STEEL WOLF
A/N: Nikolai's decision to join the Alvarez County forces in chapter 9 may seem somewhat hasty, but he had good reasons to accept the offer and this will be explained further in chapter 11. Also, I figure that by the 3070's, it is increasingly easy for Inner Sphere folk to acquire tech from the Warden Clans, thus the Ursus 'mech presented in this chapter. Do enjoy!
Chapter 10: No Margin for Error
Street, Vargas Estate, Korla,
Lyran Alliance,
August 13, 3075
Thankfully, the air was still cool and dry in the early morning as Cassandra walked toward her red car parked outside the 'mech bay. Very few other cars or pedestrians were out and about right now, and the skyscrapers and apartment buildings in the Vargas Estate's capital stood silently. Fighting back another yawn, Cassandra hummed to herself as she unlocked her car door, her head still buzzing with excited thoughts about possibly completing her Jouster and Tomahawk prototypes.
"Ah. Good morning, Cassandra Goyua," came a voice. Perking up a little, Cassandra turned and saw one of the Arctic Wolves officers walking toward her, the Wolves' blue and white logo patch on the man's uniform shoulders.
"Oh. Morning," Cassandra nodded sleepily. "Can this be quick? I was up all night and want to go back to the engineers' dorms. Lyla will cover my work this morning."
The officer nodded. "I understand. However, I am afraid that I have bad news. News from the front lines."
At that, Cassandra's gut turned cold and the excitement of her prototype 'mechs melted from her mind. She looked fearfully at the officer. "What news?"
"As of 11:32 PM last night, on August 12th, the Arctic Wolves went out of contact during a patrol mission in the Alvarez County territory," the officer recited, squaring his shoulders. "All twelve Mechwarriors are now considered MIA, including your brother Kyle Goyua. I am sorry to report it, but you must know what is happening."
"Oh my God..." Cassandra slumped her back against her car door, her head now buzzing with much worse thoughts. This wasn't as bad as hearing that the Arctic Wolves warriors were actually killed in combat, but if they were captured, what would the vengeful Alvarez commanders do to their Arctic Wolves captives? Scenes of torture and interrogation flashed through Cassandra's mind, but she dismissed them with a shake of her head. No use panicking about what could happen, but I can't help but worry about Kyle and the others. I really hope he's okay!
"The other officers are considering our options," the officer continued. "Our Aerospace assets have been unable to pick up a trail, but in all likelihood, our Mechwarriors and their 'mechs were taken to the capital of the Laurent Commonwealth, where the Alvarez forces have their makeshift headquarters. Alfonso Vargas will be asked to arrange a rescue mission soon."
Cassandra swallowed hard. "Y-yeah, I guess so." A thought occurred to her. "How will we pay off our dropship now? The Hunter's Insight still represents an outstanding debt to Alfonso Vargas."
"That is something we are considering," the officer nodded. "One option is to loan the Hunter's Insight to the Vargas Estate forces for a negotiable fee. That way, our ship is still being put to use and we can start paying it off. If we're lucky, we could rescue our Mechwarriors and get them back here with the Hunter's Insight."
Cassandra forced a laugh. "Well, the tactical stuff isn't my specialty. As long as my brother and the others get back safely, that's all I need. I'll be watching the news closely."
"Yes." The officer turned to go. "I recently saw news of the insurrection war occurring in Bhujorba City. Nasty business. I hope that we do not get tangled up in something like that."
"Oh yeah, I saw that too," Cassandra added. "It's horrible. Just what is Alfonso doing? Us Wolves would never do something like that to innocents."
"I know," the officer responded, starting to walk away. "It makes one think."
Cassandra sighed, suddenly feeling even more tired as she swung open her car door and settled into the seat. Slamming the door closed and twisting the key in the ignition, Cassandra hoped that Carlos' upcoming 'mech battle would take her mind off things.
*o*o*o*o*
Desert Arena, Vargas Estate, Korla,
Lyran Alliance,
August 20, 3075
"You're going to be bouncing off the walls at this rate," Cassandra joked as Lyla Lister sat down next to her in the desert arena's grandstands. Once again Lyla cradled an armful of sugary snacks and other junk food, but she only smiled as she reclined in her seat.
