OPREF Chpt 4

=Chapter 4 - Dealer’s Choice=
==Opalescent Reflections==
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===Grand Melee===
McKenna, Strana Mechty
Kerensky Cluster, Clan Homeworlds
2 August 3048
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Ace was glad of his sunglasses as he waited for the one technician he'd been allowed to requisition to finish prepping the Nova. Granted, only the anti-missile systems needed ammunition but there were a thousand ways for something as complicated as an OmniMech to go wrong and some of them might even be intentional.
 
The simple fact was that it would only take a bad batch of coolant to leave him in deadly danger, and Ace wouldn't have wagered a single glass of water that the thought hadn't crossed the mind of someone in Clan Burrock.
 
The Grand Melee would take place in a more or less circular set of trenches carved by miners so long ago that there was almost nothing left of their work except the flat-bottomed canyons, with occasional slopes in and out. Field supply and repair vehicles had been driven out to provide bare minimum facilities for those competing, laid out a few hundred meters apart from each other in a depression that should keep them safe from any weapons fire inside the old open pit mine.
 
"Is everything good?" Ace asked as Gideon closed up the last panel that he'd been checking.
 
"If there is a fault then I cannot find one." The tech was easily twice Ace's age and his left eye had been replaced by a cybernetic at some point. "If you fail out there, it will be your fault."
 
"As it should be." Ace offered his hand and the old man looked surprised before shaking it. (Privately, Ace thought that if anyone was likely to sabotage him it would be the tech, but he'd chosen Gideon himself so that would also be his fault.) "There are fewer people than I expected."
 
Close to sixty warriors had been at the bloodchapel to submit their names while Ace was present and only thirty-one would have been nominated to enter the trial directly. That should have left at least twenty 'mechs here for the melee, all competing for the one remaining slot, but instead there were only fourteen including Ace.
 
Gideon shook his head. "Also your own fault, quiaff?"
 
Ace removed his sunglasses and gave the tech a quizzical look. "How so?"
 
"You killed Felipe Enders. With another bloodright open, some of those who might have been here think they are better waiting and see who survives this trial. Some candidates will die, no doubt, leaving sponsors looking for new people to nominate."
 
Under the strict interpretation of the rules of a trial of bloodright, each bloodnamed member of House Enders could nominate only one warrior for the trial, with the remainder chosen by the house leader. However, like many bloodhouses whose numbers had dwindled, there was an informal understanding that the House leader would endorse a second nomination from each of the bloodnamed.
 
"I suppose that makes sense," Ace admitted. He looked around. "So those who are still here are the ones who do not expect to be picked even as a back-up."
 
Gideon nodded sagely. "The desperate. The dangerous. Warriors like you."
 
He nodded. "Well, this was never going to be easy."
 
"Try not to get too wrecked for me to put your 'mech back together," the technician advised. "That cost me my one shot at a bloodname."
 
Ace jerked his head around. He'd known that Gideon had been a warrior once, but it was unexpected to hear it from the man himself.
 
Gideon nodded. "I won a grand melee for the Eriksen bloodname - but in the rush to repair the damage to my Mad Dog's legs we all missed a damaged coolant line. It burst the first time I fired after that, then the reactor scrammed with my second salvo." He reached down and tapped his leg. "Back then I was young enough to have a replacement cloned, but it ended any chances of getting nominated - and I knew the grand melee was a loser's game."
 
"And yet here I am," Ace pointed out.
 
"You will probably lose," the technician admitted. "But I would not have listened when I was your age. And who knows. Maybe you will prove me wrong." He sounded wistful and then shook his head sharply. "But only if you get going. There's only an hour left and you need to be in position before then."
 
Ace didn't think there was that much of a hurry, but he suspected the technician was changing the subject because he didn't want to discuss his past further. And it would be as comfortable inside the cockpit as it was out here - perhaps more so.
 
Climbing up the side of the Nova, he took his time making sure that everything was connected properly, then ran a complete diagnostic. It wasn't at all likely that he would find anything Gideon had missed (or carried out, his paranoia reminded him) but there was no harm in checking.
 
Once everything came up green, Ace marched the Nova up to where a Rifleman IIC wearing Goliath Scorpion markings was looking down into the canyons, its radar dish rotating lazily - something that reminded Ace of the warrior inside. Ellison Enders also seemed lazy, at first glance, but as he'd displayed in the blood chapel, when he acted it was with deadly effect. No doubt he was similarly decisive in the Rifleman.
 
"Eager to get started, quiaff?" the older warrior asked. "Very well." There was a rattle over the radio. "Very well, you get the five position to start. There's a flag out near the south end of the grounds - make sure your 'mech is standing within twenty meters of it."
 
"Aff, loremaster." As acting head of the Bloodhouse, Ellison would serve in that role for the purposes of the Trial.
 
"Keep your 'mech powered up and your weapons offline until I tell you to," the Goliath Scorpion added. "If anyone fires before the Trial begins, I will hunt them down. And I will be very annoyed at having to make an effort when everyone involved in this should know better."
 
Ace chuckled.
 
"Do you think I am joking?"
 
"Neg, loremaster. I have enough enemies without risking your sting."
 
Ellison also laughed. "Yes, you do. Carry on."
 
Ace marched down the stone ramp and turned sharply to the south. At least the chances were good that no one would try to get an early shot at him before the Trial. If the loremaster had to step in then the entire grand melee might have to be restarted and no one sane would want to have to go through this twice.
 
He noticed a flag not far south of the ramp up on one of the many mesas that had been left as miners followed seams of minerals. It was clearly marked with a number four, so he kept going until he found a second flag. This one had a five on it - and at least from the height of a 'mech cockpit, the location was in line of sight of the previous flag. Ace suspected that the next flag along would mark a position he could see as well - although neither of those mechs would be able to see each other due to various obstructions. Looking across the mine he wondered how many of the other thirteen contenders he'd be able to see when this began.
 
As the clock counted down, Ace found out that the answer was four. Both his immediate neighbors were Burrocks - a Ice Ferret to his left and an Adder to his right. Neither 'mech was as large as his Nova, which made some sense. Clan Burrock weren't as obsessed with small, fast battlemechs as Clan Ice Hellion, but they did mostly deploy light and medium battlemechs. Most of the heavier opposition would probably come from the other three Clans. He knew that there were some heavier omnimechs but with them having been inside their field bases when he entered, he'd not identified which Clans they were from. Two Mad Dogs, which were very common, a Summoner that might be the most formidable 'mech in the melee, and a Phoenix Hawk that was technically an assault mech by tonnage. One of the Mad Dogs and a Shadow Hawk were distantly visible on the far side of the arena, outside of even the most optimistic weapon's range..
 
