Mount Asgard, Tharkad
District of Donegal, Lyran Commonwealth
30. June 3027
Captain Birdston, who still was stationed with his unit on Keid, had no chance to verify his feelings had been right, but it was so. It had taken over 2 months for all invited and commanded to Steiners and Kuritas or trusted right hands in cases where travel was not an option, to travel to Tharkad. But now the largest meeting of political and military leaders since the Fall of the Star League was taking place in the Triad and on Mount Asgard, where the military High Command of the LCAF was situated.
In the Audimax holotank of Mount Asgard, several dozen Daimyos, Herzöge (Dukes), Markgrafen (Margraves), Warlords, high ranking Officers, industrial leaders and the Coordinator and the Archon were looking at the projection, while discussing the situation at hand.
At the moment the hologram showed the actual territory of Commonwealth and Combine with the regions surrounding it within two jumps. Edward Regis, Lyran General of the Armies, just wondered a bit how strangely fate could throw the dice. The projection did not only highlight the most important worlds of both realms, as well as worlds to be strongly developed in the near future, but the position of all forces of LCAF and DCMS. Just 20 years earlier both sides would have killed or done anything to get such a complete picture of the other nation. Now they were working on bundle ling their war and internal efforts.
"I think we should let the Marik-Davion corridor be for now." The Archon could be sure to get all attention with this sentence. She zoomed the projection to that part of Space. "First, the stationed units will be substantial in numbers. Second, I think Atreus and New Avalon have planned with the possibility of an invasion attempt by us, not only one by the Liaos.
We should raid them, but not more. General Regis, the Kanrei, the Coordinator and I agree that our goals is far more helped by taking Tamarind with it´s Shipyards and Quentin with it´s Mechfactories, depriving our enemies of vital factories, while strengthening our own base. A second 'wave' will be the taking of Oliver and Mallory´s World. Thermopolis, Stewart, Kesai IV and Ozawa are interesting targets as well. How does it going with the Periphery nations?"
"The Circinus Federation has begun to strike at the Mariks, but the Outworld Alliance dislikes all Spheroids. The Taurians on the other hand are eager to strike at the Davions, but there won´t be much impact. Tortuga will 'operate' against the Suns as well. Canopus and the Illyrians might raid the League, but this is not sure at the moment."
"Just a handful of Systems will be taken for the next decade? Is that not idiotic with our momentary superiority in numbers?"
"That is exactly what went wrong for so long. We squandered advantages on short-lived ventures and offensives. No, this time we use our superiority only for taking worthy Systems near out territories and for raiding the League and FedSuns. For now! We will rebuild our forces and more important our industry and infrastructure with the help of each other and the Helm Library. It is only a matter of time until one example falls into the hands of the other Successor States. We need to create a large lead in the recovery of Tech and new developments.
We will repair damaged facilities like Shipyards and Mechfactories among the most important all across our two nations, but we will build new Yards and Industry on more than 4 dozen worlds as well. And this will be only the first step. In the 3040s we want to have recovered to a production and tech level of the early Star League across all our holdings. And by the middle of the century, we want to have at least the tech level of the Star League during the last days of her existence. Curiously, in certain civilian research areas we have surpassed the Star League even in our momentary form already! That was something we found out after deciphering the first few blocks of Data from the Library. But there are a lot High Tech areas where we will have to recover much knowledge we barely are able to produce anymore. And not to forget to recover Technology we fully lost.
Considering our ambitious goal on infrastructure, getting back several vaunted Terraforming techniques will be a real boon, not only on Mallory´s World or Ozawa when taken, but on our own less than ideal planets like Rodigo or Bolan."
"This is all well and nice for the Pillars of Gold, Jade and Ivory, but what about the Pillar of Steel? Shall we sit still, like this sounds? Where is the honour in that?"
"Tell me: does a true Samurai go to war with a shabby, improvised Katana and no plan? No? Then please listen. It might take until the 3060s until we really have recovered most of what we lost in the last centuries, but then you will have a Katana that would make Musashi proud. And do not forget that raiding and smaller offensives will still happen. We cannot let the other nations rest.
Besides, we will research new Formations, Tactics and Strategies for our Forces, which means you. Hesperus and the Lestrade Uprising have shown us some definite advantages of the Davion RCT formations. We have to develop a counter for that and a formation, which is better suited for us and our specific needs. Especially elite units like Royal Guards, Lyran Guards, Sword of Light, Genyosha or Ryuken would profit immensely. Then when we are really prepared, we will show the Inner Sphere that our way is the right one."
