The Mech Touch



"Warborn!"

"Warborn!"

"Warborn!"

From the moment that General Ark Larkinson announced the name of their new mech division, the troops under his command embraced it with great enthusiasm!

The large proportion of Larkinsons and Crossers within the ranks practically ensured that the culture of the newly established mech division would have a strong enthusiasm for combat.

Their extensive experiences in the battles of the Golden Skull Alliance had forged them into brave fighters who did not back down in the face of a tough challenge!

Once the short ceremony came to an end, the party had begun. While the rank-and-file began to partake in drinks and bond with each other, the guests and the most important members of the Warborn Mech Division began to mingle with each other.

"Warborn, huh?" Ves said as he met up with his uncle. "What an interesting name. Did Patriarch Reginald Cross insist upon it or something? It doesn't seem like a name that you would choose."

General Ark Larkinson smiled back as he faced his brother's son. "Then what name do you think I should bestow upon my troops, Ves?"

"Maybe one that is associated with honor or defense. You used to be known as an honorable protector of the Bright Republic back when we were still living in our home state."

"That was the case in the past, but our circumstances are different nowadays." Ark responded. "The Bright Republic at the time was a state that was regularly besieged by the Vesia Kingdom. The latter had always been the one to violate our borders and invade our territories. Our Mech Corps had no choice but to employ defensive strategies to resist the generational onslaught. We also had to rely heavily on values such as honor and duty to maintain our fighting spirit. Without strengthening our willingness to fight, the Bentheim System would have fallen long ago. Now that I have told you this, do you think that Davute is in the same position?"

Ves briefly paused as he swirled the glass of champagne in his hand. "Hm, I see what you mean. Davute and Karlach are much different. While there are rumors that the latter has raised a stronger military, there should definitely be opportunities for the former to launch offensives and counter offensives."

"Defending a star system is always easier than attacking one." General Ark told the younger Larkinson. "What the Federal Military needs the most are assault and breakthrough units that can overcome the initial defenses of a fortified location and create enough space for follow-up units to establish beachheads in enemy territory. I have chosen for my Warborn to assume this important role."

"That… is quite daring of you. Won't your men suffer a lot of casualties by assuming this dangerous job? The attrition rates will be horrendous. I very much doubt that most clansmen in the Davute Branch are willing to turn themselves into cannon fodder."

Ark shook his head. "As I have mentioned before, the Warborn Mech Division is not for the faint of heart. We only accept qualified volunteers. If there are Larkinsons who want to serve in the military but do not meet our standards, there are many other mech regiments and mech divisions that welcome their talents."

This sounded different from what Ves expected. He did not know that General Ark would be willing to take such extremes and shape his mech division into a bloody fighting unit.

"Why go this far?" Ves seriously asked. "I doubt that you are doing this because your higher ups are forcing your new troops to assume this dangerous role."

"You are correct. My staff and I have discussed long and hard on how we wish to contribute to the war effort. We eventually chose to specialize in assault for multiple reasons. Many of our veterans from the Larkinson Clan and the Cross Clan are already accustomed to launching attacks. We have fought very little protracted defensive battles. We are not suited to fight battles of attrition, so it is better that we avoid them as much as possible."

Ves firmly nodded. Battles of attrition could drag on for months and leave a huge amount of devastation behind. It took a different mindset for soldiers to take part in grueling campaigns where the ownership of a contested star system could swing back and forth several times.

"What else, Ark?"

"Another important reason is because we are the few soldiers who can do this well." General Ark smiled in a grim fashion. "The Warborn Mech Division is not a militia or a second-line unit. Our mech pilots are better. Our mechs are stronger. Our funding is higher. The Federal Military is willing to provide us with greater funding and infrastructural support. As an ancient myth has once taught, with great power comes great responsibility. Since our Warborn are elites, we are obliged to undertake the missions that only elites can fulfill. We have a clear understanding about this matter with the higher ups of our colonial state."

The upcoming war against Karlach was bound to be a survival test for Davute. The latter could not afford to fool around and squander its resources. It was undeniable that the Federal Military lavished the Warborn with funding, carrier vessels and other forms of support. A lot of other military mech units would become incredibly dissatisfied if General Ark's troops chose to sit in the rear and garrison a safe planet after all of this investment!

"I suppose Patriarch Reginald Cross had a large voice in deciding the combat orientation of the Warborn." Ves said in a mild voice.

General Ark did not deny this guess. "He is… a fervent warrior. His men are much the same. I am gratified that he and his Crossers are in full support of this direction. Together with my grasp of the Larkinsons under my command, I am in full control of the Warborn."

"Is that truly the case?" Ves sounded skeptical. "Your mech division answers to the Federal Military, you know."

