The journey into the Vulcan Empire was a contentious one to say the least. Even though Ves had made an agreent with the Glory Seekers and the Cross Clan, his allies didn't want to fly straight into a black hole!
It took a lot of effort to assure both his allies and his own clansn that Smiling Samuel was not as dangerous as a black hole. Too many people had read or heard all kinds of awful stories about the dwarves while the fleet was parked in Amswick.
The locals constantly exaggerated the nace of their archenemies whenever they interacted with outsiders. The Empire of the Lost was filled by traumatized survivors and descendents who inherited the hate and fear of their parents towards the dwarves.
Ves personally thought that the mania towards the Vulcanites had reached an excessive degree. Though the Lost were justified in demonizing their threatening neighbors, the Golden Skull Alliance did not play any part in this local turf war.
No matter how much tensions flared between states, it was of no concern to transient travellers such as the Larkinson Clan.
In fact, Ves was even willing to do business with the dwarves if it was convenient to do so! It was too bad that he didn't intend to expand his business presence in the Fermi Star Cluster.
"There's also another problem. The dwarves don't like to pilot conventional humanoid chs."
Their hatred against the tall folk did not just lead them to question the true nature of their supposed patron god. They also moved away from piloting normal humanoid chs in favor of bestial chs and most notably dwarf chs.
A dwarf ch was exactly what it sounded like. It was a shorter but much more stockier version of a typical humanoid ch. Its contours basically matched that of a dwarf scaled to the size of a war machine.
From what Ves had heard about the Vulcan Empire's ch community, the local ch industry was relatively young but already ca up with nurous innovations that increased the competitiveness of dwarf chs.
Dwarf chs were characterized by their lower profiles. This not only made it a little harder to hit them at range, but also conveyed substantial defensive advantages when fighting up close.
Since dwarf chs did not stretch as high as traditional humanoid chs, they also possessed a lower center of mass. They were a lot more difficult to trip and they remained rock solid even when the terrain beca unstable.
Of course, just like the dwarves themselves, the chs that took on their form perford quite well in heavy gravity environnts.
The advantage was so substantial that even the so-called 'tall folk' preferred to pilot dwarf chs whenever they had to deploy on a heavy gravity planet for an extensive amount of ti.
"Heh, the dwarves probably don't like that." Ves chuckled.
That said, dwarven chs also ca with significant downsides. If that wasn't the case, they would have beco a lot more ubiquitous than today.
Their short and stocky limbs made it a lot more difficult for normal ch pilots to get used to piloting them. Many pilots described the experience as turning into a fat and muscular child. They simply couldn't make the sa movents that they had been accustod to making as normal human adults.
While this issue went away with ti and practice, there were other downsides to dwarven chs that were not as easy to brush away.
Dwarf chs were characterized by worse than usual mobility. For one, they possessed shorter pairs of legs. That made them a lot slower when they traversed on land. They were also a little more awkward to maneuver in the air and in space.
The lack of length in their limbs also made it more difficult for them to perform lee attacks. Though they were able to hit harder than an equivalent normal humanoid ch, their shorter reach and reduced range of motion mostly limited them to performing simple and more straightforward moves.
Their deviating forms also suffered from lower carrying capacity and less efficient heat managent. These were important factors for ranged chs, so they suffered a small disadvantage even at range.
Overall, the complications surrounding dwarf chs ultimately stopped them from gaining popularity in circles outside dwarven communities. The only reason why the latter clung to using dwarf chs was because they identified with the stockier machines!
While Ves was aware of these well-docunted disadvantages, he did not automatically look down on dwarf chs. They offered a lot of value under the right circumstances and fulfilled certain niches very well.
"At the very least, they are one of the most efficient ch types in heavy gravity environnts."
Quadruped chs actually offered a lot more stability in the sa locale, but moving four limbs was a lot more energy-intensive than moving two limbs. Dwarf chs occupied a sweet spot where they offered a reasonable amount of stability while still remaining fairly energy efficient.
"Well, it only matters on the few settled planets that possess higher than normal gravities."
One of the ironies of the Vulcan Empire was that most of its settled planets possessed standard gravities. The dwarves had taken them all over from the forr human states that occupied the various territories before the dwarven revolution. These planets had all been terraford and featured a lot of expensive infrastructure that took decades or centuries to accumulate.
Even though the dwarves preferred to settle on heavy gravity planets, the fact of the matter was that there were too few of them that were terraford and developed. Not even the Vulcanites could afford to start from scratch.
This had led to the current result where the overwhelming majority of dwarves resided in the forr hos of the tall folk they hated. The gravities they were subjected to were also a lot lighter than their bodies could handle. This ca with all kinds of complications that Ves didn't bother to explore.
"I'm not a dwarf, so why should I care?"
Ves wasn't in the mood to get back to designing chs right away, so continued to spend so ti on reading up on the Vulcanites and the dwarves in general. He beca surprisingly engrossed in their lives. They had developed quite a unique culture that was eerily familiar yet also different in a couple of crucial details.
