CHOOSERS OF THE SLAIN
A Battletech Short Story
By Sentinel 28A
AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry it took so long to update. Midterms. Here's a long chapter to compensate.
In this chapter, Louisa learns the ups and downs of command. Mainly downs. I'm hoping that she doesn't come off as a clone of Sheila, but that her inexperience—and the feel of living in the shadow of famous parents—comes through here. And for the techie fans, there's a little order of battle in here for you too.
The objective names (Gina, Brittany, Brianna) are the Diggers sisters from Gold Digger. Had to throw a little homage towards my favorite comic.
REVIEWERS' CORNER:
FraserMage: Actually, I kind of like not knowing what's going on the Jihad. Since this story is from Louisa's point of view, all she knows is what she's heard from rumors. The Wobbies in this story aren't like the Jade Falcons or even the Smoke Jaguars in the Snowbird stories. They're a faceless enemy. (But the help is appreciated. I might call on it when I get up to 'Mech combat.) As far as the Tooth of Ymir goes—one, the Sentinels could be wrong; two, the Wobbies could be disguising their units again, or three, this story might not be canon.
SulliMike: Oh, it gets worse in this chapter.
Rogue: Well, the artillery can still shoot at night…they'd just better have a good forward observer.
PacificUser: I appreciate it, but the last time I "visited" the MechWarrior universe was actually January of this year, when I put the finishing touches on "Snowbird Triumphant." (Don't know if you read that yet.) I haven't heard of the reboot, though I hope it doesn't happen. I started playing Battletech when the Clan invasion started, so I have fond memories of that time. While I thought the Jihad was kind of stretching things a bit (the Wobbies fielding 20-30 divisions all of a sudden—and nobody noticed? Everyone gives up their 'Mechs on Devlin Stone's say-so?), I was willing to go with it. I don't intend to send my characters back to the 4th Succession War. That story has been told. It sounds to me that the dinosaur effect is still around in Battletech (i.e. "We don't want anything new! The Clans ruined it!") But that's just me. (And the music corner is back!)
ACDoubleEdge: Bloody is right! This chapter might not appeal, but the next few will…
MUSIC CORNER: Sorry, PacUser, couldn't fit in Basil Poledouris. However, I think "Crockett's Theme" from the Miami Vice soundtrack will work, as will "Optimus" from the Transformers soundtrack. (In the last chapter, though, I could definitely see "Approach to Shadizaar" from Conan the Destroyer.)
Snowbirds Assembly Area, Belgrade
Virentofta, Pesht Military District, Draconis Combine
11 September 3070
Louisa walked to the part of the assembly area where her ersatz company was supposed to be. The drizzle had increased to a light rain—not enough to soak her, just enough to annoy. Her boots and the bottom of her pants legs were now hopelessly muddy, but so was everyone else's.
It occurred to her that she didn't even know what she was commanding. Snowbirds Alpha Company had four lances, like the other Sentinels companies, instead of the normal three, but Kahvi had mentioned that she was keeping what was left of Alpha Fire, the artillery lance, back behind the lines. That made sense, since the artillery 'Mechs weren't able to do much when their Arrow IVs were out of ammunition. That would leave her with three lances—Alpha Command, Alpha Assault, and her own Alpha Light. She got under a tree and opened the packet. On top was a printed sheet with her order of battle:
TASK FORCE VALKYRIE
Command Lance (Green)
Lance Commander (brevet Major) Louisa Arla-Vlata, Nightsky
MechWarrior Robert Habersohn, Black Hawk (Nova)
MechWarrior Yurika Misumaru, Valkyrie
MechWarrior Hitomi Dunn, Spider
Assault Lance (Wolf)
Lance Commander Priss Musashiya, Awesome
MechWarrior Faye Mido, Mauler
MechWarrior Kagome Sentinel, Masakari (Warhawk)
MechWarrior Edward Redrock, Flashman
Elemental Hunter (Bunny)
Lieutenant Roland Pryce, Demolisher MBT
Sergeant Trina Smith, Schrek HSV
Sergeant Molly Connell, Peltast HSV
Sergeant Ash Weltjens, Ontos HSV
Rifles (Red)
Lieutenant Carl Fencer, Lynx LHAPC
Sergeant Granville Shade, Lynx LHAPC
Sergeant Pollyanna Eastwood, Lynx LHAPC
Sergeant Ray Derrenbacker, Lynx LHAPC
Engineers (Shovel)
Sergeant William Dore, 4 Aardvark CEV
Louisa's heart had sank long before this, but she figured it was now somewhere in her boots. While her own lance was intact, the assault lance was a mix of MechWarriors she knew from Alpha Command and Alpha Assault. While having the big assaults with her was good—especially the monstrous Clantech Masakari—they were all slower than her slowest 'Mech, Misumaru's Valkyrie. Alpha Light's machines were fast, the better to both scout with and hunt down other scouts.
