The Mech Touch

No serious incidents took place as Task Force Fury and the Golden Skull Alliance successfully departed from the Friday Coalition's sphere of influence.

Just as the intelligence indicated, none of the coalition partners mustered up any forces to pursue the powerful attackers that had devastated Pima Prime.

The surprise attack and the resulting devastation still provoked a lot of arguments, accusations, recriminations and grief among many people.

The rivalry between the Fridaymen and the Hexers became stoked once again. The latter might have lost the Komodo War, but their overall strength in the Red Ocean was not weak!

The Larkinson Clan hardly took notice of the rising tension between the two archenemies.

As the fleet of the Golden Skull Alliance finally split away from the ships of the Hex Army, everything slowly appeared to go back to normal.

The clansmen were already beginning to move beyond the previous operation and started to prepare for the Trailblazer Expedition that should have started months ago according to the original schedule.

The biggest priorities of the Larkinsons were to digest the huge amount of plunder and other gains from Operation Saturday Market while doing their best to recover their strength in the short term.

Many different people and institutions in the clan were already doing their part to make up for the losses.

The Diligent Ovenbird became preoccupied with conducting emergency repairs on the broken combat carriers, most of which had to be towed by the capital ships in order to keep up with the fleet.

The Larkinson Navy along with other relevant departments were contacting a slew of shipbrokers, ship wholesalers and shipbuilding companies to acquire as many carrier vessels as possible.

The Larkinson Clan's vastly improved reputation and recognition helped to open a lot of doors.

The chances that the Larkinsons could obtain even more combat carriers than they originally started with became a lot higher due to their impressive performance in the previous battle!

The repair work on damaged mechs and the production of replacement units proceeded without any issue. The clan excelled at working with mechs so something had to go seriously wrong if it couldn't even replenish its mech casualties.

The main fleet already stocked enough parts and materials to quickly produce enough mechs in-house.

The Hammerworks Manufacturing Complex situated inside the Cat Nest had also been tasked with producing a lot of mechs, ship parts and other goods to facilitate the clan's restoration effort.

Even the Larkinson Clan's external partners such as Melmen Advanced Systems had agreed to produce high-quality replacement parts to repair the Larkinson expert mechs that had incurred serious damage.

It wasn't just the mechs and starships that were being fixed or replaced. The clan also put a lot of effort into meeting the needs of its own people.

The soldiers and their families organized funerals and memorial services for the dead.

"Our journey through human space and beyond is a struggle." General Verle solemnly spoke as he stood in front of a row of coffins. "Our clan never had it easy since it came into being. Each of us have joined it with the hope and expectation of reaching the top of human society, but society does not want us to rise above our station."

The uniformed servicemen all stood still as their thoughts about their fallen comrades began to make way for thoughts about their future trajectory.

"Whether they are pirates, Fridaymen, Garleners, Vulcanites or aliens, anyone might emerge one day and stand in our way. The only way for us to break this blockade is to fight the enemies that wish to drag us down. Many times we have succeeded, and many times we have paid the price for our defiance. This time is no different. We have bled. We have suffered. We have persevered. Let us honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice by remembering them. Each of them are heroes for contributing to the survival and prosperity of the rest of us. REMEMBER THEIR NAMES!"

"REMEMBER!"

"REMEMBER!"

"REMEMBER!"

The mourning period was intense but short. As far as the clan was concerned, the living deserved a lot more attention than the dead. Funerals had become somewhat of a semi-regular routine to many clansmen, so the overall mood soon lightened up after the most immediate scars of the battle had begun to fade.

The survivors also required a lot of attention. Those who sustained injuries in the previous battle all received the care they needed from the Larkinson Biotech Institute.

People who received significant mental trauma began to step on the road of recovery. The Larkinson Clan had inherited the belief of the old family that showering traumatized individuals with love and attention was the best way to make everything right.

While this wasn't completely true, there were dedicated departments in the clan that closely monitored and controlled the interactions of potential problem cases.

Jannzi naturally fell under their gaze. It was extremely unhealthy for her to spend over half of her waking hours inside a secure storage compartment while pressing her body against the remnant head of the Shield of Samar.

The Larkinsons pretty much dragged her listless body away from this dreary place and forced her to spend time with her husband Adenau and her son Mercer.

She also had to attend therapy sessions in order to make sure she received professional help and guidance.

"I love you, mommy." A cute little boy sat on Jannzi's lap and hugged his mother.

"I love you too, Mercer." A brittle smile appeared on Jannzi's face as the overflowing love from her baby boy caused her to set aside her depressing thoughts.

As the expeditionary fleet steadily left the Magair Middle Zone and returned to the Krakatoa Middle Zone, many other ships and fleets always made sure to keep their distance from the dangerous alliance.

