The Mech Touch - Chapter 7133: Transit to Jotunheim
Chapter 7133: Transit to Jotunheim
Ves agreed to intercede in this matter.
The Phase Lord Department should have been a powerful contributor to red humanity’s defense. Its phalanxes were expensive and time-consuming to set up, but could put up a mean fight against alien phase lords once they deployed on the battlefield.
Unfortunately, many people seemed to have forgotten about human phase lords as their appearance on the battlefield petered out shortly after they appeared.
While they enjoyed a modestly positive track record in the initial months, the secret personality changes that overcame them when their body cultivation advanced past a certain threshold caused them to care much less about their military obligations.
They had retreated to their bases and remained isolated from the rest of red humanity!
The other members of the Red Collective initially did not find this strange. Human phase lords were a very new phenomenon, and who knew what problems or bugs these pioneering humans encountered.
Yet as the human phase lords continued to sequester themselves while the frontlines burned, everyone’s patience was slowly running out. Even if these body cultivators encountered a troublesome issue or three, shouldn’t they be able to solve them or tough it out already?
The frontlines continued to get pushed back! Without enough reinforcements, there was no way that red humanity could prop up the entire frontlines.
It was only when the incident related to Ves became known that the Red Collective fully accepted all of the gathered intelligence.
The Phase Lord Department had become compromised.
In the face of such a major problem, Ves expected the distraught collies to figure out a way to solve this delicate but vital problem themselves, but their best solution amounted to waiting for him to stop by and intercede for them in person.
Well, it made a certain amount of sense.
“It is well-known that you are not the most dutiful chief councilor.” Eliza Mo Ragadan told Ves as they had all made themselves comfortable aboard the Tarrasque that was about to bring them to the outskirts of the Yernstall Central Star Node. “However, you are one of the individuals that is most strongly associated with the Red Collective. You are the founder and hold one of the highest legislative positions in our superorganization. Requesting you to render aid is more expedient because we can still keep this internal.”
So the collies were afraid of making a fool of themselves.
“So the alternative plans all involve asking for help from external parties, is that correct?”
Secret Keeper Zariel-775 naturally accompanied Ves as they all made their way to the distant planet that housed the headquarters of the Phase Lord Department.
While the human phase lords were set up across human-occupied space, their highest leader as well as a sizable number of giant troops had holed up at the headquarters located on the Yernstall XXVII, which had recently become known as Jotunheim for whatever reason.
Jotunheim was not the most distant planet from Yernstall’s three stars, but it was pretty out there. It lacked the warmth and illumination enjoyed by the closer planets that were situated more comfortably in the inner system.
This isolation happened to work in favor of the Red Collective. It was much easier to hide any irregularities related to their internal cohesion if the human phase lords never showed up in more densely populated planets such as Yernstall IV and Yernstall V.
During the transit to Jotunheim, Ves made good use of his time by pumping his chief of staff and the accompanying secret keeper for more information.
“How many human phase lords does the Phase Lord Department command?”
“Assuming that they have not suffered any attrition on or off the battlefield, the department should number 361 in total.” Eliza Mo Ragadan reported. “The Ur-Titan Phalanx is the first and most elite unit that numbers just 60 in total in order to guarantee their strength. The Flesh Chopper Phalanx is the second elite unit that also amounts to 60 human phase lords. Then there is the Faceless Giant Phalanx, which is the first standard unit that is compromised of human phase lords. They are able to field 240 weaker and less developed human phase lords, though they still have a small number of powerful champions to help them resist more powerful foes.”
“That is 360 human phase lords, not 361.” Ves pointed out this small discrepancy.
“That is because I have left out the department head and leader of the Phase Lord Department, sir. Do not be intimidated by the large number of the phase lords that the estranged collies have at their disposal. Many of them are weak and equipped with good but not stellar combat equipment. It is not economical to outfit them with excessively expensive combat gear that is sized for their enlarged physiques. That is an expense that we cannot afford.”
That was the troublesome part about fielding human phase lords. Just like warships, these body cultivators relied on size and mass to become stronger, which meant that it became increasingly more expensive to outfit them with good gear.
It did not surprise him that the Phase Lord Department only raised 2 elite phalanxes before moving to raise a standard phalanx.
The latter may have a lot more phase lords to throw at enemies, but their gear was probably at least an order of magnitude cheaper.
That did not necessarily mean that they were weaker. Ves was fully willing to believe that several squads of the weakest human phase lords could make the life of any greater phase lord miserable.
This was especially the case if they were equipped with modern gear and demonstrated impeccable teamwork!
“I won’t be meeting with the human phase lords at the heart of their home base, right?” Ves asked with a little concern as he thought about what might happen if the talks went sour. “I do not think I can overcome an ambush of dozens of human phase lords, even if the Bluejay Fleet is ready to assist. I won’t be able to teleport away when I am in the presence of so many powerhouses that can disrupt the local space and block any displacement attempts.”
