Yeah, the trouble with having more than one plan to subvert a job posting is that the plans that don't go off get to sit and fester. And when one of those plans involves making empty promises to an amoral and ambitious Archduke with fingers in the spy community...
Well, I can say, in a manner that is only technically correct, the best kind of correct: the First Prince of the Federated Suns will not invade the Capellan Confederation in this story.
Sound superficially like reasonable conversational phrasing, but are also clear indications (to my reading anyway) of an imposter working with partial, imperfect information and allowing Ardan to fill in the blanks himself to avoid suspicion by missing minor but key details.
Sound superficially like reasonable conversational phrasing, but are also clear indications (to my reading anyway) of an imposter working with partial, imperfect information and allowing Ardan to fill in the blanks himself to avoid suspicion by missing minor but key details.
Those specific bits you quoted, sure. But it led to a recollection of a specific event that I can't see how a doppelgänger would know would lead to supporting his point. If he was fishing, there's the risk that no such incident would have occurred.
In any case, I'm pretty confident Operation DOPPELGÄNGER failed, earlier and harder than in canon. Why? One simple reason: Ardan Sortek is still there. As I recall, the entire plot of Sword and Dagger stems from the Cappies trying to neutralize Ardan Sortek, discrediting him as a madman, because he knows Hanse well enough to potentially see through the ruse. Those efforts were clearly either not made (unlikely) or had failed (and Max is unaware of the failure), both options which, I feel, preclude a successful Operation DOPPELGÄNGER.
Well, I can say, in a manner that is only technically correct, the best kind of correct: the First Prince of the Federated Suns will not invade the Capellan Confederation in this story.
Am I the only one pinging on (a suggestion) that while canon Hanse was fiendishly clever, here he has had more fiendish with his clever?
With the villains' plots his sharp-witts had clashed against in cannon now countered by Larkin's machinations, his chicanery has been left to be put to somewhat-less-than-assuredly heroic applications. And this may have directed his development elsewheredifferently than his canon appearance.
... Sort of hoping that he pulls of some bizarre combination of a xanatos gambit with a spanner in the works orthogonal misdirection about how he actually intends to achieve his goals - to the frustration of Larkin; and finds Adena every bit his nemesis a worthy opponent.
It also doesn't preclude the canonical pounding the FedSuns gave the Capellans, as long as Hanse himself stays back at New Avalon to coordinate. AFFS troops aren't the First Prince, after all.
Ardan Sortek raised his eyebrows, blinking. He kept his eyes on the road and his hands on the wheel, but he was sorely tempted to turn and glare at the woman in the passenger seat.
"Sep," Ardan said, archly, "need I remind you, Hanse Davion is our lord and liege."
Candent Septarian laughed. "That's what I keep telling you, Dan. Have you finally decided to listen? Or, going back to my question - are you still pissed at the First Prince?"
Ardan made a small whuffing noise. He couldn't decide how to respond to that, or if he even should. Despite the fact that he was Sep's commanding officer, he often found himself on the losing end of any argument.
Crossing swords with Candent Septarian was infuriatingly like talking to Hanse, come to think of it. Except that instead of a regal too-handsome Prince, it was a trim woman with an AFFS MechWarrior's haircut.
Hanse liked Sep, as well. Perhaps a little too much, because Hanse was constantly hinting that Ardan should marry her, or at least officially ask her out. In truth, Ardan was sorely tempted. But they were in the same regimental chain of command, damn it… Septarian was his second in the Davion Heavy Guards. It wouldn't be proper. Hanse should have known that better than anyone.
"You're being too hard on the Prince," Sep said. "He does what he must. You know he's a good man, in the end. Better than any of the other House Lords."
Ardan gripped the steering wheel tighter. "He's compromised his ethics."
"He's the First Prince of the Federated Suns," Sep replied. "He needs to make tough decisions. That comes with the office."
