Now that Ves successfully delegated his supervision duties to Ketis, his schedule finally freed up a lot.
He felt bad about pushing all of the repetitive, banal and rage-inducing work to his student, but the problems that constantly popped up should provide her with plenty of practice in solving mildly complicated technical issues.
Some of the other Vandal mech designers felt that Ves bypassed them entirely for no reason.
He didn't care. He was in charge and they were not. Ves didn't trust any of them to wield their powers responsibly.
Trust. Competence. Power. All of these intertwined at multiple levels among the ground expedition.
At the very top, the co-leadership of Captain Byrd and Commander Lydia led to a harmonious relationship so far, but how long would that last? The Swordmaidens had their own way of doing things, and Commander Lydia's authority was equal to Major Verle's.