Putting his cyborg cat in the hands of a prominent citizen of a first-rate state was easier said than done. It was not impossible, though. Ves and the Larkinson Clan probably wouldn't be able to pull it off alone, but that was what friends were for. He was sure he could use one of his contacts to help him put his beautiful divine artifact up for auction at an exclusive venue in an upper zone. "That will help in the medium term, but it won't do much for me in the short term." Ves said. "Then you better spend your time on other projects in the meantime." "That is definitely on the agenda." The two siblings continued talking. Though Helena failed to provide any further advice, Ves appreciated her input. Her perspective was vastly different and she had learned enough lessons from their mother to provide him with an expanded perspective on different matters. Her intangible form stood up and let go of the cyborg cat. "As much as I like to keep chatting, I am burning too much energy by keeping this form. I think I have helped you get on your way now. You will have to do the rest on your own. You can call me whenever you need help, but please try and become strong by developing your own system. Our biggest problem has always been that we are working with methods that our enemies have largely invented first. Our mother and I have inherited too much from them, and that makes defeating our foes an uphill battle." Ves understood what his eldest sister meant. It was as if the Larkinson Clan was locked in a struggle against the Mech Trade Association. The latter was the holy land of mechs and knew more about them than any other organization, period. The only way for the Larkinson Clan to survive such a confrontation was to stay as far away as possible while developing new technologies that could surprise the mechers. In fact, that was exactly what Ves originally intended to do before the MTA took a greater interest in his work. Nowadays, anything he invented would eventually get leaked to the MTA, which meant that Ves essentially had to surrender his work to the people he was trying to guard against! It was beyond frustrating for the MTA to swoop in and demand Ves to share his work all of the time, but that was the reality of being a good mech designer in the Age of Mechs. This era belonged to the MTA and the CFA, and no one could get away from their influence. Once his sister departed, Ves spent a bit of time examining his cyborg cat. "I will find a new owner for you so that you can get pampered every day. For now, I need you to hide yourself. I don't want anyone tying your existence to me, so please bear with the situation." 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦 "Myaow myaow." The cyborg cat rubbed herself against his cheek before she phased herself into the deck while also camouflaging herself for good measure. His new cat's hiding ability was much better than his own, so Ves felt fully reassured in her ability to stay unnoticed. Time passed by. Several events took place. For one, the Larkinson Clan's lawyers had worked intensely with their counterparts to finalize the contracts that formalized the trade deals that the Larkinson Clan had concluded with the other members of the temporary coalition. As soon as the contracts took effect, the different parties began to ship over the mech weapons that Ves needed to upgrade. A small team of guards and observers accompanied each shipment. The Larkinsons had already made plans to accommodate the temporary guests aboard the Spirit of Bentheim, but that did not change the fact that they were annoying to work around. The foreign guests constantly kept Ves in his sights whenever he approached and touched the powerful mech gear. Although he had received permission to make small physical changes to the weapons, the specialists among the observers could veto his proposed changes at any time if they thought that Ves would ruin the effectiveness of any of this powerful gear. He sighed. "I guess I will have to stick to cosmetic changes to make my mark." There was one commission that Ves couldn't handle in the Spirit of Bentheim. This was not just because it comprised of more than just a standalone piece of mech equipment, but also because it would put the flagship of the Larkinson Clan at extreme risk! Even if Ves was willing to believe in the integrity of an ace pilot, there was no need for him to tempt fate! This was why he boarded a shuttle which brought him to a modest combat carrier that had moved to the midway position between the fleets of the Larkinson Clan and the Santana Group. The Santanas were rather economical as far as their starships were concerned. Though they did not skimp on the construction of the ships that fell under their powerful Xenoarchaeology Division, the vessels did not possess any additional bells and whistles. They were merely solid ships that were designed with efficiency in mind but were also devoid of personality. As the shuttle touched down in a hangar bay that was made up of plain, uncoated metal alloys, Ves greeted a junior officer who had been instructed to guide him to the right compartment. A short time later, Ves and a couple of guards that had been allowed to accompany him entered an unusually well-equipped workshop. Ves momentarily paused in order to admire the sight of the sole mech that had already been placed in a work bay. "We meet again, Thunderer Mark II." It was one thing to see the powerful ace mech operate on a projected screen. It was another thing to experience the Thunderer Mark II at close proximity! Though the ace mech was dormant at the moment, Ves could still feel the echo of power that had been imprinted on the thick and massive frame. Ves didn't have much experience with high-ranking heavy artillery mechs. Sure, his clan fought against a number of them in battle, but those were mere snapshots