The Mech Touch

　　"You are an interesting mech designer, Mr. Larkinson." She said with a smile. "I have never held a discussion with a Journeyman of your particular background and talents. You have shown me a novelty in the form of your companion spirit that has broadened my perspective of what is possible. I shall keep paying attention to your work and exploits going forward."

　　Most mech designers would feel flattered when they heard that someone as powerful and accomplished as a Star Designer tracked their work!

　　Ves was not among them, though. He was horrified to hear that he couldn't get rid of the Polymath so easily!

　　For all of her knowledge and her help, Ves did not forget that he did not see eye to eye with the MTA in many matters.

　　These differences in deeds and opinions might land him in hot water with the MTA one day. If the Polymath kept snooping on his work, how was he supposed to make any progress in his more controversial research projects?

　　Even if the Simile Halifax finally separated from his expeditionary fleet, he would still have little confidence in his own privacy!

　　Of course, Ves did not dare to bring up this matter to the Polymath. She was still so far above him that she could get her way with or without his consent.

　　Ves meekly smiled. "I am honored by your interest. Much of my work is still rudimentary, though. I am afraid that you will be disappointed by my many fumbles and mistakes."

　　"It is of little concern." She dismissively said. "My fellow Star Designers and I have gone through this stage in our lives. Few of us succeeded in realizing every promising idea that we have invested ourselves in. We can learn just as much from our failures if we are clever about our research approach."

　　"I see. I shall take that into account."

　　The Polymath took one last look at Ves. "We shall not meet again for many years. My most trusted agents among the Survivalists will remain in contact with you and convey any words I might have. For now, it is best if we maintain our distance from each other. I have collected a fair share of enemies throughout my life, and the more reprehensible of them are more than willing to harm you if they perceive you can be of assistance to me. I shall seek you out once you have advanced to the rank of Master Mech Designer. We will have much to discuss once your design philosophy has achieved permanency. Goodbye, Mr. Larkinson. May humanity prosper."

　　"Er, goodbye, Your Excellency. May you succeed in your research!"

　　The Star Designer instantly shifted away. Whatever teleportation technology she utilized was much faster and quieter than the run-of-the-mill applications utilized by more plebian mechers.

　　Before he wondered how the hell he should make his way to the exit when the white mist obscured his vision, he suddenly felt he was being teleported himself!

　　Soon enough, he appeared inside a familiar white corridor that was just outside the chamber he was in. Though he personally felt it was an enormous waste of energy to use a teleporter when he could have just walked his way out, at least he wasn't the one paying the bill for this transit.

　　"Ves. I see you have held a fruitful discussion with him." Jovy greeted him as he woke up from his virtual exploration or something.

　　He still found this meeting to be surreal. Though he had gotten used to speaking with powerful individuals, he never truly expected that he could get in touch with one of the hundred known Star Designers alive today.

　　If the Polymath hadn't exposed him to her domain, he would have questioned whether he was meeting with the real deal!

　　"It was very fruitful indeed." Ves answered as he still tried to make sense of everything he had talked about with one of the top figures of human civilization! "I learned a lot from 'him'. 'He' was not what I had expected."

　　"No matter who we become, we are still humans." Jovy remarked with a smile. "Though there are people within our Association who believe otherwise, we Survivalists value our humanity and are still proud to call ourselves humans. From the moment we think of ourselves as more than the people we came from, it becomes harder for us to care about our fellow humans. History suggests that will always lead to bad outcomes."

　　The two steadily walked back the way they came.

　　"We talked about that." Ves said. "The CFA is indeed detached from general human society. Most average people only come into contact with the MTA. The CFA is usually nowhere to be seen. Heck, if I hadn't traveled beyond the borders of human space a few times, I wouldn't have met with the fleeters either."

　　"He talked about that, huh?" Jovy looked thoughtful. "If that is the case, then he intends for you to take a more active part in our society's development. He has good judgment, not that I have ever doubted him. Your living mech designs and your masterwork mechs show great potential. Even I am envious of what you have managed to accomplish."

　　Ves chuckled. "Hehe. You have access to much greater resources and repositories of knowledge than I. You are also able to design first-class mechs that can easily crush any of my machines. What's more, that design philosophy of yours is so reality-defying that your mechs will probably be a terror to fight against once you grow older!"

　　Both of them exchanged knowing glances. Neither of them thought they were weak. Though their backgrounds and circumstances were vastly different, Ves and Jovy roughly regarded each other as equals.

　　This made it much easier for the two Journeymen to develop a sincere friendship with each other. They would have never been able to speak to each other as freely as now if they were too far apart.

