Demi-Precentor VI Wintaka sipped at his morning tea as he read the latest reports that had come down from the Militia's Headquarters. What little we get anymore, he mentally grumbled as he set his teacup down, next to a plate that held the remains of his breakfast. Damned infidels and their accursed predilection towards aerospace craft. Why can't they be like all the other fools and concentrate on armies?
Even as the thought crossed his mind, Wintaka realized the truth of the matter. Because they know that the first step towards victory is to deny your enemy freedom of movement. He slapped the report from HQ down and stood. Just like they're doing to us now!
Although angered by his train of thought, Wintaka was cautious enough to remember not to stand up all the way, as he was in an appropriated native house. As if I need more reminders of our dire straits, he thought as he turned from the table he had sat at and headed for the door. Stepping through it, he passed from the house's combination kitchen/dining room and out into the sunlight of the dawn.
Wintaka took a moment to stretch his muscles, most especially those cramped by bending over in the small house, or from sitting in too-small chairs. Damned aliens, he thought as he tilted his head from side to side to work out the kinks in his neck. They're the reason our enemies have tracked us this far. Studying them, I'm sure, instead of teaching them civilization, was one of the infidels' weak-minded fools.
He growled a bit, not unlike some lupar. Well, best to concentrate on today's work, Wintaka thought as he turned to look over the six 'mechs of his Level II that had been assigned to the outpost at the native town. I should be commanding a Level III, even a Level IV by now, instead of a Level II of 'mechs and another of infantry. His bitterness only fed the growing anger he felt in his gut.
Wintaka sighed roughly to clear his mind again, and he turned and started off for the house next to the one he had taken for himself and two other of his MechWarriors. In there was the communications consoles they had been assigned to keep in touch with command, and Wintaka was anxious to see if any new report might have come in recently to counter the one he had just read.
'Intel regrets to inform you that we have lost contact with the enemy forces moving up from the south. Furthermore, these same forces may be in possession of our atomic, biological, and chemical arms that were secreted away in' blah blah BLAH. Wintaka mentally dismissed the rest of the report as he walked inside the rear of the next house. Two lances of clan tech-equipped mechs and tanks, and we can't find them? What else are those worthless natives we have working for us good for if they can't keep track of a walking building?
Inside, the communications house was pretty much like that of the one Tanaka had just left. The kitchen of this one, though, held a portable fusion generator and the appropriate cables of which that led into the fore room and out the back to the other houses and tents of the Blakest outpost.
Wintaka took a moment to pause by the generator and run a hand along its rounded top. At least we've managed to keep some articles of our glorious heritage. This generator was built in the time of the Star League, and by rights it should be powering a station on Dieron, or Addicks, or somewhere else than a planet full of aliens and infidels.
Grunting his displeasure at the thought, Wintaka walked into the next room. There, a field communications suit remarkably similar to the one used by Major Tanaka's forces sat, manned by a raven-haired woman dressed in the utility fatigues of a technician.
The lady turned her head and saluted the Demi as he entered. "Precentor," she said by way of greeting, preferring the Blakest shortening of the rank, rather than the 'demi' that their ComStar brethren preferred. "Is there a message you would like sent?"
"No," Wintaka replied with a shake of his head. "I was just wondering if any new reports had come in."
The tech shook her head in reply. "Negative, sir. Nothing since that report from last night."
Wintaka grunted. "Very well. You will notify me the very instant you receive any new reports. Is that understood?"
The tech nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Good," he said, and then turned and walked out of the room, and then out of the house entirely. Once outside, he paused to readjust his belt and gun holster, checking to make sure that the laser pistol he carried still had its charge. Not likely that it would change, he thought. Still, sometimes these things go bad. And when the infidels attack us – as I know they will – I want to be fully ready.
A sudden commotion brought Wintaka's head around to the left, where a pair of his infantry escorted a trio of natives. Strange, that one in the middle isn't one of the dogs. It's one of those cat-things from the south. They were heading for him, and one of the guards signaled Wintaka with a hand to confirm this.
After a couple of minutes, the small group reached him, and the human guard in the lead saluted Wintaka in the traditional Blakest manner. "Precentor, the local militia commander seems to want to speak with you."
"Is that so?" Wintaka asked nonchalantly. Then he turned to the lupar in the lead and cleared his throat as he brought up the natives' language. "What is this about?" He asked haltingly.
"My apologies, great one," Tangee began with a flourish. "But this is the stranger you asked us to bring in last night." He gestured to Alexis at the last. "I brought her here to see what you wanted to do with her."
Wintaka narrowed his eyes a bit as he recalled the previous night. Ah, yes, that anomalous infrared reading we thought might've been a spy. "And so? What would we do with her?"
Tangee blinked. "I… I do not know. You asked us to bring in whoever was coming close to the town, and I've done so."
Behind him, the other lupar guard rolled his eyes carefully, much to Wintaka's wry amusement. Stupid creatures, but they have their moments, I admit. He then dropped the amusement from his mind. "Well, is this thing a threat?" He asked slowly.
"Not that I can tell, your greatness," Tangee said, his tone becoming unsure. "She knows some Lupari, and she's mentioned that she's lost. We haven't found any blades on her person, so there's nothing to fear."
