FSRB Chpt 3

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==The Federated Suns Reborn Chapter 3==
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===3061 - First Quarter - Victor's Return===
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The year started with the FedCom in turmoil. Commands were moving to reinforce key sectors, small scale battles had broken out in a number of areas and civil disturbances were breaking out all over the FedComs territories. Still with command and control secure from New Avalon, Robinson, and New Sytris and with all of the various regional command centers firmly in the hands of the legitimate military authorities the situation was well in hand. The largest number of deployments were in fact not BattleMech equipped units but instead independent infantry brigades rushing from planet to planet to quell disturbances. 
====January 3061====
January opened with fighting either breaking out or continuing in a number of areas, mostly within the Capellan March. 
Within the Achernar PDZ, fighting had broken out on Kansu and Algol. On Kansu 75% of the 1st Kestrel Grenadiers and the 12th Vegan Rangers' Beta Regiment faced off against the 1st Republican regiment along with a number of local militias who had sided with the pro-Tikonov command. Even with these reinforcements however the understrength 1st Republican soon found itself hard pressed to fight off the elite units arrayed against it. After holding out for 2 weeks of brutal fighting the unit broke and it's survivors joined the few remaining Kansu Militia units to attempt to flee into the wilderness. However the largely XL engines mech's of the Vegan Ranger's Beta Regiment soon ran down the vast majority of fleeing enemies. A handful survived to escape but these would be little threat and were hunted down over the next few weeks. Leaving a small force Marshal Stromp prepared to move on the 3rd Republican on Yangtze. On Algol the remainder of the Kestrel Grenadiers found themselves acting more as a support for the two veteran units of the Rangers' Alpha and Gamma Regiments. Under the command of General Stancel of the Alpha Regiment the combined AFFC-Mercenary force smashed into the 2nd Republican. Expecting to be facing an under strength unit with limited supplies General Stancel's forces were surprised to find themselves facing an almost intact regiment with ample supplies. However even this was unable to do more than prolong the inevitable. Using his own Alpha Regiment and the attached Grenadiers as a hammer and the Gamma Regiment as an anvil the general proceeded to smash the 2nd Republican over the course of January and into early February, finally accepting the surrender of the 2nd Republican's remaining battered forces on the 3rd of February. 
Also within the Achernar PDZ, the 1st FedCom RCT largely disarmed the Nanking SMM although left it's Command Officer Leftenant General Tull in command, although with a number of his officers facing court martial's. The 1st FedCom then moved on to Achernar itself, leaving a small combined arms regiment to ensure that the Nanking SMM remembered it's duties. During this time the Davion Assault Guards RCT also arrived upon Tikonov and took most of the staff and cadets of the Tikonov Martial Academy Training Group into custody pending investigations. At least half of the staff and nearly a third of the cadets would subsequently either be dismissed from service of face criminal charges. The remainder would be returned to their positions for the time being. 
The other major area of fighting was on the industrial world of Kathil. Here the 8th FedCom loudly declared for the "Archon-Princess" and refused to stand down at what they felt was the usurpation of her rightful attempt to take the reigns from her weak sister. The 6th New Sytris Fusiliers attempted a quick and overwhelming strike on the 8th FedComs' base, but were rebuffed with heavy losses particularly in their armor support. Following this failed quick strike the war on Kathil turned into a series of sieges, feints and battles for position. Again and again the Fusiliers attempted to break through the 8th FedComs lines with the 2nd NAIS Cadre in support. However as the 6th's losses mounted more and more cadets from the 2nd Cadre were drawn into the battle and suffered disproportionate losses. All through January the battle continued, with little change being made for the lives being lost. 
On other worlds riots and minor disturbances would take place but these were easily contained. 
Within the Lyran Alliance, General of the Armies Nondi Steiner realized her nieces attempted takeover of the FedSuns Command had failed by the 1st of January. She had been expected regular updates from Katherine Steiner-Davion and when these totally failed to materialize after the 22nd of December she feared the worst. Hurried inquiries with various agents in place in "Davion" units within the Lyran Alliance and to operatives within the FedSuns Command itself confirmed to her on the 1st January that her niece had been taken into custody and that throughout the Lyran Alliance pro-Victor units were preparing to move. Whether to withdraw into the FedSuns or to attack her position at Tharkad she couldn't be sure. Not wishing to start a civil war she was reluctant to attack the pro-Victor units but at the same stage she had not achieved her rank solely because of her second name. She immediately began shifting supplies and troops to better positions on the event that a civil war did break out. Deliberately stripping the Jade Falcon border to the bare bones she put more pressure on Duke Morgan Kell's Arc Royal Defense Cordon and the various mercenary units, Clan Wolf-in-Exile, and "traitor" Lyran and Davion units stationed within it to defend the border. This action however did have the unforeseen consequence of infuriating the commanding officer of the 14th Donegal Guards RCT, Leftenant-General Adam Steiner. Seeing the shifting forces as a blatant political maneuver which was stripping the world's of the border of protection he began to think long and hard on his support for the regime on Tharkad. Towards the end of the month he would begin to enter into talks not only with Duke Kell but also with other LAAF officers who had previously been either neutral or pro-Katherine to discuss his concerns. 