"Could I have one of those?" Alphonse asked hopefully, leaning in his seat to get a look at all of Lyla's snacks. He sat on Cassandra's other side.
Lyla held her food close to her. "No way, Alphonse. You have to keep your health in check! Aren't you a bodybuilder?"
Alphonse made a confused face. "What? No. I played football in college but I gave that up to pursue engineering work."
Lyla smiled warmly again. "But you sure as hell didn't give up that quarterback body. Whoo-hoo!"
"B-but I didn't play quarterback," Alphonse sputtered, his face warming as Cassandra held back a giggle. "Are you making a pass at me? I thought you were with Nikolai."
"Yeah, I am with him," Lyla said fondly. "He and I go back a long way, Al."
Alphonse sat back in his seat as more fans poured into the grandstands around him. "Then aren't you worried about him? He and the other Arctic Wolves are still MIA. Anything could have happened to him."
Lyla chuckled and shook her head. "You've got more to learn about us Arctic Wolves, friend. If I had to worry and lose sleep every time Nikolai got himself in a bind, I wouldn't be here today. I would have quit long ago. He's better than that and I bet that he'll be back soon enough. So I'm not worried."
"I admire your confidence."
"Good. Admire me some more. I love it."
"Come on, Lyla..."
Cassandra gave Alphonse a pat on the shoulder. "Will you never catch on to the fact that she loves teasing you? You're pretty easy to bait..."
Alphonse sighed grumpily. "So I trust easily. Sue me."
"Game's about to start," Lyla piped up, pointing. "Here they come now!"
*o*o*o*o*
"Whew. Okay, Carlos. By the book. Don't let this one slip up," Carlos Vargas told himself sternly, sitting in the increasingly warm cockpit of his Shadow Hawk-7CS. He pushed on the pedal slowly, letting his 55-tonner break out into a confident trot across the road toward the waiting arena. The sun sank toward the dunes, giving the desert panorama a soft gold-orange glow while the opposite horizon started to turn deep blue. As Carlos walked his 'mech toward his starting position in the square desert arena, he glanced at a photograph of a smiling, brown-haired young woman taped to his cockpit's dashboard. Watch this, Cassie. I'll make your proud!
"People of the Vargas Estate, welcome to tonight's one-on-one match of the desert arena tournament!" boomed the announcer's voice. "Only one brave warrior today will earn the right to advance in the single-elimination segment of the tournament. Before long, we'll have four semi-finalists to contend for the top spot and one of these two Mechwarriors tonight will be among them!"
Carlos moved his Shadow Hawk onto its starting position, releasing his foot pedal to bring the 'mech to a halt. Far across the arena, nearly one kilometer away, stood an unusual sight: a gleaming silver Ursus.
"Ladies and gentlemen, may I introduce our first contender tonight!" exclaimed the announcer. "In the south gate we welcome Michael Prichel, a longtime warrior who will stop at nothing to claim the trophy! He's bringing a real treat for the eyes: an Ursus, a powerful fusion of Clan and Spheroid technology. Where the obtained this treasure, no one knows, but our other contender is going to have a real fight on his hands!"
Squinting at his HUD's readouts, Carlos made a quick mental summary of what he was fighting. The Ursus carried a hefty ER large laser and a pair of ER medium lasers on its right arm, while the torso carried two medium pulse lasers. The left shoulder bore an LRM 10 launcher and the right torso carried an SRM 6 launcher. That guy's set up for good long-range pounding, but he has nasty short-range defenses as well, Carlos analyzed. There's going to be no margin for error. I have to play this right or bust!
"Our other contender tonight is none other than Carlos Vargas, ready to prove that being wealthy is no reason to be a slouch!" continued the announcer. "Carlos aims to make his father proud tonight so Michael had better watch his back tonight! Now, everything is set. Let the match... begin!"
