There were times, when the moment was calm and quiet, that she would sometimes dream of them. Even though the reality was somewhat different, the scenes in the imaginings would always be peaceful, serene. It was the happy times, the times of innocence and wonder, these were the memories that came to her. She would sometimes hope that they were all in a better place, a place where there would be no wars, no conflict, and no bloodshed. Just a little garden, with leaves fluttering in the wind, the scent of roses and pine, the gentle rush of flowing water and of birds singing in the sunset. How she loved to be in their arms again, laughing and joking at just being together.
Natasha Kerensky gently rubbed at the medallion of the goddess Ishtar on the top instrument panel of her 'Mech's cockpit, hanging along with the grotesque figurine of the demon Pazuzu. They were a few inches beside a tuft of wolf fur and the picture of the McGavin brothers. She didn't have a whole lot to remember people by and she tried to collect whatever pieces reminded her of them.
As she stared at the photograph of the two smiling McGavin boys, cheerfully goofing off in front of the camera as it was taken, she felt a touch of guilt but the fond memories of them all together, having fun, took most of the pain away. Natasha reminded herself, on and on, that she could not have done anything different to save the older boy. Kieran McGavin died trying to save her, and she knew that from his personality, he would not have had it any other way. His last words to her as he lay dying in his arms were for her to take care of his little brother Duncan. There wasn't a day that passed by that she hadn't thought of them, not a brief second of time where she would sometimes glance back, hoping to catch Kieran's infectious smile once more, only to turn back to what she was doing, realizing that he was finally gone. But Duncan was still alive, undergoing schooling in the Wolf's Dragoons facility on Outreach. The Black Widow vowed to herself that she would return to see Duncan once more. She was the only one the little boy had, and she would do everything in her power to stay alive and come back to him.
But as her glance shifted over to the left of the control panel, where the tuft of wolf fur was, a momentous despair almost overwhelmed her. Joshua. He was the cause of both her grief and reason for her existence. How he both broke her heart and drove her to the most intense periods of pleasure in her life. A loving angel and a malevolent demon, a beacon of light and a shade of utter darkness he was. She hadn't quiet gotten over him yet. She doubted if she ever would. They were both reborn to become assassins of the Bounty Hunter, a clone of the terrible Usurper himself, Stefan Amaris. Natasha was a clone too and so was Joshua, she of the first Black Widow and he was her dead lover. Her thoughts were hazy now, indistinct and primeval, like a fish learning how to breathe air. How she had rebelled against her creator and how Amaris had sent Joshua to kill her. He failed because of his memories- deep inside of him, despite his conditioning- he loved her. But Joshua murdered Kieran McGavin and she couldn't forgive him for that. Like her own totem animal, she killed him.
The bitter reality seeped into her consciousness once more as she saw a flare go up near the northern gates of the old city. Natasha knew that her enemies were near as she powered up her 'Mech's systems. Her Warhammer was crouched down low, near the broken rocks at the city's eastern edge. Her Null-Signature system was keeping her 'Mech concealed but a thorough search would reveal her position in the end. But not that it mattered, for if she did make contact with the enemy, she would fight for she could not allow any Blakist BattleMech to move in and support their troops who were in the city. She needed to keep them occupied as long as possible.
Already she could see a number of enemy contacts venturing into the area where she was in. They knew her general whereabouts but not her exact location, not yet anyway. Natasha calmly placed the neurohelmet on her head as she plugged in the neural interface jacks that would allow her unprecedented control over her gargantuan BattleMech. As a few seconds passed, the blips on her HUD grew closer as she began running a weapons diagnostic check. All indicators blinked back with a lethal, friendly green.
A squawk on her open communications channel momentarily distracted her as she put on her insulated gloves. "Black Widow," the voice belonged to no other than Precentor Brandon St. Jamais, "I know you are out here somewhere. There are ten of us against you. I suggest you surrender and spare everyone any further bloodshed."
"I have a better idea," Natasha replied. "Why don't you and I fight each other one on one. Single-combat. Mono-a-mono. If I win, you let us be. If you win, we all surrender peacefully."
Adept Amon Goth bit his lip as he was listening in on the same frequency as he drove his 70-ton Shootist BattleMech forward. He hoped that if it did come to that, St. Jamais would choose him to be his champion.
"No, I don't think so." Brandon smiled as he stopped his Toyama heavy BattleMech less than a mile in front of her. "I know of your reputation and that means fighting you one on one would be suicide for me. Let us begin shall we?"
"By all means." Natasha said as she moved her Warhammer to a fully upright position and activated her 'Mech's throttles. The Black Widow could see that the enemy BattleMechs had spread out on a skirmish line to try to draw her out. Glancing from side to side she realized that Brandon St. Jamais wasn't kidding. Ten 'Mechs of assorted tonnage were strung out, ready to act as a giant, robotic firing squad with her as the victim. Quickly analyzing the situation, she knew that she needed to take down the fastest 'Mechs first, lest they surround her and fire on her lightly-armored rear.
