"My Lady."
"So gallant. One rarely meets such courtesy in these strident days. So much gruff attention to duty and too little to manners. How is it that you are here, my handsome young MechWarrior, and not simply playing a Mech Warrior on the vids?"
"My pleasure is to serve."
"Really?" One eyebrow rose and a sly smile caressed her hps. "I am certain you will serve well, given the chance. And I think perhaps that the pleasure would not be one-sided." She chuckled at his obvious distress. "I am sure we will talk again. Commander Veck, please introduce me to the rest of your valiant MechWarriors."
As they moved away down the line, out of earshot, JJ whispered, "Medic, medic. MechWarrior down. Coolant overload."
"JJ?"
"Yeah, Mr. Chill?"
"Shut up."
When the inspection was over and Lady Shu was escorted away to the operations center, Kelly discovered that JJ wasn't the only one who had noticed his interplay with Lady Shu. Once Sam had wound down a bit, Kelly managed to say, "Drat all, Sam. I was just being polite."
"I was just being polite," she echoed, still in danger of a heat overload. "You were a puppy dog with your tongue hanging out."
"Chow-chow," JJ barked, imitating a dog.
Slug just smirked as Kelly's face grew hot.
19
Arousia District
Arousian Region, Epsilon Eridani
Chaos March
23 February 3062
The next day, Kelly and the Vigilantes found themselves on their first official assignment under active duty, marching along the rosy beaches of the Lake Arous Resort, headed for the city of Dori.
"Commander, I've got 'Mechs on scanners," Slug announced over the lance link. He gave the coordinates. "Two count. IFF not responding."
An unknown force of 'Mechs was not the sort of business that the Vigilantes wanted to be dealing with, even if they outnumbered them two and a half to one. Their mission as Lady Shu's honor guard wasn't supposed to include combat. Just the opposite. The Arousia District was supposed to be neutral. Lady Shu was a peace negotiator, aiming to settle the differences between County Shu and the Duvic Palatine before shooting broke out. "They ain't us," JJ pointed out unnecessarily. "So who are they?" Kelly wanted to know. He checked his scanners to ensure that Lady Shu's ground transport was secure. "Bandits or Doofvics?"
"They could be Eridani Guard," Sam observed "This meet is President Benton's show."
"Enough chatter," Veck declared. "Trahn, do what you can to refine the scan. And let me know if they show the slightest signs of interest in us. Meanwhile, we keep on course. And off the link."
Slug was able to peg the two unknowns as light 'Mechs, but no more. The machines showed no interest in the converging Vigilante 'Mechs, but the unknowns' destination seemed to be the same: the city of Dori. Just before the two bogeys disappeared into the scanner clutter that was the city of Dori, Slug announced he'd picked up two, maybe three, more BattleMechs, bigger ones, already in the city. One of the new contacts was an assault 'Mech, a mechanical monster that would outmass at least three of the Vigilantes' machines by itself.
"Think it's a trap?" asked JJ.
"They're not doing a good job of hiding, if it is," replied Kelly. There was nothing else to do at the moment but proceed.
A kilometer or so from the city limits, they encountered what at first glance appeared to be a roadblock. It was, in fact, a welcoming committee, complete with media coverage. Romano Shu exited her groundcar to bask in it, and Veck dismounted to join the party, but the rest of the Vigilantes remained in their 'Mechs and stood sentinel. Kelly ratcheted up his external mikes so he could hear what was going on.
"Kwai!" Lady Shu beamed at the head of the welcoming delegation, a man in a conventional business suit that stood out among the ceremonial robes of the Arousian officials. "In person! Now I know this little tete-a-tete really has President Benton's support."
"A pleasure as always, Lady Shu." Minister Kwai Jame's body language didn't match his warm tones. "The city elders of Dori requested that I accompany their delegation to greet you and welcome you to the city. They thought it wise that I, as the senior representative from the capital, be the one to make the formal introductions. If I may, I will do so, after which we shall enjoy a small ceremony."
"I would be happy to meet the distinguished delegation, Kwai, but if you're going to be speaking I would rather pass on the ceremony."
