Garrison
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
1 November 3051
Kou glanced out the dropship window. "So that's Garrison."
Mike and Isaac looked over his shoulder toward the green plains far below. "Do you know the history of this world?" asked Isaac. "It's rather interesting."
"Some sort of religious colony, I believe." said Mike. "And there's the old Star League base."
"A Castle Brian." said Kou. "Looted by the Commonwealth in the first months of the First War."
"The structure is still there." said Isaac, "and will probably become our base of operations."
Garrison had been just that, a religious colony. Much like the ancient history of North American and Australian continents of Earth, there had been a period of pioneering in the 22nd century. Fringe political, social, and religious groups all fled Terra for the planets of the galaxy, hoping to find the freedom to believe as they chose in the newly charted regions of the galaxy.
There had been a small cult formed in the 21st century that used J.R.R. Tolkien's writing as the basis for their system of beliefs. Garrison, with its somewhat unusual native wildlife, seemed to them to be as perfect a representation of the world of Middle Earth that they could find.
Isaac thought privately to himself how frequently he'd encountered references to Tolkien's work in his travels. Aside from Joshua, who was a personal fan, Isaac knew of Garrison. Luthien, the capital of the Draconis Combine, had also been named for a Tolkien character, even though the reference ended at that.
Garrison had been occupied by the SLDF for use as headquarters for their
The capital of the planet was Minas Tirith. The region around it was the
"I wonder if we'll see any dragons." said Kou.
"Not likely, unless Joshua decides there's something to defend in the Mordor province." Mordor, like its fictional namesake, was a volcanic wasteland. "Dragons" were a species of dinosaur native to Garrison. Like the transition species between bird and reptile, they had wings and hollow bones, so despite their size were capable of graceful flight. Their unusual physiology also allowed them to make use of the methane expelled from the volcanoes as a weapon. Two large gas sacks existed at the base of their neck, which held the methane. A pair of sharp flint-like teeth at the back of the mouth could be clicked together when the methane was exhaled, igniting it and giving the creature its infamous fiery breath. The flames did not burn very hot or long and served to frighten predators more than burn villages or any of the other things fictional dragons were often accused.
"Yeah, but they like metal, so they may come after us for our autocannon casings."
Isaac smiled. Like many animals, the dragons were attracted to shiny objects. Although not discriminating like their namesakes to steal only valuables, the dragons of Garrison would collect everything from soda cans to the aforementioned shell casings.
The dropship shook as it touched down. A mild klaxon sounded as the bay doors several levels below began to open.
The
"That passage is how wide?" asked Joshua, his voice almost a shout. Some time had passed and the Swords had begun their deployment.
"75 meters across. The river narrows from nearly 200 yards across here in the wider sections of the canyon to 75 in that trough." said Kou.
Joshua made his fingers into a gun shape and pointed at the passage. "Kill zone." he said with finality.
Kou gestured to the twin Long Tom heavy artillery pieces being mounted at the front door of the Castle Brian. "No kidding. Put Daishis or Rommel tanks in this floodplain and nothing will get through that passage."
"This canyon is impregnable." said Matthew Jiwe. His Daishi was parked nearby, its pods stripped empty of weapons. Without guns, the mech looked radically different.
"They could catch us from behind." said Joshua. "From this point northward, the canyon becomes more and more shallow until it disappears entirely. Up north, the bedrock is much tougher. This geological region and further south, where the rock is softer, is more rugged. If the Clans drop into the plains north of Minas Tirith, this'll all be for nothing. They'll trap us in here and that....." he gestured at the narrow trough, "...will be our way out of here."
"So how are you going to keep them from doing that?" said Kou, puzzled. "It would seem tactically wise to sweep in here from the north and pin us in place. You wouldn't have gone through all the trouble to set up all these field works if you felt the Clans weren't going to come from that way." Kou pointed southward towards the roar.
"I am placing the bulk of our forces in Minas Ithil and Lindon." said Joshua. "Those cities are south and southwest of here. I have set orders to withdraw northward to here after initial skirmishes. Unless they try to cut us off with a dropship transfer, they'll follow us into the canyon and up to that point." He paused. "Bang! Game over."
"Like lambs to the slaughter." said Matthew.
"But the dropship transfer?" said Kou.
"Erik has to gain air superiority and keep it. We want them to be afraid to take their dropships back up again."
"So this whole plan relies on Erik?" said Jiwe incredulously.
"He can do. Wars are won and lost by the power of one's air forces. History is rife with examples.” Said Joshua. "My point is, Matthew, that our aerospace forces are going to decide this battle for us. In the end, we will have our part to play. But we will be dramatically outnumbered. Mechlanthon told me that aerospace forces are held in lower regard to Elementals and Mechwarriors. Their fighters will be the first to be bid away. They will not live to regret that mistake. Our fighters will destroy as many of those Falcons as they can. We do the rest."
"And if he fails?"
"I said he can do it." Said Joshua with finality. “I have faith in my commanders. All of them.”
