21.1

Chapter 21.1 Operation Shiroyama Part 1.

3029

Dieron

Dieron IV

A different perspective

Benjamin Rommel

Benny stared out into the void. The view to Dieron was beautiful from up here. Of course the fact he was on The Stick played a part in that. A large window on the Warship gave him a great view.

Although he had regretted not being able to be in front of the Commander when she did her speech. He had been needed. Dieron was a massive target. The Capital of the Military district that was named for it. It was heavily defended, with multiple regiment sized commands. Or at least it had at the last intelligence report. At least a few of those would be gone now. The 5th was currently on Northwind from an update. Which was good and bad.

Good because it made taking Dieron easier.

Bad because the bastards had used a biological weapon on Northwind.

When Vicky found out, she had already put down a simple order in case of any meetings with the 5th Sword of Light.

Complete Decimation.

Which to be fair. That was already the plan. But now it was personal.

But that was a problem for later. For now he was thinking. Plans running through his head, how he was going to take this world. How to best do it without losing too many men. Well at least he would have the orbitals. The Stick would remain in orbit providing support. Although he was going to try and take the world without relying on pinpoint orbital support.

God he smiled. Even if this went bad, there wasn't a force in the Inner Sphere that could survive orbital fire from a Warship when it simply always knew where you were. Vickys sensor once more changing the landscape of war, and no one outside the ISDF even knew it existed.

The Dracs were about to learn what it meant to fight ISDF.

"You done brooding yet?"

"Not yet." He said, pouting a little as Hanna nudged him. He was glad she was here. The Gunslingers would make this assault a lot easier.

"Been hanging out with the Irregulars. Most of them are good kids. Couple might go crazy, so watch for that. If they start killing civs, we will need to step in."

"It's always a concern when bringing in new people, but I have faith. The Irregulars are going to be difficult, but give it a few battles, and all the problems will work out, we will be a Combine busting machine."

Hanna shrugged as she leaned on him. "I'm not worried either way. I just wish Vicky was here with us. Stupid blonde is stuck supplying our entire invasion and can't even take part."

"Yeah. She was pretty sad not to be leading us out. We will just have to step up. She always coddled us, was there to cover our mistakes. Now we will still make mistakes but we have to solve them ourselves."

"Hell Yeah. Time to show Vicky that all her work wasn't for nothing. Gunslingers are ready to remind the snakes who the real elites are."

"You'll do fine love."

"Aww, is Big Sub Commander Rommel getting all sappy with me?" Hanna teased the girl leaning in and delivering a warm kiss pulling Benny away from the sight of Dieron. "C'mon I didn't come to get you to play around though. Some of the Merc leaders are getting cold feet. Time to pretend to be Vicky and give a speech."

"I'm bad at speeches though."

"Just say something about how they have a Warship over their head. It'll be fine. That will either fill them with confidence, or put the fear of God in them."

Benny grunted out a laugh. He had happily taken up the challenge of ordering the new arrivals putting together the different invasion routes, and with his team he had put together over ten years, he had handled that without too much difficulty. The hard part had been finding the absolute green mercs. The ones that had gotten lucky and tricked their way into getting here.

But thanks to just how many old dispossessed Mechwarriors were showing up, it hadn't been too hard. Sure. They would never have worked together before. Sure they were taking commands with a new 'company' in their eyes.

Sure, it wasn't perfect. But honestly. The biggest weakness of the model was as always already solved. He almost wanted to smile at how much trouble the Combine were about to be in.

But first he had to come up with a speech… This was bad. Steal a Vicky speech?

Steal a Vicky speech.

—--

A different perspective

Aaron McOwen

Dieron

This was absolutely the craziest thing he had ever done. How the hell had this even happened? He was a farmer and a part time militia member! Why was he here!?

Getting to step foot on a Warship was something he would never forget. The feel of it moving beneath his feet had filled his dreams for the entire trip to Dieron. But it was when the last call alert blared, and he was buckled into his Mech that it all started hitting him.

His Mech.

He was piloting one of the most powerful weapons of war ever made. Him. Aaron the Farmers kid.

And like his grandfather before him, he was going to go fight the Snakes. His grandfather had never come back.

Aaron just prayed he wouldn't meet the same fate.

