FSML-3 Chpt 3

=Chapter 3=
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==Frederick Steiner and the Man Who Knew Too LittleBook 3==
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===First Circuit Discusses Current Developments===
Hilton Head, North America
Terra, Solar System
November 28th, 3023
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Julian Tiepolo would have really preferred it if the First Council could meet around a table. Standing for this long wasn’t doing his back any favors. But would probably be too corporate, abandoning traditions that went back to Jerome Blake or at least Conrad Toyama. That was what the conservatives would say if he suggested they relocate to a conference room.
Tempting as the idea was, that probably wasn’t a fight he wanted to expend political capital on. Even if possibly every Primus and likely every other member of the First Circuit going back two hundred years had felt the same way and made the same decision. Not today.
“Precentor Everson, could we begin with an update on the Lyran situation?” There was always a Lyran situation. They were by far the most irritating of the Successor States, edging gradually upwards on every metric except compliance with Blake’s vision since Katrina Steiner took office. Things were a little more serious right now.
Ulthar Everson stepped forwards slightly. “Ambassador Davidson has once again failed to secure the release of Colonel Sortek. After his vocal protests that two months is far in excess of any reasonable interpretation of diplomatic custody, we believe he is likely to be asked to leave the Lyran Commonwealth.”
Everson’s counterpart from New Avalon arched an eyebrow. “I hadn’t heard that.”
“Given the time needed for diplomatic pouches to cross the Inner Sphere, I imagine the news will take some time to arrive, Huthrin.” Everson shrugged wryly. “It’s not my fault they don’t trust our Blessed Order with such communications.”
“I think we’re all glad that relations between the FedSuns and the Commonwealth are collapsing.” Tiepolo interjected before Huthrin Vandel could speak further on the matter. The diplomatic issues were somehow leading to similar quarrels between the two Precentors, even though they couldn’t have happened at a better time. “Katrina Steiner’s Peace Proposal would have been a disaster for us if Hanse Davion had been able to take it up. A pairing of Lyran technology and industry to the Suns’ raw materials and military might would have been calamitous.”
“I’m not sure the Capellans stepping into that void is an improvement.” muttered Pedrigo Aliz.
The Primus sighed. “It’s certainly not ideal. I would have preferred that Chancellor Liao shoot himself in the foot the way that Captain-General Marik did with his own response.”
All eyes turned to Villius Tejh, who buried his hands in his sleeves. “Two years ago I’d have expected the same gaffe from him: proposing a dynastic marriage between his heir and Katrina’s.” Precentor Sian admitted. “The Archon would never accept using her daughter as a diplomatic counter in that way, at least by my read of her.”
“Certainly not in the way that Marik did it.” Everson agreed. “He didn’t even specify which of his potential heirs would marry the girl.”
Tejh shrugged. “The Chancellor’s position is essentially the reverse: his son’s illicit marriage and disinheritance meant he had no male heir to offer and he apparently wasn’t open to the idea of suggesting one of his daughters marry young Melissa. Since he couldn’t offer that, he apparently decided it would be better to be inside the tent if the plan somehow succeeded and agreed to the ceasefire and talks if at least one other Successor Lord was open to the idea.”
“The Blessed Blake’s guidance thankfully sparing us that.” the last of the First Circuit murmured. “Without the Sortek Scandal, Davion’s response might have led to a tripartite conference.”
“I think we could have reasonably hoped that Davion-Liao antipathy could have spoiled that, but better we don’t have to find out.” admitted Huthrin.
“Quite.” Tejh shook his head. “In any case, he did suggest that if no other House Lord was amenable then it might be possible to bring Marik to the negotiating table via a joint invasion: faced with the alternative of coordinated attacks on both fronts, his Parliament might press him to come to terms. From their point of view, if they have binding peace treaties with the Commonwealth and the Confederation then they can sit back and rebuild while the Lyrans and Capellans fight the other Successor States.”
Tiepolo frowned and looked at Aliz. “Is that realistic, do you think?”
