Wherever the Universe Takes Me
by Ulquiorra9000
Chapter 24
Site Alpha, Vorarlberg
Free Rasalhague Republic
September 24th, 3051
The next few days of drilling cadets at Site Alpha proceeded... well, not unlike the first day. Try as he might, Chen found himself either pushing the cadets to insanity, or scaling back the training so much it did no good. This was nonsense. Whatever Kathy and Overste Bjekkon told him, Chen was sure that his own training experience was a fine foundation for forging soldiers and MechWarriors. If you couldn't take some punishment at training camp, what were you to do on the battlefield?
Without even being asked, Peter (back at the hotel room) ran a detailed analysis comparing training methods of the five Successor States, and major Periphery realms and even the FRR. What he found backed up Kathy's claims that Chen ought to use a slightly gentler hand.
I'm sure that you mean well, Peter added in his notes. But Chen, your views on soldier life and training are subjective. It is imperative that you yourself are open to some molding by exterior forces, not just your trainees. That is, even teachers learn.
Chen had read all this on his noteputer in his and Kathy's bunk room and grinned despite himself. That Peter sure was more confident when he didn't have to talk face to face! Fine, if the numbers showed it, Chen could switch gears. Maybe. Somehow.
Overste Bjekkon was more impatient.
"Sergeant Bliss, you take over soldier training and field drills," he had said earlier this morning. "Sergeant Yeung, you handle the live-fire BattleMech training sessions. Try not to kill my cadets, will you?"
And so, Chen found himself in the 'Mech hangar, feeling like he was being reborn as he changed into a cooling vest, shorts, and boots for 'Mech piloting. I couldn't ask for more!
The 'Mech assigned to him was an Orion, but something seemed... different... about it as Chen climbed the scaffolding and settled into the cockpit. This machine looked pretty newly built, unlike the patched-together rust buckets he saw during his own career. This wasn't a Succession War relic, was it? Didn't seem so.
Chen spoke the passcode the Overste had given him, and once he slid the power lever into place and flipped a few switches, the 75-tonner rumbled to life. According to this machine's HUD displays, Chen was piloting an ON1-M Orion, loaded with... whoa.
"Is this an LB-10X autocannon?" Chen asked on the general comm to the support staff.
"It sure is," came a woman's cheery voice. "You're piloting one of the KungsArme's first-ever 'Mechs to use it. Be honored, mercenary. Treat it well."
Not only did this monster have an LB-10X at its hip, but the LRM launcher was a 20-tube model rather than the usual 15-missile type. In addition to the standard SRM 4 and twin medium lasers, this Orion had a NARC missile launcher! This put anything Chen ever piloted to shame.
Once prompted, Chen gently pressed the pedal and allowed the Orion to lumber out of the bay and into the open training field. Damn, it felt so good to feel a hulking 'Mech walk underneath him, its footfalls reassuring and its creaking metal like music to Chen's ears. And this thing wasn't even battle-scarred or jury-rigged. It was fresh.
Chen switched over to the training comm channel. "This is Sergeant Yeung. Everyone into formation."
He was the last one to arrive; the other cadets were milling around in their machines, getting a feel for them. All of these 'Mechs were using low-power rounds and half-power lasers for safety's sake, Still it was remarkable that relatively green 'Mech pilots were allowed the real thing in between simpod sessions. Well, training in real 'Mechs did offer some advantages.
"You see those targets?" Chen asked. He used his Orion's right arm to gesture at a series of round targets down the range. "I'm marking point values on them all. Let's make a game of this, cadets. Whoever scores the highest gets to pilot that Awesome I saw in the hangar earlier."
Chen could already imagine the trainees salivating at the thought of piloting an impressive assault 'Mech like that. An Awesome! Who would pass that up? Even combat vets hesitated to take on such a monster in combat.
"Report in," Chen added, "and get ready to take positions. Four 'Mechs at a time, spaced one hundred meters apart."
First up was a cadet Chen recognized at once on the comm: Gregoro Gustafso, who piloted a Centurion. "I'm ready, sir," Gregoro said eagerly over the comm.
"Hey, me too," came another voice as a Griffin ambled into the second spot.
"Decorum, cadet," Chen told him.
"I'm sorry, sir. This is cadet Mikael Svennog, reporting in."
