OPREF Chpt 3

=Chapter 3 - Dealer’s Choice=
==Opalescent Reflections==
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===Dealing with Fear Mongering===
Hilton Head, North America
Terra, Sol System
3 July 3048
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The sun was streaming into the First Circuit's chamber through stained-glass windows that bore ComStar's emblem, warming the room to the point that the heavy robes worn by those within were uncomfortable. That was Wei Rong's feeling anyway - she could hear the air conditioning working hard to try to address the problem but it wasn't quite sufficient.
 
For a moment she considered throwing an upgrade to the air conditioning onto the agenda, but if no one else was bothered by it then she'd be wasting time and credibility. Perhaps if she was on better terms with the First Circuit but despite being the one who'd appointed them, she wouldn't call any of them friends. They didn't spend enough time on the same planet to change that - it wasn't like the original First Circuit, before the Precentor-Advocates were appointed. The twelve original positions were all based within direct HPG range of Terra, close enough for an (admittedly expensive) real-time conversation. Perhaps that was why Dieron was the most powerful of the five Precentor-Advocates before she moved that position to Luthien - it had easier access to Terra.
 
"Does anyone have any concerns about the proposed contracts for Krupp and Wangker?" she asked, instead of mentioning the air conditioning.
 
Gwyn Thorne frowned but then shook her head. "None I haven't already voiced." Precentor Rasalhague had been a good choice, Wei thought. She was towards the pacifist end of ComStar's political spectrum and had a background in the financial side of the Order. She'd be delighted if the ComGuards shrank back to their previous side, balancing out the more militant voices.
 
Wei looked around the room. "Shall we approve the contracts for the upgraded Griffin and Corsair production by acclamation, or does anyone wish to call for a vote?"
 
"A vote would be a formality," Joe Murphy declared. "Let's just approve this and move on."
 
No one spoke up in opposition after a moment and Wei tapped the approval button on her podium, dispatching the proposals back into the bureaucracy. She'd managed to keep the list of Focht's requests to herself, and only requesting the two top items - a medium Battlemech and a medium Aerospace Fighter - would keep enough money spare in the budget for other projects. And if there was money next year, she could look at the next few items. In her experience, a trickle of benefits for someone tended to win more support than a single bout of largess.
 
"We have completed the scheduled agenda," she declared. "Does anyone want to raise any new issues?" On her podium she brought up her own plan. Not the air conditioning, or at least Hilton Head's air conditioning. Repairing the solar shade for Venus, after a quarter of a millennium of neglect, could be considered to be very large scale air conditioning.
 
Joe Buckley leaned forwards. "Yes, Primus. I do have a concern related to our last item of business."
 
Wei gestured for him to continue - she'd invited input, she could hardly shut him up now. What was Buckley after now? Last time he'd asked for anything it was additional Psi and Nu presence in the HPG stations through the outer edges of the Crucis March, hoping to bring back the days when the Davion Outback had been a major recruitment area for ComStar. Wei had been delighted to send him all the Psi division staff he could have asked for - it got them away from Terra and it would give Federated Commonwealth intelligence something to focus on other than actually important ROM activity.
 
"I'm pleased that we're taking the defense of our enclaves seriously," the New Avalon Precentor declared pompously. "The most important, of course, being here on Terra. However there is an area that I believe is being neglected: our warship fleet is in a state of sad neglect."
 
"We have the only warships left in the Inner Sphere," Precentor Norris pointed out, slightly scornfully. "Just the fact we have three of them active means that Terra is completely secure, not to mention the dozens of mothballed hulls."
 
"Ah, but we may not have the only warships for much longer."
 
Wei turned sharply towards Buckley and restrained a sharp question only because Tiger Lily got there first with a: "What are you talking about?"
 
Buckley nodded seriously. "Hanse Davion's secret warship programme is moving towards the construction of a class of warships - Project RX-78."
 
Tapping at her podium, Wei searched for data that and found nothing. "If this is so," she asked, "then why has ROM not reported it already."
 
