Chapter 451 451 Cruise Ships Need Guests
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Max led the group to the rooms he had picked for them, halfway up the Cruise Ship area, and well away from where the others were staying, just in case there was an incident or the negotiations fell through at the Black Wolf end.
The last thing that he wanted was for one of their visitors from the Alliance to be injured or killed. It would ruin not only their reputation but the reputations of all humans in the eyes of the Alliance arbiters, even if the Illithid spoke on their behalf.
Some barriers could be deployed all over the ship to stop a violent rampage, but even one casualty was too many at this point, and it was making even the most basic of hospitality seem stressful to Max. Mercenaries, like the Reavers themselves, viewed it as rude and a sign of distrust to ask them to leave their sidearms behind, so he couldn't even do that much to ensure the safety of his guests.
The Black Wolf Company wasn't likely to start any trouble, though, and they were getting along very well with the Innu Technician who had joined them for the walk. She was happy to discuss the technical aspects of the things they saw along the way, like the Gravity slides, which the Mercenaries didn't quite understand until they saw an off-duty pilot come gliding out the end of a tunnel and into a pool.
"So, you're saying that you built a giant waterslide network through the entire public portion of the ship? Exactly how many disposable resources do the Reavers have?" One of the Mercenary representatives asked.
"Oh, this is nothing. The water can be filtered and recycled, so we don't lose much of it, and Terminus carries enough resources to be self-sufficient for decades, assuming minimal casualties among the Mecha forces." Nico offered.
"You have a strong Mecha force? Most Reaver vessels don't. They prefer ship-to-ship combat and trade missions, with fewer rescues. That's what we usually do." The Station Captain asked.
"Terminus is an emergency response vessel, thanks to her unique technologies. We carry a full Heavy Mecha Regiment with some special surprises." Max informed them with a wink.
That earned them a lot of respect from the Mercenary Company, who were quite eager to learn about the defensive capability of Terminus, which was the only vessel of the Trade Group that they were planning to join that was in the region around their base.
"Are they the new patterns that we have heard the Reavers are making in the Rae 5 system? I have seen some photos of them from our informants, and they look quite impressive." One of the Mercenaries, a big man with a scar running from his mouth to the back of his head, commented.
"That's right. We were the test fleet for them, so our entire force is new pattern mecha made by the Reavers. We poached some top talents in the chaos, and I can say for certain that they are not inferior to current-generation Kepler or Cygnus Mecha.
Once you are firmly dedicated to the Trade Group, they will be made available to you as well. The Reaver Captains only agreed to hold back until we are sure that they won't be going to double agents who want to get their hands on more firepower before breaking the terms and attacking their neighbors."
The Station Captain looked intrigued by the answer and followed up with a simple question. "Why are the Reavers of all people so dedicated to nonaggression between solar systems? In the past, they kept neutral and served everyone equally. This could hurt their customer base and trust."
"The Alliance that these alien species come from is a large part of the driving force. They have incredible technologies to improve humanity's standards of living, and we want access to them. The Reavers will continue to service anyone who isn't attacking a member of their group, so that much won't change, but if we can convince all of humanity to keep it in their pants for a couple of generations, we can earn ourselves some intergalactic trust and start working toward opening up trade to other galaxies."
"So, the Reavers are playing the long game to open up some new markets?" One of the Mercenaries asked.
"Not just some. The market share is roughly ten thousand times the size of the entire human population, spread over thousands of Galaxies. If we could sell our specialties to them, we would never run out of customers, and we simply aren't capable of producing enough to overcome demand. The Galaxy doesn't have the logistics or manpower." Max explained, and the Mercenaries stared at him with awe.
"What about the ones who just love a good fight? Even if it isn't a war, some folk need to fight." The scar-faced man asked.
"There's still the Klem, the Narsians, and hundreds more increasingly dangerous species. We already met a group calling themselves the Hunters, which uses a Biomechanical Mecha technology to hunt beasts that make the Klem look like angry puppies." Nico informed him.
The two shared an overjoyed look, reveling in the potential for intergalactic hunting missions to replace the mundane reality of war, and Max realized that actually gaining membership in the Alliance was not something that was going to happen in a single generation or likely even ten. They might have a chance at becoming trade partners like the Hunters, though.
"Here we are, the seventh floor. You might as well take the luxury suites since the ship is almost empty at the moment. We just have some members of a plant species and the Innu staying here right now." Max offered.
The Mercenaries hesitated, wondering what was included in a luxury suite and if the Reavers were trying to bribe them with something illicit. The Reavers had killed entire planets over human trafficking rings in the past, though, so that wasn't their major concern. But the Station Captain knew that a supply of illicit drugs, which the Reavers had no problems delivering as long as they weren't too addictive, could sway some of his team.
"Don't worry. It's just the basic stuff you would expect on a high-end cruise. Comfortable beds, hot tubs in the rooms, holographic theaters, and ensuite replicators in case you need a snack or an off-schedule meal.
There are restaurants all over the area, with the majority of the ones closest to you being on floor five. That's where most of our crew goes to party and relax when they are off duty, so you will find the closest thing we have to a crowd there if you feel like socializing." Max explained after hearing their thoughts.
"Now we're talking. Do you have dancers? Live bands?" One of the men on the mercenary team asked.
"The dancers are holograms, sorry. But we have live bands. Since we don't have to worry so much about storage as a smaller ship does, we have a couple of talented and fully equipped musical groups in the crew."
Max opened the door to the first suite, and the Mercenaries stopped in their tracks. It was just a single-bedroom suite, very similar to the one Max stayed in, though without the extra rooms attached and a smaller living room, but compared to the rough and simple decor of a Mercenary station, it was practically a royal palace.
"This whole section is the same. Pick the rooms you want, and the door locks will register your fingerprints when you enter for the first time. The red light on the door means it is assigned to someone else."
Chapter 452 452 Mercenaries Incoming
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Max set the alarm to get up early the next morning to prepare for their meetings, but it seemed that the alarm wasn't early enough. He was awoken by an urgent message from the bridge staff.
[Sir, we have incoming Mercenary Vessels. Not just a few. Our signals count over fifty.] The radio officer informed him.
The Black Wolves should only have a dozen vessels, and some of them barely qualified as Cutters, so either they had brought back allies to split up loot after a successful mission, or this was a trap.
[All hands to ready stations. Mercenary ships are incoming, and we have not yet determined if they are all friendly.] Max ordered, quickly getting into the augmentic armor suit that he had been given after the trials were complete but leaving the helmet in the flat space storage.
