AWF Chpt 15

=Chapter 15=
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==A Warrior's Family==
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===Training Day===
Edwards System
Federated Suns
August 3029
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They went down a few decks and entered a large vehicle bay. There were several ground cars and trucks, a large recovery vehicle and a few random 'Mech and vehicle parts, plus several large storage containers. All were chained down or locked into anchor points on the deck. Near the back end of the deck was an assortment of command couches, partial cockpits, power cables, tables, holo projectors, a large cylinder marked "Lennox 60" that had dozens of power cables plugged into it. The couches and tables were arranged in a circle around the cylinder. It was noticeably warmer on this part of the deck.
At the table was an assortment of computers, computer parts and screens. There was a skinny young man and a teenage girl dressed all in black with electric blue hair and too much makeup. Crow led them up to the table. "Hey Codey, Mal, these are the new Mechwarriors."
The young man stood up. He was tall, lanky, wearing baggy clothes and had a short hair and a scraggy mustache. Hap introduced Anastasia, Joker and himself. He nodded to Hap, "Hello. I'm Codey, the master electronics tech for McFinnigans, and this is Malicious Logic, but we call her 'Mal', she's our main programmer." He motioned to the young woman.
Mal turned to look at them. She was wearing lipstick that matched her blue hair. Her black clothes, heavy eye-liner, makeup and hair made her skin look paler. She gave them a quick wave said, "Hey" and turned back to her screen.
Next to them was a table that was bowing under the weight of a large holo viewer and a group of large screens behind it. There was a muscular dark skinned man standing by the holo. Hap remember him from last night, he was Yorik Tomax. The holo projector next to him showed a map with four blue triangles, and a four red triangles. Hap glanced around and could see four teenagers sitting in some of the simulator cockpits.
"Alright, alright. Form up. Noah, get in that square formation." Tomax yelled, "I swear to god, I'll make MechWarriors out of you even if it kills you." Tomax spoke like a Drill Sergeant.
Tomax watched as the blue triangles started to form into a loose square. "Alright let him have it." He said quietly to Codey and Mal and the red triangles moved to engage the blue triangles. The young MechWarriors yelled and tried to coordinate with each other.
Tomax looked over to the new MechWarriors, "Let me finish with these younglings, then we'll get you guys in there. Mal can start loading your 'mechs into the system while these boys get schooled."
Tomax looked back at the tactical display, then switched one of the sider monitors to display technical information on one of 'mechs. "Conner, you're left side is nearly blasted to hell, turn your 'mech."
As Mal loaded the new Mercenaries 'mech configuration into the system Codey explained the cockpit configuration and how it simulated their 'mech and the holo projector in front of the cockpit would generate an exterior view. The system could be configured to allow the warriors to fight each other or could generate Opposing Forces (OpFor) or friendly forces for different scenarios. The computer generated 'mechs were AI driven, but Mal and Codey could give them some direction, or tell them who or what to target, seek, or avoid.
Once Hap, Anastasia, Mags, and Joker were comfortable Fletch showed up and started putting them through drills. Crow and Rolph also participated and Tomax allowed the younglings to watch how the new Recon lance responded to their scenarios. Hap was glad to hear Tomax compliment their activities to the young trainees.
Fletch kept them busy for the whole day with various drills and scenarios, and a few inter-lance match-ups. Throughout the day other MechWarriors in the company showed up and ran through some of the same drills or fought them.
Fletch and Tomax felt the lance looked good, but each corrected Mags for running ahead of her lance mates. She preferred to go fast, be aggressive, and use her 'Mech's speed and agility to its greatest advantage. Hap tried to explain they needed to stay together, mass firepower, and wait till the right moment to use her 'Mech's superior swiftness to flank, or pursue an enemy. She didn't agree but after Fletch and Tomax yelled at her she at least complied during the training.
Through the day the new mercenaries learned the basic structure of the company. McFinnigan and Sons was arranged into four lances. The main lance was Dullahan lance. It was a pursuit and raiding lance that consisted of Medium and Heavy 'Mechs that had the ideal balance of speed and firepower. It was similar to Hap's recon lance, except the Mechs were bigger, and slightly slower. The pursuit lance was McFinnigan's main lance because raids were their core business.
Crow and Rolph were part of the Fire Support lance, it consisted of 'Mechs that had indirect fire weapons as their primary weapon systems. Everyone referred to them as the hammer lance. They would stand at the edge of the battlefield and rain down missiles on the enemy. One of the roles of Hap's recon lance was to spot for Hammer lance.
