Exodus Ch. 3

 

Bannockburn

Skye

Lyran Commonwealth

31 May, 2767

 

               Carli laid back and closed her eyes, letting her heart and breathing return to normal as the cool night breeze blew over her through the open window. Just enough of Roger’s arm lay against hers to bring back that feeling of security that she still didn’t understand why she found in him.

               “You’re sure your orders are going to come down tomorrow?” she asked.

               “Damn near certain,” he replied. “Regular units got their move orders today, and we were all told to expect orders and assignments to be drawn up as soon as they figure out what they’re going to do with us. It can’t be long now.”

               “Then it’s off to the Rim World’s Republic?”

               “Somewhere around there. The General made it pretty clear that the cease fire didn’t apply to the Republic, and that we’d be occupying them in short order. I still don’t understand why we’re not all heading straight for Terra. Cut off the head and the body dies.” He mused.

               Opening her eyes, she rolled over and snuggled closer to him, letting her leg wrap around him and pressing herself against his bare chest, still glistening just a bit from the aftermath of their earlier lovemaking. “You should trust Kerensky. He knows what he’s doing. If there’s anyone that can handle this…whatever this mess is, it’s him.”

               Roger stifled a tiny laugh. “You sound so certain; how come you’re not signed up with the SLDF?”

               Many around the League, and nearly all of the SLDF personnel she’d had contact with in the last few days had shared Roger’s desire to strike quickly for Terra and remove the Usurper from the throne and to restore the Hegemony to its rightful place at the center of the Star League, not this newly declared Amaris Empire.

               But Commanding General Aleksandr Kerensky had seemed to have decided to take the cautious road, to deal with the Usurper’s realm in the Periphery before attempting to storm the Hegemony proper. It made sense to her. It would give time for the House Lords to mobilize their own forces to help in the liberation when the time came and ensure that an enemy dagger was not poised at their back in the form of Amaris former Periphery realm.

               “We’ve had that discussion before, Roger. I’ve always been bound for the Commonwealth Armed Forces. It’s been my path ever since I decided I wanted to be a MechWarrior. Besides, we’ll both get our chance to see action once Kerensky turns his eye toward Terra.”

               Roger shook his head. “You seem so confident the Archon is going to take action. Don’t be so certain. The House Lords are petty. They won’t get involved unless they have something to gain.”

               She raised an eyebrow. “We have nothing to gain from removing that weirdo from the throne and ending whatever this scheme of his is?”

               “Steiner won’t see it that way. Nor will any of the other Lords. Why expend resources and risk weakening themselves just to restore the status quo. And that’s if there’s even any Cameron’s left alive. Most coups are bloody, and there’d be a big, huge vacuum at the heart of the League for the General to step in and fill. And you know how they feel about him. Why not let the SLDF do the hard lifting, maintain their own power, and only have a weaker central authority to deal with?” He paused for a moment. “No, they won’t act.”

               “I have more faith in the Archon and the General than that. You’ll see. Once you deal with the Rim Worlds, you and I will be fighting side by side again,” she countered.

               He squeezed her gently. “I hope you’re right. I’ll remind you of those words when I head this way again.” He traced a finger slowly in an aimless pattern over her back. “Any word on your posting? I’d have thought assignments would have been posted by now.”

               Closing her eyes once again, she savored the silence and his touch for a few seconds before responding. “I’d have thought so too, but this mess has everyone on edge. The Hegemony going black played havoc with the markets, and the economy is the number one priority for the Archon. Everything else has slowed down. They say we’ll get our postings by next week.”

               “It will be a Skye Rangers unit; we both know that.”

               Carli shrugged. “The question is which one? I want to make sure I’m in one that sees some action, not stuck here guarding the Isle. I didn’t join the military to be stuck on Skye my whole career.”

               “Don’t worry, Carli. I’m sure we’ll both see our share of travel before this thing is over.”

               She kissed his neck. “Well, if you’re going to run off in the morning, the least you can do is make tonight count.”

Exodus Ch. 02

 

Sanglamore Academy

Skye

Lyran Commonwealth

10 March, 2767

 

               “Ok people, there’s the main nav point. If I were Duclair, I’d try to set up an ambush by that creek. There’s rolling hills on either side and plenty of cover. We’ve done this before. What do we do when we figure out where Duclair is laying his trap?” The voice of Cadet Roger Ruby, who was acting as company commander for this simulated exercise came over the comms.

