The Mech Touch

Over the course of several weeks, many notable and influential Vulcanites received mysterious parcels.

Word began to spread of the divine gifts contained within the untraceable packages. The first couple of recipients had already spoken of the blessings that they received!

In fact, their claims sounded so exaggerated that most Vulcanites initially dismissed the news as idle rumors.

More people started to receive the parcels, though. When they or a member of their staff all opened them up, they instantly became enlightened by Vulcan's glory!

The dwarves had never experienced Vulcan's presence in such a direct and wondrous manner. It was especially amazing considering that every form of scanning and examination revealed that the statues were merely solid blocks of normal metal!

"Only Vulcan can bless these statues with his divinity!"

"Our god has answered our calls in our darkest hour! Our deliverance is at hand!"

From generals to priests, those who held sway and those who commanded the attention of the dwarven people all obtained a much-coveted parcel with no return address.

Word of mouth continued to explode throughout the Vulcan Empire. While there were minority of cautious dwarves who got spooked by the statues and had them destroyed, there were still well over 1900 statues that had each obtained a place of honor among their new owners!

Many different Vulcanites reacted differently to these divine objects. The presence they exuded specifically appealed to their beliefs in a way that was more direct and personal than anything they experienced!

The glow they exuded were not that strong compared to the mechs that Ves had designed. The glow also didn't actually compel the dwarves to do anything. All it did was to project the presence of a human or dwarven version of Vulcan depending on the specific statue. It did nothing else, and that was a deliberate choice.

When Ves revealed his plan to Shederin and Calabast, the two advisors sternly warned him that he could easily cross a line and get on the bad side of the MTA.

This was why he made sure to minimize his criminal liability. Perhaps the Vulcan Empire had to spend a lot of effort to trace where the parcels came from, but he was not stupid enough to assume the MTA was also clueless!

Fortunately, Ves had interacted with the MTA enough times to roughly know what he could get away with. If Ves wanted to avoid an unwelcome visit from one of their representatives, he had to possess enough plausible deniability.

This was why he refrained from inserting any specific values or emotions when he made his statues. He simply portrayed Vulcan in the most authentic manner possible.

According to Minister Shederin, this was more than enough to achieve the desired effect.

"The Vulcanites are deeply flawed, more so than other humans." The old man explained one day. "Many human states are more mature and better run because their citizens benefit from an enormous accumulation of societal development. From antiquity onwards, numerous advancements such as the abolition of slavery to the prohibition of the current taboos have all contributed to the common prosperity of many states."

"What makes the Vulcan Empire different, then?" Ves curiously asked.

"The dwarven state is not as connected to human civilization as other states. It is more insular than usual as its citizens explicitly reject the galactic consensus. They believe it is too human-centric, you see. While this has allowed the Vulcanites to build up their own pride and confidence in their culture, it has also produced severe flaws that have made them vulnerable to threats that would otherwise not work."

"Like what?"

"Let me describe the Vulcan Empire's ailments in a manner that a mech designer like you should be able to comprehend. Think of a normal state like the Bright Warrior. It is a decent, modern and competitive state that is not excellent at anything but is stable, reliable and open."

Ves twitched his mouth when he heard that description. Even a diplomat didn't hold the highest opinion of one of his works.

"Compared to a normal state, the Vulcan Empire is akin to a second-class mech that is two generations older than the Bright Warrior model. Maybe this other mech appears stronger to many people because it is more expensive and incorporates better materials, but its shortcomings cannot be denied. As long as a competent opponent can recognize one of these vulnerabilities, it takes less effort to defeat it than it should."

Ves understood the analogy. The Vulcan Empire might look strong and powerful compared to its regional rivals, but it's dwarven citizens were too insular and biased. This caused their cultural and institutional development to fall behind in many different aspects, which meant the dwarven state was vulnerable to an attack that targeted its weak points!

It was clear to Ves and Shederin that religion was one of its major weaknesses. While there were many states where different religions were dominant, those that withstood the test of time always tempered their extremism to a degree. At the very least, they needed to recognize that the rest of the galaxy didn't always welcome their faith and that their forceful attempts at convincing others that they were spreading the truth might not be appreciated by their audience.

This was a lesson that even the Hexer people had learned!

Seeing that Ves understood his point, Minister Shederin wrapped up his explanation. "The Vulcanites are too flawed and their society is too young. The rapid growth of their empire has caused them to become ignorant of their own flaws. After all, they only look at their own success and fail to see the dangers that they have yet to address. This is a rather common problem to many insular states. Always remember that a state or organization is strongest when it remains in touch with the rest of human society."

Ves had the sense that Shederin was not just talking about the Vulcan Empire when he spoke those words.

In any case, Ves sent out so many different statues that at least some of them should be able to yield the desired results.

He simply kept working on his mech design projects while keeping a close eye on the regional news.

