Dead Man's Hand

by JA Baker

Spinning off from Who Goes There?, this series will chronicle the misadventures of the enigmatic Joker and her band of merry reprobates, the Dead Man's Hand Mercenary Command.

5. Family Values

This ended up being far, far longer than I anticipated

Continued thanks to Cannonshop, who provided a not inconsiderable amount of dialogue for certain characters

Also, I keep forgetting just how old Joker is supposed to be...

Dead Man's Hand: Family Values

MV Daisy-May

Zenith Jump Point, Bucklands

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

8 August 3057

"Women actually go through this voluntarily?" Joker asked, laying back on the bunk that took up most of the small cabin, "On purpose, even?"

"There's an old joke." Kelso smiled from her seat, only just out of arms reach, "God's in his workshop one day, tinkering around with the designs for Adam and Eve, and He asks one of the angles to get him the box of nerve endings. 'No, not that one' He says, 'The super-sensitive ones on the top shelf.' So the angle dutifully gets the box down and carefully hands it over, and asks 'What are you working on that needs something so powerful? The heart? The brain' 'No.' God shakes his head, 'I'm working on the reproductive organs.' this shocks the angel, who asks why something so basic needs something so powerful? 'Because,' God turns to the angle, 'I'd occasionally like to hear them screaming out my name as loud as they can.'"

Joker burst out laughing.

"That's better." Kelso nodded, "Although, I am surprised that a good Catholic girl like you hadn't heard it before."

"I'm Roman Catholic, not some heathen New Avalon Catholic, like you."

"Sex is Sex, no matter what world you're on, or God you pray to." Kelso shrugged off the jib, "Did I ever tell you that I'm the youngest of six?"

"Dead God in heaven, do they not have TriVid on whatever backwater world you came from?" Joker asked, only half joking, "I'm still not convinced that going through this once won't kill me!"

"What's going to kill us is jumping around with no destination in mind." Kelso countered, "We all get that you need to spend as much time as possible on a GravDeck, in your condition, it is eating into our walking-around money."

"Yeah, next time we go into Clan space, we'll see about grabbing a JumpShip." Joker put her hands behind her head, "If I remember the shipping schedule correctly, the ships bound for Inarcs, before heading back out to Main Street. From Inarcs, we should be able to find a ship headed for Kowloon."

"Kowloon?" Kelso asked.

"We need a place to lay-low while I..." Joker trailed off mid sentence.

"We could have turned around and gone back to Sweet Water. " Kelso suggested, "I'm sure Alex's family would have..."

"Loved to have a constant reminder of the 'Mercenary bitch' who go most of the their loved ones killed around?" Joker asked, a dark expression on her face, "No, we need to go somewhere we can keep a low profile, and Duchess Ngo owes us a favour or two. We go there, keep our heads down until this slap-fight between the Falcons and the Wolves dies down, and then we try and find some honest work."

"Decided what you're going to do?" Kelso asked, hesitantly, "With the kid, I mean?"

"No." Joker turned over onto her side so the other woman couldn't see her crying, "Haven't a clue."

---

Recharge Station

Nardia Jump-Point, Inarcs

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

25 August 3057

"Well, this is bullshit." Joker lent back in her chair, "We've been here a week now, and no JumpShips headed for Kowloon?"

"It's politics." Scilicorn shrugged, sipping his iced-tea, "Duchess Ngo's made more than a few enemies..."

"She's killed most of them." Aung pointed out.

"Well, yeah, but from what I've read, they kind of deserved it!" Joker pouted, "And that doesn't change the fact that none of the local ships going there have an open collar, and we can't afford to contract a ship for even a single jump without a client footing the bill." she frowned, "We really need to see about getting our own JumpShip. Just a Scout will do: I'm not greedy."

"We'll look into it." Kelso promised, looking across the table, "You going to finish that croissant?"

"Yes!" Joker grabbed the half finished pastry and shoved it in her mouth whole.

"Changing the topic, I checked our MercNet account this morning." Scilicorn placed a data-pad on the table, "Someone's lodged a formal complaint against us with the MRBC."

"What did we do?" Kelso asked.

"Killed a bunch of pirates." Aung picked up the pad and read the official communication, "Someone seems to be of the impression that we were...overly enthusiastic."

"Well, that's even more bullshit!" Joker protested, "Since when was killing pirates a bad thing?"

"When one's gunned down in a prison cell." Aung offered her the pad, "They have the CCTV footage."

"And you thought going back was a good idea?" Joker asked Kelso, ignoring the offered pad, "No, we burned our bridges there."

"Funny thing is, the MRBC isn't investigating." Scilicorn added, "They only notified us because the complaint was filed, but made it clear that it's not being followed up on."

"Okay, now I'm interested." Kelso grabbed the pad and looked it over herself, "... insufficient evidence to take formal action?"

"Yeah, which is indeed bullshit." Scilicorn looked at Joker, "We get why you did it, Boss: not one of us wouldn't have done the same, or worse, under the circumstances, but you really shat the bed that time. It's bad enough that we're not rated, meaning a lot of people don't consider us a legitimate unit. If word starts getting round that we broke the rules..."

"But it's not, is it?" Joker asked, defensively, "You said it yourself: the MRBC isn't investigating us."

"The complaint will still be on our records." Aung warned, "Mud sticks."

"Doolally was a bastard, and none of us question the fact that the universe is a better place without him using up good oxygen, but you should have let him have his date with the hangman." Scilicorn warned, "Without an official rating, our reputation is everything we have. And right now..."

"We're a bunch of loose cannons." Joker admitted, "Okay, message received loud and clear: keep my temper in check." her com unit chirped, and she looked at the screen, "Okay, good news for once: Guild ship just arrived, headed for Kowloon, and they have a free collar. Does say they're trying for a pirate point closer to the planet..."

"The Guild kind of weirds me out, but they know their shit." Scilicorn shrugged, "I say we take it."

The others nodded in agreement, so Joker quickly booked the transport.

"Okay, six days for them to charge their drive, then we're in business." Joker opened the MercNet app, "Best warn them to expect House guests."

---

Ngo Family Estate,

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

9 September 3057

"Oh my God!" Liz took a step back, almost stumbling before Nathan Roshak caught her, "You're Pregnant?"

"Oh, so that's what this is?" Joker responded deadpan, looking down at the visible bump jutting out from her abdomen, "I was starting to wonder..."

"Obviously not a squee! moment." Liz chuckled, carefully getting her feet back under her. "How do you want to play this? Your message was pretty bare-bones and this wasn't in it, but I'm assuming you're not wanting to advertise: Mercs with kids have blackmail and extortion issues and you're not asking about immigration forms."

"No, not looking for a permanent position." Joker confirmed, "Not every mercenary unit has an entire planet of their own to fall back on for support."

"It's the exception more than the rule." Liz tilted her head to one side, "If I may be so bold, is the father in the picture? Do I need to worry about one coming looking? Because if I am looking at that, it's going to influence how high an alert I'm going to be setting the militia on, given your social circles."

"He's...not in the picture." Joker admitted, a dark look falling across her face.

"Okay..." Liz nodded, reading the other woman's body language well enough to know to let it drop, for the time being, "Well, first you're going to need prenatal care and you're going to have to tell me what your Plan A is, followed by your backups and contingencies."

"Plan A? Contingencies?" Scilicorn laughed, "Do we look like the kind of people who think more than a move ahead?"

"Plan A, because Joker's not the kind who drops their career for eighteen years to raise a kid, contingencies because Mercenary work is hazardous as hell, you make enemies, and if she'd wanted an abortion you wouldn't be here." Liz listed off, "You'd go to Inarcs or Coventry for that, so we're looking at fosterage and security to keep your many enemies clear off the kid so they don't have leverage...but first, scheduled pre-natal care and housing for the duration and after, we can start looking at options for the rest once you're settled in...and security while you're here."

"Fosterage?" Kelso asked

"For the first seven years of my life I was fostered to my grandfather while my parents did their bit, and more, for the realm." Liz made a sour face, "It might've been my whole childhood, except grandfather had the poor grace to die of old age first. Being dragged along as baggage is bad enough when your parents are regulars, it's much worse when there's only one parent, and they're not, you brought yourself here, called in a marker I can't ever properly repay, but it's owed, so I make sure your family is cared for-that's what being Noble means-repay all debts no matter what. In the meantime, we'll need to schedule your medical checkups and get you the prenatal care you're going to need."

"I'm not looking for a Foster family." Joker spoke softly, but with an unmistakable edge to her words, "I don't know how much is actually in my MRBC file, or how much LIC has been able to dig up, but I grew up in an orphanage. It wasn't exactly Dickensian, but it wasn't exactly paradise, either. I was the gangly, wild kid who nobody wanted, so I left of my own accord when I was sixteen. I may not have had the worst life imaginable, but it isn't one I'd wish on anyone. So no, I don't want... this child, sent to some foster home. I want it adopted by a family who will love it and care for it, and never tell it who their biological mother is, because they themselves don't know."

"Boss?" Kelso asked, "You sure about that?"

"Do I look like the material type?" Joker asked, "Just about the only thing I have in common with my own biological mother is the fact that I know I'm not cut out to raise a kid. If Alex... if things had worked out differently, I'm sure I'd be wearing a wedding ring and arguing what colour to paint a nursery by now. But he's dead, and without him... I can't do this on my own, and I'm not going to ruin this kids life by trying to be something I'm not."

"We can discuss this later, once you've settled in." Liz suggested, "Do you have any preference for where you'd like to stay?"

"Somewhere low-key, where people aren't going to ask too many questions." Joker stated, "I'm already dealing with being an unmarried mother-to-be. I don't need nosey neighbours on top of that."

"Ia Drang's or Nha Tranh are probably your best bets." Liz nodded, "My family owns property in both. I'll arrange to have someone show you around."

"I know I'm already asking a lot, but there is one other thing." Joker sounded hesitant, "We've burnt through most of our available cash these last few weeks, so if you know of any jobs..."

"I'm in the process of expanding the planetary Militia into something that could act as more than just a speed-bump, should the Clans come calling." Liz smiled, "Having an experienced Red Team to knock the edges off might be helpful."

---

Wolf's Dragoons HQ

Harlech City, Outreach

Contested Space

1 October 3057

"And our people on Kowloon have confirmed this?" Jamie Wolf asked, looking at the hardcopy report in his hands.

"As best they can without risking discovery." Wolfnet Director Michi Noketsuna nodded, "Kowloon has always been a closed society: the original colonist, ahem, acquired a number of JumpShips, with the aid of the Pathfinder Corps, and jumped well clear of what was, at the time, claimed space, deliberately picking a system that is difficult to navigate to in order to flee persecution on Terra. They are inherently untrusting of outsiders, and fanatically loyal to their Duchess. I could have my agents dig deeper, but..."

"No. It is paramount that they are not discovered." the Mercenary commander shook his head, "In fact, I want you to make sure that nobody else discovers the truth: as far as the rest of the galaxy is concerned, Dead Man's Hand are on Kowloon to rest and refit before returning to their regular trade of raiding the Occupation Zones. Nobody is to know the truth."

"Sir, if I may be so bold, my job would be far easier if I knew exactly why this... Team, is so important?" the spy master suggested, "Stopping the investigation into what happened on Sweet Water..."

"A man who has already been sentenced to death was killed. Does it really matter how his end came about?" Wolf asked, then shook his head, "I am sorry, but this is a... matter of personal honour; a duty I took upon myself for an old friend. I can not break that trust, even for you." He paused, then added, "I give you my word, as a warrior, your commander and your friend, that there is nothing dishonourable in what I am doing."

"Understand, Okyakusama." Noketsuna bowed his head, "I will see that it is done."

Wolf waited until the other man had left, and the door was securely closed again, before he allowed his mask of professionalism to slip, and he let out a low chuckle.

"Oh Natasha, what will you think of this?" he reached into his desk, and pulled out a single-use cypher pad, "I only wish I could see the look on your face when you find out..."

---

New Saigon, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

7 October 3057

"And you do this sort of thing often?" Nathan Roshak asked.

"Well, our usual jobs involve slipping behind Clan lines and pulling down the pants of unsuspecting Star Colonels." Scilicorn grinned as he checked his gear, "But yeah: we've been known to carry out the odd Morality Inspection. Kind of surprised that you've never heard of one."

"Clan warriors are held to a higher standard." the former Jade Falcon proclaimed.

"And that's where I call bullshit." Kelso shock her head, "I don't care how much they've tweaked your DNA, you're still as human as the rest of us shaved apes at the end of the day."

There was a low chuckle from the Coast Guard squad at the back of the van, and Nathan Roshak fumed.

"Warriors of the Clans are taught to find more... acceptable outlets." he insisted, "We have evolved beyond such petty vices."

"Then I feel sorry for the Duchess." Scilicorn winked, "She looks the same as all those other Prim and Proper Nobles: all stuffed shirts, until you get the shirt off of them, and then the fireworks really start!"

"And how would you know what a Noble Lady is like in the sack?" Aung asked.

"Didn't anyone ever tell you not to judge a book by its cover?" his friend pointed out, "I scrub up okay when needed. Certainly enough to catch the eye of a young 'Lady' looking for a bit of rough before she marries the human equivalent of a sleeping pill."

"Ah, the inevitable part of the mission where we're subjected to the depravities of Emilio's dark and twisted imagination." Kelso rolled her eyes, "Almost makes you look forward to getting shot at."

Nathan Roshak looked ready to burst a blood vessel, before Aung, relatively gently, slapped him on the back.

"Relax: we don't mean anything by it." he rumbled, "It's just that, well, the last time we took part in one of the these was on Tamar..."

"Something we agreed never to discuss with outsiders." Scilicorn snapped, his previously playful tone noticeably absent.

"The last time we took part in a Morality Inspection was the night we all met, Joker included." Kelso took up the explication, "What we thought as just an illegal brothel turned out to be a cover for, well, something else."

"Yes, Elizabeth showed me the report." Nathan Roshak nodded, "It is truly sickening, how far some people can fall..."

"Would that be the report that talks about them burning incense with an hallucinatory effect?" Scilicorn asked, "Or the one that states what really happened?"

Nathan Roshak looked confused, but even he noticed that a couple of the Coast Guards looked...uncomfortable.

"The official report states what the Brass wants to say happened." Kelso lent back against the side of the van and closed her eyes, "But, well, their conclusions didn't match up with the physical evidence. And, before you go asking us what we saw, don't."

"Some things are best left in the past." Aung rumbled, earning a nod of agreement from his two companions.

"Well, that killed the mood pretty damn quickly." Scilicorn looked round, "We going or what?"

"Yeah." Kelso looked at her watch, then banged her fist against the side of the van, "Let's get this show on the road!"

The driver started the van, and it rumbled down the road, the team in the back giving their weapons and equipment one last check.

"So, what are the rules of engagement?" Kelso asked.

"The Duchess wants the place shut down, but she also wants names, so we need to leave someone alive." Scilicorn shrugged, "Of course, there's an awful lot of wiggle room between 'alive' and 'in one piece'."

"My kind of mission." Aung domed his helmet as the van started to accelerate, "Game Time."

There was a muffled shout of surprise, and a bullet bounced off of the vehicles hidden armour, before it burst through a wooden door and into the warehouse beyond. It continued on for several meters, no king over several packing crates and a table, before skidding to a halt. Aung kicked open the back door, a massive combat shotgun with an extended drum-magazine in his hands. The weapon barked twice, beanbag rounds knocking the wind out of the two guards who had followed them into the building.

"MORALITY INSPECTION!" Kelso yelled, gleefully, "REACH FOR THE SKY!"

Their suddenness and ferocity of their entrance stunned the assembled gang members, giving them the time needed to exit the van and get their weapons at the ready. But soon there was a scream of outrage, and all hell broke loose.

---

Lazy S Ranch

Ia Drang, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

7 October 3057

"You could have picked somewhere less... rural." Liz complained.

"It's your families holding." Joker pointed out as she lounged on the patio, trying to enjoy a decaffeinated coffee, "Consider it payback for making me drink this swill."

"Too much caffeine can be bad for the baby." Liz pointed out, "One cup of regular coffee or tea per day. And you can consider that an official ruling as the Duchess."

"My Loki is in the barn, you realise?" her guest pouted, "Liberté, égalité, fraternity!"

Liz simply smiled, reaching into her pocket.

"You even think of lightning up one of those around me, while forcing me to go into caffeine withdrawal, and I will kill you." Joker warned.

"Sorry: force of habit." Liz took her hand off of her cigarette case.

"So's my caffeine habit." Joker decided to change the subject, "So, how's Roshak in the sack? Those 'enhance' genes worth the questionable philosophy?"

A stream of ice tea shot forth from Liz's mouth as she almost chocked in surprise.

"Excuse me?" she managed to asked between sputters.

"Oh some on: I've seen the way he hovers around you like an overly protective dog marking his territory." Joker smiled coyly, "And with my hormones all over the place, I've been wondering if I should have taken him up on the offer of some zero-g nooky when I had the chance."

"Nathan... propositioned you?" Liz asked, somewhat shocked.

"He's a man, I'm an apparently somewhat attractive woman... when I don't resemble a crashed DropShip." Joker shrugged, "And it's my understanding that Clanners have a far less restricted view on recreational sex."

Liz started to say something, then stopped herself, and thought carefully.

"I don't exactly have anything to compare him to." The Duchess admitted, "But he makes me happy."

"Then take my advice: don't let go of that." Joker reached down and placed a hand on her swelling abdomen where her unborn child was growing, "You never know when that happiness will be ripped away from you."

"You don't talk about your..." Liz started, then realised that she didn't know how to finish.

"Alex was a tech in the militia we were training. One night in a bar just off base, he asked me to dance, and the rest is history." Joker admitted, "I didn't exactly plan to fall pregnant, certainly not so soon, but... if there was ever someone I could see myself settling down with, it was him."

"We are far too young to be talking like this. Or, at least, I am." Liz shuddered, "Are you sure Nathan will be okay?"

"Worried about your big, strong Star Colonel?" Joker couldn't help but laugh, "Don't worry: they'll bring him back to you in one piece. Or, at least, the bits that matter."