He raced to his office, where he could check the screens and view the data streams much more conveniently than the projections from his new watch. It did indeed show over fifty signatures, though some of them might be doubled up, as a large vessel could take a few smaller ones into their warp field for shelter and ease of transport.
[Someone, find me the Black Wolves Station Captain, I want to know what is going on.] Max called over the Regiment-wide general channel.
[I'm with him now, Commander. It seems that their transmission wasn't as secure as they thought it was, and every friendly Mercenary group that they passed wanted in on the action, as well as a few hostile ones who wanted to give them a try in combat before they could finish the deal.] Nico replied, and Max could hear the sound of boots thumping on the walkways as she spoke.
That meant they were likely running either to him or to one of the meeting rooms in the public areas, which were set up for group communications.
That seemed like the more likely choice, so Max got up and searched the thoughts of the crew to find their location before running to join them.
As he ran, he started to get a list of the Mercenary Companies that were coming their way. They were all friendly or neutral toward the Reavers, though not all on the shortlist for early alliances. Doing things in bulk might work much better, though, as he could pull a whole region of the Death Wind Territory in at once if he played his cards right.
With the new generation Cutters and a Titan Class Mecha on board, he wasn't particularly concerned about being overrun if they decided to play a trick on him, so Max started making preparations in his mind about how he would begin the negotiations once the leaders of these groups arrived.
By the time Max made it to the room where the Station Captain was chatting with the new arrivals, the details of the incoming fleet were already known. There were only two large Mercenary Companies among the mix, the Black Wolves and the Exterminators, a massive group that specialized in border fights against Klem waves.
Accompanying them were thirty small, single vessel Mercenary Companies who did mostly bodyguard work and lived from their ships, with no permanent base station or homeworld of their own.
That meant that this deal wouldn't gain them much territory, but it would gain them a large force of trade vessels that could assist with their early attempts to corner the market.
One after another, the ships docked around the station, spreading out in an organized dance of steel like they had practiced all their lives. Once they were in place, the Station Commander turned to Max and put on his best formal smile.
"We have a request to join the negotiations. Thirty-one new groups would like to join the Reavers Trade Group."
"Please invite them aboard. I will have the crew prepare more seating for the meeting." Max replied, then sent out the message to make sure that there were at least seventy seats at the main table and much more seating in the back for assistants and others.
The room was ready quickly, but it took an hour before the Mercenary groups had assembled outside the cargo bay door where Terminus was docked with the station. It looked like they had sorted themselves into some sort of hierarchy based on the strength of their forces or perhaps by some sort of internal ranking that Max was unaware of.
The man in front was huge, almost tall enough to be a Narsian, at 2.8 meters, and heavily modified with cybernetics.
"Commander Keres of the Reavers. I am Commander Arnold of the Exterminators. It is a pleasure to meet you." The big man greeted Max when he stepped through the threshold.
"Likewise," Max replied, shaking his hand and getting a mighty squeeze in return.
A normal human's hand would have been pulverized, but Max was no normal human, even without the addition of the augmentic armor, and his return greeting was met with the squeal of hydraulics being forced open as his grip strength exceeded their limits.
"So what they say about Kepler Commanders is true. Small but mighty." Commander Arnold smirked, pleased with the result of his test.
Max could already tell that this man was going to be difficult to deal with, but his fleet included a Human-made colony ship, a planetary base, and over twenty other large vessels. They were supposed to be contacted by the main negotiating fleet more than a month from now, but Max's appearance at the Black Wolves base had drawn their attention.
"Come, let's find a seat, and then everyone can introduce themselves." Max insisted, motioning to the huge round table that was now set up in three concentric rings, with the rear two on risers so that the occupants could see what was happening at floor level.
"You don't look concerned with all these Mercenaries aboard your ship." Commander Arnold noted as he took a seat next to Max in the central ring.
"Terminus herself is a force to be reckoned with, and we have a few technological advances that can provide personal security." Max agreed, tapping the new augmentic armor he was wearing.
Chapter 453 453 Expansion
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Once everyone was seated, it became clear to Max that they were almost all subordinate to Commander Arnold and would follow his lead in these negotiations, trusting him to broker the deal on their behalf.
"Now that everyone is gathered, we will start things over. I know some of you have been informed of the details of our proposal already, and I have sent a copy of the Trade Agreement to every Captain and Commander.
So, that brings us back to the introduction of the benefits. The most important to the majority of you is that the Reavers are willing to share their advances in Warp Drive Technology with all members of the trade group.
I have seen that many of the ships in the fleet are Warp 2 and Warp 3 generation vessels. That is impressive here in Death Wind Territory, but soon the embargo will be gone, and on the scale of the whole of humanity, it isn't fast enough.
So, the Reavers have offered to help you retrofit your vessels or purchase new trade vessels that have top speeds exceeding what your current hull designs are capable of."
The whole room burst into excited conversations as the Mercenaries worked to digest the fact that the Reavers were capable of doing something that had been a mere dream to them for Millennia.
"At what cost?" Commander Arnold asked.
"Just as you read in the agreement. Materials, labor, plus a fifteen percent markup and five percent tax. That goes for a retrofit as well as purchasing entire new vessels.
The stations gathered in the Rae 5 system have already begun turning out new hulls in preparation for the expected orders, and I am sure that at least one or two of the Companies has gathered the assets for an upgrade that they were unable to obtain in the past."
The Commander's look was somewhere between placid and mildly surprised, but his thoughts were a jumble of shock and awe that Max was taking as a good sign.
"So, you are saying that if I turn over the resources, I could have new hulls here within the year?" Commander Arnold asked.
"I am saying that once your Company is a Trade Group member, I can open a portal to Rae 5, and you can have new Warp 10 capable Cutters that day, assuming you have the resources gathered," Max explained.
The room was now too loud for anything to get done, so Max simply waited and practiced the mental technique that the Illithid had taught him to lower the volume of the thoughts around him, so it didn't feel like a hundred people were shouting in his mind.
It worked very well, and he was able to focus only on the few influential Captains within a minute, silencing everyone else's thoughts to a quiet murmur.
"We will want a lot of vessels, both for ourselves and our vassals." Commander Arnold warned him.
"As long as they are members. The agreement states that the new technology isn't to be spread outside of the Trade Group, an incentive to membership, if you will. But as of the last time I checked, there should be at least two dozen vessels ready and waiting, though some will have been snapped up by the Reavers already.