He felt more and more gratified when the dwarven news portals started to praise his work. Though the mass-produced totems were relatively trivial objects, Ves was still a creator and he always gained satisfaction when his customers enjoyed his work.

Of course, he became extra satisfied this time because his customers happened to be Vulcanites this time!

"Hehehehe…" Ves deviously grinned as he kept reading the headlines related to his work. "Keep embracing my totems. Vulcan is truly on your side… just not your side. Hehehehe…"

Many dwarves who became exposed to the statues felt as if their questions had been answered and that their doubts had been resolved.

"Vulcan is a dwarven god!" A leader of the Dwarven God Cult exclaimed as he lifted up the statue of a dwarf! "The grand regent, the high priestess and their lackeys have been wrong all of this time! No. Their crimes are worse. They and their predecessors have covered up the truth all of this time. They knew that Vulcan was a dwarf but deliberately lied about it to deprive us of Vulcan's favor. The grand regent and his cabal of cowards and parasites are all liars! Tear them down and restore the truth!"

"Restore the truth!" A large audience responded.

"For the dwarven god!"

"For the dwarven god!"

Many scenes such as this took place throughout the Vulcan Empire. The priests and the most devout Vulcanites all gained certainty in their beliefs. Each of them felt more connected to their god than ever and thought that their rivals and opponents were unquestionably wrong!

It wasn't just the Dwarven God cultists that had become more righteous and fanatical about their cause.

The older Vulcan Faith that had failed to keep up with the times and risked losing relevance suddenly underwent a revival.

The statues of the human god that ended up in the hands of various priests and respected leaders were no less effective in reinforcing their beliefs.

Many of them felt as if they had been right all along. The cult that had managed to sway the younger generations was not just wrong, but outright heretical for claiming that Vulcan was a dwarven god!

"Our ancestors and heroes were right all along." A provincial governor concluded as her eyes fervently stared at the simple human statue. "We have been too remiss in allowing the Dwarven God Cult to deceive our citizens and distort Vulcan's image. Even though we all want him to be a fellow dwarf, the truth must never be allowed to disappear!"

Under the influence of the statues, people such as this provincial governor did not just embrace their new certainty.

They wanted to make sure that everyone else embraced their revelation as well!

"Let me issue a new decree. From tomorrow onwards, the Dwarven God Cult must cease to exist! The cult and its followers are no longer allowed to spread their false claims and ideologies within our borders. Our administration shall mobilize all of our policing and peacekeeping forces to enforce our new rules!"

"Sir! You can't issue such a drastic decree. You're overreaching your authority and I doubt our lawmakers will agree to pass a corresponding emergency directive. Even if we implement your new decree, over thirty percent of our population has already defected to the Dwarven God Cult. Many of them will not convert back to the Vulcan Faith and will resist fiercely against any enforcement attempts!"

"The truth cannot be denied! Schedule an emergency meeting with our senators. Make sure they come in person. They must witness Vulcan's glory up close in order to be enlightened to the truth…"

With scenes like this happening in many different provinces, it did not take long before the first incidents of open violence broke out throughout the state.

"These cultists have gone too far!" A leader exclaimed as a mob of angry dwarves tried to invade the governor's mansion. "This is no longer a protest. This is an act of rebellion!"

When the mob started to employ heavy weapons against the riot police, the latter received orders to respond as fiercely as possible.

Gunfire and screams rang throughout the air as the well-armed peacekeeping forces tried to disperse and punish the deluded cultists in the clearest manner possible.

To each of them, Vulcan was a human god, and it was blasphemy to claim otherwise. These ignorant cultists needed to learn that righteousness was not on their side!

Of course, the opposition was not deterred by the government's response.

Elsewhere in the provincial capital, an influential priest of the Dwarven God Cult prayed in front of the statue of the dwarven god. The totem's divine glow caused the priest to feel no guilt or loss at the suffering of his followers.

Instead, the priest became more convinced that the corrupt officials were trying to maintain a falsehood so that they could keep exercising their power without having to answer to their god!

"If the governor thinks that he can suppress the truth and prevent Vulcan's rise, then he is sorely mistaken." The priest gritted his teeth as he turned to his followers. "Call your men and get ready for battle. If our words cannot convince the corrupt politicians to recant their lies, then we shall force the truth down their throats with our guns and mechs! To arms, my brothers!"

"For Vulcan!"

When one side began to resort to mechs, the other side quickly followed. Even though most battles ended one-sidedly due to regional differences in strength, a line had been crossed once the Vulcaintes employed their weapons against their citizens.

"Take down the corrupt leeches!"

"Suppress the deluded rebels!"

Though the bloodshed only affected a few hundred hotspots, the rest of the Vulcan Empire began to destabilize at a rapid tempo. Even the star systems dominated by one faction or another began to gear up for war. It became increasingly harder for the remaining dwarves to stay neutral!

The schism between the two factions grew more violent with each passing day!