---

New Saigon, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

7 October 3057

Nathan Roshak felt the unpleasant sensation of two of his ribs cracking as something hit him in the chest with considerable force. He staggered backwards, tripping over the body of an unconscious gang member and fell against the wall before sliding to the ground. Looking down, he saw where the front of his uniform was ripped open, right above his heart, only the reinforced trauma plate in his tactical vest saving his life. Reaching up, he dislodged the still hot bullet and examined it.

While no expert in infantry weapons, it seemed remarkably large, even if it had been drastically misshapen by the force of the impact...and why were his ears ringing?

A shadow fell over him, and still somewhat in shock, he looked up to see Aung standing over him. His mouth was moving, but the former Jade Falcon couldn't here anything but the damn ringing...

"I SAID, ARE YOU BLEEDING?" Aung repeated, his deep, almost seismic voice finally getting through.

"N...Neg." Nathan Roshak shock himself, forcing his mind to clear and his sense to return to normal.

"THEN WALK IT OFF!" the towering mercenary grabbed him by the shoulder strap and effortlessly yanked him to his feet, "We're not done here."

Looking round, Nathan Roshak took in the situation: one of their Cost Guard allies was down, bleeding from a gunshot to the leg, but was already tying it off with a Tourniquet. Elsewhere, he could see Scilicorn junked down behind a low internal wall, exchanging weapons fire with an unseen opponent in an upstairs office. He watched the other man draw a stun grenade and lob it over arm. The charge smashed through the remains of a glass window before exploding with a loud crack, thick white smoke filing the room in an instant. Two forms emerged from the doorway, struggling to each fresh air, only to take a full-power hit by the Sonic Stunner being wielded by Kelso.

A large man with crazed eyes charge at them, what looked to be a fire axe held over his head. Aung swung around, grabbing the gang enforcer by the throat and lifting him up into the air before bringing him down, hard, onto a table, which promptly collapsed beneath him. Despite the waht should have been an incapacitating blow, the man kept trying the fight back, so the massive mercenary simply punched him in the face with enough force the shatter his nose, and finally rendering him unconscious.

Seeing movement toward the back of the warehouse, Nathan Roshak checked his own weapon, and set off to investigate. He was approaching a corner, when a chuck of the thin wall exploded before him, and he ducked down just in time to avoid a second burst that would have taken his head off. Even so, he felt something tug at the back of his neck, and his hair felt slick. Reaching round, he could feel a small cut, just below his hair line, where a needler shard and nicked him. Inching forwards, he carefully looked around the corner to see a woman struggling to reload a needler pistol of some kind. Taking careful aim, he fired his laser pistol, hitting her in the left shoulder, making her drop her weapon without killing her.

It didn't take much longer for the last few criminals to decide that discretion was the better part of valor, and surrender.

"Now, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, this is a Morality Inspection." Kelso survayed the prisoners as they knelt on the ground, hands on their heads, the Coast Guard going about checking them for hidden weapons or other contraband before securing their hands with zip-ties, "We're not a rival gang, or even the local cops, looking to shake you down for additional protection money. No: we're here under the personal authority of her Grace, Duchess Elizabeth Ngo."

Nathan Roshak couldn't help but notice how a couple of the prisoners looked decidedly less sure of themselves.

"Now, until recently, this little operation of yours was allowed to continue, because you were keeping to the unwritten rules, and not involving anyone who didn't want to be a part of it." Kelso continued, "But, then you got greedy, and decided to use some of the local kids as drug mules. We are here to make it abundantly clear that this will. Not. Be. Tolerated. You have, by your own actions, been selected to be made an example of. Under Commonwealth Law, we already have enough evidence to see each and every one of you spends the next couple of decades in prison. So, the only question is.. who wants to make a deal?"

"You're bleeding." Scilicorn appeared at the Star Colonels side, first aid kit in hand.

"It is nothing." he waves the other man off, "A scratch."

"Still, best to get it cleaned and bandaged: who knows what kind of filth they have here?" the mercenary ignored his protests and quickly tended the wound, applying an antiseptic ointment that stung on contact, "Look on the bright side: you've got a nice little trophy to impress the young Duchess with."

"You think I need battle scars to gain her favour?" Nathan Roshak asked.

"There's an age-old saying: wounds heal, chicks dig scars, and glory lasts forever." Scilicorn explained as he applied a bandage, "You've bled in the line of duty, leaving you with a scar that only your sweetheart will ever see, and you'll have a cool war story to tell in the future. Take the win."

---

Dinh Ngo Medical Center

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

25 October 3057

"Shit!" Joker hissed, "Does it have to be so cold?"

"I get pulled out of bed in the middle of the night to perform an ultrasound on a patient who doesn't exist, at the behest of a woman who never takes my medical advice, and this is the thanks I get?" Dr Trinh Wah ignored the obvious discomfort she was causing as she applied a liberal amount of gel to the mercenaries abdomen, "Maybe if you'd attended your other appointments, you'd be better prepared?"

"My usual doctor is a Clan trained combat medic." Joker protested, "She's better at settling bones then prenatal care."

"Figures: it was the same when I was doing my tour." Wah shrugged as she prepared the rest of the equipment, "All too fixated on breaking things, not building them." She paused, "Are you sure you don't want anyone here with you?"

"The father is dead and buried, my friends are busy elsewhere, and I don't have any family." Joker laid back, "Let's get this over with."

"As you wish." the doctor started running the transducer across her patient, "Fetal heart rate is good... no signs of any abnormalities...would you like to know the sex?"

"You can tell?" Joker looked at the small screen, seeing nothing but a confusing mass of shapes.

"It takes some practice, I'll admit, but you eventually learn to tell the difference."

"I...I guess it wouldn't hurt to know." Joker swollowd, "Least then I know what names to call it when it's keeping me up all night, sitting on my bladder."

"She obviously takes after her mother then." Wan nodded, "Congratulations: it's a girl."

---

Beta Galaxy Command DropShip Snow Lair

Inbound, Twycross

Jade Falcon Occupation Zone

27 October 3057

Khan Natasha Kerensky looked at the piece of paper in her hands with a completely blank expression on her face. The completely unofficial and illegal to the point of treason back channel between her and Jamie Wolf was only ever supposed to be used in the most dire of emergencies, a final link between two friends to warn of potentially existential threats. Even during the so-called Dragoon Civil War, he had kept silent, allowing her to discover the truth through the interception of civilian news broadcasts.

But, perhaps, this had been what the channel had truly been set up for, even if neither of them had been willing to admit it.

Reading the short, concise message again, she could almost hear her former commander laughing as he wrote it, no doubt finding the macabre humour in it all. History, after all, had a way of repeating itself, it is often said.

'Your daughter is pregnant. Father unknown. Congratulations.'

Oh how she wished he was standing before her, just so she could wipe to no doubt smug expression off his face!

For decades, she had struggled with the secret known only to a handful of her closest comrades, many of whom had died at her side. For years, she had hoped that it would never return to haunt her, but then came the word that her daughter was unknowingly following in her parents footsteps and taking up the life of a MechWarror. Even then, there had seemed little chance of their paths ever crossing... were it not for the strange tides of fate that seemed intent on bringing them ever closer, but never meeting.

Once, she had allowed herself to imagine what it may have been like if she had given her daughter over to the Dragoons to be raised. There were always children around, be they the offspring of the Freeborn members or foundlings taken from the countless worlds they visited. She would have been raised not to know her parentage, but Natasha would have kept a discreet eye on her, following her development as she grew to become a MechWarror. And, just perhaps, she would have gone to her, invited her to join her when they were recalled to the Clans at the beginning of the Great Crusade.

After all, she had already been met with scorn, being far older than most solahma troops: would it have really mattered if she had brought her Freeborn daughter with her? Especially one who was so obviously an exceptional warrior?

It started with a chuckle, but quickly grew into a deep, resounding belly laugh that echoed far beyond her quarters, startling many of the crew and those under her command.

---

Ngo Family Estate,

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

1 November 3057

"Most men, most heterosexual men, anyway, if confronted with an attractive young woman dressed in something that is as uncomfortable as it is revealing, giving them 'Bedroom Eyes', would not wave them off and go back to watching a hologram for what has to be the twentieth time this evening!" Liz protested, stomping her foot, which made certain parts of her anatomy move in suggestive ways, "Is these something we need to discuss?"

"Sorry?" Nathan Roshak looked up, then suddenly found himself completely incapable of complex thought as a significant amount of blood rushed away from his brain.

"Better." Liz cocked her head to one side, "You've been obsessing over that recording all evening. What is it?"

"The recording?" her lover shook his head to get his train of thought back on track, "Yes. Emilio gave me a copy of the BattleROM footage from Sweet Water as part of the Militia training program... and I have to admit, I am... perplexed."

"I'm no expert, but isn't one battle against pirates pretty much the same as another?" pulling a robe around herself, Liz sat down across the table from him and looked at the flickering image.

She recognised the unmistakable outline of Joker's Loki, painted a sandy yellow colour, moving across the field of vision. There was an unmistakable fluid grace to its movements, as opposed to the more jerky reactions of its opponents. As she watched, it blasted a smaller, more humanoid looking 'Mech with a flight of missiles, emerald laser beams following up to slice through the remains of the armour. The pirate stumbled backwards, struggling to remain upright, only to be almost casually batted aside by one of the Loki's arms, Joker already moving onto her next target.

The struggling pilot lost their battle with gravity just as assuredly as they had the mercenary, and they landed in a twisted, broken mess on the fire savaged ground.

"It goes on like that." Nathan Roshak paused the playback.

"So? You knew she was good." Liz looked confused, "I mean, she defeated you..."

"The woman who narrowly defeated me is not the same woman who effortlessly decimated those pirates." the ex-Star Colonel lent back in his seat and rubbed his chin, "I say this with no ego, but I am considered to be an excellent MechWarror, even by the standards of the Clans. Joker only defeated me because she did not fight like a trained MechWarror, and that unpredictability his her greatest strength. Had she shown half this skill in our battle... she may well have defeated me, but I would not have felt so... confused, by the loss."

"So...she's good?"

"Better than she realises. I have a feeling that, on Sweet Water, she allowed her instincts to guide her." Nathan Roshak turned off the recording, "Whoever her parents were, they must have been remarkable."

"Well, whoever they were, they certainly gave her good genes." Liz looked at her partner, "How old would you say she is?"

"I have never given in much thought." Nathan Roshak admitted, "Late twenties?"

"Add ten years to that." it was Liz's turn to lean back in her chair, "She thinks she was born in 3019, which makes her closer to forty than thirty."

"She looks... remarkable for it." He responded.

"Yeah, she told me you hit on her." Liz stood and walked back to the bedroom, "Only reason you're not sleeping outside is that it was before we met."

---

Lazy S Ranch

Ia Drang, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Commonwealth

7 December 3057

"What you all doing?" Joker asked ashe she made her way into the tastefully decorated sitting room.

"Jay's trying to explain to me how he managed to fit into a Panther without it bursting apart at the seams." Kelso laughed, "Still not convinced."

"That just shows lack of imagination on your part." Aung rumbled, unhappy his word had been brought into question.

"I got a letter from home." Scilicorn help up an envelope with the official ComStar seal on the front.

"News from the homestead, huh?" Joker made her way over and carefully lowered herself into a seat, "Things settled down around there yet?"

"Hard to tell: no actual fighting as such on Woodstock its self," her friend gestured to the letter, "But a fair bit of pro-Capellan sentiment seems to be growing suspiciously fast."

"You know, we're not going anywhere for a few months at the very least." Joker lent forward slightly, Kelso and Aung pausing their conversation to listen in, "You could go home, check in on your family, if you'd like."

"Thanks for the offer, boss, but I kind of burned most of my bridges on the way out." Scilicorn shook his head, an unmistakable edge to his words, "Only my kid sister is still talking to me, if you can call the occasional letter to my MercNet account that."

"We're all here because, well, we have nowhere else to go." Kelso added, "Jay almost killed his CO, I... well, let's just say that there's a well connected young man who had a problem taking 'No' for an answer who's not going to be continuing his family line. Fate may have brought us together, but we stay together because, well, who else would have us?"

"Ain't no place I'd rather be." Aung chimed in with a nod.

"Sorry to tell you this, boss, but you're not getting rid of us that easy." Scilicorn smiled, "Like we said before: where you go, we follow."

"Here's forty shillings on the drum." Kelso placed her hand on the table.

"To those who volunteer to come," Aung placed his hand over hers.

"To 'list and fight the foe today." Scilicorn topped theirs, all three looking to Joker.

"Over the hills and far away." she added her hand on top, reaffirming their bond as a team, "It's the hormones that are making me cry, okay?"

---

Ngo Family Estate,

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

8 December 3057

"You look absolutely horrible!" Liz looked at the image on the screen with absolute shock, "What happened? Is the baby okay?"

"She is fine: currently trying to rearrange my internal organs to be more to her liking ." Joker assured her.. friend? Certainly confident, over the video call, "I just... I couldn't sleep last night. I don't know why, but I just had this... this feeling, that something was happening, or I was missing something. I don't really have the words to describe it."

"I just wanted to check in. I've been... busy, last few weeks."

"It can't be easy, running a planet and a business empire."

"It keeps me occupied." Liz nodded, not wanting to explain why she'd actually been unavailable, "Do you have any plans for the holidays?"

"Go to church, eat too much, watch the others drink too much, and celebrate another year of cheating death." Joker shrugged, "Truth is... I spent last Christmas with Alex and his family, so I'm not sure I'll be much company this year."

"How are the locals treating you? I haven't had any reports of incidents..."

"I haven't come across anything that required my professional skills, if that's what you're worried about." Joker raised her right hand, displaying a simply gold band on the forth finger, "A little costume jewellery, a mostly black wardrobe, and I'm just another woman who lost her husband to...well, I'm a mercenary, so they fill in the blanks for themselves. Less gossip that way."

"I wish my problems could be solved so easily." Liz frowned, "Should anyone ask, I'm not actually calling you, but rather involved in critical closed-doors negotiations with a representative of the Free Rasalhague Republic over a multi-billion Kroner contract for machine tools needed to rebuild a factory on Grumium."

"Well, my Swedenese is a bit rusty, but I'll try my best..."

"I just need something to keep Tharkad off my back, and in my experience, few things work as well as the threat of losing a significant amount of tax revenue."

"I take it this has something to do with the disagreement between Victor and Katherine? Lot of new, somewhat loosely defined contracts floating around on MercNet these last few months. Fortunately, we're small enough and specialised enough to fly below the radar, for the most part."

"Unfortunately, yes: our new 'Archon-Princess' expects me to drop everything and go all the way to Tharkad to Bend the Knee in person, prior commitments and TDS be damned."

"One advantage to being effectively stateless is I don't have to worry about things like that: my loyalty is to my friends, and to my contract."

"I do hope I fall into the former, and not the latter."

"After everything you've done for us thee past few months... if you ever have need of us, we're be there. I don't know if my word is worth anything, given that you don't even know my name..."

"Your name is Joker, far as I'm concerned."

"Thank you." the Mercenary looked down, "Sorry, but someone here is using my bladder as a footstool, so I'm going to have to cut this short..."

"I fully understand." Liz laughed, "We'll talk later."

"Goodbye." Joker smiled and cut the link.

"Oh fuck me!" Liz slumped in her chair, the colour draining from her face as she struggled to light one of her cigarettes.

Well, she called them those, even if they were made using medical grade New Avalon Red Leaf, still the strongest form of cannabis known to exist. It was also highly illegal in the Commonwealth... Alliance, she corrected herself. Mere possession of it would have landed her in prison for a considerable length of time, were it not for the fact that it had been prescribed by one of the top neurologists in the entire Inner Sphere, as one of the few things know to at least take the edge off of Stage Two Cholmann's Syndrome, and the side effects of high dosage of anti-seizure medication she was on.

Besides, she'd be dead and buried long before any of the negative effects began to manifest.

Still, spending the last week in hospital, recovering from injuries received due to a bad fall during his last seizure left her feeling... helpless wasn't quite the word, but it was close enough. The doctors wanted to up her dosage, again, but she was only taking half of what they were prescribing her as it was. She needed her head clear and her wits about her if she was going to leave Kowloon ready to face an uncertain future. It still wasn't clear if it would be Henry or Evelynn Mosovich, who if the Clans had just held off invading Tamar for a single day longer, would have been Patrick's wife, would succeed her as ruler of Kowloon. Both were more than up to the task, and had been a godsend in keeping things running while she was incapacitated.

When the time finally came, she'd bow out under her own terms, at a time and place of her choosing. But, until then, she needed to maintain the facade of the Black Duchess for as long as possible. Joker had a keen bullshit detector and absolutely no filter, so as long as she could maintain the illusion of still being fully in control good enough to keep her from commenting, she was still doing okay.

"One day at a time, Elizabeth." She told herself as she struggled to her feet, leaning heavily on her cane, "One damn day at a time."

---

Lazy S Ranch

Ia Drang, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

12 January 3058

"Well, that's us out of a fucking job." Joker sat watching the latest news reports coming in from Arc-Royal: the defection, if you could call it that, of a significant portion of Clan Wolf, and their seeking, and being given, sanctuary on the Kell family homeworld was all anyone that side of Tharkad was talking about.

"It certainly complicates matters." Kelso agreed from her perch on the arm of the sofa, "And things were getting hot enough as it was."

There was a chirping sound in the corner of the room, the communications console announcing an incoming message.

"Son of a..." Scilicorn sounded hesitant, "Um, Boss: it's for you."

"Who is it?" Joker asked, looking back over her shoulder.

"You'd never believe me if I told you." her friend shook his head and took a step back.

"Son of a bitch..." Joker complained as, with help from Kelso, she struggled to her feet, and staggered over to the corner of the room, "SON OF A BITCH!"

"What's up?" Kelso followed her over, and did a quick double take when she saw what was on the screen, "SON OF A BITCH!"

The spinning ComStar logo was pretty standard for most of the Inner Sphere, but it what was written beneath it that had them all surprised.

"You have a pending live HPG communication from KELL, PHELAN on ARC-ROYAL." it announced, as if such a thing was an everyone occurrence, "Do you wish to accept: YES/NO?"

"What's going on?" Aung walked in to see everyone standing around the communications console, and walked over to see what all the fuss was about, "Son of a bitch..."

"We just said that." Joker, Kelso and Scilicorn responded as one.

