The Mech Touch

Ves started to grow hot and nervous as two competing desires welled up in his mind.

On the one hand, he wanted to transfer to the Tarrasque right away and request Admiral Tensen to travel to the Terran Alliance as fast as possible.

He wanted to get his hands on the Ouroboros!

The value of getting close enough to one of his past works was incalculable!

As far as he was aware, the Ouroboros was the oldest surviving living mech that he had designed that was still in existence.

What was even better was the fact that it was present in the Red Ocean, which meant it was within his reach!

So long as he made an arrangement with the Streon Ancient Clan, it shouldn't be a problem for him to gain the chance to examine his old work from top to bottom.

Of course, it was highly questionable how much of the old living mech still 'belonged' to him. Axelar had clearly turned to a crowd of highly competent and experienced Terran mech designers to continually upgrade its design and technical specifications.

After a hundred years of growth and development, both Axelar and the Ouroboros had grown side-by-side until they shared little resemblance to who they were at the start of their journey!

Ves did not feel too sad that other mech designers had come to change his work and made it closer to their ideals as opposed to his own. The Ouroboros badly needed to get upgraded over time, and since he was clearly not available, others had to step in and fill the void.

The intervention of other mech designers did not necessarily do the Ouroboros any favors. Even as its technical design increased in power and capabilities, its spiritual development had barely made any progress. It might have even regressed as the design philosophies of other mech designers inevitably started to squeeze it into a corner.

No matter how careful these powerful mech designers worked, it was impossible for them to restrain themselves completely. They were too powerful and too committed to their own design philosophies to be able to hold back forever.

Ves could see how he could make a huge difference. It would entail ruining a lot of exquisite design arrangements of Master Mech Designers who were much better versed in the craft than him, but this was an acceptable price to pay to transform the Ouroboros into a proper living mech.

While he worked towards addressing the deficiencies of the Ouroboros, he could also examine all of its properties up close.

The ace mech held great research value to Ves. As the 'oldest' living mech in existence, it had grown so long that it had likely developed traits that ordinarily only showed up among other long-lived machines!

Ves had never gotten his hands on a living mech so old. While mechs such as the Desolate Soldier and other surviving copies of his older works may be more than a decade old, they were ultimately 'teenagers' if he equated them to humans.

The Ouroboros on the other hand was equivalent to a grandfather among living mechs!

Though it was more precise to label it a highly defective and cripple grandfather, that did not change the fact that it had built up an enormous accumulation!

Ves could learn so much if he was able to pick apart this rich accumulation. He would not only have a better idea of what occurred during the later stages of the evolution of a living mech, but he might be able to develop fantastic new design solutions that allowed him to introduce a portion of the best qualities of the Ouroboros to his newer works!

However, before he could bring himself to make this request, his caution and rationality restrained his emotional desires.

He couldn't afford to make any missteps here. Ves feared what might happen if he 'reunited' with General Axelar Streon once again. Would the man find out the truth? Would he discover that Ves had somehow managed to travel back in time and occupy his mind and body for a time?

The probability that this might happen was great!

If Rion Aaden had been able to figure out the truth, then a peak ace pilot with even better intuition and a powerful domain field should be able to make the same dedication!

This was extremely dangerous. The impact of Rion Aaden's discovery was limited because he was just a dwarf, but General Axelar Streon was one of the top figures of the Terran Alliance!

The damage he could do if he learned the truth of that incident a long time ago was incalculable.

While it wasn't necessarily the case that Axelar would try to harm or blackmail Ves once he discovered the truth, it still represented a vulnerability that was highly undesirable.

Then again... the Destroyer of Worlds was aware of him as well. Ves did not particularly object to this as Divine Irene Moxwas a trustworthy and honorable god pilot who remembered the gratitude she owed towards him. It would go against her principles if she did anything that harmed his interests.

The question now was whether Ves could extend the same form of trust towards General Axelar Streon.

The way the two Mastery experiences played out were very different. Ves had been a lot more open, direct and honest towards Irine Mox at the time.

As for Axelar... Ves had not only been placed in a situation that was anything but ideal, but he had no clue that the former drug addict and wastrel would turn into one of the Terran Confederation's strongest leaders!

In any case, the cases were different enough that Ves could not use his experiences with the Destroyer of Worlds to assume that General Axelar would respond in a similar fashion.

No matter how friendly the Terrans appeared to him, Ves had to remind himself that they were not on his side. They had their own interests and concerns. They had a long history of plotting against others and getting plotted against. Dealing with them was always dangerous.

Aside from fearing that General Axelar Streon might learn too much about Ves when they met with each other in person, Ves was also concerned about the implications of improving the Ouroboros.

If he somehow managed to fix the old living mech and elevate it to a much greater height, then the ripple effects would be massive!

Ves already figured out that the Ouroboros was the only reason why General Axelar Streon hadn't taken the plunge yet. If this condition changed, then two possible outcomes might occur once the powerful Terran leader finally started the Mech Body Merger Process.