To make matters worse, she had never commanded tanks. She had nothing against tankers—or "treadheads," as MechWarriors named them—but knew that the ones assigned to Task Force Valkyrie were slow. The Lynxes, on the other hand, were faster than her 'Mechs. She couldn't even guess why a platoon of Aardvark engineering vehicles was being attached, either. Basically, she had a conglomeration of 'Mechs and tanks with differing speeds, different purposes, and MechWarriors and crews who belonged to the same battalion, but almost never worked together. Louisa looked up into the cloudy sky. "Not funny, God."
A cosmic joke or not, she had her orders, and Louisa trudged on, back out into the rain, which was now starting to really come down.
Louisa walked into the tent that held the commanders of her ersatz force. She recognized Roland Pryce, Carl Fencer, William Dore, and especially Priss Musashiya, but she didn't really know any of them. They knew her, though. She didn't like the feeling the room gave off. Great, Louisa groaned silently, they know. There wouldn't be any way to break it to them gently. Either Kahvi had told them in a misplaced effort to make things easier, or Task Force Valkyrie had learned the old-fashioned way, through the rumor mill, the fastest communication known to man.
"We don't have a lot of time, so I'm not going to soft-soap it," Louisa announced. "You all know me—I'm Louisa Arla-Vlata. Commander Falx has put me in command of this task force. I've been brevetted Major."
Musashiya stepped forward. She was the same height as Louisa, rangy and thin, her red hair and blue eyes in direct contrast to her Asian features. Those eyes were bright with exhausted rage. "Why?" she demanded. "Why you?"
"Because I'm the last lance commander who isn't a casualty," Louisa shot back. "I take it then you know what we're supposed to do?"
"Not yet," Fencer spoke up. He was the oldest one there, in his mid-fifties, one of the true "old heads" whose service dated back to before the Clan War. "We were just told to get together." He thumbed behind him. "Everyone else is at dinner. We were told to meet the task force commander here." His tone was neutral.
Louisa's stomach abruptly reminded her that she hadn't eaten in the past twelve hours. It would have to wait. "Okay…" She took a deep breath, aware of everyone's eyes dissecting her every move. "We're supposed to jump off, march across the Vingaard River, and rescue the 63rd Infantry Battalion of the Virentofta Militia, then hold until relieved by the rest of the Snowbirds." The other four exchanged glances; there was no fear there, but there was plenty of concern.
"Who the fuck came up with that brilliant idea?" Musashiya growled.
Easy, Louisa cautioned herself. She's tired. Don't go punching your subordinates in the face. "Commander Falx's, I believe." Louisa sighed. "Look, we don't have time to discuss whether or not it's a good idea. We just have to do it." She ignored Musashiya's look of exasperation, walked forward, withdrew a map from the packet and spread it out on a table. "They're here, south of Toston, on Hill 5423. We're here. We've got to figure out how to get there, and we've got about six hours to figure it out. We're supposed to go at midnight."
"Tonight?" Pryce groaned. "Son of a bitch! We just came off ops last night. My men have barely had any time to eat and do routine maintenance. The Wobbies are all over the damn place. Why do we get all the good shit?"
Fencer laughed. "Because the universe hates you, Roland."
"Fuck you, old man—"
"Knock it off!" Louisa snapped. There was a time and place for good-natured, or not so good-natured ribbing, and this wasn't it. Both men quieted.
Fencer stepped in. "What's the 63rd's strength?"
"Not good. They're down to two reinforced companies, low on ammunition. The Wobbies plan on snapping them up in the morning, then coming after us."
"Poor bastards." Fencer had spent his career transporting infantry, and felt closer to them than the regular tankers or MechWarriors. "What's your plan, Major?"