Ardan sucked in a breath. "He's changed, Sep. You didn't know Hanse, when he was younger. Maybe it's the position, but… "
"Dan," Sep said. "You're an alpha strike. Guns blazing. Weapons to full. But there are battles that can't be fought out in the open. The Prince is waging war on a different level."
"That's not the war he should be fighting," Ardan groused. "Honour demands that we give the Capellans a bloody nose. The Federated Suns has an alliance with the Free Worlds League. You'd think Hanse would fulfil his own promises."
"Many in the Federation are less than enthusiastic about mobilising our regiments on behalf of Janos Marik," Sep pointed out, reasonably. "The Solaris Conference treaties are new. Untested."
Ardan thought about that as he straightened the steering wheel, easing his foot off the accelerator and applying the brakes, letting the groundcar come to a gradual halt. As he put the vehicle in 'park' and engaged the handbrake, he finally turned to look at his friend. "Is that genuine public opinion, or merely the bigoted close-minded belief of nobles who think everyone outside the Federated Suns can go hang?"
"Dan," Sep said, as she unbuckled her seatbelt. "You're a noble. That driveway we just rolled up, it's longer than my entire street."
"Your apartment block is along a cul-de-sac," Ardan retorted, shutting down the fuel cell engine and removing his own safety restraints.
"It's still a street," Sep insisted, opening the door and swinging herself out.
Ardan followed suit. He shut the vehicle door behind him, then looked across the roof at Sep. "Okay, first, my family wasn't nobility until First Prince Andrew gave my father a title. Second, that being said, I'm qualified to pass judgement on the breed of brainless and spineless dilettantes that we have for neighbours."
Candent Septarian made a show of twisting her head left and right. "Are they still neighbours, if I need a map and satellite tracker to find the next house from here?"
"Point taken," Ardan grumbled.
"You're always so critical about the First Prince's advisors, the office-holders in Avalon City, the noble class in general," Sep said. "But this is the Federated Suns. We're not a democracy, and we haven't been one since the twenty-fifth century. The nobility holds the levers of power. The Prince has to manage his relationship with the elite, not merely the citizens."
"Point taken," Ardan stated, again, in the same bone-dry tone. "I had good tutors, you know. Because the Sorteks are now one of those families, as you insist on reminding me."
"You didn't listen closely enough," Sep said, undeterred. "Didn't you go to the Albion? The instructors must have hammered you with the same material on government, politics, and the sausage-making thereof."
"I don't like politics," Ardan insisted.
"Tough," Sep said, unsympathetically. "You're a regimental lead. And we all know that Ran Felsner and Yvonne Davion have their eye on you to take over one of their positions, someday. You can't get away from politics. Neither can Prince Hanse."
"Some days," Ardan Sortek complained, "I feel like I should be back with a line regiment, not stuck on Mount Davion and New Avalon. I'm not cut out for this."
"You're not foisting your job off on me," Sep said, warningly. "Man up. Or woman up, whichever you prefer."
Ardan eyed her. "You'd run the Guards better than I am. You can handle all this maneuvering and backstabbing."
"I'm not a Sortek," Sep replied. "And I'm not the hero of Nashima, or Prince Hanse's best friend. That's you, Colonel Sortek."
Ardan snorted, then waved in the direction of the villa. "After you, Leftenant Colonel Septarian."
Instead of moving, she simply folded her arms and planted her booted feet on the gravel-coated driveway.
"I can't unlock the door of your parents' place."
Ardan thought about retorting, but he realised she was right. Typically, Ardan didn't drive up to the Sortek estate, nor did he use the front entrance. He was used to coming in through the back terrace, facing the fields. Passing through the fields, it was about an hour's brisk run between the Sortek family lands and the outer ring of the brigade's Albion compound.
But asking Sep to make the run with him had seemed awkward, considering she was a dinner guest.
He walked up the steps, grasping the door handle. It appeared to be an old bit of brass, but Ardan's father had installed a more contemporary biometric reader some years ago, prior to Ardan's posting back to New Avalon. There was a whirr and a click, then Ardan pulled the heavy wooden door open, holding it for Sep.
