SotU Chpt 41

=Chapter 41=
==State of the Union==
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Castle Davion, New Avalon
Crucis March, Federated Commonwealth
24th March, 3064
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Yvonne got a nod from Catherine's secretary - a woman pulled from the palace's general secretarial pool back when Catherine was just a newly arrived member of the royal family and less than two months later had found herself running the office of the effective head of state - and entered the main office without nodding.
It was her - their - father's office once, then Victor's... and Katherine had been using it as well, something that still elicited a shiver from the youngest Steiner-Davion. Who was Katherine really? For that matter, where was she?
"Catherine? Your secretary said you weren't doing anything urgent."
While the face behind the desk was still unnervingly familiar, the much shorter hair thankfully provided an obvious signifier that this wasn't the ousted blonde, but the one Peter vouched for. And, Yvonne realized with a touch of judgmentalism, one who'd been doing a fairly good job of not just holding things together in Peter's absence but tying up the wounds of the war.
"Not urgent," Catherine agreed. She pushed her chair away, looking away from the documents being projected into the air in front of her (a holo-projector was cunningly concealed in the wooden desk). "just reviewing reports from the Colonelcy Board."
"The what now?" Yvonne confusedly asked
Lips curled, Catherine clarified: "General Abrams' board - the rank reviews?"
"Oh yes. Why do you call it that?"
"I didn't, FNS are calling it that. Presumably because we're formally reinstating the rank of Colonel."
Yvonne nodded in understanding. "I never understood why that was thrown out when the LCAF and AFFS merged - it was one of the few ranks they had in common, wasn't it?" She went to one of the couches in the office and put one hand on the back in silent invitation.
Catherine pushed back her chair. "I blame Seattle." she said as she walked around the desk, not explaining the cryptic response.
They sat facing each other and the younger sister hesitated before asking: "Have you thought about the future?"
The smile on Catherine's lips was self-deprecating. "Just a bit." She spread her arms and wiggled her fingers to indicate the breath of that 'bit'. "Time is a fire in which we burn, Yvonne."
"Are you being morbid or...?" she asked Catherine
"It sounded better in my head." The blonde smiled a little sadly. "What scale are you contemplating the future of?"
Yvonne leant back and eyed the other woman. "The future of the Federated Commonwealth and the Star League."
"It's entirely possible that neither has very much of a future." Catherine told her immediately.
"...you say that so easily." Yvonne said to her
"The Star League exists because it benefits all of the members. It's a purely voluntary association... and it was to a very large degree driven by the threat of the Clans. Victor, Theodore and..." She hesitated. "Mansdottir, are all concerned by that. Katrina should have been, but... Katrina. Thomas Marik and Sun-Tzu Liao have no direct stake in those threats - I suspect Thomas was pressured the Word of Blake since they have an ideological opposition to the Clans. Sun-Tzu just didn't want to be the one left out."
"The Clans are still there, aren't they?" questioned Yvonne
"Yes... but not as a unified force. Actually, I think they're going to face some very... interesting conflicts between themselves, but that's getting away from the point." Catherine considered and then shrugged. "Overall, Clan Ghost Bear are the strongest of the Clans right now - the Wolves and Jade Falcons are still weakened by their war seven years ago and other conflicts since. But the Draconis Combine is fighting the Bears fairly effectively right now, and with little to no outside help. The Clans are no longer the menace they once were."
"And without an outside threat, you think the Star League will break up. Just like the way the Allies of World War II did once the Cold War broke out?"
"That's an awful historical parallel, but not entirely inaccurate." Catherine said with a wince. "Right now, the Star League is missing it's primary focus and without another that we can all agree on, it will be of reduced influence. It didn't exactly do anything about our recent war with the Combine and Theodore is the First Lord."
Yvonne nodded slowly. "Where does that take us, back to the Succession Wars?"
"Well not the early ones, at least I hope not. Although the technology for that level of savagery is more available now that it has been - warship fleets, for example. If someone starts breaking out the canned sunshine -"
The term got a blink and then a snicker from Yvonne, who fought it down just a little too late.
Her sister gave her an arched eyebrow and then wry smile. "Not a term to use in public, I confess. But yes. The Star League may have value as a restraint but if two or three of the major powers withdrew then it might collapse entirely."
"There wouldn't be many members left in that case," Yvonne pointed out and then paused. "unless others joined it... but the Periphery was never interested and all the states in the Inner Sphere are members. Except the Word of Blake - have they contacted you?"
"I may be reading too much into it." Catherine told her
"Do you think that it would be wise? They're fanatics in Myndo Waterly's mould." Yvonne shivered, recalling how the former Primus had attempted to seize control of the entire Inner Sphere in the wake of the Battle of Tukkayid. The youngest Steiner-Davion had been only thirteen years old, but she remembered how her parents had been forced to divert resources to neutralize the plot after it was leaked by a Combine spy inside Waterly's inner circle.