　　Ves felt a lot closer to the mechers today. His meeting with the legendary Polymath was life-changing. Not only did he meet with one of the idols that he had always admired from a professional standpoint, he was also confident that he had gained her favor.

　　He developed a greater urge to cooperate with the Survivalists. Though he was still wary about getting too close with the MTA, the faction that he sided with was quite okay. They were probably the friendliest and most sincere members of the Association that he would ever interact with. When their goal was the survival and continuation of humanity, they were willing to go through great lengths to succeed.

　　After today, Ves also felt a greater responsibility for doing his part to safeguard humanity.

　　Naturally, he was also aware that it was not a coincidence that he started to think this way. The Polymath had steered the earlier conversation in a way that would definitely make Ves more receptive to her standpoints!

　　Ves didn't mind, though. The opportunity to meet with and learn from the Star Designer was worth the price of getting indoctrinated!

　　"The nature and the future direction of humanity is one of the great ongoing discussions within our circle." Jovy spoke. "We originally started out small and weak, but managed to develop a civilization that spans half of one galaxy and is getting close to conquering another galaxy, if only a shrunken one. We are still not strong enough to defend ourselves against the threats we face today and in the future. We need to strengthen ourselves further, but not all of us agree on the right way forward."

　　"Are you referring to the debate between mechs and warships?"

　　Jovy shook his head. "Not quite. It is related to what you have said. Has he told you about a certain ancient cult?"

　　"Yes." Ves replied.

　　He and the Polymath probably talked about a lot more than Jovy thought, but that wasn't important.

　　"That makes sense. Given your work, it would be irresponsible not to mention it." Jovy said. "In short, the MTA, the CFA and the 'cult' are the three most powerful human organizations in existence. The reason why we are split from each other is because we all pursue different ideas on how humanity should evolve."

　　"Evolve?"

　　"Yes. I deliberately used this word because that is exactly what they are fighting for. I believe that Master Willix should have already told you how the MTA and CFA differ from each other in this regard. What you may not know is that this picture is not complete unless you add in the cult."

　　Ves furrowed his brows as he thought about it. He soon figured out how it might all fit together.

　　"I see." He said. "If I am getting this right, the CFA and the 'cult' both sit on opposite ends. The fleeters value technology above all else and have relatively little faith in the strength of humans. They think they can defeat any threat as long as they construct powerful battleships equipped with the most advanced systems. They don't do that much to develop themselves, though."

　　"And what about the cult?"

　　"The cultists don't seem to put a lot of emphasis on advanced technology, though that may also be because they are working in the dark. Anyway, from what little I know about the cult, they focus a lot on forcing the evolution of themselves and other humans. By specializing in biotechnology, they can truly make humans a lot more powerful than normal. All of this comes at a horrible price, though."

　　The price was usually their sanity or a lot of innocent human lives.

　　Jovy nodded. "Your impressions of the two great groups are a bit shallow, but they are accurate enough. In our opinion, neither of their visions are promising. You can argue that the CFA's strategy is the most orthodox of all. From the beginning of our civilization, we have always relied on developing better and more powerful technology to conquer our planet, star system and more. All of this is okay as long as we fight against regular threats. However, once we begin to struggle against more unfathomable enemies, the weakness of the humans crewing all of those powerful warships may prove to be the CFA's downfall."

　　"Isn't that why the CFA is so insistent about developing more powerful AIs? They can more easily compensate for the weaknesses of humanity if they succeed."

　　"That is true, but that is another discussion." Jovy waved aside the issue. "The cult holds the opposite stance. I do not know much about it myself, but I am aware that it seeks to empower themselves to the point where they can fight against mechs and warships with their own bodies and mind."

　　"It sounds ludicrous."

　　"I agree, Ves. This is why the MTA is treading a middle ground compared to these two groups. We do not pursue as many extremes and we make sure that we are hedging our bets. We still depend much on technology, but we do not entrust all of our survival on massive weapons and automated systems. We also embraced the best parts of the cult in order to make sure that the people controlling our weapons never grow too weak."

　　Though the MTA distinguished itself from its rivals by focusing on mechs, it indeed occupied the middle ground between the CFA and the cult.

　　Ves quite liked that. The mechers were less extreme and didn't have any glaring vulnerabilities that could easily be exploited one day.

　　"It must be hard to develop in this fashion." He said. "Mechs are still relatively new compared to the studies that the other two groups have conducted in their own fields of specialty. The rate of mech pilots and mech designers advancing to the higher levels are way too slim to call the MTA's current strategy a success."

　　Jovy sighed. "That is right, but we must still make an effort. If we do not… the CFA and the cult will both engineer our downfall."