The Mech Touch

"Congratulations. You have formally joined the Larkinson Clan. Your new identity shall be Alexa Streon-Larkinson, though it is not necessary to add that last part in normal conversations. How do you feel now that you have joined my clan?"

The young woman still continued to kneel in front of the large statue of the Golden Cat.

In order to commemorate this important induction ritual, she had changed into ceremonial robes that had especially been prepared by the best tailors of her former ancient clan.

The relatively modest-sized ceremonial hall offered a suitable stage for the woman to take the final step in severing her ties from the Terran Alliance and join a completely different polity.

From now on, Alexa was obliged to stand up for the Larkinson Clan!

Even if her grandfather or any other Terran contacted her in order to ask for favor, she needed to consider whether her response would benefit or harm her fellow Larkinsons.

It was only now that she formed a connection to the Larkinson Clan that she understood how so many entrants got along so well with each other.

No matter how many differences they had with each other, under the overarching warmth and love radiated by the Golden Cat, the Larkinson Network encouraged every clansman to treat each other as family!

The way Alexa looked at her new patriarch and the other Larkinsons gathered in the ceremonial hall had changed.

She already shared a bond of trust and friendship with Ves, but she had yet to spend enough time with the other members of the Larkinson to develop any similar bonds. They might as well be strangers.

All of that changed now that she had accepted the identity of a Larkinson in heart and soul.

It had taken her a lot of effort and a lot of preparation to shift her mentality to this extent. She had already known that a lot of Terran applicants failed to enter the Larkinson Clan due to their lingering attachments to their clans and their home state.

How could Alexa possibly make the same mistake? With the encouragement of her grandfather and the repayment of much of the benefits that she received throughout her childhood, Alexa managed to settle all of her perceived debts to the Terran superstate and reduce the psychological burden of cutting her old ties.

All of it was worth it in the end. Perhaps other people might think that she had been a reckless gamble by leaving one of the strongest and wealthiest ancient clans of the Terran Alliance, but she had a lot of confidence in the potential of the Larkinson Clan.

Even if she had yet to formally join the Larkinsons up until this point, Ves had already given her plenty of hints about his clan's ambitious plans for the future!

As far as Alexa was concerned, she could enjoy a much brighter future as a Larkinson as opposed to a Streon.

She could also help her former relatives far more as a prominent Larkinson mech designer than a forgettable descendant of a well-established ancient clan.

The Streon Ancient Clan did not suffer a shortage in talents anyway. She knew quite well that the opportunities that the Streons had reserved for her in the coming decades could easily be allocated to the other descendants that had entered the same profession.

With that thought in mind, Alexa had no regrets about this major turn in her life. She was free to embrace her new life as a Larkinson without any lingering guilt!

As if to celebrate her successful entry into the clan, the statue of the Golden Cat shone before a manifestation of the ancestral spirit emerged above her head!

"Nyaaaaa-"

The glowing and intangible spirit radiated so much warmth and love that Alexa couldn't help but embrace the adorable little thing in her arms.

Although she found it rather strange at how she was able to 'hold' a creature that shouldn't be physical, her analytical mind took a backseat to her newfound affection to her newly adopted family.

"So you are the real power behind the clan. I didn't expect you to be so... cute. Is this your superpower?"

"Nyaaaa!"

As Goldie indoctrinated the latest member of the Larkinson Clan with her feline charm, Ves and the others who witnessed the ritual stepped forward and congratulated the former Terran.

"Welcome to the clan, Miss Alexa." Gavin Neumann bowed. "I have been looking forward to your entry. Once you have completed your induction process, our clan would like to request your assistance on a few matters related to our ongoing cooperation and interactions with different Terran institutions. We could sorely use the advice and intervention of a knowledgeable and well-connected insider. While our current deals with the Terrans are relatively satisfactory on the surface, we have encountered plenty of hindrances due to lack of understanding. We have been unable to make much progress due to the obstacles in our way."

The young woman did not look surprised at this. "Terran society is based on long-term trust and partnerships. We rarely work with foreigners and outsiders that have only emerged for a short time. Many different groups come and go like dayflies. For clans that have lasted for centuries if not millenia, there is not much benefit to engaging with these groups. Even if our patriarch is able to present highly desirable inventions, the heritage of the oldest continuous state is not for show. I can readily tell you that our Streon Ancient Clan as well as every other established clan has started up entire research groups that are tasked with unearthing the secrets of our hidden past."

That attracted the interest of Ves.

"How much progress have these research groups made?"