At once, Carlos stomped hard on his 'mech's pedals, wrenching his joysticks to the side. He felt himself get thrown around as his Shadow Hawk broke into a run to the left, scampering up a tall dune. Tons of sand were kicked up by his 'mech's rapidly stomping feet, but Carlos focused only on his enemy. He tightened his hands on his joysticks, slipping his crosshairs onto the Ursus as the enemy 'mech ran toward the arena's center.
Squeezing his joystick's trigger, Carlos felt his Shadow Hawk recoil from the fifteen LRM's that roared out of its right shoulder. Guided by an Artemis IV system, the missiles curved sharply toward their moving target like a swarm of angry bees. However, the bulky Ursus snapped its right arm up and let loose a vivid red laser from its main gun. Carlos winced as the ER large laser burned into his Shadow Hawk's right torso, and globs of melted armor spilled onto the dunes, sizzling on the sand.
Then, the Ursus quickly backed up and scooted to the side, putting a small dune between it and the incoming LRM's. Carlos muttered a curse as most of the LRM's crashed into the dune, peppering the terrain with a string of explosions. Four of the missiles did hit home, pounding into the Ursus' right shoulder and breaking off flakes of armor. Shrugging off the minimal damage, the Ursus retreated into the terrain, keeping out of sight.
"Not so fast, pal," Carlos growled, firing up his jump jets. He felt himself getting shoved into his seat by G-forces as his 'mech's jet thrusters fired up, vaulting the 'mech higher and higher into the air. The sandy terrain fell away below the Shadow Hawk's feet, and Carlos resisted a laugh as he easily spotted the Ursus hiding in cover. Carlos squeezed another trigger, and a blast of Ultra Autocannon 5 shells flashed through the air. The Ursus, far below, shuddered as the ballistics tore into its center torso.
Pressing his advantage, Carlos prepared to fire his LRM 15 again, but another red laser beamed up from the Ursus, and Carlos winced as his HUD reported a lot of armor lost from the Shadow Hawk's right leg. Carlos' gut squirmed as his Shadow Hawk wobbled from the awkward shift of mass balance, and he knew that he needed to get down fast. Hands flying across the controls, Carlos quickly eased his Shadow Hawk back down toward the waiting dunes, praying that he didn't take another large laser shot in the process.
This Michael guy is a great shot. I have to minimize the time where he can see me. Hit and run should do it, Carlos told himself. He clenched his jaw as his Shadow Hawk slammed its feet back onto the ground, the whole 'mech shuddering from the impact. Acting fast, Carlos scampered across the dunes, watching as the Ursus popped back into the open. Another LRM 15 flight streaked out of the Shadow Hawk's shoulder launcher, but this time the Ursus responded in kind, its LRM 10 launcher spitting out a cluster of rockets.
Pulling back on his joysticks, Carlos backed up toward a shallow valley between two dunes, hoping to block the ten incoming LRM's on a dune since his opponent had no advanced guidance tech. Meanwhile, his own fifteen LRM's all exploded against the brawny Ursus, causing the Clan-Spheroid 'mech to recoil as though punched. From the explosion came two ER medium lasers, both of which raked Carlos' Shadow Hawk on its torso.
Cursing under his breath, Carlos slipped into the dune's cover, and the Ursus' ten LRM's blasted off the top of the dune, entirely missing the Shadow Hawk. Popping back out of cover, Carlos fired up his UAC 5, and he felt satisfaction as the rounds tore into the Ursus' missile-damaged torso, breaking off chunks of charred armor.
Then the Ursus slipped to the side, its ER large laser stabbing through the air again. This time, the deadly beam slashed into Carlos' LRM 15 launcher.
"Critical hit!" warned the HUD's automated voice as red lights flashed on the screens. Carlos gritted his teeth, pulling hard on his joysticks to keep his 'mech balanced. His right shoulder's LRM 15 launcher exploded from the laser's molten touch, and the internal ammo explosion was vented just in time by the CASE Carlos had installed. Still, the entire right side of his 'mech creaked and groaned, already badly damaged by earlier attacks. Breathing hard and trying to ignore the warning lights, Carlos snapped his crosshairs onto the Ursus and opened fire. His Ultra Autocannon 5 barked loudly, but its rounds hissed through empty air, missing the Ursus' left shoulder.
