MBMSFS Chpt 4

==Manufacturing a Blueprint for a More Stable Federated Suns‎‎ - Chapter 4 - - Getting Shoved Out the Door -==
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===Stalling for Time===
[Arthur Corean]
[Corean Enterprises Headquarters]
[Avalon City, New Avalon; Federated Suns]
[January 20th, 3027]
"Are you sure you've got everything?" I asked my little brother as I stood inside one of MIIO's out-of-the-way hangars, a Leopard dropship behind me ready to be wheeled out onto the tarmac.
 
I was stalling. 
 
I knew I was stalling. My brother knew I was stalling. My MIIO handler and AFFS security detail knew I was stalling. 
 
Everybody knew I was stalling. Yet I had good reason for it- I was utterly terrified of getting onto that dropship. 
 
For damn good reason! Just three weeks ago ComStar had tried and almost succeeded in fucking killing me! And my little brother!
 
"Yes. I do. I have it handled, Arthur. I know that I'm still a university student, but you've given me a complete write-up of everything I'm supposed to be doing while you're gone," Yuri sighed as he shook his head, "More to the point, your very capable, experienced, and highly paid staff do as well. Your science teams are already on the ball, the construction crews are finishing up the first of the underground facilities, and we still have the five-year reconstruction roadmap to go off of."
 
I didn't realize that I was shaking until Yuri reached out and grabbed onto my hands, the lad squeezing them to steady me in a way I hadn't known I needed, "It's not like you're going to be gone forever, Arthur. Just a few months to look at the station and get introduced to your new Duchy, and then you'll be back here before you know it. You'll be fine. If you feel like you can't trust anyone else, then at least trust our Prince."
 
"I do trust our Prince. It's just everyone else I have a hard time trusting at this point," I let out an explosive sigh as he released my hands, and we both made a display of wiping our palms on our clothing... even though we both knew damn well it was my hands that were cold and clammy, "You'll send a runner to let me know what the survey team pulls up, right?"
 
Yuri shook his head, "Of course, of course. The Jumpship for Bristol has already left with a survey team, though it won't be until early March when they arrive. What's got you so spun up about it in the first place?"
 
I looked to the AFFS team that was going to be escorting me for the duration of this expedition since this was an Official Federated Suns operation and I did not yet have a Ducal Guard of my own yet. My Corean Security teams had their own responsibilities to attend to at the industrial complexes; we had a lot of construction going on right now, and with the crews moving in and out along with materials they needed every set of eyes they had. 
 
Even after having doubled the size it was stretching them thin; even the company-sized element I sent with the survey team had dragged away more than a few hands that Major Willis insisted would be of better use on New Avalon, yet I overruled him because unlike him, I knew that the Fury tank plant that had been owned by Jolassa Weapons still existed. Sure, it had been nuked, but by now the site was ice cold and ripe for the picking. It would take some time and a lot of excavation, but at bare minimum there was a company of pristine Fury tanks that could get me fully function Gauss weapons so I could begin the process of reverse engineering them, but the tanks also had a special computer system on-board. 
 
The Nirasaki-Whatevernumberitwas was a battlecomputer that was borderline artificial intelligence and was one of the most advanced multi-purpose computers the Star League had developed prior to the fall. Targeting, communications, integration of multiple systems into one network band- it was the perfect command and control tool that the Dracs would use to build the C3 system that they made little use of. By studying it I would be advancing my personal understanding of advanced vac-tube electronics packages and programming, and I was damn near certain that it also had some optical computing technologies spliced in there somewhere; for a device that added no appreciable tonnage its benefits were to many for it to be so damn small.
 
Besides, by using this success, I'd springboard it into other successes, gaining more credibility to get access to more systems or at least make people heed my word when I said that "there might be something there, so its worth taking a look". 
 
Then? Then I'd use this to springboard a campaign to search Outreach once it was in the Federated Commonwealth's hands- I was going to steal the march on old Cranston Snord and Jaime Wolf. 
 
Betray dear Katrina's trust and conceal a Castle Brian and its contents, will they!? Lie to my friend Hanse and dupe Ardan, even if he deserves to get duped from time to time for being so damn noble, will they!? Hah! Fuck them!
 