In January within the St. Ives Compact, brief skirmishes began between SLDF Peacekeepers and local St Ives units and even some FedCom units such as the 7th FedCom RCT. 
====February 3061==== 
The fighting on Kansu and Algol was slowly dying down and Marshal Stromp authorized her own 1st Kestrel Grenadiers and elements of the 12th Vegan Rangers' Alpha & Gamma Regiments to lift off and head for Yangtze. However, by the time they had arrived over the world in late February the 3rd Republican was gone. The unit had fled and taken with it as many stores as it could loot, pillage and steal. As well as recruiting at least 2 regiments worth of local militia infantry to join its "Free Tikonov" cause. The 1st Kestrel Grenadiers along with attached conventional troops were then forced to begin rebuilding the military infrastructure of Yangtze that the 3rd had looted and willfully destroyed. 
On Achernar the Achernar SMM had been alerted to the impending arrival of the 1st FedCom RCT. Although the unit stood up in case they were attacked even the most fanatically pro-Tikonov members knew they had little chance of surviving an assault by the veteran RCT. Although the commanding officer Hauptmann General Flostet informed his officers he wished to defend the planet from the "Davion invaders" after Marshal Swanson made it clear that she was not here to crush the unit but to take it's commanding officers as well as a handful of separatists into custody the rest of the unit stood down after a few tense days. The arrests did have the effect of reducing the already under strength unit to 50% of it's paper strength. 
The battles on Kathil only got worse as February continued and additional conventional units were dispatched by by New Sytris and New Avalon from neighboring worlds to reinforce the loyalist New Sytris Fusiliers and NAIS Cadre. Although these added little offensive firepower to the 6th New Sytris Fusiliers RCTs forces they did allow Hauptmann General Silver to further blockade the 8th FedCom RCTs territories and limit their maneuverability considerably. While the 8th Fusiliers could easily smash a conventional armor regiment, the time it took to do so would allow the BattleMechs of the 6th Fusiliers and their 2nd Cadre allies to rush to the area. Still with little progress being made at the end of February Duke Hasek ordered the 5th Sytris Fusiliers RCT and the 3rd NAIS Cadre to reinforce their sister units. 
During February, the already tense situation within the St. Ives Compact escalated further and open battles began to take place between the SLDF Peacekeepers and the local and FedCom units. An open battle erupted between the 7th FedCom RCT and the 5th Lyran Regulars. The veteran BattleMech force of the 5th Regulars easily held their own against the much larger but less experienced 7th FedCom, but both sides took considerable losses. These losses drew the attention of the High Command on New Avalon and they began to take steps to prepare to reinforce their allies within the St Ives. The situation was further inflamed when Denbar was annexed to the Capellan Confederation by Warrior House Hiritsu.
Within the Lyran Alliance, Nondi Steiner began to hear rumors of officers discussing the apparent disappearance of the Archon and what this meant for her own position. At this stage the first whispers that perhaps Peter Steiner-Davion could be considered to take up at least a temporary regency, perhaps with her remaining as General of Armies to advise him, began to reach her ears. She briefly considered ordering the arrest of Adam Steiner who seemed to be the main focus of the unrest but rationalized this would only antagonize the officer corp of the LAAF further. She did continue to make plans and prepare for any attack on Tharkad. 
====March 3061==== 
March started with active fighting dying down across the FedCom, but with brief upsurges of unrest on a number of worlds. These were largely handled by the local March Militia's reinforced with conventional infantry units. The first reports from Mayetta began reaching the ears of Marshal of the Armies Jackson Davion and they were less than reassuring. Given the situation he authorized a full brigade of infantry sent to the planet to secure the investigators from any reprisals and ordered the nearby Bremond DMM, Milligan DMM, and Tsamma CrMM to prepare to move into the region to pacify it if fighting broke out. The 1st Crucis Lancers RCT was also ordered to being to prepare for a move to Mayetta if the local officers attempted to fight their way out of trouble. Backed up by elements of three March Militias he was confident that the experienced and well equipped 1st Crucis Lancers RCT could put down any revolt. 
