Author's note: Sorry if this popped up. Not really an "update," but I was re-reading this, and I found a few places where I got lazy and let the writing slip. I went back in and changed a few things that, though small, still annoyed the Hell outta my sense of style and prose.
Maddog3060
Rain fell over the plains, drenching Tanzano and the area around it. Although not a particularly nasty storm, lightning was nevertheless common enough that everyone hunkered down inside his or her homes.
Everyone, save several members of the 3rd Infantry Platoon (Armored), who were in concealed positions in a semi circle around the Silver Pagoda and the newly-arrived LST-89, which had arrived several hours before, coming in soon after the meeting with the ruling council. In it was Lieutenant Peterson's lance of four Abrams main battle tanks, which had been cut loose from the main force on Kujira's orders.
And they should be the stupid bastards out here tonight, Private Fredericks mentally grumbled inside his suit of Marauder armor. He lay in a small drainage ditch that ran along the side of the road that led out from the gate that the two Republic dropships had grounded near by. His position was only about three hundred meters distant from the two ships, but he still found the watch boring. Nothin' to do but lay in the mud and hear rain hit the top of my armor, he thought, continuing to complain to himself. Sure, it's not like I'm one of those poor PBIs in the past, having to sit like this, but with the rain fallin' on me directly, but this is still fuckin' annoying.
Fredericks and three other members of the infantry detachment were out standing watch to the north and east of the ships, per standard operating procedure in an area that wasn't fully secured.
What the Hell would they consider "fully secured?" Fredericks wondered as he shifted his position a bit to prevent a cramp in his legs. Washington? Nimitz Base? Perhaps an Omega Depot? He snorted inside his helmet. Probably one o' those depots… Hell, no one even knows where they are, 'cept the brass.
It was then that a blip appeared on his thermal sensors, only a double dozen meters ahead of him. What the Hell is that? He wondered quite naturally. Then the blip disappeared, and he became more confused. Odd, blips like that don't just come out of nowhere… Part of him wanted to rise up and get a better look at the area around him, despite the fact that the top of his head already poked above the ditch lip. But something seemed strange to him, and the fact that he and his comrades had been deployed in such weather told him that there just might be a reason for the paranoia after all. Thus, he froze and watched the thermal display in his HUD, and contemplated whether he should call it in or not.
Then the decision was made for him, as he saw two new heat signatures appeared at the same time as two figures slowly crawled into view along the road. Each of the vague, shadowy shapes appeared to be dressed in a black suit, though Fredericks couldn't be sure, given the darkness and the pouring rain. Not like it matters, anyway, he thought briefly as the two figures crept closer to his position.
Do they see me? He wondered as the helmeted figures crept along the road. No… These aren't out people, and those helmets, those're like DEST gear. And that means that they're Wobbies. If they had seen me, I'd be dead by now. He gave a silent prayer of thanks for Sergeant Renard's paranoia in demanding that each soldier take out a sensor-baffling 'ghillie' cover that made him appear to be a natural formation to all but a combat vehicle's full-power active probe suite. They would have sniped my head off if I wasn't under this cover. Although equipped with the best battle armor in existence, Fredericks – like all Republic troopers – was trained to not rely on the armor so much as on their training, since even the best armor had weak spots for an enemy to exploit.
Stop it Bobby, he chastised himself as the two intruders drew near. Concentrate! Okay, they may be monitoring our radios, so wait 'til they're past at least. After this thought, Fredericks exerted all the will he could to hold himself absolutely still within his armor. Think like a rock, Bobby. You're a rock, nothing to look at. Nothing to see here folks, go on about your business.
The intruders seemed to almost take these last thoughts to heart, and they quickly moved along the road in a crouch, passing Fredericks with only a single glance at him. The Republic trooper breathed out a sigh of relief, and he triggered his HUD to a rear view with a simple flick of his chin plate. An image display opened up in the lower left corner of his helmet's visor area, and he watched as the two people continued to move.
How many are there? He wondered. Just those two, scouting the area? Are they part of an assault team coming to launch a surprise attack? Or are they trying to find a sentry to snipe? He couldn't be sure, but he could have sworn that he had seen the long shape of a high-caliber sniper rifle on the back of one of the figures.
Well, fuck it, I ain't gonna let them get away with whatever they're tryin' ta do! With that, he finally keyed his radio to one of the LPI – Low Probability of Intercept – frequencies, using his eyes to cycle the contact list to the command deck of the Silver Pagoda. "This is Red Dog One Six to Beta Site, come in please," he said quietly, almost whispering, despite the fact that he could yell and not be heard outside of his armor should he not choose it.
The two figures continued on their trek, and Fredericks breathed a sigh of relief in the brief moment between his radio call and the response from the Pagoda. "Red Dog One Six, this is Beta Site, authenticate."
"Authentication Red Square," Fredericks replied as he continued to hold himself still, should the intruders have any friends nearby. "I have had visual and infrared contact with two human individuals dressed in infiltration gear. They have passed my position and appear to be moving towards the dropships."
The channel was silent a bit before the man's voice came back. "You're fucking me?"
"I don't fuck around, boy," Fredericks replied with a menace in his voice. "They were wearin' DEST-style infiltration suits, and crouch-walking along the road. That ain't the sign of a friendly neighbor."
"No shit. Stand by," the clipped words came over the channel, and Fredericks took another breath before moving in his position slightly so that he could raise his helmeted head higher. Now that I've called it in, I'm a bit more expendable. The thought made his stomach churn, but his training and duty was clear in that he needed to get information now.
On his HUD, he saw the two heat blips return, though they were very weak. They had stopped moving about thirty meters behind him, and Fredericks remembered that there was the large stump of an old tree along the roadside around that area. Useful cover…
"Red Dog One Six, this is Red Dog Two," Sergeant Renard's melodic voice rolled over the frequency. "We're gettin' everyone inside suited up all quiet-like. Tell me what you got."
Fredericks repeated what he had told the naval watchman aboard the Silver Pagoda, and he added in the new information about where the two people had stopped. He then waited for a moment as Renard chewed the information over.
Finally, the sergeant spoke again. "Okay, boy, stay still out there and watch for more intruders. If any one of them so much as sneezes in your direction, blast 'em to Hell and get the fuck back to base. Kapeesh?"
Fredericks couldn't help but smile a bit inside his helmet. Damn nice to know that the guys in charge care 'bout your ass. "Roger wilco, sir."
Alexis woke with a start to the sound of the intercom buzzing. She lifted her head off of her borrowed pillow in time to see a groggy Captain Tanaka reach over to the intercom on the side of her bed and slap the control on it. "What the fuck is it?" She asked in a voice made unfriendly by the interruption of her sleep.
