Ways Of Seeing Training Facility, Barcella,
Kerensky Cluster,
22nd July 3051
“Well, Star Captain, enjoy your last sight of this place.” Varro Drummond commented as Descartin slung his duffel bag over a shoulder. “I doubt you will live long enough to be solahma.”
“Like you?” Des remarked. They were standing at entrance of the building that housed the offices of the trainers and the academic classrooms. Almost all the personnel who had helped shaped the raw cadets into qualified warriors were gathered there. In a short while, the young warriors would be picked up by vehicles and sent to their new postings.
“Aff, like me.” Varro sighed. “You are young. You think yourself invincible, that you are ageless, that you will live forever. Then you will grow old, your body will start to fail you, and you will ask yourself, ‘What have I done of any worth?’” Varro looked at Des, his eyes piercing. “I have asked myself this very question, and found my answer wanting. This is my very last lesson to you. Do not hold back, even if it means your death, for you do not want to look back and curse yourself for not giving your all.”
“Ah, Commander,” Troussier walked up, “do not discourage them! Their fire and youth will be what our clan needs for the crusade ahead! Do not extinguish it so quickly.”
“On the contrary, Troussier, I am urging them to use their enthusiasm before it fades away.”
“I do not quite understand, sir.” Des shook his head. “We fight where we are ordered to, and giving our all is our duty, quiaff?”
“Aff, but saying that you will give your best effort and actually doing so, are two very different things.” Varro glanced at a dust cloud in the distance, probably sent up by the approaching fleet of hovercraft. “In any case, I have little doubt that you will serve the clan well.”
Des nodded his head. He heard the thin whine of hovercraft engines as they came to a stop in front of the building. Each hovercraft was quite small, able to seat only four people each, but they were enough for the purpose at hand.
Varro spoke loudly so that all the departing warriors could hear him. “Yesterday you all have proved yourselves worthy of the position of warrior! Today, today is the first day of the rest of your lives! I know that you are eager to attain glory for yourselves, and I am confident that you will do so in the best traditions of the clan.”
“Seyla!” The cadets intoned solemnly.
“Well, we should be on our way.” Descartin moved towards a nearby hovercar, before he paused as he thought of something. He turned back towards Varro.
“Sir, about the vision I had…”
Varro shook his head. “They will be revealed in due time. Patience. Now go, you unit is waiting.”
The old warrior already suspected what the vision meant, but he also knew that revealing the meaning too early might not be good, thereby foiling the vision quest.
If it is even a vision quest, Varro told himself as he watched Descartin throw his bag into the boot of the car. A vision quest that will likely last a lifetime. Is he ready for the trials that lie ahead?
The warriors climbed into the cars, and soon were just specks in the distance. Varro stared after them for long moments, before he walked back into the building along with the rest of his staff, ready to begin another day of training for the other sibkos.
Descartin looked around curiously as he got out of the hovercar at the Vision Seeker Base. The sound of technician caste members working on mechs filled the bay, and he savored the sight of rows of mighty omnimechs sitting in their repair racks.
Vision Seeker Base was a large facility, capable of housing two entire Galaxies within its cavernous bays. It loomed over the landscape, a typical military installation much like any other, surrounded by fences and barbwire.
The hovercar had to pass through a security checkpoint before it was able to enter the base proper, and its freebirth tech driver was obviously well acquainted with the layout of the base as he turned and twisted through the streets to arrive at the area designated for the 449th Assault Cluster, Alpha Galaxy.
An elemental walked up to him and Deserk, and the two new warriors saluted in unison as they saw the insignia of a Star Captain on the elemental’s tight fitting jumpsuit.
“Greetings, Star Captain Descartin, Warrior Deserk. I am Star Captain Hendrick West, commander of Second Assault Trinary. I trust you had no problems reaching the base?”
“Neg, no problems, Star Captain,” Des, as the higher ranking warrior, answered for them both. “I see the techs are hard at work on our mechs. What are we being assigned to?”
Hendrick started to walk off, gesturing to the two warriors to follow him. “The Star Colonel wants to see you first, Star Captain Descartin, before making a decision, but Warrior Deserk is already assigned to a Mad Dog in Third Assault Trinary.”
Des saw Deserk grin fiercely for an instant, before his expression slid back into the studied calm of a Nova Cat warrior.
They were led by the Star Captain to a room. There were two beds there, and some minimal furnishings, but to the newly graduated warriors, it already looked far more inviting than their old bunks back in their sibko days. “You can put down your belongings here. This is just a temporary room for the two of you, since we will be leaving soon for the Inner Sphere.” Hendrick’s eyes glowed with joy as he spoke, probably already thinking of glory to be earned in the Inner Sphere. “Warrior Deserk, please stay here for a moment. Your Star Commander will see you here. Star Captain Descartin, please follow me to see Star Colonel Nostra.”
