The Battle against the Abyss did not just ripple through the Nyxian Gap, but also beyond!
Of course, it took so ti for those in the Komodo Star Sector to learn about the outco of this long-awaited confrontation.
For more than a day, the Larkinsons in the Nyxian Gap hadn't transmitted any ssages back to the clan mbers who remained in civilized space.
There were good reasons for that. First, they didn't want to transmit any sensitive information that Ves and the clan would rather keep under wraps. Second, even if they wanted to share the good news, they had no way to transmit their ssages.
This was because their ships no longer possessed any quantum entanglent nodes!
A short ti before the Battle against the Abyss comnced, Ves commanded all of the nodes to be destroyed.
The Black Cats made sure to remove every single communication device capable of communicating with the galaxy outside! Without any ans to connect to the galactic net, Ves didn't have to worry about the Larkinson fleet leaking out sensitive information.
He did not even let off the Darkbreak module. His n had secretly removed the MTA communications device from the Scarlet Rose and hid it inside a random asteroid.
Right now, a detachnt of Larkinson chs were cautiously on their way to retrieve the precious device. Ves needed it back to talk to Master Willix on a frank basis. The clan also needed it for other communication.
In fact, the Gravada Knarlax and so of the other pirate ships that fell into their hands possessed quantum communication nodes as well.
According to Calabast, the pirates didn't build or buy them legitimately. Instead, they just stole from their prey.
None of these quantum communication nodes survived the battle. As soon as the dark gods appeared onto the battlefield, the pressure and interference they emanated caused the sensitive nodes to break.
"That is an unexpectedly good outco." Calabast reported to Ves as the initial takeover of the Gravada Knarlax neared completion. "Quantum communication nodes are fairly sensitive to outside shock and influence. While there are reinforced nodes for sale that are better able to cope with adverse conditions, the pirates all sourced their nodes from privately-owned ships."
Third-class private sector starships rarely hosted reinforced nodes. They cost so much that they could easily eat through half of the budget of the ship in so cases. There was no way that any custor wanted to pay such a huge premium to obtain a simple ship! They would rather spend their money on other features such as faster propulsion or larger cargo holds.
Though Ves preferred not to talk to Master Willix again so soon, he knew he had to take the initiative to act proactively. If he simply did nothing, then the MTA would certainly begin to demand an explanation.
Due to the enormous power disparity between the Larkinson Clan and the Association, Ves would have no choice but to obey every instruction!
"I need to control the narrative."
This extended beyond just his relationship with the MTA. Though his clansn were still in the process of tallying losses and comprehending the magnitude of what had taken place, the scope of casualties would soon beco known to everyone.
The figures didn't look good.
"How many dead, major?"
Major Verle recited the figures from his data pad. "Sir, during this battle alone, we have lost around 140 Avatar ch pilots, 80 Sentinel ch pilots, 30 Battle Crier ch pilots, 30 Vandal ch pilots, 2 Swordmaiden ch pilots and also 60 Penitent Sister ch pilots. Naturally, we lost a lot more of the other personnel when so many of our ships went down. With more than thirty ships lost so far and many more damaged, over 6,000 Larkinsons have died, along with plenty of Penitent Sisters as well. This is the first ti in our entire run that we suffered such serious losses from our ship crews and support personnel."
Before that, the only significant loss in that area was when an anomalous hazard caused the disappeare of the Nova Krokaw. Compared to that little incident, the deaths from this battle were much worse! Not even the preemptive evacuation asures helped reduce this figure all that much.
Ves rubbed his forehead. "It could have been worse. Still, with so many clansn gone, the hole they've left in the clan is enormous. It will be difficult for our remaining n to get over so many deaths."
He grew concerned about whether he could hold onto his position. When he and the Larkinson Assembly formulated the governing rules of the clan, the position of clan patriarch did not co with absolute power.
This was necessary in order to reassure the rest of the clan that their highest leader remained accountable. While the barrier to remove the clan patriarch was high, it was not an impossible hurdle to overco.
Right now, Ves felt it was very realistic for eighty percent of the Assembly mbers to vote for his removal! While he had helped the clan rise, ruinous battles like these also proved that he could easily lead it to ruin!
"What I'm worried about are the reactions from the Avatars and Sentinels, sir." Major Verle noted. "These two groups comprise the mainstay of our clan. Any dissatisfaction from them will have far-reaching effects. At the sa ti, gaining their support will offer you a lot of internal support. The influence of the soldiers in our clan is very substantial. Buying them over ans you automatically gain the support of the majority."
The forr Brighter possessed a good grasp on what it took to swing people's opinions. When he pointed out that Ves only needed to focus on swaying the Avatars and Sentinels, the problem didn't appear to be so unsurmountable anymore.
Still, Ves wasn't sure whether the two groups would be easy to persuade.