“Twenty or thirty years ago, Marik might have backed the idea. Today it might have to be done over the Captain-General’s dead body. Then again, there may be people willing to arrange that.” Tiepolo’s successor on Atreus shook his head. “On balance I don’t think it will work, but I can’t rule it out.”
The Primus nodded in understanding. “I cannot disagree with your assessment. Let us finish our update on the Lyran situation before we discuss responses.”
“I understand that Demi-Precentor Rachan has been active,” Everson observed. “Perhaps it would be best if he reported directly on his activities.”
There was no dissent and Tiepolo gave orders to call in the head of ROM’s activities within the Lyran Commonwealth. His former aide had been summoned ahead of time, the need having been anticipated, so he was brought in without any wait.
“Demi-Precentor, I hope that you have good news to report about your activities than we’ve received over the last few years.” Vandel greeted him.
“I at least have more to report than previously.” Rachan replied confidently. “We’ve been working for a long time to obtain access to records held by the Tharkad Institute for Research On Lostech and since my last report, one of our agents has managed to enter the Nagelring vaults and view some of the back-up data the Institute stores there.”
“Is this related to the Sortek matter?” enquired Tejh.
“Unintentionally. The colonel’s presence was unexpected, but fortunately he provided a useful distraction. I wish I could claim credit for the resulting impact on relations with the Suns, but that was our good fortune rather than a planned part of the operation.”
“So what have you discovered?” Aliz demanded. “Do the Lyrans have a Prometheus core, as we feared?”
“It isn’t quite that bad, but if the summaries our agent extracted are correct then they do have an extensive collection of texts. Enough to pose a very serious threat to our Order’s monopoly on advanced technology, if they are able to fully exploit it. Fortunately, the challenges of this are something that they are struggling with.”
The face of Precentor Aliz paled. “Primus, surely we should reconsider the previous decision not to take direct action. Destroying this Tharkad Institute for Research On Lostech and their back-ups must be our highest priority.”
Rachan raised one hand. “Your pardon, Precentor, but that wouldn’t seriously hamper the Lyrans. Our analysts have established that while TIROL is a functional agency, it’s primarily administrative. Destroying their facilities and even the back-ups of their files would be a strictly temporary set-back. The actual research is being carried out at many different locations, few if any of them on Tharkad itself.”
“But there have been many announcements of laboratories and research bases on the Lyran capital.” Everson protested.
“Decoys, Precentor.” Rachan dismissed the criticism coolly. “Those sites are attacked with almost predictable frequency by other intelligence agencies, and even when they succeed they are wasting their efforts. We know that at least one entire DEST team has been lost chasing false leads on Tharkad. Lyran Intelligence is playing a very clever game. The only nation who we haven’t identified as making utter fools of themselves are the Canopians, and that’s because their only presence we’ve identified is the Tharkad Institute of Technology and Science.”
There was a pause as the First Circuit collectively translated that into an acronym.
“I refuse to believe that that’s a serious scientific establishment.” Vandel objected. “Is this a joke, Rachan?”
“Not my joke, sir. It’s the name of a bar outside Tharkad University, the Canopians have been collecting intelligence there for at least forty years. If the Lyrans are aware, they’re allowing it to exist as a way to feed data to the Magistracy. We do monitor their messages home, there’s occasionally useful information.”
“I trust that you can also exclude ROM from embarrassing themselves as well?” asked Tiepolo.
Rachan shook his head. “We haven’t lost any agents, but we did waste some time following up on failed raids before we realized what we were dealing with. I’ve assigned a few Delta agents to continue the investigation just in case LIC suspect that we’ve caught on to their deception.”
“I’ve no intention of questioning your methods, not being an expert in that field,” Tiepolo declared, hoping to deter his colleagues from doing that. “You’ve said that the Lyrans are struggling, could you expand on that?”