"Cassy, it's Jorge," Hernandez's voice came in over the intercom, and the urgency in his tone made Alexis and Tanaka pay more attention than they normally would have after being awakened in the middle of the night. "One of Renard's pickets has spotted a pair of humans in infiltration suits about three hundred meters from the ship. We're movin' to ground combat stations, and I need you to get your ass outta bed right now."
Tanaka had brought herself to sit upright on her bed at the mention of the two intruders, and she now swung her legs over the side. "I hear ya, skipper. We're on our way," she added the last part as she saw Alexis stand up from where she had been laying on a sleeping bag on the floor.
"Good. I need you up here to coordinate with your lance. Your friend can come along. Out." With that, the speaker went dead and Tanaka stood and looked at Alexis. "Get dressed, Alexis, we got to 'splain it to our new arrivals."
Alexis nodded silently, and she and Tanaka quickly went to work, changing out of their nightclothes and into their combat fatigues. Thank goodness that when they fetched my things from the firebase, they included my armor, she thought as she began to fasten the light ablative/flak gear over her torso.
Tanaka finished much earlier, since she only had simple camouflage uniform and a small pistol sidearm to put on. "I'm headin' for the bridge, come up when you're ready," she said to Alexis. Then she went to her door, hitting its control stud and squeezing through it even before it was fully opened.
Alexis had nodded at the human, but she didn't spare any words as her adrenalin and some fear tightened her throat. Never before have I been so pleased to have a weapon nearby, she thought as she grabbed her laser rifle and needler pistol before she too left the cabin.
It took only a few minutes to get to the elevator and ride it up to the deck just below the bridge. Alexis quickly pushed her way along the narrow passage to the stairs, reaching and climbing up them to hear Fredericks make another report.
"They're definitely staying still, and I keep getting' intermittent eye-arr blips to my right. Dunno if'n it's more, or just this damn rain," the voice came over the speakers and flooded the dimly-lit bridge. Alexis paused to let her eyes adjust to the blue battle lighting that had replaced the standard white fluorescent light that the room normally had.
"I've got One Six's intermittent contacts, too," another voice called in over the radio, brining Alexis' head around to see where Tanaka and Hernandez stood near a crewman who sat at a communications console. Another crewman sat at a different console on the opposite side of the circular room, and he tapped controls nervously. Alexis climbed up and onto the main level as the crewman sitting away from the others spoke up. "Sensors realigned, sir. We're getting several heat blips across the northern arc."
Hernandez grunted as he turned his head to look at the crewman. "Can you pick out numbers?"
"Negative sir," the man replied with a shake of his head. "I read six unidentified contacts, but I don't know if they're singles, doubles, or whatnot." He tried a few more tweaks on his control board, and then sighed. "The ship just wasn't built with this in mind."
"Damn," Hernandez cursed as he turned his head back to the comm console. Then he leaned forward and hit a stud. "Red Dog Two, this is Beta Site. I'm sorry, but our sensors are geared for ship-to-ship, not anti-personnel. All we can give you is the general locations of some anomalous heat sources."
"It'll have to do," Alexis heard Renard's voices come out of the nearby speakers. "I don't suppose the Ninety-eight can do any better?"
Hernandez hit the send button again. "I already called Pike about that. Those LSTs were made for one thing only, and that ain't sensor picket duty."
"All right then, give me the locations of those contacts, and I'll see to them."
"Copy that, Red Dog Two. I'll have my tech send ya the info," Hernandez replied, and then he let go of the send button. "Shang, get on the horn and relay that info," he said, addressing the sensor operator. Then he took a step back from the comm console, prompting Tanaka to follow. The latter then noticed Alexis, and she waved the gatón over.
Alexis took a few steps closer to hear Hernandez mumbling. "I don't like this. Seems too fishy that they'd appear this soon. We've only been here a day."
Tanaka nodded. "I agree. The Vanquishers had scout armor, and these guys only get here after they leave," she said and then crossed her arms. "Someone's been feedin' them info."
"A spy?" Hernandez asked, his words sending a chill up Alexis' spine. "In the city?"
"Either that, or they were ready for us to move in and take up residence here," Tanaka replied quietly.
Hernandez frowned at that. "If that's true, Cassy, then we might be dead already."
"I'm just callin' it like I see it, Jorge," Tanaka replied and shifted her weight a bit. "I ain't paid to look at things with rose-colored glasses."
Hernandez just grunted. "Neither am I. I'm half tempted to just boost for orbit and have the boys outside rendezvous with a shuttle."
"Unless that's what they want," Tanaka added in. Hernandez then gave her a sour look. "Cassy, we can't be goin' into that, mind game crap now. We need action, and we need it now."
Tanaka shrugged... "I'm open to suggestions."
Hernandez frowned again. "You're the ground-pounder here, Cassy."
Tanaka stood quietly for several moments before she sighed and then spoke again. "All right, I have one idea."
Fredericks was beginning to feel cramped, having forced himself to remain absolutely still for the last dozen minutes. Those damned officers had better get a plan soon or I'm gonna be too stiff to do anything when they do.
His radio came on just then. "Red Dog One Six, this is Red Dog Two," Renard's voice burst into the private's consciousness. "We think we got us a good surprise for them boys you're watching. Wait for activation signal Papa One, and then turn around and waste their asses, and then get clear. You copy?"
"Roger wilco, Red Dog Two." Fredericks replied as he chinned his HUD into battle mode.
"Good. Stand by," Renard replied, and then the channel fell silent.
'Papa One,' Fredericks mused, thinking of the list of code words that he and the platoon had memorized. To prevent an enemy from using the Republic's own code words against them should the radio encryption be cracked, some phrases – like those to initiate or call off an attack – were told before hand, and only referred to over radios prior to their use by a second code word.
Thus, ten minutes later, Fredericks was ready when Renard's voice erupted over the wideband frequency. "Firestorm!"
Within the space of several heartbeats, Fredericks half stood, half leaped up from his hiding spot, canting back his shoulders to toss off the camo netting he had used to escape detection so far. Then with reflexes honed by years of training and experience, he turned far more rapidly in his armor than anyone would rightly assume.
He watched the HUD and noted in an automatic, clinical nature that his two targets were beginning to react to his movement. The only thought that had time to enter his head before his targeting reticules settled over the two moving forms was that they were too late.
Fredericks, equipped in the Marauder suit's "Ranger" configuration, mounted a light machine gun and a support particle cannon, and he wasted little time in aiming these weapons and then firing them. The machine gun rattled off first, sending a stream of white-hot lead to impact the center of mass of the right hand figure.
Then the particle cannon opened up, sending a blinding stream of excited ions and electrons hurtling across the plains at nearly the speed of light. Both weapons tore into their targets, the machine gun sending small, horizontal fountains of blood and gore out from the back of the enemy soldier to mix with the rain, and the particle cannon literally vaporized the entire abdomen of the other figure, sending the two halves of his body to flop to the ground separately.
