FaRtaL Chpt 3

==From a Ristar to a Lady - Chapter 3 -==
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Haynes Palatial Manor, Innerman City, Inman
Milligan PDZ, Woodbine Operational Area,
9th January, 3061
Finn was still in a foul mood the next local cycle when he entered the Haynes palatial manor, seat of their power. The sentries on guard saluted him briefly as he passed through security. Then his mood grew even more foul when he saw the person approaching him.
Captain Spencer Larouche wore his usual oily smirk as he walked towards Finn, while Finn’s mouth curved in obvious disgust. Of all the people he hated, Spencer Larouche was at the very top.
“It is nice to see you, Viscount Rason.”
Finn felt like slapping that smirk away.
“Nice for you, not for me. Your face makes me angry, so I’d like you to get lost, Larouche.”
Larouche shrugged in response. “Unfortunately, I cannot. We are headed to the same place.”
"What?"
Finn never got along well with Spencer, and he was sure the other man felt the same, though Spencer never showed it outwardly. Finn loathed Spencer, not least because of what the other man had done.
“Count Haynes called us both in.”
“…… damn."
Finn cursed a bit under his breath. In the end, as they were both heading in the same direction, he had no choice but to go through the same hallway. There was only one corridor that led to the Count’s office.
"Oh, I heard you are engaged."
“……”
“I heard that your fiancee is the famous daughter of Baron Kalinski, the White Lotus of Altoona. Is that true?"
Finn refused to rise to the obvious bait. “…….”
"Ah, I've seen her face several times from afar, she is indeed very beautiful. So much so she managed to bewitch even Baron Haynes for a brief time.”
Spencer was mocking him now, bringing up the fact that the Count Haynes’ son Renard had abandoned the woman after playing around with her.
Finn twisted his lips. Despite his origins, that bastard seemed right at home in the venomous pit of snakes that characterised the nobility of the Inner Sphere. Finn didn't like the way he frequently mocked other people with his backhanded compliments either.
"Lady Kalinska surely must have been delighted to see you. You must be sad that she has not been feeling well."
He even raised the rumour that his fiancee had jumped into the manor’s lake right after being rejected by Renard!
Goaded, Finn finally said, “Your efforts for Renard seems more appreciated than that of Lady Anastasia.”
Spencer’s oily smirk grew wider. “I think anyone who hears that will misunderstand. I am only the Count’s faithful servant."
“Sure, whatever you say. I do get entertained by your efforts.”
“.......”
“I think they’re mostly in vain though. Still, I bet the Count is impressed.”
“Well, I can only thank you for your overt interest in me.” Spencer smiled.
What a sly fox. Without a ready comeback, Finn could only glare at the other man.
No more words were exchanged between the two men as they walked together. Finn’s thoughts turned towards his fiancee.
Based on noble ranking, Baron Kalinski’s daughter should have been glad for his engagement offer. After such a humiliating and scandalous event, she would probably have no other choice but to get married to an older nobleman as a second wife, if it wasn’t for his offer of an engagement to protect her status.
He was somewhat surprised to see that she was able to offer her condolences for his deceased father, but her cold demeanour showed her lack of maturity.
Her face had 'I couldn't marry Renard because of you' written all over it. She didn't even offer for him to sit with her as if she didn't even want to see his face. Come to think of it, just as he detested Spencer, she also seemed to despise him in the same way. Finn wondered if his family had ever done anything unspeakable to the Kalinskis.
However, he had thought Baron Boris Kalinski was pleased when he had responded enthusiastically to the engagement notice. Furthermore, although he had met the Kalinskis somewhat frequently since his return to the Trivet, and they had exchanged passing greetings, he had never engaged them in conversation. They simply had no common interests.
So why the deathly glare from Anastasia? When he thought about it, he realised another strange thing - her speech patterns was that of a warrior. He had been so startled by the novelty of speaking informally to his fiancee, that he didn’t even think about the fact that she could respond to his brusque words so naturally.
In hindsight, he should have been surprised that such a well-groomed noblewoman could speak so crudely at all. He didn't notice it at the time because it had sounded so natural. Did she go insane when she threw herself into the lake? He would definitely refuse to have a crazy spouse, regardless of the consequences.
Finn frowned at the memory of that unpleasant first meeting. He said he would divorce her right after marriage, but that meant even more paperwork. Thinking of that grim future annoyed him to no end.
Eventually, the two men reached Count Haynes’ office. With a polite knock to announce their presence, they pushed the door open and entered.
“My lord,” they greeted simultaneously, bowing at the waist.
