Chapter 5756 Lieutenant-Commander Astrid Jameson 5756 Lieutenant-Commander Astrid Jameson Ves was sure that a lot of people tuned out of the broadcast as he continued to lecture about living mechs. In order to establish an objective baseline that could casually be questioned by his opponents, Ves needed to start from the beginning and touch upon all kinds of subjects that many of his customers had long grown familiar with over the years. It couldn't be helped. Ves did not want to create misunderstandings by skipping on essential subjects. He needed to build a foundation based on truth to deflect any arguments that were based on falsehoods surrounding his living mechs. As Ves continued his lecture, the opposition remained silent for the time being. The speakers who intended to paint living mechs in a much worse light did not intend to let him go unchallenged, but they understood that this was not the time for them to interrupt. The public inquiry was a marathon, not a sprint. The first day was mostly devoted to developing a better understanding of living mechs. All of the discussion needed to be anchored around this core goal. The right to speak first was incredibly valuable because it enabled Ves to set the baseline on living mechs. His opposition would probably do their best to challenge his many claims and assumptions, but they would be doing so at a disadvantage because they needed to work hard to convince the public to accept their alternative explanations. The more Ves elaborated on his living mechs, the more his opponents had to work in order to weaken the existing foundation. Once Ves believed he had spoken enough about living mechs, he wisely decided to stop before he started to bore even his most dedicated audience. There was only so much lecturing they could tolerate. The public inquiry was also meant to allow multiple voices to have their turn, so Ves could not be allowed to speak all day. "...Now that you have obtained a basic grasp on the essential variables that make up a living mechs, I hope that you have developed a proper understanding of the unique E- technologies that make them different. One of the fundamental reasons why my works are so often misunderstood is that many of my design solutions are intangible. That has caused plenty of people to develop wild ideas about them, but once you dive into the theory, you will find that they are similar to other engineering solutions." It was important for Ves to demystify the existence of living mechs. Too many people misunderstood them because they did not work according to normal science. "Living mechs are part of a brand new frontier of technology that has great potential. It would be foolish to reject innovation that can contribute massively to the war effort solely because it is more difficult to grasp than usual. Already, there are mech designers who have begun to grasp the theory and practice of living mechs. This proves that the theoretical framework that I have built is solid enough that it can be taught. I can promise you all that there will come a day where the advantages that I have accrued will become a part of our collective human heritage." That was also an important point he had to make. Living mechs had put a lot of people out of their jobs because their employers had no way of matching the features that Ves took for granted. By reminding people that the art of designing living mechs could be taught, Ves presented hope that other mech designers would be able to design products that were just as good as the Fey Fianna or the Ultimatum. Of course, it was questionable whether other people believed in this claim. Living mechs had already built up a reputation for being notoriously obtuse and difficult to learn. The opposition was sure to criticize this point. Once Ves had vacated the central position and returned to his previous place at the side, the planetary governor pointedly gazed down at the leading opposition figures. "Now that the creator and chief proponent of living mechs has delivered his introduction, it is time for us to hear an alternative perspective. This subject is far too great to rely on a single source of information to form our judgment. Now, who among the opposition wishes to speak first?" "I do!" A surprisingly young and female voice spoke out. "I am Lieutenant-Commander Astrid Jameson, and I have been appointed by the Fifth Enforcement Fleet to share the Red Fleet's rapidly growing concerns about the spread of the infestation called living mechs." Her tone and words were bound to provoke a lot of negative reactions from the audience. There were many loyal users of living mechs, and they did not appreciate a fleeter referring to their assets as a plague upon society. Though Astrid Jameson did not exactly make a good impression, it was not strictly necessary for her to charm her audience. She just had to instill enough doubt and fear towards living mechs to complete her goal. Clearly, she had decided upon an aggressive strategy. It was risky, but the potential gains were great so long as she did not mince any words. Her opening was already sufficient to wake up a lot of people and revive people's interest in the public inquiry. It helped a lot that she was surprisingly young and attractive for a fleeter officer. She possessed a similar high-class grace that Ves was accustomed to seeing from elite scions such as Alexa Streon. Her blond hair was braided in a crown that made her look more dignified and her red, black and gold fleeter uniform was sized exactly right for her toned physique. Her most remarkable feature was her obvious signs of cybernetic augmentation. The Fleeters had always put greater emphasis on cybernetics as opposed to genetic modification to improve their capabilities, but even then they tried to do their best to retain a natural human form. The lieutenant-commander apparently saw no need to be discreet and openly wore her visible cybernetic augmentations with pride. Her electronic hazel eyes, her enhanced vocal modulator, her elf ear-like sensor array and all sorts of other touches elevated her to an individual that was beyond human. Though her appearance was bound to evoke feelings of rejection or alienation among the audience, they were usually the most inconsequential part of the population. The wealthier and powerful folk had all embraced human augmentation to such an extensive degree that they could not imagine life without their upgrades. The thought of living like a baseline human was a nightmare scenario as far as they were concerned. Therefore, Astrid Jameson's extremely high-end cybernetic augmentations were also capable of generating a lot of envy and admiration among