"I'm sure that the matter is working its way through their structure, Primus." Buckley lowered his head obsequiously, which didn't hide a smug smile. "It was only recently discovered and I brought the data directly to Terra with me." He tapped at his own podium and files became available for Wei to read. Rather than do so on the podium, she activated the holoprojector built into the floor.
 
The diagrams that came up were clearly incomplete and it took Wei a few seconds to find the best overview of what it was - a thimble-shaped ship that looked more like an oversized dropship than a full-sized warship.
 
"It's only a corvette," Murphy observed. "And not much of one. We have three Dante Class frigates active, any of which would make mincemeat of this."
"And this is only a design," Wei observed. "Has construction begun on this?" If it had then she could take a figurative ax to ROM's reporting processes. That should have crossed her desk before now.
 
Buckley shook his head. "Federated-Boeing of Galax is currently in the process of preparing construction slips, but the design has not been finalized and we do have a few years of leeway - but any response will also take years to be put into place. The Federated Commonwealth clearly proposes that this ship will be built in numbers - multiple vessels to be built at Galax and possibly at Alarion as well."
 
Norris leant forwards. "That is concerning. Even if it isn't directed at us, that would give the Federated Commonwealth a substantial advantage over the navies of its neighbors. I'm confident Theodore Kurita would order the use of nuclear weapons if he had to face FedCom warships, even vessels as limited as this."
 
"...it could take us back to the Second Succession War." Wei realized, speaking out loud.
 
"And if a flotilla of these could overwhelm our frigates," added Tiger Lily. "Primus, the security of Terra requires that we bring more warships online."
 
"We have the time to bring our fleet up to its full strength, more than sixty warships, in the time it will take Davion's scientists and engineers to complete the first batch of these ships," Buckley advised the other Precentors. "And thanks to the Primus' fiscal care, we have something of a surplus of funds - enough to put this into practice."
 
"I've been earmarking those funds for the solar shade over Venus." Wei told him. "ComStar has been promising to deal with that for over a century, it's time we kept our word."
 
"Respectfully, Primus, keeping a few thousand Venusians happy is much less important than the defense of Terra." Tiger Lily spoke hotly. "I don't object to that project in principle, but we must prioritize."
 
Wei glanced around the room and saw that the fear of the ship projected in the air among them had captured the imaginations of most of those present. "I understand your concerns, Precentor Atreus."
 
"I'm sure the Precentor Martial has contingencies for reactivating the fleets," Murphy declared. "I propose that an updated plan, based on the available funding, be prepared for us to consider before the end of the month. We have time… but we cannot waste it."
 
"I second Precentor Tharkad's motion," said Joe Buckley. "Shall we vote?"
 
"All who say aye?" asked Wei. She knew how this would go thought - the four most powerful Precentor-Advocates were in agreement, even if Precentor Sian added his vote to her and Gwyn Thorne, the result was clearly going to be in favor of rebuilding the fleet.
 
Touching her podium, she dismissed the proposed solar shade. Sinking a fortune into warships that hadn't been needed since Jerome Blake's day instead of keeping faith with the people that ComStar has a duty for…
 
No, she thought. This isn't over. I won't let Buckley's fear-mongering dominate ComStar. I have a month to find a solution.
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===Dispute over a Bloodright===
Katyusha, Strana Mechty
Kerensky Cluster, Clan Homeworlds
16 July 3048
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The Bloodchapels of the Clans occupied a great park, called Svoboda Zemlya, that surrounded the Hall of Khans. More than eight hundred chapels stood, surrounded with trees and shrubs that in some cases had been planted by the first generations of the Clans.
 
Some that Ace drove past were blasted ruins, torn apart by the weapons of BattleMechs to mark the annihilation of the bloodlines that had once been under the custodianship of those working in the Bloodchapels. The Not-Named Clan and a few other examples since had suffered that fate.
 
Others were quiet and near-abandoned, either because the Bloodhouse that they had once represented had dwindled over the centuries or because the Clan that they sprang from no longer centered their affairs on Strana Mechty. A Clan's most prized lineages would be fought for on their own capital, not here - reducing the bloodchapels to mere back-ups that functioned mostly as automated back-ups for the main repositories.
 