“Dispersing their efforts has made it much harder to decisively shut down their progress, but it also hinders communication between their scientists. At the moment, the majority of their projects are working to bridge the gap between what they know, the data in various texts that may or may not be applicable, and a functional application of that data to their goals. It would be grossly optimistic to say that they haven’t had successes already, and in the long run they can expect to make a great deal of progress but in the short term each breakthrough is isolated and even if it might help with other goals there’s a good chance that it will be missed. For example, while they’re working to understand the principles behind HPGs, these efforts are being handled entirely independently of other research into hyperphysics such as jump drives.”
“Which would you say is most advanced there?” asked Tiepolo warily. If the Lyrans had their own HPGs then it would be a disaster he’d not survive, at least politically.
Rachan shook his head. “As you might imagine, we prioritized evaluating that, Sir. From what I can tell, they’re running down dead-ends that the Star League thoroughly explored back in the Twenty-Sixth Century.”
“That’s certainly a relief. I think we’d like to see a more detailed report on your discoveries, Demi-Precentor. Please have the data prepared for us to review independently and thank you for your hard work.”
“Yes Primus. Blake’s will be done.” Rachan bowed and retreated.
“The Lyrans are getting more and more dangerous.” Vandel muttered.
“Agreed. I’d appreciate you and Everson doing everything you can to see that the current rift with the Federated Suns has as much knock-on effect as possible on their commercial dealings. Sooner or later Sortek will have to be released, however angry the Archon is. The harder it is to recover from the current quarrel, the better it is.”
Both Everson and Vandel nodded in agreement. “And the Capellans?” asked Precentor New Avalon.
“Ideally the invasion will simply fail, but we can’t count on that. I believe that both nations have sent their best generals?” Tiepolo asked.
“Ridzik has many flaws but incompetence is not one of them,” agreed Tejh. “And we all know how dangerous Frederick Steiner is. We can only hope he suffers a fatal injury.”
Everson shook his head. “He’s survived this long. The good news is that our sources indicate that the two of them don’t get on, but neither’s willing to see the invasion fail because of it so they’ve simply arranged a plan that limits their need to directly interact. The details are being kept hidden but it’s fairly clear that each has their own targets and they don’t plan on requiring their forces to closely cooperate.”
“I see.” Tiepolo frowned. “So ideally their invasion should fail, but even if it succeeds we must assure that a defeat at their hands doesn’t force the Free Worlds League to make peace with their neighbors.” He looked at Precentor Luthien. “I believe the solution is obvious, Thomas.”
Precentor Thomas Marik nodded solemnly. “Hanse Davion must be aware that actively attacking the Capellans in support of the League would destroy any hope of rebuilding his relations with House Steiner. Therefore the only prospective ally my father can look to is Theodore Kurita.”
“Correct. As Precentor Luthien, you are ideally placed to act as an intermediary between them. Under the circumstances, do you believe that you can bring them together to the point of cooperating against the Lyrans?”
Marik considered the matter. “I believe that correspondence would not suffice in the timeframe we’re considering, Primus. However, if you would be willing to allow them the privilege of meeting directly upon neutral ground here on Terra, things could move much more quickly.”
Aliz made a face. “Anton Marik met with Maximilian Liao here on Terra and the Captain-General knows it.”
“Present it to him as an opportunity for revenge.” recommended the Captain-General’s son.
Tiepolo nodded in approval. “Will a foreign negotiation cause Kurita problems with his Warlords?”
“Not directly, I believe. There is a long term concern that Warlord Yorioshi may have too much influence over the new Warlord Galedon; but, so far, he is supporting the Coordinator.”
Vandel nodded. “I am surprised that Kurita was willing to promote Shotugama to replace Samsonov under those circumstances.”
“It may have been a tradeoff for previous support. The young Coordinator cannot afford to be seen as someone who the high command cannot work with. If that happened, a more accommodating Kurita could be elevated - it has happened before.” pointed out Everson.
“The Combine has hardly been a friend to ComStar.” Tiepolo murmured, thinking back to the clashes between the Order and House Kurita in the late thirtieth century. “However, at the moment they are needed as a balance against the Lyran Commonwealth. I think that allowing the Warlord of Benjamin enough influence to cause a power struggle would only undermine those efforts.”