Different from last time, the Golden Skull Alliance were no longer considered to be one among many pioneering groups.

The Larkinsons, Glory Seekers and especially the Crossers had shown that they could threaten entire colonies and potentially cause the downfall of entire colonial states!

The colorful history of the Golden Skull Alliance only added to its intimidation factor. Its inexplicable involvement with the Vulcan Empire was particularly concerning as the once-famous dwarven state collapsed shortly afterwards!

The Larkinsons gained a lot of confidence from these reactions. Their self-esteem and belief in their own strength and values rose significantly in the past few weeks.

All of the mech pilots that had participated in the battle also experienced a lot of growth. So many of them had been rookies a month ago, but now that they had gone through a baptism of fire, they finally received the recognition they craved from the seasoned veterans of the Larkinson Army.

"Venerable Imon!" Lanie Larkinson stood up and saluted the new arrival. "I didn't expect you to pay a visit to me. Please forgive the mess."

The pilot ready room was anything but a mess, but Lanie had become flustered as one of the heroes of the Larkinson Clan stepped inside while she was completely unprepared.

Venerable Imon casually waved her hand. "Relax. This isn't a formal meeting or anything. I was in the neighborhood, so I just decided to stop by and find out how you are doing. You learned a lot from me, and I still recognize many echoes of my skills in your previous battle performance. That makes you my apprentice or student I suppose. Anyway, what did you think of your first battle?"

"It… was exciting." Lanie honestly said. "A few of the rookies among the Avatars have lost their nerve due to the Battle of Pima Prime, but I'm not one of them. I only felt as if my time had finally come. I spent so much time growing up among the Larkinsons and hearing about different battles that I yearned to fight myself. From the moment I began to challenge different Fridaymen mechs, my blood pumped faster. I even had to hold back at times in order to prevent myself from getting too far ahead."

Venerable Imon nodded in understanding. "That is similar to how I felt during my first battles. We have trained for this for much of our lives. From our teenage years onwards, both of us spent many days training our skills and learning everything we needed to know about mechs and tactics to become useful on the battlefield. Now that you are finally able to fulfill your purpose, you probably look forward to the next battle, right?"

Lanie smiled. "I guess so. I know it isn't entirely right for me to wish that our clan can get into a fight. People have died in the previous battle. Though I sympathize for those losses, that hasn't stopped me from looking forward to the next engagement. Am I a bad person for feeling this way?"

The expert pilot did not look surprised after he heard her admission.

"You are doing nothing wrong as far as I am concerned. We are both mech pilots and soldiers. Our main purpose is to fight and protect our people when needed. As long as your thoughts don't hinder you from doing so, then it is okay to look forward to battle. In my opinion, we need people who are eager to prove themselves like you in our ranks. If our Larkinson Army has lost its drive, then our clan's future will come into doubt."

The Red Ocean was rife with danger and turmoil. There was no way the Larkinson Clan could make it as an independent power if it didn't possess the force and the willingness to use it to defeat its adversaries.

The two mech pilots continued to talk for a while. Lanie asked numerous questions about how she should handle specific situations in battle and Venerable Imon obliged by giving her answers or at least a few hints so she could figure out her own fighting style.

Lanie also shared her thoughts about the battle and her place in the clan. No matter what silly matter she brought up, Imon spoke with utmost consideration for her wellbeing.

"Thank you for clarifying all of this to me." She said at the end of their fruitful session. "I don't feel like I deserve all of this personal attention from an expert pilot like yourself. I'm already doing okay and there are many more mech pilots who could use your help."

"I know, but you are different, Lanie. Aside from the reasons that I mentioned at the start, I'm guiding you because I think you have potential to fight at my side one day."

"Huh? Aren't you being too premature, Imon? No one can ever predict a breakthrough."

"You're normally right, but when I look at you, I see the makings of a great Larkinson mech pilot." Imon unabashedly said. "I'm not even afraid of revealing my expectations to you for fear of ruining your mentality because I know you are strong enough to overcome such trivial matters. You bear a part of my power, so you should have also gained a portion of my potential."

"I… am honored, sir. I will do my best to live up to your expectations." The girl solemnly spoke.

Imon patted her shoulder in a friendly manner. "Don't be in a hurry. You have only gone through a single real battle. You still have much to learn or experience before you know who you truly are on the battlefield. Make sure you survive the dangerous battles to come, but don't go too far and turn into a turtle. Fear never helps. The only way for you to surpass your limits is if you overcome hesitation and display true courage and valor on the battlefield. Only those who are willing to put your life on the line for your cause have the qualification to become larger than life."

The young woman grew more eager to prove herself once again. Her fighting spirit rose as Imon's belief in her combat ability fueled her confidence!