The Mech Touch

Casella's reaction towards the First Chosen Envoy was less than pleasant to say the least.

The Chosen Courtyard nurtured Imon Ingvar's tattered remnant of a soul back to health. It actually went beyond that and continued to empower him until he was transforming into an entity that gained physical substance.

Yet this transformation also introduced undesirable changes to the formerly deceased expert pilot.

It was as if the Chosen Courtyard functioned as a factory that brutally salvaged Imon's soul, only to turn it into a macabre vessel for a powerful servant whose sole purpose was to obey the users of the Mech Designer System.

Was Imon still Imon?

Ves truly could not answer this question.

Casella could not come up with a solid answer either.

If there were still parts of Imon that were left intact but got buried under his new behavioral programming, then there may be a way to bring the old Imon back in a reasonable manner.

However, if the worst case scenario came to pass, then the parts of Imon that contained his love for his sister may be permanently gone upon his demise.

If that was the case, then Casella needed to work a lot harder to 'revive' her brother!

She would have to become the god of the current universe and find a way to reverse the timestream in order to have any chance to recover her brother in full!

The Saint Commander did not fear this challenge, but she was not stupid. The probability that she would be able to grow to such insane heights in the far future was close to nil.

If she had a choice, then she would definitely pursue an easier and faster plan that could yield the outcome she desired!

Unfortunately, the clear sense of indifference that the current version of 'Imon' expressed towards Casella caused her to lose hope of making him recover the easy way.

She needed to break the most fundamental laws of reality in order to realize her dream of getting Imon back!

Any other plan did not go far enough to obtain the perfect outcome she desired.

"I do not recognize this thing as my brother." She almost hissed as she stared at the 'Chosen Envoy' as if it was an abomination. "I am grateful that your relic managed to preserve a semblance of my brother after he died. However, that does not mean I like what it has done to what is left of him. What I see is a weapon that has repurposed the soul of my brother. This Envoy has more in common with a living mech than a human as far as I am concerned. No, this false human is worse, because he does not even have the privilege of free will."

Her verdict was brutal, but not wrong.

A living mech may start out with a strong predisposition for loyalty towards its pilot, but it was technically free to entertain other thoughts instead.

There were more and more cases where living mechs turned against their own pilots. In every case, the unlucky customers deserved what they got, so the cases never generated a lot of controversy.

Of course, the support of the Red Association played a crucial role in suppressing these ugly incidents.

The Saint Commander was sharp enough to realize that the First Chosen Envoy lacked this freedom.

Its loyalty towards its 'users' was hardcoded into its solidifying existence.

Ves did not know how long it would take for Imon's magical transformation to end, but if his current state was any indication, he would only become more loyal towards its masters, not less.

Anyone who knew the old Imon Ingvar would definitely react negatively to what he had become!

This level of personality reprogramming was taboo when applied to actual human beings!

Ves would definitely get into a huge amount of trouble if Imon Ingvar was still alive!

In fact, Ves was still guilty of desecrating the dead. An honorable expert pilot such as Imon Ingvar deserved to move on in peace.

Ves could only console himself that he went through the trouble of persuading Imon, or whatever was left of him, to agree to this unknown transformation.

That did not necessarily make everything right, but it at least exempted Ves from feeling guilty.

After Casella spent a minute to process how far her brother had fallen, she gradually disciplined her mind.

Her willpower reasserted itself. She pushed away most of her emotions and relied on her rationality to maintain a clear enough mind.

"Please take this thing out of my sight." She requested.

Ves waved his hand. The First Divine Envoy silently bowed to his master before fading away from sight.

An uncomfortable silence ensued as Casella struggled to maintain her cool.

As an ace commander, her willpower was not as solid and self-centered as that of regular ace pilots.

This was both a strength and a weakness.

On the one hand, she was not as stubborn and mule-headed as other saints.

On the other hand, she was more susceptible to setbacks.

She cared too much.

What Ves had presented to her inflicted such a severe shock to her that she completely lost her mental balance.

Knowing the truth was painful.

A part of Casella would have preferred to remain in ignorance. Why did Ves have to show what happened to what was left of her brother?

The Saint Commander shook her head. She was not being mature. An ace commander could not afford to show so many weaknesses.

The more mature part of herself understood that Ves had ultimately made the right choice.

It was better to know the truth than run away from it. At least now she gained valuable information that she could use to improve her master plan.