The Merc company he had 'joined' had eventually passed him off, when they realized they really wouldn't get to 'keep' him and his equipment after everything. Aaron and every Mechwarrior signed their own contract separate from the normal merc company contract. Bastard Fritz had dumped him instantly. But in the end it didn't matter. As a 'Disposed Mechwarrior.' He was assigned to a new unit.

The 14th ISDF Irregulars.

And somehow his lance had been attached to the fuckin Gunslingers.

They were apparently The ISDF Elite Company. Not that Aaron could tell the difference? It wasn't like he wasn't riding around in a SLDF Royal as well.

He still felt like he was standing in church every time he settled into his cockpit.

"Hey Wheatfield, You good?"

"I'm fine!" He growled getting distracted. So he had been a farmer! No reason to make fun of him! Lieutenant Stevens was his Lance lead, and had given out nicknames to everyone.

Of course he had gotten his old insult back. Stevens was the oldest in the group, closer to thirty than twenty like the rest of the Lance.

So we all started calling him Oldman.

"Good. Listen up! 14th, this is it. You are all Green. That's fine. You are in damn good equipment, and our job during the assault is to back up the gunslingers, we are fire support. Especially you Wheatfield. Slow and steady kids and you will make it out this alive, and with a fuckin Royal to pass on to your children. So just keep your eyes open. And your ears wide. Because if I give an order. Do it. Then think."

"Roger."

"Yeah yeah Oldman."

"Understood." Aaron replied as his hands wrapped around the controls. The dropship was still shaking. His Neurohelm was on, although he could barely feel this one. Not like the ten pound monster that had been in the training Urbanmech on Saffel.

This was a real machine of war. That and the Cooling suit was actually comfortable and didn't smell like old sweat and puke. This one was brand new. His.

The rumbling suddenly picked up, the dropships engines burning to slow their decent, and Aaron realized this was happening.

He lost track of what was happening there. Simply closing his eyes and praying to God that he wasn't about to be killed like a fool for leaving the farm.

It had seemed like such a good idea at the time!

The massive thunk of the dropship landing pushed his prayers away. They were here. On a draconis world.

Where they would be shooting at him.

Fuck.

The next half an hour was actually slow. The dropship landed and began a slow process of disembarking everyone. It wasn't just mechs. Plenty of tankers had signed up as well, and ASF pilots. Although they would need more prep for their landing.

That was part of what Aaron would be doing. The Gunslingers, the 14th Irregulars as support, and a company of tanks would be going to claim a starport up in the mountains.

Which was only one of the assaults planned and prepared from orbit. But the Starport would absolutely be defended. The snakes were using it for their own ASF forces.

"So if we are going to hit the Starport, what is stopping them from hitting us with their fighters? I don't like the idea of having a bunch of ASF above us Oldman."

"No more joking around Trickster. This is serious. But since you aren't patched into the command channel let me tell you what they said about the enemy ASF." The Oldman answered back, Aaron was forced to focus as the crew of the dropship started motioning for him to walk forward to leave the bay.

As he stomped forward the Oldman continued. "I think the exact quote was. 'Don't worry about enemy ASF. The Stick already spoke to them.' In case the context is above your head. They tried to send ASF to contest our landing. The Big fuckin Warship above our head, swatted the lot of them out of the air. So they either don't have any more, or the ASF they do have are staying grounded and hidden so they aren't just wasted."

"Fuck me. Poor Sods." Trickster whispered, although it was still caught by his mic.

"Get your comm discipline in order Trickster. It's easy as. You have a damn SLDF NeuroHelm just turn your comm off when you don't want to share."

"What if I want to share Oldman!? My words are important shit!"

"No one wants to listen to you Trick. Shut up." Campbell spoke up. Although Aaron couldn't remember his first name. He couldn't help but think of him as-

"Fuck off Earl. Just cause you used to be some noble shit. Blueblooded asshole."

"Fuck off yourself Trick. That was like two centuries ago. I didn't even bring it up, you fuckin asked!"

"Yeah yeah. Well I am mistaken, I don't care anymore about how you learned to pilot."

"Alright clear up! We have a job to do! You boys want to keep your fancy ride when you get outta here? Then listen up. Do your job." Oldman called out from his Archer. The Pristine mech took the lead, and Aaron was forced to refocus on everything around him to follow.

Trick of course couldn't keep his mouth shut though. "Yeah yeah. Just point me at'em. This fuckin Phoenix Hawk is gonna make mincemeat of anything we run into!"

