The Mech Touch

Though it sounded paradoxical, Ves believed the best course of action after completing the first iteration was to take a break.

Ves had always been aware that he had become consumed in his work. The Larkinson mech was so important to his future and the future of the Larkinson Clan that he never allowed himself a break during the core phases of the project!

Yet now that project moved on to testing the earliest incarnation of the modular mech platform, Ves and Gloriana deliberately withdrew from the stage.

Instead, they tasked the two design teams to fabricate and test the prototype in all four configurations in the next week.

"That's not enough time!" Miles Tovar protested. "We won't be able to test every significant aspect of the prototype in a couple of days. Don't forget that we have to test the prototype three more times in order to measure the performance of the other three configurations."

"Then fabricate four prototypes, then." Gloriana suggested. "We have the production capacity and we should have enough test pilots to put the four prototypes through their paces at the same time. The only question is whether our material stockpile is adequate enough to fabricate so many expensive mechs."

Ves grinned. "I already prepared the materials in advance. I've already imported a considerable amount of auxiliary materials and lesser exotics. It's a bit more difficult to secure a lot of Breyer alloy at once, but my Battle Criers have continued to procure enough of this vital material to fabricate enough mechs. Be sure to recycle the materials once we are done with the prototype!"

Several months had gone by since he started this design project. This was enough time for the production loop aboard the Scarlet Rose to yield a huge pile of Breyer alloy!

In fact, the only outside factor he cared about when he was in his most driven mood was the supply of Breyer alloy. His Larkinson mech practically hinged the availability of this strong and valuable material. Whether he wanted to make use of its default formula or the one geared towards shock absorption, it was incredibly difficult to fabricate his mech without the essential contribution from 'Cassandra Breyer'!

Ves felt very thankful that his captive spiritual sorceress continued to supply him with 'free' materials. Though the witch had harassed him from time to time, Ves figured that as long as he kept burning her body and escape pod at a rapid pace, she wouldn't have that much energy left to haunt him at inconvenient times.

"So far, she hasn't been bothering me. Am I supposed to feel relieved or apprehensive?"

Her lack of intervention might be a signal that she expended her available reserve of energy. On the other hand, it might also be a sign that she was saving up her spiritual energy for a big move!

Whatever the case, Ves couldn't do anything about it. Cassandra Breyer's mummified body was encased in a runic shell of spiritual energy that seemed impervious to all of his investigations.

Without deepening his understanding of spiritual engineering, Ves had no hope of cracking her existence anytime soon!

"Well, it's not as if I'm curious in the first place." He shrugged. "I'm better off staying as far away from her origin as possible!"

So far, the Battle Criers hadn't reported anything unusual taking place in Compartment G-13, so Ves did not worry about Cassandra any further.

Right now, Ves should take full advantage of his temporary break. As his subordinate mech designers proceeded to band together with a number of mech technicians in order to form four separate fabrication teams, he left the design labs in order to catch up with what he missed.

So far, nothing important enough to disturb him from his work had taken place. Neither Gavin nor Raymond informed him of any major developments.

While the LMC and the other organizations experienced many changes lately, none of it was too far outside their expectations. Most importantly, his fleets continued to grow in size as more and more Ylvainan light carriers continued to be delivered to their doorsteps.

Of course, more ships meant more crew. Practically all of them consisted of Ylvainans, which continued to weigh heavily on Ves. Right now, he had significantly more Ylvainans than Brighters in his employ!

Such a vast shift resulted in shifts in how his enterprise was being run. Aside from the Larkinson Clan which had nothing to do with the Ylvainans, his other organizations were starting to take on a different character!

"The change in culture and mood is a lot more noticeable at the bottom than at the top." Gavin reported. "The top positions still haven't changed, but a lot of Ylvainans have been added to the middle and lower layers of our hierarchy."

"Do the Ylvainans expect representation at the top?" Ves frowned.

"No. Not yet at least. I'm never really sure what the Ylvainans want. They're.. they're so fanatical about working for you that it sometimes sounds as if they're willing to become your slaves!"

Ves scoffed. "That's religion for you. The more people believe in something, the more they lose their common sense! Fanatics are some of the worst people in the galaxy?"

"Well, compared to other Ylvainans, the ones we recruit turn out to be a lot more pious than the average in the Protectorate. They're all well-meaning, though. Most of them are nice and they have received strict orders not to push their beliefs in our faces. It's just…"

"It's difficult to avoid their influence when they're so ubiquitous. I'm aware of the consequences, Benny, but we don't have a choice. Our ships won't run well without competent crews. It would be a severe dereliction of duty if I throw them into battle while they're being run by amateurs!"

The original Larkinson Family had never been geared towards independence. The old family mainly concerned itself with training mech pilots.

All of their other needs were met, so the Larkinsons only concerned themselves with sustaining and adding to the glorious heritage of their predecessors. Hardly any Larkinson pursued a career in ship command!