She grinned at him, just a little, as she went through the doorway.
The foyer of the Sortek villa was a simple affair, not like the overly-decorated monstrosities that many of the landed gentry tried to pass off as architecture. Most of it was simple white tiles and paint, with railings, doors, and furniture in sturdy dark wood… much of it from the Sorteks' forests. Sortek Hall was fairly recent, built in an airy high-ceilinged style by Ardan's own father. The previous Sortek family home had been a far more claustrophobic structure, or so Adriaan Sortek said.
It didn't take long before someone noticed their presence. The door leading to the kitchens swung open, with a waft of aromatic air - the smell of something sweet, accompanied by the scent of baking bread.
The familiar figure of Ardan's mother bustled through, wiping her hands on her smock and apron. She was a squarish and stocky woman, not tall, but strongly built.
Candent Septarian had a good head on Ardan's mother. And as an active duty MechWarrior assigned to the First Prince's elite bodyguard brigade, she was in good shape. But she was still powerless to resist the Sortek matriarch as she enveloped Sep in a hug.
"Candent! You're looking well, my dear," Vela Sortek said. "I hope Dan isn't working you too hard."
"We are obliged to maintain operational readiness," Ardan said, dryly, locking the front door. "The brigade is the First Prince's bodyguard unit, New Avalon's defence force, and the Federation's strategic reserve."
Vela Sortek released Sep, then fixed her with a serious look. "Is that the truth?"
Sep laughed. "Aside from a certain Colonel Sortek thinking that cross-country marches are an effective use of field time, I've got no complaints. It's good to see you, Mrs. Sortek."
"Now, now," Vela Sortek urged, "if Dan's pushing you too much, you can always come to Adriaan and I, or Hanse."
"Mother," Ardan complained, vaguely scandalised.
"Someone has to make sure poor Candent has enough free time," Vela Sortek retorted. "How else are the two of you going to give me more grandchildren?"
Ardan flinched. "Mother!"
Sep smiled. "I'm flattered, Mrs. Sortek, but Dan's my boss, not my… "
Vela Sortek patted Sep on the arm. "I know he's rough around the edges, and more bullheaded than a Taurian. But he's a good boy, and he is very fond of you."
Sep blinked.
Undeterred by Sep's befuddlement and Ardan's growing mortification, Vela Sortek barreled on.
"If you can't convince Dan to settle down, I must warn you, Listessa has her eye on him. She thinks he's quite dashing, you see."
Sep peered at Ardan, an unreadable look on her face. At least, it was not an expression that Ardan could parse. "Listessa?"
"Our next-door neighbour," Ardan explained, quickly. "The nearest landhold, I mean. Our neighbours' daughter. Sep, I've been avoiding her for years. Trust me, she's not in love with me, I think the only thing she's in love with is the sound of her own voice."
"Be nice," Vela Sortek chided, "that's very unfair. Tessa is simply an outspoken girl. She's your sister's friend, you know. She's been a great help to Felsa, with the baby."
Felsa was Ardan's younger sister… and a new mother. She'd never finished MechWarrior training, having been injured when the cockpit flash suppression in her Chameleon had failed during a live-fire test. But as her subsequent marriage and new maternal status indicated, Felsa was adapting well to civilian life.
Ardan nodded. "Is Felsa here?"
"Upstairs," Vela Sortek said. "In the nursery with the little one. Mak is out with your father, there was something Adriaan wanted to show him, in the fields."
Mak was Felsa's husband, another member of New Avalon's lower nobility. Though Ardan actually liked Mak and his family. They were sensible, which was saying something. Ardan often felt that common sense was in short supply on New Avalon.
"I haven't seen the First Prince's godson," Sep said, grinning. "Holograms, of course, but not the youngest Sortek in person. Will Felsa mind if I… "
"I'm sure she'll be pleased," Vela Sortek answered, at once. "You're virtually family, Candent."