Ace stretched lightly within the cockpit, waiting for the clock to tick down to the starting time. Two minutes remained when Ellison's voice cut across the radio channel being used for announcements. "All participants may render their weapons live. If you have a technical problem you may announce your withdrawal any time up to the starting time… after that, it is your own misfortune."
 
Flipping the safety, Ace saw the capacitors for all three of his weapons charge. The anti-missile systems flicked their muzzles left and right in a quick test as they loaded their first loads of flechettes. And he saw the warning light as both of the 'mechs flanking him focused their sensors on him.
 
The nearest cover would be to move forwards and drop into one of the wider canyons that cut across the old mine, Ace thought. But they will expect that…
Both 'mechs were carrying missiles - twin LRM packs on the lighter Adder, while the Ice Ferret was packing SRMs to back up its large laser. But there was another launcher on the Adder and Ace had a solid idea what was in that.
 
A buzzer marked the start of the battle and the Adder swung its arms to bear on Ace's axis of advance, loping forwards at a respectable pace to get its weapons in line. The Ice Ferret was even faster, sprinting off the edge of the mesa and sliding down into the cover of the canyon.
Ace wheeled to face the Adder and disabled one of his anti-missile systems in sudden calculation. His ER PPCs slashed through the space between them, cutting under the mass of LRMs being fired at him. One shot tore through the hooded torso section above the Adder's torso, the other caught the light 'mech's left shoulder and reduced the joint to a wreck, taking the missile launcher in the left arm out of commission.
 
The single anti-missile system chattered viciously, but thirty LRMs was far too many for it to handle alone and explosions smashed against the Nova as missiles got through. Nothing breached though, and as the defensive system cycled a fresh clip into it ready magazine, Ace brought the other back online.
 
A single missile sped from the small launcher tucked into the right chest of the Adder, and the anti-missile system he'd held back carved it out of the air without the slightest difficulty.
 
Slamming both his feet down on his jump jets, Ace bounded his Nova back and into the canyon along the edge of the arena. Without the NARC Missile Beacon that the Adder had tried to catch him with, once he was out of sight it would be hard to locate one 'mech in the metal-rich rocks of the arena.
 
…but counterversely, if he had been caught then the beacon would have likely told every Burrock in the melee exactly where he could be found.
 
Just before he dropped out of sight, Ace fired on the Adder again, not caring that the double-salvos coupled with the use of his jump jets would be enough to impair him. The Adder got off its own missiles before one of the particle beams caught the damaged section of the hood and ripped through it to gut the reactor and gyro assembly. The missiles that didn't lose track and waste themselves on the canyon edge were almost all swept from the sky by his anti-missile system.
 
Ace faded back into the canyons, swinging through the southern end of the arena, past the Ice Ferret's starting location. There was no use getting into fights he didn't need to right now. He'd take an easy kill if one presented itself, but the grand melee didn't go to the warrior with the most kills - just the one who was last standing. He'd already taken light damage - better to let the other contenders wear themselves down.
 
The strategy served him long enough for the Nova's temperature to drop back to nominal levels and work his way around towards the western end of the arena when he ran into a Conjurer that had pristine Fire Mandrill markings: clearly someone with the same idea but who had avoided an initial clash.
They'd run into each other around a corner, finding themselves basically face to face - Ace used the barrel of his left ER PPC to bat away the large pulse laser mounted in the Conjurer's right arm before it could bear.
 
The Fire Mandrill tried to use his left arm to deflect Ace's other arm but the young Diamond Shark had drawn the arm back and tucked it against the side of his 'mech. At a range of less than three meters the particle beam ripped into the front of the Conjurer but somehow failed to penetrate.
 
He fired the pulse laser beside the cockpit but despite the trail of damage it caused, the Conjurer still seemed undamaged.
 
The same could not be said of the Conjurer's lasers - both of the medium lasers dug into the left side of the Nova's forward-thrust torso and then the missiles fired at far too close a range for his anti-missile systems to do anything. One missile caught the rent in his armor and the medium pulse laser suddenly went black on the weapons display.
 
Swinging the left arm of the Nova up, Ace leveled the only weapon he still had ready to fire directly at the cockpit. He could vaguely see the face of the Fire Mandrill mechwarrior through the armorglass, then his own cockpit opaqued itself to shield his eyes from the glare of the ER PPC.
 
Despite that he was left blinking, but the Conjurer's mechwarrior was no longer visible. Nor was most of the other medium 'mech's cockpit.
 
The next minute, a stream of autocannon shells blasted into the rockface, the only warning Ace had that another 'mech was coming. And since they couldn't have been aiming at him, probably more than one.
 
Ace leant the Nova forward against the Conjurer, covering his cockpit and hit the reactor reset. He couldn't shutdown fully but the power plant did cycle fully down and Ace set it to only bring power up to minimum levels. Hopefully…
 
The Summoner, armor plating all down one thigh ripped to shreds and hanging on only because it hadn't been fully severed above the knee, ran around the corner with the torso twisted so it could fire its autocannon back at the pursuer…
 
…whoever it was wouldn't notice that he wasn't shut down.
The Phoenix Hawk IIC raced after the Summoner, both autocannon raking it with cluster ammunition as soon as it got around the corner. This did a lot of fairly superficial damage, and also completed tearing away the thigh armor from that leg. The myomers underneath were shredded by the explosives, which could have left the seventy-ton Omnimech falling flat on its face if the mechwarrior inside hadn't done a truly magnificent job of keeping himself upright.
 
The Summoner unleashed a full alpha strike into the Phoenix Hawk, the most obvious effect of which was the ER PPC tearing away the jump jet intakes above the left shoulder, and putting half a dozen modest craters into the paintwork.
 
That was when the third in this little battle arrived, jumping directly over Ace and landing right next to the Phoenix Hawk. The Vapor Eagle had the Goliath Scorpion's badge painted on its shoulders and landed delicately next to the much larger Hells' Horses Phoenix Hawk, using its pulse lasers to tear what was left of the Summoner's leg off.
The fall of the Burrock Omnimech just gave the Hells' Horse mechwarrior a new adversary and it barely hesitated before turning its autocannon on the new arrival. Flaring its jump jets, the smaller 'mech dodged away, turning to spray the Phoenix Hawk with its machine guns.
 