Outside Sakuntalem, Kalidasa
Rahneshire, Lyran Commonwealth
29. April 3033
It was a clear night near the capital city of Kalidasa. The stars were blinking in the Sky and a single jet-black Warhammer was humming in stand-by beneath them, motionless. For several klicks, no other human being was near, seeking solitude, it´s pilot had manoeuvred the Mech into one of the sparsely settled regions.
In the cockpit, Colonel Natasha Kerensky was lying on the pilot´s couch, some notepads spread out beside her, sometimes looking at the holo-pictures pinned to one cockpit wall. Pictures of loved Ones, friends and those who were not in this world anymore.
Today was her sixtieth birthday and few knew about an introspectrous side of the Black Widow. She was a living legend, the wild, successful mercenary leader. But public image notwithstanding, Natasha had needed some space before heading back to base for the celebrations, so late yesterday evening she had taken her Mech and went outside.
It was 2 in the morning and soon she would walk back, but there were still some things weighing on her soul.
Even for someone born in the breeding program of the Clans, turning sixty was an important date. Kerensky could know with certainty that she was among a tiny minority of Clan warriors living. From the more than 110,000 warriors in the Warrior Caste, at any given time only some hundred were in that age bracket.
Sometimes she wondered about how the situation in the Homeworlds was. Ever since their last contact with Khan Kerlin Ward, even the few Dragoons in the know had no inkling what happened there, they just "posted" some reports every other year.
Were the Clans already on the move? Were they still undecided? What about the real mission of the Dragoons? If the Clans came in her lifetime, would the Wolf´s Dragoons get a recall order? Well, that was music of the future.
But what was more important for Natasha, were all those people who would not be at the celebration later that day. She looked at the holopics once again. Joshua still gave her a stab sometimes, when she thought about him, even when he had been dead for 29 years.
There where others, mostly from her Dragoon times, but people during her time with the Clans as well. And most of all Jaime Wolf himself, who had died due to a mundane and guiltless traffic accident in 3031.
Natasha remembered his last minutes all too well, they brought her into the position she was in now. Jaime gave her the command over the Dragoons as one of the few people who knew the real mission. And he made her swear to follow through with that. Preparing the Inner Sphere and his son Mackenzie for the time when the Clans came back.
The Black Widow knew herself enough to realise how impatient she was on the political parquet, but to succeed on the mission she now had, politics were an essential part.
The general situation of the Inner Sphere in the early 3030s had led Natasha to change employer again. When the Capellans wanted a contract extension in Summer 3031, she declined. If the Clans returned to the Inner Sphere, they would most likely take roughly the route on which the SLDF left centuries back. Which made the Steiners and Kuritas the most vulnerable Houses. So she accepted a new contract proposal by the Archon and the Dragoons moved into Lyran Space. How and when the Dragoons would talk to the Great Houses, time would tell and show.
Like the superb soldier she was, Natasha Kerensky already had several scenarios planed out for that occasion.
Mackenzie Wolf began to shape up into a good leader, even if she knew several, even high-ranking Dragoons who did not believe the son would compare really well to his father. Another one of her problems for the coming years. And then, looking at a specific holopic, her biggest problem, even if she considered it a happy one now. Thirty years earlier, she would have nipped it in the bud, like the good Clan warrior she still was. By Alexandr´s gaze, she would never even gotten into that situation. But the sudden leadership of the whole Dragoons, her sorrow for her old friend, all the things that had to be done on short notice had led to an evening in a bar without her "shot". Evenings in bars were a normal occurrence for the widely known as hard-partying Mechwarrior, but without her shot was something that had only happened due to the many things that had to be done.
And an oversight only a Trueborn could do. In the warrior caste only bloodnamed warriors got halfway old. The average life expectancy for a Clan warrior was around 45 years, the only exceptions were the Bloodnamed. In the Inner Sphere the average life expectancy was 90 years, but that got a bit distorted by the hellholes like Antalos or Shiloh. On a middleclass planet, life expectancy was closer to 110 years and up.
Already in the 21st. century, according to history files, women became pregnant at later ages than before and with the medicine, good and healthy food available on many planets, widely used additives for women and a general development towards extended life stages due to longer lives, at the time of the Star League the onset of menopause began for most women between sixty and eighty.