the viewers of the live broadcast. The young fleeter officer presented herself as an idol that many people wished to strive for. They wanted to become as successful as her and upgrade their bodies with all kinds of first-class cybernetic implants that could make their jobs a lot easier. Even Ves grew a little jealous about all of the handy features that Astrid stuffed in her body. Though Ves had already fulfilled the dream of many cosmopolitans by becoming a phase lord, his weird physical evolution left him unable to make use of regular human augmentations. Outside of freeloading from the energies unleashed by a lightning tribulation, he had to develop his own solutions in order to upgrade his intrinsic capabilities. Ves inwardly shook his head. He couldn't afford to get distracted by the fleeter's high-quality augmentations. He needed to pay attention to her words if he wanted to be ready to push back against her words. As Astrid Jameson stood at the center of the speaking pit, the central lighting made it difficult to ignore her presence. Once she became assured that she had drawn as much attention as she could, she began to speak with her perfectly modulated voice. "Technology is dangerous. This is a lesson that teachers have always taught to humans throughout the generations, but it bears repeating. Technology has made us powerful, but it has also caused tragedies throughout our long and turbulent history as a race. During the Age of Conquest and the Age of Mechs, we have advanced our technologies at such a rapid pace that we are overwhelmingly responsible for the deaths of our fellow humans. We have killed each other a hundred times if not a thousand times more than any foreign alien race! If you do not believe me, then study our history. We are our own worst enemy!" This was shocking information, but Astrid did not reveal any new information. As she said herself, it had always been evident in the history books that humans liked to kill each other for many different reasons. They liked to kill a lot of aliens as well, but that was a story for another day. The most important part was that Astrid had made her point. By framing her argument around human's inherent capacity towards killing each other, she could paint any powerful weapon as an existential threat towards their race. Ves frowned. He could already guess where Astrid Jameson wanted to take her story. "Those who forget their history are condemned to repeat it." The woman quoted in a voice that conveyed a lot of gravitas. "This ancient phrase has rung true far too many times than it should. During the darkest years of the Age of Conquest, humanity was ruled by irrational actors who let their emotions drive themselves to tyranny. The consequences are well-known. The entirety of human civilization had been pushed to the brink, and only with the rebellion of the remaining sane admirals did we manage to put an end to all of the mass slaughter." Typical. The fleeter completely ignored the role played by the Mech Trade Association. To be fair, the mechers had very much been the junior partner of their alliance. The Mech Trade Association had only formed relatively recently and lacked a lot of accumulation. Combined with the murky history where a lot of events got buried for one or another, it still remained unclear how much the MTA had contributed to the pacification of a civilization gone mad. "There is no single cause to the collective descent into madness that ended the Age of Conquest." Astrid slightly lowered her tone. "Many factors combined together to produce a confluence of disasters. However, those who have studied this period of history in extensive detail cannot deny that runaway technological innovation and humanity's inability to prudently manage all of its new toys has unquestionably set up our own downfall. Too many humans gained power that they were not equipped to handle. Whether it was control over warships that possessed the power to crack the crust of a terrestrial planet, or extreme instances of genetic modification where mixed alien genes overtook pure human stock, our race has abundantly demonstrated an inability to control our greed and lust for power." The vast majority of humans were born long after the end of the Age of Conquest inflicted a huge amount of trauma onto their race. Nonetheless, Astrid still managed to evoke visions of fear with her tale. Just because it happened centuries ago did not mean it could happen once again. After all, those who forget their history are condemned to repeat it. Many people had this quote in mind. "The living mechs designed by Professor Larkinson represent progress beyond anything the mech industry has ever produced." Astrid admitted. "It is exactly because we are venturing head-long into uncharted territory that we must stop and think about where this technological branch is taking us. If you study them in greater detail, you will eventually discover that Professor Ves Larkinson's works are not based on novel science, but ancient mysticism. This may be a surprise to you, but it is not a secret to the Red Fleet." Wait, what? Ves immediately felt a lot more tense as the lieutenant- commander's speech ventured into dangerous dangerous territory. Astrid whipped around and pointed an accusing finger at Ves! "The truth is that Professor Larkinson is far more than a mere mech designer! His mother is a cultist, one who has mastered unfathomable witchcraft that runs counter to the laws of reality that governs our technology! Not only that, his mother was part of a hidden cabal of mysterious and inscrutable cultists who ruled original humanity in secret during the entirety of the Age of Conquest! Near the end of their reign, this secret cabal of madmen became so mad with power that it would have caused the extinction of our race if not for the rebellion of the brave admirals and spacers who overcame the spreading wave of insanity!" Many people looked confused, but the higher ranking individuals among them looked shocked and horrified at the secrets that Astrid Jameson so casually spilled to the public! "You!" Astrid pushed her finger towards a hapless-looking Ves. "As the ancestors of the Jameson Spaceborn Clan once stood against the evil witches and warlocks that sought to sacrifice the lives of our entire population to feed their delusions of power, I shall bravely stand against the evil magic that you are attempting to spread to your unknowing customers! You are not a mech designer. You are a cultist who wants to do nothing more than to lead red humanity into an age of ignorance and superstition!" As the fleeter flung her accusations, a lot of powerful people started to get restless!