“I believe we can arrange for messages between Yorioshi and Shotugama to be… detrimental to a smooth cooperation.” Marik agreed smoothly. “Yorioshi is a proud man and it would be easy for him to seem overbearing. Not to the point of destructive rivalry, but certainly to the point Shotugama resents him.”
“Good.” Tiepolo looked around the room. “I’m no more comfortable than anyone is with the Lyran renaissance, but that isn’t a problem we can solve quickly or easily. Please take the time to review the data that Rachan has recovered and see if you can come up with suggestions to address the issue. Hosting two Successor Lords on Terra will require my personal involvement, but please don’t hesitate to bring any proposals to me.”
There were nods from the Precentors.
The Primus focused on Huthrin Vandel. “Hanse Davion is not going to risk his friend’s safety by targeting the Capellans while they’re allied with the Lyrans, however tentatively. However, I believe that the Duke of New Syrtis is less solicitous of Lyran feeling and of Colonel Sortek. It may not be possible to push him to action, but encouraging more ill-feeling towards his brother-in-law should be feasible.”
“In the Duke and in others within the Capellan March.” the other man agreed. “Should I arrange leaks of potential raiding targets to independently minded officers?”
“Yes, and if you have suitable targets for the Capellans, please let Villius know. If absolutely necessary, a small ComGuards detachment might be freed up for a deniable attack to get things rolling but I’d rather not risk that if we can get them to start without such intervention.”
“Probably not necessary,” Tejh agreed. “It’s not as if they’re at peace. Davion can order no invasions but stopping raiding would be as likely as stopping the tides outside.”
“If he tries, he looks ineffectual,” confirmed Vandel. “He’s not such a fool as to issue an order that won’t be obeyed.”
“Alright. Things aren’t going as well as they could be, but with Blake’s blessing we’ve avoided what could have been a serious crisis. I think we can count on Maximilian Liao to be his own worst enemy in negotiations with Katrina Steiner, so if we can prevent any victories this will hopefully bring the entire matter to a close. In the best case, it might even lead to a downfall as dramatic as her uncle’s.”
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===Interstellar Negotiations===
Bueno Aires, South America
Terra, Solar System
December 17th, 3023
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The vast sprawling city on the short of the Atlantic rivaled the cities of Luthien, but it was far older. Theodore Kurita felt the urge to take time to cross the globe and visit Japan, the ancestral home of his family. Alas, there would be no such opportunity. Just visiting Terra was riskier than it ought to be, after the fall of Dieron. He’d had to arrive via a ComStar jumpship and if news got out of his presence then even ComStar’s neutrality might not protect him. If a jumpship went missing, who was to say if it fell prey to the Steiners, the Davions or just mischance?
And so he stood quietly in the penthouse, lamps out as he admired the night-time illumination of a city that had been old before the world of his birth was first colonized. The bright, artificial lights contrasted against the darkness but could not push it back except locally. His father might have managed a poem on that topic and Theodore felt a pang of loss, of never getting to know Takashi on a more equal footing - man to man, not son to father.
The lights of the suite lit slowly, an attentive hand giving him warning that he was no longer alone. Theodore turned and let his eyes adjust. When the door opened he was unsurprised to see the Captain-General enter first and unescorted.
Janos Marik was tall and his long white hair marked his age and dignitary, just as the eagle tattooed across his forehead marked his allegiance. His eyes locked onto Theodore’s, taking his measure and perhaps jostling for dominance.
The Coordinator of the Draconis Combine smiled and did not yield. He might not be equal to Marik in age, but he was his peer in power. And what bird was feared by the dragon? Only the yellow bird, and that wasn’t a color associated with House Marik.
Instead, without shifting his gaze, he swept one hand towards the waiting table and the three chairs. “Lord Marik.”
“Lord Kurita.” Janos’ voice was dry and he crossed to the table, taking one seat without waiting.