Fredericks didn't pause to gloat over his aim. He instead crouched his legs a bit before pushing down with them as hard as he could. His armor read and copied the movements, amplifying them so that Fredericks literally leaped a meter into the air. Then he triggered his jump jets, and he angled for a copse of trees that stood nearby in a farm field.
His HUD showed that, behind him, the three other troopers who had also been out on sentry duty began to fire and jump, each one heading off in a different direction. Fredericks then saw the ramps along both spheroid dropships virtually slam open to disgorge their devastating cargo.
The first machine out was an Abrams battletank that came from the side of the LST-89. It rolled down the ramp in a split second, its turret swiveling about to train north and towards the enemy.
Fredericks then had to focus in on landing, and he did so amidst several tall fruit bearing trees. Quickly, he turned on his feet and ran several meters to the east end of the copse, backtracking slightly so that he could bring his weapons into play.
Movement near the Silver Pagoda caught his eye, and he quickly activated his radio. "There's infantry near the Pagoda!"
Adept Gregory Chang dashed forward from where he and his group had hidden next to the infidels' Confederate-class dropship as soon as the rains had started, emerging as they had from a safe house that in the city that they had obtained through the elimination of the family that had lived there.
Filthy aliens, Chang's mind let loose the curse before he regained control and then preceded to head for the lowered ramp. The mission he had planned had required that a third of his team would have to be bait, hiding in the fields and then opening up on the ships with long-range support weapons. Although he knew they had little chance of actually damaging the enemy's ships by any significant degree, they were only supposed to draw out the enemy's 'mechs, and thus open the way for the true attack, where Chang and the rest of the team would move inside the enemy 'mech carrier, kill whoever they found, and set charges around the ship's fusion reactor.
Something had gone wrong, however, as the shots from the field came nearly a minute before the planned start of the operation. Nevertheless, Chang now vaulted himself over the edge of the ramp and ran forward for the bay of the dropship, where he and his team could plant the demolition chargers.
The lack of any mech walking down this ramp didn't surprise him. His team's observations had placed it as the one that would be empty, since its usual inhabitant was now lying in the streets of the alien city. And so he had selected it as his main entrance point, while another team of six would try for the other berth that would be empty as the enemy's lone patrol 'mech was over a kilometer distant.
However, just as he and his team of five other special operatives reached the top of the ramp, the lights inside the bay cut out, causing his helmet's visor to go blank for a few seconds while it readjusted.
Unfortunately for him, it would be a few seconds too late, as he felt several bullets impact his chest, abdomen and neck. Then in a very short time, he felt nothing at all.
"Tango down!" The call rolled over the common frequency of the Republic ground troopers, distracting Alexis only slightly as she sighted her laser rifle over the still-moving shape of an infiltrator in the rear of the enemy line. Her position, lying on the catwalk above the 'mech bay, gave her an excellent sniper position, and she used her marksmanship training to good effect as she laid a shot straight into the enemy soldier's chest.
The Blakest wheeled about and fell back, though not before he pulled down on the trigger of his Rorynex sub-machine gun, sending a spray of bullets to fly throughout the 'mech bay.
However, the only people standing in its line of fire wore the powerful Marauder suit, and though the bullets scraped some armor off, they didn't do much else as the soldiers of the 3rd Platoon ripped into the enemy with weaponry designed primarily to engage more formidable combat vehicles.
Alexis listened to the few bits of radio chatter via the communicator built into her, and every other Republic infantry helmet. She ignored it, however, as she sighted for another target. She found one in the man she had just shot, who had apparently not been completely slain by the laser entering his chest.
That can be rectified, Alexis thought morbidly as she sighted on the man's head, and then fired again. The laser seemed to flash partially off of the man's fully enclosed helmet, and he continued to move, pushing himself up from a lying position.
The man dropped the Rorynex, and Alexis wondered if he was going to surrender. Then he reached around behind him and grabbed a satchel that had been slung around his back as a pair of troopers in Marauder suits dashed forward.
A ball of ice materialized in her stomach as Alexis realized what the Blakest intended. Then with grim determination, she re-aimed the rifle at the man's hand. You won't take their lives! She thought as she pulled the trigger.
The laser again thrummed between her arms, and its bolt struck true, slicing through the man's left hand as he grasped a detonator cord. With a noise that could be heard even outside his helmet, the Blakest screamed in pain. His hand refused to work, and one of the advancing Marauder troopers finished him off with a burst from her own arm-mounted SMG that tore out the infiltrator's chest.
"Clear!" The woman called on the radio then, and the call was soon echoed several times by other troopers. Alexis swung her rifle out to look over the field just beyond the ramp, though her perspective was a bit limited by her perch. "Clear," she called, seeing no one moving other than those painted with the camo scheme of the 3rd Platoon.
"Copy all clear," Hernandez's voice came in over the radio. "Red Dogs One Four, One Six, One Seven, One Nine, and Gator One reports all targets neutralized outside."
"Good," Renard's voice gruffly expounded. "3rd Platoon! Police the bodies and check for vitals. These bastards had some good armor, so don't assume they're dead lest you see a hole the size of a warship in their chest."
A chorus of 'yes sirs' came in, and Alexis closed her eyes and breathed a sigh of relief. Thank the Gods it's over, she thought as she flipped the safety on her rifle to its locked position. Then she opened her eyes and stood up from where she had lain, picking up her rifle and then heading for the ladder she had used to climb up.
Alexis was surprised that Tanaka's plan had not only worked, but that she had determined what the Blakests had actually been up to so accurately. "It's really quite clear," the female MechWarrior had proclaimed not a dozen minutes before. "Light infantry can't take out a dropship unless they get inside. So we'll let them get inside."
And in they had come, Alexis mused as she slung her rifle over her back. Right into an ambush by nearly two squads of battle armor. They never had a chance.
Arriving at the ladder, Alexis quickly climbed down it to get to the main floor, and then she walked slowly towards where the troopers of the 3rd Platoon were checking over the bodies that lay on the ground.
Part of her wanted to stop, to turn and run from the area and not look at what they – what she had done. However, her sense of duty impelled her on. I need to help maintain a safe perimeter, she thought.
But it's more than that, isn't it? I want to see, she realized. I want- No, I have to know what I did. Alexis knew it wasn't morbid curiosity, though the primitive part of every sentient psyche would undoubtedly be gratified at seeing an enemy dead at her feet. I have to make sure that I did well. Because if I didn't do well, then I need to know what I did wrong so that I can do better in the future. Because next time, I might not be in a team.
Alexis passed a couple of bodies, and she drew her needler and aimed it at them, just in case. None of the shapes moved, however, and she moved forward to reach the body of the man she had attacked.