Racing in a zig-zag pattern toward the Ursus, Carlos mashed his trigger again, firing another UAC 5 volley. This time, his shells slashed into the Ursus' wounded left torso, creating a shower of sparks at the point of contact. The Ursus reeled from the blow, but then it recovered and fired its guns. Two ER medium laser beams sliced through the air, but Carlos adjusted his course at the last second, letting the beams miss him entirely. His UAC 5 hammered the Ursus yet again, chipping off armor from its right torso.
Wait, Carlos realized. I'm missing a lot of my firepower so I have to focus. The Ursus is missing the most armor on its left torso. That's my only chance and I've got to hurry. I can't take much more from that ER large laser!
Reaching 300 meters' distance from the Ursus, Carlos noted that the enemy 'mech would now use its SRM's instead of LRM's, and that was indeed what happened. Six missiles roared from the Ursus' torso, and the missiles blasted into the left shoulder of Carlos' Shadow Hawk. The Shadow Hawk staggered to the right from the kinetic force, and Carlos realized with dread that he was vulnerable. Luckily, the Ursus kept its ER large laser barrel pointed away.
"He's overheated!" Carlos muttered, then grinned wolfishly. He stood his ground, raising both of his Shadow Hawk's arms and letting loose. His ER medium lasers stabbed into the Ursus' wounded left torso, melting away what little armor remained there. The Shadow Hawk trembled as its UAC 5 fired again, but it was worth it: the shells tore into the Ursus' torso near the waist, and smoke poured from the attack point.
Then, the Ursus spat out a stream of segmented laser bolts from its torso, and Carlos growled as the medium pulse lasers peppered his Shadow Hawk from head to toe, sizzling away armor all over the place. Another warning light blared on Carlos' HUD as a heat sink in the right torso was breached, then another heat sink was breached a few seconds after the first. An SRM volley smashed into the Shadow Hawk's upper torso, but Carlos still stood his ground, lost in his enraged thoughts and a swarm of warning lights and sirens. I'm not going down, he thought, feeling oddly detached as he gripped his joysticks tightly. Keep focus, fire, survive, win. He lit up his ER medium lasers again, and one missed entirely, stabbing into a dune's sandy ripples. The other one pierced the Ursus' wounded left torso, and a small explosion flared out from the 'mech's wound.
Staggering back with smoke leaking from its torso, the Ursus raised its right arm and unleashed its fearsome ER large laser yet again. Carlos cried out as his Shadow Hawk's right arm took the blow at the shoulder, and the myomer muscles boiled away in an instant. The titanium bones melted and snapped a second later, causing the entire limb to break off in a shower of sparks and metal shards. The limp arm fell to the dunes, rolling down a slope in a puff of sand.
No. Not yet, Carlos thought hazily, using both his joysticks and brain's signals to fight his 'mech's swaying. Gasping for breath, and with sweat soaking his skin, Carlos settled his crosshairs onto the Ursus' torso and let loose with is Ultra Autocannon 5 and laser. The Ursus, not expecting such defiance, reeled back from the assault. Another explosion shook its torso, then another and another in an accelerating string of detonations.
Carlos stared in apprehension as his enemy stumbled backwards, but then a final, bigger explosion burst through the Ursus' torso, cracking the 'mech's torso in half. An ejection pod streaked out of the ruined 'mech's head, and the pieces of the Ursus collapsed onto the dunes, fire dancing in the charred metal scraps.
"And we have a winner! Carlos Vargas continues his march toward the champion spot!" the announcer shouted excitedly. "Michael fought well, but not even the engineering of the Ghost Bears could save him this time! I do wonder how he convinced the Ghost Bears to give him an Ursus, unless he acquired it from battlefield salvage... but that is a mystery for another time. Give a round for tonight's winner!"
Carlos gasped for breath as he waved his Shadow Hawk's left arm, feeling giddy excitement bubble up in his chest. There you go, Cassie. I won't let you down!
*o*o*o*o*
Private office, family mansion, Vargas Estate, Korla,
Lyran Alliance,
August 23, 3075
"General Abby? I trust that you have a good reason to enter my office this early in the morning?"