Louisa hadn't really thought of one, but she grabbed a pen from a pocket. "Well…I figure there's three ways we can do this." She scratched three arrows on the map, labeling from north to south, Gina, Brittany, and Brianna. Brianna was the southernmost, shortest, and most direct route—straight up Highway 90, Virentofta's Main Supply Route, crossing the Vingaard at Three Forks, then angling straight north to Hill 5423. Brittany, the center route, crossed the Highway 286 bridge at Clarkston, from which it was more or less a direct shot west to the objective. Gina was a ford below the Toston Dam, nearly twenty kilometers north of Hill 5423, from which the force could turn south to reach the hill.
Pryce leaned over. "Highway 90 is the only way—Brianna, I guess. 286 is too narrow. That's the way we had to retreat yesterday, and we got all shot up."
"Roland's right," Musashiya added. "We're going to take Brianna. We know that ground well, and the bridges there are wide and reinforced for 'Mechs."
"It's also the most obvious avenue of approach," Louisa countered. "That's where the Snowbirds will make their main push tomorrow, and the Wobbies will have it covered." She tapped Route Brittany. "This takes us right there and we can approach it without being seen, down these coulees."
"Except, of course, by the Wobbies who are besieging Hill 5423 as soon as we reach Clarkston, assuming they haven't put a listening post in the village," Musashiya returned, voice full of sarcasm. "They'll see us coming, and they'll chop us up going across the river, or in the hills just beyond it. We don't even know if that bridge is even still there. If I were the Wobbies, I'd blow that bridge to keep us from using it."
"Last report said the bridge was still up," Louisa replied.
"And how old is that report?"
"Six hours," Louisa admitted, a bit sheepishly.
Musashiya spread her hands in a there-you-are gesture. "Doesn't matter. We'd never even make it across the river."
"All right, fine," Louisa said. "What about Gina?"
"It's a ford. The Vingaard's too wide for 'Mechs to jump—for my 'Mechs, anyway—and it's swollen because of the rain, which means the current's going to be too strong. Anyhow, the tanks can't ford it. Anyone who can read a map can see that it's Highway 90—Brianna-or nothing." She leaned in towards the map. "Now, here's how we'll approach Three Forks. We can use our skirmish line as cover, and…" Her voice trailed off as she felt Louisa glaring at her. "What? Did you want to add something?"
Louisa barely kept her anger under control. "Yes, I would, Brevet Lance Commander Musashiya." With her head, Louisa indicated the door to the tent. Musashiya sighed, pushed off from the table, and followed her out into the rain. They walked a few paces out of earshot, then Musashiya crossed her arms over her breasts. "What can I do for you, Brevet Major?" Musashiya challenged, using the same emphasis as Louisa had.
Louisa turned around. "You can tell me what the hell you're thinking, Priss." She stabbed a finger at the tent. "If you pulled that kind of insubordination with any other commander, you'd be out of a job. If you tried it with Senefa Malthus, you'd be coughing up your teeth. What is your malfunction?"
"My malfunction?" Musashiya stepped forward. "My malfunction, Louisa, since we're apparently on first-name basis now, is that I think you're a jumped-up little shit who's been given this command because your mother happens to be Sheila the Almighty Snowbird Arla-Vlata, and we all know Kahvi and her—and you—are tight." She held up two fingers pressed together.
"I've been with this battalion for five years, and before that I served with the 5th Sword of Light for ten years. I've been around. Now I wouldn't want anything to happen to Alice Atikokan, much less Allison Gayheart, but gods dammit, I've waited for my turn at command. Then you come along, Louisa, Commander's Daughter, and I'm just supposed to swallow my pride and my years of service, say 'yes ma'am' and kowtow to a 25 year old fucking kid."
Louisa bit back what she was going to say, which was for Musashiya to pack her bags, report to Commander Falx, and get the hell out of her sight. Musashiya had a point. She was wrong, granted—or was she? Louisa wondered if she had been indeed given this command because of her parentage. She didn't think her mother or father were prone to nepotism, though Kahvi might be. "I've been a lance commander for the past three years, Priss. I'm not a kid."
"Yeah. A lance commander because who your mom is. Don't think that didn't rankle Dick Davis, either. He wasn't happy." She raised her chin in defiance. "Way I see it, Louisa, you can either let me run this task force—which, by the way, I've been working with for the past two days; it wasn't formed so Louisa Arla-Vlata could get her chance at company commander—or you can relieve my ass and send me to Kahvi."
"You done?" Louisa growled.
"Yes."
