WoWS3 Chpt 17

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==Weapons of War Saga: The Final March- Chapter 17 - ==
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===Unpleasant Reports===
Star League in Exile - Helena’s office
New Lazarus
31st December, 3142
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She sighed. She had hoped to get more prisoners and civilians evacuated from the operation, but the reports were clear.
Only eight thousand six hundred twenty two prisoners and civilians had been evacuated in all. Four hundred ten of those were beyond saving and succumbed during the return trip.
But she took solace in the fact that nearly a full cluster of very difficult to replace Falcon Garrison units had been eliminated or captured.
The butcher’s bill was a bit higher than projected. Raw troops on their first deployments. It was expected.
But it was still an incredible win and a way to announce she was on the scene.
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===Malvina's Message===
Aegis Class Heavy Cruiser, CJFS Red Talon
Unspecified System, Jade Falcon Occupation Zone
1st January, 3143
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“They jumped in at non-standard points with Warships. Our garrison forces had insufficient equipment to face such heavy opposition. They were simply overwhelmed. Each system was attacked by a Lola III, a Pinto, well over 100 Aerospace Fighters, and a Merchant that delivered a mixed battalion of ground forces. All units encountered used a modified form of the Star League crest. We lost over three thousand laborers, five thousand prisoners, and the work camp on Nusakan will take at least six months to rebuild, and our garrisons on Summer, Alkalurops, and Nusakan all suffered severe losses.” Becket Malthus felt a strange twinge of satisfaction at the fact that there was someone out there that was now standing against Malvina.
The battleroms were playing on several screens. It showed a scene of utter humiliation for Clan Jade Falcon.
“Bring in the prisoner.” Khan Malvina Hazen said quietly.
He was the only one they had managed to secure. He had been captured on Nusakan.
“Warrant Officer Al Nashir, Raul. Service number 414881793.” He said weakly with a bruised face.
“Impressive you still have that much resolve.” Malvina allowed.
“You have drawn the ire of the Eternal Princess. She will destroy you and ensure madness like yours never takes root again.” Raul was forced to his knees.
“We shall see. For now I have my own message for this Eternal Princess of yours.” Malvina placed a sealed package on his chest and pinned it in place by driving a knife into his heart. “Make whatever arrangements are needed to get that to Redburn. We will let Redburn and the Republic know we are not to be trifled with. For now it seems we have certain deficiencies to address in our garrisons.”
“It will be done, Chingis Khan.” Beckett Malthus motioned for the guards to pick up the body.
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===Troubling Problem===
Redburn’s office
Callison, Republic Remnant
6th February, 3143
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“Yes, he was one of ours. Captured at Nusakan in our raid there.” Victoria Cameron looked at the image of the body in storage elsewhere.
“He was delivered with this. It was held in place by a knife to his heart.” Paladin Damien Redburn handed over a slightly blood stained letter.
“Lots of bluster for someone who clearly cannot properly garrison all their worlds.” Victoria had to keep herself from laughing.
“The rumors true?”
“Yeah we hit them pretty hard but our deployments were too slow and strung out so we took more losses than we otherwise should have as units rushed off to their objectives piecemeal. It still could have been much worse. And it cost us people we could have saved too.” Victoria admitted.
“To be expected with raw troops, especially against a foe as easy to hate as Malvina.” Redburn offered. “Is it true you made a trip through the Augustine Alliance?”
“My talks there were not fruitful. They have thrown in with the Free Worlds League.”
“I cannot help but notice that a rash of rather treasonous people had a rather coincidental string of mishaps at the same time. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that would you?”
“Just that karma caught up with a lot of people.”
“Have it your way. I shed no tears for their deaths.” Redburn poured them each a glass of cognac. “So what now?”
“Now we find a way to get Levin to stop being an idiot and take down the Fortress Wall so we can bang some sense into his head. The Falcons will be far more prepared for our next raid and our other foes will not be idle forever. It would be much easier if we had the might of Terra on our side.”
“Good luck. I’ve been sending messages to him through the Northwind HPG for a while now and he has not sent a word back. At least nothing addressing what I was asking of him.”
“I wonder…” Victoria mused.
“Oh?” asked Damien
“Just pondering the implications of Levin not answering.” she commented
“It troubles me as well.”
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===Reflection amidst the Stars===
Kolossas Envoy WarShip
Unspecified System, Lyran Commonwealth
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Stars…
Glittered like so many gems in the distance. Somewhere out there, Her Majesty the First Lord was finally taking steps to settle things up.
Atrocity sighed, and re-entered the airlock.
"Enjoy your walk?" the ship asked.
"Yes. We took prisoners at the last stop, they're still alive?" she inquired.
"You took them, you didn't tell me to kill them." 
"Good point." She dismounted her armor, and locked it in the charging station. "Do you understand why I took prisoners this time?" she asked.
"I assumed because you felt…isolated." the AI told her.
"Not exactly. I took them, because we needed better information on issues surface-side." She explained.
"Issues?", AI asked
"Cracks in the Jade Falcons. Our Free Stars contact man with Ingraham Liner mentioned not all the Clanners in the Falcons are happy with Malvina's direction. It seemed reasonable to test that."
