BattleTech: The Prodigy
by Ulquiorra9000
A/N: In chapter 26, I made an error. Allison Skyllia is not part of Alpha Company (she leads Beta) but Zack and Chen are still part of Alpha Company.
Chapter 28: Pride Comes Before the Fall
Tundra, Vuori
Periphery
June 21, 3074
Cooling his Mad Cat back down wasn't an issue, but Lane knew that he'd still have to be careful when re-entering battle with the formidable pirate defense force. As he marched tensely with the rest of Beta and Delta companies, he reviewed his damage tracker: moderate damage on the torso and left arm, minor damage to the legs and most importantly, his right arm had been blown off. Now, only torn myomer fibers and wires dangled from the metallic stump.
Up ahead, Alpha Company's surviving 'mechs fought desperately against the pirates' advance forces. Medium 'mechs and tanks alike hammered Alpha while the other Lyran lances struggled to keep up. Although the pirates had fewer 'mech forces than the LAAF invasion force, the tank backup more than evened the odds.
Allison decided to turn that around.
"Focus fire on their armor assets," Allison ordered once her strike force burst back onto the scene. "Then the enemy 'mechs are vulnerable."
For a moment the pirates were taken by surprise; they didn't expect the Striking Tigers to reunite so soon. This bought them enough time to score a few volleys on the enemy Manticore and Drillson tank formations, ripping several tanks apart in blasts of flame while driving the rest back.
"Bloody brilliant!" howled Zack Mackenzie on the comm. Although his BattleMaster had scars and chunks of armor missing all over it, the assault 'mech pushed ahead and punished a Manticore's front armor with a searing PPC beam. The tank returned fire with an LRM cluster that pushed the BattleMaster back a few steps.
"I've got you covered," Chen assured him. His Black Knight braved the storm of enemy fire and further wounded the Manticore with a well-placed PPC shot. Desperate, the tank's PPC turret swiveled to face Chen's Black Knight and fired, tearing armor from the 'mech's chest.
"No, I've got him," Zack insisted. His 'mech spat out an LRM cluster that collided with the Manticore just as Chen fired a large laser at the very same target. The Manticore vanished in a brilliant fireball.
Lane stared at the explosion. Who nailed it? He wondered. For weeks Zack and Chen had been locked in a friendly but furious rivalry, and keeping track of kills was their main method of competing. Sure enough...
"My laser definitely struck first," Chen stated. "That gives me eight kills to your seven."
"Bollocks," Zack retorted. "I did the most damage and that makes it my kill. My eight to your seven."
Before either of them could continue, Allison interjected and clearly fought to keep the humor out of her voice. "Cut the radio chatter. We've got incoming hostiles."
Allison was right; Enslow's men had dealt some damage but now they were on the retreat. Another friendly LAAF lance was destroyed and now the pirates converged on the Striking Tigers battalion.
Feeling claustrophobic, Lane led his lance against the enemy force with bravado but at this rate, the Tigers would be driven off-world. 'Mechs and tanks on both sides crumpled in flames as lasers and missiles raced back and forth.
"Prodigy Three, back me up against that Thunderbolt," Lane ordered as the 65-ton 'mech advanced on him with two Drillsons for company. "Two, Four, take out his tank escorts."
Makoto's Cougar evaded laser fire from the two Drillsons and hurled two streaks of LRMs at the closer tank. The LRMs easily converged on their target and peppered it with explosions, but the tank took the damage in stride and released another large laser from its turret. This time, the red beam slashed a boiling trench in Makoto's Cougar and the small 'mech stumbled as armor melted away.
"Hang on, Two," Kyle growled. Although normally shy and soft-spoken in person, the elder Goyua sibling fought with just as much bravado and skill as anyone else in Prodigy lance. Kyle's Shadow Cat aimed its arm-mounted Gauss Rifle and spat out a nickel-ferrous slug that punched deep into the Drillson's missile-damaged armor plating. The medium tank rolled back toward the Thunderbolt for protection with smoke pouring from its armor.