               Carli Benedict flexed her fingers on the control sticks of the simulator for the ‘Mech she was running, a Lyran favorite, the -2D Commando. She knew what was coming next.

               “Spring the trap,” came a chorus of responses over the channel. They were all final year cadets now, and they knew their stuff. They had run missions like this several times before, but now, with graduation looming, the practice rotation had gotten just a little bit more intense to close out the final semester.

               Of course, that wasn’t the only thing looming. Now there was the very real prospect of a war facing them when they graduated. For some of the cadets, the ones bound for the SLDF, this was nothing new. Most of the SLDF was currently deployed in the Periphery, engaged in putting down the various uprisings that had come in the wake of actions over the last few years by First Lord Richard Cameron.

               Carli, however, was not bound for the SLDF. Her commission would come in the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces. The Lyran state was at relative peace, and she had assumed her first assignment would be a rather easy one. But all that had changed in the last few months, with the apparent news that the Camerons had been deposed as heads of the Star League and the Terran Hegemony was now ruled by the former Rim Worlds Republic leader Stefan Amaris. He had declared himself Emperor of the Amaris Empire. To Carli’s mind, it wouldn’t be long before he declared himself the new First Lord, and that could mean war.

               For that matter, she thought, it should be war. There was no way that the leaders of the Great Houses could stand to have the Star League run by a Periphery Lord. That wasn’t the way things were done. The Camerons ruled, just as the Steiners ruled the Commonwealth. That was just the way of things.

               “Jaeger Nine, you know what to do. Go stir up some trouble over there. We play it like always. Everyone else, follow behind at two klicks. Duclair won’t know what hit him.” The order came over her comms.

               “Confirmed, Jaeger Actual. We’ll kick the hornet’s nest,” she replied. She flipped her comms over to her lance. “Alright Recon Lance let’s go. Standard formation, we’ll just bull-rush into that creek and spring Tony’s trap. Remember, keep moving, our objective is just to flush them out, make them waste their trap on us while the big boys hit from behind. Got it?”

               She received a chorus of affirmatives from her lance subordinates, and the lance moved forward in formation. Her lance consisted of a pair of Commandos and a pair of Wasps. They closed the distance to the nav point with relative ease. The simulator barely put out any heat as her ‘Mech ran cool, and the terrain of gently rolling hills posed no obstacle to the lance as they advanced, keeping careful watch for any sign of enemy activity.

               As they neared the creek, they climbed a gentle sloping his and the tree coverage thickened somewhat. They reached the crest of the hill and stopped momentarily to survey the scene. Below them, a gentle creek ran fairly straight, and with few rocks or outcroppings. On the other embankment were more trees and another slope. If this was anything like all his other traps, Cadet Tony Duclair would want the trap sprung when Carli’s team was down in the creek. By forcing him to spring the trap on only the recon elements of their company sized detachment, Cadet Ruby hoped to foil the enemy plan and send them into confusion.

               Carli’s lance descended into the gentle valley of the creek and pushed through at full speed and began climbing the opposite hill. There was no enemy fire, and no sign of enemy ‘Mechs anywhere on scanners.

               “Recon Lance, hold.” She stopped her lance as they reached the crest of the hill. There was still no sign of the enemy. She keyed her comms for the commander. “Jaeger Actual, we have no sign of hostiles here. I’m through the creek and up on the other side and we still see nothing. Orders?”

               “Stand by,” was all re received in reply.

               Something was very wrong now. There was no sign of the enemy, and her sensors now could scan nearly to the objective. Where were they?

               Suddenly, the sound of weapons fire crackled over her external pickups, but from behind them, in the distance. It took her only a second to realize that the sounds must be her own friendly forces engaging the enemy behind them. Somehow the enemy had gotten behind them.

               “Recon Lance, turn around, they slipped behind us somehow. We have to get back to the main body and add our weight to their forces or else they’re cooked.”

               Her lance responded and they bounded at full speed back the way they came. They crossed the creek and back up the opposing slope, and were only near a kilometer away from their main body. But the distance was enough. She flipped to the company wide frequency and heard several curses as comm discipline was momentarily lost.