Minister Jame's face darkened at the slight.
"Oh!" Lady Shu sounded distressed. "I misspoke, didn't I? I meant to say that unless you were speaking I would pass on the ceremony."
Jame calmed his ruffled dignity and started the introductions. Kelly saw what the minister missed: the wink that Lady Shu sent to Commander Veck. Introductions completed, the "small ceremony" began. Forty minutes later, Federation Minister Kwai Jame concluded his welcoming speech and signaled that the vid crews cease recording. He took a reader from a waiting aide and presented it.
"The pad has details of the security arrangements for your guard captain to look over. I am sure everything will be satisfactory. Since I am also sure that your ladyship would like to rest from her journey, we can proceed with no further delay."
Lady Shu nodded for Veck to take the reader, and said, "Her ladyship would like to meet with the Duvic negotiator as soon as possible."
"Minister Waterhouse has stated that he will be available for a mid-morning meeting tomorrow."
Veck looked up from the reader. "Who belongs to the BattleMechs?"
"Those are Minister Waterhouse's honor guard," Jame replied off-handedly.
Veck wasn't satisfied with the answer. "Both groups?"
"Both?" Jame blinked like a bird that had just rammed a window. "Yes, of course. Who else would they be?"
"If they are both part of the minister's honor guard, why did they arrive separately?" asked Veck.
Jame sighed. "I wouldn't know. Some military necessity, I suppose. Isn't that what it always is? In any case, why shouldn't they arrive separately? The machines belong to two separate mercenary groups."
"What units?" demanded Veck.
"I don't know, Commander. They are just mercenaries. I don't think that their unit names are important. This is not a war zone, and they are not here to fight. Perhaps all of you MechWarriors should go out for a drink together and toast the coming peace. Now, Ladv Shu—"
Romano cut him off. "Lady Shu thinks that the commander's question is a good one. Who are these mercenaries? And why don't you know? Price sends mercenary units and you do not even think to ask after them?"
"I already told you that—"
"What you already told us is unimportant. Especially since you are about to tell us that you will get the information and get it now."
"This is—"
"An outrage? Of course, but only a minor one. Certainly, in civilized circles, it would hardly compare to sending mercenaries instead of household troops to an honorable conference, but we weren't speaking of that, were we? We were talking about my outrageous behavior. I am so sorry, Minister, but being outrageous is part of the job of a hereditary ruling family like mine. I find it hard to help myself. It must be my genetic heritage. Now, you come to your position by choice, do you not? An act of will and dedication. No prisoner of genes are you. You have risen through the ranks of bureaucrats by skill and ability. How sad for you that the job of a bureaucrat is to follow orders, especially those given by an outrageous hereditary chieftain. It will be even sadder if such a chieftain has to have a word with President Benton if she doesn't get her way. Am I clear, Minister Jame?"
Apparently she was, for the information was forthcoming.
It turned out the units were one that styled itself "the 48th" and another that didn't seem to have a nom de guerre, but was simply known after its commander, Kingston Crawford, as Crawford's BattleMechs. Colonel Bua's ferrets had already noted the presence of both units in the Duvic order of battle, so their presenc
e wasn't a new and unknown factor. Not that there was much known about those two units. The ferrets had dug up precious little solid information about them beyond the names of their commanders, but what there was the Vigilantes shared on the lance commo circuit as they moved on.
Crawford's BattleMechs, according to a JJ-approved rumor, was a splinter faction of the Tooth of Ymir, Mech Warriors who had refused to carry on with the rest of their unit under Liao paymasters. That was a stance worthy of respect. Crawford's 'Mech strength was unknown, although two lances were supposed to be on the Duvic payroll. Colonel Bua had yet to share what, if anything, he had learned about specific BattleMech models. But there was a rumor that Crawford was running some kind of shell game because the lances never seemed to have the same machines in them and 'Mechs of the same model were reported in multiple color schemes. JJ thought the lances might be understrength and that the repaints were to make the unit appear stronger than it was, although with an assault 'Mech and several top-end mediums in the line-up, Crawford's Mech Warriors were not an insignificant force.
