[1-200] THE MECH TOUCH

Chapter 190: Breaking Point

Ves pushed his setup to its limits when he failed to get a response. Due to the inverse-square law, the poor little transceiver had to accommodate an increasingly alarming amount of power.

Neither the salvaged energy cells, the improvised power converter or the hastily upgraded transceiver handled the increasing load well. Ves frequently shut down the power to cool down the stressed devices and replace a few of the more delicate components that only hung on by a thread.

His persistence finally paid off when his shabby transceiver finally returned a response. It came in with dense encryption that made no sense if Ves didn't have the right key.

"Why reply with encryption?"

Then he thought about the untrustworthy elements in the expedition. If someone like Commander Keller listened in to their correspondence, then that could lead to a lot of unpleasant consequences.

Acting upon a hunch, Ves applied a unique code that his father hammered into his head to his transceiver.

The gibberish transformed into simple text.

[This is base camp. We read you loud and clear. Both your cousin and the commander are present.]

Ves checked his transceiver and noticed a trail of smoke. He rapidly typed in his reply on the projected keyboard.

[I am still in captivity and am transmitting through an improvised transceiver. It will only hold up in a limited amount of time.]

[Roger. We are triangulating your position but it will take time. Please explain your circumstances.]

Without any delay, he briefly transmitted what he experienced including the fact that he'd been operated on. He also emphasized that Doctor Jutland and his Kaius departed the cave a day ago.

[Copy that. We have anticipated his arrival. Base camp is currently in upheaval. Expeditionary fleet has suffered a defeat against sandmen fleet but fled in good order. Cmdr. Keller and his supporters have rebelled and are at large. Prospectors have found the motherlode and its exploitation has disturbed the local ecosystem. Disabling the Kaius is a critical priority. Do you have a solution?]

The brief message came at a bombshell. The defeat of the expeditionary fleet caught everyone off-guard. No wonder Keller and his ilk went AWOL. That latter part of 'fled in good order' sounded reassuring, but who knew what the truth really looked like.

Without a stable fleet presence up in orbit, they'd never able to leave this miserable planet. If they couldn't leave within twenty days, they'd be joining Doctor Jutland in his merry isolation.

Forget about retaining your sanity, you'd run out of food, water and air long before the next twenty-seven year lull arrived.

As for the motherlode, Ves figured that House Kaine finally found the source of all the monoexurite spread throughout the jungle. An unimaginable amount of wealth should be locked away in this vein.

Digging it out should net the expedition an unimaginable amount of monoexurite, perhaps in the kilograms even! However, taking such a valuable source of monoexurite away would also devastate the local ecosystem and cut off Jutland's ambitions.

"He's just like an alien who can't do without a source of exotics. Cutting him off from monoexurite is like taking away the stimulants of a hardcore addict. Jutland will never be resigned to give up his source of bliss."

Fortunately, House Kaine took its security seriously, and with Ves warning them of the coming of the Kaius, they'd be fully prepared to repel the monstrous mech.