The Larkinson Clan obtained a number of other ch models, but they were just as disappointing as the first three ones.
"Why so glum?" Ves frowned as he turned around. "The comrcial chs I've ordered may not be impressive compared to other second-class chs, but they are solid, reliable products with proven track records. Don't forget that each of them perform far better than any of the third-class chs we are getting rid of. You can finally say goodbye to your paltry and outdated Desolate Soldiers, Doom Guards, Deliverers and Aurora Titans."
His ch commanders grew even more morose.
"We may have outgrown those chs, but they're special to us." lkor voiced. "I know we don't have room for them anymore, but it feels wrong to part with them. They're living chs, are they not? Shouldn't we treat them better?"
Ves responded with a rueful smile. "In an ideal reality, I would like that as well. It's not possible, though. Carrying capacity is one of the scarcest and most precious resources of any fleet. Each additional starship we acquire increases our burdens and slows us down. We cannot justify bringing along too much junk. I'm willing to retain retired chs that are either exceptionally valued or possess a lot of historical significance. Everything else must go. You should at least be grateful that most of the chs we are parting with will have a second life under another owner."
As long as the chs weren't exclusive to the Larkinson Clan, Ves was willing to put them up for sale. The second-hand ch market was willing to accept any used products as long as they were in decent shape.
"It's a sha the performance of these chs can't match up to your existing second-class ch models. Why can't we use so of them instead?"
"Do you want your Avatars to pilot Hexer chs?" Ves raised his eyebrow at the Avatar Commander. "As long as your n are willing to pilot Blessed Squires, I'll supply as many as you want."
"Uhm, no thanks." lkor quickly replied.
He would rather remove the visor from his face than to force any of his n to pilot such an insulting ch model!
Besides, the Blessed Squire was primarily a landbound ch design. It was troubleso to adapt them for space combat.
"Sir, we are still slated to receive our Valkyrie Redeers, correct?" Soone asked.
Ves nodded to Commander Valerie Chancy. "Correct, but it will take so ti. Every ch company in the Hegemony is running at full capacity. They're busy churning as many chs as possible to replenish the Hex Army's losses. From what I've been told, the Hegemony will bundle the shipnts of Valkyrie chs with the delivery of our starships."
Both the Penitent Sisters and the Glory Seekers were allowed to field the Hexer chs he designed for the military. Both of them had already approached him in the past about procuring the highly-acclaid Valkyrie chs.
Since both of them wanted to obtain hundreds of them, Ves was forced to order them from the Hegemony. Without his factory ship, his fleet simply didn't have enough production capacity to make so many chs. The Valkyrie Redeers were high-end military ch models that boasted incredibly complexity for their size.
These problems only increased Ves' yearning for his factory ship. Though the additional upgrades he recently ordered made his future flagship more impressive, they also delayed her completion by a couple more weeks.
It was worth it though! With 20 high-end production lines, his factory ship could spit out 20 Valkyrie Redeers every 3 days once they fully ramped up. If Ves added in the ch workshops, then his new industrial vessel was capable of outputting even more products!
Of course, it took a lot of effort to get to this point. His ch technicians had to be retrained to operate the advanced second-class production machines. His fleet also had to procure all of the raw materials needed to produce so many chs.
To be honest, his clan still lacked too much qualified manpower. It would be great if the LMC managed to activate 10 production lines within the first month of receiving the factory ship. This was only possible by relying on the trainers supplied by the Hexers and by borrowing the ch technicians hailing from the Penitent Sisters and the Glory Seekers.
Ves was already satisfied if he could operate his factory ship at half or even quarter capacity. He not only wanted to produce more Valkyrie chs, but also a lot of very crucial Transcendent Punishers.
As the primary fleet defense ch of the Larkinson Clan, Ves would never contract its production to another ch company. It wasn't all about keeping the design schematics confidential. While it was important to hide the weaknesses of the artillery ch, Ves had a more important reason to rely on internal production.
Only his own production crews were able to produce better LMC chs. While the LMC stopped using its label system as much, that did not an it had beco irrelevant.
Ves was a bit dissatisfied by the impersonal and efficiency-oriented production approaches adopted by many third-party manufacturers. The LMC wasn't able to force them to change their thods just so that they could output slightly better LMC chs. The tradeoff simply wasn't worth it for many companies.
Only the ch technicians and production workers of his own clan abided by his standards. As long as they followed his thods, the Transcendent Punishers produced by his factory ship should co with stronger spiritual foundations, thereby giving more play to its distinctive spiritual qualities.
This ant that The Transcendent Punishers beca drastically more accurate as a result! The difference might save the lives of hundreds if not thousands clansn down the line.
During the remainder of the inspection, Ves explained so of these logistical considerations to his ch commanders. They needed to know that it would take ti to supply their troops with excellent chs.
