Chapter 2013 A Greater CallingA couple of ships emerged in a sand-scoured star system of the Reinald Republic. Different from Ves and the Larkinson Clan, the remnants of the Larkinson Family traveled aboard weaker vessels. In its entire existence, the Larkinson Family never operated any starships at all until recently. Before the rise of Ves and the influx of excess cash, the family always depended on relying on commercial services or renting starships in order to move its larger assets. That was in the past. Now that the Bright Republic turned against the old family, the stricken family members were forced to do everything possible to get their hands on some ships and mechs. Fortunately, the family was not without friends nor resources. Though the government confiscated their domestic assets, the family still invested lots of excess money in a number of foreign accounts. That may not be enough to buy ships and mechs, but that was where their stellar reputation came in. When the Larkinsons called for help, a surprising amount of sympathetic Brighters donated their aid! There were many Brighters who were fed up with the current direction of the Bright Republic or thought it had no future anymore even before Bentheim succumbed to the sandmen. A lot of veteran mech pilots turned mercenary and other folk still remembered what it was like to serve alongside a Larkinson. many former Havensworth division soldiers also looked up to their former commanding officer! With Ark Larkinson taking charge, the Larkinson Family received aid from all corners. Though the contributions were fairly minor and sporadic, collectively they amounted to a considerable amount of help! A fleet had formed around the old family. Though it wasn't too impressive, it was strong enough to defend itself. Piloted by veteran Larkinsons as well as defectors and mercenaries that had joined the family in their escape from the Bright Republic, the mechs didn't look impressive but exhibited military coordination. Even though the fleet was still vulnerable to determined raids and major attacks, not a single pirate group dared to test the Larkinson Family's patience! Not only was there very little to be gained by attacking a fleet that carried no valuable cargo, a famed expert pilot also presided over it! No one was crazy enough to challenge an expert pilot except for other state actors! The Gracious Indigo was the current flagship of the Larkinson Family's fleet. Though she was old and fairly worn, she was still quite serviceable, having served as the mobile headquarters of a mercenary corps before finally passing on to the Larkinsons through unclear means. Inside an office compartment, Ark Larkinson sat behind his desk reviewing the balance sheet of the family. Though the family wasn't in danger of running out of cash, the Bright Republic's appropriation of all of its domestic accounts caused a lot of disruption. Most of the money it accumulated was gone! The family put too many eggs in one basket! The evaporation of so much money was yet another reason for the old family to resent Ves Larkinson and his penchant for provoking the Friday Coalition. If not for this wayward descendant, the Larkinson Family would have never been entangled in so much trouble! Now that the Larkinson Family was suddenly left to fend by itself without the support of a state, Ark Larkinson tried his best to keep the pieces together. He kept frowning as he studied the accounts. While there was enough money to eke out a stable existence, it was not enough to elevate the old family. His terminal suddenly sounded a chime. Ark immediately accepted the request. The projection of Benjamin Larkinson appeared. Though he looked old and exhausted, the current crisis ignited his willpower, causing his former expert pilot tendencies to reemerge! "Son." "Father." "I'm sure you know what is taking place in the clan right now." Benjamin slowly spoke. "Ves and his band are contemplating yet another radical initiative." "I understand the position of the clan. The decision to adopt external people into their clan is not as crazy as it sounds. These are new and unprecedented times. We may need to change as well if we want our family to remain intact." "I understand. I already have a lot of ideas, but you have the final say. Everyone in the family trusts you, Ark. I have no doubt that you will exercise your authority wisely given your leadership of Havensworth, but I hope that you can steer us to a solution that will give most of us some peace of mind." Ark grimaced. "That's easier said than done. For obvious reasons, the Komodo Star Sector is becoming increasingly less attractive to us. More and more, I am beginning to contemplate whether we should move to Vicious Mountain or Majestic Teal." Neither star sectors were ideal. They had their own way of doing things that didn't entirely mesh with the noble ideals of the old family. It wasn't easy to find a state that was similar to the Bright Republic! "Majestic Teal has fewer wars, but it is full of hypocrites." Benjamin dismissively shook his head. "The peace they enjoy is very false. Millions or billions of subjects die each year due to the machinations of their avaricious leaders. None of them possess any true honor. The only ones who do well in Majestic Teal are those who excel in plotting and intrigue. Let's face it. We do not excel in this area. Considering our inclinations, we would do much better in Vicious Mountain." That said, neither Benjamin nor Ark held a good opinion about Vicious Mountain. Though it honored mech pilots and especially high-ranked mech pilots to an extreme degree, putting glory hounds in charge of states came with its own problems! Compared to Majestic Teal, Vicious Mountain and especially the Garlen Empire was refreshingly blunt and honest. Its leaders fought