"What do you think he wants to talk to you about?" Scilicorn asked, not taking his eyes off the screen, almost as if he was worried that it might jump up and attack him.

"I haven't the faintest idea, but whatever it is, it can't be good news." Joker shook her head, "Probably pissed about all the shit we've pulled in the occupation zone."

"What if they want the Ante-Up back?" Kelso asked, "What if they want Dane and the others back?"

"If they want to go, I won't stop them, but they're not having our ship." Joker shook her head, "We took that from them fair and square, fully in accordance with MRB regulations at the time."

Joker reached out and tabbed the decline button, then switched the console to privacy mode, meaning any incoming communications would receive a pre-recorded message stating that they weren't taking calls at the time.

"I am so not in the mood to be dealing with that right now." Joker shook her head, "So, so not in the mood."

---

Zenith Jump Point

Kowloon System

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

24 February 3058

"I'm sorry, gentlemen, but it looks like you've made a wasted journey." Midshipwoman Linda Seether did her best to sound sure of herself, even if she was actively using her suits waste recycling system.

At seventeen, she was still technically a cadet at the Coastguard Academy, on her first shipboard tour. And yet there she was, standing before a Clan Wolf... Clan Wolf-in-Exile, she corrected herself, Star Colonel in full dress uniform, complete with genuine wolf pelt cape and ceremonial mask... and the living legend that was Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Allard of the famed Kell Hounds mercenary regiment. They didn't have to try and intimidate her: they achieved that simply by existing, and it was only the very genuine fear of what her instructors back at Spider Moon would say if she screwed up that was maintaining her poker face.

"A 'wasted journey'?" the Star Colonel asked with that all too perfect accent all Clannners seemed to share, "Please, explain."

"Yes, please do." Allard added with a polite nod.

"I'm sorry, but I have official orders, signed by the Duchess herself, baring any members of the Clans from entry to the Kowloon system." Seethers held up her data-pad for the two men to read, "I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait here until this ship leaves, or you can book passage on another JumpShip headed out-system."

"I have been sent by Khan Phalen Kell himself..." the Star Colonel started, but Allard held up a hand, then produced a sheet of very official looking paper.

"We are travelling under the authority of Duke Morgan Kell, as his duly appointed representatives." he passed the paper to Seethers, "As such, we request and require that you allow us passage to the surface of Kowloon, where we will meet with Duchess Ngo ourselves."

"That certainly looks official." Seethers read the note, then pressed a button on her data-pad, "Duchess Ngo thought something like this might come up, and prepared a response." She took a deep breath, and started to read the text on the screen, "From, Elizabeth Ngo, Duchess of Kowloon. To, Morgan Kell, Grand Duke of Arc-Royal..." she hesitated, then steeled herself for what was inevitably going to follow, "Go fuck yourself, you traitor spawning son of a bitch. Stay the hell out of my system."

The Star Colonel looked ready to pop a blood vessel, but fortunately, his companion was more level headed.

"Well, that certainly sounds like something Liz Ngo would say." Allard sighed, "Message received and understood."

"Gentlemen." Seethers bowed her head, "Have a pleasant and safe journey back to Arc-Royal."

---

Ngo Family Estate,

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

6 March 3058

"You wanted to see me?" Joker all but waddled into the Duchess's office: while she hadn't put on all that much weight during her pregnancy, her naturally slender frame meant that she was carrying it all externally, drastically shifting her centre of gravity.

"Not so much me." Liz winced, then gestured behind her friend.

Joker turned, then froze like a deer trapped in headlights as she saw just what, or rather, whom, was on the massive screen that took up a significant amount of the wall across from the desk. Morgan Kell, Arch Duke of Arc-Royal and one of the more feared and respected MechWarrors in... well, history. From Joker's point of view, looking at him was nothing short of looking at, if not God, then certainly one of the Archangels. Probably Michael, just after he cast down Lucifer. Beside him stood his son, Phalen Kell, Khan of the newly formed Clan Wolf-in-Exile, a man Joker had been doing everything she could to avoid for over a month. She had no idea just how much of a bill he had racked up with ComStar, between the countless messages that she had left unread, and the ruinously expensive live HPG transmissions she had declined.

Some people might have been flattered by the attention, but Joker was growing increasingly terrified.

"So glad we could finally get to speak with you, face to face." Duke Kell nodded, "I had to call in a significant number of favours and markers jus to get Duchess Ngo to take my call, and considerably more to get her to call you in without explaining why first."

"Nice to feel wanted." Joker responded with mock levity, "So, to what do I owe this... honour?"

"I find myself curious as to that myself." Liz stood, leaning on her desk, "You've pulled more strings than I realised you had access to to pull this off."

"While I appreciate your assistance, this is a private matter." Khan Kell spoke up for the first time, "Maybe it would be better if you left us?"

"She stays." Joker insisted, "There's nothing you have to say to me that you can't say in front of her."

The two men on the screen exchanged looks, the older one nodding, a resigned look on his face.

"Very well." the younger Kell continued, "By now, I am sure you have heard of the death of Khan Natasha Kerensky?"

"It's been in the news." Joker nodded, "Honestly, I didn't think that the old bitch knew how to die."

"Since her death, certain, files, have come into my possession." the Khan ignored the barb aimed at his mentor, "Including the last Will and Testament of Natasha Kerensky. Most of it is purely internal Clan protocol, it does include a copy of a birth certificate, dated August 8th, 3019..."

"Oh god." Joker felt her knees go weak, and she slumped backwards against the desk, Liz hobbling to her side.

"It is my duty to inform you that Natasha Kerensky was..." Kell continued.

"Shut up!" Joker snapped, "Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!"

"... your birth mother." the Khan finished.

"I think I'm going to be sick." Joker doubled over as best she could, hyperventilating.

"Are you completely out of your fucking mind!" Liz yelled at the screen, "You really think that dumping something like that on a pregnant woman is in any way a good idea?"

"I am forced to agree." Duke Kell looked at his son, "This could have been handled better."

"You think?" Liz snapped as she did her best to comfort her friend.

"Oh god no." Joker sobbed, "No no no no no!"

"There is another matter I feel compelled to address." Khan Kell spoke up, "You genetic legacy is... remarkable."

"Why do I have the feeling that I'm a page behind everyone else?" Liz asked.

"My father was the Bounty Hunter." Joker managed to speak up, "Or, rather, whoever it was who held the identity at the time, and was famously the arch-enemy of... Natasha Kerensky. That much I can guess for myself."

"As I said, remarkable. It certainly explains your exceptional natural talent as a MechWarror." Kell continued, "I have to ask if you have decided what you will do once your child is born?"

"Noooooo!" Liz hissed, looking at the screen with fire in her eyes, visibly shaking, "Don't you fucking dare! Don't you dare suggest what I think you're about to!"

"Like it or not, Joker is of Clan Wolf; her child is of Clan Wolf." he continued, unperturbed, "We have a right to lay claim to..."

"NO!" Joker yelled at the screen, "YOU CAN'T HAVE MY DAUGHTER!"

"The lady has spoken." Liz snarled, the shaking becoming worse, "So, unless you think you can take my world by force, I suggest you shut up before I show you how we deal with traitors on Kowloon!"

The Wolf Khan looked like he was about to say something, but Liz suddenly fell to the floor, convulsing uncontrollably as she lost all control over her body. Joker's scream of surprise and fear was heard in the next room, and Nathan Roshak burst through the door. Ignoring the two men on the screen, he grabbed a report off the desk, rolled it up and forced it between Liz's teeth to stop her biting her own tongue off.

Joker stumbled back as an emergency medical team rushed in, not even realising that her waters had broken.

---

?

"What!?" Joker looked around, surprised to find herself standing on the shore of a large, almost perfectly smooth lake. Across the water, she could see a forest leading off up to towering, snow capped mountains, the air rich with the scent of pine leaves, "Where am I?"

"Now, that is a matter of opinion." A voice off to one side answered, "As a life-long atheist, I would say that your heart stopped, and your brain is slowly dying of oxygen starvation, causing you to hallucinate. But, that then implies that I am nothing more than an hallucination myself, so I do not know why you would listen to me in the first place."

Joker looked round, surprised to see a table set up a few metres away, around which were placed three chairs. At one sat Elizabeth Ngo... and at another, Natasha Kerensky.

"I, on the other hand, have a different opinion." Liz took a sip from a delicate looking tea cup, "Yes, your heart stopped, and you're dying, and as such, you're having what's commonly called a 'near death experience'. I'm personally not sure why I'm here, because that lake doesn't seem to be made of burning sulphur..."

"WILL SOMEBODY PLEASE JUST TELL ME WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON?" Joker yelled, her voice carrying across the clear lake to echo off the distant shore.

"Sit, have some tea, and we'll talk." Natasha Kerensky pointed to the empty chair.

Begrudgingly, Joker sat, glaring at the two women.

"You're dead." She looked at the former Khan of Clan Wolf, "You died on Twycross, at what they're calling the Second Battle of the Great Gash."

"Oddly enough, I do remember that." Natasha Kerensky admitted as she poured out a cup of tea from a fine china pot, "Honestly, I was expecting, well, nothing. Instead, I find myself here. Assuming, for arguments sake, that I am not simply a projection of your own subconscious mind."

"Well, that much at least I could believe." Liz turned to Joker, "I'm sorry, but you do have a narcissistic streak running right through you."

"If that's true, aren't you also a projection of my subconscious?" Joker asked as she accepted the offered tea.

"Oh, I'm very much me: this isn't my first time peeking beyond the vail." Liz insisted, "Although, last time, there was a creepy man in a black suit and sunglasses who thanked me for my part in the war effort."

"So, what? You're gate-crashing my near death experience?" Joker snorted, "Egotistical, much?"

"This from a woman who named herself after the lyrics to a thousand year old song?" Natasha Kerensky asked.

"Let us just assume, for the sake of argument, that this is actually happening, and isn't just move on from there." Liz suggested, "Joker, it seems that there were certain, complications, from the birth of your daughter. Although, given she's not here, I would like to believe that she's alive and well. You, however...that is yet to be determined."

"Yes, this is all rather... confusing." Natasha Kerensky agreed, "As I said before, I was an atheist, and yet I find myself in, well, somewhere outside of the physical world. Please forgive my slight existential crisis."

"What about you?" Joker turned to Liz, "Last thing I remember clearly is you having some kind of fit..."

"Yeah, I bet that wasn't pretty: I've always avoided watching any recordings, but now I have to contend with Morgan Kell and his son... and possibly ComStar, having it in glorious HD." The Duchess of Kowloon frowned, "I have second stage Degnerative Neural Sheath Annihilation Syndrome, perhaps more commonly known as Cholmann's Syndrome. I have, maybe, another ten years before it gets to the point where I blow my own brains out before going into Stage Three. There's no cure: there's barely a treatment beyond doping me up to the eyeballs with increasingly high doses of pain killers and anti-seizure medication. Unfortunately, one of the side effects is my body becomes increasingly resistant to the medication. If I took anything like the levels they tried to give me, I'd be a drooling, spaced-out vegetable by now."

"Okay, if this is all some kind I hallucination, how do I know all that?" Joker asked.

"Because you are far more observant than you realise?" Natasha Kerensky suggested, "You obviously subconsciously picked up on more than you realised."

"Evidently, denial isn't just a river on Terra." Liz rolled her eyes.

"There's nothing anyone can do?" Joker asked.

"NAIS like to claim they have a theoretical treatment, but all they ended up doing was subjecting my great uncle to months of living hell with absolutely nothing to show for it." Liz shook her head, "No, not even the Star League could cure me: there's a reason why they call Cholmann's one of the 'Incurables'."

"Well... that sucks." Joker pouted, then clutched her chest, "Owch!"

"Ah, they are starting with the defibrillators." Natasha Kerensky nodded, "I have been told that they are somewhat... uncomfortable."

"You can say that... OWCH!" Joker winced again, "You can say that again!"

"Not long before you leave here, one way or another." Liz warned, "Anything either of you want to say or ask, now's the time."

"You did good, kid: I am proud of you." Natasha Kerensky raised her teacup in salute, "And, please, do not give Phelan too much of a hard time. He can be a little... dense, but his heart is generally in the right place."

"I think I'm beginning to understand you." Joker admitted, "I certainly don't blame you for giving me up. It would be... hypocritical of me, under the circumstances."

"Well, isn't that nice." Liz smiled, just as a bright light appeared behind Joker, "I think your ride is here."

The mercenary looked like she was about to say something, when she was suddenly pulled out of her seat backwards, vanishing in a flash of light.

"Well, this was nice while it lasted." Liz smiled as the world around them started to grow dark, "Where will you go now?"

"Honestly, I do not know." the Black Widow admitted as she started to fade, "But, wherever it is, they better have whisky..."

---

Dinh Ngo Medical Center

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

10 March 3058

"Oy-vay..." Joker blinked: her entire body ached, but she could feel soft sheets and a surprisingly comfortable bed beneath her.

Looking round slowly, she could see various pieces of hospital equipment, most of it bleeping away happily, while the line from an IV bag disappeared under the soft, warm blanket covering her. The room was painted a soft, calming blue, and soft sunlight flowed in a large picture window. Much to her surprise, she could just about see the outline of a second bed through a thick privacy screen to her right.

"What, I don't even rate a private room?" she muttered groggily, her mouth dry, her lips painfully chapped.

"Ungrateful bitch!" a voice from the other side of the devise responded, "I'll have you know that this is my private room, I my families private ward of the best equipped hospital this side of Arc-Royal!"

"Liz?" Joker struggled to look over, but her body was too weak, "I had the strangest dream..."

"The tea was surprisingly good, wasn't it?" the Duchess cut her off, "Take my advice: don't tell anyone. They're only look at you funny."

"...that was real?" Joker asked, "Really real?"

"You forget, I've read the report into what happened to you and the other on Tamar. What really happened." Liz countered, "After that, is a little near death experiences so hard to believe?"

"Well... Shit!" Joker sat back, then somehow found the strength to sit bolt upright, her entire body protesting, "THE BABY!"

"Alive and well, with a hell of a set of lungs on her." Liz assured her friend, "They have her next door. Under, well, you have some interesting friends."

"My team?" Joker asked, confused.

"Are highly capable, but no, not them." there was a click, and the privacy screen folded back on itself, allowing the two woman to actually speak face to face, "I don't know how, but it seems that the Spacer's Guild is in your debt. As such, their local representative, and I didn't even know they had one on planet, has made it clear that your daughter is under their protection."

"The Spacer's Guild?" Joker blinked, "But they just train DropShip and JumpShip crews, right?"

"Oh, I could spend the next few hours explaining just how wrong you are, but I don't think you'd enjoy it." Liz chuckled, "Just believe me when I say that your daughter is perfectly safe with the Guild watching over her as payment for a life debt." she paused, "Speaking of which, you're going to be have to name her eventually..."

"Alexis." Joker carefully settled back down onto the bed, "Her name is Alexis Lucy Kobe."

"So glad you didn't go with Kerensky: not a very popular name around here." the Duchess reached for a call button, "I did promise to let them know, soon as you woke, but I had the feeling that we should talk in private before hand."

There was a faint buzzing sound somewhere out in the corridor, and the door opened to admit Dr Wah.

"Good. You're finally awake." Wah walked over to Joker's bed and lifted her chart from the slot at the end, double checking the latest ops, "How do you feel?"

"Like shit." Joker admitted, "What happened?"

"I'll save you the medical jargon and skip right to the important bits." The doctor held the clipboard to her chest, "There's no easy way to say this: your daughter was breach born, and you suffered a serious hemorrhage as a result."

"And that's when my heart stopped?" Joker asked, then saw the look of surprise on the medics face, "Long story."

"Unfortunately, yes." Wah nodded, "But there's no apparent sign of permanent damage from that."

"Tell her." Liz ordered, "You tell her, or I will."

"Unfortunately, there were further complications from the hemorrhage, and they were forced to perform an emergency hysterectomy." Wah looked genuinely sad, "I'm sorry, but you'll never be able to convince a child naturally again."

"Just as well I wasn't planning on it." Joker looked up at the ceiling.

"Now give her the good news." Liz insisted.

"While they had to remove your uterus, they were able to salvage your ovaries." Wah continued, "They're viable, and should you wish, you could secure the services of a surrogate..."

"Not interested." Joker shook her head, "Give them to someone who needs them..." she paused, then looked at Liz, before back to Wah, "You sure they're viable?"

"It's not exactly my area of expertise, but from what I have been told, yes." The doctor nodded.

"Interesting." Joker thought for a moment, "I need a terminal with access to the HPG station."

"What?" Liz sat up, "What are you thinking of doing?"

"I'm going to make Phelan Kell an offer he can't refuse." the mercenary looked the Duchess in the eye, "If he wants my genetic legacy so much, it's going to cost him."

---

Kell Hall

Old Connaught, Arc-Royal

Arc-Royal Defense Cordon

Lyran Alliance

15 March 3058

"Well, she's Natasha's daughter, certainly." Morgan Kell re-read the message for the umpteenth time, then dropped it onto his desk, "Why doesn't she ask for the First Lord's throne while she's at it? Or the lost fortune of the Camerons? Those, at least, might be possible!"

"It is a deliberate act on her part." his son stood, staring into the roaring fire set in the mantle that took up most of one wall, "She asks for something she knows we can not give."

"I think you're both missing the Big Picture here." Daniel Allard sat in an overstuffed armchair, a tumbler of Glengarry Special Reserve in one hand, watching the single ice cube slowly melt, "She could have asked for anything: money, weapons, enough OmniMechs to outfit an entire company, a new DropShip, hell, even a JumpShip...but instead she asks for something far more precious, and far more noble."

"I do not understand." Star Colonel Ranna Wolf spoke up from her spot on a couch, where she sat with her ceremonial Wolf mask on her lap.

"And admitting that is said to be the first step on the path to true wisdom, or so Kai tells me." Allard smiled, "What you Aunt, and that's technically who she is to you, has asked for is not for herself, but for her friend. And her LIC file seems to imply that she doesn't have many of those."

"Duchess Ngo." Phelan Kell spat, "She is behind this!"