"It's like looking at a twisted mirror of humanity."
While Ves contemplated the dwarves, his two cats engaged in their weekly tussle for dominance.
"ow!"
Mrow!
Both Blinky and Lucky rolled as they scratched and bit each other. They continued to cry out aggressively as they tried their best to assert themselves as the top cat aboard the Spirit of Bentheim.
Mrooow!
"ow ow!"
Unfortunately, this fight ended as anticlimactically as the last. Though Blinky was not a weak cat by any ans, Lucky was far more experienced and durable. After swiping Blinky one last ti, the gem cat proudly lifted his head and arrogantly claid victory.
"ow!"
The purple spiritual cat hissed resentfully at Lucky before returning to Ves' mind in order to recuperate and plot his next takeover.
"You dumb cat." Ves muttered to another part of himself. "What makes you think you can beat Lucky? He's a blooded cat. Who knows how much his body count is. As for you, I don't think you've taken the life of a single opponent."
Mrow mrow…
Hey, I'm not going to put myself anywhere close to a fight if I can help it. I'm not going to stray onto a battlefield just so that you can acquire so actual battle experience. I don't care what talents you've acquired. Your non-combat functions are much more valuable to . I didn't make you because I wanted to find a replacent to Lucky. I made you so that you can provide with the utility that my first cat is incapable of providing."
"ow!"
"You're too inconsistent when it cos to producing gems!" Ves glared at his chanical cat. "It's already been a few months since you produced those Bastet gems. Don't you think it's ti for you to pay your rent again?"
"ow ow."
As Ves argued with his cat, his office chid.
"Hmm? Who is visiting?"
It turned out that Ketis wanted to drop by in person. When Ves let her in, she waltzed in and dropped herself onto one of the couches.
Swish swish.
"ow~"
Bloodsinger approached Lucky, allowing Sharpie to greet its friend.
"I thought you would be eager to spend more ti with your new creations." Ves stated.
The younger woman waved her hand. "I know my work. There's hardly anything worth studying for . I can always look at the First Sword and the Decapitator later. They're not about to run away or anything."
"Ah, I guess you're right. You're being surprisingly patient about it, unlike my wife."
She huffed. "That's one of the reasons why I'm glad to get away for a mont. She can be a bit of a handful to be around sotis. I'll just wait until she has her fill of my masterwork."
"Good idea."
"So… I haven't received any word from the MTA." Ketis said. "While I don't think any of us has transmitted the news to the chers, I'm sure they learned about the Decapitator by now. How long do you think I have to wait until I have to play host to MTA Master?"
Ves thought about it for a mont. "I'm not sure if Master Willix or the rest of the MTA will even bother to drop by again. A masterwork ch sword is not as significant as a masterwork ch, you know. From their perspective, a single masterwork ch part won't substantially increase the odds of breakthroughs."
He also thought that Master Willix must be so tired of getting yanked by the Larkinsons that she would probably throw her hands up this ti and get back to her usual business.
"That's wrong!" Ketis insisted. "A sword is by far the most important companion a swordsman could have. To Dise, it's fine if the expert ch is flawed. What concerns her a lot more is the quality of the sword. She will definitely benefit a lot from wielding such a fantastic weapon!"
"Let's see how it will turn out. Maybe you're right."
After discussing this topic, Ves brought up another matter.
"What do you think about the ceremony that the Swordmaidens and Heavensworders held in Venerable Dise's honor? Can you tell whether you think that it has helped you in forging a masterwork ch sword?"
Ketis nodded without any hesitation. "It has definitely affected in many ways, and mostly for the better. I think it was a brilliant idea to fabricate our expert ch in the company of those who care the most about it. Seeing all of the people around us and recognizing that they are all invested in our work conveys a lot more aning to our work."
"Is that so? Because the rest of us didn't really gain that much."
"That's because this expert ch design project was not as personal to you." She stated. "This is not your fault. I know that you and your wife made an earnest effort into designing a good expert swordsman ch. It's just that this is not enough. I have a much more personal stake in providing Venerable Dise with the most powerful weapons possible."
This difference illustrated the importance of aning and emotional investnts. One of the downsides of designing so many remarkable expert chs at a ti was that it was hard for any ch designer to maximize their enthusiasm for each of them. It would have been a lot easier to get invested in all of the remarkable projects if the Design Departnt had spaced them out over a span of multiple years.
It was a pity that the Larkinson Clan needed all of the expert chs sooner rather than later. Ves did not regret the opportunities that he had potentially missed by deciding on the current approach. Producing any masterwork from these difficult projects was already a bonus in his eyes.
After a bit more chit chat, Ketis finally broached the real reason why she wanted to talk to Ves.
"I know that we still have a couple more projects to complete, but I'd like to hear your input on a couple of proposals that I have been thinking about for a while. Rember my Monster Hunter concept?"
"I do."
"Well, I no longer want to wait after we have completed this round. My idea goes like this…"
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