Chapter 1929 Liquid Courage The time had come. Almost two days after the tall ones began their search, Ves noticed that the guards had grown more vigorous in their search. In order to give the impression that everything was still normal, the dwarves still showed up on their assigned shifts. Rion had to waste precious time at work in order to avoid drawing any suspicion towards him. At this crucial moment, arresting him early would immediately spell the end of their escape plan! As Rion numbly drove his mining machine deeper, Ves constantly lectured him on how to pilot a mech against the guard force. "The Genie Pearl is a cut above the other mechs. It's not only a premium model, but also the only mech that retains much of its original speed characteristic. The antigrav backpack it is wearing exerts at least 3.6 g's of counter gravity on the mech, allowing it to move as swiftly as any other standard planet. Do you realize what an advantage this brings? It will be the only rabbit in a mob of snails!" "Forgive me for asking, Great Vulcan, but what is a rabbit? What is a snail?" Rion ignorantly asked. "Forget about that." Ves mentally waved his hand. "The point is that the speed of your mech is the key to victory. The guard force is fully alert and ready to respond to any incidents, so we can't completely catch them by surprise. Their main shortcoming is that they have dispersed their mechs to cover the entire outpost. This is the critical vulnerability which we can use to dismantle their mechs one by one. The premise is that you are able to run and defeat the separated mechs fast enough to prevent them from converging together!" A light skirmisher was known as a supreme one-on-one duelist. Popular in mech arenas, a skilled mech pilot could make these mechs dance against even the most formidable machines. They were often known as the underdog mechs, both in the dueling arena and the battlefield. Light mechs were cheaper and easier to maintain than larger mechs. As long as the mech pilot was skilled enough, a light mech could easily defeat mechs that were ten times as expensive! Of course, results like these did not come for free. The disparity in skill between mech pilots was crucial. The good news was that the mech pilots of the guard force were not up to standard. Though Ves could only infer their actual strength, from everything he had seen so far, the tall folk were so used to bullying the dwarves that they didn't bother to keep up their training and fitness! This was a crucial weakness! The bad news was that the dwarves weren't in a better shape either. None of the dwarves underwent any systematic combat training. The only remedy that Ves could offer was a half-baked crash course in tactics and maneuvers based on his personal experience. Though the dwarves lacked decent training, they made up for it with enthusiasm and drive. Though the rebels were lacking in other aspects, Ves in his guise as Vulcan managed to reduce many of their shortcomings. Each rebel dwarf possessed a suit of makeshift combat armor. While the reinforced hazard suits were not comparable to actual combat armor, they at least prevented the foot soldiers from dropping after getting hit just once. Ves also made sure the dwarves possessed the weapons to crack open the shells protecting the guards on foot. He already observed their combat armor in detail and realized that most of them consisted of cheap models of light and medium combat armor. Though Ves was not impressed by their gear, the guards did not need anything more to keep a population of slaves in line. If not for the extensive preparations made by the Desala Resistance Movement, the foot soldiers alone could have easily crushed any attempted rebellion without resorting to their mechs! Even so, the rushed and makeshift equipment fashioned for the dwarves only evened the odds. The dwarves still had to fight an uphill battle, and that caused many of the rebels to grow nervous as the final hour arrived. Once Rion finished his shift and sneaked into the underground base, a large group of rebels had already gathered. Clad in their crude and bulky barrel-shaped combat armor, the dwarves looked more valiant than ever. In order to prevent the patchwork armor from reinforcing their shabby impression, Ves ordered the dwarves to coat their armor in a uniform red-and-blue coating. The red stood for Vulcan and his domains. The blue stood for freedom and the boundless void of space. Painted on their broad chest was a giant black X surrounded by a stylized cog. The X stood for the planet that they had called their home, while the cog stood for their future potential. To be honest, Ves wanted to bestow the dwarves with a more sophisticated emblem to unite around. However, the symbolism would doubtlessly be lost to their inadequately educated minds. The large X's surrounded by cogs made a very powerful impression on the dwarves. The rebel movement had never adopted a simple symbol before. Now that so many dwarves were wearing the same colors and symbols, an unprecedented feeling of unity emanated from their group! This simple transformation completely elevated them from a collection of disgruntled miners. If their gear was of a higher quality, then the dwarves could easily be mistaken as a professional troop! "The reckoning draws close." Ves in his guise as Vulcan declared. "The tall folk have enslaved us long enough. Now, it is time to pay back all of the enmity we have accrued!" Every dwarf looked solemn as they tried to psyche themselves up for battle. None of the dwarves had ever fought a battle against the tall folk! Though the rebels largely consisted of the most reckless and resentful dwarves, all of them bore the scars of decades of tall folk suppression. The superior human oppressors cast a very long