The Mech Touch

The data you have sent is quite.. illuminating." Master Willix slowly drawled as half of her concentration was probably focused on reviewing the footage and doc.u.ments through her high-performance cranial implant. "It is frustratingly incomplete. The footage of the most interesting parts of the battle are quite conspicuously absent. The interviews and written after-action reports of the mech pilots involved in the battle provide no actual clarity either."

Ves innocently shrugged. "I'm just a mech designer, and our task force is occupied entirely by mech pilots, ship crew and other related personnel. What do you expect from us? Our chief engineers barely know how FTL drives. We can't even begin to decipher how pirates messed with strange higher-dimensional physics. We searched the pirate base extensively after it has fallen and none of the pirate tech we've stumbled upon possesses the capability to warp the material dimensions to this extent."

Master Willix did not look amused. Her white lab coat shifted as she tapped her forearm while staring at him as if she wanted to peer into his soul.

It was too bad that Ves truly told her truth. Nothing he said was a lie.

"Can you explain in your own words your interpretation of the events that ensued after Ulimo Citadel became surrounded by this artificially-induced anomaly?"

"Well, we all felt really bad. Everyone could sense that there was something fundamentally wrong about it. The dark fog has a strong isolating effect so none of us knew what was going on. It took a lot of trouble to beat it back."

"Hmmm… there is an interesting detail in your data. You and your Larkinsons state that you have eventually beaten back these abnormal phenomena by relying on your expert candidates and newly-gained expert pilot. While your Larkinson Clan is blessed with the presence of exceptional mech pilots, I note that your ship, the Scarlet Rose, did not carry any of the sort when venturing into the anomaly. What gave you the confidence that your ship and the mechs you have brought with you would resist the anomaly?"

Oh, damn. Master Willix wasn't willing to let this interesting detail pass without further comment. It seemed that Ves couldn't avoid putting on his crazy hat after all. Here goes another session of spewing nonsense.

"Faith."

"..Pardon?"

"Faith." Ves offered Willix's physical projection a mild but confident smile. "As you are no doubt aware of, our clan has adopted many interesting people with remarkable abilities. James Ylvaine, the Living Prophet, has been my guide and counselor in all matters regarding faith. As the founder of a faith and a reborn prophet, he is intimately more qualified to tackle the unknowable and unfathomable. He has been of remarkable assistance in advising us how to rely on our faith to shield us from the horrors of the Nyxian Gap. Though we are small in comparison to the anomaly, we managed to hold it off for a time."

"That sounds.. remarkable."

"If you wish, I can request the Living Prophet to detail his own experiences." Ves magnanimous offered. "I highly advise you to hear him out via a recording, though I'm sure he can write down his thoughts if you prefer that instead. If you would rather interview him directly, I can call him over to the Scarlet Rose immediately. It will probably take thirty minutes or so for him to arrive."

"That won't be necessary, Mr. Larkinson. We prefer to work with solid data rather than subjective interpretation. It is a pity that your sh.i.p.s aren't better equipped."

"We are in the process of obtaining some better sh.i.p.s, but even if we had some, it isn't a good idea to bring capital sh.i.p.s into the Nyxian Gaps. Navigating around the asteroids is hellish and such a huge ship is too slow and c.u.mbersome to get anywhere in a reasonable amount of time."

The Master lifted a finger, causing some projections of some very strange-looking sh.i.p.s to appear into view. Ves immediately noticed that many of these starsh.i.p.s were medium-sized but boasted a lot of advanced sensor arrays across their hulls.

"I am aware that you are in the process of building up your fleet." She spoke. "I highly advise you to invest in a serious science or exploration vessel. These types of sh.i.p.s are specialized in studying unknown phenomena and unknown satellites. If you had such a vessel in your fleet, you wouldn't have ended up with so little usable data."

"These sh.i.p.s don't seem to fit my budget, ma'am. We are looking to acquire other important vessels first. Buying a fleet carrier and an ark ship doesn't come cheap, especially if they have to be robust and durable enough to survive the Red Ocean. Aside from that, our clan must invest in the design and production of one or several expert mechs."

The Master Mech Designer shook her head at him in disappointment.

"A good science vessel can save your life in a way a fleet carrier can never achieve. Don't underestimate the importance of investing in good sensors and scanners and the hardware required to interpret their data. There are spatial anomalies and other natural or induced phenomena in space. Being able to peer through the fog and comprehend the truth of what is taking place will allow you to save your entire fleet one day. If that is not enough, the powerful scanners of a dedicated science ship are also extremely effective at detecting hostile stealth units."

Ves perked up a bit when he heard that last sentence. Guarding against stealthed vehicles and mechs had always been one of his persistent fears. He had suffered several times at the hands of undetectable enemies.

