Chapter 2351: Stronger Spirit
When the tests involving the two prior fully saturated mechs ended in failure, Imon stood with the other Avatar mech pilots.
Each of them reacted with horror at what had taken place. When they saw the pained mech pilots being moved to the infirmary, a cloud had cast over the heads of the remaining Avatars.
Evidently, the last batch of modified Bright Warrior mechs were much harder to pilot. Something about them turned them into hazards to their own mech pilots.
"You shouldn't go, brother." Casella Ingvar spoke softly to Imon. "It's clear now why the clan patriarch hesitated to conduct the tests. Not every new invention is safe, particularly when they are too extreme, as is the case right now. I think Mr. Ves should just stop and settle what he has managed to accomplish with the mechs that performed better previously."
Casella already had her turn. She piloted one of the mechs with 50 percent saturation. Though the strain of piloting her machine had increased, it was well within her tolerance. It also helped that her own mech cooperated much more closely with her than before.
In her opinion, every other mech pilot should be pleased at piloting such a responsive and comfortable mech. Casella never experienced any instance of discomfort when she was running her improved mech to her paces.
What she didn't know was that Ves had some good reasons to put the Ingvar siblings in different groups.
He didn't have many Avatar mech pilots with spiritual potential in the First and Second Spaceborn Mech Companies, so he needed to spread them out in order to gather sufficient data.
Ves also valued Casella Ingvar more. As the Mech Captain of the Second Company, Ves couldn't afford to take her out of action.
In comparison, Imon Ingvar's absence was much less consequential. If he ever suffered an accident, then the rest of his unit would still be capable of chugging along as if hardly anything had changed.
Imon was ignorant of these reasons. He just thought that Ves believed in his strength. Why else would the clan patriarch call him in person to put him ahead of the line?
He couldn't wait to prove his piloting ability to the Avatars and the leader of the clan!
Some time later, he settled down in the familiar piloting seat of his mech. The arrangement of its cushioning, support and dimensions had already been precisely tailored to his suited form.
"Please proceed to activate your mech."
"Yes, sir."
A piloting helmet extended from the ceiling and settled over his head. The mech began to come alive seconds later.
"Whoah!"
Imon immediately understood what his sister meant when she felt as if her mech had become 'heavier'.
Compared to his previous piloting sessions, his assigned Bright Warrior mech immediately felt as if it possessed more presence. It was as if Imon previously swam in a shallow pool, but unexpectedly plunged into a deep ocean this time.
Not only that, but the ocean was filled with much more life and activity than before! As the initial systems came online, Imon sensed the heavy presence becoming significantly more active than before.
The mech did not just mechanically go through the checklist without doing anything else. It bloomed to life like a budding flower. A sense of indescribable closeness caused Imon to feel rapturous.
"Remain focused!" Ves barked through the command channel. "The worst is yet to come! Brace yourself instead of opening yourself up. A heavy blow is coming and I need you to endure it in order to make this test a success!"
Though the sudden words caused Imon to pull out of his blissful state, he didn't dare to voice any complaints and did as he was told.
It was difficult. His mech was like a welcoming home that beckoned him to head inside. He felt so tempted to open up his mind and embrace the mech that had become a lot more powerful in some way.
Then, the intensity of their bond abruptly increased.
"Ah!"
Though he had prepared himself for some kind of bump, when it actually happened, he was still caught off-guard!
"It's like someone punched my head!"
Despite the sudden strain, Imon tried his best to stay sober. He couldn't allow himself to fail like the previous two mech pilots. He was better than them! There was no way he was going to shame himself by letting his own mech overpower his senses!
"Please… work with me…"
Imon tried his best to find some way to make his connection with his mech more bearable. His mind churned as he tried several different ways to ease the burden.
Though none of his methods worked, he felt as if his own mech was beginning to bond considerably deeper with him in a way. Though the process stretched on for several minutes, Imon discovered to his surprise that the pressure no longer felt as overwhelming!
His expression gradually relaxed as the strain of piloting his Bright Warrior mech had lessened.
In its place, a very strong bond had formed between him and his mech.
"Imon. Are you okay?"
"I.. I feel great! It's still a bit more difficult to control my mech, but I can still do it! Please send me out! I'm so much more in tune with my mech that I can't wait to see the difference!"
"Very well. You are cleared to deploy."
When Imon's mech launched into space, it quickly began to follow the same standardized routine of the other mechs.
Since the mech was in its swordsman mech configuration, the machine soon began to spar against another sword-wielding mech.
When Ves studied Imon's performance and compared the data to the previous instances where he had piloted his mechs in battle, the difference was very obvious.
"He's performing a lot better than usual! Some of his parameters have grown by as much as 20 percent!"
Though the overall performance boost only averaged at around 10 percent or so, that was still a massive boost. This was just the first time that Imon interfaced with his enhanced mech. How much better would Imon's performance be if he had a month to get accustomed to piloting his growing machine?
Ves glanced at the projections of Imon's life signs. After the early spike into the red zones, the various figures had dropped to tolerable levels. While Ves felt that they were still rather high, it at least indicated that a mech pilot with strong spiritual skills such as Imon did indeed possess the capital to pilot a fully saturated mech.
This was the result he wanted to see!
"Alright, let's end the session."
"Awwww." Imon whined. "I have just begun to get used to my changed mech. Can you let me stay out longer?"
"No. While we haven't detected any signs that you are under severe strain, we still need to perform an extensive examination of your state. We also have to inspect your mech and make sure that it hasn't changed for the worse. Besides, there is one more Avatar mech pilot who is awaiting his turn."
The Bright Warrior mech reluctantly returned to the Redfeather. Once it returned to its place in the mech hangar, the mech smoothly shut off. Imon eagerly left his cockpit and began to share his unique experiences with his fellow Avatars.
Many mech pilots tried to listen to Imon. The Avatars all wanted to learn what made the altered mechs so differencent.
In the meantime, Joshua, who had suited up in his customary piloting attire, quietly entered the cockpit of his Quint.
Even before it came active, Joshua already felt the difference. As an expert candidate, his senses and his perspective were different from norms. He also bonded very intimately with each of the mechs he had the pleasure to pilot.
The Quint was one of the most unique and stellar mechs he ever laid his hands on. The young Avatar mech pilot may not know much of the technical details of this exquisite masterwork mech, but Joshua bet that no one could beat his feel for it. He had become deeply familiar with every single nuance of his powerful mech!
This time, Joshua felt a lot of expectation for his mech.
"Please proceed with activating your mech."
When Joshua did as instructed, the Quint slowly came to life.
Unlike the gradual bond that Imon had formed with his mech, the bond that formed between Joshua and the mech was seemingly greater!
Not only that, but the mech already welcomed Joshua as if he was a husband returning to his wife after a long day of work.
Nothing was unfamiliar to him. The Quint was still the same Quint. It was just that the masterwork mech was somehow able to express its strength and appreciation towards its mech pilot to a much greater degree than before!
As time began to pass, Joshua began to feel the strain that others had warned about. Yet unlike the previous mech pilots, he did not experience much discomfort.
He was an expert candidate! He was much stronger than anyone else in certain aspects!
The mech, noting that its own mech pilot was fully capable of bearing its strength, began to do something different.
Instead of minimizing the depth and fidelity of its bond with its mech pilot, the Quint sought to leverage more out of it. The pressure rapidly rose and the observers began to notice some concerning signs.
Ves, who had been watching carefully, immediately noticed that some of the parameters were rising without cause.
He immediately became vigilant. "The Quint isn't supposed to do this. Why have some of its systems become more active? The mech is still at rest!"
Joshua did not notice anything outside of his bond with his mech. As his connection between his mech grew more vigorous, a part of him started to feel as if he had gone heaven.
This is what mech piloting should be like!
"Quint.. You're a fantastic mech. I never realized you were so marvelous."
Ves began to look a bit strange as Joshua seemed to melt into his mech. Though none of the data spiked, a lot of life signs began to rise in a calm and steady fashion.
It was as if some kind of tsunami was forming. The momentum emanating from the Quint began to rise. The mech gave everyone an illusion that a slumbering dragon was about to wake!
"My mech.. is truly alive now." Joshua whispered with genuine wonder. "I always knew that LMC mechs were alive, but this is different. I'm not piloting my mech, I'm working together with the Quint! We are equals now!"
As the momentum from the mech continued to surge, Ves suddenly noted that another important parameter started to rise.
The resonance meter began to bump!
Ves immediately slapped the shutdown button.
The bootup sequence abruptly stopped before it had completely run its course. Joshua went from experiencing a transcendent high only to get ripped away from the mech he melded with the next second!
The sudden transition immediately induced a jarring headache to Joshua!
"Agh! Why did you stop it?! I was almost there!"
"That's why I can't allow this test to proceed, Mr. Joshua. Your time has not yet come. I need the Quint and you to shine in our upcoming battle against the Allidus Alliance. It's a waste for you to take the next step when there is no one around to fight."
Joshua was devastated. He truly felt as if he was about to grasp a better way to connect and bond with mechs that reached out to him. The Quint had become so much stronger and more suitable to him that he didn't want to go back to the old style of piloting mechs!
It was too bad that Ves had different intentions in mind. He already had the data he wanted. He had no intentions of getting anything more out of this experiment.
"The session is over. Joshua, please exit the cockpit. All of the Bright Warrior mechs must be locked down and secured. I will be inspecting each of them in person. Thank you for your cooperation."
Chapter 2352: Reciprocal Growth
Ves was very satisfied with the round of experiments. The mechs enhanced to 25 percent, 50 percent and 75 percent saturation all stimulated their mech pilots to perform successively better.
The differences were fairly minor at 25 percent saturation, but those who were filled up three-fourths of the way exhibited pretty noticeable improvements in many areas.
The benefits of strengthening the spiritual foundation of his mechs were evident. The effects roughly matched his expectations, though he knew that a lot more time needed to pass before he could witness more drastic results.
If Ves had the leisure to run his experiment properly, then he would have left all of the affected Bright Warriors in their current states.
"I can't do that this time." He whispered to himself. "No matter how curious I am about the differences in their development, it's all moot if the pirates beat my forces. I need to survive first before I can explore my ideas further."
He already planned to raise the saturation of every mech to at least 75 percent. This appeared to be the level that most of his Avatars were capable of harnessing.
Trying to pair all of them with mechs at 100 percent saturation would likely go very poorly. The two Avatar mech pilots who had been carted off to the infirmary were proof that too much power was not always desirable.
Of course, the biggest surprise came from the two times that his test subjects succeeded in interfacing with the most powerful and dangerous group of mechs.
The success of Imon Ingvar proved that every mech pilot with spiritual potential met some kind of requirement that allowed them to endure the strain imposed by their mechs.
Ves had keenly noticed that once Imon had gotten over the initial bump, the young mech pilot became increasingly more relaxed. Either the heightened strain was temporary or Imon and his Bright Warrior mech had somehow managed to adjust to each other.
This was a good development. After all, a mech pilot that had to effectively resist the pressure of his own mech during battle would actually perform worse in battle! Such an awful outcome went against his original intentions. Ves would rather strip his mech of most of their added strength if that was the case.
"I still need to see how this develops in the coming weeks."
The experiment hadn't strictly ended after Ves prematurely ended Joshua's chance to pilot his newly-empowered Quint.
While it was possible for growth to happen instantly, Ves knew that his changes needed time to show their full value.
"Hopefully, the strength of all of the affected mechs and mech pilots will evolve quickly enough to make a difference a month later."
Of course, the mech that received most of his attention was the Quint.
When Ves moved to the Redfeather in order to inspect the individual mechs, he visited the Quint right away.
Joshua awaited his arrival with a resentful and grumpy expression. He made for a stark contrast with his current mech, which seemed to be extraordinarily active on a spiritual level. Its glow had become richer as well.
The masterwork mech had become greater than any of the other fully saturated mechs. Part of that might be due to its inherent advantage in quality, but Ves guessed that having a fantastic mech pilot like Joshua was also an added benefit.
Before the Quint received its latest boost of strength, its spiritual foundation was already more developed than the regular Bright Warriors, and it was mostly thanks to Joshua.
What took place today largely concurred with his current framework on mechs and spirituality.
When the mech was weak but the mech pilot was strong, the latter slowly nurtured the former.
Ves inferred that the reverse might also be true.
If the mech was strong but the mech pilot was weak, the latter would experience faster growth. Ves intended to track the improvement of all of the mech pilots that piloted the special mechs very closely.
The only snag was that not every mech pilot was capable of getting along with a mech that had grown too powerful.
It was a given that mechs that were 100 saturated provided the most benefits to their mech pilots.
The precondition was that the mech pilot was qualified enough to harness such strength.
So far, two mech pilots without spiritual potential failed to finish the bootup process.
To be honest, Ves was dissatisfied with the lack of observations.
What if another spiritually weak Avatar mech pilot managed to get over the most difficult hurdle?
Was it possible for this category of mech pilots to increase their tolerance to the point where they were capable of withstanding the burden?
If not for his current difficulties, Ves would have wanted to follow up on these questions.
For now, he didn't have the luxury to do so. He needed to pursue fast growth with as little complications as possible.
Since no one who piloted a mech at 75 percent saturation experienced any backlash, Ves was already willing to apply this standard to all of the other LMC mechs in his fleet.
Aside from perhaps the Doom Guard, Ves wanted to empower as many mechs as possible with this new innovation.
Empowering hundreds of mechs did not come without a cost. All of those Deliverers, Aurora Titans, Bright Warriors and possibly other mechs demanded a lot of spiritual energy to fill them up to 75 percent saturation.
Ves wasn't worried about this issue. Only Goldie had to borrow her spiritual energy. Many of his remaining design spirits weren't short on spiritual energy due to the fact that they presided over mass-produced mech models.
If the amount of mechs that needed to be empowered numbered at at least ten-thousand, then Ves might start to worry.
This wasn't a concern this time because the amount of LMC mechs in the fleet was not numerous enough to impose an excessive burden to any design spirit.
Unexpectedly, designing mechs for the market provided an added benefit to his current circumstances. His design spirits would have never been so flush with spiritual energy if he had chosen not to sell his mechs to the private sector!
Ves knew that he needed to continue with this current course. As his Larkinson Clan grew in numbers, more and more mechs had to be enhanced to 75 percent saturation. This was very costly and could quickly deplete the spiritual energy reserves of his design spirits.
The only way to ensure that his Larkinson mech pilots utilized the strongest possible mech was to keep harvesting the spiritual feedback of millions of mech pilots.
"I might even need more if the current limit grows."
When Ves observed certain powerful mechs such as the Quint, he noticed that its spiritual foundation was actually stronger than the spiritual foundation of Imon Ingvar's Bright Warrior.
There was still room for growth in this area. The better the mech pilot and the older the mech, the higher its maximum limit reached.
While this entailed many possible dangers to the mech pilots who bonded with these growing mechs, Ves believed that they were capable of growing in tandem. A growing mech would never let its mech pilot remain stagnant.
"Sir? When will I be able to pilot the Quint again?"
Ves turned his attention back to the present. "Don't be so impatient. You'll get to pilot it when we need you at your best. Right now is not the time."
"What? Sir, you can't take the Quint away! I need to pilot it! Please! Just let me connect with it for a time!" Joshua pathetically pleaded.
Unfortunately for the mech pilot, Ves remained unmoved. He already had a thorough plan in mind. No amount of begging would convince him to release the Quint.
He studied his masterwork mech with a critical eye. "I'm going to upgrade the Quint."
"Is that possible?" Joshua looked startled. "I thought that masterwork mechs had to remain exactly the same in order to retain their quality level."
"That's not strictly true." Ves shook his head. "There is still room for change. Otherwise, getting hit even once might ruin the Quint. The most important requirement is to retain the essence of the mech."
Joshua didn't understand much about mech design. All he cared about was how Ves intended to strengthen the Quint.
"What do you intend to improve?"
"I have progressed quite a bit since I completed the Bright Warrior design. I know it well, and I have thought about solving some of the issues inherent in the design whenever I thought back on it. The main complication is that we are still in the Nyxian Gap. Despite all of the plunder that we have obtained, we don't have access to all of the exotics I need to perform the upgrades I want."
"Does that mean the Quint won't be as strong as you want it to be, sir?"
Ves grinned. "Oh no. Quite the opposite in fact. We have looted a lot of random exotics, some of which are very powerful or have very interesting effects. It might be possible to combine them into fantastic parts that can add powerful capabilities to the Quint."
Part of the benefits he gained from this experiment was that he possessed a deeper understanding of the essence of mechs. Though he hadn't proven all of his theories yet, he was confident that he was able to upgrade a masterwork mech.
The Quint was his own work, after all. He possessed a very strong feel for the mech. If someone other than Ves or Gloriana tinkered with the mech, the chances that something would go wrong was significantly greater. Yet because Ves was revisiting one of his old works, he merely had to refresh his memory.
Perhaps he could plan his upgrades with Gloriana. Both of them designed the Bright Warrior design after all and two heads were better than one.
In fact, they could also design some upgrades for some other mechs.
Joshua's exaggerated reaction towards his enhanced mech suggested that Ves might be able to provide his other expert candidates with opportunities.
Ves intended to replace their current mechs with Bright Warriors configured and modified for their specific inclinations.
Perhaps this might actually be a way to exert control over when his expert candidates were able to advance to expert pilots!
In any other circumstance, Ves would have leaped with joy if he found out that this was a viable method to accelerate the breakthroughs of expert candidates.
Many of them had waited for quite some time! Even if a formidable pirate fleet was bearing down on Task Force Predator, Ves always doubted whether all of his remaining expert candidates would be able to advance during the decisive battle.
Now, he had cleared much of his doubts.
Of course, Ves and Gloriana would have to perform extensive modifications to customize the new mechs to the expert candidates. Aside from Joshua, none of his other remaining expert candidates piloted an LMC mech.
Due to lack of time and resources, Ves planned to take some Bright Warriors and tailor them their new users.
The versatility of the Bright Warrior design was very helpful at this time.
Commander Dise was very compatible with the swordsman mech configuration. Ves might even ask Ketis to assist in preparing this specific mech.
As for Commander Orfan, Ves could either hand her a lancer mech configuration or start from a swordsman mech configuration but replace its sword with a spear.
Tusa's case was a bit more difficult. He specialized in light skirmishers. As Ves hadn't designed a serious light mech yet, he wasn't able to provide Tusa with an easy solution.
Spiritual foundation enhancement only worked for LMC mechs, so it was not very practical to apply this technique to Tusa's current machine.
Perhaps it might be possible to give Tusa the mech he needed by taking a Bright Warrior and modifying it extensively. It wouldn't be the first time that Ves stripped down a medium mech to the point where it became a light mech!
Chapter 2353: Gathering of Candidates
The most skilled and powerful mech pilots of the Larkinson Clan each entered the Scarlet Rose's conference room.
It was rare for the expert candidates to actually gather in a single room. Usually, they were confined to their own cliques within the Larkinson Clan. Aside from their elevated piloting ability, they didn't share much in common.
That said, they weren't strangers with each other.
In addition to the expert candidates, Ves also invited Venerable Jannzi to attend the meeting.
Her presence instantly dominated the conference room upon entry. Even if she didn't deliberately exert her force of will, her aura worked similarly to glows. No matter who was in her presence, people couldn't help but become affected by her strong will.
Norms with weaker, unempowered wills were most susceptible to this effect. If most expert pilots weren't so noble and principled, it would have been easy for them to abuse their auras for unscrupulous purposes.
In fact, some people argued that the expert pilots of Vicious Mountain had already crossed this line. Their obsession with earning glory in battle had warped the lives of everyone who lived in the star sector.
Fortunately, the people attending the meeting all possessed strong wills of their own. As expert candidates, Joshua, Tusa, Commander Orfan and Commander Dise all possessed the ability to remain true to their own selves when faced with external pressure.
Ves may not possess the empowered wills of the rest, but he was a Journeyman with some very strong ideas of his own. Mech designers at his level never lost sight of their ambitions.
"Please take your seats." He spoke.
The three chosen of Qilanxo opted to sit together. For some reason, Orfan and Dise both sat besides Venerable Jannzi as if they were flanking the expert pilot.
Though this seating arrangement made sense from a mech piloting standpoint, the differences in age was difficult to accept.
Joshua and Tusa both sat in their own corners of the conference table. While they were acquainted with each other, they weren't particularly close with each other either. Their lives hardly intersected and their interests diverged.
Curiously, Joshua did not sit next to his supposed girlfriend. Perhaps this might be due to the professional context of this meeting, but Ves couldn't help but be concerned.
Joshua was one of the most valuable mech pilots to Ves. With his rare life domain, his compatibility with LMC mechs was nearly perfect. Keeping him happy and ensuring he remained committed to the clan was an important priority.
If Ves wasn't so swamped with responsibilities, he might have chosen to meddle with their relationship.
"Alright, everyone is here, so let's begin. The reason why I have invited you to this meeting is because I want to make sure that each of you are at your best when we confront the Allidus Alliance. I am sure that you have witnessed or heard about the experiment that I have conducted on the Bright Warrior mechs of the Avatars of Myth. Though the tests haven't entirely gone smoothly, I have gathered enough data and proved enough theories to support my next initiative."
It didn't take much thinking to realize what he was talking about.
"Are you applying this new invention of yours to our mechs?" Commander Orfan asked.
"Not exactly. You are correct that I will be making full use of my latest innovation, but I won't be applying it to most of your mechs. One of the conditions of my newly-developed trick is that I can only apply it to my own mechs. Venerable Jannzi doesn't strictly need any help, and Joshua's Quint has already received the necessary treatment."
"I don't entirely know what has changed, but from what little I've experienced, it's as if the mech that I was familiar with has truly come alive." Joshua remarked. "I just feel so frustrated that my session was cut off!"
"It's for your own good, Joshua. I don't want you to release your pressure prematurely."
Joshua let out a frustrated grunt. "I'm pent up, sir! I feel like I'm backed up! Do you know what kind of torture it is to look at the Quint but be prohibited from piloting it? And why did you take away my permission to pilot other mechs? I'm so itchy!"
Ves threw a flat look at the young man. "Hold it in. Don't you dare let go. If it helps, I can allow you to pilot some of the salvaged pirate mechs we have picked up from the previous battle for some reason. Only the cheaper ones, though. I don't want you to pilot anything too powerful."
"What?! That's hardly better! Most of them are trash!"
"That's the point, Mr. Joshua. Piloting a bad mech may be a better way for you to keep your skills sharp. You've been too pampered by the Quint and my other excellent mech designs. While I am glad that you are able to master each of my products, you should broaden your horizons."
Joshua's horrified face expressed everything he thought about this suggestion.
In truth, Ves wanted to use this method to build up Joshua's desire to pilot the Quint again. The greater his yearning for the masterwork mech, the more impressive his eventual breakthrough would become! Frustrating him a bit by forcing him to pilot awful pirate mechs with not a glimpse of life within them was a good way to build up the anticipation.
Ves wanted Joshua to explode as violently as possible.
He smiled at Joshua in a patronizing manner. "It's for the good of the clan. We need you at your absolute best, so don't be in a hurry to obtain your satisfaction. I promise you that your release will be greater than ever! While I can't make too many modifications in a month, I will be sure to upgrade several key aspects of your mech so that it can fully support your efforts in the battle that will decide our fate."
"What about us?" Orfan asked.
"Those of you who don't pilot an LMC mech can keep using your current machines. Just keep in mind that you won't be piloting them in the decisive battle. Unless something has gone wrong, I will be passing heavily-modified Bright Warrior mechs to the three of you. Each of them will be upgraded and customized to fit your preferred fighting style."
The three expert candidates who were the targets of this program looked surprised.
"Are you crazy, Ves?!" Orfan erupted. "Switching mechs isn't trivial! Even if we're expert candidates, we still need a couple of hundreds of hours of drilling and practice to understand how to use our new machines to the fullest! Without this preparation, we'll never be able to perform at our best!"
"I understand the downsides, but I am confident that you'll be able to adjust quickly. The performance of the custom Bright Warriors will definitely exceed that of your existing mechs. They're still third-class mechs, after all. The base model of the Bright Warrior design already exceeds most of their parameters."
Commander Dise frowned. "There is more to a mech design than the numbers on the spec sheet. Some designs simply don't match my fighting style. I don't want to pilot a mech that is too awkward for me to employ my sword style."
"Ketis will assist in customizing your new mech. The two of you can work closely to make sure that the modifications complement your fighting style rather than detract from it. Will that assuage your concerns?"
The Swordmaiden leader visibly relaxed. "I trust Ketis. As a fellow sister, she knows exactly how I prefer to fight. Just make sure to listen to her recommendations. The Bright Warrior in its swordsman mech configuration is decent, but… it's clear you only possess a superficial understanding of swordsmanship."
Ves accepted her light critique. "I'll address this shortcoming in due time, but I am inclined to let Ketis handle everything related to swordsman mechs."
"What about my machine? You haven't made any spearman mechs." Commander Orfan stated.
"Your mech requires a bit more work. Are you comfortable with piloting a lancer mech?"
She shook her head. "Lancer mechs are too inflexible. Now, don't get me wrong. I love how they can punch through anything with their charges. It's just that it is not my style to conduct hit-and-run attacks. I like to get into the fray and dual my opponents up close."
"I see. Then just like Commander Dise, I will start with the swordsman mech configuration and work my way from there. I understand that wielding a spear is different from wielding a sword in battle, so don't hesitate to review my work and tell me what aspects need to be changed."
"If this is the best that you can do, then okay. I can live with this as long as my new mech is good enough."
With Commander Orfan placated, Ves turned to the final expert candidate. "Tusa, your case is the most difficult of all. I truly don't have a suitable light mech in my mech catalog, so I can only take a Bright Warrior and overhaul its structure and armor scheme."
The light mech specialist looked ugly. "These conversions rarely succeed. Medium mechs are simply built differently from the ground up. Even if you remove a lot of fat from a Bright Warrior, the bones can't be thinned so easily."
"That is.. correct."
"I have witnessed these situations several times." Tusa smiled sardonically. "Some mech designers believe that all you need to produce a light mech in a hurry is to tear out a lot of armor and other parts from a medium mech. It never quite works out because the mechs often end up in between."
"I'm aware of the challenges. Although I haven't designed any serious light mechs, I am confident I'll be able to work something out. The light mech that I'll deliver to you next month will certainly satisfy most of your demands."
"Just make it fast. I don't care about armor or weapons. As long as its acceleration is top notch and its agility is good, I can cope with the rest."
This was not a light demand especially due to the situation that Tusa had just described. Ves would have to perform some pretty deep modifications to Tusa's custom mech in order to fulfill this major demand.
Ves believed he was up to the challenge.
"Gloriana will be assisting our efforts by remote. With her participation, each of your mechs will be sound. Aside from that, these mechs will be more responsive, more complementary and more welcoming than your current mechs. You can just ask Joshua or the other Avatars if you want to hear the benefits of my latest innovation."
"What is this exactly supposed to do for us?" Tusa asked.
His reluctance to this initiative was the greatest. He possessed the least amount of confidence that his new custom mech would meet his requirements.
Seeing that the other expert candidates needed some convincing as well, Ves decided to be open about it. "Each of you is on the cusp of breaking through. What if I tell you that I think that pairing you up with your new custom mechs can guarantee that you'll be undergoing apotheosis?"
Everyone except Joshua looked shocked!
Even Jannzi looked a little startled!
"Is that true, Joshua?"
"I don't know. All I can say is that it works for me, but then again the Quint isn't a normal mech. I've already bonded a lot with it. Who knows whether this will work when you pilot your new mechs for the first time."
"He's not wrong." Ves admitted. "There is no guarantee that this measure will work the way I intended. Still, it's better than letting you keep your remaining mechs. A small chance of breaking through is better than no chance. Now, do you still doubt the necessity of replacing your current mechs with my customized works?"
No one raised any more objections.
Chapter 2354: Wish List
After the general meeting, Ves talked with each of the expert candidates in private in order to hear their initial demands.
He started with Joshua first.
"In the decisive battle, we need to pair you with a mech that can allow you to threaten an enemy warship." Ves spoke. "Two out of four of the Bright Warrior configurations are suitable for this purpose. A lancer mech will allow you to perform a single overwhelming attack while a rifleman mech will give you substantially more reach. Which one do you prefer?"
"I'm used to piloting the lancer mech configuration, but I can brush up my marksmanship skills if you need me to. It's just.. will either be able to allow me to fight against a warship?"
"Breakthroughs will always allow you to exert more power than usual. This is especially the case when you reach Unity of Man and Machine."
"I'm not Jannzi."
"You're right. You are not like her. That doesn't mean you should underestimate your own ability. Out of all of our expert candidates, you have the greatest understanding of my mechs. While I can't say whether it will truly happen, I have high hopes for your ability to meld with the Quint."
"It would help if I can pilot it a few times." Joshua remarked.
"Don't bother making this request again. I have already told you my answer. Now let's return to our original question. Lancer mech or rifleman mech?"
This was a very impactful choice. His choice of configuration had the potential to change the entire course of the upcoming battle.
After half a minute, Joshua made his choice. "I'd like to keep the lancer mech configuration if possible. I always felt as if it is the most powerful configuration of the Quint, sir. My mech is able to penetrate much tougher obstacles than the regular Bright Warriors. This is a powerful advantage."
"You made the right choice." Ves smiled.
Of the five gems that Ves had used to build the Quint, one of them stood out due to its high amplification factor.
[Fist of the Faithful]
The memory of a punch that changed the course of the galaxy resides in this gem. Increases the impact damage inflicted by a mech by 30 percent.
The sole advantage provided by this gem was not trivial. Ves eagerly wanted to leverage it even further when he improved the Quint. Whether it was enough to threaten a warship, he didn't dare to make any claims.
The few instances where expert mechs directly confronted warships often ended in tragedy.
The power of a demigod seemed uncomparably frail compared to a heavily-armored ship that was capable of outputting enough damage to crater an entire city in a matter of minutes!
Only ace pilots were able to offer meaningful resistance against sub-capital warships.
As for god pilots, no one knew what they were capable of. The rumors suggested that they were worse, equal or even superior to CFA battleships.
Joshua was not a god pilot. He wasn't even a proper expert pilot yet. Even if he broke through in the most powerful way imaginable, there was only so much he could do. That was why Ves did not bet all of his chips on this plan alone.
Still, making sure that Joshua was able to exert more power would definitely open up some opportunities in the upcoming battle.
Once the two decided to settle on a lancer mech configuration, Ves called up a wireframe model of the Quint and began to illustrate some of his suggested changes.
Many of them were rather subtle and overly technical, so Joshua quickly got lost. It wasn't until Ves marked out the miniature missile launchers that the young expert candidate paid attention again.
"I never used those missiles. I never found a need to resort to them." Joshua said.
"I know, but the opponent we'll be facing is different." Ves responded. "The biggest disadvantage of missiles is that it's not easy to stock up a mech with a lot of missiles. You have to make the most out of the limited payload the mech is able to carry. I intend to replace the standard second-class missiles supplied to the Quint with custom, handcrafted missiles."
"You're making them yourself?"
Ves grinned. "Oh, you betcha. All of the other Bright Warriors that I intend to supply to the other expert candidates will enjoy the same treatment. We have accumulated a lot of medium and high-grade exotics from Ulimo Citadel. At least some of them can produce potent explosive reactions."
"This isn't enough. Once I fire all of the missiles loaded in the Quint, I'm dry."
"That's okay. This is just a secondary weapon system. Let's move on to the core enhancements of the Quint."
Ves outlined several improvements to the acceleration and the shock-absorbing systems. He also proposed to replace the Quint's current lance with a different one that was substantially stronger.
Joshua was surprised at the last suggestion. "Do we have a material that is stronger than Breyer alloy, sir?"
"Yes, though it's not easy to work with. I might have to spend a lot of time on this subproject."
Ves intended to make the Quint's new lance out of Unending alloy. Even though he hadn't found a way to work this first-class alloy, he might be able to manage something if he cooperated with Lucky.
His cat still suffered from an awful stomach ache, but hopefully that might change in the coming weeks.
If not, Ves was prepared to cure his cat in any way he could.
"Do you have any specific requests? Do you think the Quint in this configuration is missing something?"
"I…" Joshua trailed off for a moment. "Lancer mechs are kind of one-dimensional. I could use another weapon if charges are impractical. I'm not talking about a backup knife. I want something I can use to tear something up without building up momentum."
That was not an easy request. "I can pair the Quint with another weapon, but your mech isn't geared towards brawls. A lot of capacity of the lancer mech configuration is taken up by its shock-absorbing systems. It has to carry all of these cumbersome parts because you and your mech are liable to squash yourselves flat if these components are absent."
"I don't need anything too fancy. I can rely on my skill to overcome the awkwardness of my mech."
Even though people such as Melkor might not be able to win against a Swordmaiden in a swordfight, he was still able to hold his own to some extent.
Against regular street thugs, a trained soldier like Melkor would still be able to win the fight with relative ease when both of them were wielding swords for whatever reason.
A talented mech pilot such as Joshua possessed a very broad skillset. His skills were not in question, but the frame of a lancer mech didn't really possess the agility and full range of motion that allowed real swordsman mechs to outduel their opponents.
Ves couldn't do much to address this problem without creating other problems.
After discussing some other matters, Ves finished his discussion with Joshua.
The upgrades to the Quint weren't very complicated. The lancer mech configuration still retained its essence. Ves merely planned to add some selective improvements to enhance its core functionality while possibly adding a touch of flexibility as well.
He ended his meeting with Joshua and called up Commander Orfan. He replaced the projection fo the Quint with the projection of another Bright Warrior mech.
"I intend to create your spearman mech by adapting the swordsman mech configuration of the Bright Warrior. Do you have any specific requests that you think might help?"
She pointed at the spear held by the projected mockup of her future mech. "This spear looks a bit thin."
"Don't worry. It's a lot stronger than you think. Don't think it is weaker because it's not as thick as a typical spear. It's made out of incredibly hard material. The mech will break before the spear begins to crack."
Commander Orfan looked impressed. "If that's the case, then I don't have as many complaints. I actually like thinner and lighter spears because I can launch my attacks faster. Just make sure the spears are straight and solid. I don't want to fight with those weird floppy poles that bend and tumble as if they are acrobats."
"I didn't plan on supplying you with this kind of spear. It's rarely used in the Komodo Star Sector."
"There's something else I want you to add to my mech. I want you to add a small shield to my mech."
"Uh, are you sure?"
She nodded. "It would help a lot if I have something that can absorb a lot of damage. Just make sure it isn't big enough to slow my mech down. I don't want a big fat tower shield."
"Understood. I'll pair your mech with a modest shield."
The Valkyrie Redeemer design already possessed a lightweight shield, so Ves could just copy it over while making some small adaptations.
She didn't impose any other important demands, so Ves quickly moved on to hearing Commander Dise.
"Ketis will know what I want for my mech." The Swordmaiden Commander uttered. "It will take too long to list out my exact requirements to you. I am very particular about the swordsman mechs I pilot. The Bright Warriors that are armed with swords are too balanced for my tastes. Aside from their admittedly impressive defense, they aren't weak or strong in any other aspect."
"I've studied some of the swordsman mechs in your mech roster. I take it you want something that is more focused on offense?"
She nodded. "Defense is good and all, but that is not our way. We cut through every obstacle or evade the attacks we can't afford to take."
Part of that was due to necessity. Back in their pirate days, the Swordmaiden mechs couldn't really handle too many complex repairs. High-quality armor systems were not only expensive and challenging to source, but difficult to repair when damaged. It was better for them to rely on simpler mechs that may not be the toughest but were easily to service in resource-deprived regions.
Though these constraints no longer applied to the Swordmaidens, they had already developed a strong martial tradition around these limitations.
"I will make sure to improve the mobility of your mech. I'll focus on enhancing its reaction time, agility and immediate acceleration. The armor system will largely remain similar, so its defenses should still be as good as before. As for the weapon, I might cooperate with Ketis to replace the Breyer alloy greatsword that is paired with your current mech with something better."
"I look forward to seeing the result."
She didn't put up a fuss. Of course, Ves didn't think she was charmed by his design ability. She mainly placed her trust on Ketis. As long as the Swordmaiden mech designer had a say in the project, Commander Dise had nothing to be concerned about!
This kind of unflinching trust was very touching to Ves. Dise did not express an inkling of doubt towards Ketis. Even though the two hadn't spoken about this topic, the Swordmaiden Commander already believed that Ketis would succeed!
How come other Larkinsons didn't exhibit this degree of closeness? It turned out that there was still a lot more room for improvement for his clan. Ves hoped the rest of his clan would develop this degree of implicit trust and intimacy.
After they quickly completed this discussion, Ves raised another topic to the Swordmaiden leader.
"There is something else I'd like to talk to you about."
"What is it?" She looked at him questioningly.
"I.. have another experiment. It's not tested and it's mostly theoretical, but if it succeeds.. It might be possible to empower your Swordmaidens through completely different means. Are you interested?"
"I'm not sure. Your experiments.. aren't exactly the cleanest."
Chapter 2355: Forgotten Group
Ves explained his intentions to form some kind of way to pool the minds of the Swordmaiden mech pilots through mysterious methods.
Since he didn't really know yet how to accomplish this unprecedented feat, he failed to articulate his complete vision.
It couldn't be helped. Much of what he intended to do was related to spirituality. Though he didn't really care about the MTA's insistence on keeping 'psionic power' secret, exposing it to Commander Dise would only complicate the situation.
Unfortunately, Dise saw through his obfuscation.
"You're talking about something dangerous, aren't you?"
"Uhmm… it's largely theoretical, but there is still a solid foundation behind it. Think about what has changed ever since you joined the clan. Have you ever thought it was odd that you feel a lot more close to your fellow non-Swordmaiden clansmen than you normally should?"
She frowned. "Ketis said something about Golden Cats and whatnot. I don't really understand what is going on, but I know that this is anything but normal."
"We're all connected to an invisible network." Ves succinctly said. "This network doesn't do much other than affect our perception towards our fellow clansmen. However, I have barely scratched the surface of this network. I can do much more with it, though I still need to work out the details."
"That sounds very vague. Maybe it will help if you explain what exactly you want to accomplish."
"Are you familiar with Master Huron? Probably not. Let me explain his work to you. He has been a great inspiration to me. If I wasn't exposed to his design philosophy, our clan would have never become so cohesive at this time."
When Ves showed the Swordmaiden Commander what Master Huron accomplished, she looked impressed.
"I can see how this can help. I admit that I'm impressed with these neural networks." She raised an eyebrow at him. "I don't see what this has to do with you, though. You are not a Master Mech Designer. You are not Master Huron's apprentice. In fact, if any of this involves modifying neural networks, then I will immediately end this conversation. Don't think I am unaware of some of your experiments on Aeon Corona VII!"
Ves awkwardly coughed. "This is different. I would never treat your Swordmaidens like I did the dwarves at Aeon Corona VII. Your Sisters are valued people. I haven't forgotten about your sacrifices at Kesseling VIII. It's because I value your Swordmaidens so much that I want to grant them all a means of gaining greater power."
He finally managed to sway Dise to an extent.
"I'll have to discuss your proposal with my fellow Sisters. Nothing will happen unless we all agree to take part in this.. Experiment. While we are eager to gain more power, we don't want to throw away our lives."
"I don't want any of you to die. This is why I'm urging your Swordmaidens to take part in this experiment. My network is different from that of Master Huron, but the benefits should be similar."
"I will think about it and discuss it with my subordinates."
That was the best that Ves could accomplish. Contrary to the superficial image of the Swordmaidens, Commander Dise wasn't the type to mindlessly take action. She couldn't afford to be as reckless as some of her subordinates when the future of her mech troop was at stake.
The pirate outfit founded by Commander Lydia had suffered so many successive setbacks that less than a single mech company was left. Until their trainees graduated from their years-long training regime, the Swordmaidens weren't going to expand in numbers anytime soon!
Due to the very limited number of mech pilots among the Swordmaidens, each of them were irreplaceable treasures. Neither Ves nor Commander Dise wanted to lose the irreplaceable heritage that every surviving Swordmaiden mech pilot possessed, but the desperate circumstances left them with little choice.
Aware that the Swordmaidens in their current form wouldn't be able to play a major role in the upcoming battle, Dise reluctantly decided to take this suggestion seriously.
Once Commander Dise left, Ves met with the final expert candidate of the clan. Tusa Billingsley-Larkinson did not look content.
"So now it's my turn." Tusa crossed his arms. "Did you deliberately put me at last?"
"What? No! I just wanted to speak to you last because the mech I intend to prepare for you requires a lot more work."
"Oh. I see."
Ves summoned two separate projections. It depicted the Bright Warrior mech in both its swordsman mech and rifleman mech configurations.
"As you can see, the swordsman mech configuration is an excellent melee combatant, but it is too heavy to fit in the lightweight class. The rifleman mech configuration features a considerably slimmer profile and is much closer to what I intend to shape for your custom machine. The problem is that its musculature and overall layout is optimized for ranged combat."
"What does this mean?"
"As I have said, your mech requires much more work to make than others. I have to redesign a lot of aspects right down to the deepest portions in order to shave off mass. Unless you are willing to pilot a medium mech, I will have to spend a lot of time to design and implement all of the necessary changes. It might be possible that I won't be able to finish your new mech at the time the enemy pirate fleet forces us into battle."
Tusa reacted nonchalant at that. "If that is the case, then so be it. I'm already familiar with piloting my current machine. Getting a better one is nice, but not entirely necessary."
"I'm glad you are so accommodating. For what it's worth, I don't intend to leave you hanging. I haven't spent as much time on you as I did with some of the other expert candidates."
"We light mech pilots are used to being ignored." Tusa sardonically remarked.
"Ah, that won't be the case for long." Ves quickly replied. "I intend to design a very good light skirmisher for the Larkinson Clan in the near future. The Flagrant Vandals have been requesting one for a while, but I'll make sure the rest of the clan has access to the new model as well. I'll definitely make sure that yours fits your piloting inclinations like a glove."
"I'll take your word for it, Ves. It's about time for our clan to receive a powerful light skirmisher. My fellow light mech specialists feel as if you don't acknowledge their existence. In fact, if not for me, they might even doubt you are aware that our clan has mech pilots who prefer to pilot lighter machines!"
Obviously, Tusa shared the same sentiment. Ves could feel some of the edge in the expert candidate's nascent force of will. It became a bit more agitated, which meant that Tusa likely spoke from his heart.
Ves looked apologetic. "I will truly make it up to you all. The wait will be worth it as all of the improvements and innovations that I have made in the last couple of months will all be applied to your new light skirmisher mechs. Unlike the Bright Warrior, our new light skirmisher design will become a full second-class mech design. This means that once you and your compatriots obtain your new mechs, you'll be able to stick with them for many years. They'll easily stay relevant, and if that's not the case I'll publish a minor revision to the design to elevate its performance."
The hefty promise finally placated Tusa. The expert candidate wanted to stand up for his fellow light mech specialists, and he accomplished his goal. There was no reason for him to put up a tough exterior anymore.
"Thank you. Ves. You're a fantastic mech designer, and from what I know, you have always abided by your promises."
"My word is gold. I always mean what I say."
Ves realized that he needed to hurry up with replacing all of the non-LMC mechs in the clan with his own mech designs. While it took a lot of time to represent all of the essential mech types, he would just have to expand the role of his design teams.
"Oh, by the way, don't just design a single light mech and leave it at that, Ves. There are more light mech types than light skirmishers, you know. Not everyone remembers this detail. Even if the other varieties of light mechs are rarely used, they can be very powerful under the right circumstances. I know for sure that the Flagrant Vandals will request more varieties of light mechs."
"I'll take that into account, but generally speaking we can't neglect medium mechs either. In our situation, medium mechs are our mainstay mech models. We aren't short on funds or resources, which means we can invest in more durable mechs. In fact, we are much more limited by our available pool of manpower. Each Larkinson mech pilot is precious. Putting more of our mech pilots into light mechs is not desirable."
"I don't want to see that either." Tusa said. "Piloting light mechs is a calling. Those who aren't cut out to pilot them are better off with frontline mechs or something. It takes a special kind of daring and courage to entrust your life to a machine that can shatter into pieces after suffering just a couple of serious hits."
Ves respected the mech pilots who chose to pilot light mechs regardless of their glaring weaknesses. They were the true daredevils of the mech community.
When Ves finished his enlightening discussion with Tusa, the round of meetings had finally ended.
He gained a good impression of what the expert candidates wanted to see in their custom mechs.
These designs were vital and Ves expected to spend much of his time on developing them all. He was even prepared to put aside most of his workload related to the Design Department's ongoing design projects.
Gloriana was very understanding towards him. With his life, it didn't matter if it took an extra month to finish the Valkyrie Redeemer design.
Besides, it wasn't as if those projects stalled the moment Ves shifted his priorities. Gloriana and the design teams were more than capable of completing the projects by themselves.
Ves only needed to stop by every couple of days in order to clean up and direct the spiritual development of the developing mech designs. He also had to flesh out their other spiritual properties, but that didn't demand too much of his time.
More and more, he felt like he needed multiple copies of himself to handle his increasingly growing workload.
He even thought about ordering Ranya Wodin to cultivate a couple of clones of himself.
Since the spiritual version of Ylvaine was able to breathe life into the physical copy of Ylvaine, Ves vaguely guessed that he might be able to do the same.
If he could develop a technique that was similar to his mother's incarnation ability, then he might be able to control additional instances of himself!
How great would it be if he could make more copies of himself, each of which were capable of handling as much work as his original self?
Ves slapped the side of his head. "This is a stupid idea!"
First, some aspects of his body couldn't be replicated. Some aspects of his Jutland organ had become completely unique, and clearly he wouldn't be able to gain another implant as good as the Archimedes Rubal.
Aside from these practical constraints, Ves also feared what would happen if his clones somehow gained independence. What if they didn't want to work for the real Ves anymore? What if they wanted to live their own lives?
Just the threat of such a rebellion was enough to deter Ves from following up on this idea.
"It's probably impossible to accomplish such an unreal feat." Ves muttered.
He would have to be a god to be able to make this work, and he was clearly not a divinity.
He was just a mech designer.
Chapter 2356: Same Boat
The war had changed for the worse.
Venerable Ghanso Larkinson smelled the desperation from some of the Fridaymen. Despite the upbeat news, despite the pronounced victories, most of the Fridaymen who served at the frontlines knew that the Hexers were continuing to gain ground.
The Crestfallen Stars were teetering on collapse! It was only a matter of time before the hinterland and the core provinces of the Carnegie Group became vulnerable to successive raids and invasions!
The Friday Coalition couldn't let this pass.
Lady Aisling Curver already warned him that the CRC intended to reinforce Unit L with additional expert pilots.
"That's good." Ghanso responded. "They're all good mech pilots that can make a difference in this war. Why us, though?"
"The brass thinks that we are worth investing in. We'll not only be able to replenish the lost Scarra faster, but also gain some help in other ways. Be ready to greet some new guest expert pilots."
"Please tell your superiors that I prefer to serve alongside other Brighter expert pilots. Our shared background and training will allow us to get in sync right away."
"I will pass on your request, Ghanso, but my influence is limited. From what I have heard, the brass believes it is better to split the foreigners up in order to avoid the formation of insular cliques. When you wear our uniform, we expect you to dedicate yourself to the Friday Coalition."
"We are losing ground against the Hexers. I don't think this is the time to focus on integration. We need to gain immediate battle effectiveness in order to stall the Hexer."
Back when he served in the Mech Corps, Ghanso became acquainted with many Brighters. He trusted his mates from the Volari Starhawks with his life and developed ties with many other honorable Brighters.
Though the Hex Army unexpectedly drove the Fortune Legion from the Marrakath System like rats, a few individual units performed brilliantly enough to mitigate the disastrous defeat.
After killing more than half-dozen elite Hexer expert pilots, Ghanso fully gained the Friday Coalition's recognition. Master Huron was already exploring options to start up additional units with asymmetrical networks while Aisling largely washed away her guilt for letting Ves Larkinson hijack her assigned ship.
Neither Ghanso nor Aisling were pleased at their modest success. Killing a bunch of Hexer expert pilots would likely save the lives of several thousands Fridayman mech pilots over the course of the Komodo War, but that hadn't been enough to stave off a crushing defeat at one of the Crestfallen Stars.
The Blessed Squire and its revolutionary glow changed everything. The crazy Hexers became even crazier whenever they fought in the vicinity of one of these annoying supportive mechs.
According to some strategists, the sudden entry of the Blessed Squire onto Marrakath III directly spared the Hexers the lives of at least a hundred-thousand mech pilots and trillions of coalition credits worth of supplies and war materiel!
What was worse was this was just the start. Even when Ghanso heard that the Master Mech Designers of the Friday Coalition were close to publishing their first counters against the Blessed Squire, the powerful force multiplier was showing up in almost every battlefield!
They were ubiquitous on land and became more common in space after the Hex Army started to deploy them onto floaters, which were basically levitating platforms adapted for combat.
Though slow, inefficient and unwieldy, the Blessed Squires flying around on top of floaters gradually caused the Friday Coalition to suffer more losses in crucial space battles.
The ripple effects of the introduction of the Blessed Squire potentially caused more than a million valuable Fridayman mech pilots to perish ahead of time.
This was a very serious consequence that directly tilted the balance in favor of the Hexers!
Such an outcome couldn't stand. With increasing desperation, the Friday Coalition reached out to more and more lesser states in order to poach their most talented mech pilots.
The Coalition not only borrowed a lot of foreign expert pilots, but also started to recruit a lot of talented third-class mech pilots.
The elite mech pilots from the smaller states such as the Ylvaine Protectorate and the Bright Republic were able to pilot some the best standard mechs of their respective mech militaries.
Now, they were only qualified to become the Friday Coalition's cannon fodder. By piloting resilient but simplified frontline mechs, these new additions were one of the Fridaymen's many countermeasures against the rising momentum of their archenemies.
When the first batch of reinforcements finally arrived, Ghanso eagerly awaited his new colleague.
Unfortunately, he did not like what he saw.
"You!"
Ghanso reacted with shock!
Standing opposite to him was a woman who wore a similar uniform as his. Though Ghanso knew that the Coalition Reserve Corps engaged in an extensive recruiting spree in the past couple of months, he never expected to see a familiar face!
Aisling calmly approached the new arrival and shook her hand.
"Venerable Relia Foster. Welcome aboard the Pallas Intaer. We have just transferred to this new combat carrier, but we have made sure to reserve some room for you and your upcoming expert mech."
The Vesian expert pilot perfunctory accepted the handshake and looked around. "I am not pleased with this assignment. While I am willing to do what I can to help you defeat the Hexers, I can tolerate only so many stunts. Why am I standing in the same room as a Brighter?"
The air between the two expert pilots turned volatile as their wills pressed and clashed against each other.
"Venerable Ghanso Larkinson is different from Mr. Ves Larkinson. He is opposed to his cousin."
"THAT MAKES THIS WORSE!" Relia burst out! "I cannot stand you Larkinsons! You and your family have inflicted untold damage to my state. While I can reluctantly accept the fact that both of our states are allied to the Friday Coalition, that does not mean that I am willing to fight alongside one of the butchers of my fellow Vesians!"
"Oh?" Ghanso growled and stepped forward in a menacing posture. "I can say the same for you, witch. You're one of the biggest hopes of the Hafner Duchy. You have tons of Brighter blood on your hands. Why don't I take revenge for the lives of my fellow compatriots right away?"
"ENOUGH!" Aisling shouted. "Calm down and act like adults for once!"
Upon her command, some bodyguards moved in between the two acrimonious expert pilots. Even though it was difficult for the guards to endure the strong wills of both expert pilots at close range, they were well-trained Fridaymen who possessed a natural sense of superiority against third-raters.
Soon, the distance between the Brighter and the Vesian doubled. Aisling stared at both young expert pilots with considerable irritation.
She didn't agree with Venerable Foster's transfer. She already knew that sparks would fly once the two former enemies met. What happened completely fell in line with her expectations.
"Neither of you are allowed to pursue any old grudges and private vendettas. The Bright-Vesia Wars are relics of the past. Your two states no longer have any reason to fight against each other after a lot of devastated territories have opened up for reclamation. The Bright Republic has also lost the Bentheim System, so it has lost much of its value."
The fall of Bentheim was a very sore point to Ghanso, who witnessed its fall up close. Though the sandmen were to blame for launching their final apocalyptic offense, the Bright Republic would have been in a better position to resist the aliens if the Vesians hadn't been spoiling for a fight a few years prior!
His hatred of the Vesians almost exceeded his hate for Ves and his band of traitors!
After the bodyguards forcefully dragged them to different rooms, Ghanso spent some time cooling himself down. Aisling visited him a half hour later.
"I expected better from you, Venerable Larkinson."
"The CRC deliberately presented a former enemy in front of my face." Ghanso resentfully growled. "How else do you think I'm supposed to react? It would be the same as if a Hexer suddenly stepped up to you. Would you really be able to restrain yourself when Gloriana Wodin—"
"DO NOT SPEAK THAT NAME!"
Ghanso shut up, but his eyes twinkled as he made his point.
He knew about Aisling's obsession with his hated cousin. Mesmerizing this brilliant Fridayman mech designer was yet another crime to lay at the feet of the destroyer of the Larkinson Family.
Ever since he learned about Aisling's fascination, he tried to convince her to move on many times. A loathsome profiteering bastard like Ves did not deserve her affection.
It was too bad that any news about Ves' exploits only made her even more regretful at her missed opportunity.
Aisling finally calmed down a bit. "Look, neither of us likes this situation. I really don't know why the brass decided to transfer Venerable Foster to Unit L despite all of the warning signs, but we have no choice but to work with the hand we have been dealt. Can you bring yourself to forget about the past and work to secure our future? Not just the Friday Coalition, but also lesser states are at risk of being subsumed by the Hexers."
She was right. A Hexer victory would definitely lead to a comprehensive transformation of the Komodo Star Sector. Just like in Vicious Mountain, a single dominant second-rate state in a star sector would definitely spread its cultural influences to the third-rate states.
Both Brighters and Vesians were at risk of slowly losing their unique identities! Instead, they would slowly take on Hexer norms and begin to treat men and women differently.
This could not happen!
"...I understand. I will try to get along with Venerable Foster." Ghanso reluctantly promised.
"Good. I'll call her in so that you can introduce yourselves to each other properly this time. I hope that the both of you can take the bigger picture into account this time."
"I am not a lout, Lady Curver. I know when to take a step back."
Once she made sure that Ghanso meant what he said, Aisling activated her comm and transmitted a brief signal.
Venerable Relia Foster entered the compartment and stoically stepped forward. "Venerable Larkinson. Lady Curver is right. The Komodo War is too big and pivotal to allow any room for us to solve our grudges. Let us bury the hatchet for the duration of this exceptional conflict. We can always resume our fight after we have dealt with the threat of the Hexers."
Her response precisely matched his own intentions. It seemed that they had more common ground than he thought!
Without hesitation, Ghanso stepped forward and shook her hand. "Welcome to Unit L. Though it will take some time for me to accept fighting alongside a Vesian, neither can I accept the Hexers taking over our star sector. If I may ask, how will you fit into Unit L?"
Venerable Foster turned to Aisling, who gave the new transfer permission to talk.
"A new expert mech is under development. It is set to be called the Jeanne d'Arc, and it will mainly be a swordsman mech. I will be offering close-ranged protection to you under normal circumstances, and I will also be able to support you against the more formidable Hexer expert pilots such as the Ruination Witch."
"What are the strengths of your Jeanne d'Arc."
"I'm not exactly sure, but it will take a lot to take it down. It won't be a problem for me to fight in extended engagements."
Aisling looked pleased as the two expert pilots no longer generated any sparks between them. Perhaps the upper ranks were right in putting former enemies together. Though expert pilots were known to stand their ground when it came to their principles, they were also able to change if it benefited their cause.
Friend or foe, the two enemies were on the same boat now. Both of them had to do their best to survive the coming Hexer storm!
Chapter 2357: Minxie
"Whahaha! Bow before me! I AM INVINCIBLE!"
The Adonis Colossus flew majestically in space as Vincent Ricklin-Larkinson was having the time of his life!
Though he was merely taking his mech out for a spin, he felt as if he had made a small breakthrough in his piloting skills.
How else could he have suddenly increased his performance and won more points in the simulated drills?
His large mech had become a familiar sight in high orbit of Cinach VI. The locals, the traders and the Hexers all ignored the sight of the strange mech with a flowing particle cape trailing behind its back.
The rifle in one of the Adonis Colossus' hands barked out a couple of harmless false shells that precisely hit the target dummy bots that were whizzing back and forth a fair distance away.
At the same time, the mech relied on its heavy armor to deflect the stab of a simulated light skirmisher.
"I've been eying you from the start, you rat!"
With a single swing of the Adonis Colossus' blade, the projection light skirmisher broke into pieces as the powerful attack decisively registered as a fatal blow to the non-existent mech!
On and on the solo practice session proceeded. Vincent exulted in his greater ability to pilot his mechs as he felt more in tune with his personal machine than ever!
"My mech is singing to me, and I'm singing back! Damn I'm good!"
His talent for piloting mechs must have finally bloomed into splendor. There was no other way to explain his increased performance!
The only snag was that his improvement didn't carry over so well when he piloted other mechs. Whenever he piloted a landbound mech to practice his duelling skills for his upcoming competitive matches, he seemed to lose a large amount of fluency in his piloting skills.
"Maybe I'm bad at piloting landbound mechs." He thought. "I'm better off piloting mechs in space!"
After he completed his practice run, he brought his mech back to one of the carriers of the Living Sentinels. He hopped out of his cockpit and handed his mech off to the mech technicians before entering a shuttle that brought him back to the surface.
Though the commute was rather tedious, Vincent had no choice to take these regular trips. The Adonis Colossus was at home in space and did not perform well on land.
Once his shuttle reached the landing zone of the temporary Larkinson Clan base, Vincent exited the shuttle and walked across the extensive courtyards.
The Larkinson Clan had grown even larger in the past couple of months. Recruitment of critical personnel may have slowed down, but it never stopped. Vincent constantly spotted new faces, each of which seemed to have come from further and further away.
No matter where they came from and who they used to be in the past, they all became Larkinsons once they passed all of the requirements.
"Hey, Vincent!"
"Good luck on your next match, Vince! I'm rooting for TSV!"
"Take care not to piss off the Hexers next time."
"I did not mean to insult them!" Vincant protested. "I was just complimenting those beautifully toned stomachs as those babes were running across the field. How could I know that they were willing to chase me all the way to the men's toilet and kick me to pieces?"
"You enjoyed it though, right?"
"I'm not THAT kind of a man!"
All of the banter was well-meant. As one of the more flamboyant members of the Larkinson Clan, Vincent was something of a local celebrity. His Adonis Colossus alone ensured that every Larkinson would learn about him in time, though not everyone thought well of him and his chosen occupation.
He heard a lot of talk behind his back about his choice to pass on an opportunity to be a part of Task Force Predator.
As much as he wanted to prove his courage, Vincent was wary of the Nyxian Gap. Just like Raella, he had enough of war. As much as he wanted to prove his masculinity, he hadn't survived this long without developing a keen sense of danger.
The latest news that had come from the Nyxian Gap did not bode well for the clan. Though the Larkinsons at Cinach VI all tried to maintain a normal routine, beneath the surface a lot of elements were moving.