Wintaka snorted. "'Nothing to fear,'" he said mockingly. "Have you checked that pack she's carrying?" He asked and pointed to Alexis' pack.
Tangee looked at the pack, and he frowned. "Well, not really, other than to see what's inside-"
"Then you haven't determined her to be a threat, have you?" Wintaka asked rhetorically. Not that I really think she's a threat, but I like to make this butt-kisser squirm.
Tangee's ears went back a bit. "Well, we did open it, but all that's inside is-"
"Why don't we look for ourselves?" Wintaka said quickly, cutting off the lupar. He then turned to the infantryman standing closest to Alexis. "Take the bag from the bitch and open it."
The man nodded and reached out, grabbing a hold of the bag and yanking it from where it rode loosely on the gatón's right shoulder, startling the natives with his speed. He quickly brought it up and yanked back the flap.
He then promptly slammed it back down again. "Blake's Blood! That smells like ass!"
Tangee cleared his throat, apparently guessing what the guard had said. "As I was about to say, it's filled with fraga root, which smells quite bad."
Wintaka caught a whiff of the roots, and he scrunched his nose up. "What do you use it for?" He asked Tangee in the natives' language.
Tangee shrugged. "It is used to make a red dye for clothing. When prepared, the dye itself doesn't smell, though the roots themselves are particularly offensive."
Wintaka frowned, still smelling as he did the roots. He turned his head towards the guard holding the bag and nodded. The infantryman then gently half-tossed the bag to the ground by the gatón's feet. Though not particularly caring about the goods inside, the man didn't want them spilling out should the bag break.
Just then the commtech came out the back door to the appropriated house. "Precentor, sir I-" She paused as her eyes took in the scene and Wintaka turned to look at here. "Am I interrupting something sir?"
"Nothing important," Wintaka replied. "You have a new report?"
She nodded slightly. "Yes sir. Adept Ramirez reports that his Level II has finished moving to their standby position. He asks if there is any specific orders for him at this time."
Wintaka grunted. "Yes. Tell him to sit down, shut up, and don't clutter the few secure channels we have left with his useless prattle!"
"Yes sir," the tech replied calmly before turning and walking back into the house. Wintaka then turned back to the natives, and he again switched to his rudimentary knowledge of their language. "So, what should we do with this?" He asked rhetorically.
"Well, great one," Tangee began cautiously. "If you do not want to question her, I may be able to find some use for her." He glanced over at the gatón then, eyeing her subtly.
Not subtly enough to Wintaka's eyes, though. "Is that so? Perhaps I just don't like the look of it and I'll shoot it now." With that, he drew his laser pistol and sited it on the gatón's brow in split second.
The natives gasped, and Wintaka suppressed a savage grin. Good, let them fear me, he thought as he slowly re-holstered his pistol. "Remember, Tangee. Remember not to be presumptuous, or I can take away something you desire."
"Y-yes, greatness," Tangee stuttered, apparently still a bit flustered from the pistol even pointing in his general direction. "I will remember."
"Good," Wintaka said. Then he waved his hand dismissively. "You may leave now. And take that worthless bitch with you."
"Yes, great leader."
Alexis felt her pulse slowly return to normal as she was led away from the Wobbies' portion of the town. Her heart rate was up partly from having a laser pistol pointed at her head, but also partly because of the way the Blakest had so casually insulted her repeatedly.
Arrogant zugert, she thought derisively. Still, that arrogance will be his undoing. She fought to suppress a smile at the tidbit she had overheard. Another six tanks or 'mechs, she thought, remembering what the Blakest Level II unit meant. No wonder they want this place to be inviting. Twelve war machines could be enough to overwhelm eight, even with the Republic's advanced technology.
Still, that can't be all they have planned, Alexis thought as the lupar named Tangee led her and the other guard around the last corner before the jail. Even if that other Level II is all 'mechs, they would still need something else to ensure a good victory.
Alexis shifted her bag a bit. Thank the Gods that he didn't check inside, she thought. And not just because the smell would have driven me crazy. Inside her bag was her disassembled laser rifle, a scope she had borrowed for it, a bowie-style knife, and a radio. If they had seen those, that man would surely have shot me dead.
So deep in thought she was, that Alexis didn't realize they had passed the jail instead of going into it. It took the guard behind her speaking up to make her aware of it. "Commander, why are we not taking the prisoner to the jail?"
"She's only a gatón, and a female at that, Hurg," Tangee said as he continued to lead them further along the street. He glanced about before continuing, which seemed unnecessary to Alexis as the area was mostly devoid of lupar, since most had already gone to their tasks. "She won't be any real problem. Besides, she could be… Useful."
"I'm sure," the guard, Hurg, said behind Alexis in a tone that told her that he knew very well what Tangee meant. As do I, she thought, feeling a mix of fear and anger in her mind. I was right last night; he's a lecherous bastard. Again, she managed to barely suppress a smile. The fool doesn't know what I know, though.