An armored trooper was just standing up from the body's side, and he turned to look at the gatón as she walked up. "Did you do that?" The man asked and used his left hand to point at the Blakest's mauled hand.
Alexis walked up and then looked over the now-dead man. "Yes… Yes I did," she said mechanically as her emotions ran the gamut from elation over having survived, to guilt over the taking of a life, and the happiness over knowing that she had helped to protect her friends' lives.
The man in the armor grunted. "Well, if you ever get tired of hangin' around with the space heads, feel free to stop by our neck of the woods," he said, using the army's derogatory term for the Mobile Infantry.
Alexis looked up at the man's helmet, and she managed a ghost of a smile. "Thank you."
The man shrugged, and then turned to walk down the ramp. Alexis took a moment to look over the dead body at her feet, and she willed her mind to rest so that she could settle on something to feel.
Finally, she felt one feeling above all; the satisfaction that the man would never hurt another innocent again. And that's good enough for me.
The next day dawned to the scene of the Republic forces arrayed outside of their dropships. Three Abrams tanks and two battlemechs of Oni lance were arrayed in an arc that stretched from the river on the left flank all the way to the eastern curve of Tanzano's wall.
Alexis couldn't help but feel a bit intimidated at the display, even despite the fact that she had seen much more impressive vistas on New Honshu. There's just something strange about seeing such vehicles just outside of a city that is so… Well, primitive. She blushed a bit at that, feeling embarrassed over the need to use the word. It sounds so derogatory, and even a little hypocritical coming from me. Gatón villages don't even have what Lupar cities do, and yet here I am commenting on how primitive Tanzano is.
She sighed then, and shook her head. Enough daydreaming, time for work. With that, Alexis stood up from where she had been leaning against the side of the doorway that led into the mech bay of the Silver Pagoda. She then turned and walked for the elevator in the middle of the bay, minding her path so that she wouldn't get in the way of the techs and Seabees who were busy fitting some chains to the back of the Seabee's specialized jeeps.
Alexis took the elevator to the deck that contained the officers' quarters, and she headed for Tanaka's cabin, which the human had been gracious enough to share with her. Amazing that I got any sleep last night, after what happened, she mused as she approached the door marked with Tanaka's name and rank insignia. I suppose that I must be getting used to this kind of life. The 'long periods of boredom, separated by ten minutes of mind-shattering violence,' as Earl said once. She couldn't disagree with the sentiment, not after what she had seen and done.
The door to the cabin swished open when Alexis entered the code into the panel on the outside of the bulkhead, and she stepped into the small room enough so that the door closed behind her, plunging the cabin into darkness before the lights came up automatically. Alexis paused to look around the small room, noting the disarray of the bed and the sleeping bag laid out on the floor. The latter drew her attention most of all, because next to it lay her armored vest, helmet, and weapons, all of which she had came for.
Cassandra has an interesting idea about how to get her 'mech out, Alexis thought as she quickly began to grab the equipment and weapons, securing them to her body. She said that it was an old, old way of moving things back in Human History, so this shall be interesting. Of course, the recent attack by Blakest Special Forces meant that the team going into the city would have to be fully prepared for battle, just in case more of the enemy lay in wait. The one person from the attackers who did survive said that there were no others, but we can't be too sure, Alexis remembered as she placed the helmet onto her head. So we go in loaded for bear. With that thought, she turned and left the cabin, making sure that it locked behind her. Then the gatón quickly made her way down to the main 'mech bay again.
Departing the elevator, Alexis easily noticed that the Seabees were getting dressed in their own, quasi-combatant armor. Cassandra said that it was modeled after special operations armor, something called 'Mjolnir,' Alexis mused as one of the Seabees pulled on a helmet that had a wide, mirrored visor. It certainly looks like it's made to frighten than anything else, though since the Seabees are supposed to go into battle at times, I guess it makes sense.
Then someone whistled, and Alexis turned her head to see who it was. She then saw Tanaka standing near one of the Seabee jeeps, which had been moved outside. Alexis gave a short wave to the human, and then walked down the ramp to where Tanaka was waiting.
"Looks like you're ready," Tanaka observed from where she leaned against the angular chassis o the jeep.
Alexis managed a small smile as she replied. "Well, you did say to be ready for anything, didn't you?"
"I did, didn't I?" Tanaka returned with a smile of her own. Then she let her expression slip into a more neutral visage. "Still, if there are more of those bastards out there, you've got to be at the top of your game. You think you can handle it?"
Alexis frowned a bit. "I haven't let anyone down yet, have I?"
"No," Tanaka replied, and then shook her head. "No you haven't. Sorry."
"It's no problem," Alexis sighed. Then she changed the subject. "So, where are we going to get the trees we need?"
Tanaka nodded, her eyes showing her gratitude to the gatón. "That forest over there," she said, pointing off to the north. Alexis turned her head and saw a tall stand of trees off in the distance. Then she noticed the field of green that stretched off to either side of the stand. "That's awfully far," Alexis said, her voice revealing her sudden nervousness.
"Only a couple of kilometers," Tanaka said with a shrug. "And we'll have some help from Lieutenant Peterson, as well. He'll be rolling out with us in his tank."
Alexis nodded and she turned her head back to look at Tanaka. "So when do we leave?"
"As soon as the Seabees are done."
Van Horn drifted out of the Rodger Young's mess hall, and he grumbled to himself at the continued microgravity environment. The return to simple orbiting meant no acceleration to simulate gravity, and the ship's grav deck had been damaged when Ladavic had pulled off her highly successful stunt. Although the emergency brakes had secured the grav deck, preventing permanent damage, the circular deck's motors and bearings had been damaged enough that they needed to be replaced.
Unfortunately, that requires a drydock facility, since some of the damaged equipment is too large to be replaced without tearing open the hull, van Horn mused grumpily as he settled his feet onto the deck. The magnetic covers he wore over his boots latched to the deck and provided him and everyone else with some sense of 'up' and 'down,' though they did little to assuage the general feeling of helplessness that most ground soldiers feel when they don't have dirt to stand on.
He shook his head at the thought as he turned and walked towards he nearest elevator tube. It's more than just a lack of dirt under my feet, he realized. I've become close to many people down there. Not to mention, I care about all the natives of the planet.
Van Horn sighed as he reached the elevator and pressed the call button. This time of 'r & r' might be required to prevent combat fatigue, but it isn't really helping my state of mind too much. I don't feel right, sitting safe here in orbit when I know I could be doing something helpful on the ground.
Then the elevator arrived, and he was about to get in when the loudspeakers that were in every compartment came alive. "All Mobile Infantry personnel report to the briefing room. All Mobile Infantry report to the briefing room per Lieutenant Vickers' orders."