Theodore seated himself facing the other House Lord and both looked with one accord as the robed figure of Primus Julian Tiepolo entered. Neither stood or gave him any sign of respect.
“Gentlemen,” the cultist murmured. “I am here merely to mediate.” He sat and folded his hands before him, watching in silence.
Was the one who spoke first yielding advantage? It could be said. And yet, that would also be timidity. “Your son said that you wished to speak with me directly.” Theodore told Janos. “He claims that we have a mutual interest, which can be only one thing.”
“Steiner,” the aged ruler confirmed tersely. And then, as if it pained him to admit it. “She is able.”
“Some of my people find it hard to believe a woman can be dangerous.” The younger of the pair shook his head slightly. “That is foolishness. Even arrogance. She has yet to fail at anything of significance.”
“Ha. Negotiating with Diablo and expecting him to keep his word may be her fatal error.”
Theodore shrugged slightly.
“Her officers have beaten mine, particularly her cousin. And he also defeated your father’s generals. Together, we may be able to get a better result.” Janos offered cautiously.
Ah. “Captain-General.” He allowed a hint of reproach in his voice. “I know that she has sent Frederick Steiner to plan an invasion of the League, with Capellan aid. And I know that you know this as well as I do. The Hammer is coming for you first.”
For a moment he thought that Janos would strike the table but the older man controlled himself. “First, yes. But he will come for you as well. As someone once said, if we do not hang together we will assuredly hang separately.”
“I have time to prepare, but yours is running out.” Theodore pointed out. “I recognize the logic of your argument, but the survival of the Free Worlds League is not my concern. If you would like my support, tell me why I should fight Steiner now and not when I have built up my forces. Losing Dieron cost my father precious regiments.”
“And you have the Dragoons on contract.”
Theodore blinked. “Are you asking me to transfer their contract?” They had cut short one contract before to work for a Marik and Janos could not possibly be ignorant of that.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” the Captain-General snorted. “But it more than makes up the troops you lost. I imagine they demanded not to fight against the Lyrans, but it frees up more regiments. And you have those Drakon regiments you created…”
“Let us say that I have the option of acting now… or not.” He leant forwards slightly. “I am not ashamed to act the merchant here, Lord Marik. If you want my support, it will not be without a cost.”
The Captain-General closed his eyes. Took a deep breath. “I remember being that young. That sure.”
“I may one day look back on now as you look back on your own youth.”
“What are you prepared to offer?” Janos ground out as if it pained him. “And what are you demanding in exchange?”
Well now. That wasn’t a blank cheque - he was sure that Janos would refuse if he asked for too much - but it was yielding the initiative. The old man was worried. Very worried. And Theodore was not sure he was wrong to be. “As you say, I do have regiments available for service. I can deploy them to strike at the Commonwealth, drawing their reserves and resources to fight me. It would mean striking sooner than I am comfortable with and it could cost me those regiments if Katrina Steiner decides that it is worth pulling away from the invasion to counter me.”
“You would have to strike at something of value, something she could not lightly lose.”
Theodore let his lips shape the name of a world, barely breathing it. “Tamar.”
Janos paused. “Yes,” he admitted. “That might do it.”
“You would still be facing the Capellans and I cannot assure that she would decide to fully abandon the invasion. Frederick Steiner has caused you significant reverses with only a single regiment, and he will have at least three.”
The Captain-General’s eyes narrowed. “I do not expect you to predict her actions. Yes, an attack on Tamar would serve my needs. If she ignores it, she would be weakening herself against her internal foes. I would begrudgingly accept her being bled like that even if I lose worlds to her and Diablo.”
“Very well,” Theodore agreed. “In exchange though, I am aware that you have made a recent find of lostech equipment, at around the same time that my father did.”
“True.” Janos admitted.
“Much of ours was lost on Dieron.” Theodore told him. That was hardly a secret.
The older man shook his head. “I won’t replace it. You know I’ll need it if the Royal Guards are deployed against me.”
