While Ves was close to finishing his new competition ch, his wife sat down in a lounge that was far away from the tournant venue.
Gloriana showed no concern at all for her husband's performance. She detested any event where ch designers had to compress weeks or months of work into an interval of just a few days or less.
There was no way a ch designer could develop a proper ch in such a tiny tispan!
Though she fully understood the argunt that working under severe limitations enabled ch designers to exercise their design abilities in a different way, she never felt the need to resort to such a clunky thod to advance her own skills.
She briefly checked up on Aurelia, who was sleeping peacefully in her floating stroller.
"Miaow."
Clixie was close at hand, of course. The cat had been circling protectively around the baby carriage to make sure no one would ever think about disturbing the baby.
The neck ornant that Ves had provided to the cat glinted softly in the gentle light of the club. Its lustrous jewel reflected the light in multiple colors, which Clixie absolutely adored.
In order to make sure the jewel remained pristine and shiny, Clixie regularly licked her paw before rubbing her limb against the surface of her gem. She was proud to carry such a pretty object!
"My apologies for keeping you waiting, Mrs. Wodin-Larkinson." An older woman who clearly wasn't a ch designer but carried herself with power eased into the lounge.
"It is of no consequence." Gloriana calmly responded as she stood up from her seat.
"I am Dorma Tenze Vilasoen, the managing director of this club and an outer mber of the ch Supremacist Faction. I've also been assigned to handle your application. We had to look into your exploits a little further. It is not every day we et with a Journeyman who possesses so many masterwork certificates under her belt."
"I have received this reaction multiple tis. To be honest, I owe much to Master Willix. She is the true ch designer responsible for helping obtain my masterwork certificates."
"You do not have to be modest around here." The woman smiled as she shook the new mother's hand. "Here at the Well-Oiled Machine, we recognize ability, not status. If the ch Trade Association sees fit to bestow you with a masterwork certificate, then your contribution to the creation of an excellent machine is not trivial. To other ch designers, it is not that easy to obtain official recognition."
Gloriana smiled back. She already liked it here. She was afraid that her relatively modest origin and background would cause her to be looked down upon, but her fears were overblown.
"That is great to hear. It appears that I have co to the right place."
The Well-Oiled Machine had made a good impression so far. The private club was one of several eting places owned and operated by the ch Supremacist Faction in Chance Bay.
The clean, tallic decor mixed with elegant luxury provided the guests with an environnt that was conducive for both business and relaxation. Everything was so exquisite that Gloriana truly felt comfortable.
Once they sat down again, Dorma called up a projection in order to go through the process of inducting Gloriana into the ch Supremacist Faction.
This was not a difficult process, especially if the applicant possessed interesting qualities to the ch Supremacist Faction.
The fact that Gloriana held five masterwork certificates to her na was not that remarkable at first, but the story was completely different once it beca clear that she was just a Journeyman and a young one at that! Not even her peers from the galactic center of the Milky Way could equal her in this regard!
Although this remarkable feat did not guarantee that Gloriana would beco a brilliant Master in the future, the ch Supremacist Faction was willing to take in a potentially promising candidate.
In any case, even if Gloriana no longer made any significant achievents in the future, the faction would hardly lose anything.
What was more important was that bringing her into the fold would deny her to the other factions of the MTA. There was no way the ch Supremacists wanted to give its rivals a bargain!
Over the course of half an hour, Director Dorma Tenze Vilasoen proceeded to fill out various forms while asking nurous questions to her latest guest.
None of the questions were particularly uncomfortable. The ch Supremacist Faction just wanted to know more about this promising Journeyn who seemingly erged out of nowhere.
Considering how the galactic rim generally didn't hold much interest to the ch Supremacist Faction, this description was not much of an exaggeration!
"What chs do you seek to design once you have beco an accomplished Master?" Dorma asked in the middle of the interview session.
"I have always dedicated myself to designing the perfect vessels for individual ch pilots and that hasn't changed." She answered. "I always intended to design chs for the most excellent ch pilots. Ideally, I would like to devote myself to designing expert chs and ace chs. I've already had a taste of what it was like to design a high-end, high-ranking ch and I know it is where my strengths can truly play a significant role."
"I see. That is a good ambition. What about designing lower-end chs? Are you still open to designing more modest chs for less wealthy or capable custors?"
"Tch." Gloriana did not bother to hide her disdain. "My efforts are wasted here. I don't look down on mass market models and the custors who are happy with them, but they do not match my inclinations. I specialize in designing excellent chs for the most discerning ch pilots and I make no apologies for that. In any case, my husband and many other ch designers are more than willing to fulfill this need."