Monmarault System
Jade Falcon Occupation Zone
5 November 3051
Dal Pryde looked out from the bridge of his warship as other ships materialized around him. "Soon," he thought. "Very soon, we will be on Garrison and the greatest threat to the Jade Falcons will be crushed and the honor mine." He turned and floated towards his ready room. "But only if I fool my compatriots into bashing their idiot heads against the Swords first."
Robert floated over the holographic table in the middle of the ready room. On it was the
"Are you so sure, Star Colonel?" said Robert.
"That the Star Swords will take these exact positions? Neg. But their leader is no fool. He knows that he will be outnumbered and outgunned. This canyon and its castle provide him with a nearly impenetrable fortification. He will try to lure us here, where his forces will butcher us."
"So what do we do? If he holds this ground when we arrive, we will be unable to break him."
Star Colonel Pryde smiled, but Robert found little in it to find pleasing. "The canyon at its northern end ascends to open ground. Were we to land our forces north of the canyon, we could easily overrun his flanks and his fortifications would be meaningless."
"The battle could degenerate into a cat-and-mouse game within the Castle Brian itself, quiaff?" countered Robert.
"Aff, but I suspect your former associate will not allow that to occur. He does not like to be trapped, this Not-Named friend of yours. He will leave himself a way out." Dal pointed to Minas Tirith's spaceport. "His retreat will be to here, not to the bowels of the Castle."
"All the more reason for him to be concerned about an attack from the north. We would cut off his escape route."
"You are learning. You need to learn to read your enemy. Know more about him than he knows of himself, and he will never defeat you. Messer is talented and perceptive, but he is young and impetuous. He will try to trap us.....here." Pryde pointed to the canyon's southern end.
"But it is obvious to attack him from the north." said Robert. "Why do it any other way?"
"Because he will find a way to make us. Sadly, as much as we can predict him, he can also predict us. He can even manipulate us, something we are unable to do in this circumstance." said Pryde. "He will challenge us to fight somewhere in the south, in open ground, where we will hold the greater advantage. Perhaps near Minas Ithil. It will be tempting bait for our companions in the Galaxy's other clusters."
Robert's eyes lit up as he saw the battlefield expand to include the provinces to the south of Gondor. "He will withdraw from the field after the initial fight and flee northward at break-neck speed, trying to convince us he is defeated and fleeing for his dropships. More bait. We follow him, up the canyon...."
"Bang!" said Pryde emphatically when Robert's finger reached the area he had pointed out as the trap. "He has us."
"What can we do?"
"We will drop last." said Pryde. "The others can waste their energy on his feint in the south. I will place us here, to the west of Gondor in the
"Dangerous territory. Lots of volcanoes and
"Aff. But the Star Swords will not be looking for an attack from that direction. We will flank his position just as he is setting up his ambush. We will crush him, and the honor of the victory will be ours alone." Pryde smiled. Robert did likewise.
"I like the way you think, Star Colonel."
"Sometimes, to defeat a freebirth, you must think like one. As much as I may dislike your kind and their ways, I do understand your knack for creative thinking. I grew up fighting bandits in the far reaches of our homelands. It has taught me much. Your former Inner Sphere compatriots are little different from them."
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
11 November 3051
"You may find this somewhat alarming." said Erik Iolair to Joshua as he and Lisa came out of the locker room. Joshua shifted the bag with their swords on his shoulder. The pair had been practicing in the gym of the Castle Brian. Erik shoved a piece of paper into Joshua’s hands.
"Worried?" said Joshua, looking at the paper and then up at his friend.
"They will scramble our radar." said Erik. "They could make a sneak attack on our positions."
"That's not their way." said Joshua emphatically.
"And who says they won't adapt? Pryde strikes me as a ruthless sort of chap. He'll break the rules, if he thinks he can win and/or get away with it."
"What's going on? What's this about?" said Lisa, snatching the paper from Joshua’s hands to read it.
"Solar activity. Flares and such. The local astronomers predict an unusually high level of flare activity over the next week or so. Our means of detecting incoming ships will become limited."
Lisa looked at the report, and then at both men. "You're too nervous. This plan is flawless."
"Don't be too certain of that. His 'protection of New Belfast' plan was flawless too, but the Clans punched every hole in that they could." retorted Erik.
“Times have changed.” Said Joshua defensively. “I didn’t have the Star Swords back then. And I didn’t have the rest of my fellow exiles fighting by my side.”
“I appreciate your confidence, but I still think this is a bad idea.” Said Erik.
“Noted.” Said Joshua dismissively. "This is going to be the biggest fight any of us have faced since our worlds were first overrun. Everyone knows it. They know the Falcons are going to throw everything including the kitchen sink at us. They're scared. I'm even a little scared. But I’m convinced we can do this."
As if on cue, the lights turned red and a klaxon went off.
"Enemy ships detected in-system." said Daisaku Hayakusora's voice over the PA. "General Messer to Sword Command. I repeat, this is not a drill. All personnel go to yellow alert. Jade Falcon ships have jumped in-system."
Joshua tossed their gym back to Lisa and headed for the command center. Lisa, intent upon finding out what was going on, ignored his rather large hint to return to quarters and stormed after him.
"What's going on, Matthew?" said Joshua as he entered the center.