"Good. Now allow me." Louisa took a step forward, so that she was no more than five centimeters from Musashiya's face. "First of all, don't you ever fucking tell me about what Richard Davis thought. He was under my command on Mayetta, not yours, and you didn't have to watch him die. He was my friend—yes, he resented me taking command at first, but I did something you so far haven't graced me with. I listened to him. He taught me what I know today. And he died under my command. You ever say something like that to me again, and I swear I will put you in the ground.
"Second: I earned my lance command in training. You should know that. The Snowbirds didn't choose me because I was Sheila Arla-Vlata and Max Canis-Vlata's daughter. They chose me because I fucking earned it, same as you did. But that doesn't matter, Priss, because as you should have learned in the Sword of Light, you don't question how your commanding officers got their ranks; all you need to know is that they are in command.
"And that is what I am, Priss Musashiya. I am in command here. I don't like it, I didn't ask for it, and believe you me, I tried to talk Kahvi out of it. But she's right—I'm the senior surviving lance commander, by the grace of God and the Sentinels RCAT, which puts me in command of this task force. I'm going to ask your advice, and I'm going to need your advice, but I will be damned before I let you bully me. If the position was reversed, you wouldn't take that shit and you know it.
"Third: my mother doesn't even know I'm in command of this unit. I was offplanet until this morning. And trust me, life has not been superb being the Commander's Daughter. It sucks, Priss. Everyone expects me to be just like her. Well, I'm not. She formed the Snowbirds, led it all around the Inner Sphere, beat the shit out of the Clans, rebuilt the regiment after Sudeten, and then beat the shit out of everyone else. Now you think it's easy, let's exchange nametapes, and you can deal with that constant sort of pressure. You'd be welcome to it."
Louisa backed off a pace. "Now, the way I see it, we have three options: one, you can relieve your own ass, pack your shit, and go moan to Kahvi about your wounded pride. Two, we can work together and save the lives of two hundred good men and women who are buying us this time to bitch at each other with their blood."
"What's the third option?"
Louisa kicked at the mud. "We can draw a Circle of Equals like Senefa's bunch does, and beat hell out of each other, and whoever drags the other out of the circle is in command."
Musashiya looked at the mud, then back at Louisa, who could tell she was debating her options. A chill went down Louisa's back at what would happen if the other woman chose option three; she wasn't up to a fistfight. Despite her mother and grandmother's best attempts, Louisa wasn't much of a hand-to-hand fighter, whereas Musashiya, it was rumored, liked to compete in mixed martial arts. Of course, a Circle of Equals, while accepted in the expatriate Clan Sentinel, would not go over well with Kahvi Falx or Sheila Arla-Vlata. For either Musashiya or Louisa.
Finally, and to Louisa's surprise, Musashiya chuckled and smiled ruefully. "Well. You put me in a trick, Louisa. I can either go to Kahvi and cry on her shoulder about how a kid kicked me out of my own company, or I can fight you in the mud. The last person to fight an Arla-Vlata in the mud didn't come out so great, as I recall."
"Well, she ended up getting her own battalion in the end," Louisa joked.
"Yeah, but I think I'd either get my ass kicked—by a kid—or worse, I'd win, get my ass kicked by half the battalion and possibly the regimental commander, and then get court-martialed. I've been through one of those already." Louisa saw a brief flash of pain on Musashiya's face, and wondered what offense she had committed to get kicked out of the elite Sword of Light. Usually Kuritans who suffered that dishonor killed themselves. "So you see, it's a no-win situation."
"Unless you work with me."
"Unless I work with you." Musashiya sighed. "So. I still think Brittany won't work."
It took a moment for Louisa to realize what she was saying. "All right. Why Brianna, then? I don't like that route."
"Let's not make the decision out here." Musashiya motioned towards the tent and fell in step with Louisa. "Shit," she suddenly said.
"What?"
"I was out of line back there. About Davis, I mean. You're right. I'm sorry." She paused. "Probably shouldn't have said that other stuff, either." She stuck out a hand. "We good?"
Louisa wondered if Musashiya was genuinely sorry, or feared being reported for insubordination. Differences aside, Louisa still outranked her. She supposed it didn't matter. They were not friends, but they could be allies, and that was good enough. Louisa shook the proferred hand. "We're good."
They walked into the tent. The three men waiting there were obviously relieved. As the two women approached, Fencer cleared his throat. "I took the liberty of looking at our combat power." He tapped the printout. "Eight 'Mechs, four heavy tanks, my four hover APCs, and four combat engineer vehicles. Is that it?"