When Vincent finally returned to the accommodation he shared with his girlfriend, Raella sat glum at the window.
"You're back." She said flatly.
"Is work bringing you down?"
"It's the usual. The LCS is not as easy to organize as I thought, and interest in watching our preseason duels has dropped ever since the news broke that our fellow Larkinsons are in serious trouble."
"That's odd. From my experience, people are even more eager to seek out fun when times are hard."
"We Larkinsons are different from the rabble you mixed with before. You're not a part of the Bentheim Liberation Movement anymore."
"Eh." Vincent shrugged as he walked up behind her and pulled her into a hug. "There are more similarities than you think."
The two fell silent for a moment as they took in each other's company. Raella eventually pushed herself off her boyfriend.
"How was practice?"
"Great as ever." Vincent replied as he approached the sofa and took a seat. "Where's Minxie?"
"She's taking a nap maybe. MINXIE! Where are you?"
It took a moment before Vincent and Raella heard a response from an adjacent room.
"Nyeow! Nyeow!"'
Raella instantly melted as she turned to greet the arrival of a young feline. "Minxie! There you are. Did you just finish your nap?"
"Nyeow."
The woman picked up her pet and hugged her white-furred companion with an adoring smile.
Raella and Vincent's adoption of a cat was another custom that had taken over the Larkinson Clan. The clan had ordered a large variety of specially-bred cats from Felixia.
Though the new cats weren't as amazing as Lucky and Clixie, the new cats like Minxie each had their strong points.
What was common to all of them was that they enjoyed longer lifespans. They had also developed a measure of sentience and were capable of learning and understanding human speech.
There were other advantages, but that did not change the fact that the cats were still pets. They did not strengthen the clan, but they enriched the lives of those within.
Since the Larkinson Clan was known for its cat motif, many Larkinsons defaulted to adopting cats. Only a small minority adopted other pets such as lizards, insects, birds and dogs.
Raella took a liking for beautiful cats. She chose to adopt a surprisingly gentle modified white persian than a more active and energetic pet.
Though Vincent disagreed with her choice at first, he had come around later on. Minxie was simply too adorable for him to dislike her. When he approached Raella, the cat curiously looked up at his face.
"Nyeow?"
"Who's your daddy?"
"Nyeow!"
Raella giggled. "Pfff! Stop teasing our little kitty. She's too innocent for your humor."
"Who said I was joking?"
The two cuddled and played around a bit with Minxie before the cat quickly lost interest. Once the white persian chose to doze off in her new cat bed, Vincent and Raella sat together on the sofa.
"So… how are you holding up, Raella?"
"Not that good, to be honest. I can't help but worry about Ves and the rest of our clansmen. They're being hunted by pirate warships of all things. I can't believe the Big Two allow the pirates to get away with building them. Now, our trapped Larkinsons hardly have any choice but to fight their way through the worst of the Nyxian scum."
"You already heard Gloriana. There's nothing we can do but put ourselves in danger. Our mechs are simply too weak at the moment. It's better that the Wodin Warriors sent a couple of thousand mechs in their stead."
"I still felt I could have done more." She sighed. "I don't usually feel this way."
"Our clan has a way of worming its way into your heart. I used to think that all of this emphasis on fellowship, brotherhood and kitties was soft. Now that I've been in the clan for a while, I can't imagine turning back to my old life. I never had a real family before now, you see. Here, I can be myself or be the Vincent that everyone knows without caring too much about what others think."
"This has always been the case in our old Larkinson Family. It was just that we didn't have this weird clan glow that causes us to feel close to our fellow clansmen at all times. The implications are kind of disturbing."
"I like it." Vincent straightforwardly said. "It helps with making friends. Without it, our clan would have devolved into a collection of factions. Everyone who came from the same state would have stuck with each other with little reason to go out. I've seen that happen in the BLM to some extent as the boys from the same city stuck together despite being told to get along with the other rebels in the same cell."
Raella looked at Vincent with a curious expression. "Do you truly not miss your old life anymore?"
"Being a rebel sucked. I only joined because I had problems with my family and expected more from the BLM. I didn't really care about fighting for Bentheim's independence. I just wanted to start a new life and feel like I belong."
She knew about some of the details of his sordid past. Vincent had lived a colorful life and developed a colorful personality. That excited her, as did his formidable prowess.
"Our new life will be under threat if Task Force Predator can't make it back."
"I know." Vincent squeezed her shoulder. "I'm not giving up hope, though. While I don't think that Ves and his pals can run away from the pirates forever, I think it's possible to stay out of reach of the pirate warships and prolong the chase long enough for the Hexers to come to the rescue."
"Oh, have you become a genius navigator, or are you just saying something random?" Raella sneered.
"Hey, I heard this from one of the mech captains. The Nyxian Gap is filled with meteorites and a lot of other junk. It's not easy to chase after a single target."
"We'll see. I don't want to develop any false hopes."
Raella almost couldn't believe how Ves could bring himself to go on this risky excursion. Her wildly-successful cousin could be so stupid sometimes.
The two continued to share their concerns over the course of their idle talk.
Meanwhile, Minxie crawled up to their laps and demanded their affection.
"Nyeow!"
"Oh, you pretty princess you. Your fur is so soft and fluffy."
Vincent smiled as Raella became besmitten by her new cat again.
"Do you think we can get another pet?"
"Huh? Is Minxie not enough for you? She's more than cute enough to satisfy us both!"
"It's not that, Raella. I just think like we could spice up our lives with a dog."
"No. Forget about it, Vincent. Minxie is enough. If she's lonely, we can get her another cat. Under no circumstances will I allow you to bring a dog or any other animal."
"Why not? Do you hate dogs?"
"I love them, but I love cats more. This is one thing I have in common with Ves. His Lucky is amazing."
"What about obtaining a mechanical dog? They're pretty low on maintenance but they can be even better companions."
"I told you to stop it. No dogs allowed. Besides, mechanical dogs aren't really alive. They're just good at pretending they are. How can you love a bunch of computer code?"
"I don't know, but Ves seems to do fine."
"Lucky is different! So are other cats!"
Though Vincent appreciated cats as much as anyone, some Larkinsons simply took it too far!
Chapter 2358: Mother's Child
The mood at Task Force Predator slowly recovered from a low point.
Even though the prospect of facing not one, but several pirate warships worried the Larkinsons to no end, the threat only galvanized them into working harder.
To some, every second counted. Finishing repairs a day sooner meant that the Larkinsons would have more mechs to field at the time of the decisive battle.
An interesting dynamic took place. Even when it looked as if they had restored plenty of mechs, the mech technicians kept dragging up wreckage to restore to working condition.
Ejections typically happened quite a lot in battle. The ejected mech pilots would usually fly back to their motherships and mostly sit around until the battle had ended.
Not this time. The casualties suffered by the Larkinsons gave them much greater leeway to build up a reserve. Ves even decided to make more room on his carriers by dumping out the least valuable loot.
With the most difficult battle of this run on the horizon, no one cared about bringing home riches or earning an extra bonus. They just wanted to get back home alive.
For this reason, every material aboard their ships became accessible for use in various applications.
For example, the Larkinsons salvaged a lot of wreckage that used to come from the Penitent Sister mechs that had succumbed in the previous battle.
Though the grey mechs pounded their internal parts to pieces, much of their armor plating still remained intact or in pristine condition.
The enterprising mech designers and chief technicians eagerly claimed this armor and crudely installed them on specific mechs such as Aurora Titans or other defensive mechs.
The hasty jury rigging did not look elegant at all. The low-ranking mech designers neither had the time nor the skill to implement more cohesive modifications. They just wanted to give their mech pilots a greater chance to withstand enemy fire.
"Come on, boys! These mechs aren't going to armor up by themselves! We still have three more mechs to reinforce by the end of this week."
Whether these actions would help remained to be seen. If the Gravada Knarlax fired her main cannons at any of the crudely-upgraded mechs, a bit of extra second-class armor plating wouldn't meaningfully change the outcome.
Still, the extra armor would definitely come handy when the Larkinson mechs fought against the pirate mechs. The strong layers also allowed the mechs to last a little longer when targeted by secondary gun batteries.
Nobody thought this was enough to tip the scales of the fight. Ves knew he had to do more in order to give his task force a meaningful chance of defeating the enemy punitive fleet.
He had already begun to do that by promising to upgrade the mechs of the expert candidates in the clan. He even offered to upgrade the Shield of Samar, though how he would do so still remained to be seen.
As a real expert pilot, Jannzi's role in the coming battle might ironically be eclipsed by the expert candidates.
Jannzi had already broken through. No bottleneck stopped her progress anymore. Though her smooth growth was good for the clan in the long run, it was counterproductive in the current crisis.
Expert pilots without expert mechs were only capable of channeling a fraction of their strength.
The lack of resonating materials in the inventory of the task force was a very sore point to Ves. Even if he couldn't develop a complete expert mech for Jannzi, having some resonating materials at hand would have given her some additional strength in the coming battle.
"I guess she'll have to make do with a mildly-upgraded Shield of Samar."
Ves intended to replace her shield with one made out of Unending alloy. This was the fastest, simplest and most convenient way to upgrade the Shield of Samar's strongest aspect, which was defense.
All he needed to do was to find some way to carve out a large, rectangular chunk of this material out of the statue of the Unending One. Hopefully, Lucky would recover quickly, because the cat was the only cutting implement that Ves knew of that could damn well chew through anything!
"Lucky can probably drill a hole through the hull of a CFA battleship if he wanted to!" Ves joked to himself.
If Lucky still remained sick, then Ves would just drive his gem cat to work. No one in the fleet who could be of use was allowed to slack off at this time!
As Ves arranged many matters and laid out several bold plans, he also took the time to meet with the Penitent Sisters.
Instead of requesting Commander Chancy to meet him aboard the Scarlet Rose, he decided to go to her instead. He took a shuttle and traveled to the Surly Cockatrice. The large Hexer combat carrier did not exactly look inviting to Ves due to her six-sided interior, but the mood among the Penitent Sisters wasn't as hostile as before.
Months of fighting along with constant companionship had a way of turning any strangers into battle buddies. While the Penitent Sisters weren't exactly friends with the Larkinsons, they implicitly trusted each other to cover their backs.
This was very welcome progress to Ves, but he wasn't satisfied with that. This was why he met Commander Chancy in an empty conference room. Juliet Stameros, the resident head designer of the Penitent Sisters, sat by her superior's side.
"Mr. Larkinson." Chancy greeted with a neutral tone. "I believe you wish to talk about something of great import."
"I do." Ves nodded and casually sat on one of the available chairs. "As you know, our task force is facing a great threat, but we are not about to roll over and let the pirates have their way with us. No matter how small the odds, we will fight them to the end."
"We share the same sentiment." The leader of the Penitent Sisters smiled. "If we put in our all, we might be able to take down some of the pirate smaller warships. Ridding the galaxy of a pirate destroyer or a couple of pirate frigates will hopefully be enough for us to achieve redemption."
She spoke as if her death and the death of her subordinates was already set in stone.
Ves raised his chin. "What if I told you there is a way to accomplish more? What if I told you there's a chance of winning the upcoming battle?"
Perhaps other people would be fooled by his confident boasts, but the Penitent Sister Commander was well aware of the overall strategic situation.
"That is very unlikely."
"You'd be surprised." Ves smiled. "After all, didn't we accomplish successive miracles in the previous battle?"
"That was just a fluke." Juliet Stameros interjected. "Venerable Jannzi has earned all of our respect. Her dedication to her mech is admirable and has put many of our fellow Penitent Sisters to shame. Of all of the mech pilots in your clan, she is the only one who is worthy to achieve perfect resonance."
Ves slowly shook his head. "You know too little. The Shield of Samar isn't my most brilliant mech in our fleet. The Quint is considerably more potent. What do you think will happen if Joshua breaks through? What if all of our other expert candidates break through as well with the custom mechs that I intend to provide?"
Both Penitent Sisters tried to imagine the sight. If it worked out the way that Ves hinted, they might be able to witness more miracles!
Commander Chancy recognized that she was being caught up in Ves' rhythm. She quickly calmed herself down and regained her composure. "While I welcome any development that increases our odds of victory, what does this have to do with us? Why have you come, Mr. Larkinson?"
This was the moment where Ves revealed his ambitious proposal. "I want you and your Penitent Sisters to accept some of my arrangements. While some of them seem radical, it is in our best interests to augment your strength as much as possible before the decisive battle starts. It will be hard on you all, but if any of you survive, I promise to let you join the Larkinson Clan."
"Pardon?!"
"Are you serious?!"
"I am absolutely serious." Ves spoke with a straight face. "Aside from Gloriana and Ranya, I refused to let any other Hexers join my clan. However, considering your valiant service during the time that you have stayed with us, I am willing to make an exception on account for your great valor and contributions in battle. Even if the Hexadric Hegemony doesn't want you back, you have already redeemed yourselves in my eyes."
Both women looked very conflicted. Emotions such as disgust, confusion, repulsion and other negative emotions flitted through their faces.
Juliet settled on confusion. "Why.. why would you think we want to join your clan? Ever since our fellow Hexers have forced us to seek our penance, we have been working towards earning our penance. All we have ever wanted was to return to the Hegemony and be welcomed with open arms."
"While I don't claim to understand you Hexers well, I know enough that they will still consider you tainted no matter what you do." Ves stated while crossing his arms. "You were a problem that the Hexers needed to get rid of. Why should they want you back?"
"Chasing after an unattainable dream is better than settling for less."
"My clan is not any lesser than your former state. In fact, as long as we are able to sustain our current rate of progress, we might far exceed the Hegemony one day."
Valerie Chancy looked skeptical. "That is unlikely. Even if you do manage to accomplish this, it has nothing to do with us. We're Hexers, not Larkinsons. The prosperity of your clan is as irrelevant as the wealth and splendor of the Terrans and Rubarthans."
"You are wrong, commander. I have already revealed so much to you over the course of this excursion. Let me remind you of a true Hexer."
Ves did something he would ordinarily never do. He concentrated his mind and reached out to the dormant Superior Mother.
Even if the still-transforming ancestral spirit had entered a state of hibernation, Ves was still able to interact with her to a degree.
He attempted to channel a portion of her presence through his body. He wore his mother on his mind like a mask and deliberately tried to amplify her strong, motherly glow.
The process unexpectedly went smoothly. Ves somehow felt that he was incredibly compatible with the Superior Mother. It was as if his mother embraced her son!
Of course, another reason for their incredible fit was because Ves was the Superior Mother's progenitor. It was a given for his mother to embrace him because she was his child.
The effect he managed to induce immediately took over the conference room.
Both Valerie Chancy and Juliet Stameros became gobsmacked as Ves radiated the same vibe as the statues of the Superior Mother that the Penitent Sisters had started worshipping.
For a moment, both of them were barely able to process what they were sensing from Ves. They already suspected that Ves had some ties with the Superior Mother, but this was the first time they directly witnessed his relation to the revered Supreme in such a direct fashion!
"You are blessed by the Supreme, no, you are truly her son!"
"How can this be?! You're not a Hexer, yet.. It's as if you are more of a Hexer than us! This is impossible!"
Though Ves loathed to play the role of a charlatan, he really needed the Penitent Sisters to be fully onboard his plans. He did not hesitate to sell out his principles in order to bring the exiled Hexers fully under his heel.
"The Superior Mother is my birth mother." Ves boldly claimed. "You may take that as figuratively or literally as you wish, but I am her only envoy in the material realm. Do you know what this means?"
"Ummm.."
"Let me ask you a question." Ves held out his palm. "Would you rather earn the redemption of the Hexers who rejected you and cast you out of the Hegemony?"
He held out his other palm and concentrated some of the Superior Mother's glow onto it. "Or would you rather receive your absolution from the greatest Hexer Supreme?"
A shocked silence swept through the compartment.
Chapter 2359: Perfect Test Subjects
As the strongest element of the fleet, the Penitent Sisters would definitely play a crucial role in the upcoming battle.
As Hexers who possessed unusual ideas and uncertain loyalties, the former cultists could either save Task Force Predator or hasten its demise!
As Ves did not like to leave this question hanging, he wanted to secure their loyalty for real.
The problem was that the Penitent Sisters didn't have much in common with the Larkinson Clan. They used to be some of the worst kind of Hexers imaginable. They fit every man-hating stereotype that foreigners held towards the citizens of the Hegemony.
He did not think it was impossible to integrate the Penitent Sisters into the clan. Ves had already noticed that the exiled Hexers had mellowed out during the time they traveled alongside Ves and his clansmen.
Months before, Ves fabricated and distributed a bunch of statues of the Superior Mother to the Penitent Sisters.
As expected, they became charmed by the glow of the supposed Supreme and worshipped it every day. To the Penitent Sisters, the Superior Mother was their greatest example! The authority of this mythical figure exceeded that of any matriarch of their home state!
Therefore, getting their buy-in turned out to be incredibly simple. Ves merely had to channel the Superior Mother a little bit and he easily managed to hoodwink these gullible Hexers.
His contempt towards fanatics had risen because of that. No wonder Prophet Ylvaine used to be able to seduce entire states with his drivel. The more someone was inclined towards fanaticism, the less they engaged in critical thinking!
Asking simple questions such as whether the Superior Mother was real or whether Ves was even channeling the genuine article never came up. Commander Chancy and Head Designer Stameros easily accepted the falsehoods that Ves had spouted.
After the two Penitent Sisters swore their devotion to Ves and the Superior Mother, they calmed down a bit and asked what he had in store for them in the future.
"It won't be easy to earn your redemption from the Superior Mother." Ves spoke in a normal mood. "You will need to go through the fires of damnation yet again and pass the tests that I will set for you. None of them are trivial. I have no doubt that many of you will fall and turn to dust. However, those who can survive these successive challenges shall be reborn anew under the Superior Mother's blessing!"
He had already drawn back the ancestral spirit's presence because he didn't want his mother hanging over his shoulder all the time.
Regardless, his audience remained fixated by his earlier illusion. This was good, as Ves would easily tire if he had to do the whole song and dance over again whenever he met with the Penitent Sisters.
"What must we do, sir?"
Ves spread his arms. "I will pass on a number of plans in the coming weeks. You will have to make a lot of sacrifices, beginning with your ships and mechs. I hope you aren't too attached to them, because we will probably have to use them up in the upcoming battle."
The Penitent Sister Commander frowned. "You intend to use them as consumables? Do you know how valuable those ships are? You can't just throw them away!"
"No material assets are more valuable than our lives! Wake up, commander. If we don't give our all when we confront the pirate warships, then preserving our ships is pointless. We'll be dead anyway and many of those fine Hexer combat carriers will probably end up in the hands of the Allidus Alliance. Does it please you to hand your precious ships over to the Nyxian pirates? They'll be able to make bolder raids with the possessions that you have left behind!"
"None of us want to help the pirates."
His argument hammered home the fact that nothing should be ruled out. Commander Chancy and the rest of her fellow Penitent Sisters never thought about making more use of their resilient ships because they were long used to valuing them. Even in the Hegemony, a fleet of combat carriers represented an enormous amount of wealth.
"As long as you pass the tests and earn the Superior Mother's redemption, you will join our clan and be able to obtain new mechs and ships that we procure for you. Don't get overly attached to your current war machines. Although it is regrettable to make use of them in a destructive fashion, they will have served their purpose in the most brilliant way possible. I think the Hexers who made your assets would have wanted them to go out with a bang while taking out as many degenerate pirates as possible. Don't you agree?"
"We understand your point." Commander Chancy responded. "Can you tell us what your plans entail?"
"In the short term, your engineers and ship crews will have to transform their ships as much as possible. Each of your combat carriers must be modified to excel at frontal collisions. I want to convert as many of them into ship-sized torpedoes as possible. At the very least, we should increase their bow armor, magnify their sub-light propulsion systems and pack them with as much enriched nuclear warheads and other explosives as we can stuff inside their hulls."
This was an extravagant proposal! To utilize combat carriers as slow, jumbo-sized torpedoes was unimaginable to the Hex Army!
However, this was the only way that Ves could think of to inflict meaningful damage on the Gravada Knarlax. Any other missile or projectile would instantly get chewed up by the hundreds of secondary weapon batteries.
In a frontal battle, only pure resilience or devastating long-ranged firepower could put a dent on a heavy cruiser like the Gravada Knarlax.
Of the two options, the latter was not practical. Building, mounting or adapting a cruiser-grade laser cannon or a kinetic spinal cannon on a ship was not doable under the current circumstances. Ves and the Larkinson Clan lacked the proficiency in making these weapons and they didn't have access to the drydock facilities or the lengthy amount of time required to mount a couple of ships with these devastating weapons.
Ves had no choice but to resort to a more primitive solution. Flinging armored vessels forward was the only way that he believed would work against the pirate fleet, but not just any ship would do. Third-class ships were simply too fragile against large-caliber guns. Only the second-class combat carriers had a chance of making it through.
In fact, he was pretty sure that half or three-quarters of the suicide ships would never make it all of the way to their targets.
That was not a big issue. These ships were very large, very heavy and would probably accumulate a substantial amount of forward momentum once they reached their targets.
Since a heavy cruiser like the Gravada Knarlax was known to be sluggish, there shouldn't be any way for this big fat target to dodge the incoming suicide ships!
Only a couple of collisions and subsequent explosions should be enough to cripple or at least heavily damage the flagship of the Allidus Alliance.
Perhaps the lighter destroyers and frigates might be able to dodge the suicide ships, but the Larkinson Clan could deal with them in other ways.
"There are limits to what we can do in a month." Juliet Stameros warned. "Trying to modify a starship while she has to remain active and on the move is much slower than if we can park somewhere or put her in a drydock facility. Also, I doubt we have the materials required to make the best possible conversions."
Ves casually waved his hand. "Don't bother with trying to make everything perfect. Just do what you can within the deadline. We are not trying to make works of art."
Both of the Hexers understood his point. While they were still fanatics, they were also soldiers. Not every Hexer was as obsessive as Gloriana when it came to pursuing perfection.
After discussing the modifications needed to turn their ships into deadly suicide vessels, they asked what else Ves had in mind.
"I'm not ready to unveil my other plans yet." He admitted. "I'll inform you as soon as possible when I am done with my preparations. Some of them are pretty radical and experimental. I will ask much from your mech pilots, but as long as they have faith in the Superior Mother, I am sure that they shall overcome the danger."
"Can you be more precise? We would like to have an idea of what the Superior Mother requires of us humble servants."
"Let's just say that I am trying to implement a method to tie you to the Superior Mother during battle. I can't say more than this, but if it works the way I think it will, the benefits to you and your mech pilots will probably be substantial!"
His claims suitably impressed his audience. They didn't look reluctant at all. Instead, both Commander Chancy and Juliet actually looked like they wanted to experience what he said right away!
He intended to form a separate neural network for the Penitent Sisters. This one would be different from the network that Ves had planned for the Swordmaidens. He wanted to try out several ideas in order to see what worked and to avoid putting all of his eggs in one basket.
Since Ves was forced to resort to extreme measures in order to narrow the gap between his forces and the pirate fleet, he might as well take advantage of all of the opportunities for experimentation!
As long as he used the current crisis as an excuse, his test subjects became much less opposed to subjecting themselves to radical tests!
In fact, they happily volunteered to take part because their duty compelled them to. They would do anything to help!
Ves inwardly sneered at all of the displays of blind acceptance that he had witnessed so far. These Penitent Sisters eagerly listened to 'boy' just because he found a way to present himself as the envoy of the Superior Mother.
Their reactions only affirmed his belief that fanatics made for the perfect test subjects. They were willing to set aside any doubts to please an illusionary deity, even when it pertained to their lives!
The meeting ended shortly afterwards. Commander Chancy promised to convince the rest of the Penitent Sisters to go support his plans, but it likely wouldn't be easy.
"It will help if you address all of my Sisters in person." She said. "It's easier to believe you if you show yourself to them as you did to us. Otherwise.. It will be difficult to ensure compliance."
"I understand. Schedule a general assembly so I can address as many Penitent Sisters at once."
This was not something that Ves was concerned about. If he could convert Commander Chancy in an instant, then her subordinates likely wouldn't be able to resist his illusion either.
"I have one more question. If.. if we ever manage to make it out of the Nyxian Gap, how will you integrate us in the Larkinson Clan? Will we be able to retain our own identity?" Chancy asked.
Ugh. That was a problem that Ves hadn't fully considered. He was much more focused on the present than the future.
"Don't take our oaths lightly." He warned. "When you join our clan, You are no longer allowed to regard yourselves as Hexer. You are Larkinsons first, and the interests of our clan triumph over every other loyalty. That said, you are allowed to develop your own beliefs or priorities as long as they don't conflict with the core tenets of our clan. Just look at the Ylvainans in our midst. While they have changed remarkably, they still cling on to their faith, though they have made a lot of adaptations."
"Understood. We shall do our best to fit in if we live that long."
Ves didn't need to mention that the Penitent Sisters would have to stop discriminating against boys. He wasn't concerned about this problem at all. Just like Ranya, they were doomed to become more closely aligned to the clan once they joined the Larkinson Network!
Chapter 2360: Defiant Ves
There was so much to do. Ves not only had to start making the custom mechs for his expert candidates, he also had to develop plans and put them in motion.
Even as Task Force Predator slowly moved about while deploying aggressive patrols to beat back the increasing number of pirate scout mechs, every clansmen became swamped with work.
Repairing mechs, modifying mechs, converting starships and more caused the entire fleet to resemble a large scavenger operation. A lot of materials were being consumed in order to ready the forces for the most difficult battle of what looked to be an exceptional campaign.
As long as at least some of the Larkinsons survived to the very end, each of them would all come out as battle-hardened veterans! The value of these mech pilots and other personnel was incalculable and well worth many of the risks that they had taken.
However, it was easier said than done to get to this point. A few miscalculations on his part had led his forces in an inescapable confrontation against one of the most powerful pirate fleets in the Nyxian Gap.
When Ves asked Calabast if there was any way to avoid getting intercepted by the main pirate fleet, her answer remained the same.
"The pirates really hate us." She grimaced. "Did you expect that all of your actions against them wouldn't somehow bite you back in the butt? There are good reasons why neither the Peacekeepers nor any other major pirate groups have tried to assault pirate bases such as Ulimo Citadel, and it's not just because of all of the superweapons defending these locations."
"Yes, yes, yes, I know. Pissing off pirates with friends is a bad idea, I get it already."
"I'm being serious, Ves! While it may sound strange, diplomacy is one of the main reasons why most pirate organizations in the Nyxian Gap remain in existence. No one can withstand getting ganged up by multiple hostile factions. At the same time, no organization can be assailed when backed by numerous allies. Let this be a poignant lesson to you. If we ever travel to a bigger pond, we can't afford to get chased by sharks all the time."
Ves glanced to his display case where the drooping Prosperity Tree looked as if it lost a bit more life than before.
"I don't endanger myself and the rest of our clan because I think it's fun. I'll watch myself a lot more closely once we escape the Nyxian Gap."
"You better."
Calabast moved over to one of the couches in his stateroom and draped herself over it. She tilted her head at Lucky, who was dozing off on the armrest.
"Is he okay? It would help us a lot so we can employ him as a commando cat again."
"I'm not sure, to be honest. I'm willing to give him a few more weeks to get over his indigestion. If nothing changes, then I'll resort to other measures to get him up and running."
A brief silence ensued as Calabast did not immediately make a remark. Instead, she looked around with her head and observed the various pieces of furniture and other objects in the compartment.
"What are you doing?" Ves suspiciously asked.
"I'm trying to take a measure of your personality. It's difficult to pin you down these days. There are moments when you act selfishly and callously and there are other times where you come across as compassionate and caring. It's an interesting duality, but not exactly the most stable one. Don't you think?"
What was Ves supposed to say to that?
"Are you doubting my sanity?"
She released an amused chuckle. Her black uniform rippled as her body shook. "Oh, heavens no! Doubt has long left my mind! I think that anyone who knows you well can already say with a hundred percent certainty that you are not right in the head."
"I am not insane!" Ves angrily stated. "I am just a little bit eccentric, that's all! That's normal with mech designers. Besides, I only look a bit worse at the moment because there's a huge threat closing in. Desperation can lead everyone to extremes."
His answer did not satisfy the spymaster.
"I've seen you spinning around like a hyperactive cleaning bot for several days now. Not only that, you've been cooking up more and more outlandish plans. While I don't necessarily disagree with the measures you are resorting to, I feel it is important for you to regain some perspective."
"What are you talking about?"
"Let me be frank with you." She adopted a concerned expression. "I am concerned about mental wellbeing. While it's true that the Nyxian Gap is capable of bringing out the worst in people, I'm afraid that some of it will stick if we return to civilized space. You've become more unhinged, Ves. It takes a very deplorable kind of person to experiment on his own people."
BANG!
Ves stood up and slammed his fist against his desk!
"I CAN'T AFFORD TO FEEL GOOD ABOUT MYSELF WHEN IT WILL LIKELY LEAD TO OUR DEATHS!"
He stepped forward and pointed his finger towards her. "Don't misunderstand me. I take my responsibilities seriously! I am doing everything possible to get as many of us back home as possible. Didn't you tell me a few days ago that you have already made preparations to sneak away unnoticed?"
"That's different! Escaping a battle that is unwinnable is a reasonable action to take!"
"Abandoning our fellow clan members is far more cruel than what I am doing! At least I am giving everyone a fighting chance! I have never forced anything onto my clansmen. Each of them are ready and willing to gain as much power as possible to achieve an upset against the pirate armada."
The two of them harbored opposing sentiments on this issue. Neither of them were able to reconcile their differences, so they just moved on. Calabast had already made her point and it was up to Ves to find his way out of the dark hole he had entered.
Ves collapsed onto another couch but still remained a bit upset. It wasn't his fault that he had to spin all kinds of extreme measures. The circumstances forced him to do so. If the Larkinson Clan was stronger, he wouldn't have any reason to go crazy!
"We can't live like this, Ves." Calabast remarked as she stroked the sleeping gem cat's back. "Ever since you have started your career, you have been tumbling between danger, rest, danger, rest and so on. You're not growing any younger, Ves. Have you ever thought that Journeymen like you don't have any reason to expose yourselves to extreme risks? You could have sent out this task force without you. Even if it suffers an accident, you would have been safe at home next to Gloriana designing your next mechs."
Though her words made a lot of sense, Ves grew contemptuous at her description. "You know what I think about this cowardice. I'm a Larkinson, and you are supposed to be one as well. How can you not know what we are all about?! We are a clan of warriors, not businessmen or scientists! With the dangers I face, I can't afford to become a purely civilian mech designer like Gloriana. Whatever dangers we are facing right now, I can already foresee that it will be worse in the Red Ocean!"
Calabast stopped petting Lucky and turned to frown at Ves. He looked pretty defiant as he crossed his arms across his chest.
"Have you ever thought about not going to the Red Ocean? As a mech designer, you can do your business anywhere. Before the Red Ocean even opened, you intended to go on a more modest sightseeing tour, right? Why not do that instead? Not only will you be able to spare the millions of merits that you have accumulated, but you'll also be sparing your entire clan from another existential crisis like the one we are currently subjected to. Doesn't that sound better?"
Ves huffed dismissively at her. "I'm not one to take the slow and steady route. There are good reasons why I need to push myself. As a mech designer, I need to be stimulated in order to squeeze the utmost of my potential. Haven't you seen the results of my latest experiment yet? If it works out the way I think it will, I may have unlocked the secret to accelerating the breakthroughs of every expert candidate! I would have never come up with an innovation like this in peaceful circumstances."
His stubborn answer did not sit well with his conversation partner.
"You're insufferable, you know that. We're getting by one of the bad bets you've made. Instead of wising up, you are already looking forward to making riskier bets!"
"Is there something wrong with that?"
She paused. "Do you think it's sustainable to act this way all the time? Even if you don't care about risking your own life, what about the other people you care about? What will you do if your future wife is imperiled? What will you do when your children pay the price of your choices?"
"That's not fair, Calabast."
"This is exactly what you will have to consider if you continue to choose the more dangerous options out of all of your available choices. While I admit that entering the Red Ocean can bring many benefits to us, it's not the only choice we have. As an independent, you don't have to answer to anyone who is above you, but you must still answer to those who are beside you and below you. Are you really determined to stick to your current course?"
"You don't understand." Ves sighed and shook his head. "I am under a lot of pressure. I have to run from some very powerful enemies and I also have to advance as fast as possible. I don't like what you have said, but I am even less willing to accept the alternatives. Every gift comes with burdens. You should know. You signed up with me despite knowing the huge interests involved."
She understood what he was alluding to. The gift that propelled him to success was a tainted one. Even now, Ves always retained his fear of getting cornered by its former owner.
"You're right. I did partner up with you despite knowing what a hot potato you are. It's just that I didn't expect my hands to get burned so much from holding you. I really do hope you will change soon, Ves. If you want to get your dose of excitement, then go engage in politics or participate in some mech games or something. There are many ways that people have come up with to get their fill of excitement without literally putting their lives on the line."
Ves remained unmoved. "I don't know. I don't like it when the stakes are too low."
"I think you'll change." Calabast confidently stated. "When you grow older and start having kids, you'll change your tune. I'm sure of it. You may be a daredevil, but you are also a caring person. I don't particularly like Gloriana but I really hope she can help you enter into a different phase of life."
"Hahaha! That's a funny joke! What about you, hmm? You're older than me, right? You look like you're forty years old. Are you going to tie the knot with anyone? I haven't seen you together with Commander Dise at all. Maybe you should turn your fake relationship into a real one and visit Ranya to produce an offspring. Who will be the mother? Oh, I shouldn't have to ask. There's no way that Dise is the mother in your relationship. When will you be waddling around with a swollen belly?"
Calabast scowled. "That's enough, you brat! My personal life is none of your business! Take care of your own mess before you stick your nose into other people's lives."
"Isn't this what you have been doing this entire time?"
"You naughty boy! Don't make me spank you!"
Chapter 2361: Battle Networks
Long after Calabast had left his stateroom, Ves continued to think back on her words.
She seemed very confident that Ves would change his propensity for risk once he grew older.
"Where does she get that idea?" Ves scratched his head.
He didn't really feel like changing himself. Though he found his current circumstances to be very challenging, he didn't regret the choices he made.
No one won all the time. Every risky decision entailed the possibility of losing. Ves had already accepted this possibility when he initially made his bet. Even though the current circumstances exceeded his estimates, he only had himself to blame, and that was fine.
Perhaps the main issue of contention to him was that he felt a little conflicted about his principles.
As a Larkinson, he should seek opportunities, but at the same time care for his fellow Larkinsons.
There was an inherent contradiction between these two values. It wasn't that much of a problem for the Larkinson Family because the mech pilots assumed most of the risks. The norms mostly remained behind and lived normal lives. No matter how many Larkinsons died on the battlefield, the family's foundation was never under threat.
This no longer applied to the clan. Without the protection of a state, the civilian Larkinsons solely relied on the protection of the mech pilots of the clan. If the latter suffered enormous losses, then the others became vulnerable to predation.
"Maybe I should dial it back in the future."
Though he thought about it, he felt it was pointless to make any choices when the future was so far away. There was no way to predict what would happen years later so Ves felt it was pointless to agonize about it. Certainly, he was aware that he might need to make better choices, but he hadn't come this far by being timid.
"Well, enough moping around. I need to get to work."
He spent time on various priorities such as trying to figure out how to form specialized combat-oriented spiritual networks for some of his mech forces.
Though he only possessed a shallow understanding of Master Huron's neural networks, Ves vaguely understood the basic premise.
A neural network enabled different like-minded mech pilots to pool their thoughts and share them with each other.
This was already a very delicate process under normal circumstances. Any variable or disturbance could easily cause unexpected fluctuations that might cause severe brain damage to anyone connected to a destabilized network!
The genius of Master Huron was that he managed to form a stable neural network that was safe and robust enough to function properly on the battlefield.
This was a true miracle!
Every mech designer knew that messing with neural interfaces was exceedingly dangerous. Master Huron not only performed a couple of tweaks on the neural interfaces of his mechs, but outright expanded their functionality, thereby redefining what neural interfaces were supposed to do. Only a fearless and confident mech designer would be able to realize a design philosophy centered around this insane idea!
Therefore, even if Master Huron belonged to the opposing side, Ves had nothing but respect for this old but inventive mech designer.
Knowing how exceptional it was to develop such an innovative way to increase the battle effectiveness of mech units, Ves became a bit unsure about his own way forward.
"I'm not a Master. I don't know much about neural interfaces, let alone connecting people's minds together."
That didn't stop him from forming the Larkinson Network. When Ves swept his glance to the Larkinson Mandate, the Golden Cat happily administered her bonds with every clansman.
Nyaaaaaa!
Ves couldn't help but smile at the adorable ancestral spirit. "Keep up the good work, Goldie. We need to keep morale as high as possible. Don't be afraid to tell me if anyone is beginning to think impure thoughts."
Nyaaaa.
Though the Larkinson Network he masterminded turned out to be both safe and useful, its applicability in combat was very limited.
For a long time, Ves accepted this, as he never saw any need to fix something that wasn't broken. The Larkinson Clan was already doing fine with its existing advantages.
That no longer applied to the present situation. Ves had to grasp any possible way to strengthen his forces, and forming a better spiritual network was one of his key ideas.
The question that first came to mind was whether he should alter the existing Larkinson Network or form a new network or subnetwork.
Ves chose the latter option. He wanted to confine his new developments to a smaller and more homogenous group of participants.
The existing Larkinson Network was already doing a good job by itself. Ves didn't want to take the risk of breaking it. While he liked to live dangerously every now and then, this was a preventable risk.
While Ves was not a neural interface specialist, he knew a fair bit about spirituality and how they interacted with people. All of the experiments he performed on the captive pirates had borne considerable more fruit than the direct results to his tests. His overall insight and intuition of spirituality had grown substantially.
He possessed just enough confidence to make it work.
Though spiritual networks were not identical to neural networks, Ves nevertheless took a lot of inspiration from Master Huron's applications.
When Ves browsed the galactic net and looked up on the latest instances where Master Huron's products made a splash, he noticed a clear division of networks.
The ordinary users of neural networks all consisted of normal but well-trained mech pilots. Each unit consisted of crack troops in order to meet the prerequisites. It wasn't a secret that every member of the neural network had to be aligned with each other in order to function properly. The greater the heterogeneity, the greater the instability.
If Ves wanted to implement a new spiritual network with this style, then he had to abide by the same logic. Of all of the mech forces at his disposal, only the Swordmaidens, the Battle Criers and the Penitent Sisters met this strict standard.
"Each of them are well-trained veterans with lots of shared battles and experiences under their belt. Their martial cultures strongly emphasize a common identity that sets them apart from other people. In short, they are made for neural and spiritual networks."
The other mech forces regrettably did not meet the necessary standard.
The Avatars of Myth was very strong, but it lacked too much experience.
The Living Sentinels possessed a weaker culture and featured a lot of heterogeneity within their mech roster.
The Flagrant Vandals boasted a lot of veterancy but their martial culture emphasized a lot of autonomy, so every Vandal was different.
"I don't think any mech pilot under these three mech forces will like it when they meld their minds directly to their fellow mech pilots."
Perhaps Ves was making the wrong assumption. The strict standard that Master Huron adhered to only applied to his neural networks.
Spiritual networks were different. Some of the principles were the same, but the implementation was very different. Spiritual engineering did not operate by the same rules as the ones underpinning neural interface technology.
That said, Ves believed it was better to start with the Swordmaidens, Battle Criers and Penitent Sisters. If the results exceeded his expectations and if he still had some time, he might look to augment the remainder in some other fashion.
For now, he focused his attention on his current choice.
He had something special planned for the Battle Criers. They had long been neglected by him even though they had been performing well. All this time, they maintained absolute loyalty to him rather than just the Larkinsons as a whole. Ves wanted to reward them by implementing something that would allow them to stand out from the other Larkinsons.
Because of the elevated risks involved with empowering the Battle Criers in this fashion, Ves wanted to experiment with them later.
His first target was the Penitent Sisters. While their strength made them very important for the upcoming battle, Ves cared the least out of them. Even if they were Larkinsons, he was still inclined to use them up because of their Hexer heritage.
Ves wanted to turn them into his first guinea pigs. He wouldn't shed a tear if any of these crazy Hexer died as a result of his experiments. They were just as good as his pirate test subjects in that regard!
"I can't afford to lose too many of them, though."
He intended to start with a modest amount of Penitent Sisters and slowly add more members to the network from there.
The goal of implementing this new kind of spiritual network was not to replicate the functionality of the existing Larkinson Network. Neither did he want to copy Master Huron's accomplishments.
All he wanted to do was to boost the battle performance of the mech pilots connected to the new network. How this strengthening took shape didn't matter to Ves.
Normally, Ves wasn't confident in his ability to create a network that exceeded the Larkinson Network in this aspect. He didn't really know how the latter exactly functioned. There were way too many gaps in his understanding of spiritual engineering for him to be able to explain every single component.
"That's fine. It's not as if I have to understand something down to the tiniest details."
To Ves, Spirituality was a product of thought and emotions. As long as he willed something to work in a specific fashion, the spiritual energy he manipulated would make it happen somehow.
Of course, this was only practical with simpler applications. Creating vastly more complex spiritual applications such as the Grand Dynamo required way more detail and precision than daydreams could accomplish.
"I should keep it simple, then."
The battle-oriented spiritual network that Ves wanted to create for the Penitent Sisters was based on a fairly simple idea.
He wanted to center this battle network around the Superior Mother!
His mother's position wouldn't be the same as that of the Golden Cat. In the Larkinson Network, Goldie played the role as network administrator more or less. This was a fairly restrained role as Ves aimed for stability and did not dare to ask for more at the time. He also wanted to avoid interfering too much in the lives of his clansmen.
A battle network should be able to do more. Ves believed the key to empowering it was to tie in the design spirit in a more direct fashion. Instead of playing the role as a passive system administrator, Ves wanted to turn the Superior Mother into a source of power to those connected to the network!
This was different from empowering mechs. Ves wasn't really sure what would result from channeling some of the essence of his mother into the Penitent Sisters in this fashion, but he hoped that something good might ensue.
"As long as this experiment succeeds, I can proceed with the next one."
He had something else in mind for the Swordmaidens. Not only were their Swordmaidens some of the most cohesive troops he had ever seen, they were also helmed by an expert candidate that was close to becoming a fully-fledged expert pilot.
Ves took inspiration from the rumored 'asymmetrical neural network' that supposedly allowed Ghanso to run around with fifty quasi-expert mechs.
"What if.. Commander Dise gains her own entourage of empowered mech pilots?"
The result would definitely be different from that of Master Huron's latest innovations, but Ves was eager to see what this expert pilot-focused battle network might produce!
In short, Ves aimed to create two different battle networks centered around two different powerful subjects.
Whether the subject was a design spirit or an expert pilot, both of them were powerful in spirit! As long as he tied them together with mech pilots that were very closely aligned with the central subjects, Ves believed that the risks were manageable.
"Now how am I going to put a battle network together, exactly?"
Chapter 2362: Industrious Hexers
Time went by as the Larkinsons busied themselves with their preparations. Machinists and technicians broke down a lot of valuable scrap and began to clad them onto their ships or mechs, sometimes without any regard for balance or mass distribution.
This was a viable means of upgrading the durability of a mech in the short term. The enemies the Larkinsons expected to face would definitely bring a lot of firepower to the table. Adding extra layers of armor would give many mechs some additional chances of survival.
As for the negative impact on their mobility, Ves and the other leaders did not think much of it. Ves personally designed a special attachment scheme that was semi-modular. The way the Larkinsons slapped the additional armor plating onto the mechs was done in a way to make them detachable when they were rendered unusable.
Simply put, the mechs gained some scales that covered much of their surface. As long as the Larkinsons coated the scrap armor with the color schemes of the respective mech troops, then they didn't look that out of place!
While the mechs only carried a relatively thin layer of additional armor, the starships gained substantially more.
Ves decisively commanded the fleet to use up all of the relatively lower-value bulk metals that filled many of the cargo bays. While it was difficult to shape these materials into large armor plates in a fleet while on the move, the Larkinsons somehow made it work with the help of the available mobile fabrication capabilities.
As long as no one minded the occasional flaws, cracks and sloppy finishings, the output was still adequate.
The Penitent Sisters took much of the newly-produced ship plating and used them to reinforce the bow armor of their combat carriers.
Since Ves ruthlessly decided to convert all of these strong vessels into single-use ramming vessels, he wanted them to excel in their new role.
The main purpose for adding more frontal power was to give the combat carriers a greater chance at withstanding the primary and secondary gun battery fire of the Gravada Knarlax.
With all of the bulk armor being put onto the ships, the effectiveness of secondary battery fire was heavily reduced. As for the main guns, Ves did not harbor that much hope. When a cannon reached a certain scale, armor became like paper. They would be lucky if the additional armor gave the combat carriers the chance to survive an additional hit.
"Hopefully, the firing rate of those main cannons aren't too fast."
Bigger guns generally reloaded slower. The bigger the caliber, the much more troublesome it became to load in another shell smoothly. Due to the relative cramped space of a warship, ship designers had to squeeze in a lot of functionality while keeping everything stable and robust.
These were very strenuous demands as warships were always expected to continue functioning even if they came under heavy fire.
Ves did not believe the pirate warships were built well enough to meet the insanely high standards of the CFA. Continuous investment or not, there was only so much a bunch of criminals could do in a barren and lightly-populated region like the Nyxian Gap.
"Hopefully, at least some of the combat carriers will reach their target this way."
As an extra touch, the Penitent Sisters also shaped the prows of their combat carriers in the form of a cone or triangular shape. While this change might not have that much of effect at collisions of this scale, it was still worth a try in order to see if the combat carriers were capable of breaching the armor of the heavy cruiser.
Of course, with the addition of all of that mass, much of the flight characteristics of the combat carrier had turned a bit messy. The crew of the ship had to make constant adjustments to offset the small but noticeable shift in balance.
All of this presented a new problem. If the ships accrued too much mass, it would take far too long for them to build up a respectable amount of speed. Perhaps the Gravada Knarlax might be capable of dodging the incoming suicide ships just enough to turn a devastasting blow into a glancing blow!
This was why all of the engineers of the Penitent Sisters came together and outlined an extensive set of modifications to the sub-light propulsion systems.
Commodore Abigail Evern personally explained the proposal to Ves one day.
"Since we don't expect to retain any of our combat carriers after the decisive battle, we wish to convert a large portion of the interior to make room for temporary boosters and other supporting elements. Our goal is to use up as much fuel and energy as possible in as little time as possible to sustain the powerful boosters and supercharge the other propulsion systems."
"How will you use all of that excess energy?"
"There is little point to retaining all of the fuel and energy if there is no expectation that the ships will survive past a month. We might as well use it all up even if it is astronomically wasteful."
The efficiency of these measures were horrible. Ves glanced at the estimates drafted by the Hexer engineers and all told it was wholly unacceptable under normal circumstances.
For example, in order to gain a modest ten percent boost in acceleration, the ship had to use up at least five-thousand times more fuel and energy!
And this was just the start. Each successive increase in acceleration demanded an exponentially greater amount of juice.
However, in these specific circumstances, it was worth it! The only reason why Ves looked a bit hesitant was because he knew it wasn't easy to contain the violent reactions needed to give the large and heavy combat carriers a powerful shove forward.
Still, former cultists or not, the Hexers knew how to train their engineers. The extensive designs the Penitent Sisters put forward all outlined robust changes at the stern of the vessels in question.
"Where will you get all of the high-quality materials needed to build all of these new parts?" Ves asked.
"We will be cannibalizing much of the interior of our combat carriers." Commodore Abigail readily answered. "Much of the interior of our combat carriers are geared towards supporting longer deployments. Think of large compartments devoted to storing ammunition, spare parts, recycling systems, and all of the machinery required to service and maintain our mechs. If we cannibalize all of these redundant elements, we'll be able to fashion quite a bit of crude but workable solutions."
Ves was quite surprised at the flexibility exhibited by the Penitent Sisters. They may be stiff about their beliefs, but everything else about them spoke of an abundant amount of competence.
Nevermind their mech pilots, Ves wanted to absorb their ship crews! With all of these excellent second-class spacers at his disposal, he could instantly man his upcoming factory ship with them, thereby ensuring that his future flagship would run a lot more smoother at the start than he initially projected.
With huge and lumbering capital ships, malfunctions and screw ups always hindered their functioning at the beginning.
Under normal circumstances, every large and complex ship had to undergo numerous trials in order to work out all of the teething problems. No matter how precise the shipbuilders put the ship together, they always left behind at least some mistakes and miscalculations.
Even a small but critical error might be enough to cause a part of the ship to explode!
In these crucial situations, having trained and experienced spacers at hand could vastly reduce the chances of small problems snowballing into life-threatening disasters!
As for the complication that most of these competent spacers consisted of radical Hexers, Ves paid little mind to this issue.
He finished studying all of the reports and diagrams. While he did not understand the deeper nuances of naval engineering, he was still able to glean enough details by relying on his existing foundation in mechanics, propulsion systems and other relevant fields.
"All of this looks good to me. You have my approval to implement these extensive modifications. Will your crews be able to complete the transformations in time?"
Commodore Evern nodded. "We are confident we will so long as we don't adhere to a strict standard. Supreme Mother willing, we will work as fast as possible to allow our cherished ships to go down in a blaze of glory!"
That was another important aspect of their plan. Alongside modifying their ships, the Penitent Sisters also helped with producing potent explosives to give their planned attack run some extra bite.
Alongside programming the power reactors to overload on command, adding all of the bombs, some of which qualified as weapons of mass destruction, would surely give the Gravada Knarlax some added difficulties!
The only downside of fabricating all of these homemade bombs was that they weren't able to turn enough of them into directional explosives. When most of the bombs detonated, much of the blast would radiate in the opposite direction of the target, thereby wasting a lot of their destructive potential.
It couldn't be helped. To contain and direct so many forces required materials and manufacturing capabilities that were out of reach to the task force.
If only they had his factory ship. With the extensive industrial manufacturing capabilities of such a huge and ridiculously expensive vessel, they wouldn't need to sink so low in order to hastily increase their battle capabilities.
"Alright, I've seen enough. Keep up the good work."
With the crucial ship modifications running on schedule, Ves no longer paid attention to this aspect. He devoted his full attention to enhancing the battle power of his mechs.
Aside from working out the theory and application of his battle network concept, he also began work on transforming regular Bright Warriors into powerful custom mechs for every expert candidate.
He decided to start with the simplest modification project. He invited Ketis to reengineer a Bright Warrior in its swordsman mech configuration so that it suited a Swordmaiden mech pilot.
"I've often thought about adapting the Nova Warriors in order to make them more compatible with our fight style." She said as she looked up at the machine that Ves had moved to the Scarlet Rose's mech workshop. "A full transformation will probably take a month to accomplish."
"That's too long." Ves shook his head. "These custom mechs are only stopgap solutions. We don't have to aim for something permanent. Once Commander Dise advanced to expert pilot, we can slowly work towards designing a dedicated expert mech for her. Until then, we just have to prepare a mech that is better than what she currently pilots."
"That's going to be a challenge." Ketis said. "What she is piloting right now fits her fighting style well. It's Mayra's work after all. While I know that the absolute performance of the Bright Warrior is far superior to what is now a last-gen third-class mech, we can't really replicate the piloting experience that Commander Dise prefers."
This was a very serious issue to Ves. "I'll try to make it as comfortable as possible for her. This is something of a specialty of mine so I am sure I can find some way to ease the transition. Until then, we only have a week at maximum to modify this mech. Let's make the most out of it. We can't waste any time."
The two began to load the design of the mech and began to manipulate the diagrams and wireframe models to transform the Bright Warrior.
To his surprise, Ves found out that Ketis had caught up quite a bit to his level. While she was far from holding as much knowledge as him, when it came to her narrow specialty, she was already a match for many regular Journeymen!
Their discussions produced a lot of results for that reason. It only took half a day to settle on all of the changes they intended to realize.
"At the end of this week, this mech should be strong enough to chop up a ship!"
Chapter 2363: Sword and Spear
Working on the custom mech for Commander Dise granted Ves a greater insight in how the Swordmaidens fought.
This was invaluable for many reasons. Not only did he gain a better idea on how to design a swordsman mech that suited these former pirates, he also developed a better idea on how to shape their experimental battle network.
Ketis helped enormously in this project. Ves initially thought that his skills were far too good compared to hers, but it turned out that she had already progressed enormously in the areas she cared about.
This was the biggest advantage of hyperspecialization. As long as Ketis chose to neglect her studies in other fields such as ranged weapons and so on, she could make rapid progress in her chosen specialty.
Even though she had yet to finalize a single mech design, her actual design ability was already beyond every assistant mech designer in the LMC!
Her fluency and depth of understanding towards swordsman mechs not only matched his own level. In some crucial areas, she had already overtaken him! She knew so much about swordsman mechs that Ves gradually allowed her to take the lead on this project.
"I still need to work on the other custom mechs after this, but it's different for you." Ves said. "I think you're good enough to continue tweaking the mech without me. You have already proven that you know what you are doing. With how much this mech matters to Swordmaidens, I am confident that you will do right by this mech."
His announcement came as a surprise to Ketis. She halted her current work and looked at Ves with shock.
"Will you really hand over responsibility for this mech to me? Can I change whatever I want?"
"You can as long as it's within reason. Don't think you are completely free to do what you want. I'll be checking up periodically in order to make sure you aren't going astray."
"Thank you, Ves!"
This was great news to Ketis! Of course, it was not because she looked forward to getting rid of Ves. The main reason for her jubilation was because she wanted to implement deeper modifications that would turn the custom swordsman mech into an even better vessel for Commander Dise!
With several more weeks to go, there was much an enterprising mech designer like her could do. She already began to dig up some of the more ambitious ideas that Ves had previously judged impractical.
With these additional changes, Commander Dise would probably perform even more brilliantly than normal.
"Just make sure you keep the mech as robust and resilient as possible." He warned her. "Don't blindly try to squeeze more performance out of the frame. The stability and toughness of the mech has to remain high in order to accommodate any potential breakthrough phenomena. When Commander Dise breaks through, she becomes able to exert true resonance on a non-expert mech. Her mech's performance will vastly increase as a result, but it doesn't necessarily mean that the frame can take all of the abuse. Don't let the mech fall apart under these circumstances."
Ketis nodded with a serious expression. "I will watch out for that. I will never allow my work to let her down."
Work on the custom mech proceeded a bit swifter than before while Ves was still involved. Ketis had become incredibly motivated and passionate about her new responsibility. In absence of publishing any mech designs, completing this custom mech was pretty much her first experience at delivering a real mech to a client!
With Ves reassured that this custom mech was in good hands, he withdrew from the project after he determined he no longer needed to provide anymore guidance. He had already implemented various changes related to the power reactor, flight system and other components that Ketis still needed to grasp.
The one last step he needed to take before he left was to enhance the spiritual foundation of the mech. Ves thought about adding some spiritual constructs as well to add some triggered abilities to the mech, but he eventually decided against it for several reasons.
He couldn't really predict what would happen if the spiritual constructs received a substantial boost due to the strengthening of the entire spiritual foundation of the mech. He still needed to investigate this issue before he deemed it safe to add spiritual constructs.
Ketis moved Commander Dise's machine to the Jaded Sword. She suggested that she would be able to do much more work if she was working alongside a crew of Swordmaiden mech technicians and Ves agreed. Even though the Swordmaiden flagship didn't possess any high-quality production equipment, she still desired to work on the custom mech at its natural home.
Ves moved on to working on the next custom mech on the list. Commander Orfan specialized in piloting spearman mechs. Though she was more comfortable with piloting landbound mechs, fighting in space was not a huge issue to an expert candidate.
Spearman mechs were not very common in spaceborn combat. Due to the huge distances involved, traditional melee mechs were always less practical than ranged mechs.
If any outfits deployed any spear-wielding mechs, they were liable to be lancer mechs instead.
Unlike typical spearman mechs, lancer mechs were designed with potent forward acceleration in mind. This meant that as long as they charged forward without any elaborate course corrections, they could quickly build up a lot of speed, thereby crossing the vast distances that separated friendlies and enemies in a shorter amount of time!
This was crucial in space combat as cover was almost nonexistent in most space battles. The sooner a melee mech reached the enemy, the sooner it ended its stint as a moving practice target!
"That said, I don't need to pay that much attention to this priority." Ves muttered.
Unlike many other regions, the Nyxian Gap was filled with an unnaturally huge amount of asteroids. While it was possible to thread the spaces between the asteroids without going too much off-course, a mech could also take cover behind the floating rocks instead. This severely increased the survivability of melee mechs while heavily impacting the effectiveness of ranged mechs.
"I wonder if the Gravada Knarlax is able to blow apart these asteroids by firing a single cannon. In fact, how is a ship this large even able to navigate smoothly through the asteroid fields?"
Whatever the case, Commander Orfan preferred to pilot a spear-wielding mech that possessed enough agility, reaction time and range of motion to duel mechs up close.
Such a mech would not be able to perform devastating charges like true lancer mechs because their structures and internals pursued different aims.
Ves took another Bright Warrior configured as a swordsman mech and began to work from there. In order to assist in his work, he called up a bunch of Braves to assist him in his work.
Though none of them were as good as Ketis, people like Moltar Ringer, Dukan French and Felicia Slenn were able to provide different perspectives to the project.
Still, Ves missed the competence and ability demonstrated by Ketis. The rest of the Braves still hadn't caught up to her level yet, and they probably wouldn't be unless they gained second-class augmentation or if he decided to feed them Attribute Candies.
He also made sure to obtain frequent input from Gloriana, though it was difficult for her to stay on top of what was going on by remote.
"Why haven't we worked on fabricating the spear for this custom mech?" Dukan French asked.
"Developing the weapons for this mech and other custom mechs is a separate project. They're going to be fairly special, but that means that a lot more work is required to make them. For now, just work from the numbers that I've given to you all. Keep in mind that while the spear will likely be fairly thin, it is heftier than it looks."
Someone else asked a question.
"It's a shame to design this mech without any elevating shock-absorbing capabilities. Can't we modify this mech so that it is capable of performing both charging attacks and be good at fighting up close?"
Ves threw a contemptuous look at the assistant who asked that question. He didn't even think it was worth it to open his mouth. His silent reaction was enough to hammer home what he thought about this proposal.
In truth, he wanted to accomplish this as well, but the circumstances didn't allow it. In his judgement, it was possible to design a lancer mech that was also good or at least decent in frontal combat if he built a mech according to second-class standards.
That wasn't quite possible under the circumstances. The Bright Warrior was a bridge mech, and the modifications he intended to implement weren't capable of exceeding some of the limitations of its original design.
He had to design a new mech from the ground up in order to accommodate both modes of combat.
Work on the mech proceeded briskly. Partially, this was due to the relative simplicity of the modifications. A swordsman mech was already capable of wielding spears with good proficiency. Ves just wanted to make it even better by performing targeted upgrades and enhancements that optimized its performance when wielding spears.
Midway into the project, Ves invited the Commander Orfan to Scarlet Rose in order to observe her upcoming mech.
When she arrived, she looked impressed at the Bright Warrior. "Wow. Is this really for me? I feel much less reluctant about setting my old mech now!"
