The Mech Touch

Many minutes before a monstrous surprise attack disrupted the most important phase of the founding ceremony, Prospective President Yenames Clive patiently waited as a team of professionals fluffed up the exquisite layers of garments that had been piled onto his body.

Another attendant had already brushed up his makeup and slightly modified it so that he would look as commanding as possible when he held the most important speech of his life.

Standing by the side was Reina Kernsk, who wore a dark ceremonial uniform of her own that looked suitably refined but did not overshadow the president or any of his senior officials.

As Yenames Clive's confidant and chief of staff, Madame Kernsk was in constant communication with the different arms of the government apparatus.

She wielded the power of the prospective president on behalf of the man himself. This not only allowed her to command a huge variety of departments, but also granted her unparalleled access to government systems and databases.

Naturally, Reina Kernsk could not wield all of these powers on an indiscriminate basis. She was not the president herself, but she was merely his trusted agent.

As such, there were entire control departments based inside Skyline Palace that constantly tracked and monitored the actions of the chief of staff and other important personnel.

Numerous intelligence agencies empowered by the government to undertake counterintelligence duties covertly spied on public officials in order to catch for any acts of treason or severe misconduct.

Then there were the president's most solid and reliable protectors.

Anyone who served closely by the side of Yenames Clive had to make sure to hold no duplicitous thoughts. At the very least Reina Kernsk was not allowed to act on them in any way!

This was because the slightest sign of treachery or malice could trip the suspicions of the ace pilots assigned to guard their principal!

Ace pilots paired with ace mechs possessed many metaphysical powers that could not be described or reproduced through conventional means.

Nonetheless, this was the Age of Mechs. Despite the inability to figure out the mechanisms behind their amazing abilities, many powerful leaders had come to trust the Saints and their inexplicable powers.

The active intervention and promotion by the Mech Trade Association had led to a rapid degree of acceptance of ace pilots and all of the benefits they could bring to the table.

Barring a few exceptions, ace pilots always abided by their word. They could be trusted to discharge their duties faithfully and without any hesitation. If they ever entertained any doubts, they were always honest enough to discuss them openly with their employers rather than lie or scheme behind their backs.

In a day and age where trust was never absolute and where a whole array of advanced technology could assassinate or sabotage damn near anyone and anything, the introduction of ace pilots and their miraculous powers urgently served an essential need for powerful states and organizations.

In fact, one of the unofficial but essential requirements to found and run a second-rate state was to have at least one dedicated ace pilot on retainer!

Those that attempted to run a second-rate state without the protection of a Saint became far too susceptible to manipulation, blackmail, sabotage and outright decapitation strikes.

This was also why no one was eager to cooperate with ambitious parties that tried to build a powerful state, which subsequently hindered their plans of succeeding in their ambitious ventures.

One of the fundamental reasons why Davute and Karlach had entered into the forefront of the Krakatoa Middle Zone was because both of these rising powers had multiple ace pilots under their command!

Not only that, but through establishing extensive cooperation agreements with powerful pioneering organizations such as the Cross Clan, the two colonial states substantially increased the amount of ace mechs they could deploy on the battlefield!

Of course, the latter group could not be relied upon to fight for Davute on an unconditional basis. Powerful individuals such as Patriarch Reginald Cross only fought for the colonial state when their goals happened to be aligned. Once this was no longer the case, it would be difficult for the government to rely on these mercenary Saints.

Only a small group of hand-picked ace pilots received the privilege of guarding and watching over President Yenames Clive.

This presidential guard duty was extremely sensitive and critical. Not only were the ace pilots not allowed to make any mistake, they also routinely came into contact with incredibly important and damaging secrets. The ace pilots had to make absolute vows to never divulge any secrets they heard without the express permission of their employers.

Right now, Saint Antai Shogi kept careful watch over President Yenames Clive. His iconic Shotgun Shogun hovered right outside. His Saint Kingdom cast an invisible blanket across every individual within its extensive range, causing them to feel as if they were never truly alone.

Reina Kernsk had lived under these circumstances since the beginning of the colony. It was difficult for many people to rein in their impulses and live a more honest life, but those who managed to pass this difficult test enjoyed a lot of trust from their employers.

This was exactly the case with the female chief of staff. Every day she reported for duty, an ace pilot assigned to guard the president thoroughly verified her intentions and confirmed that she bore not a single thought of ill will towards Yenames Clive.

"Reina." Yenames Clive spoke in his smooth and commanding voice after his makeup had been adjusted. "Have the speech writers completed their final adjustments?"

"Yes, sir." The uniformed woman responded. "I have read through the speech myself. The writers have increased the proportion of targeted attacks towards Karlach. Depending on how you deliver these words, you should be able to whip up a higher number of citizens against our rival with these adjustments."

She handed over the latest iteration of the speech to Yenames Clive in the form of a secure data chip, who promptly transferred the contents to his cranial implant after verifying that it did not contain any malware.

