Chapter 15

Kirkeøy Continent, Wotan

Tamar March, Lyran Commonwealth

June 2nd 3050

Star Colonel Diane Anu was glad she had used her right as commander of the operation to cut short the bidding. Her opponent knew her way around bidding. Re-listening to the recording made her realize just how much she had been giving up. The clever freebirth had been bargaining for the use of all the DropShips in Borealtown to be used as her transport. Not all that were needed, but all. Khan Elias Crichell was on the planet, and if she lost… it would be the end of her career as a frontline warrior. Regulated to Solahma duty, despite her Bloodname and rank. She ticked off what she was providing her enemy in the unlikely event of her defeat.

Safe passage for a priority target.

Safe passage for all the 'Mechs, vehicles, artillery, and infantry on this continent.

Safe passage for every Inner Sphere DropShip on the planet.

Five OmniMechs and five Elemental suits.

Two members of the Tech Caste who know our technology.

She had played the conversation again and saw how well she had been maneuvered. Now, she saw that she would be facing two OmniMechs, though one looked like some abomination out of a Science Caste's nightmares. That one would not be able to maneuver as well. The formidable power of the Timber Wolf did not require any specific range. It was deadly at all of them.

Her confidence was undeterred. She was designed to be the perfect warrior. Her lineage had been carefully crafted and selected. She had proven her genetics worthy and earned a Bloodname. She could not lose to this freebirth.

Challenges were sent and it was she who would face Katherine Steiner-Davion.

As it should be. The Jade Falcon does not seek lesser prey.

Her Summoner was equipped for a ranged battle, and in this valley, there was no cover to be had. Armed with an ER PPC, LB 10-X Autocannon, and an LRM-15, this loadout could do significant damage at range. Her opponent was piloting one of the energy-heavy variants of the Gargoyle. It had two ER PPCs, one large pulse laser, an ER medium laser, a medium pulse laser, and an ER small laser. The battle's outcome would come down to the accuracy of the MechWarrior.

The two 'Mechs closed, and Diane waited for the icon to flash golden-green, indicating that her ER PPC was in range. The enemy pilot struck first, and both ER PPCs shot out azure streaks, torching the torsos of her 'Mech. She quickly responded with her own ER PPC and scored a hit.

Even a two-meter greater distance and her particle projectile cannons would have fallen short of doing even moderate damage.

It frustrated her that 'first blood' had gone to the Spheroid. Her LRM-15s achieved target lock and swarmed across the distance at long-range. The enemy 'Mech ate up the ground at the fastest speed the Gargoyle could go, moving with uncanny grace.

The last time I saw a MechWarrior move so gracefully was when Khan Ulric Kerensky of the Wolves defeated and killed both Khans of the Ghost Bears in the Trial of Refusal.

Her flesh prickled with goosebumps as the Gargoyle ducked its torso down as if bowing in mid-run. The unorthodox move was nearly impossible to pull off at a full run, especially with an assault 'Mech's weight. Despite her foe's grace, she half-expected to see the 'Mech fall, face down to the ground. Instead, the missiles just peppered its body and she continued. Diane saw how two missiles that should have struck, had the 'Mech been properly upright, missed.

Who would take such a risk to prevent such paltry damage to their 'Mech?

As they continued to close, they exchanged large pulse laser fire, and Diane took savage satisfaction in seeing her opponent's armor bleed down the 'Mech's leg. Her own 'Mech took damage across its center. Getting into close range quickly would not serve her, so shifted to moving her 'Mech perpendicular to Katherine's advance. The target for her autocannon flashed in range, and she sent the depleted uranium rounds into the Gargoyle's arm.

Diane briefly glanced at one of the other duels and saw the Ice Ferret stripping away her opponent's armor with ease. Only minor damage marred the OmniMech in return. She did not have time to take in the full battle, but it appeared as if the Spheroids were adhering to Zellbrigen.

As her weapons began to cycle back online, her opponent struck with only one ER PPC, tearing apart more armor at the center of her 'Mech.

The freebirth fears to let her 'Mech get too hot. A more talented warrior would know sometimes it is worth it.

Diane fired her own ER PPC, narrowly missing. Cursing, she waited for her LRMs to cycle back online and pressed the trigger upon hearing the confirmation lock. At the exact moment her missiles launched, another blaze of light seared into her 'Mech's torso, exploding several missiles as they left their launchers, setting off even more.