Meanwhile, a cadet named Tsuya Olaffsdottir took up the third spot in her Crab, and a trainee in a Whitworth occupied the fourth and final spot on the range.
"Have any of you fired live ammo from a BattleMech before?" Chen asked. "Doing this in person is not the same as the simpods, I should warn you."
"No, sir," Gregoro admitted. "But we are ready anytime."
Chen had no what idea to expect. Time to find out. "Ready... open fire."
All four 'Mechs let loose with their full arsenals, from the Griffin's PPC to the Centurion's LB-10X (more advanced weapons!) to the Crab's trademark twin large lasers and LRMs from the Whitworth's chest-mounted launchers.
One target was hit.
"I did it!" Mikael cried in glee. "Sir, look! How many points was that?"
Chen sighed and checked his readout. "Five points for that one, cadet. And you barely hit it. As for the rest of you, what just happened?"
"I'm... still getting used to this, sir," Gregoro admitted, waving around his Centurion's LB-10X cannon. "I won't miss again."
"I sure hope not," Chen commented darkly. "Aim carefully and wait for the right moment before firing. Having a big gun doesn't ever mean victory on the field. Do you understand?"
"Sir, yes sir!" Gregoro cried. "Preparing to fire again."
Chen kept his Orion steady, folding his arms as the four cadets took aim once again. And missed.
"Cadet Olaffsdottir," Chen said. "You are aiming low."
"Oh. Yes, sir," she responded.
"And so...?"
"Um..."
"Cadet, the Crab has heavy claw hands. That makes the machine aim low unless you compensate," Chen told her. "Hit that target, or so help me, you'll complete your training in a Savannah Master. The same goes for all of you! Fire!"
They unleashed a third volley. Marginally better results.
"Okay. That's another five points for cadet Svennog," Chen reported as Mikael's PPC vaporized a target into scattered embers. "And five for cadet Gustafso for that LB-10X hit. And..." He kept checking. "Ten for cadet Olaffdottir. Well done, hitting that target from 380 meters out."
"Thank you, sir," Tsuya said warmly.
Chen ambled forward. "Watch this." He set up his crosshairs on multiple targets, prepared his targeting solution, and squeezed both triggers.
The Orion recoiled as a cloud of twenty warheads raced from its launcher, and a target 600 meters out vanished in an earth-shuddering fireball. At the same time, LB-10X rounds tore into a second target, while the medium lasers evaporated a close target and the SRMs obliterated a fourth.
Chen got another surprise: his heat, which had spiked at once, was already coming back under control. Did this thing have double-strength heat sinks in it? The Orion was cooling off so fast.
This was a new era for sure.
"That would have been 45 points for me," Chen said calmly. Then he winced when the comm was flooded with cheers and excited babbling.
"That was incredible, sir!" Tsuya cried. "How did you do that? Four targets at once?"
"No wonder you were a Death Commando," Gregoro added.
Chen stepped back. "Now, try it again, cadets."
He gave the four-member team five more volleys until he demanded a cease-fire and added up the points.
"Cadet Svennog, you lead with 80 points," Chen reported. "You've got some aim there, kid."
"Thank you, sir," Mikael said. "I made sure seven was on my side for this."
"Seven?"
"This is 'Mech 0-77, and it's painted right here on the chest, sir." Mikael tapped the Griffin's chest with its left hand, drawing Chen's attention to the "0-77" stenciled there in black.
"Seven is his lucky number, sir," Gregoro explained. "It helps him focus."
"He's our best shooter, sir," Tsuya added.
Chen had more than a few opinions to share about that. He kept them to himself. "Next group, take position and prepare to fire on my mark."
It took another hour for all of the trainees to get all their shooting done, and everyone got more than a few chances to score some serious points. A few cadets truly struggled and ended up with 0 points, but Mikael ended up on top with 535 points, with Gregoro in second with 360 and Tsuya in third with 295.
Chen glanced at the 'Mech bay. "You lot got your ammo refilled, right?"
"Yes, sir, as you ordered," Gregoro said.
"Good." Chen stepped into the field's middle. He didn't care if he got yelled at for what came next; he had to see this. "Cadets Gustafso and Svennog, step forward, fifty meters apart. Yes, like that... stop."