Don't worry, though. They have some earmarked for purchase by new members so that everyone understands that the Trade Group isn't just for the benefit of the Reavers. The Materials Printers and Replicators we can build right here on Terminus, so that isn't going to be a problem unless you need more than we have the materials to create."
They had a huge amount of suitable ore in the ship that they had saved from their previous trade deals, so unless they wanted to retrofit an entire planet, Max wasn't too concerned about that part of their orders.
"How good are the Materials Printers? We have some among the Exterminators fleet already."
Max smirked at the question. "They are an upgrade on the previous generation of Kepler military units. They might not be as good as the bleeding edge units we are still experimenting on, but they are solid units capable of producing everything from domestic items to entire Mecha if you have the plans."
That got their attention. They hadn't expected to get technology at that level out of the trade deal, but more importantly, it meant that the Reavers were already working on an upgrade that would give them the upper hand on anyone who might oppose them. With all the chaos in the galaxy, it was unlikely that anyone else was devoting much manpower to research and development of noncombat technology.
"I want to see it." Commander Arnold demanded, producing a data card from his jacket.
That was clearly a Cygnus military data card, and it didn't look too old, so it might even contain current-generation equipment plans. How they got it was a secret that the Exterminators could keep to themselves, but as long as the security measures didn't corrupt it during extraction, the Materials Printer could work with it.
"Follow me. We have a unit set up already, and you can input your blueprints and make whatever you like within the limits of the resources we have set out." Max offered.
They had set out enough for most basic items, but if the Commander wanted to make a whole Mecha, it was going to have to wait.
Commander Arnold followed him to the side of the room while everyone at the tables turned to watch them as well as they could.
The big mercenary was clearly competent and familiar with the interface, quickly navigating the menus before inserting the data card that he had produced and beginning the process of creation.
Only a few minutes later, a shiny new Plasma Shotgun, in light Mecha size, suitable for such a huge man to carry as a heavy weapon, sat on the floor of the bay.
With reverent hands, the Commander picked it up, and a small cable extended from his arm, powering up the insert weapon and bringing up the menus, as well as a 1 percent charged notification. That wasn't enough to fire a shot, but it was more than enough to run the diagnostics and produce a puff of plasma at the end of the verification.
"It really worked. With this level of technology, the Death Wind Territory would be on par with the major powers for the first time in their history. Are the Reavers sure that they want to sell such a valuable thing to all of their allies?"
Max snorted in amusement. "Do you think there is a Mercenary Company in existence that could take the entire might of the Reavers and their allies if they broke the agreement and used the technology to attack their neighbors?"
That brought a few chuckles from the other Captains. Of course, there wasn't. Not even the entire group of them working together would dare to declare war on the Reavers. They weren't idiots like the Tapani.
"You have a point. So the mutual defense pact is also a way of maintaining order. What about domestic issues?" Commander Arnold asked.
"What about them? This is a trade alliance. Internal issues are internal issues. They only become an issue if leadership changes." Max informed the room.
Chapter 454 454 A New Hope
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"So, you don't intend to interfere in internal issues or issue governance guidance for members?" The Mercenary Commander asked.
"No, we only intend to ensure that international incidents stop. There are too many humans for one leadership group to work for the benefit of everyone, but if we can stop the interstellar wars, we can expand our trade into the Alliance after some time.
They turned down our application once already, as humans were too violent and unrestrained to be deemed civilized, but we can change that and bring our Galaxy up to the standard where other Galaxies will at least trade with us." Max explained.
"The invincible ships? Now that's a lofty goal. No wonder the Reavers are taking action with that sort of trade Market up for grabs." The big man laughed, understanding the driving motivation behind Max's push to expand their group.
"It's a long way in the future, but the first step is to stop our people from going to war with each other. The Reavers plan to do that by bringing everyone up to a higher standard of living, where there simply won't be so much of a need to fight over resources. The Trade Group will do that by cornering the market with an overwhelming force of numbers until nobody dares to start a war."
That made sense to the Mercenaries, and if they weren't going to interfere in internal matters, it meant that it wouldn't mess with their business, which wasn't international war but domestic issues and security.
"Try the Rum. We've gone too long without Rum." The Station Commander called from a seat in the back since his bosses had taken the seats up front.
"Where are my manners? Of course, there is Rum." Nico laughed, bringing out an entire pushcart full of matching liquor bottles.
"Fresh from the Replicators. Have a drink and look over the agreement. Ask us anything that you have concerns about, and we will work with you." Max told the group.
"Do the Reavers really have Warp 10 capable vessels? I heard a rumor, but that's all it is. A rumor." One of the Captains asked.
"We are using them to deploy our Mecha here aboard Terminus. Would you like a speed test?" Nico offered on behalf of the crew.
"Seriously? Isn't this a Colony Ship?" Commander Arnold asked.
"It's far more than that. We have added facilities for intergalactic vacationers, and we carry the firepower to keep our interests safe. It wouldn't make any sense for the Reavers to send a ship forward to make deals if we couldn't deal with the fallout if a deal didn't work out." Max replied.
"Let's just take them to the hangar. Let them see the First Battalion in person, and it should answer all of the concerns about our capability." Nico suggested.
That would definitely work. It would reveal their military might sooner than Max had intended to, but it would silence all the critics at once if they saw the Mecha force that Terminus could deploy. The Mercenaries would see it sooner or later. Not every deal would go so smoothly, and there were other threats out here that they had to deal with, including various species as vicious as the Klem but not as widespread.
"Field trip, everyone. Get up and follow us." Commander Arnold declared, taking charge of the Mercenary forces and leaving Max no room to refuse the demonstration.
Max bristled a little at the other man issuing orders aboard his vessel, but he was only directly ordering the Mercenaries, not the staff of Terminus. That was where Max would draw the line.
The First Battalion's Cutter was only a few bays down, so Max walked the whole entourage down the hallways as Nico elaborated on the design elements of the new vessels that the Reavers were making, getting everyone ready for the reveal of the Cutter.
The Company was loaded aboard the ship already, in preparation for emergency deployment, so they would reveal the Mecha second after the Mercenaries had a moment to take in the outer appearance of the high-speed ship.
"And this is the home of the First Company. Excuse their mess. I can see that they have been tinkering with their toys." Nico welcomed everyone to the hangar. Their repair team had been doing a few bits of maintenance while they waited, so there were some Light Mecha in the new pattern, which none of the Mercenaries had seen before, sitting out on the repair racks.
Nico ignored that, though, and introduced everyone to the Cutter itself, going over the performance and storage capabilities.