Count William Haynes had ruled the Trivet worlds, comprising of Inman, Altoona, and Delcambre, for the past three decades since before the Fourth Succession War. He answered to Duke James Sandoval, Minister and ruler of the Draconis March, and further up to their ultimate sovereign, First Princess Katrina Steiner-Davion, now ruler of the Federated Commonwealth. Although as far as Finn knew, none of the First Princes had any reason to focus their attentions on the worlds of the Trivet, as isolated and poor as they were.
Count Haynes looked worried. The old man rested his forehead on one hand, his fatigue clear to both men. “Viscount Rason, Captain Larouche.”
They stood to attention.
“You heard the latest news?”
Finn mentally ran through the events of the past few days. Well, there was that affair Renard Haynes was involved in, receiving payoffs in return for introducing commercial interests to their prospective regulators. Strictly speaking, it was not illegal, yet the very perception of corruption can, in itself, be quite damning.
As a result, there was a groundswell of sentiment against Renard. The news networks were spinning furiously the past few days to shape public perception more favourably, but there were limits to their reach. There were already a few major protest marches.
Protests were fine. The Federated Suns was founded with an emphasis on freedom of speech. But usually, that was as far as things went. Rarely did these protests result in any actual change, and matters usually returned to the status quo after some time. If they didn’t…
The ‘whiff of grapeshot’ still worked as well as ever.
While petitions could still go up the chain to the First Prince, at the ground level the government officials and the nobility would usually conspire to mitigate such charges and find plausible excuses here and there to excuse the excesses of the local nobles.
Finn had seen it all. Studied them, even, during his time at Kilbourne Academy. The power of an entrenched bureaucracy, the Deep State, could make or break even absolute rulers, and was something even the monarchs of the Successor States often refused to admit to themselves. Capable rulers, like First Prince Hanse Davion and Coordinator Theodore Kurita, knew how to subtly shape the apparatus of state to their aims, while mediocre rulers, like Captain-General Janos Marik, would be foiled by internal opposition at every turn.
“Tensions are rising, and damn Renard for getting caught!”
There it was. It wasn’t that Renard did anything wrong. It was that he got caught. Nobody claimed Count Haynes, least of all himself, as any paragon of virtue. The old man had lied, swindled, and cheated his way to power and wealth over the years.
Finn supposed he shouldn’t be surprised. The Count had taken on Spencer as his military aide and commander of his household troops, after all. But even if he found it distasteful, he still owed the Count his loyalty and fealty.
Such were the obligations of a noble in the Inner Sphere, bound to the web of the feudal system. You didn’t have to like your rulers or even your subordinates, you just had to do your own job.
“I want the two of you to have your men ready. If the worst happens, you should know what to do.”
Finn glanced over at Spencer. The Count was deliberately being vague on his orders, all the more for them to take the fall if anything went wrong.
Strictly speaking, it wasn’t Finn’s problem. By tradition, the Viscount of Delacambre was responsible for the military defences of the Trivet, keeping tabs on production of vital logistics and making sure they could fend off pirate raids, or historically, hostile incursions from the Draconis Combine.
Finn himself preferred to be on an actual battlefield instead of handling domestic matters.
But when the Count called, well, he couldn’t refuse. The upside was, if he played a major part in resolving the problem, it would be the Count’s turn to owe him a favour.
And that would be useful indeed.
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Kalinski Estate
17th January, 3061
“My lady, please stop.”
At the maid's plea, Anastasia slowed her pace. She was panting, and her heart was pounding. Sweat dripped down and stuck to her body. Bystanders would have thought that she was crazy, but unfortunately for Anastasia, she had only gone twice around the garden. And she was not even running, just walking a little faster.
To Avryl, Anastasia’s body was shockingly feeble. She was so limited in what she could do. How did the original Ana manage to go for all those parties?
When she resolved to start her physical training, she could not even find suitable clothes from the wardrobe to wear for exercise! So she was stuck wearing the shifts that Anastasia seemed to have in plenty. Thankfully, the estate grounds were mostly populated by the maids of the household and she did not have to worry about leering eyes.
Not that Anastasia cared. The clans were never that hung up on these social mores, though she knew that in the aristocracy of the Inner Sphere, proprieties still had to be observed.
Her plan was pretty simple. Although her body was far weaker than Avryl’s, she still wanted to be fit and strong. Who knew what dangers could be out there? Even if Anastasia was raised as a pampered and protected noblewoman, she just could not abide the sheer lack of physical activity.
So, she had to build up her strength and stamina. It was a good thing that she happened to be somewhat familiar with the therapeutic, rehabilitation, and conditioning exercises used by the clans to recover, especially after injuries, and this knowledge certainly came in handy now.
