FSRB Chpt 212

==The Federated Suns Reborn - Chapter 212==
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September 3071An Heir and a Spare
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===Birth of a Daughter===
The First Prince continues to have input into the combat operations of Wave Three of Operation Harvest throughout September, however more and more of his time is taken up by not only the deteriorating situation within the Lyran Alliance but also the negotiations with Clan Diamond Shark. While he would prefer to concentrate entirely upon the military operations he has no other option but to delegate most of these decisions to the highly capable officers of the High Command and in particular Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion while he concentrates on things that they cannot do. They don't have the prestige of his name, office and the residual loyalty of some within the Lyran Alliance towards him, and therefore it falls to him to continually call for calm and stability within the Alliance, even as word comes that Adam Steiner is being moved to Tharkad. Nor can they negotiate as equals with the Khan of an independent Clan, however he does get some help in this area from Conrad Davion who takes a jump-line from New Avalon to Addicks to join his Prince before the next meeting with Khan Sennet.
Before any of these meetings take place, the First Prince is overjoyed to hear the news that his wife has given birth to a healthy baby daughter on New Avalon, who is to be named Melissa Candace Salome Davion, on the 1st of September. The news is flashed throughout the whole Federated Suns and beyond and soon several junior aides are tasked purely with responding to the well wishes pouring in. Victor manages to find time to have a ruinously expensive live HPG link to New Avalon with his wife and new daughter (as well as Burton who seems a bit confused by his new sister) on the 2nd. After which he has to go back to work. Throughout the rest of the FedSuns however the celebrations of the new princess continue. Within the League March and the newly conquered areas of the Draconis March these celebrations are largely muted, but they are present - if only from those eager to ingratiate themselves with the new management. One major exception to this muted response again takes place on Tikonov. Just as with the birth of Prince Burton the Duke of Tikonov declares a full week's holiday and donates huge stores of food and drink (including nearly a month's production of his own brand of vodka) while again donating a full company of battlemechs - this time the planet's signature battlemech the heavy weight Koschei - to the AFFS. The fast heavy class 'Mechs are dispatched by the High Command to the Kentares DMM.
With the birth of his daughter fresh in his mind, the second meeting with Khan Sennet begins to produce potential results for Victor Davion, although initially the meeting does not begin well. The Diamond Sharks are still not keen on not having extra-territorial rights over any enclaves they set up. However, the First Prince refuses to budge on this issue. He does however (at Conrad Davion's suggestion) agree that any trading posts set up, both temporary and permanent. This will be under the sway of the Federated Suns central government and legal jurisdiction rather than local planetary laws. Conrad Davion feels that most worlds will agree to this simply for the advantages of obtaining trade with the Clan, while at the same time seeing it as New Avalon safeguarding them from any Clan "invasion". The issue of Clan warships however, remains a major stumbling block, as does the ground troops who will of course accompany them. One option proposed by Khan Sennet is that any "convoy" be escorted by AFFS and Federated Sun's Navy ships and troops. While this is a workable solution, the First Prince asks time to consider this. Particularly given that at the current time his troops and ships are fully committed to ongoing combat operations. Khan Sennet agrees and suggests perhaps meeting again in December.
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===Defiance Industries Desperate Plea===
At the same time, the First Prince is contacted by Defiance Industries. The damaged industrial giant is frantically trying to rebuild it's shattered flagship plant on Hesperus while at the same time rapidly expanding its facility on Furillo as well as secretly bringing the long forgotten former Rim Worlds facility on Kwangjong-ni back online. A fact that Davion intelligence has been able to uncover. The beleaguered company are desperate to rebuild Hesperus's semi-destroyed factories, yet the supply of heavy industrial equipment to do so is at a premium within the Lyran Alliance. One realm however, which has spent the last ten years expanding their military-industrial complex, the Federated Sun's have said equipment in large quantities. The major problem for Defiance Industries is the simple fact that they have little to bargain with. The C-bill cost for the industrial equipment and shipping would ruin the companies precarious financial position. However, they are not in a position to offer large scale Battlemech production to the Federated Suns given the desperate need of the LAAF. Additionally, the AFFS might not even wish said large scale sales of Battlemechs, preferring as it now does domestic production. Again Conrad Davion is called into the discussions about what to do with the request for aid. 
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===AFFS Troop Movement & Actions===
On Kentares, the Kentares DMM decide in an open air vote at the Kentares Memorial to accept the First Prince's request to join the new Grenadier Brigade. After brief discussions between the senior leaders of the unit and the Duke of Kentares, the unit has requested it to be known as the 1st Kentares Grenadiers RCT, "Melissa's Own" with the motto "Never Again". Both requests are granted almost immediately.
