The establishment of the Warborn Mech Division represented a closer entanglement between the Golden Skull Alliance and the Colonial Federation of Davute. The Larkinsons and the Crossers no longer limited their support for the state in the form of industry, commerce or technological exchanges. If that was all they did, then they could still avoid associations with the Davutans if this proved to be inconvenient. That was no longer the case anymore. Ves and his allies had formally crossed a line by offering their troops and mechs to the Federal Military in a time where war loomed closer with each passing day. The fact that the Larkinsons and the Crossers not only provided tens of thousands of soldiers, but also numerous expert pilots as well as its only ace pilot was a massive commitment! What President Yenames Clive and the colonial government cared about the most was Patriarch Reginald Cross and the Mars! The addition of such a powerful and symbolic strategic asset substantially boosted the morale and the actual combat strength of the recently founded colonial federation! It served as an authentic vote of confidence and dispelled a lot of fear and uncertainty that had spread ever since the Karlachs launched a surprise attack in the Government District. Even though the tragedy that occurred that day led to many deaths and horrible memories, it only took a single month for all of the pessimistic attitudes to fade. The federal president, his administration and the backers behind him all worked extremely hard to placate key stakeholders. Davute became even more attractive of a trade destination than before now that the state granted increased autonomy, greater access and more explicit support to the strong or wealthy pioneering organizations that continued to arrive in the new frontier. Many different colonies and colonial states sought to bring these powerful talents and groups into their camps. Though Davute and Karlach both developed their own strategies to build up a stronger network of supporters, they were hardly the only game in the region. Many more nascent states had emerged that offered their own favorable terms. The larger, stronger and better funded ones offered more attractive terms. Davute and Karlach actually did not rank among the top of these growing colonial states. They could only settle in the middle of the ranking of second-rate states. Neither of them were able to attract too many pioneering organizations at the caliber of the Golden Skull Alliance. "How is Davute doing these days?" Ves asked Minister Shederin Purnesse as he paid a visit to the older man's office in the Cat Nest. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs had grown a lot busier after the founding of the Colonial Federation of Davute. The Larkinson Clan might not be the strongest party in the local scene, but it was definitely a player that punched above its weight! "It is difficult to form an accurate assessment of Davute, Ves." The diplomat said. "The situation is changing quickly. Public data is scarce and we do not have access to the colonial government's metrics. We can only base our analysis on many indicators that are obvious on the surface. Right now I would say that Davute is doing as well as it can hope, but that is not enough to overpower Karlach." Ves expected as much. The two colonial states were too even in many regards. It was hard for either of them to overpower the other. "Alright, forget about Davute for the time being. How close are we to welcoming the Adelaides and the Boojays into the Golden Skull Alliance? We need their help in order to hunt down the opponents we need to harvest the MTA merits and first-class materials we need to comprehensively upgrade our combat assets. The sooner we reach quasi-first class standards, the more we can guarantee our safety. We won't become invincible, but the combination of a roving fleet and a mech force that is practically undefeatable in the middle zones of the Red Ocean will buy us a lot of development time." "I am aware of your layout, sir. My office and I are working as hard as we can to conclude the treaty negotiations as soon as possible, but we cannot work any faster. The Golden Skull Alliance is not as small and casual as before. A vast amount of people have become involved. The two ace pilots of the Adelaides and the Boojays also represent massive bargaining chips. We are essentially providing these two groups with their own kinship networks in order to secure a promise that Saint Marissa Lewandowski and Saint Kalasandra Boojay will accompany and protect our expeditionary fleet. This may sound like a simple exchange, but the details are extremely crucial as we want the ace pilots to affirm these promises in their own words." Ves nodded. He understood the gravity of the situation. High-ranking mech pilots always abided by their words. The moment they broke a single promise was the moment they threw away all of their chances of advancing any further! He only needed to remind himself of his grandfather Benjamin to know how much their vows and convictions dictated their lives for good or ill. "Make sure they won't be able to get away from this demand." He told him. "Kinship networks are immensely valuable, but it doesn't really cost me anything to make them for different groups, so don't worry about whether we have to make great sacrifices. I am more worried about ruffling the feathers of the Big Two and inducing a backlash from the general public." "I agree." Minister Shederin replied. "The implications of your kinship networks are too massive and will definitely attract attention from the wrong parties. We have exaggerated the value and the difficulty of making your kinship networks to the Adelaides and the Boojays in order to strengthen our negotiating position. It has worked well for us. All we need to do now is to finalize the details and close the deal before our two future partners realize how badly we desire their ace mechs." After