The Briar Patch Chronicles

by SeerKing

In the 33rd Century, the Star League rises for the third time, this time under Clan control...but that's not important. Out in the Periphery, changing times are coming to the planet Musutafu. Join Izuku Midoriya in his adventures in...the Briar Patch Chronicles. Pairing undecided. Rating T for now. Quirkless AU.

5. Shadows Abroad and At Home

"Moving to Engage." - Regular Speech

'What now?' - Thoughts

"Roger that." - Radio/Comm Transmission

"MOVE!" - Loudspeaker

Chapter 5: Shadows Abroad and At Home

"With the Musutafu Concilium having been originally formed by noble families fleeing from not only the five Successor States, but also the now-defunct Terran Hegemony, it is no surprise that its written constitution contains elements of all six bodies. The final form of the Musutafu Constitution is perhaps one of the best examples of the Concilium's constant efforts to both utilize the best aspects of their diverse heritage while also trying to minimize the more negative aspects. Indeed, considering that the Concilium's original founders could be considered at best 'expatriates' and at worst 'traitors' to their previous governing bodies, it isn't wrong to say that the founding families had a better view of their homelands' faults than their strengths.

Taking inspiration from the Draconis Combine, the Concilium formed the position of the High Councillor (using the Combine's Coordinator as a rough template) to hold and maintain a centralized autocratic power. However, to prevent any family or group from hoarding power or forming a possible dictatorship, the Concilium incorporated both clear and ironclad limitations to the High Councillor's rights in office and a requirement that any motions put forward directly by the High Councillor to be passed through a review of their peers on the rest of the High Council.

The Free Worlds League provided much of the guidance for how the Concilium attempted to forge a loose alliance of smaller, unattached groups into a single, united people. However, unlike the Free Worlds League, the Concilium was already loosely united by the then-Council of Twelve already acting as a ruling body, with the council system itself again designed to prevent hoarding of power and the rise of any form of dictatorship.

From the Federated Suns, the Concilium took lessons on how to build both a sense of martial pride and desire for liberty in their newly united people; as well as serving as a base for the system of nobility that the Noble Houses of the Concilium would adopt. To help prevent the rise of the foppish nobles, tinpot dictators and petty tyrants that plagued the Federated Suns, the Academy was constructed and requirements were placed on what an heir would have to accomplish to gain their title as well as strict regulations on what a noble must contribute in order to not lose their position.

The idea of military service being a requirement of the nobility was taken from the Lyran Commonwealth. However, to prevent the rise of the 'Social Generals' that made the Planetary Defence Forces of the Lyrans a joke in the galactic military, the Musutafu PDF had strict regulations set on the skill-levels required to gain a command-level position. It is also widely recognized that the Lyrans also inspired at least a portion of the Concilium's emphasis on a strong defensive strategy and a sound industrial base.

The Capellan Confederation, unlike most of the other Successor States, provided most of its lessons on how NOT to run an interstellar polity. Concilium citizenship is a right that can be stripped, not a prize to be earned. The almost unbroken chain of rulers from House Liao was also the main stimulus for why it was decided that the High Councillor position could only remain with a single House for two generations before it must be passed to a new family via a general vote from the High Council. The brutality of the Maskirovka is also attributed as the main reason that the High Council drafted several laws prohibiting the creation of any form of secret police force within the Concilium, be it a military or civilian arm.

The now-defunct Terran Hegemony provided an important lesson on why a head of state should have a clear and focused line of duty and responsibility, without having to juggle responsibilities from multiple titles and positions. As such, the Concilium Constitution clearly states that, upon either being elected or inheriting the position, a new High Councillor must forfeit both their seat as a regular councillor and the ruling seat of their home territory to either a regent or capable heir before they take office so that they can focus their efforts and attention on governing the Concilium as a whole.

