BOOK II

CHAPTER 1

Author's Note: For some reason being a mercenary in Battletech universe is very appealing. I had my hands full with a DCMS unit Ryuken-go, but I keep thinking about being a soldier for hire working for IS Great Houses with no strings attached. I guess there's an entrepreneurship in all of us.

Book II makes a cross-reference (alright, alright, crossover) with a friend's story My Father's Friend, since both stories are set in similar timeline. If you want to know what My Father's Friend is all about, you can read it in this forum (the story is written in 2011 ^_-). I hope you like the story and enjoy the characters' cameo here.

Pummelo, Outworlds Alliance,
December 29, 3073

Sergeant Mogami perched atop her 'Royal' Sentinel on top of a mountain, overlooking a bay at the far end of the mountain base. The snow flurry masked the heat from her battlemech, painted stark white at her behest. Ninety meters below her waited her lance mates, a Cicada -3P with the monstrous Heavy PPC on its left torso, an Artemis-equipped Assassin -23, and the Plasma-laden Clint -3UL. Her lance was not exactly slated for reconnaisance, but when you need something done right, you'd better do it yourself.

Through her binoculars Mogami observed dozens of barges dropping off weapons, ammunitions, trucks, tanks, and battlemechs on the shore. And it made her mad. She submitted reports of Kuritan Yakuza supporting rival family's war effort to her employer. She had a feeling that Yakuza (or may even be DCMS itself) was planning something big in this remote world. But her warning fell on deaf ears.

Pummelo was a contested ground for 3 rivaling families. The Okita family held the front with Kuritan support. The Langmore family, an expanded family with ties to many tribes in Pummelo, was supported by rogue Davion forces, most notably the 1st Federated Suns Armored Cavalry. And the Navarro family gained support from a motley of crime families from neighboring planets.

Despite her Japanese heritage, Mogami was a staunch Davion supporter. She had been working for the Langmore family for a long time. Her parents ran away from Azami persecution from Al Na'ir, and the Langmore family took them under its wings. As such, she was an antithesis of the Langmore family members who were predominantly caucassian: dark pixie-cut hair, milky-beige complexion, slender frame, and small eyes. But she was Langmore (and to a greater extent: a Davion) at heart.

"Contact," one of her subordinate called in. "Unidentified lance closing in at 1.05 click south."

"Signatures?" Mogami slid into her cockpit and armed her weapons. Her Royal Sentinel, a survivor of Star League's golden years, sported a Gauss rifle, an unprecedented treat for a 40-ton battlemech. It had been a very powerful tool of negotiation and an even stronger tool of murder, as a few foolish rival mechs found out. She hoped she didn't have to use it today, but she was ready to use it if the situation demanded it.

"A Blackjack omni, two Valkyries, and one Chimera."

"Stand down," Mogami turned off her weapons. "That's Austin's lance. Let them come."

Austin Merriam was the son of the head of Merriam family, one of the crime families from a neighboring planet Callone VI. He had been groomed to take over the Merriam family one day, but he showed no interest in his family's affair. His thing was battlemech sport, a Solaris-esque fighting games he held in his local arena. Mogami took part in some of those games, and she had been good friend with Austin despite their rivaling background.

The Blackjack omni parked next to Mogami's Sentinel. Her comm LED blinked.

"That powerful Sentinel of yours could lighten up my arena," Austin said. "I miss the time when we 'play' together in the arena, Mogami. The games are not the same without you."

"Duty calls," Mogami replied. "Our childhood was fun. But I'm not a kid anymore."

"You are what you choose to be."

Mogami scoffed. "Look at those, Austin. What do you see?"

Austin spent some time watching the movement of vehicles on the beach. "Online shopping?"

"I see succession." Mogami sighed. She zoomed in on the ships dropping off crates and transports. "Those are not interstellar shipping company. Those are Yakuza. The Okita are aligning with the Yakuza to take over Pummelo. I need your help."

"Mogami, I am not a front-line mechwarrior like you," Austin stated. "I'm an arena fighter. I fight games and party with the winners. I have no experience in this."

"You're the only one I've got," Mogami replied morosely. "I told the Langmore about the Okita's increasing activities. They thought the Navarro is the more imminent threat. They are directing their assets to Langmore-Navarro's border, and left my lance to deal with the Okita."

"My family supports the Navarro," Austin said. "What will your boss think about that?"

Mogami was aware of the mafia mentality. In fact, each family at Pummelo could be classified as mafia. The Langmore family might not be happy that Mogami worked with a rival family, in fact they might even see it as a betrayal, and have her head, even though she did everything for them. And the Merriam family might require some sort of 'payment' in the future, something that Mogami would not be able to refuse. The repercussion of enlisting Austin Merriam outweighed her intention to stop the Okita family from rolling all over Pummelo.

Yet for the time being, it was the only thing that made sense.

"Maybe it'll change their perspective about 'imminent threat'," Mogami sighed. "Do you think the Yakuza will stop at Pummelo? When they overrun the Langmore and the Navarro, they will expand their operation to other worlds, like Callone VI."

"Alright, I get the point. How much help are you talking about?"

"I'll take whatever you can provide. A lance, a company, a battalion…"

"I may be able to persuade some fighters to fight for you. If I can't get you mechwarriors, I can give you battlemechs. And ammunition."

"That's plenty, Austin. Thank you." Mogami looked at the ships one more time. "It may not be enough to fight the Yakuza, but at least I have a fighting chance."

"Be careful, Mogami," Austin said. "I still like you to fight in the games one day."

"If time is kind to us," Mogami flashed a sour smile. "I always pay my debt, Austin."