"So is Hanse, but he hasn't been round to see his own godson," Ardan grumbled.
Vela Sortek gave her son a disapproving frown. "Hanse is very busy. I'm sure he'll be by, when he can."
"The Prince might also be concerned about drawing attention to your family," Sep suggested. "There's always a crowd of reporters, courtiers, and spies tracking his every movement."
Vela nodded. "Speaking of which… your other guest is in the parlour, he arrived a few minutes ago."
Ardan narrowed his eyes. Other guest? He'd only invited Candent Septarian to dinner at the Sortek estate. Nobody else.
Seemingly catching on to Ardan's confusion, Vela said: "You haven't forgotten, have you? That nice fellow who works with Nick Truston at the IIO Ministry, Quintus Allard."
Ardan and Sep exchanged glances. Quintus was the right hand man of Nicholas Truston, the Federated Suns' Intelligence Minister. Together, the pair of them ran MIIO.
As the Count of Bristol, a large landhold on the coreward Crucis March world of Kestrel, Quintus Allard was socially higher than the Sortek family - Adriaan Sortek was a baron. But the disparity in their noble rank was not so large to be remarked upon. Moreover, both Ardan and Sep did know Quintus, of course. They weren't extremely close, but they were on friendly terms.
Nonetheless, that left the problem of Quintus having apparently invited himself to the Sortek family home. In light of who Quintus Allard was, and the work he did…
Ardan felt a sense of unease building under his skin. He forced himself to remain calm. "I suppose we should say hello to Quint, in that case."
"It would be rude of us, not to," Sep agreed.
The ground floor parlour of Sortek Hall was near the back of the house, overlooking the terrace and the grain fields.
By the time Ardan and Sep reached the room, Ardan's mother had excused herself, vanishing back into the kitchen to oversee the dinner preparations. If Ardan knew his mother, she would be rolling up her sleeves and working alongside her helpers.
Quintus Allard was seated inside the parlour, in an armchair, a wine glass in hand. As usual, he was dressed casually, in a manner that did not reflect his rank or position. He wore an oversized green jacket, too baggy for his frame, and a pair of loose trousers. The nobleman rose to his feet as Ardan Sortek and Candent Septarian entered.
"Hello, Quint. I see you've found my father's collection," Ardan said.
"Your mother insisted," Quintus answered, ruefully. "She's a difficult woman to refuse. I've had easier negotiations in my time with the foreign service."
"We should put Mrs. Sortek in charge of the Foreign Ministry," Sep suggested. "The Capellans and the Combine will sign over all their territory by Thursday, and we'll have Prince Hanse elected as the new First Lord of the Star League by Friday."
Ardan looked at the glass in Quintus' hand, then at the bottle sitting on the counter in the corner of the parlour. It was a Sortek Albion merlot, a soft and easy-to-drink variety. The thirty-eighteen batch. That had been a good year. Ardan had been offworld at the time, but his father and sister had sent HPG messages about the harvests.
Personally, he much preferred the cabernet sauvignon. But Ardan pushed the thought aside.
"I don't want to sound uncouth," Ardan said. "But I'm sure you're here for more than just wine and dinner. You have your own wine cellar and liquor library, I seem to recall… with better brews to drink than my family's humble offerings."
Quintus held his glass up. "You're selling your vineyards short, Ardan. I'd rank this alongside any other wine coming out of the Crucis March."
"I'll send you some bottles for Christmas," Ardan said, flatly.
Quintus Allard sighed. "You'd best sit down for this."
Ardan started to protest, before Sep placed a hand on his shoulder, and squeezed.
Letting his annoyance subside, Ardan settled down on the sofa, while Sep took another of the armchairs.
"Alright," Ardan said. "What's all this? Did Hanse send you?"
"No," Quintus responded, immediately. "But Yvonne and Nicholas did, if you need to establish my bona fides. And Field Marshal Felsner."
Ardan studied Quintus closely.