Alfonso Vargas breathed deep through his nose as he leaned forward in his swivel chair, resting his chin on his left hand and his elbow on his desk. He narrowed his eyes slightly as his ex-Wolf Clan general marched briskly into the office, her red beret slightly crooked in her haste.
Abby stood ramrod straight four feet before Alfonso's desk. "Mr. Vargas, I will make my case clear: I protest the use of armed force against civilians in our conquest of Korla. Case in point, the brutality in Bhujorba City."
Oh, so it's this, Alfonso realized. He sighed and sat back in his chair, the leather padding creaking as he moved. His dark gray suit felt a little tight. "Listen, General. I do not like it either, but if I am too... forgiving with my newly-acquired subjects, they will slip out of my grip! I cannot afford to lose anything I have gained at this point. Of course, the sooner the Bhujorba rebels settle down, the better. I am making every effort to squash that rebellion as soon as possible, even if the process is bloody."
"This is not honor," Abby hissed. "This is bullying! And what is more, I am still bothered that you take so many military actions without my counsel. I thought that I was the military voice of the Vargas Estate. That was a term of our partnership."
"Be careful with your tone," Alfonso growled, heaving himself out of his chair and walking toward a mahogany bookshelf. "You can be replaced, you know. Not easily, but you can be. I expect a better tone out of you."
Abby swallowed. "I meant no disrespect."
"Good." Alfonso reached out and removed a book from the shelf, a volume of moderate length but thin pages. He flicked through the pages, not really reading them. "Do you see this, General? It is The Manifest of Prospecting, authored by Juan Vargas, copyrighted 2879. He wrote this when he began the successful mining of Korla, and it has inspired countless other prospectors across the Inner Sphere, providing material wealth to the Successor States during the Succession Wars. In it, he speaks of the need for a firm hand, for a hard stance now brings both discipline and loyalty later. He was never wrong. I merely follow his footsteps."
Abby gave the book a glance. "You believe that your current course of action will allow you to find your destiny like Juan Vargas did?"
"His advice has never failed anyone," Alfonso boasted, tossing the took to Abby. She caught it, opening to a random page in chapter 9: Knowing When to Move On.
"This seems a most enlightening book," Abby commented. "Perhaps I could learn much from it. I could study this during my off-hours."
A relaxed smile crossed Alfonso's face. "Wonderful." He clapped his hands together and sank back into his swivel chair. "Now, do you remember our plan to gain another ally? I believe we should do so sooner than later."
"Do you mean the Klein Federation?" Abby asked, referring to a neighboring nation populated by ethnic minority Germans.
"Right," Alfonso nodded. "My intelligence networks believe that the Alvarez brothers may scheme to bring the Federation to their side. We must beat them to the punch!"
"I see where this is going," Abby added. "Recruit the Federation with promises of wealth and the benefits of a united Korla, plus military protection against the nations that oppose us."
"Exactly right. I wish to send a delegation to speak with the Klein family as soon as possible. We should arrange a negotiation party soon."
"And neutralize any similar party that the Alvarez brothers might send," Abby figured. "We cannot afford to have too many enemies."
Alfonso pursed his lips. "Very much so. You are dismissed, Abby. Find success on the battlefield."
"Yes, Mr. Vargas." Abby turned on her heel and swung open the office doors, gently closing the doors again behind her. Around her stood four of her Trinary's Mechwarriors, all waiting for her verdict.
"Alfonso is going to recruit the Klein Federation to his side," Abby told the four men. "But he fails to see the truth about what he is doing. He is going to drive more people away from him than toward him with his lack of honor! I will correct this." She took a deep breath. "I am going to formulate a plan and call it Operation Phantom, and when I give the word, it will go into effect. That may be weeks or months from now, but it will happen. Spread the word to the rest of the Trinary."
The four men saluted. "Aff, Star Colonel."
Making a self-satisfied smile, Abby handed Alfonso's book to one of her men. "Go and throw this away for me. I do not need this trash. I will just tell Alfonso later that I lost it."