The Mech Touch

Commander Melkor Larkinson stood quietly as he waited next to a hatch. Its tight seal ensured that no sound escaped from the other side.

That did not hinder him from listening in through other means. He raised his hand and tapped the side of his visor a few times.

[I have had enough, Joshua.] A female voice spoke with emotion. [Ves is not the right leader for the Larkinson Clan! Your constant excuses for him ring hollow whenever I think how many Larkinsons ended up in graves due to his decisions!]

Melkor felt some of her rage impacting his mind through the bulkheads! She was a lot angrier than she sounded!

[Come on, Jannzi, don't be like that! I know his leadership is controversial, but if you take the big picture into account, it's not as bad as it looks. Each of us isn't happy with how small we are. While I agree that the clan patriarch may be a bit too aggressive, our clan has continually grown stronger with his help. Without him, we'll never be able to obtain the second-class mechs and ships we need to travel the galaxies. Without him, we have no hope of becoming first-raters in our lives.]

A warm, soothing wave displaced the uncomfortable sensation from Melkor's mind. He always felt much more comfortable in Joshua's presence. The younger man was easy to get along with. Becoming an expert pilot hadn't changed his disposition that much.

Soon enough, the wave of righteous fury returned with twice the intensity!

[I cannot tolerate your presence any longer! Leave, and never return! We are over. Joshua. You are not the Larkinson who I thought you are. The more you express your admiration towards Ves, the more I can't stand your presence. Just face it. We aren't meant to be together!]

[You can't say that! You haven't given me a chance yet! I have worked so hard to get up to your level. A week isn't enough to show you how much I love you. Can't you think about the good times we had together? Just look at Ves and his girlfriend. They're two completely different people, but they managed to get along fine!]

Two minutes later, the hatch slid open. Jannzi firmly pushed Joshua through and kicked his butt for good measure!

"We're done." Venerable Jannzi hissed as her body radiated such an intense vibe that Melkor was forced to take some steps back! "Unless you stop worshipping the ground that Ves walks upon, I don't want you back."

A wave of alarm spread from Joshua.

"That's impossible! The clan patriarch is the greatest Larkinson in history! He's the only successful Larkinson mech designer, and he has already accomplished more with his mech designs than any of the expert pilots of the old family. Why can't you admit the truth that his mechs will make us all great?"

Jannzi was too infuriated to engage with her former boyfriend any further. She silently turned around and stormed back into her cabin.

An air of malaise spread from the fallen expert pilot. Melkor tried his best not to get affected by Joshua's depression and steadily moved forward.

He offered his hand. "Come on, Venerable Joshua. An expert pilot should never show any shame."

Joshua grabbed the hand and hauled himself up with a single pull. "Thanks. I… well, you've seen what happened. Jannzi doesn't want to be with me anymore."

"Welcome to the vagaries of life. You might be a hero, but you're still a human. Not every challenge can be overcome through fighting."

Melkor guided Joshua back to his stateroom aboard the Redfeather. Once the expert pilot made himself comfortable, the Avatar Commander studied the dejected young man with his visor.

A part of him felt envious at Joshua's great success. The adopted Larkinson not only possessed a lot of talent, but he possessed a special relationship with Ves.

Both of them came from Cloudy Curtain. This shared background tied them together. Apparently, Joshua not only became an early fan of Ves' work, but the clan patriarch also showered his fellow Cloudy Curtainer with attention.

While Commander Melkor recognized that Joshua ultimately deserved his treatment, a lot of other Larkinsons could have benefited instead.

What if Melkor piloted the Quint? Each time he studied the mech up close, he could feel some of its might.

As the commander of the Avatars, Melkor technically possessed the right to reassign the Quint.

For example, he could claim it for himself.

In fact, he didn't really need to resort to such an extreme. He could hop into its cockpit and take the masterwork mech out for a spin whenever he liked.

Yet whenever he felt tempted to do so, the Larkinson within him warned him that this was not a good idea.

It was dishonorable to pilot a mech that was exclusively assigned to a mech pilot!

The Larkinsons were especially sensitive towards this principle. Due to the influence of Ves, every Larkinson mech pilot slowly came to believe that their mechs were alive.

Piloting a mech on a consistent basis was similar to marrying it. How could Melkor possibly justify piloting Joshua's wife?

He shook his head. This was not the time to obsess over piloting the Quint. He knew he wouldn't be able to bring the most out of the mech. Unlike Joshua, he wasn't proficient in piloting multiple different mech types.

Joshua regained his composure. He calmed his roiling emotions and faced his superior.

"Thank you, sir. I needed a moment."

"No problem."

"What now?"

"That depends on what you want." Melkor gently responded. "This is why fraternization is so messy. I've tolerated it as long as it doesn't happen within the chain of command, but your case is a bit tricker. Tell me honestly. Will Jannzi be able to stand your presence?"

