The Mech Touch

The return trip proceeded fairly quickly. The Bluejay Fleet did not include any laggards, so the superdrive-equipped warships were all able to enter the Torvald Middle Zone at an impressive speed!

It helped a lot that the faster destroyers were able to generate portals that could instantly bring the slower Tarrasque and other heavier vessels to another location.

Using a daisy chain of portals, the Bluejay Fleet managed to reach the Corellix System in just two days!

Ves felt rather strange and out of place when the Bluejay Fleet emerged out of the final portal.

In a little over a week, his life had completely changed.

He arrived at the conference as a relatively minor and forgettable tier 6 galactic citizen.

He left the conference as the youngest and most impactful tier 3 galactic citizen!

Ves managed to present so many contributions to the Survivalist Faction during the conference that even the highest layers appreciated his work!

He managed to earn a huge amount of gratitude from the top figures of humanity such as the Xenotechnician and the Fist of Defiance.

These were legendary names that he previously considered to be unapproachable!

To be able to get onto speaking terms with these immensely powerful True Gods was an accomplishment that could already make most people feel as if they had fulfilled their life's mission!

Given everything that happened to him, it became inevitable that his return turned into a much greater spectacle than his departure.

"HAIL THE PATRIARCH OF THE LARKINSON CLAN!"

"LET US CELEBRATE THE RETURN OF OUR NEWLY MINTED TIER 3 GALACTIC CITIZEN!"

"THE LARKINSON CLAN SHALL SOAR TO GREATER HEIGHTS UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF OUR PATRIARCH!"

Ves teleported into a large hall within the Spirit of Bentheim that had been covered with festive decorations.

Projected Larkinson mechs floated above everyone's heads as they showcased their moments in recent battles.

Banners that proudly depicted the head of the Golden Cat and other related Larkinson symbols hung on invisible poles and inspired greater pride among the clansmen.

Children dressed in colorful outfits happily clapped as they shared in the excitement of their parents.

Even the cats that occupied an undeniable place in the expeditionary fleet had come dressed with eye-catching collars and ribbons!

Though Ves was not in the mood to take part in a bombastic celebration, he realized that his recent rise in status had made an enormous impact on the members of his clan.

Many of them joined the clan and fought under his command because they were all hopeful that he could lift them from their average lives and uplift them to the top of human society!

Ves had dangled this promise in front of their eyes for so long that they felt incredibly fulfilled now that he succeeded in piercing through an important barrier!

Now that he was on the fast-track to becoming a first-rater, the remaining clansmen all expected that he would be able to pull them up as well.

That actually made Ves feel guilty and apprehensive. 5000 single-use EdNet slots was far from enough to meet the demand of almost a million earnest members of the Larkinson Clan.

Even if he limited his selection to the active serving members of the main branch, the amount of quotas would barely be able to satisfy more than a fraction of eligible candidates!

Ves was afraid of what would happen once he revealed the harsh truth to all of his clansmen.

It also resolved his determination to find a better way to accommodate the desires and ambitions of his people.

All thoughts about leaving them behind and forgetting about their needs went into the garbage chute.

Here in the midst of so many people that had chosen to become a part of his rapidly growing family, Ves could not bring himself to distance himself from the Larkinsons.

"Ves!" A female voice sounded from the side!

A smaller and slimmer form closed in like a missile and embraced Ves in a warm and affectionate hug!

An entirely new and floral scent flooded his nose as Ves looked into the eyes of his adoring wife.

Their heads came closer until they kissed in full view of the public.

"I missed you so much, dear." Gloriana adoringly said as she finally gave her husband a bit of space. "We could hardly believe the messages that you have sent back, but the reactions from other parties have made it clear that you have truly earned the recognition of the mechers. The Terrans and the Rubarthans have become especially appreciative of your actions. Is it true that you prevented the Polymath from destroying the Hex Federation as well as the first-rate colonial superstates?!"

Ves nodded. "The proposal that the Polymath tried to get passed by everyone contains a few elements that many find problematic."

"So it is true! You bravely stood up to her in order to preserve the Hex Federation and keep Hexer culture alive! You truly are your mother's son. The matriarchs back home have invited you to attend a virtual audience with them. You can initiate contact with them anytime once you have freed enough time. Do not keep them waiting for long, dear-"

Gloriana pecked him in the cheek as if he had been a good boy before letting others have their turn.

"Papa!"

"Paaapaaa!"

"Wheee! You're finally back!"

"Miaow!"

Three children of various sizes quickly glomped Ves from various directions. The father couldn't help but laugh in delight as he became reunited with his most cherished family after more than a week of separation.

All thoughts of costs, benefits, sacrifices and compromises completely left his mind as he immersed himself in the warmth of love and family.

