The Mech Touch

6922  High Captain Gilbert de Raanvanchas

Mech designers did not have to stick to the exact same design philosophy that they initially chose upon advancing to the rank of Journeyman Mech Designer.

Otherwise, they would become far too set in their ways.

By sticking to old and outdated design philosophies, mech designers would turn from proponents of innovation to opponents of any significant form of progress.

That was not supposed to happen.

This was why there was a bit of leeway for mech designers to change or rather 'evolve' their design philosophies over time.

Ves actually did this himself. As he grew and shaped his ideas on his goals and ambitions, he gradually nudged his design philosophy into different directions.

This was why he currently ended up with Mutual Growth in Adversity.

He would have never come up with such an idea back when he had just become a Journeyman Mech Designer!

All of this showed that mech designers were capable of evolving their works and design philosophies over time.

Yet there were still limits to how far they could move away from their original intentions.

As far as Harry Kaikkonen was concerned, precision focused laser weapon systems had little in common with luminar crystal energy weapon systems aside from the obvious.

Just because both specializations centered around the use of energy weapons did not mean that they belonged to the same category.

Expertise in one area definitely did not cross over into expertise into another area!

It was not impossible for Harry to switch to specializing in luminar crystal technology, but he needed to forge links between his current and desired design philosophies.

That was difficult and time-consuming. It would take years for Harry to essentially damage his original foundation and replace it with a new one that would happily repair the damage.

If Harry managed it correctly, then he would succeed in transitioning his design philosophy so that it fit the current area a lot better.

That would be great for the Larkinson Clan. Ves had handed over the inheritance of luminar crystal technology as well as the responsibility to further its development to the younger mech designer.

So far, he did not have many reasons to complain, but that may change if Harry did not come up with any major advancements in the coming years.

Just as Ves wanted to delve deeper into Harry's professional problems, he received an urgent notification from his assistant.

"What is it, Gavin?"

"She's arrived."

"Which one?"

"The Tortuous Scream. She looks glorious. She has just arrived at the edge of the star system. Traffic control is holding her at bay until she can undergo a thorough inspection, but she will be brought to orbit of our planet soon enough."

Ves' blood pumped faster and hotter.

Finally!

After a long time of waiting, the most important ship of the Premier Fleet had finally arrived in the Larkinson Clan!

The sad part about her arrival was that this may be the last big project completed by the E-66 Experimental Yard.

The orbital shipyard that Ves had bought at a high price was located in the Inferno Spear Principality of the Rubarthan Pact.

Its territories had come under considerable pressure as the native aliens cleverly targeted the principality that possessed the strongest chances of uniting the Rubarthans under a single banner.

Even as the Red War continued to spread devastation across human space, the Rubarthans were still obsessed with appointing their leader after they got cut off from the New Rubarth Empire!

Old habits died hard. The Rubarthan Imperial Household held a transcendent status among the common folk. They needed something to believe in, especially when there were too few sources of stability taking action.

Ves shook his head. The Rubarthan Pact was not an acute concern at the moment. He cared much more about the arrival of the Tortuous Scream.

The warship attracted a lot of vigilance, and with good reason.

Yet due to the importance of the Larkinson Clan, traffic control tentatively allowed the Tortuous Scream to proceed deeper into the star system.

Of course, all of her weapon systems had to be shut down and remain in a hardware-locked state.

This was quite difficult and time-consuming as the Tortuous Scream was mounted with a lot of direct weapon systems.

Even when the Tortuous Scream continued to move forward under the control and escort of the Larkinsons, the Devos Ancient Clan still remained apprehensive towards her presence.

What if the green and unfamiliar Larkinsons failed to understand how to operate the starship at all? That might result in a devastating situation!

17:10

However, the Tortuous Scream did not arrive at New Constantinople by relying entirely on green personnel.

The Larkinsons instead took the time to invest in students that would go on to work for one of its companies.

As the formidable alien battleship drew closer, many people clamored to tour the arriving warship!

"I want to go! I want to go! Please take me with you, papa!"

"Alright, dear. If you are not too impatient to endure hours of walking back and forth inside the interior of the enormous warship, then you can get ready."

"Yay! You are the best, papa!" Andraste kissed her father's cheek before racing off to 'prepare', whatever that meant.

"You two can come as well." He told Aurelia and Marvaine.

His eldest child did not express too much interest. SHe only agreed because it would be his home in the future.

As for Marvaine, he grew excited beyond measure after Ves agreed to give his little boy a tour of the largest weapon systems on the warship.

He couldn't resist the opportunity to study the biggest and most powerful guns up close!

Not even the mechs around him were allowed to wield such huge and bulky armaments!

Multiple departments and groups continued to verify the safety and the control of the Tortuous Scream.

The converted alien battleship was not allowed to enter into close orbit of New Constantinople VIII, but instead had to diverge to circling around a sparsely populated moon.

