The Mech Touch

Chapter 6335  Meddling Witch

Saint Tusa may have reluctantly agreed to wield the tier 3 Destroyer spear in combat as a last resort, but that did not mean that he and his battle partner could start to practice with it right away.

The ace pilot needed to undergo a lot of training and preparation. He could never match the preparations made by elite Terrans mech pilots, but he could at least make a start in order to increase his chances of successfully taming the weapon in the short term.

Wielding a tier 3 Destroyer weapon was an intimidating prospect even to a normally confident ace pilot like Tusa. The time he spent fighting alongside other Terran mech forces had given him a much greater appreciation for these special weapons and their dedicated wielders.

The discipline and fanaticism of the Terran wielders reminded Tusa of the Swordmaidens and the Heavensworders in the Larkinson Clan.

They had all dedicated their lives to mastering their chosen weapons and weapon styles. The difference was that the Terrans who earned the right to wield Destroyer weapons were a lot more specialized.

Saint Tusa was very different from these kinds of soldiers and warriors. He was not necessarily lazy or undisciplined, but his mentality and attitude towards weapon mastery was a lot different.

It was not necessary for him to completely overhaul his attitude and so on in order to effectgively wield the tier 3 Destroyer spear.

However, he did have to make an earnest attempt to adapt to the burden of wielding this powerful Destroyer weapon if he did not want to get disintegrated by it in turn.

This was not an easy task for Tusa. Most Terran wielders tended to start with wielding a low-tier Destroyer weapon and steadily work their way up if they successfully managed to break through. Doing this step-by-step massively reduced the risks as the wielders never came in touch with weapons that were way too prone to exploding in their faces.

When Ves learned about Tusa's initial difficulties, he quickly arranged a solution by relying on his connections.

"Tusa. I have good news for you. There is no need for you to do a lot of studying, meditating or whatever. I found a much more effective way for you to get used to wielding Destroyer weapons."

"Oh? What did you manage to arrange?"

"The Devos Ancient Clan has stationed an elite mech unit in New Constantinople that is armed with a mix of tier 7 and tier 6 Destroyer weapons. The Devosans even have an expert mech that is armed with a tier 5 Destroyer sword. They are willing to loan you these arms and let you get used to harnessing Destroyer particles at a much lower intensity. The only problem is that you can only make use of these weapons while you are still in New Constantinople. Once we depart, you will have to relinquish the Destroyer weapons to the Devosans."

Saint Tusa's eyes lit up when he heard about this offer. "This will definitely help! There is only so much I can do without actually touching and wielding a Destroyer weapon myself. There is a big jump between a tier 5 and a tier 3 Destroyer weapon, but that is better than starting from nothing."

The ace pilot did not waste any time after he learned about this development. He entered the cockpit of the Dark Zephyr and flew straight towards a nearby military base owned by the Devos Ancient Clan so that he could begin to practice with wielding the weaker Destroyer weapons right away.

With that taken care of, Ves sought to look for additional ways to strengthen his protection during the upcoming trip to Yernstall.

Unfortunately, few if any of his allies had any forces to spare.

Well, they could technically loan out more troops to him, but that would result in weakening their own defenses, thereby making themselves more vulnerable to targeted attacks and such. They all needed to guard against their own enemies.

Ves could not ask his friends to prioritize his needs over their own unless he gave them a strong enough incentive to change their minds.

In the end, he only managed to gain relatively small concessions from multiple different parties.

The Red Fleet agreed to place 4 frigates under the command of Captain Zonrad Reze. The frigates possessed very limited armaments, but they were fast and excellent at scouting adjacent star systems. They could also potentially be used to evacuate Ves if the worst case scenario occurred.

The Devos Ancient Clan agreed to send 3 combat carriers, each containing 20 first-class multipurpose mechs for a total of 60 machines.

The Streon Ancient Clan was located further away, and could only divert 1 combat carrier containing the standard amount of 20 first-class multipurpose mechs.

The Gaia Coven was able to call up and transfer 1 combat carrier with 20 first-class multipurpose mechs on short notice as well.

The Pantheon of Modern Gods also transferred a single combat carrier with 20 first-class multipurpose mechs.

The difference with this particular troop of first-class mechs was that all of the machines happened to be significantly lighter and faster than usual. They all hailed from the Temple of Light that was devoted to the worship of the Light of Sol, hence why all of the machines emphasized mobility.

The first-class multipurpose mechs fielded by the other groups all had their own quirks. Ves could study their individual properties at a later time.

For now, Ves quickly exhausted a large amount of social capital just to obtain this help.

He appreciated the assistance a lot, though he found it regretful that certain other parties declined to render him any assistance.

Ves was pretty sure that most of them had the forces to spare. They just did not want to give him any favors or secretly wish that he suffered a mishap.