In Clan Space, with rough conditions on many planets, contingent resources and the breeding program, propagation of the species became distinctly different. No caste had an average life expectancy that came close even to the slightly reduced IS one during the darkest days of the Succession Wars. Focus on the military, breeding programs and other factors led to a reverse of the fertility span in Clan women, whereas in the Inner Sphere life conditions, civilian food and medicine never regressed that much after the Fall of the Star League. So while most Inner Sphere women like their sisters of earlier times had children before their mid-forties, a still sizeable number had children at higher ages and in systems with very long life expectancy, seventy years or older "newbie" mothers were not that unusual.
Natasha Kerensky, like the other Clan women of the Wolf´s Dragoons, had been for decades in the Inner Sphere now and had lived on IS food and medicine. While the freeborn women relatively early found out what side effects that produced, the few surviving Trueborn among the Dragoons kept to their caste´s disconnect with normal propagation. Take a pill and/or condom and have fun. So when Natasha missed her anti-baby medication due to all the work after Jaime Wolf´s untimely death, she thought nothing about it. Still thinking in Clan terms about procreation, Natasha despite her intelligence just assumed that with getting close to sixty years, her time as potential mother was over.
So when a slightly overworked Black Widow had a recreational fling with a charming minor noble in 3031, it produced a shocking result for the tough warrior.
At first, she wanted to terminate the pregnancy, but she had been playing with the thought of maybe trying out normal procreation when she had been in love with the late Joshua Wolf. After a long and vicious struggle with herself, she finally decided to keep the twins. While she hated being banned from the cockpit during the last phase of her pregnancy and the gossip magazines across the Sphere had a heyday with her coming motherhood, Natasha realized that "her state" gave her the time to hone her "desk warrior skills", something she definitely needed now as the overall commander of the most famous mercenary unit.
In spring 3032, a bit early, Joshua and Ellen were born. It turned out, the kids father, a Baron from Senftenberg, wanted to be there for the children and was delighted to get successors for his line as well. There was some real sympathy between the Baron and the Colonel, if not love for the time being, so they decided to raise the twins together.
Effectively, most of the work was done by the Baron and his household, since Natasha had debatable knowledge how to raise a small child and was the commander of a military unit. But Natasha loved the two and visited and stayed as often as possible. Sometimes she still could barely believe that she was a mother in the freeborn sense now.
For her birthday, Joshua and Ellen were naturally brought to Kalidasa and she would play with them in the morning for one, two hours. Then her other pressing problems would be in the focus once more, at least before the party in the evening.
Martin Luther Hospital, Tharkad
District of Donegal, Lyran Commonwealth
7. May 3039
"The scans are clear, no cancerous cells can be found. Congratulations, Your Highness! You defeated the cancer."
While outwardly calm and collected, Katrina Steiner felt a stone dropping from her heart. "Thank you, Dr. Bertram! For all the help you and your team gave me."
"I´m glad I could help, your Majesty, but beside the strides medicine did since humanity went to the stars, I admit that the fully repaired Star League machinery of our hospital and that herbal medicine from the Combine doctors were key components. In your case, the cancer had spread wide already, without the medicine from the Combine and the restored machinery I regret to say, you would have been terminally ill."
"The curious way fate operates, Doctor, isn´t it? 30 years back, I doubt the doctors from the Combine would have helped me, today it is so."
Dr. Bertram smiled. "Oh yes, my Archon! And 'curiouser' from fate the fact that it was this brand of cancer. One we could get into grip with this medical pincer attack. You know as well as I do, that even with all the new and restored knowledge several types of Cancer are nearly always deadly. Providence smiled on you."
"Yes, and I intend to use the years gifted to me to the utmost. But before you scold me for being reckless, Hans, I will stay in office only for a few years longer, definitely not beyond 3045 the latest. The time for Melissa comes with fast steps and then I can spoil the grandkids rotten, before they are too grown up."
"If I may be so bold, your Highness, do you know and are you willing to tell me if Duggan or Thomas Marik is in a better position in their fight for Captain-General? My youngest son is member of the Embassy´s staff on Atreus and if both are closely matched, this Civil War will come to the FWL capital. My family and I hail from the Bolan Province, as you know, so we know first-hand what blood drinking barbarians the Mariks can be."
Katrina Steiner smiled a little.