As the Devos Ancient Clan and the Larkinson Clan continued to conduct multiple rounds of verification and such, the time had finally come for Ves and his family to tour their new flagship.

Ves and his family all boarded a shuttle that would bring them up to orbit before moving to the warship that was parked further away from all of the hustle and bustle.

Saint Commander Casella Ingvar and other Larkinsons would not be joining them this time.

They needed to handle other obligations. They suddenly had to take care of a lot of work now that the Larkinsons intended to enter her into circulation.

As the shuttle under escort entered the large and relatively spacious hangar bay of the Tortuous Scream, Ves, his bodyguards, his cats and the rest of his immediate family slowly exited.

The Larkinsons that had already been assigned to the enormous battleship had already formed up into ranks.

Their predominantly red-and-white uniforms were styled differently than what Ves and others were accustomed to, but this was a nice touch that set them apart from the other Larkinsons.

As Ves continued to look around, he could immediately feel as if he had stepped into an alien warship that was only hastily converted to human tech.

The dimensions did not match. Alien tech openly operated alongside human tech, and not always in a harmonious fashion.

The layout of the Tortuous Scream was also relatively unfamiliar to red humanity. The alien battleship possessed a vertical deck layout. This contrasted from other starships that preferred horizontal layouts.

Ves was sure that a lot of Larkinsons would struggle to understand this layout and be able to navigate themselves to the right positions.

After the short greeting ceremony complete with music finally wrapped up, a well-dressed man in a fancier officer's uniform slowly walked up and bowed.

"Welcome to the Tortuous Scream, Patriarch Ves Larkinson. It is an honor to host you and your family on this partially converted alien ship. I am High Captain Gilbert de Raanvanchas-Larkinson, formerly a citizen and retainer of the Dermont Ancient Clan. Although I do not have any practical experience with serving on a bona fide warship, I have studied ahead and earned many of the necessary certifications on how to operate the weapon systems."

That was not as difficult as it sounded. The Tortuous Scream originally boasted a lot of cannons, yet that did not stop her from falling into the hands of the Larkinson Clan.

However, Ves had made the deliberate design choice to rip away tertiary and secondary gun batteries.

Bunkers took their place, offering both shelter and convenience for all of the Larkinsons that would feel more lost in the future.

Ves would be inspecting them soon enough.

"It is good to meet you, high captain." Ves returned the greeting. "If I may ask, what has brought you into my service? The Dermont Ancient Clan is pretty nice. How did you manage to earn the qualifications to captain a big ship like the Tortuous Scream?"

The entire procession began to move towards one of the massive elevators situated further away.

"I have no complaints about my service to the Dermonts, patriarch. They have given me the opportunity to serve on their starships as an officer. I started with a specialization in sensors and communications. I needed to learn diplomacy and relationship management right at the start of my service. Without developing an understanding and good relations with all of the officers in charge of different departments as well as the officers of other starships, friction and misunderstandings can occur. By understanding everyone's stations and responsibilities, I can connect the right people together and communicate with them in a manner that makes them more responsive to different commands."

Ves looked impressed. "It sounds like you were already being prepped for command."

Gilbert smiled in response as he thought back on the good old days. "I was. The Dermont Ancient Clan must have recognized my talent and effectiveness. I received fairly frequent promotions. Each time, I had to learn new knowledge in order to keep up with my expanding portfolio. I was lucky that my ability to find allies and assistants and forge them into a single interest group has succeeded more often than not. Eventually, I realized that a good commander does not necessarily command his troops directly, but instead gives them information and guidelines so that the soldiers can decide their own way forward."

The high captain indeed appeared to be the type that built up a huge amount of social capital and used it in the right moments at the right time.

While Ves felt a little disappointed that the smooth talker of a high captain was lacking in engineering or other technical skills, he understood that he was asking for too much.

Highly knowledgeable technical personnel still enjoyed a distinguished status among the people. "So what made you decide to jump into the Larkinson Clan, Gilbert?"

The high captain faced Ves and briefly evaluated whether he should be truthful.

"Your clan had a vacancy open. I applied and attended many different meetings. I roughly understand why your people are driving these people out. However, such events will lose their novelty quickly. I am gratified beyond measure to make it past a difficult gauntlet that challenged many different people. I thank my luck every night to remind myself of how I managed to enjoy this exalted rank where many others have failed."

Gilbert de Raanvanchas had to possess special qualities beyond the norm in order to remain in charge of the huge warship.

What were his secrets?

"Are you proficient in commanding lots of starships?"

"Yes." Gilbert confidently said. "I may not be the equal of the descendants raised and educated by the Devos Ancient Clan, but I have learned and exercised both squadron command and fleet command."

"That is good news. We already have numerous talents such as Saint Commander Casella Ingvar, but it is best to have alternatives on hand."