"Elizabeth Ngo would die a hundred times over before asking you, or any of the Clans for that matter, for help." His father shook his head, "I don't know how much you know about the history of Kowloon and the Ngo family, but they were once under the yoke of the Rim Worlds Republic, back when they were still valued allies of House Cameron and the Star League. It was SLDF forces that helped put down the rebellion of 2729, an SLDF warship that destroyed Dinh Diep, the original planetary capital, all be it by accident. And, when they rose up against House Amaris during the Star League Civil War, it was that same SLDF that swore to ensure their independence going forward... and then left the Inner Sphere, and Kowloon, behind. Son, when she calls you a traitor, it's not just because she thinks you betrayed the Commonwealth, but because she thinks General Kerensky betrayed her entire world."

His words got him death glairs from the two Clan officers, but he ignored them.

"The truth is, Elizabeth Ngo would never make an offer like this. Hell, I can only imagine what kind of stink she's raising over Joker making it." the older Kell continued, "No, this is from Joker, and I think she's deadly serious."

"So, all I need do to preserve a unique genetic legacy for my Clan is do the impossible." the Khan snorted, "What makes her think it is even potentially possible?"

"I don't think she does: I think she's desperate, and playing the only card she has." Allard pointed out, "Stop thinking like a leader and start thinking like someone who's lost friends, and imagine what you'd do to get them back?"

"There is nothing I would not do, if I were in her place." Phelan Kell admitted after a moment, "But that does not change the fact that she is asking the impossible."

"We once believed that faster than light travel was impossible, and yet here we are, hundreds of light years from Terra. Nothing is impossible, just mathematically improbable." the Grand Duke countered, "We need to think outside the box, take a step back and look at the big picture: people have been trying to cure Cholmann's for over a thousand years..."

"Trying, and failing." his son countered back.

"Then think of the glory when your Clan succeeds where so many others have failed!" the old mercenary lent forward on his desk, "Or, if that's not motivation enough, think of this: Liz Ngo's consort is a former Jade Falcon, who very likely has a back-channel to his former Clan. How long do you think it will take before he tells them the prize that awaits the first person to cure one of the fabled incurables?"

"Stravag!" Ranna bolted to her feet, he mask falling, forgotten, to the ground, "She would not... would she?"

"I don't think we can put anything past Joker." Allard warned, "You're too fixated on who her mother is, and you keep forgetting that her father was one of the most ruthless individuals who ever lived."

"We need to move quickly!" Morgan Kell punched his desk, hard, "Phelan, I don't care what it takes, but get your people working on this. I'll do what I can to reach out to Jamie Wolf and Cranston Snord, see if they've uncovered anything. Dan, see if you can shake anything loose from New Avalon." he looked around at his three companions, who were all staring at him with a mixture of shock, confusion and disbelief, "Oh, I'm sorry: did I make that sound like a suggestion?"

---

Dinh Ngo Medical Center

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

15 March 3058

"I'm not okay with this." Liz sat on the side of her bed as a nurse changed her bandages.

"What happened to 'my body, my choice'?" Joker asked, nursing her daughter, "Isn't that still the law in the Alliance? Or did that change with the name?"

"You're offering to trade your ability to have children in the future for magic beans!" the Duchess warned, "There is no cure for Cholmann's: never has been, probably never will be."

"Well then, there's nothing to worry about." Joker smiled, "No cure, no ovaries. Simple as that."

"And you really expect the Clans to abide by your decision?" Liz asked.

"No, but I know you: you're a paranoid bitch who has contingencies stacked on top of contingencies for your contingencies. You probably have the freezer housing my ovaries rigged to blow if the wrong person tries to open it."

There was a moment of silence, with almost everyone in the room looking at the young Duchess.

"...it's a perfectly standard procedure used by most noble houses to ensure no 'engineered' claimants to a title." She admitted, sheepishly, "And it was just sitting there, not being used..."

"See? Nothing to worry about." Joker handed her daughter back to a nurse and buttoned up her top, "Anyway, since you're insisting that I breastfeed, meaning I can't have any of the good painkillers, I felt inclined to make you suffer at least somewhat."

"I'm trying to help you bond with your daughter." Liz shrugged, wincing as a cracked rib protested the movement, "It's something I can't imagine your own mother doing."

"While I may have disagreed with my mother on many, many things, boobs being for fun, not food, isn't one of them." Joker looked down at her chest, "That said, they are looking truly spectacular right now."

The young nurse who'd been tending to Liz blushed a deep shade of crimson red, only worsened when Joker gave her a smile and a wink.

"Enough of all that! Leaving aside your physical condition, we're roommates right now, and the privacy screen isn't sound proof" The Duchess warned, "Even if I am glad to see you're getting back to something approaching normal, for you, anyway, I'm not voyeuristic."

"Does that mean that I won't get to see a certain Star Colonel help you with your... physical therapy?" Joker asked, playfully.

Now it was Liz's turn to blush, although she did a better job of hiding it.

"I've been involuntarily celibate for almost eight months, during which my hormones have been going crazier that a Liao on amphetamine." Joker protested, "Sorry if I need to get laid."

It was at this point that the nurse dropped the tray she'd been holding and ran out the door.

---

Wolf's Dragoons HQ

Harlech City, Outreach

Contested Space

17 March 3058

"Oh what a tangled web we weave..." Jamie Wold looked at the decoded HPG message from Arc-Royal.

"She is certainly her mother's daughter." Michi Noketsuna agreed, "This was not part of the 'Tradition' I inherited during my tenure as the Bounty Hunter."

"No doubt your predecessor wanted it kept secret, as much for his own protection as anything." Wolf nodded, "No matter who inhabits the mantel, the Bounty Hunter always has a back for attracting the kinds of enemies who wouldn't think twice about going after their kid. He may have acted like a cold blooded killer, but he evidently took at least some precautions to try and keep her safe when she was younger. Has Travers been in touch?"

"No, and I don't expect him to be. Not over this." the spy-master shook his head, "Part of the Tradition is, when you walk away from being the Bounty Hunter, you can never look back. While I consider Vic a friend, he is essentially dead while he bears the mantle. It is... complicated."

"Isn't it just?" Wolf asked wiley, "I've talked with our medical and scientific staff: they have... ideas, but nothing workable."

"I have our people searching everywhere, looking for anything, but this is not what we normally specialise in." Noketsuna paused then added, "How far should we push this? We have Natasha Kerensky's genetic profile on record..."

"This goes beyond that. Whether she ever wants to admit it or not, Joker is, for want of a better word, family." the old mercenary mused, "She could have asked for anything, or gone public with this information, but insisted she's apparently completely uninterested in claiming any presumed inheritance. All she asks is that we try and save her friend, and for that, she is willing to pay an unimaginable price."

"I do not believe that she is fully aware of what she is offering." Noketsuna sounded hesitant, "Forgive me if it is not my place to say, but, to an outsider, your ways can seem abhorrent. You subject your children to a life of military service, regardless of what they themselves might want."

"And her file would seem to indicate that she finds such practices, as you said, abhorrent." Wolf nodded, "And yet here she is, potentially consigning dozens, if not more, of her children to such a life. We should all be so lucky as to have such a friend."

---

Lazy S Ranch

Ia Drang, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

17 March 3058

"Welcome home!" Kelso enveloped Joker in a hug as the mercenary walked through the door.

"Still healing!" Joker winced, "Still healing!"

"Ya baby!" Kelso laughed, then turned to face the nurse who was following behind, "Speaking of..."

"Only way they'd let me out." Joker admitted, "Do you have any idea how hard it is to sneak out of a hospital staffed by ninjas?"

"Ninjas?" Kelso stopped and looked at her friend.

"Okay, not actually ninjas per-say, but some of those Coast Guard types can be damn scary, and they answer directly to Liz." Joker put her bag down, then accepted the bundle of blankets that contained her daughter, "Don't get used to having her around: I start interviewing foster families next week."

"Foster, not adoption?" Kelso asked as she cooed over the sleeping newborn.

"Fucking Liz; she got into my head while we were sharing a room at the hospital." Joker admitted, "I'm still leaving Alexis here when we head back out, but I will technically be a part of her life, poor little sod."

"You know, if you're gonna be around a kid, even fleetingly, we need to do something about your vocabulary." Scilicorn walked in, eating an apple, "You cuss like a drill instructor with a tooth ache."

"Eh, I had sixteen years of some very... Old Testament minded nuns trying to 'cure' me of my foul mouth." Joker shrugged, "If they failed to beat it out of me..."

"So, definitely not going with a religious school." Scilicorn nodded, "Check."

"Anyways, meet Trinh." Joker introduced the uniformed nurse, "She's here to help look after Alexis while I work on getting back into fighting condition. Doctor Wah said to take it slow, but we need to get back out there, kicking ass and taking names before we get too rusty."

---

Archons Private Office

The Triad, Tharkad

District of Donegal

Lyran Alliance

21 March 3058

"...she's my guest, as are her unit." the image of Duchess Ngo filled the display on the desk that had once belonged to Katherine Steiner-Davion's mother and grandmother. It was clear that, as hard as she wa trying to hide it, her illness was taking a greater toll on her.

'With any luck, she'll drop dead sooner rather than later' the self-styled Archon-Princess scowled inwardly, while carefully maintaining her pleasant outwards demeanor, 'then I can appoint a regent who'll do as their damn well told!'

"And you yet again refuse a reasonable request!" Katherine pointed out.

"Reasonable is where you're standing, Highness." Liz countered, "I'll remind you how many weeks in transit stand between Kowloon and the Capital. You demanded a time limit that is logistically impossible, even if I had a command circuit, the travel time and the condition of the realm argue against arriving on the date your staffers set. Bringing a Mercenary along without a contract?" she shook her head, "Not do-able. Besides, between your keen interest in my welfare, and the welfare of the nation, I have to argue that the nation's welfare comes first: my corporate fleet is busy carrying supplies to LCAF units along the Clan border, the ships that aren't involved in that, are carrying critical supplies to national contractors to fill orders, what remains beyond that, are working in support of anti-piracy operations days away at best, months away on average, I won't be able to reach Tharkad without a ride, and those assets are better spent supporting the defense of the nation."

"I KNOW you have a Shipyard." Katherine allowed just a little anger to slip into her voice, "One you've worked very hard to keep from being nationalised, despite the ongoing emergency..."

"A shipyard does not mean having completed, mission ready vessels, Your Highness. I've got a yard and it's backlogged ten years' worth to customers throughout the nation. Should I tell the Bradfords that Defiance is going to have to wait? Or Coventry metal works? how about the LCN itself? Who do I stiff, Highness? My facilities are in USE, and the bulk of my customers happen to also be your supporters. Who do I stiff so you can look me in the eye in the Triad and get me to re-speak the same Oath I already took?"

"We are no longer part of the 'Federated Commonwealth!" the anger was now genuine.

"Yeah, and a quick review of the recording shows I didn't swear fealty to the Federated Commonwealth, Highness, I swore it to the Lyran Commonwealth, which is the political entity that my world joined in 2789. I have never had any use for foreign rulers, this your intelligence people ought to have told you, Now, if you feel insecure, I suggest you have your legal team review the Treaty of Annexation, specifically parts nineteen, twenty four, and Thirty-two. Specifically the 'duties and privileges' clauses. I've fulfilled my explicit Feudal duties, a public, in-person swearing in is defined as a Courtesy, it is not a requirement, and I am not in good health. The tax and tithe are being paid on schedule, I am supporting the economy and military of the Lyran Commonwealth as required under the treaty, and that should be good enough."

Katherine cut the link without bothering to respond.

She was Archon-Princess of the Lyran Alliance, rightful heir to the thrones of two interstellar nations, and the Star League itself. She did not have to justify herself to some half-dead, half-breed slut from a world that would be utterly inconsequential if not for a handful of factories that had managed to survive the Succession Wars relatively intact! The audacity of the woman! To deny her, granddaughter of Katarina Stiener, the loyalty and obedience that was her very birthright!

Oh, by the time she was done with the little bitch, she'd be begging to face Stage Three of Cholmann's. Not that Katherine had any intention of letting her off that easy.

All this trouble, over some inconsequential mercenaries who weren't even Dragoon rated? And yet, according to her LIC analysts, they'd started popping up in an increasingly significant amount of chatter between people Katherine knew better than not to keep her eye on, such has her traitorous cousin, Morgan Kell, who hadn't had the good grace to die in the bombing that she had arranged to remove her mother. No, for some reason, this woman, this... Joker? What in of name was that for a grown woman anyway? Well, whoever she was, her name was being spoken of by powerful and influential people on Arc-Royal, Outreach, and even a far as New Avalon. Anyone who could go from unknown zero to that kind of attention was with knowing everything about.

If only Elizabeth Ngo had been a good little vassal, and brought her to Tharkad like she was asked. Then she could have been disappeared into whatever dark, bottomless pit LIC had for such people and 'persuaded' to talk. But no, they were going to have to do things the hard way, which meant activating the only LOKI cell on Kowloon. They would get to the bottom of everything, while also sending a message to remind Elizabeth Ngo of her place in the grand order at things.

---

Ngo Family Estate

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

21 March 3058

"Well, that could have gone better." an unexpected voice from the doorway shook Liz out of her funk.

"Henry?" She spun round, dropping the cigarette she'd been in the process of lighting, "What are you doing here?"

"Funny story there." her brother sauntered into the room, hands thrust into his uniform pockets, "I was with my regiment on Coventry, when suddenly I get an immediate summons to Tharkad..."

"That fucking bitch!" Liz spat, already starting to connect the dots.

"Indeed, it seems that my presence was requested and required by our esteemed Archon-Princess." Henry continued, "And, being the good little soldier I am, I did as I was told, grabbed my kit, and boarded the DropShip."

"Then how did you get here?" Liz asked, confused, "Tharkad is in the complete opposite direction."

"That is, I'm sure, under investigation: seems the JumpShip navigator got all turned around, and nobody noticed in time." Henry sat, "Coincidentally, my arrival in-system coincided with the end of my term of enlistment. As such, any orders pertaining to Hauptmann Henry Ngo are invalid, and Henry Ngo, Baron of Hue, is far to busy looking after his pregnant wife to go running off to Tharkad on such short notice. Oh, yes, by the way: Shelby is expecting. You're going to be an aunt."

"YOU BASTARD!" Liz laughed as she swatted him on the arm with the end of her Cain, "Next time, lead with the good news, okay?"

"Message received and understood." her brother rubbed his arm, "Shelby sends her apologies, but unfortunately the trip took a lot out of her, and she headed directly back to ours to rest up. She'll come see you soon as she recovers."

"Tell her, as much as I'm looking forward to seeing her again, not to rush." Liz perched herself on the edge of the her desk, "We've had far too excitement around here lately."

"Yes, I saw Nathan on the way in." Henry frowned, "Why didn't you tell me you'd progressed to Stage Two?"

"I'm dying: what does it matter if it's a little sooner than we'd hoped?" Liz asked with a shrug.

"Nathan also said something I didn't understand." Henry sat back, folded on leg over the other and pressed his fingers together, "He said something about a potential cure..."

"Oh, he is so sleeping on the couch tonight!" Liz hissed, "That man needs to learn to keep his damn mouth shut."

"So, there is a possible cure?"

"No, what there is is a damn fool trying to change the universe through sheer force of will." Liz lamented, "And, for once around here, it isn't me."

"The only other person around here crazy enough to attempt the impossible is..." Henry stopped, a worried expression on his face, "What. Did. She. Do?"

"I assume you're referring to your esteemed rescuer?" Liz asked, "Well, shit, you'll find out eventually, but you'd best pour us both a good, strong drink, because you're gonna need it."

---

Lazy S Ranch

Ia Drang, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

5 April 3058

It was just gone 3am, local time, when the LOKI team approached the perimeter. Their advanced sneak suits allowed them to bypass the active sensors, while their lifetime of training got them past the passive. The few guards on duty were huddled in the small outbuilding that served as a guardhouse, playing cards, their indifference accidentally saving their lives.

The LOKI team had very strict instructions to minimise collateral damage where possible, but full authority to kill anyone who got in their way.

Thermal imaging of the main house showed a number of distinct individuals, all located in what the blueprints had identified as bedrooms. One particular heat source was noticeably smaller than the others, indicating that it was their target. They neither knew nor cared why they had been ordered to snatch the child in the middle of the night, only that a high-speed shuttle was waiting to take it to an LIC JumpShip that would jump in to a predetermined pirate point at a set time for pick-up, and then transport the child out-system.

Beyond that... it was not their concern. They had a mission to perform in the name of House Stiener, and nothing was going to stop them.

An outside stairway provided access to the roof, and they carefully and silently made their way across the terracotta tiles until they reached a spot over the balcony adjacent to the targets room. A final quick check of the thermal scope indicated that nobody inside had moved beyond what was normal for someone in a deep sleep, so they lowers themselves onto the balcony.

The simple lock on the door provided only the bare minimum of a delay, and the four silently made their way into the nursery. The team leader crept towards the crib, holding a can of specially formulated stun-gas that would keep the child from making any noise, but not hurt it. After all, their briefing had been very clear that the child was to be taken alive and unharmed. Theirs was not to reason why, theirs was but to do, and if needed, die.

Stun-gas at the ready, the commander slowly pulled the blanket out of the way... only to find a hot water bottle where the child should have been.

"I've been expecting you." a voice from the deep shadows in one corner of the room suddenly announced, and a light flicked on to reveal a young woman in a nurses uniform, with an sterne expression on her face. One arm was held across her chest, the other hand holding a steaming cup of tea, and yet neither the woman nor the cup had shown up on the thermal scope...

Peterson, the communications expert, was closest, and made a grab for her, only to get a face full of scalding hot tea. He was wearing a face mask, but it was designed for maximum stealth in a dry environment, so offered only minimal protection. It certainly distracted him long enough for Trinh to bring to cup back around, braking it against the side of his head. Hakeswell, the sniper-scout, was next, drawing a combat knife, and advancing on the nurse... who suddenly dropped down out of the commandos line of sight. Using the sharp remains of the cup, she slashed at the taller woman's legs, cutting her femoral arteries. Then, rising up, she grabbed the knife from the surprised commando and flung it at Burebaker, the team leader. The laser sharpened blade sliced through the slash resistant materials of his sneak suit and neatly bisected his heart, dropping him like a stone.