Matthew Jiwe was standing over the sensor monitor, looking into it with the radar-man. He stood up and turned to Joshua. "Two Clan warships just jumped in-system at a pirate point less than 1 AU from Garrison."
"Two?"
Matthew nodded. Daisaku walked over. "Looks like they took the bait."
"All the fish haven't gathered yet." said Joshua. He turned to the communications officer. "Get me Star Colonel Mechlanthon. Order all command personnel to assemble here on the double."
"Aye, General."
"Yes, General?" said Mechlanthon as his face appeared on the view screen a moment later.
"We've got company. The Falcons have arrived and in force."
"How many?"
"Two warships." said Joshua, looking over Matthew's shoulder. "Aegis class. Transponders identify them as the Frost Falcon and the Blue Quest."
Mechlanthon thought for a moment. "That would be the 2nd Jaegers and the 1st Striker clusters.”
“The 2nd Jaegers? Pryde’s unit.”
“The very same.”
"Another report." said Matthew. "A third warship. An Aegis registered as the Gold Talon."
"Here comes the kitchen sink." said Joshua with a sarcastic grin, looking back at Lisa and Erik.
"I fear that will not be the last.” Added Mechlanthon. “It appears to me that the force that will take Garrison from us will be none other than the entire Gyrfalcon Galaxy. Approximately 220 Battlemechs."
"Two-twenty versus one forty-four." said Erik.
“Still good odds. It depends on their bid against us, presuming they have one.”
“We may be dezgra and therefore not worthy of receiving one." Added Mechlanthon. “Depends on how seriously they take Pryde’s suspicions about your origins.”
“I’m not waiting to find out what they intend. I’m going to force the issue.” He turned to the communications officer next to Matthew. “Send to Jade Falcon command verbatim. This is General Joshua Messer of the 1st Star Swords regiment. We welcome the Jade Falcons to Garrison and offer a tally of our forces to aid you in your bidding process. We await your response to our batchall. End. Include with message the present location of our forces, sans aerospace."
"Yes, sir." said the comm officer incredulously.
"More bait?" asked Lisa.
"More bait." responded Joshua. He turned to Daisaku. "Assemble the command staff in the briefing room as soon as they arrive. This briefing will last only a few minutes, after which time we will be joining our units to await the Falcon arrival. The battle is on."
Lagrange Point L2, Garrison system
Donegal March,
11 November 3051
To any ordinary Inner Sphere observer, the Falcon warfleet was more menacing by far than the Battlemechs and aerospace fighters carried by it. Warships had long ago been a tool of war denied the Inner Sphere. They could not construct the behemoths, the materials and the technology had long since been lost.
On the bridge of the White Aerie were the four commanders of the Galaxy's four clusters and their aides. Samantha Clees had just opened the bid. "The Star Swords number a single reinforced regiment of Battlemechs: 144 Omnimechs stolen from our Clan. What are bids for the honor of gaining the best pick of position and timing for wiping this desecration off the face of this world?"
"My cluster, in full." declared Dal Pryde. It was a laughable bid. The idea behind the bidding process was to declare the minimum force required to defeat your enemy. To declare all your forces was pointless. Dal knew however that the Swords were a crafty and powerful enemy. They would take all his strength to defeat.
"I bid all my forces, save warship." countered Diane Anu, the commander of the 5th Battle Cluster. Pryde wanted access to the Frost Falcon in the event the Swords tried to escape via their own warship. He hoped this was the one portion of his bid he would not have to call upon. The Emerald Hawk was much larger and more powerful than his Aegis class. It would be a difficult battle.
Rard Hoyt, a spindly little man, almost a dwarf, spoke next. "The 1st Falcon Strikers will attack with all but Echo Wing 3 and our warships." That was a Star of aerospace fighters.
Evenlyn Buhallin, the stocky commander of the 305th Assault cluster, gave a snarl. "These cowards bid away bits and pieces....or nothing." She sneered at Pryde. "They are not Falcons. They are Wolves. Perhaps Kerensky will take them up for a transfer. I bid my cluster minus warship, Echo Wing 3 and Delta Trinary."
Pryde immediately bowed out. He would not dare to reduce his forces by over a full trinary. The others added new bids, but they were for the second place position. The 305th would land first and in the best position.
"I choose Minas Ithil and will conquer the Swords 1st Battalion." said Buhallin. "We launch at once."
Rand Hoyt immediately declared his intention of taking the port city of
Clees looked at her two remaining cluster comanders. "I reserve the right to choose my landing position until I see the fates of my betters." declared Pryde, meaning he wanted to get a glimpse of how the initial battles went before he landed his forces. Anu chose the same.
Clees sneared at both, considering it a coward's choice to not rush in with guns blazing. Pryde ignored her and turned to Robert. "It goes well for us. The solar flares will not be at their maximum until two days hence. We launch at their peak and pick our landing far from our enemies prying eyes and marauding fighters."
Garrison
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
12 November 3051 (Day 1 of the
First to land was the 305th Assault Cluster. This cluster lived up to its name, as it was filled with assault and heavy Battlemechs. Evelyn Buhallin was bloodthirsty and brutal. Her insolent attitude was a small portion of her troubles with her superiors and peers.