"Thank… you." She said in a subdued tone. "I am not taking this well, but none of this is your fault. I… needed to see what had happened to my brother. So long as the tiniest semblance of him still exists, I am much more confident that I can find a way to bring the rest of him back. I have a stronger reason to fight. I cannot afford to be too soft-hearted if I want to survive and grow strong enough to reunite with the real Imon."

Ves solemnly nodded. "It is good to hear that you have your priorities straight. Terrible events will take place across human-occupied space now that much of the 5th defensive band is crumbling. Even if you are transferred to the Upper Zone, I don't think the first-raters will be able to prevent tragedies from taking place in their own states. You can fight to save their lives, but I hope that you will not forget to value your own life. Only when you survive will you be able to save your brother one day."

"I shall try, sir. I do have to remind you that ace commanders cannot always shirk responsibility. That is cowardice. If I want to speed up my growth, I cannot refuse too many challenges. Every ace pilot must stand up for her own beliefs."

Ace commanders may possess less ego than their more direct peers, but they need to show their courage in their own ways.

A cowardly mech commander was ultimately an unqualified commander.

Of course, caution should not be ignored either. A reckless mech commander would end up getting all of his subordinates killed one way or another.

It was up to the ace commanders to reconcile these two conflicting priorities and find a balance that worked out for them. Casella still had a long way to go to figure out her own equilibrium.

"About your brother…"

Casella looked up at him with suspicion.

"What is it that you want to say?"

"Your brother is transforming into an increasingly more powerful existence." Ves continued. "While I do not know whether his growth will reach a plateau or not, I have a strong suspicion that he may become a potent asset on the battlefield."

That caused the Saint Commander's expression to turn ugly. "Are you saying that you will deploy that thing on the battlefield?"

"Just like mechs are designed for combat, Chosen Envoys are probably made to represent their principals on different occasions, up to and including the battlefield. While I will not choose to deploy Imon if there is no need, I will not hold him back if I am facing a tough opponent. I think if Imon was still alive, he would rather that his remnant be put to use, don't you agree?"

Placing the initiative on Casella forced her to contemplate this matter seriously.

"You are probably correct. Imon is not a man who wants to remain a decoration. Even in death, he would probably applaud your decision."

"The problem is that I am not sure how strong or useful he will become." Ves admitted. "If he is not as strong as an ordinary mech, then it is better to keep him away from large battlefields. If Imon happens to be a lot stronger, then he can save the lives of multiple clansmen if he is deployed. If this Chosen Envoy is able to pilot a mech, then that would be even better. My point is that there is a risk that what is left of Imon may get further damaged or even destroyed. It depends on whether my relic is able to revive and restore my Chosen Envoy."

Both Ves and Casella felt frustrated by the lack of information.
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Still, if the two assumed the worst case scenario, then there was a good chance that the First Chosen Envoy might permanently disappear while fulfilling its purpose.

How should Casella react to this possibility?

She did not struggle as long as before.

"It is not fair for me to tell you that you must never place your Chosen Envoy in danger. As long as there is a good reason for you to resort to this measure, then I will not object to it. I cannot imagine that this will happen often if at all. You have warships, first-class multipurpose mechs and ace mechs at your disposal. If you are in so much danger that you feel the need to bring out that thing, then I find it difficult to imagine it can turn a battle around."

Maybe she had a point, but Ves liked to believe that the Mech Designer System did not waste its resources just to raise cannon fodder.

"I am convinced that the final form of Chosen Envoys is much more impressive than what you just saw. The problem is that it may take a lot of time, resources or other demands for Imon to realize his potential in his new state of existence. I think he will become a lot stronger in a year or two. I will continue to monitor his growth and keep you apprised of any major developments."

The woman nodded. "That would be… appreciated. I admit that I do not know how to feel about this. Your Chosen Envoy desecrates the memory of my brother, yet it also preserves what little of him remains in this universe. I am… conflicted. It will take time for me to come to peace with what you have shown."

"Family is important, Casella. Do not feel guilty for feeling so strongly about your brother. That shows that you are still human. In my opinion, you are much better than saints who mainly think about themselves and cannot bring themselves to care about their fellow clansmen."

Both of them knew that he was referring to a certain Saint General.

Their meeting had come to an end. Casella wanted time for herself to think about her goals and her outlook towards the future.

She needed to sort out her mixed feelings if she wanted to return to the battlefield stronger than ever.

If she did not deal with her inner turmoil, then piloting a stronger mech was no use.

The Minerva Mark II could only be as strong as her pilot!