The Concilium also learned much from both the glories and the mistakes of the First Star League as a whole, with three great lessons standing out amongst them. First, forging a sense of unity and togetherness within the newly forged Concilium was a priority in order to prevent the various nation-states of the Concilium from eventually falling into a new Succession War on Musutafu. Thus, one of the first official acts of Council of Twelve was to publicly renounce their own and their people's former citizenships and nationalities and begin to promote and push the idea that they were all now Musutafan among all their citizenry, something that would continue for several generations to come and help develop the strong sense of sovereign pride that is a part of Musutafan culture. Second, to prevent another power-hungry despot or lunatic like Stefan Amaris from coming to power within the Concilium, any candidate for regency for a member-state of the Concilium has to be approved by both the Council of Twelve and the Planetary Marshal, as well as preventing any regent from also holding a position of power in the military while acting as a regent (to prevent the sort of trickery that Amaris enacted against Aleksandr Kerensky). Third, no one, from the common citizen to the sitting High Councillor themselves, stands above the law. Anyone who would bring a charge against another, with at least a substantial amount of circumstantial evidence to back their claims, must have their accusations taken seriously, regardless of the accused's position.

These lessons, learned during one of the darkest and bloodiest periods in the galaxy's history as the First Star League self-destructed amidst the Amaris Civil War, have helped guide, shape and protect the Musutafu Concilium for over four centuries. May they continue to do so for centuries to come."

- An Introduction to the Government of Musutafu, by Adam Tsunotori.

The Next Day

Private Sitting Room, Palace of the Protector, Outskirts of Ascension City, Duchy of Eight Million

"Mother, I do not understand why you are allowing this." Momo Yaoyorozu, Heiress of the Duchy of Eight Million, offered as she prepared tea for herself and her mother.

"Why I am allowing what, my dear?" her mother, the Duchess Eikō Yaoyorozu, asked, amusement glimmering in her eyes. Mother and daughter were very similar in both stature and face. Both were tall, black-haired women with hourglass figures, jet-black eyes and elegant demeanours. Momo's face was only a bit softer than her mother's chiselled features and she carried herself a bit more stiffly, as well as lacking the mischievous smirk that often graced the Duchess Yaoyorozu's face when she was out of the public eye.

Momo rolled her eyes, not at all amused by her mother's games. "Why have you allowed one of our vassals to swear themselves into the service of another House." she clarified in exasperation as she finished serving their tea and took a seat at the small table set before them. "House Utsushimi has served our family and our family alone since before the formation of the Musutafu Concilium, all the way back to when we were a part of the Draconis Combine! They have not served another in over a thousand years; to simply allow them to enter into the service of another House is an insult to our history and pride."

"My, my. You are certainly kicking up a fuss about this aren't you, Momo?" Eikō offered with a laugh. "It is not like the young Lady Utsushimi has forsworn us for a new lord, she is merely serving an appointment for five years before she returns to our service. The paperwork Duchess Midoriya sent made that particularly clear, likely to ensure that such an insult was not taken."

"Well yes, but it is still a matter of principle." Momo responded with a huff before taking a sip of her tea to calm herself down. "It was hardly Baroness Utsushimi's fault that some ne'er-do-wells sabotaged her BattleMech in an attempt to use her as a cat's paw in an assassination plot against Heir Midoriya."

"Duchess Inko agrees with you on that, it is one of the reasons she made the offer after all, but she also points out that a more thorough examination of the Illusory Lady would have likely revealed the sabotage before the match even began." the Duchess agreed with a sigh. "Her MechTechs were formerly in our direct service and were contracted to her as a gift on her accession to Baroness after the tragic loss of the previous Baron in that accident last year. That puts at least a small part of the responsibility for the incident on us. That wasn't the only reason I agreed to allow it, though."

Momo looked up from her tea curiously and nearly choked on her breath when she saw how serious her mother's face had become.

"Even before things came to a head with the death of Hisashi Jade Falcon, the Duchy of Green Valley was suffering internally from the power struggles going on between former Duke Rekka and current Duchess Inko and their followers." Eikō explained carefully. "With his death and the revelation that that old war hound Rekka had deliberately weakened and even sabotaged his own lands' defences in order to murder his son-in-law, weaken his daughter's position and attempt to reassert his dominance; the Duchy of Green Valley and the Midoriya Family have never been in a weaker position in the history of the Musutafu Concilium."