"I'm running off some old paperwork that Father left us. You know how Father always wanted to be a LosTech prospector, right? Well I found some things that he was going to look into but just... never got around to, not when he had to take over the company when Grandfather passed away," I shrugged my shoulders, "It could be nothing, but if that is the case then we're only out a few million C-Bills at worst. The site may have been nuked, but if someone nuked Corean then after waiting for it to cool off if they dug around they'd find some interesting things; I'm willing to bet good money that Jolassa Weaponry was the same. Besides, its not as though they're still around, so it's not as if they can complain about it, right?"
 
Jolassa Weaponry as a corporation was little more than a holding company, a husk with a name from a bygone era. They wouldn't be able to do shit until their old Jolassa facility was excavated for them and some other company jumped on board and put up the funds to get them operational again. Once we'd dug up the Fury tanks it would be Corean Enterprises that would partner with Jolassa to get them back up on their feet, and I'd start to establish myself in the industry as someone that helps his partners and competitors alike. Sure, GM would still be pissed at me, but once I offered them a good portion of the Outreach facilities for production and repair? We'd be frenemies at best, but frenemies was a sight better than plain old 'enemies'. 
That and it would put more prominent people and industries in my corner when it came time to snipe Outreach from the Dragoons. If they wanted to use the planet to garrison? That's cool, but those damn Clanners won't even sniff the manufacturing scene- the only good thing they ever made was the Marauder II, and I would be stealing the march on them there as well. 
 
Meatshields should stay meatshields when all they have to offer is Clanner politics outside of that.
 
Those old factories were in good enough condition that the Wolf's Dragoons were able to set up shop and get them working within a few years, and I wanted those facilities. 
 
Fuck the Wolf's Dragoons! Those pricks did a terrible job in preparing the Inner Sphere for the Clans-
 
"Brother?"
 
And fucking Daisy.
 
I knew she was likely a ComStar plant, but even after going through everyone with a fine-toothed comb and getting rid of as many possible moles as we could within the company... Daisy had a solid background with decades of loyal service, and other than being a former ComStar acolyte at the New Avalon HPG for two years as a front desk receptionist she had been clean. I knew she was a plant, yet even after all of the digging we couldn't find a solid reason to get rid of her like the others, not without raising suspicion that I was onto ComStar... and damnit, my father adored Daisy.
 
Even with my paranoia, there was still a small part of me that didn't want to believe that Daisy was likely the person who got my parents to get on that dropship with a faulty hydrogen seal- to give my father his morning cup of coffee just the way he liked it with a scone in the other hand and a brilliantly refreshing smile on her face. All the while knowing that in just a few short hours she would be sending my father and mother to their deaths... and me along with them. 
 
Yet I didn't want to go on a photo op, not when my cozy lab called to me, so I changed my mind at the last minute and decided not to go.
 
By that point it was too late for ComStar to abort the plan, not without having to admit they supplied a faulty seal... they could just get me later at their leisure.
 
Fuckers.
 
"Stop. Stalling." Yuri reached up and patted my shoulder, knocking me out of my thoughts, "It's time for you to go, Arthur. You wanted the Duchy? You got the Duchy. Show the Prince your worth and turn Petrolia into a shining gem that can one day rival New Avalon's splendor. However, you don't do that while standing here, so on you go, get on the dropper!"
 
He then physically spun me around and started frogmarching me over toward the open bay while the security detail followed along with amused expressions on their faces.
 
Had he been working out? I don't remember him being this strong.
God the Leopard was such a cool-ass dropship.
 
Normally I would have been thrilled by the prospect of being on one, especially since I'd only ever been on one of the family's Union one time, and that was when I left Augusta at age 9 and came to New Avalon to attend NAU. Now that I think about it, it is sort of crazy that I hadn't left the planet in almost 21 years.
 
Holy shit. I'm going to be going into fucking space! 
 
Fuck! That's so cool, but damnit, when everyone wants you dead it's also fucking terrifying. 
 
Damn you, ComStar, for taking what should be fun and exciting and making me dread it!
 
My feet tapped up the ramp and into the primary Mech Bay, where I spotted four Battlemechs snug in their cradles- a BJ-1DB Blackjack, an ENF-4R Enforcer, a CN9-A Centurion, and surprisingly an AS7-D Atlas. The 'Mechs I expected, but to see that there were a few ground vehicles as well sort of surprised me, among them was a Mobile HQ that had been strapped down to the interior footpath along with a quartet of wheeled APCs.
"We're the Advance Team to secure your new Duchy," One of the AFFS NCOs walking next to me replied, "The Prince doesn't expect you to build up your Ducal Guard overnight, and at this point asking you to defend your Duchy with the security forces that Corean has at their disposal would be criminal."
 
