The Mech Touch novel Chapter 628

The Vandal fleet emerged at the edge of the Remoss System in a flash. FTL transitions couldn’t be hidden because the entries rippled through gravitic space.

"Pulse the surrounding space." Major Verle ordered with force. "Launch patrol mechs and secure the perimeter. If there’s anything hiding nearby, I want to find it out yesterday!"

"Yes, sir!"

The officer in charge of sensors implemented a pre-planned arrangement. As the starships of the task force recovered from their stint in FTL travel, a large number of Inheritors launched from their hangar bays.

Some of them hadn’t been worked on since the Vandals got them back from the repair businesses. The mech technicians only had time to upgrade the sensor arrays of only a handful of Inheritors.

Still, this small change was more than enough to make a difference.

"We’ve detected a cold sensor pod several light-seconds in-system!"

"Shoot it down!"

"Sir, considering its position, the sensor pod likely belongs to the local garrison fleet."

"Shoot it down regardless." Major Verle repeated, throwing a menacing glare at the sensor officer for doubting him. "The Reinaldans are as dirty as anyone. I don’t want anyone receiving up-to-date telemetry on our movements."

A precise laser took out the distant sensor pod. Though it was challenging to destroy something so far away when it moved, the sensor pod possessed no mobility at all. It was as immobile as a floating piece of rock orbiting around the sun, so its trajectory was a cinch to predict.

A few more seconds went by as the sensors of the ships and mechs started to resolve the vicinity in an expanding range.

"We’ve detected several unknown fleets! One has been identified as the Masters of Combat! The other is broadcasting their identity as Lydia’s Swordmaidens. The third fleet claims to belong to the Caged!"

They expected the first two fleets. They did not expect the presence of the Caged!

"That Roppongan gang!" Verle shouted as he slammed his fist against his armrest. "Tactical, analyze their movements. Tell me why they are here!"

When the various outfits involved in assaulting the spaceport departed from the Harkensen System, they supposedly split in every direction. Now, four of the outfits involved had coincidentally ended up in the Remoss System!

Worse, because they all jumped from the same starting point and emerged at the same exit point, every fleet was a stone’s throw away from each other. While that still amounted to countless kilometers in absolute terms, it only took a couple of hours to close the distance, and that was if one fleet tried their best to run away.

Ves watched on from his observation seat in the command center. The amount of aid he could offer at this point was limited, but the preparations he drafted beforehand had already shown their fruits. At this point, his analyses of the enemy mechs would be of limited use, since the Masters of Combat had a tendency to employ high-quality mechs with all-encompassing defenses.

Mech designers and mech technicians contributed as much to a battle as mech pilots. The former two made a difference before the battle even started. The latter contributed to victory once the fighting commenced.

Therefore, even if his presence wasn’t entirely useful, Ves still earned the right to witness the battle from the command center.

Still, the presence of the Caged might change all of that. While the Vandals had done their homework on the Masters of Combat, they couldn’t say the same for the Caged. Ves immediately pulled up every scrap of readily available intelligence on the gang.

The limited number of reports in the central database depicted them as a major criminal influence in the Roppo Principality. The governments of Roppo and Reinald maintained close ties to each other because they were both part of the Frozen Leaf Alliance. However, the same could not be said of their criminal elements.

In general, Reinald’s gangs held a lot of sway in the surrounding region. The massive amount of commerce and trade in Reinald had empowered the gangs and pirates overseeing the underground markets. This turned them into bullies who weren’t afraid to throw their weight around.

This little fact immediately explained why the Roppongan fleet adopted a defensive position against the Reinald-backed Swordmaidens. The pair’s backers might have been allies in public, but their outfits were definitely rivals.

The communications officer spoke up. "Commander Lydia is hailing our ship! Do you wish to accept her comm request, sir?"

Major Verle sighed. "Accept her hail but put it on my console. I’ll be taking this call in private."

A privacy screen emerged around the major’s command chair. Nobody could eavesdrop on their conversation unless they brought a high-tech listening device.

Ves really wanted to hear what the two commanders had to say to each other. Obviously, they hadn’t expected the Caged to tag along.