"That is true, but its management of the External Group is not as strict as you think. The mech units that fall under this category enjoy varying degrees of autonomy and choice depending on our specific contracts and agreements. There will not be a case where high command will deliberately drive us to our deaths."

Ves smirked. "Davute can't afford to piss off the groups that have joined its side. If the higher ups are stupid enough to do so, then more soldiers will join Karlach instead. I'm sure that the importance of our clan will play a large role in how high command will treat your Warborn."

The intermingling between politics and military affairs was a fact of life. General Ark Larkinson didn't like it, but he was not naive enough to assume he could avoid this phenomenon entirely.

"Even if we have the freedom to reduce our participation in the war, I do not intend to maximize our downtine." The expert pilot and general explained. "The most important reason why I want our Warborn to take this route is because completing assault missions will allow us to earn the most war merits. Davute has formulated many rules with regards to assigning credit for many different war accomplishments. The more war merits we are able to earn, the more territories we can claim for our Davute Branch."

So that was General Ark's game. Ves knew that his uncle wouldn't risk the lives of so many clansmen without a good reason. He bet that the Cross Clan was also eager to gain a lot of territory.

"I can understand why you would want to be more proactive in the upcoming war. The main branch of our clan has embraced this approach a lot earlier than you and your new mech division. What puzzles me is why you are willing to risk the lives of so many of our clansmen and the other people under your command. I don't know how many of the men that have chosen to follow you into combat will survive in the end. Is it truly worth it to sacrifice so many lives just to gain the right to control a few planets and star systems?"

General Ark responded with a stern smile. "We cannot repeat the mistakes made by our ancestors who founded and established our original Larkinson Family. They had the ambition but not the courage to do what was necessary. Our family members had the chance to become a part of the power structure of the Bright Republic, but instead turned into its unwitting tools. Now that we have learned our lesson, I intend to work harder and ensure that we can gain our own territories that we can convert into our permanent strongholds. The Davute Branch may not be important to you, but it means everything to myself and many of our old family members."

Ves couldn't pretend to approve this stance.

"The Colonial Federation of Davute is not any better than the Bright Republic, you know that? The only reason why Davute is treating us better is because we are more useful to the state. This will change as soon as we suffer an enormous setback."

His uncle remained unmoved, however.

"You can say that about any state, Ves. I am not blind or ignorant. I have traveled to enough states to understand that the paradise we seek is a fantasy. The best we can hope for is to earn the right to govern our own planets so that we can do the best we can to build our own homeland. To many people, this is a better alternative than turning ourselves into permanent space nomads."

"At least our fleet is not subject to the whims of others." Ves retorted.

This was an old and familiar argument. Ves and Ark had spoken about this topic plenty of times, so neither of them were willing to rehash it as there was no possibility that they would change their minds.

The fact of the matter was that Ves could never understand and agree with his uncle's unreasonable obsession with serving in the military of an ordinary state. Why wasn't Ark able to recognize that the Larkinson Clan was already transitioning into a state of sorts as well?

It was as if Ark and many of the old-timers among the Larkinsons were completely ignorant of the spaceborn way of life!

Oh well.

The two leaders among the Larkinsons continued to chat with each other.

General Ark soon voiced an important request for his newly established mech division.

"Have you taken a look at our mechs?" He asked. "We have deliberately chosen to embrace your living mechs as much as possible. While we cannot avoid the use of mechs designed and sold by the Cross Clan and other third parties, we are fully committed to using your works as our mainstay mech models."

"I am glad that you are willing to entrust the lives of your troops to my mechs." Ves responded with a smile.

"There is just one issue, Ves." Ark leaned closer. "Our Warborn Mech Division can obtain your commercial mechs easily enough from the Davute Branch, but that is not comprehensive enough for our needs. I would like to ask you to give us the authorization to procure the mechs that can help us even further. I am talking about the models that have never flowed outside of our clan such as the Transcendent Punisher and the Second Sword. I am aware that I am asking for much, but we need your best works to minimize the casualties among the brave Larkinson soldiers that are fighting for a better future for our fellow clansmen."

That caused Ves to frown. "That is not appropriate, Ark. There are good reasons why those Larkinson-exclusive mech models are restricted to our clan. The more they are spread, the more our enemies can study their properties. That will make it much easier for our forces to suffer defeat in the long run. We already got ambushed by the likes of the Fridaymen in the past. I can't rule out that a similar attack will happen in the future. Our exclusive mech models must not become transparent to all of our adversaries."

Ark was not willing to settle for this answer.

"We need your mechs, Ves. We will suffer many more casualties if we have to resort to lesser mech models. Please do this for our family's sake. Your father would want you to support our family in every way you can. You will be able to save the lives of many Larkinsons as long as you say yes."

"..."