               Her lance pressed forward at their best speed, her two Wasps even igniting their jump jets to clear the woods faster than her Commando could. By the time that the fight appeared on their screens, the main body of friendly forces depressingly showed only two active blue blips and a host of red swarming them.

               The fight was lost. There was nothing to do but a hopeless fight against incredible odds. She pounded a fist into the side of her command couch. She hated to lose, and she was not going to surrender, but what good was there in a hopeless fight?

               Then it hit her. “Jaeger Eleven and Twelve, turn tail and run for the objective. Best speed to the objective, nothing else matters.”

               “Sir?” A confused query replied.

               “The objective is wide open. We can’t win, but if we can slow them down enough, you two can get there and blow it before they can catch you.”

               Assured of the plan, her two Wasps dutifully turned and ran back in the direction of the objective. Only Carli and her other Commando continued forward. “Jaeger Ten, if you see any fast movers, hit them. We don’t have to win, we just have to slow them down.”

               Her warning was prescient, as the first mech to come within range was quickly tagged as a Locust. It was heading straight for her, which was fine by her. As it entered range for her Medium Laser, she pulled the trigger and fired a bolt of light at the bird-like ‘Mech. She scored only a glancing blow but earned the ire of the enemy warrior.

The Locust seemed to slow slightly and take aim as it fired, its own Medium Laser scoring a solid hit and coring into the armor on her left leg. The slight slowdown might be her only chance at hitting the speedy Locust. She fired both of her SRM racks at the enemy, sending ten missiles corkscrewing toward it.

Only three of the missiles hit, pecking armor from the Locusts’ frame but doing little to stop it. The enemy mech picked up speed once again, bounding straight towards her. At these speeds, they would close almost instantly. The Locust wasn’t planning to charge her, she figured, but instead run past her and hopefully track down her two Wasps now heading for the objective.

As it closed to near point-blank range, it plinked away at her with it’s Machine Guns but kept its course. At the last minute, as it was about to run past her, she stuck her wounded left leg out and tripped the Locust.

The weight of the enemy ‘Mech hitting her already damaged leg sheared her ‘Mech’s leg off at the knee, but it was enough to destabilize the Locust, which unceremoniously fell to the ground, planting its laser in the ground and tumbling over.

Her own ‘Mech hit the ground on it’s back, and the simulator pod shook her as vigorously as it could. She only hoped that the ride down had been rougher on the Locust pilot.

Fighting off the ringing in her ears, she struggled to bring her ‘Mech up to a crouching position to try to take stock of the battle, but just as she did, her ‘Mech was rocked by fire from the main body of the enemy force. An Autocannon round slammed into the chest of her mech, knocking it backwards, but not enough to save it from a savage of laser fire from several enemies. Her cockpit went black and the simulator rocked her for one final time, signaling that some other catastrophic damage had claimed the life of her ‘Mech.

She leaned back and pulled off her neurohelmet, running her hands through her sweat drenched hair. This was the worst part, the waiting. She sat in the blackness for what seemed like an eternity until a horn sounded the end of the exercise, and the seal of the simulator pod cracked open to allow a rush of cool air into the cockpit.

She climbed out into the blinding light of simulator bay, shivering slightly now that the heat of battle had subsided, and her cooling suit had cooled her down. All around her, her teammates were repeating the same procedure. She was only interested in the last two pods in the line, where two men, the pilots of her Wasps were extricating themselves from their pods. She made her way over to them.

“Well, did you guys scrag the objective or not?”

Their smiles told her all she needed to know.

Exodus Ch. 01

 

Sanglamore Academy

Skye

Lyran Commonwealth

31 December, 2766

 

 

               Carli Benedict glanced around the room which was currently filled with dancers. It was the New Year’s Ball at Sanglamore Military Academy and all members of the upcoming graduating class were all in attendance. Of course, also in attendance were most of the faculty and more importantly, a sizeable representation of the nobility. There were nobles from dozens of worlds, most of them from the Isle of Skye region of the Lyran Commonwealth.

               “Isn’t it exciting?”

               The question came from her classmate and best friend Arabella Schmidt. “You know I hate these things, Bella.”

