Heir to the Dragon

by Robert N. Charrette

  48

  Unity Palace, Imperial City, Luthien

  Pesht Military District, Draconis Combine

  18 August 3033

  "You cannot annul the marriage," Theodore objected.

  "By the laws of the Draconis Combine, he can," Subhash confirmed.

  So you play your own game, Subhash-sama, Theodore thought. The ISF Director's eyes seemed to say that it had always been so.

  Takashi smiled, vindicated.

  "But the Coordinator will not," Subhash stated confidently.

  "So you have betrayed me. You side with him," Takashi shouted, stabbing a finger at Theodore. The hall hushed at the sudden bellow from the throne. A muscle in the Coordinator's cheek began to twitch, turning his white-lipped scowl into an intermittent feral snarl. He dropped his voice to a harsh whisper. "Will you kill me here on the throne and put this puppy in my place? You would like such a puppet."

  "I do not side with the Heir against the Coordinator. I strive for the Dragon's welfare." Subhash's voice was weary, as though he had said the words too often. "The Combine must have a strong succession. The state must remain stable at a time when we are surrounded by enemies on all sides and face enemies from within. The Combine must show no weakness."

  "She is a nobody," Takashi said to Theodore, as though

  Subhash had not spoken. "A merchant's child. Even her credentials to join the military were forged."

  "Iie, Tono," Subhash contradicted. "She is more."

  Takashi stood and took a step toward Subhash, hand half-raised. Theodore was startled, more by Subhash's statement than by the Coordinator's reaction. Did Subhash know of her connection to O5P? A murmur from the crowd made him shoot a glance over his shoulder. Constance was walking toward the dais from the women's side of the hall. Tomoe was nowhere in sight, but Theodore caught a glimpse of Jasmine standing among her attendants, her expression worried. Subhash, too, had seen or detected the head of the O5P's approach. With a small nod, he directed Takashi's attention to her. The men waited in silence.

  "Tono, Jokan Constance can tell you of the history of Tomoe Sakade," Subhash said, as Constance joined them.

  Theodore knew that Constance was quite prepared to do that. It had been their plan from the start. She was composed and calm as she began to speak. "Tomoe Sakade is another woman than the one she appears to be. Her records have been forged, but today the real story is here for you; a copy has been deposited to your databanks, Tono.

  "Tomoe's real family is Isesaki. As you know, they are a merchant family. But they are more than that. She is descended in a direct line from Ingrid Magnusson, a descendant of the founding Prince of Rasalhague. The Order of the Five Pillars learned this after taking Tomoe in as an orphan. As we were not able to prove the connection at the time, she was not told.

  "As she grew up, she expressed a wish to serve the Combine as a MechWarrior. We made that possible while we continued to search for proof of her ancestry. We hoped that she could serve the Combine as an example of cooperation and understanding. She found a better way of serving the Dragon by herself, it seems. As wife to the heir, she is a fine choice, for her ancestry is truly noble and offers powerful political potential. There is no slight to the clan's honor in this marriage."

  Constance started to speak again, but Subhash gave her no chance. "There's more. Ingrid Magnusson married Karl Sakade of the Isesaki clan, which dates her back more than 500 years.

  "When the usurper Stephen Amaris slaughtered Richard Cameron to take control of the Star League government, he too left a job unfinished. In the massacre of loyal League supporters, Johanna Kurita and Duncan Cameron, absent from their apartments on a tryst, escaped. They fled Terra with the aid of a merchant of the wide-ranging Isesaki Shipping Company. Seeking refuge among the stars, they traveled to the edges of Rasalhague Province, a region known even then for fierce independence. After the horrors they had seen, neither wished to have any more to do with the affairs of the Inner Sphere. They wanted only peace for themselves and the children that they hoped to raise. They changed their names to Sakade, and using Johanna's connections for a last time, were officially adopted into the Isesaki clan.

  "The clan elders were not acting entirely out of good will. They leaked the information to Coordinator Minora who, in gratitude for their aid, granted the company a royal patent for trade anywhere in the Successor States. A patent that has been confirmed by every Coordinator since that day."