Guided by an automated navigation system, Ace guided his groundcar towards one of the many bloodchapels that still functioned as it had been designed to - a building that was a hive of activity today. Scientists out in force, as were warriors from four different Clans, awaiting the beginning of the Trial of Bloodright. Clan Burrock had long since relocated its capital to the world of Albion, but for Bloodhouses that it no longer held complete control of, it was still best for a Trial of Bloodright to take place here on neutral ground. Not law, but practicality.
 
Pulling the groundcar up alongside a rank of others, Ace climbed out and then removed the sunglasses he was wearing in deference to the bright light of Strana Mechty's star. As he looked around, he saw that he'd caught the attention of many of those outside - worth one look as a potential rival and then a second as they realized that a fifth Clan had joined the mix.
 
No doubt there would be some jostling for position, warriors trying to psyche themselves up and discourage other contenders. Ace felt a degree of amusement at the idea, he'd had to face his entire Clan Council to be here. A little hazing was nothing.
 
One of the scientists manning a desk set up outside the chapel looked up at Ace's arrival. "Are you sure you are at the correct place, warrior? This is the Enders bloodchapel. If you need directions…"
 
"This is where I should be." He rolled up one sleeve of his jumpsuit, as he saw many of the warriors had. "I am here to register for the Trial of Bloodright."
 
The man - shorter than Ace and already old enough to be balding - flinched. "My apologies. I was not aware that any of the bloodline served Clan Diamond Shark. If you would hold out your arm?"
 
Ace complied and the man tapped his codex bracelet against a scanner, downloading his official profile, then drew a blood sample with a second tool - a means of identifying fraud. Ace had never heard of someone trying to cheat their way into a Trial of Bloodright, but anyone who tried would almost certainly not be given long to regret the decision.
 
"Star Captain Ace… bloodline…" The man frowned. "Excuse me, could you confirm your sibko? There seems to be a mistake."
 
The conversation around the table died down, silence spreading to those further away as they turned to see what had drawn attention.
 
"I was trained in freeborn sibko," Ace declared, conscious that everyone here would hear the words. "My mother was born into Sibko Enders-Polcyzk-2997."
 
"Your… mother…" the scientist said slowly. "Let me check…"
 
Ace slowly rolled down his sleeve, watching the scientist.
 
"You are definitely in the wrong place, freeborn." a woman said quietly.
 
He looked at over her for a moment. A Burrock, no rank pins. "To earn a bloodline requires the correct matrilineal DNA… and to win. Being born in a test-tube does seem to help but it isn't technically a requirement. Otherwise Natalya Enders couldn't have held the bloodright we are all here for."
The mechwarrior seemed about to say more but someone caught her shoulder, then had to yank his hand back before she seized it for a throw. "Relax, Annika. No Diamond Shark holds our bloodname so he has no sponsor. He is fodder for the Grand Melee."
 
"Technician Sophia," the scientist observed quietly. "Washed out of Enders-Polcyzk-2997 prior to her Trial of Position… This is irregular."
 
"Does his Matrilineal DNA match?" a gray-haired woman asked.
 
"Aff."
 
She shook her head. "Then it is not our problem." Turning, she looked Ace in the eye. "The bloodhouse leader is inside, warrior. Your credentials are verified, you can go inside to complete your application to participate."
 
"Thank you." He tilted his head slightly in respect and then turned sharply - as if on a parade ground - marching towards the handful of steps leading up to the entrance. No one tried to stop him, but he heard a snatch of words from a cluster of Fire Mandrills and Goliath Scorpions. "Felipe… chew him up… wager… blood…"
 
Then he was out of the blazing sunlight and in the shadowy interior hall of the chapel, closing the heavy door behind him.
 
Below the floor would be the catacombs, level after layer of genetic reference material, offices and other working areas for the scientist caste. But here there was archaic wooden benches set on a marble floor. Once Ace was past the antechamber he found himself in a chamber of gothic paneling as high as his shoulders. Above that, the walls were marked with clips and niches to hold hundreds of trophies - donations by bloodnamed warriors wanting to leave a mark here for their successor. Each had a story… but he suspected that few knew what those stories were. Reverence for a predecessor made little sense when one was aiming to surpass them.
 