Stravag!

Warning indicators flashed as the Star Colonel realized that all the armor had been stripped from one of her torsos. Was it luck, or had her freebirth opponent perfectly timed the shot, calculating the moment since she had last fired her LRMs?

This cannot be happening!

At least one member of her Star was performing well, the enemy Shadow Hawk piloted had ejected and one of the Spheroid lighter 'Mechs had moved to engage the Ice Ferret. Both the Timber Wolf and the Hellbringer were still locked in combat and she had no time to learn more than that due her own struggles.

She rotated her 'Mech, presenting the less-damaged side, and fired her LB 10-X Autocannon. The rounds struck true, but the tough outer shell of the assault 'Mech remained unbreeched. The Gargoyle continued its advance, and the ER medium laser burned a line through the heart of her 'Mech.

They exchanged ER PPC shots, but her opponent again only fired one. Diane hesitated to fire her LRMs, but no secondary shot came. She pressed the firing button, and the LRMs raced out, scoring hits on the less-damaged side as the enemy Gargoyle twisted its torso, letting the less-damaged arm take the bulk of the hits. Now even closer, the large pulse laser was joined by the medium one, as well as the ER medium laser. All of them scored furrows of destruction throughout her 'Mech's internals.

Gyro hit!

Temporarily out of sync, her 'Mech began to teeter, so she fired her jump jets to keep herself from falling while the system compensated. Her jarring landing was difficult, but her superior piloting ability kept her 'Mech upright – only for the Gargoyle to continue its savage assault on her Summoner. Her 'Mech had been hollowed out, the arms and legs still almost pristine, yet an open cavity existed as a maw at the center of her 'Mech. It had taken a shockingly short amount of time. With one final weapons exchange, the freebirth finished her 'Mech by utterly destroying its center torso. As she ejected from her defeated 'Mech, she realized that her foe had not missed with a single shot.

She landed safely at a distance, the pall of mind-numbing defeat hanging over her like a physical shroud. The odds of her Command Star winning were now near zero, thought at least the enemy Shadow Hawk was down. Now, Katherine would use her only moderately damaged 80-ton 'Mech to utterly dominate. The only hope she saw was if the Hellbringer could bring down the Timber Wolf before it sustained too much damage.

This is no normal freebirth.

***

Kirkeøy Continent, Wotan

Tamar March, Lyran Commonwealth

June 2nd 3050

"Remember people, under no circumstances are you to fire on anyone you aren't dueling. Hail the enemy 'Mech in descending order of tonnage." The Princess ordered. "If things get hot, remember you can eject and it doesn't mean we'll lose. I want all of you alive by the end of this!"

Aiko flipped a switch on her comms display, setting it to a private channel.

"That goes for you too, Katherine." She told her Princess.

She was, Aiko knew, being too forward for someone in her position. She also knew that her job as an FCIS agent had literally been to become the Princess's friend and confidant. More to the point, Katherine expected this level of candor from Aiko. She needed it from her, at least if anything was to get through the Princess's stubborn skull.

"Of course," Princess Katherine Steiner-Davion replied, as if it was obvious.

You are a genius, a hero, and a darling, Katherine, Aiko thought, running through the rest of her new mech's activation sequence. Flipping switches, tapping buttons, and adjusting controls to just the way she liked them. But you're not fooling me.

You'd bleed yourself dry on this rock for us if we'd let you.

It was almost enough to bring a scoff to her lips.

"If things get hot we can eject?" Aiko repeated as she put in the last commands.

Most importantly, she disabled the auto eject system.

"I'm afraid I'm going to have to disappoint you, Princess." Aiko wore a grim and eager smile. "If these invaders want to claim our silver star, they'll have to pay the price in blood and steel. One way or another."

Around her, the cockpit of the salvaged Mad Cat rumbled to life in agreement.

It didn't take long to follow the Princess to the valley where she'd arranged the battle to take place. Watching the Jade Falcon dropship cruise in unmolested didn't sit right with Aiko, her finely tuned instincts yearned to act with an enemy on the horizon. Yet, iron discipline had ever been her most reliable ally. She was to be the Princess's trusted ally, her "friend".

Aiko would make a poor friend for the Princess if she allowed frayed nerves to get the better of her now.

The comms panel lit up with a request from the Kommandant, and Aiko promptly opened it. "Yes, Princess?"

