The World Egg 02
New Avalon
Crucis March
Federated Suns
17 March 3025
Ardan Sortek normally by this time would be considering resigning from the Davion Heavy Guards into command of a more deployable frontline force. Knowing about Liao's inbound perfidy, he still wanted to move his command towards the Capellan March, but that was Duke Hasek-Davion's territory. He was a sword, he supposed – and Hanse was a dagger – and it helped them none for him to be in disgust at the self-serving politics of court then only to move towards a region that needed political as much as military finesse. He no longer had the excuse of randomly flailing around trying to escape from politics would help things.
Michael Hasek-Davion was extremely popular in the Capellan March as the stalwart defender against House Liao, and Hanse Davion a far removed ruler more concerned with the closer Draconis March. Were it not for Duke Hasek-Davion, the Capellan March would get the dregs of support from the AFFS. The notion that he might be conspiring with Maximilian Liao for grand treason was unthinkable. Therefore, any orders that came from Hasek-Davion's hands had to be carefully viewed for what was beneath the underneath. Ardan's skull already ached well in advance trying to imagine working for someone that actively yet subtly wanted you dead.
But because the Draconis Combine was in truth the much larger threat, the Davion Heavy Guards could not be so easily deployed. Maximilian Liao had been counting on his obvious dissatisfaction with being on New Avalon to trigger the plot to discredit him as delusional in the event of OPERATION DOPPELGANGER.
He and Quintus Allard had been considering doing this anyway – that is, go to the Capellan border and fight, not to allow Hanse to be replaced - because otherwise Michael Hasek-Davion would have free reign over the deployment and spin any losses as a lack of support from New Avalon.
Once more, Ardan wondered- why can't people who have all the power and privilege just be content? What is more that they need that they would entertain treason and murder and kinslaying just to be able to wear the crown? Does Michael really think he could do a better job than Hanse, after betraying the people of the Federated Suns to its ancestral enemies? He considered the Capellan March his private fief, insulted at New Avalon looking like they would take it away from him, but then send them to die against their most hated enemies?
What could make all this waste worth it?
Hanse being replaced and interrogated was no longer an option due to the extremely sensitive information he now possessed regarding the possible return of the SLDF.
The Eridani Light Horse's Wandering Horse was of no help, they had already given their warning and Davion intelligence could not be so incompetent to fail to follow through. Only Hanse Davion could decide this, the ELH had no business butting in any further without overstepping their boundaries as retainers.
Ardan supposed that they were more concerned with House Kurita and Wolf's Dragoons. That was fine. That was part of the reason he had been drilling his regiment of the Royal Guards in formations that imitated the Dragoons.
In a conversation with Ren Felsner, the actual Field Marshal in command over the entire Davion Royal Brigade of Guards and known for his unorthodox strategies, it was suggested that part of the reason that the Dragoons get so far is that they are a Dragoons regiment with a heavy concentration of force. They break their opponent's will to fight sooner than the weight of numbers could matter.
When directly asked by Sortek what he felt about other mercenaries like the Eridani Light Horse, Felsner admitted that he didn't see much to admire about mercenaries in general, though he supposed that the difference was that an old-model RCT like theirs - that mixed combined arms within a regiment instead of separate mech, armor, infantry and air regiments - could move and be deployed faster. If you only had a regiment in situ to work with, then they were of course more flexible.
But they did nothing all that new. The SLDF was good, but one had to remember that the Star League came about as an alternative to the Age of War before it – the Federated Suns too had been fighting for almost a thousand years by now. There was nothing inherently special about SLDF doctrine, it was their wealth of resources and the decisiveness by which they applied it that mattered.
The Dragoons were good, but throw an entire RCT at them, he still put his faith in the Davion Guards. The Eridani Light Horse? They were impressive mainly in how they could do so much with so little.
"In a straight fight, I wouldn't hesitate to match a good Davion regiment against anyone," Felsner finished.
That was not as comforting to Sortek as he had hoped.
Then rumor came down that the Eridani Light Horse had beaten the entire 2nd Galedon Regulars and the entire Wolf's Dragoons Epsilon regiment with minimal losses and that was even more disturbing. That was mind-boggling levels of improvement compared to their mauling on Hoff when they first matched against the Dragoons. He would not so candidly imagine even the Heavy Guards to get through without sustaining appreciable losses. Was there something that the AFFS could use? The ELH had already given up so much, why should they be expected to share even more of their doctrine?
Yet if they didn't in order to keep their advantages, was not that a hint that they expected they might have to turn against their patrons in the future?
Then he got personally got word from Hanse that Nathan Armstrong had requested another audience.
While not as giddy as Hanse, he wondered what the SLDF was up to today.
"You beautiful person! You bunch of magnificent ponies!" Hanse bellowed as Nathan Armstrong entered the room. "I heard what you did! How I wish I could hear Takashi Kurita howl!"
Armstrong nodded gracefully and inserted a holotape into the waiting projector. "Thank you. But it was not just us, it was in cooperation with the 4th Deneb and our 21st Striker Regiment. We can't do that too often."