"We also have a pure trade version available, with smaller facilities for the crew, and a slightly larger hull, giving fifty percent more capacity, with no loss of speed or maneuverability." She explained, then remotely opened the walkway that would lead them in the back doors to the Mecha bay.
"We will go in the back today since I know you are all concerned about the military might that we can offer to enforce the rules, should it come to that.
This is the First Battalion of our Regiment, and we do have a few hidden aces up our sleeves, but I think you will be impressed." She told the Mercenary Captains, then stopped at the base of the ramp, where the mighty form of Enduring Rage was parked at the entrance, taking the role of the point attacker during assaults.
The stop was perfectly timed, and the bay went silent as everyone stared at the Super Heavy Mecha and the unusual armament it was equipped with.
"Meet the Thunder Pattern Super Heavy Mecha, the next generation of war machines being produced by the Reavers. These aren't available for public purchase yet, but the Crusader Class variants that you will see in a second are."
All at once, the Captains rushed forward to get a better look at the Mecha.
"Six Battle Cannons and a pair of Ion Bombard Arrays? That's insane. Oh, I see defensive Lasers as well." Commander Arnold commented with a whistle of appreciation.
"Those are actually Mass Drivers, much more powerful and longer ranged than the conventional Battle Cannons. The Ion Bombard Arrays are also an upgrade on the original design. She also has a multi-layered defensive shielding capability for defense.
The Crusader Class variants also share the shielding on a smaller scale and have some unique new weapons. The details will be available to members when an order is placed with the factories on Rae 5." Nico informed him.
"With a force like this, no wonder you are confident." Commander Arnold replied, looking enviously over at the second Super Heavy Mecha in the hold.
"This is only the First Battalion. Rest assured. We have much more to go with it. Terminus is not a soft target." Max told the big man with a confident smile.
This might be the easiest way to negotiate with a difficult Mercenary Group. If there was one universal truth in life, it was that strength was always respected. And they had the strength to back up their words, even this far from their home base.
"So, let's see this ship in action. The Mecha are clearly powerful, but getting them to the battlefield is always the most difficult part of the mission." Commander Arnold declared, doing his best to keep an impassive face while Max could read the joy and excitement in his thoughts.
Chapter 455 455 Joyride
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Nico escorted everyone to the front of the ship, where there was a crew compartment with windows so that the infantry could see what was going on as they deployed instead of sitting in the dark waiting to see what was happening.
"These will be our seats for today's voyage. Our crew has already requested for a navigator from the Black Wolves to join them so that we can safely navigate a path around this star system and surrounding areas.
Please buckle yourselves in. The gravity control is quite good inside the ship, but we don't need any incidents should the unforeseen occur."
The Mercenaries chuckled at Nico's phrasing, as common sense dictated that you would get a fair bit of feedback from maneuvering as well as the Warp Transition. Their ships were even more dated than the Abraham Kepler, where Max and Nico had started their careers, and that ship had enough of a lurch that the crew just accepted that a large portion of them was going to feel nauseous every single time they went to warp.
"I will bring up navigational data on the board in case the view out the window gets confusing. The distortion at higher warp speeds can make the world outside the bubble look completely foreign. If you wish to confirm our routes and speed, I am certain that your vessels will have their own logs of our route when we return, so you don't need to just take our word for it." Nico added.
Most merchants would be at least a bit offended if you questioned the integrity of their demonstrations, but this was no simple purchase. The Death Wind Territory had been under embargo for over a thousand years, and every time they attempted to create a new shipyard or other military manufacturing facilities, they were viciously attacked by the border nations to keep them deprived of the might to fight back.
That meant that most of these companies had never even had the chance to obtain a new ship. They weren't pirates who would raid a vessel to claim as their own, and the missions that they took weren't high enough profile that any client would risk the retaliation of a dozen small nations to pay with prohibited goods.
At least not prohibited goods as high profile as a new military space vessel.
The Reavers were the first in a Millennia that were brave enough to even try, and not only were they offering new ships, but also state-of-the-art Mecha, in medium and Heavy categories, not just the Line Mecha that most Mercenary companies relied upon.
Big groups like the Black Wolves or Exterminators would have dozens or even a hundred Heavy Mecha, salvaged from battlefields or covertly purchased from more distant customers, but that put them in a completely different category than the single-ship operators.
[Departing Hangar in 5 seconds.] The pilot of the Cutter announced, then gently guided the ship out of Terminus's enclosure and out into space.
That alone was enough to impress a lot of the Captains. Smooth maneuvering in tight quarters was a sign of precision skills and engineering, and they hadn't even felt the ship move, only watched the bay disappear around them as it left the mothership.
[Black Wolves Navigator reports that the route is ready for autopilot. Engaging Warp Drives as soon as we are at a safe distance.]
The ship's thrusters took them well away from the station and into open space that was designated for ships going to warp so that the field creation and energy surges wouldn't affect the station or the defense systems that had been set up to defend the Mercenary Company's base.
The hull of the Cutter shook gently as the Warp Drives engaged, and the world distorted outside of the window before turning into streaks of light as the ship raced up to maximum speed, showing off for their customers.
"Was that a Warp Translation? It was, wasn't it? That is incredible. I didn't know it was even possible to shift so smoothly." Commander Arnold had lost all sense of decorum once the ship was underway, purely shocked by the experience.
"Why is my data feed getting distorted? Is there something strange about the Warp Field that interferes with communications?" One of the other Captains asked, looking at the messages his crew had sent.
"We are currently heading away from your vessels at Warp 10.5, and the subspace communications that your ships are using only travel between warp six and warp eight. The distortion is caused by the speed differential.
But the high-speed vessels do come with upgraded communications so that you can keep in touch with others as you wish, though those without the new technology will still have trouble contacting you when the vessel is traveling away from them." Max explained.
They completed the turning point of the demonstration, on the far side of a nearby star, and began heading back, which filled everyone's devices with a flood of notifications as they caught up to the messages that had been sent to them while they were underway.
Commander Arnold's smile was getting bigger with every word that Max spoke. "I hadn't even considered the implications of that sort of speed. This means that if we run an embargo line, we will arrive before the messages warning the reinforcements of our impending arrival. That is a huge advantage when passing through hostile territories. At least for now."
Before long, they had dropped out of Warp and were gliding back into the hangar bay of Terminus, ready to continue the negotiations.
"Please follow me out of the vessel, and we can have a bite of lunch before we continue the meetings," Nico informed the crowd.
"Miss, we just landed." One of the Captains pointed out.
