The Mech Touch

"It turns out that Seniors and Masters aren't so stupid and gullible after all." Ves remarked as he finally understood the most important intricacies of the draft agreement.

The short version of the story was that the Voikens were willing to pass on 20 percent of the earnings of their law enforcement mech ecosystem in exchange for a lot of guarantees.

Just as the Larkinson Clan did not want to get taken advantage of by the Voiken Family, the Voikens also did not want to partner up with the Larkinsons only to raise their future competitor in the same market space!

Every negotiation was an intricate dance. This was especially the case concerning a big deal with major, long-term economic interests.

Ves found that both sides of the negotiation table prioritized different demands. The Larkinsons were more concerned about maximizing their advantages while the Voikens aimed to minimize any negative consequences as much as possible.

Their goals weren't necessarily incompatible, so their negotiators did not have a hard time finding common ground on many issues.

Even so, Ves still felt that his side managed to get the upper hand in the negotiations. A lot of the clauses that the Larkinsons conceded were merely conditional. If the clan had no intentions to screw around and obediently abided by the rules imposed by the contract, then many of those clauses would never take effect.

On the other hand, the Voikens were continually obliged to pass on the share of earnings owed to the Larkinsons regardless of the circumstances. This was a much more constant commitment and one that could not be given up without paying a hefty price.

Ves was fairly satisfied with this arrangement. As he followed up on this matter, he eventually heard that the patriarch of the Voiken Family wanted to speak with him in person!

"Are you sure about that?" He asked Minister Shederin.

"It is important for both sides to be on the same page for cooperation at this level, sir. As the two principal mech designers and decision makers of your respective family organizations, it is vital for the both of you to talk to each other at least once to find out whether you can stomach the idea of working together for decades on end."

"I understand."

A deal of this nature was more than just about business. Once they truly started to collaborate with each other, they would put out a range of mechs that represented both of their brands.

If either side harbored too many second thoughts about their partnership, then that would severely impact the long-term health of their collaborative venture.

It was better to find out whether both sides were able to click with each other early. It would already be too late if they found out the truth after they signed their names on the contract.

For this reason, Ves was about to make contact with the latest Master Mech Designer that had managed to enter his orbit.

Ordinary Journeymen would feel both honored and suppressed whenever they got to speak to a Master in person, but Ves did not feel nervous at all for the impending talk.

Even the fact that Master Barnard Solas Voiken devoted over three centuries to his vocation and earned a huge amount of recognition from the mech industry did not faze Ves too much.

After meeting a living legend in the industry in the form of the Polymath herself had long numbed Ves to the identities of lesser mech designers!

Besides, despite his relative youth and short track record, his dazzling accomplishments already exceeded that of Seniors and Masters who were at least a century old!

While other mech designers invested many years to develop mediocre solutions, Ves had already created a potential new way to mass-produce high-ranking mech pilots!

There was no reason for Ves to put up an old veteran in the industry up a pedestal.

Of course, refusing to look up to Masters was not equivalent to looking down on them. They still contributed a lot to the technological development of mechs and deserved at least a measure of respect from everyone.

Ves stood quietly in his flagship's smaller conference rooms and waited for the connection to go through.

Due to the existence of the galactic net, there was no problem at all in forming a seamless real-time communication channel between the Milky Way and the Red Ocean.

He still felt a psychological sense of distance, but that did not have any measurable influence on the quality of the connection.

He quietly sighed. Much of the tech that he took for granted was actually incredibly amazing. The fact that he could easily talk to any resident of the Milky Way Galaxy with near-zero delays and without the need to pay exorbitant costs was a huge benefit!

The Comm Consortium was pretty customer friendly in that regard. Of course, everyone also conveniently ignored the fact that the same consortium was in control of humanity's main form of interstellar and intergalactic communications.

Soon enough, a physical projection came into view. Master Barnard Solas Voiken finally 'met' Ves in a more direct fashion.

While they weren't exactly holding this meeting in person, this was the first time they spoke to each other without relying on intermediaries.

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At first glance, Ves could immediately tell that Master Barnard was not the stereotypical decrepit old monster who only cared about extending his longevity and was willing to sacrifice everything to live a century more.

Ves couldn't exactly describe it, but the vibe that the Voiken Patriarch conveyed through the communication link was one that was filled with a restrained form of energy and curiosity.

The man was clearly engaged in his incredibly deep research projects and probably found social calls like this to be a distraction from his true passion.

That wasn't so bad to Ves. He immediately felt a sense of kinship with the Master as he held a similar attitude towards his work and life.

Both of them smiled a bit at each other. They hadn't even spoken to each other but already confirmed that they shared at least some command ground.

