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The next day while I was studying what I should produce from the obtained licenses as I didn't have the money for everything, they announced the arrival of Grayson, Lori together with a small train of vehicles.

I gave the order to bring them to my office while I closed for now the spreadsheets with the unsolved production problems.

From the looks of whoever came in besides Grayson and Lori, (if I was right, Davis McCall and Hassan Ali Khaled), the meeting would go well or they were all excellent actors.

My doubts were quickly set aside as the GDL was interested in the contract I had proposed them and after we cleared up some doubts and details on both sides, the contract to guard VMI and V4RU and train the Revenants was signed. The reason the four came was quite simple, it took four 'MechWarriors to take the 'Mechs that were the payment for the delivery of Helm datacore, which they brought with them on a truck. The only extra point they requested was to leave only a week later, in order to give Grayson and his troops some time to rest and the opportunity to do some recruitment. From what I heard and knew, Grayson was much better at recruiting new staff than I was, which was not a real surprise, lol. The other option was that he was less concerned with security measures than I was. Personally, I think his charisma and growing reputation were far superior to my money, but I'd better not worry too much about that.

The first time I connected to my copy of Helm datacore was a shock as even though it included about 250 exabytes of data, the information was all mixed up with no file list or index, a maze of the worst kind. WTF? was my first reaction. Then I remembered the theory proposed by Chris O'Farrell in my universe and supported by many BT fanatics that the problem was due to the fact that the system used an unknown file structure in these times.

Thanks to the fact that I was a computer technician in my previous life, not to say a 'geek', I took my notebook, on which I had downloaded all the file structures / databases formats that existed in the New Dallas datacore and praying quietly, I connected it to the Helm datacore. After a "long" waiting time– during which the phrase 'analyzing structure 'please wait' passed in small letters at the top of the notebook, suddenly everything changed to 'loading SLDF-EC 2740.R3C format' and access was finally obtained… in all its glory, in an easily accessible format, with a huge list of themes, with all the data well organized and structured. I couldn't contain myself, and in the silence of my office, at the top of VMI facilities in Galatea, I laughed profusely.

The day before we returned to the Concordat I saw on the news that Edward was going to be at the wedding of Hanse and Melissa, representing his father (and the Concordat). Apparently, the relations of the Concordat with the Federated Suns were improving.

Before embarking on the long journey back - about 5 months, brrr, I sent my instructions regarding what it was to produce.

Karnov VTOL, Lords Light PPC, Vlar 300 fusion engine and Vulcan heavy ASF, obviously modified to use equipment produced by VMI / Concordat.

There was no way to build a production line for the Marauder II, they were too expensive and the production numbers would be too low when compared to the rest of the hardware that was going to be put into service, even though the 'fame' of producing the first Assault 'Mech on the periphery was an idea I toyed with for a time.

Considering what I knew, I planned our route to avoid the conflict zones as much as possible, conflict that would escalate in the 4th​ Succession War in no time. Due to having planned the route correctly, even if it meant being underway for a little longer, we avoided being caught in the first waves of the invasion of the Capellan Confederation by the Suns in August, arriving in early November to New Vandenberg.

The report by Vasseur and Allais was interesting but in the bad sense of the word.

Allais' group had found one of Baumann's bases but before they intervened, a force of 'Mechs belonging to the notorious Bounty Hunter had appeared. Fortunately, Vasseur who was waiting for the call had a superior force and managed to defeat the group of mercenaries and to take control of the base. The hardware they found in it was intriguing to say the least, several weapons as advanced or more than the most modern of the Royal regiments, which included several ER Medium Lasers,weapons I knew never existed at that time and an unknown model of Assault 'Mech with a symbol that caused me shivers, a wolverine head with claw marks making a cross… The mark of the Wolverine Clan, the famous No-Named Clan. Oh, shit.

Having taken over Baumann's base and with him having ran away and taken a very low profile and with the Bounty Hunter gone to other areas, I was left with the hardware in my hands and a lot of unresolved issues…

Having taken advantage of the trip back to study a lot of information that was in the data core obtained by the GDL in Helm, I left some instructions in New Vandenberg, before going to meet with the Calderon family. Among the information I left were detailed instructions on how to build with absolute priority a production line for DHS, which included the information for the so far elusive crystalline matrix with the absolute maximum of confidentiality and security and fuck the price, I was sure that I would negotiate this with the Calderon before I got back. Having the control over most of the auctions had some advantages, mainly that it would be some time before the opposition took action and if I could get the Calderon to go along with me, I could say bye-bye opposition and hello extra funds.