Rough draft of Chapter 8.4 (will be deleted later)
- Location
- USA
- Pronouns
- He
Sorry to all that this wasn't finished before the usual monthly posting that I tried to set myself to. So here is a sneak peek at what I have so far in the spoilers. I'll fix up the consistency and lore-related parts during an edit. (My 3-month-old son is a handful).
Chapter 8.04 The Fires of Renewal
AN: Warning testing a beta on my grammar program.
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Location: Brinton system, Brinton V, Outskirts of Richard, sealed Mobile HQ, private room.
Date: November 1, 3025, 12:00
Edward Caldron, the Governor of Brinton and commander of the First Caldron guard, was gripped with anxiety as he anxiously awaited the arrival of reinforcements. Unfortunately, news soon spread that additional enemy dropships had penetrated their defense screens, making the situation even more dire. The total number of opponents had increased to nearly two battalions, which outnumbered the dwindling forces of the First Caldron guard. At least they managed to force a few Capellans back before their reinforcements appeared. However, it came at a cost. They were limited to only two lances, and their chances of victory seemed slim. The infantry had wisely retreated to the capital of Richard, where they were working tirelessly to fortify their defenses and prepare for the upcoming battle.
Edward was lost in thought and prayer when a familiar but weary voice interrupted him. Subaltern Whitney Upton stood at the door, the sole surviving member of his guard of Mechwarriors who had all perished in a fighting retreat to Richard. The voice belonged to no other than Governor Caldron.
Remembering his duty as governor, Edward ordered, "Report Subaltern Upton!"
"Yes sir," She replied, then opened up the ziputer she received when registering as a ZBBC unit. "Captain Kolar has been forced to combine what was left of his forces with the remains of Second Company. The mechtechs and civilians are working together to bring back four salvaged battlemechs online. The only issue is pilots, as few neurohelmet-compatible people are here."
Upon collecting her thoughts, Whitney relayed the following information to her superior: "Sir, it has come to our attention that a contingent of Capellan forces who were previously targeting our location has changed their trajectory and are now headed towards Fago, located in Charlton. Our security team stationed at O-P Computer Electronics has already engaged in combat with the enemy. Although they have managed to fend off the OpFor thus far, the situation remains fluid and unpredictable."
After discovering the true purpose behind the sudden attack, Edward faced a challenging dilemma. He contemplated the unexpected diversion tactic that was executed to draw the defenders away from Fago, effectively creating an opening for the sol CCAF Battalion to target the VIP. However, he couldn't comprehend the reasoning behind Hanse Davion's decision to send such a person to this location.
Edward carefully evaluated his options. He could either order a lance of battlemechs to safeguard their primary source of income using the solitary Leopard in Richard, or he could hunker down and sacrifice their source of income. Although this would ensure the safety of the majority of citizens and their VIPs, it would come at the cost of losing their primary source of income.
"Any information on potential Scourge Plague being detected with the capital?" He asked after a moment. While damage to the city had been minimum, a slight crack could easily mean the death of all non-immune people.
Whitney looked through her ziputer for a bit before replying, "There was a breach that was sealed quickly after the last attack. However, some of the Scourge was found within the city. The few infected people found were detained and placed in the SHC that my people brought from the ZBBC, and it seems like it can halt or even cure people of it."
Edward sighed in relief and muttered, "Well, that makes plenty of sense. We made the vaccines thanks to the single SHC I brought." He then looked at Whitney and asked, "Any estimate on when our reinforcement should arrive? I believed the ultimatum from Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke would end in a few hours."
"They could be arriving," Whitney started before an alert from the comms cut her off. Both of them looked at each other before Edward answered the call. "Governor Caldron here. What is the situation?"
"Sir," A voice called out that Edward remember belong to one of those modified Mules protecting the system. "I'm reported as requested. We have odd reports from our sensors. Should we engage them or continue hunting down those Capellan scum?"
A beep from Whitney's ziputer made his decision. "Disengage from the Capellans and get ready to send your targeting data to the incoming ship. Then I want you to surrender to them for repairs." The ship's Captain yelled obscenities, but Edward managed to get through to him. "They are allies, but due to a situation ground side, we are temporarily being taken over by the Aurigan Coalition."
Alerts for incoming calls appeared on a nearby terminal, but Edward dismissed them since they must be linked to the Captain's line. "Do not fire upon them unless you want to risk Brinton losing to the Scourge Plague. They are not only assisting us against the Capellans. They are also ending this nightmare."
"How will bring a…." The Captain trailed off before shouting. "Holy shit! What the hell is this a warship?" There was a considerable commotion behind the man, but Edward overrode their comms and ordered. "All ships, send your targeting data on the Capellan to our allies now and get out of their firing lane."
There was a pause before more commotion happened through the comms, but what Edward heard made him smile. "To the Aurigan Warship. We of the Briton fifth Navy surrender." That was over the general communication, so everyone who tuned in would have heard that. He received a text message saying all Capellan space units had been wiped out and the sol jumpship was disabled.
He looked at Whitney and said, "Get your battlemech ready. I'll join you soon so I can meet our allies on the battlefield."
"Yes, sir," Whitney said before turning around and opening the doors to the hallways into the command center. Noises of battle readiness and shouts about betrayal were ringing through the mobile HQ. All this had caused the Mechwarrior to freeze in the doorway of Edward's office.
"I'll meet you there," Edward said as he walked past Whitney and began quelling the chaos ahead.
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Location: Brinton system, Brinton V, Outskirts of Richard, Fifth Confederation Reserve Cavalry 6th and 8th Company.
Date: November 1, 3025, 16:00
As Major Borya Makarov readied his Catapult, his subordinates followed suit with their battlemechs. Most of the mercenaries who had fled at the mere mention of the Aurigans were insignificant. Instead, the battle group had banded together as a formidable force of thirty-two mechs, a dozen combat vehicles, and infantry support to face the enemy head-on. The remaining members were with Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke securing their forward operating base. The battle was imminent, and they were poised to demonstrate their power.
"Major Makarov," his second in command called out from his Grasshopper. "We haven't contacted the two mercenary lances since the Aurigans arrived. We believed they may have surrendered."
The Major checked the vitals of the missing mercs and noticed how erratic they were. He growled and responded, "They did not surrender but died from being stupid. Their vitals show the symptoms of the Scourge." He heard mutters of prayers. Anyone who raided Briton always knew to keep a check on the vehicles and suits' seals. One breach was all needed to end most of the First St. Ives Lancers before they retreated to their jumpship and fled the system with those unaffected. They were lucky.
"How are the prisoners?" He switched the conversation away from the Scourge before the morale dropped. "Will they be enough to shield us from the Aurigan's forces?"