The 48th, according to ferrets official and not, was an all Kuritan unit. Sam thought that might mean that they were ronin, warriors whose lord had died and left them unprovided for, thus condemning them to make a living selling their skills as warriors. The 48th was supposed to be all light 'Mechs, suggesting an outfit that specialized in operations like scouting and light raiding. It might be that the mercs, if they were ronin, just couldn't afford anything heavier.
The ronin phenomena had been pretty common once, but now, most Kuritan survivors from a shattered unit just got transferred to another unit. Like owner-operators, warriors demonstrating such unswerving devotion to the samurai ethic of undying loyalty were becoming things of the past. Kelly thought that sad and hoped that rumors he'd heard of a revival of samurai sentiment among certain Kuritan elements was true.
"I wouldn't put too much faith in the poor ronin theory," JJ advised. "Word is that this '48th' touched down in a pretty hefty DropShip. An Overlord, I hear."
"That's not confirmed," Veck said. "We have better things to do than worry about rumors. Let's get to it."
Getting to it amounted to joining a parade as Minister Jame's cavalcade took them on a route into the city that had been approved by the city authorities. People lined the streets in spots, many looking confused or worried at the presence of the BattleMechs. Some of the kids cried as the mighty machines tramped past, but most stared in silent awe. Some few had to be restrained from running close to the machines and getting underfoot.
The route included the finest civic sights of Dori, including several spectacular views of Lake Arous's sapphire waters. It also took them past the lot where two of the Duvic 'Mechs were parked. Minister Jame confirmed that they had a second vehicle park elsewhere.
"Trouble in the chain of command?" speculated J J.
"Possible rivalry," agreed Veck.
"Useful if we have to fight them," Kelly said.
"We're not supposed to be fighting them," Sam reminded everyone. "This is a peace mission."
The two 'Mechs were the lights that Slug had spotted heading for the city: a Panther and a Jenner that Minister Jame said belonged to the 48th. Both designs were thiry-five-ton BattleMechs and both were often considered Kuritan designs, having made up the bulk of the Draconis Combine's light 'Mech forces since well before the birth of any of the Vigilantes. They didn't show any of the latest upgrades, but they looked well cared for, suggesting that the ronin had pride, if not mountains of C-bills.
When the parade finally passed Crawford's BattleMechs, JJ was the first to react.
"Look at the size of that monster!"
The monster was a one-hundred-ton Pillager. Massive shoulder assemblies and a low narrow cockpit between them gave the machine a thuggish look, calling to mind one of the bruisers who habitually threatened the heroes in crime vids. Spikes on the knuckles of its battlefists reminded one of tiger's claws or brass knuckles and only added to the sinister effect.
"I've never seen anything quite like it," Slug said in an awed voice.
That wasn't surprising. The Pillager had the smooth and rounded surface armor commonly associated with older designs, the sort that had fallen out of production when the Star League fell. Though once common, the venerable machines had fallen to the advance of time, just like the League, though now, like the Star League itself, such designs were enjoying a new lease on existence. ComStar had brought hundreds from hidden storage facilities and many old designs, gleaned from an ancient memory core recovered by the Grey Death Legion, were being brought back into production. As yet, backwaters like Epsilon Eridani had seen few of them.
"Think it's vintage or a new build?" Sam asked.
"Dunno" was the consensus.
Ton for ton, Star League style machines were faster, stronger, better armored, and better armed than the BattleMechs the Successor States had been limited to during the long, slow decline since the original League's collapse. They weren't up to Clan standards, or even those of the newest Inner Sphere OmniMechs, but they were plenty tough. Vintage or newly built, this Pillager was undoubtedly a mighty 'Mech. It mounted a large laser on the right forearm and paired mediums on the left. Slug said it had two more mediums as well: one in the torso where the designers must have found some spare space and one in the head where it would have a little extra traverse. But its primary armament lay in the twin gauss rifles embedded in its thick torso, paired magnetic railguns that could fire nickel-plated ferrous alloy slugs capable of tearing the limb from smaller machines or coring into the heart of larger ones. It was a true engine of destruction, and it dwarfed the fifty-ton Enforcer and forty-ton Clint parked beside it, let alone the light 'Mechs of the Vigilantes.