"Why not?"
The holo showed a model of the Scout II JumpShip paired with two Dictator-class spheroid DropShips. "Because our jumpships look too much like penises as it is."
"But… all jumpships already all look like penises," Ardan mumbled, then slapped his face as he realized what he was saying. Objectively true, and yet…
Hanse chortled. Ah, how they did not disappoint. The ELH's non-sequitur ways of avoiding answering a question about their real capabilities had an almost comedic timing. Did they practice this?
The First Prince of the Federated Suns lounged back on his chair, years of stress melting off his face. "So, you mentioned you wanted something? Removing two regiments from House Kurita is a significant contribution, they only have around eighty of them."
Ardan wondered if Hanse was trying to downplay it to remind the ELH to maintain a humble big picture mindset, or if it really was that significant. Like a leaky dam, the collapse always starts with something small and untreated.
Armstrong nodded, apparently not offended at all. "That is why I am here to ask about how we… or you… are doing with those Scout II jumpship plans. We also want to buy up as many DroST hulls we can get."
"Drost? The DropShip-Tank?" Ardan echoed. "Aren't they obsolete?" The DroST was a line of vehicles that were a precursor to modern dedicated military DropShips. They were capable of landing and taking off vertically due to large fusion thrusters on pivoting wing assemblies, but those same assemblies also made them more complicated and vulnerable in combat. They were now mainly produced as civilian transports instead of hauling tanks and infantry as the SLDF originally intended. "I suppose they are six thousand tons compared to a Leopard, if you ever need to haul something with an aerodyne."
He glanced towards the image on the holo, and his eyes widened. "Wait, do you mean to turn them into Assault DropShips too?" That was the sort of extensive rebuild that takes shipyards years to accomplish! It would often be faster to purpose-build something based on a more modern hull, like Avenger or the Achilles; the latter which at 4500 tons and a safe thrust of 4 gravities was the closest thing to a WarShip that Inner Sphere still possessed.
"Done," said Hanse. "But I have a feeling this isn't what you came here for. You could just easily posted this on official channels. What do you really want that only my authority as First Prince could give you?"
"Indeed. As you should have already been informed, we are expanding our force first to four regiments, then five. Personnel is an issue. But we cannot just simply start recruiting drives for mercenaries and experienced volunteers again. This will only fill up the needs for the short term, we need a sustainable in-house source of replacement and reinforcement," said Armstrong. "It takes three years to train a Mechwarrior, and so it is best to start as early as possible."
"Mmm. So what are you proposing?"
Armstrong made the holo show the Federated Suns territories, and the large rear region that was mostly undeveloped and undefended. "Two things. First – we heard about the problem with your Vagabond Schools – those repurposed freighters that travel to the Outback where the educational facilities and standards are so poor that it is more worthwhile to pack up a region's 12-to-13 year old youths to a JumpShip and study there for nine months of intensive education. The problem is that they are so old that these JumpShips are so old that they can't even be used for freighter duties, and they are prone to deadly accidents. And that you only have ten of them to serve scores, if not hundreds of worlds."
"Yes. If the Federated Suns were a military dictatorship, an uneducated citizenry would be beneficial. But we are just starved to address the needs of the Ministry of Education. You are right to presume that this is a JumpShip capacity problem – we can only do so much to spread around our limited number of teachers, and without enough jumpships educational and employment opportunities of even the most promising youths left undiscovered and limited to their backwater of a world." Hanse rubbed at his nose. "Are you proposing we start filtering new Scout IIs first into the Vagabond schools? I agree that they have a bigger, more comfortable grav deck and they seem built to serve long-duration independent cruises. We haven't even started trying to remake Merchants into Scout II lines though."
"The first and second requests I have are related to this issue. This is actually suggested by my wife, who is the head of our civilian division. If the Eridani Light Horse are no longer content to hide our light under a bushel, then it stands to reason that we ought to meaningfully help make the Inner Sphere better, not just slowing its bleeding out by fighting and killing. Be like vitamins instead of just antibodies. Therefore Eridani Light Horse would like to contribute JumpShips to this endeavor. You just supply the DropShips and the teachers."
"Wait. Contribute?" Ardan held up his hand. "Where are you even getting those ships? Do you mean… it's done?! You have been reinforced?!"
Armstrong clapped his palms together and bowed. "Greetings and salutations from the Declan Blacksite. It is live. If you send anyone to snoop over there, they will die. Thank you for your generous cooperation, my lord Davion."
"Heh. Who actually is the one that pays in this relationship? But if you're willing to do this, obviously there is a string attached. Out with it, man!" Hanse gestured snappily.
Armstrong shrugged helplessly. "Well you how the Eridani Light Horse's reverence for the Star League and styling ourselves as its legitimate remnants can be called costume play or even cult-like by some-"
"Hah. Are you supposed to just say that?" Hanse snorted with amusement.