Four long benches with crimson cushions lined the upper half of the chapel's main floor, a throne-like seat in the same black wood and crimson velvet for the bloodhouse's leader facing towards the door. There was room for six people on each bench, though Ace knew from his research that twelve bloodrights had been retired over the years - mostly for mediocrity. The Enders bloodhouse had produced few warriors of great note. It must rankle with those who came here.
 
Even of the twelve living men and women who held the bloodname of Enders, half were absent. A stocky, dark-haired man in Burrock ceremonial garb sat on the throne, flanked on his left by three more Burrocks. Facing them was a redheaded woman in the colors of Clan Hells' Horses and a lean, distracted seeming man whose cap bore the Goliath Scorpion's badge.
 
"What is this?" The house leader had been examining a datapad - presumably linked to the tests done outside. "Does Khan Ian Hawker think Bloodhouse Enders is a joke?!"
"I do not speak for my Khan." Ace replied quietly.
 
The Goliath Scorpion stretched slightly and then seemed to awaken - had he been napping? The man looked over at Ace with lazy curiosity. "I like the look of this one."
 
"No one cares, Ellison." The house leader set his datapad aside. "A technician's sp-"
 
"I care," Ellison replied mildly. "Ah, you were speaking, Felipe?"
 
So this was indeed Felipe Enders, the current bloodhouse leader. Ace hadn't been entirely sure - it was possible he might have not attended, requiring another to oversee the Trial of Bloodright. The man took a deep breath, clearly struggling with his temper. "Aff, I am speaking."
 
"Please continue." interrupted Ellison, smirking slightly.
 
"If you would bring your customary silence to the conversation - in fact, if you were to go back to sleep - then that would be much easier." Then Felipe turned his glare on Ace. "And you can get the hell out of here, freebirth. A technician's bloodline has no claim here on the Enders name."
 
"Vladimir Enders was a technician before he followed Nicholas Kerensky in the Second Exodus," the redheaded warrior said drily. "As you ought to remember."
 
"That was a very long time ago. As much as I honor the founder's legacy, if any of the founders of the Clans were among us today they would no longer be our equals," Felipe asserted. "and whatever this one's maternal lineage. I see no record here of whatever lineage was mixed with it to produce him. He has no place in a Trial of Bloodright."
 
"Unless you can muster a vote of the Grand Council to amend the General Regulations… I meet the requirements," Ace challenged. "You have no grounds to block me. Are you really so afraid that whoever you are sponsoring are unfit to face me?"
 
"I am the leader of this Bloodhouse and I have the right and obligation to deny participation of anyone whose credentials are suspect." Felipe smirked suddenly. "Alas, without any of your Clan here, it may take quite some time to validate your identity."
 
The redhead hissed slowly. "That is a dangerous position to take, Felipe. One that could get you reaved - or worse - if the Diamond Sharks go to the Grand Council."
 
Ace did his best not to let on that Ian Hawker would probably be ecstatic about Felipe's position.
Felipe slowly and deliberately sat down on his throne and tapped his knuckles on one carved arm. "Are you challenging me, Helena."
 
For a moment the question hung in the air and then Ellison chuckled. "A vote," he proposed. "If the Loremaster of even one of our Clans saw this the wrong way, it could lead to the entire Bloodhouse being censured. Not even the leader of a Bloodhouse has the right to drag us all into that against our will."
 
Felipe looked at the so far silent Burrocks to his left and got a nod from the one nearest him. "Fine then. I vote that this Diamond Shark be detained while we refer the legitimacy of his candidacy to the loremaster of my Clan - on Albion. Who is with me?"Two of the Burrocks raised their hands immediately, then jabbed the man between them below the ribs when he hesitated, stroking his beard. "Very well," he sighed. "I agree."
"Four votes to your two," Felipe told Ellison and Helena. "So…"
 
"Five votes," Ellison told him brightly.
 
Felipe blinked. "Are you so drunk that you cannot count, Ellison Enders?"
 