"Hans, how long do we know each other? Nearly 40 years and you ask like a young Doc, just having waltzed into the room. I have always appreciated your trustworthiness or you would not be my personal House doctor.
While I will not tell specifics, I can assure you that our Embassy will stay inviolate, even if Duggan and Thomas are closer matched than both would like."
Quiang-Xi-Park, Ronel
Commonality Capella, Capellan Confederation
6. November 3030
Field Marshal Ardan Sortek was walking beside First Prince Hanse Davion and was still perplexed.
"Hanse, I cannot believe that you do this! This is either your greatest game plan ever or you have lost your mind. And I´m still not sure which one is right!"
Hanse Davion kept his calm even in the eye of his friend´s disbelieving and helpless wrath. And he was proud to have such true friends like Ardan, Quintus Allard, Morgan Hasek-Davion or Ran Felsner. The Fox was glad for his friends Ran and Quintus in special. Ran and Quintus´ son Justin had come free after years of captivity after getting captured on Hesperus earlier in the year 3027.
Hanse Davion felt lucky for this, since many parents and relatives of the troops that went into the ill-fated attack would never see her loved ones again. Among the Fallen were such prominent warriors as Colonel Stephenson from New Ivaarsen, but considering where he was, the Prince of the FedSuns shook off these thoughts and concentrated on the now.
"Ardan, this is a chance we have to take. With his madness finally getting the better of him, but still sometimes lucid, Max Liao will get his true punishment with this marriage.
Candace is not only sane, but a beautiful, intelligent woman and now Chancellor of the Capellans. While it seems very strange, just think about it, Ardan.
We know that Candace Liao always wanted better relations with us to stabilize her realm. Stability for the CapCon was and is her main goal. Quintus told me that to help this goal, she even made an informal treaty with the Steiners some years back. The hard resistance we had when conquering the Carver-Caph corridor, was made possible by that informal understanding.
With the marriage, Candace get´s stability on our front and we calm for the March Capella. In addition, we terminate the understanding between Sian and Tharkad.
I already spoke with Janos about it. And while he is no fan of this step, he sees the advantages. Less raiding on the common borders, only an idiot would think that Liao and Marik can keep full peace, easier trade between our realms without having to use up needed regiments by conquering the CapCon and sheer numbers in population and industry.
Many tend to overlook the consequences, since the general border lines are centuries old, but the Lyrans and Dracs control nearly the entire coreward quadrants of the Inner Sphere. With a population of a bit over 2 Trillion people.
Our Suns and the League have around 1.9 trillion combined. Only with the Capellans added we achieve parity and even a surplus. And think about the industries of our three realms. To truly counter the power of -mainly- Lyrans and Dracs combined, we need all three of us."
"Yes, Hanse, but the Liaos are treacherous. You of all people should know best."
"Ardan, Janos and I actually await such a move in some years. Heck, even Candace and I do not think that our marriage will hold that much longer, but it is the perfect pragmatic solution to our Fist-and-Dragon problem in the short term. Everybody get´s something out of it, only the Steiners and Kuritas loose.
I know, that we cannot reposition many units, since this is an alliance of pure convenience only, but the Elsies and Dracs will think twice now, if they use their diminished superiority of units against us.
Janos has already promised me the hand of one of Thomas´ children, when she comes of age.
Quintus´ best operatives are close to getting one copy of this elusive 'Helm Library' and then the research centers of three realms will work on it.
Our propaganda campaign about our three nations standing fast against Steiner and Kurita aggression is already on and has big success in the Draconis March and the Marik border provinces.
The Lyrans had their chance to follow us, now we will force them someday. After we have taken care of the Commonwealth and the Combine, the Capellans will think twice as well, if they try to challenge us with treachery.
And if they do it before we are ready to deal with our enemies, we have at least gained on the Elsies and Snakes.
Besides, who knows, maybe this marriage will hold, even if I´m very sceptical about that notion.
You see, Ardan, we have thought about all possibilities. Which is one reason we marry here on Ronel, since the adversities still run deep, we take slow steps. Now be my old friend and best man! Candace is waiting."
Cafe Wiesner, KaumbergAlarion Province, Lyran Commonwealth
4. May 3033
Dessert had been served to the group of eleven men and women in the small, but prestigious Eatery on the outskirts of the planetary capital. A piece of Apfelstrudel was sitting before each of them and the mood was festive.