"Your job is to support our Lance. While we are laying down LRM fire you watch our back. Use it as such." Oldman called out but after that that the seriousness of the situation hit them as they fell into a flank position on the Gunslingers. The Gunslingers that were each in the nastiest assault mechs Aaron had ever seen.

He had heard of them though. Nightstars. The mech of the SLDF. Or he admitted it had sorta become such after the whole Immortal warrior thing.

Ask a kid what mech the SLDF used, and nine outta ten would say Nightstar. A mech that had been basically extinct had returned as immensely popular thanks to the movie.

Hell Aaron had seen it. Good flick. A bit hammy at times, but solid. And everyone liked the mechs.

Of course the equipment that was thought extinct? Yeah apparently the ISDF had so many they were just handing them out to complete greenhorns like him.

Damn if it didn't make him want to do well. To prove he was worthy of this ancient mech.

"Alright 14th, this is Gunslinger Hayha. This is going to be a fun brawl, keep your head in the game. Just support our assault, and don't do something stupid. Retreat if it's called. No heroics. Heroes die. We survive."

The Comm went silent after, as the Gunslinger pulled out of the channel, back to her command communications. But it actually did reassure Aaron.

With a leader that wasn't going to lead them into a suicide charge, maybe they would make it out of this okay?

"Hey Trick! Focus up, you are wandering!"

"Fuck off Oldman, I'm gonna jump up on that rock for the view."

"Don't wander off Trick! Stay with us."

"I'm a scout! I'm Scouting!"

Aaron sighed. Maybe they would make it out of this… Maybe.

The next hour was quiet. Just traveling through mountain passes, and stomping a few military checkpoints that was done through peppering the small outposts with ERPPC fire.

Aaron didn't even get to take part, but he did get to stomp on a few buildings as he followed along.

That was amazing.

But as he followed along he could practically feel the tension ratcheting up. Trick was getting almost caustic. Oldman was cracking down on their fuckups. Earl stopped paying attention at all to the others.

Aaron was forced to realize that the mention of retreating by Gunslinger Hayha might not have been hyperbolic.

It might be a very real thing that happens.

Soon.

As they turned a corner in the mountains they saw it. The Starport. It was a massive structure, obviously. It had to be equipped to handle dropships. It was also not going to be a cakewalk.

"Confirmed enemies. 14th, sending targeting data. Confirm." Gunslinger suddenly called out over the line, and Aaron saw his computer beep as it started receiving data on what to fire at.

"Confirm!" he called out as Oldman, and Earl did the same.

"Good. We are moving in. Once you are in range of your targets, fire at will. Also 14th. Stay close to the tankers. They will help keep you safe from return fire. Gunslinger out."

And that was it. Oldman took command, with a single directive they all received waypoint and the 14th, and gunslingers split apart. One to get into long range positions. One to smash through the defenses. Tanks Turrets, and infantry.

The Tankers split up, some moving to stay in the shadows of the Gunslingers, some to stay with the 14th, and that was how the battle began.

"Wheatfield, shoot what I shoot. Earl Trick, you two are a team, hit anything moving towards us Earl, and Trick jump them if they still get close. We stay together, and send fire downrange."

"R-Right!" Aaron called back as he felt the hatches on his missile pods pop open, as Oldman started firing.

Then Aarons Royal Catapult joined in.

The Rhinos that had been following also joined in, and the massive streaks of LRMs filled the sky, giving cover to the Gunslingers, that were already firing in rapid succession. Bunkers, splintered under fire. Tanks were flattened, And infantry in long trenches died.

The battle was like that for a while. A minute of picking targets, at long range, and sending a barrage of missiles, moving on, or firing again if they were still active.

For the most part, Aaron was firing at tanks, and other vehicles, that were being activated. Knocking them out of the fight so they couldn't interfere.

Then a few minutes in, as he was getting comfortable, he got an alert.

"14th Irregulars. You have incoming hovercraft at your 4 o'clock company size. Turn and prepare." The voice was one Aaron wasn't familiar with, but it caused every to still for a minute as the information ran through. Well everyone but Oldman, who had already turned.

"Shit! Hovercraft!" Trick called out, as he suddenly jumped away from Earls side, which had Oldman cursing him, but even with their warning Aaron could understand the panic. That was a company of Hovercraft racing at them!