"Move in. Concentrate on the source of enemy fire when it happens." Brandon ordered as he punched up the throttle of his Toyama 'Mech. The moment his unit detected any tracer rounds or energy beams, they would lay down a withering return fire in that direction. It didn't matter if the Black Widow's exact location couldn't be pinpointed, their concentrated fire would hit her sooner or later. Just like in old naval warfare incidents, she would be crossing the T.
Almost as one, the white-painted Blakist 'Mechs moved as one line as it drove forward into the area. Natasha gripped her control sticks as she prepared the Warhammer for a quick dash to its side once she commenced firing. It was imperative that she stay on the move, if she sat still their tracking fire would hit her. In front of her extreme right she could see an enemy Lightray 'Mech coming into her sights. Jaws clenched tight in extreme concentration, Natasha zeroed in and fired her arm-mounted gauss cannons.
As the 120mm hypersonic shells left the barreled arms of the Warhammer, they both immediately impacted upon the Lightray's 55-ton bulk. The first shell smashed into the center torso while the second hit the right leg. Although the damage was significant, neither shot failed to penetrate the Lightray's armor.
Goth grimaced as the pilot of the Lightray reported that he was under fire. He realized that the Black Widow was a dangerous opponent for she knew what their plans were, instead of firing her lasers that would have been visible to their sensors, she opted instead to use her gauss cannons. At that moment they could not get a bead down on her but as they were getting closer it would be just a matter of time. Might as well take the punishment before finishing her off, he thought.
Natasha quickly moved the Warhammer sideways as her gauss cannons cycled back their spent energy. The Blakists were well disciplined; even though they were already under attack they held their fire until they could get a thorough bead on her. As long as she kept using her gauss cannons and the ranges stayed long, she could keep doing this until they were all nothing but smoldering ruins but she knew she couldn't keep it up; they were rapidly closing into short range and she had a finite amount of ammunition in her gauss cannons, sooner or later she would have to switch to her Warhammer's medium-ranged heavy lasers. And that would make her visible to their sensors.
"Increase speed, move in!" Brandon ordered. The Blakists began to rev up their fusion powerplants as their 'Mechs ran ever closer. Natasha kept her composure as she ran her Warhammer sideways towards the extreme right of the enemy line, triggering her gauss cannons once again at the sprinting Lightray in front of her.
Although the Black Widow's first shot went wide, the second gauss slug smashed into the Lightray's vulnerable cockpit and decapitated the enemy BattleMech. The Blakist 'Mech fell forward and smashed its torso onto the jagged rocks.
The Spartan pilot instantly saw the Lightray go down as he was trailing behind it and a bulky shadow moved into the crosshairs of his HUD as it was making its way to the extreme flank of the line. A few nights before his 'Mech had one of its legs torn off from the Black Widow's desperate alpha strike and now he was eager for revenge. Laughing maniacally, the Spartan pilot instantly fired his 'Mech's extended-range particle projectile cannon, or PPC, as he alerted the unit that he had made contact.
Natasha was nearly blinded by a white incandescent beam of light that erupted from the enemy Spartan and impacted onto her Warhammer's center torso. Although the man-made lightning bolt from the PPC didn't penetrate, the damage was quite significant and she wouldn't be able to take many more of it. The Black Widow realized that she was in a bind for her gauss cannons were still cycling back their energy but if she decided to fire her lasers, the others would detect her position. As the Spartan closed in on her, she knew that only one desperate choice remained; it was risky but she had to chance it or get beaten right then and there.
Quickly pushing her 'Mech's throttle to maximum, Natasha began to maneuver the Warhammer as it's torsos twisted like a tank turret and kept facing the onrushing Spartan even as she began to move behind it. The enemy Spartan saw what was happening and twisted its torsos to try to keep up with the black Warhammer just as Natasha fired a volley of heavy lasers at it. One bluish beam impacted onto the Spartan's left torso but the other two caught the Blakist 'Mech in its rear as it wasn't able to twist its torsos fast enough. Although the first laser bolt failed to penetrate the Spartan's rear, the second one sliced through the already devastated armor and shorted out the 'Mech's gyros. As the Spartan sputtered to a stop while the pilot was frantically trying to keep it upright, Natasha instantly changed direction, running her Warhammer backwards as she slid behind the stricken enemy assault 'Mech. Almost as if on cue, the enemy battle line had turned its direction and lumbered down on the two 'Mechs, firing their weapons in a full-scale barrage.
The Spartan pilot screamed as lasers, PPCs and autocannon shells began to impact his 'Mech as the Black Widow stayed behind him. Numerous shells and laser bolts tore into the Spartan as its pilot finally lost control and it too toppled over.
"Cease fire, cease fire! Its one of ours!" Brandon shouted as his sprinting Toyama got there first. His unit was slowly being whittled away and he was getting extremely frustrated now. As the Spartan finally fell over, he noticed that there was something behind it. Brandon immediately concentrated his weapons for he knew it was the Black Widow.