Even the two Messenger's of Shiva LCTs on the pirate sweep take a day off to celebrate the birth of a new Davion princess, but the very next day they drop onto the planet of Lorkdal. This former Taurian Concordant world had been largely abandoned as the breakdown of it's solar light shield had led to it's population facing mounting hardship during the Third Succession War. Still it remained marginally habitable even without the light shield and had become a secret base to a number of former Taurian Defense Force personnel who had turned pirate following their defeat against the AFFS. The 1st Messengers of Shiva LCT dropped down to the north of their "base" in the former capital city of Lorkdal - Worse. Sweeping south they fought a brief and savage battle against the roughly mixed battalion of pirates before pursuing them through the ruins. Right into the hands of the 2nd Messengers who had descended in a much less dramatic fashion and deployed forward swiftly to take up positions within the southern edge of ruined city of Worse. The pirate band is effectively wiped out with the few survivors taken into custody. With this success, the two LCTs head back to the FedSuns for refit and repairs.
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===Developments in Industry===
Sapphire Metals's offer to New Independence Weaponry to leases production rights for the defunct Akuma Assault Battlemech from them is accepted. With some (clandestine) help from NAIS the company begins work converting the Akuma to a new "Hades" variant, most of which is armor moldings and finding room for CASE by removing the medium laser and medium pulse laser and replacing both with two ER medium lasers. Sapphire also makes a conscious effort to source said lasers from Tancredi.
Maltex is also contacted by the Federated Suns during September and offered support to set up a third production site. In particular the High Command want a Wyvern city fighter 'mechs production line in the League March. The former Terran Hegemony and Capellan Confederation worlds that make up much of that March often have large urban areas that the Wyvern would be ideal for. The existing lines on Brockton and Errai are sufficient for the AFFS's current needs, but the High Command wish additional Wyverns to flesh out the various League March Militias. Provisionally a site has been selected on Gei-Fu, a strongly pro-St. Ives/League March world within the former Capellan territories.
New Independence Weaponry sends it's second Victor-O prototype out onto the testing grounds on the 14th September. This time the war machine performs MUCH better. There are still some small issues with the ammunition feeds for the arm mounted weaponry, but the team has rectified many of the flaws in the initial trial in May. Jokes are made amongst the design and engineering team that they might now get some sleep. Satisfied that this design is a viable one, the High Command give orders that work continue until the remaining issues are rectified at which time it will be put into mass production.
On Nanking Kallon Industries completes it's Crusader line. In a surprise move the company begins construction of three new Challenger MBT lines rather than additional BattleMech lines. It does still however continue to build the two Enforcer lines it has under construction.
Veridian Dynamics completes it's final Tiger Main Battle Tank line on Sarna. In a surprise move it announces that it will be building a new plant on Dieron - producing the Vali artillery vehicle for export to the LAAF and for the AFFS. Three new lines will be split between both customers.
Also on Dieron, the existing LAW plant, which has been building Grand Dragons which have immediately been sold to the LAAF and mercenary groups is repossessed. It was always in the cards that the facility would be taken over and time has finally run out for the existing (heavily watched) management. GM is handed the plant and quickly begins work on the upgrades to retool it to produce the Cestus class heavy battlemech. This upgrade is expected to finish by December. At the same time GM also breaks ground on a large scale vehicle factory to produce the new Ajax Omnitank. Combined with the new facility from Veridian this creates a major economic boom on the planet.
At Arcadia, the second of the massive repair slips completes and is soon filled with refitting warships. However the growing orbital infrastructure around the dead planet has began to become difficult to hide. Jackson Davion considering his options makes a surprising decision and sends for Duchess Helen Trempeleau. He arranges a meeting with the Minister for the Outback in early October.
Challenge Systems at the High Command's prompting begin construction of two further Congress-D II Class Frigate slips at Panpour. The versatile ships were much in demand by the Federated Suns Navy and the existing slips were unlikely to keep pace with the said demand. Once more the orders for material seemed excessive even for the construction of two large slips. 
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===Clan Troop Movements===
The Free Rasalhague Republic's raids on the Clan Wolf worlds of Lothan and Ramsau succeed beyond the wildest expectation of their planners. The Clan Wolf garrisons rather than the front line clusters that had been expected consisted of a handful of older warriors who were swiftly overwhelmed by the 3rd Drakons and 4th Kavalleri respectively. To thunderous applause from the Republic's Parliament both worlds were welcomed as "liberated" from the Clans and back into the Free Rasalhague Republic. 
The 3rd Hussar's raid on Altenmarkt however was another matter. The 357th Assault Cluster of Omega Galaxy and 2nd Claw of Zeta Galaxy shared garrison posting on the world. Forming an almost Nova-Cluster the two units proceeded to hammer the 3rd Hussar almost from the moment they landed. In a four day running battle, the Ghost Bears drove the Rasalhague unit off world with heavy losses. 