The final lance was the command and assault lance. All the Mechs in this lance weighed 80 tons or more and were generally used for defense or full scale assault and destruction. They rarely took to the field, but when they did it was for jobs where point defense, or overwhelming damage and devastation were a contractual requirement.
Fletch and McFinnigan would also organize Mission Tailored Force Package depending on a contract or a specific mission. Fletch pointed out to Hap that his Griffin was a pretty useful 'Mech so he shouldn't be surprised when he was mixed into one of these packages.
They finished at dinner time, and Hap was happy they had met and worked with most of the MechWarriors from the company. He now knew most of the men and woman he would be fighting with and he was feeling better and more confident about his decision to join the mercenary outfit.
After dinner Crow invited them to play Spades. They led them down to a lounge on the same deck as their berths. Like poker, it was something Anastasia had never played. Hap explained the basic rules to her, and they paired off against Crow and Rolph.
Crow and Rolph proved better than Hap and Anastasia and after a few hands they decided to sit out. Joker got Mags to be his partner and they were better competition for the members of the Hammer lance. Hap decided to watch because he enjoyed the general trash talking and camaraderie of the spade game. Anastasia sat next to him, and leaned on him while they watched the game.
David Lee, the company's other Valkyrie pilot, tried to talk to Anastasia about the model of 'Mech they shared. Anastasia gave him a few succinct answers until he decided to leave her alone. Hap wasn't sure if David was trying to flirt with Anastasia or if he was just being friendly. He also wasn't sure if Anastasia was being awkward or if she didn't want to talk. Hap suspected David was being friendly, but Anastasia was so used to pushing people away she didn't always know when or how to make small talk.
When Hap announced he was going to bed Anastasia did the same. They started back to their berths, but being new to the ship they got lost. As they retraced their steps Hap asked, "What do you think?"
Anastasia shrugged, "Most of these mercenaries are pretty good, or at least competent. I wish Mags would listen and stay in formation, or just stay within optimal LRM range of the lance."
"She'll figure it out." Hap replied. "I used to have the same problem with Joker. I'd pair him off with Lucky and tell them to stay within a few hundred meters of Tuna and me. Just so I could cover him, and we could quickly close when they found the enemy. We usually found ourselves in a lopsided square."
"A 'lopsided square' like a parallelogram? That's not doctrinal." Anastasia said.
"Yeah, a parallelogram. It was terrain and 'mech type dependent, so technically that's doctrinal."
She pursed her lips, and gave her head a small shake, "Not really. What we really should do is form a wedge. Place me on point with my advanced sensor package, have you and Joker behind me, and then have Mags trailing behind you."
"That sounds good, except I think I should be on point, because my armor is heavier." Hap said.
"No. Your Griffin's weapons are all long range so my medium laser makes up for your lack of short range, and give you that extra standoff to keep your PPC effective. Joker and Mags have highly maneuverable 'Mechs so they can quickly flank the enemy while we fix them at range. The wedge formation allows us to adjust to terrain and quickly bring our maximum fire power to bare."
Hap could see her point. "Why didn't you bring this up earlier?"
"Because Joker would have made some glib comment, and Mags would argue that her 'Mech is fast so we should keep up, or tell me to find better tactics for her 'Mech's speed. It's just giving them an opportunity to mock me, but if you suggest it, they won't question it." Anastasia said.
Hap was quiet for a moment. "You want to be my assistant lance leader?" Hap asked
"Giving me some title isn't going to make them listen to me."
"I know, but I actually need an assistant lance leader to give me advice, and more importantly to do the things I don't want to do, like fill out paperwork."
Anastasia's eyes narrowed, "We're in a mercenary company, how much paperwork can there be?"
"Doesn't matter because you're my assistant lance leader now, so you'll be doing it."
Anastasia shrugged, "The jokes on you, I actually like filling out paperwork."
Hap chuckled, "of course you do." They turned a corner and found themselves in their berthing area.
"Does assistant lance leader come with any perks, like private meetings?" Anastasia asked suggestively.
"Uh…if it's necessary, yes." Hap said as she stepped into his personal space.
"Good, because if you're going to off load unpleasant tasks to me, and if I have to put up with Joker's terrible jokes, and Mag's threats I'm going to need some time alone."
"Okay, that's not a problem." Hap replied as he sat down on his bed.
"With you." Anastasia said as she sat down next to him.
"Anastasia, we'll spend time together. I do want a relationship with you, I just want to make sure we let our relationship grow in more ways than just the physical. And, you really need to figure out how to be friends with Joker and Mags. Honestly you might have it easier than me getting past Mags tough-girl exterior. Maybe you should talk to her and see if you two don't have something in common."
