The Mech Touch

The Hexadric Hegemony and its successor state were both ruled by the six matriarchal dynasties.

These were the modern family organizations that had come to dominate the Hexer people since they established their roots in the Komodo Star Sector four centuries ago. Their power over their own society had become so entrenched that no other Hexer dynasty managed to challenge their rule.

Even the hasty and messy evacuation to the Red Ocean after the Hexers lost the Komodo War did not change this fundamental status quo. The six matriarchal dynasties retained enough of their wealth and power that they thought they could continue to stay on top even as greater developments affected the rest of human society.

They were wrong.

Another influence within the Hex Federation rose up as of late. Many Hexers started to display less deference towards the matriarchal dynasties. This was a concerning trend to the established rulers.

The reason for that was because the Wodin Dynasty continued to gain more prominence due to its inescapable ties with the Supreme Mother, the Daughter of Death and the Supreme Son!

It looked as if the 'divine family' that consisted of the most powerful Supreme, goddess and mortal son wielded far more influence and authority over the Hex Federation than the council of matriarchs nowadays.

From changing the very tenets of Hexer culture to propagating several successful lines of Hexer mechs that have become embedded in their society, the divine family continued to shift more authority away from the council of matriarchs!

This concerned the members of the council a lot. While they found many of the changes to be acceptable and even necessary, there was one development that caused a lot of consternation among the established leaders.

The rise of the Wodin Dynasty threatened to affect the composition of the six matriarchal dynasties!

Normally, the rise of another power shouldn't have concerned the leading Hexer organizations so much.

As long as the Wodin Dynasty grew powerful enough to earn a seat at the table, it shouldn't take that much trouble to turn the six matriarchal dynasties into the seven matriarchal dynasties.

There was just one problem with this change.

It was impossible to depart from the sacred number of '6'!

The very notion that the Hex Federation should be ruled by the seven matriarchal dynasties sounded incredibly wrong!

Due to this cultural abhorrence to such a change, it was not possible to elevate the rapidly rising Wodin Dynasty.

Yet given the current trends, it was also unacceptable to deny the Wodins their rightful place in Hexer society.

This difficult dilemma therefore produced increasingly more consternation among the matriarchs.

Although none of these old and wise female leaders openly discussed this problem amongst themselves, they all knew that there was one possible way to resolve this growing headache.

The Wodin Dynasty just needed to take the place of one of the existing matriarchal dynasties!

It went without saying that this was a distinctly unacceptable solution. The weaker matriarchal dynasties that had not done so well in the transition to the Hex Federation were especially fearful that future developments would force their hand.

This was why it had become especially urgent for the council of matriarchs to have a formal talk with the Supreme Son.

It took a bit of waiting, but the Larkinson Patriarch finally agreed to hold a remote discussion over a secure communication channel.

The six matriarchs gathered together and simultaneously entered a magnificent hall with an exaggeratingly high vaulted ceiling.

Banners and stained glasses that depicted the symbols and historical imagery of all six matriarchal dynasties added a huge amount of solemnity to the chamber.

The most eye-catching feature of the hall was the enormous six-sided council table positioned in the center. Bathed by the defined rays of light from above, the impressive piece of monumental furniture had been hand-carved out of the gigantic trunk of a massive alien tree.

The matriarchs had entered this chamber so many times that the sight no longer impressed them as much as before, but the atmosphere still put them in a more serious mood.

They only ever held important discussions in this council chamber.

Slowly but surely, the matriarchs took their seats.

There was no need for them to go over their plan as they already held this discussion in the past. All six matriarchs agreed to the same consensus on how to approach this critical conversation.

The projection of a single man appeared a short distance away from the council table.

The man emphatically did not appear above them all to avoid any suggestion that the matriarchs had become subordinate to him in any fashion.

"Hello." The man in a red-and-white uniform greeted the six most powerful Hexer leaders as if he was greeting a gaggle of old ladies relaxing in a park. "You sent an urgent request to speak with me, so I contacted you as soon as it was convenient for me. I hope you appreciate the fact that I decided to talk with you women first before everyone else. Now what would you like to discuss?"

It was quite rare for the matriarchs to be addressed in such a direct and irreverent fashion, but there was no helping it. The differences in status had become so great that the Supreme Son could ignore their request to talk without consequences.

Matriarch Alisia Vraken spoke up first. "We would like to congratulate you on your successful promotion to a tier 3 galactic citizen. We have heard much about you. The Red Association has finally recognized your value, and seeks to elevate you to their level sooner rather than later. We have long believed that you were capable of rising so far ahead. It is gratifying to see that one of our staunchest supporters and allies has broken the ceiling that we are still struggling to penetrate ourselves."

The projection of Ves smiled back at them. "1 appreciate your well wishes, but I do not think that this is part of your urgent message."

