CS3056-12

=Chapter 12= 
==Clover Spear - The Story of the '56 War==
Prologue, Book 2, The Hammer Falls
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===Meeting with the IlKhan===
IlKhan’s Office
Tamar City
Tamar, Clan Wolf Occupation Zone
August 30th, 3056
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The Jade Falcons have met the Falconer…and he is taming them badly, mused Ulric Kerensky, ilKhan of the Clans, as he poured over the Wolf Watch reports from the Jade Falcon/Steel Viper OZ. He’d been reading the estimates generated by Star Captain Kerensky’s people, and he was impressed with her insight. I was right to sponsor her bloodright, with Conal Ward gone, Clan Wolf will need a new Loremaster, and I can think of none better. I will discuss this with Natasha when I get the chance, but not tonight. Tonight, is for far heavier things. Things I did not ever believe I would discuss.
His reverie was interrupted by a sharp tap at the door. “My Khan,” a voice known to him as a member of his personal guard “Khan Kerensky and saKhan Ward of Clan Wolf are here to see you? Do I allow them entry?”
Ulric exhaled. Time to as Phelan is often fond of saying “face the music”. “Yes, allow them entry, Star Commander. Then make sure we are not disturbed, I have a feeling this will be a long meeting.”
“Aff, ovKhan, as you wish.”
The door opened to reveal an older woman and a younger man, both in Clan Wolf leathers, the woman, though she had dyed her hair red, and her face was lined by the ravages of time, still walked with a regal bearing that signified her status among the Wolves, and Inner Sphere. She was the Black Widow herself, Natasha Kerensky, Khan of Clan Wolf, and all that came with it. She was death, personified. And yet, with all that, intimates knew her as both a “pain in the ass” and a “someone with an authority problem”. Which to Ulric, made her elevation to Khan both a way to honor her...and the best damn joke he had known in years. I had always said, ‘Tasha, that you would be Khan one day and you told me “Over my dead body.” Funny how that worked out. It seems all the dead bodies belong to everyone who stood in your way. But considering the nature of our little meeting, why is she wearing a smile?
The young man on the other hand, was in a broad grin, and carrying a six pack of Timbiqui Dark and Phelan, like the Greek bearing gifts. Uh-oh. Those two have a plan that will bring the Wolf Clan martial glory, and me a lot of headaches in the Grand Council. Perhaps they have not had a chance to read the intelligence estimates I just did?
“Dammit Ulric, why so glum? We’re seeing the humbling of the Falcons?” Natasha bellowed, her nature was always boisterous and loud, except in combat, which clearly, this was not. She made herself at home leaning against Ulric’s work table in the far corner of the room. Phelan, on the other hand, took a seat on the maroon couch in the middle of the room.
“I would say that this has the potential to undermine all of Clan society, you two. This basically makes Zellbrigen dead as horse cavalry.” muttered Ulric.
“I dunno, Ulric. Perhaps this is the wakeup call the Clans needed. We didn’t belong here. We still don’t. And now, now little Victor, with no doubt help from Daddy is doing what we haven’t, ripping the damn guts out the Crusaders once and for all?” Natasha mused.
Phelan’s features pinched a little. He didn’t agree completely with Natasha, and Phelan was a bit more forward thinking that she was. Not that she made a bad Khan by any means, but Phelan was often the one doing the leg work on the more “administrative” matters, like peacefully resolving the unrest on Tamar last year during the worst of the food shortages. That had the potential to get nasty, Vlad, damn him, wanted to take ‘Mechs and Elementals in and slaughter the protestors. He really doesn’t have what it takes to be Khan, that one.
“You disagree, Phelan, quiaff?” Ulric queried
“Aff, Ulric. The Falcons and Vipers are being hit by massive levels of force and firepower. The FedCom’s new “Artillery Brigades” are basically smothering them in fire..and then the FedCom mops up with combined arms. Sure, it’s not a perfect solution. But Ulric, unless the Falcons and Vipers can goad the FedCom into a mobile engagement with at least some sort of parity in the numbers department, then all we are going to see is the defeat in detail of both Clans. The issues are, what comes after?”