The final member of the team, Graves, the heavy weapons specialist, drew a needle pistol, but Trinh grabbed the still struggling Peterson and used him as a human shield. Graves didn't hesitate to fire, shredding his team mates back, even as Trinh rushed forward. Had his lungs not already been ripped apart, the force of the impact would have drive the wind out of Peterson, but instead he hit Graves like the dead weight he was, giving Trinh a momentary advantage.

But Graves was highly trained in hand-to-hand combat, and had a considerable size and weight advantage, forcing the nurse to get in as close as possible to try and negate his advantages, while also limiting her advantage in speed and agility. The fight was fast and brutal, with both combatants looking for any opening to take their opponent down hard and fast. Eventually, Trinh's superior training won out, and she delivered a lightning jab that crushed Graves' larynx, then grabbing his discarded pistol from the floor, held it against the underside of his chin and pulled the trigger.

Looking round, Trinh saw that Hakeswell was still moving, struggling to apply crude tourniquets to her legs. Switching back into her medical persona, she helped the struggling woman, stopping the bleeding before the blood loss became life threatening. She then dragged her to her feet.

"I am letting you live, but only so you can deliver a message to those you serve." She warned, her voice cold and hard, "This child is under the protection of the Spacer's Guild. Make no further actions against her, or face the consequences."

With that, she shoved the shocked commando backwards, hard enough to send her out through the doors, a roos the balcony and over the low wall. It was only a single story drop, and even in her injured state, one someone with her training had a better than average chance of surviving. Trinh then looked around at the three dead bodies, and considerable amount of blood, that filled the room, and started clearing.

---

Archons Private Office

The Triad, Tharkad

District of Donegal

Lyran Alliance

9 April 3058

"I am sorry, your highness, but there is simply nothing we can do without risking potentially catastrophic consequences." the LIC director stood before Katherine Steiner-Davion, looking very much like a teacher trying to explain a concept to a particularly stubborn pupil, "Spacer's Guild ships and crews account for at least a third of our civilian shipping. And, with so many vessels called up for government service, we need every last one of them."

"Then seize the ships!" The Archon snorted, "Put our own people on them. I want the Guild to rue the day they crossed me."

"Your highness, if I may, the Guild doesn't care who they crossed by stopping our operation on Kowloon. In fact, they may not even know it was one of ours." the director continued, "The Guild has managed to maintain their independence throughout the Succession Wars, despite the best efforts of everyone from Jerome Blake to your grandmother and even your father, simply by being, well, indispensable. A Guild Interdiction, even a partial one, affecting only the JumpShips and DropShips they control directly, would cripple our economy and force us to release appropriated ships back to civilian service."

"But you just said that they don't know for sure that it was us?"

"Indeed, your highness, but that does not mean that they wouldn't find out. The Guild has had centuries to perfect the art of finding out who is responsible for what. If not for the fact that they seem singularly dedicated to their self-professed mission of maintaining interstellar trade, they would arguably be on the same level, power wise, as any of the Great Houses."

"How can such a situation have been allowed to come about, let alone continue for so long?"

"Because, your highness, it is simply easier to have someone else deal with it. So long as the Spacer's Guild is taking care of training officers and crew to the same high standards as was expected during the Star League, and doing so universally and without distinction for nation of birth, it is one less thing the government has to do. And, given just how many millions in there are, either as members of or trained and certified by the Guild, it would be a bureaucratic nightmare. By allowing the Guild to take up this burden of their own free will, it allowed our forbearers to concentrate on trying to kill one another. And, all military and secure government ships are kept strictly free of Guild interference."

"So, in short, an independent Guild is preferable to a Guild under the control of someone else?"

"Exactly, your highness. The Guild is notoriously impartial, and would react the same to interference from anyone."

"But why take such an interest in this child?"

"There I can only speculate, but I have had my people back-tracking the career of this particular mercenary unit, and we have uncovered an incident on the planet Sweet Water, one of the more... forgettable worlds in the Bucklands Province. It appears that the mercenaries were instrumental in fending off a pirate attack, after which this Joker, handed a loaded weapon to a young woman who had been a prisoner aboard the pirates DropShip. The young woman then used said weapon to shoot dead the leader of the pirates, before she and an associate gave a very long and indepth accent of the various criminal activities that they had been privy to. It also appears that the young lady was a member of the Spacer's Guild, and they quickly sent a ship to restive both her and her associate from Sweet Water, while the other pirates were all executed."

"So, it's simple quid pro quo: she helped a member of the Guild, and they are now returning the favour?"

"That would seem to be the most likely examination, your highness. Kowloon has a rather substantial 'Belter' community, a relic of their days under the Rim Worlds Republic, so it stands to reason that they would have a noticeable Guild presence in the system."

"So, we can not risk any further direct action at this time." the Archon looked and sounded very much like a spoilt child who had failed to get her way, "Very well: continue to monitor the situation for now. But I want to know the instant anything new comes to light."

---

Port St. William

Coventry

Coventry Province

Lyran Alliance

9 April 3058

"It has been a while." Khan Martha Pryde looked at the face on the screen, "How is Huntress?"

"Cold." Chief Scientist Peri smiled weakly "I appreciate you taking the time to talk to me directly like this."

"Well, Etienne obviously considered this important, if he had you of all people contact me directly." her former sibko nodded, "And to have Kael Pershaw agree? You have my curiosity."

"You remember Star Colonel Nathan Roshak, quaff?"

"Aff: he was a promising commander, who 'allowed' himself to be taken as Bondsman by an Inner Sphere mercenary as part of a scheme to gain insight into, and a leverage over, the upper levels of the Federated Commonwealth."

"Well, he has been in contact with our Watch, and if what he says is true... it could have drastic ramifications."

"You had my curiosity, now you have my attention."

"If the information he has uncovered is true, and it apparently came from... the leader of abjured Wolves, then while she was in the Inner Sphere, Natasha Kerensky had a daughter. A freeborn daughter. According to Nathan Roshak, the father was also a Mercenary of some... infamy, known only as the 'Bounty Hunter'. Although, obviously not the same individual who is active today."

"So, the Black Widow allowed herself to fall pregnant? Hardly something we can use against the Wolves, as she is dead."

"But the child, a daughter, is very much alive, and is indeed the very same mercenary who defeated Nathan Roshak in a Trial of Possession. She is also currently on Kowloon, the same planet as Nathan Roshak, having recently given birth to a daughter herself. There were, apparently, some form of complications during the birth, resulting in the Mercenary being surgically sterilised. However, her reproductive organs were saved, and are currently being used as a bargaining chip with the same abjured Wolves."

"Let me guess: she wants advanced weapons and OmniMechs?"

"Neg: she has tasked them to find a cure for Degnerative Neural Sheath Annihilation Syndrome, otherwise known as Cholmann's Syndrome, one of the so-called 'Incurable'. It appears that the ruling Duchess of Kowloon, a close friend and benefactor of the mercenary, has the syndrome, and has recently entered Stage Two. If the Wolves can cure her, they get the mercenaries genetic legacy."

"And Nathan Roshak believes that this offer is genuine?"

"Aff. And, what is more, he believes that she would be open to a counter-offer..."

"We save this useless noble, and we can claim the prize?"

"That is his belief, yes."

"Well, that certainly makes things interesting." Martha Pryde sat back in her chair, "Find out if such a cure is even possible. I do not want to tip our hand with nothing to show for it."

"And if it is?" Peri asked.

"Then we shall see who can make their offer first: us, or the Dezgra Wolves."

---

Ngo Family Estate

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

21 April 3058

"Holy shit!" Liz read, then re-read the hand delivered HPG message, holding it at arms length as if it was a hissing snake, "Holy shit!"

"You already said that." Nathan Roshak commented from the office doorway, "What has you so... agitated?"

"You wouldn't understand." Liz shook her head, but offered the message up for him to read.

"From, New Avalon Institute of Science. To, Elizabeth Ngo, Duchess of Kowloon." He read the message aloud, "Dr Bartholomew Banzai requests permission to tour Nha Tranh University at your earliest convenience."

"You have absolutely no idea who that is, do you?" Liz asked, completely deadpan.

"I confess I do not." Her lover shrugged, "A scientist, I presume?"

"Calling Doc Banzai a 'scientist' is like calling Katherine Stiener-Davion 'slightly ambitious'." the Duchess snatched the paper back, "He's effectively the scientist, certainly for my parents generation. He spearheaded the development of bionic replacement limbs, especially those suitable for soldiers. But he's also an award winning physicist, acclaimed musician and a highly decorated MechWarror."

"He sounds impressive. Should I be concerned?"

"If he was thirty years younger, yes, very much so!" Liz admitted, "I had... quite the crush on him during my younger days. He was one who few people in the Inner Sphere who actually seemed to give a damn about improving the quality of life for everyone, and not just the nobles. And now he is on the way to my world, to visit my university!"

"So, we should, I believe that the phrase is, 'break out the good china'?"

Liz looked at him with a warm expression.

"You know, if not for the fact that you're from a society of genetically enhanced assholes, you'd make a damn good husband."

Nathan Roshak looked stunned for a moment, then started to say something, but Liz silenced him with a finger to his lips.

"You know the rules: yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, and today is a gift. Spending time dreaming about what can never be is time not spent living in the now. Carpe Diem. Now, help me get this dress off so we can properly celebrate the good news."

"Only so long as you promise not to call me 'Bartholomew'."

"I make no such promises..."

---

Blackheath Maximum Security Prison

Rubat, Eden

Pentagon Worlds

Deep Periphery

25 April 3058

"Prisoner #1864!" The wardens voice echoed down a cellblock, "You have a visitor."

"How unexpected." Cathy sat up on her bunk as her cell door slid open, "Who could possibly want to see me?"

She stood, stretching her long, slender arms above her head. Near starvation rations and enforced exercises time had honed her body in a way that her previous life as one of her Clans premier genetic researchers never had. Unlike many senior scientists, she had not washed out of warrior training, but had rather grown up the Freeborn daughter of two humble farmers, until her natural aptitude had been discovered in early childhood. The Clans always insisted on the best out of their lower casts, even if they were treated as little more than chattel by the Warriors. As such she had been transferred to the Scientist Cast, and had been educated to the best of her Clans abilities. Her natural inclination towards biotech had been encouraged, and she had soon gained the Labname Franklin for her work isolating a recessive gene that had been plaguing the Jade Falcon Aerospace Pilot phenotype for some time.

Unfortunately, her proposed cure had been deemed too radical, and had been rejected by her superiors. Believing them to be closed minded, she had attempted to prove hr point, by clandestinely altering the DNA of an entire Sibko. Her actions had been discovered, resulting in her arrest, and the destruction of the altered embryos.

Most people in her position would have simply been executed, but her brilliant mind was still considered a potentially valuable resource, and a such she had been sentenced to life within Blackheath, one of the few prisons in Clan space.

Stepping out into the corridor, Cathy looked down along the row of identical cells: while their origins varied greatly, everyone in Blackheath was considered too dangerous to be left free, eve in the tightly controlled society set forth by Nicholas Kerensky, yet too potentially useful to be simply discarded. As such their were an odd assortment of scientists, engineers, warriors and even the odd artisan...who tended to be very odd indeed. She could feel them watching her through the small openings in their cells a she made her way to the steel door at the end of the block, where the warden, a Solahma Elemental named Hindley.

"Prisoner #1864, reporting as ordered, sir." she smiled sweetly.

Hindley simple grunted, and bid her to follow him to a small room containing a table, two chairs, and another woman. Her uniform was that of Star Captain, but bore no name or unit identification, which immediately identified them as a member of the Watch, the closest thing any of the Clans had to a covert military intelligence agency.

"Sit." the woman stood with hr back to the door, hands clasped behind her back as she looked out the window.

Cathy did as she was instructed, and silently waited for the other shoe to drop.

"Degnerative Neural Sheath Annihilation Syndrome." the unnamed warrior said after close to a minute of silence.

"Inherited genetic disorder found amongst the descendents of the recipients of certain early recombinant DNA therapies development on Terra in the mid 21st century. Used to treat a number of degenerative conditions including Huntington's Disease, Parkinson's, Multiple Sclerosis, Epilepsy, as well as heritable vulnerability to depression and psychosis." the scientist recalled from memory, "The treatment was not approved by the Western Block nations, but a number of their citizens did travel for treatment. Even so, it is predominantly found in people of Southeast Asian decent. Most commonly known as Cholmann's Syndrome."

"Is there a cure?" the Star Captain asked.

"No. Cholmann's is still considered to be one of the so-called 'Incureables'." Cathy shook her head, "There was some promising work done in the Capellan Confederation, before the fall of the Star League, but nothing definitive."

"If you were to be granted access to the records of that research, could you find a cure?"

The question surprised Cathy: to the best of her knowledge, the defective genome had been eradicated from the Clan gene pool centuries ago, and it was only remembered as a cautionary tale, a reminder of the inherent hubris all too common in those who sort to play God.

"I do not know." She admitted after careful consideration, "I would have to review the records for myself."

"They will be provided." the Star Captain turned, "You can review them in transit."

"May I asked where I am going?" Cathy looked up.

"You are going to the Inner Sphere." The warrior explained, "There, you will prove your continued usefulness to the Clan by curing the incurable."

"And if I fail?" the scientist asked.

"Then you will have proven that you are no longer of use." the unspoken threat hung heavy in the air.

"Motivation is always key." Cathy did her best not to let her fear show, "Just as well I have nothing to pack. When do we leave?"

"Immediately."

---

Boojum Shipyard

Kowloon System

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

12 May 3058

The space around her may have been the very definition of organised chaos, but Liz doubted she had ever felt more at peace.

Floating free of the massive shipyard that orbited an airless moon that in turn orbited a gas giant, she had found herself adopting the lotus position almost subconsciously as she allowed her eyes to take in the ceaseless activity that was arguably her true legacy. Kowloon had always had some form and native shipbuilding industries: the binary system was simply too vast to get around at sub-light speeds, and a number of so-called 'jump taxis' made regular jumps close to the key transfer nodes and larger Belter settlements. Such ships needed to be built, maintained, and when needed, repaired, and that required a shipyard.

Oh, sure, the Rim-Jobs had blown most of their orbital infrastructure to hell when they moved in, but enough of it had survived, hidden away in isolated, hard to reach corners of the system, that they had managed to keep going, despite the best efforts of their imperial overlords. Even the SLDF Navy, with all their awesome might, hadn't been able to stop them building and maintaining ships. And, as if to prove that the universe had a sense of ironic humour, it was those same shipyards that had helped build the ships needed to carry the 171st Kowloon Volunteers Brigade all the way to Terra, to help overthrow the Fat Man. The years since had been hard: so much, too much, had been lost to the insanity of the Succession Wars, and the yards had lost much of their previous capacity, until they were only a shadow of their former glory. But, time, an incredible amount of money, and the assistance we Spacer's Guild, had restored at least part of the station to life.

In many respects, the Kowloon Coast Guard were the inheritors of the legacy of the 171st, all be it on a vastly reduced scale. Long gone were the Sampan class Cutters, really just refitted and upgraded Type-51 Gunboats, and the attendant flotillas of primitive JumpShips. For far too long, the Lyran Navy has stripped them of anything of any real value, always under the guise of 'National Security' or the 'Needs Of The State', leaving them with far too few hulls, or crews, to adequately patrol their sector for pirates and smugglers. As such, one of the first things she had done upon assuming the position of Duchess was to lie through her teeth about just how expansive the upgrades to the yards had been. Given their inability to produce anything larger than a Merchant class JumpShip, they'd managed to avoid any serious attempts at a hostile takeover.

Liz had ended that particular threat by personally buying all the outstanding debt the yards owed, which with the stake she already held as Duchess, effectively made her the majority shareholder. Unfortunately, it had tapped out almost everything she had that wasn't already tied up in Nha Tranh University, leaving her asset rich, but cash poor. As such, she hadn't been outright lying when she told Katherine Stiener-Davion that the entire output of the yards was presold for the next ten years... she just didn't tell her the full truth as to how many ships were under construction, and who they were intended four.

Parallel manufacturing was a hell of a trick: the longer the production run, the lower the unit cost. Build enough, and you'd end up with a surplus of effectively free components. And, as nobody was willing to spend weeks in transit to inspect the yards personally, they just looked at the end-cost numbers on the spreadsheet and compared them to the commonly accepted price of a given item and left it at that. They didn't care just how much you were actually producing, so long as the taxes and tithes were paid, in full and on time. As such, nobody had noticed that, for every six JumpShips they were expected to produce, they were actually building seven. Or that they had vastly expanded their DropShip and aerospace fighter lines over the last few years. Oh, it was taking time and exorbitant amounts of money, to the point where Liz wasn't even sure she'd live to see the end results, but she was determined to leave Kowloon better armed and prepared to defend themselves then they had been before she'd taken power.

Tyra Miraborg had proven that the Clans could be defeated in space, if you were brave, crazy or desperate enough. And while even primitive warships like the Sampan might still be out of reach; but still something they were actively working towards, they could build a massive fleet of Assault and Carrier DropShips, and enough fighters to equip them. Throw in an unexpected fleet of Jumpships to give them strategic mobility, and the Coast Guard was finally getting back to something approaching its desired strength.

Opening her eyes, Liz looked out to see the assembled ships of 1st Squadron, Kowloon Coast Guard: twelve Merchant class JumpShips, arranged into three four ship patrols, each equipped with an Achilles class assault ship and a Leppard CV carrier. Upon each hull was the leaping Orca insignia of the Kowloon Coast Guard. Liz had looked into the more powerful Vengeance class, but they were too expensive to get the licence for, and it would have drawn unwanted attention. As it was, they represented the biggest concentration of naval firepower that side of Arc-Royal... and few outside of the Coast Guard or the shipyards even knew they existed.

And they were only the beginning...

---

The Palomino Club

Ia Drang, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

4 July 3058

"We gonna sit here all night and watch her destroy her liver?" Scilicorn asked, looking across the to the spot at the bar where Joker sat perched on a stool, an increasing number of empty shot-glasses laid out before her.

"You really want to try and stop her?" Kelso asked, sipping her beer, "Tonight would have been her and Alex's second anniversary..."

"In get the significants of the date." her friend and comrade lifted his own bottle to his lips, "I'm just saying, this ain't exactly the healthiest way of dealing with it."

"That it ain't, but it's better than some of the alternatives." Kelso admitted with a shrug, then nodded towards the bar, "Besides, Jay's looking after her."