Except that she did not expect her body was going to be this weak!
She staggered over to a table, pausing to catch her breath. Her heart was pounding so hard she could count her heartrate even without putting a finger to her neck.
The maid next to her called out in worry, "Miss!"
Anastasia waved her off. “I am fine. I have to do this.” She was waiting for her heartrate to subside before continuing her exercises.
The maid pouted. “I will tell the master.”
Anastasia stubbornly persisted. "You can try, but this is something I must do." She took a deep breath and started doing supported squats using the table. If only the stravag shift didn’t keep getting in between her legs! She made a mental note to ask the maids to get her proper exercise attire.
Calisthenics were traditional bodyweight exercises used by warriors through the ages, and even after mankind’s ascent to the stars, they were still amongst the best exercises for building up strength. Anastasia recalled a fellow clan warrior who once lost his legs in battle and got cloned replacements, but still had to go through the grueling rehabilitation exercises to ensure full reconnection of his nervous system and to recover his lower body strength.
Supported squats, standing pulls, standing push-offs, seated knee tucks, she recited mentally to herself. As weak as her body was, she could only do the most basic of exercises. And considering that Inman had decent 1.03 G gravity, she could not blame the weakness of her body on the local conditions either. Freebirth, there were Clan Homeworlds with 1.5Gs!
Meanwhile, the maids watched their lady, worried and yet proud of her determination. They had quickly realized that their mistress, who had always been mean with a sharp tongue, was now even more stubborn but also somewhat gentler. The more astute ones recognized that Anastasia was now kind to everybody to some extent, instead of playing favourites and capriciously switching as she had done in the past.
They knew that Lady Anastasia had lost her memory. She had lost all her etiquette and seemed to lack any knowledge of the social conventions that surrounded her status. Yet she was generous and they felt that made her more adorable than before. Even though she was an adult, she also did not begrudge their efforts to care for her.
The maid sighed, “I’ll hold up a parasol? The sun is very strong!”
Anastasia eyed the small and flimsy parasol dubiously, then up at the sky, where Inman’s M0V class primary cast down its reddish-orange light. Compared to Huntress’s G7V yellow star, this was far weaker and she would normally not even care. Except that Anastasia’s skin, like the rest of her body, was probably just as delicate, and might not even withstand the rays of such weak sunlight.
"Your arms would hurt. I am also taller than you. Your name is….?"
“I’m Luisa.”
“All right, Luisa,” she gave in eventually. The maid’s intentions were well-meaning, and Anastasia just could not bring herself to reject her kind offer.
One more thing the servants noticed was that she was friendlier with her maids and made an effort to remember their names, instead of just saying “Hey you”. Of course, the effort was ineffective since she would always mix up their names.
The estate, where everyone once walked constantly on thin ice due to Lady Kalinska’s vicious personality, was turning into an easier place to work in. One of the more poetic maids even compared the brighter mood to blooming flowers.
The maids remembered Anastasia’s savagery, but they held no grudges against her. At their lowly status, it was expected of their betters. Lady Anastasia’s rank was too high for them to consider otherwise. Besides, they felt they were already lucky enough to have jobs and food on the table. Why put all that at risk?
Except now, Lady Anastasia’s every action slowly entangled the convoluted knot of depressed feelings in the servants, confounding and astounding them in equal measure. Several times, she could not stand back and just watch the maids working hard. She would take on the small chores, such as pouring water for herself, even if her strength was still weak.
The maids managed to stop her from doing so anymore, because they would get into trouble with the head butler. These incidents also convinced them that Lady Anastasia was not inherently bad and that she was just spoiled. Maybe the failed suicide attempt also ignited a burst of maturity?
They certainly hoped so.
The Baron was also delighted with Anastasia's changes because she stopped being so picky and was a lot more easy-going. In all, they were slowly getting used to Avryl as Anastasia.
After several more exhausting rounds, Anastasia finally gave into Luisa's pleas to rest. When she entered the house, one of her other maids brought her a gift box, saying that the master had sent it since she asked for it. Opening the box, she was a bit surprised.
It was a dagger, adorned with so many jewels on the hilt that it seemed almost impractical. She held up the gaudy dagger with one hand, judging its balance critically. As she suspected from its appearance, it was poorly balanced, had a lousy grip with the jewels, and was meant for ornamentation, not actual combat. It was still sharp, but that was about it. Trying to block attacks or to stab with the dagger would be foolish against a competent opponent.
Anastasia felt disappointed, but consoled herself with the fact she at least got a dagger. She knew the Baron doted on his daughter, and would acquiesce to almost anything she asked for.