It would have been a lot more convenient if the president received this package directly through a wireless connection, but it was way too risky for a man of his importance to casually transmit and receive a lot of data in a wireless form.

Yenames Clive possessed perfect control over his expressions, so he never needlessly displayed his disapproval.

Nonetheless, Reina Kernsk had worked for him long enough to sense that he was not entirely pleased.

"One of the important criteria that I have set for this speech is that it must be timeless and relevant throughout the years." The man slowly spoke. "Whether people listen to it today, fifty years later or even a thousand years from now, my words must remain relevant to each of them provided that our colonial state still exists in a recognizable form at that time. Specifically attacking a rival state may be highly relevant for the time being, but it will render much of my speech antiquated and irrelevant to a future audience."

The chief of staff understood his concerns.

"There are good reasons why these adjustments are necessary. Making a speech that will remain timeless is a good aspiration, but it becomes moot if Davute ever suffers total defeat at the hands of Karlach. Our hostile neighbors are making excellent strides in building up a powerful mech army by luring in many powerful mercenary organizations. If you have read the intelligence reports and military analysis reports, the Karlach mech forces will hit out lines hard right at the start of formal hostilities. If this happens, our lines will break and collapse if our defending troops do not have the motivation and resolve to stand their ground."

She did not need to remind the prospective president what needed to be done to prevent this from happening.

The colonial state already poured in a lot of funding and resources into the border systems. Each of them was being fortified at a rapid rate. A lot of newly raised mech units would soon get transferred to these strategic locations as soon as the bases and space stations could accommodate their presence.

Still, no amount of fortification work would help with stopping the Karlachs if the soldiers faltered before their defenses!

In order to motivate so many selfish soldiers and mercenaries into holding their ground against the formidable mech forces fighting under the banner of Karlach, it was crucial for President Yenames Clive to rally his new subjects against a common enemy!

"The changes are distasteful... but effective." The man admitted. "I fear that I will come across as a demagogue rather than the father of a state. That is not the start to my presidency that I have envisioned."

"We must attain victory before anything else, sir. If giving up a part of your dignity and losing the universality of your speech can help our soldiers vanquish over their Karlach counterparts, then that is a favorable transaction. You can always rebuild your dignity and legacy at a later date. You cannot regain the territories of Davute once Karlach's forces have routed our troops and conquered our colonial state."

A man as proud as Yenames Clive could not stomach this transaction easily. Nonetheless, he was no stranger to painful compromises. He knew it was best to meet his essential short-term obligations before he could address his long-term priorities.

"So be it. Please inspect the voice amplification settings and verify that they have taken the alterations to the speech into account. If I must unleash thunder and fury against Karlach, then I shall do so beautifully. Make certain that the sound engineers exercise precise control over the amplification of my voice."

"The best of the best are handling this assignment."

Once President Yenames Clive confirmed that every detail surrounding the upcoming speech was in order, he moved to make his first public appearance in front of a mass audience.

In the meantime, the Indormeon piloted by Saint Yorvick Clive relieved the Shotgun Shogun from its current guard duty.

The ace striker mech piloted by Saint Shogi proceeded to undertake his new mission of guarding the VIP seating blocks.

The ace knight mech that remained behind carefully covered Prospective President Yenames Clive and everyone else in the vicinity.

Reina Kernsk could feel that Saint Yorvick Clive paid much closer attention to herself all of a sudden.

Just as she wondered what had caused her to attract the ace pilot's elevated focus, the Indormeon's Saint Kingdom precisely vibrated the air between her ears to produce a single voice command.

"AE-3410-EFK-ASPARAGUS-TUUUUS-#34RR-CXEIE36RE-S-ROYALE."

Though this string of code meant nothing to Reina Kernsk, it triggered a hidden setting of her cranial implant.

Her entire mind froze as the cranial implant secretly became a lot more active!

Normally, activity of this level should have triggered a number of highly sensitive sensors, but this didn't happen due to the deliberate tampering of Saint Yorvick's domain field!

As such, Reina Kernsk's mind completely shifted without alerting anyone else.

It took a moment before the woman opened her eyes once again. Her gaze became minutely sharper, wiser and more assertive, though she quickly softened her demeanor so that she became indistinguishable from her previous state.

The woman did not turn to look in the direction of the Indormeon, though her altered mind clearly directed its attention towards the ace pilot.

Saint Yorvick Clive made a brief mental bow towards the woman. "Welcome to the Red Ocean, my lady."

"Report." She spoke in a soft but uncannily commanding tone that resembled that of Yenames Clive.

"The president is ready to hold a speech that puts a heavy emphasis on uniting the Davutans against Karlach." Saint Yorvick replied in an uncommonly subservient tone. "I have confirmed that all of the possible actors and elements of the plan are in place."

"Very well. Let us commence the plan."

"Please transmit the override codes to these channels with the permissions held by the individual under your control."

"Done." Reina Kersk spoke, or more precisely the elder who had managed to assume direct control over the chief of staff's body!