Van Horn looked at the nearest speaker and raised an eyebrow, despite the fact that the woman on the other end couldn't see him. Then he shrugged and waited for the elevator to arrive, and when it did, he climbed on and pressed the button for three decks down, which would take him to the same level as the briefing room that the Mobile Infantry shared with the fighter pilots.
A few minutes later, van Horn walked into the briefing room, finding it full with most of the surviving Vanquishers. Then he suppressed a wince at the thought. So many people dead now… So many more to die, I'm sure… He paused a moment to give himself a mental shake. They wouldn't want you whinin' about it like some prissy little military-hating moron. They knew the risks, and they knew what we're fighting for.
A sudden, light slap against his back brought van Horn around. "You okay there, doc?" Marks' voice asked as she came around his left side. "You look like you ate somethin' that didn't care for the trip."
Van Horn couldn't help but smile at the creative phrase. "Funny, Jen. I was just cleanin' some cobwebs," he said, and then gestured to the holographic briefing table that most of the troopers were gathered around. "You have any idea on what's goin' on?"
Marks shook her head. "Not a clue, though I can't say I really care. I just want to get down and kick some Wobbie ass."
Van Horn smiled again. "Well, since that's the reason we're at this planet, I doubt very much that we're goin' to go grocery shopping."
Marks smirked and then punched him in the shoulder. "Funny boy. Let's go join the others and see what's up. Maybe they'll know what the hubbub is about."
"Sounds like a plan," van Horn replied. Then he waved a hand forward. "Ladies first."
"She ain't no lady," one M.I. trooper commented as he entered the room and passed the two. "I got the bruises to prove it."
"You're a wuss, Jimmy," Marks replied easily. "It's not like you haven't been beaten in sparring before."
The man identified as Jimmy shook his head. "Yeah, but at least the other people who beat me don't try to do it by slammin' my head into the mat."
Marks raised an eyebrow. "Don't you blame that on me! I'm not the one who left his weight shifted too far to the left."
Jimmy looked set to reply when Vickers walked into the briefing room from another door that was closer to the table. The room fell silent as the lieutenant walked to the head of the table, and without a word, everyone gravitated to its edge. Vickers quickly loaded a data chip into the appropriate slot, and a holographic map of the area round Tanzano burst into photonic life.
Vickers then cleared his throat. "At approximately twenty-three twenty-five hours lima, a special warfare team consisting of at least eighteen individuals launched an attack against the landing zone north of the native city Tanzano, designated Beta Site." He paused to let the words sink in, and the room managed to become even quieter, as people held their breaths or stopped shifting on their feet. "Y'all will be happy to know that the attack was repulsed without a single friendly or civilian loss," he paused again, briefly, as several people let out sighs of relief. "However, this attack, coupled with previous failures of intelligence, has rather ticked off Major Kujira," Vickers then crossed his arms and grunted. "Frankly, I don't blame him.
"Thus far, our operations have been reactive in nature, rather than proactive. As a result, the initiative has been slowly slipping to the Blakests. Their attacks have not only increased in daring, despite their precarious position, but they have also shown themselves to be quite comfortable with targeting civilian populations." Vickers paused and looked over every trooper in the room. "I don't know about you, but this does not make me happy. And if I'm not happy, you're not happy, understood?"
"Yes sir!" The troopers all replied as one.
Vickers nodded, and he even let the outline of a grim smile show on his lips. "Good. Now, seeing as I don't like to make people unhappy – well, at least not the ones who ain't my enemies," he paused as several soldiers chuckled. "Therefore, the brass have decided to end our little vacation. Not that I mind, since I think y'all're getting' fat just sittin' around here anyway."
Van Horn stifled a smile at the comment. M.I. troopers may goldbrick t times like any soldier throughout history, but no one's slacked on their training routines. Then he focused back in on Vickers as the lieutenant continued.
"We'll be still havin' a couple of days to make sure that you slackers haven't lost all of your edge and to gather intel, and then we'll begin to raid enemy positions to the north of our forces' current operational areas.
"We will most likely be goin' in via the ship's boats, but don't get lazy; we might also be doin' a few combat drops." He paused a second to press a few buttons on the console in front of him, and the map of Tanzano's environs was replaced with a continent-wide map. On it were highlights of friendly and enemy areas, as well as several dots representing enemy positions located thus far by orbital observations.
"Those small red dots you see are gonna be our primary targets. They are enemy camps similar to the one we vaped when we first came to Bowman's Planet, and they exist for the same purpose; to coerce the locals into supporting the enemy."
Several mutters came from around the table, which Vickers cut off with a short, fast wave of his hand. "Focus people. Now, we're gonna be doin' fast raids, regular smash and runs, albeit we're gonna have to be careful not to set things on fire too much, on account of the locals' buildings and their tendency to live in forests. So I want y'all to concentrate on better fire discipline and marksmanship in the warm up period."
Vickers then pressed another button, and the holotable turned off, causing the map to disappear. "Any questions?"
No one moved nor spoke for a moment. Then one woman that van Horn recognized as Jackson did raise her hand. "Sir, what about the people on the ground? Are they just gonna sit there?"
Vickers managed a small smile at that. "Not at all, private. Major Kujira and Captain Tanaka have some ideas cooked up, so you can rest assured that our friends down on the planet ain't gonna be sittin' around."
Alexis felt strange, standing as she was next to Tanaka's Guillotine IIC, listening to a rock and roll song blare over one of the Seabee's jeep radios, and surrounded by curious Tanzano lupar who seemed to stare at her as much as they did at the humans and their equipment. Not like I can blame them, she mused. They've at least seen humans before. I doubt that the majority of them have seen a gatón, much less one armed like I am. The thought made her smile a bit as she simply looked over at where the Seabees were attaching chains to the fallen battlemech.
The plan was an interesting one, to say the least. The engineers had spent the morning cutting down several large trees and then 'cleaning' them until they were simple round logs. Then they had spent another hour dragging them back to the city on top of sleds made from their own thicker branches.
Alexis turned and looked over the crowd again, still uneasy over the surrounding mass of people. I know they're probably not going to do anything, but it still makes me nervous, the way they stare. The feeling dredged up several memories from her past, from the time she had been ordained as an apprentice in Kuamket five years before, to the way people had stared at her just the day before as she helped to escort out the rescued gatón. And all the usual stares I garnered in between, she thought with a hint of wry amusement. Neo Tokyo especially. People couldn't believe their eyes, I think.
The loud clank of a chain caught her attention, and Alexis quickly turned her head around to see a Seabee in armor attaching one of the three decimeter chains being fastened to the back of Lieutenant Peterson's own Abrams. The 70-ton tank looked almost as alien as a battlemech, thanks to the insect-like angles of its armor plating, and it received its own fair share of looks.