Though the mech was partially disassembled and did not reflect the finished product, Orfan just looked at all of the work being done and instantly gave her seal of approval.
"You're fine with what the mech looks like so far?" Ves blinked.
"Why not?" She grinned. "You're a great mech designer. Why shouldn't I trust your work? I'm sure this new baby will run smoothly once I get my hands on it. Is there something else you need or can I get back to training?"
"Ah, I need you to provide more details on your preferred fighting style and habits. We want to make absolutely sure that the mech excels at performing your favorite moves."
"Oh, okay. I can do that. It's not that complicated."
She was used to adapting to the mechs she was assigned to. Piloting a mech that was customized especially for her was a relatively new experience to her. For this reason, she did not make too many demands.
"Make sure the mech is balanced and mobile." She said. "The way I fight with this mech is to keep enemy melee mechs out of reach by threatening to spear them if they ever step into my zone. The arms need to be strong enough to make quick but also powerful stabs. I like to alternate between them in order to catch my opponents off-guard. Aside from that, try and add some secondary weapons if possible. I'm not a purist like Commander Dise who solely wants to rely on her sword to win a battle."
As long as Ves made some modest compromises, he could squeeze in several secondary weapon systems.
"Your mech is already slated to get a shield so I can add something as long as it doesn't take up too much capacity. What would you like? A shortsword? A carbine?"
She rubbed her sturdy chin. "Hmm.. give me a knife as well as a pistol. Is that possible?"
"We can add that. It's just.. they won't add too much strength to your mech. At most, you will have some extra options at your disposal."
"It's enough, Ves. I don't want to depend too heavily on my spear and shield no matter how much you claim how good they will be. If my mech ever loses them, I will still have some options available that I can rely on. Understand?"
"We will try our best to accommodate your demands."
Chapter 2364: Ves the Planter
Working back-to-back on the custom mechs of both Dise and Orfan presented an interesting contrast to Ves.
Both expert candidates were melee mech specialists, but they possessed different philosophies in their approach towards combat.
Commander Dise dedicated herself completely to swordsmanship. Her will was obsessed with it and she believed that almost every threat could be dealt with as long as she held a blade.
Of course, most people would say that mech pilots such as her fared really badly against opponents that were too distant and used overwhelming ranged firepower to destroy their targets from a distance.
In these cases, mechs with no ability to attack hostiles from a distance usually had to run for cover.
That didn't necessarily mean that mech pilots like the Swordmaidens were useless. When they were still a large outfit, they fielded at least some ranged mechs and other mechs to balance out their mech roster.
Mechs never fought alone unless they engaged in duels. In most battles, swordsman mechs fought alongside other mech types. In this context, the extreme specialization of the Swordmaidens turned into a powerful advantage rather than a vulnerability that was begging to be exploited.
To Ves and the clan, this extreme dedication made the Swordmaidens very valuable. There were other mech forces which were capable of fulfilling the roles that the Swordmaidens rejected.
The Vandals were different. As a remnant of a disbanded mech regiment, they were accustomed to fielding a rounded mech roster with plenty of variety. While its mech pilots usually specialized in different mech types, their military-standard training was good enough to allow them to pilot other mech types if needed.
This meant that Commander Orfan and her ilk were much more open to utilizing whatever weapon was suitable and on hand rather than sticking to a single weapon system as if their life depended on it. These kinds of mech pilots were much more common in second-rate states as mechs at that point were easily able to accommodate additional primary weapon systems.
The two expert candidates and hopefully future expert pilots would continue to develop along these divergent paths. Ves could see the pros and cons of both approaches so he didn't do anything to encourage the expert candidates to change anything.
"Diversity is a benefit to our clan. If every mech pilot fights the same way, it will be too easy to exploit our weaknesses."
This diversity was present in the two custom mechs he made. Commander Dise's custom mech only excelled in one specific fighting style and weapon. This specialization went so deep that its performance would only be a fraction of its peak if it wielded any other weapon such as an axe or a rifle.
Ves chose a different direction for Commander Orfan's machine. He drafted plans to broaden the fighting capabilities of the mech. While he had to sacrifice some performance in the form of lower mechanical strength and slightly worsened reaction speed, the mech became very adaptable.
It wasn't confined to fighting with its current weapon loadout. If Commander Orfan ever felt she needed to resort to other weapons, she could do so without worrying that her mech would lock up or fail to keep up with her demands.
"Well, this mech is pretty much done." Ves clapped his hands.
He and his Braves looked proud at what they managed to cobble up in a week. The custom mech for Commander Orfan wouldn't be as brilliant as the one for the Swordmaiden Commander, but its versatility made up for it for the most part.
Of course, the mech wasn't equipped with its full range of weapons yet. So far, Ves had only fabricated the pistol and knife. The spear and shield had to wait until he was ready to break down the statue of the Unending One.
Before he began work on Joshua's Quint, Ves allocated some time on advancing one of his other initiatives.
After two weeks of intermittent theorizing and planning, Ves was finally ready to form his first battle network.
He took a shuttle to the Surly Cockatrice in order to meet with the Penitent Sisters. Commander Chancy and Head Designer Stameros already greeted him the moment he stepped foot onto the hangar deck.
"Welcome to our ship, sir."
She sounded a lot more respectful than before. It seemed that she was already advancing further in her new mindset as a future member of the Larkinson Clan. The Penitent Sisters no longer appeared to object as much to this possibility.
"Let's proceed quickly. My time is short. Bring me to the participants."
They crossed the hangar deck and reached a formation of forty mech pilots. Each exiled Hexer stood straight in their rigid postures.
Ves studied them carefully with both his ordinary vision and his spiritual vision. He could feel the unity, devotion and deep trust these Penitent Sisters held towards each other and their shared faith.
"How are these soldiers?"
"They are some of our best." Commander Chancy proudly smiled. "The competition to become the first participants of your glorious new gift was intense, but in the end I have decided to grant this honor to our 3rd Spaceborn Mech Company."
Ves looked oddly at the eager-looking Penitent Sisters.
When he usually wanted to experiment with test subjects, he had to drag them over to his testing area while they were kicking and screaming. All of the pirate captives he had tormented just a few weeks ago had all attempted to shout obscenities at him while forcefully trying to fight against their restraints.
Having been long used to the sight of resistant test subjects, the sudden change took him aback. The enthusiasm that rolled off their bodies confirmed that they truly thought it was an honor to become his test subjects!
Ves resisted the urge to rub his eyes. Maybe he was seeing a mirage.
"Well.." He said. "I like what I see. I'm sure they will do great."
"To be honest, the Third Mech Company sustained some losses during the previous battle, but we have reconsolidated and reorganized our ranks to fill up the gaps. However, you don't have to worry about the cohesion of these Sisters. They completely trust each other with their backs."
"That's good. Let's proceed with the experiment, then. Bring me to the testing chambers that you have prepared."
They moved to an isolated section of the Surly Cockatrice. The Penitent Sisters had already brought over a lot of lab equipment and other equipment. While Ves did not expect these machines to be useful in enabling his experiments, they were still useful in monitoring the conditions of his test subjects.
If any of these test subjects experienced considerable strain, he would at least be able to get some advance warning.
Ves decided to start small and chose to form his network out of a single squad of mech pilots.
Ten Penitent Sister mech pilots stepped into the prepared testing chamber. A lot of sensors and scanners kept a very close eye on the physiological conditions of the first batch of test subjects.
"Bring in the idol." Ves commanded.
A bot entered the chamber. A small idol depicted the Superior Mother with great detail. Ves had personally crafted it with care and attention in order to turn it into a small but potent vessel for his mother's glow.
The effect was immediate. The ten test subjects reacted towards the idol with reverence and knelt like knights meeting their monarchs.
Ves blinked again. The behavior of these test subjects inspired him to alter his approach towards this experiment.
When Ves learned about neural networks, he knew that its effectiveness was largely dependent on how closely the participants aligned with each other.
The same should apply to battle networks as well. Anything that could help the mech pilots in question think the same way was valuable.
He turned to Commander Chancy, who was standing besides him in the control room.
"Tell the sisters to.. uhmmm.. pray to the idol."
"Yes, sir."
The ten test subjects began to worship the idol as if the Superior Mother herself had descended onto it! Almost every other thought left their minds as they completely concentrated on showing their devotion to the Supreme.
The intensity of their worship reminded him a lot of the times when Gloriana entered her own prayer sessions.
These Hexers had begun to pray since they were young. They had become so accustomed to opening themselves up to something greater that their minds literally entered a different state that was unique to their current activities.
Ves studied the neural readings provided by the sensors.
He made a very important discovery.
"These readings are all similar!"
The minds of every worshipper had become even more closely aligned with each other!
Prayer could be private, but it was also common to see people performing their prayers in giant churches and temples.
When they grouped up for prayer, they were already conditioned by their priestesses or whatever to listen and align to a central thought or speaker!
Ves realized that these conditions exceeded his most ideal expectations. Perhaps he could hijack this conditioning in order to maximize his experiment's chances of success!
The method wasn't important to Ves. Only the result mattered. Who cared if he took advantage of a faith he didn't believe in? These Penitent Sisters exhibited the most unity when they were engaged in their beliefs!
He decided to help guide them along as he prepared the spiritual building blocks of his first battle network. He began to speak through a communication channel.
"Open yourself up to the Superior Mother. Feel her splendor in the idol that is sitting before you. The mother is all-knowing and all-powerful. Her wrath is terrible but her kindness is endless. As the nurturer of sons and daughters, you are her child. Surrender yourself to her glow and accept her as your caretaker."
The neural readings slightly improved. The readings of different Penitent Sisters began to sync up even more, which showed that his measures were working!
He continued to speak random nonsense to sustain their current states.
"A true Hexer is never filled with hate. A Hexer is filled with love. Out of every possible Hexer, mothers bear the most love of all. Don't restrain yourself. Accept the Superior Mother's embrace, because she holds enough love for everyone. With love, everything can be forgiven. Even the damned such as you are worthy to earn her redemption as long as you accept her love. Embrace the power of love and become her first anointed heralds!"
Ves began to concentrate and began to make contact with the Superior Mother.
It was still dormant, which was good. Ves would never pull something off on his mother if she was still awake.
Normally, a powerful spiritual entity would have blocked and repelled any foreign entity that drew close.
Not Ves.
He was both her father and her child. These dual familiar relations caused the Superior Mother unconscious instincts to adopt a very warm posture towards his arrival.
Ves smiled. This was exactly what he wanted to see. He needed his mother to be clueless in order to proceed with the next step of his plan.
After making sure that the Superior Mother hadn't secretly woken up or anything, he finally made his move.
He began to touch his mother! He began to manipulate the exterior of her spiritual body without any regard for propriety. All he wanted to do now was to manipulate some of her spiritual essence and shape it into a form that was capable of supporting his first battle network!
Ves had no idea if she would wake up or turn hostile due to his spiritual molestations, so he began to work faster and rougher.
The Superior Mother's sleeping essence began to shake and convulse as if her unconscious spirit detected something amiss.
"Damnit! Keep sleeping! I'm not done yet! Let me plant you with my battle network before you kick me out!"
Chapter 2365: Regal Mother
Something extraordinary took place. Commander Chancy, Juliet and several other Penitent Sisters who were standing by or monitoring the readings each felt as if the Superior Mother had descended from the beyond!
The small idol of the Superior Mother actively radiated the ancestral spirit's glow. Ripples of activity emanated from it. The ten chosen Penitent Sister mech pilots each prostrated themselves before the totem.
To them, this experience had transcended anything they had ever experienced in their lives! Not even the most solemn hexism ceremonies where they witnessed boys being impaled alive topped the majesty and profoundness of this deceptively bare and simple occasion!
The power of glows transcended any religious trappings. Churches, hymns, artwork and scripture were mere window dressing compared to direct exposure that the gullible Hexers mistook as a deific figure!
The control room adjacent to the testing chamber was no different. Not only did the glow emanating from the idol bleed over to the surrounding compartments, Ves began to appear as if he had become a channel for the Superior Mother as well!
This made the Penitent Sister Commander and her subordinates believe that something unprecedentedly holy was taking place. Some operators even forgot about their duties and began to kneel on the deck in order to demonstrate their sincere devotion to the boy who carried the blessing of the Superior Mother.
Not a single Penitent Sister present in the control room harbored any further doubts towards Ves! He was truly the son of the Superior Mother. As a boy who received the nurturing of the best mother in the multiverse, there was no way they could treat Ves like any other regular boy.
In their perspective, he transcended the idiotic boyness typical to his gender and had reached a greater status! Despite his youth, he was as wise and mature as a woman!
"He is truly blessed." Someone muttered with awe.
"I want to bask in the Superior Mother's presence every day."
"It's possible as long as we follow her holy son. We can't look down on the Larkinson Clan anymore."
Many of the Hexers here had already experienced a gradual shift in ideology. It wasn't much of a stretch for them to extend some of the same high regard they held towards the Supreme to Ves. After all, he was unquestionably her son, and that was enough for them to set aside most of their usual biases against boys!
In this profound moment, Ves wasn't thinking about his effect on the exiled Hexers at all. Instead, he was frantically trying to plant the framework of his battle network inside the Superior Mother as fast as possible.
"Stop shaking so much! Can't you just go back to sleep like a good mommy?"
From the moment he found out that the Superior Mother's spiritual makeup did not reject his touch, he eagerly dove in with his spiritual projections.
What he tried to do was in essence similar to what he did to the spiritual foundations of his mech designs. He attempted to create a new spiritual construct from the Superior Mother's own existence.
Not only that, but he also wanted the spiritual construct to be alive and capable of growth. For this reason, he donated a copious amount of his own spiritual energy. By steadily inserting his essence into his mother, the two slowly conceived a new form of life.
"This is it! This is what I want!"
Ves became more enchanted by the creation process. As someone whose domain largely centered around life, the act of creation always satisfied him to no end.
He lived for this experience.
Creating anything, whether it was a mech, mech design, spiritual product or whatever else, was an act filled with meaning. It was a process where disorder slowly made way for a certain kind of order.
His excitement was compounded by the fact that he was creating a new life by using his mother as a carrier. Normally, an entity as strong as the Superior Mother possessed her own pride.
Although Ves could easily approach Qilanxo and ask her to gift him a spiritual fragment every now and then, he had no illusion that she would refuse to allow him to manipulate her spiritual essence.
The spirit was the foundation of a sentient being's life! This was especially the case for entities that somehow managed to transcend their mortal coil!
Perhaps Ves might have better luck with his own spiritual products, but not everyone was as open to him as the likes of the Golden Cat.
Someone as proud, domineering and imperious as the Superior Mother would have never allowed him to get close enough to touch her without a good reason.
It was a good thing she was dormant at the moment. The ancestral spirit had never woken up after her birth. Ves chalked it up to his mother's attempt to turn the Superior Mother into her 'incarnation'.
While Ves rapidly built up the spiritual construct, his intuition warned him of an approaching threat.
For some reason, he began to feel a sense of growing doom. What he was doing clearly irritated the unconscious Superior Mother. Her spirituality continued to ripple and convulse as if it slowly became apparent that Ves was up to no good!
"Damn, I need to hurry up before something happens!"
He threw all caution to the wind and thrusted his spiritual projections deeper. He rapidly completed the framework of his prototypical battle network with little regard for the flaws and imperfections that showed up. He didn't really mind them. While they made the battle network less efficient, they also added character and uniqueness to the living spiritual construct.
As long as it was allowed to grow, the living spiritual product could either outgrow or transform these flaws!
Just fifteen minutes passed when Ves hastily ended his task. In the end, Ves managed to create an embedded living spiritual construct that took on the form of a crown!
Yes, a crown!
This crown instantly gave an even more dignified image to the Superior Mother. Due to the special nature of the spiritual construct, the new head ornament did not look quite solid. Instead, it gave off an ethereal and mist-like vibe.
As the living construct was not active at the moment, the crown looked very dim and almost unnoticeable. If not for his keen spiritual senses, he would have thought the crown had disappeared!
Ves barely had time to admire the creation he conceived before the Superior Mother finally couldn't take the violation any longer.
The unconscious spirit released a strong pulse that instantly crushed his spiritual projections and broke his concentration!
"Agh!"
The pulse was so strong that Ves immediately collapsed to the deck as if his mother had pressed him down. At the same time, both his body and the small idol leaked out the aftershocks of the violent pulse, causing every Hexer in the vicinity to experience the Superior Mother's might directly to the point of taking a few steps back!
"Amazing! The Superior Mother has blessed us! We are truly fortunate to have received her attention!"
"I will dedicate my life to worshipping her from now on! No matriarch has ever conveyed as much power as her. I have been worshipping the wrong Hexers all this time!"
As the Hexers all became enthralled by the magical moment they had just experienced, Ves was not feeling so good.
Mother or not, the punishment she inflicted on him dealt quite a bit of damage to him. With the accumulated worship of billions of Hexers, the ancestral spirit had rapidly grown stronger.
Just an unconscious pulse was enough to give him a gnawing headache!
The shattering of all of his spiritual projections along with the shock to his mind made it difficult for him to perform any further spiritual exertion.
The pain was no less than getting kicked in the nuts!
Couldn't his mother be a bit more gentle? She was his child, after all! He birthed her and breathed life into her! Why was it strange for him to touch her and knead her spiritual essence in order to fashion a new addition?
Still, punishment aside, he succeeded in his endeavor. The crown had taken shape and the Superior Mother did not appear to reject the new addition.
As the ancestral spirit slowly entered into a deeper sleep, Ves finally shrugged off most of his aches and lifted himself up to his feet.
He looked around but saw that he didn't need to be worried. Commander Chancy and the rest were so absorbed by their own experiences that they hardly took notice of his moment of weakness.
"Well, the first phase is over. Let's move on to the next one."
That surprised some of the Penitent Sisters.
"It isn't over yet?"
"This is just the setup! In fact, I thought I would have been able to complete the next phase, but my mother's patience isn't endless."
He miscalculated. Before he was ready to take the next step, his mother slapped him away!
This also made his next step a bit difficult. Right now, the ten test subjects who were supposed to be the first Penitent Sisters to connect to the battle network were still unchanged.
After managing the situation at the control room, Ves decided to complete the next step right away.
He entered the testing chamber and approached the mech lieutenant that led her unit.
"Sir." The Hexer bent her head as she remained on her knees.
Though the idol of the Superior mother no longer pulsed so vividly, it still radiated a firm but gentle glow.
Ves didn't bother calling her up her feet. Instead, he placed his palm on her head. His fingers sank lightly into her red hair that she had tied into a short ponytail.
"Please stay calm and keep thinking about the Superior Mother. You have witnessed her love, right? Now think about embracing it. As long as your mind is clear and your heart is pure, I will allow you to bond with her to a greater degree than before. Are you willing to become her adopted daughter?"
The Penitent Sister's lieutenant's eyes lit up! "Yes! I do! I shall give everything to receive this supreme honor!"
"Then close your eyes and prepare yourself. I don't know what will happen next, but you will likely feel some sort of disturbance. Don't resist. Open yourself up to the Superior Mother. No matter how much pain you feel, it will be alright in the end as long as you are sincere. Are you ready?"
The Hexer clasped her hands together and looked more earnest than she had ever been in her life!
"I am ready."
Ves began to feel her mind through his touch and sensed that she was a typical mech pilot without spiritual potential. Only a tiny, intangible mote of spirituality was present in her mind. Though weak, it was still potent enough to sustain a human experience.
How was he supposed to connect this little spark to his new battle network?
Ordinarily, Ves would have asked his mother to extend a connection to his test subject, but she was not very responsive at the moment.
Maybe he didn't need to bother with these solutions. His spiritual energy was already highly compatible with her own spiritual energy. This meant that it shouldn't matter much whose energy he used.
Ves began to create a new spiritual projection in the form of a very thin and long string. He 'tied' one end to his test subject. Though the woman frowned a bit and showed some signs of wanting to shrug it off, in the end her strong belief caused her to stay still.
Even so, the connection didn't seem to hold very much. Before his spiritual string disconnected from his test subject, Ves quickly cast the other end to the Superior Mother's crown.
The crown seemed to sense the approaching string. Due to its nature as a battle network, it automatically sensed that a very compatible mind was connected to the end.
The living spiritual construct began to follow the programming that Ves had instilled into it. The crown magically attracted the string and tied it to its structure, thereby establishing its first connection to a human!
A shudder ran through the Penitent Sister lieutenant's body.
"I can feel something!"
"What do you feel?"
The woman opened her eyes in astonishment." I feel.. connected to her! She is so powerful!"
Ves released his hand from her head and grinned. The connection was stable!
Chapter 2366: Thick Connections
After establishing the first connection, he used the same crude method to connect the remainder of the squad members to the Superior Mother's new crown. Though it felt strange to use his own spiritual energy to make these bonds, he didn't have any other choice.
The moment he made these connections, the test subjects barely changed. Aside from gaining a bit more awareness towards the Superior Mother, they still remained normal.
This was by design.
To Ves, a battle network served a different purpose than the Larkinson Network.
The latter was a means to unify different clansmen and warn them of any traitors in their midst. It did not play a direct role in battle, though Ves might be able to change that when he upgraded the network in the future.
Still, due to its central importance, Ves was very reluctant to mess with something so profound. He was more inclined to create different networks that served specific roles.
For now, it appeared that the battle network that he had fashioned had finally come into being! Though he only connected ten Penitent Sister mech pilots to the network, there should still be room for more. If the crown ever reached its maximum capacity, then Ves merely had to wait for the living spiritual construct to grow in order to accommodate more connections.
Unlike the Larkinson Network or the unnamed network that allowed the Superior Mother to connect to every Hexer, a battle network was much smaller in scope.
Battle networks had to be robust, so Ves wanted to make sure it reinforced its connections to its mech pilots as much as possible. It had to withstand external disturbances and had to withstand any attempts to cut them off. After all, suddenly losing connection to the network while in the middle of an active battle could prove fatal to the mech pilots involved!
A battle network also had to empower the participants involved to a substantially greater extent.
The Larkinson Network only established a relatively modest connection to the members of the clan. The bandwidth of these thin connections wasn't all that impressive.
A battle network on the other hand was capable of maintaining significantly greater bonds. Even now, the Superior Mother's crown was already nourishing the bonds that Ves had made.
What made a battle network stand out even more was the fact that it was only active when it needed to be. Outside of battle, it would remain dormant and accumulate energy. Only when the members of the networks all deployed together in battle and formed into a cohesive unit would the crown begin to truly activate the connections!
Not only would the Penitent Sister mech pilots in question be able to form an active bond with the Superior Mother, her crown also enabled them to connect to each other!
This was Ves' attempt to form a spiritual equivalent of Master Huron's neural network. With the Superior Mother acting as both the system administrator and the source of power, Ves had high expectations for the battle network in its active state!
There were still a lot of uncertainties, though. Due to his insufficient theoretical foundation in spirituality, he had to leave many areas ambiguous and open to adaptation. How exactly the battle network was supposed to augment the mech pilots in battle, Ves truly didn't know. He kind of left that problem to the Superior Mother. As an inherent spiritual entity, she was capable of exerting these kinds of effects with much greater proficiency.
If Ves attempted to come up with something on his own, his solution would likely be flawed and filled with loopholes. He decided not to take the rest and simply left it up to the Superior Mother to fill in the blanks however she wanted.
Whether her method of empowerment was strong or weak didn't matter too much for Ves. He just wanted this experiment to produce some solid results and confirm his theories.
As long as this battle network produced plenty of results, Ves would be in a much better position to design more refined battle networks for some of his other mech forces!
It didn't take too long for the crown to complete the reinforcements of all of the bonds. Ves had only involved ten test subjects so far, so it didn't require that much work.
Ves clapped his hands. "Alright, let us see whether you have truly become her adopted daughters. Please suit up and board your mechs. Once you sortie into space, please stand by. You need to mentally prepare yourselves to reach out to the Superior Mother, just like before. The test can't proceed if you are too distracted. It's important that each of you have her in your mind, is that clear?"
"Yes, sir!"
Some Penitent Sisters guided the mech pilots away. Meanwhile, Ves followed Commander Chancy to the expansive bridge of the Surly Cockatrice.
The two remained silent for most of the walk. They passed through various corridors where a number of Penitent Sisters looked a bit surprised at his presence.
Though some of them looked hostile, the intensity of those piercing stares were much less than he would have received a few months ago. It seemed that every single Hexer on this ship had already become affected by the Superior Mother's alternate ideology.
Just as planned.
"What can we expect to see now that you have.. done whatever it is you did?" Commander Chancy reluctantly asked.
"That is up to the Superior Mother and the devotion of your mech pilots. The conditions of what I have been trying to accomplish are fairly harsh. There is a chance that we won't see any meaningful differences. Still, as long as your mech pilots are at least somewhat willing to surrender themselves to the Supreme, then we should at least see something different."
"I will make sure my mech pilots have received this message. Not that I doubt them at all. After experiencing that unforgettable moment, I don't think any of the mech pilots in question possess any remaining doubts!"
That was true. Though Ves disdained the religious-themed theatrics he resorted to, he had to admit it was extraordinarily effective against these Hexer fanatics. The more bombastic the ritual, the more extensively the Penitent Sisters bought into his illusion!
The fact that all of the show and dance was based on falsehoods did not bother Ves at all. He saw it as an effective way of achieving his goal.
Having studied and taken inspiration from Master Huron's work, he knew that it was of the utmost importance to align the mech pilots involved as closely as possible.
The Fridaymen who piloted Master Huron's work mainly drew from their strong camaraderie and distinct esprit de corps to maintain this condition.
Ves partially chose to start his experiment with the Penitent Sisters because they too possessed these two essential traits.
What Ves did differently from Master Huron was that he added another element that was capable of centering the mech pilots even further.
By connecting the minds and spirits to the Superior Mother's crown, they all gained a very simple condition.
As long as they centered their thoughts around the Superior Mother, they didn't have to resort to other more ambiguous thoughts in order to align themselves. By opening themselves up to the Superior Mother, they became much more receptive to the battle network's input.
Would the results exceed Master Huron's work? Ves wasn't sure. It was extremely arrogant for him to believe that a Journeyman like him could essentially outcompete a Master Mech Designer in this area.
Besides, what little Ves knew about Master Huron's was only what the public knew. The Fridayman Master doubtlessly worked on many other projects, some of which were still classified and others that had never seen the light of day.
For all Ves knew, the neural networks that were known to the public were simply the most superficial application of Huron's work.
He shook his head. He had no reason to compare himself to a Master Mech Designer at his stage. There was no shame in acknowledging that his efforts would definitely pale in comparison to Huron's better work. There was also no reason for him to feel any undeserved pride for thinking that he exceeded a Master at his own game.
All Ves wanted was to invent a new method to strengthen his combat forces for the upcoming battle. With very severe time, resource, manpower and industrial capacity constraints, he didn't have a lot of ways to lessen the disparity between his mechs and the warships fielded by the pirates.
This was why he engaged in something as risky as trying to form a battle network. Even though everything proceeded well so far, Ves knew that his attempt could have easily ended up in disaster if any of the steps went awry.
Fortunately, the connections he forged between the test subjects and the Superior Mother remained healthy and stable.
While the crown was in its inactive state, the connections were essentially closed. Other than feeling a hint of the Superior Mother's majesty, the connected mech pilots didn't feel anything different. At most, this small influence would have a subtle indoctrination effect.
Ves designed these bonds in this way for multiple reasons. First, he wanted to conserve energy. The thick bonds actually consumed quite a bit of energy in order to remain active. While the Superior Mother received a huge amount of spiritual feedback these days, Ves did not condone needless waste.
What if he expanded the battle network? What if he not only applied it to the Penitent Sisters, but also to a select number of soldiers of the Hex Army?
Ves already planned to apply the battle network in conjunction with a future Hexer mech design. He wanted to see how powerful a mech could be if it was designed with the battle network in mind from the ground up. The strengthened cohesion between mech, mech pilot and design spirit would definitely produce surprising results!
Unfortunately, that wouldn't be the case today. The Penitent Sisters only had access to lastgen second-class commercial mechs. Each of them were designed by Hexers, so there was no opportunity for Ves to take ownership of them unless he invested a lot of time in modifying each and every machine.
It was better this way. By leaving a living mech out of consideration, the upcoming test was much simpler. Only two real variables mattered this time. Ves closely monitored the mech pilots in order to see how aligned they were to each other.
Judging from their worshipful expressions as they entered their cockpits and waited their turn to deploy into space, Ves shouldn't have to worry too much.
The ritual that they had lived through was still very fresh in their minds. This was also why Ves wanted to hurry up and start the test right away.
The second variable that Ves paid attention to was the reaction of the Superior Mother. Since she was in an unconscious state, it was a bit of a mystery how her unconscious self would do with the battle network once it became active.
The worst outcome was that the Superior Mother remained unmoved. With channeling any spiritual energy through the network, there was no substance to it. The mech pilots wouldn't gain much power this way!
"I hope we'll see something."
Soon, the test went underway. After the squad of Penitent Sisters mechs flew further away, their mech pilots began to follow their instructions.
"Superior Mother, please grant me your power!"
"Aid us in battle, please!"
The mech pilots actively beseeched the Superior Mother. This was the way to activate the battle network.
The crown grew active a minute after receiving the signals. It glowed a little as it began to radiate some power. Even without the Superior Mother's conscious direction, she had automatically begun to divert some of her energy into the living spiritual construct.
The crown soon began to process and channel that energy through the connections!
Ves leaned forward to look at the projections of the mechs with attention.
"Is it working?"
Chapter 2367: Close Alignment
A lot of Penitent Sisters and Larkinsons were watching the squad of mechs. Many of them had heard that Ves was up to something again. They wondered what was special about these mechs that weren't assigned on any patrols.
Would they witness something similar to the last round of experiments? Back then, many of the Bright Warrior mechs that went through their paces performed better than usual.
Since then, the Bright Warriors that Ves enhanced from 25 percent to 100 percent saturation all continued to produce slightly greater results with each subsequent practice session.
The mechs themselves hadn't grown stronger, but the piloting ability of their mech pilots was definitely trending upwards!
Even though the improvement from day to day was rather light, the fact that the results were constantly growing higher was very notable. Ordinary training never yielded these kinds of smooth and continuous curves!
A lot of other mech pilots had begun to ask whether they too would be able to benefit from this magic. Which mech pilot didn't want to improve so fast on a daily basis?
Sadly, their superiors couldn't provide any answers. Ves already denied any requests to expand this program because he was only able to pull off this trick on LMC mechs.
The most he did was to expand the scope of this experiment to his other mech models such as the Aurora Titans and the Deliverer mechs. Ves skipped the Doom Guards because he didn't think it was a good idea to strengthen something so fearsome and because their numbers were too small to make a difference in the coming battle.
The results weren't as drastic as with the Bright Warriors. The Aurora Titan was a very sluggish defensive mech that didn't have a lot of agency. The skill involved in piloting them mainly revolved around spreading out the damage across its entire frame, avoiding damage to any critical components and managing the polarizer module wisely.
The Deliverer mechs didn't possess that many options either. They were very slow and fragile compared to normal ranged mechs. The only skill required to pilot them proficiently was to aim their weapons well and to open themselves up for any guidance that Ylvaine might provide.
Nevertheless, the growth characteristic alone caused many mech pilots to increase their appreciation of their own mechs. They felt as if their assigned machines became more and more intimate with them. The lucky mech pilots became more willing to entrust their lives to their improved mechs.
"Is something happening? It has been some time since our mechs deployed into space." Commander Chancy couldn't help but ask.
The Penitent Sister Commander had slowly overcome her awe at the ritual she witnessed. Her responsibilities as a leader asserted themselves, causing her to remain more sober than the rest of the Hexers who witnessed what had previously taken place.
"Don't be impatient." Ves answered as he continued to monitor the various projections. "This is the first time your women are doing something like this. It is too early to tell whether the Superior Mother can truly support them in battle as I originally envisioned."
Time continued to pass as the mech pilots earnestly prayed to the Superior Mother. While their earnest efforts successfully triggered the battle network, it wasn't doing anything!
Ves wanted to scratch his head. Right now, the crown attracted a fair amount of spiritual energy from his mother. The battle network even transformed it into a more usable form of power.
Yet after finishing all of these pre-programmed steps, the battle network appeared to have run out of instructions. In truth, this was the part where the ancestral spirit was supposed to take over and do something specific with the charged battle network.
It was as if Ves programmed a battle bot to enter a battlefield, only for the stupid machine to freeze in place because Ves hadn't loaded a combat AI into it. Without a guiding hand, there was no purpose to the active battle network!
Ves frowned deeper and deeper as the Superior Mother really didn't appear to be doing anything with her glowing crown. Perhaps it would be a different story if the spiritual entity was fully conscious, but that was not the case at the moment.
Should he wake her up?
That might not be a good idea. He sensed that a lot of transformations still took place inside the Superior Mother. Interrupting it might cause a lot of damage to his mother.
If his mother wasn't conscious, then how could he induce her to act?
Ves quickly began to think up a solution. Her state of dormancy was different from regular sleep. Even if the Superior Mother wasn't conscious, she still maintained the large and growing network of Hexers who had begun to revere the Supreme.
He recalled the time when he initially planted his battle network into her. He managed to arouse an unconscious reaction out of her by irritating her to a large degree.
Did this mean that if Ves had to act like a naughty boy again if he wanted his mother to do something?
His face grimaced. This was not a sustainable solution.
Ves looked back to the projections of the mech pilots inside their cockpits. He had hoped the faith and devotion of the Penitent Sister mech pilots would have been enough for the Superior Mother to make a move. Evidently, general worship was not sufficient to make her do something with her new crown.
"Maybe there has to be a purpose." Ves guessed.
If his test subjects weren't in danger, there was no reason for the battle network to make a move. As its name suggested, its only purpose was to empower mech pilots in battle.
Ves began to open a channel to Commander Melkor.
"What is it, Ves?"
"I need you to send out a mech company of Bright Warriors and as many Doom Guards that your Avatars can scramble in a short amount of time."
"I can do that, but what do you want to do with them? Is it related to your current activity?"
He nodded. "I have done something to some of the Penitent Sisters. If it works out, I may have established another method of strengthening some of our forces. The only problem is that it is only supposed to be active during battle. I need your mechs to pressure the squad of the Penitent Sister mechs. Try to make their mech pilots feel distressed. The greater the threat, the greater this trial will yield a result!"
"Understood. Do you want to send out any of our expert candidates? Joshua is available."
"No." Ves shook his head. He didn't want to add too many variables to the equation. "Just regular mech pilots will do. Send them over quickly."
The Avatars of Myth soon dispatched a full squad of Bright Warriors as well as a motley collection of Doom Guards.
To be honest, the Larkinson Clan did not make extensive use of the striker mechs. They were not only troublesome to work with, but they possessed limited mobility. The Avatars especially disdained the striker mech because much of their doctrine was based around maneuver warfare.
The mechs that Ves requested flew over to the Penitent Sister mechs that Ves was keeping an eye on. Shortly afterwards, Commander Chancy and Commander Melkor agreed on how to conduct a spar.
The Bright Warriors in rifleman mech configuration soon began to fire their laser rifles at the Penitent Sister mechs.
The Doom Guards drew closer in order to pressure the Hexer mech pilots with their glows.
The melee Bright Warrior mechs circled around their targets and occasionally darted in to launch their attacks before drawing back.
The Penitent Sister mech pilots were instantly forced to take control of their mechs to fend off the sustained assaults. While their powerful mechs easily endured the weak attacks, they still felt enough of a threat to feel compelled to defend themselves!
Neither side inflicted any serious damage towards each other. This wasn't the first time the Penitent Sisters sparred against the weaker mechs of the Larkinson Clan.
Though neither side tried to kill each other, the pressure was very real to the mech pilots engaged in the spar.
Over sixty mechs circled and attacked the ten Penitent Sister mechs. There was no way the latter felt comfortable under these circumstances!
The glows of the Doom Guards were especially helpful in giving the Penitent Sisters a greater sense of threat. As these striker mechs grew closer, the Penitent Sister mech pilots began to feel an increasing amount of genuine distress!
"Superior Mother, please show your might!"
Ves stirred as he sensed a change. Though his test subjects were trying their best to fend off the frequent attacks, their growing urgency finally sparked a reaction from the battle network.
The Superior Mother's crown began to shine! A small amount of power began to flow through the connections. Instantly, the mech pilots connected to the battle network seemed to come alive in a way that Ves had never witnessed before!
"Something is happening!"
The life signs of all of the mech pilots rose as their minds became involved in a mysterious process. Ves tried to extend his spiritual senses, but he was too far away to glean much detail.
All he could see right now was that the Penitent Sister mechs hadn't stopped at all. Instead, they fought back more ferociously than a minute ago. The intensity of their counterattacks not only grew greater, but they also began to reposition themselves!
"This is not one of our standard formations." Commander Chancy frowned.
The way the ten mechs repositioned themselves reminded Ves of a cross surrounded by a hexagon. The definition of this image wasn't very high with just ten mechs, but he could easily imagine it would look a lot more impressive with more machines.
Just as Ves questioned the purpose of this odd formation, something profound took place.
The battle network went hyperactive and channeled a lot more spiritual energy all of a sudden!
If all of that energy was being dumped into his test subjects, their heads would have exploded by now!
The only reason why that didn't happen was that the battle network was channeling that energy elsewhere. Ves vaguely sensed something grand and powerful coming into being.
"Something is happening! Are.. are those mechs glowing?"
"Is it resonance?"
"No, ma'am! The resonance meters aren't moving!"
"Then why does it look so similar? Is this false resonance? That's impossible! Those mechs don't incorporate any resonating materials!"
While the Penitent Sisters all became confused by the vaguely familiar phenomena, Ves widened his eyes.
With his spiritual senses, he understood what was happening.
Normally, expert pilots exerted their power by resonating with their mechs.
What was happening right now was similar, but different! The same kind of resonance took place but with different actors involved.
Instead of resonating with their mechs, his test subjects were instead resonating with themselves and the Superior Mother!
The glows around the mechs began to expand and diffuse over a greater area. The Larkinson mechs attacking the Penitent Sisters couldn't help but slow their attacks.
"What is going on?"
"Are they all simultaneously turning into expert candidates?"
That wasn't the case, but it was difficult to fault their misconceptions. The glow surrounding the mechs became so bright it began to encompass the entire formation and beyond!
Soon, Ves felt as if all of the power from the Superior Mother began to manifest in something substantial. After a few seconds, the enormous ring of light turned into a vague silhouette of the Superior Mother herself!
"The Superior Mother is with us!"
Before Ves or anyone else could step in, the Penitent Sister mechs simultaneously moved. Their odd formation darted forward and smashed all of the Bright Warrior mechs aside with undaunted force!
Despite their Breyer alloy armor plating, the affected Bright Warriors sustained severe damage, much to Ves' consternation!
What was surprising about this sudden attack run wasn't just the added power exerted by the mechs. The giant silhouette of the Superior Mother actually attempted to strike as well!
Fortunately for the Avatar mechs, the glowing apparition failed to inflict any material damage.
"Women are superior!" The test subjects simultaneously exulted.
Just as their formation turned around to launch another attack run, the battle network suddenly reached some sort of limit. The glowing apparition rapidly diminished and the Penitent Sister mechs all lost their glows!
A lot of observing people looked dismayed. While the effect seemed powerful, the duration was too short!
It didn't matter much to Ves. He had already seen enough proof that his battle network actually worked! Even if it didn't look very practical, he could always refine this new innovation later.
"This experiment is a success!"
Chapter 2368: Impractical
After the spectacle ended, the investigation had begun.
Something completely new and unprecedented took place. After aligning themselves to the Superior Mother, the test subjects managed to get in sync with the Superior Mother and each other. What happened next confounded Ves and those who observed the proceedings.
After adopting a certain pattern, a strange insubstantial apparition of the Superior Mother superimposed itself over the formation. This silhouette acted as if it was alive and moved according to the actions of the mechs that made up the formation.
"Or is it the other way around?" Ves frowned and wondered.
He wondered who was in control in the brief interval of time when the odd phenomenon ran its course. Had some part of the Superior Mother directed the mechs to attack according to her will? Or had the collective of Penitent Sister mech pilots pooled their minds together into some kind of gestalt will that provided unified direction?
He had so many questions that he didn't know where to begin!
After studying the data recorded in the logs and finding nothing of use, he knew that the phenomenon that took place was largely spiritual in nature. The mechs did not play a major role other than serving as tools.
Ves wondered whether the battle network would perform more impressively if he connected living mechs to it. That was something to consider for later. First, he needed to get to the bottom of the first successful trial.
"It's quite strange." He frowned. "The Superior Mother expended a substantial amount of energy, but where did it go?"
He did notice that the offensive might and the momentum of the mechs had increased. That was a real gain and something that could really make a difference during critical moments.
The problem was that Ves didn't think it was worth it! From an efficiency standpoint, the yield was so abominably bad that Gloriana would literally tear her hair out if she knew how much energy the battle network actually wasted!
"Is it truly wasted, though?"
He couldn't really tell so far. He only witnessed the battle network becoming active once and at a very healthy distance. For the subsequent trials, he needed to observe from a closer vantage point in order to glean more details on where most of the energy disappeared.
One potential destination was the insubstantial energy silhouette that had spontaneously emerged after all of the affected mechs released some sort of radiance. While their glows resembled the visual resonance phenomena unleashed by expert mechs, they were different in nature.
At the very least, the energy silhouettes for a lack of better description were not infused by any will.
This wasn't a big surprise. The Penitent Sister mech pilots taking part in the experiment were all spiritually weak like most normal people. That was good, because Ves mostly sought a way to empower the majority of his mech pilots who weren't as gifted in spirituality.
The entire point of centering the battle network around the Superior Mother was to draw the energy needed to boost mech pilots from a potent source.
While he managed to accomplish this goal, he has not sufficiently accounted for what happened next. It was not as if he had much choice as he was truly clueless on how to transform the energy into something useful. He left that up to the Superior Mother and her new crown, but evidently they weren't as competent as he hoped.
"It's like going through all that trouble developing an exquisite expert mech only to let a dummy like Vincent pilot it. All of that work and effort is wasted!"
All of this resulted in a short burst of power that was only marginally useful in the larger scheme of things. No matter how impressive the formation and the energy silhouette looked, it was mostly smoke and mirrors.
Once the exhausted test subjects returned their mechs to the Surly Cockatrice, Ves instructed the Penitent Sisters to set the women aside and perform extensive checkups on their conditions.
They were largely fine. Their exhaustion was largely mental in nature. There was nothing wrong with their bodies aside from getting overexcited.
When Ves met with the test subjects in a debriefing room, he briefly interviewed them on an individual basis.
He placed the idol of the Superior Mother on the table, causing his interviewees to become a lot more earnest and respectable.
There was no way these fanatics would attempt to lie or withhold any information in the presence of such an obvious icon!
"What did you feel during this period of time?" Ves asked as he projected a recording of the time just before the mechs moved into an odd formation.
"I'm not sure." The Penitent Sister mech pilot honestly answered. "I wasn't quite aware of myself. My memories of that time are a little fuzzy. I don't know why I instructed my mech to move into a formation that I have never learned. I guess.. the Superior Mother may have told me to do this, but not with words. It just.. comes to me.
She became enchanted as she shifted her gaze to idol. Pure awe and worship filled her eyes.
Ves stretched out his hand and snapped his fingers. "Hey! Don't get lost on me yet! You can do whatever you want when you are released, but until then please answer my questions."
He asked a raft of other questions. He asked what she thought about the formation, where the strange radiant glow came from, how her mech was able to exert power beyond its technical specs and why the phenomenon suddenly cut off after a single pass.
"I think I remember.." She said as she watched the footage of the formation suddenly breaking apart and the energy silhouette disappearing shortly afterwards. "I think the strain got to me and my Sisters. We came closer than ever to the Superior Mother, but she's simply too strong. I.. always imagined that a Supreme was strong, but feeling it up close like this is something else! I truly cannot describe how little I felt in front of her majesty."
Ves heard the same answers from the other test pilots. Each of them had come close to the Superior Mother somehow but couldn't withstand the strain of staying in her presence.
After the round of interviews ended, Ves went over what he heard and tried to extract as many clues, insights and patterns as possible.
"It's rather simple." He whispered to himself. "The mech pilots are unable to harness so much power. It's similar to my previous experiment."
Back when he enhanced the spiritual foundations of his Bright Warriors, he discovered that weaker mech pilots were simply unable to bear the strain.
In his enthusiasm in increasing the bandwidth of the individual connections of the battle network, he overlooked the fact that the recipients might not be able to bear so much power!
Ves palmed his face. "I made a mistake."
Despite this oversight, he was very satisfied with how the first iteration of the battle network turned out. The initial test may have failed to showcase the practical application of his new invention, but he glimpsed a lot of potential behind it. As long as he worked out the flaws, the battle networks he intended to introduce would definitely make a difference in the upcoming battle!
There were several areas that Ves thought he should work on to refine the battle network concept.
First, he needed to uncover why the energy conversion was so inefficient. Where was all of it going?
Second, he had to figure out what was up with the energy silhouette. Was it being directed by the Superior Mother's consciousness?
Third, he had to increase the load-bearing capacity of the affected mech pilots when an active battle network brought them closer to the source of power.
Ves went to work immediately on these issues.
The last one was the easiest for him to address.
"If ten mech pilots can't bear the load, what if there are forty mech pilots? If normal mech pilots aren't strong enough, what if there are stronger mech pilots in the mix?"
The energy channeled by the battle network was substantial. The Superior Mother was also a rapidly-growing spiritual energy who was quickly nearing Qilanxo in strength.
Ves had high expectations for the ancestral spirit's future growth. This was because unlike other design spirits, the Superior Mother actively attracted the worship of hundreds, if not thousands of Hexer expert pilots!
Though the Superior Mother only absorbed a tiny amount of high-quality spiritual feedback, if every expert pilot in the service of the Hex Army took part, then the quantity was definitely considerable!
Normal people normally wouldn't be threatened if they came in close proximity to such a powerful spiritual entity, but it was different this time. The battle network forged a direct connection between a mech pilot and the Superior Mother. This bypassed much of the usual defenses that ordinarily protected the former.
"This is troublesome, but not insurmountable."
The first test only involved ten mech pilots. If he expanded the number of participants to a full mech company, he hypothesized that the strain on them would be diluted to an extent.
He began to organize a second test. This time, he expanded the battle network by connecting it to the remaining thirty mech pilots of the Third Spaceborn Mech Company of the Penitent Sisters.
Some of them happened to possess spiritual potential. Ves set these handful of mech pilots aside in order to control for this variable. He didn't want to involve them too early.
"Commence the second test!"
They repeated the first trial on a larger scale this time. Three mech companies of Avatars mustered forward to spar and induce a sense of crisis onto the Penitent Sisters.
After praying earnestly to the Superior Mother while they tried to keep their mechs together, more than thirty-five Penitent Sisters simultaneously began to adopt a formation.
"This formation is different from the one before!" Commander Chancy remarked. "It's more defensive in nature!"
The battle network had become active! With the Superior Mother's grown radiating power, her energy flowed through the connections. A familiar energy silhouette came into being but largely did nothing except look impressive.
Ves studied it for a small moment before focusing on the mechs. The formation they adopted this time vaguely resembled multilayered diamond-like hexahedrons. The mechs on the outside exhibited measurably greater defenses. Their energy consumption also lessened beyond what they should be! It was as if the formation had turned into a castle!
After a certain period of time, the mechs on the outer periphery rotated with the mechs inside the diamond. This caused the pressure on some of the mechs to decrease while letting more rested machines hold the line.
All the while, the energy silhouette of the Superior Mother seemingly adopted an inward, reactive posture. Even as the Bright Warrior mechs accidentally flew through her insubstantial body, the silhouette did not make any moves to attack as before.
Commande Chancy studied the positions and the rotations that were periodically taking place. "This is an attrition-oriented formation. Have you noticed that this time it is lasting longer?"
"I have."
Right now, Ves couldn't tell whether this was due to the added mech pilots or because the nature of the formation was different.
Regardless, he noticed that the formation still wasted a lot of energy. The difference it made was not negligible, but it was not enough to satisfy his expectations for the battle network.
After roughly thirteen minutes, the formation fizzled out. Some of the Penitent Sisters finally reached the end of their mental endurance and were unable to keep their thoughts aligned with the Superior Mother and their fellow comrades.
"Alright, the test has come to an end!"
The second test proceeded differently from the first. Ves felt a bit annoyed that the battle network induced the mech pilots to adopt a different formation this time. The effects were different, which meant he couldn't make direct comparisons!
"Goddammnit, do I need to run this experiment again and again? How many formations do you have, mother?"
Chapter 2369: Refining Formations
Ves began to perform over forty successive tests. Each time, he deployed a varying amount of Penitent Sister mech pilots. After stimulating the Superior Mother's crown, they spontaneously adopted different formations depending on their circumstances.
It turned out that the Superior Mother was able to induce six different formations, each of which corresponded to the six phases of existence.
For example, the first test exhibited the last phase of existence. The formation based around the supremacy of women was capable of unleashing a strong burst of power. Unfortunately, without the requisite strength and number of mech pilots, the woman-oriented formation was very draining.
The second test showcased the fourth phase of existence. Apparently, the formation based around the damnation that every life form had to go through was oriented around beating attrition and outlasting the enemy.
The remaining four formations each excelled in different aspects. Where they actually came from was a mystery. Ves didn't think they came from Cynthia Larkinson. She may be many things, but he was pretty sure she didn't know anything about mechs, either from a pilot or designer's perspective.
Perhaps the ancestral spirit derived these formations from all the mech pilots she came in touch with during or after her creation. Ves still recalled the many mech pilots that took part in the ritual that birthed her. Subsequently, all of the bonds the Superior Mother formed with her worshippers may have also given her insights on formation and mech combat.
"I could be wrong, though."
There was something very odd about these formations that he couldn't quite figure out yet. Commander Chancy already confirmed to Ves that it was unlikely that any Hexer outfits or military mech regiments utilized any of these formations.
When the Penitent Sisters tried to recreate the formations without activating the battle network, nothing unusual happened. The formations were decent but did not bestow any abnormal advantages.
Without any spiritual shenanigans, the formations lacked meaning.
It took a lot of trials to gain these extensive results.
Just a single mech company wasn't enough to engage with the battle network over and over again. Seeing as none of the Penitent Sisters who maintained a thick connection with the battle network suffered any maladies, Ves decided to throw all caution to the wind and connected every other Penitent Sister mech pilot to the same network!
With hundreds of test subjects to work with, Ves no longer had to wait until the participants of his tests had recovered from their mental and spiritual exhaustion. He could rotate a fresh batch of mech pilots on a continuous basis.
It only took two days for Ves to gather an ample amount of data.
Perhaps his most surprising finding was that the inclusion of just a single mech pilot with spiritual potential made a huge difference in the load-bearing capacity of the unit that was channeling a formation.
The duration of the formations doubled and in some cases tripled after the inclusion of mech pilots with spiritual potential. Whether this was because spiritual-active mech pilots redirected much of the burden to themselves or because of other factors, Ves wasn't sure. He was just glad that his latest innovation had become a lot more practical now that it was capable of lasting longer!
This wasn't all. Any spiritually-active mech pilot was not only capable of enduring more strain, but also gained greater awareness during the process!
This was an important discovery! Any mech pilot that managed to avoid getting subsumed by the Superior Mother's vast presence was able to actively nudge the formation to act in a certain manner more conducive to the battle at hand.
This effectively meant that the formation gained significantly more purpose and direction. Although the difference was rather subtle, it hinted that stronger mech pilots might be able to gain an even greater voice in the battle network!
Was this the principle behind Master Huron's asymmetrical neural networks?
It was too bad that the Penitent Sisters didn't boast a single expert candidate or expert pilot. He would have to form a new network centered around the Swordmaidens in order to explore this research direction.
In any case, through all of these successive tests, he and the Penitent Sisters slowly understood some of the rules behind the formations and how to make better use of them in battle.
When Ves met with Commander Chancy to review their conclusions, he handed her a modest list of mech pilots.
Chancy reviewed the names on the data pad. "Are these the mech pilots that are capable of extending the duration of the formations?"
Ves nodded. "They are all special and worthy of greater investment. Even if you don't do anything with them, it is still useful to spread them out among your mech companies."
"What happens if we concentrate them in a single unit?"
"Adding more will lengthen the duration of the special formations even further, but not by much. In fact, I think it's wasteful to add more than two special mech pilots in a single formation."
This was because while the additional spiritually-active mech pilots could channel much of the energy flowing through the battle network, they couldn't do much to help the remaining mech pilots withstand the Superior Mother's presence.
Maybe it would be different if Ves threw an expert candidate or expert pilot in the mix. Their strength gave them the capital to resist the powerful pressure of a strong spiritual entity, and their force of wills might interact with the battle network in a surprisingly different fashion.
Commander Chancy decided to accept Ves' recommendation. She intended to distribute the mech pilots on the list evenly across all of her mech companies. That way, their formations would all be able to last a decent amount of time.
"Do you have a name for this mysterious blessing?" She asked.
"Hmmm…"
Ves hesitated for a bit. He hadn't really thought about it yet. He was tempted to call the phenomenon a battle network, but he didn't want to reveal more than what was necessary.
If any outsiders heard this name, they would definitely conclude that Ves ripped off Master Huron's work.
While it wasn't shameful to take inspiration from other people's work, doing so without attribution or without respecting the source was deeply troublesome.
Ves did not wish to make use of the word network at all. He had always spoken vaguely about the Larkinson Network because he didn't want Master Willix and the MTA find out about all of his spiritual engineering projects.
He thought about using the word formation instead. That was more fitting. There was no way to hide the mechs adopting distinct formations, so he might as well base the name around them in order to attract outsiders away from what really mattered, which was the spiritual battle network.
"Let's call them battle formations." He decided after a couple of minutes. "These battle formations are distinct from regular formations due to the 'blessings' they can evoke."
The middle-aged Penitent Sister Commander furrowed her brows. "This is a rather underwhelming name for something so grand."
"That's the point, commander. I don't want people to know about them or be on guard against them. The battle formations are capable of conveying substantial advantages to our mech pilots, but they are not infallible. If our enemies are prepared against them, then the battle formations will only exhaust our mech pilots in vain."
Though Commander Chancy wanted to assert that the Superior Mother's formations were unbeatable, her better sense pushed through. Even she could think of ways to negate the advantages of the battle formations. For example, the most convenient method was simply to deny battle and wait until the battle formations reached the end of their durations!
"I understand. I will make sure my women will keep the details of the battle formations to themselves. Each of them have stated that it's a great privilege to become a vessel of the Superior Mother. They will not do anything that compromises the sanctity of this exalted ritual. It's just..."
"Is there anything you want, commander?"
"We have noticed that it takes your personal intervention to enable our Penitent Sisters to grow closer to the Superior Mother. While it makes sense that you are able to do so since you are her son, can you give us a means to convert more of our Sisters?"
Ves immediately shook his head. "No. Access can only be granted by me. Do you think anyone can approach the Superior Mother?"
"There are many non-mech pilots in our midst who would love to gain a closer relationship with the Superior Mother. For example, Head Designer Stameros deserves this honor for all of the work she has done in keeping our mechs running. Commodore Evern will also be delighted if you grant her the same honor, and so do many more Penitent Sisters."
He couldn't do that. Battle networks were much smaller in scope by design because of their greater effects. Battle formations were only useful for mech pilots, so letting in someone else took up a valuable slot.
Only when the living spiritual constructs that supported the network grew more powerful would some additional slots open up, but that took time.
"I am open to exceptions, but not too much." Ves compromised a bit. "Let's leave this matter aside until after we have left the Nyxian Gap. Right now, we have very little margin for error, so I don't want to complicate this matter further. Make sure to limit your suggestions to those who have earned this right."
"Will do, sir."
The relationship between Ves and most of the Penitent Sisters had warmed up ever since he hoodwinked them into thinking he was literally the Superior Mother's son. While this was factually true, Ves didn't want to emphasize it too much. He just wanted to convert these powerful mech pilots to his side so that they wouldn't abandon him when he needed them the most.
Before he left the Penitent Sisters and allowed them to explore battle formations at their own leisure, he implemented one more change.
One of the more perplexing aspects about battle formations was the emergence of impressive-looking but largely meaningless energy silhouettes.
He disliked them quite a bit. There was no substance to them all and their presence might give the Big Two as well as the Five Scrolls Compact some clues that Ves did not want to reveal.
He tried various methods to get rid of the energy projections, but none of it worked. They always showed up as long as the mech pilots engaged in battle formations.
"The two are inseparable!"
Since there was no way that Ves wanted to abandon battle formations, he decided to cover up the energy silhouettes.
It wasn't that hard to do so as long as Ves employed some technical ingenuity. He licensed some projection software from the galactic net and programmed an AI-driven software system.
The purpose of this new software was very simple. Whenever the Penitent Sister mechs engaged a battle formation, the projection modules built into the frames of the mechs automatically projected a lifelike visage of the Superior Mother over the energy silhouette.
With the help of sophisticated AIs, the projections perfectly matched the movements of the energy silhouettes!
Ves essentially covered up the spiritual phenomenon with a purely technological phenomenon!
Not only did the giant projection look a lot more impressive, but it was also useful for waging psychological warfare.
What would it be like if hundreds of different battle formations simultaneously projected giant figures at the same time? How would enemies react if all of those intimidating-looking projections charged into their lines?
"Hahaha! That will be a powerful show, especially if we combine it with glows!"
Other mech designers would probably regard it as a flamboyant quirk. After all, despite looking powerful, the projections ultimately didn't do much except affect the morale of both sides.
It was much like waving a flag, he thought.
"Hopefully, others will see it like that as well."
Chapter 2370: Obnoxious Consultant
"Meowww…"
Lucky painfully meowed as he squirmed on top of the desk. His indigestion was still as bad as a few weeks ago. Something about the Unending alloy he had eaten still caused him lots of problems to this day.
Fortunately, most of his wounds had healed. His metallic tiger-striped body no longer bore any exposed and open sections.
Ves estimated that Lucky would need one more week at most to heal all of his external damage. Maybe at that time, his gem cat could devote most of his energy on boosting his digestion.
"Time is running out, Lucky. You better finish your business quickly in the next few weeks. If you haven't accomplished anything by that time, I'll stuff you with you some B-stone to see if that will help unclog your pipes."
"Meow! Meow.. meow!"
Lucky reacted with alarm when he heard the threat. His weak body flailed a bit. It was as if he desperately wanted to phase his body and run as far away as possible from his devilish owner!
"Hehehe.." Ves grinned as he patted Lucky's limp back. "Work hard if you don't want to eat a B-stone sandwich for lunch."
"Meow!..."
Ves ignored his distressed cat and began to plan his new round of experiments.
He successfully realized the battle network concept, though the outcome did not match his initial expectations.
He initially aimed to replicate the high cohesion and coordination enabled by Master Huron's basic neural networks. What he got was something different.
When Ves activated his desk terminal and studied the public footage of the famed Master Mech Designer's products in battle, he did not see anything special about the formations they adopted.
Certainly, the mech pilots connected to the neural networks were able to employ all manner of complicated formations, but none of them added any extra oomph to their mechs.
The Fridaymen mechs didn't radiate any unusual energy projections either.
"The two aren't the same. They're completely different concepts."