They continued along the street until they came to a nice, two-story house just on the other side of the town square. Tangee walked right up to the door and pushed it open with such surety that Alexis realized that it was his house. Or at least it is now, she thought after glancing back at Hurg, whose face betrayed certain disgust with the whole scene. She decided to play up her assumed persona. "What happen? Why here?" She asked in halting Lupari.
Tangee turned back from within the threshold. "You'll be staying here for a while," he said, eyes wandering again. He then turned and walked to the side of the door, disappearing from sight for the moment.
The guard behind her muttered something that Alexis hadn't heard before, though from the tone, she guessed it was an obscenity. Then he pushed her gently between her shoulders, just to the left of her pack. "Come on then, miss. It's best you get this over with."
He sounds sad, Alexis thought as she allowed herself to be guided from behind into the foyer. To her left, she say Tangee working to light a lantern, which seemed odd to Alexis to be doing during the day, until she realized that the house was pretty large. There are undoubtedly rooms that do not have any windows to let in light.
"That will be all, Hurg," Tangee said as he turned around with the now-lit lantern. "I'm sure she won't give me any trouble. Now will you?" He directed the question at Alexis.
"No trouble," She replied, again in her deliberately accented Lupari. Not until we're alone, anyway… A plan was already forming in her head, and she was actually hoping for the other lupar to leave.
Hurg gave Alexis a quick glance before he leaned in and whispered to Tangee. "You shouldn't be doing this. She's just a lost woman."
"And I'll remind you just who is in charge here," Tangee replied hotly, though also in a whisper. "Now leave."
Although their voices were pitched low, Alexis understood them well enough. Most likely they think I don't know enough Lupari to comprehend a whisper, she realized. It would be best to not disturb that assumption.
Hurg, she noticed, seemed to be struggling with himself. Good, they're not all bastards, she thought as the lupar spun on his heel and walked out of the house with a huff and some muted grumbling.
Tangee sighed as he went to the door and closed it. "Do not mind him, miss," he said gently as the heavy wood door cut off the light from the outside. "He does not know his place. Something I am sure that you ought to know better about."
Alexis decided that it was time to play up the confused aspect of her assumed persona. "Place? Where?"
Tangee chuckled slightly. "Well, how about right through there?" He asked, gesturing through the doorway opposite of the main entrance. It was one of two, with another doorway on the right leading down a short hall, though the one Tangee indicated led to a decently-sized parlor.
Alexis walked to the edge of the entrance, and she grabbed the doorframe in a slightly frightened manner that she hoped would be consistent with her performance so far. She studied the room, and found it to be well enough lit from a window on the left side of the room, though the light wasn't too strong as it was mainly reflected off of the adjoining house. She also noted the heavy drapes that hung to one side of the window, and she fought to control a laugh at that and the long couch along the far wall. Oh Gods, so this is what he has planned!
"Please, go and sit," Tangee said, this time with a bit more strength in his words to make it seem more like an order than an invitation. Alexis glanced back at him to fit in with the part she played, and then she turned back and walked into the room. Tangee followed as she passed another, somewhat shorter couch sitting against the outer wall, next to the window.
"Perhaps you'd like me to take that bag for you, eh?" Tangee asked as he grabbed the sack slung over Alexis' shoulder. She responded by gripping it tighter and turning around to look at him with wide eyes. "No! Mine!"
Tangee pulled his hand back and held it palm outward. "Okay, okay, it's yours," he said. Those roots must be valuable from wherever she's from. "You can keep it. Why don't you go sit?" He asked gently again, indicating the long couch to the back of the room.
Alexis backed away from him a step before turning around to head for the couch. While doing so, however, she managed to reach surreptitiously into the bag to withdraw a certain item while Tangee went to the window and drew the drapes across it, cutting off the light.
"There," he said while he straightened out the heavy cloth. "Maybe now we can have some privacy to chat."
"Yes," came a voice from behind him that lacked the halting nature or fearful tenor from before. Tangee felt a chill at the word, and he turned around to see Alexis brandishing a wicked-looking knife, a predatory smirk on her face. "Let's chat."
Acryu walked along the streets of Kaytor at a pace fueled by his anger. It's bad enough that the bastard kowtows to the invaders, but this goes too far, taking advantage of someone who's lost and alone!
He passed through the town square in a huff, ignoring a called greeting from a family friend. Acryu instead went on, and headed for the house of the former militia commander and maegister. Someone who was ten times the man Tangee is before the invaders cut him down, Acryu remembered. The thought only helped to stoke the fires of his anger, and he rested his hand on the hilt of his sword as he came to Tangee's door and slammed on it with his left hand. "Eiger! Come out now!"
A few moments passed without acknowledgement, and Acryu banged on the door again. "Open up Eiger!" Before I break the damn door down! Commander or not, I've had it with your behavior!
Finally, he heard some movement, and the door swung open slowly to reveal Tangee standing there, his face a study of consternation. Good, Acryu thought. Let him worry. "About time. We need to talk, Eiger."
Tangee twitched an ear a bit. "Uh, can't it wait, Kaeno?" He asked with a gulp. "I'm, ah, rather busy at the moment."
Acryu frowned and his ears went back. "That's exactly why I need to talk to you, right now." He reached down and grabbed his sword's hilt. "I will not be persuaded otherwise."