The officer in charge of their cover responded, "I believe so, sir!" Then the foot soldier went off with the rest of the guards to set up a contingency should the shields not work. However, the Major knew better and silently signaled one of his Mechwarriors to double-check and ensure the proper suits were used.
"Sir?" Another officer piped up as his Stinger powered on. "I thought the reports on the Taurian and Aurigan relationship were still hostile after the incident with ComStar interdiction of the latter. So why would they be working together?"
Makarov thought about his answer and whom he was talking with. Then, after a moment, he told his subordinate. "Commander. I'm about to tell you the truth about the so-called hostility. That is all a lie. The Taurian Concordat is allied with the Aurigan and Canopus. This is confirmed by our intelligence agents years ago. However, publicly they disavowed the Coalition like all the lesser powers, with only our Celestial Wisdom deciding to keep an eye on all three."
"So these barbarians convinced the Bulls and the Canopus to play peace?" The officer asked while Makarov sent orders to his XO to direct the second company. The Grasshopper moved to take over for the company. That group began moving into a position to defend themselves from a possible counterattack.
"This is correct," Makarov replied as a lance of mercenary Hetzers drove by. He paused a moment as he remembered how many of the soldier-for-hire with them were nothing more than Servitors given weapons to earn a chance at citizenship.
"Yet, they somehow managed to keep it from everyone but our eyes. That is why we are here to stop vital information from reaching the backers behind the Aurigans." He marched forward to his position as his Company would be the first to fight the Aurigans.
The officer he was talking to gasped and asked, "There a backer behind them?" There was a pause before the rest of the commander's lance began following them. Makarov allowed it as two escorting Vindicators began forming in his position. The fourth member was still on return from her scouting mission.
"Indeed," he responded, alerted by the beeping of his sensors. The remote probes had detected enemy battlemechs approaching from the direction of the Warship's recent landing site, several kilometers beyond their perimeter. The only reason they weren't bombarded from orbit was thanks to those hostages.
"We are set to engage in combat with them soon, and I wanted to ensure that everyone is aware of who we are up against," he added, without mentioning that this could potentially be their final battle, given the strength of the opposing forces.
"This is Major Borya Makarov to all Capellan forces," He spoke into the available frequency for those under Celestial Wisdom. "The great foe our grand leader has warned us about has arrived. We must stop them from reaching the Taurian city we have been besieging, or all will suffer from the darkness. Therefore, all forces, prepare to stop these demons from taking our objective."
Makarov's intentions of delivering a powerful speech, praising their esteemed leader, and newfound opportunity were thwarted when a deafening wolf-like growl disrupted their communication channels. In a blinding flash, the Stinger and the officer he was conversing with vanished, triggering pandemonium as their unit was engulfed in flames.
He fired his LRM without tracking at the quadmech that somehow avoided his sensors but standing on the cliff nearby. After all, his battlemap showed the enemy was still a few kilometers away. Not within PPC range!
Before his missiles could even arc, the quad mech jumped off the cliff, dodging a barrage of lasers and PPC. The direction of the leap was to the lance of mercenary Scimitars waiting to ambush the enemy force. But, before anyone could warn them, the wolf shape battlemech tore through them with a golden flash.
Just in a moment, the force lost five units to one mech. "Shìbīng's Recon lance avenge your leader. Calvary's skirmishers follow behind them. Fifty-Six Infantry battalion stay with the prisoners and begin rigging our surprise," Makarov ordered as the last member of his lance, a captured Dervish, began sending sensor lock on the target. The mech was returning from scouting the Taurian city with a higher vantage point to spot the enemy.
"All units," he continued as the fast-moving mech nearly disappeared from the shared data link. "Fire at will. Take out that battlemech!" All units within firing range fire their weapons while Makarov looked back at his battlemap. "Calvary Nine, get your lance to that cliff and begin harassing it back up. That unit is only here to distract us. Enemy's main force is still five minutes out."
The last lance of First Company jumped up to the same cliff the Wolf shape battlemech had vacated when their leader's Wolverine suddenly flew off it in pieces. Following the dead man, the Vindicator and Griffin abruptly fired their weapons before cutting their jet off to land next to their downed commander. Unfortunately, the Spider with them didn't make it as something dragged it—the sounds over the comms chili him to the core.
"AHHHHHH NOOOOO IT A," the Spider's Mechwarrior shouted before the crunching sounds were heard before it was cut off. Then the sound echoed throughout the battlefield.
"Calvary Ten, Eleven, Report!" Makarov shouted as he fired another round of LRMs after that fast-moving wolf mech. It was being chased by the two Locusts and one Wasp of Shìbīng's Recon lance. A single Pegasus follows them and provides support fire.
Calvary Eleven reported as the Ten's Vindicator jumped back up and fired at the unseen enemy. "S-Sir! There are giant spider shape battlemechs up here. One of them is chewing on Yoyo's Spider like a bug." Makarov could tell that the Mechwarrior was shaken by what she saw. But before he could ask any further, he had to move and avoid being shot to pieces by the Wolf mech.
"Damn it," Makarov shouted as his left leg and torso gave warning alert. "LRM down," the system announced. He ejected the ammo stored in the general location. An ammo explosion would not kill him. Instead, he would rather die fighting these monsters.
"Someone kill that damn battlemech," He ordered again as he began thinking of another solution. "Shìbīng Lead, take whomever you need to reinforce Calvary Ten and Eleven. The rest of you try and flank them."
He watched his XO lead a lance of Urbanmechs and two Shadow Hawks. He glanced at his lance status and realized that his two Vindicators had taken heavy damage somehow. Luckily, they still had all their weapons operational compared to him.
"Major Makarov! We have-" A shout nearly broke him from his concentration as his missiles locked onto whatever Calvary Ten managed to sensor lock. However, before his LRM could fire, he noticed that the mercenary commander of the Lance of Hetzers had vanished from their position. The remaining combat vehicles guarding their shields were in combat.
"Sir," Another voice shouted through the comms. It was his infantry commander. "We are under attack. The prisoners are-" the voice cut off as the sounds of gunfire overtook.
His missiles launched and then twisted his mech torso to where the merc's and infantry's position was, only to be met by a barrage of particles and lasers. "Ahhh," The yell from Jamie reached his ear as the man's Vindicator went up in flames.
The flash as the battlemech's fusion core vented its plasma had blinded Makarov, but he could hear the second Vindicator engaging the enemy with its PPC. However, as his eyes adjusted to the brightness, he saw a fear-filling sight. Where they had been storing their meat shields stood four small spider shape battlemech protected by a larger one with two massive cannons pointed at him. He absentmindedly noticed the dozens of man-size mechs firing away at the APCs and entrenched infantry before he reacted.