Aside from sharing some superficial aspects, battle formations worked on an entirely different paradigm. He couldn't keep looking at neural networks for answers. He had to explore his new invention from scratch and avoid making unfounded assumptions.
"How troublesome!"
That said, the power of his battle formations were evident, if a bit unrefined. They had barely scratched the surface of this new battle method.
Naturally, Ves did not intend to spread something so good to too many many people. For now, he intended to keep it firmly within the clan as a unique, competitive advantage.
"I'm not sure it's entirely safe or practical though." He muttered. "Only by employing them in an actual battle will I know for sure whether it is a boon rather than a bane."
One of the more worrying side effects of employing battle formations was that the mech pilots usually experienced substantial mental exhaustion at the end. This made activating them very risky in large and difficult battles.
"It's best to employ them close to the end of a battle, but will there be any mech pilots left alive at the end?"
Energy, alignment and mental strain each imposed restrictions to battle formations. While Ves believed he might be able to lift or alleviate some of these constraints, he didn't have the time to explore this research at the moment.
He needed to move on and set up at least two more battle networks for the Swordmaidens and the Battle Criers.
As for the Avatars.. Ves reluctantly shook his head.
The experiments he performed on the Penitent Sisters already proved his guess that the mech pilots connected to the battle network needed to be as uniform as possible. Their thoughts all had to be highly aligned in order to meet the conditions to engage a battle formation.
"My Avatars are too heterogeneous. Not enough time has passed to form a strong and established martial tradition."
This was a massive pity. The excellent training, superior aptitude and powerful LMC mechs of the Avatars all suggested that uniting them in a battle formation might produce extremely powerful results!
"Well, the Swordmaidens and the Battle Criers aren't that bad."
He expected much from the Swordmaidens. They may not be watched over by a powerful ancestral spirit like the Superior Mother, but they had their own rising hero in the form of Commander Dise.
When Ves began to refine his design for the Swordmaiden battle network, he wondered whether centering it around Commander Dise adversely affected the crucial expert candidate.
If his experiments inadvertently prevented her from experiencing apotheosis in the coming battle, then Ves would have lost far more than he gained!
"I can't go too far!"
He revisited the notes he scribbled in his implant and began to revise them based on the results he had obtained from his earlier experiments. Now that he knew much more about battle networks and battle formations, he intended to introduce a more refined and adapted version for the Swordmaidens.
"It has to center around Commander Dise, but it also needs another unifying factor!"
Ves was worried whether using Commander Dise as the center of his second battle network would be sufficient in aligning the thoughts of every Swordmaiden mech pilot.
Even if she advanced to expert pilot, the Swordmaidens weren't really the type to completely surrender themselves to someone else. They possessed an incomparably strong degree of pride in themselves.
He thought about Ketis and how she obsessed about Sharpie and her sword all the time.
"Maybe that is what I need to add to the battle network. A sword!"
When Ves created his first battle network, he chose to shape it as a crown for superficial reasons. He just wanted to create something that reinforced the Superior Mother's control over the mech pilots.
For his second battle network, Ves thought about using the greatswords that the Swordmaidens were fond of as a model for the living spiritual construct.
It would be like creating a second Sharpie in a different Swordmaiden's mind!
"This is going to be costly."
Back when he created Ketis' living mind sword, he sacrificed a tiny portion of life-prolonging treatment serum to form it. If Ves intended to do the same for Commander Dise, then he would have to use up another drop.
"What a painful price!"
There was no way he could avoid it if he wanted to go through with his plan. Still, thinking about the potential power that Dise and her mech pilots might be able to exert, Ves pushed aside his stinginess.
Why should he put so much effort into conserving the drops of serum in his possession? If he held back too much, the chances that his task force would lose the upcoming battle would definitely be greater!
There was another reason why he needed to invest more power into his second battle network. Comparatively, the Superior Mother was far stronger than Commander Dise.
Even if the Swordmaiden leader advanced to expert pilot, her actual spiritual strength would still pale in comparison with the upper echelon of design spirits. This meant that any battle formation the Swordmaidens evoked would definitely yield disappointing results!
Ves spent hours on refining the design of his next battle network. Unlike the more general battle network targeted to the Penitent Sisters, his second one was much more narrow in scope.
It single-mindedly sought to enhance any combat action related to swords!
How that actually worked out, Ves wasn't sure. He couldn't really predict whether his second battle network would also express its power in the form of a battle formation.
"Hopefully, it doesn't, but who knows."
Though he had covered up much of the spiritual traces of the first battle network by superimposing the energy silhouette with a technological projection, it wasn't a foolproof solution.
If he had to do the same for the Swordmaidens and every other group connected to battle networks, then the beneficiaries had to implement the same projections to every single mech they piloted!
"How troublesome!"
As Ves began to encounter an increasing amount of uncertainties in his battle network design, he became more and more unsure of what he was trying to accomplish.
Trying to design a battle network that could be entirely sustained by a mech pilot was very risky. He became increasingly more afraid of taking missteps that would ruin Commander Dise's chances of future advancement.
"I could use some help or at least a second opinion."
Should he summon Ketis?
"No. She knows quite a lot about swords and mechs, but she won't be able to answer any of my questions."
What about the primary recipient, Commander Dise?
"I will definitely have to take her input into account, but she's my client, not my helper."
He needed assistance from someone who was versed with spirituality. Out of all of the clansmen in the fleet, only one person possessed the qualifications to speak to him in detail about this subject.
His mouth curled into a frown.
The list of spiritually-knowledgeable experts was pathetically short.
In fact, other than himself, there was only one other name!
Though he wanted to find reasons not to meet with the bastard, Ves had no alternative.
He reluctantly invited James to shuttle over the Scarlet Rose in order to discuss something confidential.
The Living Prophet calmly entered Ves' stateroom while garbed in a pure white robe draped over his standard Larkinson uniform.
"Bright Martyr, it is good to see you again. I believe you have doubts."
Ves couldn't be bothered to express his annoyance at James' foresight. "Sit down and help me understand what I'm dealing with right now. I have many questions and I hope you can answer at least some of them before I lose my patience."
He began to provide brief explanations on battle networks and battle formations. He also provided James with some of his theories and assumptions related to his current research.
For his part, the clone looked quite intrigued. "Hmmm.. this is interesting. I have to admit that I have never touched something like this before. This is truly as new to you as it is to me. Back in my time, most battles were fought between titanic warships."
"Yes, yes, yes, you old git, you lived through the Age of Conquest, now can you actually tell me something useful?"
James raised his hand and pointed at a projection of Commander Dise. "You are underestimating her power."
"What?" Ves looked confused.
"Great mech pilots are capable of evoking and harnessing far greater power than you think. Do you know why?"
"They express their power through their will."
"That is correct, but do you know why? What is so special about infusing their will with power? What makes them different from those with power who aren't mech pilots such as you and Qilanxo?"
Ves blinked. He always wondered about this question but he never really researched it in depth.
"I don't really know, to be honest. If I had to make a guess, it is that mech pilots are specialists. They are different because they augment their power with their will."
James tutted and shook his head. "Your views on expert pilots and more impressive mech pilots are woefully shallow. Mech pilots like Jannzi Larkinson, Joshua Larkinson and so on are defined by their will. Tell me, where does will come from? What is the source of will?"
It took a moment for Ves to form his answer. "Will comes from the mind. Will comes from thought."
"Where does the power you regularly manipulate come from?"
Ves widened his eyes. "It comes from the same source!"
Both spiritual energy and willpower shared a common origin!
Seeing that Ves grasped this point, James lifted both his arms. "Suppose I'm trying to hold a sword."
He stretched out one hand. "If I hold it with my dominant arm, I can probably swing it with decent force."
The Living Prophet stretched out his other hand. "If I hold it with my weaker arm, I will probably struggle to launch a decent attack."
He then stretched out both hands at the same time. "If I hold the sword with both hands, I can probably exert much more force than before."
Ves looked astonished, but only for a moment. He quickly grew skeptical. "This is different. The power that we wield is strong and versatile. Will is formless and unable to affect reality on its own. They may share the same origin, but they're completely different in terms of strength!"
"Are you sure about that?" James grinned. "Is willpower truly powerless?"
Chapter 2371: Power of Will
What was willpower?
There were a lot of official definitions of this term, but few of them described the concept that matched his current understanding of this term.
Willpower was intent. Willpower stood for the willingness to endure hardships. Willpower kept warriors aloft in battle.
To Ves, willpower took on even more meaning after personally witnessing expert candidates and expert pilots in battle. Even without seeing them in action, those with strong will such as Venerable Brutus and Venerable Jannzi already distorted the reality around them with their latent will alone!
Yet what these amazing individuals accomplished was not purely a product of willpower. Expert pilots only emerged after they unconsciously developed their spiritual power by merging it with their strong wills.
For some reason, no other people except strong-willed mech pilots were able to accomplish this odd and very rare feat. Due to these strict conditions, the amount of expert pilots in any given state was actually quite low. It was no surprise that the MTA imposed many rules favorable to high-ranked mech pilots in order to preserve their lives outside of mech combat.
He turned his attention back to James. This religious bastard did not even bother to hide his paternal expression. Even though the Living Prophet smiled politely as he awaited an answer, to Ves the clone looked incredibly smug!
Ves wanted to punch this smug look off the bastard's face!
Sadly, Ves had to abide by the decorum that was expected of a clan leader. James hadn't done anything that merited a good whack.
As the only person who possessed actual knowledge and insight on the mysterious phenomenon known as spirituality, James played a vital role in the clan. Several times now, the self-proclaimed reborn prophet had provided essential wisdom and insight.
How could Ves possibly do something as shortsighted as spoiling his relationship with the former cult leader?
Emotionally, Ves wanted to beat James up.
Rationally, he wanted to retain the man as a spiritual consultant and advisor.
Emotion and reason warred within Ves, but eventually the latter achieved a decisive victory.
Enough time had passed for Ves to reorganize his thoughts and form an answer in his own words.
"Willpower is a form of power that comes from the mind. To ordinary people, it is a quality that allows them to persevere temporary difficulties to achieve a greater payoff. To expert pilots, it is one of their strongest traits and allows them to fully leverage the other powers."
"That is a good interpretation." James nodded in satisfaction. "The power of thought and the power of will are highly similar. Which one do you think is stronger?"
Ves frowned. He felt as if there was a trap behind those words. Even so, he decided to answer according to his own understanding.
"The power of will can achieve great feats when it is blended with the power of thought, but on its own it is largely formless. Just like our other thoughts and emotions, it can only affect our behavior."
"That is only what you think. Tell me, Ves. Have you ever seen an ace pilot? Have you ever had the fortune to meet a god pilot?"
Ves sneered. "I don't think you have ever seen those people either."
The current James was just a designer baby grown from the Prophet's genes. The past James was the founder of a cult in an age where mechs and mech pilots hadn't been invented yet. How could this smug bastard ever come in touch with a god pilot under these circumstances?
Despite the acid remark, James showed no irritation. His charming smile remained as radiant as ever.
"Willpower existed before the Age of Mechs, Ves. Back then, certain humans and aliens have already made use of the power of thought and the power of will. It is only after the emergence of mechs that the latter has become more ubiquitous."
"What is your point and what does this have to do with the battle networks I'm trying to develop?" Ves impatiently asked.
The prophet held up a hand. "Patience, please. Understanding the power of will is essential to your future endeavors. Now, think about it. Mech designers such as you mainly advance by developing the power of thought. I am sure you have met with a number of Master Mech Designers. What do you sense when you meet them in person?"
"Power. Pure power." Ves spoke as he recalled the times when he met with both Master Olson and Master Willix. "It is as if they evolved their thoughts to such a high degree that it has solidified into a physical substance. I have sensed something similar from other comparable entities such as Qilanxo."
"She is a magnificent being, if a bit uncultured. Nonetheless, she is not only powerful, but also well-versed in the application of her power. That is quite admirable for a god of her age." James complimented the sacred god. "However, you have made one mistake. Powerful mech pilots are not comparable to the likes of Qilanxo."
"Huh?"
"Expert pilots are defined by their will. The stronger their will, the greater their ability to exercise their unique abilities in combat. Without a sufficiently strong will, it doesn't matter how much they have cultivated the power of thought."
While Ves could buy that, he wondered where the role of spirituality came in. After all, the force of will that expert pilots used to resonate with their mechs was a product of both willpower and spiritual energy!
"If that is the case, why don't mech pilots rely on pure willpower and leave the power of thought alone?" He asked.
James smiled wider. "Ah, that is the great secret. Fortunately for you, I believe you are qualified to know this. Let me put it this way. When you are young, can you study a lot of books and develop into a competent mech designer all by yourselves?"
"No. Not realistically. Unless I have the enhancements that I have now, I wouldn't have been able to get where I am today if I did not benefit from structural teaching and guidance from the professors at the Rittersberg University of Technology."
Even though it was a fairly low-ranked academic institution for raising mech designers, Ves truly benefited a lot from learning there. Even if few of its graduates went on to become successful entrepreneurs, many of his former classmates were still able to land very good jobs at the military, the government or the design departments of various mech companies.
"It is the same when it comes to the power of will." James stated. "Earlier, you remarked that the power of will is formless and unable to achieve anything powerful on its own. You aren't wrong, but that is only when it is in its weaker stages. As long as you develop it further, the power of will becomes more and more amazing. At the end…"
"At the end?"
The Living Prophet teasingly smiled at Ves. "You get god pilots."
"What?!" Ves almost stood from his chair. "Are you saying that god pilots are able to contend against battleships with just their will and mech alone? What about the power of thought?!"
"Ah, god pilots have no need for it anymore." James dismissively waved his hand.
This was a huge revelation to Ves! The difference between high-ranking mech pilots and high-ranking mech designers turned out to be bigger than he thought!
He composed himself. "Explain to me how mech pilots develop themselves. What happens after they advance to expert pilots?"
"What I said before is already all the information you need to answer your own question, Ves. Someone like you is unable to become a mech designer without going through structure learning or personal guidance. The same goes for willpower. It is weak in its earlier stages and cannot bring many advantages to mech pilots. That is why they must meld it with the power of thought."
Ves felt as if he came in contact with a profound truth. If James wasn't spinning nonsense to him, then this was probably one of the biggest secrets behind high-ranking mech pilots!
"The combination is more powerful than the separate components, right? I always thought that this combined force is the main reason why expert pilots and such are so powerful. Am I wrong?"
"No. Your information is just incomplete. While it is correct when you limit your sights to expert pilots, it is a different story for ace pilots and god pilots. Expert pilots must use the power of thought to nurture their will. At this stage in their development, their will alone is stronger than normal people, but not impressive enough to achieve anything drastic in battle. That is why they must use the power of thought as a carrier."
"What about ace pilots?"
"Ah, when an expert pilot is able to surpass a threshold in the development of their will, they enter a new realm. The power of will begins to take on a greater proportion while the power of thought becomes more and more unimportant. Once the will of an ace pilot has reached a certain level of maturity, the power of thought becomes a shackle rather than a growth vessel."
This! Ves couldn't even get a grip on all of the implications of these revelations! He never realized that ace pilots progressed in this manner!
"What happens after that?" He huskily asked.
He wanted to know the truth!
"The student must surpass the teacher. When the power of thought is no longer able to provide any further help, the ace pilot must continue to develop will to the point that they are able break their power of thought and shatter the final barrier that prevents them from reigning supreme by will alone!"
"That sounds insane! The power of thought is intrinsic to every sentient lifeform! Without it, there is no life!"
Even the weakest humans or sentient animal possessed a tiny mote of spirituality. This single quality distinguished them from non-sentient life forms that weren't truly aware of themselves such as AIs and clones!
"It does sound implausible when you assume the power of thought is indispensable to life." James agreed. "This is why god pilots are so amazing. Their wills are so unfathomably strong that they are able to substitute the power of thought in their minds! They are living wills incarnate and have become entirely different! They cannot be called human anymore. It is not a mistake to call them gods."
"Is this.. What the Ylvainan Faith claims will happen to everyone in the future?"
"Oh no." James shook his head. "There are multiple paths to power. The cultivation of willpower is just one of them. You and I are following different paths. It doesn't matter that we are different from mech pilots. As they say, all roads lead to Rubarth. Just like how there are different professions, there are also different kinds of gods."
Ves paused for a while. He had to process what he heard.
If James was right, then the force of will gained by expert pilots was only a transitional product. It was temporary. The goal of forming a force of will was to prop up the immature willpower with spiritual energy. As these mech pilots advanced to higher ranks, they constantly needed to grow and transform their wills by using spiritual energy as a crutch.
It was only at the end when senior ace pilots reached their limits that they were ready to break their crutch! They had to shatter one of the key powers that made them alive and sustain their lives entirely by their superior will alone!
To Ves, this sounded as absurd as an unarmed human trying to fight a mech! It was impossible unless the human modified his body extensively to the point of becoming a deadly monster!
So much could go wrong through this arduous process. How could spirituality that was supposedly essential to all life be so easy to discard?
By far, most humans who tried to fight a mech with their bare hands would unquestionably die!
Only those who were freakish enough to develop their wills to insane heights were able to achieve this impossibility!
"No wonder why there are so few god pilots in the galaxy." Ves dazedly muttered. "With such an insanely difficult hurdle at the end, they are truly worthy of their titles!"
Chapter 2372: Myriad Powers
Though James could have been spinning a tale of nonsense, Ves did not believe this was the case.
The revelations on the power of will largely conformed to his own observations.
It was just that Ves was still too clueless about ace pilots and god pilots to know how important it was for them to develop their willpower.
The end goal of every mech pilot who wanted to reach the top was to evolve their will to a height that allowed them to live on it. To Ves who constantly gained a greater appreciation of spirituality, this sounded like a completely alien means of ascension!
Ves had to take a fair amount of time to take stock. Though he still disliked James, he had to admit that his spiritual advisor was definitely earning his keep in the clan!
"Earlier, you said that we are different from the mech pilots who develop their wills. What role does the power of will play for us? Also, aren't you supposed to be a mech pilot?"
"To answer the latter, I am, but that does not mean I have to follow the same path as every other mech pilot." James calmly answered. "Though it may seem unimaginable to the likes of you and every other mech-crazed citizen of human civilization, I am not particularly interested in becoming an existence that is sustained by will alone. My talents lie elsewhere."
Oh, Ves could believe that. James hadn't piloted a single mech during this excursion. Just like any cult leader, the Living Prophet excelled at scamming and hoodwinking people!
"As to how mech designers differ from mech pilots, well, that is something you can figure out yourself, Ves. Both god pilots and star designers are immensely powerful. They are gods in human form, but they express their might differently. To put it into terms that you are accustomed to, they have pursued different specialities."
"I see. Then what makes mech designers special, exactly? Are we dependent on the power of will as well?"
"No. While I have some insights on how mech designers reach greater heights, I am not one of them myself. I believe it is better for you to explore this on your own. All I can say is that unlike mech pilots, mech designers take the more common path of developing their power of thought. Just because mech pilots must eventually get rid of it doesn't mean it is useless. Willpower is just more suited to their roles."
Ves scratched his head again. He had been doing this several times as he struggled to understand all of the implications of what James was saying.
Right now, he felt awfully envious at mech pilots for being able to develop their willpower into something amazing. Ves felt rather lacking that he wasn't doing something like that.
Was cultivating willpower something exclusive to mech pilots and potentates? What stopped Ves from doing something similar? Was it truly possible for a single human being to cultivate both willpower and spirituality to their highest forms.
The Living Prophet seemed to know what Ves was thinking. "Don't think about it, Ves. I told you earlier that when ace pilots reach the threshold of their upper growth, their power of thought has become a hindrance. Do you really want to spend the effort to grow both powers, just so that you have to shatter one of them? Also, don't think that mech designers can casually develop their power of will on the side. Your minds are wired differently when you reach the rank of Journeyman."
That was a pity. Ves thought that his remarkably high control and perception of spirituality would allow him to do what others could not, but evidently there were hard limits.
Perhaps he could force it, but Ves had no ambitions to develop the power of will at the cost of compromising his mech design ability. What would he do with strong willpower if he couldn't even pilot a mech? It was completely counterproductive!
He recalled the reason why he summoned James in the first place. As much as he wanted to explore these novel aspects in greater detail, it would be pointless if Task Force Predator failed to overcome the intercepting pirate fleet.
"Let's get back to my original question. I asked you how a battle network would be different if I centered it around an expert pilot instead of an entity like the Superior Mother. How does the inclusion of willpower affect this dynamic?"
James tapped his fingers against the surface of the desk. "Gods like Qilanxo and the Superior Mother sustain themselves by cultivating their power of thought. As for expert pilots, the power of thought is merely an enabler to their power of will. Now, let us consider your so-called battle network. What do you think the mech pilots who are caught in this web prefer. The combination of will and thought or just the power of thought?"
When put in this way, the answer sounded obvious.
"Mech pilots don't seem to have much use for the power of thought in isolation. Standard mech pilots have developed neither powers. Just gaining the power of thought alone is not that helpful if their will remains weak."
Maybe that was why the efficiency of the Penitent Sister battle formations was so low. The Superior Mother may be powerful from a spiritual standpoint, but she did not do anything to enhance the wills of the mech pilots connected to her crown.
Perhaps this was also why most of the mech pilots weren't able to persist for a longer time. The demands on their feeble wills was simply too much.
This made Ves wonder if adding an expert pilot, whether they used as the central focus of a battle network or merely one of its participants could make a substantial difference.
"Is it possible for expert pilots to share their power of will to the other mech pilots in the network?" Ves asked.
James smiled but did not provide a direct answer. "I cannot say. You are the inventor of battle networks. You should know better than I about this subject. What does your logic say?"
"I think.. the asymmetrical neural network that has propelled my cousin Ghanso to fame is proof that the power of will can be shared."
The only question was how compatible the other mech pilots would need to be in order to sync up with the expert pilot. The requirements must be extremely strict. So strict in fact that Ves actually wanted to know how Master Huron prepped the mech pilots that fought alongside Venerable Ghanso.
"Whatever you do, don't underestimate the power of will." James warned Ves with a serious tone. "Expert pilots have cultivated their willpower with the help of their power of thought, but the same can't be said for other mech pilots. What is the nature of will?"
"Belief in self. Perseverance. Intent." Ves summed up his previous answer.
"Now try and imagine transplanting these will components to another person's mind. Do you think that this will go well?"
"..Maybe not. In the worst-case scenario, the expert pilot might turn the other mech pilots in the battle network into her copies."
Whether this was good or bad depended on how much he cared about the weaker mech pilots.
From a rational standpoint, turning different mech pilots into carbon copies of expert pilots sounded like a great deal! As long as Ves was willing to lose the individual personalities of the mech pilots in questions, he would be able to gain a lot of mech pilots who possessed similar traits as that of an expert pilot!
Still, despite the great attraction of this development, Ves would never allow this to happen to his own clansmen! He and his clan valued their individual wellbeing. Overriding their wills with the will of another person was no better than suffering mind death!
"Your worries may be unfounded, Ves." James added. "Expert pilots have great control over the power of will. If they do not wish to inadvertently cause harm to their comrades, then they just need to restrain themselves."
"That is a relief. If my battle network can only be utilized by standard mech pilots, then much of its potential is lost. That would be a great shame."
The two spiritually-enlightened individuals spoke some more about battle networks and willpower. Ves wanted to obtain a bit more clarification so that he did not develop any wrong ideas about what he had just learned.
Of course, as wise and all-knowing as James appeared, Ves constantly reminded himself that this fellow wasn't entirely trustworthy. So far, he only learned about the power of will from a single, obviously biased source. A source that definitely held ulterior motives.
Ves would be a fool to believe in James just because he sounded authoritative over this subject!
As a researcher, Ves always possessed the urge to verify what he discovered. When it came to something as vital and hidden as willpower, he had to be extra careful and know for sure that the theories he gained were accurate.
If he made any mistakes, he might spark off a disaster when he was ready to implant a battle network in Commander Dise!
The two men began to wrap up their discussion.
"Is there anything else I should take into account when I make my next battle network?" Ves earnestly asked.
"I do have something I wish to say, though it is not necessarily related to your current endeavors."
"Then say your piece."
James took a slow breath. "There are more forms of power than just the two I have mentioned. Just like how most of humanity has discovered how to harness kinetic energy, thermal energy, electrical energy, gravitational energy and so on in the form of technology, there are many more expressions of power that are less accessible. Some are only found in aliens. Others are more easy to access. The power of thought just happens to be the most universal power to individuals like you and me. We are blessed in that regard."
Ves was inclined to believe this. There was so much that he and humanity were still ignorant of. Reality was much more grand than anyone could ever imagine. Just the Milky Way Galaxy alone still hid countless secrets that could revolutionize the way people lived.
"Noted. Is there anything else?"
"Hmmmm. We live in the Age of Mechs. Any power that is conducive to mechs is in vogue now. That does not mean that other expressions of power have become extinct."
"How did people strengthen their will before mechs?" Ves suddenly asked.
He had been wondering about this for a while now. He didn't think it came out of nowhere.
"That is something for you to explore for yourself." James grinned. "I'll leave you with a hint. We humans are actually defective in this aspect. Most life in the galaxy is defective when it comes to cultivating their willpower."
"What?"
That was quite a negative-sounding statement!
"You heard me, Ves. We humans are weak in developing our willpower. Although it sounds harsh, it is not untruthful to describe us as defective. A more ideal form of life should be capable of developing a much stronger will and sense of self. We humans are far from reaching this standard. We are like cripples who have to rely on external aid such as hover chairs to move around."
Ves looked scandalized! Equating heroic high-ranking mech pilots as paralyzed cripples who weren't able to move without a tool was a pretty radical statement to make!
If James ever uttered this description in the midst of a group of mech pilots, he would have instantly been beaten black and blue for his temerity!
Even though Ves merely admired expert pilots, he too felt that James had gone far. Perhaps the Living Prophet was making a factually truthful statement. That did not mean he should phrase it in the most pejorative method possible!
"I don't agree with your tone." Ves replied with a restrained smile. "Humanity has always relied on external tools to achieve greatness. We are married to technology, and there is nothing to feel ashamed about that. Mech pilots are not burdened by mechs. They are enriched by mechs. This is what I believe!"
Chapter 2373: Shocking Implication
Long after James left his stateroom, Ves remained in deep thought as he repeatedly analyzed everything he heard and inferred.
His spiritual adviser certainly lived up to his unofficial title. James Ylvaine was truly a font of knowledge when it came to the more mysterious side of reality.
"What a troublesome parting shot. Is he trying to ruin my impression of expert pilots?"
Clearly, James expressed his contempt for high-ranking mech pilots several times. It was as if they were somehow worse than those who pursued different paths to power.
Despite the great temptation to take everything that James said at his word, Ves couldn't bring himself to do so. The final remark especially compelled Ves to make a stand and refute what his advisor had claimed.
To Ves, expert pilots and higher weren't poor or crippled. Everyone relied on external tools and aid these days in order to do their jobs. Human civilization was practically defined by its extensive and ubiquitous use of technology to accomplish feats that were impossible to accomplish with human power alone!
After all, great feats such as constructing Dyson spheres around suns, terraforming lifeless rocks into life bearing planets and crossing the stars could never be done without the use of lots of vehicles and technological inventions.
Even a mech designer like Ves depended extensively on technology to propagate more technology. Didn't the criticism espoused by James apply to him as well? Was this the Living Prophet's veiled way of dissing his current path of progression?
"You bastard!"
Ves should feel happy. He not only learned a lot about a subject that he depended heavily upon, but he also solved many of his doubts and uncertainties with regards to his battle network.
Yet some of the implications that James alluded to added additional burdens to his mind. He felt haunted by some of the more unsettling theories and guesses he formed.
"Are mech pilots, and by extension mech designers, really crippled and overly dependent on external tools?"
He didn't think so. Ves was a mech designer. He was part of a greater society that depended entirely on tools to gain superiority over the rival alien empires that used to dominate the galaxy.
"Human civilization is an empire of tool users." Ves muttered. "The Seven Apex Races and many other alien civilizations used to lord it over us because of their inborn strengths and endowments. Now look at them. We've displaced them entirely from the most prosperous and juiciest parts of the galaxy. Many of their former empires have gone to ruin and all of their monuments and traces have disappeared."
He believed that the views espoused by James were more sympathetic towards the Five Scrolls Compact than the Big Two. This alone caused Ves to inherently reject the views espoused by the clone.
"I could use a bite."
Ves didn't bother standing up in order to eat a meal at the mess hall. Neither did he bother to call a chef to deliver a hand cooked meal to him. Why should he go through all of that trouble when he had plenty of food within arm's reach.
He opened one of his drawers, revealing a messy heap of nutrient packs. Ves picked up one of them and looked appreciatively at the label.
"These Ulimo nutrient packs are certainly unique. If my ships had the room, I would have packed up their nutrient processing plant and taken it back."
Perhaps the Larkinson Clan should look into producing its own nutrient packs.
"Nah." Ves put down the suggestion as he tore open the wrapper. "The nutrient pack sector is one of the most oversaturated markets in human space."
He dug out the small spoon that was embedded in the folds of the wrapper and began to spoon the dry, dense concentration of nutrients. As soon as he swallowed his first spoonful, his eyes lit up. His taste buds instantly came in touch with deep, rich flavors.
After spooning up a few more scoops, he immediately felt invigorated. A burst of energy refreshed his mind and eased his stress. He felt ready to work an entire week!
Once Ves finished his meal, he restored his hydration level by drinking a large glass of water.
"Ahhh!" He sighed in pleasure. "I needed that."
Taking a break and eating a hearty nutrient pack completely reset his mind. Now that he had taken a step back, he no longer felt as troubled as before.
"Who cares what he thinks?" Ves huffed. "I chose to be a mech designer. My job is to serve mech pilots by providing them with the best tools for the job. Is there anything wrong with this? Just because I can't become like my mother doesn't mean I'm inferior!"
He was not jealous of his mother and her extensive mastery over spiritual manipulation!
Whatever James thought about mech pilots was only relevant to himself. The rest of the Larkinson Clan largely centered around mechs. Both its mech pilots and its mech designers were vital to its future might and prosperity.
In the Age of Mechs, this was a winning combination!
"Making use of mechs is even better than relying on yourself. As long as mechs are alive, the combination of human and mech can achieve fantastic synergy that can rival the entities who pretend they are gods!"
The previous battle was a fantastic example of this. At the very end when the Unending One was about to unleash his wrath, Venerable Jannzi, her mech and Qilanxo all combined forces to crush the ancient alien horror!
Alone, the three probably weren't capable of defending against the Unending One. Together, they had the potential to overturn the entire galaxy!
"My design philosophy centers around symbiosis. By nature, my research and ambition is all about combining different elements together in order to accomplish a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. I can't do much with a single part."
Ves felt more sure of himself after he made this realization.
He shoved this matter aside and returned his attention to developing his second battle network. He tweaked his design for the battle network in order to account for willpower. If it was possible for Commander Dise to 'share' a portion of her willpower with her fellow Swordmaidens, then Ves wanted his battle network to facilitate this as much as possible.
He didn't change all that much, though. His second battle network may be narrower in scope, but Ves did at least distinguish it in one specific way.
Inspired by James' description of the power of will, Ves decided not to leave any room for any potential design spirits. The Swordmaidens were some of the most willful mech pilots in the Larkinson Clan. Even the normal Swordmaiden mech pilots possessed minds of steel.
Enhancing their performance with design spirits and glows would only clash against their martial tradition. They were used to being self-sufficient and relying on themselves.
Even if Ves intended to create a sword-oriented design spirit in the future, he didn't want his Swordmaidens to lose this intrinsic strength.
If the Penitent Sister battle network worked entirely on spiritual energy, the Swordmaiden network instead ran on force of will.
Ves added a few safeguards to his design, though he wasn't really sure how effective they would be. When it came to spiritual engineering, a lot of additions that Ves intended to add to his work ended up rather fuzzy. This was the inherent challenge of manipulating something that Ves wished to bring to life.
After a while, he felt satisfied with what he accomplished.
"It might not look much right now, but hopefully it will grow into power."
The next day, Ves shuttled over to the Jaded Sword in order to install his second battle network.
As soon as he arrived, Ketis enthusiastically greeted right outside his shuttle.
"Ves! You're here! Are you checking up on Commander Dise's custom mech?"
"Ah, I'm here for a different reason, but I might as well check up on your progress so far. How much have you changed?"
"Not a lot, but there are still some weeks to go. Let me show you the current state of the Sword Hunter."
"Sword Hunter?" Ves raised his eyebrow.
"That's the name of the mech we worked on. Dise doesn't need any fancy names for her machine. She just wants a mech that is able to attack and move according to her expectations. She has already outpaced her current machine so she expects much from the Sword Hunter."
Even if Ketis made the current Sword Hunter perfect for Commander Dise, it might not last. If the Swordmaiden Commander ever managed to advance to expert pilot in the next battle, then the Sword Hunter would only momentarily be able to keep up due to the temporary outburst of resonance that accompanied the breakthrough.
After that, the mech would likely turn into a sluggish mule for an expert pilot such as her! Only an expert mech would be able to satisfy her from that point!
Once the pair of mech designers arrived at a mech workshop, Ves saw that the Swordmaidens had already disassembled much of the mech. Various Swordmaiden mech technicians were in the process of replacing some of the internal components with higher-performing ones.
Ves instinctively reached out with his Spirituality in order to smooth over the many imperfections that was marring the mech's spiritual foundation.
The mech was already radiating with power. If any Swordmaiden mech pilot randomly entered the cockpit and tried to boot it up, she might actually die!
Only Commander Dise among the Swordmaidens possessed the strength to withstand the pressure extend by her own mech!
As Ves finished his task, he briefly reflected on what he had done.
"Mechs and mech pilots. Do they both rely on the same source of power?"
Mech pilots resonated with their mechs by utilizing their force of will. They needed to combine both their spiritual energy and willpower to produce a composite force that allowed them to wield greater power.
"What if.. the mech pilot doesn't have to supply these powers. What if they came from the mech?"
Wasn't this what he was already doing to an extent? His spiritual foundation enhancement attempts added a substantial amount of spiritual energy to the mech.
When a mech pilot interfaced with an enhanced mech, they essentially pooled their own spirituality with the spiritual foundation of their machine.
"They're like married couples!" Ves suddenly realized.
His outburst surprised Ketis for a moment, but as soon as she realized that he was having another epiphany, she dutifully kept quiet.
As for Ves, he was in the process of applying all of the insights he recently gained and combining them with his previous invention.
Right now, his spiritually-enhanced mechs possessed varying degrees of spiritual energy saturation.
Just like a man and wife, what belonged to the mech also belonged to the mech after they interfaced with each other.
Conversely, what belonged to the mech pilot should also belong to the mech in this situation!
Ves didn't think it was that simple, but if this outlandish theory matched reality, then the implications were profound!
If Ves somehow managed to imbue both spiritual energy and willpower into a mech, didn't that mean it had all the ingredients necessary to accomplish resonance?
It just needed a mech pilot to channel both kinds of power.
Was this a viable means of creating an expert mech without requiring a corresponding expert pilot?
Would he be able to bring an expert mech into existence that was just as strong as the real deal with just a regular mech pilot?
Ves was really shocked at his own realization! Something as radical as a standalone expert mech would completely subvert the entire mech industry!
There were so many mech pilots in the galaxy but few of them managed to advance to a higher rank. If Ves made it possible for normal mech pilots such as Melkor and Dietrich to make full use of an expert mech, then was it possible to make expert pilots redundant?
His body shivered.
Chapter 2374: Respa
The creation of a standalone expert mech sounded incredibly interesting to Ves. Theoretically, it should be possible, but in practice Ves would have to solve a lot of problems.
"This is probably something I should look into when I advance to Senior or Master." He muttered.
Aside from learning how to design expert mechs, Ves had to figure out how to impart willpower in a mech.
James mentioned that spiritual energy and willpower came from the same source. The first was more common and versatile while the latter was difficult to nurture and not so transferable.
Spiritual energy centered around thought and emotion. Willpower came from the self. This difference implied that transferring someone else's willpower onto a mech may not be viable.
Design spirits couldn't help. All of them were entirely based on spirituality and did not possess any exceptional willpower.
Perhaps theoretically, they might be able to nurture willpower through some unusual methods. Maybe they could even piggyback off his mechs to accomplish this feat.
However, at the end, the strengthening of willpower demanded the destruction of spirituality. Didn't that mean these spiritual entities had to kill themselves in order to turn into a lifeform composed entirely of willpower?
Ves believed it was a bit more realistic to encourage a living mech to develop a will. No matter what fortune or misfortune took place over the course of its evolution, every consequence would be confined to a single copy.
This was still a very distant prospect, however. Ves barely understood anything about the nature of the power of will. He only recognized it as a distinct source of power just recently.
For now, it was best to focus on his immediate problems rather than let his ambition run wild.
He turned his attention back to the Sword Hunter. For a converted Bright Warrior, Ketis was doing a good job transforming it into something unique. It might even be her first real variant design.
After discussing a number of issues about some of the trickier changes that Ketis wanted to implement, they eventually met with Commander Dise.
The strong Swordmaiden expert candidate and leader greeted Ves with a ramrod straight back and her feet planted solidly to the deck.
"Welcome to the Jaded Sword." The dark-skinned woman spoke as she gazed at her Sword Hunter. "Will you be giving us the same treatment as the Penitent Sisters?"
"Not exactly. The experiment that I wish to perform on your Swordmaidens is different in nature. Let's head somewhere private so I can explain some of the nuances to you. In order to make this work, I need your cooperation."
He knew that a Swordmaiden like Dise was not interested in the mechanics behind what he was trying to achieve. She mainly cared about the results. Therefore, he condensed and dumbed down his explanation as best as possible so that she knew just enough to know what she might be getting into. With something as new and unknown as this, the risks were considerable.
"Do I have your consent to proceed with my experiment?" Ves asked after he finished outlining his plan.
Commander Dise frowned. She turned to Ketis, who shrugged.
"Ves usually means well. I don't claim to know how this battle network will affect you and our other Sisters, but I think it is definitely useful. However, I'm concerned about a couple of details. This network is different from that of the Penitent Sisters."
He nodded. "The Penitent Sisters can easily sync up to each other by praying to the Superior Mother. You Swordmaidens are different. I think it is much more suitable for you in the long run if you stay true to your current heritage."
Commander Dise clenched her fist. "I agree! We Swordmaidens aren't in the habit of relying on others like weak women! We are more than capable of fighting our own battles!"
"This is why the battle network that I'm preparing for your troop won't center around a powerful entity that graciously does much of the heavy lifting. The Penitent Sisters may be strong in their own way, but their mentalities are too.. prone to submission."
This was what he disliked the most about the Penitent Sisters and any other group of religious nuts. While it was convenient for Ves to command them as long as he found the right handle, he ultimately believed it would have been better if they weren't so gullible.
The Swordmaidens, who survived and thrived in the brutal frontier, were much more sensible and guarded in this regard. They lived alongside numerous weird cults such as the Temple of Haatumak. They personally witnessed the depravity of all of the cults that for one reason or another had been chased out of civilized space.
Ves admired the independent mindset of the Swordmaidens. Even when they had joined the Larkinson Clan, they were still determined to cling to much of their old ways. They compromised just enough in order to fit into their new circumstances. Perhaps that might not be so good from an integration standpoint, but Ves cherished the diversity these women added to the clan.
It took some time before Commander Dise eventually agreed with the experiment.
"I trust Ketis and I trust you." She plainly said. "Our Swordmaidens truly need strengthening, and barring some new mechs this seems like the only way. From all accounts, the enemy we are about to face is so strong that my fellow Sisters can easily lose their lives in an instant. I don't want to see that happen."
"I can't guarantee that your Sisters will all make it out alive, but I can at least assure you that they'll be able to put up a greater fight."
After that, Ves proceeded with creating his new battle network.
First, he needed to add the capability to Commander Dise's spirit. This was a fairly delicate operation because she wasn't as strong as the Superior Mother.
Ves had to resort to using up a drop of life-prolonging treatment serum in order to create a living spiritual construct for Commander Dise.
This new construct was a hybrid between a battle network and a mind sword. It essentially tried to fulfill both functions at once.
Nothing went wrong. Ves already knew what to expect from creating his first mind sword and his first battle network. The only complications resulted from the fact he tried to merge two different roles into a single spiritual entity.
In order to accommodate all of the necessary functions, he built a multi-part spiritual greatsword. While its shape was largely identical to that of Ketis, it possessed its own unique touches.
When Ves finally relaxed his mind, he let out a deep breath. "It's done."
Commander Dise, who lay on a treatment surface, slowly began to rise up to her feet. "I feel.. As if my mind has become busier."
"You'll get used to it." Ketis spoke. "Your new sword intent is alive, just like mine! If it bothers you, then just tell it to be quiet. Don't let your sword run amok."
One of the principal lessons the Swordmaidens learned was to always maintain control over their swords. It didn't take much time before the Swordmaiden Commander quieted her own mind.
With Ketis present, Ves let her guide Commander Dise on how to handle her new gift.
"You should give it a name. It's alive, after all, and it will respond more readily to you if you call it out."
"You're right." Dise paused for a minute while she began to consider names. "I'm thinking of calling it Lydia, but our old commander wouldn't have wanted me to name my sword intent after her. I think I'll call it Respa."
Ketis shared a knowing look with the Swordmaiden Commander. Obviously, there was an inside story behind the name. It was none of his business, though. He suppressed his curiosity and clapped.
"Alright, seeing as you still need to get used to your new mindsword, I will leave you with Ketis. Tomorrow, we'll proceed with the experiment."
They conducted the experiment a day later after Ketis extensively taught Commander Dise how to manage the new addition in her mind.
They encountered a bit of difficulty because of their different professions. The way Ketis interacted with and made use of Sharpie was based around treating it as a living pet.
On the other hand, Commander Dise felt much more comfortable with wielding her mind sword directly. With her nascent force of will, she was able to resonate with her mind sword to a modest degree. Though she was very clumsy in controlling Respa, Ves figured that was mostly because she was just an expert candidate at the moment. Her force of will possessed no substance at this stage.
Once Ves gained enough confidence in Commander Dise's ability to keep her mind sword under control. They quickly commenced the experiment.
Ves first established some connections between a squad of regular Swordmaiden mech pilots and Respa. This went smoothly.
While Respa still remained active as a mind sword, her battle network aspect hadn't been activated yet. As long as this remained true, nothing flowed through the connections. At most, some of Dise's residual force of will might leak into her fellow mech pilots.
"Are all of you feeling okay? Tell me if there are any abnormalities."
The first batch of Swordmaiden mech pilots all shook their heads.
"If that's the case, then head to your mechs and wait your turn to deploy into space."
A squad of Swordmaiden mechs launched from the Jaded Sword. Commander Dise followed shortly after with her current mech.
Though it would have been interesting to see how her battle network interacted with the Sword Hunter, the mech was in no state to launch.
The experiment soon commenced. Just like before, Ves asked a group of Avatar mechs to spar with the Swordmaiden squad and put them under pressure.
This time, the Avatar mechs significantly held back in their attacks. Unlike the second-class mechs of the Penitent Sisters, the third-class mechs of the Swordmaidens were much more fragile.
Even so, being surrounded by forty hostile mechs at closer ranges imposed a very powerful psychological effect on the Swordmaiden test subjects.
It was easy to forget that they were taking part in a controlled test when their mechs were being pushed around like bully victims!
"Enough! We are not weak!"
Ves watched closely as Commander Dise finally managed to find out how to activate Respa's battle network functionality.
The Swordmaiden mech pilots began to feel odd as Commander Dise reached out to them. While they had trouble getting in sync with each other, the problem wasn't as bad as Ves initially feared.
Every Swordmaiden admired Commander Dise! She not only succeeded Commander Lydia as their leader, but had also advanced to expert candidate. Her superior skill, strength and battle acumen had long earned her the respect of all of her subordinates!
With such a heroic figure at the center of the battle network, the Swordmaiden test subjects finally managed to sync up with each other.
"It's happening!"
The mechs spontaneously moved into a distinctly narrow formation. Ves imagined that they were forming a large sword.
Unfortunately, the attempt seemed to fail. The mechs didn't radiate any form of radiance, so no energy silhouettes appeared. Their formation had no substance!
Ves shut down the experiment. "That's enough!"
Ketis and the other Swordmaidens manning the various consoles and workstations looked disappointed. They expected to witness a powerful burst of strength. Instead, their Sisters hadn't accomplished anything!
"Did something go wrong? Have we failed?" Ketis softly asked.
"Calm down. To be honest, I expected this result."
"What? You planned for us to fail?"
"Not like that." Ves hurriedly shook his head. "It is just that I haven't hooked up the network to a powerful energy source. How can something powerful emerge from nothing? Commander Dise isn't strong enough to power any formations."
"Then what is the point of this experiment? Were you stringing us along all this time?!"
"No! Look, this experiment may have failed, but the framework is still sound. I checked it myself. We just have to wait for the right opportunity for this battle network to show its value. I'm sure that it will give all of us a pleasant surprise once Commander Dise advances to expert pilot!"
As long as Commander Dise broke through in the upcoming battle, the effort and resources that Ves put into creating Respa would finally pay off! Ves was willing to bet his life on this outcome!
Chapter 2375: Self-Replenishment
Time flew by quickly after that. With the results he gained from creating his previous two battle networks, Ves encountered no complications when he formed a third battle network for the Battle Criers.
He did not bother with testing it, afraid that any hidden pirate scouts in the vicinity might observe what he had accomplished. Though the odds of that were frankly low, Ves could not afford to rule out this possibility.
"Keep what I've done for your boys under wraps." Ves said to Commander Cinnabar aboard the Ion Tracker. "If your battle formation works out the way I think it does, then you may be able to make a huge difference in the upcoming battle. What I require from you and your Battle Criers is to be ready when I call upon you. Is that understood?"
"Yes sir." The red-bearded leader replied and bumped his fist against his chest. "We are Kinners. We strive to obey you to the fullest extent!"
Ves smiled. "Good man. Out of everyone in the Larkinson Clan, I trust Kinners such as you and Nitaa the most. I hope that your people will never forsake me. As long as you do so, I will always watch out for your Kinners."
Commander Cinnabar was flattered by the appreciation shown by Ves, but he was also skeptical. "We are all part of the same clan now."
"Yes, but the contract that I have signed with you Kinners should still remain valid. You can be both Larkinsons and Kinners without resulting in major contradictions. Am I wrong?"
"I can think of a number of scenarios where our multiple loyalties can come into conflict."
"That is why I want to make sure that you know which one you should value."
"This…" Commander Cinnabar was well aware of the implications of those words. "This may be fine for our current generation of Kinners, but we don't want all of our children to be locked in this bond."
Ah, that was right. Ves recalled that the Kinners cared a lot about providing a better future for their children. It didn't matter if they signed away their own lives. As long as their offspring gained the opportunities that they never achieved, everything was acceptable!
He quickly made up a new policy. "While this isn't a big consideration in the short term, let us make an agreement on how to treat your descendants. Right now, what will happen when your children become adults?"
"They are free Larkinsons and Kinners."
"Will they join the Battle Criers and continue your tradition?"
Commander Cinnabar looked troubled. "Maybe. As a Larkinson, I would want them to join the Avatars or some other division within the Clan. As a Kinner, I don't want our way of life to become extinct among the Larkinsons. Who knows what might happen to the Kinner Tribe one day. If our tribe is annihilated, we may very well be the only group of Kinners left to carry on our traditions."
Personally, Ves thought that continuing a legacy that centered around the deplorable practice of legal slavery was abominable. Still, as long as he was the one who held the whip, he didn't want to lose this valuable asset!
"Each culture is unique, and some of them are worth preserving. I admire your people's dedication to fealty and service. You are some of the most sincere people in the Komodo Star Sector."
"Thank you, sir."
"While it is true that you are Larkinsons, it is a shame for you and your descendants to forget about your origins. How about this? Just raise your children normally. When they become adults and are ready to decide how they want to live their lives, just give them a choice. If they want to become a mech designer and work for the LMC, then they can do so if they qualify for the job. If they want to become a mech pilot for the Avatars, then that is also okay as long as they pass the requirements. However, if they want to follow the footsteps of their parents, then they should be given a chance to do so. Won't that be great?"
The Battle Crier Commander's eyes lit up. This actually sounded like a great idea to him! The children of his people would have plenty of choice on how to live their lives in the future if this was the case.
"This is a good arrangement! Most of our fellow Kinners will agree!"
"Good. We can discuss the details later and put it into another contract. What matters is that we don't have to rely on importing Kinners from your tribe or letting in more outsiders to expand your ranks."
If he ever got out of the Nyxian Gap, Ves planned to leave the Komodo Star Sector as soon as possible. He was really sick of his home star sector and wanted to leave his local troubles behind.
However, that would mean losing valuable access to some of the unique products of this region such as spiritually-active materials from the Nyxian Gap and human products in the form of diehard loyal Kinners.
While Ves had no clue how to synthesize his own B-stones and P-stones, he did know how to produce more loyal bondsmen. Just letting them breed and indoctrinate their own offspring with their unique culture should be sufficient to keep his Battle Criers going for multiple generations.
This was very important to Ves! Their strong sense of loyalty had already made him valuable, but the new capabilities he intended to impart to them would make them even more vital to his many plans.
Best of all, Ves didn't have to do anything to encourage the Battle Criers to perpetuate their Kinner practices! The Kinner Tribe indoctrinated each of them to embrace their habit of selling themselves, and as good parents she should definitely pass on their values to the next generation!
Ves didn't mind if ten percent or even ninety percent of Kinner descendants chose to leave the Battle Criers. As long as at least some people remained behind, he would retain possession of a strong and distinctive unit of ultrloyal clansmen who Ves could potentially entrust with all of his secrets!
After all, Nitaa had been with him for multiple years, silently guarding his back like a tall guard dog, and she had never once leaked anything to anyone. Ves knew because he personally bugged her combat armor. He knew everything she did, and if she ever aimed her weapon against his back with the safeties off, her rifle would automatically lock out and turn into a brick.
Frankly, Ves thought this precaution was excessive considering Nitaa's exemplary loyal service. Even without this precaution, Ves was still assured she wouldn't betray her trust. The same went for the Battle Criers who were crewing the Scarlet Rose.
As much as Ves wanted to trust the other Larkinsons such as the Avatars of Myth, he felt as if they were slowly growing out of his direct control.
Part of that was good because their growth would definitely benefit the clan as a whole.
Part of it was bad because this growth came at the expense of personal loyalty.
Well, he was fine with that. Though Melkor was the person who deserved the most credit for growing the Avatars of Myth into a formidable troop of elites, Ves felt like a proud parent for enabling their rise.
It was similar to how he viewed his mechs. He was proud of designing and producing them, but there was no way he wanted to retain them all. Once he sold them to his customers, what happened to them was none of his business anymore.
Ves and Commander Cinnabar discussed some other matters.
For example, while the leader of the Battle Criers was highly in favor of sustaining his mech force by allowing their children to take up the mantle of their parents, it would take a lot of years for their numbers to swell.
"The Sentinels, Avatars, Vandals and so on have suffered substantial losses in this campaign. However, their root is still intact, so they can easily grow new leaves by recruiting talented outsiders or clansmen. It's not that easy for us if we solely rely on internal replenishment."
"Are you asking me if you should recruit outsiders to bolster your ranks?" Ves guessed.
"Yes. We have accepted a number of outsiders such as Mr. Dietrich Kotz and a number of other foreign-born mech pilots. All of them have integrated nicely with our people. They are indistinguishable from our Kinner-born Battle Criers in most aspects. It's just…"
"Their loyalty isn't as ironclad, right?"
"Yes. That is my fear, sir." Cinnabar sighed. "We Kinners raise our children in a unique way. That is why you can always be confident in our people. As for others, there is always the chance that they may have different ideas."
This was a fairly serious problem, but not that much considering the unique advantages of the clan.
"The problem is not that big in our case." Ves smiled and patted the commander's shoulder. "Every Larkinson is connected to each other. As long as someone is up to no good, you will surely notice it. No one can hide their thoughts from the clan."
Commander Cinnabar and his men never experienced this effect in person, but they heard about it from other clansmen. It was actually quite effective in rooting out traitors!
Still, the Kinner did not think too highly of this method. Forced loyalty was one of the lowest forms of loyalty.
"While I admit your method is good at rooting out traitors, it's not so simple when there are competing interests at work. What if a situation similar to what tore the original Larkinson Family apart emerges? You have at least two factions going at each other because they both believed that their ideas will benefit the Larkinsons the most!"
Ves briefly frowned. In a sense, Commander Cinnabar was right. No matter how awful Venerable Ghanso behaved, Ves could not dismiss the fact that his fallen cousin always pursued what he thought was best for the Larkinson Family!
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it, commander. For now, there is plenty of room for everyone."
While Ves was very interested in talking about the future of his clan, he really had to get back to work. He still had to upgrade the Quint and prepare Tusa's custom mech, among other tasks.
Ves eventually departed from the Ion Tracker and returned to the Scarlet Rose. The crew already brought a new Bright Warrior mech into the mech workshop.
Along with the mech, its future user was already waiting for Ves. Tusa Billingsley-Larkinson stopped staring at the impressive, gold-coated mech and turned around.
"Patriarch Ves. It's about time you've arrived."
"I'm sorry for being late." Ves apologized. "My other experiments took priority. I've taken care of them, so there won't be any more delays."
"Good. I'm really looking forward to the light mech you are about to prepare, though a part of me lacks confidence. Converting a medium mech to a light mech is not an easy task. I have never heard of anyone completing this transformation in just a week!"
Ves grinned. "I'm different. Besides, I'm not working on this project alone. Gloriana has already been pouring over this problem back in civilized space. She has constantly updated me with new design schematics and such. Together, we have prepared quite an extensive modification plan. Just sit back and let us work. In seven days or less, you will finally have a mech that can better keep up with your performance."
"It better be, because I have been waiting for years."
The product that Ves intended to make for Tusa would definitely dazzle the expert candidate. After years of neglecting the light mech pilot, Ves would finally produce something that would appease the impatient man. Hopefully Ves would no longer have to deal with Tusa's nagging after finishing this project!
Chapter 2376: Blueshift
Ves didn't have much experience with working with light mechs. He considered humanoid medium mechs to be his home ground.
Medium mechs were the most mainstream variety of mechs for good reason. They were mobile enough to avoid getting pinned down by artillery attacks and they were tough enough to provide their pilots with plenty of margin for error.
The load-bearing capacity of medium mechs was also far superior to that of light mechs. Due to their volume, mass and other design properties, medium mechs were able to carry enough weapons and other gear to make it easy for any of them to contribute in battle.
Light mechs traded all of that in to gain more mobility. They were faster, but they paid a lot to secure this advantage.
The relatively thin chest armor of a light mech meant that the mech pilot had to brave a lot of dangers with insufficient protection. This was the biggest reason why most mech pilots would rather not pilot these challenging mechs.
One single mistake could easily spell death!
The casualty rates of light mech pilots were statistically the highest in every star sector the MTA surveyed. Ves could pull up centuries worth of studies that pointed at the depressingly high number of deaths for this group of mech pilots.
To be fair, many of those mech pilots would have rather piloted a medium mech if they had the choice. Light mechs were smaller and therefore cheaper than medium mechs, so plenty of struggling mercenary outfits attempted to fill up the available space in their carriers by purchasing some 'affordable' light mechs.
These outfits got what they paid for. Their inability or unwillingness to invest in larger mechs meant that the mech pilots of the outfit had very little choice.
This was something that Ves personally disapproved of, but what could he do? Not every organization was as flush with money as the Larkinson Clan. Journeymen such as him may not be as good as Masters when it came to creating value, but even the worst Journeymen were still capable of funding a couple of mech companies!
Ves showed off the design of the custom light mech to Tusa. The modification plan and all of its diagrams momentarily overwhelmed the light mech specialist.
While he didn't understand any of the finer details of the design schematics, Tusa still knew enough about light mechs to judge the approximate performance of certain aspects by their appearances.
"This mech.. Doesn't look light enough." He said.
Ves grinned. "This mech is faster than you think. Look, it's true that designing a light mech from the ground up is much better than stripping down an existing medium mech. However, we don't have the time to do the former, so I'm trying to implement the latter in the best way possible. In this case, despite our lack of time, we have an abundant amount of resources, much of which consists of rare and valuable exotics."
"You mean you…"
"Your guess is right. Any problem can be solved as long as I stuff enough high-quality components in your mech! To be honest, some of the components such as the flight system and the power reactor will be rebuilt to second-class standards. Do you know what that means? It's specs have surpassed the standard expected of a third-class mech or a bridge mech!
Though Ves still had to strip plenty of Breyer alloy and other mass, the stripped down Bright Warrior still retained much of its resilient structure! This meant that Tusa wouldn't have to cut it so close in battle. Compared to his current light mech, the defensive capability of his upcoming mech was at least an order of magnitude higher!
Giving his expert candidates more durable mechs was one of the main reasons why he went through the trouble of making them. Each and every expert candidate and expert pilot was valuable to Ves. How tragic would it be if any of them died before they managed to leave the Nyxian Gap?
Ves and the rest of the clan would definitely cry until they had no tears if someone like Joshua lost his life!
As for Tusa, Ves figured he wouldn't cry as much tears, but that didn't mean he was fine with this outcome. An expert candidate was an expert candidate, and Ves was not in the habit of squandering valuable assets.
"I don't need an excessive amount of defense." Tusa stated with a frown. "I appreciate your work in trying to increase the protective capabilities of my mech, but if I can sacrifice most of that to gain 10 percent higher acceleration, I can live with that!"
Ves doubted that. The pirate armada barreling down on their fleet possessed a lot of firepower. Even if Tusa piloted the most nimble light mech in the clan, the Gravada Knarlax merely had to instruct a hundred of its secondary gun batteries to saturate the surrounding space!
Therefore, Ves was pretty adamant in sticking to his current plan.
Tusa may make as many unreasonable demands he wanted, but according to his professional judgement, Ves had the obligation to protect his current client from his own stupid decisions.
Of course, he didn't put it that way to Tusa.
"The Bright Warrior mech is by nature a medium mech that heavily emphasises its armor. Converting it to a light mech can only go so far. The proper way to enhance its mobility from that point isn't to strip any further structure. I've already done that. It may not look this way, but the design that you're seeing right now is as barebones as I can make it. At this point, Gloriana and I looked at upgrading some of its core parts to speed it up. If you look at the spec sheet, you'll see that the end product is projected to be substantially faster than your current mech in almost every criteria."
This wasn't difficult to achieve as Tusa piloted a normal premium light mech up until now. The commercial mech that Tusa was accustomed to was a good, speedy machine, but its budget constraints meant that its materials and parts were highly constrained.
With light mechs, miniaturization was a very important concept. A part that accomplished the same job as another part but took half the amount of space was at least several times more expensive!
In fact, it was more common to see these smaller parts selling for eight, ten or even fifteen times the cost of something larger!
A commercial mech could never incorporate so much waste, but fortunately this was different. Ves had a sufficient amount of exotics at his disposal to cobble up some replacement parts that were lighter, took up much less space or delivered superior performance!
Though Ves was only able to apply this treatment to a couple of parts under the circumstances, this was already enough to turn Tusa's mech into an incredibly elusive mech!