"Neg," the Scorpion said brightly, "But I kind of had a suspicion that you might decide to put your finger on the scales in favor of your Clan, so I sent word to Jared, Allaria and LeBrun. Oddly, they all agreed to give me their proxies to vote for them if anything came up in their absence." He pulled a datadisk out of his pocket and handed it to the Hells' Horse-woman beside him and smirked at Felipe.
 
She picked up a datapad, slotted the disk in and checked the contents, then looked up. "It is true. Ellison holds four votes… and I believe I will side with him."
 
With smooth suddenness that was entirely at odds with his earlier laxness, Ellison leant forwards into Felipe's face. "I have the votes to remove you as House Leader, at least until you can get proxies from the Burrocks who are absent. You do not want that, quineg?"
 
The Burrock growled something that could be considered a neg. "You have your vote, Ellison…" And then jabbed a finger into the Goliath Scorpion's face. "And I call for a Trial of Refusal. The freebirth is not a true warrior and I am offended that you treat him as such."
 
Ellison blinked and then laughed in Felipe's face. "Ha! I did not think you had it in you. Alright, take your shot at him. Who has a coin? Wait, I should have one."
 
Ace could see the others were baffled, but it was the bearded Burrock who saw it first. "Ah, since this is a trial based on your fitness, Star Captain Ace, you must champion your cause."
"At four to five votes." Helena muttered.
 
"That is close enough to even," declared Ellison. He produced a golden coin from one pocket. Heads or tails, Diamond Shark. Winner chooses the means of combat, the loser chooses the circle of equals."
 
Ace blinked at the idea, but it wasn't as if he'd come this far to back down. "Heads."
 
The coin spun in the air and then Ellison snatched it back and slapped it onto the back of his hand. "Lucky as well as brave," he said cheerfully. "Heads it is."
 
"Wait - since I am the loser, I declare that our battlefield will be in here," Felipe snapped, before Ace could declare they would fight in 'mechs.
 
 Helena made a face. "Legal…" she conceded.
 
Ace grit his teeth. Augmented combat would play to his strengths, but it was clearly impossible to bring even one 'mech into the Bloodchapel, never mind two. And even trying would destroy the building - something that would disgrace Ace. Bloodchapels, like any other genetic repository, were sacrosanct.
 
The trouble was, unlike most Clan warriors, Ace hadn't been practicing unarmed combat since he was born. He was adequate… but he wasn't an expert. And Felipe had probably guessed that.
 
He needed a way out. A loophole…
 
"Well?" Felipe asked. "How will we fight?"
 
Something among the trophies caught Ace's eye and inspiration struck. "Augmented," he declared and before anyone could object, he ran at one of the empty benches, using it as a jumping off point to snatch two rapiers from where they hung on the wall. He had no idea who had left them up there, but they had the weight to not be merely ornamental.
 
Ace landed on the far end of the bench, behind the three Burrocks and jabbed one of the swords point-first into the wooden bench. "With these," he clarified, backing down the bench until he could hop off it and onto the floor.
 
Ellison laughed. "Also legal. Well, Felipe? Go kill him if he offends you so much."
 
Felipe reached over and grasped the hilt of the rapier, yanking it out of the wood with no great effort. "It will be my pleasure," he declared, stepping between the benches.
 
Ace lunged forwards, driving the sword right at Felipe's face. The Burrock threw up his sword to parry and sparks flew as the two blades ground against each other. Then he pushed and Ace let him break the bind, not convinced he had the muscle to win that contest.
 
Taking the withdrawal as weakness, the Bloodhouse leader advanced - hacking wildly with the sword. The other bloodnamed warriors scrambled back and away while Ace kept his parries short and kept backing away. His hands stung when the swords clashed - Felipe was strong and he was angry, putting a lot of force into the blows.
 
"I will send your body back to the Sharks in pieces." the older man promised as Ace kept giving ground towards the door.
 
"Promises, promises. You have yet to even draw blood." Ace reminded him.
 
Felipe snarled and attempted his own lunge. Ace sidestepped, pushing the other rapier just far enough out of line to miss and then punched with the basket-hilt of the rapier.
 
The Burrock's head snapped back as half a kilogram of metal smashed his nose flat. He didn't fall though and he had the wit to twist his blade around Ace's, freeing him to attack again before the younger man could try to exploit the opening.
 
