Chapter 4032 The Right ldentity
After Ves concluded his insightful and illuminating discussion with Master Barnard Voiken, the negotiations between their respective organizations finished quickly.
The leaders of both the Larkinson Clan and the Voiken Family both liked each other. This was enough of a reason to cement the deal.
Given how Ves and Master Barnard saw a lot of advantages in cooperating with each other over longer periods of time, the negotiation teams no longer quibbled as much over the fine print of the contract.
As long as the negotiators from both sides wanted to complete the agreement as fast as possible, it did not take a lot of time before they concluded their work!
It was quite impressive for Ves to see a copy of the finished document before his desk only a day after his talk with Master Barnard.
The full contract largely fell in line with his demands and expectations. According to his advisors, there weren't any traps that he should be worried about. The Voiken Family had shown their sincerity and earnestness in many ways, not even hesitating to paint itself as the weaker side in the negotiation rounds.
By the time that Ves and Master Barnard Voiken officially signed the legally-binding document during a formal virtual conference meeting, the Larkinson Clan gained another business partner!
"How do you feel about your old family and relatives reconnecting to the clan that you have joined?" Ves asked the Voiken siblings shortly after the ceremony.
The two formally-dressed Journeymen looked ambivalent, to say the least. They neither celebrated this partnership nor condemned it from what it appeared.
"We still consider ourselves as Larkinsons." Dulo Voiken spoke up first. "We are thankful for our family for bringing us up and allowing us to become good in the profession that we have always yearned for, but in the short time we have been in your clan, we have improved so much and gained so many benefits that we can never imagine going back."
Sara nodded in agreement. "Our former patriarch is a great mech designer and leader in his own way, but the family that he has built is not a good home for everyone. We much prefer to work for the Larkinson Clan. It is here that we can be entrusted with major responsibilities right away and receive plenty of room for us to realize our own visions without too many constraints on our projects."
This was all true, but this was mainly because Ves was unable and unwilling to hire Seniors and Masters who should really be leading these kinds of design projects.
It was only in a new and developing organization that young and less experienced mech designers such as Sara and Dulo Voiken were able to take charge of major design projects, ones that had a real impact on the clan's military strength or commercial success!
Ves raised his arm and patted both Sara and Dulo on their shoulders. "I'm happy to hear that. I anticipate that our clan will gradually develop a closer bond with the Voikens in the Red Ocean. While I don't expect you to cut off contact entirely with your old relatives, I hope that you will always remember the identity that you have currently assumed."
"That goes without saying, sir."
There was no reason for Ves to worry about the divided loyalties of any of his men. They had all assimilated smoothly into the Larkinson Clan. The treatment they received after joining up was so good that there was little reason for them to look back or feel any nostalgia about their past situations.
He briefly quizzed the Voikens on the brief amount of progress they made on their design projects before waving them away.
Now that the Larkinson Clan and the Voiken Family signed a business agreement, Ves was able to cross another item on his lengthy to-do list.
There were not a lot of immediate priorities left before he could fully devote the following months of his life to completing his design projects.
He slowly smirked. "Enough time has passed for the Aducs to get accustomed to living alongside Gaia."
The powerful ancestral spirit should have already gotten used to its new life. He didn't need Gaia to possess full mastery over all of her powers and abilities. He just wanted her to possess enough of a handle of herself to cooperate with him on his next gambit.
He called ahead to the Aduc Family before heading over to his familiar shuttle to transit over to the Green Dream again.
Given the sensitive nature of the Aduc Family's second and far more secret heirloom, Ves did not bring along his daughter or any of his cats this time.
Matriarch Erexi Aduc enthusiastically greeted him as soon as he stepped out of his shuttle.
"Welcome back to our humble flagship, patriarch Ves. We will always open our doors to you. Do you wish to enter the Green Sanctum and visit the Mother of Earth in person?"
Ves shook his head. "No need. I have my own ways of contacting Gaia. I am on a tight schedule. I just want to pay a brief visit to you-know-what."
"I understand. This way, please."
In the interest of saving time, they boarded a floater platform and zipped through the hallways of the Aduc Family's capital ship until they approached the main engineering bay.
Ves went through all of the mandatory security checks and waited for the Aduc Matriarch to lead him through the familiar secret route before arriving in front of a familiar chamber.
The Annals of Terra Vita looked as aged and fragile as ever. Seeing it once again made Ves feel a sense of anticipation.
He had thought a lot about his first encounter with this old scroll when he returned back to his own fleet.
He also did a lot of research in the background of Old Earth and the people that worshiped the cradle of humanity.
It turned out that there were a lot of faiths centered around Old Earth throughout human space. The planet had gained such a mythical status in society that those who were born tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of light-years away developed highly idealistic notions about the root of humanity.
Ves grew speechless when he got introduced all of these cults.
The Aducs were tame compared to the crazies that worshiped Old Earth as a literal god!
All he could say about it was that there were many people that were desperate to believe in something greater and were capable of latching onto anything to satisfy their spiritual needs.
It was a bit unfortunate that Ves had come no closer to finding out the origin of the Annals of Terra Vita. There were no existing mentions of this scripture or whoever could have possibly made it, thereby ending his search fairly quickly.
Whether the Annals of Terra Vita was related to the one and only Earth Scroll was still unclear, but Ves hoped he could find out the truth today.
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