Quintus Allard was an older man than Ardan himself, or Hanse. His hair was going white, which was an obvious sign, and he had three adult children from two marriages. His eldest was a major in the AFFS, his younger son was with the Kell Hounds, and his daughter was pursuing some kind of esoteric research at the New Avalon Institute of Science.
But at the moment, with a wine glass in hand and fatigue written across his face, Quintus looked even older, much older than his years.
"Hanse doesn't know you're here," Ardan said.
"He does not," Quintus confirmed. "Until or unless we can get to the bottom of this, it'll have to remain that way."
"I don't like the sound of this," Ardan stated, bluntly.
Ardan exchanged a look with Candent Septarian. She seemed equally uncomfortable with the direction the conversation was heading in.
"I don't either," Quintus said. "But we're not certain that we can trust the First Prince."
"You'd better explain that," Ardan threatened, an edge entering his voice. "Quickly."
"Tell me honestly," Quintus asked. "Has Hanse been acting strangely, as of late?"
Ardan hesitated. "I've… had disagreements with him, but we've been butting heads for a few months now. I don't… Quint, what in God's name are you getting at?"
"We have reason to suspect," Quintus said, slowly, "that the First Prince has been compromised by the Capellans."
All characters appearing or mentioned in the segment are canon. Ardan and Candent Septarian do get married later in canon, and yes, Hanse did ship them. And yes, Candent is consistently referred to as 'Sep' by Ardan, which suggests that Candent is the true Mass Effect Protagonist and Ardan merely one of the companion love interests.
Can anyone tell me what the difference is from canon events? I only know that Hanse was imprisoned somewhere and his rescue was the whole plot of a book.
Can anyone tell me what the difference is from canon events? I only know that Hanse was imprisoned somewhere and his rescue was the whole plot of a book.
It would appear at this point that the events of The Sword and The Dagger are happening as they did in canon, because if the real Hanse managed to fool Ardan, Quintus, Yvonne and Nicholas into thinking he was his own doppelganger...
There's crazy prepared, there's Batman crazy prepared and then there's this, which is a good way to get yourself killed by the people you're supposed to most trust.
At this point, I think we're fooling ourselves thinking that Hanse is playing double-agent. It's my understanding that in canon, Sortek discovered the doppelganger ruse in 3025, and it was that plot by the Capellans that motivated Hanse to stomp them flat as a 'gift' to Melissa. Here, we're in 3026 and yet there has conspicuously been no reference to these events. Even if a lack of the existence of the Federated Commonwealth engendered some caution in Hanse, he still wouldn't hesitate to take a chunk out of Liao's backside when they focus on the FWL. Not to mention, the doppelganger would have confirmation codes and whatnot to keep Liao up-to-date; codes that Hanse wouldn't have without the help of Allard or MIIO at minimum. Hence, Allard's concerns, and Liao's confidence.
The things that makes me somewhat sceptical of this Hanse being a clone is the whole childhood memories thing which would require a really absurd level of knowledge of Hanse to fake. Besides that I don't think that Hanses plot are that unrealistic/unreasonable since even if he believes in the whole alliance thing there is some benefit for him in the other major factions losing some of their power and influence, especially after the string of success that the FWL seems to have experienced since the aftermath of the rebellion (and supporting Anton doesn't strike as that bad of an idea either).
That said I am a bit surprised that Hanse doesn't jump at the change of double-teaming the Capellans since I think that kind of "opportunistic" attack fits him very well though I guess that he could both be worried about possible Draconis involvement as well as wanting to wait for the most opportune moment to strike the Capellans and perhaps get a nice "bribe" from the FWL for his trouble to boot.
It would also be quite amusing if Larkins warning resulted in the Federated Suns intelligence agencies becoming to paranoid and instead of helping them has resulted in the Suns leadership plotting against each other to save the realm.
Can anyone tell me what the difference is from canon events? I only know that Hanse was imprisoned somewhere and his rescue was the whole plot of a book.