"Like shoes or clothes?" Anastasia said sarcastically, "I hardly think she knows what good shoes are, and her style, such as it is, could charitably be called 'tactical'."
"To be fair all I've seen you in is boots, military coveralls and an oversized T-shirt."
"That's because it's all I had in my 'Mech or what I could get from the Company store." Anastasia replied, "When we get to a civilized world, I assure you I'll dress differently. Although I don't really follow fashion trends. At least not the current wide shoulder nonsense. It looks ridiculous on me."
Hap laughed at Anastasia's annoyance, and gave her a gentle squeeze on the shoulder. Hap said, "This is our unit now. Joker is a pain in the ass, and Mags is undisciplined, but when the fighting starts I'm sure they'll have our backs. Besides the company is more than just Joker and Mags. Crow seems nice."
"The guy that put a mech hand in my bed?" Anastasia replied
"That was a misunderstanding, and he apologized. What about David Lee, he's seems friendly?"
Anastasia gave Hap a questioning look, "I'm not sure if he's being friendly or trying to be more than a friend. Either way conversations with him are awkward, even for me."
Hap shook his head, "Dillon also seemed to try and talk you up."
"I don't want to be mean, but Dillon's a…he's a simpleton. He's also made it clear that I still owe him a dance. I'm a little surprised he's a MechWarrior, but he seemed capable in the simulator."
"His lance leader was in the simulator next to mine. Fiona coaches him, not anything excessive, but she tells him which target to engage, and where to stand. His Dervish is mostly indirect fire, so it works."
Anastasia nodded, "So, are you going to be like Mother, and tell me that I need to make more friends?"
"Well not after you say it like that. No. However, I was impressed by everyone we met today. Usually Mercenaries have a reputation for being undisciplined, psychotic, and poor quality warriors. Everyone today, even Dillon, seemed pretty good. I'm also sort of enjoying the family atmosphere."
"I preferred the big bureaucracy of the AFFS, an organization spanning galaxies that a girl could get lost in. Everyone here wants to talk to me, and I just want a quiet place to read, or talk to you."
"Yeah, but no one is calling you Princess."
Anastasia shrugged, "That's true, I suppose. On a different subject, I still owe you something."
Hap looked at her confused, "What?"
"We had that wager. I lost when we played highest card to see who would get your blanket."
"Oh that. Yeah, I almost forgot about that."
"I really don't like being indebted to anyone, even you. Please tell me what I owe you. I could bake you something, or if you want some of my winnings from that night, just name it. If it were anyone else I'd be worried you'd ask me to do something degrading, but I know you're not that kind of man. "
Hap gave her a strange look, "What do you consider degrading?"
Anastasia gave him a startled look, "Harold, no. Just no. Whatever you're thinking the answer is no."
"I'm just curious. You don't use obscene language, but I know the books you read. So I have to wonder."
"I read 'those books' occasionally, and I think you know what is, and is not, degrading."
"One person's degrading sex act, is another's good time." Hap replied, as Anastasia gave him a sour look. "What if I got a luxury hotel room with good room service, and invited you to a topless weekend?"
Anastasia's eyes narrowed, "Would it be both of us, or just me."
"How about if I were just as undressed as you were?"
"If we're alone, and it's something you're willing to do, it's probably not degrading." Anastasia said. "Is that what you want? You want to see me nearly naked? That seems counter to what we talked about."
"I do want to see you naked, but I'm willing to wait, I'm not going to trade in this debt for something that I'll probably get eventually if I play my cards right. That would be foolish."
"What's foolish is if you keep talking about what degrading things I might or might not do."
"Alright Anastasia, I'm not going to take advantage of you. I was just taking the opportunity to learn about you and what you think about certain things, like sex, and how I should treat you."
"I like to be held, and cuddled. I don't like to talk about degrading sex acts."
Hap nodded, "Alright, I'm sorry. I thought I was being clever, but I may have gone too far."
Anastasia nodded, and her tone and looks softened, "Harold, I know you're not someone who would risk our relationship for a few moments of base pleasure, but I don't want to think about this." She sighed and added, "I'm just going to bake you some cookies tomorrow. Do you like chocolate chip?"
"Well actually I prefer chocolate cookies with peanut butter chips, but I didn't agree to accept that for the wager. I think we really need to talk more about what is or isn’t degrading.” Hap teased her.
Anastasia looked at Hap for a long moment before saying, “You’re getting the cookies, and I’m going to bed now. Next time we wager, I’m going to make some stipulations, like an expiration period, and limits. We’re not doing this again. Good night.”
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