Equitum Sidereus chapter 5

Changed the rating to m because of the gore this will end up at some point leading to. precaution... maybe even a preemptive strike...

I'm going to start going a cut off in this stories timeline, sorry if you don't like it but I got places to get. And frankly, I wing this whole thing, so im still trying to see where this stories going to go. But the ideas ive had which cant really be implemented untill later are most epic. and once I reach the beginning of the prologue around chapter 20, this story will end and there WILL Be a sequel!

Oh and I think I've found a song to use as a them to this shit like how anime always has music at the title scene…

And as a final note, anything with A * will be defined in the post script at the end of the chapter.

Disclaimer: did I ever put one of there up? I don't really think anyone cares anyway…

As the jump-ship flies through space at an incredible speed, its escort Warships the Agamemnon class battleship GRWYRE-10 and the Thera class carrier Delphi flanking it as it whips through the open expanses towards the periphery.

It has been three weeks since the mission to defeat the raiders at their home planet, dubbed operation zealot began, and we were soon to arrive within the hour.

Tensions in the crew were high as we quickly assembled six lances of battlemechs, and three squadrons of battle armor, as well as two battalions of heavy tanks. The plan is to discreetly send in three lances of battlemechs, including my lance, along with the battle armor to destroy any planetary defense systems. Then the other three lances of 'mechs and tanks to clean up any resistance and destroy all of the military manufacturing on the planet.

At least that was what the plan was. As soon as the ships dropped out of the KF space the enemy was there to meet us.

Three squadrons of fighters from the Delphi engaged an armada of aerospace fighters, debris and clouds of smoke from the engines of missiles crowds the space around the Sidereus as the drop ships carrying the three mech lances, and the Conquistador crash through the atmosphere of the planet.

"Okay! Gryphon one to all Gryphonunits prepare yourselves to drop. Weapons hot! I repeat weapons hot!" McGraths voice flairs over the radio; I palm the security pad on the Highlanders control panel, its reactor spinning to life with a low whine. The computer goes through its normal startup checklists, and I flip the toggle switch to drop the safeties on my weapons.

The Union class drop ship hits the ground with a sharp Shake that throws me around my cockpit, It's weapons blazing to life with a series of shallow cracks and sharp whines of capacitors charging, heavy gauss rifles firing in unison with the ER-large lasers shake the drop ship and warm its massive heat sinks.

"Ready! GO! GO! GO!" McGrath yells as the long ramp lowers down, the light from the outside streaming in. I push my mech forward in a slow acceleration out into the light just behind McGraths Black knight. As we hit the outside immediately a gauss rifle round flies from the right arm of the Black Knight its large slug tearing an arm off of a Supernova damaged by the fire from the drop ship.

The conquistador screams overhead, its Rotary auto cannons and large pulse lasers tearing a Brigand and a Sentinel apart. Its cargo bay open, with armored soldiers jumping out, disposable HALO jump packs slowing there descent, all of them detach the packs while still high up and crash down to the ground creating dust clouds where the land.

"Holy shit! Those boys are crazy! Zion One to Gryphon lance, ya see those AA laser towers to the east? That's our target; the Conquistador will provide support while we take them out." The pilot of a Gladiator Assault mech shouts over the Staccato din of the battle raging around us.

"Support 'mechs, hang back and start throwing your LRM'S at the closest tower as soon as your within targeting range, Lambda lance; send those assaults to the gate to the city those damned laser towers." He says while throwing an LBX/AC20 into the cockpit of another brigand.

I form up behind Instructor McGrath as the procession of 'mechs forms up and begins to move towards a thick furrocrete gate to the capital city of the enemy. Minutes seem to last forever as the slow assault 'mechs, a Fafnir and Marauder 11c make their way to the tower and begin to launch Heavy gauss, PPC's, and the kicker that tears the doors off its massive hydraulic piling locks, a massive rail gun slug from the Marauder.

"Alright! Good job. Now gryphon lance move up to engage the enemy guards in the streets. Support mech; Hammer the city, my lance is going to move up to… holy shit! HOLD UP! LAMBDA BACK AWAY FROM THE DOORS! THE WALL IS…" My radar blares in warning only once before a massive explosion overtakes the section of the wall, swallowing the two 'mechs in a massive ball of fire… their pilots having no chance to eject.

"Jesus… Ok, back away from the gate. We have to wait for the smoke to clear out before we engage the city… son of a bitch, reactor from the Fafnir is going critical. It's going to blow, back up quick!" Zion one says shakily, backing his mech up with its weapons facing the gate area. I push my mech into reverse as fast as I can, and bring it to crouch behind the wreckage of an atlas as the reactor of the Fafnir erupts in a massive shockwave and a dome of light and superheated air.

"Holy shit! That's not supposed to happen is it?" Hale asks while standing his crouched Black Knight back up from behind a huge Hedgehog* laid into the furrocrete outside of the city, he stomps the 'mech back in line with the others, forming into a loose column formation.

"No, not really, but so far we have been extremely lucky down here. Something's wrong; why the hell do they have so many inner sphere battlemechs? And why do they seem to know we were coming? I'm calling this situation Charlie foxtrot pull back to the landing ground. We're going to have to wait for reinforcements." Zion one says as he spins his Gladiator around and pushes it off towards the waiting drop ships, the group of 'mechs stomping off with him. I turn my head to find my friends and teammates, seeing Hale and McGrath on my left and on my right Nils in a catapult and Miala in an AS7-D-H Atlas II variant of the Atlas. This one taken as salvage from a battle during operation bulldog, requisitioned for my units uses.

"Status?" I ask while pushing my mech towards the drop ships. Looking on towards the now hovering Conquistador and the quickly constructed mobile field base in the area, the fighting around the drop ships completely finished by the time we made off towards the wall.