It would appear at this point that the events of The Sword and The Dagger are happening as they did in canon, because if the real Hanse managed to fool Ardan, Quintus, Yvonne and Nicholas into thinking he was his own doppelganger...
In very quick summary, The Sword and the Dagger opens with establishing House Liao has invaded a couple of border FedSuns planets in the Capellan March. Then on New Avalon, we find out that Ardan and his old buddy Hanse are having differences of opinions, Ardan not approving of Hanse being a sneaky politician. Ardan asks for a front-line posting, and ships off to fight the Liao invasion. Round this time, we also find out Liao has their eye on Ardan specifically, and are trying to grab him.
In the 'namedrop' scene where we get the title from, when Ardan says his goodbyes to his buddies on New Avalon, Candent Septarian tells him, Ardan, you're a sword, but Hanse has to be a dagger. There's nothing wrong with daggers, stop being racist against daggers, you dick. Then she gives him a dagger as a going-away present to make her point.
Sorry for the pun.
In the Capellan March, Ardan meets Duke Michael Hasek in a scene seemingly intended to demonstrate that Hasek is an arsewaffle. Then he and his pals engage the Capellans. Ardan punches out of his 'Mech, stumbles around in a swamp and gets captured by swamp Ewoks sapient tribal aliens (yep, Far Country isn't the only canon BattleTech novel to show an intelligent alien race running around in the BTverse). Then a slightly used Ardan gets taken off the swamp-Ewoks by the Capellans.
Ardan is taken to a Capellan base on planet, where they're apparently growing their own organic greenhouse Hanse Davion in a tube. This does seem to be a Capellan Xanatos ploy to draw attention away from the idea of an impostor Hanse, by first making Ardan sound like a crazy person ("I SAW ANOTHER HANSE?!") and later pinning the blame for there being two Hanse(s) on Ardan himself. Anyway.
Ardan escapes from the base, gets picked up, etc, etc. Nobody believes him about Double Hanse All The Way. He's sent to Tharkad to chill out and have a vacation to recover from his ordeal, getting to know Katrina Steiner and Melissa Steiner in the process. 'cause, you know, Ardan's privy to the whole 'Hanse is gonna marry Melissa' thing, while most folks aren't. Melissa believes him about the Double Hanse, even if nobody else does. She finds it rather suspicious that the FedSuns medical folks and others were so quick to dismiss the notion.
With Lyran help, Ardan goes back to the world where he saw Clone!Hanse. He calls up Candent Septarian and his sworn companions along the way, but by the time Ardan and his RPG party get there, the tube is empty and there's very little evidence to find.
Ardan goes to Argyle, where the Davion Summer Palace is. Confronts Hanse. Except there are two Hanse, because other-Hanse is already on the premises, and shit, the Summer Palace core staff are traitors. Hanse apparently sucks in hiring secretaries and PAs. Ardan is legitimately confused as to which Hanse is which, since both Hanse(s) know stuff about Ardan's childhood. But then he mentions something that Melissa told him, and clone-Hanse is duuuude wot, while real Hanse is all, oh, yeah, wait, she told you that? Broooo.
Real Hanse and Ardan end up in the dungeons, because they're trying to frame Ardan for growing his own Hanse in his basement, or something. Obviously since he turned up on Argyle with another Hanse, that one's the evil twin, see?
They escape. The party goes to New Avalon. By this time, Fake Hanse has been running around as Prince for a while. They confront Fake Hanse again. The doctors and such are called in. All tests show that the Fake Hanse is the Real McCoy, while actual-Hanse is a fake.
But the chief expert from NAIS refuses to let this go, because fake Hanse cut her funding, goddamn it, fuck that guy, I refuse to believe he's Hanse Davion. No, really. Don't get between an academic and her budget. She insists, come on, someone has to have a better way of telling these two apart.
So Ardan suggests putting both the Hanses in Hanse Davion's BattleMaster. Only the real Hanse would know the sekkrit security password, right? Except to Ardan's horror, Fake Hanse gets the 'Mech going. But... not the weapons. Fake Hanse disembarks, and he insists that obviously there's something wrong with it, and yes, he did try to turn it on and off again.