Asking for a gun would set off all sorts of alarms though, and she dared not press her luck too hard. And if a gun was too much, even more so for a 'mech. She was not even sure if her current body had the neurological responsiveness in the first place.
Besides, buying a 'mech was a whole new level of expenditure. Discreet and oblique inquiries had revealed that there actually was a family heirloom mech stashed away somewhere on Altoona, but nobody had seen it or even know where or what it was. Disappointing, but expected given what she had observed of the Baron and the state of the household. They were definitely not a military family, or else had lost whatever pretense to being one.
Anastasia sighed and finally strapped the sheath around her right thigh, before sliding the dagger into it. She practised drawing the dagger out of the sheath a few times, before she was satisfied at her draw speed and that she would not cut herself while doing so.
The dagger under her ostentatious clothes. A tinge of danger under a veil of glamour. She supposed that was who she was now, just like she was actually Avryl Showers in Anastasia Kalinska.
In fact, it took some explanation before she understood why her surname was different from her father's. House Kalinski still adhered to the old tradition of using different suffixes for male and female members of the family, although they did not keep the patronymics.
The best part of every day was mealtime. The food was far better than the rations issued to the warriors of the clans. Other than a few special occasions, it had always been the same old protein bars, energy drinks, and reconstituted ‘meat’ that passed for food. After she tested out as a warrior, the poor state of the Clan’s economy meant that even the warriors did not enjoy luxurious meals.
In the Inner Sphere, she had some exposure to the local food and delicacies on the conquered worlds of the Occupation Zone, and she came to appreciate ramen, donburi, and sushi, staple meals of the occupied worlds, but there were not many opportunities to enjoy them. She especially missed okonomiyaki.
The food on Inman was different, centered around European style cuisine. She found that she enjoyed aglio olio, pizza, and the lighter soups, though the more flavorful dishes still seemed too much for her recovering stomach. She also finally got to taste the mythical ice cream, and it was especially delightful, since she had never tasted anything like it before. The quillar flavor was too sweet though; she preferred vanilla.
It was sheer decadence compared to the spartan lifestyles of the clans, but Anastasia resolved to enjoy it since she now was able to. That did not stop her feeling somewhat guilty at times though.
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Militia HQ
Innerman City
18th January, 3061
Finn groaned. As if the protests weren't enough, the protestors were now going after the companies that had paid Renard off. It was a change of tactics that did not augur well for tamping down tensions.
Several of these companies had called in, complaining that they couldn't conduct business as usual due to people deliberately blocking their vehicles, pestering their workers, or playing very loud music outside their offices. A few extremists even went after the families of the owners, further exacerbating the tensions.
Civil disobedience of this sort could be very effective when sustained, and the authorities wouldn't have any real reason to shut most of them down.
The usual counter strategy would be to go after the protest leaders, putting them under house arrest. With the broad powers available to the local nobles, this was not just possible, but even legal. However, it could also set off another round of protests against the government’s heavy hand.
"Sir, Tom Cladis called to complain his family is being harassed." His secretary Eric stood to attention while reporting in his office.
Finn sighed. "Pass it on to Chief Donaire. It's the police's job, not ours. We're only good for breaking things, and this isn't the time for that."
"Then why did they call us?"
"Because these small minded fools are hoping we'll take action. And then the heat gets transferred to us because we'll end up breaking people."
With his command of the militia, he currently only had a lance of mechs and another lance of combat vehicles, but these would be overkill against the protestors. And Count Haynes himself had his own household guards, commanded by Captain Spencer Larouche. Better the steady escalation of force, first through the police, before they had to be involved.
If they were called in too quickly, the populace would forever remember the response, and nobody liked having to live the next decade constantly looking over their shoulder for possible threats.
He’ll have to tread the line carefully. Unless something serious happened that absolutely required the presence of a military force, he would wait for specific instructions from Count Haynes. And even then, he would make sure the justifications were sound before taking action.
Not that it would come to this, Finn hoped. The way things were going, it would only take a spark to set the whole city on fire…
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Inman (Planetary Profile)
System Information
Coordinates: 556.02, 7.187
Stellar Class: M0V
Recharge times: 201 hours
Recharge stations: Zenith
Geophysical
System Position: 1st
Jump Point distance: 3.17 days
Moons: 2
Surface gravity: 1.03
Atmospheric pressure: Standard (Breathable)
Equatorial temperature: 16 0C (boreal)
Surface water: 80%
Highest native life: Birds
Infrastructure
Capital: Innerman City
Population: 80,000,000
Socio-economic levels: D-D-C-C-B
HPG station: B
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Chapter 3