" One; ready-op." McGrath responds, all traces of his normally casual speech staunched by a gruff professionalism.

"Three; ready-op." Hale responds twisting his torso to look over at me, and to allow me to see his 'mech.

"Four; ready for more." Niels replies with his normal joke filled banter, idiot doesn't know when it's time to stop does he.

"Five; I'm ice boy's" Miala replies, spinning up the Rotary auto cannon resembling a giant Gatling gun attacked to the Atlas II's right arm. Seems the stress of combat hasn't gotten to her yet. Good, seriousness isn't her way and wouldn't feel right.

"Alright; were all good then. Head over to the drop-ship but leave your 'mechs on standby in case they need to be hot started." I say, taking command from McGrath without even thinking about it. He activates a private video link to my mech and scowls at me.

"I thought I was in command here. What are you doing?" He says, chastising me on my choice of stealing his command.

"Sorry, didn't think about it. Force of habit under stress, guarantee you it will happen again. Just go along with it, I did go to school for this." I say, ignoring the exasperated face he is giving me. I pull my mech up next to the drop-ship and lock the computer so I can leave the reactor running.

After stepping out of my mech and climbing down the ladder I make my way to the command mobile field base were several officers are arguing over the need for reinforcements from the main army at Hammer, and one even suggesting to contact the new star league defense force, just to quickly have his idea shot down by the other commanders.

"I have an idea!" I shout over the yelling of the older men and one woman in the tank-like mobile field base. I walk in, nearly crushed by the weight of the others stares.

"Who the hell are you kid? Officers only, and nobody really cares if you had an idea or not."One large older looking MechWarrior with a scar running across his chin says, a frown forming at his face when I don't turn around and leave.

"Yeah… Fuck you old ass man, I don't give a shit if you care or not. If you haven't figured it out yet, for all intents and purposes, the ship we came here in belongs to me and my team. So I am entitled to speak my mind about whatever I want, as well as you being entitled to not give a fuck. So here's my plan, we use the battle armor to…" I start but am cut off as a fist hits my face and throws me from the MFB. I stand myself up shakily and wipe the blood from my swollen cheek. The large man I insulted walks from the MFB towards me with an infuriating smug look on his face.

He stops a few feet away from me and looks down at me in disgust, wiping my blood from his knuckles he shakes his head in contempt.

"Who the fuck do you think you are kid? talking to a superior officer like that, I ought to put you up for a court martial for that. Instead I think I will just beat you down a few notches" he cracks his knuckles and steps closer to me, attempting to use his size to make it so I couldn't even defend myself, against the yells of the other officers he throws his fist at me.

I yell vehemently as I roll out of the path of his fist, and pull a spear point bladed ceramic CQB knife from a sheath on my belt. Without hesitating I fall back on the training in hand to hand combat given to all of the Knights. I spin the blade in my hand so it points away from my body, and in one quick sweep, I slide it through the man's gut, then with an angry yell slam the blade into his chest. The other officers look on in shock as the man falls to the ground in a spray of blood, covering me from head to toe in spots.

"J-Jesus, that kid just killed him." One of the Officers says while walking slowly towards me and the Mech warrior's body.

I step on his chest and use my body to lever my knife out of him, more blood soaking his grey shirt as I do, then walk back towards the drop ship where my mech and my teammates standing around a fire in a grease barrel are all gathered.

McGrath looks up from the fire then stands from his impromptu gauss slug box seat and rushes over to me with a concerned look on his face.

"Fawkes… oh shit look at you… wha- what happened?" he hurriedly stumbles over his words. I walk past him to my mech, dropping my knife on the way over I crawl back into the cockpit, momentarily in my unstable mind considering turning around and hosing the MFB with auto cannon fire, I quickly discard those thoughts and frown at myself in anger and disgust. Disgust over what I just did, anger at being pushed to do something like what I did.

A tear washes the blood from my face as I curl up into a ball in my cockpit and slowly cry to myself. The video link to McGraths mech blinks to life on the heads up display. Upon seeing me, the look of concern deepens.

"This is the first time you've killed someone isn't it?" I nod in reply, two fine lines of clean skin showing through my bloodied face.

"I see… It couldn't have been under worst circumstances either. Listen to me… you did the right thing. He would have hurt, or even killed you otherwise. No one is going to look down on you or punish you in anyway. That man was Karlyle Moylag , he wasn't a good person in the first place, he was one step away from being executed anyway. How he ended up here without anyone stopping him is a mystery to me, he was charge with a war crime during the trials after operation bulldog, and was sentenced to exile from the league. He was a criminal, and don't let anyone let you think different. Now come down to the fire, your friends are worried about you." He finishes and cuts the link to the video, and I start wiping blood off of my face on the sleeve of my shirt.

I change my shirt out with an extra one I had stuffed into a compartment in the cockpit. Then climb back to the fire and sit between Miala and Hale on a log drug up towards to the fire. I tense for a moment as I feel Miala hug me, then relax, telling her I will be fine. I will be fine, I have to be to make sure the same thing doesn't have to happen to her, to Hale, to any of them.

Alrighty then, remember, review this bitch if you read it, I write faster if I have more reviews and suggestions to work off of. Im going to close the poll on my profile in a few days because at this point it doesn't even matter. And heres for the definitions

area

HEDGEHOG: The Czech hedgehog was a static anti-tank obstacle defence made of angle iron (that is, lengths with an L- shaped cross section) deployed during World War II by various combatants.

The hedgehog is very effective in keeping tanks from getting through a line of defence. It maintains its function even when tipped over by a nearby explosion.

That is all. Carry on.