Real Hanse gets in, turns on the 'Mech, and gets the weapons live. Because it turns out that Hanse Davion, being Hanse Davion, has a two-stage password system where, yeah, there's an actual passphrase given when the 'Mech computers ask for one... but a second passphrase that needs to be spoken, punched in, mimed, rendered in interpretive dance, something (we never actually find out what this is for certain), well after the obvious password prompt. During the rest of the startup procedures.
Ardan asks Hanse, hey, your second password, it's that cutesy bird metaphor stuff you told Melissa isn't it, and Hanse is all, bro, lay off, I ain't tellin' ya shit.
And that's the clone saga.
Or, as I prefer to think of it, how the entire Federated Suns was saved because a biology PhD got pissed off about Hanse Davion cutting her grant money.
This is actually... yeah, so every so often I make a post saying 'that's not a mistake', even though it looks like I goofed. Yeah, so, I know that, and the phrasing was deliberate, but it's another case where what I THOUGHT would work just LOOKS like I made an error, and it's better to change it.
My thinking was that they refer to the Davion Heavy Guards RCT as 'the Brigade' or 'the RCT', because mind you, that's what they do in the novel. Whereas 'Heavy Guards' or 'Guards' is more the 'Mech regiment. But I agree it's probably just better to change that.
Crossposted from SB because it's helpful commentary on the story, maybe:
Chris O'Farrell said:
Doppelganger is one of those things that makes absolutely no sense and can by in large be put down to early adoption weirdness. (...) But, it is at the same time undeniably part of Battletech canon. So its just fun to deal with. And I mean really, really fun. Not to mention a really good introduction to Ardan Sortek.
So... this, here, the quoted bit, is basically why I have the Hanse or Not!Hanse subplot. Chris O'Farrell says it better than I could. All of it. It's weird as hell, but it's undeniably canon, it's potentially fun for me at least to write, and it introduces Ardan Sortek.
Unpacking this slightly, when I got to the 3025 era for this story, I had a decision to make. Either I ignore the clone plot entirely or have it fail miserably off-camera... which I was tempted to do at one point, but that seemed to be a cop out.
Now, at this stage I need to explain that I don't actually like the FedSuns, but I have a strange way of dealing with bits of BT canon I don't like, which is to apply the novels and sourcebooks straight to my forehead and bloody-mindedly write long sequences dealing with them anyway. This is why there are Wolf's Dragoons and House Kurita interludes in this story. I dislike the Draconis Combine. But it's either ignore 'em... or knuckle down and give 'em a fair shake and adequate screen time in this story. So...
So I do the latter. That's why there's a FedSun mini-arc, that's why I'm riffing the clone thing. I'm not entirely sure I could toss out anything particularly interesting with regards to the Suns without this material to play with... because I really don't like the Federated Suns at all.
I don't hate 'em, really, and if I've said so otherwise, elsewhere, it's hyperbole. But I am somewhat apathetic about the FedSuns. I liked the Federated Commonwealth, the formation thereof, the breaking of it after, but I have little interest in the FedSuns as such. It just comes across as the blandest of the bland to me. It's the European Feudal Knight House in a setting that's European Feudal Knights in Giant Robots (except some are slightly more ethnic-flavoured). Meh.
But 'Hanse Potter and the Hanse Potter' is a starting point for me to do something with the FedSuns rather than simply sidelining them or waffling around aimlessly, so I decided, in the end, to engage with the clone thing.
I do realise many folks would rather forget that the clone business exists, and that nothing I do with it will please people, but there you go. That's the thinking.
and how relevant will the fact that they arent gonna marry in this fic (i think I remember this being said)?
Melissa, if she doesnt get this adventure, will i asume be a wildly different woman. Due to reasons I cant acurately articulate right now. Maybe have her join the Tigers? Im sure mommy Katrina will just love to (really tiny) bits the group who endangers Melissa.