Both the Toyama and the Warhammer fired simultaneously. Brandon's two extended-range large lasers tore into the Warhammer's torsos while his LB-X autocannon made numerous smaller hits on the enemy's legs. Unfortunately for Natasha, both her gauss cannons missed but two of her heavy lasers did impact on the right torso and left arm of the Toyama. With lethal determination, both BattleMechs circled each other and continued their barrages at one another.
As the two opposing 'Mechs continued to slug it out, Amon Goth pushed the throttle of his Shootist as he got into close range. The other 'Mechs in the unit were still somewhat far off, but they would get there in a matter of minutes. Goth couldn't fire as the Toyama kept getting in his way so he bided his time as he continued to get into a better position. Time was on his side so he just needed to be patient.
Natasha's Warhammer was taking heavy damage but there was no penetration on her 'Mech's armor, as of yet. The Toyama was giving as much as it got but it suddenly stopped circling her when it nearly ran into a sprinting Raijin BattleMech that had just come onto the scene. The Black Widow instantly saw her opportunity as she sighted her weapons and fired. Two gauss slugs instantly leapt out of her Warhammer's arms and impacted onto the Toyama. The first slug tore into the Blakist 'Mech's left arm but the second 120mm slug smashed right through the Toyama's right torso and penetrated the ammunition storage of Brandon's long-range missile rack. One of the missile warheads instantly detonated, sending a chain reaction that blew the entire torso to shreds. As the alarms blazed all around him, Brandon was instantly torn loose from the exploding Toyama as his ejection seat propelled him several hundred meters into the desert night.
"You're mine." Amon Goth said as he finally had the position he was hoping for. Almost immediately, two massive 200mm shells erupted from his Shootist's ULTRA autocannon and impacted onto the black Warhammer. As the Black Widow's 'Mech staggered from the hail of armor-piercing steel, Goth fired his pulse lasers as well, adding into the carnage.
Natasha Kerensky shook off the effects of the neural feedback as she shut off the whining alarms in her 'Mech's cockpit. Her Warhammer was heavily damaged and parts of her torso had been penetrated, that meant that her Null-Signature system was offline and her 'Mech had taken engine damage as well. The Warhammer's left arm also hung limply on its side, the gauss cannon damaged beyond repair. Her odds were never that much to begin with and she knew it. "Move, damn you!" The Black Widow said as she practically willed her stricken Warhammer to perform one last task before it succumbed.
Goth couldn't believe it. Despite the pounding she took, the Black Widow still didn't eject. Oh well, he would have to do it the long way, then. As he circled the stricken Warhammer, he saw that the Raijin slowed down as it fired a barrage of pulse lasers into it as well, tearing out large chunks of armor from its legs and burning through some internal components.
But the Black Widow wouldn't give up. Quickly revving up what power she had left in the damaged engines, her Warhammer got up and quickly sprinted backwards, surprising both the Raijin and the Shootist. Before they could recover, she fired her remaining weapons at the immobile Raijin. Her targeting sensors were gone so she stood a better chance of hitting the lighter Raijin than the already moving Shootist. Two heavy lasers were able to pound the Raijin's torsos but failed to penetrate it. Natasha's last gauss slug, however, did the trick as it passed effortlessly into the Raijin's left torso and cored its engine housing. The Raijin's reactor instantly went into meltdown as the fusion energy tore through its casing and the exploding ammunition from its missile bins blasted the hapless 50-ton 'Mech into millions of pieces.
"Enough!" Goth shouted as he pushed his Shootist forward, firing his ULTRA autocannon again at the smoldering Warhammer. This time, the Black Widow just didn't have the armor to take a second volley as the massive autocannon shells ripped through the remaining armor and tore out the Warhammer's engine housing, nearly cleaving the 'Mech in two as the damage cut through the chassis as well. This was all too much for the Warhammer's central computer as it immediately activated the pilot's ejection seat and tried to shut down the remaining systems. By then the Black Widow was already unconscious from the neural feedback and so didn't feel the g-forces as the ejection seat wrenched her away from the dying Warhammer 'Mech.
Brandon St. Jamais unstrapped himself from his ejection seat while staring out into the desert sky. He could see that the battle in the city was going full force as explosions rattled on in the distance. He could see Goth's Shootist several hundred meters away, moving slowly along the rocks, hoping to find the Black Widow's parachute. Quickly activating his communicator, Brandon patched in to Goth's frequency. "Well, did you find her?" He said.
"Negative. I shot at her parachute as it was going down but she's somewhere in these rocks. She's probably dead anyways." Goth replied.
"Don't be too sure." Brandon said as he pulled out his laser pistol. "I want you to dispatch a team of LOM operatives here to hunt her down. I want a positive ID on her body."
"Roger that. Do you want me to pick you up?"
"Negative. Once the chopper inserts the hunter-killer team, have them pick me up; I'm going to command our forces in the city. You handle the 'Mechs until my Toyama is repaired." With that, Brandon deactivated his communicator and sat down on a slab of rock.
Damn these delegates and damn that Black Widow, he thought. Why couldn't they have just surrendered peacefully? They had no chance. Or did they?