There was soft breath, almost a sigh, but not quite. "...The Jade Falcon commander has dispatched their order of battle. You shall be engaging their Hellbringer first while I duel their Summoner."

"I understand, Princess," I nodded. "Although I believe I heard a report that your brother wanted to call it a 'Loki'?"

"He…" This time Aiko was sure she heard the Princess sigh, "...Of course he did. The only thing faster than the HPG network, the Rumor Mill."

"Princess?" Aiko wasn't used to hearing Katherine joke around much. Not unless it was incredibly morbid, which…

…Given the current context, I suppose that does track.

"It's nothing," The Princess immediately dismissed it. "Just focus on the task at hand. From what reports I've heard, this 'Loki' is exceptionally well armed, even by Clan standards. If it has any weakness, it is that it is not armored to the same insane degree as its fellow Clan mechs."

"So merely as well armored as any half decent heavy mech built in the Inner Sphere, then?" Aiko replied.

"So the reports say…" Katherine said, her voice thick with doubt. "Nonetheless, much rests on the shoulders of our victory here today, Aiko. I won't say anything inane as 'the entire Commonwealth hangs in the balance', but our efforts here could be vital for the war effort nonetheless. The possibility of getting not only intact clan technology, but the technicians who understand it…"

"I understand, Princess," Aiko nodded.

More than you know, She thought, with no small amount of dry humor. How quick you are to dismiss your own worth in the Federated Commonwealth, Princess. As if we would allow ourselves to lose you to the Clans so easily.

"Very well, Aiko," The Princess said, "Then I believe that's all there is to say. Good Hunting."

"Good Hunting, Princess." Aiko replied.

With that, the line went dead, and Aiko was alone once more. Only the refurbished Clan mech to keep her company. The hum of its powerplant. The booming thumps of each footstep. The whine of countless advanced pieces of machinery powering on and off in perfect synchronicity.

Well… nearly.

The legs still aren't as perfect as I'd like them to be, Aiko frowned as she forced the Mad Cat to walk its way up the lip of the Valley's incline. The patch job was impressive to do even this well, but it was still a patch job all the same.

Even now, the occasional step fought her controls. She could swear there was a faint grinding sound coming over the neurohelmet, along with an itch at the base of her spine that didn't really exist.

None of it was, on its own, an insurmountable obstacle, but they all added up.

And all when I can least afford it.

Aiko had seen how good these Clanners were. Regardless of how little respect she held for the invaders as a society, she had to respect their skill as mechwarriors, which was grudgingly impeccable.

She set her eyes on her opponent's mech in the distance. One heavy mech splitting off from the others and marching her way down the valley. Aiko zoomed in on the Hellbringer with a few taps on the joystick.

There you are… She thought, looking over her foe's loadout.

Two main cannons in the form of a pair of ER PPCs in the arms, a trio of lasers peeking out from the left torso, along with a six pack of SRMs mounted above the right shoulder completed the main weapon systems. The Hellbringer also sported a few other tools, some anti infantry gear, machine guns, an anti-missile system, and…

A full electronic warfare suite, Aiko frowned, noting how her Mad Cat's computer system tagged the Hellbringer with an ECM warning. If I was using a normal Mad Cat, that might be a problem, but this one…

Most of the "Timberwolves", as the Clanners had called them, tended to be loaded with a heavy armament of long range missiles and lasers. The one that the Princess had managed to recover was a different variant, one armed with loadout not too dissimilar from the Hellbringer itself.

Two ERPPCs, three medium pulse lasers, a Streak SRM six, and an ER small laser. Aiko tallied her mech's weapon systems, fingers tapping along the safeties of all their triggers just to remind herself of their placements. It reminded her a lot of a Warhammer, a mech she certainly wasn't unfamiliar with. It helped shape her plan of attack, but on some level she was still flying blind.

I cannot say I truly know the enemy or myself. Hardly the most stable ground to fight on. She frowned, pushing her unfamiliar mech onward, inching ever closer. But, at the very least I can rely on one thing.

Resolve.

"You!" Came the transmission from the clan Hellbringer, "I am Ivanna of Clan Jade Falcon, piloting this lone Hellbringer! I hereby invoke the ritual of zellbrigen and challenge you to a duel of warriors!"