Landing with her was Samantha Clees. Her Broadsword class dropship had deposited her command star as the point unit on world. Commander's prerogative.
"All is clear. Sword forces are forming battle lines to the west, between us and the city." reported Clees. "Bring down your forces. We have a few hours before they will be able to attack us."
The three Clan Union dropships descended through the clouds. Clan fighters descended with them, landing on the flat plains not far from Clees' star.
"An unopposed landing?" asked Clees' aide. "These are unlike most Inner Sphere foes we have faced. They do not dishonor us by striking at our most vulnerable time."
"It depends, Andre, on how you define vulnerable. Our dropships will soon be safe, and with them our mechs. But our fighters, at minimal fuel, are now most vulnerable. Without anti-aircraft to deploy, a bombing strike could cripple our air support."
As if on cue, her radar scope immediately lit up with enemy contacts. Aerospace fighters!
"Were I superstitious, I would say you had jinxed us." retorted Andre sardonically.
Cold as ice, she brought the crosshairs onto the next ship in line, a Visigoth. Again she waited.
Despite the calm demeanor of the attacking pilots, the ground below was anything but serene. The first bombs struck within seconds of Andre's sarcastic appraisal. It struck a Sulla which had just drifted to a stop, its fuel tanks empty. The bomb smashed through the light ship's wing and into the ground below. The shock wave flipped the fighter over onto its back and fire engulfed it. Similar results occurred on other ships in turn. Within a minute, the entire plain was filled with burning aircraft. The fire had spread to the brush and was turning the dry grass into a sea of flame.
Samantha swung her Mad Dog's pulse lasers skyward. She waited for a Sword Jagatai to begin a strafing run and she fired. Jagged flashes of crimson light danced into the sky into the path of the attacking fighter. Armor boiled off the underbelly of the ship as it broke off its attack and roared away.
"Greg, how bad?" asked Michelle.
"I'll live, Gold leader. Fuselage hit. Jammed my one remaining bomb rack though."
"Gold leader, this is Gold-4. First sweep shows four ships destroyed. Four more badly damaged. Two unharmed. Shall we make another pass?"
"Negative. We've done our part. It's up to 1st Battalion now."
Garrison
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
12 November 3051 (Day 1 of the
Joshua had previous scattered the three battalions of the Star Swords to the three major cities on Garrison. First Battalion, with whom he'd assigned his own command lance, was guarding Minas Ithil, while Second held the port city of
Several hours after the bombing run, Joshua was looking over intelligence reports from his scouts. One of the Clan clusters had landed in a remote area, while two others had come down near the cities of Lindon and Minas Ithil.
"This doesn't make much sense." he complained to Mechlanthon. "The 305th is here, still reeling from the fighter attack. The 1st Striker was hit equally hard. Now the 5th
"Diane Anu saw what happened to her comrades when they landed.” Said Mechlanthon, attempting to analyze the Falcon strategy. “She dropped far from the cities to avoid an easy air strike. Now, inadvertently, she blocks our escape path."
"Inadvertently? I doubt that.”
"She still could have secured territory north of Minas Tirith, but she did not. She fears your fighter strategy. She knows better than we, how much damage we caused. She stands ready to mop up if and when we retreat."
"We get to fight our way out. Good, it may make things more convincing for them. Do a tactical study on all possible escape routes. If we're to face battle on the run, I want it to occur someplace where we will hold an advantage."
"Yes, sir." said Mechlanthon crisply.
"Pryde hasn’t landed yet." Observed Joshua.
"Neg, and the solar flares have worsened to the point where can no longer detect beyond the stratosphere."
"Well, Erik was right. If he can break the rules, he will."
“You expected otherwise?”
“No, he’s an obsessed fanatic. Predictable in one sense. We knew he’d find some way to manipulate the situation to his favor. But how precisely?”
"My guess. He’ll have the other clusters soften us before he moves in for the kill.”
"Clever. I’d probably do the same in his shoes. He’s the only one who truly knows what he’s up against."
"Juan reports that he has engaged the enemy 200 kilometers north of Lindon." said Lisa, walking up to the two of them.
"What is the 305th Assault cluster doing? They've just been sitting out there less than a hundred klicks away. Surely we didn't hit them that hard."
"Luring us out?"
"That's too easy. Time to flush the geese." Joshua picked up a field communicator. "If they don't move, we'll make them." he said sharply. "They hated the bombing the first time. Let's see how well they react to a second dose. Michelle, are you there?"
"Yes, sir, General. What do you need?"
"I've got a stubborn enemy 100 klicks southwest of Minas Ithil. Can you flush them out for me?"
"Can do. We can launch within the hour."
Joshua looked at his wife. "Let's get into position. If this is an ambush, it's time to make it look like one."
Lisa nodded. Joshua folded up his tactical map and headed for Galileo II.
Garrison
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
12 November 3051 (Day 1 of the
"Here they come!" said Joshua. The mechs of the 305th Assault cluster came bursting out of the hills south. "Hold your fire until they are right on top of us.”