"Die!" He shouted as hit engaged his jumpjets to avoid the twin cannon shots and returned fire with his four medium lasers. However, according to his computer, those energy weapons barely did any damage. Makarov felt his mech knocked aside as his lancemate grabbed him to force him down. His fellow soldier sacrificed his life to save him as his previous location was filled with more particles and lasers. The enemy destroyed the battlemech before it could do anything else.
His Catapult landed hard, and his left leg registered as destroyed. However, for now, he had landed behind a ruined building that would shield him from most of the enemy fire. "All units report your situation," Makarov ordered as he took deep breaths. He would honor his unit's sacrifices once he figured out how to end this in his favor.
"This is Shìbīng Four," A voice called out. "I'm retreating to defensive positions. All my lancemates have been killed by that damn wolf. It still has Shìbīng Three in its jaws and uses them as a shield. At least it ran away and out of our perimeter. I'm almost-NOOOO AHHHH." The Major realized where the Locust pilot was and silently gave him a prayer. The man had returned to where those spider mechs were tearing through the backlines.
"This is Shìbīng Ten," The only Rifleman in the company shouted through the comms. "My guns are down, and my sensors are picking up incoming ASF. Everyone, watch out!"
A barrage of LRMs and laser fire came from above, and the battlemap showed that over half his force was devastated. "This is Calvary Lead," Makarov said as he moved his damaged mech closer to the cliffside where their main force was gathering. "Regroup with Shìbīng Company. Shìbīng Ten, where are your lancemates?" He got a lock on another mech and fired another batch of LRM.
"Sir," The Rifleman pilot reported over the chaotic battlefield. "They are engaged with enemy battlemechs. Unknown identification. However, four are wolf shaped, and the others are odd monstrosities of a mech and tank." The report made the Major look back at his screen and realize the enemy force had sent in their light recon units. However, his sensors only registered four fusion-powered mechs. The other lance was not…wait, there they were, but their signature vanished again.
"Everyone be careful," He ordered as he managed to get a lock onto a flying Sabre. He fired his LRMs and hit the ASF before being forced to hide behind the ruins buildings again. "Enemy units have stealth capability. Mark them with laser fire if possible. Calvary Four, where are you?"
"Unfortunately, I'll be taking the role of Calvary Four," The voice of their cultural officer. "I'm currently harassing the incoming Aurigan forces. They landed a Company of battlemechs at these coordinates." The battlemap zoomed out to show ten red dots coming from the North. Calvary Ten supported the Dervish. However, Eleven was displayed as destroyed. A quick check revealed that his XO and his force were still engaged with whatever killed that lance.
"Calvary Ten, continue supporting of cultural officer," He ordered before the sensor picked up those ASF on another run. But, at least this time, it was only three as Shìbīng Ten's lancemates shot down the other half of that group once they were freed from their engagement.
"Ah, damn it," the voice of the mercenaries came through the open frequency. "Fuck this job. All Gavin's Hunter, fire your surrender flares. Let the Capellans deal with this bullshit."
The sensor marked the three remaining mercenaries powering down despite the incoming mechs…that passed them and continued attacking his forces.
"All Capellan forces," he spoke with conviction, knowing what the other cultural officers would do if he suggested anything else. "Regroup at fallback Alpha. Restock and then prepare to meet the enemy again."
The Wolf and those spider mechs had all retreated away with the few battlemech they were engaged with. Unfortunately, they left all the infantry dead or dying without support vehicles. Their only hope is to resupply with the reservists at the fallback point.
It took an hour, but they gathered on the small mountain where their damaged dropship was used as a base. However, seeing that only twenty of them made it was depressing. On the other hand, it was actually easy as the enemy forces stopped following them forty minutes ago.
"How could we be reduced to this in a single battle," A Mechwarrior whispered, but it transmitted over the comms. Despite the man's slip-up, Makarov felt the same. So he took stock of what was left. The ones with severe damage are placed in the mechbay to bolt on armor as fast as possible.
Of the Calvary Company:
His damaged Catapult (with only four medium lasers).
Four (the cultural officer) with the Dervish (out of LRM ammo).
Five's Firestarter was still operating at capacity.
Six's and Seven's Javelin and Ostscout were nearly wrecked due to those spiders and mini mechs.
Eight's Phoenix Hawk was missing an entire arm and was out of machine gun ammo.
Ten with his Vindicator had minor damages and was out of LRMs.
Thirteen through Sixteen status had minor injuries, but that was because those Urbanmechs were covering the retreat path.
Of the Shìbīng Company:
His XO's Grasshopper was missing both arms.
Two's Shadow Hawk was down to its autocannon and SRMs.
Three and Four's Urbanmechs somehow came out alive but out of ammo and stripped of armor.
Ten's Rifleman only had medium lasers as its arms were gone.
His lance of two Blackjacks and one Whitworth was severely damaged but could still act as semi-mobile turrets.
Finally, they had only one APC that managed to escape the ambush but with only a fire team worth of infantry inside.
Overall, the situation wasn't good at all. However, they couldn't surrender, as who knows what other cultural officers might be within his ranks. After all, the tone from some of the reports was the same as in the Dervish. Luckily, everyone decided to stay within their battlemech in case those monsters managed to find and attack them.
He focused back on the conversation about the battlemechs that ambushed them. "So we agree that despite there being five wolf-shaped mechs. Only the first one was truly alien in its abilities to kill us," His XO stated.
"This is true," Makarov agreed as he reviewed the data from the survivors of Shìbīng Company, Striker Lance. "The four lighter battlemechs are moving much better than other quadmechs I know of, but they use standard tech in their weapons and armor. On the other hand, the larger, heavier mech has a weapon hitting beyond anything I have encountered."
He paused before asking the three survivors of Calvary Recon Lance. "Calvary Five, Six, and Seven." The Mechwarriors acknowledged they heard while they stood on guard duty. "What are your reports again on those mini mechs and spiders-shaped ones?"
There was a pause before Calvary Five responded, "From what we observed before, I was forced to bail Six and Seven out. These man-size mechs have four distinct appearances, with the ones looking like Terran medieval-era knights being the weakest of them. They died to my flamers eventually."
"Five," Calvary Six butted in. "You only managed to kill one of those Knight-like power suits." 'Power suit,' Makarov mentally noted. Six continued, "Those other two types tanked all your attacks from your flamers and medium lasers. Hell, those more battlemech-style ones nearly killed Seven and me!" He said the fear in Six's voice and hoped that any cultural officers didn't try to execute him. They needed everyone to work together if they were going to survive this.
