In the process of explaining his new vision for the Avatars, Commander lkor started with the identities of the other ch forces of the clan.
"I believe the Penitent Sisters fulfill our original purpose much better than my Avatars." He began. "It’s not your fault. They’re just better than us in every asure except friendliness towards the male gender. The Hexers have many shortcomings, but training skilled and disciplined second-class ch pilots is not one of them. Even if so of their doctrines aren’t tested in combat, they make up for it in unit cohesion and esprit de corps. The Penitent Sisters are strong, and they know it. Their results in the previous battle is hard proof of that."
"That’s not a fair comparison." Ves shook his head. "Due to the importance of our Valkyrie Redeers in enabling Venerable Joshua to unleash an empowered energy attack, we refrained from deploying the Penitent Sister chs in the trenches. We had to preserve their numbers as much as possible until they could engage their battle formation."
lkor lowered his head in response.
"That’s exactly how an elite ch force is supposed to be employed. They have to be employed in the right mont and the right ti in order to maximize their impact on the battlefield. In contrast, my Avatars were lumped in with a bunch of other ordinary forces and were tasked with resisting the powerful Fridayman chs in frontal combat. Does this sound right to you, sir?"
"We were short on chs. We needed your chs to hold the line. Besides, the Fridayn employed their elite units as frontline combatants as well. There is no distinction in this regard."
"That’s because the Fridayn didn’t bring any regulars for this mission. The elite ch units we fought against were also shaped to take part in massive battles. They are comfortable with acting as the anvil of a greater unit. My Avatars weren’t designed for this role. Not initially, at least. Yet during the Battle of Reckoning, you employed us as an anvil when we are much more comfortable with acting as the hamr."
"We didn’t have enough anvils."
lkor took a deep breath.
"I get that, sir. I don’t fault you for putting our Avatars in the place where we were most needed. When you are short on anvils, you look for substitutes among the hamrs that are not as good or vital in their current purpose. Obviously, my n scored worse in this aspect so we had to fight like Living Sentinels."
Obviously, lkor was highly ambivalent about this turn of events.
From a logical standpoint, the higher ups made the most rational decision. It was objectively the best and most optimal choice to make out of the available possibilities.
Yet from an emotional standpoint, lkor resented the circ.u.mstances, and so did many other Avatars probably. They were always told they were the pride and joy of the Larkinson Clan, but when they fought their most serious battle to date, the Avatars turned into supporting characters so that other ch forces such as the Penitent Sisters and the Swordmaidens could play the starring roles.
"The Battle of Reckoning is long over." Ves gently stated. "While the circ.u.mstances we faced back then are regrettable, in this ti of rebuilding we can make it all better. Your Avatars will grow bigger, better and stronger, and your n won’t be the only ones to do so. Every elent of our clan will improve so that we will not be as desperate next ti."
"I’m glad to hear that, sir, but the Avatars cannot go on like this. We need to specialize ourselves just like the other ch forces. We need a new and more focused purpose so that we know what we are building towards and can take pride in sothing that the other ch forces cannot equal."
"I suppose you’ve ford an idea."
"Indeed, I did." lkor began to grin. "As it is right now, the force makeup of our clan already covers a number of roles. Yet none of them are quite as suitable to be employed as heavy cavalry as us. That is not to say that the others are bad at launching assaults, but they are much more suitable to be employed as flankers or commando units. What we can do is to perform the charges that others cannot. We shall be the spear of the Larkinson Clan!"
"You an with lancer chs?"
The Avatar Commander nodded. "Among other ch types. While it is too monotonous to replace all of our machines with lancer chs, I do envision them as one of our defining ch types. I want to see entire formations of Avatar chs charging forward and breaking open a massive hole in the ranks of our opposition! No matter how stiff the enemy is holding back our might, our Avatars must be capable of smashing through every obstacle and disrupting the carefully-laid plans of our enemies. We are your best tools when tricks and sches aren’t enough."
In other words, lkor wanted his Avatars to beco the fist of the Larkinson Clan. While it was nice to take out a difficult opponent by circling around and stabbing them in the back, that was not possible all the ti, as was the case in the previous battle.
Sotis, an enemy had to be overco by fighting them on their terms.
The Avatars wanted to stand out from the other elite ch forces of the Larkinson Clan by excelling in creating openings.
In this situation, it would be nice to have a solution that could just charge straight through the front!
"A heavy assault role is quite dangerous." Ves pointed out. "No matter how successful you are, as long as the enemy is strong enough to hold back our other ch forces, they are probably capable of exacting a significant toll on your troops. Each frontal assault is fraught with peril."
"My n can take it. As long as this is our main purpose, we will work hard to et everyone’s expectations. Of course, we also need the right chs. We won’t be able to breach through any enemy formation without chs that are tough enough to drive a wedge into the enemy ranks."
The Avatar Commander looked expectantly at Ves. For his part, Ves was quite willing to address this need. The problem was that this wasn’t the only priority on his mind.