Probably trying to cool off, Ace decided. He adjusted his controls, trickling what power the fusion reactor was providing into the capacitors of his PPCs.
 
The Phoenix Hawk and Vapor Eagle danced around each other, exchanging three successive salvos. The Hells' Horse 'mech was less able to avoid the hits but more able to weather them - the Goliath Scorpion didn't get away unscathed but cluster rounds couldn't really knock it out without more hits than were landing.
 
The duel ended when the Scorpion jetted themselves in front of the fallen Summoner, which took the opportunity to re-enter the fight - firing both arm-mounted weapons while flat on its back. The PPC lit up the Vapor Eagle from behind and then the Burrock's cluster rounds ripped through the ruptured armor and gutted the interior.
 
For a moment the Vapor Eagle stood, smoking and helpless, between the two much larger 'mechs. And then both of the Phoenix Hawk's guns spoke again - the impacts blasting the wreck of the medium 'mech to crash down upon the Summoner, pinning its weapon arms beneath fifty-five tons of weight.
 
Well, that had been dramatic, Ace thought. Both PPCs were charged and who knew how long it would take for someone else to arrive?
 
Dialing up the reactor, he started the Nova moving as soon as there was enough power to get the myomers flexing - however sluggishly. He only had to shift sideways a little and raise the arms, after all.
 
The Phoenix Hawk's pilot didn't seem to notice anything until both PPCs scored hits at the base of what would have been its spine for a human, the particle beams wiping away one of the jump jets and then digging into the gyro.
 
The Hells Horses mech tried to turn around only to pivot so far to one side that it fell flat. His reactor now at full power, Ace moved around outside of its arc of fire and deliberately blasted one of the Phoenix Hawk's arms to scrap before moving over to wreck the Summoner's remaining leg. He didn't want either of them getting up.
 
"Diamond Shark," Ellison challenged him. "You have been accused of re-engaging after conceding."
 
"I dialed my reactor down to minimum," he answered. "It was never off."
 
"...I will want to see your BattleROMs," the loremaster decided after a second's thought. "You may continue the melee, but if the records do not prove your case then I will kill you myself, quiaff?"
 
"Aff, loremaster." Ace worked his way into the maze, this time heading for the center of the arena.
 
There were at least five 'mechs down so far, probably more. That didn't mean caution wasn't needed, but it also meant that survivors were either going to have been fighting in the center and therefore damaged, or lurking in the edges. Better to pick off the damaged while he might have an edge in armor.
 
Move to a corner, jump out ready to fire. Repeat at the next corner. Then again, all the time keeping half an eye on the back.
 
Near the middle of the mines, a broad slope led down to what was the lowest section of the diggings. A Griffin lay at the top, missing its cockpit, while a Viper was sprawled at the bottom - missing the left leg and left arm. Ace paused and looked at the Viper. It looked as if the Fire Mandrill had been shot at from around the corner to the right of the slope. Which suggested someone had launched an ambush.
 
Turning aside, Ace moved the Nova carefully along the ridge above the slope until he could look down over the corner.
There stood a familiar looking Ice Ferret, leaning against the wall. One leg below the knee was a blackened cinder, but it was still aiming all the weapons it had at the corner - at least until its sensors must have picked up on him.
 
Both arms came up, but not in time to beat a pair of particle beams. The left arm was torn entirely off the Ice Ferret by Ace's fire, then the second beam struck the leg that wasn't half destroyed and made it a matching pair.
 
The SRMs fired upwards as the Ice Ferret fell on its back mostly got swatted out of the air, Ace twisting to shield the damaged left side of his Nova from those that came through. Then he fired his right PPC again, smashing through the right arm, destroying the missile launcher.
 
Pulling back behind the screen of the cliff edge, Ace let his temperature settle.
 
"This is Ellison Enders," the Goliath Scorpion declared. "All combatants are to stand down. The grand melee is over. Star Captain Ace is the last warrior standing and unless he is so stupid as to have cheated in a way that his BattleROMs would make clear, he has won the last slot in the Trial's tournament stage."
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===Politics and Budget Retraints===
Hilton Head, North America
Terra, Sol System
2 August 3048
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"So before we discuss the proposals to discuss the ComGuards warship fleet, there is another development we should consider," Wei Rong told the First Circuit. This piece of news had taken a while to reach her but that wasn't ROM's fault. It took time for news from the Periphery to reach Terra at the best of times.
 
"If this is about the Solar Shade," Andrew Norris observed, "Please remember that Primus Marteen suffered as a result of focusing too much on Terran affairs and not enough on the larger picture."
 
Wei gave her fellow historian a sour look. "I am extremely aware that political violence can affect us." Andrea Marteen's death might have been an accident but both her successor and his political rivals had blamed each other for the explosion, leading to some of the darkest days of ComStar's history. "However, this is not about the Solar Shade. We've just had news that Marius O'Reilly has passed away."
 
There was a quiet "Who?" from Joe Murphy
 
"House O'Reilly rule over the Marian Hegemony," Precentor Atreus reminded her colleague. "Dare we hope that this will lead to a downswing in piracy along the League border."
 
"Hope is pleasant, but may be premature. Marius' successor Sean has apparently adopted the title of Caesar rather than the customary Imperator. The two men weren't close, there was a scandal two years ago when Sean was found to be siphoning funds earmarked for colonization efforts into his personal finances." Wei smiled slightly. "Held in Terran banks."
 
"How did the late Imperator pass away?" asked Gwyn Thorne.
 
"A climbing accident on one of their more recent colonies." Wei shrugged. "ROM are investigating, as are other interested parties, but we have fairly limited resources - the Stella Maris HPG station is only a Class B facility."
 
"I thought the Marian capital was on Alphard?"
 
"There's already a planet called Alphard in the Free Worlds League," Tiger Lily lectured her colleague from Rasalhague. To avoid confusion, the HPG station in the Marian capital city is named for the nearby sea."
 
"Why not use the city name?" enquired Norris.
 
"Because that's called Nova Roma, which is also a planet in the Free Worlds League. House O'Reilly is not very imaginative when it comes to names."
 