"Explain how exactly you nearly died to men in exoskeletons, Lieutenant?" came the voice of the cultural officer in the Dervish. "I find it hard to believe during our fight that those units could work for more than fifteen minutes like those on Solaris."
"Easy," The Javelin pilot shouted. "Here is the data from what my combat computer could pick up on. They weren't people using standard SRM or LRM launchers. They were using crew and mech-grade weapons!"
Makarov could feel a cold sweat breaking on his back as he read the man's data. The sensors registered recoilless rifles, mech-grade machine guns, a stripped-down support PPC, and unknown weapons. Of course, everyone knew the former three and how much damage they could do to a battlemech, but the latter surprised him. They seemed like Particle weapons but were different in how they hit. This means there was a new weapon in play, or someone managed to advance older tech. Either way, this was game-changing in war.
"So they managed to make crew weapons fit for a single infantry unit wearing an exoskeleton," The man said as the reserve crew began loading more missiles onto the Dervish. "I can't see how that could affect your light lance. How did these units manage to bring down the team station there? It couldn't have been due to just those five battlemechs. They are under gun to fight off the Marauder and Warhammer that were protecting the base."
Even he couldn't keep quiet this time. First, Makarov expressed his frustration, "Under gun, my ass!" Then, he uploaded the data of his recent encounter with the spiders and human-sized mechs. Despite carrying limited weapons, they inflicted severe damage. Makarov emphasized, "Take a look at the data and compare. Their impact is equivalent to that of a medium-class laser."
"I see," the cultural officer replied. "Then we contact Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke. But first, we must capture and hide this tech for the Chancellor. Then, the retaliation force will find and recreate it in our advanced universities and factories."
As if there would be a retaliation force. Makarov thought but kept that to himself as he messaged the base's communication officer. "Lieutenant Dan. Contact Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke and inform him that we have urgent news." He wished his superior wouldn't be stupid and call a retreat from this world. There was still a couple of Unions station back at the main base.
After a brief pause, Dan said, "Lieutenant Colonel has not responded, Sir." This statement caused some unrest, but Makarov paid no attention to it. Instead, he inquired, "Has there been any data transmission or communication from the base?"
"No," Dan began but then stopped before changing his tone. "Nevermind, Sir. We have incoming data from a Security unit's frequency. It's massive and will take a few minutes before it is ready for review."
"Send the data to us as soon as possible," Makarov ordered before turning to the few light mechs being repaired. "Calvary Five and Six. Patrols the area with the remaining security force. Eight and Ten get ready for sortie if those quadmechs or spider-shaped ones appear. Shìbīng Two, you are in command while One is with me and the other senior officers at the emergency meeting room."
"Yes, Sir," Came choirs of voices as those warriors went off to complete their duty. He parked his damaged Catapult next to the Grasshopper before getting out. He made sure that his laser pistol was ready if the data they received was enough to surrender to save the lives of his troops. Those cultural officers wouldn't allow them without a few holes.
Makarov noticed a few of the Servitors bring refreshments to the meeting room under guard. He saluted the few veteran foot soldiers before entering and seeing all who was left of his command. He walked over and took his seat, and began to relax. "Everyone," He said while looking at the few officers left. "While we wait for the data. Dine and rest. We will need it."
——-Half an hour later———
According to reports from the patrolling units, there was no sign of any enemies, and the situation was calm. However, the Communication department faced an issue as they could not establish contact with their space assets or the main base.
He discreetly observed the cultural officer's group, noting who was engaged in conversation and who wasn't. Lieutenant Dan sent him a message with data about the battleRom, which came from Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke's experimental Cataphract. The recording's estimated length of just twenty minutes made him uneasy. Despite having elite units in their battalion, their battle had ended quickly.
Considering the lack of communication between the Colonel's group and their counterparts, those twenty minutes were a final attempt to warn them about the enemy before the primary base was captured.
"Major," He turned to his XO, who handled the holotable's controls. "The data has been formatted. Shall we start viewing what the Lieutenant Colonel sent us?" Makarov replied while signaling a hand code only known between them. "Begin it."
As he settled into his chair, he discreetly adjusted his laser pistol. Makarov secretly observed his fellow officers and noted that only those he trusted had noticed his action and made their preparations. Although they served as officers for the Capellan Confederation, their families had all made plans to flee due to their ongoing battles with the Federated Suns and Taurian Concordat, which had taken a toll on their dedication to the Chancellor. After all, why attack the Bulls when they hadn't made any offensive moves against the Confederation in decades?
What better place to migrate to than the Aurigans, as they had proven to allow immigrants in and had the power to overwhelm them easily with a few battlemechs? While some of his fellow co-conspirers had been killed in action, the rest had survived by being part of his battalion. The so-called Servitors here were all family members in disguise being guarded by trusted members. The surprised cultural officers threw a wrench in their plans, but thankfully those countermeasures on their hostages had been dummies.
His thoughts were interrupted as the holoprojector began playing the battleROM's data. After all, the sounds of heavy bombardment would draw anyone's attention. The image of one of the smaller quad mechs was gripped in its sole hand actuator of the Colonel's battlemech being held before him. The sounds of his class ten autocannon blasting off in the offhand at an unseen target. However, the few units seen were in multiple different unit colors fleeing the battle.
"All units," Mitschke's horse voice rang out. "Form up on me. Do not let these beasts into the final perimeter. They all shall burn before our might. For the Capellan Confederation!"
The remains of that quad mech flew forward into a barrage of missiles heading for the retreating Bulldogs. It absorbed most of the damage and protected the tankers. Everyone could hear the cheers from the crews and surviving members of Mitschke's group, which was down to just a Company worth of tanks and mechs, according to the BattleROM. It was depressing as the base had a battalion station there.
"The Colonel took a lot of those bastards out," He heard someone say as the BattleROM picked up several destroyed tanks and hybrid battlemechs for which the Aurigans were known.
"God damnit!" One of his fellow officers shouted, causing Makarov to focus back on the screen. Then, a powerful PPC emerged from a distance and destroyed both tanks with a single shot. The Major noticed the warning being flashed within the Colonel's battle computer.
"Who are you!" Everyone heard the panic in Mitschke's voice as the image of a giant ape-shaped battlemech came into view. Shots from the remaining base turrets and their mech forces missed or did nothing to the incoming behemoth.
The original OpFor had quickly retreated behind the large ape-like battlemech as several medium and heavy mech emerge from the direction. Makarov noticed that all his fellow officers realized what was being transmitted. The last stand of their former leader.