Aaron panicked. He could admit that. The Hovercrafts must have been hiding in the mountains around the Starport, and so when they popped up, they were already moving at speeds that would make them tough to hit.

He turned, one of his pods releasing a barrage, only to curse when they were easily dodged, the Hovercraft juking to the side to let his missiles splash across the mountain dirt.

And then Oldman was there, his Archer firing a burst of green lasers that clipped one of the Hovercraft sending it spinning off as its mobility failed.

"Stow your shit! Aim and shoot! They aren't going to disable you, unless you panic. Trick! Get your ass back in formation and back up Earl! His Thunderbolt isn't made for fast movers!"

Right… He just needed to focus. He targeted one, and fired. His four Mediums bursting to life. His attack nearly missed, as he had fired ahead of the Hovercraft. But the pilot had juked into the path of his mediums.

Apparently Aaron had fired so badly it had surprised the pilot.

The four mediums, even only over a moment as the Hovercraft raced through did what Aaron needed. Sending the vehicle into the dirt as something failed, and then it spun and rolled.

It was definitely not a threat anymore. As it rolled itself to pieces.

"Stop staring Wheatfield! Daydream when you are back on the farm!" The roar of Oldman in his ear had him shift, switching targets, and firing. Then again.

His accuracy was shit, but with four mediums, even just a glancing blow tended to send the Hovercraft spinning out of the fight.

Of course the tankers weren't ignoring this. They fired as well, putting enough fire down that even when the Hovercraft kept peppering everyone with medium lasers, it wasn't enough to score a kill.

In the end, the Company of Hovercraft retreated, at less than half strength, and Oldman called out immediately.

"Alright, focus on the job! Support the Gunslingers!" And immediately a new target popped on Aarons screen. As he turned back to the real fight, he couldn't help but gape at the devastation.

The Nightstars, while the 14th was distracted had scythed through the enemy. Leaving a literal trail of destruction as the assault mechs had simply walked through any walls, or defenses the Combine had set up.

It was a blood bath.

The Nightstars were earning a few scars, but every few seconds a new boom would echo through the valley, as the Gauss were fired showing how little the assault mechs minded.

With each boom, another tank, another installation of infantry would fall. Aaron watched in amusement, as a new Turret popped up targeting the Gunslingers, firing a barrage of LRMs. Only for all of them to be chewed up by the Rhinos behind the Gunslingers. The tanks had AMS. No wonder they had been told to stay near the tanks.

"Damn." He couldn't help but mutter. As his LRMs joined the fray. Knocking a defensive turret into scrap that had popped up and was shooting at the Gunslingers from behind.

Is that Trick? He wondered suddenly seeing a mech hop over a wall and start shooting at the combine. A moment later he got his answer.

"Dammit Trick. I'm gonna put this shit on your record. Get back in formation!"

"Fuck no! I'm killing some snakes today!"

"Phoenix Hawk! Get your ass out of there!" The sudden voice of Gunslinger Hayha cut in, but even Aaron knew that Trick wasn't going to listen. The Phoenix Hawk Jumped blasting a vehicle with its ERPPC as it landed atop another.

"Dammit! You idiot they have the Starport trapped! You are jumping into a minefield!" The Gunslinger screamed again, causing Aarons heart to clench.

Tricks comm connection was off.

He had turned off his communicator.

Aaron watched, unable to do a damn thing as Trick continued charging leaping over the first walls the Combine had set up.

A moment later there was an explosion.

The Phoenix Hawk that had just jumped, was covered in smoke. But Aaron realized it wasn't standing anymore.

"Fuck." Oldman whispered, forgetting to mute his mic.

Yeah.

"14th. New orders. You will move to the target, to try and exfiltrate your boy. Gunslingers! Time to earn our pay!"

Aaron gaped as the entire Lance shifted, the four Assault mechs moving as one, seemed to completely forget their target was the Starport as each of them shifted towards the fallen mech.

"Well I'll be damned." Oldman showing his own lack of comm discipline muttered, before realizing he needed to move. "You heard him 14th! Time to move. Follow in, slow and steady!"

And they moved. Aaron felt sick as he saw the battle suddenly pick up. Because the Combine Infantry? They were hungry for a Mech kill.

The Infantry were charging out of trenches running up to the smokee covered Phoenix Hawk and Trick.

If they got to him, they would peel his cockpit open and rip him apart.