Tangee gulped again, and he fidgeted. "Please, Kaeno… You really do not have to worry about the young lady," he said slowly. "She is quite untouched, and will remain that way."
Acryu snorted. "And I am to take your word for it, tail-fluffer?" He asked sneeringly, finally eliciting an angry reaction from Tangee as the latter narrowed his eyes. "You should be ashamed, trying to take advantage of some poor, lost woman."
Tangee took in a breath to calm himself. "Acryu, do not be stupid. You know what might happen if the invaders find out that you've killed me, their preferred liaison."
Tangee's words caught Acryu off-guard. He hasn't called them 'invaders' in months. "Eiger, what's going on?" He asked, suddenly feeling suspicious.
"Nothing," Tangee said a bit too quickly. "It's just that I am a bit… Tired, yes, that's it." He managed a small smile. "I don't think I had enough sleep last night. So I'm going to go and sleep… Upstairs, in my bed."
Acryu twitched an ear and stood there for a minute before he finally sighed and shrugged. "Fine, I'll talk to you tomorrow," he said, and began to turn away. Then, moving fast, he turned back and reached out to slam his left fist into the side of Tangee's muzzle, sending the other lupar to fall to the floor off to the right.
What appeared after he fell, however, startled Acryu enough that he froze as his mind tried to reconcile it. Standing behind where Tangee had stood was the gatón woman, and instead of looking frightened, she brandished a knife and had a visage of grim determination.
Before Acryu could react, she reached out with her free hand and grabbed the front of Acryu's thick shirt, yanking back on it and using her whole body as a lever to amplify the force of her pull. In seconds, Acryu found himself falling forward, and he reached out with both of his arms instinctually to break his fall.
Alexis, having already fallen on her back, moved just slightly quicker. As Acryu fell forward, he also fell on top of her, and when his arms went out to break his fall, he opened up his middle. Alexis used this opening to drive both of her feet into his midsection, stunning his solar plexus and shifting his momentum to her left.
After only about one and a half seconds or so, Acryu fell on his side behind and next to Tangee, falling over his legs and keeping the other lupar from getting up in the process. The stunning of his diaphragm caused Acryu to stay there instead of trying to get up while he tried to gulp in air.
Alexis, meanwhile, was already moving. Rolling to her right, she used that momentum to help her stand into a crouch, and she turned around to take stock of the situation. Acryu was still gulping air, and so she discounted him for the moment, while Tangee was beginning to pull his legs clear of Acryu's.
Not going to happen, she though as she stepped over and delivered a quick chop to his neck. The blow, although not anywhere near the fatal level of strength, nevertheless stunned Tangee, and he again fell down to the floor, half sprawling into the side hall with a grunt.
Alexis took the moment she knew she had to move to the outer door and lean out. With a quick look, she was relieved to find that no one else was in the street at the moment, and she pulled the door closed before turning to look over the two lupar at her feet. What do I do now? She thought as she undid the knot holding Acryu's sword scabbard to his belt, and she yanked the bladed weapon away and left it to clatter to the floor behind her.
Acryu, for his part, finally managed to get some air into him as his muscles recovered a bit. "What… Is… This?" He huffed out.
Alexis let out a quick, frustrated sigh. "You just couldn't leave, could you?" She asked in near-flawless Lupari, the use of which seemed to surprise the newcomer as much as his easy takedown.
"I… Thought you were in trouble," Acryu managed to get out as his breath returned to normal. Who is this woman?
Alexis shrugged, and she waved the knife in her hand a bit. "I wasn't, really, though I appreciate your care," she replied casually. Yet, within that casualness was also sincerity, and Acryu picked up on it. "You're welcome, I think."
Alexis smirked a bit. "Thank you. Now," she paused and reached over to yank Tangee by the tail, as he was trying to get up on all fours. The hard pull not only surprised him, but also brought him off balance, and he fell again. "I hope you didn't think that our little conversation is over, commander," she said, loading the last word with sarcasm.
Acryu frowned and looked between Alexis and Tangee. "Just what is going on here?" He asked as he pulled himself to sit upright.
Alexis, however, soon had the knife pointed back towards him. "What's going on is that your friend here is obviously ingratiated with the invaders, and I wish to find out just how much he knows about them."
Acryu snorted. "Friend? He's an asshole and a tail-fluffer," he said and glared at Tangee. "And towards what he knows, I'm willing to bet that his head is as vacant as his morality."
Alexis smirked again. "That may be so, but I have friends who want to know exactly what the invaders are up to here, and even a little bit of information is worth a lot." She then turned and walked over to where Tangee was still laying down, and she put a foot on his neck to pin him. This is becoming a bad habit with me.
Acryu stared warily at the gatón. "Exactly why would your friends want to know about the invaders that they couldn't learn from hearing about them?" His tone dripped with suspicion.
"Namely, how many people they have here, and if there are any more nearby," Alexis replied. "I already have a good idea, thanks to this slug bringing me to the invaders' camp earlier," she paused to dig her toe claws into Tangee's neck as he stirred a bit. "I know they have twelve machines waiting. What I don't know is what other surprises they have waiting here."