               It was the part of Academy life that she liked the least, the social displays that were such a part of Commonwealth military culture. Driving a ‘Mech was easy. Navigating the ridiculously complicated waters of the social network of Lyran nobility was something entirely different.

               At least her dress fit right. In her early years at the academy that had been the bane of her existence. With her body changing from the rigors of the academy, finding suitable formalwear for the myriad of social functions had been a near impossible mission. But for today, she had managed to acquire an off-the-shoulder gown that fit her to perfection, and in the dark green of Sanglamore’s colors. Her auburn hair she wore up, as was the current fashion among the female cadets. Her jewelry was minimal, a pair of emerald studs in her ears and a delicate gold necklace.

               “Of course you do. But you don’t hate Roger Ruby, and this is going to be one of your last chances to sink your claws into him.” Her friend looked at her coyly.

               Bella was a true Lyran in that she loved these occasions and her fashion showed it. She wore a gown of Steiner Blue, eschewing school colors for the currently en vogue colors of the ruling Steiner Dynasty. The gown hugged her every curve and she wore it as if she were born in it. She wore her golden blonde hair down, just as the upper crust of Lyran nobility were doing at the moment. Her diamond drop earrings would occasionally catch the light, but they paled in comparison to the diamond choker that her mother had given her specially for the occasion.

               Carli was less than amused. “Just because Roger and I are a thing…sometimes, doesn’t mean that I have to rope him in and plan our lives out together. I plan on living a little, thank you very much. Besides, you know he’s SLDF.”

               Bella slipped her arm into Carli’s. “So? As if a little cross pollination never happened before?”

               Carli bristled, as she did every time her friend tried to play matchmaker and plan out her life with her on-and-off lover Roger Ruby. Sure, she and Roger had some good times together, but she was hardly at a time in life where she was searching out marriage prospects. Career prospects were hard enough to manage. She would soon be graduating as a Leutnant in the ranks of the Lyran Commonwealth Armed Forces. It was her dream to be a MechWarrior, but she knew it would take focus if she was to achieve the career she wanted.

               As if on cue, a dark-haired cadet made his way in their direction. Roger Ruby was sharply dressed in the formal cadet uniform of the Academy, which was a shade darker than the SLDF green Carli knew he would soon be wearing. It complimented his dark brown hair and the firm jaw that had first attracted Carli’s eye two years ago.

               “Ladies, you are both looking stunning tonight, my compliments.”

               “Compliments will get you nowhere, Roger,” she said with an exaggerated sternness.

               Bella deftly slipped her arm out from Carli’s and positioned herself so that Roger would reach Carli first. “Compliments will get you everywhere, Roger Ruby.”

               Carli chuckled slightly at Bella’s move. She did not protest as he slipped his arm into hers. He had a soft kind of strength that she enjoyed at times like these where she felt slightly out of her element. His touch had a way of putting her at ease and making the awkwardness of the social situations far less and allowing her to be more herself. If his looks had drawn her to him at first, it was that feeling of safety that had more than once drawn her back to him during their two years of on-and-off romance.

               “Well, you do look rather dashing, I’ll give you that,” she said with a slight wink. “Is it midnight yet?”

               “Afraid I’ll turn into a pumpkin or something?” He raised an eyebrow.

               “At least at midnight, things will start to wind down, and there may be some hope of escape for us.” She responded.

               Bella stepped closer to the pair and linked her arm with Carli’s free arm. “Thank god your battlefield tactics are better than that, Carli. If you really want to escape, you have to make it happen.”

               “It’s not as if we are hostages here, but I think ducking out before midnight would be frowned upon, Bella.” Roger gave her arm a gentle squeeze.

               Carli spotted one of their instructors making their way towards them with his wife by his side. She tensed her arms slightly, but enough to catch the attention of both Roger and Bella. “Speaking of tactics and escape plans, we better come up with one quick or else we’re going to be stuck here talking to Professor Vanderwald until graduation”

               “Roger, did Carli tell you we got a room at one of the best hotels in Bannockburn tonight?” Bella quipped.

               She elbowed Bella gently.

               “That sounded like an invitation,” Roger replied with a wry smile.

               Sighing, Carli shook her head slightly. “Yeah, well none of that is going to matter in about five seconds, because we’re going to be stuck talking about the current Periphery uprisings and how they differ from the Reunification War until we grow old and die, so get your best fast talking ready, boys and girls.”