Aaron knew that. It was something that any pilot going against the Combine understood.

The stomping of his mech didn't seem fast enough. Even as he noticed Earl firing into the smoke with ERPPC fire blowing chunks out of the charging infantry they might not make it.

Sudden explosions peppered the Nightstars. The four mechs weathered the attack, and Aaron realized that the loss of the Phoenix Hawk had obviously put the Gunslingers in a bad position as they moved to help, and now Combine mechs that had been hiding were appearing to punish them.

Fuck.

They weren't going to make it in time to save Trick.

Even with the Gunslingers sending barrages of pulse lasers into the charging infantry it was obvious they would reach the downed mech.

So Aaron decided to do something stupid.

So stupid. He had only done this once before back in training with the Urbanmech.

Just once. It hadn't exactly gone well. But… Trick may be an asshole, but if even the Gunslingers were going to risk themselves, Aaron who wasn't nearly as important couldn't do less.

So he moved his foot over to the 'other' pedal. The one had made damn sure not to touch until now.

And he kicked it.

The Roar was unlike anything he had ever experienced before. The Urbanmech wasn't exactly known for the power in its jump jets.

But this was a Catapult. And it was more than capable. 120 meters jump distance. It let Aaron leap over the wall. Right into the same minefield that had wiped out Trick.

But Aaron was pretty sure all the mines around Trick had been set off. So that is where he aimed.

Well tried to aim. He was off a bit tilting too much to the right, but it was enough, he landed beside his downed comrade, and after a few seconds of his heart hammering in his throat, he realized he hadn't exploded.

So instead he switched his focus, and started a constant barrage of medium lasers against the infantry.

His sudden appearance, had done what was needed. The infantry went into shock, and seeing that the fallen mech was protected the Gunslingers could turn their full attention to the company of mechs that were firing on them.

If Aaron could do more than a glimpse or two of what was happening he would have, because a line of Nightstars reminding the Combine what heavy ranged firepower looked like would have filled him with awe, instead he was focused on…

Well it felt sort of like burning ants with a magnifying glass. If he was being honest with himself.

He had four Medium lasers on the front of his Catapult, and even with a few Combine mechs staggering him from time to time, he was able to lay down a constant line with each of his lasers to ensure the infantry couldn't reach Trick.

With that done, his Lance, and the Tankers all turned their attention to the Combine.

The Combine that were shattered with the amount of fire hammering down on them.

In the end, Aaron was left panting. His armor red in places, but not a single man had made it to Trick.

He would still be alive in there. If battered.

The Nightstars ended up pushing into the Starport crushing the remains of the Combine resistance by pure might.

And Aaron got to put a little mark into the side of his cockpit. Just like his Grandpa had once done when he was a Tanker.

Put a mark for every battle you survive in. To remind yourself that every battle was a roll of the dice.

But damn if he didn't feel like a mechwarrior now.

—--

A different perspective

Hanna Hayha

Hanna sighed. What a massive fuckup. It was over now. The ISDF had their foothold. And the Combine were readying their big guys to try and stop them.

Of course Artillery was going to be a massive force in the next few battles.

Battles she would have to be careful in. Her Nightstar was yellow, or orange level armor across multiple angles.

But she didn't blame the kid. This was her fuckup as the Commander. As Vicky liked to say, 'If you are in charge and someone does something stupid. You are still at fault.'

Hanna was so used to being listened to by everyone, she hadn't put enough effort in getting the Irregular group she had taken with on her side.

So one of the kids got hot headed and wanted to charge in, not realizing that Hanna was well aware of the Mine field. Had purposefully not stepped into it. It was obvious the Combine had set a trap, as they often do by using Tanks and infantry to draw in mechs.

She imagined the enemy leaders plan. Lay a minefield inside their own defenses, draw in the mechs, when the mechs first get fucked over by an active minefield, your mech forces appear from their hiding places and hammer into the damaged mechs.

It was a good plan. Hanna's was better. Or at least she thought it was. But she had made a mistake, she hadn't considered the trust factor. If she had spent a few moments explaining that they had intel on the Minefield, this never would have happened.

She stepped into the med bay. The kid inside was banged up, but he would live. Although his Phoenix Hawk was in trouble. Both legs blasted to bits.

"G-Gunslinger!" He chocked out when he noticed her enter. A failed salute because the poor kid had a broken arm.