"I'm afraid so," Louisa answered.
Fencer looked directly at her; she noticed he didn't look at Musashiya like the others did. The old veteran had clearly figured out who was now firmly in charge. "We need some infantry, Major. I understand that my Lynxes are going to be there mainly to load supplies for the 63rd Battalion, but a platoon of SLI would go a long way towards helping us hold that hill."
Louisa suddenly remembered David Harris. "I might could pry some loose. Let's get this thing planned—"
"Louisa!" The shout startled them all. Louisa whirled around just in time to get hit and nearly fall as about 120 pounds of MechWarrior hugged her and threatened to squeeze the breath from her.
"What the—Yurika?" Louisa gasped out.
"Louisa! Louisa! Louisa!" Yurika Misumaru jumped up and down, her long black hair flying as she hugged her roommate and best friend. "About time you got back! I thought maybe the Wobbies got you on Richmond or the way in or something! I heard about the ambush on the road at Saddle Peak Pass—scared the crap out of me when I heard it was Manei Domini! There's this guy talking about you and how awesome you are; I think his name is Harris! He's kinda cute, you know—you could probably get him to take you out and stuff, and there's this new Japanese restaurant here in Belgrade that's awesome and…"
Louisa finally managed to pry her off. Yurika Misumaru was a bundle of nervous energy, slept only four hours a day, and occasionally seemed to spend the other twenty dreaming up ways to annoy Louisa Arla-Vlata. Yet they were close friends, and had been ever since they had first met when Louisa took command of Alpha Light. Yurika had no ambition other than to enjoy life to its fullest all the time, even if that meant dragging her friend along on double dates, to dance clubs, and to social occasions that Louisa abhorred; Yurika found Louisa far too sheltered, prudish, and hopelessly boring to leave alone for long. While there were a few people in the Snowbirds who would like to see Misumaru beaten severely about the head and shoulders, most simply found themselves unable to dislike her. Her enthusiasm was infectious.
"Yurika, I'm a little busy here!" Louisa, eyes wide, nodded at the four people around her.
The fact that she had just embarrassed her lance and now company commander mattered not a bit to Misumaru. "Oh yeah, congrats on the promotion! Hi everyone—Mr. Fencer, Mr. Pryce, Miss Priss…" Musashiya visibly forced herself not to do violence to Misumaru for that one. She turned to Dore, grabbed both his hands, and began shaking them vigorously. "I'm Yurika Misumaru, and—"
"Yurika!" Louisa shouted. "This isn't the time. Get lost; I'll talk with you later."
"Oh. Well, here, Commander Falx asked me to give you the latest intel report." She held up a sheaf of paper.
Louisa counted to three, then took the report. "Yurika, go find Harris; I need to talk to him. Not about what you think."
"Right. See you later!" Misumaru literally skipped out of the tent.
Louisa set the intel report down on the map and sighed heavily. "I'm really sorry. MechWarrior Misumaru just is being herself…which is to say like a five year old on a sugar high."
Fencer chuckled. "We all know Yurika, Major. Hard not to."
"She's in your lance? And she listens to you?" Pryce shook his head. "Well, I take it all back, Miss Arla-Vlata. If you can command that, this lot shouldn't give you any trouble."
"Whatever. Let's see what she brought us." Musashiya opened the packet. In it was a reproduction of the map Louisa had, but with markings showing known enemy positions. It didn't look good. According to the Sentinels' intelligence, virtually every river crossing was covered by infantry, tanks, or 'Mechs—though the latter seemed concentrated around north of Hill 5423 at a place called High Peak, and north of Three Forks. Both had a company, but the Sentinels had learned that the Word of Blake was good at hiding their numbers—if there was a company present, there was likely another hidden nearby. There was also the better part of two companies of infantry and tanks just across the river from the Clarkston crossing. "So much for Brittany," Musashiya sighed.
"Possibly, but I can't say I like Brianna much either. We'd be under observation from the moment we jumped off, and it's just too obvious a crossing. We'd be covered on the way to Brittany, like I said…" Louisa caught the look in Musashiya's eyes, and smiled thinly "…but we'd also have to clean out a metric ton of infantry along the way. We don't have that kind of time."
"What about Gina then? The ford? Have we completely written that off?" Pryce asked.
