The Mech Touch

Ves had witnessed numerous impressive MTA warships in the past.

The one that stuck out the most to him was the Antazella de Osiris.

Ves took an admiring look at the augmented and corrected view of the starship where the conference was held.

The research battlecarrier de facto functioned as a seat of an MTA Master for good reasons. She possessed all of the amenities that a mech designer in the field required while also possessing formidable offensive and defensive capabilities.

Her expansive mech capacity along with her battleship-grade gun batteries enabled her to fight against a varied range of enemy craft and vessels all by herself!

The existence of such a comprehensive capital ship signified that Ves might not be the only daredevil of a mech designer in human society.

The mechers also yearned to explore the less well-known parts of space!

Of course, their excellent grasp of high technology and their abundant resources enabled them to gear up countless times better than Ves.

Whereas he was often at risk of falling over the edge and plunging into the abyss, the mechers had plenty of safeguards in place that would prevent them from losing their balance!

"What is she?" Ves asked as he waited for the MTA frigate he was riding on to move up the line, pass the security check and complete the transit.

"That is the Khamatar Reign, the flagship of the Blue Kindling Fleet and a ship under our direct control." Jovy Armalon explained. "She is one of the many warships that we have prepared in the event the worst case scenario has occurred."

"You mean..."

"Our faction have set up the Blue Kindling Fleet along with a number of other fleets to escape the Red Ocean Dwarf Galaxy in their entirety if there is no hope anymore. We previously thought that we were just being overly cautious out of habit, but it turns out that preparing for this contingency plan may end up worth it after all." He spoke in a subdued voice.

The Survivalists were the most paranoid and prepared factions out of the entire Association. They saw danger where there was none and always did their best to prepare for a rainy day.

Even if their efforts were wasted 99 out a 100 times, their foresight and emphasis on backup plans put them in a particularly strong position at the start of the Age of Dawn!

Ves observed the fleet surrounding impressive capital ships. Smaller but still formidable fleet carriers, battleships, cruisers and escort ships surrounded the vessel from all sides.

Not a lot of first-class multipurpose mechs were out and about, mainly because it was a lot harder for them to engage in independent FTL travel due to their limited sizes.

It still impressed a lot that the Survivalists had nonetheless deployed a couple of hundred of them even though it was not entirely necessary!

This was as much a safety precaution as well as a show of force. Perhaps the sight might not be much of a surprise to the mechers themselves, but associates such as Ves rarely encountered such an impressive sight!

No matter how safe they were while traveling the higher dimensions, the Survivalists did not leave anything to chance and maintained the highest security standards.

This was also why Ves and Jovy couldn't be teleported into the Khamatar Reign immediately even though the mechers definitely had the tech to make it possible.

In order to prevent crazy attacks from occurring such as a traitor suddenly teleporting hundreds of antimatter bombs within the flagship of the Blue Kindling Fleet, the mechers had set up an interdiction field that completely negated this capability!

Ves could already feel it in his veins. The invisible interference field was far more subtle and refined than expected, so much so that most people would never even feel the difference.

The only reason why Ves could perceive it was because he was a phase lord!

He had a feeling that he wouldn't be able to execute the same instinctive teleportation trick like the one he pulled off in the ancient alien prison facility built inside the Davute Pocket Space.

Interesting.

He was not surprised that the mechers were capable of building such powerful tech.

What he did take note of was how refined and effective it was. He did not believe that this effect was within the realm of possibility of an ordinary MTA researcher.

Had one of the two Star Designers of the Survivalist Faction personally developed the contraption that was responsible for inhibiting teleportation and warping?

That realization caused Ves to grow more nervous. He already knew on an intellectual level that he would be coming into close proximity to not just one Star Designer, but possibly another one as well.

He still recalled the moment where the Polymath deigned to visit him and meet with him in person.

Though the impressive True God in the form of a mech designer did not find what she was looking for, Ves was still sure that she was more eager than ever to get her hands on another piece of the legendary Metal Scroll.

Ves had inadvertently got away from that dangerous moment because the System went into dormancy in order to complete its comprehensive upgrade cycle at the time.

He could no longer count on this anymore. Unless the Mech Designer System Version 2.0 managed to improve its hiding capabilities, Ves needed to make sure he did not come into close proximity to the Polymath again!

It would be a mistake to assume the relatively young Star Designer had not changed all of that much since they last met in person.

This was the Age of Dawn. The reintroduction of the power of heaven to red humanity meant that every cultivator gained access to a whole new source of power.

The Polymath was a True God-level cultivator who just happened to be one of the leaders of the Red Association, an off-shoot of an off-shoot of the Five Scrolls Compact.