"At ease." She ordered stomping in. She wasn't as good at this sort of thing as Benny, and she didn't have that mysterious bimbo power Vicky had. She was usually the enforcer to Bennys lead. Not the lead herself.

But this was her fuckup.

"Gunslinger Hayha… I am sorry. Th-"

"They call you Trick Right?" She interrupted taking a seat.

"Ah… Yes."

"Alright Trick. Let me lay it out. You fucked up, but I fucked up worse. I knew about the Minefield. The plan was to wipe out the Combines defenses while their mechs hid away waiting for their opportunity that wasn't gonna come. The 14th Irregulars, were meant to be fire support, so I never considered and of you would even come close to the Minefield so I never bothered to give you a warning."

"I went against orders… I lost my mech."

"Yeah. That was fuckin stupid." She agreed. It was after all. "But the fuck up wasn't just yours. I'm not used to working with Irregulars. Not used to working with people that don't know that when you get an order you fuckin do it, because your lead may know something…" She shook her head. It was kinda hard to explain that the ISDF just… didn't fall into traps.

The kid looked unsure of what to say. Even Hanna didn't know so fuck it. She reached out, and despite the fact that guy was probably about the same age she ran patted his shoulder, a little awkwardly. "When you recover we will put you in something. Next time just follow orders, or request from your Lance lead a new order. We are pretty good about accepting good ideas from our underlings. Till then rest up."

"W-what?"

Hanna ignored his question. If he wanted answers his lead would take care of that. She was done doing the inspirational leader thing. She was sorta bad at it. No she wanted to get back in her Nightstar and stomp some more snakes.

Yeah. That sounded like fun.

—-

A different perspective

Aaron McOwens

"Here kid. Drink up." Oldman offered as he settled in around the fire. They were up in the mountains. It had been a few days since the Starport, but the battles had started blending together. If not for his markings in his cockpit, Aaron might have actually forgotten just how many fights he had been in.

"Thanks Oldman." He takes the beer. Courtesy of the ISDF and takes a sip. It was weak stuff. And not enough was passed out to get anyone drunk. But it definitely raised morale when the ISDF officer had pulled out the cooler full of beers and passed them around.

They weren't the only Lance gathered up together here. Apparently it was SOP for the Lance, sized groupings to gather together during their stops to help increase their protection.

Although Aaron had heard Oldman say it was also for morale. Aaron looked over the other four Lances that had met up with them. Two were irregulars like him, one was actual ISDF.

And damn if he wasn't in awe about all the stories being passed around. Battles that should have left them with heavy losses. The sort of knock down drag out fights that ended merc regiments instead leaving the Combine mechs smoking as the ISDF walked over them.

And it was happening everywhere. A little voice in your ear telling you where the enemy is. That they were about to ambush you. That everything was going to be okay.

There were losses of course. Aaron looked over to where Tricks mech would have been in their Lance. But with superior equipment, came better chances to survive. There had only been a few actual deaths even among the irregulars.

Even the hardened mercs like Oldman had to admit that the ISDF weren't just throwing them to the Snakes.

This was starting to become more than that. And the Irregulars were noticing.

The ISDF guys, the real ISDF guys in their shiny armor. Were actually pretty terrifying. The ones he had talked to would laugh at his question but answer him, telling him they were only 'regular' pilots.

Then they would slog into the nastiest fights, with brutal overwhelming efficiency. It wasn't that each one was the best, but they worked as a team. Half the time every member in a Lance would focus one snake at a time.

And since they had Lostech, usually that first barrage was all that was needed.

But it was more than that. I mean, everyone tried to fire at the same mech to take it out. But Aaron had seen a few battles now. And it was like… The ISDF guys didn't care about the glory.

Yeah Aaron decided as he sipped his beer. That was probably about right. Curious, he stood up from the fire. Wandering over to the section of the camp that had the ISDF mechs. The four mechwarriors were gathered around a fire just like the rest of the camp.

But they still wore their shiny armor. None of them made any move to take it off as they rested. He wandered over. Not sure of the 'rules' on talking to them. But every time he had fought with ISDF guys, well actual ISDF not irregulars, they had been pretty nice.

Even their 'elites' had been pretty pleasant. Gunslinger Hayha had mentioned after their taking of the Starport she was putting in a commendation for him.

Apparently his rescue of Trick had worked out for him.