Even so, that still didn't cause him to change his list of priorities. The chances of encountering stealthed opponents and strange phenomena in space were fairly low, especially if his expeditionary fleet kept a low profile and solely traveled along normal trade routes.

What happened during the previous battle was an exception because Ves wouldn't normally bring a fleet to a place as dangerous as the Nyxian Gap.

This was definitely going to be his last adventure for a while. He witnessed so much excitement and collected so many new insights that he was ready to return to a calmer, more regular life. The inspiration he gained was so much that he could spend years on applying it all on his upcoming mech designs.

"Our clan will consider acquiring such a ship when our more immediate necessities have been met." Ves vaguely promised.

"Be sure to obtain it before or shortly after you enter the Red Ocean." She advised him. "You have not traveled to a lot of areas where there are high concentrations of energetic exotics. Some of what you have experienced in the Nyxian Gap also applies to normal space. I can tell you that the Red Ocean is not entirely safe, especially when it comes to FTL travel. Phasewater is a material that intrinsically affects FTL drives, so when a star system has a large quantity of deposits, you can encounter some very abnormal conditions."

She had a good point. While it would doubtlessly take a lot of time to reach the Red Ocean, he did not want to be caught with his pants down later on. Ves knew that the Red Ocean not only contained a lot of phasewater, but plenty of other high-grade exotics.

The two continued their discussion on some other matters. Master Willix eventually mentioned the other topic that Ves was least willing to talk about.

"Venerable Jannzi Larkinson's breakthrough is by all accounts exceptional. As you are someone who has grown up in a military family, you are doubtlessly aware of what happens when expert candidates exceed their limits."

Ves reluctantly nodded. "Compared to how Venerable Ghanso and Venerable Ark of my family has advanced to their current rank, Venerable Jannzi's breakthrough was a lot more dramatic."

"Unity of Man and Machine." Master Willix sighed as her eyes softened up a little. "Do you know how rare it is to witness such a grand spectacle related to mechs? I truly wished I would have been there with you when it happened. The footage and dreadful descriptions of your mech pilots do not do justice of the majesty of perfect resonance. In fact, it should have been incredibly unlikely for this to occur. Much better mech designers and mech pilots have tried to reach this legendary state, but failed."

If Master Willix wanted to expose a flaw in his story, then sorry, Ves had already prepared his response.

"Those mech designers and mech pilots are different from us." He stated. "My mechs are alive. They are not soulless machines that act as tools or extensions of their mech pilots. They are living partners to mech pilots, and they can make their own choices! From the moment Jannzi first advanced to expert candidate, she has completely dedicated herself to piloting the Shield of Samar. She has forged a bond with her with her personal mech, and her mech is completely tuned to her presence. Don't forget that the Shield of Samar is still the same mech she piloted when she broke through the first time. By remaining loyal to her mech, her mech has progressed as well!"

Though Ves mainly spoke all of this in order to get Master Willix off his back, he truly believed what he said. The experiences that mech pilots shared with their mechs did not enrich just one of them. Instead, Ves boldly believed that mechs could advance as well!

The Ouroboros piloted by General Axelar Streon already provided him with a hint of what Venerable Jannzi might attain in the future. She followed the same path as the Terran ace pilot!

Master Willix asked some more questions, and Ves did his best to answer with his true views while at the same time coming across as obtuse as possible.

Even though a Master Mech Designer possessed a much greater understanding of mechs than Ves, there were areas where even she became stumped!

By bringing up vague concepts such as emotional bonds, intangible progression and mechs with life, Ves ensured that he conveyed the least amount of usable information!

Ves grinned inwardly as he eagerly relegated his eclectic views on mech pilots and mechs.

"The definition of perfect resonance is when a mech pilot achieves total alignment with their mechs. Doesn't that mean it is a given that Jannzi was able to achieve this state? Even if it was just a moment, her incredible accomplishment proves that my design philosophy has a compelling advantage in this area! Mechs are alive, and they have feelings. They are able to love and hate their mech pilots as well as any other life."

"Are you being literal?"

"Of course!" Ves spread his arms. "Don't you realize it? Unity between Man and Machine isn't as mysterious as you think. As long as you consider the 'Machine' portion as alive, sentient and capable of feeling emotions, then the relationship becomes much more simpler. The two of them are in love! Love is one of the strongest emotions in existence, and it is through the power of love that Venerable Jannzi and the Shield of Samar has achieved the greatest possible resonance!"

"The power of love." Master Willix flat repeated. "This is not an action drama, Ves. We are talking about real events."

"You don't get it, Master! The power of love is real, and it is one of the greatest ways to empower mechs. How can mech designers possibly design the strongest mechs when they never impart the capacity to feel love to their work? It's a travesty! They are crippling their products, depriving both the mechs and their mech pilots the opportunity to develop a power that transcends what is possible!"

It was safe to say that Master Willix did not pursue this topic much further. Love was very subjective and couldn't be quantified at all!