The Mech Touch novel Chapter 623

The events on Harkensen I revealed that not even the Reinald Republic could escape the rising tide of war. Trouble lurked in every corner. It could pop up at any planet at any time.

The debates on what truly happened at that planet turned the galactic net into a separate battlefield. Public opinion see-sawed between one extreme to the next. One day, the prevailing opinion regarded the Reinald Republic as victims. The next, they were painted as greedy merchants who were wildly out of touch with reality.

In any case, everyone smelled a purge. Conflicts within the upper ranks in the government and military revealed stark contradictions between their factions. Reconciling their differences could only be achieved when heads started to roll. Many officials readied themselves for war among themselves.

The mysterious terrorists who had built up a massive presence on Harkensen I elicited many questions as well. Where did they come from, and what were their motives? Why did they spring their attack at this specific time?

Once the Reinaldans imposed some measure of order on the surface of Harkensen I, they finally picked off all of the wrecks and started to trace their origins. Naturally, if the terrorists had been even mildly competent, the mechs shouldn’t have revealed any clues.

Ves knew this for certain, because he already combed over the Water Wraith the Vandals recovered.

"Other than the fact that their design comes from Vicious Mountain, there’s nothing else that stands out."

Potential meddling from neighboring star sectors aside, Ves kept wrangling his head around Miss Calabast. Though she spoke with a distinct Vesian accent, his gut kept telling him her facade was only skin deep throughout their interactions.

"Is she from the Seven Stars? Or is she an agent from another intelligence agency?"

He frowned a bit. It would have made a lot of sense if she had been stationed in the Harkensen System as an asset of the Vesians.

There was no love lost between the Vesia Kingdom and the Reinald Republic. Undermining the hive of scum and villainy that was the Harkensen System definitely benefited Vesia the most of all. In fact, the galactic net had been leaning on that theory the most, objections from Vesian diplomats be damned.

He truly missed the presence of someone like Iris. Right now, he could really use a sounding board.

As the newly invigorated Vandals headed towards another star system, Major Verle finally called for another meeting. As Ves entered the conference room, he could tell the ones who lived through the mess at Harkensen I from the others. Those who survived the ordeal on the paradise planet kept their guard up at all times.

"Good. Everyone is here." The major said to his subordinates. "Let me begin by explaining our next mission. I know that many of you are hoping to return to the Bright Republic. That isn’t on the table at this moment."

A wave of dissatisfaction ran through the officers in the meeting. Those physically present on the Shield of Hispania and those attending through projections both appeared rather frayed.

The shore leave was supposed to recharge their batteries, not drain them even further. Nobody had anticipated that everything had spun out of control. The Vandals still had to deal with the aftermath.

"I get it. You’re tired. We’re far away from home. We are squatting in the territory of a state that doesn’t look kindly on us. However, we are soldiers! The war is still being raged back home, and the Bright Republic needs us here."

Captain Orfan spoke out. "Sir, we’re with you and the Vandals all the way."

Not everyone appeared supportive of her statement. Many of them felt tired in a way. What did the Reinald Republic have to do with the war?

Fortunately, the major had a ready answer for that. He grinned at everyone. "What if I say we’re about to get some payback on our enemies? During the previous escape, some of you came under fire from your erstwhile allies, the Masters of Combat. Those mercs from Venidse tested our defenses, and felled a number of our brothers."

The Masters of Combat shot down a couple of shuttles carrying Vandals and supplies. Overall, the casualties didn’t amount to much in the larger scheme of things, but that was already a significant price to pay.

"Before they transitioned into FTL, I’ve ordered our navigation officers to trace the most likely destination of their fleet. As soon as we determined their destination, we’ve aimed at the same star system and followed suit."

Ves had a bad feeling about this. They hadn’t even left Reinaldan space yet!

"Are we going to pile up on the Masters of Combat?"

"Good! They deserve to be taken down a notch!"

"They’re Vesians! As far as I know, we should wipe them off the face of the galaxy!"

The mere prospect of beating up the Masters of Combat put a smile on everyone’s faces. Uttering those confident boasts had lifted everyone’s moods. Ves had to hand it to Major Verle. He truly knew how to pull everyone’s strings.

The commanding officer pressed a button and a projection of fleet belonging to the Masters of Combat emerged.

"Before their departure from the Harkensen System, we’ve scanned the makeup of their fleet. Captain Rakeshir?"

The projection of the senior ship captain of the Antecedent stood up. "While we’ve failed to hack into their database, our analysts have drawn accurate models of their combat capabilities through a mixture of external scans and historical research. Overall, the Masters of Combat is a large Venidse-style mercenary corps that puts much of their emphasis on landbound combat. That’s not to say their spaceborn assets are weak, but the Masters of Combat treat space battles as a necessary evil to secure their landbound forces from above."

The central projection cycled through different combat carriers, light carriers and large transport craft.