"Hey! Sorry we don't have any more beers to pass out!" One of the Mechwarriors called out a little tiredly as Aaron walked up. But he just waved his own.

"I'm good thank you. I wouldn't want to get drunk."

"Hah! See see! I told you they know what they are doing! These are all mercs they aren't going to be stupid and get drunk in the middle of a battle!" One of the men said as he kicked at anothers foot only to get a look in return.

"Not everyone has their head on straight." He said before turning to Aaron. "So what's up? Need something?"

"Ah. I was just curious about a few things?"

"Ahhh. That is something I understand, C'mon take a seat. Ask your questions. Benny told us to be open about stuff."

"Thanks. Umm, so I guess, you guys don't fight like mercs. I noticed it earlier. I mean Oldman mentioned it while we watched you take out that tank company earlier."

"Ah. Yeah I know exactly what you mean. You expected some Immortal Warrior shit right? A single mech against an army of tanks and smashing them until our mech was half destroyed but the enemy are smoldering wrecks?" He laughed tapping the woman that had been sitting with them, but hadn't said anything yet.

"Oh fuck off! Just because I was in that movie!" She growled throwing an armored punch that looks like it would have hurt, but it didn't do much against their armor.

"And you tried to solo that Lance…"

"The guy in the 10th were asking for it! They should know not to fuck with the ISDF… But yeah Benny was piiiiisssed."

"You were in the Phantoms of the SLDF?" Aaron couldn't help but ask a little surprised. His question earned him a heavy laugh from the whole group.

"We all were!" They cheered raising their hands to fist bump. "We are old timers. We got pulled by Vicky to go with on her movie adventure."

"It was pretty fun. The food was great, and the beautiful women!" Crowed one of the guys before sighing dreamily.

"She just gave you an autograph. She wasn't in love with you."

"A man can dream!"

"Wow. I've never met movie stars before." Aaron admitted earning more laughs

"Oh we aren't. At all. We were extras, maybe a bit of glorified extra. But thats it. I mean only Rebecca actually had a line. I was just told to stand and look proud."

"Oh yeah. Ehhemm. 'We may be phantoms, but even so we stand!' Oh man that takes me back." She laughed after saying her line.

Vaguely Aaron actually did remember that scene. Huh.

"But anyway. You were asking about our tactics right? Yeah listen first thing ISDF doctrine teaches is that heroes die. Like literally the first like six engagements they put you in simulator and VR, is you up against a ton of forces. You have two options fight slowly and carefully with your VR team. Or try and act like the Immortal Warrior. Guess how many people pass the first six tests?"

"Probably not many?"

"None." Rebecca intrudes looking proud. "Not a single one! After those six tests you get a sit down with Benny, err Sub-Commander Rommel himself. And he tells you, you are one test away from flunking completely from the mech program."

"Ugh. He looks so sad about it to. Like we kicked a puppy!"

"Yeah it's hilarious.. I mean after. It's funny now. But then? Oh god I felt like I was gonna die!"

"Especially for us older kids. I mean we had already been pulled into a few things here and there. But this was huge. Anyway. So we get told this. And then Benny spends a few minutes going over your fuck ups."

"Tears you apart."

"And he explains that every one of the tests they have given are completely beatable. Then he takes you down to the VR stations right?. And he puts you in one. And himself in another. You get to sidealong with him as he fights the mission. The hardest one."

"And of course he shows us all up. Benny plays the whole engagement safe. He fights completely with his allied units. Uses defenses. Falls back. At one point on mine he got over run a little and literally retreated."

"And he wins."

"Yep. It's eye opening because in the end not just his score, but his actual kill count tends to be higher than ours. Or close enough. Showed us that our gungho attitude was pointless in the end."

"Then he sticks you in a Lance, like ours."

"Yep. And all of us have to do the test."

"So of course we copy what Benny does, and that is how the ISDF teaches idiot mechwarriors how to be MechSoldiers!"

"Ugh we are not called that! It's still just Mechwarrior!"

"No way MechSoldiers is cooler! Vicky calls us soldiers not heroes so there. The Commander agrees with me."

Aaron watched as the four fell into an argument but his thoughts were stuck on his own engagements so far. He had basically been too afraid to do much. Especially after the craziness of saving Trick. But he could see how that would be massively better than even what his Lance does…

Huh.

—--970