Not even the light mechs of the Penitent Sisters could match the extravagant amount of expensive materials that Ves intended to use for this project!
After Ves parried every request to make the design faster, Tusa reluctantly accepted the current plan.
The work proceeded without issue. Ves may not have spent too much time on this project, but Gloriana made up for that. As long as Ves supplied a list of every exotic in his fleet's possession, she could licence any superior component that made use of these materials.
It actually took less than a week for Ves to put the custom mech together. Compared to a typical Bright Warrior, the mech reserved for Tusa looked like it had lost at least half of its mass. Its limbs were leaner and its torso looked like Ves had taken a knife and cut off a lot of the bulges.
Though it looked anything like a traditional light mech, to Ves the mech looked much more formidable. Due to all of the mass and volume retained in the modified mech, it possessed significantly higher arm strength and structural resilience.
In short, this light skirmisher was capable of hitting a lot harder than regular light skirmishers!
When Tusa inspected the finished mech up close, he placed his hand over the surface of his new machine.
"You should get rid of the gold coating." He spoke. "I don't want to pilot something that looks so ostentatious. If I am about to enter battle with this mech, I don't want to attract too much attention."
"Oh. I'll take care of that. What color scheme do you prefer?"
Tusa thought for a moment. "Go for sky blue. I like that color. It reminds me of the pristine blue skies of home."
To him, sky blue stood for freedom.
"Alright."
Ves finalized the mech by changing its coating. This didn't demand too much effort as Ves only had to instruct some bots and machines to perform this quick job.
As the mech changed color, Ves asked Tusa if he wanted to name the mech.
"I'll leave that up to you. I've never named my own mech before. I can't think of anything at the moment."
"Then let's call it the Blueshift." Ves casually chose. "There are two meanings behind this name. Your mech is blue, and if it moves fast enough, any enemies observing its approach will see it slightly bluer than usual."
In most battles, this effect was negligible. Ves still thought it was still a nice reference, though. Perhaps one day Tusa would be able to pilot a mech that was fast enough to make his enemies see blue before they perished!
After making sure that the mech's spiritual foundation was fully saturated, Ves ordered some men to ship it out of the Scarlet Rose. Ves gave a stern warning not to pilot his new mech until they confronted the pirate armada.
He had already passed on this instruction to every other expert candidate. It wouldn't do for them to advance prematurely.
Time quickly went by after this. Ves only had to modify two more mechs. He did his best to elevate the performance of the Shield of Samar and the Quint within his current time constraints.
"I don't have enough time!"
He received plenty of assistance from his Braves, and the Larkinson mech designers back in civilized space also pitched in by performing lots of tests and simulations.
Despite all of this help, Ves couldn't implement all of the improvements he wished into the mechs. Ves had to retain as much character as possible, so he couldn't afford to make any drastic alterations to the Quint and the Shield of Samar.
He still managed to make a lot of improvements. It was just that the difference was not as drastic for some of the other mechs.
Ves was much more concerned about fabricating some of the weapons and shields of his custom mechs. So far, he hadn't begun to make them. If he didn't begin work on them soon, he had no choice but to issue his mechs with gear made out of Breyer alloy!
"Breyer alloy is pretty good, but it's no longer good enough." He muttered.
Only Unending alloy met his standards!
In order to break down the statue of the Unending One, Ves had no choice but to turn to his cat.
He moved to his stateroom and stepped up to Lucky.
"Meowww..?"
"It's time, Lucky."
"Meeoooww…"
Ves picked up his cat. "No excuses. I don't care if you are still sick. You need to get back to work and earn your keep."
"Meowww!..."
If your stomach is really troubling you, then I have the perfect means of solving this problem!"
Uh oh. Lucky knew exactly what Ves was talking about. He began to squirm!
"Give up. You don't get to go until you complete your job!"
"MEOW! MEOW! MEOW!"
Ves opened up a drawer and retrieved an egg-sized chunk of B-stone. He especially prepared this sample for just this situation.
"Stay still! Don't fight so much! You'll feel better in no time!"
"Meow! Meow! Meow!"
Chapter 2377: Ves the Veterinarian
"Meoooooww!..."
Lucky squirmed and meowed in panic as Ves dragged him over to the mech workshop. Ordinarily, performing an untested medical procedure should occur in the medical bay or at least Ranya's lab, but a gem cat was a mechanical creature rather than a bio-organism.
Also, the affliction that caused Lucky to continually suffer from indigestion definitely had something to do with the Unending One. When Lucky initially bit the statue, its entire structure was filled with dark energy.
What did that mean?
Ves should be the most suitable person in the fleet who could help Lucky get over his upset stomach!
He grinned and he placed his cat on a worktable. His pet clanked onto the solid surface as his metallic form. Lucky's weak limbs impotently flailed as he tried to escape the machinations of his owner.
"Meoow…."
"None of that, Lucky. I gave you several weeks to get back into one piece, but you have only managed to regenerate your physical wounds so far. It won't be long before we bump into the pirate armada and I don't want you to be left in this defenseless state at that time. This is for your own good!"
"Meooow!"
Lucky obviously didn't agree, but what he thought was inconsequential. Ves had waited long enough but it didn't look as if his gem cat's mineral processing system could handle something as strange as spiritually-charged Unending alloy.
As Ves studied his pet's appearance, he once again became fascinated by the cat's remarkable nature.
Who designed him? Was he unique, or were there other gem cats out there? Did all of them possess a spirit like Lucky?
He figured that his mother ought to know more. Ves did not miss the fact that Lucky behaved very familiar with her in the few times she showed up. Not even her ghost form fazed his cat!
"Well, I'll get those answers sooner or later." He muttered as he stroked his hand across Lucky's smooth surface. "Now, I just need to get you back to normal."
Ves did not bother to pull out any scanners to study Lucky's internals. He had tried many times, but this act never yielded any result.
"That's fine."
He possessed an alternate method of looking inside Lucky. Whatever prevented him from scanning Lucky's body past his exterior did not do much against his spiritual senses.
In fact, Ves wondered if he could use the same trick he used to defeat the anti-copy measure on the Darkbreak module on his pet.
"It should be viable."
Ves began to load the design for the spiritual construct necessary to accomplish this feat. He hadn't neglected this function during the past month. Whenever he had some idle time, he spent at least some of his attention on expanding his kit of temporary spiritual augments. There was no burden to his mind at all as long as he didn't activate any of them. Through this method, he stored dozens of different useful abilities in the storage space of his implant.
Once Ves molded some of his free spiritual energy into a fairly sophisticated spiritual camera construct, he began to activate it. He abruptly gained double vision, causing him to feel a bit dizzy until he closed his physical eyes.
"That's better."
Through his spiritual senses, he interpreted the visual feedback from his spiritual camera. It was much more refined than the cruder version he made at first. Its resolution was higher and it could even record footage rather than still images!
Anything captured by his camera would automatically be translated and dumped into his implant. This meant that he could keep his spiritual camera active without manually needing to translate his spiritual file format into an electronic file format.
In fact, if he was willing to, he could keep all of his recorded data in a spiritual form. This was useful in cases when his implant was restricted or compromised!
While Ves did not think of using his spiritual camera as a means to look beneath the surface of objects, there should barely be anything stopping it from being used that way.
Of course, anything covered by B-stone or a strong spiritual source such as expert pilots were different.
When Ves moved his camera forward until it entered Lucky's torso, his cat shivered all of a sudden.
"Meow..?"
His camera immediately returned completely dark images, so Ves had to tweak its settings to detect alternate input such as infrared radiation.
"That's better."
Ves gained a monochrome view of some of Lucky's insides. As expected, a gem cat's body was not some kind of black box. Instead, Ves encountered a dizzying collection of small but incredibly sophisticated-looking high tech parts.
He frowned. While it was nice to see what Lucky was made of, the problem was that Ves recognized none of the functions of the different components! They were so advanced that only someone extremely well versed in high technology such as Master Willix could make sense of his observations!
Though Ves continually stored everything he saw in his implant, there was little chance he could ever make use of them for a long time.
Perhaps only when Ves was capable of building a gem cat himself would all of this observational data be of use. Until then, it only took up space.
"Well, let's look at his stomach at least. I'm wondering what goes on inside."
As Lucky was a gem cat that converted both raw and refined exotics into gems, the stomach was a key organ or part to him. Ves had long wondered how Lucky's stomach actually broke down all of those varied exotics, many of which possessed dangerous and unusual properties.
Unfortunately, as soon as the spiritual camera entered the stomach, Ves saw nothing but blinding noise!
"Damnit! I feared this would happen!"
There was no way that Lucky could eat many kilograms of exotics and not explode. Aside from his mechanical nature, his cat was just as large as a regular house cat!
For this reason, his stomach part was very likely a dimensional pocket of some sorts. Anything that entered it appeared into a different space with a much larger volume.
All of this meant that Ves couldn't observe what went on inside. This was the true black box portion of his cat.
In the end, Ves didn't really gain much data that helped him devise an effective treatment.
Ves shrugged. "I'll have to resort to guesswork and speculation instead of hard data and solid theory."
Well, it wasn't as if he was a stranger to shooting from the hip. While judging whether an experiment would go well by listening to his intuition, his gut and his whims was not that reliable, it worked for the most part.
The most important support was to back up his guesses with at least some logic.
Ves retracted his spiritual camera and turned his attention to the egg-sized nugget of B-stone in his hand.
Unlike other spiritually-reactive materials, B-stone blocked and repelled spirituality. It was the only material that Ves encountered that possessed this useful property.
He eyed his cat, who was still panicked at the prospect of becoming Ves' next test subject. Lucky had witnessed Ves performing all sorts of depraved experiments when he was swept up in his passion, and right now the glint in the mech designer's eyes did not look reassuring!
"Meow.. meoww.."
"What are you talking about, Lucky? You don't need to call the MTA in order to report a crime against humanity. I'm trying to heal you, not hurt you. Besides, you're a cat, remember? Human rights don't apply to you, silly!"
"Meeooow!.."
"There's no need to approach any of those animal protection societies either. You're a mechanical cat to them, which means they believe you're just a machine that emulates life. It's not their fault they can't determine that you're the real deal."
"Meeeeoooww!..." Lucky despairingly yowled.
"Look, I don't see why you are trying so hard to get away. My theory is sound! Right now, I believe that the incredibly hard nature of Unending alloy isn't the source of your problems. You managed to eat an entire CFA shuttle. Even if it was three centuries outdated, it was still packed with numerous high-grade exotics and first-class alloys. If you had no problem processing and assimilating all of that energetic stuff, then Unending alloy by itself shouldn't be a challenge!"
Ves had spent some time to scan the physical properties of the statue of the Unending One. While many details remained a mystery, he still learned enough to know that it didn't possess any remarkable properties other than its hardness and spiritual reactivity.
Another reason why Ves believed that the remnant of the Unending One was at fault was due to the traces of foreign energy he sensed from his cat. It was like a small and hidden parasite was trying to worm its way into Lucky.
Perhaps the reason why the Unending alloy that Lucky had eaten did not exit his dimension stomach was out of his own protection. If the semi-processed materials exited the stomach and entered the other parts of his body, the dark energy would be able to sweep and infect Lucky from the inside!
What Ves needed to do was to weaken, restrict, neutralize or annihilate this hostile energy.
"What better way to do that than to resort to B-stone?"
To be honest, Ves wasn't sure it would work the way he hoped. B-stone restrained spiritual energy but did not destroy it. Otherwise, wouldn't Ves be killing his Spirituality if he put his B-stone lockbox over his head?
"That reminds me, I've got enough B-stone to build a proper helmet and suit of armor. I should definitely cross this item off my list."
He wanted to craft an excellent suit of armor for himself and Ketis. He wanted to make use of both B-stone and Unending alloy for this purpose.
As long as he built it to his expectations, he would no longer have to look for replacements for a very long time. With the modular design he envisioned, he could easily replace outdated components and subcomponents with updated versions without needing to disassemble his entire armor!
"Such a fantastic suit will last me for a very long time in the Red Ocean!"
It would have been better if he could add some self-regenerating materials such as Rorach's Bone. While it was possible for him to purchase the lower grades of this material from the open market, it wasn't good enough. He needed the high-grade samples, but those only showed up in auctions if their owners were stupid.
Well, he would get better materials sooner or later, so there was no reason to delay the formation of his suit of armor any further.
"The time where I keep buying or making a new suit of armor only for it to fall behind my growth is over."
As a mech designer, Ves did not specialize in the design and construction of personal armor. However, he believed he could still apply some of the techniques that made his mechs great on this project.
If the Allidus Alliance fleet had brought any Grey Watchers or other powerful cultists along, Ves would be able to give them a nasty surprise with his new gear!
His great desire shoved all of his doubts and concerns aside. Now that Task Force Predator was projected to bump into the pirate armada within the next two weeks, time was running out. He needed to finalize every project related to the upcoming battle as soon as possible.
"Sorry Lucky, but this is going to be a bit uncomfortable for you. Just bear with it, okay?"
Ves decided not to feed the entire B-stone egg at once. He grabbed a small cutting tool and shaved a small sliver the size of a fingernail from the whole.
"Open up!"
"Meooow meow meow!..."
Regardless how much Lucky protested, Ves turned a deaf ear as he held Lucky's head and rammed the sample straight into Lucky's bottomless gullet!
After making sure that the Lucky didn't cough the B-stone sample out, Ves released the cat and began to look and wait. He had already activated numerous scanners that were programmed to watch out for any changes or fluctuations.
"Hehe.. I'm so excited."
Chapter 2378: Foulness
"Meooowwww…."
Lucky's face looked queasy ever since Ves forcefully fed a tiny sample of B-stone to him. The cat behaved as if he had lost energy and laid completely limp on the work table.
Ves wasn't sure whether Lucky was putting on an act or not. He knew very well that his cat did not agree to be experimented upon, but Ves was used to dealing with uncooperative test subjects.
"C'mon, Lucky. Do something. Has there been any change?"
"Meooow…"
"Maybe the dose isn't high enough. At least I found out that a small amount of B-stone isn't lethal to you. Well, for now. Who knows what might happen in a few hours. Your stomach might suddenly rupture and dump all of the contents in your dimensional pocket into your current body. Since the volume of stuff inside this pocket definitely exceeds your stomach cavity by at least a factor of a hundred, that means there is too much stuff and too little space. Do you know what that means? Your precious little body will assuredly explode into a rain of metallic parts!"
Lucky's weak head looked at Ves with horror!
Ves rubbed his smooth-shaven chin. "I could be wrong, though. B-stone shouldn't cause your stomach to fail because it's not very energetic or reactive to physical materials. Instead, it is likely capable of inducing all manner of spiritual reactions, some of which may be benign and others that may be harmful in nature. The B-stone may very well gnaw at your spirit, acting like poison thrown into a lake. It would be quiet. One moment, you're alive and spirited. The next moment, everything in your mind is snuffed out as you have become no different from other soulless mechanical pets."
"Meooow…"
"Don't be such a worrywart, Lucky. I'm here, remember? If anything happens to you, I'll do my best to intervene. I may not be able to do much about your hyper advanced body, but when it comes to your spirit I can still do plenty. After all, I have built up a considerable amount of experience in experimenting—, ahem, treating people's spirits. As far as I'm concerned, I am on my way to become a spiritual surgeon, so you are doubtlessly in good hands."
Lucky didn't even deign to reply to that remark. He merely looked increasingly troubled as he feared his stomach might explode at any time!
Several minutes passed as Ves continued observing. Nothing meaningful changed aside from making Lucky more uncomfortable.
While it was best to keep observing for a couple of hours, Ves was way too impatient to bother with that. He was much more inclined to believe in his initial guess, which was that he fed way too little B-stone to Lucky to make any difference.
"Well, I think you need some more."
Ves prepared a thumb-sized sample of B-stone this time and proceeded to force Lucky to swallow it. This time, his cat had grown weaker, so Ves hardly encountered any resistance.
"Meoooowwww…" Lucky meowed as if he was about to lose his soul.
"Hmm, I hope there is a bigger effect this time."
The effect was greater than before. Ves sensed various strange activity boiling inside Lucky. At the very least, a larger amount of stray dark energy was leaking from his stomach area.
"I think it's working! Isn't that great news?"
The activity didn't last long. After a couple of minutes, Lucky's insides subsided. In the meantime, a small amount of foreign energy spread throughout Lucky's body.
"Oh, that won't do."
Ves had no idea if the Unending One was still able to control this trace of energy, but Ves did not wish to push his luck. He concentrated and tried to remove the dark energy before it could contaminate Lucky's spirit or something.
Once he shoveled the dark energy away, it automatically dissipated into the imaginary realm. Through this method, Lucky's body became clean again.
"Well, this treatment is definitely effective if it is able to purge the dark energy from your stomach. I'm afraid the dose still isn't enough."
This time Ves did not bother to hold back anymore. He cut the remainder of the egg into smaller bite-sized portions and stuffed them into Lucky one by one. Once he did that, Ves took a step back and studied his cat's current state.
Lucky looked like he had died. He lay flat on the table with his electronic eyes glazing over. Even his tail had stopped moving!
What was even more concerning was the fact that Lucky's spirit was convulsing quite a bit! All of the B-stone he ingested probably had an adverse effect, but Ves was not yet concerned.
He did not recklessly feed B-stone to Lucky without any thought. In fact, he was confident that Lucky would thank him afterwards.
This was because Lucky was one of the few entities capable of assimilating all manner of exotics and extraordinary materials without rejection. This was quite a remarkable ability and one that was key to this experiment!
Ves basically bet that despite Lucky's spiritual nature, he was capable of assimilating or at least processing the B-stone without getting poisoned to death. His voracious gem cat had eaten all manner of dangerous and even radioactive materials, so why should B-stone be any more dangerous?
As Lucky's stomach attempted to cope with a relatively significant influx of B-stone, his stomach abruptly began to leak more dark energy. The quantity being expelled constantly grew until the entire mech workshop threatened to descend into darkness!
"Damn, why is there so much?!"
Ves hastily broke up and threw the dangerous energy into the imaginary realm. He had to exert more and more of his strength to do so because the energy was alive. The higher its concentration, the harder it was for Ves to manipulate it. He had to work faster and faster in order to prevent the dark energy from pooling too much.
In the worst case scenarios, the dark energy might become potent enough to summon an artificial anomaly or give the Unending One an opening to launch a remote attack!
"Begone, darkness!"
Lucky still laid flat on the table as his stomach finally seemed to expel all of the foulness that had occupied it for almost a month.
Despite the purification, Ves was fighting poison with poison, so from a physical perspective Lucky was actually doing worse!
"Just bear with it! You're doing great! Hopefully, your stomach gets back into gear and begins to assimilate what you've previously ingested."
Lucky kept leaking dark energy like a deflated balloon. Though Ves wasn't sure he had given him a sufficient dose, with the amount of foulness leaking out, there shouldn't be much left inside.
Once the flow had entirely cut off, Ves tentatively judged that there shouldn't be any need to feed his pet with another chunk of B-stone. Even if there was something less, his cat should be able to cope with the remainder.
Lucky a little bit more relieved at the end. He seemed to have gained a bit of energy, but not too much.
"This is a good sign." Ves self-assuredly nodded his head. "I think you'll do fine!"
"Meooowww…"
"I think this is enough for one day. You better heal up quickly. If there is no progress in a day, then I'll come back with another B-stone."
"Meow!"
Lucky looked incredibly distressed after he heard this statement!
"If you don't want to become my patient anymore, then don't be sick anymore. You'll get better. I know you will."
Ves had great confidence in Lucky's digestive capabilities. Now that the B-stone he ingested got rid of the indigestible dark energy, his stomach should be back to normal now. This meant that Lucky should be able to process both Unending alloy and B-stone regardless of their difficult and conflicting properties.
He picked up his limp cat and brought him out of the mech workshop. Once he returned to his stateroom, he dropped Lucky onto his couch like a sack of nutrient packs.
"Meooow… meooowwww…."
"That's good. If your tummy hurts, then it's obviously doing something. You'll be back to normal in no time. In fact, you'll definitely become even stronger! I can't imagine how powerful you will be after you have assimilated the properties of both B-stone and Unending alloy!
Though Lucky looked tortured, Ves did not worry too much about his cat anymore. In his limited judgement, his cat's life shouldn't be under threat. Even if some kind of accident happened, as long as Lucky remained alive in spirit, Ves was confident he could patch him up somehow.
Since Lucky apparently needed more time to settle his stomach, Ves began to call up his designs for the gear he intended to build with the Unending alloy that Lucky would hopefully be able to process with his teeth.
He frowned a bit at the rough designs. The various swords, spears and shields for the custom mechs reserved for the expert candidates of his clan did not look very refined.
A helpless expression appeared on his face. "I can't expect too much from a cat."
Using Lucky to process an extremely hard metallic substance was as crude and primitive as using his bare hands to assemble a data chip!
Ves had already studied the bite marks on the statue of the Unending One extensively. While it showed that Lucky should have little problem chewing through the hard material, his bites weren't exactly as straight and precise as a machine cutter.
This imposed a lot of limitations to Ves. He had to assume that any portions that Lucky would be able to chew off would be rough, irregular and jagged.
Perhaps he might be able to get Lucky to chew some of the roughest parts, but his carnivore-like teeth weren't suited for fine work. This meant that Ves would have to accept the fact that he would be working with lots of irregular chunks.
Considering these limitations, Ves had to make a lot of compromises in his designs to cope with this outcome.
For example, the tower shield reserved for the Aurora Titan would likely consist of the biggest slab possible. Ideally, Ves wanted Lucky to separate the middle of the statue of the tentacled whale so that Ves would be able to gain the most height and surface, but he couldn't guarantee it would come out that way.
"If a single slab isn't big enough, then I'll have to get more and fit them together like a puzzle."
Such a shield wouldn't be as structurally strong as a single solid slab of Unending alloy. Against heavy firepower, the shield was liable to break into pieces.
The same went for the other mech-sized gear that he reserved for the other mechs. Captain Orfan needed a solid spear and Joshua needed an even longer lance.
"Thankfully, the Blueshift doesn't demand that much."
It was possible for light skirmishers to arm themselves with bigger weapons, but they usually did not do so for various reasons. Creating a pair of daggers and perhaps some extras should be one of the easiest jobs.
Too small was not necessarily a good thing, however. In order to separate the plates required to build an Unending alloy combat suit, he needed Lucky to bite out very thin plates. This sounded like a difficult task and Ves would probably have to plan and supervise the process closely.
"Meow! Meow! Meow!"
Lucky started huffing and meowing, causing Ves to turn his attention away from his rough but ambitious designs.
"Is it time?!" Ves' eyes lit up. "Are you finally about to solve your constipation problems?"
"Meoooowww…"
"This is good! Keep pushing! You can do it, Lucky!"
It was very doubtful that his words actually helped, but Lucky was far too troubled to pay attention to Ves anymore.
His tail flopped frantically as his body began to feel more and more pressure from his stomach. Lucky looked at his lower body with concern. He had never regretted eating something so much!
Chapter 2379: Highly Unstable
Ves had moved closer to his cat. He watched with all smiles as Lucky panted and squirmed as if he was in great pain.
In the past, Ves suffered from stomach aches as well, mostly because he ate something that didn't agree with his digestive systems. With advanced pills and remedies, these problems usually went away quickly, but none of them worked for a mechanical lifeform such as Lucky.
His cat had no choice but to work out his problem the natural way.
"Meooww… meowww…"
Though Lucky didn't look as limp as before, he was far from going back to normal. The gem cat weakly jerked his limbs as if he wanted to get as far away from Ves as possible.
For his part, Ves kept smiling in expectation at his cat. After all this trouble, his cat would hopefully recover from his lengthy affliction.
"Come on. It's almost over."
After half an hour of increasingly tortured activity from his cat, Lucky finally seemed to have reached a limit!
"MEEEOOOOOWWWW!"
Several objects suddenly ejected from his backside! They flew out with so much force that they collided against the bulkhead like miniature railgun projectiles!
"Yes! That's it! More!"
To his surprise, Lucky wasn't finished yet. His rear continued to eject a couple more gems at great speed until his cat's digestive track finally emptied.
"Meoooooowwwwww….."
Lucky looked incredibly relieved. It was as if most of the pressure that built up in his stomach had disappeared. While his stomach still exhibited plenty of activity, much of whatever caused him to feel stuffed was gone.
Ves had long stopped paying attention to his pet. Instead, he immediately walked over to the side of his stateroom in order to pick up the freshly-produced gems.
With so many new gems, Ves looked forward to what Lucky had been holding this these past few weeks.
He picked up the new gems and quickly counted them. His eyes lit up as he realized that he was holding on to a whopping nine gems!
"Nine! Wow! I haven't seen that many gems in years!"
Seeing so many gems instantly brought up his suspicion that Lucky was secretly keeping most of what he ate to himself. Despite his designation as gem cat, Ves always suspected that his thieving cat was embezzling most of what he ate!
Certainly, this was not entirely bad. Whatever Lucky kept for himself would inevitably go on to strengthen his capabilities in some way.
At the start of his mech design career, Lucky wasn't nearly as formidable as now. Through continuous eating his cat had grown quite formidable! From antigravity to phasing powers, his cat had upgraded himself into one of the most deadly killer creatures that Ves knew of. Perhaps not even Centerpoint could build something better of the same size!
"Now let's see what goodies I've received."
He had to utilize his System vision to understand the products produced by Lucky, who was ostensibly a System product as well.
Five of the gems looked similar.
[Unstable Chaos Essence]
A terrible essence of chaos is locked within this gem. The essence is stolen from a great and ancient horror that would dearly wish to regain it. Carry this gem at your own risk.
"Wait a minute, this sounds familiar."
Ves expected to gain some gems that he could use to empower his mechs. For example, he wanted to gain something that could increase the damage of a rifle, boost the resistance of armor or something else that he could use to elevate the performance of his custom mechs.
Instead, he got something different.
"This goddamn chaos essence! What use is it to me?! Nothing about this description states that it is useful in empowering mechs!"
Different from the orange gem that Lucky produced before, the collection of five new gems were all radiating a grey glow from within. This reminded him a bit of the dark energy that the B-stone had just ejected out of Lucky's stomach a short time ago. Could it be…
"Is there Unending One energy inside these gems?"
He felt nothing, but he chalked that up to the excellent isolating properties of the gems. Whatever the case, the seemingly useless gems ruined Ves' mood.
"When I told you back then to produce more gems like these so I can have a match, I didn't mean you should produce five more at the same time!"
"Meooww.."
"At least vary their colors a little! Why do they all look grey?"
With his hopes dashed, he set the Unstable Chaos Essence gems aside and inspected the second batch of gems.
[Highly Unstable Chaos Essence]
A terrible essence of chaos is locked within this gem. The essence is stolen from a great and ancient horror that would dearly wish to regain it. This gem is very frail. Carry this gem at your own risk.
"Ugh!"
The Nyxian Gap was definitely messing with Lucky's digestion! There was no other explanation for it. The highly unstable versions looked larger, but Ves didn't see anything about them that would suggest they were prone to blowing up. Regardless, the way these gems came into existence gave Ves enough concern to handle them carefully.
He returned to his desk and placed the gems onto the surface. He reached out in his uniform and brought out a purple gem that largely matched the first batch of gems that Lucky produced.
He still intended to use the purple Unstable Chaos Essence as a jewel for one of his wedding bands. Though Ves would have preferred it if Lucky produced something useful instead of lots of identical gems, at least he fulfilled this request.
Ves picked up a random Unstable Chaos Essence gem and pressed it close against his purple gem. They largely matched in appearance and dimensions, and that was enough.
"Together with Unending alloy and some other miscellaneous high-grade exotics, I should have enough materials to delight Gloriana when I catch her at our wedding."
As for the remaining gems… Ves did not feel very comfortable with them. It did not seem like a great idea to use something that sounded so dangerous on the custom mechs of his expert candidates.
Ves already upgraded and enhanced the Quint, the Shield of Samar, the Blueshift and the other mechs quite a bit. Once he equipped them with gear made out of Unending alloy, their comprehensive strength would reach a level where they could probably give their upcoming enemies a lot of headaches.
The question was whether this was enough.
Despite the many preparations that he and his fellow Larkinsons worked on, Ves didn't think it was enough. Reinforcing the ships, modifying the mechs, turning the Penitent Sister carriers into giant torpedoes and so on all should have increased the odds, but the opposition was so overwhelmingly strong that it was easy for him to feel that they were still too weak.
There was only so much a fleet of mechs and unarmed carriers could do against a swarm of pirate warships. The Gravada Knarlax inexorably closed in on Task Force Predator like an antimatter missile descending into the atmosphere of a populated planet.
The large caliber primary cannons of the Gravada Knarlax weren't very sophisticated. They were simply basic ballistic or kinetic cannons scaled to gigantic proportions. Whatever complexity that the pirates added were merely there to keep such a big and powerful weapon system under control.
"Yet these crude methods are enough to wipe out all of our ships!"
While Ves hadn't attended many meetings with Major Verle and the other military leaders, he knew how slim their chances were. The projections remained as pessimistic as ever. Though the exact strength of the pirate armada was still fuzzy, some of the intelligence that Calabast collected suggested that the Allidus Alliance fleet had hired some local pirate groups to bolster their numbers.
The infamy of the Allidus Alliance in the Nyxian Gap was high, and the heavy turrets bringing their huge guns to bear against the smaller pirate groups must have been an effective way to force the latter's surrender!
Once the Larkinson Clan received word of this development, Major Verle had to revise his projections downwards. The simulations all showed varying degrees of crushing defeats. Even the potential breakthrough of Joshua and the other expert candidates didn't help improve their odds that much.
It was already bad enough to confront a heavy cruiser escorted by a bunch of smaller warships. It was even worse if several thousand pirate mechs accompanied these vessels!
In fact, Ves even believed it was overkill to bring so many additional mechs along.
The Larkinson Clan may be strong, but it wasn't that strong!
"I've already taken plenty of risks, but it's not enough. I truly need to do more, and these gems might help!"
Despite suspecting that the new gems were filled with the Unending One's essence, Ves still felt he could make use of them. Compared to before he entered the Nyxian Gap, he had considerable progress in his design philosophy!
He expanded his spiritual toolbox with a lot of useful new tools and even found methods that could make mechs more alive and hasten the breakthroughs of expert candidates.
With all of this improvement, Ves refused to accept that he was incapable of harnessing the potential of these so-called Unstable Chaos Essence gems!
He already developed plans to embed these gems in the mechs or possibly the gear of his custom mechs. Of course, he recognized that planting them without any further steps was not a wise idea.
In the worst case, he might grant the Unending One a backdoor into the crucial mechs piloted by his expert candidates!
"I need to treat these gems in some way."
Ves turned his gaze at the larger but more dubious-looking gems. The 'Highly' Unstable Chaos Essence gems were presumably identical to their smaller cousins in most aspects.
"What exactly happens when they explode?"
He didn't know, and he felt very reluctant to use up one of the gems. He only had four of them in total.
"Maybe.. I can stick them into one of the Penitent Sister carriers?"
Each of the ships had been modified to a very extensive degree. Once the mechs inside deployed into battle, the combat carriers would no longer be receiving any of them. They were destined to boost ahead and try their best to collide with the Allidus warships.
If the initial momentous impact did not cripple the targeted warships, then the nuclear bombs and all of the other explosive goodies should do a considerable amount of damage if they exploded up close!
What if he added these 'Highly' Unstable Chaos Essence gems to the ships? Would the Unending One be able to stop the ships, or would his own energy amplify the explosions somehow?
Ves grinned. "It's worth a try."
He only had four of the gems to begin with. If it backfired on him in any way, then only a portion of the suicide ships would be compromised. The rest should be able to go on their merry way to ram the Gravada Knarlax.
It would be great if he could process the energy locked within the gems, but Ves wasn't sure whether he should tamper with them. What if they blew up in his face?
"Well, let's not push my luck." He softly muttered.
He put the gems away but continued to imagine all of their potential uses. While Ves was pissed that Lucky seemed incapable of producing any normal gems, at least he delivered something instead of nothing.
"Meowww…."
Lucky still hadn't recovered up to full yet, but at least he looked better than before. Perhaps when he finally processed the B-stone, he might get completely back to normal.
Ves picked up his cat and hugged his pet. "Good job, I suppose. Are you feeling well enough?"
"Meooww…"
"Hehe, you can't sue me. I told you already, you're not a human, so your feeble threats are pointless."
"Meow!"
Chapter 2380: Unending Gear
It took some time, but Lucky eventually regained a bit of vitality. Without his stomach going to war against the remnant energies of some dark and unfathomable entity, he no longer acted as if he was paralyzed.
That didn't mean he returned to normal. Sometimes, the medicine could be just as bad as the malady. While Ves didn't think this was the case with Lucky at the moment, the B-stone he ingested certainly did not make his cat feel good!
"Meoooww.." The gem cat pathetically meowed while he was stuck in Ves' grasp.
"None of that, Lucky. You're healthy enough to walk and bite, so that means you're healthy enough to work! No slacking off for you any longer. With the Gravada Knarlax and other pirate warships about to close in on us, we need to take advantage of every asset that we have, including Unending alloy!"
Ves held his cat like some kind of cutting tool and basically directed him to bite off certain sections of the giant statue of the Unending One.
He had already apportioned the cutting lines beforehand. He also prepared some external aids such as struts and guide supports to make sure that Lucky did not bite in the wrong direction. He wanted the cut-off portions of Unending alloy to be as even as possible.
With the help of his grumpy cat, Ves steadily split up the statue into different pieces of varying sizes.
To produce the pieces he intended to use for his personal gear, he cut the Unending One's tentacles into smaller squarish-plates or other hand-sized shapes.
To make the larger pieces such as a mech-sized spear or lance, he forced Lucky to bite through the entire length of the statue several times.
Though his cat openly took advantage of this situation by ingesting some of the Unending alloy he bit, he was too wary of this material to eat too much. Even if the dark energy that this statue used to hold had already evaporated, the incredible toughness of this metal still made it difficult to digest.
"Meow…."
"No breaks! Keep biting! Time is of the essence. The sooner you complete this job, the sooner you can go back to sleep! You're working overtime!"
"Meow!"
"What do you mean about bonus pay? Aren't you eating it right now? You've been stuffing your stomach until it is full. That's enough of a reward for you. After this, it's back to eating regular exotics for you. You won't enjoy this banquet for long!"
"Meow meow!"
Due to the sheer amount of alloy that needed to be bitten, it took two straight days to break off the necessary portions from the statue. The tower shield reserved for the Aurora Titan took an especially long time due to its enormous surface area.
Not only did Lucky have to bite through this shield and other mech-sized gear from the greater statue, Ves also forced his cat to go over every bitten surface in order to bite off the roughest and most uneven areas. He had to force Lucky to employ more precision and only bite on command.
At the end. Ves finally put Lucky down, much to the exhausted cat's relief!
"Meoooww!"
"Hey, I don't like it either, but do you see any first-class material processing machines around here? I can't help it that Unending alloy is way too hard for any of the machines in our possession to tackle."
Ves felt like a caveman for employing a solution as inane as turning his own pet into a cutting tool. Yet no matter how silly he looked, he did not regret it as taking advantage of Lucky was better than letting the statue remain intact.
Now that he had partially butchered up the statue, he ordered his men to move it out of the way. After clearing some room, he proceeded to refine and assemble the sections he had cut together with some other auxiliary components.
He first treated the daggers reserved for Tusa's Blueshift. While they were larger and weighed much more than his body, they were fairly small and slim compared to other mech weapons.
Due to their amazing properties, Ves made the daggers smaller and thinner than other daggers typically wielded by light skirmishers.
Despite slimming them down so much, their effectiveness in battle shouldn't be any worse. Unending alloy was very dense and heavy so even a slim dagger provided enough heft for the Blueshift to stab them with force. The relatively thin blades also increased their penetrative power, which gave Tusa the option to thrust the daggers through more protected armor sections.
Most of the finishing work that Ves performed merely entailed minor work such as wrapping up the hilt with a grip and other minor flourishes.
Like every other gear he prepared for his expert candidates, he added a bit of personalization to the daggers. With Lucky's help, he added his signature look on the crossguards. He also fashioned a unique pommel in the form of a claw where he set some artificial synthesized crystals.
There wasn't anything special about the crystals. Their durability was at least a thousand times worse than Unending alloy, but they were cheap to make and replace. Ves mainly opted for this choice because he was able to mold them in a way that allowed them to fit perfectly in place.
"If they break, I can always replace them." Ves shrugged.
Perhaps in the future he might obtain something better than a synthesized industrial-grade crystal.
In fact, Ves was more inclined to melt the daggers down and reforge the materials into something much more sleek and refined. Due to the crude way he made the pieces, the daggers did not look that good. Its uneven surface area covered with bite marks gave the weapons a distinct texture that looked rather savage, but Ves would rather produce something smoother.
"Well, at least these Unending daggers are deadlier than any other weapon."
He proceeded to assemble and finish the other Unending weapons as well.
The Banthar, which was the name that Commander Orfan came up with for her custom mech, gained a spear and small round shield. Ves also threw in a small Unending knife as a backup weapon.
For the Sword Hunter, Ves spent a lot of effort on adding his finishing touches on the large Unending greatsword. It featured a more prominent signature look of his and boasted a larger and tougher crystal as its pommel.
He also employed the same care for a shorter and much thinner sword. If the Sword Hunter ever lost its primary weapon, Commander Dise would still be able exert almost just as much cutting power with its smaller and lighter secondary weapon.
The Shield of Samar finally gained a shield worthy of its name and mech pilot. Though the tower shield's outer surface initially looked rough, Ves covered it up by applying a thin layer of Breyer alloy on the outside. He also added multiple sturdy grips so that Venerable Jannzi's mech was capable of holding and bracing the shield in multiple ways.
"This is an enormously heavy shield! If I hadn't upgraded the Shield of Samar's flight system, it would probably be left behind in battle!"
While Ves could have made the shield thinner, Venerable Jannzi had already made it clear that she wanted as much defense as possible.
He delivered what she wanted. The tower shield was so thick and dense that Ves was confident that the Shield of Samar would be able to withstand a direct hit from the Gravada Knarlax's primary cannons!
"Of course, blocking such a powerful attack doesn't mean the kinetic force goes away."
Just like one billiard ball hitting another billiard ball, any heavy attack that squarely hit the Shield of Samar would probably bounce the mech away!
This problem was especially bad in space combat. The lack of solid ground meant that mechs had to rely on their flight capabilities to stay in place.
"Well, at least the mech will still be in one piece. That is always better than sustaining damage."
Though he knew that Venerable Jannzi didn't particularly demand it, Ves still threw in an Unending knight sword for her mech as well.
After all of that work, he left the Quint's weapons for last. Since Joshua and Major Verle already decided to keep the enhanced and upgraded masterwork mech in its lancer mech configuration, Ves wanted to make sure to craft a lance worthy for one of his best works.
The Unending lance was long and narrow but not entirely smooth. It featured some cleverly-placed grooves and bumps along its length to offer a stable grip and ensure the lance wouldn't get flung away at the moment of impact.
To give the Quint some close dueling capabilities, Ves prepared an Unending short sword as well. Though the lancer mech configuration lacked the agility and flexibility of the swordsman mech configuration, a pilot as good as Joshua should easily be able to cope with these limitations.
"This is especially so if Joshua breaks through during the next battle." He grinned.
Though all of this mech gear took a lot of time to prepare due to their considerable mass, Ves had plenty of time left over to fill them up with some spiritual energy.
After all, Unending alloy was not only incredibly hard, but also capable of storing spiritual energy. Ves had a strong hunch that this second property might be very helpful in the coming battle.
He only asked the Golden Cat to fill each piece of gear with just a modest amount of her spiritual energy. The capacity of each Unending weapon was very considerable, but filling it up would likely weaken his design spirits considerably.
Perhaps it is better to leave a lot of room. If the expert candidates ever turned into expert pilots, maybe they could channel some of the excess energy they leak out into the Unending weapons.
This would not only empower the weapons in a way that completely fit the individual expert pilots, but also leave an imprint behind that could grow.
"Maybe they'll turn into legacy weapons someday."
Ves winced at the thought of the rough and crude gear turning into revered relics. He resolved to smooth the Unending weapons out as soon as he gained access to a production machine that was powerful enough to perform this task!
Once he completed his work on the mech gear, his clansmen took them away and moved them to their respective mechs.
With that out of the way, Ves could finally turn his attention to crafting some personal gear. This would be one of the final projects he embarked on before he met the pirates in combat.
Although Ves felt it was kind of silly to pay so much attention to infantry gear when he was about to confront actual warships, he wanted to make sure to account for as many possibilities as possible.
"The focus this time is on enhancing my spiritual combat abilities." He muttered.
Just like he did with Ketis' Rising Red Dragon suit, Ves envisioned creating a suit of armor that consisted of two primary layers.
The outer layer should be made of Unending alloy, while the inner layer consisted of B-stone alloy.
Ves gazed at the bin where he collected a large quantity of small Unending alloy plates. The bin rested next to a large bed frame he looted from Ulimo Citadel.
"There should be enough B-stone to create two inner layers with plenty of materials to spare." He estimated.
If there was any time left over, Ves also planned to remake Lucky's Misfortune Harness!
"Let's begin!"
He already prepared all of the designs beforehand. On top of that, he also fabricated much of the internal parts out of Breyer alloy and other accessible materials. His main job was to assemble them all together and make sure he ended up with one, solid suit of armor that could withstand any manner of material and spiritual attacks!
Chapter 2381: Unending Regalia
He first started with making Ketis' new gear. In order to make sure her new combat armor was to her liking, he called her over in order to assist in the project.
Once she arrived from the Jaded Sword, she inspected the design that Ves came up with and proposed extensive changes to fit her preferences.
Perhaps the most unexpected change was lowering the amount of Unending alloy used to make the powered armor."
She explained her rationale to Ves as she adjusted the schematic. "If you're right about this Unending alloy, then it's pretty much impossible to break it without employing a ludicrous amount of power. I don't see the need for so much protection when all of this dense material just weighs me down."
In other words, just like the swordsman mechs that the Swordmaidens preferred, Ketis wanted to wear a leaner suit of combat armor. By lowering its mass, she could move around considerably faster, especially if all of the servos and other motors remained the same.
Ves understood her desires, though he didn't feel very comfortable about it. Her previous ordeal inside Ulimo Citadel showed that her Breyer alloy combat armor clearly wasn't up to the task. His worries caused him to overcompensate a bit, though he didn't think that was wrong.
"Are you sure you want to make your new combat armor so lean?"
"Passively taking a beating is not my style. I want to be able to move fast while still enjoying a reasonable amount of protection. Also, increasing the mass of my combat armor also hinders my ability to swing my sword."
"Speaking about your sword, I think we can augment it with a little Unending alloy…"
Her CFA greatsword was made out of alloys that were just as strong as Unending alloy if not more. Even so, one of the downsides of the impressive weapon was that it did not contain any spiritual properties.
While it wasn't possible to replace the blade with one made out of Unending alloy or anything, it was possible to make some other additions. Replacing the hilt, crossguard, pommel with rougher versions made of out Unending alloy somewhat ruined the clean, high-tech aesthetics of the greatsword, but Ves and Ketis employed great care in maintaining its balance.
As soon as they completed the modifications, Ketis became much more pleased with her weapon.
"I feel it's easier to get in tune with my weapon. Sharpie is happy as well!" She happily chirped.
To test out the real efficacy of her new blade, Ketis attempted to perform her little superpower with the help of her sword intent.
With great concentration, she managed to cover the entire length of the blade with a deadly glow!
When she quickly hacked the sword down onto a spare plate of Unending alloy, her sword painfully clanked as the attack failed to leave a single mark!
"Damn, I thought it would work this time!"
Ves already expected this outcome. While he was impressed with her ability to cut through very tough objects, it did not change the fact that its effectiveness was largely based on how much energy she expended.
As an Apprentice Mech Designer, Ketis was still at the stage where her spiritual potential had not yet consolidated into something stronger.
Despite the disappointing outcome, Ketis eventually perked up. "This time, I managed to cover the blade of my entire weapon! That's progress at least!"
Already, Ves could sense that a trace of her spiritual energy remained locked inside the Unending alloy. While the quantity was miniscule, over time it might build up to something bigger.
Ves regretted that none of the Larkinsons had any time to build up any accumulation. Even he was a little different. After the previous battle, he had lost much of his reserve of excess energy.
While he made sure to rebuild it, just a couple of week's worth of spiritual energy wouldn't be enough for him to form another protective barrier around his ship if something strange took place.
Fortunately, Venerable Jannzi should be capable of protecting the fleet in his stead.
Ves and Ketis rapidly crafted the remainder of their gear in quick tempo. His student even helped him out in assembling and finishing his own protective combat armor.
Unlike her combat armor which she straightforwardly called the Unending Dragon, his own protective suit was not designed with close combat in mind.
His so-called Unending Regalia was leaner and smaller than the Unending Dragon because he did not envision himself diving into enemy ranks like a barbarian.
His Unending Regalia was more of a protective suit rather than powered armor. The latter was more protective, but it massed more and relied too much on active moving parts to properly function.
Ves was a bit paranoid about depending too much on components like these. While the chances were small, there were always ways to sabotage them or compromise them. For this reason, his Unending Regalia had to be light enough for his artificially-strengthened body to move around without investing any power.
One benefit to building such a modestly-sized suit of combat armor was that Ves could make it foldable. If there was no need for him to wear so much protection, he could command it to fold up into a thick and heavy suitcase-like object that could be mounted on Nitaa's heavy combat armor.
"Hmmm, that reminds me, I should make a new suit of armor for her as well."
There wasn't much time left for him to do so, and the benefits weren't as great. The primary purpose of the Unending Regalia was to strengthen him against spiritual opponents!
There were very few people in the task force that could handle the cultists of the Nyxian Gap. His expert candidates and expert pilots may be strong in this regard, but they did not possess his knowledge, control, perception and understanding of spirituality.
This meant that if the pirates ever dropped an artificial anomaly on the fleet, Ves should be able to fight back with the help of his spirituality-oriented combat armor!
Ves did not explain these considerations to Ketis, but she wasn't stupid. She could tell that Ves had something different in mind when he presented her with such a peculiar design.
"If not for the strong defensive properties of Unending alloy, I would describe this work as a survival suit rather than combat armor. It's great if you end up stuck in some untamed planet away from civilization. The fact that you can still move it without any active components is a great advantage in certain situations, Though I don't really see you ever needing it as long as you remain in the clan."
He shrugged. "I've experienced a lot of strange and unusual events. Take the anomalies for example. Whenever they sweep you up, normal solutions might not work anymore. I don't want to rely too much on technology only for it to fail for some inane reason."
"That's rich coming from a mech designer." Ketis chuckled. "Don't you make big, huge complex machines for a living? A lot could go wrong with them and the logistics to keep them running isn't light. Despite these disadvantages, our clan still relies heavily on mechs. Oh, don't forget about the ships either. It's impossible for us to sail through the stars with our naked bodies!"
She had a good point, but his Unending Regalia was only meant to fight against one specific class of opponents. Against more mundane enemies, Ves did not expect he would be forced to take action in person.
Unlike in the past where Ves was still growing his organization, now he was surrounded by tens of thousands of competent and loyal Larkinsons. Any of them could handle most enemies far more efficiently than he ever could!
If it turned out that he was wrong, well, he always had the Amastendira in his intangible back pocket.
"Let's move on to assembling the remainder of the internal modules."
Despite the relatively compact dimensions of his Unending Regalia, he made sure to pack its limited capacity with as many useful gizmos and gadgets as possible.
He used some of the finest and rarer exotics his fleet had plundered from Ulimo Citadel and other pirates to make these modules. By using these high-quality materials, Ves could pack a lot of power in a very small package without making any other sacrifices.
Some of the more important functions he added to his Unending Regalia included a strong communications module, sensor modules, several antigrav modules, an automated targeting system, ECM and jamming systems, limited water and air filtration and storage systems and so on. Each of these modules and systems worked far better than anything that Ves had previously used.
If there was one regret, it was that Ves wasn't able to add a minifab to his Unending Regalia. He probably didn't need it in the Nyxian Gap, but it would have been nice to regain this capability.
For this reason, he made sure to add a modular slot to the back of his Unending Regalia. Later on, Ves could place any optional backpack module such as an oxygen tank, a flight system, a power communications antenna or his long-awaited minifab system.
Ketis looked amused at Ves. "You're constantly harping on about the minifab system. Why do you want it so much? This system is only useful for field or combat engineers."
"I just want to be able to bring a miniature fabricating machine wherever I go. It's not just useful in combat. With this little machine, I can craft anything small on the fly. Trust me, it is far more useful to me than you think."
One of the ways he exercised his abilities was by making totems that possessed a spiritual foundation and were able to channel a design spirit. Ves wanted to gain the capability to craft sophisticated trinkets in case he needed to hoodwink someone important.
They soon finalized the Unending Regalia. Just like Ketis' Unending Dragon, he covered the rough and uneven Unending alloy sections with smooth and precisely-machined Breyer alloy plates. After that, he coated his new suit in the standard Larkinson pattern of red and white.
When it came to the finishing touches, he added a large emblem of the Golden Cat on the chest of his new work. With this addition, there was no doubt that the wearer of the Unending Regalia was part of the Larkinson Clan!
He didn't forget about his signature look. He often used the third eye as a motif in his recent creations, and this was no different. He added a special third eye on the forehead of the helmet. The reason why it was special was because Ves partially synthesized it with some ground P-stone. This allowed him to perform various parler tricks with it if he ever needed to impress some yokels or something.
While his Unending Regalia did not look that impressive due to its small stature and standard coating, Ves had prepared a red cape that instantly doubled the wow factor of his new armor!
Ves couldn't wait any longer. As soon as he finished the Unending Regalia, he wore it right away. As soon as the protective suit molded to his form and its systems came online, he experimentally moved around while his cape swished along with his motions.
Meanwhile, Ketis had changed into her Unending Dragon suit. As a more combat-oriented suit, her new gear caused her to gain quite a bit of height and mass. When she stepped in front of him, she towered over him by almost a head!
Ves felt a bit inadequate when he was forced to look upwards in order to meet her eyes.
"Damn, you look good."
"Same to you." She grinned as she clenched an armed fist. "I can feel the power of my new gear! It's not perfect, but it's better than anything that I have ever worn!"
"That's the point. As long as we take good care of them and keep their systems up to date, they'll last a lifetime!"
Chapter 2382: Supporting Data
The completion of the Unending Regalia and the Unending Dragon almost marked the end of his personal crafting spree.
While Ketis happily departed the Scarlet Rose with her Unending Dragon in tow, Ves stayed in the mech workshop long enough to fabricate a new Misfortune Harness for Lucky.
After all, his cat helped him out quite a bit in processing so much Unending alloy. Ves figured that his cat deserved an extra reward.
The Mark II version of the Misfortune Harness did not differ very much from the first version. Ves did away with most of the Breyer alloy, only using it to keep the structure together.
Just like before, the inner layer consisted of a thin layer of B-stone. While Ves wasn't sure whether this protection helped his cat in any way in the previous battle, that was mainly because the Misfortune Harness Mark I sustained too much damage against conventional attacks.
In the end, the thin layer of Breyer alloy couldn't withstand so much firepower. Getting caught in the middle of a trap where explosions triggered all around Lucky resulted in numerous breaches that exposed the fragile B-stone layer.
Such an outcome shouldn't happen again. The Unending alloy exterior was capable of withstanding explosions that were at least ten times more powerful. In fact, the true defensive capabilities of the Misfortune Harness Mark II was likely higher than that, but Ves did not want to overhype his work too much.
In order to retain Lucky's phasing ability, both layers of materials had to be thin. The B-stone layer protected Lucky against some spiritual attacks, but not if they exceed a certain level of strength.
The same went for the Unending alloy layer. Not only was it very thin, its coverage was also a bit inconsistent. Ves tried to overlap the plates as much as possible in order to avoid exposing any gaps in coverage, but the irregular shapes still introduced several vulnerabilities.
"Well, it's as good as I can make it with the tools I have on hand." Ves sighed.
He fitted it onto Lucky to make sure that his cat enjoyed adequate protection while wearing it. Due to the naturally obsidian look of Unending alloy, Ves didn't need to coat it. In fact, the irregular exterior panels caused Lucky to gain a very savage look!
"C'mon, buddy. Roar for me. Roar like a panther!"
"Meow."
Though his cat looked somewhat curious about his new gear, he was still a bit lethargic from having to digest the B-stone in his stomach.
Ves reached out to rub Lucky's covered head, only for a thick paw to smack his hand away.
"Oh, don't be so sullen. You've done our entire clan a huge favor. With all of the products I've made with the Unending alloy that you've processed, our chances of surviving and winning the upcoming battle is substantially greater!"
His cat did not look appreciative of his praise. Despite his dashing appearance with his new Misfortune Harness, Lucky looked like he was more willing to sleep through the upcoming battle!
"Meow.."
"Okay, okay, I'll take it off for you. Don't think you can take a break, though. As soon as the Allidus Alliance comes within sight, I'm putting it on you whether you're sick or not. Understood?"
Lucky flipped his tail at Ves.
With that done with, Ves exited the mech workshop and took a long break.
The next day, he intended to spend the remainder of his time supervising the final preparations before battle commenced.
He first summoned both Major Verle and Calabast to his stateroom for a private meeting. The former Brighter and Hexer both arrived promptly and began to fill Ves in on the battle readiness of their fleet.
"Task Force Predator is as strong as it can be at this time, sir." Major Verle reported first. "Certainly, there is still much we can build, but we have used up much of our available resources and supplies. What's left is relatively low-valuable bulk materials and unusable exotics that can't be converted into anything useful. As for our mech pilots, they can always use more training, but the increase in battle power from this point is marginal. The only exception is if any of them randomly advance to expert candidate, but the odds of that happening is painfully small, especially when we aren't fighting any major battles."
That last point may not be as unlikely as Major Verle thought. Ves had made at least some progress in his research towards accelerating the breakthroughs of expert candidates. At the very least, he possessed a lot of confidence that his spiritually-enhanced custom mechs should definitely be able to trigger the breakthroughs of all of his current expert candidates at the right time.
Of course, much of that was possible due to the prior accumulation of the Larkinson Clan's best mech pilots. Aside from Joshua, each of them became expert candidates several years ago. During that time, they fought through several major conflicts such as the Bright-Vesia War, the Sand War and now the Nyxian Gap Campaign.
It was not a mistake to claim that all of his expert candidates had been forged through the fires of war! The amount of times they put their lives on the line in battle was enough to put all of them, including Joshua, at the threshold of expert pilot!
What applied to his expert candidates also applied to the regular mech pilots in his fleet. Many of their compatriots had died, but those who survived up until now had evolved into the bloodied, battle-hardened elites that Ves always yearned.
If only he could bring them out of the Gap unscathed! None of his brave mech pilots needed any further trials to prove their courage, valor and competence in battle.
In truth, the pressure heaped on the shoulders of those with spiritual potential was so great that Ves hoped that some of them would have advanced to expert candidate by now. It was too bad that talented mech pilots such as Imon and Casella Ingvar didn't find their turning points.
He briefly thought back on his enlightening conversation with James. His spiritual advisor told him that he shouldn't be focusing solely on the spirituality of his mech pilots.
Willpower also mattered.
Was that why his regular mech pilots failed to advance?
If he had more time, Ves would have gladly investigated this angle further, but the pirates were too close to pursue another initiative.
That reminded him of his spiritual enhancement project. Almost a month had gone by since he enhanced the spiritual foundations of almost every LMC mech in the fleet. Their saturation levels ranged from 25 to 100 percent, though the latter was only reserved for those with spiritual potential.
"Has there been any notable increases in performance of this group of mech pilots?" Ves asked during the meeting.
Major Verle nodded. "There have. It ramped up over a couple of weeks but leveled off as more time went by, sir. We can conclude that whatever you did to improve the mech caused their mech pilots to obtain both a short-term and long-term boost."
"Do you have the data?"
"Here you go."
Ves received the files sent by Verle and quickly went over the data. He quickly discovered that the saturation level of the enhanced mechs made a small but substantial difference in the rate of improvement.
Both the immediate boost and the sustained boost in performance went up as the saturation levels went up. Even when Ves controlled for age, piloting skill, experience, mech type and so on, the broad pattern was undeniable.
He smiled. The data provided conclusive proof that higher saturation levels led to greater improvement.
Still, he couldn't use this new technique unscrupulously. The spiritual energy needed to empower the mechs in this fashion did not come for free. Also, the mech pilots themselves needed to be mentally and spiritually strong enough to withstand the burden of piloting a mech with a stronger spiritual consciousness.
Cockpits tended to get messy if this was not the case.
"How is the fleet?"
"Oh, all of our ships look quite good, though that doesn't change the fact that most of our vessels are tin cans, sir. The asteroids floating around us will likely help prevent us from getting pounded too much by the pirate warships, but I'm not hopeful for our light carriers. A couple of well-placed hits can easily cripple the Redfeather. Win or lose, I don't expect most of our ships to survive the engagement."
"They don't need to." Calabast interjected after a long time of remaining quiet. She crossed her sinuous legs as she shifted her position on the couch. "The reinforcements from the Wodin Warriors have made good speed trying to reach us. If not for the pirate armada in our way, we could have linked up with them and safely left the Nyxian Gap. As it is, we don't have to fend for ourselves for long if we ever manage to survive the upcoming battle."
Major Verle reluctantly nodded. "She's right. We can lose ninety percent of our mechs and ships and still succeed in our goal of making it out. We just have to have enough ships left to accommodate all of the Larkinsons who are still alive and retain enough mechs to deter any scavengers and other scum looking to pick up an easy bargain."
"A battle involving this much hardware always attracts vultures and scavengers." Calabast warned. "The Allidus Alliance has done its best to press as many local pirates as possible, but plenty of them are still on the sidelines. If we win but lose our entire battle strength, we can't defend ourselves against the pirates that come after. You can bet for sure they will come in great numbers. The value of the salvage of all of our second-class mechs and ships as well as those from the enemy warships will likely exceed anything the pirates have earned in their entire lives."
Ves pressed his fingers against his forehead. "That sounds great."
"We just need to hold on for two weeks or less. It's not that bad."
"First, we need to win the battle, though, and that is already an enormous challenge in itself." Major Verle said. He waved a hand, activating a projection that depicted every ship in the fleet. "We have one overriding objective. Survive. To accomplish this, we need to preserve both our ships and mechs. While we are unavoidably forced to use them up, the key is to maximize the yield and make the enemy pay dearly for every loss we suffer."
"That's the calculus used in battles of attrition." Ves frowned.
The major nodded. "I know you don't like them, but the strength disparity along with our circumstances leave us with no other choice. If I was in the shoes of Lord Hivex, I could think of several ways to leverage the pirate warships and thousands of mechs to crush us without suffering a great loss. That isn't possible for us. We are unquestionably weaker and we can't run away, so that means we have to adopt a mindset of sacrificing our strength in the hopes our enemies lose even more."
"Is there no way we can lessen this disparity somehow?"
Calabast spoke up. "We've tried. We have contacted many pirate factions through various channels. While they openly rejected our entreaties, a number of them are actually quite supportive of us. As long as we defeat the Allidus Alliance, its rivals will surely take advantage. It's just…"
"None of them are willing to help us in the upcoming battle, right?"