Descartin threw his bag carelessly onto a bed, regretted it for a moment since it contained most of his precious holovids, then left the room with Hendrick. “Deserk, watch my stuff for me.” Deserk nodded, along with a wink. As warriors, they could finally play the holovids in the open, especially Des with his officer rank.
It was a long walk through the base and an elevator ride before Des finally arrived at Star Colonel Thadeus Nostra’s office. Hendrick showed him through the door, then closed it as Des stood before Nostra’s desk.
Thadeus Nostra looked like the average clan mechwarrior, muscular and tall, but the strength of his presence permeated the room, leaving no doubt as to the power he wielded as a Star Colonel in one of the clan’s most prestigious units.
“Star Captain Descartin reporting as ordered, Sir.” Des came to rigid attention, staring straight at his superior officer.
“At ease, Star Captain. Please have a seat,” Thadeus gestured to a seat. Des obediently sat down. “First of all, welcome to the 449th Assault Cluster. As you no doubt know, we will be leaving in a few days, to take part in Operation Revival. The ilKhan has activated our clan, and we have been assigned to the Draconis Combine corridor, beside the Smoke Jaguars.”
Thadeus gave Des a nasty chuckle. “Aff, the ilKhan is clever. As a Warden, he no doubt wants the Crusaders cut down to size, and our activation is a veiled insult to the Jaguars. While I am as happy as any Nova Cat at the Jaguars’ humiliation, the fact that we are the ones activated means possible problems in the future.”
Des was silent for a while, before he asked, “What sort of problems?”
“Supply lines, for one. Trials of Possession for our holdings in the Inner Sphere, for another. And contested trials for target worlds in the corridor. The Jaguars have no love for us, nor us for them. We will likely be fighting each other as much as the Inner Sphere along the way. Which brings us to our return to the Inner Sphere, and your role in it.”
Des sat up straighter in his chair as he focused his attention on the Star Colonel’s words.
“You will be assigned to command Third Assault Trinary, which has an empty command slot because the previous commander has tested up to Star Colonel. Your assignment to a frontline unit immediately after your Trial of Position is uncommon, since most warriors are sent to second line units first to get a handle on advanced tactics and the like. However, it was Oathmaster Biccon Winter’s strong suggestion that sent you here, since she is confident that you will be able to fit in quickly.”
Something that Thadeus did not mention was the rapid expansion of the clan touman, which left large gaps in the ranks of the frontline units as worthy warriors tested out to become officers in other units. Therefore, while frontline units like Alpha Galaxy and Sigma Galaxy still had a strong and experienced officer corps, the ability of the average warrior had actually fallen a bit, as well as the unit’s ability as a whole. Des decided that there was nothing to be gained from mentioning this factoid, so he kept quiet about it.
“I am honored by the clan’s trust, and I will strive to the best of my ability.” Des said with pride.
“Good. But in order to acclimatize you as quickly as possible, I will be assigning Star Captain Oasic Carns as your mentor, to teach you as much as possible of combat tactics before your first battle.”
Des tried not to look insulted, but he did manage to work out a protest, “Sir, I am fully acquainted with battlemech tactics…” Thadeus cut him off with a slice of his hand.
“What you learnt in the sibko is the barest fraction of what a frontline officer is expected to know. Such knowledge often takes a few years to learn, through practice and combat, and now you expect me to trust a warrior just out of his sibko to possess such information? No, you will do this my way, and trust me, you will be all the better for it in the end.”
Des looked at Thadeus for a moment, thinking furiously, but in the end he conceded inwardly that the Star Colonel was probably correct.
“So what do I do next?”
“You will follow Star Captain Hendrick as he shows you around the base, then you will meet the rest of your Trinary. I’ve assigned an experienced Star Commander to act as your Executive Officer, Star Commander Jeff. He is a bit old, but he has been with the cluster for a long time, so make use of him. I have also taken the liberty of scheduling a live-fire training session for your trinary this very evening, with Star Captain Oasic and his First Assault Trinary being your opponents.”
Des blanched at the news. He had not even met his new command yet, and now this Star Colonel wants him to lead them into a training battle? Des started to shift slightly in his seat. Time, time, I need time! Des yelled in his mind.
His reaction did not go unnoticed by Thadeus. “That will be all for the moment. Dismissed.”
Des shot up from his seat, and he remembered in time to salute the Star Colonel before dashing out of the office.
