The Mech Touch novel Chapter 1461

The Circle of Mota’s temporary marketplace differed remarkably from the other black markets Ves visited.

While a surprisingly large amount of people managed to gain entry here, almost everyone kept to themselves. Even the figures who seemed to be nobles by the way they put on airs underneath their disguises mostly remained discreet.

No one trusted each other. No one wanted to poke into other people’s business. Transactions dominated the marketplace as most people just wanted to obtain the goods and services they required before heading out as fast as possible.

One of the threats looming over their heads was the risk of discovery by the authorities. While the Circle of Mota insisted on numerous requirements that made it extremely difficult for the Planetary Guard to track them down, nothing was fool proof.

Raids had happened in the past. Those instances usually spelled disaster to the people visiting the marketplaces because they usually got caught up between opposing mechs!

No matter how august they were underneath their robes, the authorities did not have the time nor the inclination to pay attention to their wellbeing! Every person trading with pirates was scum in their book!

Everyone who took part in the Circle of Mota’s trading activities knew the risks. Ves sensed a permanent tenseness in the air as everyone remained on guard. They not only guarded against each other, but also against external threats.

Accompanied by the hulking form of Nitaa, Ves passed through a peculiar quarter in the underground city.

"Starship engineer for sale! 35,000 firthrals! He’s young, but he’s healthy and vigorous! He’ll last a long time under your care! His brains are completely untouched and ready to be brainwashed under your specifications! We offer a fifty percent discount if you make use of our brainwashing services!"

"Are you lonely in your lives? Do you require some company? High-class pleasure madames for sale here! They are completely organic and unsoiled. We promise!"

"No one offers cheaper labor than us! Our clones have been grown to be completely pliable to your commands! Our products are smarter than bots, cheaper to maintain and more amusing to torture! Don’t let your bots do the cleaning. Use our clones instead! Buy one, get one free, starting at just 4,999 firthals!"

Ves grimaced underneath his helmet as he saw how prolific the trade of slaves turned out to be. While he always knew that slave trade happened in the murkier corners of the galaxy, to witness human products being hawked around like cabbages left a foul taste in his mouth.

At least the Kinner Tribe managed to dress up their slave trade with a veneer of civility and mutual benefit.

Not so for the slave traders associated with the Circle of Mota. They unabashedly sold humans kidnapped from various places without any reserve.

What Ves found even more disturbing was that they sold a lot of clones as well. Cultivated and grown under abominably inhuman circumstances, their mentalities were completely deficient.

Of course, this also made them ideal for jobs that required dumb labor.

As for why someone preferred to use clones over bots? It was all about reducing maintenance requirements!

Clones were especially useful in the Nyxian Gap because bots required frequent maintenance while their human counterparts would just make do with nutrient packs and water.

Due to the scarcity of technical services in the deprived regions of the Nyxian Gap, clones or brainwashed humans were much easier to deal with for pirates who didn’t know the right end of a wrench!

Numerous disguised visitors approached the shops and stalls of the slave traders. Lots of people desired slaves for various purposes, and they weren’t very bothered by the implications of exploiting those who had no choice in their lot in life.

Different from the expensive human products sold by the Kinners, the slaves offered under the auspices of the Circle of Mota were cheap. Unimaginably cheap.

The Circle of Mota mainly transacted in firthals, the predominant currency of the Nyxian Gap.

Just like the frontier’s K-coins, the firthal was based around firthal ore, one of the most prevalent low-grade exotics from the Nyxian Gap. With varied applications, the demand for firthal was constant and stable, thereby making it suitable to be used as a reliable form of hard currency in the notoriously anarchical and chaotic region.

Right now, 1 firthal was worth 24 bright credits, so even if Ves mentally translated the prices for slaves to his most familiar currency, they still seemed unimaginably cheap!

"What do you think?" Ves asked softly.

"Poor quality. Unreliable. Defective.

"Of course you’d say something like that."

Whereas the Kinner Tribe emphasized quality, the slave traders were not so discerning. Their human products were generally low quality. Those with valuable skills were usually kidnapped and subject to extensive brainwashing.

While the brainwashing ensured their obedience, the rough and pervasive treatment also affected their other competences.

The customers didn’t mind. Those that wanted to purchase Kinners mostly consisted of the upper echelons of society. They had the money to afford to buy a number of permanent Kinner bondsmen.

Ves guessed that the people that purchased slaves here mostly consisted of Nyxian pirates or various underground outfits. These types of unsavory organizations always struggled to acquire skilled or highly-educated labor.

"Mech designers for sale! Whether you need them to repair, modify or upgrade your mechs, our mech designers can do it all! Some of our more premier slaves can even design completely new mech designs that are perfectly suited for your outfits! We sell Novices starting at 3 million firthals! Our Apprentices can be yours starting at 8 million firthals! You won’t get a better deal than ours!"

His mood dropped considerably as he brushed past the enslaved mech designers. The poor sods who had fallen into the clutches of the slave traders had been subjected to the same brainwashing regimes as most of the other slaves.

The quality of their work left much to be desired, especially since much of their profession relied heavily on creativity and inspiration. Ves did not believe a single brainwashed mech designer would ever be able to match the design prowess of a willing mech designer.

Nonetheless, as Ves observed the types who eyed the mech designers for sale, he figured that most buyers simply wanted to obtain them to service their existing mechs. The clientele mostly appeared to consist of dark mercenaries and hidden forces.