  "I did not know this when I signed the patent," Takashi said petulantly.

  "Regrettably, Tono. The secret of Isesaki Shipping was lost in the turmoil following Coordinator Jinjiro's removal from office. The information was only recently recovered." Subhash folded his hands in front of him. In a reassuring tone, he continued, "Had you known, you surely would have praised the match between your heir and this lady of noble ancestry. Thus, you cannot be faulted for objections. You acted correctly, given the information available to you."

  "Yes, Tono," Constance agreed. Theodore was relieved to see that Subhash's revelations had not stolen her poise. "You have certainly not acted wrongly. She is a worthy wife for the Heir to the Dragon. If any are at fault, it is Director Indrahar and myself for not informing you sooner."

  Takashi sat down, frowning. Elbow propped on the throne's arm, he leaned into his upraised hand until the lower half of his face was covered.

  "Allow me to call her forward, Tono." When Takashi gave no answer, Constance turned and gestured toward the woman's side of the hall. The crowd, already surreptitiously trying to observe and eavesdrop on the argument on the dais, openly turned its attention to what was unfolding.

  Tomoe stepped away from the ranks of the women, her stride far shorter than normal, constrained by her formal kimono. Her elaborate wig and court cosmetics made her appear to be one of the court ladies. She was a vision of grace and beauty, Theodore thought. Regal. She would fill her new role as fully as she had all her others. He could not keep the proud smile from his face.

  Holding her left hand, the ten-year-old Hohiro stood as tall as he could, clearly conscious of his dignity. On the other side of his mother, his five-year-old sister Omi struggled with the skirts of her kimono. Several times, she stumbled and was saved from falling only by Tomoe's strong grip on her hand. Tomoe flawlessly performed the bows of presentation before the silent Takashi, whose stern face was half-masked by the hand in which he rested his chin. Hohiro fumbled the last one, but no one laughed. Omi refused to bow, preferring to hide behind her mother's skirts.

  "Tono, there is another male scion of the Dragon," Tomoe said. "Minora. He is almost into his second year. He is in the care of Jokan Florimel on her estates."

  Takashi stared wordlessly at his sudden daughter-in-law. Theodore tried, but could not read his mood. Takashi lowered his hand from his face, revealing that his tic had subsided. Gripping the arms of the throne so hard that his knuckles faded to white, he leaned forward.

  "Am I the last to know?"

  "In this, the Dragon knows what the Fox does not," Subhash stated.

  Takashi barked a rough laugh that dispelled the tension gripping those assembled near him. "Be seated, Jokan Tomoe."

  With those words, Takashi had accepted his son's wife and children. Theodore took a deep breath when he realized that he had not taken one for some time. He moved to Tomoe's side, but was intercepted by an anxious Hohiro, who demanded to know if he had done well. While Theodore was reassuring his son, Subhash summoned the Lord Chamberlain and bade him make formal announcement of Theodore's marriage and the existence of the heirs. After a moment of stunned silence, the hall erupted in wild jubilation.

  Takashi settled back on his throne, face expressionless. To the assembled courtiers, he surely seemed majestic and lordly; to Theodore, he looked disturbed. Recognizing the tension in the muscles of his father's face, Theodore knew that the Coordinator was not mollified by the revelations of Constance and Subhash, but Takashi could do nothing. He must accept what had happened
. Appearances must be preserved. For now.

  At the edge of his vision, Theodore noticed Subhash Indrahar turn to Ninyu Kerai. The ISF Director was speaking softly, but not so softly that Theodore could not hear his words.

  "Tie up the loose ends, Ninyu-kun."

  49

  Yoshin Apartment Building, Blenshireton, Wolcott

  Pesht Military District, Draconis Combine

  21 September 3033

  Kathleen Palmer entered the apartment. A quick survey of her tattletales assured her it had been undisturbed during her short absence. She checked on the boy in the bedroom. He was still asleep. She returned to the door and locked it, throwing the bolts on the additional ones she had installed after renting the flat two weeks ago.