Alexis shook her head as she thought over the plan again. Drag the 'mech onto the logs by using the tank, and then slowly move it forward, taking logs that the 'mech leaves and then putting them down in front so that they can be used again. The idea struck her as needlessly complex, relying as it did on the armored Seabees and four members of the 3rd platoon to move the logs. But of course, I don't have any better ideas. No one has, really, and so we must do what we must.
She watched as another chain was run between the Guillotine IIC and the tank, this one connecting the left shoulder to the Abrams' starboard tread cover. The ten-meter long chains stretched easily over the six logs that the engineering team had brought, and their metal glinted in the early afternoon light. Alexis mused briefly over the metal used in the chains. Endo-steel… Metal forged in space itself. A metal of the Gods, even? The idea made her want to laugh and also to shirk a bit in embarrassment at the subtle jab at her religion. She did neither, but instead simply turned around to look over the crowd again. Perhaps not a true jab, she thought. Perhaps this kind of metal is what the Gods would use, if they were standing here.
Scanning over the crowd, Alexis suddenly found herself wishing for some sunglasses that she had seen her friends wear before. It's not that sunny out. The clouds are rather thick from the rain last night, but it still would be nice to hide my eyes. She noticed that many of the lupar seemed to react whenever they noticed her looking at them. Some of them returned the look; others seemed to sneer at her. But the ones that made her wish for the sunglasses were the people who seemed to almost cringe. It's like I'm some sort of creature to fear…
"Alexis!" A voice called to the gatón from the crowd. She tuned her head and soon found the source of the call. It was the elder of Mrs. Reyka's two daughters, carrying a large basket before her, and Alexis smiled a bit at her appearance. "This is Oscar One," she said, triggering her radio and using the codename assigned to her. "I see someone I know, so I'm going over to talk."
"Alright," the voice of the senior noncom, Corporal Greer, replied. "Just be careful. That person may be your friend, but the person around him or her ain't."
"I will," she replied, and then walked towards where Pelana stood. Alexis made sure to safe her weapon and slung it over her right shoulder as she approached the edge of the crowd where Pelana stood. Some of the natives took a few steps back as she reached the young lupar, and Alexis suppressed a smile at their timid behavior. Although I cannot blame them.
"Pelana," Alexis said to the slightly taller lupar, letting genuine warmth enter her voice. "I hope your mother is feeling better?"
Pelana smiled as she replied. "She is. She slept all day after everyone left, but she's all caught up now."
Alexis returned the smile. "I'm glad to hear it," she said, and then she dropped her face into a concerned look. "Mikula and I were worried that she was pushing herself too hard, and we felt bad that she worked so much for everyone."
Pelana blushed a bit. "Mother can get somewhat stubborn at times, especially when it comes to helping people. But you shouldn't feel bad, we were all glad to be of help."
"Good, " Alexis replied, her smile returning. "I'm glad to know that we weren't too much of a burden." She paused while Pelana blushed again. "So, I hope you didn't come out here just to see them yank the machine out?" She asked, gesturing with her head towards where the humans worked.
Pelana glanced over at the humans, and then turned her head back to the gatón. "Not especially, no," she said, and then hefted the covered basket a bit, showing off its weight. "Just getting some supplies we used up. Then I saw the crowd, came to look at what was going on, and…" She let her voice trail off after than and then shrugged.
Alexis smirked a bit. "Well, there is nothing much to see. They're just attaching chains to the machine so that they can drag it to their ship."
"I can see that," Pelana replied as she again turned her head to look over the humans' activities. "But why the logs?"
Alexis let her smirk grow into a grin. "It's an old trick with them, something that let their ancestors build gigantic monuments." She then turned to look with Pelana as the Seabees in armor began to drag the logs into line. "Hopefully, it will be just enough to make up for the lack of proper equipment."
"Well, it certainly looks interesting," Pelana said neutrally. "Though, I hope you take no offense when I say that I find it unusual that you'd be involved in such a thing."
Alexis turned to Pelana and tilted an ear down in question. "Oh? Why not?" She said, reminding herself to hold her temper in check. Not everyone means it like that.
Pelana shrugged. "Well, the other night at the tavern, you seemed, well, too nice to be doing hard work like this."
Alexis chuckled. "Even after I dumped that oaf on his tail?" She asked with an amused tone in her voice.
Pelana managed a wide smile. "Well, that notwithstanding, you, ah, didn't quite seem like the warrior type," she said, blushing slightly at the end of the sentence.
Alexis shrugged. "To tell the truth, I wasn't. At least," hr voice dropped and she turned to look at the damaged citadel sticking above the buildings off to her right. "Not since the invasion began."
Pelana followed her view and she nodded gravely. "It seems this war has touched us all," she said, her voice trailing off. "My brothers left with those so-called 'Wobbies' you and Mikula spoke of." She sighed. "I wish I could know what happened to them, or where they are now."
Alexis tilted her head in thought for a moment. "They were with the detachment that left Tanzano?"
Pelana looked at Alexis and nodded. "Yes, over a month ago. They were marching to the west- what is it?" she asked, seeing Alexis' expression change to that of a person drifting in thought.
"What are their names?" Alexis asked Pelana. The latter frowned a bit as she replied. "Ako and Merk. Why do you ask?"
Alexis mirrored the other's frown, wondering how much she should, or even could say. "Pelana, there was a battle to the west of here, where my friends set down first. That was the army that the Wobbies gathered to subjugate more towns, and they had fought several battles.
"Then the battle was joined at the town of Hercor, and my friends brought the Wobbies down. Most of the lupar fled, though we captured some." Alexis looked into the face of the lupar female. "I think those names are familiar to me, as I helped the lupar after they were released."
Pelana's eyes grew wide. "Really?" She asked excitedly, so much so that the nearby lupar seemed to wince at the tone. "Do you think it was them?"
Alexis frowned again. "I can't say. I never learned their last names. Although," she turned to look towards the humans, "I may be able to check on that later. As for now, though," she changed her tone as she saw the Seabees finish testing the chains and they began to walk towards their jeeps. "I think that I have no time left to talk." Alexis then turned to look at the lupar once again. "But I promise you, I will check on that and then get back to you, no matter what the truth is."
Pelana smiled, and she nodded as well. "You certainly are kind. No wonder Mikula likes you so."
Alexis blushed deeply at that. She also managed a smile. "Well, I'm glad to hear that I'm not imagining it, then," she said with a wink.
Pelana chuckled slightly. "To hear Mikula tell it, it does sound like a story from around a campfire.
Before Alexis could respond, her radio cackled. "Alexis, time to get goin,'" Tanaka said over the comm channel. "Get over to the jeeps."
Alexis reached up to activate her helmet radio. "Roger, I'll be right there," she said in English, and then switched back to Lupari as she looked at Pelana. "Sorry, my time's up," she said as she took a step back and unslung her rifle. "I'll try to get back to you about that information, okay?"
