TOW53

Chapter 53 - The Other War
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Delios
Kerensky Cluster
June 10th, 3062
Rebekah watched dozens of muddied Tallasi transports roll down the highway only illuminated by their headlights from the roof of an office building. Tattered tarps secured a numerous supply crates and drums being returned to Deep Harbor’s port. Star Colonel Danforth’s unsuccessful OP:CAUTERIZE failed to uncover a Bandit stronghold in the Scablands despite his best efforts. 
Epsilon Galaxy was being withdrawn to deal with the latest Star Adder aggressions toward Londerholm. The breadbasket world was key to any population expansion on the harsh Homeworlds and was the site of fierce Trials between many Clans over the years. Nu Galaxy was to remain on station ensuring the security of Delios until its transfer to Clan Coyote was complete at year end. Captain Cyne ordered his agents to stay put and continue surveillance. 
She turned over to Cara watching the latest launch of an Overlord to the Carrack Transport, CCS Solar Blaze, orbiting above. “Dark Caste activity is likely to pick up now that the pressure is off.”
Cara nodded, “Do you think they will attack the city? This area has been cold for weeks, no sign of Banditry.”
“They must have agents here. Galaxy Commander Kufahl was murdered in this city!” The late Silas Kufahl was of her same bloodhouse. It seemed particularly personal that the enemy had killed two of their number in the past month in such a chalcas fashion. Bloodhouse Master Sancia Kufahl decreed that a Grand Melee would be undertaken by year end to determine who would inherit his lineage. Becky was trying for a sponsorship but had to undergo the Rites of the Coyote before being considered.
“Jerry was a dead end though just a low-level bookie. We don’t know enough about this place yet to know when something is off. We need better training.”
“I have watched terrain change before and tracked animals across Drum Canyon with binoculars. We have unlimited access to shipping schedules and the Valiant’s launch windows. Something won’t add up and then we investigate, then something else will be wrong, repeat until we find the root of this infestation and then we call in Danforth’s QRF.”
Now that the dropship had boosted out of view Cara looked down concerns visible on an elfin face, “We will find you a mech if they attack. You can fight alongside me.”
The younger woman kicked pebbles from the asphalt roofing tiles, the small stones rolled down the metal overhands and fell into the parking lot below, “I don’t think I can do it, be a Warrior. Serving with you has been nice but I can’t stop thinking that I should just quit to become a Tech.”
Rebekah was shocked, she knew her friend was not the best Warrior, but even inferior ones still served their Clans in various capacities. Technicians were much lower in the totem pole of Caste ranking despite their contributions serving all Castes. “Why would you do that? Is it that boy you were coupling with in Belle’s Wharf?”
Her companion went red with embarrassment. She thought she was being discrete while that was occurring. She hoped that she hadn’t let on that something else was bothering her more than a dalliance with one of the local Techs. A tech who introduced her to the forbidden lore that the Clan Warrior caste was attempting to censure about life in the Inner Sphere. “What NEG! 
My own Pack Master has so little confidence they scheduled my Trial of Position last. They expected me to fail fast. I don’t want to fight. It was fine to pretend, but now I can’t say I want to endure the grind. Sibko was enough for me, this assignment is wearing me down.”
“We haven’t done anything yet.”
“That’s the problem, I crave stimulation but, can’t take to much. Not doing anything is making me antsy there are to many unknowns about these Bandits. None have been captured and they are using completely alien equipment in comparison to anything we have.”
“That is why we have to find our what they want and how they intend to get it, Cara.”
“But how! There’s no pattern other than they attack from the ocean and leave within ten minutes after firing some missiles.”
''
“Or they lurk below the waves and take unsuspecting prey like my brother and the others. Drowning them like animals. 
Make no mistake, Cara, these underwater terrorists are sadists of the highest order and they will not stop terrorizing civilians and we Warriors are the only thing that can stand against them.”
“But we haven’t been. When Danforth left the attacks around Belle’s Wharf stopped.
''
Nothing was found in the Scablands. 
We can’t even verify it was these same Bandits that sabotaged the bridges. The locals might have done it on their own, to make our Warriors bypass their town.”
''
“You have been reading too much Chatterweb conspiracy.”
“You don’t feel the same way? How can you ignore it now? You heard how they talked about Colonel Nyriev in Avon. Do you think that is an isolated incident?”
Rebekah paused for a moment, being undercover meant that the civilians had dropped their guard around her. There was much chatter about dissent among the castemen of Deep Harbor. Many were envious of the recently arrived Spheroid Sambar Free Guilders. The Grand Council’s information cordon failed to contain rumors, true and false, and a rising Second Star League winning the Great Refusal showed that the Clan Warrior caste was not invincible.
“How can you say all of this?”