"No. It is not. Your rapid ascension and rise in status has many implications to our great colonial state. We would like to talk to you and restructure our cooperative relationship with you and your clan before any further changes can occur."

"That is logical. What do you have in mind, matriarch?"

The Vraken Matriarch began to lay the groundwork by explaining the recent developments of the Hex Federation.

It took a bit of time before she was able to get to the meat of the Hex Federation's request.

"...we propose to deepen the ties between our respective organizations by proposing a merger between the Glory Seekers and the Larkinson Clan." The Vraken Matriarch spoke. "The Wodin Dynasty originally founded the Glory Seekers as a bodyguard unit for your cherished wife. Our soldiers have always undertaken their duty with great sincerity and willingness. They have remained side-by-side with your Larkinson troops and have made considerable sacrifices in order to further your ambitions. What we are asking from you is to recognize and honor the contributions made by our Glory Seekers by absorbing them into your clan. We... are also willing to transfer the right to command our ace pilot. For as long as the Glory Seekers remain a part of your clan, Saintess Ulrika Vraken will be at your disposal."

The reaction from the Larkinson Patriarch was not as dramatic as the matriarchs hoped. This was not a good sign. It showed that he or one of his advisors had already anticipated this development.

What was even worse was that he may have already made up his mind on this issue!

Ves eventually shook his head. "You need the Saintess more than I. Our armed forces are already large and powerful enough to meet our basic needs. While I admit that gaining an ace pilot is an attractive prospect, you probably aren't that well-informed if you think that will make a significant difference. My clan can take care of this deficiency by itself. It is more important for you to retain all of the ace pilots that you currently have. You will need their strength in the times to come."

The matriarchs all felt displeased at the rejection, though they knew better than to show their irritation.

A silent discussion ensued between the matriarchs. The Supreme Son's rejection was a missed opportunity for the Hex Federation.

Matriarch Jocelyne Amorte spoke up next.

"We would like to know as much as you are willing to share. We do not have any direct channels to individuals who attended the Survivalist conference. This has caused us to be out of the loop of the decisions made during this important event."

"I will draft a small information package that should give you a bit more advance warning of what is to come." Ves easily agreed. "That is the least 1 can do for you all. The war between red humanity and the native aliens will come to dominate our entire society in the following years."

That was a nice bonus, but it was far from what the matriarchs sought to gain from the Supreme Son.

The Amorte Matriarch decided to unveil an alternative offer.

"Your clan is growing stronger, but it is still lacking in territorial holdings. The branch that you have established in the Davute System is fairly strong and sizable, but you do not control the city and planet where it is based. We would like to offer you a better alternative that should suit the long-term needs of your clan much better."

"Oh? What do you propose?"

"We have held a long discussion with Matriarch Xiaphna Wodin and Madame Constance Wodin. The two have agreed to entertain the possibility of merging their Wodin Dynasty with the Larkinson Clan. The groundwork is already there. Not only are you married to a member of the Wodin Dynasty, but your daughters already carry the name of the merged family organization! By combining the strengths and holdings of the Larkinsons and the Wodins, you can establish an immortal dynasty that transcends all boundaries and limitations!"

The projection of Ves looked a bit taken aback by the proposal. The proposed Wodin-Larkinson Dynasty had the potential to combine the best of both peoples.

Unfortunately, it did not appear that the Larkinson Patriarch saw the same benefits.

"I do not think it is a good idea to merge my clan with one of your dynasties." The man responded. "Before you object or try to persuade me further, please hear me out. I am not trying to stifle your colonial state or seek to turn my back on you now that I do not necessarily need your assistance anymore. I just think that it is not appropriate for you to seek further advantages by asking for my help."

The matriarchs around the council table began to frown.

"What is your suggestion, then?"

"Pay attention to the New Elites Program announced by the Red Association. As much as you dislike it, warlords are the rulers of the future. You should follow this trend rather than dismiss it out of hand. Rather than begging for handouts from me and my clan, it is better for you to turn your best mech armies into deep strike forces. As long as you are daring enough and as long as your forces are strong enough, you will be able to make all of the gains you want. You can even defeat the Friday Colonies and take over its territories as long as your troops do well enough against the aliens!"

In other words, it was better for the Hex Federation to work hard to gain more power on its own than to beg for scraps from the Larkinson Patriarch that was moving increasingly further out of reach.

Although the matriarchs could all agree with this sentiment, it was still difficult for them to let this powerful opportunity pass by. Inadequate diplomacy had been one of the driving reasons why they lost the Komodo War. The Hexers were intent on avoiding this mistake this time.

Although they had few real friends, the Larkinson Clan was a notable exception. Establishing closer ties with the Larkinsons was probably their best way to gain persistent access and support from a rising first-class power!