While the other Drillson pounded Kyle's 'mech with LRMs, Lane focused on the Thunderbolt. Considered obsolete by some military forces, the heavy 'mech was popular enough with Periphery forces like the Triumvirate and Lane quickly found out why.
The Thunderbolt's large laser sliced into Jennifer's Uziel before Lane could fire a single weapon, and the Uziel stumbled as an internal component was hit. The detonation nearly threw the 'mech off its feet and Jennifer needed every bit of her piloting skills to evade further fire from nearby pirate forces.
Now Lane tightened his fingers on his joysticks and pressed the fire buttons when he got a missile lock. Thirty LRMs roared from his missile pods, converging on the Thunderbolt's undamaged armor. The heavy 'mech took a few awkward steps back as its pilot fought the missiles' kinetic energy. A dark cloud of smoke obscured the Thunderbolt but when it cleared, the 'mech had recovered and was looking for payback.
Damn it! Lane shoved his joysticks to the side and his Mad Cat scampered away, but he was too slow. LRMs from the Thunderbolt's shoulder-mounted launch pod collided with Lane's left missile launcher, blasting through the battle-worn armor and setting off the internal ammo. Lane struggled against the explosions, forcing his Mad Cat to do a sort of drunken dance to keep itself upright. If he was knocked down, pirates would pounce on him like hyenas. I can't let that happen!
Meanwhile, Jennifer raced ahead and took up the Thunderbolt's attention with a daring charge. Her Uziel's left arm hammered the bigger 'mech with a sizzling ER PPC beam, then Jennifer closed into short range and followed up with two ER medium lasers from her right arm. Layers of armor glowed red-hot and slagged off the Thunderbolt's chest at the twin lasers' touch, but not even that finished off the big 'mech.
Due to the cold environment, the Thunderbolt's pilot was willing and able to push his machine to the limit. Medium lasers glowed from the 'mech's torso and Jennifer only barely got out of the way, using her Uziel's fast speed and nimble handling to escape the Thunderbolt's reticule. Jennifer's SRMs exploded against the bigger 'mech but that only made its pilot angrier.
Lane was tempted to call for Kyle and Makoto to help but they had their own issues. A Manticore had joined the two Drillsons and now the three tanks fought the Shadow Cat and Cougar for all they were worth. The five combatants scampered about and fired their weapons with complete abandon, fighting to outmaneuver each other and land enough lucky hits. Damage mounted on Makoto's and Kyle's 'mechs, but to their credit, neither Mechwarrior let that slow them down. The damaged Drillson from earlier succumbed to Makoto's large pulse lasers within a minute and the Manticore's LRM turret was blown off by Kyle's three ER medium lasers.
Meanwhile, Lane settled his crosshairs on the Thunderbolt's battle-scarred torso and unleashed his energy weapons. His left ER PPC vaporized sheets of armor plating from the Thunderbolt's chest and a second later, the ER medium laser cut deeper into the wound. By now, sparks and smoke leaked from the 65-ton 'mech's wounds but the pilot stubbornly fought on. The Thunderbolt's large laser sliced into Lane's left torso and melted away the last of the armor there. Warning lights went off in Lane's cockpit as critical systems were hit and his electronic systems became garbled and fuzzy.
"Bastard!" Lane swatted his hand on a red button to silence the alarms, then pulled his joysticks back and took a few steps backward. "Three, cover me!"
"On it." Jennifer pushed her wounded Uziel to its limit and did what Lane rarely ever saw: an alpha strike. Her ER PPC and medium lasers combined into a blue-green jet that cored the Thunderbolt like a spear. Then Jennifer's six SRMs roared into the Thunderbolt's exposed innards, blasting them apart with a bloom of flame. Finally, the Thunderbolt was overcome and it fell flat on its back like a statue.