“I understand. But since you’re no fool, you must be studying them. Looking to put them back into production.”
Both of them were very careful not to look at Tiepolo. There were only so many places the lostech could have come from but if they acknowledged that then a price might be demanded. And neither wanted to be indebted to ComStar. They needed the organization, but they would never love it.
“As you say,” Janos replied. “I am no fool. You want to exchange research data.”
“I would like to have your research data.” Theodore paused. “But an exchange is acceptable.”
“Because you expect it to be advantageous to you.”
He shrugged at the accusation. “You didn’t expend much of your material fighting the Steiners, and I will admit that my people are more renowned for our soldiers than for our scientists.”
“For destroying, rather than building.” The Captain-General made a face. “But I am asking for the former from you, so it is unfair of me to complain. Very well, would you rather exchange the data by ship or by HPG?”
By ship, Theodore thought. “Both.” he said instead.
“To facilitate your alliance, ComStar will relay the messages without charge0” Tiepolo offered. He didn’t sound entirely pleased - the implication that there would also be a back-up data package by ship to cross-check what was sent could be construed as a challenge to his organization’s integrity.
But how could one challenge what didn’t exist?
Theodore had been tempted to simply ask for a shipment but that could be lost. The HPG communication would remove one possible cause for sabotage and the risk of the ships being captured was acceptable.
Janos nodded sharply. “Done.” He steepled his own hands. “I have considered coming to some arrangement with Hanse Davion - he must surely be infuriated by Steiner’s recent actions. Would you consider a three-way alliance with him?”
Theodore hadn’t expected that to be asked. Wasn’t the answer obvious? Or was this a test? “I have nothing personally against Hanse Davion, but that would be politically impossible for me to agree to.” he said out loud. “You saw how poorly an alliance with Liao was seen when your late brother attempted it - if anything, the hatred between my people and Davion’s is greater.”
“Unfortunate, but not unexpected.” sighed the older man.
Theodore raised his hand. “However,” he qualified. “If he is willing to assist you then, informally, I could order a cessation of offensive actions - to funnel supplies towards an attack on Tamar. The Wolf's Dragoons would be restless, but if halting their raids on the Draconis March is a coin of value to you in negotiations, I am willing to extend it.”
Janos paused and then smiled coldly. “You are suddenly generous?”
“Doing nothing costs me very little, Captain-General.”
Besides, I have secured a healthy reward here already - a look at the League’s scientific advances at the cost of an offensive that is already being prepared is a great profit and it is unwise to be too greedy. If Davion can be persuaded to give me a free flank while I tear the heart out of Tamar and humiliate Katrina Steiner, so much the better. If he doesn’t, well it will give Yorioshi something to focus on other than any ambitions he may have towards my throne.
Theodore smiled coolly at Janos. “I believe that your custom is to shake hands on the matter.”
Tiepolo looked pleased as they did so. Theodore found the Captain-General’s hand sinewy and strong despite his age. He wondered what insights Janos might be drawing about him. This had been an interesting opportunity… almost enough to make him regret that he wouldn’t meet the other three Successor Lords in the summit that Katrina Steiner had proposed. Almost.
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===Battle on Oliver===
City of Gordon
Oliver, Free Worlds League
January 12th, 3024
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“Keep going!”
The Awesome was visibly steaming, rivulets of coolant escaping from ruptured piping and out through broken armor plating, where it sizzled and vaporized.
Three lighter ‘mechs had fallen around the Awesome. A Phoenix Hawk and a Griffin in the green-and-khaki of the Lyran Regulars, but also a Hunchback in the same purple-red-blue that could be seen on the Awesome.
The assault ‘mech’s PPCs blazed again, only two out of three but the blackened crater above its left hip showed that it was a choice forced by battle damage rather than a decision intended to bleed off some of the heat burden.
Only one shot struck home, scarring the armor of another of the Lyran Regulars. It was a Starslayer, a ‘mech not seen in centuries, but this was all too real and it weathered the hit, firing back with a pair of large lasers.
