TTWTWT Chpt 17

==Tell The World That We Tried - Chapter 17: Interlude==
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===Out of the Blue===
Unity Palace, Imperial City
Luthien, Peshty Military District 
Draconis Combine
February 24th, 3025
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Each of the places at the low table had a cushion for its owner to kneel on in seiza; family crests had been woven subtly into the fabric to identify who went where.
 
At the left of the foot of the table, Theodore Kurita entered first, a tall and rail-thin man whose good bone structure was marred by how thinly his flesh was drawn. He took his seat on the crest not of his ancestry, but the unit he commanded - the Legions of Vega.
 
The next was the most junior of the Draconis Combine’s five Warlords. Tall, strong-framed and with appropriately Japanese features, Jerry Akuma, Warlord Dieron, could have stepped from a recruiting poster, save for the perpetual air of strain and desperation that hovered around him.
 
Hirushi Shotugama, of Rasalhague, was next. Small and nearly silent at the best of times, he was easily dismissed, but his skill at strategy had led him to replace his loyal but blustering predecessor.
 
Grieg Samsonov of the Galedon Military District was the third. Though his face was appropriately blank, he moved with the assurance of a man who knew his position was secure. Under his control, Galedon had shown both the greatest and most sustainable growth in production of any of the Combine’s districts.
 
Kester Hsiun Chi of Pesht was fourth, a neat, almost fussy seeming man who seemed harmless, until the controlled smoothness of his movements became apparent.
 
The last, eldest, and longest-serving of the Warlords, Syovo Yoshiyori limped as he entered, and partially hidden bandages bulged the lines of his formal kimono. He had been involved in the most recent spate of fighting as a Davion probe was beaten away from his Benjamin District, and taken heavy injuries, though no hint of pain showed in his face or eyes.
 
Subrash Indrahar, head of the Internal Security Force and hence, the Dragon’s chief spymaster, entered after the Warlords. Broad-shouldered and beefy, he offered the six men already present an easy, friendly smile that fooled none of them as he took his place at the left hand of the head of the table.
 
The last subordinate to enter the room was the only one to show any hesitation in proceeding to his place, though his dark features remained politely placid. As a mere regimental commander of the Legion of Vega, Minobu Tetsuhara knew he should, by rights, have been placed below even Theodore Kurita’s military persona - who was, after all, his direct superior.
 
Nevertheless, the message was clear, and he knelt in the place he had been given, and waited.
 
Not for long. Takashi Kurita, Coordinator and despot of the Draconis Combine, stormed into the room and strode quickly to his own seat at the very head of the table. All eight of the men waiting for him stiffened slightly; even the most powerful of them was at his mercy. He had had Akuma’s predecessor literally dragged from the room and shot just outside the door after a particularly ‘disappointing’ quarter in Dieron. Even Theodore, his son and heir, knew to expect no mercy; the two men had not spoken outside of their duties for years.
 
Almost as soon as Kurita had sat, he turned his head to look squarely at Tetsuhara. “Report on the recent raid of the Lyran Commonwealth,” he ordered.
 
The man who had commanded that operation bowed his head. “On return to the Dragon’s territory, we had attacked eleven worlds…”
 
Smoothly, without notes, Tetsuhara listed off how many Lyran 'mechs, tanks, and fighters had been destroyed at each stop, along with what economic damage was estimated to have been done.
 
Warlord Yoshiyori leaned forward, glancing up the table. The Coordinator granted permission with a flick of his eyes, and the master of the Benjamin Military District asked, “Please expand on your reasoning for targeting the dam rather than the city.”
 
“We estimated that relief efforts for civilian casualties in the residential areas would have required three to five JumpShips and three to six months to recover.” Tetsuhara said. “Disrupting the city’s water supply, in contrast, would require either replacing several cubic kilometers of lost water, or evacuating the entire area. None of the other habitable zones on the world are large enough to take the displaced population, and Lyran conceptions of honor will not permit them to merely accept the loss. Evacuation and relief efforts will continue for a minimum of five years to come, weakening the Commonwealth as a whole.”
 
The warlords nodded sagely.
 
“Proceed.” Takashi said.
 
The first phase of Tetsuhara’s report ended with a summary of losses taken and inflicted: “In total, we believe that we damaged forty-eight Lyran BattleMechs and twenty-one Lyran aerospace fighters beyond repair. Including salvaged units, we lost a net total of thirty-seven BattleMechs and twenty aerospace fighters, which probably represents a floor for future operations of this type.
 