"Correct." She sighed. "The most they are willing to do is to raid the territory of the Allidus Alliance when the battle commences. Since the Gravada Knarlax is confirmed to be in the periphery, the Allidus Allliance's rivals will feel assured that she won't come back to brutalize the raiders. If we succeed in destroying the pirate flagship, then those raids can easily turn into a full-blown invasion."
While it sounded nice that the Nyxian pirates were willing to cannibalize one of their own, none of the news helped him in any way. The rivals of the Allidus Alliance were just taking advantage of the Larkinson Clan!
"Isn't there anyone who is genuinely willing and able to help us? Anyone?" Ves asked with a hint of despair in his voice.
"Well, there is one…"
Chapter 2383: No Key
"Do you remember the pair of Xona Crystals we've obtained from Ulimo Citadel?" Calabast asked.
"Yes. I heard that they are huge and unwieldy. They demand a lot of energy and they can only be used for 2 minutes and 34 seconds at a time. After that, they have to cool down for as much as 86 hours, 29 minutes and 11 seconds."
Ves stored those numbers in his implant so he was able to recall them at any time.
"Before you ask, we haven't managed to improve the usability of the crystals. We don't have any alien tech researchers or crystallographers on our staff. Our existing techs, engineers and researchers have all puzzled over the two crystals for a time, but we really can't make any progress in improving their usability without starting to study them from scratch."
"That's fine. A window of 2 minutes and 34 seconds is enough to convey a lot of important messages that absolutely need to remain confidential. For regular communications, we can make due with regular quantum communication nodes."
Everyone knew that the galactic net that the quantum communication nodes connected to was as leaky as a sieve. While there were many cryptographic methods to convey messages to one another without someone else listening in, most organizations would rather take the trouble to resort to the low-tech solution of using physical couriers to convey matters of great importance.
In that sense, the Xona Crystals allowed the Larkinson Clan to skip that tedious process, so Ves was not annoyed at its many limitations.
Calabast raised three fingers. "Well, did you remember that the Xona Stalkers used to operate five of these crystals? The Stalkers placed three of them in other, far-flung pirate bases in order to maintain a covert communications network. Since they're placed so far away, we gave up on trying to collect them. Have you ever wondered what happened to them now that the Xona Stalkers placed in those outposts are left to fend for themselves?"
"You told me these groups of Xona Stalkers belong to the loyalist faction. They're mostly made up of native Nyxian as opposed to exiles from Majestic Teal."
"Correct. I've been keeping tabs on them. Just as expected, now that these Xona Stalkers lost the support of their mother organization, they've defected to the local pirate factions. I predicted that would be the end of that, but it turns out that a very special Nyxian group has attempted to make contact with us through one of the three crystals."
Ves leaned closer over his desk. "Who?"
She looked straight into his eyes. "The Oblivion Hand."
"Truly?!"
Ves almost shot up from his chair! The Oblivion Hand! That was the dark mercenary organization that his parents had taken over. Last he heard, the Oblivion Hand had been razing pirate base after pirate base before venturing deeper into the core regions of the Nyxian Gap. The spatial warping there was so bad that most forms of communications no longer worked.
While he had idly instructed Calabast to make contact with the Oblivion Hand since a long time ago, he didn't really get his hopes up that his parents would be able to bail him out of this predicament.
They were too far away.
It would take at least several months for the Oblivion Hand to travel all the way to this location. The breakdown of communication in the core regions also meant that his parents would likely learn of the news late as well.
His worst fear was that the Oblivion Hand was so isolated from the pirate community that they didn't learn of the news at all! Perhaps they were still merrily beating up pirates in the more inaccessible parts of the Nyxian Gap!
"Don't get too excited, Ves. Just because the Hand made contact doesn't mean they are in a position to help."
"What does the Hand want?" Major Verle asked. "As far as I am aware of, the dark mercenaries are hostile to most pirates, but that doesn't necessarily make us allies."
Of everyone in the fleet, only Calabast and a handful of others knew the truth. Everyone else did not know that his parents helmed the Oblivion Hand.
While Ves considered revealing this to Major Verle, he quickly rejected the option. With secrets like these, it was best to keep it on a need-to-know basis. There was no compelling reason why the major needed to know such an important matter when it wouldn't affect anything.
"They might have an unbearable grudge against the Allidus Alliance." Ves shrugged. "We have already made contact with some other pirate factions who think Lord Hivex and his warships are disrupting the order of the Nyxian Gap."
While the Larkinson Clan hadn't managed to make any substantial deals with the pirate factions that secretly reached out, the contact nonetheless made it clear that the Nyxian Gap was anything but united.
The most annoying part about all of this was that these pirate factions were just waiting for the fight to happen. As long as the Larkinsons took out the Gravada Knarlax, the territories of the Allidus Alliance would soon get very busy!
While this might help get the remainder of the Allidus Alliance off the Larkinson Clan's back, it did not help at all in the crucial upcoming battle!
This was why both Ves and Major Verle didn't have much hope for the latest offer for help.
Calabast must surely know that, but she maintained a confident expression. "I know what you're thinking, but the Oblivion Hand has offered us a potential solution to.. bridge the gap."
"Haha."
"I'm not joking, Ves. Just look at this before you dismiss what I am saying."
She withdrew a secure data chip from her tight black uniform pocket and threw it over.
When Ves grabbed the data chip and inserted it into a slot in his desk terminal, a series of coded lines popped up. Rows and rows of encrypted entries kept scrolling through the projected screen.
"What the hell is this?" Ves frowned.
"The contact person from the Oblivion Hand did not elaborate. The amount of encrypted data is quite large. In fact, it took four separate intervals of 2 minutes and 34 seconds to transmit all of this encrypted data."
"That's two weeks!" Ves gasped. "What has made them spend so much effort to transmit this data over a Xona Crystal?"
He looked at the gibberish with much greater attention than before. What was the secret behind these seemingly-random patterns of letters, numbers and alien symbols?
Calabast sighed. "You'd have to ask them 64 hours later, because that is when the Xona Crystal on the spokesperson's end will be ready to transmit a message again. Before you ask, no one from the Oblivion Hand can be reached via a quantum communication node. Apparently, they don't want to conduct any business over the Comm Consortium's network. I suspect the spokesperson may be in contact with the Dark Cleaver through another alien device that is similar to the Xona Crystal. In my opinion, the spokesperson is solely responsible for passing on the encrypted data."
This made sense to Ves. His parents were not only hunted by the Five Scrolls Compact, but would also get in a lot of trouble with the Big Two if their identities were exposed. Since Ryncol and Cynthia Larkinson couldn't obtain shelter from any powerful galactic organization, they had no choice but to follow the same route of pirates who ran afoul of the galactic order.
Ves and Major Verle both asked a few more questions about the nature of the transmitted data, but Calabast had no answers.
As a high-ranking intelligence officer of the Larkinson Clan, she had access to all of the codes, passwords and keys of the original Larkinson Family. None of them enabled her to decrypt the code.
She even attempted to decipher the encrypted data through brute-force attacks, but with the computation power the Larkinson Clan had at its disposal, it would probably take years.
Inwardly, Ves cursed his parents. What was up with this? Neither his mother nor his father handed him any private decryption keys before they skedaddled out of his life!
The only keepsake his father left to Ves before he disappeared was… the System.
His eyes widened a bit before he reined in his emotions. He coughed. "I think I have an idea on what to do with this data."
This elicited a reaction from Calabast. "Are you sure?"
"It's the only answer. The Oblivion Hand wouldn't send us a message if we can't even read it. I'll check it out in private after this meeting. If there is anything in the message that you should know, I will pass it on right away."
Though Calabast obviously wanted to be present as he decrypted the data, she knew better than to ask. He valued his privacy very highly, especially when it came to certain sensitive matters.
The briefing resumed, but no one brought up anything unusual. The fleet had made extensive preparations, but the cloud hanging over their heads looked as stormy as ever.
Once the meeting ended, Major Verle left his stateroom first. Calabast lingered long enough to pet Lucky's head.
"So. Do you think your parents can help you?" She suddenly asked.
Now that they were able to speak a little more freely, Calabast no longer held back as much.
"I don't know. They're quite capable, especially my mother, but this is the Nyxian Gap we're talking about. I don't think there's a way for their fleet to reach us quickly."
"We have seen all manner of strangeness taking place during this campaign. Who knows. Maybe your parents have found a way."
"Even if they can bring their entire fleet to us in an instant, that doesn't change the fact that we are still outnumbered and outgunned. No matter how many pirates they have defeated and integrated into their ranks, their cohesion is probably poor to average at best. The only one who can possibly rise above the role of cannon fodder is my father, but even if he's known as an expert pilot, what can he do against an entire warship?"
There were many instances throughout the Age of Mechs where the Big Two had been forced to put down rebellious or unhinged expert pilots for whatever reason.
The most direct way to wipe these rogue expert pilots out was to bombard them with massed firepower from a very huge distance!
This was a simple, direct display of overwhelming power that successfully intimidated every expert pilot throughout human space.
With so many brutal examples, hardly any expert pilots were willing to turn against the existing order!
While the Gravada Knarlax wasn't as powerful as a typical CFA or MTA battleship, its main guns were still huge threats!
Calabast frowned and crossed her arms. "From what I can tell, your parents are quite amazing. How else were they able to accomplish great feats such as raising a well-behaved son as you and achieving success in one of the most depraved dens of iniquity in the local region."
"Your sarcasm is not appreciated. Now get out. I'm dying to hear what my parents are trying to tell me and I don't want you breathing down my neck."
"Are you sure about that? Most boys would love that, actually."
"GET OUT!"
After metaphorically kicking the spymaster out of his stateroom, he activated various security measures before he summoned the System comm from his Inventory.
It had been months since he last called it out. While he wanted to make use of it, he didn't have enough DP to make a difference.
Ever since the System stopped rewarding him DP for every mech he sold, he was only able to earn Design Points through completing mech designs.
Even though he was involved in six concurrent design projects, none of them were finished at this time!
This put Ves in the unfortunate situation where he could only lust at the expensive solutions offered by the System.
In fact, when Ves last inspected the expansive Skill Tree, he even spotted an entire branch devoted to designing expert mechs!
Chapter 2384: Prerequisites
The System offered many Skills related to mech design, but probably not everything. Even if it did allow him to learn some highly-exclusive knowledge, it was often locked behind insane price tags or onerous mission requirements.
Take for example the foundational Skill that was simply called Expert Mechs. Ves needed to obtain this Skill first before he could access the huge variety of Sub-Skills that were each tailored to enhance specific aspects of these powerful machines.
Most of them related to manipulating resonating materials and getting them to cooperate with the resonance abilities of specific expert pilots. From what little Ves could see when he activated the System and browsed the Skill Tree, these Sub-Skills formed the actual specialization of mech designers who engaged in designing expert mechs.
"This is probably why multiple Seniors or Masters usually collaborate on expert mech designs." Ves muttered.
Certainly, a mech designer specialized in defense was probably the most suitable person to design an expert mech for Venerable Jannzi, but other specialists were needed to round the mech out and ensure they weren't too one-dimensional.
It took far too much time and effort for any single mech designer to learn all of the branches in his lifetime. Doing so would only cause them to gain a basic proficiency in each area. This was much less efficient than just specializing in one branch and going as deep as possible. If they ever needed to add something else to an expert mech, they could just reach out to a colleague for a collaboration.
Expert mechs were very impressive. Their performance was high and their budgets were even higher. This meant that many mech designers who were constrained by the limited budgets of commercial mech designs could finally let themselves go and implement the solutions they had always dreamed about!
With budgets ranging from 100 to 10,000 times more than a typical design, a lot of mech designers could employ extravagant solutions in an expert mech design. Not only would they gain a lot of experience and insight from implementing their high-powered solutions, they were also able to gain a lot of data from seeing them at work.
It was not unusual for mech designers to try out cutting edge innovation in expert mechs first. With all of the data they gain from the implementation, they were sometimes able to derive a lesser but much more economic version of their inventions.
"And this is just one of the reasons why mech designers are so eager to participate in an expert mech design project!"
Few opportunities existed for mech designers to take part in an extremely high-spec design project. It was unrealistic to go through all of that effort for a mech design targeted to mundane mech pilots. Only high-ranking mech pilots were worthy of this level of pampering! Only in their hands would the most powerful mechs be able to justify their existence!
This was why Senior and even Masters who possessed the qualifications to design expert mechs were very eager to take part in such projects. As long as Ves or Gloriana were willing to bankroll the enormous expenditure of developing an expert mech, they could easily attract the interest of many Seniors and higher.
Of course, that was just one of the aspects he needed to take into account. Up until now, Gloriana still hadn't been able to accomplish a deal that satisfied everyone's demands.
"It's better if we can just design an expert mech ourselves."
This was not possible for Journeymen. The mech community generally presumed that only Seniors were capable of designing them. Ves wasn't sure why, but when he read up on the topic, he learned a very telling piece of news.
Any mech designer who advanced to Senior had to visit one of the MTA's sector headquarters and stay there for a time as a guest. They not only had to register and prove their qualifications as a Senior, but also gained numerous other benefits during their stay, including the ability to design expert mechs!
Even if a mech designer couldn't care less about the Big Two, this last reason alone was enough for them to bow their heads to the MTA!
Ves was a bit suspicious of what these newly-advanced Seniors experienced when they went on another pilgrimage to the MTA. Different from Journeymen, Seniors always enjoyed positions of considerable power and authority. They also become professors at educational institutions without exception.
It was as if the MTA put a gun to their heads and threatened to pull the trigger unless the new Seniors immediately promised to teach a class of mech design students!
"Well, I'll probably have to go through the same ordeal in the future." He grimaced.
That would take a couple of decades at the very least. While Ves had made some progress in advancing his design philosophy, he had barely stepped away from the starting line. He still had much to go before his tree grew wide and bushy enough to advance to Senior.
Most mech designers who couldn't wait to design an expert mech therefore did their best to advance to Senior as quickly as possible!
Ves thought he would have to follow this trajectory as well, but the System actually offered him an alternative.
[Expert Mechs - Senior] - 1,000,000 DP
Prerequisites: Senior Mech Designer OR fulfill 1 S-Rank Mission
The Skill started at Senior rank straight away, which made sense since Journeymen and lower were only able to participate in expert mech design projects as assistants.
Just the amount of DP he had to pay was extremely high. While he was sure that the price tag was somewhat justified by how much complete and extensive knowledge the Skill imparted to him, it was still a huge burden to fork over so many Design Points!
Aside from that, he also had to meet one of the two requirements imposed by the System.
Advancing to Senior Mech Designer was the default requirement, but also made the offer redundant. Once he advanced, would he fork over 1,000,000 valuable points to the greedy System, or would he visit the nearest MTA sector headquarters and obtain the knowledge for free?
"Only fools will pass over something given for free!"
Of course, the MTA didn't actually pass on this exclusive knowledge without a price. Nonetheless, Ves hadn't heard anything bad about these pilgrimages.
"Still, I can't wait that long. Our clan already has an expert pilot, and we'll probably gain more if we manage to survive the upcoming battle."
With so many expert pilots in the clan, Ves did not want to rely too much on external mech designers to solve the need for expert mechs.
This was why he was a bit grateful that the System offered him another way to gain the necessary Skill.
Ves was only happy for a small moment. In order for him to skip the need to become a Senior, he just had to complete a S-Rank Mission. Simple, right?
"You damn scammer!"
He resisted the urge to whack his System comm against his desk. This requirement infuriated him! Were S-Rank Missions easy to complete? Heck no! Ves had five outstanding S-Rank Missions, but had made little to no progress in fulfilling any of them. The Supply Missions asked too much!
Perhaps the only mission that Ves could complete in the near future was the one that demanded an extraordinarily valuable exotic known as Timpala Steel, but that entails years of travel.
"You stupid System! Can't you offer me a way to design expert mechs that won't take years or decades to complete? How can you be so obstinate?"
Of course, the System did not deign to reply to him. Ves hoped that it would be generous for once and offer him some alternative missions such as 'Destroy the Gravada Knarlax' or 'Escape the Nyxian Gap Alive', but it wasn't that generous.
"Come on, help a poor fellow out, will you? My fleet is surrounded by pirates. Won't you lose your investment in me if I die?"
[The Mech Designer System becomes unbound when its current user is no longer able to design mechs. Other mech designers will then be able to gain user rights to the Mech Designer System.]
WHACK! WHACK! WHACK!
"You goddamn piece of crap!"
His attempts to cajole the System into helping him failed. Even if his mother possessed some sort of influence over it, the System largely followed its own rules.
From a transactional perspective, the System demanded a lot of energy and resources. Ves provided what it needed by designing mechs and obtaining special, high-value exotics.
Nothing about this transaction implied that only Ves could fulfill the System's needs. Others such as Gloriana and one of the countless other mech designers in the galaxy could satisfy its needs as well!
It was pointless for Ves to get angry over this fact. The System possessed unknown motives and wasn't necessarily dependent on him. It could afford to sit back and relax while Ves went through all kinds of crises.
If he died, the System would simply hop over to another mech designer, simple as that.
Ves sullenly smirked. At least he made sure not to become dependent on the System either. Certainly, he was still willing to take advantage of its services, but he was still capable of getting what he wanted the old-fashioned way.
He shook his head. There was no point lusting after the Expert Mechs Skill when he only had a little over 100,000 DP in his System account. Even if he met one of the prerequisites, Ves still had to complete a lot of mech designs to pay for the price of redeeming this potent Skill.
"Let's get back to business."
Ves transferred the encrypted data transmitted through the Xona Crystals to his System comm.
The little device beeped upon receipt of the data. Ves waited for something to happen.
"Uhm… are you doing anything with the data?"
The System remained silent for a time until the System menu suddenly made way for an entirely new projection.
Ves immediately took in the large projection. It turned out to be a schematic! A design schematic!
While Ves was happy his hunch turned out to be true, Ves quickly frowned as he studied the design in greater detail.
"This… is not a mech design. Nor a design of some other device."
If he interpreted the complicated schematic correctly, the design actually represented a spiritual construct!
"What?! Mom! Do you think I can put something as complicated as this together?!"
The design almost blinded him by how dizzyingly complicated it appeared. While it wasn't as ridiculously advanced as the Grand Dynamo, its complexity far exceeded that of his simple spiritual constructs!
Ves had to be a much better spiritual engineer in order to put something as multifaceted and multilayered as this together. There was a reason why it took four separate communication attempts to transfer over the complete design!
What was worse about the design file was that it came with very little explanation and context. Ves didn't even know what it was supposed to accomplish if he put this elaborate spiritual construct together!
The final difficult aspect about this outrageous design was that Ves had to use up a lot of spiritual energy, far more than he possessed himself!
As his shock began to fade, Ves tried to figure out what the spiritual product was supposed to do. He didn't recognize anything, but his intuition gave him some hints.
"If I'm interpreting this correctly, it's.. messing with something in the Nyxian Gap. Is it.. a beacon? Maybe a portal?"
If this elaborate spiritual construct allowed his parents and the rest of the Oblivion Hand to arrive in an instant, then it was still worth the effort to create it no matter how many hurdles were in the way!
There was no way his mother would leave him out to dry. If this was the solution they prepared for him, then it was definitely worthwhile to try it out. After all, his mother loved him, right?
Chapter 2385: Unconventional Method
Ves continued to study the spiritual design his mother presumably sent over. He became very troubled by the harsh demands it imposed to make it. So far, he had a hunch that its complexity equaled that of a mech.
Did that mean that Ves was capable of making it? Hell no! Just because he was capable of designing and building mechs didn't mean he was good at other occupations!
His spiritual engineering fell far behind his mech engineering abilities. While he relied on the former to gain an advantage in the latter, that did not mean he was actually good at spiritual sorcery. It was just that most of the competition in the mech industry didn't have a clue about spirituality at all, which meant that Ves gained a monopoly by default.
Another way to describe his situation was to describe him as a slightly less stupid person among idiots.
Compared to a giant like his mother, Ves was merely a marginally taller dwarf!
"What does my mother think I am? Her heir?"
She hardly taught anything to him! For some unknown reasons, she seemed unwilling to teach him the basics of spiritual engineering and spiritual manipulation. The issue continued to haunt him at times. He had thought very long and hard about the possible reasons behind her unwillingness to share what she knew and came up with a lot of theories, many of which sounded absurd.
Maybe she thought her knowledge would corrupt his innocence. She shouldn't have bothered.
Maybe she lacked a prop or resource that was necessary for him to inherit her abilities. Perhaps her heritage was difficult to pass on without this requirement.
Maybe she was under some kind of limitation that prevented her from teaching what she knew. Was there some kind of lock in her spirit?
Perhaps the most optimistic reason was because she wanted to do what was best for him. By allowing him to find his own way, he was able to go off the beaten track and develop his spiritual abilities in a way that completely fit his needs.
Whatever the case, Ves had learned to stop hoping that his mother would enlighten him in the ways of spiritual sorcery. He was already doing rather decently on his own. Perhaps in a century, he might even be able to surpass her in this aspect!
Yet that would take time, which he didn't have. With days to go before Calabast expected the pirate armada to intercept their task force, Ves really did not have the time to spend on putting together such an elaborate spiritual construct.
It was like telling Maikel Larkinson to fabricate a complete mech on the spot!
No matter how smart he was and how much he learned under Ves, the kid still had years to go before he was ready to put together his first mech!
"The problem is that I'm in this situation as well. It's funny if someone else is in this predicament, but it's not so funny if I'm the one who is suffering!"
The spiritual construct design put Ves in a difficult position. Battle loomed closer and he could be spending his remaining time on many other productive activities that boosted his chances of winning the upcoming battle.
Should he put those activities aside and try to create the complicated spiritual construct?
Ves really didn't have the confidence to be able to do that within the limited time span available!
If he had enough time, let's say a few months or a few years, he could probably finagle something together. Even if he didn't have the knowledge, he could still resort to trial and error to kludge the construct together.
If he was half as knowledgeable as his mother on spiritual sorcery, then he didn't need the time. He just had to get enough spiritual energy from somewhere and spend a day or so to perform all of the fine work necessary to complete the construct.
No matter how much he tried to dissect the design, the individual sections were already far beyond his capacity to put together. He had to create spiritual components that concentrated lots of energy, enabled very advanced reactions or possessed other demanding properties.
It was as if he was a caveman who just received an order to build a musket.
"Musket? Why does this club look so strange? What is this big hole for?" Ves imagined his caveman self scratching his head in confusion.
After more than an hour of trying to wrap his head around the design, Ves eventually threw up his hands and gave up! His mother expected too much from him! How could she ever think he was good enough to make something so complex?
"Is she setting me up to fail or something?!"
Maybe the point of sending over this design wasn't to make it straight away. It could be that she expected him to survive the upcoming battle. Perhaps years or decades later, Ves would eventually be able to reach a high enough proficiency in spiritual engineering to make this spiritual construct.
Ves shook his head. "This doesn't make much sense. Why pass it over now instead of sooner. She could have given me this several times back when she met me in person."
Another theory was that he wasn't meant to create the entire spiritual construct. Instead, he was supposed to make just one or a couple the simpler spiritual constructs. This was a more reasonable explanation, but one that still seemed unlikely to Ves. Couldn't his mother just told him what he was supposed to build and what he was supposed to ignore? In fact, why didn't his mother just transmit the most relevant data?
After a bit of thought, Ves came up with a third theory. This one sounded a lot more plausible than his previous guesses.
"Maybe… I'm not meant to create this spiritual construct. Maybe some other powerful spiritual entity is supposed to do that in my stead!"
Was it James?
Ves attempted to call him over, but his spiritual adviser refused.
"I am a prophet, not a craftsman." He simply stated before cutting the connection.
"Tch. Bastard."
Maybe his design spirits could do something with it. He presented portions of his mother's designs to the Golden Cat and so on. None of them were able to make heads or tails out of the elaborate design.
Not even Qilanxo, who developed a lot of abilities, was capable of reproducing his mother's design!
As an exobeast who grew up on a planet where technology constantly declined, she spent far more effort on mastering her own inborn talents. She was very good at spiritual manipulation but spiritual engineering was something else entirely.
None of his other design spirits could help him out either. While he skipped over his hostile design spirits, he didn't think any of them were willing or able to help him. They were probably hoping for him to get smashed to pieces!
There was one more spirit that Ves that stood out from this group. Of all the design spirits he knew, only the Superior Mother might actually be able to do something with what his mother sent over.
The Superior Mother had remained dormant for so long that Ves forgot about her entirely. Perhaps it was better to keep her asleep, as a design spirit that was not only his mother but a very bossy mother was not fun to have around!
That said, if he could even the odds by waking her, he would gladly do so. It was unfortunate that Ves had no clue how to do that safely.
Would waking her even help him make this complicated construct? Ves vaguely guessed that this should be the case. The logic behind this possibility sounded very compelling. It made too much sense.
"Why does my mother need to send something to me instead of passing it to herself directly?"
Was his mother not connected to her own incarnation? Were Cynthia Larkinson and the Superior Mother two separate entities who only shared a marginal relation with each other?
Ves felt really confused, but this was what his logic dictated.
Now, Ves had to make a difficult decision. He could either continue to figure out how to make this complicated construct by himself, or he could shift his focus on waking up the Superior Mother and make her do something with the complicated spiritual design.
Logically, he should do the latter. Trying to figure out how to pull the Superior Mother from her slumber sounded much easier than the other option.
In addition, the Superior Mother was powerful and probably knowledgeable as well if she inherited some of Cynthia's spiritual sorcery. Just having her at his disposal like Qilanxo would help a lot.
However, his intuition hinted to him this was not a simple choice. Waking the Superior Mother before she was done with whatever she was doing might cause her to interrupt her evolution or something. The repercussions of this were severe, and Ves would rather avoid hindering the Superior Mother's growth.
He eyed the design schematic with greater resentment. Did his mother automatically assume that Ves was not capable of realizing it? Did she really think so little of him due to his ignorance?
"I'm not as incompetent as you think I am! I'm a mech designer! I'm good at creating my own stuff!"
Why should he follow her arrangements like an obedient little boy? No one said that he wasn't allowed to make this spiritual construct himself!
As a mech designer, Ves was a problem solver by nature. When faced with this challenge, Ves had the urge to surpass it. Perhaps he wasn't qualified to produce such a complicated spiritual construct if he tried to do so conventionally, but he possessed other abilities that might be of use in this instance!
"What if.. I don't make this construct, but rather grow it? As long as I build a powerful enough spiritual seed, it can grow and bloom into this design by itself!"
His eyes lit up as he came up with this radical and innovative idea!
He came up with it after recalling the way that the mech designers of the Life Research Association produced their distinctive biomechs.
Instead of fabricating the individual parts before assembling them together to produce a fully-functional mech, the biomech designers instead design their products in a way that allowed specially-cultured organisms to 'grow' into them! The process sounded rather disgusting to Ves, but it was evidently quite an effective method of producing mechs without relying on mech technicians or industrial machinery!
A producer just had to prepare some growing pools. These large, advanced bioengineering creations enabled any biomech culture to grow autonomously as long as someone dumped the required raw materials in the pools.
While the growth period was rather slow, there were several advantages to this process. The key was that as long as someone clever set the process up, the growing pools would basically run themselves!
It was this advantage that Ves sought to transplant in this situation. So what if he didn't possess the expertise required to realize his mother's design?
He would simply leverage his own expertise to build some sort of spiritual seed that was loaded with the design! While Ves couldn't guarantee that the budding seed would bloom in accordance with the design, if it was at least somewhat similar, then that was already fine!
Ves became enormously enchanted by this new and unconventional method of producing spiritual constructs. Compared to his old method, it was a lot less demanding as long as he figured out how to get it to work.
"I can probably accomplish this in a day! Maybe even less!"
The caveat was that Ves could only gain this convenience by giving up control. By giving up the opportunity to make his mother's construct piece by piece, he had to let the seed grow while only being able to exert a limited amount of influence.
"It's worth a try. If I can't get it to work, then I'll just wake the Superior Mother!"
Chapter 2386: Growing Products
The idea of 'creating' complicated spiritual constructs and products via growth rather than fabrication and assembly was perhaps the most radical and innovative idea he came up with! Its potential was enormous as it allowed him to sidestep the more traditional development path of spiritual engineering!
Certainly, what Ves imagined as 'traditional' spiritual engineering was incredibly powerful and versatile. Though the requirements were very difficult to meet, once someone became a master at spiritual engineering, they could produce any spiritual product imaginable with complete understanding how it worked because they understood and controlled every single detail.
This was what Ves yearned to achieve himself. As a mech designer, he always pursued this aspiration, and with the help of the Skills bought from the System, he had become very proficient in the finer details of mech design.
He hoped to approach spiritual engineering with the same degree of precision, control and understanding. Unfortunately, his lack of heritage, tutoring and learning resources left him as blind as a bat. Unless he was willing to invest thousands of years to reinvent several million different wheels, he would never be able to attain the level required to reproduce the Grand Dynamo he obtained from the System!
"Mech designers don't pop up out of nowhere. They are trained and educated by well-run educational institutions. They are mentored and tutored by the Seniors and Masters of their profession. If nothing else, then someone can always become a mech designer through self-study and e-learning if they have a few books and learning apps at their disposal."
The tragedy of Ves was that he lacked even the latter. His deadbeat mother didn't even give him a single booklet!
For this reason, when faced with a sophisticated spiritual design, Ves could either pass it over to someone who knew what to do with it, or use his own ingenuity to solve the problem in a creative fashion.
The proper course of action was to leave it to an expert. Yet if Ves forcefully woke up the Superior Mother, he feared he might interrupt some sort of delicate growth phase.
The damage might not be serious, but Ves did not want to risk kneecapping the ancestral spirit's fantastic potential. She had the potential of attracting the worship of trillions of Hexers. With the Superior Mother's connection to Cynthia, this might be a way for his mother to stop leeching his spiritual energy and sustain herself on a more independent basis.
"The construct itself also requires a lot of energy to shape into being. Does my mother have to pay for that?"
There were certain special components in the spiritual construct design that looked very special. Even by themselves, Ves was unable to create something so high in quality, precision and complexity. Just like fabricating high-performance physical parts, anyone who attempted to make these special spiritual components would have to pay a hefty price.
Therefore, unless it was truly necessary, Ves did not want to upset this vital arrangement!
This led him to his second solution. Though he hadn't tested it at all, Ves was very confident in his theories and projections. According to his existing understanding of spirituality, implementing a growth-based production method should be viable.
Even if Ves was very fuzzy on the mechanics, his earlier experiments in spiritual engineering taught him that this was not a crippling downside.
As long as he was willing to surrender control to the whims of nature, fortune and other external factors, he would roughly be able to get what he wanted.
Of course, that didn't mean he didn't have to expend any effort at all. Just like the peculiar biomech designers, he needed to develop a different methodology of production.
"That's okay."
Different from traditional spiritual engineering, Ves possessed a significantly greater talent and foundation in the production of 'living' entities. His life domain not only enhanced his intuition in this area, but also smoothed over a lot of difficult procedures.
Someone without a life domain would make a lot more mistakes because their spiritual energy did not offer any assistance in the growth process.
In short, this production method suited him perfectly!
He immediately began to outline the method needed to accomplish this ambitious goal. He pooled all of his knowledge that was relevant and applied his judgement, logic and intuition to put together a blueprint of his new spiritual production method.
He needed to take two broad requirements into account.
First was what he called the 'initial seed'. Like a real plant seed, this was the starting state of a complete spiritual product. The seed not only contained the design of its end state, but also contained all of the essential spiritual ingredients that were necessary to kickstart the growth process.
"Every seed needs access to good soil or other favorable conditions to grow into a healthy and vigorous plant."
This was the second requirement. The incubation conditions encompassed every positive and negative variable that could influence the growth of the initial seed. These external circumstances not only provided the necessary spiritual nutrients, but also directed the growth process!
Ves paid a lot of attention to the latter because that was his only safeguard to get the product he wanted. While it was impossible to guarantee exact precision, as long as the end product did not exceed the boundaries he set, he would be happy with what he obtained.
As Ves slowly built an elaborate plan, he found out that as long as it worked according to his design, he could indeed skip a lot of difficult steps.
"Just let the growth process take care of everything."
Even so, a couple of thorny aspects still remained.
First, he wasn't sure he was able to obtain all of the specific spiritual attributes needed to make some of the special spiritual components.
Ves could only throw up his hands at this difficult request. "Well, the growth process will just have to work with what's available. If it can't obtain the required spiritual attribute, then it can always substitute it with another attribute."
Certainly, a steel sword was a lot more effective at cutting bodies than a wooden sword. However, they were both swords and they were both capable of harming people, and that ought to be enough.
"Ketis might disagree, but she's not here!"
This was not the time for perfection. With just a couple of days to go before the Larkinsons confronted the Allidus Alliance, Ves had to set this process up quickly, forgoing the usual need for rigor.
Still, Ves remained confident.
To make sure this production method was not a figment of his imagination, he tested it out on a smaller scale. He designed a slightly obtuse and difficult spiritual construct and began to fulfill the two requirements.
He formed the initial seed with some of his spare spiritual energy and blended in a spiritual image that contained the design and visualization of his desired end product.
He then prepared the incubation conditions. He used a P-stone as the incubating chamber and began to insert some loose spiritual energy from himself, Goldie and some other sources.
Ves then threw in the initial seed and took a step back.
He observed what happened carefully.
"It's starting. The initial seed is following its programming."
When the initial seed recognized its favorable conditions, it immediately began to absorb the nutrients and grow out of its shell.
Ves smiled wider and wider when he recognized that the seed largely followed his programming. The growing spiritual construct began to grow taller and develop some branches.
He chose a spiritual tree as his first product with this new method because it offered him an easy way to judge how its formation differed from the design he specified.
"Hmm, there's indeed some variability."
He observed a lot of variance in how its branches and leaves matured. When the spiritual tree he had grown reached its programmed end state, the final result ultimately deviated from his design by as much as fifteen percent!
Ves smiled. "To be honest, that is a lot better than I anticipated."
If the deviation reached as far as fifty percent, then it was impossible to ensure the end product would be able to fulfill the same role as the original.
He pulled the just-matured spiritual tree from the P-stone and stuffed it into the so-called Prosperity Tree that was drooping so bad that it looked as if it was on the verge of death!
The shape of the spiritual tree roughly corresponded with the structure of the physical Prosperity Tree. This was because he used the latter as the basis of the design of the former!
"C'mon, revitalize already!"
The tree only looked a bit more revitalized than before, but Ves did not feel disappointed. He knew that trees were slow to change. The reason why he was happy was because the physical Prosperity Tree seamlessly accepted the artificial spiritual product he had grown from a seed.
If the tree was truly doomed, it wouldn't have done this! The fact that the spiritual tree settled in nicely signified that his scheme to revitalize the physical tree might actually work!
Ves laughed. "Hahahaha! Take that, you stupid tree! You want to die? Not on my watch! I'll pump you up with life no matter how much doom you want to portend!"
While he disdained superstition, he couldn't help but remained bothered by his Prosperity Tree's malaise. His grandfather claimed that its state directly reflected his fortune, but Ves couldn't believe in this nonsense.
Even so, he still felt disturbed when his tree was doing awful.
Instead of letting the tree increase his doubts, Ves preferred to take matters in his own hands!
The success of this little experiment provided the critical proof he needed to bet all of his chips in his plan to produce his mother's work through this new method.
Even if the scale and complexity weren't comparable at all, Ves still had faith that it had the potential to work!
He spent the rest of the day setting his plan in motion. He requested, begged or coerced his various design spirits to pass over their spiritual fragments and formed a large and complex initial seed by combining them together.
The initial seed was already a living spiritual product in itself, but Ves deliberately kept it in a preliminary state.
During the creation of the seed, Ves made sure to imprint his mother's design as much as possible. He also sacrificed a few drops of life-prolonging treatment serum to pack the seed with a lot of necessary nutrients.
Still, the seed could only accommodate so much nutrients and still retain its nature as a growing entity rather than a mature entity. Perhaps Ves might be able to raise this limit as he became more proficient with this method, but for now he could only do so much.
He turned his attention to setting up the incubation conditions. He stuffed the seed into a P-stone and began to gather some additional spiritual energy to provide the seed with fertile 'soil'.
Ves soon encountered a very significant problem.
"I don't have enough nutrients!"
His mother's design not only depicted a complex spiritual machine, but a very strong and demanding one as well!
He couldn't keep milking himself and his design spirits for spiritual energy. Ves needed a lot more.
He grabbed the vial of precious high-grade life-prolonging treatment serum from his pocket and studied his contents. He already used up quite a number of drops to fuel some of his potent endeavors. While he still possessed plenty of drops, he was very reluctant to use up so much serum for a single purpose.
Due to their universal compatibility and high energy density, it was best to use a single drop or a few drops at a time.
Did he have access to another abundant energy that could provide the initial seed with all of the spiritual energy required to fuel its entire growth?
A few ideas came to mind…
Chapter 2387: Dark Clouds
When Ves figured out some suitable energy sources to sustain the growth process, he did not immediately implement the entire plan.
He had a feeling that once he completed his mother's spiritual construct, something drastic would happen.
He didn't know whether his mother intended him to create it before the battle or during the battle. If it was some kind of means to allow the Oblivion Hand to reach his position, then it was best to make it straight away.
However, if it was some kind of superweapon that could disable the Gravada Knarlax in an instant, then Ves was better off holding off its completion until the pirate warship finally came within engagement range.
Considering all of the possibilities, Ves opted to make the safest choice and hold off until battle commenced.
Until then, Ves only started the growth process but did not feed the huge amount of energy needed to complete the growth.
This was good, because it took a fair amount of time for the seed to bloom and grow into something more sophisticated.
After the growing product used up all of the available spiritual energy within reach, its evolution stalled. As long as Ves periodically fed it with a modest amount, he was able to keep the incomplete product in a healthy and stable condition.
This allowed Ves to keep it on standby until he was ready to resume the growth process. Until then, Ves put the P-stone in his B-stone lockbox before passing the square object to Nitaa for safekeeping.
"Watch over it carefully. Don't let anyone touch the box or the stone that's inside." Ves seriously commanded his bodyguard.
"I will make sure it will stay secure." His tall bodyguard stoically replied.
Ves looked at her second-hand Fridayman gear and figured he might as well build a customized Unending combat armor suit to increase his security and reward Nitaa for her loyalty.
He had already used up most of the B-stone that comprised Grand Protector Roshaw's bed frame. What scraps he had left was not enough to cover Nitaa's entire body.
"I'll just have to build a suit without this protection, then."
While that meant she would have to forgo protection against spiritual threats, she would still be extremely formidable against material opponents.
A day quickly went by. While Task Force Predator had begun to enter into its highest state of alert, Ves had squirred himself away in his mech workshop to frantically produce a few pieces of exceptional gear for himself and Nitaa.
He not only built her a brand-new suit of heavy combat armor, he also fashioned a few strengthened gadgets for himself and his bodyguard. For example, he stripped the external structure of her heavy assault rifle and covered it with both Unending alloy and Breyer alloy.
The same went for other gear such as his jammer and Nitaa's foldable sword. He used small pieces of Unending alloy as the principal material before covering up its unevenness with a smooth layer of Breyer alloy.
During this time, Ves continually received status reports from Calabast, Major Verle and other important figures in the fleet. He was peripherally aware of the final preparations made by the various mech forces. He also gained enough information to keep track of the movements of the pirate scouts.
Over time, the pirate scouts acted bolder. They attempted to move closer in order to gain accurate and detailed scans and observation data on the condition of the task force.
The Larkinsons had to prevent this at all costs. Every hour, hundreds of Larkinson and Penitent Sister mechs sortied into space in order to beat back the brazen pirate scout mechs.
The patrols managed to take down dozens of carelessly-piloted pirate light mechs, but the damage inflicted on the pirates was trivial. There were many more scouts that were still determined enough to sneak closer!
On the day when Ves had just upgraded the last pieces of personal gear, the announcement that he had been waiting for had finally arrived.
The forward scouts dispatched by their own side finally detected huge energy emissions in the distance. The energy signatures were barely perceptible, but they were growing stronger at a strong but steady rate.
Several Larkinsons had very little doubt that the signatures belonged to the infamous Gravada Knarlax and her escorts.
The battle that Ves and the Larkinsons Clan were most afraid of was finally dawning upon them. In around twelve to twenty-four hours, Task Force Predator would have no choice but to fight against the overwhelming might of the Allidus Alliance!
Ves and Major Verle convened one final command meeting. Every important commander and officer personally shuttled over to the Scarlet Rose and met up in the conference room.
While it would have been more convenient to hold this meeting by remote, Ves did not want to give the pirate scouts any chance of eavesdropping on the transmissions.
Everyone who entered the conference room looked grim but ready. It was as if they were all staring at their impending deaths. Even if they knew that there was a large chance that some or all of them wouldn't make it at the end of the day, they still retained their fighting spirit.
Warships or not, the Larkinson Clan would not go down without a fight!
Ves threw a look at Major Verle, who promptly commenced the final meeting.
"Hello, everyone. We have all worked extensively to put the final pieces in place. I won't reiterate them all because we are all extensively familiar with these elements. Right now, this meeting is about analyzing the enemy disposition. Our forward scouts have just returned a large amount of fuzzy long-ranged scanning data. While our analysts are still trying to process this data, we can already answer some questions. First, the largest energy signature indeed matches what we expect of a 800-meter heavy cruiser. The Gravada Knarlax or another comparable warship is definitely a part of the enemy punitive fleet."
Everyone's expressions darkened a bit, but not too much. They already expected this outcome, though many hoped the intelligence was wrong. Battling a pirate fleet centered around a heavy cruiser was much different from battling one without such a powerful ship!
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Dark clouds seemed to cast over everyone's heads. Though their morale had sunk a bit, there was no way to avoid this blow.
"The sensor data we've obtained has also allowed us to confirm other observations. While there is a small chance the pirates are deliberately trying to mislead us, for now we are confident in our judgement. According to our analysts, the Gravada Knarlax is accompanied by 4 destroyers, 2 frigates and an unknown number of carriers."
"How about their mechs?" Commander Orfan asked. "I heard that the enemy armada forcefully tried to recruit every pirate in their way. How much cannon fodder do we have to go through?"
"8,000 mechs."
Several Larkinsons uttered shocking gasps.
"That's impossible."
The Larkinson Clan's mech troops could only field around 860 mechs at a time. That was how many healthy or lightly-injured mech pilots they retained after the costly Battle of Ulimo Citadel.
The Penitent Sisters were only able to field 200 second-class mechs after suffering badly in the final phases of that very same battle. While Ves expected much from the Hexers due to the quality of their mechs and the new battle network he created for them, they could not shoulder the entire weight of the battle.
Even if the 200 Penitent Sisters confronted the 8000 pirate mechs without any other enemies, it was hard to say who would win!
Each Penitent Sister mech would have to take out 40 pirate mechs to even the score. This was a tall order even if second-class mechs possessed a crushing advantage.
"If we look at the mechs alone, our Larkinson and Penitent Sister mechs are outnumbered by eight-to-one." Commander Melkor stated. "With our strength, it should be doable to defeat such a large force, but the coming battle isn't centered around the mechs."
Major Verle nodded. "The Gravada Knarlax and her escorts will dictate how the battle will unfold. There are many other factors that can complicate the battlefield. For example, we will definitely put our newly-produced superweapons to use, and I can imagine the pirates might be thinking the same. We also have to take.. more esoteric considerations into account. A repeat of the dark sphere might throw everything into chaos."
"We know what is possible now. We won't be caught flat-footed this time." Ves interjected. "While I can't go into the details, we have already prepared our own plans to complicate the battlefield. However, take into account that our measure is likely a double-edged sword. While we have implemented some precautions that should hopefully lessen the burden against us, we can't guarantee anything further."
A lot of commanders and officers expressed confusion at what he said, but he really couldn't afford to say anything more. It was enough to give them a heads-up on what to expect.
The meeting proceeded tensely. Major Verle outlined the probable enemy fleet disposition and began to call up a couple of simulated battles to give everyone an idea how the battle might proceed.
Many of the scenarios ended in an utter defeat for the Larkinson Clan. No matter what their side did, the pirates simply threw a mob of 8,000 pirates in their direction while letting their warships crush the vulnerable Larkinson and Penitent Sister carriers!
If any of the Larkinson mechs came closer, the enormous amount of secondary weapon batteries affixed to the Gravada Knarlax would surely chew them to pieces!
The only scenarios where the Larkinsons achieved a painful victory was when a lot of factors were in their favor.
"We still have a realistic chance of winning the upcoming battle." Major Verle attempted to boost everyone's confidence or at least stave off the onset of despair. "Leaving aside unknown and unpredictable factors, just our mechs and ships alone can still pressure the pirates to the point where they expose vulnerabilities. As long as at least a couple of converted Penitent Sister combat carriers manage to ram the Gravada Knarlax, our follow-up attacks may be able to take the pirate flagship down. If all of our expert candidates manage to advance to expert pilots at once, then the momentum of the battle will briefly but crucially swing in our favor."
Not everyone believed that the latter would happen. Ves hadn't actually gone around to advertising the wonderful effect his spiritually-enhanced mechs had on his expert candidates. He didn't want them to inadvertently blab that sensitive detail in an area that was monitored by the MTA.
While Ves knew it was hard to explain four simultaneous breakthroughs, he still possessed confidence in being able to Devil Tongue his way out of this predicament!
The discussion continued, but no one gained much useful information. Major Verle merely repeated some key messages in order to make sure that everyone was on the same page. The next battle would certainly push everyone to their limits. This made it harder to enact elaborate plans, especially if anomalies dropped over the entire battlefield.
In these kinds of situations, it was important to make sure that every commander and sub-commander knew their role and place on the battlefield.
Ves wanted them to be able to operate independently without waiting for orders from a superior they couldn't get ahold of. If this was not the case, one of the measures he planned to employ risked doing a lot of damage to his own troops!
"You should hold a final speech when we are close to moving into engagement range." Major Verle turned to Ves. "Each of us are here for several reasons. Some of us fight for ourselves. Some fight for the betterment of their children. Others are fighting for you and the ideals you espouse. No matter what, we are all bound and united by the same clan. As our patriarch, we need your voice to remind us what we are fighting for. Can you do that, sir?"
Ves smirked. "Consider it done."
Chapter 2388: The Final Hour
The final hours counted down.
The distant energy signatures, particularly the huge one belonging to the Gravada Knarlax, hadn't stopped their approach. In fact, they even accelerated a bit as if the pirates crewing the ships were eager to crush the brazen Larkinson Clan!
Ves thought about what he wanted to say in his upcoming speech. He knew from Major Verle that words had a very powerful effect on the morale of his troops. If he said all of the right words, his mech pilots might be able to perform twenty percent better.
In contrast, if he spoke words of doom and defeat, then the effective performance of his mech pilots might drop by as much as fifty percent!
In a battle with such high stakes, these were enormous swings! Anything that could help their side fight a little harder and prevent more deaths was worth pursuing.
In fact, Ves came up with an idea to go a step further. What if he took advantage of the Larkinson Network while he held his speech? What he tried to integrate spiritual manipulation in his words on a deeper level?
"What if I can speak to their souls rather than their ears?"
It was an interesting idea, and one that Ves thought had a lot of potential. While a part of him felt a bit exasperated at himself for trying to employ spiritual techniques in situations where they weren't needed, he was fascinated by them as well.
As Ves returned to his stateroom and sat next to Lucky, his attention shifted from the projection of the local area.
Ever since the Larkinson Clan received word that Lord Hivex dispatched a formidable punitive fleet, Ves had left much of his mech design work aside and instead focused most of his creative energies on developing spiritual solutions.
Oh, he spent plenty of his time on mechs. Upgrading and customizing the mechs for his expert candidates took up most of his month.
"It's more of a chore, though."
Ves didn't invent anything new while he performed all of that work. Even the most powerful upgrade that came in the form of Unending mech weapons actually didn't require any intensive effort at all. This was because the Unending alloy he used was already strong enough to do all of the work!
Instead, he had become quite passionate and obsessed about advancing his spiritual engineering and spiritual manipulation abilities. He correctly surmised that the best way he could strengthen his forces was to explore the spiritual angle further.
There were thousands of Larkinsons in the task force who were already able to upgrade the physical performance of every mech and ship at their disposal. Ves could leave the job of servicing them and upgrading them to the mech designers, mech technicians, chief engineers and other knowledgeable clansmen.
He could not turn to anyone else when he needed to accomplish something spiritual in nature.
Certainly, James and perhaps Ketis might help, but neither were even close to matching his spiritual capabilities.
Admittedly, his capabilities were very shallow compared to his mother, but he still stood head and shoulders above those who still believed that the extraordinary didn't exist!
As Ves reflected back on what he had accomplished in the last month, he realized that he had become a lot more passionate about spiritual engineering than mech design.
Of course, part of that was because he had stalled his involvement in the LMC's ongoing mech design projects. Yet that did not excuse his excessive preoccupation with spiritual engineering.
"Am I a mech designer or am I a spiritual engineer?" He asked himself.
Lucky tiredly looked up at his face. "Meow."
"Heh. That's easy for you to say. Your gem production pretty much runs on autopilot. Are you even capable of exerting any control over this process?"
"Meow!" His cat turned away while flipping up his metallic tail.
It was not as if Ves was much better. When faced with an impossible project, he decided to take a crooked road and invented an entirely new spiritual production method.
Ves felt this method had a lot of potential. Its applications were endless, but Ves felt a bit disturbed in the direction he was going. Was he trying to pursue spiritual engineering regardless whether his actions were related to mech design?
"What am I turning into? Can I still just call myself a mech designer?"
He imagined that this question must be plaguing many other mech designers who dabbled in other fields. It was not unusual for mech designers to be dissatisfied with relying on third-party mech parts to design their mechs. This was why Master Olson learned how to develop her own mech engines and how other mech designers learned how to design their own key parts.
Yet no matter how far they ventured into these side paths, they were still able to cling on to their primary identities as mech designer.
Ves found it increasingly more difficult to do the same. The temptation to pay less attention to mech design in order to reserve more time for spiritual engineering kept plaguing him. There were almost an endless amount of mech designers in human space, many of which could design fantastic mechs that rivaled his own in value or functionality.
There weren't as many spiritual engineers or spiritual sorcerers, though.
While it was rather precarious to engage in spiritual engineering in full view of the Big Two, as long as he maintained his identity as mech designer and continued to work with mechs in his daily life, he could probably get away with a lot!
Still, Ves felt a bit reluctant to become more like his mother. Even if he did not follow the same path as hers with regards to spirituality, he believed he definitely possessed the potential to match and surpass her strength one day!
Right now, his domain encompassed both life and mechs in equal proportion. This duality reflected his split obsessions towards life and mechs.
"I'm a mech designer. I'm a spiritual engineer. I'm both."
No matter what, if he ever managed to leave the Nyxian Gap, he would return with enormous gains related to the latter. This would surely encourage him to go down this path even further.
"Why am I even questioning myself about this when there's pirates about to barrel down on my forces?"
He shook his head. This was not the time to get swept up by irrelevant concerns.
His eyes sharpened as he reminded himself of his actual priorities.
"I have a clan to lead into battle."
Time passed by as the Larkinsons all ate the best meals they had in awhile. Ves even ate another Ulimo nutrient pack to pamper his taste buds and fill his stomach with a pleasant rolling warmth that would keep him satiated and energetic for hours.
It was a fitting meal to prepare him for what was to come.
As the reality of the situation dawned on the Larkinsons, they slowly firmed up as they mustered up their courage.
They already prepared for this battle. Each of them had worked hard to pass the most difficult tests of their lives.
Hardly any mech force achieved victory against a force of actual warships! The last example of this happening in the local region was when the sandmen overwhelmed the understrength MTA warships dispatched to defend the Bentheim System.
As confident as Ves was in all of his preparations, he did not feel his forces were as strong as the sandmen back then. He appreciated the parallels, though. Much like the aliens, his Larkinson Clan had upgraded its strength quite a bit since their last battle.
Hopefully, the Allidus Alliance would be caught off-guard much like the hapless MTA warships at the pivotal Battle of Bentheim!
When the countdown had almost reached the end, Ves began to suit up. He slowly donned his Unending Regalia and checked each and every piece of individual equipment. He also helped Lucky equip the Misfortune Harness Mark II.
Though the chances were small that he would ever end up in a fight where he needed to fight man-to-man, it didn't hurt to be prepared.
"Are you ready for a show, Lucky?"
"Meow."
Lucky did not look eager to go out. His stomach was still busy trying to digest the B-stone that Ves had employed as a laxative for his cat.
"Well, tough luck, you're going out anyway. I'm not leaving you here to sit out the entire battle."
Ves picked up his suited-up cat and held him against his shoulder as he stepped out of his stateroom.
With Nitaa's large and looming form following from behind his back, his armored suit clanked across the metal deck as he strode towards the bridge.
Once he entered, he sat in the central chair, various projections already popping up around him to give him a solid overview of his assets and the surrounding space.
Major Verle had already moved to the Redfeather to command the battle. The Scarlet Rose was many things, but she was not a good command ship.
"Status report. What is the condition of our forces?"
"The Avatars of Myth are fully deployed and ready for action."
'The Living Sentinels are just about to deploy their final mechs."
"The Battle Criers are surrounding our ships."
"The Flagrant Vandals are covering our flanks and rear."
"The Swordmaidens are keeping all of their mechs in reserve."
"The Penitent Sisters are already in the process of evacuating their converted combat carriers."
As Ves listened to the various reports, the hatch to the bridge slid open. Calabast, having eschewed her tight black uniform for a high-tech Hexer infiltrator suit, strode up to his seat.
She bent down a bit to caress Lucky's head.
"Meow~" The cat squinted in pleasure.
"Why are you here, Calabast? Do you want to take Lucky on a risky jaunt or something?"
"No. Not yet. It's too dangerous to attempt an infiltration under the current circumstances. Maybe there will be an opportunity later in the battle, but for now it's too dangerous."
"Then why have you come?"
"I want you to remind you of our backup option. The engines are already warmed and ready to engage."
"Pass."
"I'm just looking out for you, kid."
They chatted for a bit, but Calabast didn't have anything else to say. She just wanted to see how confident he was and whether he was still committed to fighting the pirate armada.
Once she left, Ves closed his eyes. He ran through the plan one more time. This was the time to see whether the stratagems he devised would grant his side enough advantages to resist the pirate onslaught.
"Open a channel to every ship and mech." Ves spoke as he gathered his thoughts. "I'm ready to address the entire clan."
His armored form creaked on the chair as he raised himself to his feet. His helmetless face looked suitably heroic, and upon a silent command, a billowing red cape extended from the rear shoulders of his Unending Regalia.
Every Larkinson waiting for the final hour to count down all directed their attention to the lifelike projection of Ves appearing in front of their faces.
The entire fleet momentarily fell silent. Aside from the mech pilots who were stationed in the perimeter of the fleet, everyone directed their attention at their leader.
Ves stared at the wide projection that popped up in front of him. A random panorama of faces greeted him. Avatars, Sentinels, Swordmaidens and more each looked at him via his projections. Seeing their faces in real time allowed him to gain a more personal connection with those he addressed. He could also adjust his speech if he noticed his clansmen weren't taking his words very well.
Before he spoke, he took a deep breath. At the same time, he stretched out his hand.
Nitaa placed the Larkinson Mandate in his armored grasp.
Ves needed the prop for what he was about to do. He concentrated his mind a bit and began to connect to Goldie and the Larkinson Network.
Then, he proceeded to do something he had never done before. He attempted to push his presence through the network!
Chapter 2389: Rousing Speech
The Larkinson Clan was about to face its biggest test in Maynard Fields.
Tens of thousands of Larkinsons paid attention to his address. While each of them had been psychologically preparing themselves for the fight of their lives, it was difficult to ensure that each of them would endure in the coming struggle.
The odds were too great. The looming pirate threat had come close enough to confirm the initial long-ranged scanning data. The Allidus Alliance hadn't been bluffing, and a formidable heavy cruiser definitely led their mighty fleet!
In the past, humans used to believe that warships played a key role in expanding and securing their civilization's dominion. The might of battleships had long attracted the worship and admirations of an uncountable amount of humans.
It was different now. The specter of warships cast a heavy shadow over humans born in the Age of Mechs. From their youth, they had been taught to fear these enormous engines of destruction. Even if nobody personally experienced the terror that warships wrought, all of the ominous education they received as they grew up in school had left a very strong mark in their minds.
Perhaps the prospect of facing a pirate-built warship might not sound so intimidating when the battle was still a distant prospect. The Larkinsons accepted the news with stoic solemnity.
Yet as the days went by, the fears that their teachers implanted into their minds had slowly started to creep up. Ves was no different as he possessed a greater technical understanding how a warship like the Gravada Knarlax could easily demolish his task force.
The power of a weapon platform depending on many factors. In mech combat, size usually wasn't a big factor because the mech industry spent four centuries to find the optimal balance between size, cost, functionality and efficiency.
Hardly anyone fielded super-sized mechs or juggernauts in battle because they were too inefficient. Certainly, anyone who had plenty of money and resources to spare might choose to field them, but their unwieldiness and their very obvious flaws left them open to exploitation.
Still, at some point, when something got big enough, they became incredibly formidable. Size increased leverage. Size provided capacity. Size added durability.
The jump in specs from light mechs to heavy mechs was already quite extreme. The two possessed completely different fighting styles, but it was not entirely clear that the larger and heavier mech could defeat the lighter mech in a dueling scenario.
However, the real battlefield was very different from a fair mech duel. In an actual battle, an expensive heavy mech could easily yield much greater results if employed correctly.
The same went for warships, but at a much more exaggerated scale. The Gravada Knarlax didn't need to have any brilliant captains and officers in command. As long as they knew just enough to keep the ship running, the Allidus Alliance could merely rely on her potent gun batteries and very resilient hull plating to carry every battle!
In comparison, a force of smaller elements such as Task Force Predator had to exert an unreasonably high amount of effort to achieve similar results.
In other words, the pirates would be able to win a battle in their sleep while the Larkinsons had to exert at least 150 percent of their effort in order to gain a fighting chance!
It sounded unfair. It sounded insurmountable. No matter how overconfident the pirates felt, there was no way the large and powerful Allidus Alliance was completely made up of incompetents.
The Larkinsons had already built up a formidable reputation of their own, so anyone who dared to confront the conquerors of Ulimo Citadel should certainly come prepared.
Ves confidently smirked as his projection graced every clansmen in the fleet. If exerting 150 percent wasn't enough, then he would make sure that everyone would output 200 percent instead!
Ves was confident he already made a lot of progress with the extraordinary measures he prepared. However, improving the tech and providing his forces with spiritual advantages was only part of the equation.
He had always believed that the key to winning most battles was to maintain better morale than the enemies.
As long as the Larkinsons were confident, then they would fight at their very best! Anything less was not acceptable!
This was why he ignored all of his doubts and tried to meld his mind with the Larkinson Network!
Though Ves did his best to look confident and at ease, inwardly his mind came under significant strain!
This was because his forceful insertion into the Larkinson Network caused him to bear some of the burden of its operation. Goldie watched Ves on with considerable concern!
Nyaaaaa!
Humans weren't suited to withstand so much input. Ves recalled the many times his experiments caused his test subject's head to explode because they received too much spiritual input!
Now, Ves chose to put himself in their place, thereby risking the same fate!