The Awesome twisted, the mechwarrior within somehow managing to find intact armor to shield itself with. The turn showed that one of the legs had taken damage, forcing a limp.
The turn preserved the Marik Militia ‘mech against the Starslayer’s fire, but the Lyran was not alone. A Chameleon bounded forwards on its jump jets and landed behind the blocky Awesome, opening up on it with everything it had. Lasers flayed away the plating and sparks flew as machineguns chattered.
Even that wasn’t enough to break the Awesome - the mighty ‘Mech had as much armor on its rear as some light and medium designs boasted on their front. But then the Chameleon slammed one fist into the battered armor plating and its target lurched, the mark of damage to its gyro.
The MechWarrior kept his eighty-ton upright and even whirled, returning the blow with the battlefist mounted on its left arm.
The Chameleon was struck in the shoulder and took a step back, but the Starslayer closed up and this time it fired more than just the large lasers. SRMs exploded against the Awesome and its left arm went limp. Key actuators must have been damaged, leaving the limb out of control.
Lurching, the Awesome brought its PPCs to bear and fired them at point blank range into the Starslayer. The salvo was as destructive as could have been hoped, but it proved to be too much for the giant’s remaining heatsinks. The Slarslayer fell to the ground, crushing a groundcar in the parking lot where the battle was taking place, but the Awesome froze, the reactor safeties kicking in and leaving it unable to move or fight.
It couldn’t have happened at a worse moment. LRMs must have already been in flight, because volley after volley from what must have been an entire lance of LRM carriers struck it around the head and shoulders.
When the explosions cleared, it was obvious that the cockpit had been struck multiple times.
The holodisplay ceased the recording, the image of the defeated Awesome fading away slowly.
-----
“We were ordered away,” Major Ernesto Cates reported shamefacedly. “The colonel said his Awesome couldn’t keep up.”
Azi Ochombo nodded in understanding. “Both of you were right.” He reached over and patted the battalion commander on his shoulder. “It’s never easy to lose an officer, much less your commanding officer. But you couldn’t have held Gordon without the rest of the regiment and we were too far away.”
“We’ve regrouped now.” Major Alexia Stevens clenched her fists. “If we hit Gordon now, we can catch them before they’re dug in.”
“That is one option, Major.” Ochombo pulled up a tactical map, showing the city of Gordon and the Brigadier ‘mech factory, the most important surviving element of Oliver’s once massive military production.
Cates looked thoughtful. “The Lyran commander transmitted that Colonel Garibaldi was mortally wounded and offered a twenty-four ceasefire to recover wounded and exchange prisoners. He might be trying to buy time.”
“I don’t think we can risk another urban combat,” Ochombo concluded. He indicated the outlying districts. “Our scouts report some of the Lyrans’ new heavy tanks are positioned here, in the west of the city. Unless we want to ram our faces right up against them - and reports are they have heavy autocannon, ideal for city fighting - we’d have to circle around and hit the east, which would cost us that day anyway.”
Stevens snorted. “Our ‘mechs can handle their tanks, Sir. I know it’s Frederick Steiner over there, but he’s not invincible.”
“He isn’t,” Ochombo agreed. “But tell me, Major. Can our ‘mechs handle his tanks and his mechs? Because our armored support comes from militia regiments and their gear is not going to hold up in that sort of brawl.”
“Are you sure you’re not being a little overcautious, Azi?” Cates looked sympathetic, not skeptical. “I know our regiment has lost to him twice before, but this could be our chance to turn it around.”
Ochombo looked at the other two battalion commanders and hid a grimace. They were younger than him, junior to him… but he’d been demoted twice and only narrowly remained with the Twenty-Fifth Marik Militia rather than be sent to a punishment posting in a planetary garrison on the periphery. If they refused to accept him as a commander, then they might be able to make it stick with the troops. High command might not like it, but victory would excuse any irregularity - if they could win.
