Mecha: A Brief History – Part 1

1901 August 11th: Nemo Quatermain declares his intentions to build the first of a new variation of the locomotive, he’s met with laughter and is soon declared missing several days later.

1904 January 2nd: Nemo Quatermain makes his untimely return from the assumption of being dead and declares “Seven days and I shall show you the future!” His announcement is met with laughter but intrigue was powerful and brings a great many number to ask for where this great future awaits.

1904 January 9th: Hyde Park London became a home to a crowd of hundreds. Many stood in wait of Professor Quatermain to unveil what many had heard rumours spread through word of mouth—suspicion was rampant as he came out from a tent, raised a hand for silences and spoke his now famously ironic statement: “I shall show you something beyond the dream of man. It shall send us sawing!” The words were a reporter’s dreams as some stood scribbling away at the sight of Quatermain unveiling a locomotive from within the tent. It was like no other at being a truly extraordinary machine to stand on legs in an almost human wat—though it was rather clunky in comparison to any man or machine to ever grace the reciprocal of anyone able to see it stand proudly within the tent opening up.

Quatermain turned to the locomotive on legs and began to climb up inside to the open chest compartment, where multiple ropes forming a net of pulley’s and vapour of steam escaped from pipe work outside the contraption. Steam hissed as assistants closed up the front plate like a coffin, clunky metal noises sounded out to surprised spectators as it began to move in heaving steps—the sight was impressive until it blew up to take out everyone within a four metre radius.

1904 January 10th: The next day grounded the irony to all with newspapers declaring “Nemo saws high in several directions”. Hilarious, indeed, for disbelievers of such a tragedy to occur within London town itself, but a fantastical sight for the few seconds the locomotive on legs moved steadily—this part of the news went unmentioned beyond a brief note (in small print) at the end: “Success for a man who did saw above us all”.

1910 January 9th: Six years after the first (and only) attempt to progress machinery onto legs, it becomes a motivating point for some to attempt to work from what remained of the original framework of the locomotive on legs and re-examine the reason behind its original failure when notes left by Nemo claim it to have been a success during the last year of his self imposed three year isolation from the outside world. Two days later the examination begins on the framework left, notes acquired from the Quatermain estate and a one witness account from those close enough (and unscathed) to catch any indication of what might’ve caused the horrific explosion of that cold winter day.

Thought of the Day: September 16th:

I’m bored, so I’m going to write a false history of mecha for the next few days.