The Mech Touch novel Chapter 2012

Chapter 2012 Assembly Session

The fateful day had arrived. When the fleet arrived in the next star system, a large number of shuttles emerged from various ships. They all converged on the Redfeather, which had converted a portion of her mech hangar into an improvised semi-circular theater.

Originally, the Larkinson Assembly wasn't supposed to convene in person. Due to various reasons, it was safer and more convenient to hold this assembly session in a virtual assembly hall.

Ves disrupted that original plan. He pushed for an in-person session, arguing that a decision as important and impactful as this shouldn't be decided in a detached, virtual setting!

The questions of whether to integrate outsiders into the Larkinson Clan and how far this integration should go were too important to be decided with so much physical separation!

In truth, Ves did not particularly object to a virtual assembly session. He only wanted to drag every Larkinson assembly member in the same chamber because his persuasion worked best if he could spiritually influence his audience up close!

He still hadn't made up his mind whether he should make full use of his Devil Tongue during this assembly session. Many times, he felt tempted to fall back to a more benign form of persuasion, just like he did when he addressed the fall of Bentheim.

Whenever he thought back on that moment, he felt proud for dragging his relative out of their slump. Along with breaking the news that DIVA managed to rescue the Larkinsons captured by the Bright Republic, his clan quickly went back on track with hardly any dips in productivity!

"That was then. This is now." He whispered to himself.

The issue that Ves was contemplating not only hit much closer to home to many Larkinsons, but also touched on their most closely-held values!

To them, family was always confined to their own blood relatives! The only ones who were exempted from this rule were those who directly married into the family. There were no other exceptions!

"Honorary Larkinsons don't exist to my family."

This approach served the original Larkinson Family well back when it was based in the Bright Republic, but Ves believed it was outdated.

Now that the Larkinson Clan sought to find a future by roaming the stars, Ves wanted to redefine what it meant to be a Larkinson!

As he rode on his shuttle, Gloriana, their cats and Gavin kept him company.

All of them provided some useful input on what he should pay attention to when he held his speech.

"Emphasize that we are all in it together." Gloriana mentioned. "Everyone who joins your fleet shares all of its wealth and woes."

"Miaow."

"See? Even Clixie agrees!"

"That's not what she's saying. I think she needs a litter box."

"Oh."

When Clixie departed to the restroom of the shuttle, Gavin filled up the void.

"The Larkinson Assembly currently consists of fifty assemblymen. We've investigated their stances and determined that roughly thirty-nine of them are leaning against full integration."

"That much, Benny?"

"Of the eleven that remain, I don't think there are any of them that are strongly enthusiastic towards accepting outsiders as Larkinsons without any divisions."

"Great."

"It gets worse, boss. Of the thirty-nine naysayers, a few of them consist of Larkinsons who have already made up their minds to leave the clan to join the Larkinson Family instead."

"What?!" Ves sat upright in his chair! "Since they're already turning their backs on the clan, they should be kicked from the Larkinson Assembly!"

Gavin shrugged. "With how the rules of the Assembly are currently set up, that's not entirely possible."

"Maybe we should kick them right now!"

"I won't advise that, Ves. Regardless of how much you are annoyed at them, many Larkinsons still consider them family. They deserve to have a say in the time they are still in the clan."

"Do they really believe that?!"

"Hey, it's your family. You know your own folk best."

His assistant was right. This was exactly what he could foresee the Larkinsons doing!

The problem was that Ves was pretty sure the potential leavers all sided with the Larkinsons who wanted to maintain a fence between the truebloods and the adopted!

Even if they didn't want anything to do with the clan anymore, they were still invested in their Larkinson identities. Naturally, they would do everything in their power to make sure the Larkinson Clan did not dilute the identity of their common name!

While Ves grumbled at this setback, the shuttle soon arrived at its destination. A lot of shuttles tried to ferry their passengers over the Redfeather, but one of the perks of being the clan patriarch was that his ride possessed priority!

Once the shuttle landed, Ves and the rest had to exit quickly in order to make way for the next shuttle. They quickly strode forward and made their way to the middle where a large space in the mech hangar had been cleared for an imposing construction.

Modeled after a semicircular amphitheater, the mech technicians had done a good job at erecting a venue where his upcoming speech would have the greatest effect!

All of this setup served a purpose. Ves had used all of his power to manipulate the environment in his favor. _{ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom}

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