Both parties were 500 meters apart, and Chen tagged the Centurion and Griffin on his screen. "How did it feel, shooting targets out there?"
"Felt good, sir," Mikael responded.
"How would you like to go again?"
"I would like that, sir," Gregoro put in.
"How about shooting at dummy tanks? Like a Manticore?"
"If you want, sir," Mikael said.
"How about me?"
There was a second of silence.
"You, sir?" Gregoro took a few heavy steps back in his Centurion.
"Yes, me. Targets don't shoot back, cadet! You learned some basic aim. But you're not going to see dummy targets on a real battlefield."
"Sir, this is -" Mikael started.
"Necessary," Chen cut in. "We're using low-power rounds and low-yield lasers. Avoiding hitting the cockpit, and there is no problem. Fight me, cadets, and show me what you can really do."
Chen could tell that the other cadets were eager to see this, and they crowded together at the training field's edge to get a good view.
The cadets fired first.
LB-X rounds erupted from the Centurion's right gun muzzle, and the flashes of light were brilliant on this cloudy, drizzly day. But the shots went wide, and underpowered rounds hissed through empty air. Chen got his Orion moving, and he was already settling his crosshairs on the Centurion.
Mikael took his shot, and the PPC beam rammed into Chen's right shoulder.
"Not bad," Chen muttered as the armor sensors reported simulated damage. But not good enough yet!
Chen released another LRM volley, and though the Centurion tried to evade them, all but three of the warheads collided with the machine, from its left shoulder to its left knee.
Oddly, Mikael didn't try to fire back; he was performing evasive maneuvers, clearly hoping that Chen would keep firing at only the Centurion.
Wrong. Chen punished the Griffin with LB-10X slugs, and the smaller 'Mech recoiled from the shot. But by now, Gregoro's Centurion had gotten its footing back, and now it was making a mad dash for Chen's Orion, its arms pumping.
Chen tapped into the comm. "What's this? You are approaching me alone?"
"I have to get closer to defeat you, sir. I have a dream! I can't realize it if I don't make my move."
"Then make it."
The Centurion slowed to a jog and spat out a handful of LRMs. Chen heard the Orion's missile alarm go off, and he shoved his joysticks hard to the right. But interestingly, the LRMs curved aggressively to follow him, and they exploded all over Chen's right side.
"Artemis IV FCS, sir," Gregoro explained. "Those missiles are tough to shake off."
Taking this chance, Gregoro aimed his LB-10X muzzle and fired. This time, half of his pellets struck home, chipping armor off the Orion's left thigh. Oh, this kid had some good instincts after all!
Chen decided that enough was enough. He fired his SRM 4 launcher, and a quartet of vicious warheads pounded the Centurion's chest. Chen followed up with both lasers and his LB-10X, and the Centurion's sensors were probably going crazy with all that damage at once. As the 'Mech flailed its arms to keep its balance, Chen fired the SRM launcher again. The four missiles overwhelmed the Centurion's balance, and the machine fell flat on its back.
"Mikael! Get him!" Gregoro cried.
Indeed, Mikael's Griffin was keeping its distance, and from afar, it fired both its LRM 10 and PPC. Too late; Chen slipped past both long-range attacks, then retorted with his LRMs. Mikael did his best to avoid them, but half of the missiles collided with his right side, and Chen followed up with LB-10X rounds that hammered the Griffin's right shoulder.
Chen tapped into the comm. "The Griffin's shoulder is a major weak point. Your LRM 10 launcher should be jammed, and good luck calibrating the PPC's aim."
"Sir! How did you know that?" Mikael cried. He fired his PPC, and indeed, the beam missed by a wide margin.
"I've been piloting 'Mechs since your parents were in high school. I picked up a few things." Chen positioned himself halfway between the two 'Mechs. "Shall we continue?"
"No, Sergeant Yeung," a new voice said. Chen saw a new 'Mech appear on his scanners, and he turned to see a charcoal-gray Atlas stomping toward him. "Stand down. That's more than enough live-fire training for today."
"I can keep going," Gregoro said earnestly as his Centurion shakily got to its feet.
"No. All MechWarriors, return to the hangar bay and dismount," the Atlas pilot said in his deep, stern voice. "Sergeant Yeung, I don't want to see any more impromptu dueling without the Overste's permission. Is that understood?"
