The Mech Touch novel Chapter 4769

Chapter 4769 Absurd Resilience

The Phase King's presence soon receded from Ves' mind.

"I can make two more observations." The clan leader stated. "First, there are no phase whales or phase lords in our general area. That doesn't rule out the possibility that either of them may be hiding far away or in an isolated chamber, but for now we are not in danger of meeting any of them for the time being. Secondly, we are in some sort of large stone structure that is replete with thick transphasic construction. This place is built like a fortress that is probably strong enough to resist everything a phase whale can throw at it. If we don't have a way of accessing the controls of this facility, we won't be able to get out even if we employ overwhelming power!"

Unlike many other people, Ves was not defenseless. However, he estimated that he would probably need an ace mech or a warship if he wanted to breach all of the walls of this ridiculous alien facility!

"Why did the aliens build such an absurd fortress?"

That was what everyone wanted to know. This was a pocket space. Getting in was already a problem in itself. Anyone who possessed the capability to open a portal and get inside would definitely be able to breach all of the thick and resilient walls!

Surprisingly, Gloriana offered the most plausible explanation.

"What if this facility was not built to keep strangers out, but to keep phase lords and other powerful individuals within its walls?"

Ves looked around once again and found that her theory matched his observation.

"This... is a prison!"

A prison!

If the Larkinsons previously developed the hope that their impressive patriarch might be able to lead them back to Kotor City, this announcement dashed a lot of their hopes!

There were plenty of mech designers among the clansmen who were stuck in this cell. Ketis, Sara Voiken and the others had examined the walls, the ceiling and the floor to determine whether there was any way to breach them with the limited means they had available.

"Let me borrow your multiscanner, Ves." Gloriana demanded.

Ves detached the Vulcaneye from where it was attached to his Unending Regalia and handed it over to his wife.

She fiddled with the advanced device's settings before she started to scan the nearby walls. The other mech designers soon gathered as well because the Vulcaneye collected much more detailed scientific data than a comm, an ocular implant or any other device they had on hand!

They soon learned a lot more details such as the fact that the cell was built at least hundreds of thousands of years ago and that it hardly saw any use. The cell walls were built so solidly that they decayed at an extremely glacial pace.

"According to the mild signs that we have detected, it will probably take a few million years before the structural integrity of this wall becomes weak enough for us to be able to use physical force to create a passage."

That was way too long! Their bodies would have long since turned into dust after such a long time!

As the mech designers continued to puzzle over the data collected by the Vulcaneye, the others also tried to make themselves useful.

For example, General Verle quickly took stock of their combat capabilities.

Unfortunately, for all of the Larkinson Clan's martial prowess, the people stuck in this cell were far removed from any mech!

All of the powerful mechs that made the clan so famous were stuck in normal space. Even if a mech somehow got pulled into this cell, the available volume was so limited that everyone's bodies would get crushed against the walls if a mech was forged to get inside!

This was one of the worst circumstances that Ves could find himself in. The Larkinson Clan's powerbase was predominantly based on its mechs.

What was even worse was that they not only lacked access to mechs, but also suffered from an enormous shortage of combat gear!

As a paranoid and distrustful mech designer, Ves carried the most hardware out of everyone else. Where people such as his wife and the ministers of the clan only thought about wearing their best dress outfits to the founding ceremony, he had always focused on how much protection his own uniform offered!

He felt grateful for sticking to his habit of allowing his honor guards to bring the folded version of his personal suit of combat armor everywhere. He could never know when he might need the protection, so keeping it as close as possible was a surefire way to always be able to depend on its features when he desperately needed to feel more capable!

He knocked his fist against the newly installed chest plate of his armored suit.

He recently overhauled it so that he could replace the Unending alloy outer plating with first-class transphasic alloy. This had made his combat armor so tough that he was confident he could even block all forms of second-class small-arms fire!

His honor guards also enjoyed a similar degree of protection. In fact, they should be able to withstand more attacks due to their larger and thicker combat armor.

"It's strange that Nitaa and my other guards have been sent away while I remained with you guys." He puzzled. "Maybe there is a lag to the alien targeting system that was responsible for pulling us into the cells of this complex."

"It is an indication that the people responsible for sending us here have not mastered all of the controls of this ancient facility." General Verle theorized. "That is good news for us. It means that we have a greater chance of subverting their attempts to control and imprison us. Whatever their motives may be, we cannot allow them to proceed to the next step of their plan."

Nobody disagreed with that, but getting out was hard when they had precious little means available to them. The dress uniforms of all of the others were never designed to take a hit, and while a lot of senior officials of the clan wore shield generators these days, this would only delay the inevitable if they lacked a means to strike back!

As people tried to figure out how they could break out of this cell, Ves did not forget about the only competent secret agent among their group.

"Lucky!"

"Meow...?"

"Why haven't you sneaked out of this cell yet? It's nice of you to stay by Andraste's side, but I really need you to go and do what you are best at. Go phase through the walls and find a switch or something that can get us out of this cell!"

"Meow meow!"

"What do you mean you can't?"

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