Once I was fully inside of the Leopard I felt my brother's firm, insistent hands stop pushing at me, and I stumbled slightly when he gave me one last shove.
 
I turned around to see him try and fail to give me a strong, reassuring smile, "You're... you're the smartest person I know, Arthur. If there is anyone who can make this all work out then it's you, so... keep your head up and remember why we are doing what we're doing, alright?"
 
Yet... I still felt reassured anyway.
 
I smiled back, "For a brighter future. For a stronger Federated Suns."
 
"For a stronger Federated Suns."
 
He gave me his best 'Man-to-Man' nod before turning on his heel and striding toward a little golf-kart-like vehicle that was waiting for him at the bottom of the ramp. I didn't even get to watch him go as a hand lightly touched my back, "This way, Duke Corean. Shall we head toward the command bridge?"
 
I took a deep breath and nodded, "Yes. Let's go."
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===Taking Flight===
Son of a bitch. Shit. Ass-fuck. Fuck my face and call me a monkey fucking whore.
 
The Dropship shook and rattled, the structure griping and groaning in ways that I am fairly certain a starship's frame wasn't supposed to, and my white-knuckled grip on my safety harness showed my discomfort.
 
"If you don't relax, Duke Corean, your hands will be hurting well into tomorrow," Salim Mustafa chided as he shook his head, "It will be a long journey to the jump point if you're so tense all of the time."
 
"'Che', yeah, seven and a half days is a long time," I muttered to myself, trying to focus on Salim's smirking face to steady my nerves.
Salim Mustafa was my MIIO representative for this mission, er, well, he was going to be my primary MIIO liaison for the Petrolia system in its entirety. Every planet within the Federated Suns had at least a small MIIO Field Office, and Petrolia II was no exception, however, with the system's recent 'promotion' to becoming a fully-fledged Duchy, with a Duke blessed by the First Prince with all of the titles and responsibilities that came with it, it now meant that the system had become a lot more important. Not only would it be getting an AFFS Regimental Combat Team, once a new one was stood up, but that also included funding and manpower for a spiffy MIIO Branch Office.
 
However, instead of promoting one of the Field Agents on the ground, a MIIO Representative with experience leading more than just a handful of men and women was dispatched to ensure that the new Branch Office was stood up properly, and that man was Salim Mustafa.
 
I'd never met the guy, and didn't know what type of person he was- hell, we were introduced as we were strapping into our shock couches!
 
Still, he seemed like a decent dude, if a bit teasing, but if he was going to be assigned to me then I'd expect him to know everything about me from his fellows who were assigned as liaisons at Corean... which was probably why he was teasing to begin with, because it certainly had me focusing my anger on him instead of being a nervous wreck as we careened into space.
 
Within a few moments, the rattling and shuddering halted, and I blew out a deep sigh of relief as the pilot's voice broke out over the intercom.
 
"As I'm sure you can tell, we've just exited atmo. Please remain in your seats until we've been granted to leave our orbiting station, and after that we'll commence with a smooth as silk 1.5g acceleration to reach Escape-V. From there? It'll be a comfortable 1g of vertical burn until we flip for decel ops. Until that time, however, our flight stewardesses will be around shortly with drinks and other refreshments."
 
My knuckles popped as I released the abused shoulder restraints and let my arms hang bonelessly in zero gravity.
 
It was just as novel as I remember.
 
"Been a long time since you last up here, huh?" Salim caught my attention, that infuriating smile still on his lips.
 
"I would hope that you of all people would know that," I huffed slightly while rolling my eyes.
 
"I've read a lot of things about you, even the blacked-out pages that the censors didn't want me to," He reached up and tapped the side of his head with a finger, "You've got a brilliant mind, Doctor Corean, but you've got some baggage as well. It's my job to help you carry it, but if you don't shoulder it yourself then you'll never make this grand plan of yours work." 
 
There was a certain level of intensity in his gaze as he stared me down, "Your idea is an audacious one, but such schemes only work when the man pushing them is bold as well. Travel like this? It's going to become a lot more common in your future, and you'll never make it anywhere if your little brother has to push you onto the dropship every time."
 
He sniffed a touch as he broke the staring contest, "And I didn't take you to be the 'limp' type."
 
"You don't have to tell me twice, I'm here, aren't I?" I felt my hands curl back up into fists as I pulled them down to the armrests, "Rome wasn't built in a day, but hey, it's a start."
 
