Chapter 2116 Mission Readiness With the Larkinson Clan's time at Cinach coming to end, Ves began to notify everyone that they needed to prepare for departure in the near future. After four months of rest, growth and preparation, the Larkinson Clan had become at least several times stronger and more vigorous than it had been at the beginning of its arrival at Cinach! Ves was very proud of what he and his clan managed to accomplish over this period of time Every starship had been serviced and readied for the challenges that lay ahead. While Ves was dissatisfied with the quality and capabilities of most of them, at this time it was still too unrealistic to procure anything better. If Ves wanted to leave the Komodo Star Sector, he could only do so with his second-class ships such as the Barracuda and the Scarlet Rose. That entailed leaving the rest of his clan behind, which was unacceptable. Upgrading the FTL drives of his existing vessels or procuring more second-class ships became more important than ever! With the huge amount of revenue the LMC earned from the Doom Guard, it actually became possible to pursue either option. However, at the moment, mechs mattered more. With the influx of a lot of new mech pilots, the LMC had to produce or procure a lot of new mechs. Every mech roster had been overhauled or upgraded to make sure that every mech pilot was paired with a good machine. While most Larkinson mech pilots had to make do with various types of third-class mech models, enough Breyer alloy became available to provide the Avatars of Myth with an additional mech company's worth of Bright Warriors. In fact, the Avatars could have received more copies of the resilient modular mech platform, but Ves put a stop to its production. He no longer wanted to waste any Breyer alloy. He wanted to save it up and build a huge reserve for other purposes. Over 10,000 new recruits had joined the clan, pushing up the total number of clansmen past 20,000 and counting. The numbers still grew every day, though the growth had obviously flattened off as the existing clan structure was already straining to integrate so many new members. Despite the challenges, Ves could feel the energy in the clan. Morale was high and plenty of newly-adopted Larkinsons couldn't wait to prove their chops! Those who applied to the Larkinson Clan and passed the rigorous selection process weren't average people. Though they predominantly consisted of Sentinel commoners, each of them possessed excellent resumes and possessed personalities that were already compatible with the Larkinson culture and mindset. Therefore, Ves was not afraid that the new recruits were hesitant to enter the Nyxian Gap. Of course, some were more eager than others. Civilians who joined the clan in order to work for the LMC did not possess as much stomach for danger as an elite Avatar pilot! In order to get a good understanding of the current disposition of his combat forces, Ves scheduled a meeting to discuss their readiness. Major Quinlist Verle-Larkinson entered the conference first together with Fleet Coordinator Ophelia Kronon-Larkinson. "Good morning, sir." "Have a seat." Soon enough, Commander Melkor Larkinson arrived. He tipped his head at Ves and took a seat while fiddling with his visor. Commander Magdalena Larkinson entered shortly afterwards. The older woman nodded at everyone with respect before sitting next to Melkor. Commander Cinnabar-Larkinson and Commander Dise-Larkinson arrived in unison. They sat down while swapping some old stories. Finally, Commander Rosa Orfan-Larkinson barged through the door five minutes late. "Sorry about that. I lost track of time when I was chatting with one of my buddies!" Ves coughed. "Please take your seat. We are all more than ready to begin this meeting." He sent a measured look at Major Verle, who shrugged in helplessness. When the Flagrant Vandals defected from the Bright Republic and decided to go their own way, they splintered. Several ships and many former servicemen refused to join the Larkinson Clan. Among them were several capable officers who could have taken over command of the Flagrant Vandals after Major Verle received a more senior position. The lack of senior command talent meant that Orfan was the only Vandal who possessed the 'experience', 'skills' and 'qualifications' to command the Vandals. Putting an expert candidate or an expert pilot in charge was not an unusual phenomenon. However, there were certain people who were much more gifted in leadership than others. Sadly, Major Verle already warned Ves that his former men wouldn't accept anyone else but Orfan. Despite her mixed results, she was a well-liked officer among the Vandals and earned their respect and trust. No one else aside from Major Verle himself could match her sway! Therefore, Ves had no choice but to tolerate the new Vandal Commander. If Major Verle hadn't supplied him with the incredibly valuable high-grade life-prolonging treatment serum, Ves would have put an external leader in charge! "Alright, everyone is here. Let's start." He spoke. "Everyone knows what this meeting is all about. It is no secret that I intend to enter the Nyxian Gap and perform a possible mission for the MTA. Such missions are very dangerous, but also very lucrative." "I have one question." The recently-promoted Commander Orfan asked. "Where are those sanctimonious Hexers? Have they pulled their sticks out of their butts yet, or do they need some help?" "Please be more respectful towards our allies and friends." Ves warned her. "The Glory Battalion won't be accompanying us. Protecting Gloriana is a higher priority and I would feel much better if her bodyguards are all doing what they are supposed to be doing. As for the Penitent Sisters, I intend to address them separately. They have no say in our decisions." That answered many of their doubts. Ves clapped and turned to Melkor. "Let's begin with the Avatars of