On the periphery border, Clan Wolf see a major attack from Clan Hell's Horses. Having lost contact with the few garrison troops remaining in their "outer" planets around Star's End, Bute Hold and the rest it can only be assumed they have fallen. What is worse, however is when the Horses smash into the worlds of Icar, Chateau, Cserztreg, New Caledonia, Verthandi and The Edge. With the desertion of Omega Galaxy all of these worlds fall within hours of the Horses' batchalls. 
On the Jade Falcon border the worlds of Montmarault, Biota, La Grave, and Benfled which were all attacked the previous month fall to the invaders. Orkney, Domain, Quarell, and Jabuka are attacked throughout September and by the end of the month only Jabuka's garrison is holding out. 
The forces with saKhan Raddick fall back further and the saKhan, now recovered enough to give orders begins to organize them as best she can for defensive operations. Quickly calling for the Bloodnamed Warriors of her clan to elevate her to Khan she does her best to stem the tide of losses. One of her first acts is to dispatch Galaxy Commander Steiner to Tamar. There she is ordered to comb the lesser castes and conquered population for any who might be worthy of joining the Warrior Caste as infantry, tank crews, and the like. She is ordered to form no less than four clusters of said troops. Not even as second line formations, but more like third line formations for defensive purposes. To bolster her position, the saKhan approaches Star Colonel Ivan Kerensky and promises him that if he supports her she will nominate him for saKhan. The Star Colonel was one of the last warriors to see Khan Ward alive and was evacuated on the last transport that left Arcturus - having been shot out of his Dire Wolf and rescued by a single wounded Elemental who carried him aboard struggling to return to the fight. The Star Colonel and the Elemental were the only two survivors of the 1st Wolf Assault Cluster, who except for them had fallen to the last warrior at the side of their Khan. Ivan had during the flight back from Arcturus challenged the warrior who saved him to a Trial of Grievance and in a brief battle in the cargo hold of the CWS Blood Drinker beaten the warrior to death. Many who watched reported that the Elemental made almost no effort to fight back. His status as the only survivor of the unit which had died with the Khan cleansed by the warriors death, Ivan was now considered a hero for the more fanatical Wolves and his support could be critical. 
The Ice Hellions find themselves in serious trouble when Clan Wolves-in-Exile forces hit their new conquest of Chapultepec with overwhelming force. Accompanied by the battleship Werewolf Khan Kell leads his entire Alpha Galaxy against the Ice Hellions who have a force of roughly two clusters on the planet. The Ice Hellion's request Hegira, but are refused this honour and in a three week battle Khan Kell smashes their forces before taking their few surviving warriors as bondsmen and women. The Fredessa class corvette, the CIH Whelp, is lost in orbit when the CWS Werewolf's fighters cripple it's engines, so that the massive battleship can catch up with the light ship. The few surviving warriors on the Whelp attempt an emergency jump which fails catastrophically and destroys their ship as they attempt to escape. 
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===Kurita Civil War===
====Battle for Dumaring - Final Stand====
For much of September the Draconis Combine Civil War continues with steadily increasing ferocity. On Dumaring, the Minoru Loyalist regiments face their end with all the honor and stoicism of true Samurai. Each warrior of the 5th Galedon and 12th Vegan Regulars disables their cockpits ejection system as the Hohiro Loyalists close in on them. Dug into the mountain passes the warriors loyal to Coordinator Minour Kurita sell their lives dearly, but the end is never in doubt. By the 8th of September, the two units have been wiped out, but have managed to inflict such heavy casualties on the attacking forces that the 8th Arkab Legion is disbanded to keep the 6th & 7th sister regiments at combat effective strength. 
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====Reinforcements from Luthien====
On Xingyang, the Frigate DCS Galedon Warrior arrives from Luthien and proceeds to provide orbital support for the 3rd Genyosha against the Black Dragon aligned 42nd Galedon Regulars. Firing full broadsides into the defensive lines of the 42nd Geledon, the warship turns the tide and by the end of the end of the month the Genyosha can claim victory over the shattered world of Xingyang. 
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====Demands of Coordinator Hohiro====
Coordinator Hohiro Kurita on the 30th of September meets with a representative from Cameron St. James within his command centeron Benjamin. He demands the WOB representative commit troops, equipment, and funds to his cause in order to turn the tide.
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===Invitation to Inarcs===
The Duchess of Inarcs invites the rulers of Arluna, Baggville, and Trentham to a conference to discuss the "future of their forgotten and abandoned worlds". The exiled leaders of those worlds seized by the Ice Hellions also were invited to attend.
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===The Price of Unification===
On Atreus, the various representatives of the splintered Free Worlds League agree in principal to reunify the League. However, Oriente and Tamarind-Abbey are clear. They will not rejoin as a single nation or accept Corrine Marik's leadership as long as the Word of Blake remain within the League. This is their price for accepting her as Captain-General. She must break with the WOB and prove she isn't their puppet once and for all...
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