Chen lowered his 'Mech's arms and began marching toward the 'Mech hangar with the cadets. "Perfectly."
Worth it.
*o*o*o*o*
Sure enough, Chen got another earful from Overste Bjekkon, who warned him that if he "abused and exploited" his temporary rank one more time, he'd be lucky to leave Vorarlberg with all of his bones intact. And by the sound of things, Kathy was doing things by the book with her trainees, but nothing impressive. Nothing to warrant earning an entire, fresh-off-the-assembly-line BattleMech.
What a headache.
Kathy retired early, but Chen lingered in the officer's mess hall rather late until he finally made his way toward his and Kathy's shared bunk. He was already mentally formulating his responses to Kathy's predicted teasing, and he couldn't help a grin. Kathy knew him better than anyone currently alive, for good or ill
"S-Sergeant Yeung!"
Chen stopped and beheld cadet Tsuya Olaffsdottir catching up to him, still in her dark blue fatigues. She made a quick salute.
"Is there a problem, cadet?" Chen asked her. "You'd probably get better results from the senior staff on base."
Tsuya shook her head. "No, sir, it's not that. I wanted... well, I wanted to thank you."
Chen raised his eyebrows. "For what? As far as the Overste is concerned, I'm a bull in a china shop here."
Tsuya's lips curled in a faint smile. "Here in Rasalhague space, we have a version of that phrase that's more crude and accurate."
"Do you?"
"Yeah. How good is your Swedenese?"
Chen made a helpless gesture. "I speak Mandarin, English, and Russian, but I don't know a word of Swedenese."
"Oh. Well, it goes: ovjaar blatte myojiffsa ar teken yamasjen jla rui-da."
"You lost me, cadet." Chen wondered where on earth Tsuya was going with this. Did someone dare her to mess with the blundering sergeant and make him do something stupid? That wouldn't surprise him.
"Seriously..." Tsuya looked a bit uncomfortable. "I... I really admire how you stay true to yourself. Like, authentic to your own creed, and you don't take jarlfreddei... nonsense... from anyone. I think the Overste is wasting your potential. Sir. If I may be so frank."
Chen motioned with his hands. "I won't report you for speaking ill of the Overste. You can confide in me. I'm working with the KungsArme, not from within it."
"Yeah." Tsuya swallowed. "I'm the same way. I ran away from home to be here, and to do something right. I bet you haven't been to Vorarlberg before, have you, Sergeant? There's a huge criminal underworld here that everyone tries really hard to ignore. It's leftover from all the yakuza gangs and Norwegian smuggling and sex trafficking rings that operated in this region of space."
Chen felt his gut clench. "Were you a... I mean..."
"N-no, sir! I wasn't a trafficked slave! I'm the daughter of a man who gets rich in that trade." Tsuya made a sour expression. "I hated him for it, but I got the rod if I ever spoke out. It's hell, being a mobster's daughter, Sergeant. He's not big enough to send elite teams to kidnap me and drag me back. I'm safe here. But even if this militia is my life now, and I can't stop being related to someone who... who makes a commodity out of people's lives!"
Chen was no therapist, but he had seen some ugly things before. He gently took Tsuya's shoulders. "You said it yourself, cadet: you came here to remake yourself. You're defined by your decisions and personal creed, not your genes. Don't feel tainted. Feel proud that you took this step."
"Y... yes, Sergeant." Tsuya nodded weakly. "I'm atoning for my family's daisuka heofan-ga, our crimes against heaven. But I was a coward who just hid my face under my pillow until I finally got some fucking resolve and got out of that life. Kusottbard!" She cursed. "Am I acting selfish? Trying to get clean just to feel better about all this? Coming here won't free all the slaves my father traffics."
Chen had heard this logic before. "Everyone has a right to be their best selves and be happy. There's nothing hypocritical about it, cadet. And think about all the lives you'll protect from raiders and bandits and thugs once you're in the militia as a proper MechWarrior. You'll build up all kinds of karma, if you want to think about it that way. That's all anyone can ask."
"I'll see," Tsuya said vaguely, but she did look a little happier. "Hey... Sergeant."
"Yes, cadet?"