“Phelan, what comes after? We do as we always have done. We win the right to absorb both clans and then we fight, I don’t see a down side here. I never liked either clan particularly.” Natasha smiled
“’Tasha, with respect, that’s what is blinding you here. The Home Clans are going to see this as an excuse to turn on both Clans, and hell, maybe even us and the Bears, and maybe even kick us out of the homeworlds? I would not be surprised if Abjurement or absorption motions would be on the table.”
“They’d be nuts to try? I mean, ok, against the Falcons and the Vipers once Victor has stomped them into the ground. But really? All of us? The only Khan that is insane enough to try is Asa Taney of the Hellions, and what would he accomplish? The rest of the Clans would step aside and watch him fail. It would be amusing to watch him try, however.” Natasha replied.
Ulric rose his hands in a gesture meant to bring some peace to the conversation. “’Tasha, Phelan, you are both right, and both wrong. I ken much chaos for the Clans if this offensive succeeds. And from the looks of it. It seems that it will. The FedCom has unleashed a concept the Clans have forgotten: Total War. We know the cost of it. The Great Founder knew it. That is why he made the Clans the way he did. But it seems, as much as we seek to avoid it, we are vulnerable to it. What I am afraid of, is how the rest of the Clans will react? And how in the world do I guide them through the rough seas to come?” Ulric then exhaled in a mixture of frustration and disgust.
Natasha shook her head. “We already do know, as we have said, they will go bonkers. The Vipers and Falcons will be absorbed..by someone, and good riddance, as for the rest of the Clans? The Jags will probably jump the Drac border. Probably manage to take Luthien this time, if we’re lucky, the Jags and Dracs kill each other off and we get a better universe out of the bargain. As for the rest of the Clans? It pains me to say this, Ulric, but back home will become a shooting gallery. Trials and counter-trials, and many of them might not bother to wait for you to weigh in?”
“You really think things would go to hell like that, ‘Tasha?” Phelan opined.
“Yeah, kid, I do. We may see ourselves as the pinnacle of human development. Guided benevolently by warriors bred and born, but the truth is? A lot of us act like ADD addled teenagers given the keys to dad’s Battlemech, myself included at times. Vlad is the pinnacle of that, if you want an even better example. Say what you want about the Inner Sphere, but they just remembered that professional soldiers beat warriors every time. And they are demonstrating it to the Falcons and Vipers rather harshly.
But here comes the part that makes me convinced it’s all going to hell in a handbasket, and fast once it becomes clear that a third of the invading clans just got their collective asses kicked? Clan society just had the rules changed, and for all our talk about “might makes right” and “making room for the future”, we are a very conservative society. Our rules have not significantly changed since the Founder returned to the Pentagon Worlds. The Clans have had a nasty habit of killing people who proposed those rules change, and unless you are a warrior...you’re not likely to survive long.”
Phelan looked forlornly at Ulric, who nodded sadly.
“Phelan, the Wardens were always the more pragmatic faction of the Clans. We knew the Inner Sphere and our own society had diverged greatly in the intervening centuries. Once the Dragoons began to report in, we realized just how much. The Crusaders however, could not bring themselves to the intellectual honesty required to realize the “barbarians” really had a lot more guns than we did...and the willingness, it seems to use them.
But shocks me, and will shock the other Clans the most? Seeing mass surrenders by Jade Falcon and Steel Viper warriors! We have already seen it on Bone-Norman! ‘Tasha? You and I have fought the Falcons many times, had you ever known the Falcons to surrender in such numbers?”
“Neg, Ulric, I haven’t, but we never made the damn sky fall in on them.” ‘Tasha mused.
Phelan swore softly. “So what in the hell do we do? Surrender? Make a deal? Turtle up and hope that Victor doesn’t drive on Tamar while he’s at it stomping the hell out of two Clans?”
“I don’t know, Phelan, you actually know the Steiner-Davions better than anyone in this room. What sort of deal might they accept? What would it take to let us stay here in the Inner Sphere, and not be made into a dead part of history by FedCom arms. The people of the Inner Sphere have many reasons to be angry with us. We came without warning. We took what we wanted, we killed many, took many more as bondsmen never to be seen again. We may say it was all because we had the right to. And part of me still believes that, but according to our rules, as much as the FedCom has violated every martial tenet the Clans believe in, they still have applied the core of our beliefs: might makes right. And right now, their might makes them right. But they believe in something different. To them, we are the Nazis, the Huns, the Mongols, we are the faceless evil from beyond the Periphery to be destroyed. We are the people arrogant enough to think we are the master race.”