“Of those losses, a majority were taken on Symington, a world which our pre-operational briefings indicated should have been guarded only by a militia battalion.”
 
Indrahar met Tetsuhara’s gaze frankly across the table, despite the fact that those briefings had been produced by his own department. “Instead,” the latter said, “we found the Fifth Rift Regulars, a frontline formation at or very near to full strength.”
 
“That is concerning,” Indrahar agreed, a touch of chill showing through his affability, though it was impossible to tell if it was directed at the soldier or at his own failed agents. “And you may rest assured that the sources of those errors will be located.”
 
Tetsuhara inclined his head. “With respect, Director, I am less concerned by the fact of their presence than the nature of their force. It is understood that military intelligence is at times an imprecise art. The equipment in the hands of the Lyran unit, however, is alarming.”
 
‘Alarming’ was a very strong word to hear from a samurai of the Draconis Combine, even in a meeting with a Coordinator who had for years emphasized plain and unambiguous speech ‘in this time of great crisis’.
 
“State your concerns,” the man himself ordered.
“To begin with, the armored regiments attached to the primary fighting force were equipped largely with either capable fusion units, like the Manticore or Merkava IX, or a new and previously unseen series of related assault tanks. All massed eighty tons and had top speeds in the range of sixty kilometers per hour, but like our own Ohkas, the fundamental chassis had been used to carry a variety of different configurations of weaponry, including missile fire support, artillery missile carriage, air defense, and direct combat.
 
“Additionally, the majority of the Battlemechs encountered on Symington were new variants, similar to the updated light 'mech models we have encountered in militia forces in the past.”
For years, the Lyran Commonwealth had been fielding new and refitted light BattleMechs as primary elements of its defensive forces - a Locust variant that combined two medium lasers and a central flamer, a Stinger model with a laser and a flamer, a heavily reworked Wasp with limited jump range but no less than four 5cm lasers, and a rarely seen but often felt Commando that replaced the mismatched short-range missile racks with a pair of five-tube long range racks to create a light fire support design.
 
A trusted palace orderly, briefed ahead of time, brought up the small holo system built into the conference room’s table and dimmed the lights enough for the projection to be seen clearly.
 
“The new Lyran Firestarter model dispenses with the standard model’s machine guns and two of its flamers, in favor of an additional pair of medium lasers in the side torso compartments, here and here.” Highlights flashed. “The result is less swift but slightly better protected than our JR7-F Jenners, effectively trading their missile battery for a retention of some of the Firestarter’s traditional anti-infantry role.
“Aside from a single Locust, the Firestarters were the only light 'mechs seen in the Fifth Rift. That role seemed to be primarily filled by a Phoenix Hawk model carrying two five-centimeter lasers and a particle projection cannon, supplemented by an extreme reworking of the Vulcan that echoes the new Lyran Commandos but is jump-capable.”
As Tetsuhara mentioned the mechs by name, their images appeared in the hologram, one dominated by its new main gun, the other sporting lenses at the wrists of its spindly arms and missile racks on either torso.
 
“The final Battlemech to appear in the Lyran ‘light’ companies, was this.” The holo changed again, to a smallish mech with plantigrade legs and one humanoid arm sprouting from a body that bore a remarkable resemblance to a giant tennis ball. Two laser lenses showed on the right torso, and the left arm was a utilitarian cannon mount. A saucer-like disk sat above the body, too thin to contain the cockpit even if viewports hadn’t been visible well below it.
 
“A Sentinel?” Chi asked, since the Coordinator had already given permission for questions.
Tetsuhara bowed slightly to the Warlord. “Hai, Kakka.” ‘Yes, Excellency.’ “The Lyrans seem to have located either plans or a factory for the type, and used it as a base for a high-mobility air defense unit. These took nearly as much of a toll on our Kaiten fighters as their Riflemen did, thanks to their ability to reposition quickly. They appeared in both the two ‘light’ companies, as well as all three of the cavalry companies encountered.”
 
“Three cavalry companies, in a Lyran force?” Shotugama spoke up to ask, his tone that of a man seeking clarification rather than venting disbelief.
 