A static message opened in the BattleROM showing a Lyran man on the other end. However what was said made even Makarov blood chili. The Major's hopes that his plans would go through without issue.
"This is Lieutenant Colonel Michael Dark of the
AN: Warning testing a beta on my grammar program.
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Location: Brinton system, Brinton V, Outskirts of Richard, sealed Mobile HQ, private room.
Date: November 1, 3025, 12:00
Edward Caldron, the Governor of Brinton and commander of the First Caldron guard, was gripped with anxiety as he anxiously awaited the arrival of reinforcements. Unfortunately, news soon spread that additional enemy dropships had penetrated their defense screens, making the situation even more dire. The total number of opponents had increased to nearly two battalions, which outnumbered the dwindling forces of the First Caldron guard. At least they managed to force a few Capellans back before their reinforcements appeared. However, it came at a cost. They were limited to only two lances, and their chances of victory seemed slim. The infantry had wisely retreated to the capital of Richard, where they were working tirelessly to fortify their defenses and prepare for the upcoming battle.
Edward was lost in thought and prayer when a familiar but weary voice interrupted him. Subaltern Whitney Upton stood at the door, the sole surviving member of his guard of Mechwarriors who had all perished in a fighting retreat to Richard. The voice belonged to no other than Governor Caldron.
Remembering his duty as governor, Edward ordered, "Report Subaltern Upton!"
"Yes sir," She replied, then opened up the ziputer she received when registering as a ZBBC unit. "Captain Kolar has been forced to combine what was left of his forces with the remains of Second Company. The mechtechs and civilians are working together to bring back four salvaged battlemechs online. The only issue is pilots, as few neurohelmet-compatible people are here."
Upon collecting her thoughts, Whitney relayed the following information to her superior: "Sir, it has come to our attention that a contingent of Capellan forces who were previously targeting our location has changed their trajectory and are now headed towards Fago, located in Charlton. Our security team stationed at O-P Computer Electronics has already engaged in combat with the enemy. Although they have managed to fend off the OpFor thus far, the situation remains fluid and unpredictable."
After discovering the true purpose behind the sudden attack, Edward faced a challenging dilemma. He contemplated the unexpected diversion tactic that was executed to draw the defenders away from Fago, effectively creating an opening for the sol CCAF Battalion to target the VIP. However, he couldn't comprehend the reasoning behind Hanse Davion's decision to send such a person to this location.
Edward carefully evaluated his options. He could either order a lance of battlemechs to safeguard their primary source of income using the solitary Leopard in Richard, or he could hunker down and sacrifice their source of income. Although this would ensure the safety of the majority of citizens and their VIPs, it would come at the cost of losing their primary source of income.
"Any information on potential Scourge Plague being detected with the capital?" He asked after a moment. While damage to the city had been minimum, a slight crack could easily mean the death of all non-immune people.
Whitney looked through her ziputer for a bit before replying, "There was a breach that was sealed quickly after the last attack. However, some of the Scourge was found within the city. The few infected people found were detained and placed in the SHC that my people brought from the ZBBC, and it seems like it can halt or even cure people of it."
Edward sighed in relief and muttered, "Well, that makes plenty of sense. We made the vaccines thanks to the single SHC I brought." He then looked at Whitney and asked, "Any estimate on when our reinforcement should arrive? I believed the ultimatum from Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke would end in a few hours."
"They could be arriving," Whitney started before an alert from the comms cut her off. Both of them looked at each other before Edward answered the call. "Governor Caldron here. What is the situation?"
"Sir," A voice called out that Edward remember belong to one of those modified Mules protecting the system. "I'm reported as requested. We have odd reports from our sensors. Should we engage them or continue hunting down those Capellan scum?"
A beep from Whitney's ziputer made his decision. "Disengage from the Capellans and get ready to send your targeting data to the incoming ship. Then I want you to surrender to them for repairs." The ship's Captain yelled obscenities, but Edward managed to get through to him. "They are allies, but due to a situation ground side, we are temporarily being taken over by the Aurigan Coalition."
Alerts for incoming calls appeared on a nearby terminal, but Edward dismissed them since they must be linked to the Captain's line. "Do not fire upon them unless you want to risk Brinton losing to the Scourge Plague. They are not only assisting us against the Capellans. They are also ending this nightmare."
"How will bring a…." The Captain trailed off before shouting. "Holy shit! What the hell is this a warship?" There was a considerable commotion behind the man, but Edward overrode their comms and ordered. "All ships, send your targeting data on the Capellan to our allies now and get out of their firing lane."
There was a pause before more commotion happened through the comms, but what Edward heard made him smile. "To the Aurigan Warship. We of the Briton fifth Navy surrender." That was over the general communication, so everyone who tuned in would have heard that. He received a text message saying all Capellan space units had been wiped out and the sol jumpship was disabled.
He looked at Whitney and said, "Get your battlemech ready. I'll join you soon so I can meet our allies on the battlefield."
"Yes, sir," Whitney said before turning around and opening the doors to the hallways into the command center. Noises of battle readiness and shouts about betrayal were ringing through the mobile HQ. All this had caused the Mechwarrior to freeze in the doorway of Edward's office.
"I'll meet you there," Edward said as he walked past Whitney and began quelling the chaos ahead.
————————————————-
Location: Brinton system, Brinton V, Outskirts of Richard, Fifth Confederation Reserve Cavalry 6th and 8th Company.
Date: November 1, 3025, 16:00
As Major Borya Makarov readied his Catapult, his subordinates followed suit with their battlemechs. Most of the mercenaries who had fled at the mere mention of the Aurigans were insignificant. Instead, the battle group had banded together as a formidable force of thirty-two mechs, a dozen combat vehicles, and infantry support to face the enemy head-on. The remaining members were with Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke securing their forward operating base. The battle was imminent, and they were poised to demonstrate their power.
"Major Makarov," his second in command called out from his Grasshopper. "We haven't contacted the two mercenary lances since the Aurigans arrived. We believed they may have surrendered."
The Major checked the vitals of the missing mercs and noticed how erratic they were. He growled and responded, "They did not surrender but died from being stupid. Their vitals show the symptoms of the Scourge." He heard mutters of prayers. Anyone who raided Briton always knew to keep a check on the vehicles and suits' seals. One breach was all needed to end most of the First St. Ives Lancers before they retreated to their jumpship and fled the system with those unaffected. They were lucky.
"How are the prisoners?" He switched the conversation away from the Scourge before the morale dropped. "Will they be enough to shield us from the Aurigan's forces?"
The officer in charge of their cover responded, "I believe so, sir!" Then the foot soldier went off with the rest of the guards to set up a contingency should the shields not work. However, the Major knew better and silently signaled one of his Mechwarriors to double-check and ensure the proper suits were used.