"Their naming sense aside," Wei redirected the conversation, "the newest O'Reilly's change of his official title suggests that he sees a new role for himself and his nation. Marius failed in an attempt to take control of Astrokaszy ten years ago, so this may mean the new Caesar will be more diplomatic - or more probably, he'll try to exceed his father's ambition."
 
"Does he have the forces for that?" Tiger Lily asked. "The Marian Hegemony isn't all that impressive."
 
"Three battlemech battalions aren't enough to pose a strategic threat, but if he wanted more then it's possible the Caesar might be able to obtain them. He's well placed to draw forces from the FWLM away from their border with the Federated Commonwealth."
 
"And Hanse Davion would find such support cheap - after all, he'd only need to approve the sale of equipment rather than subsidize it," Buckley guessed. "That could have a disproportionate effect on the politics of the region."
 
Murphy nodded. "More probably older equipment intended for militia could be redirected - it would be harder to trace back to the Federated Commonwealth, and with a solid conventional force to help him defend and control his own worlds, O'Reilly would be freer to raid his neighbors."
 
Wei nodded. "I trust that the two of you will look out for signs that the Federated Commonwealth is making efforts to reach out to Periphery realms. However," she tapped her podium. "I have to stress that no pre-emptive actions are to take place. A number of previous Precentors have decided to pursue private agendas without consulting the First Circuit. We're still picking up the pieces for activities that weren't reported. We can't afford to add to that."
 
Both Precentors representing Federated Commonwealth capitals nodded. One of the Joes seemed more annoyed at the reminder than the other, but that didn't surprise Wei. While Buckley sulked, Murphy asked: "And the other end of that connection… should we reach out ourselves?"
 
"I think we should," Thorne said. "If we can steer them from piracy to formal trade then the Hegemony could be a stabilizing influence rather than a problem."
 
"Expanding our presence there would be expensive," Tiger Lily said slowly, "But it could pay off. The Hegemony has added three colonies to its size in the last twenty years. Additional HPGs would help them to control their growing empire."
 
Wei brought up a map of the rimwards periphery in the middle of the chamber, stars glittering in the colors of their nations and with intensity marking the capability of the HPG stations. "A short chain of HPG stations could connect Thraxa in the Magistracy to Alphard. I believe the Magistrix would approve, if only to make it easier for her to watch her neighbor."
 
"Can we afford that?" asked Norris.
 
Wei frowned. More budgetary problems. "Explorer Corps activity in that region could support the shipping of the HPGs and support equipment. Land and local construction materials would be the question. I don't believe we can predict that, but it's worth opening discussions with Sean O'Reilly. He might be willing to grant the land required in exchange for the benefits to infrastructure of having an HPG station's facilities to support a fledgling colony."
 
"And ComGuards garrisons," added Murphy. "If he's half-pirate then he won't respect our presence unless we can show a stick as well as the carrot."
 
"Quite so." Wei tapped her chin. "Very well, on the one hand we'll arrange a diplomatic approach to discuss expanding the HPG service but on the other I'll discuss having Precentor-Martial Focht redirect some of our anti-piracy operations from elsewhere in the periphery to increase our presence. That would be a good idea in any case - if the Caesar wishes to expand his empire by force then having an extra division in the Magistracy, the Lothian League and the rim provinces of the Free Worlds League will give us options."
 
Thorne grimaced. "Let us hope that there's no need for them."
 
"If we can extend the peace of Blake via diplomacy that would be vastly preferable," Wei agreed. "But however much we hope for the best, we should also prepare for the worst. Sean O'Reilly is hardly a shining paragon - and we're dealing with an organized state that endorses slavery. We may have to tolerate that custom in the Confederation or the Combine, but that doesn't make it a mark of civilization."
 
"I wouldn't raise your hopes too high for social change," muttered Precentor Sian. Rachel Orchard spoke rarely, but she had a good record of predicting the paranoid leaps of judgment made by Chancellor Romano Liao which was perhaps more valuable than being outspoken while in council.
 
"Are there any other suggestions with regard to the developing situation around the Marian Hegemony?" When no one spoke up, Wei banished the map. "I'll keep the First Circuit updated on the outcome of our diplomatic approaches. Please do likewise if O'Reilly reaches out to other governments."
 
There were nods from the other precentors.
 
"And now can we discuss our warship fleet?" Buckley suggested. "I can't say that I agree with sending ships into extensive rebuilding as a solution to our current vulnerability."
 
"There is no current vulnerability!" exclaimed Murphy. "You're talking about a design that only exists on paper."
 
"As far as we know," stressed the Toyamist. "For all we know, this could be only a tiny part of building programme that's well advanced. We've already discovered that we managed to lose an entire repair yard of our own - that's how easily this can be hidden."
 
"Now you're being ridiculous." Norris shook his head. "The yard that was lost was mothballed. The financial costs of building a warship fleet couldn't possibly be missed. I've no doubt Hanse Davion intends to built a number of warships, but he can't have laid them down yet. The construction slips at Galax are no doubt exactly what they seem: the first steps towards building these corvettes."
 
"Let's begin with the basics," Wei asserted before the quarrel could escalate. "We all agree that some additional active warships are required, given the long-term concerns of the RX-78 vessels being planned."
 
Thorne looked uncomfortable but didn't speak up.
"In addition, both our own warship specialists and the Federated Commonwealth' planners believe that the SLDF warship doctrine isn't suitable for a modern battlespace." The Primus wasn't sure she was using the last word correctly but only Joe Murphy was likely to know and he had agreed with her assessments earlier. "And the Dante class Frigates is closer to what is required." She looked around. "So it's important we use this window of opportunity ensure that our warships are refitted to reflect that requirement."
 
"Yes, you've persuaded me of that," agreed Tiger Lily.
 
"We cannot afford - either financially or in terms of our available shipyard slips - to carry out the rebuilding of every warship we have, at least in a reasonable timescale. If we were just reactivating them that might be feasible, but we'd then have to maintain them which slows down the refit process even more." Wei ticked the issues off on her fingers. "The alternative of refitting two ship classes - with the cost savings of standardizing - means we can deploy ten times our current active strength, in upgraded ships, before the RX-78 becomes a reality. Tell me seriously, Precentor Buckley, do you actually feel that isn't an adequate response to the current threat?"
 
"And if he's salvaged capital vessels?"
 
Wei felt her eyes narrow. "Do you have any evidence of that? Any facts?"
 