The unsuspecting mechs of the 305th moved into point-blank range of the Star Sword ambush. Joshua decided to get bold and placed his sights onto a lumbering Daishi. He'd taken out his usual gauss-laser-targeting computer configuration for the Clans' own Charlie configuration. It carried three pulse lasers and a Class 10 autocannon.
"FIRE!" he cried, squeezing the triggers on all his weapons. Three pulse lasers melted armor and skeleton from the leg of the Daishi as the entire evening sky lit up with PPC, autocannon, and laser fire. Joshua followed up with an autocannon attack. Armor plates hammered off the surface of the mech. Joshua smiled as the gun's safeties shut it off to cool before its next shot. "It goes well so far."
His assessment was correct. The Daishi had been lucky. It was the only mech in the forefront of the 305th's advance that didn't go down with first barrage. Ten mechs were crippled or destroyed in less than ten seconds. Realizing their mistake, the 305th began pulling back.
"Press the attack!" ordered Joshua. "They won't get away that easily." He fired his lasers again, ignoring the heat as he melted away armor from the Daishi's tough chest plating. The lumbering assault mech seemed little concerned with Joshua, and concentrated his fire onto a Sword Mad Cat.
Autocannon fire tore into the frame of the Mad Cat. Joshua watched with dismay as he noticed the battle damage to the Mad Cat. A Thor was hounding the mech already, and now the Daishi joined in. Joshua had heard reports that the Falcons had discarded their one-on-one "dueling" style for a combined fire strategy. Seeing it in action worried him.
"Time to put them between the proverbial rock and hard place." said Michelle, her Stingray-C came screaming out of the sky, its twin lasers tearing furrows in the soil and several Omnimechs; one, an Uller blew apart.
Two Ryoken lit up the sky with their autocannon. Michelle swore as the bursts came dangerously close to hitting her fighter.
"Watch it, anti-aircraft!" said Lisa.
"No, really." snapped Michelle sarcastically. "They've already bagged two of my fighters with those damned Ryoken. This bombing run did not go quite as well as the last."
"Those Ryoken are priority targets." ordered Lisa. "Let's give the sky-gods some breathing room."
"Roger, Kommandant." said Ryan Smith. His Mad Cat lumbered forward, trying to wade through the disarrayed Clan mechs to engage the two Ryoken.
As suddenly as they started firing, the two Ryoken stopped. Joshua noticed that they weren't readjusting to attack Ryan on the ground. That could only mean one thing.
"Incoming Omnifighters." reported Amanda. "Twenty klicks out, closing fast."
"Ah, man, now it's getting interesting." said Michelle. "They've called in reinforcements." Her fighter peeled off for freer skies to engage the incoming enemy.
"The 5th
"Most likely."
The presence of enemy fighters took away Joshua's aerospace advantage for the moment, possibly even giving it to the Falcons. Gold squadron was down to four ships, and the rest were damaged to varying degrees. They were badly outnumbered. Joshua swore and opened fire again on the limping Daishi. This time it went down. Joshua moved over to it and blew its arm off to make sure it would stay down.
The arrival of airborne reinforcements had given the 305th time to regroup and regain the initiative against the Star Swords. Now it was the Star Swords who were being pushed back, the weight of their numbers no longer an advantage with the Clan's new combined-fire strategy.
"They have cast aside honor for expediency." said Mechlanthon with disgust. "Are they all like Pryde now?"
Joshua quickly scanned the battlefield to locate his friends. Ryan Smith was only 100 meters off to his right and Mechlanthon was even closer than that. Lisa and Amanda were in the forefront of the fighting.
"Women!" said Joshua with a defeated tone.
"Makes me glad they're on my side." said Ryan.
A pair of Puma cut around the two women's mechs. Ryan charged forward, firing his twin ER PPCs into the back of one. Joshua marched forward and blasted the other.
"Not bad shooting." said Lisa. Mechlanthon rushed to the forefront to attack an approaching Ryoken. Joshua suddenly noticed the surviving anti-aircraft configured Ryoken turn its twin autocannons on him.
"Uh oh. Clan fighters incoming." thought Joshua. As if on cue, the luminescent beams of strafing laser fire tore through the line of Star Sword mechs.
"Shit!" swore Joshua. "Close to point-blank range with the enemy cluster. That way their fighters can't strafe us without hitting their own mechs."
Joshua charged forward, noticing how the Clan mechs were forming a line.
"They're blocking our path." exclaimed an unknown Swords warrior.
The Clan mechs fired. For the first time, Joshua watched as his own Omnimechs began falling.
"Fighters coming about." said Amanda. Enemy ships swung around for another pass, undaunted by Michelle and Gold squadron.
"We'll be cut to pieces." cried another unnamed mechwarrior. There was fear in the voice, heavily tainted with the New Belfast accent. Joshua's fears of breaking morale crept back into his mind.
Joshua was about to order a fighting withdrawal, when he was interrupted. "Sir," added Amanda. "Their numbers are dwindling. If we press the attack, we can drive them from the field."