Salim didn't say anything. Instead, he just twitched his lips, the 'Show me my Prince's trust in you wasn't misplaced' unspoken. 
 
Bastard.
 
I turned to my right and looked at all of the hard-nosed men and women of the AFFS. Whether it was out of love for the Federated Suns or because they knew that if the Snakes or Cappies weren't stomped into the mud then it would be their families pushed up against the wall... these men and women were the ones who marched out to face certain death every day because that was their chosen profession. It didn't matter if they were in the cockpit of a 'Mech or Aerospace fighter, if they were behind the wheel of an APC or in the turret of an MBT, or if they were charging at the legs of a cornered mech with det-packs clutched in their hands... these crazy SOBs had my undying respect.
 
As the Duke of a new system, their beloved First Prince put a lot of power in my hands, and even more weight on my shoulders, yet just like them, I was the one who asked for it.
 
Until my freshly stood up RCT arrived and I had a Ducal House Guard to stand next to them, these men and women would fight, kill, and die to defend Petrolia should trouble come knocking... and it was up to me to do the best I can for them.
 
To earn their respect.
 
After mulling over my thoughts for a few moments I looked toward my MIIO Branch Manager, "Salim. The moment we're good to unhook, you and I need to find a quiet corner to talk shop. If Federated-Boeing is going to be at the Jump station then I have some ideas I want to run by them."
 
He blinked once, twice, before his smirk turned into a more genuine smile, "It sounds like you're going to be making me do a lot of work that is outside my lane but... as the folks say: 'I can dig it'."
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*; 22nd Independent Special Task Group: Petrolis Temporary Military Detachment (22nd Independent Special Task Group); sourced from volunteers from the 1st & 3rd Davion Guards' Regimental Combat Teams
==Chapter Notes==
*; Chapter Note from the author: About the 22nd Independent Special Task Group: The RCT is a self-contained apparatus, with each unit having its own logistics platoon, company, battalion in house. Those units are responsible for making sure their specific units get the parts and tools they need to get the job done, not just beans, bullets, and bandages. They are always closely joined at the hip with the repair/ordnance sections, the three integrating pretty tightly to the point where most good logistics units can get mechanics and ordnance teams what they need before they need them.However, these in-built logistics teams need to get their stuff from somewhere, and that is usually via a dedicated logistics unit linked in with Big Army- or in this case, "Big AFFS". The platoon loggies send their needs to the company loggies, who send those needs to the battalion loggies who then send it up to the local dedicated, organic (meaning not attached to an RCT) logistics unit that handles the Depot level stockpiles for distribution. In-Unit loggies get what is allocated to them according to their TO&E, so anything they isn't on that list of approved items for storage in their unit warehouses has to be stored at the local depot level. So the dedicated Logistics company is serving the needs of the entire RCT, but at their size it is within their capabilities. Two RCTs, however, would require a Battalion-level Logistics Support Unit. They handle the inflow of fresh parts from the dropships, and the inflow of broken stuff or overflow back to the dropships.A thankless job, but someone's got to do it.And since the unit is stationary and on 'build orders' where training (and thus munitions expenditures and equipment repair) is kept to a minimum, really, the only thing they have to do is make sure the two engineering companies get all of the construction equipment they need.The two companies of Structural Engineers, however, have the most work out of all of them. Not only are they responsible for turning the One-Dropship planet Spaceport into a genuine military spaceport, but once that is finished they'll have to build the initial cantonment for the RCT, as the RCT is currently living in a Tent City. The local city is doing what they can to help, but a city with 40k people just doesn't have that much construction capacity to help outside of building temporary structures.However, with three battalions of Infantry, you can't have them just sitting around of they'll cause trouble, so you hand them over to the Engineers. The Engineers get extra hands, and the Commander is secure in knowing his infantry are too tired at the end of each day to get bored and cause problems for the populace. Especially since he was selected by the Prince Himself to lead this operation.While he is there, Petrolia will suffer no assault, nor will it's people have to worry about brawls breaking out at their pubs and bars. lolIn the meanwhile, everyone who isn't a battlejunky gets to enjoy a very nice duty station for a few years. Sure the first few months of tent city living sucks, and the plywood. holdings that come after are barely better, but they could be getting shot at by a raging hoard of Capellans or Snakes!That Petrolia II is a beautiful world with lots to explore, and beautiful girls (or handsome boys), it isn't that bad, not at all.
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