? The Design Department welcomed a new Journeyman Mech Designer today! It hadn't been too long ago since Ves welcomed Cormaunt Hempkamp into the fold, but because his specialization was too obscure and niche, he did integrate into his new workplace without too many expectations on his shoulders. It was different for Beatrice Hendrix! Her qualifications were much more solid. Rather than bouncing around one employer after another, Beatrice was the sort of mech designer that many companies wished to hire! Her greatest advantage was that she was the direct disciple of Master Relice Yovarn. Even if no one knew anything about this particular Master Mech Designer, individuals at this height never made any misjudgments about the selection of their most important students and inheritors! Any mech designer who received the teachings and legacy of a Master Mech Designer always had a clear advantage over those who had been brought up in the wild. This was a simple truth, and though it might not sound fair, it was not as if those who never met a Master had no chances to succeed as well. Still, it was undeniable that Beatrice Hendrix not only enjoyed a headstart in her career, but made good use of her starting point. Her particular combination of talent, passion, education and tournament results showed that she was not only highly competent at her current stage, but that she also had a bright future ahead of her. She was only a little younger than the Larkinson Patriarch! As the Journeymen of the Design Department gathered in the main lab of the Genesis Lab, Ves enthusiastically introduced the curly-haired woman standing beside him. Beatrice had conscientiously dressed herself in a clean and professional manner in order to convey that she was ready to start her work right away. Everyone else gathered one by one. Ketis arrived first and silently took her measure of the newcomer. Since Beatrice managed to pass Goldie's test, she had forged a brand-new spiritual connection to the Larkinson Network. This gave her an entirely new kind of awareness that caused her to identify every Larkinson as her kin and vice versa. This was such a shocking phenomenon that the mech designer couldn't even begin to explain its mechanisms! Though Ves had told her that she shouldn't bother wasting her time on trying to figure out what was going on, she still couldn't help but put a lot of thought into the matter. As it was, Beatrice could not only feel Ketis' approach, but also gained a strong sense of security from the swordmaster. "Hey. I'm Ketis. You must have heard of me already." Beatrice snapped out of her temporary fascination. "Well met, Ketis. I have indeed heard many stories about you, particularly after I have been inducted into the clan. I must admit that many of the stories sound too… fantastical to be true, but the records and the footage that I accessed yesterday are too convincing. I apologize. I am still adjusting to all of the paradigm-shattering information that I have obtained. The public has no idea how amazing the clan truly is. I feel fully vindicated for becoming a Larkinson, because I wouldn't have realized how much I was missing out upon if I made a different choice!" There was always a sense of superiority among the Larkinsons. This became especially pronounced when they came into contact with normal human society. The Larkinson Clan turned into a secret club of sorts where the 'initiated' had managed to open their eyes and figure out the greater truths of the cosmos that most people never touched in their lives! Being able to enter this secret club and learning all of the truths that many different parties suppressed or kept to themselves was an enormous privilege to many individuals! They never wanted to go back to their previous lives where they ignorantly trudged through their lives like innocent sheep. This was an important reason why many new recruits, including Beatrice Hendrix, did not have too many regrets about joining the clan. She already understood a lot more why people who joined the clan weren't allowed to leave it. They couldn't be allowed to wander away after learning so much about the Larkinson Clan and more. "You don't need to apologize for being unused to all of this." Ketis calmly said. "Everyone was new, once. You don't have to be afraid that we will hold unreasonable expectations towards you. We are already doing fine in our current projects, so we don't need you to do your best right away." Ves nodded. "We're not going to throw you in the deep end, Beatrice. We understand it takes a lot more time to become a Larkinson and work in our clan. We do things a lot differently than other organizations and we hold different expectations towards our clansmen. My wife has already arranged a schedule where you will spend time with different lead designers and other Larkinsons so that you will smoothly integrate in our clan and work environment. Every newcomer has to go through this process. It will be lengthy, but it should provide everything you need to become a proper Larkinson mech designer." "I have no objections to that." Beatrice replied. "I was already told that I would be in it for the long haul. How long will it take for me to seriously design a mech?" "It should take about half a year." Ves said after a few seconds of thought. "You can theoretically start a new design project right away, but I highly recommend you not to do so. Our requirements, technical standards and so on are all different and distinct. You need to understand all of that first before you know what sort of mechs that our clients or our armed forces are asking for. Our mech legions are all different and distinct from each other, so it is critically important that you learn what each of them are like before you try to pitch your mech to them. Your specialty is a little unusual so you need to pay more attention to who actually needs