"The Avatars are my original loyalists." He surmised. "While my standing in their eyes has certainly taken a hit from this battle, I can still bank on my existing popularity. After all, out of all of our ch forces, I invested a lot of resources and attention in them. I also have a good relationship with so key personnel. As for the Sentinels…"
His face grew ugly. He called up the casualty figures of the Sentinel ch pilots.
When his task force initially crossed over into the Nyxian Gap, the Sentinels boasted a grand ch roster of 500 ch pilots.
While the Avatars brought 600 ch pilots, that was mostly because Ves did not give them a choice.
The Avatars were the elites of the Larkinson Clan. As the pri ch pilots who everyone in the clan should look up to in the future, they needed to be prepared to fight any battle under any circumstances so long as they wore their gold-and-white uniforms.
If any of them disagreed with these terms, then they were welco to depart after they ended their tours.
In contrast to the high expectations placed upon the Avatars, the Sentinels had it relatively easy. This was the organization for soldiers and ch pilots who wanted to commit to defending the Larkinson Clan but still be able to maintain an optimal work-life balance.
In the old Larkinson Family, Ves t plenty of people like that. Not every Larkinson was cut out to be a full-throated soldier. In fact, many survivors of the Bright-Vesia Wars typically transitioned from full dedication to looking to start a family.
His father was no exception.
Therefore, subjecting the Sentinels to successive battles where they sustained heavy losses was not a good reflection of his leadership!
It did not matter that these 500 Sentinels consisted of volunteers. Each of them entrusted their lives to him. When they signed up to take part in this excursion, they looked forward to taking part in a great endeavor.
They did not expect to go through a gauntlet where those who showed any weakness were rcilessly culled!
Yet that was exactly what happened. Of the 500 Sentinels that initially took part, only around 120 ch pilots were left alive!
Of that figure, so were heavily injured and so had lost the ability to pilot chs, thereby making the overall picture worse.
Ves continually furrowed his brows. If he was a Sentinel, he would probably feel pissed at the insanely greedy clan patriarch that constantly picked a fight against the pirates!
Even though the Sentinels were the weakest ch pilots of the Larkinson Clan, their influence reached far. They were the closest to the non-militant Larkinsons, and they valued family the most.
Fortunately, Major Verle was not without ideas. "The situation is not as hopeless as you think, sir. Directly gaining the support of the Sentinels is a bad idea. We are both good speakers, but there is only so much of the ugly truth that words can cover up. Engaging the Sentinels directly when they have suffered such a huge loss is.. not wise."
"Then what do you suggest instead?"
"We approach a small but key group of ch pilots that the Sentinels universally respect."
"Pardon?"
"Our expert pilots, Ves!" Major Verle smiled. "The one trait that every ch pilot has in common is that they always admire and respect the few who have managed to beco expert pilots. We have five of them in our fleet. Gaining the support of this small group of stakeholders is a much better way to influence the Sentinels than any direct appeal. It's no different from leveraging celebrity endorsents."
This was quite an astute plan! Ves lit up after he heard this. While expert pilots were different from normal people, he was still confident he could sway all of them to support him as long as he talked to them on an individual basis.
"I already have Venerable Joshua in the bag." He confidently stated. There was no doubt that his greatest fan would stick to him unless he literally started eating babies! "Commander Dise probably doesn't care about the losses suffered by the rest of the clan, but that in turn ans her influence isn't great. Commander Orfan has a bit more sway, but I'm not sure of her stance."
"Venerable Orfan may have developed so misgivings, but I believe she is still on your side." Verle noted. "She is no stranger to losses. She just needs to believe that we haven't needlessly thrown the lives of our clansn away. The deaths have to be aningful for her to accept the outco."
That didn't sound too tricky. Ves was already beginning to warm up his Devil Tongue.
"It's always refreshing to talk to an expert pilot. While they're annoyingly stubborn, they're very predictable as a response. I just need to know how they think and how they act to formulate my approach."
"I will send you the updated behavior profiles of our expert pilots later today."
"That leaves us with Venerable Tusa and Venerable Jannzi. Both of them aren't exactly my fans."
"Are you confident that you can get them to back you up for the decisions you've made up to this point?" Verle asked.
"Uhmm… no? I've already talked to Venerable Jannzi about a similar topic before. She's very difficult to budge. As for Tusa, I don't know what he thinks, but I haven't exactly treated him well."
"Well, the effect we want to accomplish won't be as good if you can only receive the endorsent of three expert pilots rather than five. You truly need all five of them to give the Sentinels the impression that every new pillar of the Larkinson Clan is fully in favor of your leadership. It will be very difficult for the dissenters to continue to voice their doubts on you. It would be like hitting on the faces of the expert pilots."
This sounded like a relatively clever sche.
"Let's do this, then." Ves said. "We'll have to move quickly before the negative sentint spreads."
Getting all five expert pilots to support him was difficult, but Ves believed he could find a way!
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