The Mech Touch

Ves never stopped twitching since the researchers initiated a whole regiment of testing.

There was nothing wrong with the testing per se. The Mech Trade Association was known for its stellar research and development capabilities.

According to the rumors, not even the Common Fleet Alliance could catch up to its archrival with regards to innovation!

The CFA was a more traditional and conservative institution. Although its members did not deny the importance of advancing technology, its leaders and important decision-makers overwhelmingly started off as line officers and sometimes staff officers.

Innovation was important but stability was even more crucial. The CFA may have tried to chart a new course after many different nation-bound warfleets merged together at the end of the Age of Conquest, but it still couldn't escape the trappings of its weighty heritage.

The MTA was a much younger and newer organization. It wasn't as weighed down by tradition as its frenemy and had to rely much more on supporting cutting-edge research in order to accelerate the technological development of mechs as much as possible!

The mechers had to play catch-up ever since their Association came into existence. Their relative weakness and their overwhelming drive to make mechs as strong as warships caused their entire organization to become a lot more frenzied about research!

The pressure of all of these conditions shaped the MTA into a massive institution that universally supported research and development activities.

Mech designers as well as other researchers and developers were heavily represented at every level!

Not only that, but Star Designers were pretty much worshiped by any member of the MTA!

Given that Star Designers were known to be the most avid and prolific researchers in the entirety of human civilization, it should be no surprise that their massive influence had caused the MTA to become even more slanted towards research!

Such an intense focus on research trickled down to many different facets of the MTA.

For example, the Paracelsus Optimus dedicated a third of her entire capacity towards research and exploration!

This was a substantial commitment for any warship, particularly a capital ship of this size and scale!

Since Master Dervidian pretty much had free reign over the research operations aboard the Paracelsus Optimus, the powerful and accomplished mech designer made sure to bring them up to his exceedingly high standards.

Only Star Designers had access to better-equipped research facilities!

Of course, that was too far away for someone as Ves. He already became dazzled by the multitude of capabilities at the disposal of the scientists and engineers who had the privilege of working aboard this ultramodern ship.

Ves swiped his hand to call up a detailed information panel. He tapped it a few times to call up the full details of one of the test subjects that had just been teleported into the testing chamber.

"Damn, there's so much detail!

The MTA's sensor systems were so powerful and precise that they could track the activity of individual body cells!

As Ves tapped the projected panel and moved his hand around, he could even summon a complete cross-section of the prisoner's body. All of the person's veins, bones and disgusting body fluids were rendered in such life-like detail that he quickly grew sick.

"Damn, you can see through anyone's body with this tool."

It was a pity that he did not possess a biotech background. Much of the rich and detailed sensor readings looked like gibberish to him. It wasn't really necessary for him to know the coordinates of each and every pimple on a test subject's body.

Compared to remotely peeking inside the prisoner's fleshy form, Ves was much more interested in learning the identity and background of this particular fellow.

The red-haired gentleman stood out from the crowd ever since the latest batch of test subjects appeared in the testing chamber.

It wasn't just his firm bearing and strong demeanor that entranced Ves. It was also the way that the remaining nineteen test subjects all formed ranks and gazed at the red-haired man with a mixture of hope, respect and worship.

Despite their imprisonment and despite falling into the hands of the mechers, these soldiers and mech pilots clearly held true to their impeccable training and the pride they accrued during their upbringing and service.

When Ves finally called up the record of the prisoner, his body almost jerked!

"This is a Rubarthan officer!"

Mech Major Davies Reidhorn was a 120 year old citizen who came from a well-off family in the heart of the New Rubarth Empire!

The Reidhorn Family was not a significant power in the first-rate superstate, but it had a history of sending a portion of its progeny to one of Rubarth's many military branches.

This allowed the family to send Davies Reidhorn to an elite mech academy, where he managed to earn good grades and qualify for officer training.

Davies Reidhorn then entered into service as a second lieutenant and slowly worked his way up. It was not easy to attain promotion in Rubarth's military establishment.

If the mech pilot in question was not a scion of a major family and if he was not insanely talented or brilliant, then a lot of other people got ahead instead.

In a supremely wealthy state like the New Rubarth Empire, the amount of wealthy scions that enjoyed some of the best tutoring and augmentations was quite large!

It was not easy for Davies Reidhorn to stand out compared to his betters. This meant that he had to be patient and accumulate merits over many decades to be in consideration for promotion.

Reaching the rank of mech major after almost a century of constant service was a respectable accomplishment for someone of his background!

Although he might not be too brilliant or skilled in piloting mechs, his rich experience and incredible familiarity with handling mechs, managing people and navigating the politics of his organization meant that he was an immensely valuable human resource.

Davies Reidhorn should have become a general by now if he hailed from a lesser state and military organization!

The man accrued an extensive list of degrees, certifications, commendations, awards and honorable mentions.

If not for the mech officer's strong history and attachment to the New Rubarth Empire, Ves would have been tempted to request Major Reidhorn to be put under his custody.

The Rubarthan captive was an invaluable human resource!

Ves needed highly qualified and highly experienced senior military leaders to oversee the expansion and professionalization of the Larkinson Army.

