The Battle Is Lost...

 Gamble Plains

Conquista

Duchy of Andurien

Free Worlds League

14 June, 3152

                    "Do we have contact with the Colonel's Mech yet?" Sheena asked over the comms.

                    There was silence. So far the fighting had been timid, light skirmishing and trading of shots with nobody gaining an upper hand. But Colonel Alfonso Humphreys was out there somewhere, and Death Command Sheena Li was going to take him down.

                    A Patton tank rolled into her sights. Before she could act, the Thug to her left left loose with a pair of snub-nosed PPCs and a hail of MML missiles. The weapons scored the tank's thick armor, and it sought to reverse into cover. But it was not to be. With careful aim, Sheena raised her Black Knight's right arm and pulled into her PPC trigger, sending a bolt of clan-spec lightening toward the tank. The powerful burst cored through the frontal armor of the tank and it stopped dead in it's tracks, smoke billowing for the gaping wound.

                    "Excellent shooting Patterson" She complimented the Thug  pilot on their assist of her kill of the tank. At the same time that her warrior responded in affirmation, an Atlas painted deep purple appeared from the woodline and sent a Gauss Rifle slug hurling into her Mech's right leg.

                    She staggered and rocked with the blow. That was it, she had found Colonel Humphreys. The mission was now at it's climax.

                    She strode her Black Knight forward and pulled into her laser triggers, sending multiple beams of light pulsing into her opponent. The heat in her cockpit spiked slightly, and she wished that she had more time to cool off between killing the Patton earlier and now tangling with this much more deadly foe. 

                    The Colonel responded with paired large lasers that cored more armor from her torso. The armor there was getting dangerously thin. She needed to end this fight and bring down the Colonel.

                    Once her lasers had recycled, she pulled into all of her triggers, sending a massive alpha strike outgoing towards the monstrous Atlas. Her lasers cored more armor from the Mechs arms, while the PPC bolt struck the Atlas squarely in the chest. The beast shrugged off the damage, with its thick plating of ballistic reinforced armor. The heat in her cockpit was almost unbearable as she slapped the override button.

                    The Colonel responded with everything he had. Missiles from an MML launcher pocked armor from all over her Mech's frame, while a pair of extended range large lasers cored more armor from her already damaged torso. 

                    But the worst was yet to come, as a Gauss Rifle round smashed through the damaged armor of her torso and kicked the powerful gyroscope that helped keep her Mech upright. With the gyro destroyed, her mech crashed to the ground face-first and systems began to black out.

                    She was jarred in her command couch, straining against the restraining straps that held her in place. This could not be happening! With her Mech out of action, she was left to sit there as the battle progressed.

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                    Nyxie watched as the Sao-shao's Black Knight crashed to the ground. There was little that she could do, the position was quickly getting overrun. "Call the retreat. We are not long for this world if we stay here and fight."

                    "The Sao-shao is down, we must protect her." The voice of the unit XO came over the comms.

                    "We must protect ourselves. This battle is lost. Discretion is the better part of valor. We can live to fight another day and hopefully rescue her. But for now, we must withdraw!" It pained her to admit, but the Anduriens had gotten the better of them on the field of battle. They had run afoul of the Colonels Command Lance, and the sheer weight of the assault class machines was too much.

                    A Bulldog tank fired at her and missed. She targeted it in retaliation and fired of quick snaps from her Chemical Lasers. Her Svartalfa was in good shape, but the fight was going against them. Severl other of the Death Commando mechs were down, and the assault Mechs of the Colonels lance just kept coming.

                    "Very well, retreat, all units. We will rally at grid alpha seven."

                    Nyxie bounded her Svartalfa into a run and triggered her jets, gliding forward at incredible speed on the wings attached to her back. This was a disaster. The Sao-shao was lost, and they had little hope of reinforcement on this enemy controlled planet. Retreat was the only option, much as it pained her to leave Sheena behind.

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                    With her Mech disabled, there was little Sheena could do but wait. She cracked her Black Knight's cockpit hatch, removed her neurohelmet, and climbed out into the cool air. A retreat had been called, and her forces were pulling back. It was the correct move, but it left her to the mercy of the Anduriens as they overran her position. 

                    She watched as an infantry platoon fanned out around her mech, aiming their weapons at her. She raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, and after a brief communication, she was taken into custody by the infantry troopers.

                    Realizing that they had captured the enemy commander, she was quickly transported to the building serving as the headquarters. Before long, she found herself in a cell, seated, with her hands bound in front of her. She tried to calm herself. She had to be prepared for whatever they would subject her to. Under normal circumstances, she could expect to parlay with the enemy commander, but this seemed different. The Anduriens had turned on what had nominally been their allies in the Confederation, and Sheena was a reviled Death Commando.

                    After a few hours, the door to the cell opened and a man walked in, flanked by two guards. She guessed this was the nefarious Colonel Humphreys. He was fairly tall, with auburn hair, and he carried himself with an air of arrogance. He took a seat opposite her, with a table between the two of them.

                    "What are you doing here, Death Commando? This is the Duchy of Andurien."

                    She laughed. "Do not play coy with me, Colonel. Your forces have been raiding into Capellan territory of late. Is it so surprising that we should track you down to your lair here on Conquista?"

                    "The Duchy of Andurien has been conducting operations into territories that we claim. Your Chancellor is off distracted with the Wolves, it is not surprising that we undertake such actions. But why are you here? The Chancellor sends his Death Commandos to put a stop to things? Why not send a line unit to simply attack the planet? Why this raid?"

                    Sheena shook her head. "You should know well enough that you cannot conduct these raids without retribution. I was sent to be the Chancellor's retribution."

                    The Colonel stood up and walked over to her side of the table and stood silent for a moment, looking at her. With cat-like reflexes, he struck out and smacked her across the face. "You have failed, Death Commando. You were sent here to kill me and you failed."

                    Sheena tasted blood in her mouth from where the Colonel had struck her, but she managed a coy smile. "You flatter yourself, Colonel. You are not so important as you think. But I will grant you the battle has been lost, your forces fought well, but the Chancellor's reach is long and his memory equally so."

                    Humphreys laughed. "You have been beaten. I no longer fear you. Your second in command has requested parlay with me to exchange prisoners, but I do not think I feel like giving you up. You can rot here in our cells while you wait for your Chancellor's reach to come for you. I suspect he will send nothing after such a failure. You are mine!"