“That will not happen.” The secret keeper immediately responded. “We have already arranged a clandestine meeting aboard a civilian transport vessel. There, you will meet the head of the Human Phase Lord Department along with a small number of his cadre. While the department is staffed by a large number of normal humans, they are inconsequential to the problem at hand. The only people you truly need to convince are the ones who have surpassed the physical limits of the human race.”
“So tell me about these leaders.”
Zariel-775 waved his hand and activated a projection that displayed a strong male leader in human form.
“This is Department Head Scilo Karneon. He is only 66 years old, but he is one the most impressive pugilists in the Red Ocean. We chose to appoint him as a head because he was one of the strongest advocates in support for human phase lords. He is only an able administrator, but he is remarkably charismatic and understands how to keep unruly soldiers with too much strength and energy in their bodies under control.”
Scilo Karneon did have the look of a muscular athlete and fighter as opposed to a bureaucrat or an intellectual. He probably shoved all of the paperwork and other tedious obligations to his overworked staff.
“I have a feeling that your explanation is not quite complete.” Ves told the mysterious dark-robed spy. “Anyone who is able to persuade a bunch of powerful people to get appointed in this important position is not simple. What makes him dangerous?”
Good question.” The secret keeper smiled under his hood. “The department head here used to be a competitive boxer. This means that he has grown up as a designer baby that is optimized for brutal fistfights. He has trained in boxing and other martial arts for practically his entire life. He has received many augmentations that barely fall in the scope of legality according to the galactic boxing governing bodies. All of this training and investment has paid off. He has won dozens of regional championships. His best career result is winning 19th place in a past prestigious galactic boxing tournament.”
That was a big deal!
Perhaps winning 19th place did not sound impressive, but this was a tournament that gathered the best boxers from all of human space in the old galaxy!
This was back during the Age of Mechs where the conditions were much better at the time!
Ves looked at Scilo Karneon with much greater vigilance than before. This was a born fighter and a proven champion. Now that he presumably became a human phase lord, he would be able to translate his fighting skills perfectly with his new physique!
“Okay, I can see how a champion boxer like him can gain the respect of his supersized troops.” He said. “What was his personality like before he… became compromised.”
“The department head was enthusiastic.” Eliza referred to the few times she spoke to the man in person in the past. “He was the characteristic athlete that had a passion for the sport and cared about being the best. When the Red War broke out, he felt useless because he would not be able to translate his excellent boxing skills on the battlefield. This was still back in the time when Carmine mechs had not yet been announced or released. He took inspiration from your accidental transformation into a human phase lord and initiated an effective influencing campaign. He single-handedly forced the nascent Red Collective to include the Phase Lord Department.”
This guy most definitely deserved his place in the department. Ves admired a man like Scilo Karneon who was not the strongest and did not have a lot of wealth, but still managed to win enough people over to gain an outsized voice.
“While we believe that the department head’s original personality has not completely been subsumed by his new personality traits, the new Scilo Karneon has become a much different leader.” The secret keeper mentioned. “You can read the full details in the information package that I am about to transmit to you, but you can imagine that he has become much more arrogant and fixated on becoming a physical god.”
Ves snorted. “If he is anything like Sev, then I don’t need to know much more. What I need to know is how I should complete my objective. Do I need to pressure them into falling back in line, or do I need to coax them as if they are misbehaving children?”
“Both, councilor. On the one hand, you cannot afford to present yourself as a phase lord that is weaker than them. The new department has undergone many changes where the strong hold authority while the weak can only obey. You must not give them the impression that you belong in the latter category. At the same time, these human phase lords still retain a bond with red humanity. You cannot afford to scold them too hard and cause them to lose the remaining vestiges of their loyalty and duty to the human race.”
That made Ves look pensive. How the hell was he supposed to juggle these two opposing concerns!
Push too hard, and he might drive the human phase lords into the arms of the Red Cabal.
Push too little, and he would be labeled as a weakling before the human phase lords kicked him back into orbit, literally perhaps!
“You guys may be expecting too much from me.” He complained. “I may be a human phase lord, but I am a mech designer by profession. There is no way I can beat the former 15th best boxer in the Milky Way in a fistfight, and they will know it right away. If I try to overcompensate, then it is easy to insult the prickly human phase lords. Those guys do not sound like the type to let that rest.”
“We understand your doubts, but we believe you have the best chance to convince the Phase Lord Department to return to sanity. Your status is exalted among them. The human phase lords still respect you for being the first. The examination of your true body has been vital in deciphering a systematic means to convert humans into phase lords. Each of them owes you for the power they have gained, whether they like it or not. That alone demands respect.”
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