Though he didn't join in the excited chatter of his lancemates, Kelly was as deeply dazzled by the machine as they were. When Veck didn't cut off the awed-teenager babble, Kelly wondered if his radio had gone out. "Commander, you on-line?"
"On-line, Kelly. Just thinking."
"How to beat a Pillager'!"
Veck's answer caught Kelly by surprise. "There was an Enforcer among the bandit 'Mechs that attacked the Amalgamated Mining facility out at Comaton Bluff. A Clint, too."
"An Axman, too," JJ put in.
"What about Pillagers, Panthers, or Jenners!" Slug wanted to know.
"Not that I heard," JJ said. "How about you, Commander?"
"Presider Price didn't send all of her BattleMechs here any more than Count Shu did."
"Are you saying these guys are the bandits?"
"Careful, Commander," Romano Shu cautioned, revealing that she had a link to the lance commo. "Well-honed paranoia might be useful in many places, but mis-aimed paranoia is more dangerous than any enemy. You are edging toward the sort of talk that ignites wars. We are here to stop one."
What stopped was the Vigilantes' speculation, but Kelly was sure that the others, as did he, wondered and worried about the commander's misgivings.
20
Dori
Arousian Region, Epsilon Eridani
Chaos March
24 February 3062
The next day, with Lady Shu safely delivered to Dori, Kelly figured they'd fulfilled their orders, leastwise until she was ready to leave. With the 'Mechs in shutdown as per the terms of the meeting, there wasn't a lot for a MechWarrior to do—not officially anyway—and he was looking forward to seeing some of the city with Sam. At least he was, until JJ popped in with word that the Vigilantes had more duty ahead of them. He said that they were to escort Lady Shu to the negotiating sessions, but it turned out that he didn't have the story completely right. Only two of them were to accompany the lady to the meeting site: Veck and Kelly.
As he and Veck were on their way to meet the lady, Kelly had to ask, "Why me, sir? I'm no diplomat."
"We're none of us diplomats, Kelly. We don't have to be. That's what Lady Shu is here for. We're supposed to be honor, which is to say bodyguards, but what we r
eally are is just set dressing and status symbols. Even so, you wouldn't be going to the negotiating session if Minister Waterhouse hadn't insisted on having both commanders from the mercenary units accompany him. Minister Jame says that we get two to balance them. I go because it's my lance. As to why you," Veck shrugged, "Lady Shu requested you."
Kelly wasn't sure what to make of that, but he was glad Veck hadn't said it where Sam could hear.
When they arrived at her suite, Lady Shu was radiant and cheerful and ready to get down to business. Kelly soon forgot to worry what Sam would say. The lady and her team spent most of the trip to Trade Union Palace, the site at which the negotiations were to take place, reviewing the situation. Kelly got lost fast in the discussion of the intricacies of taxes and trade regulations and jurisdictional issues. He stopped listening, sat back, and just watched the lady, letting himself get lost—in an entirely different way—in her presence.
His reverie didn't last long. The bustle at the Trade Union Palace meant business and time to be onstage. The other parties in the process were present. Minister Jame made formal introductions, Lady Shu to Minister Waterhouse, but no introductions were done for the MechWarrior escorts. In short order, Jame led the lady and Waterhouse and their top aides into a private conference room, leaving the vid crews, further bevies of aides, and their MechWarrior attendants standing around with little to do but wait.
Veck attracted some attention from the media and while the commander was fending off their questions, Kelly found himself effectively alone. He took the opportunity to look over the opposition commanders, as they too were besieged by the press. The big flamboyant one he took to be Kingston Crawford. His suspicion was confirmed when the reporters addressed him as Major Crawford. The newsies addressed the other as Major Namihito, but they were soon ignoring the laconic commanding officer of the 48th in favor of the easy-talking Crawford. Kelly figured they were missing a bet. Namihito looked far more an officer than the piratical Crawford, and Kelly figured that if either of them had the real story, it would be the Kuritan.
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