The Mech Touch

The discussion finally shifted to the most powerful and arguably the most exciting projects.

The Larkinson Clan adored its expert mechs. Each of them represented the best of what the Larkinson mech designers could impart in their work.

This time was no different.

Ves first presented the Dullahan Project to his audience. The other Journeymen were already aware that he and his wife were working on a new expert mech for Venerable Jannzi.

There was no need to go into too much detail. Ves had a lot in store for the Dullahan Project, but no one else could help him all that much in his attempt to make the Shield of Samar undergo a rebirth process. This was completely uncharted territory for him and he was the only one who could make it happen.

The Ghost Project was a bit more interesting to the Larkinson Journeymen because it was a completely new and different mech that the clan had never worked with before.

"Not many expert stealth mechs exist in the first place because it is rare for mech pilots who engage in shady operations to advance to the rank of expert pilot." Ves began. "This has to do with the requirements of becoming a demigod. Strong willpower, strong convictions and the absence of guilt are just a couple of the criteria that determines whether mech pilots can advance. I think that having a guilty mind is a major stumbling block that prevents many mech pilots engaged in assassinations and other clandestine operation from undergoing apotheosis."

There was a large variety of conflicting theories around this controversial topic. The question of whether the subjective feeling of guilt truly held back mech pilots or not was still in contention. This was merely the most recognized answer out of all of the possibilities.

High-ranking mech pilots generally tended to emerge from brave, fearless and upright warriors. It was not a coincidence that stubborn and brazen personalities such as Patriarch Reginald tended to do better in this aspect. Ignorance was no hindrance to their success!

In contrast, those with clever, subversive, sneaky and vile personality traits ultimately failed to break their limits throughout their careers.

While there were certainly exceptions to the rule, it was still incredibly difficult for a large and prosperous state like the Friday Coalition to produce more than a handful of expert pilots among the ranks of black ops units.

Ves had studied Venerable Zimro Belson's case in person to determine why he was able to succeed.

He obviously possessed a bit of talent, but he did not stand out too much in this regard.

What truly made Zimro special among those who liked to sneak around was that he possessed a clear conscience!

His life trajectory was remarkable and even living in exile in a dark and violent place like the Nyxian Gap had never corrupted his honest heart!

He and the other former members of the Xona Stalkers that eventually joined the Larkinson Clan had all thrived once they became a part of the Black Cats.

Director Calabast showed a lot of care to this group and never assigned them any dirty missions that might taint their sensibilities.

Of course, the Black Cats rarely took action against different parties. They mostly engaged in spying, monitoring and data theft.

"Venerable Zimro Belson is therefore an absolute treasure to us." Ves told everyone. "The Ghost Project may be our only opportunity to add a powerful stealth machine to our lineup. The immediate question that comes to mind is how much we should orient our new stealth mech towards combat as opposed to solitary infiltration missions. We can try our best to make Venerable Zimro's expert mech excel at both, but eventually we need to make a choice and commit to it. A stealth mech optimized for combat is substantially different from a stealth mech that is meant to sneak inside powerful fleets or a well-defended military base."

It would have been great if the Larkinson Clan welcomed two new expert pilots that could work with stealth mechs, but that was just a fantasy.

"You've already made a choice." Ketis spoke up. "The previous battle showed that we are still short on expert mechs that can defeat powerful enemy units. Rather than design a mech that is good at infiltrating enemy strongholds, it is a lot more useful for us to obtain a mech that can assassinate enemy expert mechs on a busy battlefield. That way, we can easily destroy or plunder an enemy stronghold after we have wiped out all of the opposition."

"You've pretty much read my mind, Ketis."

The swordmaster confidently smirked. "It's not difficult for me to simulate your logic chain after working with you for so many years. Our clan has always relied on open combat to solve our enemies."

"That's right. While I do not deny how helpful it is for us to be able to deploy a powerful expert stealth mech that can assassinate a crucial commander or cripple an enemy force before we commence a proper battle, I think it is better and safer for Venerable Zimro to fight alongside his peers and other fellow soldiers. The assistance of his upcoming expert mech will definitely allow us to finish off a lot more powerful enemy units than normal."

If the Larkinson Army already had a machine like the the Ghost Project at its disposal, then a lot less Fridayman expert mechs would have been able retreat intact in the previous battle!

"We need to add another sharp and hidden knife to the Larkinson Army." Ves insisted to everyone. "One of our faults in the Battle of Pima Prime was how our expert mechs were usually able to defeat their adversaries, but failed to finish the job in too many cases. The successful rescue of Saint Rebecca Andus after felling the Shockshell is the most egregious example of this. I don't want this to happen again. Our survival will always be at risk if we keep letting our enemies retreat so that they can confront us on another day."