The fighting did however continue on Kathil, with the 8th FedCom RCT now heavily dug in and abandoning any breakout attempts. Their only hope which was becoming more and more marginal by the day was that another pro-Katherine unit would arrive or that Archon-Princess Katherine would come to power on New Avalon. Both hopes were fading fast and were crushed when it was the loyalists who were reinforced. At this stage defections began in large numbers, but the hardcore of the unit continued to resist until a bloody assault that began on the 14th March and ended on the 18th March finally overran their positions. Including those who had already defected to the loyalists a bare third of the RCT was left after the fighting and all four loyalist units had been mauled. There were loud calls from the Sytris Fusiliers and NAIS Cadre to disband the 8th FedCom RCT and strike it's colors. 
On the 15th March, 3061, one of the greatest fears of the those loyal to Archon-Prince Victor Ian Steiner-Davion were banished when he and his troops arrived back within the Inner Sphere. Battered, bloodied but triumphant they had returned from the Great Refusal on Strana Mechty victorious. However, the various units and leaders of the Victor's own task force and the battered survivors of Task Force Serpent would have no time to relax. With the situation critical both Victor and his good friend Kai Allard-Liao took command of their own realm's forces and immediately rushed back to their respective realms. Victor Steiner-Davion was perhaps hurried on this path when he was informed curtly by the Coordinator Theodore Kurita that his daughter had died in childbirth attempting to bring Victor's son into the world. Victor was told that both mother and son had died. The brutal and abrupt nature of the news was perhaps the first sign that the alliance between the two men was beginning to fracture. As was the fact that Theodore Kurita lied to Victor about the fate of his son. In fact although Omi Kurita had indeed died in childbirth, she had given birth to a healthy son who had been whisked away on the Coordinator's own orders by ISF to be raised at a remote monastery maintained by that organization. Not even Theodore's own son Hohiro was notified of the survival of his nephew and he was privately known to blame Victor for his sister and nephews death. 
Despite his now cooling relationship with Victor Steiner-Davion, Theodore Kurita did make every effort to speed his travels back to the FedCom border and a chain of Jumpships transported the Archon-Prince and his accompanying units to the Draconis March border where a similar chain had been set up linking Robinson with New Avalon on the basis that he would return safely. A less intensive jump line had been created to return Kai Allard-Liao to the St. Ives. Leaving the bulk of his forces within the Draconis March the Archon Prince rushed to New Avalon with only his personal guard drawn from the 1st Davion Guards (the bulk of which had remained on New Avalon) and the 10th Lyran Guards RCT. At a number of key locations Fox class corvettes had been deployed to safeguard the returning Prince. Even with these precautions and Jumpship lines the Archon Prince would not arrive on New Avalon until early April, while Kai Allard-Liao would not arrive back in the St Ives until the beginning of May. 
In the St. Ives Compact, the word of the return of Kai caused a massive upsurge in pro-St. Ives feeling, particularly on those worlds with SLDF Peacekeepers. At this time and in preparation for the upcoming Whitting Conference the First Star Lord Sun-Tzu Liao began transferring the SLDF Peacekeepers out of the St Ives and replacing them with his own House troops. This did little to calm the situation and soon the fighting was breaking out all along the border worlds. The 7th FedCom RCT fresh from "driving off" the 5th Lyran Regulars soon proceeded to attack the replacement CCAF troops in open combat. The 3rd Canopian Fusiliers in particular found the 7th FedComs brutal attacks devastating and were only saved from being driven of the world by the interventions of Warrior House Hiritsu who had rushed from their seizure of Denbar to rescue their embattled allies. The 7th FedCom RCT's assaults were only slowed due to the heavy losses it was sustaining in maintaining them, although amongst the infantry formations these losses were often replaced by fanatical St Ives natives joining the colors. Duchess Candace Allard-Liao personally sent the unit a lance of Victor BattleMechs to replace losses and to honor their sacrifices on her realms behalf. 
General of the Armies Nondi Steiner had finally decided that enough was enough. She sent a threatening demand to New Avalon to Victor Steiner-Davion, the so-called-Archon-Prince, to demand the release of the Archon of the Lyran Alliance and her immediate return to the LA. This message would be awaiting Victor upon his arrival on New Avalon.
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