Pelana nodded. "Thank you. And good luck."
Alexis smiled. "Thank you." With that, she turned and walked over to the jeep that she had ridden in during the day's travels.
She arrived to see one unarmored Seabee settling into the driver's seat. The man turned and gave her a small smile of welcome. "Welcome back, miss Hurano," the man aid as Alexis came around the front end and climbed into the passenger seat. "Thank you, Rich," she replied with a smile of her own. "I take it that we're ready to go?" She asked as she sat in the passenger's seat, securing her laser rifle in a slot made for just such devices between the two front seats.
Rich nodded. "Yeah. It's gonna be a long day, though," he said as he buckled himself in. Alexis followed suit as he continued speaking. "This kind of movement ain't known for its speed."
Alexis sighed as she leaned back and looked over at the tank sitting off to the jeep's right. On it sat Tanaka, who sat on the lip of the gunner's hatch on the turret's top. While Lieutenant Peterson stood up through his own hatch, which good tank commanders had tended to do since the beginning of mobile warfare. They were both looking back where the four Seabees in armor were placing the final log on the ground.
"Well, so long as we get where we're going, right?" Alexis asked rhetorically.
Rich chuckled. "Damn straight."
The radio cackled in Alexis' helmet again, and she could see Tanaka turning to look at her and speak into her own microphone. "Alexis, we need some crowd control, so please do your thing."
Alexis smirked. "I understand," she replied over the radio, and then turned to look at Rich. "You don't mind if I stand do you?"
He gave her a wary look, but then shrugged. "I suppose not," he said, knowing the reason why as he, like all the unarmored humans, had their own helmet radios tied into a common line, and so had heard the order. "Just hold on in case I have to move all of a sudden."
Alexis nodded, and then she unbuckled her seatbelts and then stood on the seat itself, poking her upper body above the open-topped canopy. Standing erect, she took a breath and then cupped her hands over her muzzle. "Attention!" She called in Lupari, getting the natives' attention all right. "Please clear the street! Once this begins to move we may not be able to stop it in time if someone gets in the way!"
The warning worked; people backed away, and many decided that it wasn't that interesting, after all, and they left the area entirely. Everyone, of course, moved out of the direction that the Abrams faced, and soon Peterson turned in his cupola t face forward, speaking over his intercom as he did so.
With a sudden lurch, the Abrams began moving, drawing the heads of everyone in the area to it. As Alexis watched from where she stood in the jeep, the 70-ton tank slowly drew forward under Peterson's watchful eyes until the chains attached to its rear were stretched taught. Then the tank seemed to stop, and Alexis realized that the weight of the Guillotine IIC was now trying to hold the tank back.
The contest would normally be one-sided, favoring the 'mech, save for the fact that the four Seabees in armor, as well as the four armored troopers, lifted the top of the 'mech's shoulders and dragged it a bit so that it would start rolling up on the first log.
Alexis couldn't help but watch in fascination as the bulky battlemech began to move up and onto the log. Slowly at first, but with a bit more speed as the Abrams pulled and the log did its job of providing a movable layer between the 'mech's back and the ground.
The gatón winced as some metal screeched as the rest of the 'mech had to be dragged off of the ground lengthwise before it could be fully rested on the other logs. Then it was soon up and off of the ground, and rolling at a slow, manageable pace along the series of logs that the Seabees had managed to lay out.
"Oscar One, it would be a good idea to watch the area for any surprises," the harsh voice of Corporal Greer came in over Alexis' radio. Embarrassed at the lapse, Alexis didn't respond, but instead blushed and turned around to glance over the area. Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, she sat down and grabbed her rifle from its storage area.
Next to her, Rich chuckled. "Got chewed out, eh?" He asked good-naturedly.
Alexis turned and gave him a sheepish smile. "Yeah. I forgot which way I'm supposed to be looking."
Rich nodded. "An understandable mistake... For most people," he said quietly. "But when you're in a non-secured area, you need to keep your wits about you. " He spoke quietly, and kept his voice even, clearly thinking he was just reinforcing the idea in to Alexis' head.
Alexis, however, had a slightly different view. I let myself get distracted, and that's unacceptable, she thought as she scanned the area, her rifle resting across her lap. I'm not a true soldier… Yet. Her mind added the caveat easily. It gave her a brief mental pause, but then forced herself to concentrate. 'Do the mission now, worry later,' as one of those instructors told me back at Neo Tokyo, she remembered. Taking it to heart, she continued to watch the area around as the 'mech continued to inch along on the logs that now rolled beneath it.
Mikula walked out of the firebase's infirmary and into the bright sunshine. He paused to look up at the glorious blue sky, marveling at the complete lack of any clouds. A mid-latitude cyclone much like those that regularly swept through parts of Terra had crossed the region, causing the turbulence during the flight to Hercor and the rain that had fallen on Tanzano. Now, in its wake came the briskly cool air from higher latitudes, and Mikula found the temperature a welcome relief from the humidity of the previous week.
Looking around at the few people in the small 'square,' though, he saw that not all the humans liked it so much. Some had long sleeved uniform shirts on, identifying those who had grown up in a warmer clime. Others, however, seemed to walk through the small area with a spring in their step that told Mikula that they, too, liked the change.
Of course, I also feel good to be out of the infirmary, he remembered as he began to walk towards the tent that he technically shared with his brother, Alexis and van Horn still stood. Funny, though it is, he mused as he walked. Pavlo's the only one who's been using it. Senmar and I went to Tanzano, Alexis came soon after, and Earl after that. He absentmindedly rubbed his now sutured up wound at the memory of the city. Now Alexis is still there, and Earl is up on the Rodger Young, so it's just Pavlo and me for now.
Not that I got to use it last night, Mikula remembered. After arriving at the base and reporting in, Doctor Jennings had insisted that he stay in the infirmary overnight for observation. "Just in case," the Young's doctor had proclaimed. "MediJel does wonders, but it's not invincible."
Turning down the so-called 'street' that the tent was on, Mikula mentally shrugged off the irritation that he felt. It's not like I can blame the doctor for wanting to ensure that I'm in good health, after all. That, and Soru liked the company.
Mikula sighed as he reached the appropriate tent and then unzipped the entrance flap open. Poor Soru. Pavlo said that the shaman comes to visit whenever he can, but he's still lonely, as no one else can speak Gatonese. Mikula's presence, however, had brightened up the young gatón, and Mikula had regaled him with tales of what had happened since the night of his injuries.
At least he's healing much nicer now, Mikula thought as he entered the empty tent and headed for his cot. Sitting down, he sighed again. How horribly he was burned before. Now, though, the Republic's medicine is helping him to recover. Already, fur had started to re-grow on portions of his skin that had been healed up, and the gatón could stay awake for hours now. Although he is still in pain, Mikula knew from seeing the look in Soru's eyes. Still, he's getting better, and that's all we can ask for, I suppose.