Aiko raised her brow at the odd formality of it. It almost seemed like the more fanciful stories from Japanese and Combine tradition that Katherine was so interested in, but taken to a ludicrous extent.

Still, the Princess thinks we can make use of these, so…

"I am Aiko of the Federated Commonwealth, in the Princess's service of the NAIS training Battalion, piloting this lone Mad Cat." Aiko repeated without passion, "I hereby invoke the ritual of zellbrigen and accept this duel."

"Tch, barbaric, as expected of a spheroid freebirth, but it will do," Ivana practically spat. "In this solemn matter, let no one interfere!"

Then, without another warning, she crossed into range. The instant the crosshairs of her ERPPCs flipped red, a flash of lightning filled the valley floor.

Thunder slammed into her armor with a cacophonous Boom!

The entire frame rattled under the impact, like it'd been struck by the hand of God himself. A single glance at her armor readout reassured her that she wasn't in danger of any immediate breaches, but that one hit alone reaffirmed her assertion that these Clan particle cannons hit much harder than any found in the Inner Sphere.

Nearly two kilometers out and she's already peeling me open. Aiko scowled

"Still," She grunted as she lined up a shot of her own, "That was to be expected…"

The Falcon Hellbringer was moving quickly along the valley floor, eating up the distance between them faster than most heavy mechs in the Inner Sphere. That was part of the problem with dealing with these Clanners. By moving faster, hitting harder, and hitting further, they could choose when and how to fight, and win the fights they wanted.

"But…" Aiko thought, an idea coming to mind.

She pulled her Mad Cat to a stop, giving her the most stable firing platform to take her shot. The Hellbringer was weaving through the grassy hills with skill, doing its best not to give her an easy target.

But she had trained under the Princess, and Katherine was nothing if not exacting in her standards.

Aiko pulled the first trigger.

Boom!

A single blast of lighting lanced out.

The Hellbringer was already stutter stepping backward-

Boom!

Right into her second shot.

The PPC impacts washed over the Hellbringer's torso armor, bathing it in clouds of plasma and molten armor.

The Hellbringer's reply was immediate. Two more particle beams lit up the valley, and crashed into Aiko's arm.

She clicked her tongue, not liking the way the armor layer had already slipped into the yellow.

But in a way, it only aids my plan.

So with that impact, she pushed back on the pedals, and retreated. Her Mad Cat took one shaky step back after another, climbing back over the hill she'd just come from, even as she lined up another shot.

And if I'm lucky… Aiko thought, pulling the crosshairs over the marching form of the Hellbringer, and pulled the trigger.

Twin lances of light speared out from the arms of her mech, thunder cracks echoing down the valley as they slammed into the Hellbringer's central chassis again.

A moment later, the Hellbringer's march turned into a sprint.

They'll take the bait, Aiko grinned.

She knew that she'd never outrun the Clan mech with her mangled legs, but if she could get them to chase her by feigning a retreat, then she could get the Clan warrior to do the hard work of closing the distance for her.

For a while, the two traded shots in that valley.

Volleys of artificially lighting batted back and forth.

Thunder echoed through the valley walls, louder and louder.

Boom

Boom

Boom

Boom

Her Mad Cat's armor wore thinner and thinner with every step. It's salvaged legs getting weaker and weaker, the whine in the joints getting louder and louder. Yet further she pushed it. Further she pushed her feigned retreat. And further the Jade Falcon MechWarrior chased her.

Soon her ER medium lasers entered range at nearly a kilometer out, before any of Aiko's secondary weapons could engage.

Aiko grit her teeth as the damage poured in. Emerald beams matching the lances of lighting started to tear into every last ton of protection her recovered mech could grant her.

Not yet, She thought, keeping an eye on the indicator for the rest of her weapons, crosshairs still sitting in the blue, outside what the battle computer calculated for their engagement range. Soon…

She took another step back, and something snapped.

An indicator on her panel flashed red.

A barrage of missiles slammed into her leg.

There was a horrendous sound of metal shrieking, armor and steel wrenched out of shape.

A faint pain stabbed into the back of her skull through the neurohelmet as the Mad Cat seemed to drop out from under her.

Aiko forced her eyes open, forced her mech to its feet despite the pain. When she checked her status screen, she couldn't help but grimace at the results.

"As if I wasn't already hobbled enough," Aiko scowled, looking at her mech's missing leg.

But, there was good news.