“We never were, Ulric, you know that!” Natasha shouted.
“I do, ‘Tasha, which is why I am a Warden. But this is going to damage irreparably the worldviews of a lot of Crusaders, who will be looking for someone to blame. They will default to their usual program as it were; Get in their ‘Mechs and strike at us or at any other likely target. It will be war on a scale not seen in the homeworlds for some time. It will be seen as glorious…at first.”
“I think I could use that beer, Ulric.”
“As do I, Phelan. As do I, I think the lucky ones from all this may be the bondsmen the Federated Commonwealth take. At least they will have a future. The rest of us may not. In fact, I expect to receive notice that there will be a Trial of Grievance against me for the way I have handled things.”
“Ulric, the Grand Council would at least allow you a trial?” Natasha’s voice dropped to almost a whisper.
“No, they would not. They are angry. They see the burning Falcon and Viper ‘Mechs, the proud standards of Falcon and Viper clusters brought low by nothing better than freebirths], no offense, Phelan?”
“None taken, Ulric.” Phelan smiled.
“They see this, and they do not care one whit what the truth is, that we must evolve or die. They would see this as our social Armageddon, our Ragnorok, our Gotterdammerung. And they would act accordingly, with all the rules being off.”
“Jesus, Ulric. If that is true…?” Natasha looked on in horror, her thoughts seeing the potential end of Clan society by its own fratricidal hand.
“Then we must take steps to survive it, as a clan, and as a society, and we must purge those elements who would bring this about..and do it quickly, before we all fall.” Ulric’s voice was like gravel, it rumbled softly and with an authority given to very few men. He looked at the other individuals in the room, and held their eyes.
“Till we all fall, my friends, we must do this, because Clan Wolf, heir of the Kerenskys, must survive the coming storm.”
“Seyla” responded Natasha
“Seyla” added Phelan
“Seyla” as Ulric completed the ritual. “It is decided, whatever happens, the survival of our Clan is paramount. What happens to any of us is secondary. Phelan..let’s break out that beer. I have a feeling we are going to need some as we figure out how in the hell we survive this mess.”
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===In the Chambers of the Chancellor===
Private Chambers of the Chancellor
Forbidden Palace
Sian
Capellan Confederation
September 1st, 3056
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Sun-Tzu Liao smiled thinly as he read over the readiness reports for his military. The CCAF has reached a standard no one has seen since 2412, which incidentally, was the last time we actually launched an offensive. EAST SEA is a risky thing, but when will we ever get another opportunity? The Federated Commonwealth is feeling arrogant, and has it’s back turned. We will never get another chance. If Shang is correct, another two weeks, and we will see their second wave kick off, which should allow us to strike against the lesser formations Davion has left behind. Delicious indeed.
He turned to his left, as a figure stirred beneath the sheets of his silk lined bed, her powerful frame a contrast from the delicate features of his wife. And so much more alluring as it turns out. Neither he, nor Alexa Shang had sought out some sort of relationship, but one had developed none the less. He liked her honesty, her patriotism, her bravery, and above all, her competence. Perhaps, when this is all over, I shall elevate her to the position of concubine? She is far more appealing to spend my nights with than that flighty Marik woman.
As the form slowly woke up and stretched, her naked form was there for all to see, her almond skin shimmered in the morning light. Sun-Tzu smiled hungrily “Alexa, my dear, did you sleep well?”
“Yes Celestial Wisdom, I did not expect-“
“No need for all that formality here. In these chambers, call me Sun-Tzu. I am happy you slept well, and frankly, I need you in top form. The time for EAST SEA nears.” Sun-Tzu walked over to the night table, and fetched a comb, which he began to use to comb his hair back.
“I wished to speak to you about some parts of the plan, Cel-I mean Sun-Tzu?”
“Oh?” he asked
“I am unsure about the special operation meant to introduce command paralysis amongst the Davions? My concern is of two parts. The first, is the nature of the operation. I may not be an intelligence professional, but might it be better to use our own people? These fanatics…unnerve me.”
Sun-Tzu gave Alexa a dismissive wave “Alexa, calm yourself, we do not have enough assets to accomplish all we would like to prep the battlefield for EAST SEA. Sadly, I am forced to rely on these fanatics. At least, they are not my sister’s fanatics. These people will get the job done..and we can remove them later from the table. Believe me Alexa, if we had a choice, I would not have dealt with them at all. But Marik demands I deal with them as part of his price. They want Kittery for some reason. No matter to me, it was never really a Capellan world.”