shady in their hearts and minds. It was all well and good to talk about rebelling against the tall folk when a confrontation was far away. Now that they actually had to put their lives risks, the dwarves began to waver in their determination. Fear was a powerful deterrent. Fear was one of the most important weapons employed by the tall folk. Ves studied the fearful expressions of the dwarves and mentally shook his head in disappointed. The rebels weren't the trained combatants he was used to. The soldiers of the Mech Corps, the privately-groomed troops of his mech forces and the ferocious gangsters from various gangs were much more firm in the face of combat! The dwarves lacked the training and discipline to suppress their fear. Ves didn't want to see this. In his heart, he hoped that the rebels were able to find enough determination to steel through their fears. Sadly, that wasn't enough. The scars they incurred from a lifetime of tall folk oppression caused many of the dwarves to hesitate when the critical moment drew close! Ves could not allow the dwarves to second-guess their motives! They needed to focus on their roles and fight the guard force with as much courage and determination as possible! Fortunately, he anticipated that these untrained dwarves might exhibit the flaws plaguing many unprofessional forces. Rion's body faced the crowd of dwarves with a proud expression. "My dwarves, do not feel discouraged. The tall folk may be strong, but we are stronger! The difference between you and them is that you have a god at your side! With all of the blessings that I have bestowed upon you, none of the tall folk can escape our retribution!" 𝒇𝒓𝒆𝒆𝙬𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝒎 The dwarves hardly looked any better. Words no longer had effect. It was not easy for Ves to cure an affliction to their hearts through his words alone! Fortunately, Ves anticipated that as well. He directed his possessed body to a corner where he withdrew a long pole of Xantur iron along with a folded sheet of fabric. He returned to the center of the crowd and lowered the end of the pole to his chest. He then proceeded to unfolk the fabric and attach it to the end of the pole. His movements were slow and precise. Yet every dwarf in the crowd felt compelled to look. Once Ves was finished, he raised the pole until a long and fairly narrow banner fluttered from the top! The banner looked no different from the armor worn by the guards. Dyed in both red and blue, the large X surrounded by a cog immediately drew everyone's eyes! Unlike other objects, the banner radiated a glow that was similar to what they felt from Vulcan! It was as if Vulcan sacrificed a part of his divinity to impart the banner with his blessing! This was not that far from the truth. While Ves hadn't imparted the banner with a spiritual fragment or a spiritual product, he empowered it with an empowered image of Vulcan. While this didn't make the banner as potent as the Larkinson Mandate, the banner still made a very powerful impression on the deprived rebels! "This.." "This is the Banner of Vulcan!" Ves announced as he raised the pole in the air! "This will be the flag that represents your people! I bestow this sacred gift onto you in order to bless your courage. Even if this body is not able to fight alongside you, I will always be watching over you through this banner! Fight for freedom, fight as if your life depends on it, because a god will always be on your side! FOR VULCAN!" Every dwarf raised their fists in unison! "FOR VULCAN!" "FOR FREEDOM!" "FOR FREEDOM "FOR THE DWARVES!" "FOR THE DWARVES!" Instilling this shouting ritual was yet another tool that Ves employed to rally their hearts and unify their thoughts. There was something intrinsically encouraging about shouting the same cries as your comrades. For a moment, the dwarves actually resembled disciplined and eager soldiers! Of course, how long their temporary boost of courage would last was still in question. In order to shore up their confidence once again, Rion's body approached a pile of barrels. "Let us toast our impending victory!" "Hooray!" No dwarf said no to a good drink! The dwarves, who never ate or drank anything other than water and nutrient packs in their lives, eagerly partook in the nutrient beer as if it was literally the nectar of the gods! The ambrosia succeeded in driving away their fears. The positive atmosphere along with the encouraging glows of Vulcan and his recently-made banner infused each of them with hope and determination. They were willing to risk their lives in order to free their people! Death was not so scary as long as they proved themselves worthy enough to earn Vulcan's grace! Ves happily looked on as the dwarves required no further encouragement to confront the tall folk! He wasn't worried whether the dwarves drank themselves stupid. There wasn't enough nutrient beer to satisfy their desires. In addition, their formidable dwarven physiques raised their tolerance for alcohol to a ridiculous level! Of course, after a bit of deliberation, Ves forced his possessed body to take a few sips as well. He knew that Rion was just as prone to fear and hesitation as the rest of the dwarves. 'Ace pilot' or not, Rion was far from an actual half-god in terms of will and determination! Fortifying his heart and mind with some liquid courage might affect his coordination and precision when piloting a mech, but Ves believed the tradeoff was more than worthwhile! "You're not a bad kid, Rion." Ves mentally addressed his host. "You shored up decently well in the last week of training. As long as you can overcome your mental block, I'm sure you will be able to perform well in battle!" Once the barrels ran out of nutrient beer, the dwarves started to move into action. "Let's go."