The Mech Touch

This was the nature of technology. Many years could go by while products only improved on an incremental basis, but then everything might change on a single day as a revolutionary new invention completely changed existing paradigms.

Ves took this case as a lesson that he should never be complacent about the works that he had already made.

If he didn't want to get overtaken by technological progression, then he needed to be an innovator who pushed the forefront of technology himself!

This was the only reliable way for him to stay ahead of the trends. It was also easier for him to keep updating his existing products so that they wouldn't fall into disuse because their performance became increasingly more insufficient.

After Ves and Calabast decided on the fate of the Arminio Collection, the pair proceeded to survey other interesting pieces of equipment.

Ves directed special attention towards other masterwork products. No matter whether they were centuries old or made in the last two years, each of them elevated a specific concept or idea.

Every craftsman that was skilled enough to make a masterwork was worth learning about. Ves entertained himself by imagining how he would approach the same jobs and how his own potential masterwork equipment would differ from that of others.

Once he had his fill of masterworks, he proceeded to inspect a lot of other valuable gear that were all modern and powerful enough to be of use to Ves.

Though he decided against adding any of them to his loadout due to his preference of relying on his own works, he did not object to gifting them to his other clansmen.

"This shock scepter functions like a rechargeable EMP and shock grenade." Calabast explained as she picked up a strange metal rod. "As long as you charge it with energy beforehand, it can release multiple shock blasts that are not only capable of disabling a lot of electric devices, but can also shock and paralyze the bodies of people within range. It's an excellent tool that is designed for self-defense purposes. The device's simple and user-friendly nature allows civilians such as your wife to make easy use of it without requiring any special training."

Ves looked impressed. "This is an excellent piece of technology. My wife won't accept it, though. The aesthetics are all wrong, and the scepter is a bit too big for her to hide. What is worse is that Gloriana is the sort of woman who believes that fighting should be left to others. I think someone like Ketis would embrace it a lot more."

The varied pieces of equipment certainly opened his eyes. There were all kinds of technological devices that excelled at solving one problem or another.

Ves even felt tempted to incorporate larger versions of these products in his next batch of mech designs.

His only regret was that he didn't find anything compelling enough to claim for himself.

So far, the only piece of equipment that he decided to make use of was the emergency single-use personal teleporter that he inspected at the start.

The Arminio Collection was also interesting, but not in a practical manner. Ves actually gained the faint hope that looking at it for longer periods of time might inspire him to design and create a set of gear that completely fit his own needs.

Two hours later, Ves had completed his extensive tour of the collections. Though the Larkinsons had plundered other miscellaneous artifacts and heirlooms from the underground vaults, none of them interested him in the slightest.

The Larkinson Clan was in full swing at this time. It was growing larger, stronger, wealthier and more powerful by the year. Ves was constantly making history and succeeded in coming up with new and groundbreaking products on a regular basis.

He had no reason to covet other people's prized possessions for those reasons. Only those that did not do anything impressive in their lives had the greatest need to revisit past glories.

Now that the tour came to an end, Ves and Calabast briefly discussed a couple of important topics.

"Our clan and our alliance has won a major victory in Pima Prime, but it will take time to recover from the damage that we have incurred in the last battle." Calabast spoke. "For example, how long will it take to put Venerable Jannzi back in action again?"

"I don't know." Ves replied. "I intend to try a lot of new stuff in the process of designing Jannzi's new expert mech, and that will probably take at least a year. If my progress is slower than expected, then it may take additional months to give Jannzi an opportunity to contribute in battle again."

Calabast did not look pleased. "We will be deep into the Trailblazer Expedition by that time."

"What are you trying to say? Do you want me to delay the expedition? That's impossible. We still need this. Operation Saturday Market served as a good wakeup call to our clan, but if we want to forge everyone into hardened elites, then we need to continue to seek more challenges."

"I understand your motivations, but I suggest that you should adjust our route and early destinations so that we don't get as close to the action as we initially planned. Let us try to ease into the deep frontier rather than racing head-long into alien remnants. Just because we enjoy the cover of an ace mech like the Mars doesn't mean that we can ignore powerful alien threats entirely."

Ves thought back on how many ships and mechs his clan had lost and reluctantly agreed that the Larkinson Army was not in a good shape anymore.

"We'll discuss this during our next meeting with the other alliance partners." He spoke. "Let's just say that I am open to the idea. We need to find the right balance between risk and reward."