On the outside, the group could be a poster child for a professional get-together with a celebration of some kind. And exactly so the eleven persons came across to the waiters and waitresses for the "private-society" room. No one did recognize that the slightly Indian looking fellow with the nickel glasses and the kind smile was one of the most feared persons in the Inner Sphere. Subhash Indrahar, the director of the ISF. Simon Johnson, his Lyran counterpart, was there as well.
"A successful week is going to end and another Fedrat spy was found out. Good, very good! But what is the general situation on the extremist groups?"
A Lohengrin operative answered for the LIC. "We were able after years of work to split up the Brotherhood of Cincinnatus. The really patriotic members have left the organisation, which has weakened them significantly. The downside is that this rump Brotherhood is made up of very fanatic people. We try to pin them down fully, but all hints indicate that we will have the 'joys' of this organisation for years to come. Maybe even decades, since their secrecy is impressive.
Another dangerous development are the 'Lestrades', as they were nicknamed. The successor of Free Skye. Rumours say that Aldo Lestrade is leading them to this day. They can not only access old Free Skye networks, but a situation that has to be observed is that there are credible hints of the Kelswa family involved. Politically hot and we have to tread carefully. How is the situation in the Combine?"
"We have an equally secretive and potentially dangerous group, the 'Black Dragon'. As yours, they were already involved in criminal and treasonous activity and seem to possess resources in excess of their size.
As in the Commonwealth, we have a multitude of other groupings, but they are less dangerous and mostly powerless. A special thank you for cutting off the help for the Rasalhague separatist groups. In conjunction with reforms made by the Coordinator, we were able to dry out most of these groups in the last years. Some tether on, like Tyr, but without funds and less tension among the Scandinavian-descended, we should get them eventually."
In that moment, Indrahar cleared his throat. "Sumimasen, but there is the potential that some other faction will step in with funding, like the Fox for example. It would be helpful, if you Lyrans could keep an eye on that as well. We, the ISF, will reciprocate with watching out for signs of your 'special citizens' too."
LIC director Johnson, noted for his ability to change appearance as other people change clothes, looked like an Opera conductor this day. Unknown to many, he still had trouble getting warm with the alliance with the Kuritas. Once he had a masterpiece of IntOps against the Combine in the works, which had then been stopped by the Archon. This stopping was not related to the Arcturus Accords, but not long before that treaty, which incorrectly convinced Simon that the Archon had made contact with the Coordinator earlier than officially stated.
The 67 years old man felt a bit slighted by that, feeling kept out of the loop because of his anti-Combine stance. While his relations with the Archon began to recover over time, he still felt grumbles. Ironically on the professional level Johnson found out to his great surprise, that he preferred working with the ISF more than with the MIIO, if that alliance would have happened. As a longtime Bondian, he knew the "signature" of the various Secret Services very well. And while the ruthless ISF could be very treacherous, it lacked the oiliness Simon attributed to the Davion main Intelligence Agency.
"A good idea and let us make it so! By the way, since the Rasalhagues are a topic. How is the stance of the normal citizens?"
Subhash Indrahar allowed himself the smile he was famous for in several circles. "The Coordinator´s wisdom in making reforms to strengthen the Pillars of State helps all citizens of the Combine. Rasalhague as a whole is more content now than it was in decades. And since our alliance, we rely more on people from that district to help us understand your culture, since both their and your culture are Germanic and especially several systems far from your realm have few hints how to deal with you. It gives Rasalhague more importance being 'interpreters' and is good for their feelings.
We know there are differences between them and you and the exchange of ideas, culture expressions and personnel helps a lot. I have to say that when it comes to core values, we are not far from each other. We might express them with differing accents, but they are the same. I do not hide the fact, that this closeness of thought let me sleep better, since your German-Lyran culture is en vogue in many parts of the Combine at the moment. Our society was closed for so long with a reason, to stop the spread of ideas and faulty ways which could weaken us. It is relaxing for our eternal vigil over the Dragon that the culture we now have to let in, still shares some basics with us."
"Yes, the Succession Wars isolated us from each other more than was good. All realms grew insular, some more, others less. And I am glad to say that I can mirror your statement. The Combine we see now, is different from what it was, say under Jinjiro. Here in the Commonwealth your culture is equally in the focus since our alliance. And we had doubts about this influence too. But now, we two 'just' have to stop the extremists and spies, which is a good development. Still, somehow I have the feeling that both our agencies will soon be up to the head in a mess, made by one of those groups."