“I have faced him before, and I can’t call either of them a victory,” he admitted. “But I managed to get the regiment through those defeats intact, which is more than most can claim. Right now, he wants us to bet everything on a decisive battle. I’m sure he doesn’t have a mountain to explode on us, but people who charge right at Frederick Steiner are just giving him a target to hammer. If we do that we might win, but we don’t have any advantage in numbers, and he definitely has more firepower. And if we lose then he’ll be able to get Oliver fully secured before reinforcements can reach us.”
The other two majors exchanged looks, before Cates pointed out: “And, if we don’t, he has a solid grip on the factory complex, sooner or later we have to go at him there. Isn’t it better now than when he’s got it secured?”
“You know as well as I do that if you want to hit a fortification, you want to be sending at least twice as many troops as you know are defending it. And less than three times the troops is a gamble. We don’t have that.”
“Alright,” conceded Stevens. “But if we can’t fight him, what do we do?”
They were listening, at least. Ochombo widened the map. “We’ll hit him obliquely. Right now our strategy is to buy time for reinforcements. The Sirian Lancers are only a jump away, the Protectorate Guards not much further away. Or if this is a major offensive we might be able to look at federal or Oriente reinforcements. We don’t know the larger picture. So we’ll take the ceasefire, if nothing else it gives us time for First Battalion to pull back to Warez and repair the damage you’ve taken. In the meantime, Stevens and I will take our battalions and feign an attack on his dropships. He’ll have to either shift focus to protect them or give up his dropsite.”
“He can move them to the dropport in Gordon.” she pointed out.
“Indeed. And that leaves him basically bottled up in the city. Which means he’ll have to come out because he can’t let us turn it into a siege. He needs to maintain his momentum.”
Cates frowned. “In which case he’ll push for our repair facilities at Warex.”
“I think you’re right.” agreed Ochombo. “So if we know that, we can bleed his advance - hit and run with small detachments, while other elements keep enough pressure around Gordon that he has to keep part of his force there to maintain his hold on the factory.”
“If we lose Warez then we’ll start running into problems maintaining our forces.” Cates grimaced. “We’ll have to stop him short of that.”
“Not if we evacuate the supplies and facilities from the city - slow his advance, buy time for that and even if he takes Warez we’re still a force-in-being and now he has another city to secure.” Ochombo clenched one fist and flicked it back and forth. “Leave him fighting ghosts. Spending his supplies, spending lives, spending time… and never giving him the concentrated target he wants, the one he can land a decisive blow against.”
“An attritional strategy,” observed Stevens. “We’re not trying to win, we’re just trying not to lose.”
“It’s not the usual approach to fighting the Lyrans,” pointed out Cates. “Normal doctrine is to pin them in place, then pick them apart.”
“Normal tactics assume they’ll have heavier, slower forces.” He moved the display back to Garibaldi’s last stand. “Look at what we’re seeing from the Eleventh Regulars: Phoenix Hawk, Griffin, Chameleon, Starslayer. All of them are fast mediums. He’s not going to stay pinned in place, so we need to be more mobile than usual if we’re going to keep him from being the one who has us pinned.”
The two majors looked at each other again, but this time it was Stevens who spoke. “What do we do if reinforcements don’t arrive? The scuttlebutt was that the Lyrans were looking at a wide offensive.”
“Then we keep Steiner and his command pinned down as long as possible, and hope the Captain-General can turn the tide on other worlds and free up reinforcements. We’re in this for the long haul - it’s a marathon, not a sprint.” Ochombo looked at the younger officers with an unspoken question: Are you with me?
The nod from Stevens told him he’d won this point. “I’ll get my battalion ready to move on the Lyran landing zone, sir.”
Great. Now that he’d beaten his internal opposition., he might have a chance to beat the Lyrans. Colonel Garibaldi had been as good an officer as Ochombo had ever met - he was no Jarreau-Stewart. He’d lost anyway, so now it all depended on whether he’d read Frederick Steiner correctly.
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Book 3 - 3, Chapter