He missed this. He truly missed this. Family was the best part of his life. Nothing else came closer in importance to him. He had spent so much time among the scheming and calculative mechers that he had almost forgotten what he was truly fighting for all of this time.

Ves felt even more alienated from the Red Association now that he became confronted by such a strong contrast.

"Did you get to meet with the Fist of Defiance in person?!" Little Andraste pulled him out of his thoughts by tugging on his arm. "What about the Destroyer of Worlds? People are saying that you have become friends with her somehow because both of you adore cats. Is it true?! Why didn't you tell us about that, papaaaaaaa"

Ves chuckled as he ruffled his red-headed daughter's hair. "I have never met with the god pilots directly. They are far too busy to meet with the likes of me. Don't listen to the nonsense that other people say. I barely know either god pilots."

"Liar! You're so mean!"

Aurelia tugged at his other arm. "Papa, did you make a lot of friends during the conference? So many different people have contacted our clan lately. I've even started to receive thousands of mails into my account. Some of them even propose to arrange a marriage so that we can merge our Larkinson Clan with their own group."

"What?! Don't reply to those messages. You are way too young to think about that kind of stuff! Besides, these are all opportunists who solely think about taking advantage of the expanded rights and privileges of our clan."

His oldest daughter responded with a shrewd smile. "I already know that. Mama has made sure to redirect those messages to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs."

That was the right decision to make. Even if the Larkinsons wanted to reject an unwelcome offer, they had to do so in a diplomatic and inoffensive way.

Marvaine demanded his father's attention next.

"Did you get to see and talk about any cool first-class mechs at the conference?!"

Ves laughed as he picked up his boy and held him to his chest. "I didn't actually get to examine too many of them up close. I spent much of my time talking or listening to other people talk. That's what conferences are actually about. 1 brought you a gift, though." "What is it, papa!?"

"Have you seen the fleet of RA warships that are parked next to our own fleet? They are part of a powerful new escort fleet that is assigned to protect me on a permanent basis. While they don't have a lot of available internal space, the warships have brought along 45 first-class multipurpose mechs! Each of them are really powerful, you know. If you want, I can let you take a closer look at them when there is enough time to go on a tour."

"Really?!"

"I promise, Marvaine. I first need to take care of a lot of other stuff."

"Please hurry up, papa! I love the mechs you make, but first-class mechs are cool as well!"

As Ves finished handling his kids, he inwardly shook his head after he roughly figured out what sort of stories they heard from various sources.

The amount of information that the public managed to learn was fairly limited, but more than expected.

What truly annoyed him was that the upper echelon of red humanity had become fully aware of his existence. It only dawned upon him now how much that complicated the lives of his clansmen.

The huge amount of attention was entirely because of Ves alone. The others did not merit all of this attention and weren't properly equipped to fend off all of the increased interest.

All of that meant that Ves needed to take charge and resolve all of the headaches that he had caused for his clan.

Once he managed to get his cute little brats off his back, he was able to speak briefly with other key figures.

General Verle did not entirely look pleased. "The only reason why our fleet hasn't been flooded with starships dispatched by other groups is because our current location is too remote and far away from major population hubs. That will change in the coming weeks as starships carrying envoys from Terran Ancient Clans and Rubarthan Principalities will start to crowd the surrounding space. If not for the fact that you brought an entirely new escort fleet back with you, I would be panicking a lot more from within."

Ves raised his arm and patted Verle on the shoulder. "1 apologize that I am adding to your stress. I didn't exactly plan for all of this either. We need to have a much more extensive discussion about the future of our armed forces and our plans for the future, but that can wait."

Calabast arrived next. She looked as attractive as ever in her black uniform.

"I think you should have a good idea on how much attention we have attracted." She spoke in a neutral tone. "While there is indeed much for us to celebrate about, I am afraid that you have taken my suggestion of adopting a higher profile considerably further than either of us could have imagined. Did you at least make a decent attempt at restraining yourself during the conference?"

"Hey! I tried my best, you know! It's not my fault that the mechers are the ones who tried to squeeze more contributions out of me. I don't regret the choices that I have made. We just need to navigate our way forward from this point. I am sure that everything will be fine."

"Uh-huh. We need to have a long talk later on. I do not think you understand the magnitude of the vortex that you have pulled us into. Your actions have caused us to end up in the middle of the persistent rivalry between the Red Two and the first-rate colonial superstates. We need to maintain a careful balancing act if we want to stay in their good graces."

"I don't see any problem with that. This was our original intention in the first place. 1 just advanced the timeline by a couple of decades. So long as we can make friends with all of them, we can derive four times as many benefits as if he only stayed chummy with the Red Association."

"It doesn't quite work that way, Ves."