"Not yet." he grated.
 
"Once we have completed the current fleet process, then we can look at larger vessels." she allowed. "Even if there's no immediate threat, bringing the cruisers and battleships we have mothballed up to a higher level of capability before putting them back in storage would be a wise precaution. I'm not closing the book on any further expansion of our active fleet, but right now this is an affordable and practical solution."
"I vote in favor of the Primus' solution," Norris told the First Circuit. "And I call for a vote now. If we have a majority then further debate is unneeded, if we don't then that's the time to look at alternatives."
 
"Seconded," agreed Tiger Lily. "And I also vote in favor."
 
Murphy and Orchard also indicated their approval and Wei added her vote for a solid five votes in favor, leaving Thorne and Buckley opposing the plan for diametrically opposed reasons.
 
"I suppose now you want to wedge your precious Solar Shade back into the budget." Buckley grumbled.
 
Wei smiled sweetly and brought up a projection of it up in the middle of the chamber. "Feel free to boast about it in New Avalon," she suggested. "If Hanse Davion can be convinced to spend billions on terraforming abandoned worlds in the Federated Suns then it would be a much safer use of his funds than building warships."
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===Your predictions of my demise have been unreliable===
McKenna, Strana Mechty
Kerensky Cluster, Clan Homeworlds
5 August 3048
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The thirty-two contenders for the (now first of two) vacant bloodright had been gathered together in a briefing room inside a Clan Burrock fortification not far from the mine used for the grand melee. Ace was amused to see that the warriors had very clearly divided into two camps.
 
Twenty-one Burrock mechwarriors were occupying seats on the window side of the room, while Ace was made welcome (well, relatively) along with the four Goliath Scorpions, four Fire Mandrills and pair of Hells Horses. Apparently, even the fact he'd been accused of cheating to defeat their comrade's Phoenix Hawk didn't offend the two Horsemen.
 
"I will be watching out for that ploy," the older of the two said, offering his hand to shake once Ace sat down near them. "If Tathia had looked closely enough she would have seen that you were not fully shut down."
 
Ace felt the hand close crushingly around his for a while and returned the force as best he could. "It would not work in the sort of duels we will face from now."
 
"Yes. But our Clans will no doubt clash in the future," the Horseman pointed out matter-of-factly.
 
Further conversation was cut off as the door opened again, admitting Ellison Enders and an unfamiliar Burrock, one wearing the rank pins of a Star Colonel. From the way the Burrocks in the room stiffened, they knew who she was.
 
"For those that are curious, I am no longer acting-house leader or loremaster for the Trial of Bloodright," Ellison announced. "Abigail Enders has arrived with enough proxy votes to win that coveted honor."
 
The Star Colonel looked almost as irritated with Ellison as Felipe had been, but she didn't act on it directly. "I have reviewed the preliminaries and we will continue. The brackets for the Trial have been decided."
 
From here the Trial of Bloodright was fairly simple: a single elimination tournament that would cut the participants in half (possibly literally) until after five rounds only one remained. Ace wasn't surprised that everyone was on the edge as they saw who they would be fighting and started to plan.
 
The holo display at the front of the room lit up, displaying a simple inverted tree, thirty-two names at the bottom with lines leading upwards. Clan banners marked out each name, which made finding his own name easy enough. The only Diamond Shark swam at one edge of the display, with fifteen Burrocks filling out that half of the contest.
 
"Founder damn it!" a Burrock shouted, stabbing one finger towards Ace. "I will not be able to kill you unless you survive to the semi-finals." It was the woman who had challenged his presence at the Bloodchapel. Annie… Annette… no Annika.
 
Ace forced himself to look confident. "We could get to that today if you are in a hurry."
 
"No! I will kill you!" snarled a man who looked enough like Annika that they were probably from the same genestock. "Felipe was my gene-mother as well. You have done nothing but disgrace House Enders with your presence."
 
"Be silent, all of you. This is a sacred trial of Bloodright, not a brawl," Abigail Enders snapped. "Any fighting outside of a sanctioned round will be removed from contention."
 
The Hell's Horseman Ace had shaken hands with earlier leaned back slightly. "You cannot fight four rounds of the Trial in a single day."
 
"You can if we do it Musketeer style," he replied before the Star Colonel could call for silence again.
 
"Ah, a student of Dumas," Ellison said brightly, speaking over Abigail Ender's command. Ace hadn't expected anyone to get the reference, but it didn't seem likely that Ellison would take issue. "I haven't seen anyone manage that though."
 
"What are you talking about?" Annika asked. "If it lets me kill that freebirth, I am in favor!"
 
"Ellison, if this is some twisted game I will wring your neck," Abigail declared flatly.
 
"Ace there brought it up. I will let him explain," the Goliath Scorpion said with a smirk. His eyes were dancing mischievously.
 
"It is simple," Ace explained. "In each round, we would normally determine randomly that one of us chooses the mode of combat and the other chooses the venue. Hunter and hunted. However, if everyone - or everyone within a certain bracket - agrees to the same mode and the same venue then we can stage them sequentially. There must be enough space on this base for several circles of equals - we all proceed to our 'mechs and fight the rounds - then the winners move on immediately to face each other once each has been decided. Over and over until the Trial is over or someone decides not to agree to the same terms. No breaks to repair or reload."
 
"That is insane," the Hells Horseman said quietly.
 
Ace shrugged. "Challenging," he admitted. "But if Annika really wants to try to kill me today, that would work. Of course, it requires everyone to agree. If anyone prefers not then she will simply have to wait."
 
"I accept!" the young Burrock warrior declared. "We all accept."
 
"The participants do not get to change the terms of the trial," Abigail Enders protested.
 
"It sounds legitimate to me," Ellison said mildly. "There is room in the regulations for field expedients and this keeps the spirit of the Trial complete."
 
"Felipe will be avenged!" shouted Annika.
 
"You will not avenge the House Leader like this," the Star Colonel declared angrily.
 
Another Burrock stood up. "Annika will not if I kill the freeborn first!"
 
"You would have to get past me first," a mechwarrior up against the windows pointed out.
 
One of the Fire Mandrills shook their head, her braids flying around wildly. "I am not joining in this," she declared.
 
"Raise your hand if you wish to participate in these Musketeer style trials," Ellison said slyly.
 
