BtH92

==Chapter 92 - By the Horns==
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The Obsidian Fortress
Saso, New Syrtis
Federated Suns
March 20th, 3026
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For a moment, there was just silence in the executive office that Hanse had commandeered as he watched the image of a DropShip—Edward's DropShip—thrusting towards orbit. Towards home. And then he heard Quintus Allard sputter.
"You told him? You told him everything?"
Hanse looked away from the monitor and into the eyes of his head of intelligence and he smiled. "Not everything—just enough to get him and his father on board with RAT."
Quintus just sat there, his jaw opening and then closing, even as Ardan chuckled and the head of MIIO turned to glare at the best friend of the First Prince.
"Enough, Quintus. I know what I am doing." Hanse ordered softly. "We had thought that Wolf and his regiments would still be in service with the Takashi Kurita when Rat kicked off—we made our initial plans based on that. Now? They are going to be in the Taurian Concordat. Which means there will be less pressure on our Lyran allies as they keep the Dragon occupied while the AFFS carves up the Capellans." Hanse paused. "And since the Taurians have their own reasons to really hate House Liao right now, why not tell him and get Thomas to commit Wolf's Dragoons when we kick off?"
"Sir, if it leaks, we aren't just risking the success of Rat, we are risking the lives of our agents who are trying to get close to the leadership on Sian."
Your son, thought Hanse, and he nodded. "Which is why I did not make any mention of those agents to Edward. Not even a hint of their existence. And as for leaks? Edward knows just how sensitive this information is . . . he gave me his word that it would be discussed only at the highest levels of the Taurian government . . . under the most secure conditions."
Hanse paused and he turned to Ardan. "You said I can trust him, Ardan. Can I?"
"You can, my Prince." answered Ardan, who sighed as he noticed Quintus still frowning. "Look at it like this, Minister Allard." the MechWarrior and advisor spoke quietly. "When we invade the Confederation, what will the CCAF do to reinforce all of those worlds we will be hitting around Tikonov?"
"They will redeploy forces from the interior and . . .." his voice trailed off. And he nodded, though he still did not look happy.
Hanse smiled. "And if as they are redeploying, five Regiments of Wolf's Dragoons, augmented with a dozen or so battalions of the Taurian Defense Force stage their own invasion at the opposite end of the Confederation?"
"Caught between two fires." Ardan answered for Quintus. "Splitting Maximilian's attention; which means that our troops will suffer less attrition. With McCarron's regiments torn up, all Mad Max has left for offensive operations are the Northwind Highlanders . . ." 
". . . and I have plans for getting them out of the way." finished Hanse Davion as he sat there and grinned.
"He won't have enough troops to respond to all of the threats." Ardan continued. 
"But what if Thomas doesn't agree to invade?" asked Quintus and then he answered his own question. "Of course he will. He is still angry about McCarron's abortive invasion and the fallout from that attempted WMD attack on Taurus . . . and." he shook his head, "my people inform me that Thomas and his government have made the connection between Michael and Max and are almost convinced—because of what you did to shut Michael down in no small part—that it was part of some grand scheme by Max Liao to tear away a large chuck of the Concordat."
"Precisely, Quintus." Hanse answered. "I knew Michael and he wasn't acting on the orders of Sian—he was being the jack-ass he has always been. But Taurus doesn't know that and with the facts that they have, it appears as if Max was simply pulling Michael's strings and he was acting on behalf of the Capellan Confederation." The First Prince paused. "And now I've offered Thomas a chance to get revenge—and reducing his own casualties in the process. How do you think he will respond?"
"Like a bloody bull seeing a red cape waved in front of his face." muttered Quintus, who finally sighed. "I hate it. I really hate letting any of this information out—but you are right, my Prince. If we can trust Edward to keep Thomas' mouth shut."
Hanse smiled broadly. "No, Quintus, the question is can Edward convince Thomas to wait until we ready to launch RAT."
Quintus paused for a moment. "It might be better if Thomas invades before us . . . Max will have no choice but to redeploy the CCAF to meet and repel that invasion—especially with Wolf's Dragoons spearheading the attack."