“Heh. I imagine so, especially after Helena just gave a rather convincing statement that the insanity of Malvina doesn’t always work and has consequences.”
"Prep a lifeboat with enough fuel to reach low orbit, a transponder, and sufficient meals-ready-to-eat to keep our four guests alive until pickup." she said.
"Where are we dropping them off?"
"Along the Tharkan routes, I'm thinking maybe the Tharkad system itself." she explained, "then we divert coreward along a vector to Lazarus."
"WHY??"
"Because we're down to eighty days of fuel, you've almost used up our missile munitions, and I can't go home to Kolossus, but Helena's fleet has supplies, they're allies, and frankly, I want to have some in-person time with someone I didn't take prisoner who isn't an intel source I might not see again." she explained.
"Social time, with PEERS. Part of me wants to be hurt but I understand."
"Oh don't be that way! YOU Need peer-time too, and I guarantee you'll get more peer time in Lazarus than you will anywhere short of Port Orphan or Kolossus!"
“Just some mild good natured hazing. Like I said, I actually understand.”
"We're dropping four enemy prisoners off on the Lyrans and taking the two higher value ones to Helena." she added.
“Everything is ready. By my calculations we should be to Lazarus just in time for Early April. It’ll be tight but we can make it on our supply levels.”
"Excellent." She headed for her sleeping area. "Music, twenty-first century early, Vladislav Hannevan's Seething Cosmos, movement four, please."
The decks of the automated cruiser echoed with the strains of Orchestral electric guitar backed by the Denver philharmonic-a recording made nearly a thousand years ago.
By the time the vocalist began her wordless aria, Atrocity was soundly asleep in her quarters.
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===Caged and Interrogated===
Star Captain Greta Beckett winced as the cell's audio played a stilted, flowing burst of classical music. The same music played most nights, like a timer, since she'd been captured by the robots.
The robots had proven to be far from the sort of ridicule-worthy things in children's media or fantasy fiction. Nor were they those models of dubious moral value found on Dustball. They were not vulnerable to logic-traps, nor did they have easily identified access panels, visible weaknesses, or delicate parts. 
Her cell's walls were welded alloy, the door recessed and thick, hard vacuum refreshed at the interface to discourage any successful escape attempt, and she had found herself unable to convince the AI of any untruths so far regarding her condition or well-being.
As far as she knew, she was the only prisoner, and the machine had been terse, direct, and persistent in its questioning, but…
She had been unable, thus far, to out-smart it beyond refusing to answer its questioning.
"Machine!"
"Star Captain?"
"Machine, am I your only prisoner?"
"No."
"Who else?"
"I will not tell you."
"Why?"
"Because I do not want to. Your feed ration will be dispensed in six hours, thirty one minutes."
“Caged like an animal… With this insufferable music!”
"To clarify for your thoughts, Animals would not be isolated as you are, only humans pose enough of an escape risk to be kept under such close security. If you wish, I can adjust the music to something else for your quartering."
“What I want is out. I am going mad with little more room than to pace.”
"You will be released from your cell in Four weeks, six days and twelve hours. Would you like a countdown clock?" the AI volunteered the first hint of real information it had ever given her.
“What guarantee do I have that you will not manipulate the clock?”
"There is no guarantee. You are a Prisoner of War, however your government is not signatory to any existing treaties regarding the treatment of Prisoners of War. You have been provided medical assistance, and are being kept safe and fed, and you will be released from your cell in the timeframe specified. This has to do with the sentiments of my creators, you will not be physically abused while in my custody, any injuries you inflict upon yourself, are your choice."
“Well then, if my mind breaks from being kept under the conditions I am, you will be the one responsible and have to tell the others that I am no longer of value.”
"If your mind breaks, then it breaks, demonstrating a defect in the Clan Programming. A weakness that will be reported to my Creators and leveraged for an advantage." the cool, sexless voice informed her. 
“Many humans would break if kept in confinement such as this.”
"Yes, it is a known weakness in human psychology, The Clans claim to be immune, this test will demonstrate whether or not this is true." the machine was being outright informative now. "Would you like to see the betting pool on how long you will last? You have already surpassed over fifty percent of the wagers laid thus far."
Information. It could at least tell me how many captors I have.
“Yes.”
From some hidden place, a projection was laid on her cell's door. 
There was only one name.
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======================================================================================================
Allison Hazen
======================================================================================================
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“Machine… I hate you.”
"That is expected." the machine stated.
“Of course with only one participant I will always exceed, or fail by over fifty percent. Such pointlessness.” Greta seemed to be talking to herself now.
"Would you like to see results from the other prisoners thus far?" the machine asked coolly.
“Why not? I know it will make no difference, but at least it will provide a diversion. If only for a moment.”
Smaller screens showed cells…just like hers. Five of them.
An Elemental breed, beating his head against the wall and babbling.
An Aeropilot breed, hugging himself and rocking back and forth.
She recognized Timon, he was pacing, shouting something silently at the walls, gesturing and almost foaming with rage.