The younger of the two Yaoyorozu shuddered a bit at that. To think that someone, another noble of near-equal standing to her and her family no less, would be willing to go far as to completely disregard the first rule of Musutafan nobility, to act as a shield to those who looked to them for protection, for what amounted to nothing more than petty spite, bigotry and an unhealthy obsession with power and control, was simply anathema to everything she'd been raised to believe in.

"Back in the early days of the Concilium, there were multiple branches of House Midoriya who could take up the reigns if the main line ever fell, but then House Chisaki rebelled and nearly destroyed Okami City. House Midoriya was first on the field to defend their home, like always, and fought back with every hand they could muster, and losing many of their own in the process. Since then, the family has slowly continued to wither away." the Duchess reminded her daughter. "Now one of Musutafu's Founding Houses is reduced to just the heir to the throne of Green Valley, the Half-Musutafan and Half-Clan Izuku Midoriya; the isolated, imprisoned and half-mad Rekka Midoriya who had proven, even before his imprisonment, that he was no longer fit to rule, and the widowed Duchess Inko Midoriya, who has never taken up with another man out of grief for her lost husband."

Momo nodded, seeing the point, "But…"

"I am well aware that the Midoriya Family and our own Yaoyorozu Family have never been particularly close." Her mother interrupted, smiling crookedly. "At best we've been cordial and polite neighbours and occasional business partners. It has been that way since Sekka Midoriya and Mangetsu Yaoyorozu had their famous debate about the need to create the spy rings amongst the Inner Sphere back in the early days of the Concilium just after the Replenishment Raids. I'll be the first to admit that Sekka's plan has greatly benefited the Concilium in the centuries that have passed since, and that old Mangetsu's arguments were largely based out of fear of us being discovered and drawn into that chaotic nightmare. While we have never been particularly close, that does not mean that the Yaoyorozu disrespects or underestimates all that House Midoriya has done for the Concilium since its conception."

"Of course not!" Momo agreed, slightly affronted by the very idea. Even if their houses had never been aligned, only a fool would even try and deny House Midoriya's contributions to the Concilium. "House Midoriya has always been the first to step forward and act as a shield for Musutafu, no matter where the threat comes from. It was why House Chisaki targeted them after all, the Midoriya would have never bowed down to them, and even after House Chisaki nearly destroyed their capital, they continued to fight on. They have ever and always served the Concilium first and foremost; never acting against its interests for their own gain…something that even our own House can't proclaim." she finished, sounding a bit abashed by the admission.

"True, true." Eikō agreed easily enough. "Our House has never gone against the word of the law, but I can't deny that we've bent or twisted it from time to time to best serve our own ends. I've tried to clean up our image since I became Duchess and have tried to right some of the old wrongs, but there's no denying what our family has done it the past. Rekka Midoriya's madness is the closest House Midoriya has ever come to crossing that line, and they recouped their image quite spectacularly when Duchess Inko brought him forward herself to face the judgement of the High Council rather than try and sweep things under the rug internally. Though how much of that was politicking and how much was just her wanting to socially ruin the man who killed her husband as deeply and painfully as she could is something I'm still not sure of."

Tapping the edge of her teacup with one elegantly trimmed fingernail, the ruler of the Eight Million Duchy sighed. "House Chisaki's rebellion and subsequent exile was the first and only time that the Council was forced to divide up and parcel out the lands of one of the Founding Houses. However, if something isn't done about Rekka Midoriya's murderous sycophants, who are undoubtedly behind this situation, then Musutafu might lose another of their Founders if they get lucky enough to eliminate Heir Midoriya. Worse than that, House Midoriya has been a cornerstone of the Concilium since its founding, and I fear what might happen should they disappear. That is why I allowed Kemyi Utsushimi to swear herself to the Green Valley Ducal Guard for the next five years. That is why I have my own intelligence agency working to track down whatever remnants of the Verdant Knight's loyal hounds that might be acting in our lands and investigating just who might be moving against House Midoriya. And that, my dear daughter, is why I would like you to openly befriend Izuku Midoriya when you both arrive at the Academy; as a sign that House Yaoyorozu stands with House Midoriya in your generation."

