In the Coslora Star Cl.u.s.ter, the Draconian Dominion and the Galactic South Quarin Coalition had the biggest headaches with that fact. The swarm in question had migrated over from the neighboring star cl.u.s.ter and arrived smack dab in the border zones between their territories.

Over the course of a hundred years, they devoured the star systems they first arrived at and began to spread. First three, then nine different star systems were engulfed in war, then finally evacuated as the celestial bodies were devoured. Following their progress, another fifteen would fall prey to these world devourers within the next hundred years.

As for the next hundred years beyond that, the estimates reached twenty-six. This included a somewhat less well known star system known as Sorrel, whose second planet was currently home to one rather busy Remian Vin.

Three Gate jumps away from Sorrel, a Quarin Celestial Defense Fleet orbited Oama V, a barren, cold planet valued at 600 trillion mana (roughly 600 billion blue mana crystals, or 6 billion reds worth) due to the presence of several mana crystal lodes, the highest grade of which were purple crystals. Down on the planet, ma.s.sive mining operations scrambled to strip-mine the planet bare of valuables as quickly as possible while the Quarin military fought to delay the Mitigok advance for as long as they could.

On board the Light Carrier Asred (which looked suspiciously like a triangular fortress with six towers), Grand Master Ay'eni held council with his s.h.i.+pboard staff in the Asred conference room. "Orders from Elder Se'ravun. Our target is a new Baronness Hive starting up on the northern glacial shelf. Due to the terrain, the Elder has seen fit to a.s.sign the mercenaries to work with us."

He nodded towards an odd man out among those seated at the table. Where almost everyone else wore comfortable robes, this man wore a faded gray flight suit with insignia and emblems on top. This was Captain Jameson Lance, leader of the Bright Lance Mercenaries who originated from Conglomerate s.p.a.ce.

"Does that mean I am not required in this mission?" one thin, scrawny man at the front asked.

"Actually, I believe it best that you would work side by side with the mercenaries on the front lines." Grand Master Ay'eni said. "Captain Lance, this is Master Je'vakai, Master of our Golem Tower."

On the triangle that was the Carrier, Golem Tower was the tower at the sharp tip. It represented the very forefront of the Quarin military formations.

"Well met, Master Je'vakai. We'll be counting on you to hold down the front." Captain Lance shook Je'vakai's hand.

"Oh? What happened to your pride in your metal puppets?" Je'vakai asked, eyebrows raised.

Captain Lance grimaced. "As you know, we're not a particularly rich band. Most of our mechs are ancient second generation jumpers, except for a few third generation gladiators. We've been relying on the gladiators to hold the front lines for the past few weeks, but right now they're still in repair after that disaster we faced with that new Princess Hive."

At that, Captain Lance shot a glare at an old, placid woman who barely seemed to breathe or move in any way. She did not look back at him or anything in particular, instead, seeming to stare into empty s.p.a.ce.

This was the Seeress of the Oracle Tower, the one to the back and the left of the s.h.i.+p's triangle. It was her faulty information that he blamed for the heavy losses his band suffered during that recent fiasco. Expecting to engage and slowly wear down a d.u.c.h.ess Hive, the Bright Lance mercenaries instead found themselves face to face with the full might of a raging Princess and were summarily crushed. The bulk of Captain Lance's orders during that operation turned out to be directing his subordinates in running for their lives. After that, all hopes of their challenging a d.u.c.h.ess were dashed, and the little remaining strength of the Bright Lance could only find work in a battle against a mere Baronness, and even then only in an a.s.sisting role.

"Do we even need these mercenaries?" a slanted-eyed Master at the far end of the table asked. "What good are they, if not to stand on the front lines?"

This was Le'tte, Master of Rune Tower, which was located to the right side of the triangle. Should the Asred be called upon for long-range fire support, it was the magi of his Tower who would busy themselves with the Rune Cannons.

"We will field one full squad." Captain Lance said. "That is all I can promise you at this time. One scout Light Mech, two mid-range Medium Mechs, and one artillery Heavy Mech. That is a good, versatile mix that should be useful in most normal battles. a.s.suming, that is, that your information hasn't soured again and we find ourselves surrounded by Tier-8 Devourers."

Loftily, the Seeress said, "The threads of fate are always moving, always mysterious in their ever-changing ways…"

Captain Lance shook his head. "Yeah, yeah. Next time I'll just wait for some proper recon, thanks."

Never again, he swore to himself. Never again would he send in so many men and mechs after a target of opportunity in such haste on the words and vows of a Quarin Seeress!

"Two paltry fire support mechs and one artillery. Hardly worth our time. My Tower alone can outgun you ten to one." Le'tte snorted.

Lance's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Sounds like you don't need our a.s.sistance after all."

Meanwhile, the other two Masters kept silent. The Masters of s.h.i.+eld Tower and Alchemy Tower usually didn't have much to say about surface sorties.

