The Mech Touch novel Chapter 644

Time passed by as the Flagrant Swordmaidens made their way out of Reinald space. Along the way, they ditched the loot they obtained from the Masters of Combat at a Reinald stopping point.

Commander Lydia’s connections with the Reinald Republic proved useful here. She enabled the Vandals to cut through the red tape and complete their transactions within a matter of days.

The Vandals used up their extra funds to load up additional supplies. Ves prioritized the stockpiling of rare materials, as it would almost be impossible to obtain them in the frontier. The fleet also stockpiled entire tanks of ship-grade fuel, perhaps anticipating that the journey up ahead would be a long one.

In between her design assignment, Ketis proved to be a useful source of information on the frontier. "Fuel is one of the most precious resources in the Faris Star Region. There’s no shortage of gas giants and planets where we can extract the ingredients to synthesize the fuels, but the problem is that we can’t defend most of them. If pirates pass by the harvesting facilities for some reason, the sandmen will come across them sooner or later."

"How do you get anything running in the frontier then? Every starship runs on fuel. Every shuttle requires fuel as well. Even mechs run on fuel, though not always directly. Direct energy cells are charged by reactors that run on fuel. So in short, how can anything be run if there’s no fuel production?"

Ketis blinked a bit, as if Ves asked about something that was common sense. "The major pirate factions all operate well-defended fuel refining operations. That said, most of our fuel is imported from civilized space. We pay at least five times as much as you do for fuel out there!"

The price of lower-grade fuel was never a big consideration in civilized space, but if Ves suddenly had to five times as much for the same amount of fuel, he’d go crazy.

It initially sounded like a ripoff, but Ves knew that the forces of supply and demand was at work. Exporting bulk materials like fuel required massive tanker ships that were awfully slow and easy to attack. Providing a sufficient amount of escorts to keep them safe in the lawless frontier was costly in itself. The massive distance involved also increased the risks of encountering a mishap. If anything went wrong, the nearest help would definitely be many light-years away.

So upon second thought, it wasn’t such a big surprise that the price of fuel reached so high. The only issue that Ves couldn’t wrap his head around was how the pirate gangs in the frontier managed to operate with that much upkeep.

"Since fuel is so expensive, how are you able to keep running?"

"We pay favors. We make friends with the factions that own their own refineries. We loot something from the treasure hunters that you civilized folk always pay a lot of money for. There’s lots of ways to make money if you don’t have to abide by any artificial rules."

That was true. The untamed stars largely remained unexploited. Exploration of the Faris Star Region alone had only reached the tip of the iceberg so far. Treasure hunters who managed to hit the motherload tended to hoard the coordinates of their cash cows. The secrecy surrounding their exploitation of these treasure stars meant they needed decades or centuries to deplete the natural bounty of those prized locations.

Once something happened to the treasure hunters, those hidden stars might fall into obscurity again, only to be uncovered again when the next batch of explorers encountered it. In short, opportunity could be found in any corner of the frontier. The problem was that anyone could take away your assets and your gains.

Without the protective umbrella of a state, stealing became the norm rather than the exception. Weaker outfits constantly endured bullying from the bigger players. The only way to escape this fate was to befriend the major factions on your own initiative.

"When the Swordmaidens started off, Commander Lydia faced a lot of difficulties due to this." Ketis explained. "It was worse for her because she insisted on recruiting women."

"So she tried to make friends, I gather."

"Receiving the backing of a major faction is the way to go. As long as you aren’t too useless, you can earn their recognition which allows us to wave their name around whenever we come across a rival."

"Does that recognition cost anything?"

"A lot. We have to pay a lot of tribute and give them a hefty cut of our earnings. It’s not even worth it as some of our enemies don’t pay any heed to our backers. That’s where our strength comes in. The best way to protect ourselves is to be scary enough on your own. We’ve become quite good at that over the years."

This also explained their posturing at their first formal meeting. The dramatic show of strength and aggressive attitude served to deter others whenever they met a new outfit. Over decades of performing the same song and dance, it became an ingrained habit to them. The line between theater and reality became blurred.

"What is the end goal of the Swordmaidens?" Ves asked, genuinely curious why the Swordmaidens risked their lives every day to make a living in the frontier.

Ketis eyed him with a sour expression. "That’s none of your business. If you really want to know, then ask Mayra or Commander Lydia. It’s not for me to tell."

That ended this particular line of questioning. While Ves expressed curiosity on the reason that drived the Swordmaidens to such devotion, he figured he would stumble upon it sooner or later.

Later that day, Mayra finally contacted him. The Swordmaiden mech designer called him up from Jaded Sword, the flagship of the Swordmaidens. The Jaded Sword was an angular combat carrier that specialized in quick orbital insertions through hostile territory.

"There’s good news, Larkinson." Mayra began as soon as they established a communications channel. "I’ve managed to get in touch with the Skull Architect."

"What did he say?"

She sheepishly shrugged. "Well, he’s not pleased with me for attempting to introduce a random Apprentice Mech Designer to him. He’s a very busy man, and he’s involved in the middle of a major project. He’s not even willing to chat with an old student like me. His attitude can be impatient and prickly at the best of times."

"Look, my recommendation at least got you a foot in the door. That has to account for something! That he has agreed to take a look at your design at all is a major concession on his part. Otherwise, he wouldn’t waste his time on a junior of the profession. Even if the frontier is barren of talent, he attracts many mech designers that are even more impressive than you." _{freeweɓnovel.cøm}