"Oh, not a worry. The cargo bay shielding on Terminus has a hull temperature normalization feature. You only have to turn your engines off before you reach the bay and let the gravity beam to the work, and you can exit immediately upon arrival." Nico informed him, stunning the room into silence.
Chapter 456 456 The Exterminator
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"So, you're saying that not only do you have the fastest ships in the Galaxy, you also have the technology to let them unload shuttles the instant they arrive, without the half-hour waiting times every time they enter and exit a cargo bay?" Commander Arnold asked."
"That's right. We can also keep a double barrier up, so we don't need to worry about pressure loss, and you don't need to evacuate the bay every time you need to move a vessel around for loading. It's a real time saver." Max agreed.
"That bit of technology alone would be enough for some of our traders to join your group. To think of all the contraband that could be moved if you could have a turnaround time of under a minute without worrying about damaging the cargo." One of the other Captains sighed.
"You know, if you do it right, you don't even need to enter. The gravity beam can pull the container out of the hold as you pass by, and as long as the crate can hold up to vacuum and hold temperature for a few seconds, it's not a problem for it to move between vessels." Nico pointed out.
That got the attention of every smuggler among the Mercenaries. They had often thought of it, but it simply wasn't technologically feasible to do it when they needed to remove the atmosphere and evacuate both bays.
The shielding around the bay doors wasn't unheard of, but it wasn't exactly common either. Very few Kepler vessels had similar technology, mostly due to the fact that the hull temperatures and hot exposed engine parts would affect the atmospheric temperature so severely that it was more efficient to remove it entirely.
"It's a small invention that makes life better, but it is standard on all of the new vessels that the Reaver Shipyards are producing. Between the speed, the unique hull designs, optimized for maximum rear cargo space, and the added features, like on-board hydroponic supply systems for the Replicators, and the docking system, the Reavers are hoping that their designs will stand out as a sign of excellence in shipbuilding.
They might not have many customers yet, but once the Galaxy starts to learn where the new vessels are coming from, it should really help their reputation. You know that a lot of nations view the Reavers in an unfavorable way, but we're hoping to change all that in the near future."
Nico's spaceship salesman spiel made a few of the Captains chuckle, but after having experienced the pure luxury and capabilities of the new vessel, as well as the hangar bay of Terminus, the laughter was all good-natured.
"What about a retrofit? For a lot of us, these ships are our homes. Not just for a few years but for generations. Many of the bunks in my ship have gone through eight generations of Mercenaries now, with dozens of names scrawled on the wall, reminding the future generations that they were here." Commander Arnold asked.
That turned the mood much more serious. The Commander had a point. As cool as a new, Warp 10 capable ship would be, for the longstanding Mercenary Companies, the main battleships were every bit as entrenched in their identity as any hometown could be.
"We can sell you the Replicators, the Materials Printers, and the hangar bay door upgrades right now, and your own technicians can install and calibrate them, but Terminus doesn't have enough staff to do more than a few full Warp Drive retrofits.
We could open a portal for you to Rae 5, where they could do a Warp Drive upgrade, bringing your main ships up to Warp 4 or Warp 5 capabilities, depending on the design and condition of the hull itself. That would at least put you on an even footing with the major militaries of the Galaxy when it comes to ship speed, and then you can add the Cutters to the fleet when you are ready to purchase fast Merchant Ships." Max informed him.
"So it is possible to keep these vessels up to standard. That is a good thing for the Death Wind Territory." He agreed, accompanied by many words of agreement from the lesser Captains.
"With enough resources, anything is possible," Nico added.
"Anything is possible, you say? Like our own Shipyard, with design schematics to make those new Cutters that the Reavers are selling?" Commander Arnold asked with a sly wink.
Nico returned his wink with a smirk of her own. "Anything. But the price won't be cheap, and you would have to fight the border nations to be able to complete it right now.
However, if you wait even one year while we finish the negotiations, I think that the Reaver Captains might be able to work you a much better deal than they could today."
"Bah, they only leave us alone out here in the Death Wind Territory because the stars here are strange anyhow. There are too many base elements missing from our Star Systems to be able to make ships without importing resources even if we had the plans." One of the Captains complained.
"But once we begin working the trade routes with high-speed Cutters, courtesy of the Reavers, we will be able to trade for what we don't have. Given enough time, we could do it." Another Captain pointed out.
"And that brings us back to what Tarith Rage said to start with. It's possible if we have enough resources. Which means it's probably not worth it." Commander Arnold sighed.
"Every region of the galaxy has its own specialties, based on the resources they have available to them in abundance. As the Reavers learned when they tried to colonize a planet of their own, skilled workers are a vital resource too, and they can be harder to find than any rare element." Max comforted the big man.
"Isn't that the truth? Finding a skilled technician to run the Materials Printers and install the Replicators is going to be hard enough for most of us. I hope they come with a warranty and an instruction manual." One of the Captains laughed.
That was a good sign. They weren't considering whether to join anymore but what to do with the resources they were going to get after they did. The mental resistance to change was often the hardest part of the negotiations to get through, and they had just glided right past it.
Chapter 457 457 Mercenary Vacation
Name:Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System Author:
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"If we wanted to send some smaller vessels to Rae 5 for a full refit, how long would they have to wait until the work could begin?" Commander Arnold asked once the crowd settled down again.
"At last update, there were sixteen empty dry dock spaces in that Star System that should be fully staffed. If you're only sending a few vessels, it shouldn't be a problem for them all to get started right away. But, as you know, Reavers are first come, first served sorts, and if another Mercenary company or new ally beat you to the spot, you would have to wait." Max explained.
Arnold nodded in understanding. That was how the Reavers always were. Getting priority and favors from them was nearly impossible.
"Then, how long would it take you to make a Replicator for each of the vessels that we have here in the Black Wolves territory? We might have to wait for most of our ships to get new engines, but we can at least start eating well instead of recombined protein slurry." He asked.
"There's only about fifty of you here. If you want one per ship, we can make industrial units for your kitchens tonight and deliver them within 24 hours. If you want the smaller private units in larger quantities, it will take a while, but we do have a few in stock since our last stop also wanted the larger ones for their main meals and not a private replicator for their officers." Max offered.
"We will take it. And the Exterminators want six Materials Printers." The Commander demanded.
"Then you need to finish the paperwork. None of the good stuff goes out until you are officially a member of the Trade Group." Max replied, motioning for a staffer with the stack of agreements to come to the table.
One after another, the Captains signed off, and their agreements were double-checked for validity, ensuring that no fake or prohibited groups were tagging along unnoticed. It didn't seem to be a problem, the Mercenaries were quite selective about who they invited, despite the large number of groups that reported here at the same time, and only a few spelling errors slowed the process.