Alexa nodded, then continued. “And then there is the nature of the attack, Sun-Tzu, might we be opening ourselves open for some sort of blowback? Might they try to kill you in response?”
Sun-Tzu smiled “By the time they get around to that, their minor houses will have torn their grand alliance apart because the Steiner-Davion brood will be wiped from the Inner Sphere. No, Alexa, this is the blow my father and mother both were not audacious enough to strike, but I am. And now that we know the Dragoons are gone from Outreach, and that much of the troop strength the Davions were making us see was fiction, no, now is the time to strike. Who knows, perhaps these could be the last days of Davion? I doubt it. But a man, even a Chancellor can hope.”
Alexa Shang felt a chill go through her. Her Chancellor, her lover had done the one thing she had hoped he wouldn’t and that was launch an attack on the Federated Commonwealth based on hope of a potential outcome. Such a thing was bound to end badly, and there might not wind up being a Capellan Confederation when it was all said and done? But she owed her Chancellor and her State her loyalty. She was a good Capellan citizen, what else could she do?
“Oh, and Alexa, I intend to go with the Autumn Wind-4 option, We will attack from barracks. I say deny the Davions any intelligence until the last possible minute. And make sure we give a false set of timetables to the Mariks. I do not want them to leak a damn thing until we go.”
“But Sun-Tzu? We are depending on many of those Marik units for some key first wave objectives.”
“Do not worry, Alexa. What we lack in numbers, we will make up for in shock, and surprise, and of course the indomitable will of the Capellan fighting man.”
This development chilled Alexa even more. Has the legendary madness of the Liao line infected Sun-Tzu as well? Not at this critical hour for the Capellan state. No!
But the questions continued to come unbidden for Alexa Shang as she slowly got dressed.
Sun-Tzu turned, and his almond colored eyes burned with an intense fire of both anger, and disappointment. "You failed, Alexa."
Alexa looked on surprised. "I failed? What was the test?"
"The only test that matters, Alexa, what is more important? Me, or the state?" Sun-Tzu sighed.
"I don't understand?"
"The failure is not completely yours, Alexa. You are a product of our training, where we expect absolute loyalty to the state as personified by the Chancellor. But by now, you should realize, the state is more important than any one chancellor. I cannot afford any mistakes in what is to come, Alexa. The madness on my part, was faked. The Capellan state must have sane, responsible, and canny leadership in the days to come. I will allow you this one misstep. If I act this way again, you are to shoot me...and then my sister. In a lockbox under the throne, there are specific instructions on what to do when I die. I entrust you to follow them to the letter."
"When you die, Sun-Tzu?"
"Alexa, I do not expect to survive this war. What I am about to unleash on the Davions, their family, all to gain even a momentary military advantage, is going to have them baying for my blood, but my life is worth it to save the Confederation a lifetime of supplication to the Federated Commonwealth. Our people must have their spine back. If it costs me my life, so be it."
"But Sun-Tzu, surely there is another way? Perhaps LONG MARCH is a better option..."
"No, Alexa. The people want to see our arms defeat the Davions, not their surrogates, who are Capellans as well. We need victory, and I will make any deal and pay any price to get it. If we can get to Sarna and Liao, I will fall down on my knees and thank my ancestors for us to be so lucky. I know the state of the CCAF. I know we rely a little too much on our benefactors, and my treacherous father-in-law, but what choice do we have?"
"None that I can see, Sun-Tzu."
"Then understanding has dawned in the student. I expect you to both learn and teach much in the coming days. Do not worry about the fanatics. I expect whatever they have planned, they do not expect to survive it. And as for us getting all the Davions? That was pure theater on my part. If we can get one or two, and have them chasing their tails when we cross the frontier for a week? I will be happy with that. I am finding military operations are like politics, all about the art of the possible."
"They are, Sun-Tzu."
Sun-Tzu nodded, She will not make the same mistake again. Good, I need at least one confidant I can rely on when the time comes, and when the person I expect to come, comes for me. Especially when I remove his mother from the table....
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Category:Clover Spear - The Story of the '56 War Chapters
Category:Works by Jason Weiser