Ace backed up until his heel was against the door, taking a fencing stance - one hand holding the rapier out towards Felipe and the other behind his back for balance.
 
"Nowhere else to run," the older man warned him, staring at him over their swords. "If you leave then you've exited the circle of equals."
 
"And if talk won Trials then Clan Mongoose wouldn't have been absorbed," Ace shot back, deliberately stressing the contraction.
 
Felipe's pupils shrank visible and he darted forwards, sword thrusting for Ace's throat.
 
And Ace swung himself to the side, fingers on the hand behind him latched onto the door handle.
 
The door opened smoothly and the Bloodname leader found himself staring directly into the glare of the sun, with eyes adjusted to the shadowy light inside of the chapel.
 
He didn't stumble, but his efforts to keep his sword aimed towards Ace went wildly wrong.
 
The Diamond Shark had no such problems and he'd yanked his sword hand well back to have maximum potential to extend. Folding one knee, he angled himself to thrust up and the rapier's point stabbed upwards into the soft flesh below Felipe's chin… and then up through the mouth and brain.
 
"Well," Ellison murmured, perching on one end of a bench. "It looks like we have two open bloodrights now. And need to elect a new leader, quiaff?"
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===Enjoying perks of ComStar===
Paris, Europe
Terra, Sol System
25 July 3048
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Le Masque d'Argent wasn't the most exclusive restaurant in Paris but it was the most prestigious. Polished stainless steel and glass formed gigantic greenhouses for tropical plants, and something like a thousand tables set on balconies looking down on dance floors or stages. It was very much the place to be seen if you were one of the Terran financial elite, a group that didn't overlap very well with the more academic ethos of ComStar.
 
For that reason, as well as more electronic security measures than some Class-B HPG, Wei had selected the Le Masque as a good place to meet with Tiger Lily. Also their dessert menu, brought in daily from Vienna, was to die for.
 
Both women wore formal gowns and the elaborate masquerade masks that were required by the dress-code.
 
"I'm glad you're paying for this." Tiger Lily observed, once the main course had been served. "I don't mind expensive, but anywhere that doesn't even mention the prices is beyond that level."
 
"If you have to ask, you shouldn't be here." Wei agreed, lifting her wine glass. "Thankfully, this is coming out of my entertainment budget, not my salary. Even I don't get paid that well." Senior ComStar Precentors weren't paid badly, but the real benefit lay in the influence, not in more tangible rewards.
 
Precentor Atreus raised her own glass and sipped. Her eyes widened slightly, barely visible through the eye-holes of the feathered mask she wore. "It's a formidable bribe, but I won't compromise on the security of Terra," she warned.
 
"On the security, no. But perhaps on how it's achieved." Wei put her glass down and began cutting her lamb. She'd not tried it on her previous visit here, but she'd seen it being served at another table. In most matters, Tiger Lily was strongly opposed to the extremist rhetoric of Joe Buckley - dangerously so in some ways. Completely secularizing ComStar would be almost as bad as indulging fantasies based on reading between the lines of Blake's journals. But it raised the possibility of peeling her away from the temporary coalition pushing for bringing every warship in reach back into service as fast as possible.
 
The older woman swirled the wine in her glass for a moment and then set it down, taking up her fork. "It costs me nothing to listen."
 
"The vessels Buckley uncovered aren't designed in the same way as the SLDF vessels we have in mothballs," she pointed out. "If you look at them, they're carrying dropships and substantial secondary weapons. I've spoken to a pair of our more experienced naval officers - Beresick and Zwick - and they believe the difference is because the SLN saw warships as one part of a larger force, whereas the Steiner-Davion's have to see them as units that might have to operate alone or only in support of transport elements with limited military capability in space."
 
"I don't claim to be a military expert myself," Tiger Lily conceded, "but if you're comfortable sharing their report then I'll take it at face value." There was an unspoken 'for now'.
 
Wei nodded slightly and ate some of the lamb. It was exquisite. "If we simply rush our warships into production, they'll be at a disadvantage because they aren't equipped the same way. And we don't have the ability to surround each of them with escorting dropships and the like - unless you're willing to start making severe changes to other budgets. We might need to cut entire HPG stations if we go down that road, and hitting our core functions seems… ill-advised."
 