getting fooled and betrayed by numerous stubborn and boneheaded high-ranking mech pilots such as Uncle Ark and Patriarch Reginald, Ves had resolutely changed his handling concerning these powerful champions. He learned the hard way that he couldn't rely on soft methods to bring these brain-damaged idiots to heel! Expert pilots and ace pilots obsessed too much over their principles and convictions. Treating them like friends might allow Ves to influence their decisions, but these powerhouses wouldn't hesitate to turn their backs on their buddies if they chose to pursue a greater calling! Patriarch Reginald was the most obvious case of this phenomenon. Ves thought he had an understanding with Reginald. They talked often enough about the need to keep their respective clans safe and independent, and that roaming the new frontier was a great way to avoid entangling themselves in troublesome conflicts. Yet after all of that talk, what did Reginald do? Once the prospect of war between two substantial colonial states arose, the Cross Patriarch completely disregarded the needs and priorities of his own clan and selfishly offered his services to Davute! What was so egregious about this was that his sole purpose for doing so was to indulge in his own lust for battle! The rest of his clan such as Master Benedict Cortez and many of his relatives had little choice but to accept his unilateral decision and make the necessary adjustments. This must not happen again. After talking a bit more with Minister Shederin, Ves became reassured that the Adelaides and the Boojays wouldn't pull off a similar U-turn in the future. "The only way the Adelaide Third Fleet and the Boojay Family can withdraw their ace pilots from the expeditionary fleet is by mutual consent." Shederin explained. "For example, if we ever split up our fleet or stay in a fixed location for numerous years, we can always agree to station these strategic assets elsewhere. It is also not possible for us to retain the services of the ace pilots if their respective pioneering organizations have decided to part with the Golden Skull Alliance." These were all understandable terms. One of the reasons why the negotiations took so long was because both sides needed to agree on what would happen if one of the alliance partners wanted to leave the Golden Skull Alliance. The ace pilots and ace mechs could easily be taken away, but what would happen to their kinship networks at that point? Ripping them out would cause massive trauma and loss! As such, if the Adelaides or the Boojays ever had any reason to leave on short notice, they were practically obliged to provide compensation. The exact magnitude of this compensation and the details regarding many other variables had to be spelled out in clear and concrete terms. It was better to settle these differences in advance rather than get caught unprepared when a low probability event occurred several years later. Shederin issued a warning to Ves. "While the Adelaides and the Boojays have not pushed back against our demand with regards to their ace pilots, you need to take into account that neither of them are enthusiastic about staying permanently in our alliance. As far as both groups are concerned, the Golden Skull Alliance is a transit vehicle that they can enter for as long as they want until they have reached their respective destinations." "I already know that. I don't mind too much if they leave as long as they do so in an orderly process. The Golden Skull Alliance is nice and all, but the main reason why I set it up in the first place is to benefit the Larkinson Clan and make it stronger. If the Adelaides and the Boojays have helped us a lot in the following years and allowed our clan to develop a lot faster than before, then they have already contributed enough as far as I am concerned. We can always seek new partners in order to fill the void left behind by these two groups. We just have to sustain our massive success." That caused Minister Shederin to look troubled. The older man leaned forward. "I was meaning to talk to you about this subject, Ves. So far, we are lucky that we have managed to secure victories in the battles we have fought in the past. While we can rely on excellent preparation, superior intelligence gathering and powerful mechs to tilt our battles in our favor, it is inevitable for us to bite off more than we can chew in the coming years. We are not properly prepared for this eventuality. We will lose far more than you realize. Right now, we are able to derive enormous benefits from our myth of invincibility and success." Ves sighed. "I know that, Shederin. I am well-versed in statistical analysis and probability theory. I know that we are investing too much in our luck. This is exactly one of the reasons why we need the strength of the Adelaides and the Boojays. Greater numbers and more ace mechs will reduce our vulnerability to enemies. I am also counting on another measure to accelerate our success and minimize the accidents that we might suffer over the course of our expeditions." "Oh? That is new. You have yet to explain this measure of yours." "It's not a new idea." Ves smirked. "Do you recall how thousands of different pioneering fleets descended upon the border region between Krakatoa and Zelmar, only for ours to succeed in tracking down Lord Pearian Yorul-Tavik and earn the favor of a first-class clan?" Minister Shederin Purnesse immediately understood what the clan patriarch had in mind. "Are you suggesting…" Ves smirked even wider as he mockingly pressed his palms together. "We need to kick our growth and expansion into gear. Aimlessly wandering the deep frontier doesn't sound particularly productive to me. Since we have access to the services of a 'prophet', why not make use of this asset? We can track down all sorts of alien treasures and valuable resources with a bit of metaphysical help!" This was the measure he needed to turn his Trailblazer Expedition into a true success!