In addition to all of that, the Polymath was known to be extremely avid at absorbing all kinds of information and knowledge no matter the field or discipline.

Ves could already conclude beyond a shadow of a doubt that the Polymath had already begun to delve into cultivation science!

Perhaps the Star Designer might never be able to equal the sheer amount of knowledge and mystical capabilities as his mother, but she would definitely be able to engineer her own powerful solutions!

All of this caused Ves to view the Khamatar Reign with much greater dread. The ship was more than just an RA research battlecarrier.

She had become a nexus for all kinds of new and powerful innovations. Some of them might even be able to counter all of the methods and techniques he had long relied upon to gain an advantage over everyone!

"We are close." Jovy said, pulling Ves out of his darker thoughts.

A first-class multipurpose mech flew close and began to scan the MTA frigate from bow to stern without encountering any resistance.

Ves could feel strong energy waves coursing through his entire body. Despite all of the measures he had taken to hide his unusual traits and increase his privacy to the best of his ability, he had a feeling that the powerful scanning device pierced through everything.

This was exactly why he previously preferred to keep his distance from the MTA.

It was unfortunate that the mechers did not give him a choice.

This entire visit was a gamble to him. He needed to bet that he would be able to gain enough favor from the mechers to overlook certain troublesome matters.

Jovy clearly sensed Ves' growing distress. "You will not be left alone, Ves. I will be accompanying you for the majority of your time on the Khamatar Reign. I will make sure to look out for you and prevent others from developing a misunderstanding about you and your work."

That sounded reassuring, but it also caused Ves to grow more suspicious about Jovy's motives.

"Are you doing this on assignment or are you doing this on your own initiative?"

"Both." The RA mech designer admitted. "You are one of the few friends I have outside of the Association that I can let my guard down to an extent. I genuinely respect your work and already saw promise in them when you were much younger and less accomplished. At the same time, Master Vayro Goldstein has always kept an eye on you despite being preoccupied with his projects."

That sounded both good and bad to Ves.

On the one hand, maintaining the persistent interest of a powerful mecher who was high up in the hierarchy meant that he could count on a lot of protection.

On the other hand, he did not miss the fact that Master Goldstein was a trusted subordinate of the Polymath.

He was known as her spokesperson, which meant that his actions partially represented the Star Designer's actions as well!

All of that caused Ves to lose the reassurance that he briefly obtained. His experiences over the years told him that it was always a bad idea to get mixed up in a political power struggle, especially when he was a marginal figure instead of a major player!

Ves did not want to enter the conference while carrying the label as an associate that had firmly entered the camp of the Polymath.

Even without the whole issue concerning the search for the fragments of the Metal Scrolls, Ves just did not want to take the Polymath's side for no good reason.

He preferred to remain neutral, but if he had to pick a side, he at least wanted to know more about the alternative choices.

That reminded him of an important issue.

As he observed the projected feed, he could spot numerous ace mechs surrounding the Khamater Reign and patrolling the periphery of the fleet.

"Jovy, can you tell me whether the Fist of Defiance will attend this conference as well?"

"I can answer this for you. As far as 1 am aware, our god pilot won't be attending the conference in person. He is already committed to an important military operation. I do not know anything more than that. He has already appointed a trusted representative to go in his place and speak on his behalf. None of us will have to be subjected to a constantly active god kingdom that can monitor you at all times and eavesdrop on any conversations and transmissions that take place within the Khamatar Reign."

Ves relaxed a bit. While he was aware that Jovy might not have the correct information, he did not believe the Survivalists would like it if they spent an entire week within the research battlecarrier where all of their talk about opposing the Fist of Defiance's vision became exposed to the god pilot himself!

He briefly felt he had entered a powerful field that was highly familiar to him. The Saint Kingdom of an unknown ace pilot investigated his body and confirmed that he was not a clone that tried to sneak inside the conference with malicious intentions in mind.

"How often will this happen?"

"Not too frequently." Jovy responded. "Our security personnel are known to be thorough at their jobs, but constant checks can grate on your mood. Our conferences are supposed to be venues where mech designers and other people can freely share and discuss their ideas with each other. So long as we know that you did not come to threaten anyone, you will be left alone for the most part."

"I hope you are right."

It took a few more minutes for Ves to finally step foot inside the Khamater Reign.

He already caught sight of dozens of mechers and associates who arrived not too long ago. They all wore distinctly different outfits and were in the process of adding an extra badge to their chests that conveniently denoted their status.

Ves received one as well. His finely crafted metal badge was colored in teal while Jovy received a green version of the same item.

"Pin it on the front of your body and make sure to keep it with you at all times. Security will not be happy if you ever lose it for whatever reason."

"Understood."