Joshua looked at his tactical monitor. She was right. The Clan commander had bid away a large portion of her forces. She had struck the 1st Battalion with only two trinaries: 30 mechs. Battlefield attrition had hurt them more than it had the Swords.
"Press the attack." said Joshua, rethinking his strategy.
Ryan Smith surged forward with his company. His no-holds barred fighting style was sure to break the resolve of an enemy long before battle damage did its toll. He fought down and dirty. With only 12 mechs, he crashed into the bulk of the 305th, guns blazing. Mechs began to fall.
Within a minute, the 305th was retreating from the field. Ryan, his mech battered from the close quarters fighting he specialized in, requested pursuit.
"Neg." said Joshua. "We've won this round. Time to make them think we didn't."
Joshua assessed his forces. No mechs lost, but several, in fact most, were badly damaged. "Let's get our forces off the field and get the salvage crews out here. I want to be able to withdraw from the area by 0700 tomorrow."
"It's going to be a long night." responded Amanda.
Garrison
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
12 November 3051 (Day 1 of the
As the sun set over the rocky volcanic region of Garrison known as Mordor, a large blue-black dragon glared down from its nest at the massive humanoid machines that marched nearby. Several of the machines glistened brightly in the setting sunlight, making them attractive to the beast's sharp eyes. The dragon thought better of looking closer, however. The machines were large and noisy.
Pryde's 2nd Jaegers completed their combat drop into the Mordor region unopposed. The solar flares had masked his drop perfectly. Now they were on world. Pryde suspected the Swords already knew they were on-world, but he doubted they knew where. Stealth and secrecy were Pryde's. Another Clan commander would criticism him for his "freebirth" tactics, but Pryde could merely claim he was unaware of the solar flares and that landing in Mordor was a tactical choice based on those things he discussed with Robert earlier.
Robert's Stone Rhino moved up beside Pryde's Warhawk. "My heat registers 60ยบ C above normal. We must be close to a magma vent or something."
"All Falcons, keep watch. This is treacherous terrain. If your mech takes a swim in lava, you will find it most unpleasant. We make for higher ground, where it is cooler and the ground is more stable."
Garrison
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
13 November 3051 (Day 2 of the
The dropships of Diane Anu's 1st Striker cluster joined those of Buhallin's 305th on the plains east of Minas Ithil. Clees had requested his assistance against the wishes of Buhallin, but now after the first day of battle, the decision seemed prudent.
"The cowards!" snarled Star Colonel Buhallin. "These Star Swords are nothing. They run after their first taste of battle."
"We carry the day." said Galaxy Commander Samantha Clees, incredulously. "They flee northward across open land at top speed."
"Either you are correct, Evelyn, and they are cowards or you have hit them harder than you think." said Anu. "Still, they make for open country at flank speed. Once they reach it, we cannot catch them. Their head start is too great."
Buhallin became smug. "And you feared their air strike had crippled us." She taunted Clees.
"It would have again, if not for my arrival." reminded Anu sternly. "You should have thought better than to cut your bid so low. They are Inner Sphere and fight with little or no honor. Yet they possess our own weapons. That was a deadly combination."
Clees ignored their argument, speaking over them to quiet their prattle. "We launch and redrop. We will cut them off at the border of Gondor and Ithilien. They will be unable to escape us."
"How unfortunate that Dal lost the bid to land first. It could have been your pet to claim victory on this world. Instead, it falls to me and the 305th." taunted Buhallin.
"Your mechs are in need of repair. Mine are fresh. Tomorrow's battle will go to me, I suspect." retorted Anu.
"I will open bids for the honor, if the two of you cannot work together on this. For now, to your ships."
After taking his squadron on an attack run of Anu's landing dropships, Erik was forced to take his craft to Minas Ithil to refuel. They arrived just in time to relieve Gold squadron, who was badly outnumbered by two Stars of Clan fighters. The battle had been rough, but the near defeat of the 305th’s ground forces caused the enemy ships to withdraw. Now Erik had launched with Gold and Skull squadron to ensure that the Clans did not do well in their pursuit of the Swords.
A shrill alarm brought Erik out of his catnap. Several thousand meters below, Six dropships could be seen beginning their launch: a Broadsword class and five Clan Unions. "Look sharp, folks. Here's where we earn our keep."
Erik let his ship drop into a sharp dive. The Sword fighters followed suit. Dropships were most vulnerable during a drop. Launch was not as bad, as their powerful engines could quickly allow them to outpace attacking fighters. But there was still a window during which Erik and his squadron could make their strike.
"Skull leader to all Skulls, ignore the fighters and hit those dropships. Try to take down the Unions. Move to Echelon left formation and prepare to engage. Fifteen seconds to target."
Erik saw the Broadsword first. He brought his crosshairs to the nose of the spaceship and waited for it to pulse green. When it did, he cut loose with a full salvo of PPC and pulse laser fire. Armor plates peeled back as the powerful energy weapons did their work. He tore past the dropship, barely 10 meters off its hull, moving too fast and too close to be hit by its return fire.