"Which would also deprive us of the opportunity to defeat—in detail—the Capellan Confederation Armed Forces, Quintus." Ardan added. "Our goal here is not just to take some Capellan worlds, but to eliminate the Capellans as a threat now and forever. We want to put an end to Maximilian Liao's ambitions once and for all. We have to strike at the Terran side of the Confederation to secure a corridor to connect the Suns and the Lyran Commonwealth—but taking those worlds will mean little if the CCAF can simply withdraw and consolidate in the Liao, Sian, and St. Ives Commonalities and preserve their fighting power for future operations."
"Right now, and for the foreseeable future, Romano Liao is out of favor—Max is very upset with his daughter for her role in McCarron's invasion, correct?" Hanse asked, and Quintus sighed as he nodded his head in agreement. "And Tormano is in internal exile, shut out from all decision making. Candace is the only one left who could take over—and we are working on neutralizing her to further isolate the Chancellor, yes?"
"We are." growled Quintus. And then he nodded again. "I still don't care for sharing the details—or even the preliminary outlines!—with the Taurians, but it does make some sense, Sire."
"Thank you." Hanse answered with a chuckle. "And now we wait—and continue to prepare for Galahad '26 and Galahad '27."
"And in 3028?" asked Ardan.
Hanse grinned. "We kick their ass and don't pause to take names in the process. And we make sure that Thomas, the TDF, and Wolf's Dragoons do their part."
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Fortress-class DropShip, Black Bulls
Outbound for Zenith Jump Point, New Syrtis
Federated Suns
March 21st, 3026
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Edward looked up from his console as Jon Kincaid entered his cabin and closed the hatch behind him. The Subaltern just stood there and he was shaking his head.
"You told him everything?" he asked, and the expression on his face was one of shock.
"Not quite everything, Jon," Edward responded as he closed the document he had been reading. "Take a seat."
Jon sat and he shook his head, "Your father is going to lose his mind, Edward."
"No, Jon, he is not. We have to do something to respond to what Max Liao tried—but even with the Dragoons out here, do you think Sian will just let us seize Rollis—and perhaps Corodiz—without responding? Is the Defense Force ready for such an operation? I don't believe that we are—we are structured for defense, not offense. We need the time, at least a year, two would be better, to have Wolf work with our units and get them to where they need to be in order to carry out this attack my father wants to do."
Edward stood and he stretched, rubbing the taut muscles of his neck that stress had tensed and then he sat back down. "And this second part—sending the Samantha Calderon to Sian? We are rolling the dice and the odds are not in our favor."
He paused. "What happens if something goes wrong? And you well know—as I know—something will always go wrong. We could lose that ship, lose the people onboard her whose knowledge is absolutely priceless. But," he continued with a smile, "if we wait and Hanse Davion is true to his word and sends the majority of the AFFS into Confederation space . . . we have a lot more options. And a far, far better chance at getting retribution for what Max Liao tried to pull on us."
"I know that, Sir," Jon said. "but your father is still going to be mad as hell that you told Hanse Davion of our plans."
"Let me deal with father, Jon. We've both taken risks in the past—and the time has come to step up our game. We have a chance here—our best chance—to put an end to the ceaseless hostility and hatred that our people have for the Davions. Not completely, of course, but the best chance since before the Star League to put an end to this cold war between us. In six months—a year at the outside—our people are going to be seeing an explosion of our industry. Funding will be pouring into the Concordat, we are going to have new markets, there will be economic prosperity and peace. And then? When we are ready? When Wolf and his Regiments have honed the Defense Force battalions to a razor's edge, then we go in and teach the Capellans a lesson that they—and their children—will never, ever forget. I can convince Father I was right."
"If he doesn't disown you first." Jon muttered.
"He might. He might not. My father is a cunning man in many ways." Edward answered with a sad smile. "He's not perfect, but who among us is? I can convince him that this was the right thing—I know I can."
"I pray to God that you are right, Edward."
"So do I, Jon. So do I."
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