That got a considering nod.
 
"And as Precentor Buckley has - to his credit - given us plenty of warning, what I'm suggesting is that we refit the available Essex and Lola III destroyers to carry more onboard secondary weapons and fighter bays. The design work would take a little while, but we wouldn't be starting from scratch - it's much the same sort of work that was done when designing the Dante-class frigates."
 
"Are a few destroyers going to be enough?" asked Tiger Lily thoughtfully.
 
"I'm talking about more than twenty vessels," Wei answered drily. "Each of which should be more than capable of matching one of these RX-78 corvettes."
 
The Precentor blinked. "I didn't think we had so many ships in those classes - unless I'm mis-remembering the numbers that Buckley quoted."
 
Wei sat back. "Since we're looking at refitting the ships, I'm factoring in derelict hulls we haven't previously recovered… and a cache that I'm not convinced even Myndo Waterly knew about."
 
"...excuse me?"
 
"The deaths of so many Precentors two years ago didn't just open room at the top, it seems to have cut away quite a number of people who had sole - or almost sole - knowledge of various projects. ROM hasn't just been hiding ComStar's secrets from outsiders, they've also enabled various groups to hide them from each other."
 
"A cache of warships though? That seems implausible… although I suppose they'd not need much maintenance."
 
"Someone - I think the late Precentor Talitha was in the loop - had hidden away an entire repair facility, comparable to Lutyen or Ross." Wei reached for her glass again, watching Tiger Lily for any sign that the woman had known. "It appears that the Star League yardship that our own Faslane-class repair ships are based on wasn't scrapped, it was restored to function and mothballed there."
 
"Blake's voice." Tiger Lily reached for her own glass and emptied it. "If it wouldn't ruin the meal I'd ask for something stronger," she observed, taking the wine bottle and refilling the crystal glass. "I take it that you want that ship handling the recovery of derelicts."
 
"The cost savings of standardizing the ComGuard fleet on only a few warship classes would be significant. The same rationale as the Precentor Martial's request for focusing our production of smaller equipment on only a few types." Wei sipped from her own glass and then cut a parsnip up into three bite-sizes. "And yes, the yardship does open up some options."
 
"How many secrets like that are there?"
 
"That's a good question." Wei paused. "I'm working on finding out but we may never know."
 
They fell silent for a few moments, focusing on food as Wei allowed the older woman to consider the ideas that had been presented. They finished the main course and once the waitress had collected their plates, Tiger Lily looked out over the stage where a 26th century strings quintet was playing live music. "My concern is that destroyers may not be enough. Do the Dante class already meet the specifications that these Precentors - Zwick and Beresick - ask for?"
 
"Close, but not quite. They have some recommendations." Wei told her.
 
"Doesn't everyone when the prospect of a budget for their pet project rears its head? Like your solar shade…"
 
Wei raised her glass in acknowledgement of the hit.
 
"Why does that matter to you so much?" Tiger Lily asked curiously. "Venus has managed without for a very long time."
 
"Symbols can be powerful things," the Primus said quietly. "Right now, it's a very visible symbol of a promise Jerome Blake made that we've never followed through on. And if we don't keep promises to our own people then how can outsiders take our assurances seriously?"
 
"What outsiders do you have in mind?"
 
Wei looked at Tiger Lily and then shrugged. "How many small provinces are there in the Free Worlds League that are wary of Thomas Marik's centralization of military power. Do you think they really believe we'll stand with them against pirates, and against raiders who might or might not be their thinly disguised friends and neighbors?"
 
"I see." Precentor Atreus tapped the table. "And if Thomas Marik can't maintain a strong FWLM then certain members of House Steiner may have convincing voices when they talk about doing to the Free Worlds League what was done to the Capellans twenty years ago."
 