He didn't feel concerned. Unlike his clueless and hapless test subjects, he not only understood what took place, but also prepared a countermeasure!
He concentrated a bit further and pulled a spiritual augment template from his implant. He rapidly built up a spiritual construct with the help of the template. As soon as it came into existence, a large proportion of incoming spiritual signals suddenly stopped bombarding his Spirituality!
The new spiritual construct acted as a filter. Its role was very simple. It rejected the passage of any spiritual input except for the ones he specifically approved.
Since Ves merely wanted to communicate with the clansmen connected to the Larkinson Network, he did not need all of the irrelevant spiritual input.
It was working, if only just. While the spiritual input of most of the clansmen wasn't very strong, it was different when it came to the more spiritually active Larkinsons. Venerable Jannzi especially radiated a strong presence, so much so that she was already exerting her influence to a greater degree in the Larkinson Network!
Fortunately, Venerable Jannzi did not regard Ves with hostility. Her potent spirit and will was willing to make way when Ves stood in their way.
After cutting down the excessive input, Ves found it much more bearable to place himself closer to the center of the Larkinson Network. By partially taking over Goldie's role as the nexus, he gained a close, direct connection to every Larkinson.
This did not just apply to Larkinsons in the fleet, but also the clansmen back at Cinach VI!
Still, Ves only intended to address the members of the task force this time. When his eyes focused on the small faces on the projected panorama, Ves was somehow able to match their appearances to a specific connection in the network.
The unprecedented degree of closeness he established with his fellow Larkinsons felt surreal. Was this what Goldie felt all the time?
For a moment, he felt like a god looking down on his faithful subjects.
Similarly, each of the clansmen who paid attention to him felt as if their awe, respect, worship and other feelings towards him had increased.
It was a very magical moment for both sides. Even if Ves hadn't spoken for more than a minute, everyone felt as if they perceived his affection for them. A small portion of his love, his hopes, his aspirations and his confidence propagated through the network, causing the clansmen who were about to confront the pirates to feel as if they were all in it together!
Ves finally spoke his first words.
"Larkinsons. Our time of proving has come."
Those words audibly spread through the audio speakers. They also rippled through the Larkinson Network, thereby conveying greater meaning to the clansmen than they realized!
This dual nature caused the clansmen listening to him to become mesmerized.
"When we founded the clan, we knew it wasn't going to be easy. Many existing interests in the galaxy had already carved out their own turfs. Nobody likes to welcome newcomers."
Ves dramatically raised his fist. Now that he wore his Unending Regalia complete with a matching red cloak, he resembled a warlord rather than a mech designer!
"So what? Nothing comes for free! If we want something, we have to work for it, and in a galaxy as violent and dangerous as ours, that means we have to fight for our future! In the short existence of our clan, we have overcome numerous enemies who wanted to stop our rise. From the Friday Coalition to the Dry Snakes, each of these enemies thought we didn't deserve to grow and prosper. Each of them thought that they were stronger than us and that they could squash us like a bug. Have they succeeded?"
Ves grinned, through the Larkinson Network, he could feel some of the raw emotions from his clansmen. His fist opened up as if to symbolize an explosion!
"No! Each time our enemies stood in our way, we flung them aside! Each time our enemies thought they could annihilate us, we resisted their blows and stood our ground! Each time our enemies plotted against us, we foiled their plots and outwitted them! We survived every successive challenge that sought to end our clan, and this time will be no different!"
A huge wave of confidence spread through the Larkinson Network. Ves found it almost infectious as the network took in the rising mood and began to feed it back to every Larkinson!
He clenched his fist and pressed it against his chest. "In my heart, I believe we are special. To be a Larkinson is to be a soldier. Not just any soldier, but an honorable soldier. With the long and distinguished heritage of the old Larkinson Family as our foundation, we have proven ourselves greater and more superior than any band of roving mercenaries! Different from those who fight for fortune, we fight for family. Our comrades and our loved ones are depending on us. Knowing this, let me ask you a question. Are you willing to fight against one of the most powerful pirate factions of the Nyxian Gap?"
The answer of his clansmen came instantly!
"YES!"
"Are you willing to brave the guns of the pirate warships?"
"YES!" His clansmen roared!
"ARE YOU WILLING TO FIGHT FOR YOURSELVES, YOUR CLAN, AND ETERNAL GLORY?!"
His Larkinsons roared! They roared out their whole lungs! They roared until their hearts almost stopped!
Despite serving under the banner of the Golden Cat, each of them roared like lions today!
The collective jubilation not only spread to everyone's ears. Due to the role of the Larkinson Network, they spread their elevated moods to Ves and each other!
Though Ves had massaged the truth and distorted some facts in his speech, no one paid attention to the inconsistencies. It didn't really matter. He succeeded in boosting everyone's fighting spirit!
"Now, ready yourselves, because our latest challengers will not let us pass for free. Be prepared to teach them the same lesson we taught the Coalition Reserve Corps! For the clan!"
"FOR THE CLAN!" His Larkinsons echoed!
With that, Ves ended the broadcast. He slowly began to pull back from the Larkinson Network. Even if he managed to endure the strain, it wasn't viable for him to maintain this condition for an extended amount of time.
Ves still sensed plenty of hope and confidence from the clansmen manning the stations in the bridge. Each of them performed their duties with a sense of confidence and superiority.
Whether that would last, Ves wasn't sure. He had done his best to secure every possible advantage he could give his fellow Larkinsons. Now was the time to see if all of his hard work and preparation would see him and his clan through this pivotal battle.
An alarm suddenly rang through the bridge.
"Sir, some of the distant energy signatures are spiking! The enemy warships are firing their main batteries!"
"INCOMING!"
A trio of powerful rounds thundered towards the task force! Numerous asteroids exploded into pieces or were violently knocked aside as the Gravada Knarlax's opening attack made a powerful impression!
Shortly afterwards, distant laser beams attempted to strike the ships of the Larkinson Clan, only for them to fail to thread through all of the asteroids in the way.
Even so, Ves and everyone else knew that this was just the start!
Chapter 2390: Initial Advance
In the final days before the battle, Task Force Predator deliberately navigated to a region in Maynard Fields that was particularly dense with asteroids.
Not only that, the surrounding asteroids were denser and contained higher metallic content than usual. Some of them even contained trace amounts of higher quality exotics, though not to the extent that some enterprising pirate group decided to settle in the area in order to mine this bounty.
Regardless, the task force deliberately moved in the middle of this area and dared the Allidus Alliance fleet to enter into battle in this environment.
To Ves' astonishment, the pirate armada accepted the invitation. With these harder and more durable asteroids blocking the path between the two sides, the Larkinsons hoped to gain some vital cover that would allow them to approach the pirates without coming under as much fire.
Now, it seemed that this hope was slightly naive. Dense asteroids or not, the distant warships were firing their main batteries towards the coordinates of the Larkinsons without hesitation!
No matter what asteroids blocked the Gravada Knarlax's line of sight, the incredible kinetic energy that propelled the main battery rounds forward domineeringly smashed or knocked many asteroids aside!
"Sir, if this goes on for ten to fifteen minutes, the pirates will have succeeded in opening up a corridor between us and them! The asteroids providing us with cover won't last long under a sustained bombardment!"
Ves resisted the urge to vomit. How many times could the pirate fire their main batteries? If it was several hundred times, then that was enough to temporarily free up an entire lane!
Faced with the sight of numerous asteroids exploding or being cast aside like billiard balls, Major Verle quickly issued a set of orders from the Redfeather's command center.
"Advance!"
The Larkinson fleet surged forward, with specific ships flying in front of other ships.
Most strikingly, the Penitent Sister combat carriers took the lead. Their significantly-reinforced bow armor pointed straight in the direction of the pirate armada and blasted forward as if they already knew they were heading to their doom.
Their enormously-bolstered boosters and other additional propulsion systems did not engage just yet. This was not the time for these sacrificial ships to perform their suicidal charges.
The more vulnerable carriers and support ships of the task force directly trailed behind the far more durable Penitent Sister vessels.
Though their combat carriers weren't as modern and durable as the combat carriers fielded by the Hex Army, they were still proper second-class vessels with considerable defensive capabilities.
The only unfortunate aspect about their defenses was that their hull plating were optimized to resist mech-grade weapons fire and attacks. The smaller the caliber, the more easily the armored Hexer vessels shrugged off the attacks.
It was the opposite against more powerful attacks. Ves had studied the armor systems of the Penitent Sister combat carriers in passing and understood their weakness against warship-grade attacks.
The developers of this armor system and the shipwrights that designed the combat carriers did not care about this weakness!
In the modern galaxy, only aliens and the Big Two fielded armed warships.
If any of their customers bumped into the former, then they had entered an area where they shouldn't have appeared.
If the combat carriers somehow entered into a conflict against the Big Two's warships, then it was hopeless to defend against the firepower that humanity's overlords had at their disposal!
None of the Hexers involved in constructing the combat carriers could have ever imagined that their commercial-grade ships would ever do battle against pirate-owned and pirate-developed warships!
Ves frowned a bit. He knew that this oversight would come to bite the Larkinsons and the Penitent Sisters in the butt. Though the latter had done their best to patch over this inherent weakness by piling up a lot of armor at the bows of their vessels, the firepower the pirates were slinging around made him doubt whether it would help that much.
As the Larkinson fleet advanced with the most durable warships in the vanguard, the pirates showed no signs of stopping their wasteful opening moves. Powerful kinetic or explosive rounds impacted asteroid after asteroid, causing the surrounding space to become a bit murkier due to all of the shards and fine dust spreading.
Aside from blocking the optical sensors a bit, they didn't throw up too much interference. This was a shame, since the pirates possessed an unquestionable advantage in long-ranged firefights.
"Sir, our forward scouts have succeeded in coming into visual range of the enemy fleet!"
"Send me the visuals!"
A new projection appeared on the side. Ves let out a shocked breath as he finally saw what he and his clan faced with his eyes.
It was easy to diminish or detract the formidable nature of his enemies when they were still detected by their energy signatures. Mere symbols on a chart did not convey the power and ferocity of the pirate fleet as much as a simple projected image!
The heavy cruiser in the center of the fleet was most definitely the pride and joy of the mighty Allidus Alliance. Among the dazzling amount of secondary gun batteries installed over her entire length, a large portion of her side proudly stamped the grand name of the vessel.
The scout mech, an Inheritor mech, had ventured very far forward. The Vandal mech pilot was literally risking his life to transmit this vital footage back to the main fleet!
More details quickly became apparent. Two of the three powerful main turrets with three monstrous gun barrels each were firing in a slow but constant staccato.
All the while, the heavy cruiser slowly crept forward. Her huge thrusters and propulsion systems weren't firing at full blast. They merely pushed the enormous warship along as if it was merely a matter of time before her guns broke the Larkinson Clan!
The escort warships couldn't be ignored either. Though far smaller and less assuming than the pirate flagship, their large and numerous energy weapon turrets all boasted Judgement Lasers or similar weapons.
While they weren't very effective at blasting apart asteroids, their accuracy was incredibly high, so much so that the most forward Penitent Sister combat carriers already began to sustain some of the distant laser beam attacks!
"The Penitent Sister ships are holding, but the enemy escort warships are beginning to concentrate their fire!"
Though much of the distant laser fire wasted their firepower by striking the asteroids that covered up the line of sight to the Larkinson fleet, whenever the strikingly thick and energetic beams managed to thread the needle, the Penitent Sister combat carriers always suffered serious damage, far more than what a volley from an entire mech company could output!
"Move forward! Don't let these attacks scare you. We have enough metal between us and the enemy to get into closer range. Once our mechs get close enough, we can finally start hitting back!"
The sentiment sounded great, but as their ships came closer, the terror exerted by the powerful warship attacks continued to batter at the confidence of the Larkinsons. Some of the courage that Ves had bestowed onto his clansmen began to recede as the full import of their actions became evident.
No one wanted to be struck by the Gravada Knarlax's main cannons! No one wanted to be vaporized from existence after getting struck by a Judgement Laser!
Suddenly, one of the Gravada Knarlax's kinetic rounds had succeeded in threading through all of the asteroids and struck straight at the pointed nose of the Delica Pride!
The Penitent Sister combat carrier immediately jerked as her entire hull moved as if a giant had punched her back!
The ship fell into a brief uncontrolled spin! The thick layers of armor that reinforced her bow bore a deep and ugly rent that ruined a significant portion of her forward armor!
"What is the state of the Delica Pride?!"
"She's still operational! She has lost a considerable amount of hull integrity, and some of her forward compartments have been breached. There are no casualties and her core systems are still undamaged."
"Good!"
Much of the original crew of the Delicate Pride and other Hexer warships had already evacuated their vessels beforehand. Only skeleton crews remained, and most of them consisted of essential engineers and ship ratings that made sure their ships kept propelling in the direction of the enemy.
The bow compartments of the combat carriers were completely deserted. Only bots entered these compartments if something crucial needed to be done.
While this measure ensured that the loss of life was minimal, Ves still winced at the desecration of such a valuable ship.
A few years ago, obtaining a second-class combat carrier had been an extravagant dream! Now, he could easily afford to obtain them, but that did not mean he was willing to accept their loss.
Unfortunately, he had no choice! As Major Verle and every other military commander had made it clear to Ves, their task force was weaker than the pirate fleet.
The only way to find an opportunity for victory was to buy the time to grasp them. In order to do so, the Larkinsons had to be willing to sacrifice their ships to secure this crucial time!
So far, it was working, though the price became considerably more unbearable. As the range closed in, huge but silent weapon impacts began to scar the Penitent Sister carriers.
The enemy pirates apparently noticed how well the combat carriers endured the attacks. Both the Gravada Knarlax and the escort warships began to concentrate their fire.
The most heavily-damaged ship, the Delica Pride, degraded even faster as a combination of heavy kinetic rounds alongside a constant refrain of powerful laser beams continually hammered or melted the bow and armor.
Soon enough, the enemy warships succeeded in chewing through the forward armor! The weapons fire that followed after this point dealt considerable damage to the interior of the Delica Pride. The internal compartments were less protected than the hull, thereby allowing the destructive warships to wreak havoc inside and destroy many essential systems!"
"Evacuate the Delicate Pride! She has done her job and absorbed enough firepower to keep the Gravada Knarlax occupied for a time!"
A small amount of escape pods launched from the dying combat carrier as successive long-ranged weapon attacks finally dug deep enough to hit something critical!
"Careful! She's breaking apart!"
As a final strike, one of the Gravada Knarlax's turrets fired all of its three huge guns in quick succession!
The three enormous rounds rapidly punched the heavily-damaged combat carrier until she could no longer hold her structure together.
The last volley managed to cleave the ship into several pieces!
This pattern continued with the other Penitent Sister combat carriers. The pirates easily hit the large and obvious targets. Though the carriers employed at least some form of evasion, they were so large and cumbersome that these simple moves hardly offered any advantage.
As the range between the two fleets started growing smaller, the accuracy of the warship batteries increased. Less asteroids were in the way, and the Gravad Knarlax's reckless volleys had already destroyed many of the rocks in the way.
First one of the Penitent Sister combat carriers fell. Then another one. Then another. With each fallen ship, the wall between the formidable pirate guns and the Larkinson fighting assets gradually decreased.
Yet all of it was worth it as the Larkinsons finally came close enough for their ranged mechs to start playing a meaningful role!
"Target the enemy mechs! If that is not possible, then shoot at the enemy destroyers and frigates!"
A lot of laser beams and a smaller amount of physical rounds began to sail from one end to the other end.
A lot of pirate mechs were startled as some of their own ranks instantly succumbed after they were sniped by accurate fire from the Penitent Sister mechs!
The pirates suddenly grew angry. Like a buzzing swarm of bees, over 8,000 loosely-organized pirate mechs began to stir!
Chapter 2391: Massed Firepower
The expert candidates waiting in the cockpits of their respective mechs. Unlike the other Larkinson mech pilots, they had been ordered to keep their mechs still.
This caused the new custom mechs that Ves had personally modified and upgraded for the expert candidates to remain out of sight.
Joshua Larkinson clutched one of the manual controls tightly. Anticipation and urgency ran through his body. His concentration and fighting intent had risen to a peak.
After being continually denied the right to pilot the Quint, the time had almost come for him to bond and unite with the upgraded masterwork mech!
Only a minimal amount of systems had come online. Enough to keep Joshua in the loop and provide him with an overview of the ongoing battle.
He watched the projection of the Penitent Sister ships falling one by one. The main cannons of the Gravada Knarlax not only inflicted enough damage to devastate entire city districts at once, but also enjoyed a considerable effective range against large and cumbersome targets such as ships!
When the ranged mechs of both sides finally opened fire, the space in between them became filled with lasers, missiles and projectiles of all kinds!
Though the damage dealt by the mechs wasn't much due to the extended range, this would change soon enough.
Joshua wanted to be out there. He wanted to launch his Quint and charge straight to the Gravada Knarlax. At the very least, he wanted to shoot the distant pirate mechs and whittle down their numbers!
Unfortunately, it wasn't his time yet. It was as if a cage pressed against his cockpit. It constrained him and blocked him from unleashing his full might.
As a mech pilot and a Larkinson, all of this waiting was unbearable!
Poor Joshua wasn't the only one who was brimming with impatience. The other expert pilots such as Commander Orfan, Commander Dise and Tusa also had to remain on standby while their fellow Larkinsons had already begun to exchange blows against their pirate counterparts.
None of them liked it, but they recognized that this was not the right time. If Ves was right and their new mechs would truly be able to facilitate their breakthroughs on the spot, then doing so while there was still a lot of distance to the pirate fleet was not optimal.
Their time would come, but not in the early phase of the battle!
Instead, the regular mech pilots did much of the fighting in their stead.
Commander Melkor decided to join his fellow mech pilots in the field this time. Due to the high prestige and requirements of the Avatars of Myth, he was able to add plenty of command talent to the roster.
Grizzled trueborn veterans of the Bright-Vesia War calmly directed the Avatars alongside veteran officers from other states.
Melkor acted more as a figurehead in certain situations. This time was no different. As the nominal head of the Avatars, his presence among his own men significantly boosted the battle spirit of his subordinates.
Every mech pilot liked a fighting leader! Even if it was not entirely wise for senior officers to enter the fray and lose sight of the big picture, Melkor thought it was worth it for him to take the field.
Just like Ves and Major Verle, Melkor realized the most critical factor to winning this battle was whether the Larkinsons kept fighting!
If even a small number of them lost heart against the overwhelming and overpowering might of the pirates, the panic would quickly spread to the other Larkinson mech pilots!
This was an outcome that the Larkinsons had to avoid at all costs. If it took Melkor — who hadn't been entirely diligent in keeping up his piloting skills — to take the field, then so be it! He was a mech pilot as well!
His Bright Warrior in rifleman mech configuration fired shot after shot at the distant pirates. Even though the enemies fielded over 8,000 mechs, each of them had spread out over a wide area.
Part of this was due to their internal divisions. Aside from the core 2,000 mechs fielded by the Allidus Alliance, the rest consisted of a large mix of disparate pirate outfits. None of them wanted to fight too close alongside each other.
Another reason why the pirates spread out their mechs was to make them less susceptible to weapons of mass destruction. The Allidus Alliance didn't know for sure whether the Larkinsons were willing to employ nuclear missiles and other destructive weapons in this battle, but they employed a bit of caution and forced every pirate mech to fly apart from each other or huddle behind different asteroids.
At longer ranges, this meant that most shots flew in between the swarm without hitting anything.
Even Melkor experienced significant difficulties in hitting anything. While he did manage to strike a few enemies here and there, his laser rifle lacked the punch to take them down in a single hit. Many times, his shots hit against the asteroids instead of solid mechs.
He soon noticed that certain enemies were harder to take down than others. The Allidus Alliance mechs boasted especially strong armor, enough to give them a lot of durability.
Throughout the firefight, only the Penitent Sisters achieved great results. Their superior mechs with their excellent targeting systems and powerful rifles whittled down a lot of pirate mechs at range. Their weapons were so powerful that much of the cover that the pirates were hiding behind could not offer them sufficient protection!
Only the fastest and most elusive pirate mechs managed to avoid their wrath. Every other pirate mech was at constant risk of getting taken out by a powerful positron beam or a searingly high-powered laser beam!
A short but heated discussion ensued between Major Verle and Commander Chancy. The Penitent Sister Commander thought it was best to direct her firepower against the higher-quality mechs of the Allidus Alliance, but Verle thought otherwise.
"Quantity has a quality all of its own, Valerie." He spoke to her in a private command channel. "The mere sight of thousands upon thousands of enemy mechs is constantly wearing away at our confidence. In addition, once we enter into knife-fighting range, being swarmed from all sides by thousands of pirates is too much for our limited forces to bear! We need to reduce their numbers straight away, and I need the help of your Penitent Sisters to accomplish that. Can you do this for us, commander?"
Valerie Chancy scowled at Major Verle's projection. "Cleaning up the trash is beneath us, major. Your mechs are already doing adequately against the cannon fodder. Our weapons may be powerful, but our limited number of ranged mechs can only fire so many times."
"I understand your dilemma, but this is preferable to the alternative. Even if the remaining pirate mechs are stronger, we can at least cope with their quantity."
"Taking the core pirate mechs out first would definitely destroy their spine."
"Their spine is too tough." Verle shook his head. "It is easier and more convenient to remove the flesh first. Besides, the effect of focusing our fire on them is greater than you think. What do you think the rank-and-file will do when they notice they are being targeted by your formidable second-class mechs? They'll fear for their lives and quickly huddle further away, thereby causing the pirate mechs to lose cohesion."
As the mechs adjusted their targeting priorities, this largely came to pass. With every Penitent Sister mech managing to take out a pirate mech in just one or two hits with a disturbing degree of regularity, the rest began to experience the same kind of terror that pressed onto the Larkinsons.
Both sides had to withstand their own boogeymen. For the Larkinsons, it was the Gravada Knarlax. For the pirates, it was the enemy Hexer mechs.
To many pirates, their fear towards second-class mechs exceeded their fear of the Allidus Alliance and its formidable warships!
This was because the threat of warships was too distant from them. While they gained a bit of confidence from the fact that they were fighting alongside them, so far the main guns of the Gravada Knarlax single mindedly tried to take out ships instead of mechs.
With the apparent lack of help coming from the Allidus Alliance ships, the constricted pirate mech pilots soon couldn't take it any longer.
No one wanted to have their cockpits seared through or their mechs being cut in half due to an instant attack from a Penitent Sister mech!
Even though the latter did not really amount to a lot after suffering losses in the previous battle, their high hit rate and huge damage had already taken care of more than a thousand pirate mechs at this time!
This was a horrible loss rate! Therefore, despite the cajoling of their Allidus supervisors, the constricted pirate mech pilots increasingly began to find more ways to shirk the battle.
Once a couple of pirate mechs retreated, the remaining ones began to develop doubts as well! In this complicated situation, it became increasingly more difficult for the Allidus Alliance to keep the undisciplined and cowardly bottom feeders in line!
Still, the commanders of the pirate fleet did not exhibit much concern. The warships still focused their fire on the Larkinson and Penitent Sister ships despite knowing these vessels did not have any immediate battle effectiveness.
This allowed the Larkinson mechs to fly closer without suffering as much as they expected.
However, it soon became evident why the Gravada Knarlax and the other warships kept pointing their primary gun batteries at the larger targets.
Their secondary gun batteries finally started to open fire!
Placed along the hull of the heavy cruiser, the Gravada Knarlax's numerous laser cannons each began to rake across the battlefield, taking out dozens of careless Larkinsons mech in the initial volley!
If that wasn't bad enough, the Gravada Knarlax was capable of supplying an incredible amount of power to the laser cannon hardpoints. Along with the inherently high heat capacity of the heavy cruiser, the damage outputted by more than a hundred laser cannons posed a huge threat to the approaching Larkinson mechs!
What was worse was that unlike the pirate mechs, the Larkinsons couldn't hide behind a single asteroid all the time.
Occasionally, the Gravada Knarlax's main cannons blew them apart, usually causing any mechs that were close to them to suffer a huge amount of damage as well.
The nature of the battle also meant that the Larkinsons had to close the distance to the pirates as fast as possible. Unlike the Allidus Alliance which could mostly rely on the formidable range advantage of its warships, the most potent means of the Larkinson Clan only worked up close!
Ves grimly looked on as the activation of the Gravada Knarlax's secondary weapons was taking a considerable toll on his own mechs. Some of the lasers also started to pepper the Penitent Sister combat carriers, causing them to rupture or explode a bit sooner than ideal.
Something had to change!
He narrowed his eyes and concentrated his mind. He activated a few spiritual triggers he planted beforehand.
Two large initiatives went into motion.
One of them concerned resuming the long-stalled growth of his mother's mysterious spiritual construct.
One of the main constraints of this process was the incredible amount of energy it demanded. Perhaps it wasn't a problem for the Superior Mother to supply this energy, but Ves was not so fortunate.
He had to resort to another source. Some of his design spirits were able to feed the growth process, but Ves did not want to harm any of them, especially since the Larkinsons fielded mechs that depended on their glows.
Out of all of his design spirits, Ves had to pick a design spirit as a source of energy that was powerful but not critical to his lineup. The spirit had to be someone he didn't mind pissing off. It was best if he already shared a hostile relationship with it! This way, he wouldn't be making any new enemies.
Of all the choices, he eventually settled for a particularly suitable choice.
In the vault of the Scarlet Rose, a P-stone rested close to the Ancient Sarcophagus. Upon receiving a spiritual command from Ves, a small construct began to form a spiritual connection between the two objects.
Soon enough, an odd connection came into existence!
Chapter 2392: Expending Assets
A section of Maynard Fields became host to an incredible destructive spectacle!
Two powerful forces confronted each other in a clash that had reached the intensity of a full-blown war!
The Allidus Alliance wanted nothing less than to crush the civilized interlopers who thought they could run roughshod over the pirates of the Nyxian Gap!
Scum they may be, but the natives of the Nyxian Gap possessed their own pride!
Of course, that was not enough for the pirates to commit to a battle that was already wiping out the equivalent of billions of hex credits in value.
Many pirate commanders already started to bleed in their hearts as they saw their accumulation crumbling apart before their eyes.
Hundreds of valuable pirate mech pilots had already lost their lives as the incredibly lethal weapons wielded by the Penitent Sister mechs pierced their cockpits with relative ease.
Though the Allidus Alliance offered plenty of compensation for the pirate outfits that 'volunteered' to fight on its behalf, some advantages simply couldn't be bought with money.
Even pirates had friends and comrades! With each death, a pirate gang lost another brother or sister that brought life and even joy to the band.
The Larkinsons and Penitent Sister mech pilots who harvested their lives didn't care. They were suffering even worse!
Though it sounded incredibly intimidating to square off against 8,000 — now 7,000 —- mechs, at this distance quality mattered more than quantity.
It was the Gravada Knarlax that made all the difference! Her formidable rows of laser gun batteries constantly peppered the Larkinson mechs with accurate, sustained attacks!
The heavy cruiser provided numerous advantages over mechs when it came to operating a large number of weapon hardpoints.
First, a large ship always possessed a huge amount of processors. The space its data processing systems occupied already exceeded the size of a mech!
While the Gravad Knarlax had to split up her processing power to run many different systems and advanced components, there was plenty left to spare to calculate highly accurate targeting instructions!
Second, the vast number of sensor arrays on the pirate flagship was capable of observing enemy elements with much greater fidelity and detail. Even the second-class ECM and jamming systems of the Penitent Sister mechs failed to obfuscate the eyes of the Gravada Knarlax. The gap in power was simply too big!
Therefore, the crews assigned to each laser mount didn't have to lift a single finger. The ship's formidable automation capabilities already took care of everything! Only when the AIs and algorithms glitched for some reason or another would the operators have a reason to take over manual control.
With all of these advantages, the Larkinson mechs initially lost quite a bit of their numbers! The lightly-armored mechs of the Sentinels, Battle Criers and Vandals suffered considerably more than the other mechs as their light and agile mechs were unable to rely on their superior mobility to dodge every accurate shot!
"Aggh! How the hell can we even get close to that monster?!"
"We can't do anything but hide behind the asteroids and ships!"
After being caught off-guard, the suppressed Larkinson mechs were forced to huddle behind nearby asteroids or moving ships.
With fewer mechs to target, the pirate mechs and ships simply directed their aim to the ships of the Larkinson Clan instead!
This was bad, as at this range it became easier to target the more fragile vessels of the Larkinson fleet. Even the Redfeather began to incur some deep scars after getting hit by dozens of errant pirate mech attacks!
"Damnit, our light carriers aren't built to take part in this kind of battle! Our ships are only suited for small-scale mercenary skirmishes.
The rain of lasers pouring from the stupendously large and massive ship was dealing more damage to the Larkinson Clan's morale than getting attacked by thousands of pirates mechs!
Ves gritted his teeth as he quickly left the bridge and moved to the vault. Though his departure caused the bridge crew to feel some doubt, his next move was simply too crucial for him to stay away.
With Nitaa's armored bulk following his smaller armored form, they quickly reached the entrance vault.
Lucky, who Ves had draped on his shoulder, suddenly grew nervous.
"Meow?"
"I know it feels bad, but we have to go inside."
After going through an expedited security check, they entered the vault compartment.
Prior to the battle, Ves had already removed the Ancient Sarcophagus from one of the locked compartments. The ancient alien coffin was currently shaking and vibrating as if something inside was trying to escape.
When Ves observed the coffin in his spiritual vision, he could see how the bonds of the sarcophagus strained to contain the raging entity that was feeling some of his strength leaving him! A special spiritual bond was actively siphoning away his strength!
Ves could see that the situation was growing more precarious. Though the half-grown spiritual construct that corresponded to his mother's design had absorbed a huge amount of spiritual energy, he could see that Nyxie was already making good progress in seizing control of it. He could not imagine what would happen if the ancient alien managed to subvert such a complicated and powerful spiritual product!
"This is why I'm here."
He quickly retrieved his F-stone which he had tried to avoid using for a very long time. Out of all of his spiritually-reactive materials, he had never found a second F-stone. This literally made it irreplaceable.
Normally, he would avoid using it at all costs, or at least expend as little charge as possible.
This wasn't the time to hoard his assets. He quickly formed a spiritual blade and began to draw upon a huge portion of the offensive charge locked in the F-stone. It immediately dropped from 67 percent charge to just a 37 percent charge!
Just a 5 percent charge was already enough to inflict a telling blow to Nyxie. Now that Ves absorbed 30 percent, he felt his entire Spirituality becoming unprecedentedly excited and sharp!
He knew that the charge bestowed temporary offensive attributes to his spiritual energy, thereby causing him to gain untold destructive power!
His sharp and sparking eyes turned to the red coffin. For a long time, he had continually taken advantage of Nyxie. He harvested numerous spiritual fragments from the hostile entity. He even used it as a co-design spirit for his Doom Guard design.
Though there were many latent dangers involved with exploiting an immensely powerful alien who was likely a contemporary of the Unending One, Ves had always dismissed the threat as a long-term concern.
"It seems I can't keep taking advantage of you anymore. Sorry, buddy, but I need your energy!"
He attacked Nyxie with a succession of piercing blows! Due to the spiritual restraints of the Ancient Sarcophagus restricting the alien tyrant, Ves was easily able to attack and inflict severe harm onto the entity!
A considerable outburst of rage and pain emanated from the red crystalline coffin, but Ves persisted in his attacks! With each blow, Nyxie lost cohesion and bled more spiritual energy. The attacks also caused him to lose his influence on his mother's growing spiritual construct.
With all of the 'blood' that Ves was spilling, the growing construct absorbed ample amounts of nutrients. Nyxie's spiritual energy not only matched some of the demands of its design, but was also sufficiently high in quality to serve as great nutrients!
All of these actions had consequences, though. Ves could feel Nyxie both weakening and strengthening inside his cage. The attacks that Ves inflicted also damaged the restraints that kept the entity trapped. This was something unavoidable, but also necessary as he needed to increase the flow of energy to accelerate the growth process!
This gave Nyxie the opportunity to break out of the prison that had kept him captive for eons!
Despite the risks, Ves still felt it was acceptable to proceed in this way. After all, if his mother's spiritual construct still hadn't come into existence by the time the pirates crushed the last Larkinsons, then all of this was moot!
The process continued on for a couple minutes. By the time Ves had expended his powerful charge, the Ancient Sarcophagus was leaking like a sieve. Though Nyxie had lost a huge amount of energy, he was constantly mustering up strength from somewhere else. If this went on, Nyxie would definitely break free sooner or later!
When Ves estimated that Nyxie had sufficiently fed enough energy to his mother's construct, he commanded a nearby floater platform to pick up the red coffin.
"Let's move!" He told Nitaa. "We need to move this alien relic to the hangar bay as soon as possible!"
They proceeded to do so, leaving the P-stone that held the rapidly-growing spiritual construct behind. Though Ves wanted to supervise its maturation, getting rid of the increasingly more unstable Ancient Sarcophagus took priority!
The floater platform made it easy to move the red coffin all the way down to the hangar bay. There, a Penitent Sister mech was already standing by. It held an unusual tube-shape launcher weapon that Ves had built beforehand.
Before the mech's feet laid a torpedo. It did not contain any explosive payloads. Instead, it featured an open cavity where Ves promptly loaded in the Ancient Sarcophagus.
Before Ves closed the port, he withdrew a gem from one of his Unending Regalia's storage pockets and threw it inside.
"Alright, you know what to do! Try and sneak as close as you can and fire it at a priority target! The sooner, the better!"
"I will deliver this torpedo to the enemy or die trying!" The fanatic voice of a Penitent Sister boomed from the mech!
"You have about 8 minutes! Any longer and the payload is liable to explode prematurely, so don't hang on to it for too long!"
In truth, Ves had no idea how long the Ancient Sarcophagus would hold its prisoner back, but Ves did not want it to be anywhere near himself or his assets when Nyxie finally regained freedom!
As the Penitent Sister mech carefully loaded the torpedo in its purpose-built launcher and deployed into space, Ves briefly grinned.
"Heh. You cultists aren't the only ones who can unleash a so-called dark god!"
This was a desperate plan, but one that Ves was willing to gamble upon. As long as he succeeded, he not only got rid of a latent danger, but also forced the pirates to incur the consequences of enraging Nyxie!
"Hahahahaha!"
Ves loved letting other people pay the price of his actions!
As he quickly strode back to the bridge, he concentrated a bit and looked out into space. He looked past the increasingly unstable spiritual fluctuations of the Ancient Sarcophagus and moved his vision far ahead.
In the far distance, he observed a hint of malice, darkness and power.
Ves had always known that he and his clan pissed off multiple Nyxian factions. He found it extremely unlikely that the Allidus Alliance were the only ones who wanted to destroy his fleet.
"It seems you are very eager to take revenge, Unending One."
He did not dare to peek inside the imaginary realm. He didn't want to open himself up for attacks and he didn't want to tip off whatever was there. He briefly glanced at the clock projected from his armored wrist.
"It won't be long before you see the surprises I have in store! Hahahaha!"
Ves already expected his mechs and ships to be heavily disadvantaged in this clash.
While the Larkinsons hadn't enacted some of the key components of their battle plan, Ves knew he had to alter the circumstances.
He felt as if he was in the position of Grand Protector Roshaw in the previous battle. When faced against a superior enemy that was on their way to winning, Ves figured it was best to flip the board!
Even if the cultists in the pirate fleet had prepared their own surprises, Ves was certain that his measures were more extreme!
This was because unlike his opponents, Ves had no intentions of controlling the powers he was about to unleash!
"I can't wait! Hahahaha!"
Chapter 2393: Mortis Greyson
The Gravada Knarlax. The proud ship bore her unusual-sounding name with pride.
No one knew why the Allidus Alliance bestowed this name to her. It sounded as if she was named after someone, but Gravada Knarlax could also be named after a planet or star system.
Whatever the case, the Gravada Knarlax had acquired an infamous reputation in the Nyxian Gap. Even in the core regions where the spatial warping and other anomalies caused many complicated systems to fail, the Gravada Knarlax had managed to remain intact for decades.
This was an incredible feat considering that any MTA or CFA warfleet that ventured in the core regions always suffered unavoidable losses sooner or later.
Few people were aware why the Gravada Knarlax remained safe and sound. This was despite the fact the Allidus Alliance continually upgraded her with energetic exotics! These materials were more prone to exciting the dangerous forces of the Nyxian Gap.
Any Nyxian pirate that had lived in the region for a few years knew that gathering too many potent but unstable exotics was a recipe for disaster. The higher the concentration, the greater the chance of something going wrong!
This was why few pirate factions followed in the footsteps of the Allidus Alliance and built their own warships. They could not guarantee that their new flagships would be safe from the disasters that had spelled doom for many grand works in the Nyxian Gap!
Only a small number of high-ranked pirate leaders knew of a way to stave off disaster. Certain groups and natives from the Nyxian Gap claimed to possess the power to prevent or suppress the onset of anomalies.
The Hallowed Abyss Temple was one of the most prominent organizations to make this claim!
While it sounded ridiculous that a group of weird cultists were able to affect the fabric of reality inside the Nyxian Gap, they had proved ability plenty of times for the people in the know to take them seriously.
Therefore, at the small cost of letting the Temple erect shrines in their territories, the pirate lords all gained a measure of security.
What even fewer people knew was that the Hallowed Abyss Temple forged even deeper ties with certain pirate factions. Lord Hivex of the Allidus Alliance possessed a deeper relationship with the Watchers of the Temple. More figures in black and grey robes roamed the ships and bases of the Allidus Alliance than anywhere else. Some of the Allidus pirates had even converted to the cult!
Right now, the intermingling between Allidus and the Hallowed Abyss had led both of them to push for a confrontation against the Larkinson Clan.
Standing in the middle of the huge and expansive bridge of the mighty Gravada Knarlax, two powerful figures observed the battle through the large central projections.
One of the figures was a large, imperious-looking man. Wearing a resplendent suit of chrome-like armor that was bedecked with trophies and marks, Lord Hivex truly exuded the aura of one of the most pirate lords of the Nyxian Gap.
Despite his success and rise to power, nobody knew where Lord Hivex came from. His origins were a mystery, and so were his aims. So far, he single-handedly raised the Allidus Alliance to a formidable power in the core regions through a combination of shrewd decisions and ruthless determination.
He was the first in the Nyxian Gap to order the construction of an armed warship! Though he took a lot of risks for doing so, his gambit paid off. With the help of a strong and overpowering warship, hardly any other pirate faction wanted to challenge Allidus Alliance!
Such a figure should have been at the height of his power at this time. Yet oddly enough, the imposing pirate leader had adopted a restrained posture. It was as if he was not the ultimate authority in the formidable pirate fleet.
This was all due to the other figure that stood besides the legendary pirate lord.
Few Nyxian pirates were able to recognize his black-beared appearance underneath his ragged but thick black robe. Since the battle had commenced, the dark figure had done nothing but observe the projections of the ongoing battle.
At some point, the robed figure stirred. Lord Hivex noticed the movements.
"Black Watcher Ortis, is there something amiss?"
"Something is stirring. The Larkinson Clan.. is more powerful than I expected. The Dark Gods are right to be concerned." A gravelly voice responded.
Lord Hivex slightly shook his head. "If this is the extent of the Larkinsons, then I do not see the need for your Temple to intervene. This vessel is already pounding their assets into scrap. I admit that those approaching suicide ships are of some concern, but our enemies think too lightly of our firepower.
The Gravada Knarlax had already destroyed or knocked out a number of unusual combat carriers.
From the modifications made to them, it did not take long for the Allidus pirates to conclude the second-class combat carriers had all been converted into suicide ships.
Ever since Lord Hivex discovered this fact, he ordered the Gravad Knarlax to prioritize taking them out. As long as all nine of her main cannons concentrated their fire on a given ship, not even the ships built by Hexers were able to withstand the damage!
The broken fragments of many of these ships littered the surrounding battlespace. Their potent, explosively payloads drifted off into space without the chance of detonating against their intended targets.
If this pace of destruction continued, none of the Hexer suicide ships should be able to come anywhere close to the Gravada Knarlax!
Yet as time went by, the Black Watcher continued to sense something dangerous. He tried to commune with his dark god.
As a black-robed member of the Hallowed Abyss Temple, he outranked the Grey Watchers. Usually, important figures like him were stationed at the physical location of the temple or particularly important outposts.
The Gravada Knarlax happened to be his current station. His presence alone bestowed powerful, mysterious capabilities to the heavy cruiser!
In fact, Lord Hivex and a handful of other Allidus leaders believed that Black Watcher Ortis alone contributed as much to the ship as one or two of her mighty turrets!
This meant that anything that made the Black Watcher uneasy was enough reason for Lord Hivex to put his guard up. He knew that the Larkinson Clan was still holding some of its strength back, but what could they possibly do against the pride and joy of his fleet?
"Not good!" The Black Watcher uttered and pointed at the map! Over there!"
"What is it, Your Excellency?!"
"A storm is brewing! It's too late!"
As the battle between the two forces became more intense, a sudden change swept over the pirate fleet.
Some time earlier, the Penitent Sister mech that received a special from Ves had snuck forward amidst the chaos. The Hexer mech pilot deliberately chose to swing around in order to avoid the brunt of fire pouring down the middle.
Even though her mech stood out a bit, no one paid attention to a single odd mech amidst an ocean of mechs. Most pirates dismissed her machine as a scout, which suited her just fine.
It wasn't until she crossed a certain line that a number of pirate mechs received orders to block her from approaching further. Scout or not, letting any sneaky enemy get too close was not a good idea!
Once she recognized that she could go no further, the Penitent Sister decisively launched the torpedo.
The specially-constructed torpedo launched forward. Its powerful thrusters immediately accelerated forward at a rate of acceleration that could make Tusa jealous!
The odd torpedo immediately attracted the attention of the pirates that were tasked with intercepting the lone mech. It took some time for them to report their findings to their superior, who in turn had to report to an Allidus officer.
By the time the pirates directed some of their fire against the odd torpedo, the mysterious projectile had already crossed a fair distance. In the meantime, its thrusters kept increasing its forward speed. This not only made it more challenging to land a hit, but also decreased the time it reached its target!
"Damn, what is up with this missile?! Why haven't you shot it down already? It's practically racing forward in a straight line!"
"But boss, we did hit a bunch of times. It didn't go down!"
"What?! Are you serious?!"
This was not any torpedo. Ves had not only used up plenty of Breyer alloy and some other precious materials, but he also reinforced its nose and forward sections with a layer made out of scraps of extremely valuable Unending alloy!
"The big missile, no, torpedo, is heading straight at the Mortis Greyson!"
"I have a bad feeling about this. Tell those ship boys to shoot it down!"
The Mortis Greyson was the second-most powerful warship of the pirate fleet. While her dimensions and tonnage paled in comparison to the Gravada Knarlax, the destroyer and her formidable laser cannon turrets formed a powerful deterrent against both Penitent Sister mechs and lightly-armored Larkinson ships alike!
Just like the Gravada Knarlax, the Mortis Greyson possessed its own suite of secondary gun batteries. While they were primarily designed to fight against hostile mechs, they also functioned as point defense.
Since the Mortis Greyson was already directing a prodigious amount of power reactor output to her primary laser cannons, the destroyer opened fire with a formidable array of ballistic cannons.
Though fairly inaccurate by nature, their large quantities along with the support of advanced ship systems caused them to land a lot of hits against the incoming torpedo.
To the ship crew's surprise, none of the impacts managed to take out the odd torpedo! In fact, other than slowing it down a bit, the enemy projectile began to unleash an even greater burst of acceleration, giving very little time for the pirates to direct more fire in its direction!
"It's coming close!"
"Careful!"
Before everyone knew it, the torpedo reached the Mortis Greyson!
The torpedo thudded against her hull with so much force that its Unending alloy nose pierced straight through the thick but softer hull plating!
Many of the pirates aboard the pirate destroyer had braced themselves and unfolded the helmets of their vacsuits or hazard suits over their heads. Each of them expected some kind of explosion to detonate inside the ship.
Yet as half a minute passed, the pirates slowly relaxed. They looked confused at each other.
Was the torpedo a dud? Had the Larkinsons screwed up somehow? What was the point of launching this powerful and expensive torpedo at their ship?
"Send a security party to the compartment where the torpedo has landed!" The captain ordered. "I need visuals on it immediately!"
One of the officers located the compartment the torpedo had finally breached before it bled out all of its momentum. The disturbingly-intact cylinder rested quietly as it had pushed halfway through the bulkhead leading into a storage compartment.
As the captain observed the strange torpedo through the projection, a part of him began to feel uneasy. It would have been better on his nerves if the torpedo detonated already.
A few seconds later, he received a priority transmission from the Gravada Knarlax. Before the captain had time to play the message, the projection of the breached compartment suddenly lost signal.
Seconds later, a huge unstable wave of pressure engulfed the entire Mortis Greyson! The captain and everyone else aboard the ship screamed as they felt as if something was trying to crush their minds!
"Ahhhhh!"
Just thirteen seconds, the heads of the captain and every other crew member aboard the pirate destroyer exploded!
As blood, bone and brain tissue rained all across the interior of the destroyer, the broken spirits of the recently-deceased didn't even have time to dissipate.
An enormous suction force dragged the spiritual remains to the location of the torpedo. As soon as every scrap of remnant spiritual energy disappeared, a silent roar erupted from the Mortis Greyson.
The surrounding ships and mechs all paused for a moment as the roar affected both man and machine!
An instant later, an unimaginably powerful force cracked the Mortis Greyson! The pirate destroyer deformed as if a huge monster was trying to escape from within!
Chapter 2394: Explosive Results
An ominous presence roused from the bowels of the Mortis Greyson! The proud pirate destroyer not only lost all of her crew in an instant, but had also bulged far beyond what she could handle, causing her to look as if she had tried to bear a child that was too monstrous for her to carry!
The Mortis Greyson literally lost her life after being forced to bear this child. Now, an ancient horror was rousing. Not only had he succeeded in breaking through the prison that held him captive for how many long years, but his rage at what Ves had done to him caused the entity to have nothing but revenge on his mind!
The increasingly more powerful spiritual fluctuations emerging from the Ancient Sarcophagus destabilized the entire ship even further!
If that wasn't enough, a single gem that Ves placed next to the Ancient Sarcophagus became subject to a considerable amount of abuse.
Though Nyxie only possessed the barest of rationality after suffering eons of crushing isolation, the alien tyrant had developed an undying hatred against Ves! As far as this monstrous spiritual entity was concerned, he needed to pay the little human back for all the suffering he endured! He would not rest until he took revenge against the weakling who sought to exploit someone who had once ruled over an entire space empire!
The rage flowing out of Nyxie was so violent that the so-called Highly Unstable Chaos Essence gem couldn't withstand the pressure any longer.
Just like the heads of the pirate crew of the Mortis Greyson, the gem broke apart, unleashing the potent chaos energy locked inside!
A large amount of energy quickly spread inside the chamber of the torpedo, only for the entity that had breached the restrictions of the Ancient Sarcophagus to automatically absorb it by instinct!
By the time that Nyxie had just started to recognize that it was a very bad idea to take in highly volatile energy with very chaotic properties, his entire spiritual makeup abruptly transformed!
The pressure emanating from the Mortis Greyson doubled! The warping had grown so bad that the physical force acting on the entire hull of the crippled destroyer increased as well!
Every nearby pirate mech or ship quickly started to distance themselves from the broken warship. A powerful wave of malice and chaos spread across kilometers. This caused the pirates aboard the Gravada Knarlax to feel a bit uneasy.
While the Black Watcher was quietly communing with someone, Lord Hivex issued a series of orders.
According to the Black Watcher, whatever or whoever crippled the Mortis Greyson was just waking up! Was this the trump card of the Larkinson Clan? Was this why Ulimo Citadel fell?
"Milord, we have received an incoming hail from the Larkinson fleet!" One of the pirate bridge officers announced. "Mr. Ves Larkinson wishes to speak to you in person!"
The pirate lord's eyes grew grave. What did this young mech designer want to do? Intimidate him? That was silly! Lord Hivex had fought and beaten far more enemies than this kid from the Komodo Star Sector. There was no way he would shy away from a clean-shaven brat!
He accepted the hail. Due to all of the attacks and energy unleashed on the battlefield, the projection that appeared before the pirate lord was marred by noise and static.
"Mr. Larkinson." Lord Hivex greeted with a ferocious grin while he summoned his full bearing as one of the power players of the Nyxian Gap. "Do you wish to offer your terms of surrender, or shall I have to pry it out of you in person once you lie before me after my men have amputated all of your limbs?"
The projection of Ves grinned back. While his Unending Regalia did not boast the numerous impressive-looking trophies of his counterpart, its exceptionally high quality along with its dashing red cape significantly boosted his stature.
"Before you fantasize about bringing me before your feet, you should make sure you even get to keep them by the end of this battle." Ves confidently hit back. He spread out his armored hand. "I know you've got a bunch of cultists on your ship. I came prepared this time. Do you like the little surprise I've sent to your little destroyer? Sorry about the crew, but my alien god is very hungry and very angry. Eating pirates is his favorite activity, so I did him a favor and sent him to a buffet!"
The pirate lord seethed. "Your scheme will not work. The dark god at our side is unending and eternal. You know nothing about the powers that we can harness. If you think you can stop our dark god with an impostor, then think again."
Ves tauntingly smirked at the furious pirate lord before he abruptly ended the transmission. He sat back in his chair as he contemplated what he had accomplished.
First, he confirmed that the infamous Lord Hivex was present aboard the flagship. This was important, because Ves was very interested in collecting the bounty on the powerful pirate lord's head if possible.
Second, the brief contact allowed him to influence Lord Hivex. This was an even more important objective.
Ves knew that unleashing Nyxie after he had just knifed the formerly-trapped entity a bunch of times was a very dangerous course of action.
Anyone who suffered so much abuse would have thoughts of taking revenge!
Therefore, his plan of freeing Nyxie in the middle of the pirate fleet was actually very precarious. Nyxie could easily ignore the inconsequential pirates and head straight back to the Scarlet Rose to torture Ves in endless ways!
As Ves did not wish to be the first to suffer the brunt of Nyxie's fury, he needed to find some way to drag Nyxie into a conflict with the pirates.
First, he tried to affect Nyxie's rationality by attempting to infect him with a bit of chaos. While Ves had no clue what the Highly Unstable Chaos Essence gem contained, its description suggested that it was nothing good.
He could see the result of this act with his spiritual senses. Nyxie's fury and rage had skyrocketed after he absorbed a sudden burst of chaotic energy!
However, this was not enough. Ves had to make sure that Nyxie only thought about directing his ire towards the pirates rather than the Larkinsons.
This was why he employed his Devil Tongue against Lord Hivex! Through the few words he said, Ves implicitly conveyed the impression that Nyxie was actually on his side!
He acted and spoke as if Nyxie was his ally or patron. None of the signals that Ves released carried any hint that Nyxie was actually eager to crush him into paste!
Now, Ves could only wait to see how the pirates intended to respond. Would they act in accordance with the strings he had pulled?
"ALERT! WE ARE DETECTING UNUSUAL ANOMALOUS ACTIVITY FROM THE GRAVADA KNARLAX!"
"It's an anomaly, sir! The pirates are doing it again!"
A bit of panic spread among the crew. Everyone remembered the horrors they faced when the dark sphere had engulfed the entire area around Ulimo Citadel.
Now that darkness began to flow out of the Gravada Knarlax, the latent trauma that many Larkinsons had incurred suddenly emerged into the forefront of their minds!
Ves activated a command that allowed to speak to every Larkinson in the fleet.
"Do not be alarmed! We are prepared for their tricks this time. We have readied plenty of countermeasures to defeat their measures! Focus on your own fight! Don't let anything make you forget what is at stake!"
The fight between the mechs was intensifying. As the two sides closed in on each other, the Gravada Knarlax continued to fire her main cannons against the dwindling number of Hexer suicide ships!
Meanwhile, the dark fog that spewed out of the Gravada Knarlax began to form a vague, monstrous shape. The shadowy apparition vaguely resembled the Unending One.
Instead of facing the Larkinson assets, the monstrous fog creature warily faced the crippled Mortis Greyson.
The power unleashed by Nyxie had abruptly increased, causing the dark monster summoned by the Hallowed Abyss Temple to feel incredibly threatened!
Acting on the suggestion of Black Watcher Ortis, the dark monster did not wait for the powerful interloper to regain control over his power.
The fog monster proactively decided to launch an attack! The whale-like monster flew out of the Gravada Knarlax and began to fire a dark beam of destruction from his maw!
The strike drilled a hole through the broken Mortis Greyson and hit the chaotic entity buried deep inside!
Another silent roar emanated from the broken destroyer. For the first time in many ages, Nyxie fully emerged from his coffin!
Ves observed the incredible sight with both his physical and spiritual vision.
Nyxie's chaos-infused form looked angry and unstable. Different attributes and colors ran through his alien form.
Unlike the Unending One, Nyxie appeared to be based on a humanoid alien. This must be how he looked like when he was alive!
Due to his fluctuating shape, it was very difficult for Ves to pin down Nyxie's actual appearance.
One thing was for sure, though. Nyxie was pissed, and all of his ire was currently pointed at the dark monster.
The two terrible entities immediately began to fight each other! The two exchanged powerful spiritual attacks at a scale that visibly shook the material dimensions!
"Hahahah! That's the spirit!" Ves exulted!
He finally felt relieved. The dark monster might not be the only measure the cultists had in reserve, but at least Ves had preemptively neutralized this move before it could do any damage to his assets.
The rest of the battle did not go very well, though. Despite the darkness that continually poured out the Gravada Knarlax, the ship was still keeping up its punishingly brutal barrage of fire against the Larkinsons!
The other five escort ships were also keeping up their attacks!
The Larkinson Clan was losing ships at a rapid rate. Not only the Penitent Sister combat carriers, but also the ships of the Avatars and Sentinels were getting wrecked at a worryingly high rate.
The fight between the mechs were also taking their toll! Though the Larkinsons and Penitent Sisters managed to destroy thousands of mechs, the core forces of the Allidus Alliance were still intact! Under their lead, the pirate mechs bled their foes at a gradual but alarming rate!
The Larkinson Clan only fielded less than a thousand mechs to begin with. This made every loss a lot more painful than before. Their buffer was worryingly thin, and they would definitely not be able to survive getting mobbed by thousands of inferior mechs!
Ves didn't need Major Verle to recognize that his side was still on a losing trajectory.
He did not despair. He directed his attention to another projection. "It's time."
The Gravada Knarlax may have succeeded in crushing the majority of incoming Penitent Sister suicide ships, but three of them barely managed to hold on as they made their end runs!
The Penitent Sister skeleton crews aboard those vessels cleverly rotated their speeding carriers so that one of them would not be forced to absorb all of the punishing attacks.
By evenly spreading out the damage, the three banged-up ships all managed to hang on long enough to reach the pirate flagship!
At the final moments, the Gravada Knarlax unleashed a near-simultaneous volley from all three turrets. Nine powerful kinetic projectiles slammed into the ship that was currently in the lead.
The Penitent Sister carrier immediately shattered into pieces!
However, the heavy cruiser had finally run out of time. Just before the two suicidal combat carriers crashed against the hull of the Gravada Knarlax, the dark fog flowing out of the ship suddenly enveloped the ship!
Two smaller ships crashed against the blackened heavy cruiser! Two huge impacts slammed against the darkened shell, though amazingly the solidified dark fog managed to withstand the hugely powerful blows!
"THAT'S ABSURD!" Ves shouted as he watched the event in disbelief!
Though the fog visibly weakened to a huge degree, it had done its job. The crashes failed to inflict material damage to the Gravada Knarlax!
However, this was not the extent of this gambit. Just seconds later, a large amount of enriched nuclear bombs and other volatile explosives detonated all at once!
Huge blasts engulfed the side of the Gravada Knarlax!
As the titanic explosions subsided, Ves and everyone else paid close attention to the heavy cruiser.
A gaping hole had appeared on the starboard side the Gravada Knarlax. Though the hull had been breached, the damage didn't appear to be fatal!
"She's still alive!"
Just as disappointment spread amongst the Larkinsons, a highly volatile anomaly spread from Gravada Knarlax and rapidly engulfed the entire battlefield!
The three Highly Unstable Chaos Essence gems that Ves planted in the final Penitent Sister combat carrier were finally making their mark! Under his deliberate arrangement, the energy unleashed by the gems were bringing the imaginary realm closer to the material realm!
The shadow of an immense vortex descended upon the battlefield.
Chapter 2395: Flipping the Board
The entire battlefield had grown more and more chaotic as time went on. Debris flung in every direction. A trail of broken starships littered from one end to the other end as the Larkinsons and Penitent Sisters both lost a substantial amount of ships!
The losses ran in the thousands. Even if the crews of every ship frequently performed evacuation drills, anytime the Gravada Knarlax breached a vessel with her powerful main cannons, the resulting damage often killed at least a quarter of the people aboard!
The tyranny of warships had managed to accomplish the one feat that every other threat in the Nyxian Gap failed to accomplish. The pirate warships managed to fell at least a third of the starships of the Larkinson Clan!
If the Gravada Knarlax kept focusing her powerful primary gun batteries on the remaining Larkinson ships, then Task Force Predator would certainly become history!
Both sides knew this. The Allidus Alliance had taken advantage of the incredibly punishing firepower unleashed by the Gravada Knarlax several times. Enemies who were stupid enough to underestimate the power of a heavy cruiser had all paid the price of their ignorance!
Though Ves had never witnessed a ship comparable to the Gravada Knarlax in action, his extensive foundation in mech design and engineering granted him a great amount of respect for her weapons and armor.
It didn't matter if the underlying tech was rather rough and crude. Scale alone compensated for most of the weaknesses!
Therefore, from the very start, Ves always prioritized taking out the Gravada Knarlax. There were still ways to overcome the thousands of pirate mechs and the handful of smaller pirate warships, but taking down a heavy cruiser was too difficult with just the mechs at his disposal.
"There's also the cultists to consider."
He already knew for certain the Hallowed Abyss Temple wanted to take revenge. The Larkinsons pissed off the Unending One quite a bit during the last battle. Ves could easily predict that a 'dark god' as vengeful and furious as the tentacled whale would push its worshippers to go for a second round!
Facing one of these two threats was already bad enough. Facing both of them at once spelled
certain death as far as he was concerned!
If he played by the rules, his lack of assets meant that he would surely lose the game.
This was why he had to mess it up! He resolutely plotted to flip the board, and the only way he felt he could accomplish was by taking a page out of the book of Grey Watcher Xarnus.
"Transform the stage!"
As long as he called down an anomaly onto the battlefield, then the pirates with their formidable warships and ocean of mechs would have to fight against the environment as well as the Larkinsons!
Of course, his clansmen weren't having it easy either! As the strange anomaly that Ves had cooked up with the help of detonating three Highly Unstable Chaos Essence gems at once, the strange phenomenon that followed suit had caused everyone to freeze for a time.
This was not because they were paralyzed, but because none of them could move!
Both Larkinsons and pirates found out to their horror that every move they made, they automatically snapped back to their previous positions.
One of the bridge officers experimentally lifted his hand, only for that same hand to return to resting on his desk.
A formation of mechs attempted to fly forward, only for their mechs to stay in mid-flight several hundred meters back.