"We've got you covered!" came a voice. Lane searched the snowy battlefield until he saw a welcome sight: Colonel Enslow's men and the other Lyran lances had converged into a single cavalry formation that shattered the pirate front lines from behind.
Caught between the cavalry force and the Striking Tigers, the pirates suddenly found themselves on the back foot. The rogue 'mechs and tanks slipped back as fast as they could, but casualties continued to mount.
Still, there was a reason for the general saying "fight like a pirate with his back to the wall." The bandit forces forced the Lyrans to pay deeply for their newfound advantage, and Prodigy lance suffered along with the others. Jennifer's PPC arm was blown off by a shower of lasers and Makoto's Cougar succumbed to a wave of LRMs.
"Prodigy Two!" Lane blurted in alarm. He couldn't tear his eyes from the sight of Makoto's crumbling Cougar. Luckily, though, Makoto had ejected in time and his ejection pod arced high into the sky. Then, it deployed a silvery parachute and drifted away to safety.
Elsewhere, after they took down a few Lyrans, the pirates completed their retreat. The Lyrans snapped off a few pot shots in the meantime, most of all Zack and Chen.
"Got him!" Zack cheered as his LRMs managed to catch a fleeing Drillson. The missiles tore the tank apart in a blossom of fire.
"So we're tied with eleven each," Chen commented. "Well fought, Mackenzie. I'll beat you next time."
"Next time, you'll be eating dust," Zack retorted. "Better brush up, Death Commando."
"Cut the chatter. Again," Allison intervened, but this time she let her amusement color her voice. "The pirate base is secure. We'll roll in the APC convoy and let the infantry and tech experts handle things from there. Secure a perimeter, Tigers."
Lane and the others kept a constant vigil as the specialists carried out their task, but luckily, no more pirate forces assailed the weary Lyrans. Six hours after they had landed on Vuori's tundra, the Lyrans secured the desired intel from the base, packed up, and left the ice world behind.
*o*o*o*o*
Headquarters, Moon TX-45
Periphery
July 1, 3074
"What do you mean, you guys won't help me?"
Xavier Rosseau bolted to his feet at the meeting room table, alarmed at the words of his fellow pirate lords. Around him, William's agents worked diligently at their computer stations, ignoring the rogue politics that were at play.
William adjusted the collar of his red silk robe. "We're stretched thin, Xavier," he said in a smooth tone that Xavier found irritating. "The losses at Vuori were catastrophic, and it saddens me that your militia has suffered so. But I have to look after my own interests first. I can't loan you my forces."
"Same for me," Shuran grunted. "The Lyran Alliance is pressing hard into the Virgo Federation. My bandit kingdom needs me." He shrugged his massive shoulders. "You lost the King of Hearts and his whole force back on Vuori. That sucks, but I'm tied down as it is. I can't help you."
Xavier breathed hard as he glared at the two older men. His hands balled into fists. This couldn't be right! William had promised endless wealth, power, and looting with the formation of the pirate Triumvirate. And now that aristocratic bastard wasn't going to keep his end of the bargain anymore?
"It seems that I have no more business with you," Xavier said at length.
"You intend to quit?" William raised his eyebrows.
"Yeah. I've had enough." Xavier kept his eyes fixed on William's. "I have to cut my losses and retreat deeper into the Periphery. One day I'll come back good as new, but not today. I'm taking the Queen of Diamonds and King of Spades with me, along with all their personnel and war material. It's over."
"You won't leave!" William thundered, all pretense lost. He gripped the edge of the table hard. "Xavier, you know too much. If your loyalty to me is lost, I don't know what you'll do. What if you sell out my secrets for profit? Hell..." He swallowed. "You could sell me out to House Steiner itself! I can't risk that."
"I'm staying right here, and for good reason," Shuran pointed out. "Too late to back out."
"No." Xavier whirled around to leave. "William, you got too greedy and my pirate empire paid the price. You've ruined me, and I don't want to see your face again."