Acryu let his ears drop down in puzzlement. "I don't understand… Why do their numbers count? It's not like anyone can defeat them, no matter what their number." A sudden chuckle from the gatón made Acryu blush. "What's so funny?" He demanded.
"The invaders are far from undefeatable," Alexis returned with a grin. "We've driven them from Tanzano and from a couple of towns to the west, killed many."
Acryu blinked in surprise. "You lie!"
Alexis felt her fur bristling up. "I do not."
"Prove it."
Alexis gave him an incredulous look. "How can I prove it when we're here and the towns are elsewhere?"
Acryu blushed again. "True…" He said, and his voice trailed off as he tried to figure out what to do or say next.
Alexis, though, decided for him. "Look, it's obvious you don't like this slug here," she said and gestured to Tangee. "Am I to take it that you hate the invaders as well?"
Acryu blushed deeply again. "Of course! They take our food and kill anyone who complains!"
Alexis nodded sagely. "Then we could be allies," she said, and then lowered her knife. "Unless, of course, you have something against gatón?" She asked, tilting an ear down in question.
Acryu blinked, apparently surprised again at the turn in the conversation. "I… No, I don't have any problems with your people," he replied hesitantly. "Do you have any with mine?"
Alexis smiled then. Not the smirk of someone being contradictory or superior, but the genuine smile of open friendliness. "I think that you would be surprised at how I do feel towards some lupar," she said with an amused tone.
"I think that I might have already reached my limit of surprises for the day," Acryu said as he stood up slowly, always wary of Alexis' knife. When she didn't reach out to slash him, though, he let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. What is it about this woman? She wields only a knife and that alone scares me into tensing for an attack instead of striking out myself.
Alexis briefly chuckled again. "Perhaps you have. Unfortunately, however," she said, her voice changing tone to become more serious. "Today may be a day for many surprises."
Acryu sighed. "Well, if we're to be allies of a sort, perhaps I could know your name?"
Alexis smiled a bit. "Alexis Hurano."
"Kaeno Acryu," the lupar replied with a slight smile of his own. How can she be so fearsome one moment and disarming the next? "I must admit that you are not exactly the lady we came across last night."
"An act," She said with a shrug. "I needed to get here, and we figured that this was the best way."
"'We?'" Acryu asked.
"As in, my friends and I," Alexis added. "They're waiting for information, and when they get it, they'll figure out a way to attack the Invaders… Hopefully, without hurting anyone else in the process."
Acryu's ears twitched at that. "What do you mean by that?"
Alexis shifted her shoulders a bit. "Well, my friends and the invaders… Their kind of warfare is very, very destructive." She paused and bit her lower lip. "We will try to avoid hurting anyone, but sometimes, things can get out of our control and people may get hurt."
Acryu frowned, just staring at Alexis for a minute. "Perhaps we should speak more on your friends before we decide on anything else."
"That sounds like a wise idea," Alexis agreed.
"Specialist van Horn, report to the bridge immediately," the speakers blared throughout the United Systems' Ship Rodger Young. "Specialist van Horn, report to the bridge on captain's orders."
Dr. Earl van Horn sighed at the page. Just when I was about to get off duty, he thought grumpily as he rubbed his hands. He was standing in the repair and service bay for the Vanquishers' battle armor, having spent almost eight hours working on several suits that had developed minor, but potentially critical problems. Thus, he had been assigned to help the techs and the service-qualified troopers work on the suits, since he didn't have many other shipboard duties.
"Sounds like you gotta go, doc," Jennifer Marks commented from her seat at a diagnostic table, and she looked up from where she was working on a shoulder coupling to an Elemental suit.
"Yeah, lucky me," van Horn commented sarcastically. He then walked towards the main entrance to the room, though any semblance of gravity came only from the magnetic 'slippers' he wore. "Because, you know, it's in a captain's nature to invite M.I. troopers forward for crumpets and tea."
Marks laughed at the comment. "Well, it shouldn't be too bad," she replied as van Horn went to the microgravity sink and began to use it to clean his hands. "After all, you haven't blown up anything. At least not while I've been here."
Van Horn managed a brief chuckle as he drew the sink's plastic membrane over the entrance with his hands inside. "I haven't blown up anything since we left the planet. Which I'll admit, is makin' me antsy a bit."
Marks shook her head in mock rapprochement, though van Horn could see her grin. "You and everyone else," she said, and then sighed. "Hell, at least the aerojocks get to fly cover in the atmosphere. We just sit here nursin' our suits."
Van Horn shrugged, though he was careful not to disturb the plastic as he triggered the soap and water pedals with his feet. "Well, it beats havin' a bad suit when we do go ground side."
Marks sighed. "True, true," she said almost sadly a she leaned back from the table and turned fully to look at van Horn. "So what do you think has cap'n Ladavic up in a twist?"
"I don't' know, but I bet I'm going to find out," van Horn said as he finished washing his hands and then triggered the drying function of the sink. "Somehow, though, that doesn't make me feel any better."
Several minutes later, van Horn was standing before the bridge door. He hesitated to open it, mainly due to the fact that he hadn't taken the time to change out of the service coveralls and undershirt he had been wearing while working in the service bay. Briefly, he wondered whether he should have taken the time out to change first, but he finally decided to just get the summoning over with, and he pressed the general access code into the door controls.