Catherine leant forwards. "Keep your friends close, Yvonne, and your enemies closer."
"Ah." She shook her head though, still discomforted by the recollection. "And when it comes to the Federated Commo-"
Yvonne was cut off by a chime from the intercom. "Excuse me, your highness." The secretary's voice was cool and professional. "Count Allard and his grandson are here on what they advise is urgent business."
Catherine turned her hands palm up and shrugged. "Count Allard's judgement is usually sound. As is his grandson's." She went to the door of the office and returned a moment later with Quintus Allard and Quintus Allard-Liao, both looking grave.
"It's not news of your family, I hope?" Yvonne greeted them.
Quintus the younger shook his head. "No, your highness. So far as we're aware, my mother and siblings are well, other than being constrained to remain on Sian. The news is from somewhat further afield."
The sisters exchanged glances. "I think we're braced for the worst." Catherine said slowly.
"Our sources from the Lyran Alliance have pinned down the troop movements we've been concerned about." the Count informed them. "Unfortunately, it is as we feared - the redeployments to deal with the unrest were merely a cover for reinforcing Tharkad's defenses."
"It's not really a surprise. None of the worlds affected are as critical as the capital." Catherine told elder Allard
Yvonne called to mind the situation on Tharkad when she'd last been briefed. Although the forces were approximately equal in strength, Victor had used Nondi's need to maintain a grip on the capital to his advantage and landed on the smaller continents of Heidelberg and Franze. With local superiority they'd been overrun with relative ease, providing a foothold for the Allies from which Victor planned to move to Bremen, the planet's largest continent and the location of the Triad.
"How bad is it?" she asked the Allards.
"The timing was very bad." Quintus Allard's lined face showed more resolve than it did sympathy. "The orbitals had remained contested and Victor's warships were focused on protecting the Bremen landings until too late. Both of the corvettes on loan from Phelan Kell were damaged trying to hold off LAS Yggdrasil and her escorts, although we believe one of Nondi's corvettes has been almost crippled. As a result, loyalist commands were able to set down on Heidelberg and overrun Victor's supply bases there."
Catherine rubbed her forehead. "What strength are they in?"
Quintus opened his noteputer and gave the contents a cursory glance. "The Donegal Jaegers and two regimental combat teams, the Third Lyran Guards and the Third Donegal Guards."
"So Victor's lost his supply base and he's outnumbered?" Yvonne gripped the arm of the couch. "Are there no reinforcements we can send?"
"Unfortunately, while many of the LAAF forces have shifted away from directly support of your sister during her continuing absence, very few are willing to support your brother either. And the exceptions are faced by other concerns."
"Robert Kelswa," Yvonne spat.
Catherine nodded. "Duchess Aten still hasn't woken from her coma and with her eldest daughter dead, that leaves Skye effectively in the hands of Robert and Hermione. Even if we wanted to risk moving troops away, by the time Caesar reorganized jumpships for it, Peter would be there with his task force."
"Can't Morgan Kell do anything?"
Quintus Jr. shook his head. "The Jade Falcons are mustering their forces. While it's tempting to think they're going to turn on Clan Wolf, it seems more likely that their Khan sees this as her last opportunity to blood troops against us before the Civil War is won. As a result, the Arc-Royal Defense Cordon can't spare any significant forces. With two warships and a battalion of the Kell Hounds already on Tharkad, they they can't afford to send more."
"It could be worse though."
They all looked at Catherine. "While it always could get worse, your highness, do you have something specific in mind?" asked the Count.
"The Twenty-Fourth Lyran Guards are on Donegal, only a jump away from Tharkad," she pointed out. "They could have been easily brought in and we've been assuming they were loyal to Nondi. Peter Riskind and Sabine Steiner are a formidable command team, but if they're still on Donegal then Victor may not need to face them."
Allard nodded. "You're correct, and we have no indications that they're preparing to move."
"If Sabine isn't moving to support her grandmother," (Sabine was their second cousin and one of Nondi Steiner's grandchildren) "then I have to wonder why."
Catherine shrugged. "Possibly she sees the writing on the wall or possibly Riskind is forcing neutrality on her. He might have had to detain her in the latter case..."
"There is a third possibility," pointed out the youngest Allard-Liao. "she would hardly be the first Steiner to harbor political ambitions and she's very close to the throne. Arguably the best outside you Steiner-Davions, should her mother and grandmother be discounted."
"Another would-be Katrina Steiner," Yvonne noted sourly, recalling that Sabine's military acumen had been likened to the former Archon.
"A better one than the last." Catherine made a face. "Not my first choice, or my second, but if it comes to a compromise then she might be one we can live with."
"A compromise where the Federated Commonwealth is no more."
Catherine spread her hands. "Not my first or second choice."
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