“I say it because it might be true. It is awful that Rex was killed but he was in a fight that he could not win. Silas was responsible for a lot of suffering; this entire trade embargo and invasion was part of a conspiracy against the Khan and not his first.”
“What are you talking about now, Cara?”
''
“I’m sorry ,Rebekah, but this is going to be our last night together. I can’t hide the truth from you anymore.” 
She presented a data-pad to Rebekah who tentatively took it and scrolled through the pages. Contained within was a Top-Secret Scientist order written by codenames. Cara, as a Mechwarrior/Aerospace hybrid from a Strange Sibko (one consisting purely of hybrids used to benchmark Scientist capabilities) had a 97% compatibility with the Clan’s EI system. There were orders to secure her and other Cadets to serve as test subjects for a secret project at an undisclosed location. Silas Kufahl was to take control of the targets serving as Nu Galaxy auxiliaries on the date of his poisoning. Of the eight; One was killed during her Trial, six are unaccounted for, and then there was Cara.
“Who gave this to you? Do you trust them? 
There is no way this could be verified.”
“I hope you find one because I believe it. So much so that I have already agreed to join the people that gave it to me.”
“Your defecting to the Dark Caste.” She put her hand on the small revolver she kept in her waistband, “What if I try to stop you?”
Cara started walking backwards toward the stairwell leading to the roof, “You won’t because you care and want the best for me. It is why I felt safe entrusting you with those secrets. I wish you luck sister; because I don’t think we will see each other again.” 
The door closed behind her and Rebekah stood there still with her hand on the revolver for what seemed like an eternity, once more alone under the stars not knowing what was happening to her. Her focus was broken by an explosion by the docks. She raced over to the side and saw the orange glow of a fire, heard the sounds of machine guns and sirens, and began to smell the smoke drifting away from the ocean caught in a night breeze. 
Instead of taking the stairs she looked down and saw the fire escape. Rebekah leapt down, dropped hard on the grates before throwing herself down the stairs in a rush. She hustled down riding the final ladder to the ground where it hit with a solid bang on concrete. Keys in her hand she did a bootleg reverse, heading toward the Harbor district at high speed, passing minitrucks and riding up on the curve to avoid stopped Tallasi transports caught in traffic. 
Unable to go any further through the traffic with her jeep she stopped next to the lumberyard where a Bunyan (Crosscut Dual Saw) Workmech sat idle behind the razor wire. With Codex in hand she used her jeeps floor mat to cross the obstacle. After quickly climbing the ladder to the cage cockpit and attaching the neuroband that controlled the machine she used a Watch override code to power up the Fuel Cells and animate the machine.
With only chainsaws she was doubly disgraced by being forced to use a Workmech only capable of melee attacks, both of which were below her station as a proper Warrior. “Savashri, Its better than nothing." 
Now at full power she moved the industrial equipment over fences and towers of shipping containers toward the sounds of rifles and spreading fire. During this time familiarizing herself with the dataglove macros that controlled the two chainsaws that took the place of her hands. The sounds grew louder and were joined by missile fire impacting the buildings behind the engagement zone where the Deep Harbor Patrol attempted to contain the enemy long enough for the QRF to respond. 
The darkened cylindrical form of an Urbanmech IIC was slumped against a building along her route. Its torsos ripped apart by ferocious enemy fire the likes of which she had only seen a handful of times. DHP had a Star of light mechs in inventory with another in Securitymechs modified for riot duty with even less capable weapons and armor.
“Cara, this had better not be your doing. I will bring you in if it is.”
She turned the corner and was face to face with a mech that looked like a Mandrill but with smaller missile racks, only one of which was open while the other was behind a reinforced panel. Painted on its otherwise blue-gray exterior was a black octopus whose tentacles reached in all directions of the mech. Caught by surprise she had the initiative and spun both chainsaws up to full speed before sending them crashing down on the enemy. 
Sparks and shards of metal bounced off her cockpit as the chainsaws cut into the hostile machine. The Mandrill used its hands to grab her machines’ wrists and strained to push them back. As the myomer was stressed it caused the flimsier Workmech to shake from the strain. A small head mounted laser cut into the industrial plating near her cockpit dangerous close to the power cell while a salvo of missiles impacted her torso. The Workmech was not designed for that kind of damage but was sturdy enough to resist despite warnings blaring from the gremlin DIU computer about serious damage.
Rebekah mustered all the strength of the industrial myomer to carve another jagged slash through the squat machine. The Mandrill BattleMech however had long arms and its pilot was clever enough to slip one of the chainsaws and kick her Workmechs legs out from under her. Unable to resist the powerful kick the Bunyan’s fragile structure failed and toppled the machine. 
Another larger Mech passed her fallen machine this one like the strange Mandrill looked streamlined but there were obvious similarities to the Lupus, Clan Coyote’s first Omnimech, in its design. The Mandrill walked backward; its strange hunched form aided in locomotion by powerful arms covering its larger cousins’ retreat to the sea.