  Satisfied, she stepped into the kitchenette, removing her pistol from her sweater pocket and laying it on the counter. Two minutes later, she had a cup of fragrant jasmine tea in her hand. Her dinner would be ready in two more. She turned to the table, ready to read the headline on the telescan while she waited. She froze in mid-motion.

  A red-haired man in a gray jacket sat at her table.

  "Hello, Kathleen."

  "Ninyu."

  "I am pleased that you remember me," he said, smiling.

  "You are a hard man to forget. How did you get in?"

  He shrugged. "Where is the boy?"

  "You mean Franklin."

  "Do you have another son?"

  She stared at the floor. "Why did it have to be you?"

  "Whether it was me or some other who found you, it would make no difference. The end must be the same. You should not have run."

  "I knew it was only a matter of time when I heard the announcement of the Prince's marriage. The insurance was no longer necessary. It had become a liability."

  "I'm sorry, Kathleen," he said, reaching into his jacket.

  "So am I."

  She heaved her steaming cup at him, kicking out hard with her right foot to snap his shin against the leg of the chair. He was too quick. Pushing his chair over backward, he fell away from the blow. Her foot connected but without sufficient force to damage him. The tea splashed across the table as the cup shattered. The telescan sparked and smoked as liquid entered its casing.

  Ninyu rolled clear of his clattering seat and was on his feet in an instant, his rapid recovery preventing Kathleen from retrieving her gun from the counter. If she tried, he would be on her before she could make use of the weapon. She circled him warily, knowing he was by far her superior in unarmed combat. For his part, Ninyu stood relaxed, but that did not fool Kathleen into believing him unready. She recognized the shizen posture from her own rudimentary ninjutsu training. Her only hope was to get her hands on the gun or some other weapon.

  She swept the room with her eyes. Too late, she realized her mistake. Ninyu allowed her no margin. He was coming in at her even before she returned her full attention to him. As he moved past her and blocked her hasty attack, she felt his hand strike her left armpit. She turned to face his new position, arm hanging useless at her side. He had numbed it with a strike to the nerve complex.

  "Foolish, Kathleen. You have no chance. You should never have run."

  He was right, but she could not stop. If she surrendered, her son would die. She took a step backward and felt her right leg brush the second chair.

  Time for desperate measures.

  Grabbing the chair with her good hand, she heaved the metal frame high and to the left. Ninyu swayed aside, clearing her way to the counter. As the chair crashed into the wall, she threw herself across the narrow kitchenette. Her hand reached out for the pistol, only to close on empty air as Ninyu's kick caught her under the rib cage. She caromed off the range and onto the floor. The pain tore a short, sharp scream from her.

  She writhed on the floor, feeling the tearing of her insides. Another blow was all it would take.

  Stepping to the counter, Ninyu retrieved her gun. "Finish it," she pleaded. He shook his head.

  She had hoped that the memories they shared would move him to mercy. A futile hope.

  She realized that the boy would have been awakened by the noise of their fight. She had hoped he would flee, but he appeared in the doorway, instead, emboldened by the sudden cessation of noise. Kathleen tried to raise her arm to wave him back, to shout a warning, but her injuries were too great.

  A star whizzed across the room to spin past the boy's neck. His mouth opened in surprise as he raised a hand toward his neck. Bright blood burst from the gash torn by the sharp, whirling edges of the shuriken. The boy toppled without a sound. -

  He is in shock and feels no pain, Kathleen told herself, a small comfort as she watched his life leak out to foul the apartment's carpets.

  Ninyu stepped over the small body and disappeared into the bedroom. In a few minutes, he returned, wiping clean his shuriken and replacing it in a concealed pocket of his suit. A wisp of smoke followed him.

  He walked softly to where Kathleen lay and crouched over her. He reached out and applied pressure in the careful way they had been taught by the ISF. Her pain vanished. He touched her throat, applying pressure there as well, and she felt the darkness begin to well up from within her. "A terrible tragedy," he said as he stood. "Mother and child die in an apartment fire."

  His words were a statement of fact that just happened to describe a job well done. Through dimming eyes, she saw him bow to her, a last salute before leaving the apartment.