"Sir?" Another officer piped up as his Stinger powered on. "I thought the reports on the Taurian and Aurigan relationship were still hostile after the incident with ComStar interdiction of the latter. So why would they be working together?"
Makarov thought about his answer and whom he was talking with. Then, after a moment, he told his subordinate. "Commander. I'm about to tell you the truth about the so-called hostility. That is all a lie. The Taurian Concordat is allied with the Aurigan and Canopus. This is confirmed by our intelligence agents years ago. However, publicly they disavowed the Coalition like all the lesser powers, with only our Celestial Wisdom deciding to keep an eye on all three."
"So these barbarians convinced the Bulls and the Canopus to play peace?" The officer asked while Makarov sent orders to his XO to direct the second company. The Grasshopper moved to take over for the company. That group began moving into a position to defend themselves from a possible counterattack.
"This is correct," Makarov replied as a lance of mercenary Hetzers drove by. He paused a moment as he remembered how many of the soldier-for-hire with them were nothing more than Servitors given weapons to earn a chance at citizenship.
"Yet, they somehow managed to keep it from everyone but our eyes. That is why we are here to stop vital information from reaching the backers behind the Aurigans." He marched forward to his position as his Company would be the first to fight the Aurigans.
The officer he was talking to gasped and asked, "There a backer behind them?" There was a pause before the rest of the commander's lance began following them. Makarov allowed it as two escorting Vindicators began forming in his position. The fourth member was still on return from her scouting mission.
"Indeed," he responded, alerted by the beeping of his sensors. The remote probes had detected enemy battlemechs approaching from the direction of the Warship's recent landing site, several kilometers beyond their perimeter. The only reason they weren't bombarded from orbit was thanks to those hostages.
"We are set to engage in combat with them soon, and I wanted to ensure that everyone is aware of who we are up against," he added, without mentioning that this could potentially be their final battle, given the strength of the opposing forces.
"This is Major Borya Makarov to all Capellan forces," He spoke into the available frequency for those under Celestial Wisdom. "The great foe our grand leader has warned us about has arrived. We must stop them from reaching the Taurian city we have been besieging, or all will suffer from the darkness. Therefore, all forces, prepare to stop these demons from taking our objective."
Makarov's intentions of delivering a powerful speech, praising their esteemed leader, and newfound opportunity were thwarted when a deafening wolf-like growl disrupted their communication channels. In a blinding flash, the Stinger and the officer he was conversing with vanished, triggering pandemonium as their unit was engulfed in flames.
He fired his LRM without tracking at the quadmech that somehow avoided his sensors but standing on the cliff nearby. After all, his battlemap showed the enemy was still a few kilometers away. Not within PPC range!
Before his missiles could even arc, the quad mech jumped off the cliff, dodging a barrage of lasers and PPC. The direction of the leap was to the lance of mercenary Scimitars waiting to ambush the enemy force. But, before anyone could warn them, the wolf shape battlemech tore through them with a golden flash.
Just in a moment, the force lost five units to one mech. "Shìbīng's Recon lance avenge your leader. Calvary's skirmishers follow behind them. Fifty-Six Infantry battalion stay with the prisoners and begin rigging our surprise," Makarov ordered as the last member of his lance, a captured Dervish, began sending sensor lock on the target. The mech was returning from scouting the Taurian city with a higher vantage point to spot the enemy.
"All units," he continued as the fast-moving mech nearly disappeared from the shared data link. "Fire at will. Take out that battlemech!" All units within firing range fire their weapons while Makarov looked back at his battlemap. "Calvary Nine, get your lance to that cliff and begin harassing it back up. That unit is only here to distract us. Enemy's main force is still five minutes out."
The last lance of First Company jumped up to the same cliff the Wolf shape battlemech had vacated when their leader's Wolverine suddenly flew off it in pieces. Following the dead man, the Vindicator and Griffin abruptly fired their weapons before cutting their jet off to land next to their downed commander. Unfortunately, the Spider with them didn't make it as something dragged it—the sounds over the comms chili him to the core.
"AHHHHHH NOOOOO IT A," the Spider's Mechwarrior shouted before the crunching sounds were heard before it was cut off. Then the sound echoed throughout the battlefield.
"Calvary Ten, Eleven, Report!" Makarov shouted as he fired another round of LRMs after that fast-moving wolf mech. It was being chased by the two Locusts and one Wasp of Shìbīng's Recon lance. A single Pegasus follows them and provides support fire.
Calvary Eleven reported as the Ten's Vindicator jumped back up and fired at the unseen enemy. "S-Sir! There are giant spider shape battlemechs up here. One of them is chewing on Yoyo's Spider like a bug." Makarov could tell that the Mechwarrior was shaken by what she saw. But before he could ask any further, he had to move and avoid being shot to pieces by the Wolf mech.
"Damn it," Makarov shouted as his left leg and torso gave warning alert. "LRM down," the system announced. He ejected the ammo stored in the general location. An ammo explosion would not kill him. Instead, he would rather die fighting these monsters.
"Someone kill that damn battlemech," He ordered again as he began thinking of another solution. "Shìbīng Lead, take whomever you need to reinforce Calvary Ten and Eleven. The rest of you try and flank them."
He watched his XO lead a lance of Urbanmechs and two Shadow Hawks. He glanced at his lance status and realized that his two Vindicators had taken heavy damage somehow. Luckily, they still had all their weapons operational compared to him.
"Major Makarov! We have-" A shout nearly broke him from his concentration as his missiles locked onto whatever Calvary Ten managed to sensor lock. However, before his LRM could fire, he noticed that the mercenary commander of the Lance of Hetzers had vanished from their position. The remaining combat vehicles guarding their shields were in combat.
"Sir," Another voice shouted through the comms. It was his infantry commander. "We are under attack. The prisoners are-" the voice cut off as the sounds of gunfire overtook.
His missiles launched and then twisted his mech torso to where the merc's and infantry's position was, only to be met by a barrage of particles and lasers. "Ahhh," The yell from Jamie reached his ear as the man's Vindicator went up in flames.
The flash as the battlemech's fusion core vented its plasma had blinded Makarov, but he could hear the second Vindicator engaging the enemy with its PPC. However, as his eyes adjusted to the brightness, he saw a fear-filling sight. Where they had been storing their meat shields stood four small spider shape battlemech protected by a larger one with two massive cannons pointed at him. He absentmindedly noticed the dozens of man-size mechs firing away at the APCs and entrenched infantry before he reacted.
