity. ”

This was the kind of inspirational courage that Ves wanted to convey in his first copy.
Immersed in stories showcasing exceptional courage, Ves began to construct an abstract image that carried the essence of Ylvainan courage.

He infused it with a tiny portion of his spiritual energy, which strengthened the image by a very noticeable degree.
Although Ves could have made it even stronger, he didn ’t believe it was necessary.

”It is only a catalyst to effect a transformation. ”

Only after he formed the image of courage did he proceed with fabricating the first production model of the Transcendent Messenger.

Ves was unusually solemn during the fabrication process.
Ketis, who assisted his work, quickly noticed the difference as well.

”Your mood has changed. ” She said.
”You ’ve always been intense when you handcraft a mech, but it ’s different this time. ”

”This mech we ’re making right now is called Courage. ”

”So? ”

”Don ’t you think a mech designer ’s feelings matter when they handcraft a mech? ”

”We ’re just following the blueprint of its design. ” Ketis said in an uncertain tone.
”Whether we ’re sad or happy shouldn ’t matter as long as our mech matches the design, right? ”

”On the surface, that ’s true.
However, I believe that the intentions and feelings of the craftsman matter.
You might not be able to sense the love and passion they pour into their work, but I think that they definitely make a difference.
The emphasis they put into their work can also make a difference as well, hence why I am thinking about courage while I ’m designing this mech. ”

Ketis eventually shrugged.
She had witnessed several inexplicable wonders from Ves and became used to his vague and esoteric explanations.
Even if she didn ’t understand everything, she got the gist of it at least.

”Maybe I should try it out as well. ” She muttered.

Once they resumed their work, Ves indeed noticed that Ketis tried to concentrate on courage.
As a former Swordmaiden, Ketis didn ’t need any help to come up with examples of courage.

Her efforts were very minimal, however.
Not only did she lack the spiritual strength to imprint her thoughts on the mech, she also didn ’t clear her mind of distractions.

Although her concentration improved enormously ever since he fed her with candy, old habits died hard.
Ketis was still Ketis and even when she was working, her mind still drifted off every now and then.

It took three days for Courage to take shape.
When Ves finally stepped back and beheld the finished product, he was satisfied with the result.
The tall hero mech with its ballistic carbine and its heavy saber felt just as strong and pure in its faith as the last prototype!

The white tabard that he synthesized from a specialized machine had been draped over the mech.
Hanging from its shoulders, the cloth covered both the front and the back of the mech.

Ves placed the word COURAGE just underneath the sigils on its chest area.
The bold words instantly conveyed the meaning of the mech.

There was a snag, though.
He couldn ’t sense the aspect of Courage in its X-Factor.
Whatever courage it possessed was drowned out by the Transcendent Messenger ’s absolute faith!

”It needs more flavor. ”

He began to enact his experiment and sent out the abstract image of courage from his mind.
He attempted to infuse it into Courage.

Surprisingly, the image was attracted to the mech.
The tiny portion of courage that Ves had already imprinted on the mech acted like a beacon that called the image home.

The empowered image blended into the X-Factor of the mech with remarkably little fanfare or complications.
It complimented the absolute faith that dominated the X-Factor and began to influence it slightly.

Only now did Ves feel that Courage was worthy of its name.

During the entire process, Ketis watched Ves staring silently at the mech for several minutes while holding Lucky.
She somehow sensed that Courage had changed during this time and grew suspicious.

”Is Ves a wizard or something, Lucky? ”

”Meow. ”

”What does he even specialize in? I used to believe his design philosophy is a bunch of esoteric mumbo jumbo, but now I think he ’s definitely on to something.
Does magic exist, you think? ”

”Meow! ”

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