Grand Master Ay'eni raised a hand to forestall any further ruckus. "We can help with repairs. Bring in three squads outfitted for the front lines, and I will gift you my Star Wizard."

At that, Lance paused. Le'tte even jumped out of his seat.

Grand Master Ay'eni's Star Wizard was famous for its meaning and its uselessness in equal measure. Half in jest and half in thanks from an old friend from a distant star civilization, the point of the gift was its suitability for a mage (since it was a Wizard mech)… or not (since Grand Master Ay'eni wasn't a mech pilot and never intended to be one).

Sentimental value aside, the Star Wizard was a far more valuable mech than anything the Bright Lance Mercenaries had. It was a 4th Generation Acrobat, two entire generations ahead of their usual Jumper-type mechs, and the generation beyond even their lauded Gladiator-type mechs.

Mechs through the first four generations generally showed drastic jumps in agility and mobility as they evolved. The first generation mechs, known as Walker-types, basically started with turrets on legs. As mechs became more and more sophisticated, more weapons and gear were mounted on them until they became walking bunkers, armored weapons platforms sometimes acting as infantry transports at the same time. Mech drivers of the first generation usually controlled it like a car, with a steering wheel and pedals.

Second generation mechs, known as Jumper-types started outfitting these walking bunkers with jet boosters, also known as jump jets. Their forms began to slim down and take on roughly humanoid shapes as, instead of transporting infantry around, they began to take on all the roles of ground troops by themselves. Most of the Bright Lance Mercenaries used mechs of this generation. These pilots of the second generation mechs controlled them like aircraft, in c.o.c.kpits.

Third generation mechs, known as Gladiator-types, were definitively humanoid, often looking like armored giants. In this generation, many of these s.p.a.ce-age 'knights' popularized the use of melee weapons (which actually became practical once more as mech armor became thicker and stronger than most projectile or energy weapons could penetrate). As popularity rose, mech combat even became a sport in some places, thus the term 'gladiators'. The warriors who grasp such popularity, however, did so at a painful personal cost – the control of these violent champions employed a direct nerve interface, requiring them to plug in by their spines. Predictably, such gladiators did not usually enjoy the full lifespan of average humans.

This was the limit of the Tau Confederacy, from which the Bright Lance came. While the sports arenas showered glory on their gladiator champions using the latest and greatest 3rd Generation mechs, the majority of the armed forces still wanted to live out normal human lifespans. Thus in the Bright Lance Mercenaries, only a select handful used 3rd Generation Gladiators, and only as front-line defenders where they vastly outshone their 2nd gen role predecessors. As for fire support and the likes… the Bright Lance Mercenaries were perfectly content to use older, cheaper 2nd gen gear.

But the Star Wizard that Grand Master Ay'eni offered was something they couldn't buy in the Tau Confederacy even if they had the money. Even among older Cla.s.s-5 civilizations like the Uber States or Kanonasia, 4th Generation Acrobat-types were new, rare and cutting-edge technology.

Where then did this thing come from? Lance didn't know, but wherever it came from, they had to be a civilization so advanced, something like this could be given away for sheer sentiment, or in jest. Lance suspected a Cla.s.s-6 inst.i.tute or interstellar nation, or even, maybe, one of the three legendary Cla.s.s-7 star civilizations…

In any case, Lance was tempted. Sorely, almost uncontrollably tempted. But still, he hesitated. "Even if you gave me the Star Wizard, how would I be able to use it? If anything happened to it, trying to repair it would be impossible!"

That was the thing about mercenary mechs. They tended to take a lot of damage. If things went badly and this Acrobat took internal damage, trying to repair it in the Tau Confederacy would be downright impossible. Lance would have to bring it to a more advanced interstellar nation just to get it repaired! Among the Tau's interstellar neighbors, the Quarin were the closest friends, but while they were magically advanced, they didn't have the kind of technology Lance needed to repair a 4th generation Mech. That meant, in order to repair the Acrobat, he would have to cross through Quarin territory, travel halfway across the star cl.u.s.ter all the way to either the Uber States or Kanonasia to have it fixed.

In response to his doubts, Grand Master Ay'eni simply shrugged. "Maybe it won't be of much help to you in combat, but perhaps someone in Tau would pay a hefty price to buy it. Someone in a mech research center, perhaps…"

They would! The possibilities brightened Lance's eyes at once. Goodness, for a fully functional 4th generation Acrobat… what wouldn't they pay?!

"Are you sure that's permissible? I mean, would some highly advanced civilization come and destroy us all for stealing their tech if we do that?" Lance gulped.

"Probably not?" Ay'eni scratched his head. "I mean, to my old friend, that thing was merely a toy."

A toy! Lance quailed. Just who did the Grand Master get that mech from?!

"So, are you going to fully commit to the mission or not?" Ay'eni asked.

"Yes, boss!" Lance threw aside all caution and all hesitation and saluted enthusiastically.