"The simpods are always open for general use. And I loved how you made Gregoro and Mikael fight you in a real duel, to give them a real taste of combat. I want that, too."
"A simpod duel? Against me?"
Tsuya beamed. "You and Sergeant Bliss, if she'll join us."
Chen lowered his hands from Tsuya's shoulders and jabbed his thumb back over his shoulder. "I'll speak to Sergeant Bliss. Either way, I'll see you at the simpods. Don't worry, I'll choose a 'Mech in your weight class."
Tsuya clapped her hands together. "Dankei-gatoy! Thank you! And don't you dare go easy on me! Sir!"
She gave him a hasty salute and scampered off toward the simpods.
Chen was only 39 years old. But already, he found himself thinking Ah, youth...
*o*o*o*o*
Kathy was outraged at the idea of being left out, and delighted to join both Chen and Tsuya at the barracks simpod hall. There was no rule against using the simpods at this time of day, and only a few were currently in use. So, Chen strapped himself into a pod, with Kathy taking the one to his left and Tsuya settling into the pod on his right.
Chen fitted on the pod's helmet and pressed dashboard's buttons and dials to get everything booted up. If it weren't for simpods, Chen's BattleMech skills would have deteriorated so much since 3040 he'd be outgunned by Gregoro or Mikael. Dispossessed MechWarriors owed a lot to these things.
"Radio check," Chen said.
"I can hear you, Sergeant," Tsuya said lightly. "Don't worry Site Alpha's hardware is in great shape."
"Right." Chen browsed a selection of medium and heavy 'Mechs on the screen and settled on one. "Cadet Tsuya, you're up against me first. Choose a medium."
"Roger that, Sergeant. Which 'Mech will you use?"
"The one I understand best: the Vindicator."
"He never shuts up about them," Kathy remarked.
"For a reason," Chen muttered. Meanwhile, the server ran through a list of maps rapid-fire, then settled on a desert map with scattershot terrain.
Chen's screen placed him in the familiar cockpit of a Vindicator, and he immediately hit the throttle and broke out into a brisk jog. He eyed the shifting dunes and boulders, plotting patterns of cover and ambushes in his mind. In many cases, the right cover or exit route was more powerful than any PPC or artillery round.
"I can't find you, Sergeant," Tsuya complained. "It's just desert."
"Perhaps you are too used to live-fire ranges," Chen told her. "Have patience, cadet. This teaches you to stay alert and watchful."
"Understood."
Chen, who was more used to taking things slow and waiting for a stronger enemy to finally show their weakness, enjoyed this chance to explore the punishing desert. What a shame, though, that his best gun was also a toasty one -
There!
A radar ping appeared on Chen's scanners, up to the northwest. He turned his Vindicator and broke into a sprint, headed toward a large mesa. He didn't know what kind of 'Mech the younger warrior was using; would she try to ambush him with a Hunchback, or perhaps wear him down with a Trebuchet?
A Crab.
"Found you!" Tsuya cried. Her hunched 'Mech turned and sprinted toward Chen, opening its trademark claw-hands to expose its twin laser muzzles. She was at 575 meters and closing
Chen placed his crosshairs on Tsuya's 'Mech and fired.
"Oh no!" Tsuya's Crab staggered as the PPC bolt punched into its back-canted right knee, and the 50-tonner stumbled.
Chen chuckled. "Cut the chatter, cadet. Focus."
"Y... yes, Sergeant."
Meanwhile, Chen flung a quintet of LRMs from the Vindicator's chest-mounted launcher, and all five pounded on the Crab's center torso.
Now the Vindicator was running hot, and the 45-degree Celsius setting was not helping. So, Chen trotted backwards and prepared to fire another LRM volley, just in case.
Tsuya's Crab regained its balance and resumed the charge, weaving around boulders as it went. Now it was at 510 meters, just 60 shy of a large laser's maximum range.
Chen's LRMs slowed it down.
"Be mindful of our distance," Chen told her as his machine's heat gauge slowly went down. Damn, this place was a scorcher. "I can outshoot you with my two main guns. So, what are you to do?"
"I... oh!" Tsuya's Crab slipped behind a boulder, and to Chen's shock, it vanished from his radar entirely.