in his life. His mouth already started to salivate as he beheld a foreign ace heavy artillery mech. This was quite easily the most powerful ranged mech that he had the privilege to touch and examine up close. He even had permission to make small changes to the mech itself! It was an incredible privilege for a mere 'Journeyman' such as Ves to be granted this honor, so he quickly regained his composure and began to adopt a serious attitude to this commission. As soon as he came close enough, an unmistakingly powerful individual stood up from the crate he was sitting upon and floated over to Ves. "Saint Osenring. It is a pleasure to meet you in person." The man was unquestionably more than human. The man not only exuded strength and determination through his dense and powerful will, his body was also augmented by a considerable amount of cybernetic parts. Ves had read in the man's record that Saint Osenring had once suffered serious injuries in battle. The celebrated mech pilot could have opted for treatments that could have restored him too close to his original form, but instead he chose to integrate cybernetic augmentations that strengthened his parameters beyond the norm. This was an important turning point in Saint Osenring's life and it spoke much about his priorities and his preferences. "I could say the same to you as well." The older man responded with an inquisitive look. "Your signature is unmistakable. It was truly you that changed my mech back then. It is amazing that you have managed to do so much with the help of one of your expert mechs." "I'm quite happy with what I have managed to pull off in a short amount of time, but that doesn't change the fact that it is a rush job. I have come here to finish my work. How has the Thunderer Mark II fared after the battle?" The augmented ace pilot invited Ves forward. "Please see for yourself. It has undergone numerous changes ever since you imbued it with power." As Ves stepped closer and closer, he could feel more of the strength of the dormant ace mech. It was as if it had become a sleeping giant. There was so much potential for destruction locked within its large and heavy frame. Once Ves lifted up his arm and pressed his armored palm against the smooth surface of one of the eight spider-like legs of the machine, he was truly able to inspect the current state of its spiritual foundation. Nothing much had actually changed since he last came into contact with it. The spiritual foundation had settled into a new structure that was a bit more coherent and more compatible with life, but other than that the willpower baptism from Saint Osenring did not interfere too much. This was a good sign. It was an indicator that Saint Osenring did not reject the changes made to his trusty ace mech. Ves could even sense that the Phase King, though currently dormant, also retained its connection to the powerful machine. "Have you communicated much with the Phase King after the battle has ended?" Saint Osenring shook his head. "Not much. I have come in touch with this foreign phase whale-like creature during my guard shifts, but I have held off on my explorations out of caution. They do not entirely understand all of the changes that you have made to mech, and I am concerned about any subsequent changes that you will make. This mech is my fortress, Patriarch Larkinson. I can understand the value of strengthening its attack power, but I do not want to pilot a mech that I cannot recognize anymore." It sounded as if Ves needed to dial back his more ambitious plans regarding the Thunderer Mark II. "Don't worry. I will take your preferences into account. The initial changes that I have made are already doing much of the heavy lifting. What I intend to do is to refine and strengthen the existing structure that I have already established. Your ace mech won't gain too many new elements. Instead, its existing ones will become stronger. Does that sound acceptable?" The ace pilot of the Santana Group could hear the sincerity in Ves' tone. "I will accept your word. Please proceed, then." "Thank you. The sooner I am done, the sooner I can go back to my fleet." Ves proceeded to spend the next hour examining the Thunderer Mark II from every angle. He floated from side to side and even entered the cockpit for a few minutes to take in the seat where Saint Osenring unleashed his destructive shockwaves against his targets. There was much about the Thunderer II that impressed Ves. A team of highly accomplished Master Mech Designers had designed this metal monstrosity. From its thick, arachnid legs to its 10 formidable heavy gauss cannons, everything about the Thunderer Mark II reinforced its role as the ultimate artillery platform in the shape of a mech! To be honest, Ves only spent half of the time on thinking how to strengthen its blessed weapons. He spent the rest of the time examining the many exquisite implementations of the Thunderer Mark II! He absorbed many of the best practices that he could figure out and started to gain a deeper understanding on how the Thunderer Mark II worked. All of the lessons he learned today could be applied to future design projects involving heavy artillery mechs and ranged mechs in general. Ves especially became interested in upgrading the Transcendent Punisher Mark II's. The Ylvainan heavy artillery mechs weren't weak per se, but they had displayed clear shortcomings in the last battle. If Ves wanted to ensure that the artillery wing of the Larkinson Army remained effective in future battles, then he needed to upgrade all of their cannons into transphasic weapons! Previously, Ves never thought about doing so because the amount of phasewater needed to upgrade so many heavy mechs was excessive. Now, the situation had changed. The Larkinson Clan had just earned a windfall in phasewater, and Ves did not intend to leave it all unused.