"I’ll take care of it, though my upcoming design schedule is already packed. Our expert pilots urgently require expert chs in order to match opposing expert chs. The Battle of Reckoning would have proceeded a lot more favorably if Venerable Joshua and so on were piloting real expert chs instead of the knockoffs I developed in haste."
Though Commander lkor had heard this response enough tis to get used to it, his patience was wearing thin.
"I’ve tolerated your delays over and over again, but real lives are at stake, sir. The longer it takes for you to design quality ch designs, the more we have to wait to reach our full potential. If it takes longer than a year for you to equip us with quality assault chs, then give a bag of money so that I can purchase the machines we need from the ch market."
Ves leaned forward from his chair. "Let’s not be hasty, lkor. Our Bright Warrior Version B is just complete. While it isn’t a dedicated assault ch, its lancer ch configuration is still potent."
"Didn’t you tell us that the new Bright Warrior is supposed to be the new starter ch of our clan, sir?"
"I prefer to call it a universal ch. It’s a ch that straddles the middle ground in order to maximize its compatibility with different ch pilots. Even though that ans that its configurations aren’t as colorful as specialized chs, they are still fit for their respective purposes. Their performance does not fall short to comparable comrcial chs while still possessing all of the traits of living chs that our ch pilots know and love."
Ves called up so projections and explained in clear and simple terms how good the new Bright Warrior perford compared to its closest competitors on the ch market.
In truth, the Bright Warrior incorporated a lot of compromises in its design that noticeably diminished its overall performance.
The differences were rather minor. It was easy enough for Ves to gloss over them and focus on all of the good points of his latest completed ch design.
His sales pitch partially won lkor over.
"I guess we can give the Bright Warrior a try, if only for a couple of years." He reluctantly responded. "It’s not a long-term solution though. While this ch is indeed better than a solution from the market, the defensive properties of this machine are not quite up to my expectation."
"Its mobility is above average. All of its configurations are a little faster than usual. Miss Juliet Staros has done a great job at maximizing the mobility paraters of this design."
That was true. A heavy cavalry unit had to possessed at least a certain asure of mobility to perform their assaults. The Avatars didn’t need too much of it though. If all of that speed and agility ca at the cost of defense or offense, then the gains weren’t worth the losses.
Ves and lkor spent a few minutes envisioning how the new Bright Warrior would be able to facilitate the proposed transition.
"I do have to admit that most of our ch pilots probably won’t be ready to pilot an advanced lancer ch straight away." lkor conceded. "In that sense, starting off with a less-demanding ch like the new Bright Warrior is a good choice. Even if its configurations aren’t as powerful as I wish, their skill floors won’t be as high either. They make for fine tools to transition into better chs down the road. What’s even better is that unlike the crappy budget chs we utilized before, this model can actually withstand the rigors of high-intensity combat."
The Bright Warrior model potentially possessed other advantages as well, though Ves didn’t want to bring them up right now. What the Avatars mainly needed was a solid ch to regain their footing and transition to an assault role.
It was not a permanent solution, though. In ti, the Avatars needed a more fitting solution.
"Once I’ve addressed the needs of our expert pilots, I’ll work on the chs you need." Ves promised to lkor. "A new lancer ch is definitely on the cards, and I might design so additional chs that are suitable for assaults as well. In fact, I can also squeeze in so ti to work on your long-awaited custom ch during our stay in this star system. I can adapt a Bright Warrior Version B to suit your piloting style just like how I’ve shaped the Bright Beam Pri to complint Venerable Stark’s marksmanship."
Contrary to Ves’ expectations, lkor did not show much enthusiasm for this suggestion.
"I’m quite impressed at the Bright Beam Pri, but I would like to be able to shoot more than three tis per engagent, sir. I don’t want my custom ch to be based around the Bright Warrior either. I’d like to receive a ch that is adapted from a more dedicated rifleman ch."
lkor had waited so long for his custom ch that he might as well wait a little longer. He wanted the wait to be worth it. He knew that Ves was capable of designing much more excellent ranged chs.
"That reminds ." Ves suddenly jerked his head. "My Giant Killer design is almost ready. While it’s a cannoneer ch that is exclusive to Penitent Sisters, I can modify one so that you don’t need to be Hexer to pilot it. Are you open to this offer?"
Cannoneer chs were basically slower and more hard-hitting versions of rifleman chs. While their differences were quite significant, they also shared plenty of similarities.
lkor thought about it for a mont but eventually shook his head. "Thank you for the offer, but I think it’s best for to stick with a regular Bright Warrior for now. I need to use the sa model that the rest of my n are relying on to be aware of their plight."
"That’s a noble sentint."
"I do what I must."
lkor may not be as prominent of a leader as the likes of Commander Casella Ingvar or Commander Cinnabar, but he was dependable in his own way. Ves liked that about him. The Avatars were in good hands as far as he was concerned.
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