Sure enough, the unmistakable form of Aung sat looming besides Joker, matching her drink for drink, while also keeping the local bar-flies from trying their luck. The massive MechWarriors ability to consume alcohol and remain coherent was almost legendary, and had won the team a not inconsiderable amount of money over the years. He was certainly better suited for the task of keeping a close eye on Joker than Scilicorn or Kelso, given her apparent determination to drink like she didn't want to see tomorrow.

"She's fucked in the head, that's for sure." Scilicorn admitted, "I mean, I know we all are, or we wouldn't be here, but she's..."

"She's never lost anyone she loved before." Kelso agreed, "You know what she's like: took he years to let down her defences around us, and we're just her team. Alex got past all her defences, and in only a year, to the point where she was starting to act like, well, the closest thing to a normal human being she's ever gonna be. To suddenly lose him, and in a way that she still blames herself for on some level..."

"You think it broke her?" Scilicorn asked, his voiced filled with genuine concern.

"I think it broke something in her: only time will tell what exactly." Kelso frowned, "The best we can do is be there for her, and hope having Alexis around pulls her out of her shell somewhat."

The two fell into a sullen silence.

"Is this seat taken?" a voice asked, and the two mercenaries looked up to seen an unexpected face.

"Well, if it isn't our old friend, Star Captain Henry Jade Falcon, as was." Scilicorn laughed, "Welcome to what is depressingly called a party."

"Much obliged." the former Bondsman sat, signalling to the waitress for another round, "So, what brings you all out here tonight? I had to really push to get a very scary lady at the Ranch to tell me where to find you."

"Joker wanted to drink, and, well, Scary Lady won't let her do that around Alexis." Kelso shrugged, "This place was close and sells decent beer."

"She certainly seems to be making up for lost time." Henry looked over to where Joker was downing a line of shot-glasses, "Is this normal? For her, I mean?"

The two mercenaries exchanged glances, but remained silent: the Ngo family were friends, but they were still Outsiders, not part of the team, and as such, certain things would forever remain unsaid.

"How was Coventry?" Kelso asked, looking to change the topic, "You must be pissed you missed the main event."

"I doubt that they would have trusted me to see action if I had still been there." Henry frowned as his first beer arrived, "Nobody has said as much, but I got the feeling that my true loyalties are the subject of much debate."

"Well, you had gone rather native when we grabbed you." Scilicorn pointed out, "You more so than Shelby."

"Much of what the Clans say they stand for still makes sense to me, and I intend to do everything I can to effect genuine change in the Common... Alliance." He caught himself in time, "But distance had allowed me to see the hypocrisy inherent in their system: they say they want to help the people of the Inner Sphere, but they treat them worse than the Combine or Confederation."

"My grandfather used to say that a pig in a wedding dress is still a pig." Kelso raised her beer, "Of cause, he was going somewhat senile towards the end."

"Well, I think your grandfather may have been onto something." Henry laughed, "I need to, as the old saying goes, find the Third Way."

"Well, I'll drink to that." Scilicorn held up his beer, and the other two clinked against it with their own.

"Mission accomplished." Aung appeared at their side some time later, a snoring Joker slung over one shoulder.

"How are you even standing?" Kelso asked, as she signal a waitress to bring them their bill.

"Indeed, I saw you matching her, drink for drink." Henry nodded as he waved Scilicorn aside and settled the bill.

"Alcohol just doesn't seem to affect me all that much." Aung shrugged, enticing a murmur of complaint from Joker, before she resumed snoring.

"He just has a hollow leg, that's all." Kelso grabbed her jacket, then turned to Henry, "You gonna be okay getting home?"

"Liz has a couple of Coasties keeping watch on me." he chucked, "I'll be fine. What about you guys?"

"Taxi home, sleep it off, then spend tomorrow avoiding sleeping beauty here while she deals with a killer hangover, and Trinh's disapproving glares." Aung shrugged again, more carefully this time, "Such is the price of glory."

---

Nha Tranh University

Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

8 August 3058

The rapid tapping of Liz's cane echoed across the manicured lawns as she hurried across the quad, Nathan Roshak keeping watch from a respectful distance behind.

He had surprised himself with just how quickly he had adapted to his new life as... they hadn't exactly put a name to it, but it combined all the aspects of a friend, confidante, consigliere, carer and lover. It was certainly the drastic change from his previous life as a warrior, but somehow he felt, for want of a better word, content. Despite her illness, Elizabeth Ngo was seeking to reshape the universe round her by sheer force of will, grabbing it by the throat and demanding it be better. She probably would have shot him if he ever said so out loud, but she was every bit the Crusader he was, she just used different weapons to bring about the same ends.

Ahead of them stood a tall, older man in a grey suit, with a white shirt and red bow tie. His hair may have been graying, and not quite as thick as it had once been, but there was no mistaking the sparkle in his eyes.

"Dr Banzai, it is a true honor to meet you." Liz stopped before the esteemed scientist and offered her hand.

"Duchess Ngo." he took the hand and shook it with a warm smile, "Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to visit your establishment. Far too few people are investing in the further, rather than continuing old grudges."

The two turned to look at the massive, neo-gothic revival building before them. It had been built during her grandfathers time, when Archon Alessandro Steiner had sort to fortify his powerbase by installing 'representatives', really planetary governors by any other name, on a number of potentially rebellious worlds. The massive estate had later served as the Regents official residence and seat of power, right up until Liz had put a bullet through the few brains he had on live television, having publicly unmasked his many crimes against the people of Kowloon.

In a bid to make something useful out of the other window useless building, one of Liz's first acts had been the creation of Nha Tranh University, dedicated to to the restoration, designation and furthering of human knowledge. And, unlike many other universities in the Inner Sphere, it distinctly lacked any dedicated military departments: no MechWarror training facilities, no flight school or even an infantry ROTC. Anyone who wanted that kind of education could apply for the Militia or the Coast Guard. Nha Tranh was about education for the sake of the betterment of all mankind, not learning new ways to kill each other.

Above the main entrance, carved into the stone and picked out in gold leaf, were Liz's words during the commencement ceremony:

We have lost so much knowledge we don't even have names for what's been forgotten.

This has to stop.

"Wise words, and one's I wish more people would live up to, your Grace." Dr Banzai nodded in agreement.

"Thank you." She positively beamed in response to the compliment, "And please, call me Liz."

"Only if you call me BB." The scientist insisted, "Now, is there somewhere we can talk?"

It took them a while, but they eventually found an empty lecture room, Banzai's MIIO bodyguards keeping watch over the door, while Nathan Roshak headed off in search of refreshments.

"I must first offer my most heartfelt apologies." Dr Banzai started, taking one of the empty seats on the bottom row, "I haven't been completely truthful with my intentions concerning my journey here. Oh, I certainly intend to take every opportunity to explore this marvellous University you have created, but my primary reason for being here is as a favour to an old friend."

"Let me guess: Morgan Kell." Liz rolled her eyes, trying to hide her genuine sense of disappointment, "How much did he tell you?"

"Just that you are suffering from Stage Two of Cholmann's Syndrome." The visiting scientist admitted, "And that, for reasons he declined to go into, he would very much like you to survive."

"Well, he at least knows to keep some things private." Liz took a seat a few desks down, "You've come a long way to tell me nothing can be done for me."

"Not exactly." Banzai stood, thrust his hands into his pockets, and started to pace back and forth, "I do not know exactly what is going on, which, believe me, is something of a novel experience for me, but Morgan managed to provide me with some fractured data from before the fall of the Star League, and a computer that I would have happily killed for in my younger days, and I think I may be onto something."

"Forgive me if I don't dance a jig, but this is hardly the first time someone from NAIS has made such a claim to my family." Liz snorted, "My grandfather didn't like talking about his brother..."

"Before my time, and certainly not something I would have allowed, had I been there." Banzai looked genuinely put out by the implication that he had been in some way involved, "No, they were looking at it wrong: your family suffers from a very distinct, almost unique, form of Cholmann's, one that would never respond to their treatment, no matter what they tried."

"At last, someone is willing to admit the truth!" Liz threw up her arms in mock joy, "At least you are willing to admit that I'm dying."

"Young lady, we are all, each and every one of us, dying, from the moment we are born." Banzai turned on her, and she suddenly felt like she was back at school, "The only question is, how hard are you willing to fight to keep living?"

Liz was very much taken aback by his words: her family had a long history of quacks and snake oil salesmen promising them a cure to the so-called 'Family Curse', but in none of the accounts, had any of them had anything like the credentials of Dr Banzai, a man quoted as saying that he liked to do at least six impossible things before breakfast. She felt a sudden stab of something, and it took her a moment to realise what it was: hope.

Unfortunately, it was at that point that one of the doors flung open to admit a uniformed Coast Guard NCO, followed closely by Nathan Roshak and one of the MIIO guards.

"My apologies for the interruption, your Grace." the young woman held out a data-pad, "We've just received word from the Zenith jump-point: a ship bearing the markings of Clan Jade Falcon has arrived in system, claiming to be carrying a personal envoy of Khan Martha Pryde."

---

Tranh Truk Ngo Memorial Spaceport

Nha Tranh, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

25 August 3058

"Damn it feels good to be back in the saddle." Joker mused to herself as she felt the reassuring hum of her Loki around her.

It had been more than a year since she'd gotten more than simulator time, every medical text available making it clear that pregnancies and close proximity to even a shielded fusion reactor wasn't the best combination. As such she had been effectively dispossessed 'for the duration', and then had the wait for the doctors to give her the all-clear after her brush with death. That wasn't to say that she hadn't hit the militia proving ground hard the first chance she got, wailing on them like they owed her money. Indeed, it had actually ended up being the other way round, as she'd gotten more than a little carried away on the live-fire range, and had to fork out to repair some damage.

Still, it felt good to be back at the controls of her 'Mech again. She knew that a lot of MechWarrors, probably the majority, truth be told, liked to give their rides names, but Joker had never really understood the need. Her Loki was simply known by her callsign, Ace of Spades: she felt no great compulsion to call it 'Death Bringer' or 'Dreadnought', or, ironically given it had been the name given to an UrbanMech in the unit she'd served in before Tamar, 'Fireball'. Hell, back at the Blue Griffin on Galatea, she'd once met a crazy old burn-out who'd named his Stalker 'Gravity's Rainbow', whatever that meant.

No, she wasn't one for getting overly sentimental: she'd had two 'Mechs shot out from under her, both times replacing them with bigger, more powerful machines taken from her enemy. Should the need ever arise again, she'd do the same in a heartbeat.

The main screen displayed a live feed from a camera atop the control tower, while one of her secondaries had the RADAR/LIDAR feed from the same. Both showed the approaching Jade Falcon DropShip, a Broadsword, according to the Coast Guard ship that has escorted it in from the jump point. It would have been possible to use a jump taxi to bring it in sooner, but that would mean giving away a possible tactical advantage to an enemy. As such, they'd been forced to endure a crushing 2G burn to arrive ASAP, the envoy apparently in some kind of hurry.

Joker quickly re-read what little her warbook program had on the Broadsword: effectively an updated Leopard, it was designed to carry a single Star of OmniMechs, at the expense of the integral fighter bays. There were reports that some had been refitted as troop transports, able to carry up to twenty five Elementals, all be it in rather cramped conditions, but there was no evidence that the inbound ship was anything but stock. Even so, it still carried an impressive arsenal, causing Liz to deployment two Battalions of crack infantry, another of armour, and her only company of BattleMechs. Backing them up was a truly insane number of militia troops, IFV's and armour, all be it equipped with older, less powerful weapons. If called to fight, they'd be reliant on sheer guts and superior numbers to carry the day.

So, it was no surprise that Liz had had a contract drawn up, employing Dead Man's Hand to act as a bulwark, stiffening up her forces.

She watched a screen as, escorted by a full squadron of Coast Guard aerospace fighters, the Broadsword made its final approach, landing on the long runway. Smoke billowed from the undercarriage as the brakes fought to bleed off its forward momentum, even as a breaking parachute was deployed from the rear. It could have very easily landed vertically, but by pure coincidence, every available pad was full of either cargo transports or Coast Guard vessels, each and every one with their weapons manned and ready. Even with their targeting systems on passive, it sent a clear message to the Falcons that, while they had been granted safe passage as a diplomatic vessel, trying anything 'funny' would be the equivalent of sticking their faces in a wood-chipper.

Eventually, the aerodyne DropShip slowed to a halt, and a pair of modified coolant trucks sprayed it down to the point where a massive tug was able to drag it to the military terminal. There a set of mobile stairs was wheeled into place with the airlock.

"Okay, people: hands off cocks and on with socks." Joker warned as she brought her Loki up to full power, taking the safeties off of the weapons, "It's game time."

"Ace of Clubs, ready." Aung announced, his Archer hidden in a nearby hanger.

"Eight of Spades, ready." Scilicorn called out from where his Wolverine II was lurking in the shadow of the control tower.

"Eight of Clubs, ready." Kelso confirmed from where her Shadow Hawk was actually perched atop one of the terminal buildings.

"Ace of Spades, ready." Joker looked out from the entrance of a massive cargo handling building where her Loki stood ready, "First sign of trouble, light 'em up."

---

Liz took a deep breath as her official limo came to a stop. Pretty much everyone had tried to talk her out of meeting the Clan envoy in person, but she had insisted. After all, she was already dying, despite everything Dr Banzai had said, so what did it matter if the Falcons assassinated her?

Hell, she kind of liked the idea of being a martyr, her name forever remembered as a rallying cry.

Unfortunately, it looked like the Clannners were playing by the rules, and not abusing Guest Rights. Only two people, a tall, muscular woman in the uniform with a Star Captain, and a slightly shorter, slender woman in utilitarian coveralls, had existed the DropShip and were slowly making their way along the red carpet that tradition dictated had to be rolled out for an arriving diplomat. She'd spent the last week brushing up on her official etiquette, with extra lessons on how to present herself around the Clans. Nathan Roshak had made it very clear that it was highly unlikely that she would be afforded any special courtesy due to her position as Duchess, and instead would be judged wholly on her own words and deeds. But, at the same time, she would be seen as a representative of the Lyran Alliance as a whole, and there were still plenty of world's above the Truce Line that the Falcons could express their displeasure upon if she screwed up.

So, no pressure.

A Coast Guard officer in full dress uniform opened her door with a salute, and she put her diplomatic face on. While she may have welcomed two former members of Clan Jade Falcon to her world, one of them into her bed, even, that didn't mean that she held their society as a whole in anything other than utter contempt. They were a civilisation of slavers, descend from traitors and liers. Nothing they had said or done had done anything to convince her otherwise. But, as is often said, diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie' until you can find a rock. And, in her mind, the Clans were nothing but rabid dogs, and the sooner someone found a sufficiently big enough rock, the better.

Oh, sure, a few of them were perfectly pleasant individuals, but on the whole, she wouldn't have pissed on them if they were on fire.

"Good afternoon." She stopped a couple of meters from the two Clannners, leaning on her cane, "I am Duchess Elizabeth Ngo, and on behalf of the Archon and people of the Lyran Alliance, I bid you welcome to Kowloon."

"In the name of Khan Martha Pryde, I thank you for allowing us safe passage to your world." The Star Captain bowed, "I am Star Captain Gabriel Bang-Chu. This," she motioned to the woman at her side, "is Scientist Cathy."

"Charmed, I'm sure." Liz smiled just a little too sweetly, "Well, now the formal introductions are over, may I ask what brings you to my world?"

"We are here as official representatives of our Khan, to discuss a matter of mutual interest." the Clan officer smiled back, "But, before we continue, may I ask if the Mercenary MechWarror known as 'Joker' is still on Kowloon?"

"Joker... Joker... Joker?" Liz mused, "Now, where do I know that name?"

A loud buzzing noise came from the Duchess' pocket, and she pulled out her personal coms unit.

"Oh yes, I remember now." she nodded with a fake smile, "She's the one with you in the middle of her cross-hairs."

She activated the loudspeaker function.

"The fuck did that bitch just say?" despite the small speaker leaving it somewhat distorted and tinny, the mercenaries voice still managed to convey her anger.

"Joker, dear, do at least try to moderate your language." Liz asked, "Diplomatic envoy, remember?"

"I must say, your reputation seems well deserved." Gabriel Bang-Chu seemed surprisingly calm, under the circumstances, "I have been tasked with bringing you an offer from my Khan, personally." She grabbed the somewhat worried looking scientist at her side and dragged her forward, "Scientist Cathy here has been studying all the information we have concerning Cholmann's Syndrome."

"...you have my attention." Joker sounded at least slightly less likely to start shooting at random.

"We are aware of the offer you made the abjured Wolves." the Star Captain continued, "We were hoping that you might be open to a counter-offer."

"... Shit." the Mercenary sounded genuinely conflicted, "Give me a minute."

The line went dead with an auditable click, leaving the three women just standing there.

"Is she always like this?" Cathy asked, nervously.

"Actually, no. I have no idea what she might do next." there was a certain amount to genuine concern in Liz's voice, "I would advise caution, if I thought you knew what it means."

The three stood in awkward silence for maybe a minute, before spotting a figure marching toward them, dressed in the typical cooling vest and shorts of a MechWarror.

"That boyfriend of yours has a big mouth." Joker snarled, "Should have thrown him out the airlock when I had the chance, like Emilio suggested!"

"I will be having words with him, trust me." Liz nodded, sternly.

"Okay, so, you've heard the news and think that you have a shot at claiming the big prize, right?" Joker turned to the two Clan envoys, "Well, lucky for you, I like the Wolves about as much as I like you clowns, which is to say, not at all. But I like the Duchess here, so I'm willing to at least listen to what you have to say."

Gabriel Bang-Chu turned to Cathy, who suddenly realised that it was her turn to speak.

"I...I have been examining everything we have on Cholmann's Syndrome, including research we believe was lost to the Inner Sphere during the Succession Wars." the terrified scientist managed to say, "I would need to examine the Duchess' specific genetic code, but I believe that there may be a way to at least hlt the progression of her illness."

"I have no idea what she just said." Joker turned to Liz, "It mean anything to you?"

"My family have heard similar promises for generations... but it at least matches some of what Dr Banzai has been saying since he arrived from New Avalon." The Duchess nodded slowly, "I say we get the two of them in a room and see what happens."

