SotU Chpt 42

=Chapter 42=
==State of the Union==
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New Glasgow, Skye
Skye Province, Lyran Alliance
21st April, 3064
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Skye was... interesting. In the Capellan sense of the word.
Peter had visited the Ducal Palace, paying respects to Hermione Aten - who seemed increasingly likely to be the Duchess as her mother's coma continued. Her husband Robert had been 'unavoidably detained' elsewhere but the youngest Aten had made pointed comments about how she and Robert had both lost parents to terrorism.
It was more than likely, Peter thought, that she was on the entirely too long list of people that knew that Victor had had Robert's father Ryan assassinated in retaliation for the murder of Galen Cox. Of course, for all those who knew it to be true, virtually everyone with a nose for politics suspected it.
"It's a terrible shame about Margaret." his host told him, offering him a glass.
"I'm not sure I should be drinking." he told Caesar Steiner, but accepted it anyway.
"It's not a cure to everything, but it eases the pain of dealing with the littlest Aten." His distant uncle sipped his glass judiciously. "Some of Kell's people very nearly got her and Ilse out, but the Skye security thought they were in on it and in the confusion..." He shrugged. "Poor communication kills."
"Yes." The contents of the glass were smooth, probably deceptively so, Peter thought. Wetting his lips more than once might not be wise. "On the other hand, if they hadn't been there then all three Atens could have been killed."
"A mixed blessing. Robert's in this Free Skye thing up to his neck, but he's as wily as his father so we can't pin it on him. And whatever he does, don't believe for a moment that Hermione isn't in it with him. They're two of a kind."
"I'd rather come to the same conclusion." He set his glass down. "And the Skye Rangers all rushed back here so I assume that they'll fall in with Kelswa-Steiner if it comes to it."
"Almost certainly," Caesar agreed without hesitation. "if that happens I'll wipe out the entire brigade, but that won't do anything for public opinion."
"A possibility best avoided, but of course that means I can't take you with me to Tharkad."
The older man shook his head. "I'm sure Reinhart will uphold the family honor." His son commanded the BattleMech regiment of the Tenth Lyran Guards. "I thought you were bringing one of the Ceti Hussar RCTs as well?"
"Some of the jumpships needed repairs - nothing serious but we've been pushing them fairly hard shuffling units, so I left them behind. Since we have the opportunity, I told Marshal  Lamont to see if he could secure other worlds within the Chaos March. We need the Terran corridor re-established if the Federated Commonwealth is to have any future."
"You believe that it does?" Caesar asked him
Peter considered the man asking the question seriously and nodded. "I believe both halves have benefited a great deal from it. One of the things that Katrina used to try to discredit Victor's rule after 3057 was the economic problems in the Suns. Granted, she exaggerated some of those issues, and others resulted from her sitting on much of the military jumpship fleet, forcing Victor to lean more heavily on civilian shipping..."
"I'm familiar."
"Yes. But at root, both sides of the Federated Commonwealth saw reduced economic growth after the Alliance seceded. The Lyran manufacturers profited from the markets of the Suns and access to Lyran production stabilized those markets, letting the Suns diversify in ways they hadn't for centuries."
Caesar grunted. "Money talks, I'll give you that. But politics is more about emotion and your sister has stirred that up good and proper."
"I know. The damage she's done to relations between both halves won't be made right easily. At the same time, that gulf still isn't as wide as it once was, not when my parents chose to bridge it for the first time."
"Civil war can be polarizing. It may be wider than you think." older Steiner said
Peter rubbed his chin. "Is that what Victor's thinking?"
"I couldn't say."
Slumping back into his chair, Peter looked across the table at the general. "Where do you stand?"
"I'm here, aren't I?" older man said
"Right." He sighed. "Do you need anything to help hold Skye together?"
"I wouldn't say no to another regiment or two, but it's been worse."
Peter nodded decisively. "The Third NAIS Cadre is made up of heavy and assault 'Mechs. I'll detach them to reinforce you. If nothing happens then they'll get to broaden their horizons here on Skye. If the worst does, you'll have a heavy unit to complement the Second Donegal Guards."
Caesar tossed back the rest of his drink. "A bunch of green cadets? Alright, I'll take it. If nothing else, those fresh-faced kids'll look good on the holos."
"If we can win this battle with PR instead of guns, then so much the better. We're going to need all our firepower when the Jade Falcons move." he told Caesar
"You're sure they will?"
"They're more vultures than birds of prey. Katrina was useless against them five years ago, and now we throw a civil war into the mix... Everything I've heard about them makes it just a matter of time."
"And the SLDF isn't likely to join us - Theodore Kurita isn't calling on them against the Ghost Bears, so he's unlikely to let the fight the Jade Falcons for us." Caesar had been the Lyran liaison to the SLDF since it was reformed and remained well informed, even now.
Peter set his own glass down. "Which is a problem in and of itself. But one we'll need to deal with another day."
"Yes, taking care of Nondi and the Falcons will take both hands." Caesar's eyes narrowed. "You've still got enough forces to tip the balance on Tharkad, but there's no knowing if Victor will still be alive when you get there."
"I couldn't swear that he's alive now." Peter glanced out the window and then back. "Unless your news is more current than mine."
"He was alive two days ago, when he tried to come down on the Triad from the north. I think if your great-aunt had killed or captured him, she'd have let everyone know that. It'd be a blow - no offense, but you don't have as much of a reputation as your brother. Yet."
"That assumes she knows, but someone pulled the Prince's Men back in good order, so here's hoping."
Without his supply bases, Victor had been operating a mobile campaign across the northern ice fields of Bremen. So far Nondi had been content to keep a strong garrison with her at the 'Triad - the three Royal Guards RCTs, that had stalled the attack on the 19th - while General Esteban hunted for Victor's task force with other regiments.
"Assuming what she has said is true though," Peter continued, "he's taken losses...serious losses. I doubt he has the supplies to rebuild from it."
"Much like Bishop Sortek's position then." Caesar said with a smile and offered Peter a topping up before filling his own glass for a second time.
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