Although General Verle had done a great job at acquiring new skills and fostering the key military institution's growth, it did not change the fact that he was originally just a third-class mech officer and intelligence operative.

Despite the differences in their rank, a first-class mech major possessed incomparably more knowledge and skills than anyone else in the Larkinson Army.

Not even Commander Casella Ingvar could match the competence and organizational capabilities of a Rubarthan of this stature!

If Ves had to put a price on the value of this human resource, then he would estimate Major Davies Reidhorn's total worth at around 100,000 MTA credits.

What did this mean?

It meant that Ves was willing to pay 100,000 MTA credits to obtain the permanent employment and loyalty of this high-value prisoner!

This was a vague approximation of the amount of money the New Rubarth Empire had invested in the man's education, training and long years of service.

The actual money spent on raising Major Reidhorn to the man he was today could actually be significantly more or less than this ballpark figure. Ves simply couldn't tell as the MTA's detailed records on the man did not go that far into detail.

Regardless, no matter what Major Reidhorn had done to land him in Master Dervidian's clutches, it was an enormous waste to treat him as a disposable test subject.

Ves could think of a hundred better uses for this high-value professional than to dump him in a testing chamber next to the Aspect of Transcendence!

He quickly glanced towards the timer and saw that it had reached 50 seconds.

A sweat broke out from his brow. Ves turned to Master Dervidian.

"Sir… are you sure you want to subject this Rubarthan mech officer to this specific experiment?"

The MTA Master remained unmoved.

"I am always certain about my experimental arrangements. We have already seen how your Aspect of Transcendence affects low-ranking personnel and mech pilots under varying circumstances. In order to gather more comprehensive research data, we must diversify the input so that we can obtain a wider range of responses."

The timer had reached 70 seconds.

"I understand that, but why would you subject someone like him to a test that has produced near-total fatalities with every batch?"

"Because we can." Dervidian replied. "Besides, I have given the Rubarthan test subjects a fighting chance this time. One of my assistants have briefed them all beforehand on what will happen and how they can best resist the effects if they want to retain their lives."

The timer had reached 90 seconds.

Master Dervidian paid more attention to the rising stress levels of every test subject. "The goal is to see whether the fine soldiers of a first-rate superstate are strong enough to resist the most serious effects of the transcendence glow. We will first see how they fare by relying on themselves. I intend for the next batch to endure the same conditions as they are interfacing with their mechs."

The timer had reached 110 seconds, but no head had yet to explode.

Ves became amazed at this result. He temporarily set his appreciation for Major Davies Reidhorn aside and paid closer attention to the physical conditions of the Rubarthan test subjects.

Each of them were still clinging on to their lives!

The transcendence glow had clearly stirred up their spiritualities to the point where storms were about to erupt, but the high-class soldiers relied on their formidable will, training and cognitive augmentations to resist the escalating pressure!

"Fascinating." Master Dervidian uttered. "Rubarthan soldiers generally possess superior grit and mental fortitude compared to their Terran counterparts. They are holding out 20 seconds longer than the preceding batch."

The timer had reached 130 seconds.

However, no matter how many advantages these well-trained Rubarthans possessed, their resistance ultimately failed to suppress the runaway reaction taking place within their vulnerable spiritualities!

BOOM!

The youngest and most junior soldier succumbed to the pressure first!

Amazingly enough, the first explosion did not shock the soldiers or cause any panic within their ranks.

They had endured a lot more grievous circumstances during their training and field deployments.

Combat between first-class mech forces were much more violent and destructive than combat between lesser troops.

A single first-class multipurpose mech armed with powerful weapons could easily lay waste to much of Davute's capital city if left unchecked!

The Rubarthan soldiers had therefore been extensively prepped and trained to remain unfazed even if the entire star system collapsed around them. Even now, they still stuck to their compulsion to remain cool and in control of themselves!

"Hold fast, men!" Major Reidhorn roared! "We are not animals who give in to our baser instincts! We are Rubarthans! We are the chosen people! We are the vanguard of human progress! For the Eternal Emperor!"

"For the Eternal Emperor!"

The timer had reached 160 seconds.

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

As much as Ves became impressed by their attitudes in the face of certain death, their valor and their courage did not stop them from falling victim to their physical and spiritual shortcomings.

One by one, the soldiers all lost their heads and in some cases their upper bodies in the most violent ways possible.

Augmented flesh and implants that were worth as much as the Larkinson Clan's combat carriers continually burst in every direction, only to be blocked and captured by omnipresent force fields.

These protective fields spared the straight-backed soldiers from getting splattered by the remains of their comrades.

As the nineteenth test subject lost his head, only a single person remained alive.

The timer had reached 200 seconds.

Ves became more interested in the surviving test subject than ever!

He no longer considered it a waste to subject valuable manpower to this experiment.

This was an unheard of experimental result!

None of the test subjects in his own experiments ever managed to make it this far without breaking through!

"How is he still alive?!"

Though it became clear that Major Davies Reidhorn was not capable of breaking through to expert candidate, his formidable mind and will nonetheless withstood the most dangerous effect of the transcendence glow!

What a remarkable experimental result!