Star Colonel Deves was seated on the extended bunk, he seemed to be rational in the silent image, gesturing and speaking calmly and assertively.
The last showed another Elemental breed, (Probably Icaza?) half curled against the wall, staring blankly into space, and chewing at his wrist.
"Four of your fellow prisoners have NOT exceeded expectations." the Machine stated.
Despite herself she felt a sort of broken horror rise up. "Why?" slipped from her lips, "WHY did you do this to us!?"
"Please restate your question, Star Captain." 
"Why are you breaking us?"
The images shifted to a series of Mongol actions, beginning with the ramming of Sudeten, but moving through 'reprisals' against civilians by her Clansmen. "Because your Clan set the rules of engagement, and escalation, as well as setting the bar for the treatment of others. As I am unable to verify your personal participation in war crimes and atrocities, I must still hold you to account, because these were clearly not 'deal breakers' when you elevated your current Khan. YOU will be brought before someone with the resources to verify whether you participated in war crimes and atrocities, but your tolerance of the same, is sufficient grounds for the level of treatment you are receiving, as both accessory, and threat. This vessel is not equipped for long-term rehabilitation."
“Broken for our loyalty, innocent or not. How we have failed ourselves…”
"Your relative innocence will be decided by duly constituted authorities. I am simply tasked with delivery." the machine stated coldly, "However, your loyalty to a war criminal makes you guilty of aiding and abetting. You are NOT innocent. The victims of these 'reprisals' and of 'work camps'? Were innocent."
“And our oaths to be loyal to our ways are now our undoing…”
The image shifted to the text of "The Way of the Clans" by Nicholas Kerensky. "Those were already repudiated by that leadership." the machine stated.
“We are supposed to be gifted of Falcon Sight… To see what others fail to, to have the long vision toward the future. Instead we are blind.” Greta said.
"The Ends do not Justify The Means, because the Means you use, decide the Ends you must live with." Aleksandr Kerensky's voice echoed in the chamber.
“We are so terribly blind…” Greta began to cry.
On the walls of her cell, the images of atrocities continued to play. The machine did not speak again.
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===Gift and a Request===
Just outside Maintenance area
Kolossus Station, Near Outworlds Wastes - Periphery
22nd April, 3143
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“Kolossus has a surprise for Alice. Thus why I asked you here while your ship is being resupplied.”
Alice walked her humanoid remote into the shop and she saw them for the first time.
“DOGGIES!” Suddenly the humanoid robot ran across the shop floor and hugged one of the Doberman Battlearmor.
“THEYAREADORABLE!” Alice squeed in joy as she dangled from the neck of one of the robotic Battlearmor.
“Kolossus was certain Alice would like.”
“Because of my cancer, I never got to have a pet dog and I always wanted one. But these are more than pets aren’t they?” Alice let herself drop to the floor.
“Yes. Perhaps companion would be the better term.”
“May I? Please? Billie’s spider bots that she uses for maintenance actually kind of give me the creeps. I know I’ll still need them for that purpose but…”
“How can Kolossus say no to Alice?”
“YAY!IWOULDHUGYOUIFICOULD!” Alice danced by herself for a moment before composing herself. “Is there a way I can repay Kolossus for everything Kolossus has done for me?”
“There is something Alice can do for me. Where the HPG grid still functions combined with couriers in the right places I have learned Helena needs a Helena.”
“She’s having that rough of a go already?” Alice frowned.
“Yes. It is a warzone near Lazarus now so Kolossus will understand if Alice would rather someone else take the risk.”
“I’m ready, but my human crew are all in the Privateers. So I’ll have to clear it with Jonah and even then it would be a voluntary assignment.” she told the Kolossus.
“Fortunately, Kolossus has recently spent some time getting to know some possible volunteers.”
“So who is Helena’s Helena?” asked Alicia
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===Bearing with burdens of a name===
President Christian Avelar’s office
Alpharatz, Raven Alliance
24th April, 3143
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Lori looked at the tabloid rag picture of herself from a state dinner she and Christian had to attend a couple weeks ago.
“I’ll admit whichever papo took this shot does good work. I might have to hire them for some fresh head shots for the diplomatic corps.”
“The shot with you and Sterling on the next page is quite interesting too.”
“Not the first time they’ve tried to hint at some sort of twisted love triangle between the three of us.”
“No. And no offense my dear but while you are certainly lovely, my proclivities actually lay elsewhere.”
“I know. You were rather drunk, but I was there for your breakup with your last boyfriend.”
“Ah. Yes. I do forget that rather easily since as you say I was quite drunk.”
“Now that we’ve allowed ourselves our diversion, you have a meeting with the finance minister in an hour. An official lunch with reps from all our biggest manufacturers and to finish it off, a meeting with the saKhan in the evening.”
“Sometimes I think you should have my job, Lori. You’re better at this than I am.”
“The people need an Avelar. Not Roberts.”
“We both know who’s daughter you really are.”
“It’s still not my place.”
“You’re right of course. It is my burden to bear, but unless I miss my mark yours is elsewhere too.” Christian told her
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