The fact that her own works to improve their House's somewhat shady reputation would be greatly benefited by having them publicly aligned with the Noble House most well-known for their incorruptibility and stalwart honour went without saying.

Still, Momo couldn't help but gasp at such a bold play. "Mother!?"

"Oh please, dear. It's not like I'm asking you to seduce him; just befriend him." Eikō laughed. "Though, if you do want to take him for a tumble in the hay, feel free. Having a cadet branch of House Midoriya linked tightly to our own House could be… interesting should the worst come to pass."

"MOTHER!"

Eikō smirked at the tomato-red blush covering her baby girl's face. It paired so nicely with the look of utterly embarrassed outrage she was sporting.

Oh, to be young and innocent again.

"In all seriousness dear, Duchess Inko has been dealing with choppy waters since she took the Ducal seat and she and her father began butting heads." the Duchess continued airily. "Most of House Midoriya's traditional allies began to distance themselves from both sides in order to avoid getting caught up in what was looking to be a very nasty internal conflict, and many are nervous about trying to re-establish old ties with Duchess Inko after her rather…dramatic end to her and her father's conflict. Now is the best time for House Yaoyorozu to show that we stand by those who stand by the Concilium. Rekka was gently pushed out of his Ducal seat because the Council was concerned the charismatic old war horse was fermenting another rebellion; something that, given the near fanatical loyalty that certain parties in both Green Field's Ducal Guard and Armoured Cavalry have shown since he was brought up on charges, was probably far closer to the mark than everyone feared. I wouldn't ask you to do this if I didn't believe it was for the best of both House Yaoyorozu and the Concilium as whole, but it is and I am."

Pausing for a moment, Eikō then added, "And you never know, may find yourself and young Izuku are fairly well-matched; he is reputed to be a highly intelligent boy, albeit a bit on the anxious side. Friendships and far more have bloomed from much less."

"Very well." Momo said after a moment of consideration. "I shall do as you ask, mother. The House of Midoriya shall have my support."

"Good girl." her mother said with a smile. "And as is tradition in our House, I shall pass the reigns of Duchess to you once you graduate from the Academy."

House Yaoyorozu held the opinion that one's education should be paramount, therefore didn't pass down the mantle of Duke or Duchess to their Heir until the Heir had successfully graduated from the Academy. This was different to most Houses, who prioritized having their Heirs assume their positions as soon as they turned the legal age.

"I shan't let you down, Mother." Momo smiled.

"I know you won't, dear." Eikō said with a knowing smile. "I know you won't."

Several Days Later

Simulator Room, Endeavour Castle, Duchy of Roaring Fire

Shōto Todoroki let out a relieved sigh as he got out of the simulator for his customized JägerMech JM6-DGr. The FlashFreeze had originally been his mother's BattleMech, and he had chosen to pilot it, bucking tradition and refusing to pilot the Hellfire 3 OmniMech that had been the Todoroki Family's heraldic Battle Mech since a privately sponsored team of operatives had managed to steal it from Clan Star Adder shortly after they were first introduced in 3058.

"Yo, Shōto." a familiar voice called out, making the red and white haired boy look toward the simulator room's main entrance.

"Tōya-nii-san." he acknowledged his older brother calmly.

Of the four Todoroki children, Tōya was easily the one who took the most after their father when it came to physical appearances. Tall, with a powerful, muscular build, burnt red hair and what Natsuo always referred to as, 'a scary-ass resting bitch face.' However, Tōya was a very different man from his father, both in terms of personality and particularly in his disdain for BattleMechs, constantly referring to them as 'overly big hammers that try to turn everything around them into nails.' He had gone to the Academy and had followed the path of the infantryman and commander, against their father's direct orders at that, with a secondary specialization in AFV driving. He had since become a Colonel in the Defence Forces with his own regiment under his command.