"Sounds like I plan where I don't have to be involved." Joker nodded, and turned to the envoys, "Okay, so your mad scientist here is gonna talk with the Davion mad scientist that the Wolves roped in. If he thinks what she has to say has merit, we'll talk. Deal?"

"Acceptable." Gabriel Bang-Chu nodded with a polite smile, "We anticipated that you would want to verify what we had to offer, but I must insist on accompanying Scientist Cathy at all times."

"Likewise acceptable." Liz nodded, her smile a little warmer now, "As I said before, welcome to Kowloon."

---

St. Barbara's Church

Ia Drang, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

26 August 3058

"Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned." Joker sat, dressed in plane civilian cloths, inside the confessional box, "It has been...eighteen moths, roughly, since my last confession."

"Times are difficult for everyone, my child." the priest spoke from the other side of the partition, "What matters is that you are here now."

"I need.. guidance, Father." the mercenary admitted, "I had an experience recently that has left me with...questions... concerns."

"The Lord gave us minds that we might question His great creation. What exactly troubles you?"

"I had... I died, Father: I'm told I was clinically dead for just under two minutes. But, in that time I... I saw something. No, it's more than that: I experienced something. I was somewhere else... not heaven, but I don't know Father."

"People who have had similar experiences to the one you described have spoken of similar things. Of seeing other places..."

"It goes beyond that, Father. I wasn't alone in... that other place. I saw my mother, who I never met in life: she gave me up when I was born, and I had only just learnt who she was, after her death. But she was there, and we talked."

"Do you believe that you truly saw her? Or that your subconscious mind gave you the chance to seek the closure you were denied in life?"

"I do not know, Father, but I have had other... experiences, that lead me to believe that what I saw was real."

"Experiences?"

"I was... in a very bad place, Father, where truly evil people where hurting the innocent because they could. Those I was with, my friends and I, when we went to stop them..." Joker paused, trying to put her experience into words, "We all saw things, different things, that we were told afterwards didn't happen. But I know what I saw: I saw a great light, and from it emerged the form of a man, but made out of fire, with six burning wings, and I watched as it delivered judgment upon the evil, and saved the innocent."

"You believe that you saw one of the Seraphim?"

"I don't know what I saw, Father. Afterwards, they told me that I'd been exposed to something that made me see things, but..."

"Your heart tells you otherwise?"

"I've always been a person of faith, Father, even through all I've seen and done. I have no delusions about how far I have strayed from His path, but I have always tried to keep my actions... I've never hurt anyone I didn't have to, or wasn't in a position to hurt me back. Yes, I've shed blood, but never knowingly of the innocent, and I've tried to protect those who cannot protect themselves. I don't know if what I have done is enough to make up for my transgressions, but..."

"God knows the truth of your heart, my child, better than you know it yourself." the priest assured her, "If you have truly tried to walk His path in these most trying of times, He will know."

"I hope so, Father, but there is more." Joker took a deep breath, and closed her eyes, "When I... died, I had just given birth. A daughter. Her father... a man I loved more than I have ever loved anything or anyone, and who loved me back, he died before I found out I was expecting. And yet..."

"You did not see him?"

"No, Father. And if he wasn't there..."

"You fear that you will not be reunited in Glory?"

"Why else wouldn't he have been there?"

"When he died, was he happy? Was there anything unsaid between the two of you?"

"No, Father: we were... perfect."

"And would he have had any reason to believe that you would come to harm?"

"I Don't believe so, Father: he knew me, the things I have done, the things I can do, if needed."

"Then he was no doubt at peace, knowing that the one he loved was safe. I am sure that he is with God, and will be waiting for you, in heaven. And I am also certain that he is watching over you, and your daughter, sure as anything."

"I hope so, Father." Joker admitted, feeling at peace once again, "I truly hope so."

---

Nha Tranh University

Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

26 August 3058

Henry Ngo made his way through the empty halls of the medical campus, with only the sound of his footsteps on the tiled floor to break the silence.

The entire collage, students and faculty, had been moved to a off-site location usually used by the Coast Guard academy 'for the duration', allowing security to be ramped up to a positively ludicrous degree. Even as Baron of Hue, older brother of the Duchess and her heir apparent, he'd still been strip searched by a squad of Shore Patrol troopers who'd been enjoying the chance to screw with, well, anyone not the Duchess without consequences. He could well imagine the glee on their faces when she gave them official orders to check everyone entering the building, aside from herself, Dr Banzai, his MIIO guards, Star Captain Gabriel Bang-Chu and Scientist Cathy. Nondi Steiner herself could have appeared, in full dress uniform, and they still would have pointed their guns at her head and demanded she stripped.

Hell, knowing his sister, she'd probably left orders them to refuse the Archon, either of the two Steiner-Davion siblings claiming the title, entry unless they likewise submitted to an inspection.

Henry did his best not to notice the two plain-clothed Special Investigations agents shadowing him. Liz had been, worried, after his return from Clan Jade Falcon, perhaps rightfully so, least at first. He had been heavily indoctrinated by their propaganda, and it had taken him a while to see through the lies. Still, it wasn't only the AFFC, now LAAF, who considered his dedication... questionable. If push came to shove, even he'd have to admit that his true loyalty was to the people of the Inner Sphere, not to any one individual or state. Between his time on Blackjack, dealing with the snobbery of his 'betters', and then his years with the Clans, the scales had fallen from his eyes, and he liked to think he saw clearly for the first time.

Just what he was going to do about what he saw, wasn't clear.

"Hn'ry." A voice called out to him from down the corridor, and he couldn't help but laugh at what he saw.

Despite the broken nose, two black eyes, split lip, fractured wrist, dislocated jaw and countless bruises, Nathan Roshak still insisted on holding himself with the same dignity and authority as he always had... or, at least the closest he was capable of, under the circumstances.

"Holy shit: Liz really did a number on you!" Henry stood before his friend and former commanding officer, "Did I ever tell you about how she got expelled from school?"

"Nuh." the former Star Colonel shook his head.

"She launched herself at a boy twice her side and pummelled him into a bloody, sobbing mess, and made him eat grass." Henry chuckled at the memory, "To this day, she's still bard from the planet his family rules."

"S'nds riht." the other man nodded.

"Well, I did warn you she had a temper when you started pursuing her romantically." Henry very carefully placed a hand on his friends shoulder, "But, unlike most older brothers, I always knew I never had to threaten any of her perspectives boyfriends. She's more than capable of doing that herself."

Nathan Roshak could only nod in agreement.

He had known that, should it ever come to light, there would be a price to pay for contacting his former Clan. It had not been easy, and for the longest time, he had felt sure that he had fallen into a carefully laid trap, and that LIC, and that not even Elizabeth would be able to save him, if she so desired. But, soon as he heard of the arrival of a Jade Falcon envoy in-system, he knew that his call had been answered... and that it was only a matter of time before he faced the wrath of a woman he had, he was forced to admit, grown to love, even if he still was not sure exactly what that meant.

For her part, Elizabeth had coolly asked him to follow her into the small gymnasium attached to the house they shared, then proceeded to set about him with her cane. She had displayed an unbridled ferocity that would have put even a Smoke Jaguar to shame, and it had taken all of his self control to simply stand there and take the beating and not fight back. And even then, he was far from sure that he could have stopped her without killing her, such was the anger she had shown. When her cane snapped, she had set about him with her fists, while he did the bare minimum to defend himself.

He had once read that discretion was the better part of valour, and if that was the case, he had certainly shown plenty of valour as he lay on the ground, Elizabeth sat on his chest as she attempted to pummel him into the ground.

And, even then, he could tell that she was still holding back. That, had she truly wanted him dead, she would have been more than up to the task. Instead, she had simply stopped, once her rage was spent, and called for a medical team to tend to him while she had gone to shower. They had patched him up enough to get to hospital, where two unformed police officers had asked if he wished to press charges. The thought had amused him, at least a little: despite having near total authority over the system, Elizabeth refused to place herself above the law, and would have allowed herself to be taken off in handcuffs if needed. Had his jaw not been wired shut to allow it to heal, he would have laughed in their faces, but instead he had used a pen and paper to make it clear that he had no intention of pressing any charges, and would not cooperate with any investigations.

He had transgressed, knowingly and willingly breaking the trust Elizabeth had placed in him when she had accepted him as her friend, advisor and lover. Such an act could not go unpunished, and he had accepted his with as much grace as he was able.

"Is Liz still talking with Banzai and the Falcon scientist?" Henry asked, nodded towards a door further up the corridor, where two uniformed Shore Patrol officers stood guard

"Yh" Nathan Roshak nodded: even ignoring the fact that Elizabeth still refused to look him in the eye, he had no compression of what was being discussed, and his presence was a distraction at best, so he had left them to it.

"Right, well, wish me luck." Henry readied himself for what was to follow, "It is a far, far better thing I do now..."

---

"Why are we still here again?" Scilicorn asked, leaning against the wall.

"Because Liz is paying us extra to serve as additional security." Joker jumped up, tossing a basketball effortlessly through a hoop, "Six-two."

"Yeah, but we're MechWarrors, not PBI's." her friend grabbed the ball, took the spot and likewise netted it, "Six-three."

"We're mercenaries, Emilio." Kelso pointed out from her perch up in the bleachers, "So long as it's a valid contract, who cares?"

"Especially with what she's paying us." Aung added.

"The Big Man does have a point." Scilicorn admitted as he passed the ball back to Joker, "But still..."

"First rule of being a Mercenary: the client is always right, even when they're wrong." Joker tossed the ball through the hoop without even looking, "Seven-three."

"One of these days, I'm gonna wise up and stop taking these bets." Scilicorn warned, "Then you'll be doing your own damn laundry."

"You're just pissed that I don't wear sexy underwear." Joker laughed.

"Sexy is in the eye of the beholder." Scilicorn countered, "But no, you're underwear is most definitely not sexy."

"Oh, I have sexy underwear; I'm just not stupid enough to let you near it." Joker grinned, "I've seen the inside of your footlocker, remember?"

"Those were gifts, from appreciative women, to remember them by." Scilicorn insisted, then turned the table on her, "Besides, we've all seen the inside of your footlocker: looks like something out of a Canopian Pleasure Circus!"

"That is true, Boss." Kelso shuddered at the memory, "I'm as open minded as the next woman, but even I don't know what some of those... things, were for. And I'm not sure I ever want to find out."

"That which has been seen, cannot be unseen." Aung rumbled in agreement.

"Company." Kelso warned, gesturing towards the far side of the court, where a door had just opened to reveal Henry Ngo and Star Captain Gabriel Bang-Chu.

Joker bounced the basketball a few times, then tossed it through the net again.

"Gotten lost?" She asked with a grin, "Lab's back the way you came."

"I wanted the chance to meet you in a more... informal setting." the Clan envoy stood some distance from the mercenaries, hands clasped behind her back, "While I remain confident that we can, shall we say, conclude our rather unusual Trial of Possession before other parties become aware of the situation, I would be neglecting my duties to my Clan if I was not sure that what we were... competing for, were worth the effort."

"You want to make sure I have what it takes to be added to your gene-pool?" Joker shrugged nonchalantly, "Well, I'm sure you can find someone to help you log into MercNet: my file contains my combat history."

"Your abilities as a MechWarror are well documented, but they only tell part of the story." Gabriel Bang-Chu cocked her head to one side, inquisitively, "Who are you?"

"I am Joker. I am a MechWarror, a Mercenary." came the obvious response.

"Yes, but who are you really?" the Star Captain asked, "Your... mother, is well known, but we have been able to uncover very little about your... father."

"Oh, you mean the homicidal manic with a tendency to kill for the sheer hell of it?" Joker asked, with no small hint of sarcasm, "Sorry, but I know about as much about his as anyone. Which is to say, practically nothing."

"That may be, but how much of who you are comes from him?" Gabriel Bang-Chu began to walk around the mercenary in a wide circle, "Your mother was a Kerensky, born of the Great Fathers bloodline. And while you have obviously inherited much from her, how much comes from your own father?"

"Ah, I think I see where you're coming from now." Joker nodded, "You don't want just anyone's genes getting into your little science experiment now, do you?"

"Exactly." the Clan officer nodded, "Extracting just the Kerensky half of your DNA profile would be possible, but time consuming and resource intensive. It is not something we would choose to do if it can be avoided."

"Okay, so you want to make sure that I take after my mother more than my father. Got it." Joker shrugged, "What do you want to know?"

"Why are you a Mercenary?" Gabriel Bang-Chu asked.

"The money's good, the scenery changes, and they let me play with explosives." the other woman responded flippantly.

"You misunderstand, I feel. Why did you choose to become a Mercenary rather than join the regular military?"

"Well, for starters, I knew from the get-go that, if I was going to be in the military, I wanted to be a MechWarror, not some disposable grunt with a rifle and a prayer. Only, I didn't exactly have the kind of upbringing that, well, the kind of places that would have accepted me charge more than I make even now. Add to that, I have no ove for the mudball I grew up on: certainly not to whatever flag was flying over it at the time. So, when the opportunity arose, I made my departure and settled into the life of a Mercenary."

"But to be a sell-sword, without honour..."

"We have honour." Scilicorn butted in, "Just because we don't swear blind allegiance to a flag or an individual, doesn't mean we don't have standards."

"...explain." Gabriel Bang-Chu sounded genuinely intrigued, "Please."

"Okay, so yeah, we're mercenaries, which means that we work for whoever pays us, but there are still rules that we have to follow if we want to maintain a MRBC standing." Scilicorn rubbed his chin, "Okay, let's talk hypotheticals: your Clan is still, technically, at war with the Federated Commonwealth and the Lyran Alliance, both of which Duchess Ngo has, on paper at least, sworn her allegiance to. She could, if the mood took her, decide she wants you dead, consequences be damned. Were we House Troops, if she gave such an order, we'd be duty bound to shoot you."

"Although, Liz is the kind of person who'd do it herself." Joker grinned, "She's not one to shy away from getting her hands dirty like that."

"Indeed." Scilicorn nodded, "But, we're not House Troops: we're mercenaries. And our current contract is to provide additional security for the Duchess, and the people of Kowloon, for the duration of your visit. If she simply decided she doesn't like your face, and asked us to but a bullet through it, we'd tell her to go pound sand. But, on the other hand, if you took actions, or looked like you were about to take actions, that endangered the Duchess or Kowloon, well, we'd take such actions as we deemed necessary to stop you."

"We're not murders or hired thugs, if that's what you think." Kelso took up the story, "Oh, sure, there are plenty of Mercenaries out there who'd slit your throat for a C-Bill, but that ain't us. We take very specific missions, one's that we'd be unlikely to be assigned in a House Unit, because that is who we choose to be."

"We kill, but we don't murder people." Aung rumbled, sounding like a dormant volcano waking up.

"Exactly. Through all of history, most warriors have been paid in some fashion or another. " Scilicorn continued, "Even to this day, they still talk of 'taking the Kings Shilling', meaning accepting payment for service in the name of a House or a Nation. A Mercenary simply makes clear what their duties and responsibilities are in advance, as well as how far they're willing to go to get the job done. We choose the missions we want to do, for the people we want to work for, and at a price all involved can live with."

"You question our honour, but I asked if you even know what honour is." Joker crossed her arms.

"And the rest of you: why do you follow this woman?" Gabriel Bang-Chu asked.

"Because she stood beside us, when no one else did." Kelso offered.

"Because we trust her to watch our back," Scilicorn added, "just like she trusts us to watch hers."

"Because she's the Boss." Aung rumbled with a shrug.

"Interesting." Gabriel Bang-Chu paused for a moment, then turned and walked off without a word.

---

Liz often prided herself on being the smartest person in the room, but she had long since given up on trying to follow what BB and Cathy were talking about. Whatever it was, it involved several white boards, covered in chemical formula and what looked like a depiction of a strand of human DNA. The two scientists had been talking, at speed and seemingly in an alien language, for hours, and showed no sign of slowing down, let alone stopping. Liz had simply sat there and watched in vague amusement, even as the Clan scientists escort had made some excuses to leave the room, Henry following after to keep her out of trouble.

It was clear that all the talk of wanting to keep an eye on the scientist was so much bullshit: the Clans might talk a good game about honour and their supposed hatred of anything they considered underhanded, but Liz knew a spy when she saw one. Star Captain Gabriel Bang-Chu might have been many things, but a good actress was not one of them, and she felt sorry for the Watch if she was the best they could come up with.

LIC's Molehunters would have eaten her whole and spat out the bones.

"Yes, I think that might work." Banzai's tone of voice brought the Duchess back to the here and now.

"Finally come up with the plans for a better mousetrap?" she asked, dryly.

"Very droll, Your Grace." The scientist rolled his eyes, "No. If I am right, which I most often am, we may have... if not a cure for Cholmann's Syndrome, then certainly a very promising treatment."

"Just how 'promising' are we talking about?" Liz asked, refusing to let herself feel anything approaching hope.

"Based upon the information we have, we believe that we can stop your condition from progressing to Stage Three." Cathy smiled in a slightly unnerving way, "We may even be able to repair some of the damage already done."

"Well...that's certainly sounds more reasonable than what most of the snake-oil salesman have told my family down the years." The Duchess sat up straight in her chair, "Best case scenario?"

"Well, as Cathy said, you remain in a limited form of Stage Two: you'll always be in a certain amount of pain, and will probably always need assistance in walking." Banzai admitted, "But, we should be able to repair the damage to your neurons that causes the seizures, and prevent you from getting any worse."

"And the worst case scenario?" Liz asked, waiting for the other shoe to drop.

"You would enter Stage Three immediately." Cathy admitted, the smile fading from her face, "I am sorry..."

"I've been racing a ticking clock most of my life: I long ago made my peace with that." Liz admitted, "How much time do you need?"

"With access to what you have available on Kowloon? Two, maybe three weeks." Banzai sounded thoughtful, "I would understand if you want to get a second opinion..."

"I have had second, third, fourth and fifth opinions on my condition." The Duchess stood, "You have three weeks, while I get my affairs in order. Then we let God decide if he's done with me or not."

---

Ngo Family Estate

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

11 September 3058

"I'm not okay with this." Joker sat in a chair across the desk from the planetary Duchess.