One of the pirate destroyers called the Ailing Frey attempted to fire her potent primary laser cannons at a Larkinson light carrier, only for her turret to rotate back to its original orientation!
Though every human remained aware of the passage of time, their bodies and their machines remained frozen for some odd reason!
If this wasn't enough, the opaque shadow of a huge vortex overlapped the surrounding space. Almost everyone taking part in the battle was horribly confused at this vague but frightening illusion!
There were only a couple of exceptions to the rule. The two titanic spiritual entities continued battling each other without any sign that they were affected by the anomaly!
Both the Unending One and Nyxie exchanged powerful blows in the middle of the pirate fleet. The collateral damage of their enormous attacks sometimes felled a dozen or so pirate mechs that found themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Ves also found himself to remain in control. With the help of the B-stone layer of his Unending Regalia, he had gained a moderate amount of resistance from the anomaly's effects.
This was exactly what he wanted! After getting caught flat-footed in the temporal anomaly a few months ago, Ves had always yearned to build this suit of combat armor in order to protect him against spiritual shenanigans.
"Hahahaha!" Ves couldn't help but laugh uncontrollably! "Looks like my little surprise worked!"
The anomaly that he called into being was nothing more than an attempt to bring the imaginary realm closer to the material realm. He basically copied some of the principles of the temporal anomaly and tried to trigger it artificially through some means, though it had been difficult for him to develop confidence in his solution until recently.
The Highly Unstable Chaos Essence gems were packed with energy! With their help, Ves gained an ample source of energy to enable this momentous feat.
However, chaos energy was highly volatile to begin with, and soon their effects began to shape the temporal anomaly that had dawned on the battlefield.
Certain pockets of space became engulfed by strange rainbow warping. Time suddenly resumed in other pockets of space. Some mechs even sped up an instant, causing them to crash against friendly mechs! Projectiles in mid-flight were frozen in time and space in one moment, only to fling forward at ten times their original velocity, causing them to devastate a formation of hapless Avatars mechs!
The chaos was spreading before everyone's eyes! Some effects happened to be beneficial to the mech or ship in question, but more often than not the unstable hazards were wreaking havoc.
"What is going on?! Why can't I see straight?!"
"My mech is cleaved in half!"
"Ahh! I'm freezing!"
The suffering spread to both sides, but it was especially bad for the pirates due to their larger numbers. With more mechs and ships, the environmental changes affected them to a significantly greater degree! The unprepared pirate mechs had become especially panicked about the fact that they were caught up in an anomaly!
The onset of random hazards slowly offset the time freezing effect. Mechs and ships slowly started moving again, but that did not make life easier for everyone. They would rather be frozen in time than be assaulted by violent environmental changes!
Ves couldn't let this situation go to waste. He studied the projection of the Gravada Knarlax. The earlier attacks had caused her starboard side to lose a considerable amount of structure. It was as if a giant monster had taken a jagged bite out of the heavy cruiser!
RIght now, she barely looked functional. The destructive attacks disabled her center gun turret, knocked out at least a third of her secondary laser cannon batteries and shut down numerous other systems.
Despite this, the warship slowly regained her functionality! Her toughness and degree of compartmentalization was on a whole other level than a mech. Even if three-fourths of her compartments were destroyed or voided into space, the ship would still be capable of putting up a fight!
What was worse was something more concerning stirred within her bowels. Grey fog and white fog began to leak out of the damaged heavy cruiser. Slowly but surely, they began to solidify in massive apparitions similar to the one that was dueling against the maddened Nyxie!
Not only that, but some of the black, grey and white fog began to spread to the Gravada Knarlax and other nearby pirate assets. Once they became enveloped by the fog, the mechs and ships partially gained protection against the random hazards that struck them from time to time.
The affected pirates managed to regain some battle effectiveness!
Ves widened his eyes as he saw what was taking place. The spiritual signatures from those growing apparitions were different from that of the Unending One.
The cultists were bringing in at least two more dark gods!
He couldn't wait any longer! He had to deploy all of his trump cards before those new terrible beings tilted the battle in the favor of the pirates again!
He activated the command channel. "Swordmaidens, Battle Criers, Penitent Sisters, engage your battle formations! They will shield your mechs against the anomalous hazards!"
"Yes, patriarch!"
"Venerable Jannzi, Joshua, Orfan and Dise, your time has come. Deploy your mechs and show these pirates the might of the Larkinson Clan!"
"Yessss! Finally!" Joshua exultingly cried.
"It's about time." Commander Orfan grinned.
"I cannot do much, but I will shield our fleet as best I can." Venerable Jannzi modestly stated.
"What about me?" Tusa indignantly asked.
"Oh yeah, you too. Go out and make everyone acknowledge your existence!"
Venerable Jannzi and the expert candidates finally launched from the carriers that had deliberately hung back in the rear of the fleet.
Ves had intended for each of them to play a key role in the battle, but he knew that their spiritually-enhanced mechs would certainly cause them to undergo apotheosis right away. This made it important for him to choose the right timing for their introduction.
"Well, the formation of two more entities like the Unending One certainly qualifies!"
Throughout all of the chaos, a hint of order reasserted itself.
The first change came from the mechs that were slowly adopting some unusual formations.
The Penitent Sisters moved first! They had been waiting for the fateful order since the beginning of the battle. As soon as Ves said the right words, the exiled Hexers each opened themselves up to the Superior Mother.
"Bless us, Supreme!"
"Give us the strength to wipe out these degenerate boys!"
Only half of the Penitent Sister mechs entered into a formation. It consisted entirely of melee mechs. So far, they only contributed to the battle by taking potshots with pistols or other light ranged weapons. Now that the distance between the two sides had shrunk considerably, Commander Chancy finally let them loose!
The melee mechs each formed into a wedge formation that corresponded to the death phase of existence. Like an arrow released from a bow, this narrow wedge formation flew towards the swarm of enemy pirate mechs with rising momentum!
Soon enough, the vague silhouette of the Superior Mother with her arm stretched forward appeared above the formation! The projectors embedded in the mechs of the Penitent Sisters automatically activated according to their new programming and began to fill the silhouette with lifelike details!
Every Penitent Sister taking part in the battle immediately felt buoyed at the appearance of the great Hexer Supreme! Her presence was proof that she was blessing their cause!
"For the Superior Mother!"
The Penitent Sister arrow crashed into the swarm of pirate mechs just as they were in the process of reorganizing their ranks!
Due to the incredible quality disparity between second-class and third-class mechs, the charging Hexer mechs did not even bother to take defensive measures as they collided against the weaker pirate mechs!
Over a hundred collisions took place as the pirates instantly lost a chunk of their mechs! Panic spread anew as the Superior Mother clawed her fingers through the mechs of several dozen pirate mechs.
Though her insubstantial limbs inflicted little material damage to the mechs, her attacks still caused their mech pilots to feel sapped of energy!
With the imaginary realm overlapping with the material realm, the Penitent Sister battle formation somehow gained more strength!
However, it wasn't just the battle formations that benefited from their proximity to the imaginary realm.
The growing and solidifying pools of white and grey fog finally finished taking shape! Two different inaudible roars rang throughout the battlefield as two more dark gods had entered the fray!
The grey god vaguely resembled an avian exobeast. The bird flapped its great, ragged wings, causing it to traverse a lot of distance at once! It flapped again, causing a wide and destructive grey wave to rapidly soar to a mech company of Sentinels. The grey wave immediately collided against them, causing the mechs to temporarily glitch!
As for the white god, the giant shape that came into being suddenly caused Ves to sit upright in his chair. With wide, disbelieving eyes, the glowing white humanoid form raised a single hand and unleashed a powerful light beam that instantly struck a combat carrier of the Flagrant Vandals! If not for her reinforced armor, the carrier would have probably foundered right then and there!
Ves recognized the humanoid alien.
"Crystal Builder! Luminar race!"
To his utter surprise, the tiny extinct alien race had somehow produced a giant dark god that lived until today!
Chapter 2396: Rise of Heroes
Through eavesdropping the frankly poorly-secured pirate communications, the Black Cats soon found out the names or at least the titles of the two powerful entities.
The grey avian exobeast was called the Inexorable One. Fast, cruel and devious, her reign of terror supposedly surpassed that of the Unending One!
In the short time the giant bird made of grey fog had come into existence, she already started to terrorize the Larkinsons! With her dizzyingly fast speed and strange and unfathomable attacks, the Inexorable One seemed unstoppable!
The giant white humanoid form preferred to remain in the back. Each time he raised his hands, the 'dark' god known as the Blinding One unleashed a terrifyingly powerful light beam that vastly exceeded the power of the laser beams unleashed by the pirate destroyers!
Ves recognized the distinctive shape of the alien race the Blinding One supposedly belonged to. The dark god possessed a strange oval head with no definable mouth, nose, ears or any other facial features.
Instead, numerous holes dotted his entire head. Strange twinkling lights glowed from deeper within, causing them to look both creepy and mysterious. The Blinding One wore a robe-like garment that was apparently bedecked with crystals.
If Ves put a Crystal Lord mech alongside the Blinding One, anyone would be able to recognize the similarities between the two. In fact, many Larkinsons were making this comparison right now since the Crystal Lord was a staple in their landbound mech contingents!
"The white energy apparition is about to launch another attack!"
To the surprise of Ves and many other Larkinsons, the Blinding One suddenly tilted his multi-eyed head towards the Scarlet Rose. The giant white deity pointed his finger at the flagship of the task force.
Instantly, Ves felt as if a searingly bright beam abruptly pinned him into place! His chair began to smoke as it had suddenly become subject to an unknown source of heat!
"What the hell?!"
If not for the spiritual protection offered by his Unending Regalia, he would have probably been cooked half to death!
From the Blinding One's body language, the dark god appeared to be mildly confused by his lack of success. He raised a palm instead and immediately unleashed a potent light beam!
Yet at the moment the Blinding One fired his instant beam, the Shield of Samar had flown right in front of the Scarlet Rose! A faint glow surrounded the mech as it raised its new Unending tower shield!
A bright flash spread from the impact site as the light beam tried but failed to pierce through the extraordinarily valuable shield!
"YOU SHALL NOT HARM MY FAMILY!"
Ves immediately noticed a strange shimmer covering the shield. Spiritual energy began to fill the shield as the Unending alloy it was made out of eagerly absorbed the input!
The more spiritual energy it absorbed, the more the shield started to resonate with Jannzi. Ves discovered to his amazement that the insertion of spiritual energy into a component enabled it resonate with an expert pilot!
This was a huge revelation to Ves! He wasn't sure if every resonating material was made this way, but at the very least he wasn't as dependent on the mech industry's existing paradigms on expert mechs anymore.
What was even more amazing was that the convergence of the imaginary realm and the material realm actually allowed one of his design spirits to converge directly onto the battlefield yet again!
With a triumphant roar, a vague insubstantial silhouette of a giant lizard appeared behind the Shield of Samar!
Whenever the Blinding One's light beam attempted to hit a vulnerable ship beyond the reach of the Shield of Samar, Qilanxo briefly conjured a space barrier that completely caused the attack to disappear!
"We're saved!"
"Jannzi!"
He did not have time to appreciate this insightful discovery. While Venerable Jannzi, the Shield of Samar and Qilanxo shielded a portion of the Larkinson fleet, a single mech could not cover everything!
The Blinding One appeared to be a bit more rational than his more beast-like peers. He raised his hand in the direction of a company of vulnerable Avatar mechs.
"No!"
Yet before the luminar dark god could proceed with his clever attack, a small form struck the Blinding One from the side! The dark god roared with indignation as he attempted to swat the small but surprisingly elusive form from his side!
"You big white bastard! Let off my men!"
Commander Orfan succeeded in breaking through to expert pilot! After witnessing her fellow Flagrant Vandals fighting and dying against the powerful pirate armada, her urge to protect her war buddies had reached a peak!
This was why she immediately experienced apotheosis before her new custom mech fully launched out of the Princely Jackal.
A large, radiant blue glow similar to the glow surrounding the Shield of Samar enveloped the Banthar! While Commander Orfan unsurprisingly hadn't managed to achieve true resonance, her violently-swelling force of will empowered the Banthar far beyond its original parameters!
The spearman mech evoked the air of a champion as it valiantly assaulted the humanoid dark god! Spiritual energy belonging to Qilanxo poured into the Unending spear, allowing Venerable Rosa Orfan to resonate with it and deal substantially more damage to the white entity!
"I FIGHT TO PROTECT MY CUBS!"
Whenever the Blinding One attempted to swat the Banthar, the mech avoided the clumsy blows. With Commander Orfan's vastly-improved battle sense, she easily read the giant figure's attacks. It didn't help that the Blinding One did not employ any sophistication in his attacks. Evidently, the luminar race wasn't very good at fighting up close!
After screeching an inaudible curse, the Blinding One changed tack. The crystals adorning his robe started to glow. Venerable Orfan reacted in an instant by commanding her mech to crouch and huddle behind its own Unending shield!
A sudden omni-directional white blast enveloped the entire area around the Blinding One!
"Hah! Was that supposed to take me down? I told you already, as long as you threaten my men, I will fight you until there is not a scrap of you left intact!"
Though the Banthar lacked the power to inflict a fatal blow on the Blinding One, Venerable Orfan nonetheless posed enough of a threat with it to occupy the luminar dark god as long as her outbreak lasted!
In another corner of the battlefield, another duel between expert pilot and dark god took place!
The Inexorable One did not move to assist her fellow dark gods. The cruel grey bird instead attempted to sneak behind the Larkinson fleet in order to devastate their most crucial ships such as the Scarlet Rose.
Yet before the dark god reached her destination, a speeding form instantly struck at one of her wings!
A spiritual roar of fury escaped from the Inexorable One as her flight deviated due to the sudden attack! The grey bird quickly tried to pin down the offending attacker.
"I'm here, you rotten bird!"
A sharp blue line struck the bird from behind! The attack inflicted serious pain and caught the Inexorable One off-guard!
In the distance, a glowing sky blue glow surrounded the Blueshift. After years of precipitation, Tusa Billingsley-Larkinson finally succeeded in breaking through to expert pilot as well!
Pure power and speed overflowed the Blueshift as Tusa's boiling force of will rapidly integrated with his mech.
His converted skirmisher mech zipped around the Inexorable One, dodging and weaving the Inexorable One's attacks while darting in to inflict periodic stabs with its Unending daggers.
When the Inexorable One seemingly had enough of the harassment, the giant grey bird swelled its chest as it seemed to breathe in. Seconds later, dark god exhaled, causing the space around her to destabilize as energy vortices appeared all around her, spelling danger to anyone caught within!
The density of energy vortices around the giant grey bird was so high that it was impossible for the Blueshift to avoid them. Yet amazingly, the Blueshift phased right through the energy hazards as if they were nothing but illusions!
This was because Tusa's force of will did not center around speed, but rather freedom!
"No obstacle shall bar my way! No wall can cage me in! Your tricks are useless, monster!"
No matter how much the Inexorable One tried to get rid of this annoying mech, her measures failed. No matter how much she tried to fly away, the Blueshift exceeded her speed!
With the help of Venerable Orfan and Venerable Tusa, the two additional dark gods had no time to wreck the Larkinsons!
However, Ves knew that this situation was very precarious. The temporary boost in power that accompanied every expert pilot's emergence only lasted for a limited amount of time.
Once the two expert pilots lost their steam, the dark gods could easily retaliate!
The Gravada Knarlax suddenly fired her main cannons. The volley she unleashed thudded against the Greenfeather, annihilating the fragile light carrier that was home to the Second Spaceborn Mech Company!
Though much of her crew had already preemptively evacuated the vulnerable ship, a handful of essential crew never had the chance to flee as their bodies instantly broke from the enormous impacts!
The other warships resumed firing as well. Their powerful laser beams surgically dismantled ship after ship.
"Damnit! Someone take care of the enemy ships!"
"Take our swords!" A group of women roared!
A battle formation consisting entirely of Swordmaiden mechs stabbed forward through space!
The energy silhouette and projection of a giant sword overlapped the formation. Each Swordmaiden had become of one mind as they maintained a connection to the active battle network that was exclusive to the women!
The sharp battle formation quickly closed in on the Ailing Frey, but the pirates did not let the strange formation approach without a response.
The pirate destroyer's secondary ballistic gun batteries began to fire a downpouring of shells at the incoming mechs. Yet as soon as these shells were about to impact the vanguard of the formation, a dark blue glow blocked most of them from inflicting any harm on the swordsman mechs!
The Swordmaiden mechs blocks the remainder of the attacks by using their swords as shields. None of them sustained any damage as their battle formation finally reached the pirate destroyer!
In the final stretch, the glowing mech at the tip of the formation pointed its Unending greatsword forward.
"Pierce!"
The Swordmaiden battle formation rapidly burst forward! Within the blink of an eye, the Swordmaiden mechs stabbed through the port side of the pirate destroyer and quickly emerged from the starboard side!
A cascade of secondary explosions erupted inside the Ailing Frey as the passage of the Swordmaiden battle formation inflicted substantial internal damage! Half of her guns stopped firing and her propulsion system sputtered.
The ship could not handle too many attacks of this magnitude!
The battle formation circled around and was about to commence another destructive attack run.
Yet before the Swordmaidens could finish off the heavily-damaged Ailing Frey, a large number of highly-organized pirate mechs attempted to intercept the Swordmaiden mechs.
"It's the Allidus Archons! They're the elites of the Allidus Alliance!"
Up until now, the Allidus Archons were held back as reserves. Now that the destroyers of the pirate armada were under threat, the Archons finally moved into action!
While the Archon mechs weren't able to match the Swordmaiden mechs on an individual basis, they consisted of over 500 mechs, thereby outnumbering the Swordmaidens by fourteen-to-one!
Yet despite the enormous disparity in numbers, the Swordmaiden mech pilots under the lead of Commander Dise did not shy away from the challenge.
"Sisters! Sweep these rabble away!"
"Yes, commander!"
The Swordmaiden battle formation shifted. Instead of pointing its tip straight forward, it began to orient so that its blade faced the enemy mechs. Once the formation closed in, the giant sword rapidly slashed across the formation of Allidus Archon mechs!
Just a moment later, over a hundred Allidus Archon mechs exploded or simply split apart as an enormous cut seemed to have cut most of them in half!
"CUT THEM APART! LEAVE NO PIRATE INTACT!"
Chapter 2397: The Power of Life
The titanic battle between the Larkinson Clan and the Allidus Alliance unfolded completely outside everyone's expectations!
Many mech pilots felt increasingly small as the manifestations of several dark gods fought openly against each other or the heroes that had risen up from the ranks of the Larkinsons!
The simultaneous breakthroughs of Venerable Tusa, Orfan and Dise challenged the supremacy of the pirates.
It sounded impossible, but two of the new expert pilots of the Larkinson Clan successfully entangled two of the dark gods!
The pirates and the Larkinsons both viewed this sudden turn of events with different levels of astonishment.
To the pirates, the power of the dark gods was something that was unquestionably great! The highest leaders such as Lord Hivex knew that the terrible deities of the Nyxian Gap possessed powers beyond anyone's imagination.
Even if the dark gods hadn't actually descended in full, their fog manifestations already represented a considerable portion of their power.
Yet despite this fact, the Banthar and the Blueshift continually challenged the Blinding One and the Inexorable One, proving that humans and mechs were capable of fighting against literal gods!
While the Larkinsons largely did not believe in the existence of actual gods, they still possessed a lot of fear towards these giant entities. In fact, the more the dark gods demonstrated their might, the more the Larkinsons began to question whether these powerful entities were truly divine.
"This is not a battle between mechs and ships anymore." An Avatar officer gasped. "This is a battle between gods and heroes!"
"Those aren't gods! They're demons! We're fighting against demons!"
"Then what does that make our mech pilots?"
"Isn't that obvious? They're the real gods on the battlefield!"
"They're demigods, not actual gods."
"Semantics!"
The perspectives of every Larkinson taking part in this battle shifted in real time as the multiple confrontations between gods and expert pilots enlightened them to the true power of mech pilots!
This wasn't all! Not only did Venerable Tusa and Venerable Orfan prove that humans were capable of fighting against gods, but Venerable Dise and her linked Swordmaidens were wreaking havoc amongst the ranks of the Archons!
Ordinarily, the intensive battle formations of the Swordmaidens should have drained the female mech pilots straight away. Yet to the mild surprise of Ves, the battle formation led by Venerable Dise successively employed her draining battle formations with no end in sight!
This was all due to several reasons. Her breakthrough supplied her with an ample amount of energy. Her bond with Qilanxo also allowed her to borrow the design spirit's powerful energy. Finally, the convergence of the imaginary realm and the material realm amplified every spiritual exertion!
"CUT!"
A sword-shaped battle formation superimposed by the illusion of a giant greatsword slashed through the ranks of the remaining elite pirate mechs.
To the credit of the Allidus Archons, none of the elite mech pilots had broken and fled. Their superiors had drilled so much obedience and discipline into their heads that they were reluctant to act outside of orders.
That was a mistake.
Their relatively tight formation and high concentration had made it easy for the astonishing Swordmaiden battle formations to sweep through their ranks. The pirate officers belatedly ordered their subordinates to disperse, but it was too late at this point!
Chaos spread through the rest of the battlefield. Anomalous hazards occasionally afflicted a number of mechs. Though their frequency had lessened, they still caused a lot of grief to pirates and Larkinsons locked in battle.
While the thousands of pirate mechs continually suffered losses from the unstable environment, the Penitent Sister battle formation that had dove in their midst were exempt from this threat!
With the giant form of the Superior Mother watching over the Penitent Sisters, her presence protected the Hexer mechs from many anomalous hazards!
Along with other advantages, the Penitent Sister mechs were able to butcher the pirate mechs at an unimaginable rate!
Though the Penitent Sisters hadn't become gods, they nevertheless received the Superior Mother's blessing. With the Supreme lending her power to her devoted, the Penitent Sister mech pilots had become more and more fanatic in their beliefs! Their minds and spirits united as one as their increasing fervor enhanced their connections to the battle network even further!
Yet even as the pirates suffered great losses, Ves did not assume the battle was over and done. Multiple pirate warships remained intact. Their turrets and gun batteries had already inflicted significant material damage to the Larkinson fleet and were in the process of inflicting even more damage.
The Gravada Knarlax was slowly recovering. She had already restored a portion of her propulsion systems and her huge turrets were slowly swiveling towards the remaining Larkinson ships.
The Larkinsons needed a way to break the spirit of the Allidus Alliance! The trump cards that Ves had deployed up until now were not enough to win the battle!
It was at this time that his body slightly shook. Some sort of echo had struck his spirit, causing him to interrupt all of his thoughts.
"What is..?"
His heart beat faster. It began to catch up to the pace of the foreign impulses that affected his body. Soon, he discovered that his heart was not beating faster without a reason.
It was resonating and matching its beat with another heart!
Just outside the Redfeather, a single resplendent golden mech had been hovering in space for several minutes.
Inside the cockpit, Joshua Larkinson sat motionless with his eyes closed and his mouth curled in a blissful smile.
"I have waited so long for this moment."
The Quint responded. Through his unprecedentedly close connection to his mech, Joshua felt as if he truly understood the full profundity of the life within the masterwork mech.
"You are.. so wonderful, so magnificent. Is this who you truly are? Let us join forces and open ourselves up to each other!"
The man-machine connection between Joshua and the Quint took a life of its own. Its parameters instantly shot up, so much so that it forcibly exceeded the safety limits imposed by the neural interface.
The extraordinarily deep connection allowed Joshua and the Quint to exchange with each other to a degree that would have ordinarily fried the young expert candidate's brain. Yet at this time, Joshua felt no strain at all. No matter how much data and other input poured into his head, it did not come close to exploding.
Instead, Joshua felt as if his will and mind were expanding at a stupendous rate. His awareness of his surroundings extended far beyond the cockpit and swept a wide area around the motionless Quint!
Like a seed sprouting from the ground after a shower of rain, Joshua felt his consciousness rising to a level that was far beyond what he could have imagined as an expert candidate.
As this pure moment of bliss overtook his mind, his consciousness ran through his memories, his experiences, his ideals and his desires.
Different mech pilots possessed different reasons for fighting.
Some fought for family.
Others fought for honor.
Many mech pilots never truly discovered their reasons to fight. Expert candidates were different because they were in the right direction.
However, to take the final, crucial steps, an expert candidate had to clear all of their doubts and commit wholeheartedly to a single conviction!
Joshua needed no thinking to dial in his principles. At this time, he interfaced with one of the most impressive and liveliest mechs he had ever had the pleasure of piloting.
After Ves upgraded the Quint and enhanced its spiritual foundation, the life contained within the masterwork mech had evolved to a higher state.
Now, the Quint provided Joshua with the clearest vision of the benefit of piloting a mech designed and made by Ves. Pure love and respect flooded through Joshua's mind as he became more and more integrated with the masterwork mech.
Of all the possible machines that expert candidates could break through in, a masterwork mech offered some of the most sublime experiences for these lucky individuals!
As Joshua finally obtained his long-awaited chance of apotheosis, his force of will bloomed and resonated with the Quint!
In turn, the Quint benefited considerably from Joshua's breakthrough. The mech seemingly gained a bit of will of its own! Though miniscule, this was something completely unheard of. It was impossible for a mech to gain its own will. That would imply that it was a living, thinking entity that could develop its own wants and needs.
While Ves had laid the seeds to such a development, it was very difficult to accomplish this state. Yet under these exceptional circumstances, the Quint received a unique benefit that caused it to become even more filled with life!
With the extraordinarily close blond that Joshua forged with his mech, they resonated with each other to such an extensive degree that something rare was taking place.
Even as Joshua ascended to the rank of expert pilot, he had become completely in sync with his mech.
The complete and utter alignment between mech and mech pilot resulted in complete resonance, which was a state that only Venerable Jannzi had achieved in the history of the Larkinson Clan!
When Joshua raised his fist, the Quint simultaneously raised its fist as well!
A powerful green glow spread from the Quint! Unlike the Blueshift or the Banthar, the Quint's radiance vastly exceeded that of the other mechs!
"With my heart and soul, I shall always fight with mechs like you!" Joshua generously declared as his eyes glowed with green! "Each and every mech designed by the clan patriarch is alive, but only I can utilize you to the fullest!"
Nyaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
The green glow expanding from the Quint finally pulled in the design spirit of the Bright Warrior model!
For the first time in their lives, the Larkinsons were finally able to see the ancestral spirit that symbolized and watched over their clan!
The green-golden radiance of a giant cat proudly came into existence, thereby adding yet another god in a battle that became increasingly more centered around deific heroes and manifestations.
With Goldie's appearance, Joshua's bond with her had intensified. He gained a greater understanding of the young ancestral spirit and even felt the hopes and fears of the Larkinsons connected to the Larkinson Network!
The weight on his shoulders was immense. The members of the clan looked upon expert pilots like him for hope.
Everyone knew that the Larkinson Clan would never be able to survive if he failed to stop the pirates. Joshua solemnly accepted this responsibility, and so did the Quint and the Golden Cat.
"Let us end the threat at the source!"
Both Joshua, the Quint and the Golden Cat set their sights on the Gravada Knarlax. The heavy cruiser was damaged, but far from taken out of the fight.
Fog of different shades continually spewed from her depths. This fog not only offered supernatural protection to some of the pirate assets, but also sustained and empowered the giant manifestations of the dark gods!
The Quint finally moved. The masterwork mech accelerated far beyond its usual rate as Joshua's breakthrough along with the attainment of complete resonance provided it with capabilities that went far beyond the limitations of its parts!
The mech thrust forward, its third eye glowing as bright as a lighthouse in the dark! The giant energy projection of the Golden Cat looked eager as the Gravad Knarlax's formidable bulk came closer and closer!
The masterwork mech charged forward with such great speed that the pirates didn't even have any time to respond to this latest development! The Quint raised its lance just before the mech and the Golden Cat collided right into the bow of the Gravada Knarlax!
NYAAAAAAA!
A collision of immense proportions shook the battlefield! Even the dark gods had to pause as the Allidus Alliance flagship's very nose crumpled inward as the glowing manifestation of the Golden Cat physically slammed into the ship!
She did not rest after she collided into the Gravada Knarlax. After gathering her wits, her head darted forward and took a huge bite out of the ship! It was as if a supersized version of Lucky was snacking on the vulnerable vessel!
Just as the energy manifestation of the Golden Cat attempted to tear even deeper into the ship, a powerful explosion of dark energy blasted her and the Quint back!
Every Larkinson suddenly felt nervous as they felt a huge pressure descending upon them. They watched with amazement as three huge shadows emerged from the ships and merged with the fog manifestations fighting against the Larkinson Clan.
The manifestations rapidly transformed. They became more solid and lost their fog-like consistency. The pressure emanating from them had grown so powerful that everyone aside from the expert pilots were suppressed!
Ves instantly shot up from his chair. "Not good! The dark gods have arrived in person!"
The Unending One, the Blinding One and Inexorable One had grown so angry that they decided to descend upon the battlefield with their main bodies!
The dark gods were ready to unleash their full power!
Chapter 2398: Devouring Abyss
The battle between the Allidus Alliance and the Larkinson Clan began as a struggle between humans.
Through the use of great and powerful mechs and starships, they clashed against each other with the weapons familiar to any human.
Yet from the moment that Ves flipped the board, the battle quickly morphed into a battle that no longer had any place for mortals.
Through several means, the Larkinson Clan called down powerful, titanic energy projections that were so powerful and unfathomable that they appeared to be no different from gods!
The design spirit of the Aurora Titans roared with rage as her space barrier shielded the intact remnants of the Larkinson fleet from the pressure emanated by her enemy counterparts.
The Larkinsons and Penitent Sisters had lost almost fifty ships from the massive guns of the Gravada Knarlax and escorts. Though this had led to an enormous loss of materials, prompt evacuation had allowed much of their crews to escape alive.
Now, these vulnerable people crammed into the ships that remained intact and huddled behind the shield of the lizard-like god that hovered behind the valiant Shield of Samar.
With Venerable Jannzi doing her utmost to protect her family, no one gave in to despair!
Further ahead, three more extraordinary entities appeared to be fighting on behalf of the Larkinson Clan.
The Swordmaiden mechs numbered less than forty, but the one-sided destruction the women inflicted on the Allidus Archons was completely out of proportion!
Commander Dise's breakthrough to expert pilot certainly helped, but she could have never destroyed over five-hundred elite pirate mechs by herself if not for the favorable circumstances empowering her will.
First, the convergence of the imaginary and the material powered her up beyond what was usual.
Second, her bond with Qilanxo had provided her with a powerful boost, especially since she finally found a reason to fight that was compatible with the sacred god's ideals.
Third, her living sword intent actively concentrated her will, thereby putting her ahead of other newly-advanced expert pilots.
Fourth, her living sword intent also functioned as a battle network. After the connections became active, her strong will flowed into her subordinates!
The sword projection that superimposed itself onto the battle formation of the Swordmaidens seemed unimaginably real. I was a sword that completely surpassed anything that could have existed for real. Though it was for all intents and purposes an illusion, when the imaginary and the material became intertwined, even illusions could cut mechs in half!
"OUR SWORD IS UNBREAKABLE!"
"OUR SWORD IS THE SHARPEST!"
"OUR SWORD IS ETERNAL!"
While the Swordmaidens were backed by a giant greatsword manifested from Commander Dise's force of will, the Penitent Sisters enjoyed the support of an even greater entity!
The Superior Mother had seemingly come to life and descended over the mechs piloted by the former cultist Hexers.
Though they had left the Hegemony in disgrace, not a single shred of shame or defeat graced the excited faces of the Hexer mech pilots!
Despite grossly outnumbering the Penitent Sisters, the mechs piloted by the pirates all flew away in terror. Being besieged by incredibly powerful second-class mechs was a frightening prospect to any Nyxian scum!
While it should have been possible for the pirates to organize themselves and mob the Penitent Sister mechs with overwhelming numbers, the energy projection of the Superior Mother put that plan to rest!
Each time the pirate mechs attempted to group up, the Superior Mother stretched out with her arms and clawed her fingers through the mechs. Each time she did so, the mech pilots inside felt drained as they lost sort of energy!
The appearance of this Hexer 'god' completely broke the pirate conscripts. Even the rank and file of the Allidus Alliance quaked in their boots when faced with this Supreme come to life.
How could mere humans like them ever stand a chance against gods? Each time their mechs attacked the Superior Mother, their blows just went right through her projected body!
"We messed with the wrong people! These Larkinsons are crazier than some of the cults back home!"
"Only gods can fight against gods!"
Though the Superior Mother made a very big impression on both sides, she had only come into existence due to the activation of a battle network.
The most real entity that fought on behalf of the Larkinson Clan was no one else than the Golden Cat!
While every Larkinson knew of her, they initially thought that she was just a symbol. Though every clansmen were constantly in touch with her, they mistakenly thought that the cat that adorned their clan emblem was just a cute mascot.
Never did they think that the Golden Cat was truly real and able to manifest into reality in such a dramatic fashion!
Conjured onto the battlefield through Joshua's exceptionally powerful breakthrough, the complete resonance he achieved with the Quint allowed the Golden Cat act on her desire to fight against the pirates that threatened the lives of her precious Larkinsons!
After wreaking havoc on the forward sections of the heavily-damaged Gravada Knarlax, the Quint and the giant cat looked ready to destroy the most central asset of the Allidus Alliance by themselves!
Yet one single event changed everything.
Deep inside the Gravada Knarlax, a single hidden compartment shook from the damage inflicted on the warship. The compartment was home to a shrine that was more elaborate than at Ulimo Citadel.
Inside, three central statues loomed over a crowd of robes figures. Dozens of White Watchers, half-dozen of Grey Watchers and a single Black Watcher presided over an elaborate ceremony.
On the deck, an elaborate ritual circle drawn from blood glowed with an ominous red glow. The strange inhuman markings and lines stretched all across the deck and even crept onto the bulkheads and ceiling!
The Watchers whispered strange alien words as they prostrated over the three obsidian statues.
Each of them depicted a different dark god. Each of them released a mysterious fog that was rich with dark energy. Amplified by the spiritually chaotic environment, the statues released more fog than ever!
Yet despite the intervention of three avatars of the Dark Gods at once, the Larkinson Clan somehow managed to push them back. With the flagship of the Allidus Alliance being preyed upon by a giant cat, Black Watcher Ortis looked unprecedentedly solemn as he received a silent instruction from the dark.
He drew one of his wrinkled hands into the pocket of his robe and drew out an alien ritual dagger. The blade was green and sinuous as it absorbed some of the dark energy flowing out of the compartment.
After reciting an unintelligible invocation, the Black Watcher rose the dagger and stabbed it downwards!
Despite hitting nothing but air, the hearts of every White Watcher and Grey Watcher tending the ritual froze. Shortly afterwards, violent spouts of blood poured out of their chests.
Hole had formed over every cultist's heart! Through some unknown force, all of the lifeblood that circulated through their bodies forcibly exited their bodies and entered the elaborate ritual circle.
The blood of the Watchers was far more precious than that of random pirate scum. Even though the quantity of blood that entered the ritual circle was not that much, the activity emanating from it had risen substantially!
"Awaken, and show these infidels the might of the abyss!" The Black Watcher cried as he raised his ritual dagger again.
With a dramatic stab, he buried the blade deep within his own chest. After brutally pulling his weapon out, thick black blood that was seeped with foulness joined the ritual circle.
For a moment, nothing happened aside from Black Watcher Ortis's lifeless body falling onto the deck.
Then, the statues pulsed and glowed as more fog than ever poured out of them! Soon enough, three immense existences squeezed out of the statues and rapidly moved out of the Gravada Knarlax.
Upon arriving at their respective fog projections, the existences merged with them, causing them to manifest in their entirety!
The simultaneous descent of three dark gods exerted more pressure over humans than anyone could withstand. Many pirates lost consciousness as they were unable to cope with the raw power radiating from the three immensely powerful entities.
Some Larkinsons fell unconscious as well, but the protection offered by Venerable Jannzi, Qilanxo, Goldie and the battle networks prevented the rest from following suit.
Even so, the pressure from the dark gods was so great that hardly any normal mech pilot could even think about fighting against gods that had practically showed up in the flesh.
A dark fog emanated from the near-physical body of the Unending One. Nyxie, the enraged alien tyrant, kept attacking the tentacled whale with savage punches and brutal energy attacks as if all thought of restraint had disappeared!
Yet the Unending One that Nyxie beat up before was not the same anymore. The tentacles on the Unending One not only blocked his opponent's attacks with ease, but also entangled the limbs, thereby immobilizing the maddened entity!
With one huge bite, the Unending One opened his enormous maw and bit off half of Nyxie's energy body!
A pained, inaudible roar escaped Nyxie's form as the remnant of his existence quickly cut itself off from the trapped limbs and shifted several kilometers backwards before reforming into a considerably smaller and weaker energy body.
All of his rage and fury had drained from his unstable consciousness. A chillingly cold fear had descended upon Nyxie.
The strength of a dark god in his prime and a long-imprisoned alien entity was not comparable at all! This was especially after Ves continually cut off chunks of spirits and inflicted a lot of wounds earlier.
Now that the Unending One had engulfed half of his spirit, Nyxie was in no shape to fight any further! Without a hint of shame, the wounded entity desperately attempted to flee, only for the Unending One's tentacles to stretch out once again to catch the cowardly spirit.
Roars of unwillingness escaped from Nyxie as the tentacles slowly but steadily dragged him to a waiting maw!
With one decisive bite, an eons-old spiritual entity disappeared into the Unending One's stomach!
Across the Komodo Star Sector and beyond, millions of Doom Guards abruptly lost much of their fearsome potency as their glows had suddenly become a lot more stable!
The mutual interaction between Zeigra and Nyxie ceased to exist because the latter was no longer alive!
Complaints abruptly flooded the offices of the Living Mech Corporation. The sudden and unexpected failure of the Doom Guard model produced an unprecedented huge scandal for the LMC. If any of its products failed like this again, then why should mech pilots entrust their lives to the apparently-unreliable mechs.
Ves, who helplessly witnessed the ignoble death of one of the LMC's most important design spirits. He knew exactly how bad the consequences would be if Nyxie's death robbed one of the LMC's bestselling mech models of its pillars.
If there was one relief, it was that the spiritual products he created from Nyxie's spiritual fragments were still alive and well. Yet that did not change the fact that the sudden death of the hostile entity would surely impact his reputation!
Fortunately, he already prepared some contingency plans. He never assumed that he could use Nyxie as a design spirit forever.
He quickly inserted a substitute design spirit in the vacated space of the Doom Guard. After contemplating a few options, he selected Lufa to take Nyxie's place.
The Angel of Tranquility may be young, but he had already reached a respectable amount of strength due to the circumstances of his birth. Not only that, but his peaceful mindset completely rubbed the aggressive Zeigra the wrong way.
The two hostile spirits instantly began to fight, causing the Doom Guard's glow to regain its strength in a different form!
Ves had no time to inspect the Doom Guard's changes. After establishing a sloppy equilibrium in the mech design, he drew himself back and tracked what the two other dark gods were doing.
"Not good! Venerable Tusa and Venerable Orfan are in trouble!"
Chapter 2399: Reign of Monsters
The Unending One's full might was more terrible than Ves had ever imagined. Previously, he fought against the avatars of the tentacled whale. These projected vessels only contained a fraction of the dark god's strength, so overcoming them with the Larkinson Clan's existing means shouldn't be too challenging.
Yet how could Ves ever expect that the dark gods worshipped by the Hallowed Abyss Temple would ever condescend to arrive onto the battlefield with their real selves?
This was a catastrophe for the Larkinsons! The strength of these dark gods in the 'flesh' exceeded that of every entity on the side of the Larkinson Clan!
When the Inexorable One's true spirit descended upon her projection, the pinprick attacks inflicted by Venerable Tusa custom mech no longer managed to pierce her feather and hide.
Though fast and untouchable, the Blueshift's offensive capabilities were too weak! Light skirmishers were some of the worst mechs to employ against huge god-like creatures. Not even the exceptional nature of the Blueshift's Unending daggers changed the fact that they resembled pinpricks when compared to the enormous grey bird's bulk!
It didn't help that of the four expert candidates who underwent apotheosis, Venerable Tusa's breakthrough was weaker than the others. No spirit boosted his advance. Only his Blueshift supported him in his transformation, thereby leaving with precious little help in his attempts to hinder the hostile grey bird!
"Why are you so strong?! Why can't I hurt you anymore?!"
After adjusting to her new circumstances, the Inexorable One no longer bothered with the annoying fly that previously hindered her from displaying her might. Even as Venerable Tusa desperately directed his mech to stab the big grey bird in the eyes, his daggers barely sank into the spiritual body before stopping.
As a spiritual existence, the Inexorable One did not suffer any vision loss. To the dark god, such attacks were incredibly trivial, so much so that the grey bird already set her sights towards a worthier foe.
With a single powerful flap of her wings, the Inexorable One dashed forth with unimaginable speed!
The Blueshift, which kept stabbing its Unending daggers through the flesh and feathers of the grey bird in futility, tumbled away in an uncontrolled spin.
Venerable Tusa almost lost consciousness from the physical and spiritual forces assaulting his body and spirit. His force of will no longer empowered his mech as his debilitated state left him in no shape to fight any further! He vomited inside helmet, forcing his piloting suit to work overtime to remove the foul-smelling substances.
Nobody paid attention to the unfortunate expert pilot's plight as the Inexorable One rapidly reached her destination!
With her sharp talons stretching out, the Inexorable One attempted to slice and crush the Princely Jackal!
She would have succeeded if not for the timely reaction of Qilanxo. The giant lizard energy projection roared a warning at the Inexorable One as her talons tore through the space barrier hastily put up in her path.
Ves widened at the sight. Qilanxo's space barriers were usually powerful enough to negate any attack. Not even the main cannons of the Gravada Knarlax could overcome the barriers under normal conditions.
However, the difference in strength between the two god-like entities was too wide this time!
Though Jannzi managed to conjure Qilanxo's energy projection a second time, she was not sustaining it with perfect resonance at the moment. It was only because the imaginary and material realms were so close that Qilanxo was able to project her existence onto the battlefield to a degree.
She was no match against a genuine dark god in the flesh!
With a couple more strikes, the Inexorable One broke through all of the space barriers, allowing her to soar towards Qilanxo's energy projection!
With a mighty collision, the two great entities exchanged blows! Qilanxo roared in pain and jerked backwards, taking the Shield of Samar with her. Deep claw marks marred her reptilian head and shoulders as she gazed at the Inexorable One with deep respect and fear.
Despite the disparity in strength, Qilanxo had not thought about fleeing at all. Her intent resonated with Venerable Jannzi and the Shield of Samar. All three of them wanted to protect the Larkinsons in the fleet, and the only way to do so was to entangle this horrible bird as long as possible!
"We are the shield of the Larkinson Clan!" Venerable Jannzi stated her convictions. "No brother or sister of mine shall suffer at the hands of this beast!"
Qilanxo attempted to put up a good fight, but the Inexorable One was too fast and powerful for the sacred god to fight against. The ancient bird delighted in the torture she inflicted upon the lumbering lizard.
Further ahead, the Blinding One that had become entangled by Venerable Orfan's Banthar was glowing brighter and hotter.
The Blinding One's presence was a lot more dramatic than his fog avatar suggested. Even without doing anything, the crystals adorning his robe were already outputting huge amounts of energy. The energy formed a radiant shield over the Blinding One, causing the Banthar to sustain considerable damage just by straying close!
Whenever Commander Orfan drove her mech forward in an attempt to stab its spear into her opponent, the Blinding One's radiance shield threatened to melt her machine!
In desperation, the Banthar drew its laser pistol and began to fire at the Blinding One, only for the radiant shield to absorb the laser beams!
"What the?!"
The Blinding One finally directed his attention at the impotent spearman mech that had stopped him from bombarding the Larkinson fleet with light beams. He lifted a single finger and pointed it at the Banthar. Just as he was about to launch a soul-searing piercing attack that Venerable Orfan instinctively felt would be fatal, a golden paw slapped the Blinding One's arm aside!
NYAAAAAAAAA!
Shortly afterwards, the Quint charged forth and pierced its lance through the Blinding One's radiance shield before penetrating his head!
The Blinding One's body automatically released a bright omnidirectional flash, causing both the Quint and the Banthar to be flung back while suffering considerable surface heat damage!
The giant Golden Cat was not as taken aback. She furiously clawed and bit at the Blinding One's radiance shield no matter how much it hurt to do so. Each of the dark gods were so powerful that they could each end the Larkinsons on the battlefield by themselves.
She could not allow the clansmen to die under watch!
Yet no matter how many times she struck the shield, the crystals on the Blinding One's robe kept transferring more power to it. The luminar god's protection was too strong!
After letting the Golden Cat understand how weak she truly was, the humanoid dark god raised his palm and unleashed a powerful light beam.
NYAAAAAAAA!
The ancestral spirit uttered a painful yowl as the light beam carved straight through her projection body!
At the same time, many Larkinsons paused and screamed at the same time as some of Goldie's suffering spread across the Larkinson Network!
Only Ves and a couple of other Larkinsons managed to resist the pain.
"These dark gods.. are too powerful!" Ves helplessly uttered as he had no cards left to play.
He realized he had partially enabled this awful turn of events. If he didn't flip the board and forced the imaginary realm to overlap with the material realm, the dark gods wouldn't have been able to descend so easily with their main spirits!
Though he deeply wanted to reverse this condition and make the unsubstantial vortex disappear from the material realm, he had no way to do so. The chaotic energies that had escaped the confines of the Highly Unstable Chaos Essence gems had taken a life of their own. They were completely out of his control!
Though two of the three dark gods briefly encountered hindrances, the Unending One had just finished devouring Nyxie. With no Larkinson-aligned entities left to hinder the tentacled whale, the cruel dark god slowly set his sights on the Scarlet Rose.
Ves hitched his breath. His heart almost seemed to stop as he felt the pure malice and desire to destroy from the powerful entity. The Unending One's hatred for the Larkinson Clan was inestimable, and somehow he knew exactly who was in charge.
The Unending One surged forward with surprising speed! Though he wasn't as fast as the Inexorable One, he swam through the ocean of space as if he belonged in it. The closer the tentacled whale approached, the more Ves and the Larkinsons aboard the Scarlet Rose sensed their imminent doom!
Goldie couldn't help. Qilanxo couldn't help. The other entities were simply too weak to put up a fight against an entity that was as powerful as the Unending One.
"Is this the end?" Ves whispered to himself.
"GET BACK, FOUL BEAST!"
Just as the dark god was about to ram into the Scarlet Rose with fatal momentum, a giant, slender and scaled hand stretched out from behind the mobile supply frigate and released a purple beam energy blast that caused the Unending One to halt and rear back!
"Who?!"
Ves looked around to see one of the most frightening sights in his life!
A terrible but majestic entity appeared beyond a shaky, psychedelic portal that had emerged behind his ship. The giant energy projection looked fuzzy and unstable, but Ves could distinguish plenty of details.
Wearing a ragged, ancient-looking robe that was encrusted by dead alien plant growth, the giant female humanoid entity hovered forward while staring down the dark god that sought to crush the Scarlet Rose.
The giant woman looked terrible. Though Ves recognized plenty of unquestionably human features in her appearance, the strange uneven aquamarine scales covering her body made her look like a mutated monstrosity!
She didn't appear to have eyes. Instead, her sockets glowed with ominous bright purple lights that made Ves dizzy when he attempted to stare at them. Disbelief filled his head as he took in what he saw.
"Is that.. the real Superior Mother?"
"It can't be!"
As the monstrous woman's form began to stabilize a little, her purple eyes deliberately turned towards Ves, causing him to feel very uncomfortable. He quickly commanded his Unending Regalia to fold his helmet over his head, providing him some relief against the hostile stare.
However, the isolation effect of his suit did not block the massive entity from transmitting a message solely to his mind.
"VES! YOU IDIOTIC CHILD! IS THIS YOUR HANDIWORK!?" The mutated woman's voice boomed!
The woman gestured her hand in the direction of the Scarlet Rose's vault. Even through the insulating effect of his Unending Regalia, Ves could sense the spiritual construct he had attempted to grow had finally reached maturity.
Unfortunately, it looked considerably different from the design that his mother had initially passed on. Not only did Ves employ an unconventional growth-based production method, much of the energy of the construct came from Nyxie, whose spiritual attributes were filled with all sorts of strange and alien attributes.
If that wasn't enough, the proliferation of chaotic energies on the battlefield affected the spiritual construct as well, causing it to mutate further and further beyond its original parameters!
Whether all of these changes were responsible for summoning a giant version of his mother as an eldritch horror, Ves wasn't sure. All he knew was that he had screwed up yet again!
"Uhm.. could you please help me out? My clan and I are under attack right now and we won't be able to hang on for long without your help!"
The mutated woman scowled, causing her to inadvertently reveal her pointed, carnivorous teeth.
"You brat! If you aren't my son, I would have turned away already!"
She looked away from Ves and turned to the Unending One. The dark god had grown incredibly furious as yet another enemy had appeared to stop him from taking revenge.
The giant whale opened his maw unleashed a challenging roar that rattled the spirits of everyone on the ship! Everyone aboard the Scarlet Rose aside from Ves lost consciousness!
For her part, his monstrous mother scowled deeper. She opened her frightening mouth and released a soul-rending shriek that made Ves feel as if his spirit was about to detach from his body!
Chapter 2400: Assaulting the Gods
After unleashing a powerful shriek, Cynthia Larkinson's mutated energy projection dove forward and began to do battle against the Unending One!
To his surprise, his mother was doing far better than Nyxie! While Ves was still trying to recover from all of the shocks to his spirit, he could still see how she was putting the Unending One through his paces.
Strangely enough, Ves sensed that his mother was significantly weaker than the tentacled whale. What actually gave her ability to contend against the dark god was that her utilization of power was far more refined than he had ever seen from any powerful spiritual entity!
Her ragged robe stirred as she lifted her clawed and scaled hands. After contorting her fingers in various shapes, a dozen giant vines appeared from in front of her and shot towards her target.
The Unending One released an angry roar and attempted to entangle the incoming vines with his tentacles. Yet as soon as the two met each other, the tentacles bled and tore as the vines suddenly released sharp spikes!
The vines soon wrapped around the immense bulk of the Unending One, causing him to roar with pain. His strong body thrashed and released a copious amount of dark fog. The vines eventually broke, but at that time, Cynthia had already launched her next attack!
A pair of ethereal creatures that looked like a cross between a wolf and a dragon surged forward and began to bite the Unending One's tentacles. Each time they bit, they chewed through the tentacles in their mouths with remarkable ease!
While the dragonwolves didn't actually look very very strong, each time the Unending One inflicted severe damage to them with his attacks, the summoned creatures rapidly regenerated their wounds.
Unless the Unending One crushed them completely, the dragonwolves would keep restoring to their peak and continue their harassment.
The dark god decided to ignore the annoying creatures and instead direct his ire at the woman in his way. The Unending One opened his maw and released a powerful dark beam at his foe, only for the mutated woman to disappear and reappear a distance away.
Her scaled arms and hands swirled in a smooth circle. Her glowing purple eyes glowed brighter as an incredibly complicated energy diagram appeared before her body.
Ves tried his best to study and record everything he saw into his implant, but for some reason his attempt completely failed! No matter how closely he wanted the details of his mother's mysterious diagram, his brain simply refused to record it. He tried multiple methods to record what he saw, but he had seemingly bumped into some sort of hard rule that stated that copying it was not allowed!
The diagram floated in place for a few seconds before fading away. In its place, a large sword made of energy manifested into existence.
Ves couldn't help but be fascinated by the sword's appearance. Though he couldn't glean too much details, he sensed the sword was not only an ancient relic, but one that had developed its own intrinsic life!
"This is a sword with a consciousness!" He gasped!
When his mutated mother grasped the handle of the sword, her entire aura changed. It became more focused and restrained, but that did not make her look any less deadly.
Without moving forward, she swung her sword, releasing some kind of energy wave that cut through some of the tentacles of the Unending One before cutting his flesh!
The dark god could not endure this affront! The Unending One darted forward with great fury, causing the two titanic entities to be locked in an intensive struggle.
All the while, the spiritual pressure they emanated caused more and more Larkinsons throughout the fleet to lose consciousness. If not for the automated backup systems keeping everything running, some of the surviving mechs and ships would have crashed against each other.
Still, Ves recognized that these circumstances were anything but ideal! His mother may have gained the power to duel the Unending One on even grounds, but there were two more dark gods on the battlefield!
The Blinding One continually blasted Goldie and the Quint with light beams and other attacks. His radiance shield glowed as strong as ever as he struck at the very heart of the Larkinson Clan. Goldie suffered so many blows that her body started leaking glowing blood-like essence. She was visibly weakening with every blow she suffered!
NYAA NYAAAA!
As for the Quint, there was no way for the masterwork mech to remain intact after suffering multiple blows from the dark god. Though the Blinding One directed most of his power against the Golden Cat, the Quint suffered its fair share of blows, causing its reinforced armor to succumb first before its regular armor began to degrade.
If not for the protection of the temporary resonance shield that Joshua gained after he had broken through, the Quint would have already succumbed!
Even so, Venerable Joshua's extraordinary breakthrough manifestation was already starting to lose steam. Complete resonance was far too demanding for him to sustain for long. The continuous damage inflicted by the Blinding One didn't help matters either.
No matter how much he, the Quint and the Golden Cat wanted to sustain this state, he was finally reaching the limit of his capacity!
"Nooooo! I can't.. hold… any.. longer!"
To his regret, his exceptional state had finally run its course. The Golden Cat's energy projection finally dissipated. Though this spared her from getting slain by the Blinding One, she was unable to block the luminar dark god any longer!
As for the Quint, the mech visibly dimmed as its resonance shield and other resonance effects faded away as well. Joshua looked exhausted in his cockpit as he felt as if he had squeezed every drop of potential from his mind and body.
There was nothing left for him to resist the Blinding One!
Without resonance, he was like an emperor without clothes. The Quint wearily raised its Unending lance, but Joshua knew it was futile. Not even this fantastic weapon could make a meaningful difference if he was close to losing consciousness himself!
"You have fought admirably, kid." A gruff transmitted over an open channel. "Now let a real soldier show you how to fight!"
Joshua wearily raised his head in confusion. "What? Who?"
Before he knew it, a rapid form flitted past the sensors of the Quint! The form quickly collided against the radiant shield of the Blinding One!
Different from last time, the charge actually penetrated through the dark god's protection!
To his astonishment, a winged bestial mech had shown up and boldly struck the Blinding One with much more effectiveness than he could have imagined.
As the tiger mech continued to claw and bite into the robe and particularly the crystals adorning it, the Blinding One released yet another omni-direction flash to get rid of the annoyance!
Yet despite releasing such a potent flash, the tiger mech avoided getting blown back. A rust-red glow surrounded the machine, causing it to resist and negate the attack!
"Expert mech!"
The Devil Tiger, the first true masterwork mech made by Ves, had finally appeared on the battlefield!
The mech emerged through the portal shortly after Cynthia Larkinson's energy projection had passed through.
Strangely enough, the Devil Tiger had passed through the portal without undergoing any mutations or abnormal changes. A strong aggressive will surrounded the extraordinary tiger mech as it began to savage the Blinding One!
The luminar dark god seemed to act increasingly more alarmed as he tried several ways to repel the expert mech. Yet all of his attacks, whether it was light beams, guided bolts or simple swipes with his hand, the Devil Tiger's powerful flight system allowed the mech to evade most of the attacks.
The few attacks that did land on the expert mech only weakened its resonance shield for a moment. The Devil Tiger's resonance shield was remarkably stable and abundant, signifying that it was piloted by a genuine expert pilot who was much more seasoned than him. The readings from the resonance meter only confirmed this observation!
"Where did this expert pilot and expert mech come from?"
While Joshua and many other Larkinsons had a lot of questions about the appearance of the bestial mech, they were still grateful for its intervention.
Though the difference in power between the Blinding One and the Devil Tiger was actually quite big, the latter was putting up an excellent fight!
The Blinding One's inherent weakness in close-ranged combat left him unable to deal any significant damage to the expert mech. The few times he managed to land a blow, the Devil Tiger mostly resisted the damage with its resonance shield.
In the rare cases the damage went through, the mech only suffered moderate damage before its structure automatically readjusted until none of the marks of damage remained!
Through the use of clever if not brilliant judgement, the expert pilot constantly attacked the Blinding One from angles that made it tricky for his large humanoid form to attack the pesky mech.
In fact, calling it pesky was an understatement, because the damage the Devil Tiger inflicted was very real!
Instead of focusing on the flesh of the dark god, the expert mech instead worked to damage and demolish the crystals adorning the shield.
Each time the Devil Tiger managed to crack another crystal, the defenses of the Blinding grew a little dimmer. It was clear that the expert pilot intended to weaken the Blinding One first!
With the Unending One and the Blinding One meeting their match, Ves and many Larkinsons sighed in relief. The unknown reinforcements that had emerged through the portal were not only on their side, but also strong enough to fend off the powerful entities!
Yet there was still another dark god arrayed against the Larkinson Clan. Space around the Larkinson fleet seemed to shatter as Qilanxo let out a pained roar! Her energy projection collapsed as the Inexorable One's talons slashed against the Shield of Samar with incredible force!
Though the Unending shield managed to resist the sharp blow, the curled talons of the grey bird reached around the tower shield and punctured deeply the side of the Shield of Samar!
Jannzi's personal mech instantly lost functionality on its damaged side! It no longer possessed the strength to hold up a sword and all of the other system failures caused it to retain only a fraction of its strength.
"Hold on, Shield! Our family still needs us! We can't fall!"
Yet no matter how much she wanted to continue the fight, her failing mech was unable to do what she wanted. If she piloted a real expert mech, then she wouldn't have ended up in this sorry state too soon. It was unfortunate that the mech she decided to partner with was ultimately not a genuine expert mech.
Just as the cruel-looking grey bird attempted to swoop in and cut the helpless Shield of Samar in half, a large volley of nuclear missiles impacted the Inexorable One's form!
Though the powerful explosions unleashed by the shoulder launchers of the Bright Warriors failed to inflict any serious harm to the Inexorable One, the huge explosions did stop her from delivering the coup de grace!
As the Inexorable One turned her avian head to see who had the temerity to challenge her, she saw a motley collection of more than a dozen mechs soaring forward!
A fair amount of them consisted of gold-coated Bright Warriors, but there were plenty of other mechs that belonged to the other mech forces.
What made them special was that each of them were surrounded by unstable resonance fields.
When Ves looked at the advancing mechs, his eyes almost popped out of their sockets.
"Expert candidates! They've broken through!"
The intense battle and the increasing pressure the mech pilots faced had caused many of them to faint or become so suppressed that they could barely lift a finger.
However, a few of them found themselves thriving under the pressure. With the survival of tens of thousands of Larkinsons at stake, they somehow rose to the occasion and condensed their nascent, prototypical force of wills!
The breakthroughs not only freed the mech pilots from much of the hostile pressure, but also powered up their mechs through forced resonance, thereby giving them the capacity to challenge gods, however briefly!
"Charge forth and clip this evil demon's wings!" Casella Ingvar roared over the channel.
"We're eating hot wings tonight!" Imon Ingvar excitedly added!