Ten minutes later she was rescued by the Deep Harbor DRT, who were surprised to see a seventeen-year-old girl who clearly engaged enemy Battlemechs with a Forestrymech. Taken to Cape Valiant after presenting Warrior credentials she found herself in front of Nu Galaxy Commander Leo Koga, trothkin to Khan Sullivan and who shared most of her physical features as well as a more cerebral nature.
“What happened to Cara? Captain Cyne informs me that you personally requested her be under your command. Yet they found no trace of her in the affected zones.”
“She was captured by enemy agents prior to the attack. I was in pursuit of them prior to commandeering the Forestrymech.”
He tapped something out on his comm-pad, “Why was this not communicated to the QRF or DHP?”
She hesitated not expected a full interrogation and wondering if they were aware that Cara might have had contact with Dark Caste prior and were testing her own loyalty to the Clan. “I was not thinking clearly at the time, Galaxy Commander.”
“Perfectly understandable, Rebekah. You were not trained to handle this kind of situation and I will note this on Cyne’s review. It is not his place to give orders to former Warriors without direct release from his Star Colonel. Danforth may have been tacitly culpable but they both put a Warrior and Cadet in harm’s way unnecessarily. Tell me more of the capabilities of the machines you witnessed.”
“One appeared to be some variant of the Mandrill. It had two shoulder mounted missile launchers, one of which was closed, and a small laser in the head. The other looked like a Lupus but I suppose one that can swim. I could not see how many missiles it had or what kind of lasers it might have used.”
“That tracks with prior reports, we believe these machines are splitting their munitions between torpedoes and regular LRMs. Damage assessments and BattleROMs also lead us to believe they use heavy laser technology. Principally used by the Star Adders,” he tapped his fingers on the task, “who maintain even more Lupus machines than we do.”
“Do you think the Star Adders are behind these attacks, Galaxy Commander?”
''
“There are certainly no reports of them suffering similar attacks and it would be in their nature to ensure their hands remain clean. How they would get the tech is unknown however so I cannot speculate without more evidence. Do you wish to undertake this assignment Commander?”
 “Neg, Sir. I request permission to undertake the Rites.”
“On which World?”<br>
“Kirin.”
“Ambitious choice for one so young. Who do you wish to join you?”
“None, I will Hunt alone.”
“The Coyotes of Kirin are among the most ferocious and clever carnivores in the Homeworlds. Quiaff?”
“Aff, that is why I seek to hunt them.”
“By yourself?”
“Aff”
Leo Koga could not tell his Warriors how to undergo their Rites. This Warrior was driven almost to madness or perhaps sadness enough to commit suicide by nature. He was aware that her trothkin and she had formed a very close bond. Which had been traumatically broken and replaced with another who had been taken from her. Their Commanders had tried to separate the pair to no avail each refusing to leave the other’s side. He could not object lest he draw the wrath of the Tsalagi Cloister that was strong in his Clan.
“If you insist then that is your choice but, Coyotes are a pack. A lone one will draw undue attention.”
“That is my hope, Galaxy Commander.”
“Then I will grant you permission to travel to Kirin and transfer you to Shaman Great-Oak for preparation. He is aboard the Solar Blaze already en route to that world.” She stood to get up but was gently held down by the larger older man, “I hope you find what you seek there Rebekah, whatever it may be.”
“Thank you.”
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Kirin
Kerensky Cluster
3062
Rebekah stood atop a ridgeline looking out over Kirin’s equatorial grasslands which teeming with herds of wild animals and the predators that preyed on them. Shaman Great Oak stood beside her; his wizened face hidden beneath a headdress of blue gray Tamaron Thunderbird feathers. He picked one out and handed it to her, “Child you know the history of Thunderbird and Young Coyote, quiaff?” 
“Aff, as a child of the Kufahl and Kerensky lines it is in my blood, Shaman Great-Oak.”
''
“Remember it to remind yourself of the challenges you will face and take heart in its message.” 
“One day, OvKhan Dana Kufahl walked the deserts of Strana Mechty with Andrey Kerensky. Upon mounting a rise, they witnessed a Young Coyote hunting a large ram with the assistance of a magnificent bird recently imported from Tamaron; whose wings were as long as Young Coyote was long. 
Their cries rolled like thunder over the rocky steppe as Thunderbird’s talons tore deep into the ram distracting it enough for young coyote to strike the killing blow. Young Coyote opened the ram before sitting back on its haunches, allowing Thunderbird to eat first out of respect.”
She placed the feather into her blonde hair which had grown long during her time on Delios, checking her pack, spear, and warm fur lined clothes one last time before setting out in the grasslands.
“Together they still hunt the Land, Sea, and Sky as one. As do we Warriors that honor them.”
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