  He would leave the building unseen, waiting to be sure that nothing disturbed the fire until it was too late. No one would know what he had done here. He had crippled her without doing anything that would mark her bones. All signs of violence would be erased by the flames. The charred corpses of a boy and a woman would be found in the ashes of the apartment.

  He was very good at his job.

  She coughed up blood. The bright red splashes changed the pattern of the carpet in front of her eyes. She stared, fascinated, as she slipped toward the darkness. She felt regretful sadness that the boy who had died here would never grow to be a man. But as the darkness claimed her, her last thoughts were of her son Franklin. The DropShip taking him to refuge with Marcus Kurita had lifted at noon.

  50

  Sanctum Arcanum, Unity Palace, Luthien

  Pesht Military District, Draconis Combine

  2 January 3034

  Constance Kurita knelt on the white canvas mat before the elevated platform of the innermost room of the Sanctum Arcanum, the shrine of Kurita honor. Before her in the darkened room was a tatami-covered dais. The venerable dai-sho, the paired long and shortswords, of dynastic founder Shiro Kurita rested there on a black lacquered stand. Five pillars surrounded the dais, invisible in the gloom save for the ancient carved Labrean monodon tusk that glowed in soft luminescence, a ghostly dragon climbing for the sky. Also unseen were the four Pillarine adepts who knelt at the corners of the canvas mat. Though she could not see them, Constance could feel their strength, latent and protective.

  The fifth guardian stood at the entrance to the inner chamber, politely but adamantly refusing to allow Theodore Kurita to disturb Constance until she finished her meditations. Even if Theodore had insisted on his rank, the guard would have stood firm. In this place, Constance outranked the Coordinator himself.

  She bade farewell to the spirit of Shiro, clapping her hands once sharply as she bowed. The Adepts bowed to her as she rose. She felt their acknowledgment of her authority and radiated her acceptance and approval of their devotion. As she approached his back, the door guardian stepped aside, allowing Constance to bow to her cousin.

  "Did it go well?"

  "Very well. All four Vegan Legions looked superb," Theodore said, smiling with pride. "I had not expected such parade-ground precision from them. They may no longer be the dregs of our military, but they are still soldiers of the line. A parade is not something they find enjoyable."

  "They are fanatically loyal to you, Theodore. They would do nothing to shame you before
the Coordinator."

  Theodore shrugged, but Constance knew that he was proud that his legions were strong, and honored that they should express such depth of loyalty to him. She could feel it in his ki shell and see it in his elaborate casualness.

  "The insurrection on Tai-sho Rentoshi's homeworld seems serious," Theodore offered in an apparent change of subject. His facial expression lost its lightness and his manner became more businesslike. "The Coordinator granted him permission to attend to it. His first Sword of Light regiment is to accompany him."

  "And the Seventh Sword of Light?" Constance prompted, well aware that the subject had never changed.

  "They are to leave for training exercises on Daikoku's fourth moon tomorrow."

  "The Coordinator has never been without at least one Sword Regiment on Luthien. Will he not override the order?"

  "As Deputy for Military Affairs, I deem it necessary for the Seventh Sword to receive this training. Their last missions in such an environment were years ago and they have not had any refreshers on the peculiar tactical concerns of low-gravity operations. Everything has been done according to proper form. Their orders will appear on the weekly update in three days."

  "Too late for the Coordinator to object."

  Theodore nodded. "Besides, there is no need to keep them here while we have four full regiments of BattleMechs."

  "Your Legions. With the Coordinator's favored regiments gone from the planet."

  "Surely a coincidence," Theodore stated, deadpan. "I expect that matters will proceed in such a way that the Sword regiments will be needed elsewhere for some time to come. Even the Seventh Sword's recent low-gravity training is likely to be useful."

  "Requiring them to leave the system."

  Theodore nodded again. "It's a painless, non-violent way to remove the Coordinator's loyal troops from Luthien. The Director is justifiably concerned that such supporters might not understand what is to come. It'll be far simpler if my father has no troops immediately available to him. He has become erratic since his illness. Subhash-sama is pleased with the plan."