"Die!" He shouted as hit engaged his jumpjets to avoid the twin cannon shots and returned fire with his four medium lasers. However, according to his computer, those energy weapons barely did any damage. Makarov felt his mech knocked aside as his lancemate grabbed him to force him down. His fellow soldier sacrificed his life to save him as his previous location was filled with more particles and lasers. The enemy destroyed the battlemech before it could do anything else.
His Catapult landed hard, and his left leg registered as destroyed. However, for now, he had landed behind a ruined building that would shield him from most of the enemy fire. "All units report your situation," Makarov ordered as he took deep breaths. He would honor his unit's sacrifices once he figured out how to end this in his favor.
"This is Shìbīng Four," A voice called out. "I'm retreating to defensive positions. All my lancemates have been killed by that damn wolf. It still has Shìbīng Three in its jaws and uses them as a shield. At least it ran away and out of our perimeter. I'm almost-NOOOO AHHHH." The Major realized where the Locust pilot was and silently gave him a prayer. The man had returned to where those spider mechs were tearing through the backlines.
"This is Shìbīng Ten," The only Rifleman in the company shouted through the comms. "My guns are down, and my sensors are picking up incoming ASF. Everyone, watch out!"
A barrage of LRMs and laser fire came from above, and the battlemap showed that over half his force was devastated. "This is Calvary Lead," Makarov said as he moved his damaged mech closer to the cliffside where their main force was gathering. "Regroup with Shìbīng Company. Shìbīng Ten, where are your lancemates?" He got a lock on another mech and fired another batch of LRM.
"Sir," The Rifleman pilot reported over the chaotic battlefield. "They are engaged with enemy battlemechs. Unknown identification. However, four are wolf shaped, and the others are odd monstrosities of a mech and tank." The report made the Major look back at his screen and realize the enemy force had sent in their light recon units. However, his sensors only registered four fusion-powered mechs. The other lance was not…wait, there they were, but their signature vanished again.
"Everyone be careful," He ordered as he managed to get a lock onto a flying Sabre. He fired his LRMs and hit the ASF before being forced to hide behind the ruins buildings again. "Enemy units have stealth capability. Mark them with laser fire if possible. Calvary Four, where are you?"
"Unfortunately, I'll be taking the role of Calvary Four," The voice of their cultural officer. "I'm currently harassing the incoming Aurigan forces. They landed a Company of battlemechs at these coordinates." The battlemap zoomed out to show ten red dots coming from the North. Calvary Ten supported the Dervish. However, Eleven was displayed as destroyed. A quick check revealed that his XO and his force were still engaged with whatever killed that lance.
"Calvary Ten, continue supporting of cultural officer," He ordered before the sensor picked up those ASF on another run. But, at least this time, it was only three as Shìbīng Ten's lancemates shot down the other half of that group once they were freed from their engagement.
"Ah, damn it," the voice of the mercenaries came through the open frequency. "Fuck this job. All Gavin's Hunter, fire your surrender flares. Let the Capellans deal with this bullshit."
The sensor marked the three remaining mercenaries powering down despite the incoming mechs…that passed them and continued attacking his forces.
"All Capellan forces," he spoke with conviction, knowing what the other cultural officers would do if he suggested anything else. "Regroup at fallback Alpha. Restock and then prepare to meet the enemy again."
The Wolf and those spider mechs had all retreated away with the few battlemech they were engaged with. Unfortunately, they left all the infantry dead or dying without support vehicles. Their only hope is to resupply with the reservists at the fallback point.
It took an hour, but they gathered on the small mountain where their damaged dropship was used as a base. However, seeing that only twenty of them made it was depressing. On the other hand, it was actually easy as the enemy forces stopped following them forty minutes ago.
"How could we be reduced to this in a single battle," A Mechwarrior whispered, but it transmitted over the comms. Despite the man's slip-up, Makarov felt the same. So he took stock of what was left. The ones with severe damage are placed in the mechbay to bolt on armor as fast as possible.
Of the Calvary Company:
His damaged Catapult (with only four medium lasers).
Four (the cultural officer) with the Dervish (out of LRM ammo).
Five's Firestarter was still operating at capacity.
Six's and Seven's Javelin and Ostscout were nearly wrecked due to those spiders and mini mechs.
Eight's Phoenix Hawk was missing an entire arm and was out of machine gun ammo.
Ten with his Vindicator had minor damages and was out of LRMs.
Thirteen through Sixteen status had minor injuries, but that was because those Urbanmechs were covering the retreat path.
Of the Shìbīng Company:
His XO's Grasshopper was missing both arms.
Two's Shadow Hawk was down to its autocannon and SRMs.
Three and Four's Urbanmechs somehow came out alive but out of ammo and stripped of armor.
Ten's Rifleman only had medium lasers as its arms were gone.
His lance of two Blackjacks and one Whitworth was severely damaged but could still act as semi-mobile turrets.
Finally, they had only one APC that managed to escape the ambush but with only a fire team worth of infantry inside.
Overall, the situation wasn't good at all. However, they couldn't surrender, as who knows what other cultural officers might be within his ranks. After all, the tone from some of the reports was the same as in the Dervish. Luckily, everyone decided to stay within their battlemech in case those monsters managed to find and attack them.
He focused back on the conversation about the battlemechs that ambushed them. "So we agree that despite there being five wolf-shaped mechs. Only the first one was truly alien in its abilities to kill us," His XO stated.
"This is true," Makarov agreed as he reviewed the data from the survivors of Shìbīng Company, Striker Lance. "The four lighter battlemechs are moving much better than other quadmechs I know of, but they use standard tech in their weapons and armor. On the other hand, the larger, heavier mech has a weapon hitting beyond anything I have encountered."
He paused before asking the three survivors of Calvary Recon Lance. "Calvary Five, Six, and Seven." The Mechwarriors acknowledged they heard while they stood on guard duty. "What are your reports again on those mini mechs and spiders-shaped ones?"
There was a pause before Calvary Five responded, "From what we observed before, I was forced to bail Six and Seven out. These man-size mechs have four distinct appearances, with the ones looking like Terran medieval-era knights being the weakest of them. They died to my flamers eventually."
"Five," Calvary Six butted in. "You only managed to kill one of those Knight-like power suits." 'Power suit,' Makarov mentally noted. Six continued, "Those other two types tanked all your attacks from your flamers and medium lasers. Hell, those more battlemech-style ones nearly killed Seven and me!" He said the fear in Six's voice and hoped that any cultural officers didn't try to execute him. They needed everyone to work together if they were going to survive this.
"Explain how exactly you nearly died to men in exoskeletons, Lieutenant?" came the voice of the cultural officer in the Dervish. "I find it hard to believe during our fight that those units could work for more than fifteen minutes like those on Solaris."