"...I don't think so. As long as we disagree on the clan patriarch, she'll continue to hate my guts."

They discussed Joshua's options.

"Maybe it is best if you transfer to another ship." Commander Melkor judged. "You can train the Ingvar siblings while you're at it. They're fresh expert candidates who aren't very familiar with their growing abilities."

The Gravada Knarlax blew up the Greenfeather in a single volley in the previous battle. The Second Mech Company had to adopt a new home for their surviving mechs along with some other scattered units.

While Joshua looked reluctant, he nodded. He showed none of the decisiveness expected of an expert pilot.

"I'll keep the Ingvars company. Is there something else?"

"Yes. Major Verle recently invited all of the senior officers to discuss an important matter. It's about you and the other expert pilots."

"What's the matter?"

Commander Melkor hesitated for a moment. "We discussed how to place you within our lineup. So far, we have followed the model of the Mech Corps and other military organizations. However, we don't believe that blindly copying the military is the right solution for every problem. Our circumstances are substantially different. When it comes to expert pilots and their entourages, we decided that they should serve the Larkinson Clan as a whole rather than a specific mech force."

Joshua tried to figure out what that meant. "Does that mean.. I'm not going to be an Avatar anymore?"

"The Avatars of Myth will only limit you. We chase after myths. We emulate them. You're better than us. You have already become a hero that is equal to a myth. You need to follow a different development trajectory, and I'm not sure that any of our mech forces can accommodate you. Also, unlike the Mech Corps, we trust our expert pilots. We don't believe in shackling you and surrounding you with an excessive amount of structure. Major Verle and the rest want to do something different."

"I'm being transferred, commander?"

"Correct." Melkor nodded. "Once we return to Cinach, we'll perform an extensive reorganization. Aside from consolidating our units and supplementing our ranks with fresh troops, we will also transfer every expert pilot to a new mech force that is dedicated to them. You and your Bright Companions will serve with greater autonomy."

"What's this new unit called?"

"We call it the Hall of Heroes."

The Hall of Heroes. This new and looser organization within the Larkinson Clan gathered every expert pilot and provided them with a lot of space. Joshua had never heard of expert pilots receiving this kind of treatment, but according to Commander Melkor, various other states and organizations adopted the same model with varying degrees of success.

One of the reasons why the Larkinson Clan decided to set up the Hall of Heroes was because the distribution of expert pilots would always remain unfair if the current situation didn't change.

There were also deeper reasons why the Larkinsons wanted to set up the Hall of Heroes, but they weren't relevant at the moment.

Venerable Joshua silently took in the news. He felt a bit floored since he had gotten to know many Avatars outside of his Bright Companions. Once he transferred to the Hall of Heroes, they probably wouldn't be able to hang out as often.

"What do you think? Do you have any objections?"

"I.. I don't know. I'm not an officer. I'll try my best to make it work."

"Don't be afraid to make your own decisions. If you don't want to assume more responsibility, then the clan will provide someone who can manage your unit in your stead. You just focus on what you need to take the next step. None of us want you to halt at your current stage."

Joshua shrugged. "The only thing I need to improve is an expert mech designed by the clan patriarch. I don't care about anything else."

That sounded simple, but Melkor didn't think it would remain that way. With power came ambition. One of the more hidden reasons why Major Verle wanted to transfer the expert pilots away from their current units was because they possessed way too much influence.

If the clan kept Joshua and Jannzi in their place, the Avatars of Myth would definitely take after their heroes!

The situation was a bit tricker for Commander Dise and Commander Orfan. Due to their dual positions, they had become the pillars of the Swordmaidens and the Flagrant Vandals.

While this transfer was never meant to isolate the expert pilots from their battle comrades, there were still good reasons to distance themselves from their current responsibilities. If the two mech commanders got bogged down by too much paperwork, how would they ever have enough time left for practice?

In any case, even if the two older expert pilots served under the Hall of Heroes, that didn't stop them from spending time with their original units. They just had to devote a bit of attention to the other mech forces.

For example, Venerable Dise would likely be able to provide a lot of assistance to swordman mech specialists. It was a waste to keep her in the Swordmaidens.

Joshua scratched his head. "What about Colonel Ark Larkinson? His example proves that expert pilots can still be successful while remaining in charge."

"He's an exception to the rule. Rarely do expert pilots ever reach this rank. It's simply not possible for most of you. If Venerable Ark didn't possess the foundation of a Larkinson and if he wasn't so good with people, he never would have become more than a mech captain during his time in the service. However, if any expert pilot proves that he can follow Venerable Ark's footsteps, we are willing to make an exception."

This had nothing to do with Joshua. He barely commanded the Bright Companions anyway as he wasn't cut out to be an officer. Whenever he got excited in battle, he only paid attention to himself.

"Okay. I think I get it, commander. I'll get ready to join the Hall of Heroes and assume my new responsibilities. I hope we all know what we're doing."