Just then, a knock rang on the support pole that bisected the entrance flaps. The Republic soldiers had taken to it in lieu of a real door, and it also served as a safety check of sorts; if a pole didn't stay up under a knocking, then it wasn't put up properly. "Mikula Farkas?" The semi-familiar voice came through.
Mikula stood up and then walked to the entrance flap, pushing it aside to look at the new arrival. Squinting and blinking his eyes to readjust to the outside light, Mikula managed to make out the features of a sandy-haired young man in the uniform of the Neo Tokyo Grenadiers' infantry. "Yes?"
The young man nodded at Mikula. "Major Kujira sent me. He wants a word with you."
Mikula frowned a bit, but then nodded. "All right. Did he ask for me right now, or do I have time to change first?" He asked, gesturing to his somewhat disheveled native-made clothing.
The man grinned a bit. "He said, 'at his earliest convenience.' Of course, with an officer, that means 'right now, damnit,'" he paused to let his grin grow larger, and Mikula found his own visage grinning in return. "But that also means that you can take a bit to make yourself presentable first."
Mikula nodded. "Very well. Thank you, corporal Kumar," he said, reading the young man's name from his uniform. "I'll get to the major as soon as I change then."
Kumar nodded. "All righty then. I'll go let him know," he said. Then he nodded to Mikula again and then turned and walked down the 'street.'
Mikula watched him walk a bit, and then he turned into the tent, letting the flap drop. Now what's going on? He wondered as he went about changing into a relatively clean uniform that was in his footlocker.
Several minutes later, he was walking back towards the central area of the firebase, dressed in the simple light gray duty uniform of the Mobile Infantry. Part of him felt a bit conspicuous in it now that the Vanquishers weren't populating the base with their own grays, and all he could see was army brown and green.
Nevertheless, he didn't seem to get extra attention, and soon his thoughts wandered back to Kujira's sudden and somewhat mysterious order for a meet. A sudden idea caused a knot of fear to form in his belly. What if something's happened to the people at Tanzano? To Alexis? Then he willfully suppressed the thought. Kujira is an honorable man, from what I've seen so far. He would have come himself rather than to send an orderly to tell me something of that nature. Although he and Alexis hadn't been exactly gratuitous in public, he was sure that their affection was well known.
But if it's not that, then what? The thought made him frown as he reached the square around the base's flagpole where the banner of the Republic fluttered in the strong breeze. Well, no time left, he thought as he approached the command shed. I might as well go and find out what it is, exactly.
He approached the door and pushed it open, stepping inside and then pausing to let his eyes adjust. As soon as they did, Mikula saw Major Kujira standing with another officer that the lupar didn't recognize around the holotank. The noise of his entrance had caused them to look at the door, and Kujira waved him over.
Mikula approached and then halted just under a meter away from the two officers and saluted. They both returned it, and Kujira began to speak. "Good to see you, son. How's the side?"
"It's feeling much better now, sir. Thank you for asking," Mikula replied neutrally. More proof of the major's honor; he cares about the people under him.
"Good to hear it," Kujira said with a nod. Then he indicated the other officer by the table with his hand. "This is Lieutenant Trent Williams, the commander of the lance of the 5th Marauders' battlemechs that are attached to our force."
Williams nodded as he looked at the lupar. "Glad to be on some solid ground, too," he said with a small smile.
Kujira smirked slightly. Then he returned his face to its normally impassive expression. "With the runway completed, the lieutenant's lance has finally landed and can now provide some support to us. His 'mechs are more mobile, and with them, we can begin to strike more actively at the Wobbies."
Mikula felt his ears twitch in mild surprise. "That certainly is good news," he said lightly. Then he tilted his head a bit and let an ear flop down in question. "Although, if I may be so bold, why would you have me come here to tell me this, sir?" He was careful to add the honorific.
Williams smirked a bit, and Kujira simply nodded his head. "Because, Williams' 'mechs are going to be out in the field for good lengths of time. They will travel good distances, and potentially, meet some people along the way."
A light seemed to dawn in Mikula's head as he realized what was being said. "You want me to go with so I can be an interpreter?" He asked with a voice of wonder.
Williams nodded. "Captain Tanaka's lance seems to have benefited with the help of your friend, and frankly, I'd like the same advantage."
"Not to mention," Kujira added, bringing Mikula's head around to look at the major. "You might also have some insight as to why a certain area or group of people might be of interest to the Wobbies, whereas we might be ignorant, having come to the party late, so to speak."
Mikula nodded slightly. "I understand. It is always better to have the lay of the land, and to be able to secure help if possible."
"That's right," Williams replied. "It will be immensely helpful to my lance's operations, and spreading the word of our benign intentions will also make it easier for us to find every Blakest on this planet."
Kujira nodded a bit. "Williams' lance will scout out potential future areas of operation as well, and possibly a place to have a much larger military reservation for when the main force arrives. I doubt that the Grenadiers and the rest of the 5th Marauders' can easily fit in the smaller base we have here at Hercor."
Mikula nodded again, agreeing with Kujira's statement. "That makes sense. But if I may continue to speak freely, why are you two explaining this to me now, when apparently few others have heard about this?"
Williams raised an eyebrow. "What makes you think that other people in the camp don't know about this operation?"
Mikula shrugged. "Well, the base is still relatively quiet. Wouldn't people be preparing for the new operation instead of the normal base routine?"
Williams blinked a bit, which elicited a chuckle from Kujira. "I told you they were smart," he said as Williams turned his head to the other officer.
"So I see," the 5th Marauders MechWarrior replied, and then he looked at Mikula again. "Well then, let's cut to brass tacks. We're tellin' you this now so that we can ask if you'll volunteer?"
Now it was Mikula's turn to look surprised. "Begging your pardon, but why ask? I am a soldier, and I understand orders."
"But you're not a soldier in our army," Kujira said, bringing the lupar's head around to look at him. "If you haven't noticed, you and your brother and miss Hurano haven't really been ordered to do anything, or at least, nothing significant. You've all volunteered for whatever duty you've been assigned, even for combat.
"Of course, that is a testament to your character. But you are not soldiers in the Republic's Army, and we cannot legally order you into combat because of that." Kujira then sighed. "And frankly, I wouldn't order you even if you were in the chain of command. This kind of assignment is hard work, and very dangerous, and I don't send out people unless they damn well know they can handle it."
Mikula felt his ears go back a bit as he felt a bit of pique. "I can assure you, Major, that I can perform the simple task of riding in a machine," he said. "And I can also fight fair enough if needed. I feel comfortable in being able to do this duty." He paused a bit and took a breath to buy a moment of thought. "I thank you for asking me, though, to volunteer for such an important job. I shall be glad to help."