Yet more lies

                     Yet again, Blaine Pardoe has taken to the internet to spread more vicious lies about me and the situation that unfolded. He lies, twists facts, exaggerates all to weave a web of lies that paint him as a poor victim of harassment. It has reached the point that I now feel as though he is harassing me. He knows he can hide behind his money and power and smear me at will.

                    I know his game. He is hoping to goad me into making a mistake, a 'gotcha' moment that he can use to hurt me even further. At this point, I can only conclude that his goal is to ruin me. He is unrelenting in his lies and smear tactics. He is hoping that my mental health will fail and he will be able to get me to commit some violation of the protection order that he hides behind. I don't know if this is personal for him, or if he is just using it to sell books. Either way, it is personal for me, and I feel as though I am reaching a breaking point.

                    I don't know what to do anymore. Everything is a shambles and he holds all the power, wealth, and all the cards. The system is stacked against me, and he is turning the knife to inflict more pain. All I ever wanted was to write some fiction and make the IP that I care about a better place.   

The Gig

 

            “What is that?” She glanced up at the sleekest, most streamlined Locust she had ever seen. It looked like a Locust but the lines were too sleek and streamlined.

               “That is what’s going to take you out in the arena tomorrow night. It’s a Koto, based on a Locust but with some experimental tech all around. It’s a corporate showpiece, lots of Diverse Optics money backing it hoping to get some big contracts in the Federated Commonwealth if it has a good showing.” The man from the bar pointed up at the imposing BattleMech.

               Hannah nodded. “And a good showing involves it tearing me apart in the arena? That’s about the size of it?”

               The man nodded. “You get paid to put up a decent show, but make sure that the star of the match is the Koto.”

               Hannah shrugged “What’s the point if everything is staged? I thought the object was to win, to beat the odds?”

               “The object is to play the odds. There’s so much money riding on certain outcomes, it’s only natural that there should be a little influence as to the results. The results are what’s important, and that everyone can go to sleep at night looking like it was an honest fight. It’s about appearances, everything on the Game World is about appearances. That’s what matters. Think of it as more theatre than competition.”

               They continued on to the next slot in the ‘Mech bay, which housed a Wolfhound. “That’s your ride. Bigger and tougher than the Koto so you get to play the giant getting taken down by the agile attacker. Shouldn’t be too hard. You’ve got lots of armor to take a beating, just make sure the fall is good.”

               “What’s in it for me?” Hannah asked. Her dreams were to be a Solaris warrior, and taking a dive in her first fight didn’t seem like it was the path to glory.

               “You mean besides a paycheck? Look, this kind of work isn’t pretty, but it pays. You don’t rock the boat, do as you’re told, and you get a nice paycheck to make it worthwhile. This isn’t the holovids, sweetheart. It’s not your ticket to fame and glory as the next champ of the game world, it’s your ticket to next month’s rent. Any ideas you’ve got about victory and glory, stow ‘em. This isn’t the gig for that.”

               She nodded. She didn’t know why she nodded. Everything in her said this was a bad idea. This wasn’t real ‘Mech piloting, this was play acting and she was just a cog in the machine. But every time she thought about turning back, she thought about another day, week, month, or year of tending bar in a little hole-in-the-wall. That wasn’t why she came to Solaris. And it wasn’t how her story was going to end.

Like what you're reading? Want to see how the adventure unfolds for Hannah? Head over to my Ko-fi page and lend your support.

The Hook

 

                    Here is the hook for the first story that's burst into my head in quite a while. There's a lot still rattling around in my head, and the crazy streets of Solaris are a good place to let loose creative MechWarrior energy. If you like what you read, consider heading over to my Ko-Fi Page and lending your support.

Black Hills District

Solaris City

Solaris VII

12 April, 3057

                

                Hannah wiped down the top of the bar as she glanced out the front window, watching the rain pelt the streets in a stereotypical night on Solaris VII.

               “I think it’s just the two love-birds in the bathroom. I’m ducking out for a smoke,” Tristan, the owner of the bar said. She never knew why he went outside to smoke, the air was equally dingy both inside and outside of the run-of-the-mill sports bar on the outskirts of the Black Hills district. It didn’t matter, he was the boss.