That earned them some good-natured ribbing about their literacy from their fellow Captains, but the nervousness during the signing of such an important agreement was totally understandable to them all.
"There we go, all signed up." Commander Arnold shouted happily once his copy of the agreement was collected and sent off to Rae 5 for verification and registration.
"Excellent. I haven't seen any reported issues with any of your applications, so we can start deliveries. Are there any other supplies that you need at the moment? Terminus carries a variety of raw materials for custom orders." Max suggested.
"If you can send a team to the Station to help install the Replicators and Materials Printers that the Black Wolves have purchased, we would be willing to pay the full Death Wind going rate." The Space Station Commander requested.
"That shouldn't be an issue. We will need some time to make all of the other orders, so why don't you all stay here aboard Terminus tonight? We have retrofitted the ship with the height of luxurious accommodations, and all we ask is that you don't harass the aliens." Nico replied on behalf of the maintenance teams.
They would send human teams to the station for the safety of the Innu, who weren't familiar with any other human cultural norms and might inadvertently cause an issue due to the fact that they were only really familiar with Terminus, and mostly Nico's personal guidelines on behavior. Leaving them alone with Nico for that long was bound to cause an issue, but since they were so focused on their work, they hadn't picked up on her bad habits or genocidal tendencies yet. At least, not as far as Max could tell.
"I think we will take you up on that offer. I heard good things about your indoor beach and the tiki bar area." Captain Arnold agreed.
There had been a party there last night, mostly infantry from the ill-fated Regiment who had been aboard since before Kepler fell. Their status was sort of in limbo, despite the fact that they were working aboard Terminus in dozens of different positions. They were more than simple crewmen since they were trained soldiers, but Max hadn't had time to make an official status for them.
Terminus didn't officially have security staff since it was all military personnel, to begin with, but that would be the most logical position for the infantry, who didn't fall easily into simple service jobs or mechanical work.
"Call the staff and let them know we have plenty of guests for the Tiki lounge area. We can house them all in that same area so they don't have far to stumble to get to their rooms for the night." Nico informed someone, who replied with a double beep of the radio as confirmation.
"You boys are in for a treat. We have the finest of rooms for you, and they come with energy credits to update your wardrobe for a beach outing, so I will show you to them now, and you can get ready for an all-night party." Nico informed them.
"Energy Credits?" Commander Arnold asked.
"There are Replicators that only make a limited menu along with Terminus branded clothing and toiletries installed in every suite. You can either buy swimwear at the kiosk or create it inside your room. The Kiosk has a much better selection, as the room makes swimwear in one single style, as well as a bathrobe and slippers." Nico explained.
"You see, they're just flexing on us now. Oh, we have Materials Printers in every single room. Like that's nothing at all." One of the Captains laughed.
"It's a Replicator, actually. Since the clothing is all made of natural fibers, it can be created out of the basic Replicator supply. No synthetic materials, but Cotton and linen are no problem for the Replicators." She explained to the confused Captains.
"So, you're saying that if I had enough materials, I could just make myself fresh underwear every single morning and trash the old ones instead of washing them?" Captain Arnold asked, intrigued.
"It would be wasteful, but it would be simple to do. You could even set a timer so that it made fresh underwear and coffee for you every morning."
"Pure Luxury." The big Commander agreed.
Chapter 458 458 Can't Be Hungover If You Are Still Drunk
Name:Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System Author:
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Nico and Max led the Mercenaries to the Cruise Ship area, and the Station staff, who had been here last night, took it upon themselves to explain all the cool things they had seen along the way.
"Why do we need to change anyhow?" One of the Captains asked when the Station staff stopped everyone at the first Kiosk that they came across.
"Do you not know what a Tiki bar is? It's on the beach, so relaxing in the loungers in the water with a margarita is a given. There are hot tubs as well as holographic dancing girls. I asked about real ones, but it seems that they are too short-staffed to have real dancers everywhere." The Station Commander replied.
"I asked the ladies if they wanted to dance for a living, but they got a bit stabby about it." Nico joked.
The Mercenary Captains shuddered at the thought. The women in their Companies were violent enough. They didn't need to risk death by trying to convince the Reaver's Mecha Pilots to change careers.
Max left the Mercenaries to their own devices for the evening and headed back to his office to ensure that everything was going smoothly with the production of the Replicators and the Materials Printers that had been ordered.
[Sir, we have a private communication from Commander Arnold. He would like to have four new Cutters delivered here to Black Wolf Station directly if possible. He has arranged payment with Rae 5, and they have his order in stock.] A communications officer informed Max.
That wasn't the sort of thing that he would have wanted to say in front of all the other Captains, who mostly only had Cutter and Cruiser-sized ships of a much older vintage. It would make his allies look bad if he was flaunting his wealth in front of them, so he had done it afterward when everyone had settled in their rooms for an hour before they were going to meet for food and drinks.
[Inform him that I will have them brought through after the Ships going for engine retrofit pass through the portals tomorrow. Also, inform Rae 5 of our intentions so that they can have them ready with a few tugs to make the delivery.] Max replied.
[On it, Commander. I will make sure it is all organized and ready in the morning.]
Most Mercenary Commanders in the Death Wind Territory didn't demand payment immediately from the Reavers when they worked for them. Instead, they would keep an account open with the Reaver Company in question and use it to purchase goods and services as they needed them.
With old, established Families like the Tarith Reavers, the two groups could have had such relations for centuries, so in the case of the Exterminators, it was surprising, but not entirely inconceivable that they could have had enough cash stored with the various Reavers Companies to outright purchase four new ships for blockade running.
The Border Nations weren't going to know what hit them, and they didn't have anything fast enough to intercept, should the Exterminators decide it wasn't even worth their trouble to hide. All they could do was swear or try to retaliate against their slower-moving or planetary assets, and that assumed that they could determine who was in the ship, to begin with.
Since these ones were in a brand new Reaver pattern, they wouldn't be able to tell if it was a Mercenary Company or a Reaver Company that had run their embargo, and not one of them was brave enough to go to war with the Reavers, who were much more organized than the Mercenaries had ever been.
Max kept watch on the tiki bar area until late in the evening as he organized the delivery of the order that they were making, as well as the installation of the Replicator aboard the station, which his crew had started in the middle of the night so that it would be ready before breakfast for the staff to try.
At five in the morning, he woke up and made his way to the Cruise Ship, where there were still Mercenaries partying. The orders were all ready to go out now, though he expected that they would have to wait until later in the day, given the situation.
