TBntG-2 Chpt 25

=The Bull and the Genie=
==Chapter 25 - Book II - The Ninety-five Theses==
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==Serving Warrants and Dividing Spoils==
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===Combat Drop over the unfriendly skies of Helm===
Taurian DropShip Baby Carriage Descending, Helm, Free Worlds League - 3028
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(("Someone doesn't want us to land, General.")) the captain's voice was clipped as Mary got herself ensconced in Baby II. The Dragon BattleMech was starting up, the crew going over it in the thirty minutes of blessed single G. 
 
A pity that wasn't enough time to get the goo out of all the personal places, but Mary was more interested in ensuring that nothing had busted loose on her mech. Sortek's mech was a Victor, heavier than her three Dragons, and that meant that they'd have to watch getting spread out.
 
God, when did you think having me fight next to a Davion was funny. 
 
"Give me the bad news." 
 
(("A Air Lance of AeroSpace fighters. Light, but if they get good hits in…"))
 
"I want us down to talk to Ricol." Mary said. "Can you do it?"
(("We'll launch the small craft—they'll keep the fighters off of us, and do a hot drop for the mechs and armor, then we'll follow you down.")) The captain paused. (("I can get you down, but no certainties if the ship will be able to take you back up. We're armored, not invulnerable."))
 
"Understood."
 
ALL HANDS, ALL HANDS, STAND BY FOR HIGH G AND IRREGULAR VECTOR CHANGES.
 
Mary buckled herself into the cockpit as the last of the techs secured themselves. I really hope nobody got lazy in stowing their gear.
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(("Right! Cakemix, you'll be in the lead, try not to bust any more parties. Small Craft and the DropShip are supporting us. Ricol gave us a fix, but we can't be certain it's a trap, so we need to secure the perimeter, and let the big mechs look pretty. Got it?"))
"Got it. Can I go back to superman?"
 
(("Nah, Cakemix is more amusing."))
 
Willis groaned in his little coffin. Equipping the suits with jump boosters had worked for the Liaos, but then the mad scientists back home had come up with little descent pods that had their own jets, and even better, several of them were carrying cargo—ammo and power packs. 
 
They, of course looked like coffins, which just made him so happy.
 
"I-mother—" suddenly a big fist squeezed him, only unlike the way in, it was going every-which way.
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===Over the Battlefields of Helm, Death Lurks===
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The Free Worlds League lance was the only Air Fighter lance Duke Garth had brought. Carlyle had little support and those fighters were best left at Irian according to the Duke, ignoring the fact that none of his military advisers agreed. With four AeroSpace fighters engaging a Union class dropship, one moving faster than it should be, along with two small craft, was not a correlation of forces designed to make the pilots confident, especially after rumors of Star League weapons on some Taurian ships started to circulate. So the lance went for a conservative attack, a fast pass by that would minimize the danger, but also their ability to do damage. 
 
 The two formations inter-penetrated, and suddenly one fighter was a mass of fragments, while one of the small craft was leaking fuel and showing damage to its hull. 
 
"Lander two, break for high orbit and wait for the main force."
 
<<"Confirmed.">>
 
But long before the fighters could return, if they wanted to, Baby Carriage would have launched its payload.
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===Hot Dropping on the Accused===
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"Deploying infantry." Mary heard, and her readouts showed the small pods being fired out of the ship. The first few exercises had been a disaster—mechs and infantry pods didn't mix. So they'd go last.
 
(("Bay one, prepare for launch."))
 
"Bay one, confirmed," Mary said. She tensed herself, as the 'mech was moved to the exit door and then…
 
BAM!
The mech shuddered as the launch charges catapulted it away from the Dropship, the gyro keeping her from tumbling. She looked at the sensors. The other two Dragons and Sortek's Victor were both deployed. Mary checked, and nodded, nobody was playing games with AA. The Free Worlds Militia, at least from what the they'd seen were playing tag with the Legion in some passes, and Ricol's forces were grounded on the far side, which made no sense, because why was Grayson fighting so hard? He should be running.
 
But now we're here. Mary watched as the boosters blew free from Baby, and the mech's on-board jump jets took over. 
 
Below them was a plain, and on it, eight DropShips. Most civilian models, but Mary didn't like the odds if Grayson was a mad dog. Sortek's Victor was coming in next to her, while the PAL troops were grounding at the edge of the plain, where there was cover, some of the payload coffins being torn open for the support weapons that their heavy weapons squads would set up. 
 
Eight vs. Four, plus those DropShips. I hope you want to talk, Duke Ricol. 
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===Meeting with Gray Death Legion===
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Grayson Death Carlyle stood, staring at the four mechs. They'd landed like experts, and…
 
What is a Davion mech doing with four Taurian mechs?
 
Duke Ricol smiled. "In the trouble, I forgot to inform you that the Prince's Champion, Ardan Sortek, along with the Davion Heavy Guards have been sent to arrest you, along with the Taurians to ensure your safety."
 
"You forgot?" Lori asked. 
 
"If they were just here to kill you, they wouldn't have come ahead of their forces, or dropped under our guns. Perhaps we should talk to them? And you can tell your side of the story?"
 
Grayson stared at the mechs and beyond them, the edge of the plain where you could see the larger than human forms of the Taurian Powered Armor. 
 
The suits that took down a House Lord.
 
But the mechs weren't pointing their weapons, not directly, at his own forces, and moments later, the Victor and one of the modified dragons opened their hatches. A large man, and a… petite woman emerged from them, walking up to the small group standing in the shadow of Ricol's ship.
 