This had led him to losing his title as Heir to the Duchy of Roaring Fire, since the Todoroki Family by-laws insisted that the Family Head be a 'BattleMech Pilot of good standing.'

Enji Todoroki's children had continued to disappoint and infuriate him. His next two children had both chosen civilian lives and had willingly disinherited themselves by refusing to enter any form of military service; with Natsuo becoming a lawyer and Fuyumi having become a doctor. Thus, Shōto was the one who had been forcibly assigned the title of Heir when he was still a toddler, leaving him with no other option but to follow the path of the MechWarrior.

"I thought that your regiment was out on manoeuvres for the next month?" the youngest Todoroki asked calmly as he moved to grab a towel and wipe the sweat from his face.

"They are. I got called back to the Castle for an emergency meeting with Father." Tōya answered with a put-upon sigh. "Did you know he's been planning how best to take advantage of the recent troubles plaguing House Midoriya?"

"It does not surprise me." Shōto responded blandly. "That seems entirely in line with his usual character."

"Yeah, but he's planning on keeping his own plots and plans going even after you leave to start attending the Academy, Shōto." his eldest brother elaborated. "In other words, he's planning on keeping this shit up even after he hands over the title of Duke to you, without even consulting you."

"He will be acting as regent and Duke Emeritus while I am at the Academy. That will be within his right." the Ducal Heir replied blandly.

"Shōto, I don't think that you're really getting what I'm trying to tell you here." the older Todoroki scion groaned out in exasperation. "Our father isn't planning on giving up any control of the Duchy even after he hands over the Lordship, he more or less intends to use you as a sock-puppet for as long as he's still alive; just like Rekka Midoriya tried, and failed, to do with Duchess Inko in Green Valley."

"And he will fail." Shōto stated flatly.

"How? You've never exactly shown yourself to be the most enthusiastic about taking the Ducal Seat." Tōya asked, now completely lost. "If you don't put your foot down now, no one will treat you as more than a figurehead after you graduate. Hell, as is, most of his men will continue obey him over you no matter what you do."

"Which is why I intend to gather my own men while I am attending the Academy." Shōto responded dryly. "As well as gathering evidence of him overstepping his authority as regent while I am away. By the time I graduate, I expect to have enough proof to have the Council strip him of most of his titles and honours much like Lady Inko did to Rekka."

"Shōto…" Tōya blinked, having not expected his brother to be planning something so audacious. "If you do that, you could very well start a civil war if you don't pull it off perfectly."

"And?"

His eldest brother just stared back at Shōto for a solid minute, before closing his eyes and shaking his head. "…for someone who claims he doesn't want to be anything like our old man, you certainly have his callousness down to a 'T.'" he pointed out in disappointment as he turned and started to leave. "Just choosing to pilot a different BattleMech isn't going to make you a different person Shōto; how you chose to rule and act is."

Shōto just stared dully after him. He had no clue how to respond to that.

Same Time

Unknown Location, New Tokyo, Musutafu III

"Damn it! I can't believe that it failed!" a man's voice shouted as the sound of a fist being slammed into a table echoed across the room. "My plan was fucking foolproof!"

"Oh yes." another man's voice responded snidely. "Completely foolproof. There was no risk at all of a random hit damaging a 'Mech during a live spar, or that the opposing MechWarrior would warn the Target about an impending overheat."

The room the two men were arguing seemed to be the main room of a modestly sized, middle-class apartment, albeit one that had been left completely barren of any furnishing barring the table the two were sitting at.

"First off, the fucking genie brat was supposed to be some kind of half-trained novice when it comes to Mech Piloting! He shouldn't have been able to land any kind of hit against a fully trained Mech Pilot, let alone hitting centre mass in the middle of a fight like that!" the first voice snapped back, now revealed to be coming from a man dressed in a form-concealing trenchcoat, despite being indoors. "Second, if the damned mongrel hadn't managed to damage the device as badly as he did, the stupid bint wouldn't have gotten a chance to warn him, her 'Mech would have blown without triggering any Overheat warnings. Even then, she should have been more concerned about saving her own ass rather than trying to warn the damn genie!"