Behind him, Skull squadron broke formation. Two ships followed Erik, taking pot shots like him at the Broadsword and then moving past it towards one of the Unions. The other three broke off early and headed right at another
"Skull leader, enemy fighters at 4 o'clock. A
"Heavy fighters," thought Erik. "The only ones strong enough to withstand Michelle's bombing run two days ago."
Although outnumbered, the two Falcon ships were heavily armed and armored. Erik triggered an attack against the
The braking maneuver had the effect he wanted. The two Clan ships roared past him. Erik triggered a third full barrage, this time into the Sabutai. Damaged from the bombing, it could not handle the strike. Flames erupted from before its wing. It spiraled out of control, leaving a trail of smoke on its way down.
"Now ain't that a pretty sight?" said Erik. "They don't do that much anymore. They usually just blow up."
The
Angry at losing a pilot, Erik watched the
"This is Star Commander Arthur. I accept your offer of zellbrigen. In this solemn matter, let none interfere."
Erik pushed his throttle forward. "All Skulls, pick a ship and take it down. Our window is almost closed." The sky was growing dark, not because the day was almost over, but because their fight had taken them to the highest parts of the atmosphere. Deep space was only minutes away.
The four surviving ships of Skull Squadron focused on the first
The Class 20 cannon that had made short work of the Jagatai roared to life. Erik's ship was far more maneuverable than the Jagatai, and he wove in and out of the tracer guided cannon fire. He yanked his ship into a hard turn, bringing it back towards the dropships. As he suspected, the heavier
"Follow me!" he said to himself as the
Erik glanced at his radar and projected a course for himself. He smiled, cutting a wide turn to the left to swing around one of the unhindered Unions. The
As he cleared the edge of the
The impact was devastating. Fire ripped through the small dropship, blasting armor panels off from the inside. Its ascent ceased as the ship began a long slow curveous turn back downward, leaving a trail of white smoke behind it.
"One down."
"Make that two, sir." said Skull-2. Autocannon fire squelched his voice as he opened fire. Class 20 shells tore across the surface of the battered
A cheer was raised as Erik watched the Union join its fiery cousin in a rapid decent back to the surface. A sick fascination took him and he dove after them. He followed both ships down and watched as each in turn struck the earth with incredible force. The Broadsword, ablaze, reminded Erik of a meteor fireball as it hit the ground and blasted a crater 8 meters deep. The
"That's for New Vision, you bastards!" said Erik emphatically. "All ships, let's head for home."
Garrison
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
13 November 3051 (Day 2 of the
"Hah! Already I am vindicated. Do you see? I was right, quiaff?" Dal exclaimed, giddy as a child. "The Swords flee the field at first light, practically begging the 305th and the 5th to follow them towards the south end of
"New report incoming." said Robert. "The 5th and 305th attempted to cut off the Swords escape by dropship airlift. Their attempt was foiled by a fighter attack upon their dropships during the launch period." Robert paused. "The single Swords squadron destroyed two dropships, a
"Stravag!" swore Dal. "That was not supposed to happen. What did we lose?"
"The 5th
"Two days into this and we have already lost our warleader, half of the 305th Assault Cluster, and a third of the 5th
"It will not be the crushing victory we had hoped for." said Robert grimly. "When we spring our trap, we will saturate the ground with blood. And unfortunately, as we’ve already seen, it will not be entirely Sword blood."
Garrison
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
13 November 3051 (Day 2 of the
A Jade Falcon Grendel blew apart from a single blast of Juan's PPC. He turned his Thor to face a new target. A Fenris happened to wander too close while engaging a Star Sword Ryoken.
"Fatal mistake." said Juan, firing his jump jets and landing behind the unsuspecting Fenris. The enemy mech spun to face the new threat and took a blast of lethal pulse lasers from the Ryoken in the back. The Fenris staggered, its rear armor disintegrated.
"Good shooting, Westley."
"Aye, Captain. Thanks." said Corporal Westley Smythe, the Ryoken pilot. Juan fired his PPC and autocannon into the front of the critically damaged Fenris and its pilot ejected in desperation.
"Take this." screamed Mike Koren, his Black Hawk firing a barrage of five medium lasers into the chest of a nearby Man O'War. Although 30 tons heavier, the Clan assault mech could not stand up to Mike's selectively targeted lasers and simply fell apart at the seams.
"Bloody good shot, Mike." said Westley to his commander. "That's giving it to those bastards."
Mike's company and Juan's own command lance had taken the risky job of coming straight at the First Falcon Strikers, leaving Patterson's Company and Mizar's Company to flank the enemy on both sides. A traditional double envelopment tactic and the straight-forward Clansmen fell for it.
"Our luck is going to run out soon." said Mike, firing into an unfortunate Clan Ryoken. The gleaming silver paint scheme on the mech, put there for pure intimidation value, became marred by laser burns. Westley put in his assistance, matching Ryoken versus Ryoken. Westley's lasers finished the 55 ton mech for good.
Juan, meanwhile, was tackling another Man O'War. The huge mech leveled its autocannon at Juan and fired. Juan realized too late that the mech carried a lethal Class 20 autocannon and watched his arm get pounded off at the elbow, taking his autocannon with it.