The doors to the bridge slid open noiselessly, and van Horn stepped through to find the holotank active and spinning out a series of vectors. Captain Ladavic and Lieutenant Vickers were both standing next to the tank, and they were studying it and talking between themselves quietly. The opening of the compartment's doors, however, brought both their heads around, and their attention focused on van Horn.
"Doctor, Lieutenant, in my ready room," Ladavic ordered with a strong, though neutral voice. "Mr. Tudyk, you have the conn."
"Aye aye, sir, I have the conn," the lieutenant sitting at the ops station commented, and he stood and walked to the holotank area. Ladavic led Vickers and van Horn to the door to her ready room, and the three filed inside. The door closed behind van Horn, who was last, cutting off the muted sounds of the bridge's operations as it did so.
After entering the room, Ladavic went around her desk and sat down. "You two may be seated," she said after a second to get comfortable. Vickers and van Horn quickly took one of the two seats sitting in front of Ladavic's desk, though van Horn was hesitant given his clothing. However, Vickers had nudged him to move, and so the anthropologist sat quickly.
"Now, this is an informal kind of gathering," Ladavic began. "So I want you two to speak freely."
Vickers cleared his throat. "About what, cap'n?"
Ladavic shrugged, but didn't say anything. Instead, she flipped up the cover that had been flush with the surface of her desk, revealing a standard computer keyboard. She pressed a few commands in and soon the lights dimmed and a holographic projection seemed to come out of nowhere to hover over the desktop. Van Horn, however, soon looked up and saw that the projectors were a ceiling-mounted design.
The actual projection, however, caught his attention, as it was the seal of the Republic. "We received this transmission via HPG about an hour ago," Ladavic explained briefly, and then she pressed another command into her keyboard.
The seal faded out to be replaced with the diving eagle insignia of the USAF, which then was quickly replaced by the image of an admiral that van Horn recognized from news and documentary holovids. I don't believe it.
He began to speak. "Captain Ladavic, this is Fleet Admiral Daniel O'Neil of the General Staff. I am sorry to distract you during a crucial operation, but I am afraid that I have bad news.
"Despite previous intelligence and simulations, Clan Snow Raven has launched a raid-in-force into the Mojave system. This force includes several WarShips as well as an ample amount of DropShips, Fighters, and a currently-unknown amount of ground forces." The image of O'Neil paused to gather a nonexistent breath, and then he went on. "As of this date, August Twenty-First, Three-Thousand Seventy-One, the United Systems' Armed Forces have mobilized for possible invasion under General Order Three, Article Five.
"Unfortunately, this means that all extra transport capacity is being redirected towards the affected area. The remaining forces of the Neo Tokyo Grenadiers and of the 5th Marauders will not be joining you anytime soon.
"Until we can ascertain the Ravens' intent – whether they want to try to do what the Star Adders failed to do, or are just bein' typical clan assholes – we cannot release any further transport to you at this time. Furthermore, the transport jumpships that helped to move your forces into the Bowman's system will be recalled through normal channel in the MSC."
Again, the imaged admiral paused to take a breath that had been recorded by the faithful electronic equipment that he had used. "The news isn't all bad, Captain. Although we are recalling the transports, all front-line units currently in the Bowman's system shall remain on-station, per Rear Admiral Fitzpatrick's orders. The detachment of engineers you have will also not be recalled.
"This may seem like a kick in the pants, Captain, but don't worry. The Republic hasn't forgotten its commitment to the people of Bowman's Planet. We just need a bit more time," the facsimile O'Neil said with a wan smile. "From what I hear, you don't need too much help, and even now are pushing back the Wobbies, so you shouldn't run into too much trouble.
"Finally, captain, I do assure you that if this raid is just that, a raid, then I'll personally kick loose a full division if I can." O'Neil then smirked. "Hell, even the President's got his eye on your situation, so don't drop the ball and we'll be along shortly." With that, the image faded into the insignia of the USAF again, and then froze as the message playback ended.
Van Horn just stared at the golden insignia, his mind racing over the implications. Dear God, why the Hell do you hate us so?
Vickers cleared his throat briefly to end the awkward silence, and then he spoke. "Captain, I'll admit that I'm not the smartest fish in the barrel, so could you enlighten me as to what is in the Mojave system?"
Ladavic shrugged at that. "Nothing much. The planets Arizona and Navajo, and that's about it. Arizona's the only inhabitable rock there, and even then it's marginal. Navajo's a gas giant, but its moons have water ice, so they're bein' used as reservoirs to feed the terraforming process on Arizona." She paused to take a breath. "Other than that, there's nothin' too interestin' about the place. Arizona's got some decent mineral deposits, but nothing that the Ravens won't have in the Outworlds Alliance."
"So it's probably a raid," Vickers said almost meditatively. "Most likely, they want to see what kind of force beat back the Adders a few years back."
"Sounds like it," Ladavic added with a nod.
"This puts us in a real pickle then, doesn't it?" Vickers continued. "I mean, we only designed this preliminary invasion to go ahead with a few months supplies, and we're through the first month already. Without transport, we're up shit's creek without a paddle."
