[1-200] THE MECH TOUCH

Chapter 168: A Tale

Recordings of six-limbed hexapods played out in the projections. At first, the animals seemed wary and alarmed at the new human arrivals. Most of the animals possessed a rigid metallic exoskeleton and their sizes ranged from dogs to elephants.

Once the expedition tried to kill a smaller hexapod, they encountered their first casualties. The dog-sized hexapod withstood a substantial amount of laser beams. Its metal shell absorbed and dispersed the heat with far more efficiency than what was possible. In the end, a mech had to intervene and stepped over the creature, finally squashing it flat.

"The sudden aggression changed the disposition of the native beasts in the area. They suddenly whipped up in a frenzy, causing scores of animals to storm the group. Many people on foot perished due to their inability to threaten the hexapods."

Over half of the guards died without damaging a single hexapod. Their laser rifles did no damage at all. In some cases, the animals even enjoyed the free bursts of thermal energy.

Even the mechs got beaten up by the larger animals. It took a lot of physical wrestling and stomping to put down these incredibly tough beasts.

"I will spare you the details of the aftermath. Suffice to say, once the expedition performed autopsies on the beasts, they found to their surprise that they all possess a strange and wondrous organ laced with an exceptionally valuable mix of exotics. This organ is the means in which these hexapods are able to thrive. It absorbs heat from the environment and provides them with energy to move their heavy limbs."

A chart appeared that outlined what kind of exotics these heat organs incorporated. The name at the top provoked a substantial response from the crowd. Even Ves sat up straight when he glimpsed the name.

"Many of the exotics found in the heat organs possess special properties, but are not too valuable in these low concentrations. The only exception here is monoexurite."

Most people who attended the banquet knew the value of monoexurite. A mere pinch of monoexurite would instantly devolve this entire gathering into a slaughterhouse. According to the current market price, one gram of monoexurite was worth around two billion bright credits.

"I am certain that everyone is familiar with monoexurite. Fifty milligrams of monoexurite is enough to enhance the range of an FTL drive by fifty percent. Smaller amounts of monoexurite is also used in the fabrication of top-quality mech components."

All of the mech pilots present already dreamed about hunting down these beasts. In their eyes, they were nothing but walking bags of credits.

Even Ves had to hold back his insatiable greed. One reason why the Barracuda cost so many coalition credits was because its powerful FTL drive incorporated a substantial amount of monoexurite. He experienced the power of monoexurite first-hand whenever he travelled with his corvette.

"The hexapods seem to accumulate monoexurite from their diets. They accumulate the exotics over time. The expedition conjectured that the amount of monoexurite determines their size. Only when they reach the size of an elephant will it be worthwhile to harvest their heat organs."

Once the expedition learned from their previous encounter, they switched their gears. They drew back everyone on foot and sent out squads of mechs armed with melee weapons and ballistic cannons. They tracked down every major hexapod in the region and harvested over twenty heat organs in three weeks.

According to the chart, every heat organ contained around two-hundred milligrams of monoexurite. The expedition already paid for itself many times over. While they hadn't found any major deposits of monoexurite, the several grams of monoexurite they harvested so far would set them up for life.