Many faces grew serious. This was indeed the case.

"So what are the specifics of your Ghost Project?" Sara Voiken asked.

"That's a good question. This is the draft design that we have come up with so far. As you can see, it is a bit unusual in that it is a melee stealth mech. We plan to arm it with daggers that will allow it to sneak up to enemy expert mechs from behind and inflict critical damage onto them whenever the opportunity arises."

Several mech designers who were aware of the challenges of sneaking up to expert mechs looked doubtful. They weren't certain whether this idea would succeed.

"Are you certain we can design a stealth mech that can effectively assassinate enemy expert mechs?"

"I am." Ves confidently replied. "I know that stealth mechs at this level mostly rely on ranged weapons, but we have two ways to increase the success rate of the Ghost Project. First, I know a lot about stealth and cloaking systems. As long as we license a powerful enough transphasic stealth system from a reputable development company, I am certain that I can successfully integrate it into the expert mech design."

It was a bit difficult for Ves to explain how his competence in this area had suddenly risen to the level of a Senior Mech Designer. He simply opted to say nothing and hoped that his previous successes gave him enough credibility to believe in his ability.

It would be bad if it turned out that none of the Larkinson Journeyman were able to work with advanced stealth systems.

The only way for them to complete the Ghost Project was to bring in an outside consultant to solve all of the complicated problems. That was unacceptable because it meant that all of the stealth-related details would end up in the hands of outsiders!

In fact, the Larkinsons were already forced to involve Master Benedict Cortez in the design process in order to enable the finished expert mech to resonate with Venerable Zimro.

While this was already a major security risk, Ves could at least preserve many crucial details by withholding a lot of crucial information about the stealth system and its implementation in the mech design.

Whether his colleagues harbored any doubts towards him or not, none of them followed up on this matter.

Several of them were more interested in hearing how Ves would help the Ghost Project avoid detection from alert and perceptive expert pilots.

"If the stealth system of the Ghost Project is effective enough, then it should likely be doable for this expert mech to assassinate low-tier expert mechs." Gloriana ascertained based on what she learned from various sources. "However, the more powerful machines are not only equipped with better sensor systems, but they are also controlled by mid-tier or high-tier expert pilots who have developed extremely strong intuition. They can detect danger even if their expert mechs detect no abnormal activity at all. A single hunch may be enough to foil an assassination attempt."

Ves responded with a smile. "You are describing two different problems. The first is technological and can be solved by investing more money. The second is metaphysical in nature, which means it can be solved through metaphysical means. This is an area that I happen to excel in. I don't have any solid ideas on how to do it, but I am confident I can cobble together a solution that will be effective in battle. I just have to shape the spiritual foundation in the right way."

"You need more than that, I think." Gloriana responded. "You will need the help of a design spirit as well I think. As far as I know, none of the design spirits are good at hiding their presence from enemies except for one. The Superior Mother's dust aspect should be able to make the Ghost Project less noticeable. The Devious mech model that we have designed for the Hexers has already shown that it can work."

"Venerable Zimro is not a Hexer nor a woman."

"That shouldn't be a problem, Ves. I'm sure that Zimro will find a way to get along with your mother. He's a good boy."

Ketis and a couple of other Journeymen snorted or snickered under their breaths.

"No thanks, Gloriana. I will solve this problem in my own way. I don't think that the Superior Mother is my only solution. I'll just create another design spirit if there are no other alternatives. A new entity that is good at hiding stuff can be useful in many different situations."

They discussed other details about the Ghost Project. Ves went over topics such as explaining the requirements of the sensor systems and discussing the possibility of equipping it with transphasic grenades.

Overall, the Ghost Project had the potential to become a killer machine that exceeded the Dark Zephyr in terms of lethality!

While the Dark Zephyr primarily had to go through a difficult struggle before it gained the opportunity to land a killing blow, the Ghost Project was designed from the onset to start and finish a fight with a single strike!

Ves grinned. "The best part about the Ghost Project is that as capable as it may be in solo actions, it is likely more effective when teaming up with our other expert mechs. Just think about it. A loud and attention-grabbing mech like the C-Man can distract an opposing expert mech, which means that the enemy mech pilot will have less attention to spare against surprise attacks. The Ghost Project should more easily be able to sneak up on the target and land a fatal blow!"

This was the best way to utilize the Ghost Project in his opinion. Working together with other friendly expert mechs not only made it easier to finish off a powerful enemy, but would also provide the expert stealth mech with additional safety once it got exposed.