Myth. How many mech pilots and mechs can you field?" "After extensive training and recruitment, we can field at least 600 mechs." Melkor replied. "All of them are paired with Avatar mech pilots that are largely up to our standards. In fact, we have more mechs and mech pilots than that. If necessary, we can bring 800 additional bodies, though the quality of our Avatar candidates are very inconsistent." That was a lot! The Avatars had diminished to just a couple of hundred mech pilots after the Battle of Kesseling VIII, and that included both spaceborn and landbound specialists! "Let's keep our expeditionary force into the frontier on the lean side, Melkor. Bring only the best and the ones who we can depend upon. There is little room for deadweight in a depraved environment like the Nyxian Gap. There won't be any safe harbor for us to shelter in and recruit new mech pilots or repair our damaged ships." "Understood. I will stick to the original plan." Ves turned to Commander Magdalena. "I won't bring too many Sentinels along. Most of your men need to guard the Larkinsons who remain in Cinach." "That is prudent." Magdalena stoically answered. "Out of every division of the clan, ours has expanded the most. We are already capable of fielding 2000 mechs and mech pilots, of which 1500 are spaceborn and 500 are landbound or aerial." The Sentinels skewed towards recruiting spaceborn pilots and procuring spaceborn mechs because there was a much greater need to protect the clan's growing fleet. "How many do you intend to bring to the expedition?" "Not every Sentinel has volunteered for this dangerous duty, sir. As of now, I believe it is acceptable to dispatch 500 mechs and mech pilots." Ves looked disappointed at this anemic figure. "That is less than the Avatars. Doesn't that sound strange?" Commander Magdalena kept her cool. ???The Avatars recruited the best out of the mech pilots that have joined our clan. To put it bluntly, my Sentinels have turned into a dumping ground for the rejects. While I take no offense at this circumstance, the reality is that hardly any of the recruits we've received are ready to participate in a high-intensity, high-risk mission in the Nyxian Gap. Even the Sentinel Peacekeepers only consist of seasoned war veterans and highly-experienced mercenaries!" She made a very good point, though her words hardly lifted his mood. "What is your opinion, then? Do you think it is a good idea to bring any Sentinels at all?" He asked. "While we aren't the Avatars, we have our own pride, sir." She pushed back against the implicit doubt in his words. "There are Sentinels among us who have more ambition than others. Anyone who participates in this dangerous expedition stands to earn a lot of merits. With our reward structure, those who perform the toughest jobs are entitled to the best treatment." The determination that Commander Magdalena conveyed convinced Ves of her sincerity. "Very well. I'll be expecting 500 of your mechs to be a part of our upcoming mission." He then turned to Commander Cinnabar. "What about your Battle Criers?" "Every single one of us are ready to follow you wherever you go. Unless you intend to dive straight into a black hole, we will fight with you to the end!" Though the former mercenary commander sounded crazy, Ves was very confident that Cinnabar meant what he said. This was the benefit of buying Kinners. Even though the emergence of the Golden Cat and the Larkinson Network massively decreased the chances of betrayal, Ves was still inclined to lean onto his Kinners for some of his more sensitive priorities. At this time, the crew of the Scarlet Rose largely consisted of Kinner bondsmen! "How many mechs?" "We aren't as large as the Avatars or Sentinels." The Battle Crier Commander answered. "That said, our reinforcements from the Kinner Tribe have already arrived and joined my command. We can field 240 mechs right away." "That sounds good, though you are not necessarily required to bring everyone." Ves nodded in satisfaction. "The role your Battle Criers shall play in the Nyxian Gap may be different from everyone else. I don't need too much of your boys to come along." He turned to the Commander Orfan, who already opened her mouth before Ves could make his query. "Don't worry, Ves. My Vandals are in tip-top shape. Though we haven't turned into a 'raiding and reconnaissance' force as of yet, our mechs can take a lot of hits as long as we aren't fighting against Fridaymen or something." "That's... good to hear. How many mechs and mech pilots can you bring?" "Easily over three-hundred. We've been expanding our ranks a bit since we've arrived. We picked up a few Mech Corps deserters here and there after they heard what a sweet deal we got. We don't have the combat carriers to bring them all, though." Ves rubbed his smooth-shaven cheek. "I need your combat carriers as well as your mechs. Just bring as many mechs you can stuff in the Princely Jackal, the Shield of Hispania and the Gorgon's Gaze." "Got it, Ves." He moved on to Commander Dise, who exuded a sharper vibe than Commander Orfan. "Your Swordmaidens have suffered heavily losses during the Battle of Kesseling VIII." "That doesn't mean we have lost our edge. We've already recruited a lot of promising young women to turn them into the next generation of Swordmaidens." Dise replied defensively. "As for my veterans, we could use some exercise. The Nyxian Gap is just another frontier for us. While we can only bring a single mech company, our swords are more than sharp enough to chop some pirate scum!" "I'll make sure to facilitate some of your needs in the coming weeks." Ves promised to Commander Dise. He owed it to the Swordmaidens to take care of them. While he couldn't provide them with better mechs as of yet, perhaps he could do something about their swords. From spending a lot of time with Ketis, he knew that the Swordmaidens revered their blades above everything else!