a mech that is equipped with a modular armor system." Beatrice smiled. "I already have a few ideas regarding that, sir. After briefly surveying the mechs that your clan is using, I see that the Bright Warrior line is the most appropriate starting point for my intervention. Its current iteration is already highly modular in that it can change its modules and its external equipment. I can easily revise the armor system of this platform from one that is based on fixed plating to more easily removable and changeable adaptive modular armor systems." He quickly caught on to her suggestion. "You don't intend to design a single standardized adaptive modular armor system for the Bright Warrior line. You are thinking about designing multiple different systems that are all compatible with this particular mech model." "Exactly!" Beatrice grinned with enthusiasm. "I can already visualize it. Every mech pilot can pick and choose different modular armor systems, each of which excel in different roles. A defensive loadout will feature thicker armor plating and reinforced circuitry. A light and mobile loadout will feature lightweight modular armor plating that is designed to add as little encumbrance as possible. I can also design more specialized modular armor systems in the future such as a 'deluxe version' that consists of transphasic armor plating." Ves could no longer remain indifferent when he heard her ideas. What she presented was so fitting for the Bright Warrior line that he wanted her to start with this ambitious project right away! How could he not feel this way? The Bright Warrior had lately been regarded as a 'beginner model' that should only be piloted by newcomers. Not that many mech pilots wanted to stick with the highly compatible and universal Larkinson mech model when there were lots of stronger and more exciting alternatives available. While Ves had managed to change this trend to an extent by enabling much greater modularization, the relatively fixed armor configurations of the Bright Warrior line significantly restricted their flexibility. Beatrice Hendrix gave him hope that their clan would truly transform the Bright Warrior into the ultimate malleable mech in the Larkinson Clan's lineup! This way, the Bright Warrior line would have value that was not any worse than the likes of the Transcendent Punisher and the Valkyrie Redeemer! "Great great great!" Ves quickly repeated. "I am truly grateful for being able to bring you into the fold. I do not dare to think about where our clan would be if we failed to recruit a modular armor specialist such as you. I can think of a few other mech models that could sorely use your help to elevate their combat effectiveness. Perhaps we should wait before we start work on the Bright Warrior Mark III Project." A few other Journeymen had arrived. They formally introduced themselves to Beatrice Hendrix and generally got along well with her. None of the lead designers had any idea of rejecting her as they all needed the help of a competent defensive specialist in order to accelerate the progress of their own mech design projects. When Sara Voiken entered the main lab alongside her brother, she stopped in front of Beatrice and shook hands. "I cannot begin to describe how relieved I am to see you here." The female Voiken said in a relieved tone of voice. "Don't get me wrong. I love all of the work I can do around here, but my time is so stretched that I feel guilty about all of the delays. Once you get up to speed, I look forward to offloading many of my responsibilities to you. We may even need to hire a third defense-oriented mech designer in a year or two as we keep starting more and more projects." Beatrice smirked. "I am not afraid of too many projects. I am glad for them, especially if I am authorized to make my own design choices regarding their armor systems. The freedom that you have offered to me is massive. I shall always cherish this privilege." Ves was glad to see that Sara Voiken and Beatrice Hendrix did not treat each other as hostile competitors. There was simply too much work for them to bother with any rivalries. After a short delay, the final Journeyman of the Larkinson Clan arrived at the workplace. Gloriana Wodin had just sent her children off to their private tutoring sessions, hence why she was a little late. Beatrice conscientiously stared at the Pop Cult branded tote bag hanging on the other woman's shoulder. Any lady with a bit of awareness in fashion should easily be able to recognize this brand and the typical prices for its products! Though Beatrice Hendrix had never lost her sense of pride and maybe even superiority in her skills, she nonetheless came under a considerable amount of psychological suppression as the young mother came close. Gloriana stared critically at the fresh meat. The way she carried herself along with how much she took advantage of her status within the clan meant that she unquestionably mastered the identity of the 'mistress' of the Larkinson Clan! Her eyes briefly flicked from Beatrice to Ves and back again. They narrowed for a brief moment before relaxing after she had made a silent judgment on the newcomer. Gloriana nodded as if she was satisfied with the quality of a newly developed product. "You will do. Abide by my rules and you shall find your place in our Design Department." Though Beatrice didn't like it, she bowed her head in acquiescence. "I will endeavor to do so. I have no intentions of creating a new order here. At most, I may feel the need to make suggestions. I have worked under a Master Mech Designer as well as numerous different professional design teams. Perhaps my advice can be of use to our clan." "I will be the judge of that." Gloriana imperiously said. "Now that we are all in attendance, please introduce yourself and share your story with us all. We are all curious about what you can bring to the table."