Calabast smiled in an intriguing manner. "I have a suggestion that might interest you. It is a fairly recent development that has already attracted a number of pioneers, but the chances that the issue will be resolved is fairly minimal. Even so, it is worth attempting due to the people involved."

"What are you talking about?"

"It's a missing person case. Someone important went missing in the vicinity of the border between the Krakatoa Middle Zone and the Zelmar Upper Zone."

Ves looked surprised. "Wait, you're talking about an upper zone?"

"Yes, I'm indeed referring to a zone that is rich enough to attract first-raters. This case involves a member of the Yorul-Tavik Clan. A man who descended from it decided to become a pioneer and organized his fleet in order to go on an adventure and explore the Red Ocean."

Ves already snorted when he heard this. "Let me guess. This rich and naive fellow thought that he could head straight into the deep frontier without studying the lay of the land or harboring any serious respect against native threats."

"You hit the nail right on the head. Though the information that we have been able to gather on short notice is rather limited, most sources suggest that the pioneering fleet led by Lord Pearian Yorul-Tavik passed through the greater beyonder gate and stopped by one of the central star nodes for only a week. After that, he led his ships straight towards adventure, as he saw it. The Yorul-Tavik Clan lost contact with him and all of the personnel under his command shortly after approaching the conflict areas."

"So no one knows what happened to Lord Pearian and his entire fleet of well-equipped ships and mechs?"

"There is proof that his fleet encountered a powerful enemy alien force. A chase occurred across many light-years that caused the fleeing ships to eventually reach the border between Krakatoa and Zelmar before losing all remaining contact."

"You should know what this means, Calabast. The chances that this pioneering fleet and everyone on it has survived are slim. People die in the new frontier all the time. Even first-raters have been demolished after running into powerful alien fleets. Just because the Big Two are able to match them doesn't mean that pioneers can do the same. What makes this particular bunch from the Yorul-Tavik Clan special?"

The spymaster smirked. "There are two reasons why we should take this opportunity seriously. First, let us assume that Lord Pearian and his entire crew have perished. Does that mean there is no more use in finding what was left? No! The Yorul-Tavik Clan is large and wealthy enough to raise a full fleet of first-class mechs and ships. We can make incredible gains even if we are only able to salvage a few scraps from the original pioneering fleet."

Now that sounded a lot more interesting! Ves immediately became excited, but logic quickly prevailed again.

"Wait. If this incident has already occurred and if people like us have obtained this news, then I bet that thousands of pioneers have already swarmed the border area. What makes you think there are any high-value remains left for us to salvage?"

"There are too many star systems in this region." Calabast replied. "As long as we arrive fast enough, there should still be a chance for us to come across at least one wreck. Even if we don't find anything, is it truly a loss for us to search around in this area? There are still plenty of other alien or natural curiosities that we can encounter in this border region."

Though Ves wasn't completely convinced, he was willing to accept this argument for the moment.

"What else?"

"This is a great opportunity for us to make contact with the Yorul-Tavik Clan. We only need to find a single clue to obtain the favor of this first-class clan."

"Why would we want to befriend them? Isn't it our policy to stay away or at least maintain a neutral posture towards powerful first-raters? It is not wise for us to get too involved in their affairs with our current level of strength and development."

"That is true, but this is a unique opportunity. The Yorul-Tavik Clan is not aggressive by nature. Its family interests are largely tied to commercial and industrial ventures. This is related to the state that they are based in. You see, the Omter Republic where the Yorul-Taviks hail from is a relatively small first-rate state that sits between the Greater Terran United Confederation and the New Rubarth Empire."

"Oh." Realization was already beginning to dawn on him. "Let me guess. The Omter Republic is a buffer state."

"Right again. You've become a lot sharper than before. The Omter Republic is nothing compared to its two super neighbors, but it is never meant to be able to stand up for itself. Its main role is to serve as a trade conduit between the Terrans and the Rubarthans. It is one of the states that can conveniently allow the two archrivals to trade their own specialty products with each other, but with an extra step in between. The Yorul-Tavik Clan is one such step."

Ves understood now why Calabast was so keen on taking on this near-hopeless task.

"You want to try and see if we can develop a relationship with the Yorul-Tavik Clan in the hopes of gaining access to Terran and Rubarthan trade channels, is that right?"

"That is one of the objectives we should strive for, yes. The Yorul-Tavik Clan urgently demands news of what has happened to Lord Pearian Yorul-Tavik. We will win the jackpot if we can rescue him alive, but the clan has made other promises for those who are able to bring back proof of the subject's whereabouts or demise."

If that was the case, it was more than worthwhile to give this mission a try!