She was in range of the rest of her arsenal now.

With that, Aiko pushed her feet into the pedals, urging her injured mech forward. Out of its limping retreat, out of its feigned weakness. Crippled she may be, now it was time to go on the attack.

Aiko flipped the safety on her missile and launched a salvo of SRMs at the Hellbringer's head. Six short range missiles burst out of their pod over her right shoulder. The clanner's anti-missile system shot down two in flight, but the rest still detonated across the upper torso in a chain of explosion.

The clanner replied by firing her medium lasers, searing beams lashing out across her own ERPPCs.

Aiko mashed the buttons on her own lasers, a strobing fulsade of emerald and red light searing into the Hellbringer's central chest.

The Jade Falcon fired her PPCs, thunderblasts of charged particles smashing into her wounded arms.

Aiko pushed her mech forward, ignoring the climbing heat of the cockpit, and pulled the triggers on her own particle cannons, sending blinding spears of light into the enemy's chest.

"Fall, damn you," She cursed.

With every shot, she drove her mech to limp closer. Either unaware or uncaring of the danger, the Falcon warrior seemed happy to oblige.

Closer they marched, sending volleys of death into each other with every press of the trigger. Aiko tried to cycle her shots, tried to give the heatsinks in her mech time to breathe. Clan technology was an incredible thing, and she knew that any other mech she had piloted would have long overheated and shut down at this point, but even this Mad Cat had its limits. Firing barrage after barrage of ERPPCs, medium pulse lasers, and SRMs was taking its toll, and even with her cooling vest Aiko felt the sweat dripping off her form.

Another blast slammed into her. Ripping into the thinnest part of her armor. Then-

Metal shrieked, her mech howled, another spike of pain stabbed into her head.

Thoom!

The left arm of her mech fell to the ground, severed at the elbow by a lance of lighting. Aiko forced her limping mech back under control as over a dozen tons was ripped off its form in an instant.

Her foe barely had a moment to enjoy the triumph when her return salvo finally gutted the Hellbringer's right torso. An explosion ripped out of the right half of the mech, and for a moment Aiko thought she'd finally ended it with an ammo detonation.

Instead, it just kept walking. Just kept shooting.

Aiko narrowed her gaze, and fired back.

For every shot, the clanner had a reply. Her every weapon a mirror in the clanner's own arsenal, one the Falcon warrior was more familiar with. In a mech she was more familiar with, she might have had a different secret weapon in store, but now? The Falcon Warrior likely knew more about the mech she was piloting than Aiko did herself.

So Aiko had to push on, with indomitable resolve.

For the Princess.

Until a wave of emerald light consumed her vision.

Aiko blinked.

She coughed.

Gagged on something.

Is that blood?

The first thing she felt was pain. Then there was the scent of smoke. Its stench, overwhelming her senses. The taste of copper filling her mouth. She blinked again, wiping her eyes and coughing her lungs clear.

Aiko forced her eyes open, used every scrap of her training and resolve to force awareness and alertness through the haze and pain that hung over her.

What happened?

She looked up.

Up, and out.

And out.

Out through the hole in the cockpit.

Out to where the enemy Hellbringer was standing.

Aiko stomped down on a spike of panic, forcing herself to check her situation in an instant.

She'd taken a shot to the cockpit. One that had rendered her mech in critical condition, but it hadn't technically killed it.

Her head was singing with agony, burning almost as brightly as the cockpit around her, but she ignored it. Nearly every readout on her Mad Cat was an angry red, barely anything was still functional, but she ignored it. Her body ached, she could tell something was broken, and she knew for a fact the only reason her mech hadn't ejected her out of this walking scrap heap already was because she had disabled the auto eject, but she ignored that too.

Because Aiko knew her Princess was counting on her to defeat her enemy, the enemy was still standing before her, and neither Aiko nor her mech was quite dead yet.

And… Aiko thought, eyes narrowed at the Falcon Hellbringer as it turned towards the other fights, she thinks our duel is over.

She thinks I'm dead.

For that, Aiko let out a bitter laugh and took up the joysticks of her mech once more.

"Fool."

She pulled the triggers, and let loose with everything she had left.

The valley lit up with a storm of violence once more. Thunder and lightning, missiles and lasers, shrieking steel and howling armor.

Then, in an instant, it was over.

Her Mad Cat hit its emergency shut down after her final alpha strike had overwhelmed its remaining heat sinks.