and started wars whenever it wanted to without bothering to come up with a plausible casus belli. Though Ark predicted that the Larkinson Family could do well in Vicious Mountain, he feared the influence of its glory-obsessed martial culture! "We may need to look further ahead." Ark said in resignation. "Luckily, human space has a lot of star sectors. There should be at least one place in the galaxy that meets our needs. We just have to spend enough time to find our new home." "Will our funding be able to sustain so much travel?" Benjamin asked. "Crossing star sectors is an expensive endeavor and the distances are unimaginable to us. In fact, many of us have never even left the Bright Republic! This flight is the first time that many of us have left our familiar state, and that frightens us more than we would like to admit!" As a leader who always tried to be in tune with his subordinates, Ark completely concurred with his father. "We are all out of our comfort zone. That is not in question. I believe we are capable enough to overcome our problems. We have gone through worse. We WILL find a home!" He briefly exuded the willpower and determination of a potent expert pilot when he spoke those words. It was as if he was making a promise as well as a declaration! Though Benjamin and Ark were on different fleets separated by light-years away, the older of the two was still sharp enough to notice something distinct about Ark's mannerisms. His eyes widened. "My son.. you've changed. Am I mistaken, or are you…" "It's strange." Ark ruefully smiled as he eased his shoulders. "I fought through two of the Bright-Vesia Wars. In my first time in battle, I had to fill the shoes of a leader because too many soldiers looked up to me due to the failings of our commanding officers. Back then, I didn't know why I earned so much respect among the men. Even though I lived through that harrowing war and broke through, I still didn't entirely understand the burden of leadership. I was merely acting according to my instincts and what you and many other Larkinsons instilled in me. That was enough for me to become a mech colonel, but no further." "What has changed?" "This." Ark waved his hand around his desk. The scattered data pads and other items made it clear that he had been working very hard the last few weeks! "Even though I spent years as a senior officer in the Mech Corps, I was always operating under the auspices of high command. If you disregard my rank, I was merely a cog in a machine. I may have been a very shiny and impressive-looking cog, but I had no control over my motions." He lowered his head and looked at his hands. "It started with the Sand War. The exceptional circumstances and the dire threat of the sandmen to human life started to evoke something in me. Resisting the alien threat is very different from fighting rival humans from another state. There is no question which is the greater calling. Fending off sandman fleets, saving entire planets of humans from extermination and trying my best to keep all of my soldiers alive at the end of the day was very taxing, but also very rewarding." "You still served at the whims of high command and the government." Benjamin noted. "That is true. Though the Sand War is over now, I am thrust in a smaller but even more critical situation to me. I am tasked with steering the future of the Larkinson Family. Despite the smaller scale, I feel more burdened with responsibility than ever! Back when I was in the Mech Corps, I was surrounded by subordinates and superiors who were able to make up for my mistakes. While there are plenty of wise Larkinsons in my fleet, I seem to be the only one who possessed the strength and leadership acumen to lead our family." "And that makes you afraid, am I correct?" Benjamin smiled through the projection. "Many people believe that expert pilots don't feel fear. They are wrong. An expert pilot's fear of failure is much greater than that of normal people! The greater your fear, the greater your drive to succeed!" Ark nodded. "It's strange. In my decades-long service in the Mech Corps, I experienced numerous battles where my life hung on a thread. I navigated through constant engagements where I had to lead my soldiers through near-defeats. Yet even if I am no longer leading thousands of troops, I feel more burdened than ever because my own family is at stake. At the same time, I'm no longer weighed down by the politics and constraints of our former state. No one is there to dictate orders to me or take responsibility. The buck stops with me, and that is much more frightening than I realized." The fate of so many people he cared about rested on his shoulders. Whereas others might have succumbed to the burden, Ark accepted this greater calling. His will to preserve and save his family stimulated him in a way he had never experienced in his long years of service! Both father and son shared a meaningful look with each other. There was no need to voice what Ark was going through. As one former expert pilot to a current expert pilot, both of them were keenly aware what was happening with the latter. Ark Larkinson was beginning to progress to a higher state! Though it was far from sure whether Ark would be able to advance to ace pilot, once he did, the fortunes of the family would completely change! The value of an ace pilot was a lot different than that of an expert pilot! As long as his loyalties weren't tied to an existing power, many second-rate states would be willing to open their doors to a homeless ace pilot! The Larkinson Family would easily be able to find the home and stability it so desperately sought! "Good luck, my son." "It is not luck I need, but support." Ark steeled his eyes! "As long as my relatives continue to believe in me, I shall never let them down! That is my calling!"