The first possibility was that General Axelar Streon failed to complete this dangerous and risky process and ultimately perished at a time where the Terran Alliance needed as much strong leadership as possible.

A fatal outcome would not only weaken the Terran Alliance, but also shift a huge amount of blame towards Ves!

It didn't matter if he had done his best or that he had no ill intentions in mind. The Terrans would become really angry, and so would many other people who had high hopes for the god pilot candidate!

The other possibility was a lot more beneficial to red humanity as a whole. If General Axelar Streon successfully crossed this perilous bridge and became a brand-new god pilot, then their entire civilization gained another powerful protector!

While that sounded great for most people, Ves would probably attract a lot more heat than before!

His contributions and his actions during the Survivalist conference had already turned up the heat to an uncomfortably high temperature.

If it became known that his intervention essentially led to the rise of another god pilot, then all hell would break loose!

He would never be able to travel anywhere anymore without heavy escort!

The red humans would probably promote him to a tier 1 galactic citizen and prohibit him from participating in a deep strike operation.

Ves would lose much of his remaining freedom and autonomy because it was in the best interest of red humanity to keep him as safe and coddled as before!

Though Ves was highly interested in getting in touch with his 'oldest' work and earning actual credit for contributing a god pilot to society this time, the downsides were way too serious!

Ves actually felt guilty and conflicted about this dilemma. He felt torn between his obligation to society and his selfish desire to preserve his own interests. He couldn't make up his mind on what he should do at this junction!

The good news was that he did not need to make a definite decision right away. Red humanity was still in a fairly good state. Perhaps other god pilots would rise in the coming years that relieved the need for General Axelar Streon to undergo his ultimate apotheosis.

In the meantime, Ves might be able to circumvent this undesirable dilemma by working towards a third solution.

His gaze pierced into Alexa Streon's eyes. The young lady calmly sipped her cup of green tea as she waited for Ves to process his frantic thoughts.

He had a third way to solve this problem. Alexa was the key. If he fulfilled her goal and taught her how to design living mechs, she could work out the problems of the Ouroboros on her own. It might take a few years or a decade for her to learn enough about living mechs, but red humanity should be able to persist well enough without another god pilot at its disposal.

Ves started to smile. This was the best solution all-considered. If Alexa's contributions ultimately led to her grandfather's ascension to god pilot, then this would turn into an internal matter of the Streon Ancient Clan!

Young Alexa was much better equipped to handle all of the heat. Her ancient clan might even run interference by claiming that a bunch of other mech designers and experts had contributed to a successful solution.

Besides, her grandfather who had just become one of the most powerful warriors of the Terran Alliance would be more than capable enough to protect her from third parties that sought to take advantage of her abilities!

Meanwhile, Ves would undoubtedly attract a lot of heat as well due to being her teacher, but not to the same degree. He should be able to handle himself in this scenario.

"Alright." Ves finally spoke out loud after several minutes of thinking. "I have made a few decisions on how to go forward from here. I need to talk to you in person. I will find a way to separate myself from my expeditionary fleet and make my way over the New Constantinople System. To be honest, I have already been thinking about staying at the Eden Institute of Business & Technology for a time. It would be nice to actually teach my classes in person for once. This incident only strengthens my decision to visit your school."

His answer elicited a notable reaction from the young lady!

"You are planning to visit the Eden Institute? That... we shall do our best to prepare for your arrival. What is the estimated date of arrival? I need to inform the school administration right away!"

"I can't tell you an exact date. My current schedule has been almost completely upended due to recent events. I am still trying to deal with that stuff. It will probably take a few weeks or a few months before I enter the New Constantinople System. Make sure you are present and available."

"I shall make certain of that. What is the purpose of your visit?"

"You."

"Pardon?" Alexa looked confused.

"Yes. You." Ves said as his eyes burned in her direction. "I intend to induct you as my apprentice. If I was a Master Mech Designer, then you would be regarded as my first direct disciple."

This announcement completely caught Alexa Streon off-guard! She never expected for Ves to take this radical step just shortly after he discovered that he had been deceived!

"Why, professor?"

"I intend to pass on as many of my teachings to you as possible." Ves directly stated. "The more you learn about living mechs, the closer you will come to fulfilling your goals. That is not only a benefit to me, but also a benefit to the Terran Alliance and ultimately red humanity as a whole. Is this acceptable to you, Alexa?"

"I... cannot make a decision right away. There are too many factors that complicate this situation. I need to get in touch with my grandfather and discuss your proposal in person."

Ves grimaced at that. "Don't waste too much time. The sooner you make a decision, the sooner we can make actual progress. I don't want to exaggerate or make any unsubstantiated remarks, but I have a strong feeling that I can turn you into the savior of the Terran Alliance. Tell that to your grandfather. I am curious to learn what he has to say in response."

He knew that he had made a radical and impulsive decision, but he did not regret it at all. Bringing Alexa under his wing was the best possible way to handle the Ouroboros situation in his opinion. It would also be a great opportunity to develop closer ties with the Terrans and turn the Streon Ancient Clan into a solid ally!