"Where is Tarith?" Max asked one of the staff members, who was assembling a platter of breakfast burritos and tequila for the Mercenaries on the beach.
"She took Commander Arnold up to the gym on the next floor so that they could have a sparring match. They spent hours discussing cybernetic enhancements, and he didn't believe us when we told him that Nico was a monster in human form." The woman laughed, pointing out the Gym in question.
"Well, his order is ready, so when you see them again, let them know," Max told her.
He turned to the beach and raised his voice to address the group that was still in party mode. "Your orders are ready. Who wants them delivered to your ship by the Station Staff, and who wants to send their own crew for it?"
"Let the Station do it. My boys aren't going to be up to do anything this early in the morning." One of the Captains laughed, seconded by almost all of the others.
"Then page your security team and tell them to expect a delivery within the hour," Max informed them, getting back a series of sloppy salutes that ended as soon as the food arrived.
"I don't think we're going anywhere today. It will be noon before they pass out and night before they regain consciousness." The man cleaning empty bottles and trash off the beach laughed, watching the Captains unwind with their friends.
"That might be for the best. We can collect the orders that are coming from Rae 5 while they are all passed out and deal with the questions about them later."
If they docked the Cutters with the Station, the Exterminators could transfer their new crews over directly and without having to do it in the open where everyone else was watching. They might have also ordered more items to go with the Cutters, which would be delivered in their holds, and this would give them a chance to transfer everything in one convenient spot.
Chapter 459 459 Jealousy
Name:Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System Author:
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While the last few hard-partying Mercenaries retired to their rooms for the day, the teams from Terminus finished the installs of Replicators on over fifty ships. They didn't take particularly long, they only needed to be connected to power and double-checked for functionality, but fifty ships in a day were far more than they had expected to ever have to do.
They also delivered the Materials Printers to the dozen Mercenary Companies who had ordered one right away, while most of the others had held off on the spending until they had their ships refitted in the Rae 5 system, deciding to do all the upgrades at the same time.
This end of the galaxy would surely see a resurgence in Mercenaries competing for work in the upcoming years. Max could tell that most of them were planning to spend their entire life's savings to upgrade their vessels and get the new technologies that the Reavers could offer.
The construction facilities had already reported back to Max that they had orders for over a thousand Mecha just from these few Mercenary Companies, plus all the work on the ships and the Materials Printers that they were planning to have installed. It would be a big change for most of them, who currently only had obsolete Line Mecha they had customized making up their forces.
Once they got the new Reaver Pattern Line Mecha that closely mimicked the Samurai appearance of Max's Cleansing Light, they would more than double their firepower without increasing their numbers, and their survivability would skyrocket.
The fact that all of the new Reaver Mecha had shields, so they wouldn't need to be repaired after every single mission if they only took small amounts of enemy fire, was a great selling point for the ever-frugal Mercenaries.
In the long run, they would save far more than the unit's cost simply by not having to purchase replacement armor pieces to fix the damage that had been done to them.
While they were finishing the work, Max received a status update from Mary Tarith on the happenings in the galaxy so that Terminus wouldn't be caught off guard during future negotiations and would know to skip certain systems that had proactively joined or had declined the Reavers invitation.
Some of the news was just as they had expected, the Border Nations between Rae 5 and Death Wind Territory had all been approached, and they all turned down the invitation because the Reavers wouldn't accept their terms that the entire Territory must be excluded and officially embargoed.
More unexpectedly, the Cygnus forces were ahead of schedule, and almost all of the small nations that had attacked the Kepler Empire had been absorbed into their borders. Many went without much of a fight. Some even came willingly when the Cygnus fleet showed up, but one after another, they had all agreed to join.
Unsurprisingly, the two regions governed by the Kepler Princes were in a state of civil war with each other after a dispute over a group of small nations along their borders that both of them wanted to annex.
Best
The best news for the Reavers and for Terminus was that the Cygnus Military had purchased the rights to produce the Tarith Pattern Shields that Nico had developed, and the royalties were astronomical as they retrofit millions of Mecha with shielding units. The Kepler Free Territory had done the same and was purchasing entire Mecha Regiments from the Reavers since their facilities along the Inner Core of the Galaxy were lacking in Mecha facilities and focused more on nonmilitary production, which was profitable enough that they didn't want to retrofit it.
By any standard, other than the size of their fleet, Terminus Trading Company was currently the single wealthiest Reaver Company in existence. They didn't actually need the money at the moment, but it was nice to know that they had the funds to obtain favors or resources anytime they needed them.
Max had just finished reading the status update and planning their route, which shouldn't see any disturbances now that they were starting from the far side of the Death Wind Territory instead of being closest to Rae 5 as the others were when the notification that the Cutters were ready for shipment arrived.
The Mercenaries had partied well into the day when Max was expecting to have them depart hours ago, and the Transport Vessels were needed to move other ships around, so Max had to request for the Station to give clearance to the four brand new vessels to dock with their bays.
He called them Reaver Ships for delivery, but the obfuscation didn't fool anyone. Only one of the assembled Companies could afford four new ships, and the Black Wolves hadn't ordered any for themselves yet, though they could afford at least one new Cutter.
[Did I hear that right, Terminus? Four new Warp 10 Cutters for delivery to this location?] The Station Commander asked.
[That's right. We can't confirm the customer, as per standard privacy agreements, but they have been ordered for delivery to this location.] Max replied.
[Fine, dock them next to Terminus on the spur arms. Whoever ordered them can move their gear to that location.] The Commander replied, sarcasm clear in his voice.
News of the vessels coming through the portal that Rae 5 had opened using Terminus as a beacon spread quickly through their new allies, and everyone was out of their rooms, checking the public viewscreens, which showed the outside of the ship so that they could verify the news that their crews had sent with their own eyes.
"How much bloody money did they have to spend? I am not sure we have made that much in total, much less enough to have that stockpiled. Those new Cutters go for nearly ten times as much as our old ones are worth." One of the Captains complained.
"Do you think that means they'll have old ships for sale? Or are they going to expand and try to corner the delivery market in this arm before the rest of us can afford to upgrade?" Another asked and promptly got laughed at by his counterparts.
Of course, they were trying to corner the market. Both in trade, since they could easily run the blockades with these ships, and for emergency intervention requests, since they could get to a call so much faster than any other Mercenary Company.
"Get everyone packed up. We are heading to the dry docks as soon as the Replicators are installed." One of the Captains declared, intending to be the first among the first come, first served priority.