"You don't have to wait that long to get so better chs. In half a year, the Bright Warrior Mark II will beco available. With our factory ship, we should quickly be able to supply each of your forces with the new backbone of our clan. Just rember that the Mark II's role is different from the Mark I. Its standing is lower than that of specialized chs."
lkor frowned. The Avatars of Myth adored the original Bright Warriors. Many of them even owed their lives to its amazingly strong defense.
"I get why you did that, but won't this shift go against the original purpose of the Bright Warrior model?"
"You can make an argunt for that." Ves admitted. "It's inevitable that the role and purpose and a ch will change when classing them up. It's folly to keep everything identical."
"Still, you're turning what used to be the most premier ch of the Larkinson Clan into a version that is only one or two steps up from the Princess Jeckas and the Vima Suns. You'll be breaking the hearts of many of my ch pilots."
"They won't cry for long once my Design Departnt starts rolling out more specialized ch designs. Right now, we are about to design a very good light skirmisher. All of the light ch pilots in our clan will stop complaining once we complete it. The Penitent Sisters can look forward to sothing even better."
Commander Valerie Chancy was very pleased to hear that. She may have lost her forr head designer, but she gained a very powerful supporter in the LMC's crucial Design Departnt. With Juliet in charge of the design project, the Penitent Sisters shouldn't have any worries!
The round of inspections finally ended. Major Verle had already divvied up the shipnt of chs. Each ch force received a variety of chs depending on their force makeup and ch doctrines.
For example, there was no need to transfer any Vima Suns to the Swordmaidens. Commander Sendra was already content with receiving a lot of Princess Jeckas.
The Living Sentinels obtained the most chs because they had the most ch pilots, each of which needed hands-on training. Showering them with second-class chs would also do wonders in repairing their damaged self-esteem.
Commander lkor acted like a spoiled kid who got an apple from his mother when he actually wanted to eat so sweets. The Avatars of Myth was supposed to be an elite ch force. Piloting the second-class equivalent of budget chs did not conform to its style!
The remaining ch forces were just as dissatisfied, though it was hard to argue that the new shipnts represented a downgrade from what they had before.
Overall, the strength of the Larkinson Clan started to rise again. Shipnts continued to trickled in in the coming days. While the trading companies charged a hefty fee for importing chs across star sectors, the Larkinson Clan saved a significant amount of money by taking advantage of bulk discounts.
A lot of people were secretly dissatisfied with Ves. He was the main driver behind procuring so many budget chs. There wasn't a single decent second-class ch in any of the shipnts!
"The n aren't shy about complaining about the disappointing specs and lack of features of their new second-class chs." Gavin reported to him during a routine briefing.
Ves leaned back in his office. "You can't please everyone, Benny. I thought you should know that since you're a marketing expert. There are good reasons behind our frugality. Aside from reserving our funds for the production of LMC chs, we also have to build up our war chest for so big expenditures."
"ow ow."
On his desk, Lucky pounced on the Larkinson Mandate and tried to draw out the Golden Cat.
Nyaaaaa.
For so reason, Goldie didn't want to co out today. When Lucky beca a little too insistent, the Larkinson Mandate unleashed a strange kinetic blast!
"OW!"
The gem cat soared across the stateroom and slamd straight into the bulkhead!
Gavin spoke up once this distraction passed.
"We know you are prioritizing the future, boss. There is nothing wrong with that. It's just that so of us believe you're going overboard with hollowing the present in order to accomplish your ambitious goals."
Ves leaned forward. "I don't like to be wasteful. We need to make the best use of our resources. Know that we will be getting rid of many of our ships and chs once we reach one of the beyonder gates. The Gate Consortium only allows a limited amount of ships to pass, so it's impossible to bring everything. We will be in the best position to start our adventure in the Red Ocean if we focus mostly on building up our capital ships and expert chs."
"Is that safe? I heard the stories about the Nyxian Gap Campaign. A lot of ch pilots and other personnel lost their lives because their chs weren't up to the talk."
"You don't have to worry about that, Benny." Ves chuckled. "Our chs might not amount to much, but we've ordered a lot of them. Being able to field thousands of chs is already intimidating enough. If that's not enough, we can borrow the strength of our upcoming allies."
"You an the Cross Clan, sir."
"Correct. Do you have a problem with them or sothing?"
"We know too little about them. They're foreigners and they have their own ideas. They're also stronger than us. The quality and quantity of their chs are much greater than ours."
"The Crossers won't do anything. There is hardly any benefit. If their new guest designer is able to exert enough influence, then I am pretty sure the Cross Clan will cover our backs."
It was a bit of a gamble, but one he was willing to take. The negotiations between the Larkinsons and the Crossers had reached the final stages. The two clans ford an elaborate treaty over the past few weeks.
What was remarkable about this treaty was how many opportunities it opened for cooperation.
The Larkinsons agreed to make so of their formidable production capacity available to their allies.
In turn, the Cross Clan promised to dispatch so highly-experienced ch instructors and trainers to the Larkinson Clan.
These were just two of the exchanges stipulated in the treaty!
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