"Funny, because it's your damn fault we're in this situation anyway." Liz shrugged, then took a large swig of her drink, "If you'd just kept your damn mouth shut, Phelan Kell wouldn't have moved heaven and earth to try and get ahold of your ovaries, and Nathan wouldn't have reached out to the Falcons..."

"And you'd still have no hope of living to see thirty?" the Mercenary asked, finishing her own drink and reaching for the bottle to pour another.

"Una salus victis nullam sperare salutem." the Duchess smiled, "Look, you said it yourself: I'm dead either way. May as well go out giving fate the middle finger. And, even if I do die, maybe it'll give the two mad scientists a clue as to how to help some other poor bugger, further down the line."

"You're not some lab-rat, Liz!" Joker slammed her glass down on the table, "You don't have to do this..."

"If not me, then who?" Liz asked, "Do you know how many people, in the entire Inner Sphere, have Cholmann's Syndrome? Maybe a hundred, mostly undiagnosed because it's so rear and easily mistaken for something else, or mistaken for drug addicts, like I almost was, because they're desperate to dull the constant pain? So, what do you suggest: I find one of those, drag them in for the Mad Scientists to play with?" she shook her head, "No, if anyone has to put themselves on the line for this, it should be me."

"You're a depressing drunk, you know that?" Joker asked, again downing her drin and pouring another.

"Sorry, but I don't exactly have much experience to call upon." Liz admitted, "Opioids were always my poison of choice, and by the time I started thinking about drinking, I was already on pretty high doses of the kind of medication that, well, doesn't react well with alcohol. But, now I've spent the last two weeks flushing all that crap out of my system ahead of the procedure, I can finally see what all the fuss is about."

"And?"

"And it's something I could get used to."

"Well, take it from a borderline alcoholic: don't."

"I hope you don't drink around my goddaughter..."

"I should never have agreed to that." Joker grimaced, "No, I don't drink around Alexis. Mostly because Trinh has a scary bitch who has a sixth sense for anything more potent than mouth wash."

"Well, she is Guild."

"Guild?"

"I told you: the Spacer's Guild is watching over your daughter. Trinh, and I'm fairly certain that is actually her name, given how common it is on Kowloon, is a Rockjack. One of the few who can stand to be planet-side for a prolonged period is of time. Actually the first person I've ever met from this system who's a full Guild Member, and not just Guild trained."

"Well, I've been thinking about asking her to look after Alexis when I head back out."

"She'd probably say yes, even if she wasn't acting under orders from, well, best not to ask. I've seen her around Alexis: she generally cares for the kid."

"And she's gonna need that in her life: heaven knows I won't be around all that much."

"You could stay: the Militia needs someone to train its MechWarrors..."

"Thank you, but no." Joker shook her head, "That would be too much like what we had planned on Sweet Water. No, I'm a Mercenary: it's the one thing I know for sure that I'm any good at."

"You're a good friend." Liz assured her, "I don't have many friends, not close ones. I had a couple, growing up, but I lost one to an overdose, and the other to anger and bullheadedness. You're one of the few people I'm not related to who is not only willing to put up with my more... disagreeable quirks, but give back as good as you get."

"God, you must be a really messed up if I'm your idea of a good friend!"

"Your team considers you a friend."

"Yeah, but you've met them: hardly what you could call paragons of good taste."

"They love you. If I knew nothing else about you, that would be enough: only someone worth knowing could inspire that kind of trust and devotion, with relying on fear or something stupid like honour or tradition."

"I'm a Kerensky, remember? Convincing people to do crazy things is kind of our thing."

"I do try and look past your heritage when I can." Liz looked at the empty bottle on her desk, "Why is all the rum gone?"

---

Dinh Ngo Medical Center

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

20 September 3058

"This part never gets any easier." Henry sat in one of the chairs that filled the waiting area, a now tepid cup of tea in his hands.

"I don't think it's supposed to." Joker sat in the far corner, a sleeping Alexis in her arms, "Although, I do feel more than a little responsible for all this."

"You are, and at the same time, you are not." Nathan Roshak continued pacing back and forth, as he had since Liz had been wheeled into surgery, "Elizabeth has been hospitalised no less than seven times since I arrived on Kowloon."

"How many of those carried the risk of her putting a bullet through her head if things went wrong?" Joker asked, darkly.

"More than you'd think." Henry replied, setting his drink aside, "Liz, Patrick and I grew up on stories of what our great uncle went through: ever since she was first diagnosed, I've known that she'd never let herself go out like that."

"God, you two are depressing to be around." Joker complained.

"You're free to leave, if you want." Henry offered, "You don't have to be here..."

"No, I got your sister into this: I owe it to her to see it through to the end." Joker shook her head, "Besides, the others are off taking part in another Morality Inspection, and I've still not been cleared for that kind of work."

"They allowed you to pilot an OmniMech, but not kick down a door?" Nathan Roshak asked, surprised.

"Dr Wah deemed that piloting a 'Mech is done sitting down, therefore wouldn't put too much strain on, well, the parts lil Alexis here did a number on." Joker looked down at her daughter, "She's only just given me the all clear to get laid."

Silence filled the room.

"Oh for God's sake, we're all adults here!" Joker rolled her eyes, "You're on the way towards becoming a father yourself, Henry. And you, Mr Big, Tough Star Colonel, come from the most sexually liberated society this side of Canopus! So don't try and play the blushing virgin to me."

"I do so enjoy your visits: they keep things from becoming boring." Henry shook his he'd with his smile, "Have you decided what you're going to do, if this all works?"

"Who wins the big prize, you mean?" Joker shrugged, "Way I see it, from what little I could actually understand, it's a team effort: neither Clan Jade Falcon nor Clan Wolf-on-Holiday really cracked it on their own. It was only when they put their collective heads together that anything actually came about. So, I guess...they both win? There's two ovaries up for grabs, so I guess they get one each?"

"I doubt either will be truly happy with that. But, the half they get is half that the other does not. " Nathan Roshak offered, "And, unlike the exiled Wolves, the Jade Falcons will be able to lay claim to the fact that it was their scientist who helped find a cure to a disease that even the Star League could not, while the Wolves had to ask the Inner Sphere for even more help. "

"I don't remember you being so... introspective." Joker cocked her head to one side, "Maybe Liz beat some sense into you after all?"

"Clan society is, at its core, all about bragging rights." Henry explained with a chuckle, "To be able to finally add the Kerensky Bloodname to their own, and have the glory of having done the impossible? Well, they'll be metaphorically dining out on that for years."

"See, this is why I'm a Mercenary: I do the job, I get paid." Joker shook her head in disbelief, "Let someone else worry about honour and glory."

"You may not believe me, or even care, but you have brought both honour and glory to your name." Nathan Roshak assured her, "While I am sure that it would never be publicly acknowledged, no Clan would go to this much trouble to secure your legacy if they did not think it was a price worth paying."

"Well, don't expect me to be trading in on my mothers name any time soon: not everyone in the galaxy holds it in such high regard." Joker warned, "Kowloon isn't the only world that remembers the iron fist nestled inside the velvet glove of the Star League."

---

Ngo Family Estate,

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

22 September 3058

Jasmine. The first thing she noticed was the scent of night blooming jasmine.

Next came the all too familiar, steady bleeping of a heart monitor: she'd heard it often enough that she could recognise the rhythm of her own heartbeat.

"So, you're finally awake?" a voice asked, and Liz slowly opened her eyes, surprised to find herself in her own bed, in her room of her house.

"...guh!" she gurgled, unable to form actual words.

"Don't worry: your throat is no doubt still sore from being intubated." the voice assured her, "On the up-side, I can confirm that the procedure looks to have been a complete success."

Liz blinked, her eyes finally focusing enough to make out the smiling form of Dr Banzai standing beside her bed.

"Yet again, all be it with some help, I have done the impossible." the scientist grinned, "I guess I'll need to clear some space for yet another Nobel Prize."

"I get to go back to prison." Cathy spoke up from the other side of the bed, "Maybe they will give me an extra blanket."

"No." Liz shook her head, "Stay."

"Not possible." Gabriel Bang-Chu stood in the background, half hidden in the shadows, "Scientist Cathy is part of Clan Jade Falcon..."

"Kowloon." Liz croaked, "No slavery under Cameron Star."

"Being a member of a Clan is not slavery!" the implication seemed to have genuinely upset the Star Captain, "She has responsibilities... duties!"

"If I may interject?" Nathan Roshak asked from the doorway, and everyone turned to look at him.

"Star Captain Gabriel Bang-Chu of Clan Jade Falcon, would you consider your mission a success?" he asked, directly.

"...aff." she nodded, still defensive, but unsure where the conversation was going.

"Indeed, under your direct supervision, two firsts have been achieved: Clan Jade Falcon has acquired a legacy of the Great Father's line." the former Star Colonel continued, "A legacy that includes someone who I think everyone presents would agree was one of the finest MechWarrors to ever live, in Natasha Kerensky."

"I have met many great MechWarrors, and I can name maybe two would could have fought her on an even level." Dr Banzai offered.

"Add to that, you have overseen the impossible: The treatment of an ailment that even the Star League, at its hight, could not overcome." Nathan Roshak added, "Even the abjured Wolves can not make the same claim, but instead had to enlist the aid of an outsider, from the Inner Sphere..." he turned to the scientist, "No disrespect intended."

"None taken." Banzai waved him off.

"You have done what many would call impossible, even for a Bloodnamed warrior of Clan Jade Falcon." Nathan Roshak continued, "And now... you have the possibility to add a third victory to your mission."

"Explain." Gabriel Bang-Chu sounded intrigued.

"Scientist Cathy is a prisoner in Blackheath, quaff?"

"Aff: life imprisonment for conducting unsanctioned experiments."

"Then she is a net drain upon your Clan, her current mission aside, quaff?"

"Aff."

"But, what if she could, at not cost to Clan Jade Falcon, once again prove an asset?"

"I do not understand." the Star Captain admitted.

"It is often said that the first step on the path to true wisdom is admitting that you know nothing." Nathan Roshak smiled, "Allow Scientist Cathy to remain on Kowloon, and I am almost certain that she will be offered a place teaching at Nha Tranh University, which is set to become one of the foremost seats of learning in the entire Inner Sphere. There she will be responsible for educating the best and brightest minds from across the Successor States. Educating them from the prospective of the Clans. Of Clan Jade Falcon."

A look of revelation came across Gabriel Bang-Cho's face.

"There is a phrase I have learnt since arriving on Kowloon: take the win." Nathan Roshak stood with his hands open, "If Cathy wishes to stay on Kowloon, let her. Go back to your Khan with the legacy you were sent for, the news that a Jade Falcon did what a Wolf could not, and that you have a voice in the ear of planetary leaders for generations to come. Take the win, Star Captain, for the truest victory of all is one where you never have to fight."

"You have made a compelling argument, Nathan Roshak." the Star Captain turned to face her charge, "Do you wish to stay?"

"I can do good... good things here." Cathy stuttered, amazed that she was even being consulted, "I can do research... pure research with a set end goal. There is so much I can learn..."

"Take the win." Nathan Roshak repeated.

"I am probably overstepping the bounds of my authority, but there is another old saying: who dares wins." Gabriel Bang-Cho nodded, "Scientist Cathy: you are released from you oaths of loyalty and fidelity to Clan Jade Falcon. It is time for you to spread your wings and chart your own destiny."

"Excellent choice: it would have been a shame to have to kill you." Nathan Roshak admitted, "Scientist Cathy: did you ever earn, I believe the term is, a 'labname'?"

"Franklin." The Scientist nodded, still trying to process what had just happened, "I was once known as Cathy Franklin."

"Dr Cathy Franklin." Liz managed a weak smile, "Welcome to Kowloon."

---

Lazy S Ranch

Ia Drang, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

5 October 3058

"This isn't the life I would have wanted for you." Joker stood, looking down at the crib where her daughter lay sleeping, "You should have known your father: he was a good man, far better than I deserved, and you would have ment the world to him."

"One thing I'm sure you'll pick up on pretty quickly is I'm not exactly in touch with my emotions, beyond lust and anger. I mean, I've b know to exhibit all seven of the deadly sins, but those two are probably my favourites. As such, it is my sincerest hope that you take after your father's side of the family. I never really met my mother... but that's a story for when you're older, and we're both a few drinks in, but she was a complicated woman to say the least. The less said about my own father, the better. I know even less about him, and that's still too much."

"Your father, Alex... he was kind, brave, good natured, smart, funny, all the things you could hope for in a partner. He even found a way to bring out the best in me, and that's not something many can claim. But, I think, you will. I'm not going to be around as much as you may want: I'm only good at two things, and while I could make a living at the other, I would be setting a bad example. Not that I want you to follow me into the life of a MechWarror, unless it's what you really, really want. Certainly don't let anyone ever tell you that it's your destiny. Not a big fan of the concept of destiny, even if I do seem to be dancing to its tune. No, you forge your own course through life, and don't let anyone, certainly not me, tell you what you should or shouldn't be."

"I've left some letters, a few recordings, that will hopefully explain things when you're old enough to understand, should I... not make it back. Trinh and Liz will look out for you, keep you safe. I've made a few enemies, and there are those who would want to, well, take advantage of you simply because of who I am, and who that makes you. I hope that... well, I hope that the price I've paid will keep you safe, at least for a while."

"Look, kiddo, I'm far from being a good person, not by a long-shot: I may like to kind myself that I'm somehow better than most of the other mercenaries out there, but, truth be told, I've killed people because someone else paid me to do it. Like I said, it's one of only two things I'm good at, and it's a sad truth that there is a need for people like me in this universe. So, best I can do is try again make my peace with what I do, and make sure I keep to my moral code best I can.

"Got something here I think you should have." Joker reached up and removed and simple gold chain from around her neck: from it hung a small cross, and a heart shaped locket, both also in gold, "Sister Lucy, the woman I named you for, gave me this after my First Holy Communion. She said that, even at the worst of times, we all need a reminder that God loves us. The locket, that your father gave me for our anniversary, not long before... before he passed on. I've put the best picture I have of him in it, and one of me that at least doesn't look like a police mugshot. Figure, at least this way, you'll know more about where you came from than I ever did."

She hung the chain from the mobile attached to the end of the crib.

"This ain't a fair galaxy, kid: some days, it feels like the whole human race is going to hell in a hand-basket. Import thing is, we need things strive to lift ourselves, and those around us, up. That's why I asked Liz to be your godmother, to help watch over you when I can't: she's a good person, certainly a better one than I'll ever be, and she genuinely wants to help rag the entire human race up by the scruff of our collective necks if needs be. Listen to her, and never be afraid to go to her for advice. Just...don't listen to that crazy boyfriend of hers, okay? The Clans are the last thing you want to get involved with."

"I'm still not convinced that having me in your life is gonna do anything but screw you up. Lord knows, I'm not exactly a good influence on anyone, but...for the longest time, I thought family was a four-letter word. Then I had you and... life has a way of catching you unaware. I can't take you with me: my life is too dangerous for that, but I can at least try and make sure that you're taken care of. Hence your trust fund. The work I do may not pay as much as some other things I could do, but it's legally and morally clean, and I have enough saved away to give you a leg up in life. I'll be adding more to it as and when I can. I know it's no substitute for a real family, but you play the hand your delt in this life."

Joker stood, reaching down to brush a hand against the side of her daughters face.

"Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go attend a party to celebrate your godmother getting the all-clear from the mad scientists who saved her life."

---

Ngo Family Estate,

Hue, Kowloon

Bucklands Province

Lyran Alliance

6 October 3058

Liz had come to the conclusion that hangovers were not a price worth paying for the mildly euphoric sensation that being drunk gave her. She wasn't sure if it was due to her past narcotics addiction, or the thankfully much reduced medication they had her on, but she seemed physically incapable of obtaining the 'buzz' people often spoke of.

The buzzing of the communications system didn't help.

Only a handful of people had access to the direct line, none of them people she could easily or safely ignore, and if they were calling her directly... Well, they'd just have to put up with seeing her bleary eyed, and dressed in an old robe and fluffy slippers.

She activated the small coms unit built into the wall just outside her bedroom, and the image that appeared on the screen had the effect of several cups of strong black coffee and an entire bottle of aspirin.

"Precentor Martial Focht." she found herself bowing slightly, "Please, for give me for..."

"It is I who should ask you to forgive me." Anastasius Focht, victor of Tukayyid and hero to, well, every freedom loving person in the Inner Sphere, smiled, "I am the one calling you, unannounced, and at what am told is outside of, well, normal office hours."

"One thing I learned very quickly after assuming my station is that, when you're a Duchess, there is no such thing as 'outside of office hours'." Liz assured him, "To what do I owe this unexpected honour?"

It took all her considerable self control not to grimace when she saw Nathan Roshak walk out of the bedroom door behind her, dressed only in his underwear, stretching his arms above his head as he yawned.

"I confess that you are not actually the person I am trying to contact." Focht admitted, "However, nobody seemed to be able to locate a mercenary who goes by the name of Joker, who I have been told is currently visiting your world."

"Her unit has been undergoing rest and refit on Kowloon, while also helping to train our planetary militia, yes." Liz nodded, unsure just how much the infamously duplicitous ComStar knew, and how much they would be willing to admit to knowing.

"It is my understanding that their contract with you is coming to an end, and they have been recommended to me for, well, part of an upcoming operation." the head of the ComsGuards continued, "Unfortunately, as I said, nobody seems to know where exactly she is. I was hoping that you might be able to shed some light on the issue."

"I'm afraid that I am her employer, not her keeper. She attended a social event I hosted last night, but besides that..."

Despite herself, Liz froze when she saw the reflection of Joker, dressed only in one of Nathan Roshaks shirts, which only just covered the parts of her that needed covering, strode confidently out of the bedroom, across the hall and into the bathroom.

"Such is often the case when dealing with mercenaries." there was an unmistakable twinkle in Fochts remaining eye, and the corner of his mouth twitched ever so faintly, "I apologise for interrupting your day."

"Not at all, Precentor Martial." Liz responded with a fixed smile, "Happy to be of service."

Fochts cut the link, the screen going dead, and Liz wanted nothing more than for the ground beneath her would open up and swallow her whole.

"Well, as enjoyable as last night was, I think it confirms your heterosexuality." Joker reappeared and kissed the Duchess on the cheek, "Forgive me if I don't stay for breakfast, but I really think I should go check my messages."

The End