"The Replicators are all installed and functional. Most of your crews have already had a meal from them as well. Our teams worked all night to get you ready." Max informed them, and the Captains started moving to their ships, which turned into a foot race as their competitive nature took over.
[Station Command, prepare for multiple departures.] Max informed the staff while he sent a message to Rae 5 to hold the Portal open at maximum diameter, as they had a lot of ships incoming over the next hour.
[Got it. Good work Terminus. This should make you the leader on the recruitment list by number of deals signed. There is no prize except pride, but you lot are rich enough.] The Moon Base Communications Officer, who was in charge of all Portals in the star system, replied.
[Find us some more staff as well. We need everything for the Cruise Ship and guest quarters, as well as an Infantry Regiment, preferably Kepler born, so that we can test some new designs.] Max informed them.
Chapter 460 460 Delivery Service
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[Not a problem, Terminus. We have a waiting list of applicants that we can pick from among the refugees, so at least a few Battalions of Infantry shouldn't be an issue, and we have lots of trained staff for domestic positions and ship logistics if you don't care what nation they come from.] The Moon Base replied.
[Make it as varied as possible. We get a lot of alien tourists, and I want them to experience the full spectrum of human culture and genetic variation so they aren't surprised at any of our stops.] Max informed the base.
[If your precision Portal Function is working, open an interior Portal at these locations in six hours. We will have your staff assembled since it is now early morning in the Capital.]
The location was for a public promenade in the Capital city on the plains, and six hours from now would make it the middle of the afternoon there when he was scheduled to pick up his new crew.
That wasn't much time for them to pack, but the Reaver standard was much like the Military. They would arrive with only a single duffle bag worth of gear, which most of them kept packed at all times. They might swap out a few items if they had time, but if they got a short-notice deployment offer, they didn't want to miss out because they didn't have their gear ready.
The city even offered a packing and storage service, where the contents of an apartment would be loaded into storage for them so that they could take off the moment they got an offer and not have to worry about their belongings or rent payments.
A Gig Economy, Dave would call it. Thinking of him made Max sentimental, and he scheduled dinner with him and the kids, who he hoped had been adjusting well to life aboard a Reaver ship instead of in the slums of Kepler Terminus.
The Infantry were going to be shocked when they arrived aboard Terminus, as there were no standard infantry racks anywhere on the ship. Instead, they would be assigned the simplest of barracks, which still had small single rooms, instead of the three high bunks in a communal room which most ships assigned to the lowest of priorities.
Originally, that had been a storage bay, and then it was made suitable for a Mecha Battalion before being upgraded to house any potential Refugees that they might pick up, so they had more than enough space for their new Infantry, no matter how many the planet managed to organize for them.
[Good news, Nico. Tell the ladies that we are going to receive testers for your new infantry armor designs. I ordered an Infantry Regiment from Rae 5 along with more staff.] Max told his second in command.
[Perfection. We have all sorts of new toys for them to work with, and we are short on all sorts of Technicians and logistics personnel. The Innu will be overjoyed that they don't have to wait for testers anymore. I will steal some from the existing infantry that is aboard the ship so that I don't mess up the new arrivals.]
They were going to need more Shuttles as well if they ever wanted to actually deploy this Infantry without loading them alongside a Mecha Battalion in a Cutter, but that could wait for later. Until they finished their outreach work here in the Death Wind Territory, they likely wouldn't be engaging in a full-scale planetary invasion.
The new Cutters were securely at the dock now, and the Transports had departed, leaving their cargo attached to the space station and unoccupied while they queued for the increasingly long line to pass through the portal. Once they got motivated, the Mercenaries were in action surprisingly quickly, and they formed a double file line to depart for Rae 5, being just narrowly capable of passing through the portal that way.
[Exterminators, your presents have arrived. They are on the same spur as Terminus and are currently unoccupied. I will meet you there in five minutes to code your biometric information into the locks.] Max informed Commander Arnold and his teams.
[Now that's what I call service. Same-day delivery of fully equipped warships with all the bells and whistles. I'm not sure if my ancestors would be proud of me or weep at the loss of all the savings they had accumulated.] The Mercenary laughed.
These were all in the Cargo pattern, which wasn't really unexpected, given their speed. So, they would only be able to load a single Company of Mecha without losing Cargo space, instead of a full Battalion with no additional major cargo storage, except the materials for repairs.
Max jogged out to the dock doors, joined by Nico and a team of Technicians, who would program the initial biometric data and command codes for the four ships.
"They really went all out. The delivery order says they each have a full Company of mixed Mecha aboard. One hundred Line Mecha, fifty Corvettes, thirty Crusaders, and twenty Infernus Pattern Fast Attack Crusaders in every Cutter. The Reavers aren't willing to sell the Thunder Pattern Super Heavy Mecha yet, so this is the absolute best loadout that money can buy.
They must have some additional connections beyond simple money after all these years, or they wouldn't have gotten approval for four Cutters with all new Mecha on a single night's notice." Nico whispered to Max before they passed through the barrier at the bay door, which blocked all sound from the other side.
"Good to know. I hate being surprised by our own deliveries." Max told her with a wink and led the team out into the corridor.
Max led the team out into the corridor, where the Exterminators had split into four groups, each with roughly two hundred fifty Mercenaries, each headed by a grizzled veteran who should be the one nominated to become the Exterminators' newest Captain.
"Welcome to your new homes, ladies and gentlemen. I am sure you have all been frantically pleasuring yourselves to the specs all day, so I will cut the niceties short and have your Captains line up at their chosen door to input their biometrics and pick a name for their new vessel." Nico greeted the Mercenaries.
"Why do you have to call me out like that?" Someone laughed from the middle of the crowd, but the four Captains stepped forward without hesitation, picking the doors closest to themselves.
In theory, each ship was identical, but they had clearly thought about which one they wanted in advance, as they were standing in a specific order near the doors instead of being arranged around their Commander as they usually would.
Nico activated all four door controls and brought them into programming mode at the same time. "Place your face in front of the sensor and both hands on the tablet. That is the basic biometric lock, and then you will be able to set passcodes and additional users once you are granted rights as the Captains."
The process barely took a second, and all four doors opened.
"I know none of you want to wait until the entire crew is programmed in to begin the tour, so head in now, and the Captains can sort everything later."
"Now, Commander Arnold, which vessel should we tour? I will add you to all four vessels as an administrator, and you can set your passcodes now." Nico suggested as the last of the crew members ran past them into their new homes, each carrying a single dufflebag.