A Visitor to the Future - 93 - The Roles are Set

Over the next few weeks we managed to decide on our final team roles, and put as much time as we could spare into practice. Alexandra, Antonia and Sarkona settled on the Ambassador roles, and could often be seen colluding off to one side. I got the distinct impression that there may be a 'good-cop', 'bad-cop' relationship forming between Antonia and Alexandra respectively.

The engineers were Anode, Blaise, and Sasha. Sasha had been conflicted on whether to join the engineering or piloting team, but the deciding factor had been when Anode showed her a sonar system she'd been working on, instantly clearing up any hesitancy in the audiophile's mind. Sasha was still kind enough to keep training with the pilots whenever we needed help, though.

Which left Gatecrash, Tungsten, and, surprisingly, me as pilots. I was extremely nervous about this turn of events.

"I wouldn't worry," Gatecrash said when I voiced my thoughts, "Most people in the tournament will probably be on the same level. That's why the limit on Proxy experience is in place."

Gatecrash then immediately did a roundhouse kick using their Proxy, flooring Tungsten's in one fell swoop. This, of course, immediately negated the reassurance that their words had provided me with. Gatecrash was clearly the most capable of the three of us, beating us in practice sessions constantly.

"Nice kick," said Tungsten, "Shame you didn't see this comin-"

Whatever play Tungsten had in mind was quickly answered by another kick and a crunch in the distance. If Tungsten had a jaw, I was certain it would now be hanging open in shock.

Gatecrash smiled at me over a shoulder, "There is transferable experience, sure. My brief experience in martial arts about fifty years ago is helpful - but so are your skills."

"I'm not sure Korfball and Rugby Union counts," I said.

"Of course it does!" replied Gatecrash, turning around from the Proxies, "Balance, pushing, especially Rugby, right? I saw the way you handled that push-out with Antonia, the first time you stepped into a Proxy. And you've been getting better from there."

In the distance, Tungsten's Proxy stood up slowly. Tungsten's attention remained fixed on the field ahead. There was a sideways glare from Gatecrash at Tungsten which I couldn't quite read the intent of.

"Besides," said Gatecrash, "Trying to outthink your opponent is key in Resiliency. Anyone can slug it out until both Proxies are crushed heaps of metal. All that does is defeat both teams! I might be better at taking people down, but your perspective might be invaluable."

Thinking Gatecrash distracted, Tungsten's Proxy went in for something like a sliding tackle. Gatecrash simply leapt their Proxy to one side with a loud thud of impact.

"Argh!" said Tungsten in frustration, "What am I doing wrong?"

"Your last idea was good," said Gatecrash, turning back to the field, "Trying to get me while I was distracted. But Proxies don't move fast enough to surprise someone in plain sight. If you tried that tactic from cover, it might have worked."

Tungsten nodded, contemplating the feedback. He then held up a finger, pointing upwards to where the engineers were in the Peeping Tom to draw emphasis to his next point, "Have you both decided on your gimmicks yet? Anode has been keen to start on mine."

I shook my head. Alexandra had described gimmicks as mobility, utility, or defensive measures. I was having a hard time deciding what might be useful or good to have in those categories! It couldn't be anything too complex for the engineers to maintain, either.

"I have," said Gatecrash with a wry grin, "And I'm keeping it a secret. Nothing like a little surprise to make things interesting!"

"I was actually going to ask for your feedback - again," said Tungsten, "I've been thinking about a non-human joint structure. That might make things interesting."

Gatecrash screwed up their synthetic face, considering the prospect, "I'm not sure I'd go for it. Lots of downsides as well as upsides."

"Could you explain?" I asked, lost by the concept.

Tungsten held out his left arm, pointing out the elbow area and extending the limb so it was straight. "In human-like joint structures, the range of motion is limited. My elbow locks at one-hundred and eighty five degrees, and for humans it is five degrees less. Non-human limb structures would allow a fuller range of motion."

"Like Anode," Gatecrash said, "She can rotate and move her limbs however she wants."

"Exactly," continued Tungsten, "It makes her unpredictable, and for a Proxy it allows a greater range of motion and options. You could instantly start fighting an opponent behind you, for example."

"Yes, but the pay-off isn't worth it in this context," said Gatecrash, "At least in my opinion. With technologies allowed for use as restricted as they are, you'd be sacrificing a lot of raw power for that versatility. You'd need additional synthetic muscle strands to handle the range of motion. That means more maintenance, more supply usage, and, importantly, less resistance."

Tungsten tapped his chin with his other hand, deep in thought. "What do you mean by resistance?" I asked.

Gatecrash tapped Tungsten's elbow where it was still held out in front of him, "An elbow, for example, has a restricted range of motion. If I were to try and bend Tungsten's elbow past tolerance, I may find that difficult. It is the same for Proxies - the limited range of movement can help to resist movements that unlimited joints would succumb to. After all, unlimited joints are designed to bend over that way too. Don't get me wrong, there are probably ways to make it work. But they might be taxing for our engineers. I'd talk it through with them, but with us being new, I'd probably stick to the tried-and-tested before we change too much!"

I thought about the ranges of motion of the human arm and what Gatecrash had said, "So if you were using non-traditional joints, you might find it hard to grapple someone or pin them down?"

"Right!" responded Gatecrash, "Because your limbs are weaker - they would need additional fibres to support the extended range of movement. And because they don't have an 'innate' cap to their movement."

"Your point is well-taken," said Tungsten, "I think I've gone off the idea."

"Plus, you've been practicing with traditional joints for weeks now, you'd have to throw most of that experience away," continued Gatecrash.

"This is true," said Tungsten.

"...and also the Engineers have been practicing with the default structure for weeks too..." said Gatecrash, now clearly teasing Tungsten with a sing-song tone.

"Yes, yes, understood! Don't change the fundamentals too late into the process," said Tungsten, relaxing his extended arm finally, "Noted. Thank you for your sage wisdom."

In the distance there was a thud, as whatever latest manoeuvre Tungsten had tried crashed harmlessly to the ground. Gatecrash's Proxy still stood tall.

Gatecrash gave a sarcastic bow, "Of course, my pupil." Tungsten rolled his neck, a sign of frustration. I laughed, which drew Tungsten's focus to me sharply.

"Don't laugh so hard, it's your turn to spar with Gatecrash next!" said Tungsten. Gatecrash gave me a wink as they turned back to the field to continue practice.


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