"That's even more narrow, with the river all over the place too." Musashiya countered. "The Lynxes are the only thing that could cross that."
Louisa leaned against the tank's front and bowed her head, trying to think. The bridges at Three Forks—Brianna—were the best, and she could tell Musashiya liked that approach: a full-speed, head-on attack, bulling their way through the opposition, then only a short distance from bridges to the 63rd Battalion.
That said, Louisa still liked Brittany—the crossing at Clarkston. It also provided a short distance to the 63rd, and the WOB would not see them coming until they were at the crossing itself. The problem was, if the map was correct, the Blakists had realized that as well and had the crossing covered.
Gina was the long shot, the end-around. It had the advantage of protection and surprise, mainly because with the Vingaard River swollen, it would be difficult—though not impossible—for 'Mechs to cross. The hovertanks would have no trouble, but the tracked vehicles might as well stay home. And even if they crossed the river, it was another five kilometers of rough terrain before they broke out into open ground, and forty kilometers down Highway 287 to Hill 5423. Any delay would spell doom for the Militia.
Indecision felt like iron in her stomach—which reminded her insistently that she needed to eat something. Maybe I should break for dinner? No, this isn't a business meeting, dammit! People are going to get killed, Louisa. You have to do something.
But I don't know what to do, Louisa answered herself. Shit. Mom and Dad make this look so easy. Mom would come up with some crazy-ass plan, and Dad will either figure out that it'll work or talk Mom out of it. I need my dad, but…She glanced up at Musashiya, who was staring at her, waiting for a decision. Well, she's not my dad, that's for sure. And anyway, Mom and Dad have 20 years of experience almost doing this stuff. Suddenly, the solution—or something resembling it—popped into her head. Of course, experience! Who's the most experienced guy here?
Louisa stretched and resumed standing. "Carl, what do you think?"
Fencer had a goatee that was starting to turn gray, and he brushed it in thought. "I agree with Priss. I think that Brittany is a bad route, but for different reasons." He set the intel map against the first one. "The way the Wobbies operate, I think they would've overrun a battalion of militia by now. They're either taking their time, or they're waiting; see what we send out to relieve the 63rd or even if we send anyone at all. Naturally, they have to hold Three Forks, but they can read a map too, and I honestly think there's an ambush at Clarkston—but on the east bank of the river."
"That doesn't make any sense," Musashiya argued. "That goes against everything ever taught about war. You never let your force be divided by a river."
"True, but the force needn't be large, Priss. Just enough to delay us. The Wobbies can either blow the bridge in our face or lure us across the river and then blow the bridge behind us."
"Well, dammit, we've got to do something!" Pryce exclaimed.
"Also true." He turned to Louisa. "I think we should throw the Wobbies a curve."
"All for it," Louisa answered. "But how?"
"I think we all agree that it would be best to avoid a stand-up fight. We're pressed for time, and we're not really strong enough to take on basically a Blakist combined arms battalion. So we take the least obvious approach." His finger came down on Gina, the Toston ford.
Musashiya shook her head vehemently. "Carl, that won't work! We already discussed that."
Fencer smiled. "Except that we've been forgetting someone. Admittedly, his attempts to blend in with the tent haven't helped." He looked over his shoulder at William Dore. "Sergeant, I don't think you've said anything besides a hello to Major Arla-Vlata."
Dore, who had been leaning against a chair, suddenly realized they were all looking at him. Louisa suddenly realized that she had more or less forgotten he was even there. Dore was young, younger than her, with curly blond hair and rather plain features, though his biceps bulged through his uniform shirt. He wore the green collar tabs of the Sentinel tank crews, but with a tiny wrench embossed in the center of the tab, indicating he was an engineer. "Uh, nobody said anything to me. You're all officers."
Louisa smiled at that. "The hell with that, Sergeant, get over here. You're part of this outfit." Dore ambled over. "I take it you've been at least listening."
"Uh, yes, ma'am."
"Got any suggestions about how to cross the Vingaard?"
"Oh, yes, ma'am. My Aardvarks have assault bridges."
Louisa wanted to bang her head against the tank at her own stupidity and inexperience; the only consolation was that Musashiya and Pryce had the same expression. The Aardvark Combat Engineer Vehicle had everything an engineer unit needed: toolkits, storage space for a squad of engineers, a backhoe to prepare fighting positions for tanks and 'Mechs, a plow to clear minefields and a launcher for rope charges that could blow a lane through mines as well, and a gigantic 185 millimeter demolition gun for clearing obstacles—plus the assault bridge that covered the top of the vehicle.