"So, as always, you jumped the gun and based your plan on assumptions. Only this time you were proven wrong, and it caused us to waste several useful assets." the second man, now revealed to be wearing a rather cheap three-piece suit, responded with an exasperated roll of his eyes.

"It's not like you argued against the plan when I brought it up." the first growled back.

The suited man shrugged. "Like you, I'd heard the rumours about the little djinn's piecemeal training and agreed that the opportunity was too good to waste. I will even admit that we were all too eager to see justice done for our lord and it caused us to jump the gun."

"Tch." Trenchcoat grunted as he retook his seat, visibly calming down a bit. "So, the first shot failed. We'll have to contact the others and start planning out our next move."

"The genie brat will be heading to the Academy shortly; we simply don't have time to properly plan and carry out another venture before he arrives." Suit replied, raising a hand to massage the bridge of his nose. "Unfortunately, planting the device in Utsushimi's 'Mech burned our only way to sneak in. I've already been in touch with my contacts in the Academy and security has already found and sealed up the hole we used. So, getting in and trying another bout of sabotage is unfortunately an impossibility, as are most of our more subtle options for the moment. As for a more overt attack…we would be better suited saving time and just committing suicide than attempting that. The Academy is built like a fucking fortress and was designed to hold off ten full Lances of Assault BattleMechs along with an equivalent amount infantry, armour and air support with just its own inbuilt defences. Once he's inside, the whelp might well be on another planet for all that we can do to him."

"What about when he's outside the Academy? Students are allowed to visit New Tokyo during weekends and holidays, right?" the first man growled out. "We can't let that affront to Lord Rekka's legacy live any longer than necessary."

"Unless we somehow get ahold of the genie's schedule, that will be almost impossible to plan out." the second shook his head, before pausing. "But…there might be a way. You recall the band of pirate scum that Lord Rekka used to eliminate the original Clansman? We could make use of them."

"Even pirates aren't dumb enough to try and attack the Academy." trenchcoat scoffed out.

"Not directly, genius!" the suited man snapped, out of patience with his associate's impetuousness. "We need to look beyond the Academy campus for an opportunity. And every year, one of the first lessons that the newest crop of noble brats gets involves a trip to one of the nearby moons, in this system or the next, for practical lessons on lunar surface combat where their heat sinks are more likely to overheat."

"Yeah, what's your point." his colleague replied in confusion.

"Oh, for the love of our Ancestors! Think, you chaff-brained idiot, think!" the second declared in annoyance. "If we can find out just which moon they're going to use this year, we can let those pirate idiots know and send them to raid the lesson. They can take the rest of noble brats hostage for a big pay day, and we can see the damned genie dead as payment for the information."

"That…that could really work." the first offered, ignoring the insults for the time being. "But…how exactly are we going to find out which moon they're going to head to? There's going to be heirs and duke and duchesses and counts and all that other shit involved, so the entire thing will probably be wrapped up under Vermillion-level security clearance, at least."

"As always, my ability to plan ahead will save our asses from your brashness." the second replied smugly. "I managed to sneak a little worm into the internal communication systems while we still had access, just in case the first attack went belly-up like it did. The second the location for the trip is determined and sent out to the teachers on the Academy's private network, it'll use a recently graduated student's interlink account to send the information to an old account I bought; from there a bot will shuffle it forward through several dozen dummy accounts before I pick it up from one of them chosen at random."

"Fucking hell, you always do love to over-plan everything. Of course, when things go off the rails, you're next to useless." the first grumbled. "And I suppose you've already got a way figured out to make our offer with those pirates."

"But of course, it's merely a matter of knowing the right people." the second responded with a smirk, smugly ignoring the insult as usual.

"OK, fine. I'll get in contact with the rest and let them know, see if anyone's got anything else they can add to the pot." the first grunted. "And what happens if this attempt fails too?"

"Then we will have no choice but to take matters into our own hands, rather than trying to rely on third parties and cat's paws." the second stated seriously before giving his collaborator a knowing look. "I'll have to make preparations for that as well, just in case, so I'll be going silent for a bit before things come to a head."

