The Mech Touch novel Chapter 1527

The status of the Bright Martyr became considerably contentious after his arrival and departure in the Ylvaine Protectorate.

Some believed he was a charlatan. Others couldn’t get over the fact that a foreigner became the next martyr. The upper ranks of the leading dynasties did their best to temper everyone’s worship of the Bright Martyr. They became fearful of what might ensue if their flock demanded a new shepherd.

Though the three leading dynasties managed to reduce most mentions and calls to revere the Bright Martyr in the media, it had already gone out of control.

Practically every Ylvainan became aware of the Bright Maryr’s existence, and his rise was the most exciting incident to happen in the last four-hundred years since the founding of the Protectorate.

Unless they relied on more coercive measures, there was no conceivable way to erase the name of the Bright Martyr from the lips of the Ylvainans.

Having been raised from birth to worship the Great Prophet and his handpicked martyred followers, the rise of a new martyr became an unquestionably alluring focus of their devotion!

"Prophet Ylvaine has never left us! Look at the Bright Martyr! His appearance is proof that the prophet is still with us! Just look at his works and you will know the truth!"

While the Poxco Dynasty made numerous proposals to enact such measures, the Curin Dynasty always opposed the Attendants of Ylvaine.

Even the Kronon Dynasty refused to entertain such means. As the Protectors of the Flock, it had always been their duty to protect the Ylvainans. They were not about to allow anyone to harm them in such fashion!

The belief in the Bright Martyr therefore managed to spread among the lower classes of the Protectorate without too much hindrance. It became so expected that others shared in this belief that those who were skeptical stuck out like sore thumbs!

"What do you mean you think the Bright Martyr is fake? That’s absurd! You’re no longer my friend if you believe in this slander!"

One of the most influential factors that reinforced everyone’s worship of the Bright Martyr was the existence of the Transcendent Messengers. Anyone who witnessed the divinely-inspired hero mechs in person unquestionably believed that the Bright Martyr had been touched by the Great Prophet!

Even the middle and upper ranks of the leading dynasties started to become swayed! The more faith they possessed, the more the Transcendent Messenger demanded their acknowledgement!

The Ylvaine Protectorate slowly but surely started to change. Among the many societal changes and reforms, the Kronon Dynasty began to shift their stodgy traditions as well.

Having stagnated for so long, the Bright Martyr’s rebuke prodded them into action. Military officers became more daring and started to act with more autonomy.

Outfitting some of their mech regiments with mechs from the LMC had been among their more presumptuous actions! Since when did a mech military resort to commercial mechs to fill up their mech roster?

Yet how could the critics rebuke the officers who made the decision to outfit their units with LMC mechs? Wouldn’t that be affronting the Bright Martyr? Any word against the LMC mechs earned near-universal condemnation from the lower ranks of the Kronon Dynasty!

Having basked in the auras of so many mechs of the Bright Martyr, the Kronon mech pilots became fully convinced that their machines were special!

After a lot of internal turmoil, the Kronons from both sides reached a tentative compromise.

"The proof is in the pudding. Let us see the LMC mechs in action. Only a success in battle will those who support adopting these commercial mechs be vindicated!"

The adoption of LMC mechs occurred sporadically as only the most enthusiastic believers in the Bright Martyr embraced them at a wider scale. The mech pilots and mech officers who worked with the LMC mechs happened to have the most to prove in their first major action!

Their fervor to battle and win against the Star Worshippers was among the highest in the six raiding fleets!

This was the first time so many Blackbeaks, Crystal Lords and Aurora Titans had been deployed at once. Spread over six different strategic star systems in the territory of the Star Faith Collective, the initial stages of the incursions proceeded better than expected.

The Ylvaine Protectorate managed to hoodwink the Star Faith Collective and surprise them with their sudden assaults.

Yet as time went by and the Protectors of the Faith managed to land their ground forces on the surface of the fortified planets, the Star Army finished readjusting themselves.

The Ylvainans weren’t the only people around who could whip up their men in religious frenzy!

Aware that the future of the Star Faith was at stake, the Star Worshippers ceased to be consumed by shock and began to ready their ground defenses!

"Crush the alien lovers!"

"The Ylvainans worship alien gods! Let us show them how little their gods care about their lives!"

On Creinze IV, a lot of infrastructure dispersed throughout the planet started to get overwhelmed or destroyed. However, the Star Worshippers concentrated most of their assets and vital infrastructure at Halifax Base.

The Star Army already gave up on defending the outlying facilities in favor of consolidating their mechs at Halifax Base.

Half underground and half aboveground, it took an immense effort to establish this base. The Ylvainans would never be able to destroy it by sitting back and letting their artillery mechs bombard the base from a distance.

"The only way to destroy Halifax Base and render the Creinze System useless as a staging point for the Star Army is to get up close!"

The Protectors of the Flock only had a limited amount of time to do their damage. They never intended to invade and occupy the star systems of their foes. With the sandmen breathing down their necks, they simply couldn’t afford to fight on two fronts.

For this reason, speed was of the essence. The Ylvainan mech pilots deployed on Creinze IV did not enjoy a significant numerical advantage, so they had to rely on other factors to overwhelm the entrenched Star Worshippers.

Though the surprise factor had already faded, the Star Army had still been caught with their pants down. Many assets were still stored in containers piled up in warehouses, as the STar Army always expected that they would be the ones to make the first move.

The base commander of Halifax Base had never taken into account that the Ylvainans would be crazy enough to take the fight to them! Now, every Star Worshipper frantically started to deploy as many mobile and immobile assets as they could to reinforce the defenses of Halifax Base.

"We won’t give you that time! Attack! Storm their fortifications!"

More than a dozen landbound mech regiments spread out and advanced towards an immense walled fort city shaped like a stylized star. Halifax Base was more than a city and more than a military base.

It concentrated the might of the Star Army and represented their people’s hopes of conquering the stars!

"The stars are lifeless balls of plasma." Taon Melin scoffed as he piloted Zeal in the middle of the largest concentration advancing Kronon mechs. "Only life deserves worship!"