"Damn!" swore Juan. The Man O'War, although relatively weak among Omnimechs, was proving to be quite a match after all. "Where the hell is our reinforcements?"
Mike's Black Hawk was suddenly on the receiving end of a horrendous barrage of long range missiles. The 50 ton mech emerged from the firestorm and crashed nose-first into the dirt.
"Mike, are you alright?"
"Sweet Jesus, what is that?" said Westley, drawing Juan's attention from Mike's immobile mech to what made him that way.
The mech approaching them was huge. Both arms were simply giant missile pods; Juan estimated the mech carried at least four 20 pack long range missile launchers.
"My computer ID's it as a Kingfisher."
"Sound like a good name to me. Must be some new Falcon design. My seismic sensors put it at 90 tons."
"He's yours then. I’m not fighting that." said Westley.
"Neither am I. Pull back and regroup. I'm going to check on Mike."
"Aye, Captain. It's your show."
Juan darted in front of the Kingfisher, heading for Mike's still unmoving Black Hawk. Juan feared Mike was unconscious or worse.
The Kingfisher couldn't resist the target Juan made and opened fire with a barrage of missiles. Ugly pockmarks were torn into Juan's left leg, making the Thor stumble. Juan twisted at the waist and let loose with his PPC into it, then noticed movement on the corner of his eye.
The Man O'War he'd been fighting a minute before was closing rapidly with him. Juan swore. "Wait a minute, I'm his opponent. Holy shit, they're combining fire." Juan shivered with fear as he realized the Jade Falcon had adopted that lethal new strategy. He was trapped between the two assault mechs and nursing the loss of one of his heavy weapons.
Apparently, and fortunately for Juan, the Kingfisher seemed content to give the kill to the Man O'War. Unfortunately for Mike, the Kingfisher was apparently not content to leave his original opponent a mere cripple. The Kingfisher moved past Juan to close with Mike's stationary Black Hawk.
"Murderer! He's no threat to you now." swore Juan. Man O'War or no Man O'War, Juan was not about to let that Kingfisher kill the helpless Mike. Juan fired his PPC again, blasting a large indentation in the Kingfisher's heavy rear armor.
That gave the Man O'War the opportunity it had been waiting for. It raised its Class 20 again and prepared to fire.
It never got the chance.
Four PPCs came out of nowhere and struck the unwary Man O'War full in the back. The 80 ton mech blew apart in a shower of debris. Juan spun to see Isaac's Masakari crest the hill behind it, almost glowing from the heat generated from its deadly weaponry.
"Thought you could use the help." said Isaac, the rest of his company coming over the hill a moment later. Although battered and heavily damaged, Mizar's Company was a welcome sight for the weary members of Koren's Company.
The Kingfisher spun, ignoring Koren for the moment to gauge its new opposition. The rest of the Falcon mechs turned to engage the new arrivals.
"Where's Patterson?" asked Juan.
"Angela's mopping up her flank still. She's going to need some backup soon, because our side went on the retreat towards her."
"Smythe, circle around and reinforce Patterson's company. Isaac's mechs and my lance will finish up here."
"Aye, Captain. Just watch out for that big beastie."
As if on cue, the Kingfisher belched out a barrage of missiles at Juan. Juan fired his jump jets and watched as all 80 missiles peppered the ground under him harmlessly. Juan came down behind the Kingfisher and fired his PPC again. The ugly scar he'd made before opened up to reveal vital internal components. Two of Isaac's PPCs came down and made similar scars across the front of the mech.
Convinced it was far outmatched, the Kingfisher began its retreat by backpedaling away. That was apparently a signal to the rest of the First Striker, because they immediately disengaged from Isaac's forces and began withdrawing westward.
"They're retreating." said Isaac. "We've won."
"Hot damn!" said Juan. "I'm going down to check on Mike. Have a few aerospace fighters harass them on the retreat. I want to make sure they don't come back."
"You hear that, MacBride?"
"Yes, sir, Hauptmann Mizar. I'm on it." said Albert MacBride, commander of Silver Squadron. His Stingray-C roared overhead, followed by the 12 fighters of Silver and Rogue Squadrons.
Juan climbed down his Thor, getting his first look at the actual damage to his mech. It didn't look good, but then visual evidence of damage was usually worse looking than the damage was in reality.
Juan ran over to the Black Hawk. The armor of the mech reminded Juan of swiss cheese, as the dozens of missiles that had hit it gave it a potmarked and holey look. Its face-down position in the soft soil made it look like a discarded and broken toy.
Juan climbed up to the cockpit and opened it. Mike was slumped forward, a large crack in the central monitor of his command console from where his head had smacked it. Juan pulled Mike's neurohelmet off and Mike gave a low groan.
"You're alive after all."
"I hurt too much to be dead." said Mike.
"Hit your head in the fall." said Juan. "Looks ugly, bloody and all. Probably a concussion, but you'll live. Come on, let's get you out of this monster."
"How is he?" asked Isaac over the communicator.
"Alive, got a head injury, but I think he'll be alright."
"I hope that's the worst injury any of us can boast from this battle."
"So do I, my friend."
Next Chapter
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