"Victor Steiner-Davion is young and his father is old. The Free Worlds League is the only other Successor State that the FedCom hasn't launched a major offensive at. And if not them, somewhere else," Wei confirmed. "Another major war could bring back the horrors of the First or Second Succession War. If that happens, we need the credibility to pick up the pieces… and if it doesn't, then we need legitimacy in order to keep operating. Primus Waterly's obsession with bringing down the Federated Commonwealth has left us facing a cold war that could destroy the Order."
 
"There are those," Tiger Lily said quietly, "Who say that the Federated Commonwealth is the next Star League and that we should be supporting them. They say those things very quietly, and usually looking over their shoulders."
 
"There are a lot of possibilities, and we need to prepare for all of them. A willingness to discuss the unpalatable was one of the first casualties of my predecessor's reign."
 
The Precentor shrugged and then turned back as the desserts were brought out. The waitress unloaded them from a small trolley and then rolled it away with a little sway of her hips that Wei appreciated.
 
"I'll contact Zwick and Beresick," the older woman said, after a nibble on her pastry. "If what they say makes sense then I would be satisfied - at least for now - with restoring the destroyers you mentioned, refitting our Dantes and constructing additional frigates to the new specification."
 
Wei nodded. "That's reasonable."
 
"However, if the situation changes then we need to be open to revising that decision," Tiger Lily warned. "Warship construction by the Federated Commonwealth is something that could accelerate into an arms race among the Great Houses. It's happened before."
 
"A naval committee will be established to oversee the reconstruction work." Wei offered. "Representatives of Titan Yards, the ComGuards Naval service and the First Circuit. You could have a seat on it."
"Better me than Buckley?" asked Tiger Lily.
 
"Joseph Murphy may have more relevant experience." Wei pointed out.
 
Tiger Lily frowned at the mention of Precentor Tharkad. "He lacks a certain political awareness… alright, what do you want? The solar shade? You know we can't afford it even you cut the warship costs in half."
 
"I'll have a revised plan that spreads the cost over the next decade." replied Wei.
 
"So you have your cake and eat it too. Very clever. I hope it tastes as well as these pastries. Very well."
 
The women finished their desserts and Tiger Lily gave Wei a look when the Primus didn't rise to leave. "Aren't you returning to Hilton Head?"
 
"Later." Wei gave her a salacious smile. "There's a burlesque performance I don't want to miss - I should get the Order's money's worth out of reserving this table."
 
The precentor snorted. "Do try to be discreet. No Primus has caused a sex scandal in our entire history, it's a record I'd like you to maintain."
 
Wei tapped her mask. "Why do you think I chose a venue that insists on masks?"
 
She watched the Precentor leave while the waitress from before approached with two cups of coffee. In the blink of an eye, the waitress pulled a mask from her pocket and whipped a silky shawl out of her pockets. By the time she'd sat down the new arrival had transformed herself from a waitress to a guest wearing business dress.
 
"That," Wei said quietly, "Is showing off." Then she smiled warmly. "I approve."
 
Adept Dahlia Erin smiled back, as enigmatically as the Mona Lisa.
 
"Do you know she knows anything?"
 
Now the spy shook her head. "She is an expert politician. Feigning surprise is usually the first thing they learn after hiding it. All available evidence suggests that she is genuinely concerned at Precentor New Avalon's faction and welcomes an option to satisfy her concerns about the warship threat without accepting his solution. However, if allying with him advances her policies in other areas…"
 
"As you said, she is a politician."
 
Erin smiled again. "Precisely."
 
Wei lifted the coffee and found it was prepared perfectly to her tastes. "Anastasius Focht spoke highly of you."
 
"I hope not to disappoint."
 
Their eyes met and then Wei finished her coffee. "As of midnight, you are Precentor Rho. Officially, you report directly to Precentor ROM. Unofficially, your primary concern is to investigate the members of Mu who are controlling what does and doesn't reach me. I can't review everything discovered, but far too much is being lost for it to be an accident. That has to end."
 
"You're asking me to lie to my immediate superior, because you think other people are lying to their superiors." Erin said.
 
"I tried trusting people for almost three weeks after I got this job. It's all been downhill from there," Wei Rong admitted and turned her attention to the stage.
 
When she looked up a few minutes later, the ROM agent was gone as if she'd never existed in the first place.
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Chapter 3