The Mech Touch novel Chapter 200

What did it mean to be human? Ves asked himself this question many times on the trip back to civilized space. The researchers avidly studying each and every corner of his body hummed with excitement as they unfolded the secrets buried within.

Ves had unquestionably departed from the standard of pure human. The trans-galactic organizations maintained a strict definition of what fell under the human race, and Ves happened to get kicked out of the playground.

In his daily life, Ves wouldn’t be treated any differently. The Common Fleet Alliance’s researchers revealed that certain levels of hybridization was a bit more common than usual in the upper echelons of society.

"We are at war with aliens, but we envy them as well. The most sophisticated races possess various wondrous powers that we secretly covet. It’s therefore not a crime against humanity to depart from the norm, because we know we can’t stop people experimenting on themselves."

The trans-galactic organizations discourage the practice, but allows it to happen as long as the recipients remain discrete. They did not wish to encourage a culture where the masses became accustomed to radical modifications.

"The reason why we are wary of fusing alien genes into the human genome is that it often goes very wrong. From all reports, Doctor Jutland is a perfect example of why it isn’t a good idea to go too far. While we can’t determine the exact causes of his mood swings, his tireless efforts to inject himself with the strength of these hexapods has turned him into beast as well."

"The twenty-seven year isolation also didn’t help." Ves remarked. Personally, he wished that spending all those years alone pushed the doctor over the edge. In this case, Ves would likely keep his sanity then.

While the researchers never felt inclined to share their results to Ves, they at least informed him that his new organs came with only a couple of traps.

To eminent figures such as them who received some of the highest education in human society, Jutland’s work appeared crude. Only the decades spent on mastering everything about the hexapods allowed him to form a working set of hybrid organs.

Fortunately, the researchers possessed enough benevolence to fix the hidden dangers in his body. Although Ves could only take their word for it, he did feel a tiny bit better after he went through a number of operations. The tiny undercurrent of unease he always felt through his developing Sixth Sense had faded out when he next woke up.

"We adjusted your genes to a stabler level than before." A doctor said when he checked on his waking body. "Your body is still fairly strong, but you’ll get to live longer than fifty standard years now."

Like many humans, Ves would rather live longer than have an inhumanly strong body. Jutland thought otherwise, and look where that got him. A mech designer like Ves relied on his intellect to advance his career. At no point should he rely on his physical strength to make a living.

In total, Ves spent roughly a month aboard the Ramulus. The science vessel flew next to the damaged Ark Horizon. Both ships enjoyed the protection of the destroyers and frigates that escorted them to Mancroft Independent Harbor.

Once they reached the quiet little star system, Ves had finished his obligations. The expedition formally came at an end and House Kaine released the local mercenaries and consultants from their duties.

The CFA actually let him go, to his surprise. Didn’t they want to study him further? _{freewebnoveℓ.com}

One of the researchers knew what he was thinking and laughed. "You are overstating your own importance to our research. We’ve taken many samples and we also scanned your body down to their elementary particles."

To his horror, they showed him a vat containing an exact clone of his body. Seeing a duplicate of himself in the flesh provoked a minor existential crisis within his mind. Who was the actual Ves? Perhaps the researchers lied and put the real Ves in the vat!

"As I said, you’re thinking too much. Fully adult clones are always lacking in their humanity. Even if we copy a person to an even more precise level, their clones always lack that spark that proves they are alive. It’s the main reason why clones have not proliferated in our society. The clones basically end up as human-form computers that are incapable of appreciating art, expressing their creativity or feeling love."

"I see." Ves replied, and quickly calmed down. Once he tested his thoughts, he became more certain that ’he’ was the true Ves. "So as long as I can prove I can deal with concepts that AIs could never understand, I’ll be certain that I’m human."

In any case, the researchers only cloned him so that they could study Jutland’s work. Even if they desired to treat him like a lab rat, at least they’d be studying a gimped copy of himself. "Better the poor sap than me."

Ves tried hard not to think on what his clones had to endure throughout their short existence. In a legal sense, the clones lacked some of the traits that defined humanity, so no one bothered to give them any rights.

Once a shuttle finally delivered him to the Barracuda, Ves finally felt relief at regaining some form of control over his life. Lots of people kept an eye on him for one reason or another these past few months. Ves did not enjoy the limits it imposed on his freedom.

"Welcome aboard, sir." Captain Silvestra greeted him with a neat salute. "We’ve already established a route back to Cloudy Curtain. We can depart the Mancroft System whenever you’re ready."

"Has Melkor and the Stanislaw arrived on this ship?"

"They’ve arrived a couple of hours ago. We haven’t packed up the Stanislaw in case we meet any threats. You might not be aware, but the shipping lanes throughout the Komodo Star Sector have deteriorated these past few months. Many interstellar vessels only travel in convoys at this point. It’s too dangerous to set off on your own."

That sounded fairly bad, and not because they risked encountering a pirate attack. With the expert navigation of his new crew, he was reasonably confident the Barracuda could avoid and outrun any potential ambush.

No, the emergence of pirates meant that it became a lot harder to get access to critical materials Ves needed to build his mechs. At the very least, Ves expected a sharp rise in costs.

"Understood." Ves nodded as he tried to estimate the ripples of the changing times. "However, I intend to make a stop at Leemar before returning to the Bright Republic. Please set course to the Leemar System first."

The Barracuda was his ship to begin with, so he could do whatever he wanted. Right now, Ves wished to pay a visit to his master and ask for help in studying his condition. The CFA never really bothered keeping Ves up to date with all of the details, so he hoped to borrow Master Olson’s influence in making sure they hadn’t messed up his body.

In addition, Ves also planned to pay a visit to the Clifford Society’s club house on Leemar II. He didn’t forget why he signed on to the expedition in the first place.