“Based on the timing of encounters, we concluded that one was assigned to each battalion of the regiment,” Tetsuhara confirmed, and the holo changed again. “A slim majority of the ‘mechs in them were Griffins, all of this model, mounting an eight-centimeter laser and a fifteen-tube long range missile battery. Fire endurance was considerable.”
Another change. “Next most common is a major modification of the Star League’s Chameleon training ‘mech. Top speed seems to have decreased slightly, they were no faster than the Griffins, and secondary armament reduced to a flamer and a five-tube missile rack, but…” A highlight flashed. “They mount a second large laser and, apparently, the heat management to use it.”
 
“Armor?” Yoshiyori inquired.
“Uncertain, but more than the traditional standard of the type,” Tetsuhara said. “Finally…” The holo changed again.
 
“A Hatchetman,” Subrash Indrahar said.
 
Tetsuhara bowed to him. “A new type, clearly related to the Davion Poleaxe. One was destroyed by a cockpit hit, and we captured the wreck for analysis.”
 
Takashi leaned forward. “What were you able to learn?” he asked. Obviously the captured mech would be turned over to specialists on Luthien or another secure factory world for full analysis, but even field technicians would have been able to do a great deal of studying.
 
“First, however close the degree of collaboration that produced the two designs, whatever system or method the Federated Suns have used to wring such speed from their Poleaxes, the Lyrans do not possess it. Second, the melee weapon is a notably different type, considerably less massive and designed for use with only one hand. Third, the mountings for the ranged weapons are more conventional. Fourth…”
Minobu Tetsuhara, for the first time, hesitated slightly. “The Hatchetman’s heat-management system contains only a ten-loop circuit, but is built to Star League standards and materials. My technicians estimated its full capacity at twice that of any equivalent circuit in Combine service.”
 
The Coordinator’s head swiveled like a tank turret to stare at his spymaster.
 
Indrahar wasn’t looking back; he wasn’t looking at anyone, his famously smiling face blank as he thought furiously. When he did open his eyes, he met his master’s gaze squarely. “We had known for some time that the Lyran military had access to a stockpile of Star League components. In retrospect, it is likely that indications of a newer development or recovery program were deliberately hidden behind them.”
 
“A failure that critical is-” Akuma began, an opportunity to cut down a potential rival overwhelming his fear.
 
“Secondary at best,” Shotugama interrupted. He’d interrupted his fellow Warlord without even glancing in his direction, an uncharacteristic expression of dislike. “The significant points are that Lyran Intelligence has recovered from the dismantling of Loki, that these upgrades exist now, and that they are stationing significant front-line forces near our border, without advertising the fact. If they wished to dissuade us from invasion or raiding, they would publicise their presence. Secrecy implies another purpose.”
 
Everyone present, from Tetsuhara and his superior Theodore, to Takashi himself, knew what that purpose was likely to be, a threat not seen in the lifetime of any living subject of the Dragon: A major Lyran offensive.
 
None of the Warlords wished to make himself vulnerable by starting the inevitable argument. The Coordinator made the point moot. “Continue your report. What other new types were observed?”
 
Tetsuhara bowed. “Summarizing our conclusions of the Hatchetman, it is less devastating in melee combat than the Poleaxe, but less costly and more capable at ranges that are merely short. The Lyrans appear to deploy it as close cover for Griffin formations, and we found it effective there.
 
“Four of the companies observed mixed heavy and ‘fast’ assault types, creating a greater variety within their organization.
 
“The most common, by a decisive margin, was a Zeus model. Externally, it was distinguishable by mounting both of its medium lasers forward, and upgrading the large laser to a particle projection cannon, but the ammunition endurance of the missile launcher has increased and the armor protection is greater than in previous models.
“After that, at five units, a developed version of the Commonwealth’s favored Archer variant, with additional ammunition for the main missile launchers and lessened endurance for the short-range ones, as well as the omission of one of the rear lasers.
“Next, we observed three examples each of Warhammer, Marauder, and Thunderbolts.
 
“The Marauders showed obvious improvements in heat management and armor, and replaced their autocannons with a fifteen tube missile launcher. The Warhammers also showed improved heat management and survivability, as well as upgrading their three-centimeter lasers to five-centimeter models, but most dramatically seem to have jump capability. The Thunderbolts added an additional anti-infantry machine gun and two short-range missile tubes, and upgraded their main lasers to PPCs.”
 
Images of each mech showed in turn as Tetsuhara spoke, mostly ‘sketched’ schematics but also action snapshots from the engagements.
 