Ladavic nodded, and a small smile crept on her face. "That may be so, lieutenant, but please give me and Admiral Fitzpatrick some credit."
Vickers frowned and knotted his eyebrows. "Sir?"
Ladavic again answered by bringing up another transmission in its paused state. "Admiral O'Neil's message came through via Port Kure. Fitzpatrick piggybacked his own message along with the official dispatch." Silently, she entered in the commands for the message to play, and the image of the Republic's seal faded straight into the image of Fitzpatrick.
"Captain, by now you've watched Admiral O'Neil's message, so I'll get straight to the point. I got a similar one from him detailin' the Star Adder raid. Now, I know you, Mary, and I'm pretty sure we're both thinkin' that those pretentious techno-barbarians are just out to pound their chests with this showboating.
"Unfortunately, the General Staff can't take that view, and neither can the President. So for now, official support for Last Call is on hold." He paused to grin then. "However, that doesn't mean that all support is off."
Fitzpatrick's image paused again and shifted to the side as the virtual display split. The new image that cropped up showed a small manifest of JumpShips and DropShips assigned to Operation Last Call. "Now Captain, I'm sure that if you look closely, you can see what I mean."
Van Horn looked over the display, but he couldn't figure out what Fitzpatrick was talking about. Then several ships were highlighted, including a ship that even van Horn recognized. The Moore Haven? That's the Invader-class JumpShip that helped carry the first wave here.
"As you can see, the Moore Haven is an independent trader, and at the moment, her contract to the Military Starlift Command became null and void with the declaration of a level three mobilization. I know this because I know the Haven's owner/commander, and he's one salty SOB if you ever met one. I'm sure you two would get along famously if you ever get a chance to meet." Fitzpatrick smiled at that comment. "And since I know him, I've sent another HPG to him askin' if he wanted another contract, this one from Sector Command; me." The image smiled again. "He'll be contactin' you soon, I reckon, and he'll be headin' back here to pick up some more ships. Ships that're under my sector command, and not MSC's.
"So that's about it, Mary. We'll try and get stuff to your boys on the ground, but you tell 'em to hold onto their horses. Y'all're doin' good things there, from the reports you've been sendin,' and I don't intend for ya to break that winnin' streak anytime soon. But y'all need to play defense for a bit 'til we can get things movin' again.
"'Til next time, captain. Good luck, and God Bless." With that, Fitzpatrick's image faded out, and Ladavic killed the holoprojectors. As the lights in the room came back up to normal, van Horn and the others blinked their eyes to readjust, which caused another few moments of silence.
Finally, though, Ladavic cleared her throat. "So, lieutenant, doctor, you two are the closest people I have to experts on the situation below. I need your thoughts, opinions and ideas on these developments."
"We don't hold back," Vickers said immediately. When van Horn and Ladavic gave him questioning looks, he grinned a bit. "That is, we don't hole up and sit still on defense only. That's not only a recipe for defeat, but it'll also be a signal to the Blakests that we're in a tough spot, and they might try something crazy in an attempt to give themselves a more tenable position."
"Not only that," van Horn started before he could keep himself from talking. "But the wider we range, the more our actions enter the mass consciousness of the natives. Continuing the raiding will show to the people that we mean what we say." He paused to take a quick breath. "Plus, there's also the added benefit of the simple fact that we're savin' these people from Wobbie domination. That's gotta be worth somethin' in the ol' karma bank." He finished with a small grin.
Ladavic and Vickers both grinned at the last comment. "Well, I'm glad you two agree," Ladavic said. "Because Major Kujira sent me a request for the Vanquishers to participate in a raid to be conducted by Captain Tanaka on a Blakest-controlled town to the north of the native city of Tanzano. I was initially trepid in going along with it, given my lack of ground experience, but if you two feel like this is the way to go, then we'll do it."
Vickers and van Horn shared a quick look. "What operation is this?" The former asked. Soon, the found out.
Mikula yawed widely, exposing his long set of teeth within his muzzle. After he finished, he looked around the small mini-camp that the lance had set up, and he blushed when he saw the three others around the campfire staring at him. "Uh, excuse me?"
"Yeah, sure," Jeffries said. "Just remember, I taste bad."
Everyone chuckled at that, save Mikula, who continued to blush. "You don't have to worry about me," he said.
"Yeah, it's the Wobbies who got to worry 'bout Mikula here," Nguyen commented, eliciting a round of smiles. "Nice the way you handled that guy," he said, referring to earlier when one of the Blakest prisoners tried to escape while being loaded into a Karnov.
Mikula smiled sheepishly, and he felt like his ears would stick in the embarrassed position. "Well, it wasn't hard, since he was bound and all."
"Only his hands," Jeffries objected. "He got a good distance away, and I thought I was going to have to shoot him 'til you shout out like a bullet."
Mikula shrugged at that. "All I did was race out and catch him by slipping to all fours instead of normal. It's nothing special."
"Well, maybe not for you," Nguyen said. "But we can't really do that ourselves."
"Yeah, so it was damn cool when you did it," Jeffries added. Then he looked to the fourth person around the fire. "Ain't that right, ell-tee?"