This shortcoming hit Ves and the Larkinson Clan like a shuttle now that they attempted to become an independent existence. Trying to become their own state meant they had to address all of the areas that they previously neglected or took for granted!

Considering the importance of ships to his future plans, it hurt Ves a lot that he didn't have any good options at his disposal.

The Bright Republic would never be as generous as the Protectorate. As the suspected target of the sandmen's final attack, there was no way the Brighters would allocate their precious shipyard capacity to Ves! As for recruiting valuable spacers, forget about it! Not a single Brighter spacer had signed up his fleets in the last couple of months!

In contrast, the Ylvainans were very eager. Too eager perhaps. Ves just felt very sour that all of the applicants consisted of the devoted believers of the Ylvainan Faith. They all seemed to convince themselves that the Great Prophet had passed a holy mission onto them to assist the Bright Martyr in any capacity possible!

This was a very precarious reason to work for him! Ves was deeply aware that such a one-dimensional reason could easily backfire on him if the Ylvainan Faith turned against him! As long as he was stripped of his status as the Bright Martyr, why would any Ylvainan in his employ continue to remain loyal?

"They aren't loyal to me." Ves made an important realization. "They're loyal to the idea of the Bright Martyr. They believe that I'm blessed or anointed by the Great Prophet!"

There was a difference between imparted and acquired loyalty. Ves believed he developed the former with his core followers, the Avatars and the Larkinson Clan. This was a kind of loyalty that was difficult to shake once formed. Because Ves painstakingly built it up through his own efforts, he was confident he could keep hold of it in the worst of times!

It was a bit different with acquired loyalty. Ves gained the loyalty of so many Ylvainans by depending on his prior accomplishments. He hadn't done anything in specific to secure the loyalty of these workers.

"Easy come, easy go. It's never difficult to lose what I've gained without expending any effort!"

Right now, Ves could only bank on his strong connection to 'Prophet Ylvaine' to keep these fanatics in line.

He was quite aware that this was not a long-term solution. Ylvaine's spiritual fragment was an ally and a partner to him. Allies and partners weren't permanent. His previous relations with Master Olson, Marcella Bollinger and the Bright Republic were prime examples of cases where his relationships changed!

While Ves believed that he would always be able to remain on the good side of Ylvaine's spiritual fragment, he couldn't afford to bet his entire future on this sole assumption.

"I have to prepare some contingency plans if the worst comes true." He decided. "In the meantime, I should also find some ways to convert their acquired loyalty into imparted loyalty!"

He wanted to turn every employee into his man or woman! Regardless of their origins and backgrounds, he wanted to turn his future grand expedition into an existence that transcended the local cultures and beliefs!

"I can do so by forming my own culture!"

This was a very huge endeavor and couldn't be done in a single day. He had already taken the first steps with the establishment of the Larkinson Clan and the empowerment of the Larkinson Mandate.

With the Golden Cat as the spiritual heart, Ves hoped that the norms and values of the Larkinson Clan would slowly propagate to the LMC and his other organizations.

Ves was not deluded to think he could supplant the Ylvainan Faith in its entirety within his enterprise. He just wanted to decrease its prominence until it became a background entity.

As Ves shared some of his ideas with Gavin and Raymond, the two mostly agreed with his sentiment.

"The Ylvainans aren't problems per se, but they will definitely take over your organizations if we don't restrict their behavior." Raymond said. "Most of our clansmen don't really know what to make of the Ylvainans. They're so obviously superstitious, but they're also some of the friendliest foreigners we have met. It's very difficult to hate your fans."

"I think we need to adopt more drastic measures to integrate them into our way of life, boss. We should make it clear that the Ylvainans are supposed to adapt to us instead of the opposite."

"How do you suggest we do that, Benny?"

"You already told us how. The Larkinson Clan should become the model that everyone aspires to become. Don't you have a retainer structure in place? And didn't your clan open up a road for adoption for retainers?"

Ves and Raymond both looked at Gavin in shock!

"You're suggesting that we give the Ylvainans a chance to become like us!" Raymond exploded. "Do you know how controversial that sounds? Their foreign beliefs will weaken our clan and dilute our core values. What do you think, Ves?"

Once he got over his shock, Ves seriously considered the possibility.

"I'm not sure it will work out the way you think, Benny." He eventually spoke. "I'm leaning towards Raymond's opinion. I don't think the Ylvainans want to turn into Larkinsons. They're still committed to their own identities. There is nothing we can offer to them that can lure them away from their faith. In my opinion, it's pointless to try. That's why I emphasize the need to integrate them while respecting their beliefs."

In other words, Ves was stuck with the Ylvainan Faith as long as he continued to employ its believers. As long as they had no reason to abandon him, they would probably be a part of his enterprise for generations to come!