The director twitched a smile. "Indeed. Our civilization's ch industry is enormous. There are so many Master ch Designers active now that there is an abundance of choice for every custor. It is good that you do not force yourself to branch out into areas which discomfit you. That said, our research into your prior work has revealed that you have contributed significantly to the design of many mass market ch models. Does this work not contradict your design philosophy?"
"You may have a point." Gloriana admitted. "It's not easy for to go against my instincts and training and try to avoid making my chs specific to any single custor, but I found a way to work around it. My husband usually takes charge of these projects, so I can often take a step back and approach these projects as a contributing ch designer."
"I see. I have witnessed many ch designer couples, and they do produce excellent works in collaboration."
"I can hear a but…"
"These pairings usually don't work out in the long term. The most common cause of that is because the progress of each ch designer diverges from each other. If one of you manages to beco a highly-accomplished Master while the other is stagnating as a Senior, the differences and contradictions between the two of you will exacerbate. It becos impossible to work alongside each other as equals again."
Gloriana did not look too worried. "I don't think that will happen between us. Both Ves and myself are quite talented, if I might say so myself. Even if one of us advances sooner than the other, we will wait for each other. Besides, outside of our work, Ves is still my husband. We already have a baby and there will be more on the way. I would never want to hurt my children by ruining my relationship with their father."
She directed a loving gaze at Aurelia as she said that. She gently reached out and tickled her baby's belly.
"It is good that you feel this way towards your spouse. I hope the both of you will maintain this attitude after a century."
Obviously, Director Dorma wasn't as optimistic as Gloriana. She had witnessed way too many fairytale relationships between young and optimistic ch designers crashing into planets as the years went by. Only one thing had to go wrong in order to ruin a perfect marriage!
People changed over ti, and ch designers tended to live a lot longer than normal people. People like Gloriana and Ves wouldn't be able to recognize their current selves after a century or two of growth and change!
Broken relationships and ugly breakups was the source of a lot of drama within the ch Supremacist Faction. Dorma had witnessed this happening so many tis that she stopped recomnding that ch designers should enter into relationships with each other.
She had seen how relationships between ch designers and other people had a much higher chance of surviving in the long term!
The absence of any direct comparisons prevented a ch designer from growing envious or resentful at their partner's greater progress.
Since high-ranking ch designers were incredibly ambitious and competitive by nature, it was rarely a good idea for them to be reminded of their inferiority so clearly every day.
Personally, Director Dorma hoped that her warning would sink in to the young mother. It was still possible for relationships between two ch designers to withstand the test of ti, but both sides had to work for it in order to last beyond a century.
The interview soon ca to an end after Director Dorma collected all of the answers she needed to give the ch Supremacist Faction a good idea of this up-and-coming ch designer.
"Congratulations, Miss Wodin-Larkinson." Dorma warmly smiled. "One of our senior mbers has just approved your formal application after I've submitted your information. From today onwards, you have beco a formal associate of the ch Supremacist Faction."
"Thank you. I'm glad to be here. I'm not entirely clear what your faction does, but from what I have been able to learn, I think I shall feel at ho in your circle."
The managing director nodded. "The Well-Oiled Machine is rely a eting place for the mbers and associates of our faction. You have co at a quiet ti right now so there are not too many ch Supremacists you can exchange with at the mont. However, I can refer you to other sites in Chance Bay that will likely be of interest to you. We maintain closed ch workshops, exclusive stores, a private exchange hall, an internal library and more."
"Do you have any recomndations?"
"One of the highlights that should be interesting to you are our masterclasses. Our more accomplished and distinguished mbers regularly hold teaching sessions aid towards professionals such as yourself. They are not only an opportunity for you to learn and exchange high-level knowledge and insights, but also help you get in touch with your fellow ch Supremacists. No matter where we co from or who we work for, we all appreciate good chs. You will find no person who doesn't love chs within our faction."
"Shouldn't this apply to all of the other factions as well?" Gloriana voiced one of her doubts. "I an, the other factions that I've heard of are all part of the ch Trade Association. I think that this should be enough to ensure that everyone is a proponent of chs."
"That's correct. There are hardly any people within our Association who do not favor chs." Director Dorma admitted. "However, our faction still exists for a reason. We are the first, most dedicated supporters of the existence of chs. We believe that its value is eternal and that it should beco the only weapon system that human civilization should rely upon to defend upon. chs are already popular at the mont, but they could be so much more. We need ch designers such as yourself to help humanity embrace chs in their totality. Are you willing to do that?"
Gloriana answered with a brilliant grin… "I would be more than happy to assist your cause."
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