“Finally, at two examples each, the new Lyran Rifleman model appears to dispense with the eight-centimeter lasers in favor of paired five-tube missile racks. They appear to carry at least two tons of autocannon ammunition, and have substantially upgraded armor.
 
“Also at two examples, their Battlemaster model has two rear-mounted lasers and six forward ones, paired flamers in the left arm, and replaces the standard short-range missile rack with a fifteen-tube long-range rack, while upgrading armor substantially.”
thumb|Longbow Assault fire support 'Mech
“In the final phases of the engagement, after the order to withdraw had been given, the Ohka battalion providing rearguard engaged a single company of ‘slow’ assault mechs. An unrefitted Awesome, two Longbows, four Stalkers, three Atlases, and two Banshees.
 
“The Longbows moved in close company with the others, and field estimates indicated that switching to a 255-rated powerplant would provide sufficient mass for the additional ten missile tubes and deeper ammunition reserves we observed, with weight unaccounted for. Given the lack of close action and inability to recover combat recorders, armor and secondary armament are unknown.
 
“The Stalkers showed an unaltered long-range missile armament, but had replaced the standard eight-centimeter lasers with particle projection cannons. Again, other alterations are unknown at this time.
 
“The Atlas variant had expanded forearm housings, here, and generated laser fire at as much as four hundred meters, implying eight-centimeter models, and demonstrated expanded missile ammunition capacity.
“Finally… The new Lyran revision of the Banshee almost certainly has a top speed of no more than fifty-five kilometers per hour. That would closely align with the observation that they have added both a fifteen-tube long range missile launcher, and a second PPC. No sign of any heating issues was observed.”
 
“The older-model Awesome is a significant detail,” Indrahar mused, partly to himself.
 
Shotugama followed his thoughts. “It implies that the Lyrans have concentrated their… upgrades into a smaller number of carefully selected types, retaining only the most potent designs at the front line and transferring the rest to the same militia postings that we have been attempting to drive them to reinforce.”
 
Chi turned to glance at Tetsuhara. “Did these refits extend to their aerospace fighters?”
 
The raid’s commander bowed back. “They did,” he said. “The Seylitz interceptors we engaged seemed to be completely standard, as did the single Thunderbird sighted, but we encountered no Lucifers at all, and a higher than usual proportion of Eagles.
 
“The Eagle variant seems to have undergone the same substitution as their Phoenix Hawk, Thunderbolt, and Stalker models - PPCs in place of large lasers, and in the Eagle’s case, retained full management of waste heat.
 
“The Chippewa model filling their attack squadrons has no apparent increase in weapons mounted, but the ones engaged used a greater proportion of them-” a sign of improved cooling “-and were vastly more resistant to our weapons.
 
“Finally…” A blurry holo of a fighter in space, which was replaced by an archive blueprint. “The Lyran Commonwealth seems to have resumed production of Rapier heavy fighters. Four and a half gravities of acceleration at overthrust, paired particle projection cannons, ten long-range missile tubes, and what we believe to be one of their so-called ‘Class Twelve’ autocannon.”
 
The Star League Defense Force’s classification system for autocannon was based on theoretically modeled damage against a specified protective system, as tested by built-in sensors. It had been known since the fall of the League that the theoretical model underestimated the effectiveness of lighter autocannon, but the sensors used to create it were lost technology and so the system had persisted. The Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces had made no secret of their project of updating the model based on statistical analysis of the engagements of the Succession Wars, especially after they’d rerated Class Two (Old) to Class Five, Class Five (Old) to Class Nine, and Class Ten (Old) to Class Twelve.
 
Chi had made the most study of aerospace operations of the men present; the others took the slight tightening of his jaw as a bad omen.
 
“Warlord Chi?” the Coordinator prompted.
The Warlord of Pesht bowed slightly. “Historically, we have drawn great advantage from three weaknesses of the Lyran Commonwealth’s aerospace forces. First, that their mainstay craft, the Seydlitz, Lucifer, and Chippewa, were badly underprotected for all of their formidable firepower. Second, that their favored medium fighter, the Lucifer, was less agile than our own aerospace assets. And third, that the types of comparable mobility they did build were scattered and often sold onto the mercenary market for lack of political patronage.
 