Musashiya recovered first, with a dirty look at Fencer's smug visage. "What's the width of the Vingaard River at Toston? I've seen that river, and it's not a creek."
"Oh, no, ma'am," Dore answered. "It's normally thirty meters across, thereabouts. With the rains, probably about fifty."
Louisa winced. Her Nightsky would barely clear that in a single jump. "How long are your assault bridges?"
"Thirty meters." Dore was excited now, to the point that he cut off Musashiya. "I can overlap my bridges, Major. It won't be easy, but it doesn't have to be a permanent job or anything. All the bridges have to do is hold long enough to get everyone over. Even if there's some water over the bridge, it's no big deal. Lieutenant Pryce's tanks can handle that, as long as they cross one at a time. Sure, the bridge might sway a bit, but with their width, they'll be stable. No problem with your light 'Mechs either, Major."
"Sure, she can jump the river," Musashiya snapped. "My assaults can't."
Dore waved that away like it was a fly, causing Musashiya to go red. "Anything over 80 tons is not going to be knocked over by the current, ma'am."
Louisa cut off Musashiya's retort. "How long would it take?"
Dore looked at the ceiling, obviously doing some mental calculations, and he began to look worried. "Um…probably about two hours. Though that's a conservative estimate."
"Too long," Pryce said. "God help us if we get hit by artillery."
"But it's not a bad idea. I think we might be onto something here…" Louisa returned to the map. "Sergeant Dore's bridges might take too long to set up, but let's hold onto that as a reserve plan. But he and Carl have given me an idea." She took the grease pencil from her pocket again, and drew a line south from the Toston ford to Clarkston. "Check out the terrain here. It's a bit on the mountainous side, but if we use the hills to screen us, we could be on top of the Clarkston bridge before the Wobbies could even see us. They won't be expecting an attack from due north."
"Yeah, but the Wobbies could observe us from High Peak—" Musashiya argued.
"Priss," Louisa said, trying to keep her voice stern but not belittling, "I think we're worrying too much about what the Wobbies are doing. Let's worry about what we're going to do to them." Her fingers roamed over the map. "Yes, if they're looking to the north from High Peak. In fact, we could even use that to our advantage—we could send Carl's Lynxes across the river and have them demonstrate like we're going for Highway 287. With his speed, he could be back across the river in a jiffy if we need him back. If it turns out that the Wobbies have a blocking position facing north, then we can fall back on Dore's plan. Assuming the Wobbies even see the ford—which I don't think they even can—they'll have to pull forces either out of Clarkston or the siege of the 63rd. Either way, we have them reacting to us, and that's something, anyway."
Musashiya stared at Louisa for a moment, then sighed. "Yeah, you're right. How're we set for artillery support? I know better than to ask for air." She looked at the ceiling of the tent, where rain was drumming steadily.
"We've got plenty of arty. And you're right, no air." Louisa glanced around the group. "Are we agreed then? We take Gina to get to Brittany?" Everyone nodded. "Okay then. Order of march? I propose we go with my Alpha Light out front, Musashiya's assaults second, Pryce's heavy tanks third, the engineers in the middle, with the Lynxes bringing up the rear. Carl, Yurika's getting you an infantry platoon—Sgt. Harris. Do you know him?"
"Yes. He's solid." Fencer tapped the map. "Our route of march takes us down this gulch here—Garden Gulch. It's narrow. We'll have to go in single file."
"I know. I don't see any other way. We'll just have to move fast." Louisa regarded each of them. "We can't stop for anything. Someone goes down or he punches out, he'll just have to take his chances. As soon as we make contact, the Wobbies are going to be screaming. It won't matter if we move fast and take the Clarkston bridge, but if we stop, we're going to get curb-stomped. Understood?" Everyone nodded again. Louisa did the same. "Okay. Let's do this. Prep your lances, get some food, and get ready to move. We'll have one last meeting at 2330 to take care of any problems or answer any more questions."
"Let's go!" Musashiya clapped her hands, the others did the same, and they headed for their platoons. Musashiya gave Louisa a parade-ground salute which was returned with equal crispness, and they exchanged a smile. Louisa had observed the same ritual before, but never when she was giving the orders. It wasn't a bad feeling, not at all.