And looking out the window to the enemy Hellbringer, Aiko could see it was still standing.

But…through its torso, was a hole.

And Aiko could see the scorched grass of the valley on the other side.

With that, Aiko allowed herself a bloodied grin.

***

Kirkeøy Continent, Wotan

Tamar March, Lyran Commonwealth

June 2nd 3050

I was elated by my performance against the enemy Summoner, or, as others were calling it, a Thor. I couldn't be sure my trick with the ER PPC would work, but judging by the high skill of my opponent, I thought it likely she would let loose as soon as her LRMs were ready to fire. Even if it had not worked, the result would have remained the same, but now I had more armor than I otherwise would have.

I looked at the rest of the fight in closer detail. I was the second one finished. Unfortunately, the first kill had gone to the Jade Falcons. Hauptmann Able Daniels who had been piloting the Shadow Hawk had ejected. Fortunately, it looked as if his ejection seat was well away from the 'Mechs. I have stepped in if I had been available, but since I had still been concluding the duel, it was the second Wolfhound we had brought that stepped up to fight the Ice Ferret.

Aiko was holding her own, but it was proving to be a very close battle. Gregory was putting on a strong performance despite the technological advantage of his opponent. The Centurion was looking worse for wear as the MechWarrior was having difficultly hitting the faster Clan opponent. After another nasty hit where the Centurion failed to do much, I opened the comm link and told Hope to eject. She did so and I turned my 'Mech to the enemy.

"I am Katherine Steiner-Davion, are you ready?"

The other 'Mech acknowledged but did not speak and instead fired their ER large laser and their autocannon. Both scored hits on me, but my response was emphatic. The sheer power of two ER PPCs was devastating to such a small 'Mech. Especially when considering the damage, no matter how light, that the Centurion had inflicted upon it. That was enough to put it down, and I turned to watch the other battles.

Gregory's skill impressed me quite a bit, his lasers were carving up his opponent and the way he moved with his 'Mech showcased the long hours we had spent training together. His Wolfhound had taken some hits, but he was gamely soldiering on and making sure his lasers struck with near perfect accuracy.

To my surprise it was the Ice Ferret who finished their battle again. The Wolfhound pilot, Lana Doyle, from my original Command Company, had taken a couple of shots from the Ice Ferret's ER PPC to the center torso, and the engine had suffered critical damage. I queued the comms again and repeated my challenge.

"I am Katherine Steiner-Davion, are you ready?"

Her opponent's 'Mech had taken a good amount of damage, considering she had already faced two other opponents that was expected. It looked as if she had all her weapon systems still operational, but that would not matter. The damaged Ice Ferret accelerated and began moving toward its top speed.

"I am MechWarrior Dana of the 5th Battle Cluster. Yes, I am ready. Freebirth."

I fired both ER PPCs into her already mangled right torso, obliterating it as she raced her 'Mech across the valley at speeds over 120 kilometers per hour. With half the 'Mech falling apart, the speedy machine basically flopped backward, but such was its momentum that it essentially performed some sort of half-summersault and mid-air twist causing its head smashed into the earth with killing force.

I turned my 'Mech back toward the remaining battles and waited to see what would happen next.

Gregory had closed to short range, and his well-practiced accuracy was a sight to behold. Despite his agile opponent's quick, darting movements, Gregory was tearing it apart with his lasers. His own 'Mech had taken a beating, but once his Kit Fox opponent's left arm was torn away – along with two different types of lasers – his victory was all but certain.

I felt a momentary pang of panic as I saw Aiko take a nasty shot to the cockpit, but she was able to fire one last blistering salvo, a full-on Alpha Strike, to completely core the opposing Hellbringer. My worry remained high as her 'Mech went into emergency shutdown from heat, but she was able to answer my hail few moments later and confirm that she was alive.

I kept my buoyant emotions in check – I was operating on a lot of assumptions. I believed I had understood everything correctly, and the Falcons seemed to be playing ball, but I remained wary of treachery.

Fortunately, I worried over nothing. Not only was I able to take possession of the five 'Mechs and five Elemental suits provided, but I was also allowed to salvage the broken remains of the Command Star that had fought me. I doubted we could do much with them, but they would be an invaluable source of spare parts for the pristine OmniMechs we had just earned. The Clan armor provided more protection than even our best Inner Sphere ferro-fibrous, getting more of that armor to replace the armor Aiko and I lost in this fight was also a big deal for the longevity of our 'Mechs.