Hands went into the air, Ace raising one of his. He hadn't been able to get a replacement medium pulse laser for his Nova yet, since the Burrocks were mysteriously unwilling to accept a replacement in the future from Diamond Shark stocks. It appeared that he had made himself unpopular, and bringing in hardware from the nearest Diamond Shark depot would take a few days. Instead, Gideon had installed the two spare heatsinks that he had brought along and patched up the armor. Repeated repairs for multiple bouts would be a problem since that had exhausted their on-hand resources.
 
Fighting one extended conflict now though… that would work.
 
More than half the Burrock warriors agreed with the idea that Ace had just come up with, as did one of the Fire Mandrills - although that wouldn't matter since no one else in his bracket seemed inclined to go along with it.
 
Not knowing the names involved, Ace wasn't sure at first if he'd pulled it off, but peer pressure in the form of glares got two more hands up in the air and Ellison manipulated the display, highlighting everyone that agreed.
 
"Well, it seems that half of our trials will be done before the day is out," the Goliath Scorpion said brightly. "Abigail, would you like to let the base commander know that we are commandeering eight of the training grounds."
 
"I should forbid this."
 
"Aff… but you will not," Ellison said with a smile that put all his teeth on display. "Because the sooner this is over, the sooner you can crawl back to your office in the Burrock Watch and ignore all of us."
 
Well that explained why Abigail was not house leader despite the fact she outranked Felipe, thought Ace. Most Clan warriors looked down on their brethren who took places in their Clans' intelligence arms.
 
"Who even came up with such an idiotic form of trial?"
 
"Warriors D'Artagnan, Athos, Porthos and Aramais," lied Ace.
 
"They all died, aff?"
 
"Neg… well, they are dead now of course. This was a long time ago. But they became great comrades."
 
Abigail Enders closed her eyes for a moment. "Every cretin willing to go along with this should ready their Battlemechs," she said at last. "I will blame all of this on you, Ellison."
 
The majority of the Burrocks stampeded through the door, presumably heading for their hangar - which was conveniently well away from that being used by the visiting mechwarriors.
 
Ace paused and gave Ellison a questioning look.
 
"You want to know why I supported you?" the older warrior asked in a lower voice.
 
"Aff." Although if he'd really supported Ace, not letting him get stuck with a bracket that was stacked with enemies would have been more helpful.
 
Ellison patted him on the shoulder. "I am a very simple man," he whispered. "After five years of dealing with Felipe Enders and his ilk, I have learned to truly hate Burrocks. Whether you win or die, this will kill a lot of them." Then he laughed and slapped Ace's shoulder. "Go, I look forward to seeing a fine performance."
 
Ace left the briefing room and headed for his own hangar. Fortunately it was fairly close to the briefing room since this was usually used for pre-Trial briefings.
 
"Are you starting already?" Gideon asked as Ace arrived. "I was hoping we would have time for spare parts to arrive."
 
"Well, if I survive until sundown then we should have all the time we need?"
 
The former warrior blinked. "Is the second round going to be delayed for several days?"
 
"No, I am fighting the first four rounds back-to-back." Ace explained, stripping off his jumpsuit and grabbing the piloting suit from the case where he'd left it.
 
"They cannot force you to do that!" protested Gideon.
 
"It was my idea." Ace pushed one leg into the suit, then the other. "Look at it this way: once this is over we have days for all the repairs needed."
 
"Assuming you survive."
 
"Aff, assuming that. But if I do not, then it is not my problem."
 
Gideon groaned. "This has to be the craziest Trial of Bloodright there has ever been. It is not supposed to work like this."
 
"If it is the craziest then we might get a line or two in the Remembrance."
 
"That is not always a good thing. I would wish you luck, but…"
 
Ace finished putting his arms through the piloting suit and zipped it up. "I have your help, which is worth more than all the luck in the universe. I could not do this without you."
 
"I saw you trying to connect those coolant lines, you really could not." But Gideon saluted Ace crisply as he said it.
 
Climbing up into the Nova, Ace powered it up. The flexibility of the omnimech was paying off - fitting two heatsinks in place of the laser would have taken days on a mere battlemech. He took a little more care with the power up just in case, but everything went smoothly and the Nova loped out of the hangar. "Traffic control, this is Star Captain Ace. There should be a training ground assigned to me, quiaff?"
 
The Burrock technician did not appear to be infected with the desire to kill Ace. "Aff, we have just received orders," he replied professionally. "Proceed westwards towards route marker Gamma Seven, then turn north. All weapons are to be kept safed until the trial is initiated."
 
Ace checked that this was the case and marched across the base. OmniMechs were flowing out of the hangar, hopefully their own weapons similarly inactive, as the Burrocks came out to fight him. With a bit of luck, they would not realize that the result of this would mostly be them fighting each other - or if they did realize, then their pride might keep them from backing down. There were no mere BattleMechs visible - unlike those risking the grand melee, it appeared that the Burrocks with sponsorship were able to arrange OmniMechs for the trial.
 
As he moved north, he came to a section of the base carved into square sections by heavy lines of banked earth, berms taller than his 'mech. He thought for a moment they were defensive structures but then realized they were each a regular three kilometers square - dedicated dueling grounds. This was perfect.
 
Well, perfect would be for him to be able to kill them all by ambush. But this would be good enough.
 
"Your training ground is number eleven," the technician instructed him.
"Thanks." Ace saw the turning and found that another Nova was already waiting for him - in Prime configuration, like the one Val had used in their Trial of Position. For a moment, he wondered where the young woman was. She had been assigned to Omega Galaxy, a garrison force, and not crossed paths with him since then. What would she make of this? Would she be annoyed that he was causing waves by trying for a bloodname, or would she accept him as a Diamond Shark now?
 
Then Ace banished the thought. All that mattered now was defeating the other Nova, preferably before it chewed him to pieces. He was tempted to eject his anti-missile system's ammunition - it would do nothing against this opponent and if it exploded it could leave him crippled. But if he then needed it later, there would be no time to get it reloaded.
 
"Warriors," Abigail Enders declared over the radio. "You have been chosen for your merits and you have put yourselves forwards, as the Great Founder decreed, to risk your blood in battle for the honor of bearing the name of one of the first generation of the Clans. In the name of Nicholas Kerensky and of Vladimir Enders, you are to fight with honor. I will sound two bells. On the first you may activate your weapons, however you may only fire after the second bell. Each of you will have technicians monitoring your trials - when they declare the winner, they speak with my voice and you will obey them as if they were myself." Then she paused. "For over two centuries, we have chosen our best to lead through the Trial of Bloodright. Prove yourselves to be the best."
 