"Their progress will surprise you, I think." Alexa responded in a measured tone. "While I am not informed of any developments that have matched or surpassed your own unique inventions, the sheer quantity of Terran researchers allocated to the new research projects have yielded many different results. The impact of every successful result may not be great, but by pooling so many advancements together, I believe that the Terran research groups have made decent strides in piecing together systematic theories and applications. Once they have established a proper scientific framework on hyper technology and E-technology, the Terran Alliance will be able to unleash all kinds of powerful advancements."

Hyper technology was any sort of tech that made effective use of the properties of hyper materials. It combined matter with E energy and was easier to work with for most people.

E-technology was a lot more special as it primarily dealt with E Energy! Many people simply couldn't get started in this field because they lack the ability to perceive and manipulate this ubiquitous new form of energy.

However, as Ves' astonishing specialty products already showed, the value and potential of E-technology was just as great as hyper technology if not more!

If Ves hadn't taken the lead by unveiling his companion spirits and kinship networks, the other powers of red humanity would have never invested so much effort into digging up ancient cultivation heritages!

"I guess I have to look forward to much greater competition in the following years." Ves grinned.

In fact, he already got a slight sense of how much progress the various human powers were making.

After months of cooperating with the Transhumanist Faction, the specially adapted E-supercomputer built inside the Blinkyverse had leap across so many generations that it had actually started to come into power!

Even though it was still not powerful enough to satisfy his demands, Ves could actually make decent use out of the additional processing power to speed up his work to an extent!

Once his collaborators over at the Transhumanist Faction managed to solve the most difficult hurdles that prevented them from producing more advanced E-circuitry, the quantity of computing power that could be produced out of intangible chips would definitely skyrocket!

The development of most E-computers had already surpassed a threshold where they could no longer be powered by base levels of exotic radiation.

While there was a seemingly endless supply of E energy in the galactic environment, the rate of flow in the Red Ocean was not that impressive.

Just like how absorbing light could never power a machine as large and demanding as a mech, it was a dream to rely on passive E energy radiation to power the more advanced E-computers!

The Transhumanists and other groups that were working on developing E-computers were having quite a headache about this issue.

Blinky was different! The companion spirit specialized in absorbing lots of E energy. Not only that, but the Blinkyverse was not just a giant reservoir of energy, but also actively circulated it by simulating a real universe!

Even if the laws of physics were rather funky inside, it had still formed a complete planet and was already in the process of forming a star and other stellar objects!

The three fundamental laws of thermodynamics still worked along the same principles. This was important because it meant that energy never really disappeared when it was used to power different devices. It just turned into different forms of energy.

No matter how many E-computers Ves and Blinky built on the surface of the primordial planet, all of the energy they received as input eventually came out in other forms of energy!

Ves did not have to worry about the Blinkyverse draining itself of energy as it circulated throughout the internal universe.

He just had to pay attention to not disrupt the universal ecosystem too much and destroy the natural balance.

Even if the E-computers became a little too demanding, Blinky could always compensate by devouring more exotic radiation from the outside environment!

In short, Ves enjoyed a huge advantage in the utilization of E-computers over other parties.

In contrast, the Transhumanists struggled to create their own internal universes and divert valuable manpower and resources into developing all kinds of supporting E-systems.

While their efforts would ultimately pay off and enable them to make substantial strides forward, Ves was confident that he would always enjoy a head-start due to the unique properties of Blinky and the Blinkyverse!

In fact, developing a successful E-computer was not the extent of his plans relating to the Blinkyverse.

He had quietly spent his time on developing another upgrade to the Blinkyverse. He did not take the initiative to share this secret project with the Transhumanists as he considered this work as one of his future trump cards.

If his efforts paid off, then an aspect that he previously regarded as a weakness would likely turn into one of his greatest strengths!

It was not time yet, though. Today was all about Alexa's successful entry into the clan.

After she spoke with a few of the Larkinsons in attendance, the newly adopted Larkinson finally turned to Ves.

"Am I finally allowed to gain a companion spirit?" She asked.

Ves nodded. "Yup. There are no barriers in the way anymore. The paperwork has all gone through. According to the terms of my agreement with the Red Association, I can only freely grant my companion spirits to the members of the Larkinson Clan. Since you are officially registered as one, I can finally fulfill one of your dreams. Have you already put much thought into the design of your new companion?"

"I have. Let me transfer the files to you, sir."

"Hmmm. A cat. I'm not surprised. Your requirements are not too demanding, so it shouldn't be too troublesome to realize this vision."

"That is good to hear. Will I truly be able to get started with living mechs once I obtain this companion spirit?"

"It is not strictly necessary, but it will make your life a lot easier." Ves responded. "I believe that it should easily save you a few years of exploration. This is not only important to you, but also to me. I have been looking forward to having a capable assistant at my side..."