If I found myself stuck on the frontlines again, I would look to repeat this exercise, but with even more Clan technology. I was certain word would get out that we had turned their own 'Mechs against them, so we would probably face even odds or even unfavorable ones. However, Aiko and Gregory were impressive and would help lead us to victory.

If they allow such a thing again… their perspective is difficult to understand, but in the end, they are still human. It would not surprise me if this sort of material gain at such a small scale never happens again.

As promised, they allowed the DropShips to travel to my location at the 'Mech facility. Despite needing to carry an extra regiment of infantry and another battalion of armor, there was still ample room.

The two members of the Tech Caste would need to be kept close at hand. Ainsworth was naturally suspicious, but I could not have these two talking with anyone outside of very close, trusted members of my inner circle. The reason for that was simple: in Clan society, these people were essentially slaves. It was disgusting how the lower castes had next to zero rights, and only the abhorrence of waste kept them relatively safe.

I needed to make use of them, so I justified – if only to myself – that they were my prisoners and I was making them do labor as part of their incarceration, with the intention of eventually granting them their freedom. For now, this was another source of information, and I was going to let Nick Westfield learn all he could from them about the 'Mechs. A Tech Caste member may not have been a scientist, but their hands-on experience with Clan technology would be invaluable. I also wanted to see if their views and thoughts on Clan society differed from their position within it. At the very least, it would give me something to do as our DropShips voyaged to our JumpShip armada.

***

Borealtown, Wotan

Tamar March, Lyran Commonwealth

June 4th 3050

Khan Elias Crichell of the Jade Falcons was displeased as he watched nearly two dozen DropShips lift off and head for the second major inhabited landmass of Wotan. Save for one battle, this world had been a resounding victory. The Wotan Tamar March Militia's defeat was more like an execution than a battle. Elias had chosen to oversee it personally, since it was likely the Spheroid commander would not honor a batchall. This meant he could parade one of the Galaxies and have a stunning victory without any foreseeable complications. This was important to wipe out the shame of Trell and Bone-Norman.

On Trell, his Falcons had failed to capture the heir of one of the Successor States. Worse still, losses had been higher than anticipated. Nearly a cluster of 'Mechs had been destroyed, and the freebirth resistance on the planet was still not contained.

The Malthus Bloodname is fast losing its status.

His own saKhan, Timur Malthus, had to call reinforcements in his assault on Bone-Norman. It was humiliating. Then, on Trell, Star Colonel Adler Malthus led the elite Falcon Guards and two additional Clusters and brought shame to the Falcons with their ineptitude.

And now this. Star Colonel Daine Anu had not only failed in her task of securing the secondary objective, she had allowed another heir to escape. Of lesser value than the primary heir, true, or at least as far as Elias understood the backward ways of the Spheroids, but a failure nonetheless. How it had occurred was the worst part. A Cluster Command Star defeated by a Star and three Points of Inner Sphere 'Mechs? The bidding had placed eight 'Mechs against Anu's Star, but for once the barbarians practiced Zellbrigen, and two of the 'Mechs had not even been needed!

In honorable combat, elite Trueborn Jade Falcon warriors had been defeated. The final blow came when he had learned that Anu had not only promised safe passage as collateral, but also every DropShip on this world, as well as giving the enemy front-line 'Mechs and members of the Tech Caste! He was already making plans to minimize the loss of honor and restrict what was shared with the other Clans about this battle. Not honoring or attempting to circumvent the agreed-upon batchall terms would risk those efforts, or worse, open himself up to challenge from within his Clan.

This will not happen again. I will not allow any of my commanders to give such generous terms in the batchall.

He knew the Wolves had taken some losses and that the Smoke Jaguar had brought shame upon their Clan on the world of Turtle Bay. Clan Ghost Bear had struggled since the beginning and their slow crawl through their assigned invasion corridor was pathetic. The race to Terra was not yet lost.

We must slow to a crawl as well. We must call up Provisional Garrison Clusters to secure the worlds we have taken. Already, these barbarians launch raids upon worlds we have won. Resistance fighters harass our fighting arm, and it must stop. I will shorten the anemic list of worlds for the Third Wave, but all will see the Jade Falcon soar in the fourth.