Then the first bell sounded. Ace powered up the ER PPCs, letting the capacitors charge. He watched the Nova in front of him - it was very still, both arms lifted and transparently aimed right at him. They were just on the edge of the range for the laser, well inside PPC range.
 
Would the Burrock try to end this in a single salvo? Probably - otherwise they'd have to worry about him getting out of reach and picking them apart.
 
The second bell rang and Ace hammered down his jump jets, sending the Nova hurtling upwards as fast as he could. Lines of fire lanced through the air just below him, carving away one toe from his left foot and sending the Nova slightly off balance as it rose.
 
Ace adjusted the jump jets to counter that and hovered his crosshairs over the other Nova that was frozen in place - having overheated entirely on that all or nothing gambit. One of PPCs blew through the air and hit the ground, Ace having fired just before he'd fully stabilized.
 
Then he fired the second and it intersected with the Nova's cockpit.
 
A moment later, Ace landed, more heavily than he would have liked. He'd used too much propellant earlier, but that might have saved him more damage from the lasers. Losing one toe wasn't that bad.
 
"Victory to Star Captain Ace," a woman said quietly, sounding slightly shocked. "Please wait while we determine your opponent."
 
Taking a deep breath, Ace watched the temperature gauge drop down towards normal, while the jump-jets and Extended Range PPCs charged.
 
Two minutes later by his clock, a recovery team arrived to check the Nova. A medic diligently checked the cockpit although the result was more or less pre-determined.
 
"Star Captain Ace, your next trial will take place in training area seventeen," the same woman informed him while the medic was shaking his head. "Turn left when exiting training area twelve and follow the road for twenty kilometers."
 
Ace obeyed, backing the Nova out onto the road and then sprinting along the highway. It took a quarter hour to reach the destination and he cracked the canopy to let the wind cool out the inside of his cockpit. Halfway through his journey, another medium Omnimech chased after him, arms pumping. It was a Shadow Cat, slightly smaller than his Nova, but considerably faster. Even without activating its myomer accelerator signature circuitry (which the occupant would be a fool to do outside a battle since the technology still wasn't 100% reliable), the Shadow Cat could run faster and jump further than Ace's Omnimech. It also boasted a fractionally larger payload, but the cost was slightly lighter armor protection - particularly on the back. The theory was that the Shadow Cat would use its agility to deny the enemy shots at the rear armor - which might be true in a duel.
 
Shifting sideways, Ace let the Burrock Shadow Cat run past him and tracked it on his sensors. The mechwarrior had equipped it with a large laser in each arm and a Streak SRM launcher, the Diamond Shark noted. He wasn't surprised to see that it turned into training area seventeen.
 
"Mechwarriors may activate their weapons," Ellison's voice advised as Ace entered the square combat zone. He hadn't been told his weapons should be turned off, so that wasn't a requirement. "This is the second round of your Trial of Bloodright. Each of you has defeated one of your peers to be here, but only one may proceed further. On my command, you are clear to decide in battle who it will be."
 
Ace watched the Shadow Cat shift, its legs braced - it was either going to hold ground or the mechwarrior was going to rely on his jump jets not the 'mechs legs for his first move. He adjusted his own jumpjets.
 
"Begin!" shouted Ellison.
Instantly the Shadow Cat arced up into the air on columns of fire. Ace hammered his own jumpjets - all facing directly backwards and ran the Nova forwards. The two 'mechs converged on the tactical map, looking as if they were near collision, although in fact the Shadow Cat was simply above the Nova as Ace spun on the spot.
 
He saw no sign of the lasers firing - most likely they simply missed, but the missile warning alarm went off as the two anti-missile systems chattered.
 
Missile contrails cut turns as the guided SRMs fought to overcome their initial heading and arc in on Ace. Superb engineering paid off as all of them rounded upon the Nova, but only half made it through the gauntlet of his missiles and Ace was firing his PPCs directly upwards.
The Burrock warrior landed his Shadow Cat less than fifty meters from Ace, already turned around. Both the legs were blackened by PPC damage, though neither failed to absorb the terrific impact of forty-five tons hitting the ground.
 
Both lasers fired, blue lines briefly linking the two 'mechs - the battle computer highlighted armor panels all across the front of the Nova as compromised as relative motion dragged the Burrock's aiming point across Ace's 'mech.
Then the ER PPCs finished charging and Ace fired, aiming low.
 
The particle beams caught the digitigrade lower limbs of the Shadow Cat and violated them. One knee snapped outright and the other leg flailed wildly as the myomer controls overloaded, sending the Shadow Cat through a wild dance that was clearly under no one's control and inevitably ended in the beak-like cockpit burying itself in the soft soil of the training ground.
 
The Burrock inside didn't seem willing to take that as an outcome, driving one arm's laser muzzle into the ground so that he could try to bring the other to bear.
 
Ace circled to stay ahead of the limb, dropping his crosshairs onto the cockpit. "You are a skilled warrior," he observed on the general channel. "And there is another bloodright to claim. I do not think you will lack for a sponsor."
 
The Shadow Cat kept trying to track him until Ace was beyond the maximum possible transversal of the laser mount… then the weapon lowered and the reactor signature faded out. Ace watched to be sure that it was off, not feigning surrender.
 
"Victory to Star Captain Ace," Ellison announced, the same moment that Ace came to the conclusion that he could lower his guard. "They should have cleared your previous victim out of training ground twelve by now. Return there and wait for your next opponent."
 
This time, as Ace left the training ground, he saw other 'mechs moving - many of them damaged. He powered down his weapons, not wanting to be accused of threatening other contenders - but despite this, he kept a close eye out for anyone who might attempt an 'accidental' weapons discharge into his damaged armor. They might find disqualification for this Trial of Bloodright to be acceptable when they could apply to join the next one, while Ace might not be in a position to contend for anything ever again!
 
Perhaps the same thought had crossed their minds, because the 'mechs gave each other wide berths as they passed each other, careful not move arm-mounted weapons in a way that could be considered hostile. Two heavy transports crawled down the road as well, carrying the downed Nova from Ace's first round and a much more heavily damaged Stormcrow: someone else who had been taken out of the contest, no doubt.
 