"Easy," The Javelin pilot shouted. "Here is the data from what my combat computer could pick up on. They weren't people using standard SRM or LRM launchers. They were using crew and mech-grade weapons!"
Makarov could feel a cold sweat breaking on his back as he read the man's data. The sensors registered recoilless rifles, mech-grade machine guns, a stripped-down support PPC, and unknown weapons. Of course, everyone knew the former three and how much damage they could do to a battlemech, but the latter surprised him. They seemed like Particle weapons but were different in how they hit. This means there was a new weapon in play, or someone managed to advance older tech. Either way, this was game-changing in war.
"So they managed to make crew weapons fit for a single infantry unit wearing an exoskeleton," The man said as the reserve crew began loading more missiles onto the Dervish. "I can't see how that could affect your light lance. How did these units manage to bring down the team station there? It couldn't have been due to just those five battlemechs. They are under gun to fight off the Marauder and Warhammer that were protecting the base."
Even he couldn't keep quiet this time. First, Makarov expressed his frustration, "Under gun, my ass!" Then, he uploaded the data of his recent encounter with the spiders and human-sized mechs. Despite carrying limited weapons, they inflicted severe damage. Makarov emphasized, "Take a look at the data and compare. Their impact is equivalent to that of a medium-class laser."
"I see," the cultural officer replied. "Then we contact Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke. But first, we must capture and hide this tech for the Chancellor. Then, the retaliation force will find and recreate it in our advanced universities and factories."
As if there would be a retaliation force. Makarov thought but kept that to himself as he messaged the base's communication officer. "Lieutenant Dan. Contact Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke and inform him that we have urgent news." He wished his superior wouldn't be stupid and call a retreat from this world. There was still a couple of Unions station back at the main base.
After a brief pause, Dan said, "Lieutenant Colonel has not responded, Sir." This statement caused some unrest, but Makarov paid no attention to it. Instead, he inquired, "Has there been any data transmission or communication from the base?"
"No," Dan began but then stopped before changing his tone. "Nevermind, Sir. We have incoming data from a Security unit's frequency. It's massive and will take a few minutes before it is ready for review."
"Send the data to us as soon as possible," Makarov ordered before turning to the few light mechs being repaired. "Calvary Five and Six. Patrols the area with the remaining security force. Eight and Ten get ready for sortie if those quadmechs or spider-shaped ones appear. Shìbīng Two, you are in command while One is with me and the other senior officers at the emergency meeting room."
"Yes, Sir," Came choirs of voices as those warriors went off to complete their duty. He parked his damaged Catapult next to the Grasshopper before getting out. He made sure that his laser pistol was ready if the data they received was enough to surrender to save the lives of his troops. Those cultural officers wouldn't allow them without a few holes.
Makarov noticed a few of the Servitors bring refreshments to the meeting room under guard. He saluted the few veteran foot soldiers before entering and seeing all who was left of his command. He walked over and took his seat, and began to relax. "Everyone," He said while looking at the few officers left. "While we wait for the data. Dine and rest. We will need it."
——-Half an hour later———
According to reports from the patrolling units, there was no sign of any enemies, and the situation was calm. However, the Communication department faced an issue as they could not establish contact with their space assets or the main base.
He discreetly observed the cultural officer's group, noting who was engaged in conversation and who wasn't. Lieutenant Dan sent him a message with data about the battleRom, which came from Lieutenant Colonel Mitschke's experimental Cataphract. The recording's estimated length of just twenty minutes made him uneasy. Despite having elite units in their battalion, their battle had ended quickly.
Considering the lack of communication between the Colonel's group and their counterparts, those twenty minutes were a final attempt to warn them about the enemy before the primary base was captured.
"Major," He turned to his XO, who handled the holotable's controls. "The data has been formatted. Shall we start viewing what the Lieutenant Colonel sent us?" Makarov replied while signaling a hand code only known between them. "Begin it."
As he settled into his chair, he discreetly adjusted his laser pistol. Makarov secretly observed his fellow officers and noted that only those he trusted had noticed his action and made their preparations. Although they served as officers for the Capellan Confederation, their families had all made plans to flee due to their ongoing battles with the Federated Suns and Taurian Concordat, which had taken a toll on their dedication to the Chancellor. After all, why attack the Bulls when they hadn't made any offensive moves against the Confederation in decades?
What better place to migrate to than the Aurigans, as they had proven to allow immigrants in and had the power to overwhelm them easily with a few battlemechs? While some of his fellow co-conspirers had been killed in action, the rest had survived by being part of his battalion. The so-called Servitors here were all family members in disguise being guarded by trusted members. The surprised cultural officers threw a wrench in their plans, but thankfully those countermeasures on their hostages had been dummies.
His thoughts were interrupted as the holoprojector began playing the battleROM's data. After all, the sounds of heavy bombardment would draw anyone's attention. The image of one of the smaller quad mechs was gripped in its sole hand actuator of the Colonel's battlemech being held before him. The sounds of his class ten autocannon blasting off in the offhand at an unseen target. However, the few units seen were in multiple different unit colors fleeing the battle.
"All units," Mitschke's horse voice rang out. "Form up on me. Do not let these beasts into the final perimeter. They all shall burn before our might. For the Capellan Confederation!"
The remains of that quad mech flew forward into a barrage of missiles heading for the retreating Bulldogs. It absorbed most of the damage and protected the tankers. Everyone could hear the cheers from the crews and surviving members of Mitschke's group, which was down to just a Company worth of tanks and mechs, according to the BattleROM. It was depressing as the base had a battalion station there.
"The Colonel took a lot of those bastards out," He heard someone say as the BattleROM picked up several destroyed tanks and hybrid battlemechs for which the Aurigans were known.
"God damnit!" One of his fellow officers shouted, causing Makarov to focus back on the screen. Then, a powerful PPC emerged from a distance and destroyed both tanks with a single shot. The Major noticed the warning being flashed within the Colonel's battle computer.
"Who are you!" Everyone heard the panic in Mitschke's voice as the image of a giant ape-shaped battlemech came into view. Shots from the remaining base turrets and their mech forces missed or did nothing to the incoming behemoth.
The original OpFor had quickly retreated behind the large ape-like battlemech as several medium and heavy mech emerge from the direction. Makarov noticed that all his fellow officers realized what was being transmitted. The last stand of their former leader.
A static message opened in the BattleROM showing a Lyran man on the other end. However what was said made even Makarov blood chili. The Major's hopes that his plans would go through without issue.
"This is Lieutenant Colonel Michael Dark of the