It was times like these that Ves truly learned who he could count upon when he was in trouble.

"Do not blame them too much." Professor Vector Loban told Ves a few days before the highly anticipated departure date. "Ever since the 3rd defensive band collapsed, the Red Association and the Red Fleet pushed all of these parties to send out as many of their remaining combat-ready forces to the front. They had to hollow out their planetary defense units, their elite bodyguards and their reserves in order to reinforce the 4th defensive band so that we could finally force the native aliens to slow down their operational tempo. The forces they have left in the hinterland of human space are already inadequate."

That was all true. The Red War had affected human space in increasingly more intrusive and obvious ways. Ves was isolated from most of these changes as he spent most of his time in Diandi Base nowadays, but he was not entirely unaware of what was happening outside.

"I still feel a bit upset about this." Ves frowned. "I mean, can't you really spare one or two ace pilots? I may be technically a tier 3 galactic citizen, but with the stuff I have been involved with lately, surely I have earned a promotion several times over. It is inexcusable to deny me the right to promote to a tier 2 galactic citizen."

"For what it is worth, I agree with you, Ves. The problem is that the block that forcibly prevents any of us from doing so is still in effect. So long as the Evolution Witch's directive is still in place, your galactic citizenship may not rise any higher than tier 3 unless you have successfully realized your design philosophy."

"DAMNIT! That woman is putting me in a lot of unnecessary danger because of her demand! Doesn't she realize how much our future hinges on my continued safety and survival? If anything happens to me, you can say goodbye to Carmine mechs and a lot of other cool stuff! Removing me from the board will be just as devastating to red humanity as losing access to the Polymath!"

Perhaps Ves was exaggerating a bit, but he still stood by his point. His current level of importance far exceeded the standards of tier 3 galactic citizens.

He knew about plenty of other people at the same tier, and they were practically nobodies in comparison to Ves!

Unfortunately, nobody possessed the courage to confront the Evolution Witch and tell her to remove her block on Ves.

"As a Transhumanist, I believe I can deduce a part of her motivations why she has continued to maintain this block despite the fact that you are under greater threat than ever before."

Ves crossed his arms. "Let me guess. She wants to 'encourage' me to waste as little time as a Senior Mech Designer as possible and do my best to break the Polymath's record by advancing to the rank of Master Mech Designer as quickly as possible."

"That is certainly one reason. Another reason is that she believes that the true potential of any human can only be drawn out through intense self-preservation. Just as the Evolution Witch worked hard to stay at least one step ahead of her demise resulting from her congenital deficiencies, she may hold the belief that you will only do your very best if you are under serious threat and strongly desire to gain more strength to remedy this problem."

Ves let out an exasperated sigh. "I am not unfamiliar with that reasoning. I partially founded the Larkinson Clan based on this ideology. There is a limit to everything, though. This approach may work well for a mech pilot, but I'm a mech designer! I am a non-combatant! Acute threats should never be used to motivate a mech designer to work harder!"

"I agree with you." Vector said. "My life is on the line as well, as all of the designers of the Swarm Project are obliged to attend the product reveal as well. I cannot say that the Evolution Witch is strictly wrong on this matter. You have a history of ending up in trouble, only for you to rise above the occasion. This has occurred often enough that it has become an established pattern rather than a chain of coincidences."

"I thought I already left that kind of life behind me! My value to society is no longer in question anymore. This is the reason why you mechers insisted on relocating me to a safer star system like New Constantinople. Why contradict that by imperiling me? It doesn't make any sense!"

"It makes sense when you understand that the Red Association is divided. The Red War has failed to unite us all. At most, the pressure of an overwhelming common enemy has brought us closer to each other, but that is still far from forming a central command. The Survivalists have always insisted on raising your galactic citizenship, but the Evolution Witch and subsequently the Transhumanists under her sway are all convinced that you must prove yourself in the crucible of war to transcend your mortal limitations."

Ves felt sick to his stomach. "Again, you're talking as if I am a gung-ho trigger-happy mech pilot! I am not! I am a serene and erudite mech designer, just like you! We don't belong on the battlefield!"

"Some people characterize you as a mech pilot in the body of a mech designer. Your eventful history and record certainly strengthens this impression. Besides, you are a phase lord as well. You are not strictly a non-combatant anymore. If nothing else, the pressure of conflict may cause your phasewater concentration to grow."

"I don't think it works that way." Ves grumbled.

He was starting to grow tired of the Evolution Witch and her radical ideology. Her insistence on meddling with his life was not only infuriating, but downright life-threatening!

Ves couldn't wait to raise one of his Larkinson champions into a god pilot!

Only when he had the backing of a god pilot of his own would he finally be able to throw off the yoke of the Evolution Witch's 'tender' mercies!