No one was waiting at him at the training ground - the ground was still marked where the Burrock Nova had been disabled. Ace marched himself over to one of the back corners and parked his Nova, powering up the weapons in case someone tried to catch him off guard. Both of his fights had been over in rapid succession, possibly his next opponent was still fighting their second round.
 
Opening a storage space, he pulled out a bottled sports drink and unsealed it. One thing that he did miss from the Griffins back at the Castrum was that they were more spacious than those of Clan 'mechs. If he needed to live out of the Nova for a few days it would be challenging.
 
Ace drained the bottle, replenishing his fluids and minerals. He'd been waiting fifteen minutes and no one had arrived yet. He was putting the bottle back in the storage space - there was no dedicated waste disposal - when the radio lit up. It was a private channel, not an open broadcast.
 
Slamming the cabinet closed, Ace activated the radio. "This is Star Captain Ace."
 
"Star Captain, there will be a delay before your next bout," Abigail Enders told him flatly. "Neither of the contenders to face you in the third round is able to continue."
 
Ace bit his lip. If they'd damaged their 'mechs to the point they didn't feel up to another round then all they needed to do was opt out of the agreement to fight immediately and Ace would have no grounds to complain. It was a purely voluntary idea.
 
"As such, you have been granted a bye. Congratulations on reaching the semi-final round of the Trial of Bloodright."
 
He exhaled slightly in relief. So they'd been injured. Worse for them, but better for him. "Unfortunate for both of them. They are expected to recover, quiaff?"
 
"Aff. It will take some months," the Star Colonel confirmed. "So they will miss both this trial and the next one. Not that I would have nominated the same one I sponsored. Agreeing to this nonsense does not give me confidence in his judgment."
 
"If I win the next two rounds then I will need to make nominations. Since there are no other Diamond Sharks I know of who are eligible, I imagine I will have to consider candidates from other Clans."
 
Abigail sighed audibly and cut the channel.
 
Ace laughed lightly and put his feet up to rest until the matter resolved itself.
That resolution arrived when the sun was visibly lowering, a battered OmniMech limping into the training ground. It took Ace a moment to recognise that it was a Timber Wolf - much larger than his own Nova. The paint was almost unrecognizable, but it had to be a Burrock by the simple logic of the brackets. The right arm was missing as high as the shoulder - perhaps severed by whatever had destroyed the missile launcher above the joint - and the other missile launcher was also in no state to be used - something had smashed through the face-plate and destroyed the tubes.
Hitting the ejection controls, Ace dumped almost a ton of anti-missile system ammunition. It seemed that he'd only have to concern himself with the PPC in the Timber Wolf's left arm and the pulse lasers below the cockpit.
 
"I told you," Annika told him through her 'mech's external speakers, "That I would be the one to kill you."
 
"You did say that," he admitted. "And now you get your chance to try."
 
Before that riveting conversation could continue, Abigail Enders addressed them both over the radio. "You have both reached the semi-finals of the Trial of Bloodright. Three rounds stand behind you, with the warriors you have defeated to be here. Only one can continue. Annika, do you wish to continue in your current condition?"
 
"I will avenge my sponsor," the mechwarrior declared. "No matter what."
 
"Ace, are you also prepared?"
 
"Aff, I stand ready."
 
"I see that both 'mechs' weapons are live. At the sound of the bell, you may begin."
 
The tones a moment later sent Ace springing away from his starting point. He wasn't quite fast enough though and the beam of energy from Annika's ER PPC smashed into the Nova's side, setting his electronics flickering.
 
He replied with a slightly staggered salvo from his own ER PPCs - she side-stepped enough that one stream of charged particles crossed under the Timber Wolf's remaining arm, then the second vented its power against the already ruined missile launcher.
 
Pulses of laser fire chased Ace as he dodged and weaved, trying to stay ahead of the larger omnimech as his ER PPCs charged. Her own would be ready first, he thought, and he didn't have the armor to take many hits. Depending on what was left under the charring, he wasn't sure he could say the same about the Timber Wolf.
 
As he thought Annika was about to be ready to fire, Ace feinted a leap with his jump jets, only to cut them off before the Nova's feet had fully left the ground. He let the legs collapse and ducked as low as he could. Just barely enough, as it turned out.
 
The PPC shot shaved armor across the dorsal surface of the Nova, leaving both shoulders twitching for a moment as the electrical charge was grounded.
Having wasted her shot, Annika took advantage of his moment of immobility and lunged in, the pulse lasers ripping through armor plating across the Nova's chest. Already battered by the Shadow Cat, Ace could see that there were multiple breaches, and coolant levels began to fall as sections were severed and bled out despite self-sealing pipes trying to contain the damage.
 
He pulled both triggers and the PPCs discharged into the left side of the Timber Wolf.
 
One shot finished off the shoulder joint and rendered the heavier 'mech symmetrical with both arms missing. The second tore into the plating behind the laser mounts. Whatever was behind the armor must have been part of those systems, because the battle computer rated all three pulse lasers as ineffective.
 
Annika screamed something incoherent. Ace was sweating as his damaged cooling system struggled to deal with the impact of the salvo. The Timber Wolf kept coming, firing with the only weapon it had left - a tertiary laser that would barely threaten an Elemental.
 
Firing his jump jets, Ace threw the Nova up and over the Timber Wolf. He'd left it just a little late though and he didn't quite clear the taller 'mech - both the large feet crashed against the smooth top of the Timber Wolf and he had to fight to get over it and land, unsteadily.
 
With a crash, the Burrock omnimech fell flat on its back, laser aimed at nothing but the sky.
 
Without arms, Ace realized, it would be challenging to get the Timber Wolf upright again. Not impossible, but rather difficult. His ER PPCs had charged now, but he really wasn't sure he had enough coolant left for both of them. Turning, he walked through a quarter-circle as Annika tried to get the necessary traction to get one leg up and under the torso of her 'mech.
 
A particle beam through one hip put a permanent halt to that ambition. Ace had considered a cockpit shot, but it felt a little too much like murder.
 
"This round is over," Abigail Enders declared without emotion. "Congratulations, Star Captain Ace, on your victory. The final round will not be for several days."
 
As Ace walked the Nova slowly towards the exit of the training grounds, Annika activated her speakers again.
 
"We will fight again, freebirth."
 
"Perhaps," he replied the same way. "But your predictions have been unreliable so far."
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Chapter 4