The Mech Touch novel Chapter 1857

Chapter 1857 Growing Influences

The Larkinson Clan thrived.

Even though only a short time had passed since its founding, the clan already started off on a strong footing.

With all of its clan members coming from the former Larkinson Family, the cohesion of the clan was high and the degree of organization was fantastic.

In fact, the clan already exceeded the old family in terms of wealth, influence and military power!

The clan was growing every day. Due to the latest developments of the Sand War, a continuous flow of family members from the Bright Republic trickled into the Ylvaine Protectorate. They proceeded all the way to the Kesseling System in order to link up with the clan.

Some of these family members remained outsiders to the clan. They still believed in the old family and did not wish to get involved in the adventures of their bolder and more ambitious relatives.

Others became attracted to the benefits and dynamism of the clan. Compared to the mood at the old family, the latest offshoot of the Larkinsons was much more proactive!

The member rolls of the Larkinson Clan continued to rise, especially when a number of Larkinsons started arriving that weren't formally a part of the family!

One of the more clever recruitment policies of the clan was that it unflinchingly opened the door to exiles and non-members.

As long as they had a reasonable relation to the Larkinson bloodline, they were allowed to become a full clansman without any further questions!

Each generation, many Larkinsons chose to leave the ranks of the old family for one reason or another. Raella Larkinson was a typical example. Though they gave up their affiliation to the family, thereby becoming ineligible for its protection, they no longer had to uphold its reputation.

These exiles numbered surprisingly a lot. This was because they not only consisted of members who left the family, but also their offspring and descendants!

Most of them weren't mech pilots, but their blood and genes still possessed the mark of the Larkinson line.

The former Larkinson Family always pursued several policies to limit their numbers and keep their size at a certain range. This not only improved their cohesion due to kicking out all of the dissidents, it also prevented their finances and training resources from becoming too strained.

The clan did not follow the same path. Instead, the Larkinson Assembly and the Executive Council both agreed to pursue growth through several means. Snapping up these exiles and descendants of exiles was an easy way to expand their ranks!

Right now, a couple of hundred Larkinsons was not enough to form a strong and sustainable clan! It needed to accumulate at least a thousand members to achieve sustainability.

This was especially important because of the many risks the Larkinsons were about to undertake. This did not just encompass the mech pilots of the clan, but also the other military specialists who used to serve in the Mech Corps!

As the Avatars of Myth and the Living Sentinels sought to expand their numbers, the inclusion of the Larkinsons were vital. They not only possessed a military background, but were also loyal and more reliable. Each additional Larkinson in the ranks ensured that the units remained committed to Ves and the Larkinson Clan!

Perhaps more vital to the development of the Avatars and Sentinels was the recruitment of command officers, logistical officers, staff officers and many kinds of specialists.

Back when the Avatars only numbered a couple of mech companies, it was fine for the troop to be run by Melkor and a handful of staff.

This was obviously inefficient now that the Avatars sought to expand their ranks to 500 mechs.

With the rapid pace of recruitment, managing the units became increasingly more burdensome. The administrative overhead grew ahead of the rate of expansion as more and more complicated problems occurred.

Commander Melkor had to form a general staff and reorganize the hierarchy of the Avatars to reflect all of the departments and layers of command.

The Living Sentinels already had a robust hierarchy in place due to their larger numbers. Commander Magdalena already planned ahead so her mech force didn't have to make too many changes to process the huge influx of recruits.

Though all of these moves drained the coffers of Ves, the LMC and the clan, no one bothered with the expenditures. The LMC, though not as prominent as before, still sold lots of mechs in both the Protectorate and dozens of other foreign markets!

With this generous and fairly stable cash flow, there was no worry that they would run out of money anytime soon.

With the Komodo Star Sector in turmoil, sitting on an increasing mountain of depreciating currency was incredibly useless.

Only when their money was being spent would they be able to strengthen themselves! Converting numbers in bank accounts to physical mechs and starships was the best course of action to increase their chance of survival!

At the base leased to by the Avatars of Myth, a private meeting took place. Melkor, Jannzi and Tusa both sat in the Avatar Commander's office by the windows.

Each of them possessed an overarching view of the base grounds, where various mechs, vehicles and people moved around.

The bustling sight had become even more vigorous in the last couple of weeks. The new recruits in the form of Larkinsons, Brighters and most notably Ylvainains enthusiastically took part in boot camps meant to bring them up to speed in the Avatar way of life.

"The Avatars have changed." Melkor sighed as he adjusted the visor on his face. "We spent years as a small unit. I still remember the days when we consisted of just a single mech company. It's different now. I can no longer remember every name and face. I have officers and subordinates to do that for me. Maybe this is what it feels like to be Ves. It's no wonder that he's becoming increasingly more detached from everyone."

Jannzi tilted her head at her cousin. "People change. Organizations change. This is a good thing. It means that our efforts are paying off. As long as we remain persistent and work towards our goals, we won't go astray."

"If you can't handle your leadership position, then you should make way for a better Larkinson." Tusa added bluntly as he crossed his arms.

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