"Grayson Death Carlyle." The woman said. "I am General Cheng, and my duty is to take you and your command staff into custody, to be brought to Samantha where an impartial," she glanced at the Prince's Champion, "tribunal will determine what happened on Sirus VII." 
 
"It wasn't us." Grayson said. "It was Duke Garth—and Comstar."
 
The two facing him blinked. "That seems rather… far fetched," General Cheng said. "I can think of many things Comstar does, but engage in slaughters isn't one of them. Do you have any proof?"
 
Grayson looked at her. If I can convince them… His people couldn't fight the League, but a regiment of Davion Guards? And it wasn't as if the Taurian's didn't have a reputation. "Some. An agent in our ranks confessed to it, but since he's dead that probably won't convince you."
 
"No…" Sortek said. 
 
"But the fact that we found a Star League Cache might." Ricol twitched, but Grayson forged on. "Maybe as many as five regiments. Vehicles, BattleMechs, supplies. More than enough to support a try for the Free Worlds League." The two were looking interested, and Grayson followed it up. "And a Star League library—a data core. One of my techs is making as many copies as he can. But that was what I think brought comstar here. It's the only thing that makes sense—the only thing worth twelve million dead!" 
 
Now Ricol and Sortek were looking at each other. 
 
Yes, something that could change the balance of power. What would happen now, what would the Taurians do?
 
"A moment, commander," Sortek said. "General?"
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===Revelations and Actions to be Taken===
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"Do you think he's innocent?" Mary asked as they stood apart from the group.
 
"I don't know. But if he's telling the truth—MIIO knows that Duke Garth has ambitions and five regiments of Star League mechs and vehicles…"
 
"Would go a long way to fulfilling those ambitions." Mary nodded. Even compared to the best the TDF had, the Star League was impressive. And now here I am with an infantry company, and the Davions have a regiment, and of course, a Kuritan Duke. Joy. 
 
"But that's not…" Sortek frowned. "This is classified, highest levels. Over the years, especially after Halstead Station, there have been… incidents."
 
"Espionage?"
 
"No. Attempts at destruction. Not just that, but…" He sighed, and spoke with the voice of a man deeply unhappy to be telling something that might not be his to tell. "When compared to comstar information, there were differences in design. Differences that would see drastically increased failure rates for KF cores, for example." 
 
"And I'm just finding out about this now?"
 
"It was classified. Comstar is one of the most powerful organizations around, and one does not go accusing them, especially when the evidence is circumstantial." 
 
"But a core…"
 
"A core would see an explosion of knowledge. One that could help the Concordat and Suns alike."
 
"It could. But there's one problem," Mary said. "I'm not here for the core, I'm here for Grayson, and most importantly, by law… A Star League Core would belong to all member states, as well as anyone finding one as salvage."
 
 Sortek blinked. "You're going to give it to Ricol?"
 
 "We don't yet have our forces here, and…" She sighed. "I'll point out that this drastically increase the number of suspects for Sirius VII. The Draconis Combine, FedSuns, Concordat—if anyone solely benefits from the core, it'll be in the interest of everyone else to argue that they were behind the atrocity to get the excuse to come here."
 
"What is your suggestion?"
 
"Maximum dispersal. If Grayson is right and someone is trying to suppress this data, spreading it beats them. It also shows that nobody benefited from it to the expense of anyone else, so none of us can be accused of setting this up." 
 
"Good point. And the rest of the Cache?"
 
Mary sighed and looked out across the plain. "Hold a garage sale?"
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===Change in Plans===
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A few minutes later, the General and Sortek returned. 
 
"Commander," Cheng said. "If you hope to be let go, I don't have that authority. But I can promise you safety, and a fair trial… which will include every bit of evidence. Because of that, understanding that nothing you can give me will change that—so what are your intentions regarding the core?"
 
"I'm making as many copies as I can. I'll give them to anyone who wants them." Grayson said. 
 
"Very well. I and Champion Sortek agree. We'll take our own copies, and allow Duke Ricol to remove his." Mary nodded. "As for the Cache, well, it's salvage and since we don't have enough forces to do anything about it, you and Duke Ricol can load your shares, so long as you and your officers who were on Sirus VII come with me."
 
"I expect I will leave before the bulk of your forces arrive," Duke Ricol said. "To keep ideas from rising."
 
"That might be a good idea," Sortek said, looking quite unhappy. 
 
"Very well," Mary said. "Get me a link with the Free Worlds' forces."
 
But when the link was established, they only heard the high-pitched scream of full jamming. Long range coms were out.
 
"Someone," Sortek murmured, "doesn't want us talking."
 
"Yes." Mary muttered. "Because we're down here and can't talk to anyone up there. It'd be a shame if we all died at the hands of the mad Grayson." 
 
"Suspicious." Lori looked at the shorter woman.
 
"My first command was dealing with Arugian politics. This has the marks of the same kind of smart-stupid plan all over it." Mary nodded. "Well, Champion Sortek, it appears that we're on our own."
 
"Agreed, where were you planning on holding them, Carlyle?" he asked.
 
"At the river. I've got twelve 'mechs, in varying conditions."
 
"Sixteen," Mary said. She opened her short range coms. "Judith, this is Cheng. Get one of your platoons into the Cache. You need to babysit a library." She turned to Grayson. "Do I have your parole?"
 
"If you can save my people, we'll all come with you." Grayson said. 
 
"Well, then let's try to convince the Free Worlds League to let us engage in a peaceful withdrawal." 
 
Grayson shook his head. Well, that sounds unconvincing. 
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