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"Gentlemen. I thank you all for coming." I spoke aloud, my voice friendly and charming. "I assure you, your time will not be wasted."
The men in the room nodded neutrally, their eyes boring into me. I fought the rising urge of my body to shiver at their stares. I knew why they were staring at me. I was a teenager trying to sell grown men weapons after all. Who wouldn't gawk at that?
I had been developing the MICA as I grew up and when I hit 15, propagated the idea to Geppetto. He was taken at the idea of a suit that, for all intents and purposes, would allow people with locked auras to fight as effectively as a hunter. He said that the suit would be of incredible use for isolated villages who couldn't afford Hunter support. I smiled at that and complimented his kind heart for thinking of small villages.
Unfortunately for him, I was not just going to let the MICA be the trump card for wayward villages. I was going to build and/or equip an army with it.
When the time had been right, I approached my father and sold to him the idea I had. He saw the potential the suit offered and green-lighted the manufacture of a prototype. While daddy dearest highlighted the manufacture of a prototype, he stated that it was going to be the only thing he was funding. If I wanted more, I was going to find my own cash IE, start using the lessons that had been drilled into my head since I was five and make a profit. I accepted his challenge and with the mighty powers of connections, called up the most likely customers of the suit.
I stole a quick glance at some of Atlas's most powerful men. The table had five seats. Three of those were occupied by members of the Council of Atlas. The final two were being sat upon by representatives of the Army and Navy.
"To be brief, Friedlich AG has made a breakthrough in infantry technology and we believe that this breakthrough will serve our Kingdom's interests well." I said, my eyes traveling around the room. I pointed towards a screen and an image of the MICA was displayed.
"That breakthrough, gentlemen, is power armor." I said, my voice containing no small amount of pride.
To their credit, the assembled men managed hide their reactions well under a mask of stoicism. They merely clapped and bade me to continue.
"On your desk tops are folders containing the specifics of the MICA from armaments to technical parts. While I was initially going to tell you how great the MICA is, it is pretty clear that you gentlemen prefer actions to words. So, I shall show you what it can do." I announced. Eyebrows rose at my unorthodox way of selling the suit but they made no mention of it.
I turned towards the screen, a remote in my hand, and pressed a button. Soon enough, the roars of thrusters filled the room.
Multiple sets of eyes turned towards the screen, curiosity and interest flickering. Displayed on the screen was helmet footage of the MICA prototype being tested by a Atlesian soldier.
Said soldier was in a region in Northern Mantle and his task was to find three beacons that had been airdropped for the test. Once he had secured those beacons, he was to signal back to base for pickup.
We watched as the soldier jumped and weaved through fields of snow and through the thick forests of Northern Mantle.
"As you can see gentlemen, the MICA is maneuverable and agile." I spoke aloud, highlighting the mobility of the suit. Pens scratched as secretaries wrote down what I had said. A loud roar then came from the screen, grabbing the attention of the people assembled. It too had gotten the attention of the suit's user who raised up his weapon, a absurdly large and unnamed rifle, and fired.
Bullets found their way into the flesh of a beowolf who thought that it had found an aura-less human. It thought wrong and had died as a result. When the user had stopped firing his rifle, the spot wherein the beowolf once stood resembled that of a small crater. But as the saying goes, if you found one beowolf then its pack was not far behind.
Multiple snarls came in through the screen's speakers and right on cue, dozens of Grimm made their presence known. Seeing the situation that he had found itself in, the MICA trooper activated his thrusters and retreated to a minimal safe distance. As he did so, multiple yellow cross-hairs began to appear on the Grimm. When the cross-hairs turned red, the dark Mantle night was illuminated as a shoulder-mounted minigun let loose its deadly payload at the beowolf pack.
The minigun was accurate and relentless, its bullets turning the Grimm it targeted into cheese due to the amount of holes that it tore through them. As it all occurred, the secretaries began to write into their notebooks even more.
"And as you can also see, any user of the MICA will have enough firepower to tear through Grimm. And in the case that the user finds himself surrounded, they he can also use the numerous armaments that the suit offers. A list of all available armaments and other technical knickknacks are found in your folders, gentlemen. If you wish to view them, you can do so at your leisure." I later added.
The footage dragged on and highlighted the suits greatest features which were mobility, firepower, and maneuverability. When the presentation had finished, the questions started to fly.
"What benefit would the MICA suit offer Atlas?" A councilor asked. I considered in offering a political answer but decided that honesty would be the best way to get through the man.
"If the Council of Atlas invests in the manufacture of the MICA then it would allow our soldiery greater access to even more firepower and mobility. It would be incredibly useful if used for lightning-fast strikes against the Grimm and or other targets. It would also allow the faster deployment of troops who could be inserted behind enemy lines and both outmaneuver and outgun the enemy before their reinforcements can arrive in time " I explained, my eyes locking with the councillor. "It would also raise the combat superiority of our soldiers even more. In fact, we could outclass anything that Remnant has to offer outside of Hunters of course."
The councilors nodded at that and returned to reading the folders I handed them before the meeting started.
"If the Military purchases theses suits, how soon can manufacturing begin and when can they be deployed?" interjected the Army representative.
"Production can begin as soon as you agree to fund its manufacture." I replied. "And if you agree to fund it now, the first batch of the suits will be produced within three months."
As I watched the growing interest flicker in their eyes, I spoke once more, my voice louder and clearer.
"So, what do you say gentlemen?" I announced, a smile on my lips. "Are you all interested?"
"Would you allow us a few moments to discuss and think about this, Mr. Friedlich?" a councilor piped out. Satisfaction coursed through me at his address.
"Of course. I shall be waiting outside." I said graciously as I turned for the door.
As I left the room, my scroll rang. I picked it up and found that it was a call from an unknown number. I frowned at that and moved to cancel the call but before I did, my instincts screamed at me to accept the call. Hesitantly, I did so and a voice that I hadn't heard for a long time flowed through my ears.
"B-Blake?"
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A/N: Oh noes? What has happened to our favorite catgirl? Stay tuned for the next update and find out