Armstrong continued "We would like to start recruiting efforts under the banner of the Star League and with all the rights normally enjoyed by the SLDF. Namely, that each ELH JumpShip or installation counts as independent territory and consulate, and that once people sign up to the Eridani Light Horse they surrender ties to their former nation and citizenship and accept the authority of the SLDF in primacy over their lives and livelihood above all else for the duration of their enlistment."
Hanse pointed "Ahaha. Ha. That is big. It is a magnificently huge favor you are asking compared to just some ships. You know I cannot simply cast aside citizenship of the people of the Federated Sons. It would be tantamount to having a potentially hostile nation inside my borders." It was a testament to just how much Hanse was delighted by the Light Horse's actions that he did not take it as an insult.
Armstrong shrugged. "More like an enclave. It is not as if this is new. This was how the SLDF and the Star League operated before."
Hanse jabbed his finger with each point "But the difference is that the Star League is gone and you are not actually the SLDF, and if even so we would need renegotiate the whole thing instead of proceeding from expired agreements with a dead polity, and most importantly - you are still under the employment of the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns."
Armstrong nodded. "Yes. Which is why we would only be recruiting under the name of the Eridani Light Horse and associated support services for now. The primacy of mutually equivalent SLDF law inside these territories, and a process of extradition for what breaks the laws of the Federated Suns. Those who seek political asylum may find a place here. Nothing in force just of yet, but maybe eventually dual citizenship?"
Hanse grinned toothily and leaned his chin on his fists. "Oh? Dual citizenship with *what*, I dare ask."
Armstrong shrugged again. "If I say 'Terran Hegemony'" here he made air quotes "then Comstar would start screaming like lunatics."
"They're not the only ones with a reason to be unnerved at hearing that!"
-.
WDS HAWKEN
Harrow's Sun
Draconis March
07 March 3025
The Dragoon's Epsilon Regiment combined naval force was about halfway to Harrow's Sun II. The captain of the WDS HAWKEN reported to Arthbutnot "Sir, we have drive signatures. Sensors report what may be a Vengeance escorted by two lighter dropships, possibly Avengers or Leopards, coming from the moon named Bane. And from the pirate point – four dropships, possibly Overlord-class. Approach velocity one point five gee, intercept in two days, six hours."
The colonel frowned. After the initial hail by the ELH commander in the system, Charles Winston of the 21st Strikers for the Dragoons to "cease their attack, turn around, and leave" which he had summarily ignored, there had been no communications.
The AFFS had two fighter wings on Deneb, which meant two 20-unit groups, or enough to support being a regimental wing for an RCT and one for the home guard. The Dragoons had brought three wings into this fight.
Unless the ELH brought multiple wings on those Overlords… but then that raises the question – where would the ELH find enough ASFs and pilots in the first place? And four of them?
Only now it was starting to feel strange that the 4th Deneb would willingly relinquish command authority over the defense of their homeworld to newcomers like the ELH. Numbers alone did not mean the absorption of command rights for the smaller force. The Fourth Deneb were also known for assault boarding operations.
Arthbutnot sucked in his breath and growled. Yes that was the most likely outcome. Why allow the enemy to land at all? An Overlord could support many Small Craft and substantial boarding parties. He went over to the communications officer and bid him to open a regimental comms channel. They only had so much time to prepare, but the ELH 21st and the 4th Deneb were vastly underestimating them if they chose to rely on these tricks.
-.
WDS HAWKEN
09 March 3025
Red battle lights and alarms rang through the bridge. The communications officer announced "All hands to battle stations. Aerospace Fighters launching. All hands prepare for zero-g maneuvers."
The engines of the Overlord suddenly cut off, and the ship began to coast along on its stored momentum. Lacking the acceleration provided by the constant thrust, now everything suddenly became weightless even as the craft maintained significant forward velocity.
AeroSpace Fighters, mainly Stukas, released from the Hawken's bays. More of the Dragoon's fighters began launching as well from their fighter-carrier, while the Union DropShips moved to the shadow of the pair of Overlords.
Up ahead, the battle map showed the Deneb Vengeance dropship releasing its own cloud of fighters, while from the Overlords four fighters each emerged to escort their mothership. Hm. Normally an Overlord carried six.
Buckled into his seat and wearing a bulky and space suit, Arthbutnot could only scowl. All of the naval command staff were wearing space suits, while the rest of Able Battalion would only sit blindly and helplessly in their crash couches or belted into their beds while the ship fought a space battle. He could contribute nothing to this fight as either a commander or a warrior.
The combat map showed two waves of fightercraft about to meet each other.
"Enemy contact in five, four, three, two – fighters engaged."
The neat lines immediately collapsed into a confused tangle of BVR fights. Fighter combat was not a matter of senses, but of fingers on computers shooting at distant and near invisible blips on a screen, and pitting the need for evasive maneuvers against being able to hold a lock.
C-beams glittered in the dark in front of Harrow's Sun.
Something scraped against the side of the HAWKEN and it was as if the whole ship screamed.