“Given the design’s flaws, the wholesale replacement of the Lucifer is not entirely surprising, but its replacement by the Eagle and this resurrected ‘Rapier’ is alarming even before the implications of the recovered technologies involved. Combined with the increased survivability of the retained Chippewas, and… Heika-sama, I believe that we will be relying greatly on the success of the Seishiro if they do, indeed, intend a major offensive.”
“If that is so, shall we ready the Ryuken?”, Akuma dared to ask.
Takashi Kurita nodded thoughtfully, but had not spoken by the time Tetsuhara had scooted back and pressed his forehead to the floor in front of his cushion.
 
All of the men in the room looked at him, Theodore Kurita with more alarm than the others; he’d specifically advised the commander of the Third Legion of Vega not to…
 
“Most Honored and Exalted Dragon,” Minobu Tetsuhara said, into the floor and in the most formal and submissive phrasing, “this clumsy and unworthy servant, having completed his report of the small benefits gained in his failure to adequately execute the Exalted Personage’s will, stands ready to make full apology.”
 
Takashi Kurita looked forbiddingly down at the man who had just offered his life, and at the other end of the table, his son was unable to restrain himself from dropping his despairing face into one hand.
 
“Explain the nature of this failure.” Takashi said.
 
“When this clumsy and unworthy servant was charged with his task, his honored superiors advised him that the ultimate goal of the vital operations entrusted to his unworthy hands was to disrupt the operations of the foe and prohibit them from marshalling their forces for proper battle. It is evident that they have done so, and thus that this worthless man has failed in his charge.”
 
Takashi looked at Tetsuhara for a few moments more, both considering and letting the reality of his control of his very life sink into the bowing man’s bones, then said, “Raise your head… Gunji-no-Kanrei.”
 
Even the iron control of the Warlords frayed at that shock. The Gunji-no-Kanrei, the Deputy of Military Affairs, was the Coordinator’s direct subordinate, charged with authority over the entire Draconis Combine Mustered Soldiery - and precedence over the Warlords themselves. The office was rarely filled, and even when it was, usually reduced to a formality rather than empowering a potential rival for the Coordinator.
 
Tetsuhara hesitated just a moment before he obeyed - and when he did, his face was only slightly confused, rather than shocked senseless. “This unworthy fool is yours to command, Heika-sama.”
 
“The failure of House Liao, and the ascendance of the Davions in their stead, has plunged our domain into a time of crisis,” Takashi Kurita said. “I have said so often enough. That crisis has revealed the complacency into which we all had fallen, the ascendance of personal glory over our greater duty to the Combine. These missions upon which you and the other members of the Legion of Vega have been sent were crucibles and testing grounds for the arms of the Dragon, and distractions and hindrances to our foes… But it was always clear that in time we would learn what there was to be learned from them, and that neither Steiner nor Davion would have become such obstacles if they were without ability to cope with mere raids and other petty matters.
 
“We must adapt, and we must rediscover the virtues and techniques with which our ancestors first began the Dragon’s journey towards destiny. Yet these are things which no samurai now living has experienced, and that which is unfamiliar will always be difficult - as it should be, for that difficulty arises from the same resolve to right action as duty.
 
“To encompass these needed and required changes and carry them through all the arms of the Dragon, then, requires no common samurai. The man charged as Gunji-no-Kanrei must be one who knows our weakness and can forge them into strengths, who may act selflessly and without conniving-” Takashi’s eyes fell for an instant on Warlord Akuma, to the latter’s visible discomfort, “-who retains honor rather than embracing mere expedience-” Theodore Kurita met his father’s gaze without hesitation, then flicked his eyes downwards in acknowledgement, “-who moves both with due deliberation-” Warlord Yoshiyori nodded slightly, accepting the implied rebuke of his choice to take the field personally, “-and without hesitation or overanalysis.” Shotugama merely composed himself to wait placidly. “He must be a warrior rather than merely an administrator-” Samsonov colored, but said nothing despite his obvious urge to protest, “-and he must be free of other urgent duties.” Kester Hsiun Chi received the telling compliment to his service as easily as the monastically-trained Shotugama had the assessment of his flaws.
 
“You will be that man, Minobu Tetsuhara.”
 
“Hai, Heika-sama,” said the man who had been made the second most powerful in the Draconis Combine.
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The End' - This is end of the story, despite it being a Interlude. However, the tale continues in next entry into the two series saga of Asha Blackwing, If We Turn To Dust
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