"You're an utter pain in the ass, you know that." the first man stated with a sigh and a roll of his eyes, before rising and offering the second a salute. "For the Verdant Knight!"

"For the Verdant Knight!" the second man responded in kind.

Days Later

Throne Room, Castle Chisaki (Formerly a Castle Brian), Periphery System, Inner Sphere

Nemoto Shin was feeling a bit…twitchy.

Given he was a member of the Eight Bullets, the eight elite MechWarriors that served directly under the current leader of the Shie Hassaikai (Eight Precepts of Death) Pirate Group, it was perfectly understand that he'd get nervous from time to time, but Nemoto trusted the leader with his life and that faith usually served to put him at ease.

Now though...

He stood by his boss's throne, him and his fellow Eight Bullets forming a semicircle at either side of it while their boss reclined in the throne proper. Directly at the boss's side were his right hand, Kurono Hari, and the Battle Commander, Irinaka Jōi. A majority of the Shie Hassaikai's rank and file were also in attendance, watching the meeting from the sidelines.

And standing in front of the throne were a small pack of idiots who though that claiming they were envoys from some big-name pirate conclave guaranteed them safe passage or some such shit.

"Would you kindly repeat what you just said." Kai Chisaki's soft, almost pleasant, voice seemed to carry across the room. The current leader of the Eight Precepts of Death was currently dressed in a MechWarrior's combat suit along with a plague doctor's mask and glove, leaving only his eyes and the upper portion of his head exposed.

"Rumour has it that you brats know the location of some nice little bolthole that the ass-hats in the Sphere can't hope to reach." the arrogant pirate lord wannabe leading the so-called dignitaries stated snobbishly. "Our bosses are willing to offer your little pack of misfits a place at the table if you cough up the location. Refuse and we'll just crush the lot of yeh and get…creative with our questioning."

"I thought that was what you said, but I just couldn't believe my ears when you first said it." Kai responded calmly as he sat up properly and glared down at the impudent pack of fools. "You come into my people's territory, demand an audience with me out of the blue, deliver an ultimatum without even a proper discourse and even have the nerve to threaten me. I don't think I have ever been this insulted in my entire life."

"Should we take care of 'em, boss?" Kendō Rappa asked, punching a fist into his open hand.

"No." Kai shook his head before turning his attention fully onto the interlopers. "As you are acting as representatives, envoys almost, just this once I'll let you leave unharmed. Go back to your bosses and tell them to come loaded for war if they have the balls to try. The Eight Precepts of Death will welcome them with open arms. Aren't I right, boys?"

A roar came up from the various pirates in the room, and fear crossed the faces of the interlopers as they finally understood how badly things could go for them since their bosses' name didn't seem to carry any weight here.

"You…You lot will regret making an enemy of the Periphery Lords." the leader managed to gather enough courage to make a final threat before wheeling around and leading his nervous subordinates out of the room. Shin was willing to bet they'd break into a run for their ship within a few seconds of being out of sight.

"Hari, is it done?" Kai asked a moment later.

"Of course, Lord Chisaki. The burst transmitter was attached within ten minutes of them leaving their ship." Kurono replied. "We should be able to trace them back to whatever system their little conclave has managed to build a base in."

"Good. Once we're sure those fools are out of the system, rally up the boys, start getting the 'Mechs and AFVs loaded into the ships, and everyone armed up and ready to fight. We're going hunting." Kai Chisaki, call-sign Overhaul, declared, rising from his seat and spreading his arms wide to his men. "The Briar Patch is our sacred holy land. The place we shall eventually return to and conquer. We will not let any of the diseased hordes from the filthy Inner Sphere so much as set a single toe there. We shall purge this pack of fools from the galaxy and make them regret the day they dared to try and stand above us!"

"OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL! OVERHAUL!" the pirates cheered.

"As expected, boss." Nemoto whispered reverently. "As expected indeed!"

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Next Chapter: Ochako and Mei

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