               The bar was empty, and Hannah had managed to get it mostly clean since it had emptied out. The tri-vid screens were all showing dull replays of the night’s fights and the city was getting ready to reboot for the next day. The fights were over for the moment, the patrons had all gone home to either continue their fun or sleep off their woes. All except for the two love birds who had made a not-so secret escape to the bathroom for some extracurricular activities.

               Hannah shoved her hands in her pockets. It had been a decent night, a solid mix of D and C-bills in tips meant she would be able to cover the rent that her landlord was annoyingly demanding. That would cover her basics for another month. Call it three weeks to be safe. She could get by on food at the job, and that basic hand to mouth existence never ceased to invade her thoughts as she tried to sleep in the early mornings.

               How had her dream come to this? Sure, she had come to Solaris knowing that not many fighters made the big-time, but it had been eighteen months since she had come to the game world with aspirations of making it big, and now she found herself tending bar in a hole-in-the-wall place to make ends meet. She had served in the AFFC as a MechWarrior, she had made the cut, and now her dream was reduced to this?

               Her reverie was shattered as the two love birds stumbled out of the bathroom, holding each other up in a clumsy way, and making their way toward the front of the bar. “Sorry about the mess. Our tip should cover it,” the man said to her as he coaxed his companion towards the exit.

               Unfortunately, they had paid their tab in advance, and she would be left to clean up whatever mess the guy was referring to. There was a time where she had thought cleaning ‘Mech components was the lowest of the low, but the game world had humbled her to a point she could not have envisioned when she grounded a year and a half ago.

               She was about to steady herself for whatever horror awaited her in the bathroom when a man entered the room and sat down at the bar. “You guys still open?”

               She nodded. “As long as you’re paying.”

               The man ordered a bourbon neat, and it took Hannah no time at all to pour two fingers of the well bourbon into a glass and make her way over to the newcomer. She didn’t recognize the man, but that didn’t mean much in this part of town. The bar had a few regulars, but it was mostly fly-by-night clientele that seldom made an impression. This man was non-descript, wearing a casual suit that could have made him anything from an accountant to a bookie.

               “You Hannah Knowles?”

               She paused. That was out of the ordinary. How did this guy know her? “Could be. What do you need her for?”

               “I need a body to fill a cockpit, and my usual routes are turned up dry. Somebody dropped me your name, said you had some experience, and you were working down here waiting for a paying gig to turn up.”

               She waited for the catch. There was always a catch. She had assumed that ‘Mech piloting slots were a dime a dozen on the prime game world of the Inner Sphere, but she had quickly been disabused of that notion. Lives were cheap and ‘Mech slots were expensive, and without a ‘Mech you needed some kind of angle. She had just never found that angle. “What’s the catch?”

               The man downed a swig of his drink. “No catch, it’s just a one-time gig. Nothing fancy, just filling space on a fight card. Filling the right space for the right price.”

               So that was it. He didn’t need a MechWarrior, he needed a pilot to play a specific part, and that most likely meant a fixed fight. This wasn’t a fight, it was more of an acting job. Play the part, do as you were told, and don’t rock the boat. She had heard the play a hundred times before. She had turned it down a hundred times before. But as she thought of the prospect of cleaning up whatever mess awaited her in the bathroom, something changed. Maybe it was hope. Maybe it was desperation. Whatever it was, this time was going to be different.

               “I’m listening.”

               The man nodded and scratched a few lines on a napkin. “We can talk details then. It isn’t pretty, but it’s a job. I’ll see you then.”

Ko-Fi

             The first thing I've done is to set up a Ko-fi page. I'm not selling anything or putting anything that I'm going to write or create behind a paywall, it's just a tangible way to measure support and see if people find any value in what I'm doing and creating. There are lots of talented artists and creators out there that I support and I think it's time I acknowledged myself as a creator as well. If the the things I create have value to people, they will pass that on. If they don't, no harm is done.

                It's also a sign that I take myself seriously, and that is as important as anything else. This is fun for me, but it's also serious and I need to devote myself to that and let it happen. I need to start respecting myself more as a creator and as someone with something of value to share. This helps me a little bit toward that accountability.

My Ko-fi can be reached Here