Williams nodded. "Pretty much," he admitted. "At least, he kept us from having to waste that Wobbies' ass, so you gotta wonder whether that's a plus or minus."
Another short burst of chuckles came from everyone, and Mikula joined in this time. Ahh, it's good to be amongst soldiers in the field again, he thought as he returned his attention to his meal. Sitting balanced on his lap was the tray of an MRE, and though the food wasn't the best, Mikula had found it to be much better than the complaints he had often heard.
Of course, with their richness of food available at their home worlds, or even in their ships, it's no wonder they see this as a step down. Mikula stifled a sigh at the thought as he began to work at his meal again. Not that I blame them. Hell, I've only been eating like them for the past few weeks, and already this MRE tastes less like a good meal and more like old food. He bit into a piece of rehydrated meat and considered even the idea of leftovers. 'Left over.' To make so much food that your language has words for an excess amount of a prepared meal that no one can finish. He shook his head in wonderment. No matter how long I've been with them, humans still amaze me.
Nguyen said something directed at Mikula, and the lupar had to blink his way back to reality. "I'm sorry, sergeant, I didn't get that last part."
Nguyen smirked a bit. "I asked, 'are you okay?' You seemed like you had bitten into something that didn't agree with ya."
"Oh, no," Mikula again grinned sheepishly. "I was just thinking, and I guess my attention wandered."
"Well, that'll happen," Nguyen replied with a small smile. "Just don't let it happen too often, or we'll have to let you go."
Mikula frowned at the comment. "Let me go where? Why would you stop me?" He asked, and then he noticed the wide grins on the humans' faces. "You're joking, right?"
"Yeah," Nguyen said sheepishly. "Sorry, thought you'd get it. 'Letting someone go' is a euphemism for firing them from their job."
"Oh," Mikula said, dragging the monosyllabic word out. Then he smiled a bit. "I see what you mean. It is a bit funny," he allowed.
"Well, no one ever accused John there of bein' a comedian," Williams added in. "Still, he does have his moments, which are the only reason he's still on this lance." He said mirthfully.
"Oh?" Nguyen asked as he turned his head to look at Williams. "And I suppose that I can shoot an elemental off of your timby's nose from two hundred meters doesn't count?"
Jeffries laughed at that, and Williams blushed a bit. "Well, I'll admit that you have some skill in the marksmanship area that may account for your continued employment."
"That and I'll beat your ass in a game of UT any day of the week, and twice on Sundays," Nguyen shot back.
"'Head shot!'" Jeffries half-shouted, and the three humans laughed briefly. Mikula even joined in, having seen and even played the game they spoke of. A rather violent game, for such nice people, he mused. Still, even I'll admit to enjoying myself with it.
A sudden voice came over the small mini-camp. "Lieutenant? There's a call for you on the satcomm," Ferguson said over his Mad Dog II's external speakers.
Williams grunted as he stood up. "All right, I'll be in my 'mech in a minute," he called to Ferguson and then looked back at the other three around the fire. "My apologies, gentlemen, but I must depart," he said and then bowed a bit. From the way he and the other MechWarriors smiled, though, Mikula could tell that it was done in jest rather than any serious attempt at honoring someone else. How odd.
Williams then turned and walked over to his Timber Wolf, not bothering to discard the standard issue coveralls that he and the other humans wore over their cooling suits. Once there, he climbed up the ladder to the bird-like 'mech's forward-jutting cockpit and then disappeared from sight.
"I wonder what's up?" Jeffries asked of no one in particular.
"Ahh, probably paperwork," Nguyen said as he picked out a small clump of reconstituted potatoes. "An army may travel on its stomach, but it can't think without converting a forest into paper."
Jeffries chuckled at that, but Mikula frowned in a bit of confusion. "Excuse me, sergeant," he said to Nguyen. "But what do you mean, 'an army travels on its stomach?'"
"Huh?" Nguyen seemed genuinely surprised for a moment. Then he remembered who was talking. "Oh, right. Well, there was an old, old military commander called Napoleon Bonaparte. Pretty smart guy, nearly conquered an entire continent." Nguyen added in the last comment so off-handedly that Mikula held up a hand for him to halt. "Wait a minute. You said he almost conquered an entire continent?"
"Yeah, about twelve hundred years ago." Nguyen replied with a nod. "Back when we were still using sailing ships and gunpowder and horse cavalry. Anyway, the point is that he recognized that an army is not effective unless it's properly fed. So he coined the phrase 'an army travels on its stomach.'"
"Ahh," Mikula said and nodded, understanding at last. "I see what you mean. It makes a lot of sense when you think about it."
Jeffries joined in with a chuckle. "Most things usually do. Hell, everyone who's ever been quoted only figured out a new way of sayin' what everyone else already knew."
Nguyen chuckled a bit. "Ain't it the truth."
All of a sudden, Williams' voice rang out over the area. "Everyone, drop what you're doing and break camp. Everyone mount up ASAP."
"Something' wrong skipper?" Nguyen called out even as he stood to carry out the orders.
"Nothin' wrong, just that we've got an appointment across the mountains, and we need to haul ass."