"Then you won't," William called back as Xavier stormed out of the room. "Goodbye."
*o*o*o*o*
As he rounded up his men and headed for the base's landing pad, Xavier felt some of the anger bleeding out of him. It was risky leaving William's Triumvirate pact, but he had to set an example. No one could use Xavier and expect him to just accept it. No, he needed to rest and recuperate, just as he had told William earlier. He just had to retreat deep enough into the Periphery.
A single Leopard-class dropship sat idling on the landing pad, waiting for its master to board. Xavier had named it the Blackjack, not after the 'mech but the game. Just as the Blackjack's boarding ramp lowered itself, however, a few people emerged from the base's interior and Xavier stopped.
"You're Theodore Lombardi, aren't you?" Xavier asked when he saw the famed assassin standing there with four of his cronies.
"I am." The assassin wore his usual getup: black trenchcoat with a red shirt underneath. His dull gray eyes were ice-cold as he drew a needle pistol and aimed it at Xavier's forehead. "You forgot about me. How sloppy. William brought me here to brief me on my next few assignments, and here's the first one: keeping William's secrets safe."
Xavier whipped out his own pistol. "Like hell!" he barked. "I'm boarding this dropship and you're going to let me go."
"No," Theodore argued. "You're finished, and your men will follow whatever leader can give them the most power and riches. Or I can coerce them, even."
Before anyone else could move a muscle, Theodore squeezed off one shot and the deadly needle tore right through Xavier's head. The pirate lord was dead long before before his bleeding body crumpled to the cold, hard landing pad. His pistol tumbled out of his hand.
"Do not board that dropship," Theodore calmly ordered Xavier's men as his own four cronies drew their own firearms. "As of now, you all work for William. With your help, we can hold the Lyrans back long enough to retreat deeper into the Periphery. Xavier needed to die, but not you."
A woman with shoulder-length blond hair clearly made up her mind "I'm the Queen of Diamonds," she introduced herself. "And I swear my loyalty and that if my men to William."
"Excellent," Theodore commented. "Go back to William with your men."
As the Queen of Diamonds and her agents walked back into the base's interior, a heavyset black man with short hair cleared his throat. "I am the King of Spades," he offered. "And I swear my loyalty and that of my men to William."
Theodore pointed to the door that he had come out of. "You know what to do. I'll tell the Blackjack's crew that they serve William now. We all have some work ahead of us."
*o*o*o*o*
William regretted Xavier's death, but damn it, the game-loving fool had brought it on himself. His pride had been his ruin, but then again, that event had revealed Xavier's true colors and William didn't want someone like that allied with him. Xavier had been the weakest link anyway.
Even more disturbingly, Xavier had been right. In his zeal to expand his power base and strip riches from the Lyran Alliance, William had gone too far and drawn the full wrath of House Steiner. No longer was William a hidden threat, but a public enemy. Pride comes before the fall, as the old saying went.
While Shuran coordinated his resources with his own men, William stared at charts of data and star maps, deep in thought. Even with the Queen of Diamonds and King of Spades on his side, William determined that he had to go on the defensive for now. The Striking Tigers had obtained useful data from Xavier's base on Vuori, and although the Triumvirate had compartmentalized its intel, the Tigers were getting closer to this moon.
It was clear what the Lyrans would do next. Two jumps away from here Shuran had a similar base on a tiny, airless moon orbiting a gas giant. The base's token navy had destroyed an even smaller Lyran strike fleet, but the Lyrans would be back. By now, they'd divert resources from the Word of Blake front lines just long enough to destroy the Triumvirate.
Time to put all the chips on the table.
"Theodore," William said without looking at the other man.
"Yes?"
"The Lyrans will no doubt attempt a troop insertion mission to Shuran's outpost," William explained. "I want you and your men to slaughter anyone who sets foot in that base."
The assassin didn't smile but his voice carried a rare note of excitement. "With pleasure."