"Mr. Larkinson." The dignified old man with a white goatee spoke up first. "I have witnessed the rise of many talents in humanity's mech industry. It is not an exaggeration for me to state that you are among the best that I have encountered among second-raters."

"What about the first-raters? Do you know any that are more impressive than me?" Ves casually asked.

He deliberately adopted a casual tone while not paying too much attention to the rules of formality.

He didn't feel a need to conform his attitude to the expectations of the old man. If Master Barnard was the sort of person who couldn't stand that sort of behavior, then Ves would rather not cooperate with such an ornery person.

Master Barnard did not exhibit any irritation. Ves found that to be unusual.

The old man's strong posture along with his rich, red-and-brown embellished lab coat signified that he was a person who paid a lot of attention to appearances and behavior.

While Master Barnard did not let down his airs, he did not speak any admonishments either.

He just… kept his mouth shut and let the silence dominate the conversation for a dozen or so seconds before he finally offered his reply.

"There are always better and more superior peers in our expansive industry. Your rapid climb is impressive in that you have emerged from a humble third-rate state, but those who cannot match your ingenuity are nonetheless able to exceed your work by relying on access to far greater resources, knowledge and networks. Let alone the scions of major Terran and Rubarthan influences, the heirs of major figures within the MTA such as Master Mech Designers and Star Designers are formidable in every conceivable aspect."

Ves tamped down on his outward arrogance as he agreed with Master Barnard's words. "I do admit that there are many impressive mech designers in the vast reaches of human space that I have never met. Our mech industry is simply too big."

The Master folded his arms behind his back and let out an expressive breath. "An enormous mech community is both a boon and a benefit. The greatest advantage is that the variety of mechs is endless. The disadvantage is that there is a lack of order and stability in many markets."

That was a curious remark.

"A market that has gone stale and stagnant is not conducive to innovation." Ves plainly stated his thoughts. "If the same market leaders continue to hold onto their market share without change, then they will grow complacent and no longer work as hard to push their mechs to the next level."

"I am not stating that a free and fair market is a blight that needs to be removed. Competition is essential to keep markets healthy, but not every market participant presents a vision for mechs that are sufficiently viable, proper, practical and effective. There are many dubious mech designs on the market that mainly serve to fracture the market, skew customer expectations and waste the time and energy of many mech designers on dead end pursuits."

Ves started to feel weird. Weren't they supposed to talk about the upcoming business partnership between their respective organizations? Why was this old fogey talking about the general state of the mech industry?

These old fellows were far too addicted to giving lessons to juniors!

"With all due respect, Master, the incredible diversity and freedom of choice in the mech markets is of great benefit to our customer base." Ves retorted. "Each buyer has different demands, and not all of them have the time or money to commission the mechs they need. Sure, a lot of new products end up flopping or barely breaking even, but this is the price of opening up enough room for new and innovative alternatives. My own commercial products would have never been able to capture so much market share so easily if the competitive environment was too stagnant."

Both of them were voicing opinions based on their respective positions in the mech industry.

Though Ves had risen to the middle layer of the mech industry, it was not too long ago that he still tried to eke out an existence at the bottom. He was highly sympathetic towards conditions that granted newcomers and developing mech designers enough room to develop in the ultra-competitive mech industry.

Master Barnard was far too old and successful to understand or hold much sympathy for the plight of humble mech designers. His standing in the mech industry was so high that he looked down like a god towards the struggles of those at the bottom!

This seriously irked Ves because it was arrogant attitudes like this that made life for starting mech designers more difficult!

"I have not agreed to speak to you in order to hold a philosophical debate." Master Barnard steadily said. "We can agree to disagree on such matters, but it is important for you to understand a part of our purpose and our goals in order for us to agree to a partnership."

Ves grew suspicious and fell into thought at the moment. "Are you saying… you want our Pacifier Project and the law enforcement mechs designed around it to become the dominant leader in the market for these kinds of machines?"

"That is indeed our overarching purpose for this collaboration." The Voiken Patriarch curled his lips. "I do not expect our range of mech models to dominate the sector shortly after they are released. It is not realistic for the works of a Senior and a Journeyman to overcome much of the competition. However, our partnership will be a long-lasting one that can span many decades. If there comes a time where you have advanced to Senior while my most enterprising descendant has advanced to Master and consolidated his new state, I expect the two of you to leverage your powerful advantages and set a new standard in the market for law enforcement mechs."

Though Master Barnard remained soft-spoken throughout his speech, Ves could sense the burning ambition and expectation in his tone!

For some reason or another, the leader of the Voiken Family was highly optimistic of the future potential of their collaborative venture!