She switched to passive radar mode? Chen frowned. That was risky, unless... she was counting on Chen staying in the same place, so she could estimate his location more easily than he could estimate hers. After all, Chen was the better warrior, and he would stay in the open rather than sneak around. He had no need for tricks, but Tsuya did.
This cadet is a standout for sure.
But unless Chen was horribly mistaken, he could turn this plan around. He fired up his jump jets and vaulted to the southwest, arcing high through the air until he landed behind a ridge. No way would Tsuya find him.
"Got you! What the...?" Tsuya cried on the comm. "Sergeant?"
Chen heard the distinctive hum of twin large lasers, and Tsuya had probably fired as soon as she popped out from behind cover. How hasty.
"I said cut the chatter, cadet! React to the unknown!" Chen barked.
"Understood, Sergeant!"
Chen's heat gauge was high again thanks to those jump jets, so he ran along a huge, gentle curve to buy himself time to cool down. Slowly but surely, his heat levels sank to 0, and he tilted his 'Mech upward. He fired an LRM volley into the open air.
"What was that, Scrappy?" Kathy commented (she was an observer). "Did you put VTOLs in this sim?"
Chen didn't answer. Instead, he switched to passive radar and waited for the bait to work.
It did.
Tsuya's Crab appeared roughly where Chen expected it to, and both 'Mechs were 500 meters apart. Chen fired up his PPC, and the blue lightning punished the Crab's left shoulder. LRMs flew right into the wound, and the arm started to creak and sag.
In desperation, the Crab turned and fired its right large laser, but the beam diffused into harmless radiation a few dozen meters shy of its target. The Crab broke into another sprint, right there in the open.
Chen sighed and hit the override button. Heat be damned, he needed to teach a lesson. Once he placed that reticule on the Crab's injured knee, a PPC beam leaped from the Vindicator's muzzle and sliced right through the joint's remaining armor. Unspent energy chewed up the inner myomers and steel bone, and the Crab pitched forward from its momentum. It skidded forward on the loose sand, and finally came to a halt on its belly.
"S... Sergeant," Tsuya groaned. "I can't get up."
Ignoring his cockpit's heat warnings, Chen jogged toward the fallen 'Mech. "Concede, cadet. I've got my crosshairs on your cockpit."
"Kusottbard! I give up."
The screen returned to the main menu. "Cadet," Chen told her. "You had good ideas out there. Passive radar, estimating my position, trying to get inside my LRM and PPC minimum range. But it didn't work. Why?"
"Your aim is very good, Sergeant."
"Yes, that is true, but you got reckless. A frontal charge against me is always going to turn out badly, and you were too slow to adjust to a changing battlefield. I don't want to see that again, all right?"
"Yes, Sergeant."
Kathy chuckled on the comm. "Please tell me you didn't enjoy that, Scrappy. Beating up kids?"
"I'm not a svalkiri!" Tsuya cried.
Chen snorted. "I did what I had to. C'mon, Kath, like you're any different."
"True enough. Okay, sweetheart. Ready to face off against me?" Kathy asked the younger woman. "Remember what Sergeant Yeung told you, and apply it."
Tsuya was silent for a few seconds. "Understood, Sergeant Bliss."
"Why the hesitation?" Chen asked her. "If you would rather stop here, we can resume training tomorrow."
"No, it's not that, Sergeant. It's just... Gregoro and Mikael are my friends, and we were so sure that whatever came, we'd be ready. But now I realize how naive we were being. How can Gregoro or I make a freer and better FRR like this?"
"Hey, don't get discouraged, cadet," Kathy told her gently. "This is what training's for. Find the strength you didn't know you had, and become your best self."
"...Yes, Sergeant Bliss. I just feel foolish, is all. I ran away from my father, so sure that I had everything figured out. But I'm a small fish after all."
"Look, I've been a big fish in some ponds, the little fish in others," Chen told her. "That goes for Sergeant Bliss, too. You'll get used to it. Now gear up, cadet. You're fighting Sergeant Bliss. And she doesn't play nice like I do."
Tsuya squeaked. "That was nice?"
"I said gear up, cadet!"
"Yes, sir! Sergeant Bliss, I'm ready!"
"Come and get me," Kathy said in an ominous tone Chen always heard right before a slaughter.