TL-XBPR-004 "Brynhildr"

Aki Saitani's preferred machine, and one of the latest machines to come out of the Tesla Leicht Institute, the TL-XBPR-004 is a light and agile mech with a distinct design nod towards wings, spears, and nordic valkyrie imagery.

Brief
Originally designed as a proof-of-concept attempt to try to utilise offshoots of Tesla Drive technology for a greater range of applications, the Brynhildr is a small, light mech in bipedal form similar to the Astelion, though approximately a quarter larger and with the large manifolds over both shoulders drawn onto the back and turned lateral to form a pair of rigid 'wings' lined with much smaller multidirectional jets, which are also present at key joint casings across the entire machine for fine-tune movement. The fundamental difference between the two is in the power systems of the two mechs; whereas the Astelion concentrated the majority of its power through the TTD and the engine nacelles, the Brynhildr uses a secondary reactor as a combined ignition and turbo system working alongside the main reactor, and features heuristic systems intended to link into and direct power to a range of subsystems or external access points. This creates a normally highly agile and maneuverable mech that while not as purely fast as the Astelion is instead able to readily change its power profile on the fly to provide support to external machinery or hardpoint weaponry up to grand-scale. The price it pays for this flexibility is the lack of a boost form, as the new configuration of the wings does not allow it.

Intended as a support unit to aid base operations, the original mech designs featured only light armor and no dedicated on-board weapon systems, opting instead for latest-generation fine manipulators on the hands and the ability to link power to and equip a range of standard mech-scale armaments or to provide initial or backup power coverage for base installations; with the transfer to A-LAWS the blueprints have been revised sufficiently to allow a modicum of on-board ranged support in case of absolute emergency, and some minor close-range countermeasures. With Aki Saitani in the cockpit, the preferred primary weapon system is the XBPR-ML2 "Gungnir", an experimental weapon developed in tandem with the Brynhildr and designed specifically to use the extensive power output of the machine to power a large-scale linear accelerator that allows localised bursts of superheated plasma.

Weapons Systems
Point Defence Lasers (Fixed): Located in banks of housing around the wrists and ankles of the mech, arrays of light-power self-defence lasers allow for a default level of moderate-range strike capability. While their output power is lacking, they can provide solid cover for a unit, and their directional range and rapid rate of fire allows for good accuracy during high speed or evasive maneuvers.

Powered Defence Lasers (Fixed): These same banks of lasers can be switched on the fly to a focused fire mode, drawing a greater amount of power from the machine's reactor and firing in tandem rather than succession. The loss of accuracy in this mode is offset by the greater stopping power of the combined assault, though it should be noted that this is still intended as a backup weapon and cannot match dedicated weaponry.

Aesir's Dive (Fixed): Though inadvisable for repeated and regular use, sections of the power system can be rerouted en masse to certain banks of thruster jets in order to provide a mass surplus of power in selected limbs. This can be used to give the light mech a surprisingly vicious direct melee kick or, if the pilot does not particularly feel like extensively threatening the integrity of their machine on a whim, a heated plasma exhaust backwash.

TL-XBPR-ML2 "Gungnir" (Removable): In an inert state the Gungnir is exactly as it looks - a mech-scale spear fitted for the size of the Brynhildr, with a high-grade toughened titanium polymer head tapering to near-monofilament levels at the edges. Tests have shown adequate and satisfactory performance as a standard melee weapon when compared to other major options on the market. The core of the weapon's power, however, is in the internal workings: running through the barrel of the weapon is a particle accelerator that feeds in deuterium cells from an ammo reserve in the haft to spark a high density linear agitation that superheats the cell, venting the raw material into supply feeds and igniting it as plasmoids along the edges of the spear, providing a powerful close-range blast that can be combined with an initial spear strike in an attempt to blast through armor or other defence systems. Each canister blast is a near-instant reaction, and the payload required can be customized to the target - though sufficient recoil runs the risk of destabilising the mech.

When hooked up to the Brynhildr, the spear is capable of drawing from the mech's considerable power reserves to further its versatility. This excess of power can be used to mitigate the effects of plasma bloom on the explosion, allowing a stable-state superheated 'blade' of plasma to be formed. Alternatively, in space conditions where bloom will be minimal, initial low-power blasts can establish a trail of ionized particles that allows a drift current to the target, paving the way for subsequent blasts to act as a ranged payload.