“Nova Two-One, mind that stravag left flank!” Descartin yelled as he fired another stream of particle beams at the Warhawk that was leading a charge of four other assault mechs against his command star. The sweltering heat in his cockpit jumped just that little bit higher, while the fans tried vainly to sweep the heat away.
It had been a hectic afternoon, as he had been sent on a virtual crash course in command. The initial meeting with his new trinary had gone well, but Des had the distinct feeling that Star Commander Jeff was doing most of the talking for him, and he had felt a bit uncomfortable dealing with the battle hardened and experienced warriors of his new trinary. In fact, he felt like a fraud.
That Deserk was a member of his new trinary helped, but not by much, since he was apparently as overwhelmed as Descartin.
Then after the meeting had been a short tutorial session with Jeff, as the mechwarrior instructed Des on the duties and responsibilities of a Star Captain. If I had known there would be so much paperwork, I would have avoided the third kill! Des grumbled as he had pored over the lists of equipment acquisitions and technician rosters.
Then he had been dragged out of the office for the training exercise, and it was like going from the frying pan to the fire.
His Trinary was classified an assault unit, along with much of the cluster. Accordingly, heavy and assault mechs, along with a few mediums, made up his Trinary.
His command star consisted of his Timber Wolf, two Mad Dogs, a Stormcrow, and an Ice Ferret. No match for the five assault mechs bearing down on them. Des knew placing his relatively lightweight star to hold the line was a mistake, and that he was going to pay for it.
But not without extracting a high price first.
Deserk’s Mad Dog fired its entire arsenal of short range streak racks and pulse lasers, showering his opponent, a Gargoyle, with a deluge of energy darts and missiles.
The Gargoyle replied with its own weapons, and Deserk’s mech staggered backwards from the intense firepower.
Des was having his own problems. The Warhawk he had matched up with was proving to be a stubborn foe, its heavy armor taking everything his Timber Wolf could dish out, and returning it with interest.
An autocannon roared, and Des felt the pinging impacts of shells on the lower half of his mech as he struggled to pull the distance from his opponent. All around him, his Star was fighting hard, but they were outmatched. The good thing was, his other two stars were faring better on the flanks. His opponent had obviously stripped away most of the assaults away from his other stars to concentrate on Des’ command unit.
“Nova Three-One,” Des shouted through his comms, once he saw on his tactical screen that the assault mechs of his Gamma Star had disposed of most of its opponents, “proceed to nav delta under ECM. Engage all opponents in range in,” Des did a quick calculation, “thirty seconds.”
Nav delta was almost directly behind the enemy star, and while the rules of zellbrigen forbid mechs from ganging up on their opponents, it did not state that mechs have to face another before they start to fight. At least not explicitly.
Two crashes to his left told Des that his Stormcrow and Ice Ferret were down, while Deserk and the other Mad Dog piloted by Tenny were about to be pounded into scrap.
All part of the plan, all part of the plan, Des told himself as he jumped the Timber Wolf right into the middle of the First Assault Trinary. I hope this works! Des resisted the urge to wipe away his sweat.
“I am down!” Deserk yelled out, followed scant seconds later by a similar report from Tenny.
Des continued to dance with the Warhawk, pushing his omnimech desperately to avoid his enemy’s attacks while glancing every few seconds at the status of his Bravo Star, commanded by Star Commander Jeff, or Nova Two-One.
The readings were not too good. Bravo Star was winning, but just barely. Then his Gamma Star, which had been waiting at nav delta, engaged as per his instructions.
The assault mechs of his opponents were rocked back on their heels as Gamma Star attacked with waves of long range missiles. Des grinned, but only for an instant before he realized the Warhawk was about to blast him into pieces.
“Freebirth!” Des shouted as he fired one last salvo at the Warhawk as it tore his Timber Wolf apart. One of his PPC bolts managed to tear off an arm, which brought a smile to his lips, amidst the burning furnace in the cockpit.
His mech systems died around him as the Timber Wolf fell. Once the exercise was over, they would be restored as the techs deactivated the training programs. There was nothing he could do now but wait for the results.
“Not bad, Descartin, not bad at all.” Oasic Carns, a grizzled veteran of many battles commented as a miserable Descartin sat in the mess hall swallowing his dinner while digesting his opponent’s analysis of the battle at the same time. He wondered why Oasic was not eating, but had a fusionaire in front of him instead.
Oasic continued, with one cautious eye on his young charge. “Of course, you could have won if you had ordered Gamma to stay back and let your Bravo engage my mechs first. The fresh mechs of Gamma would then be able to take down my assault mechs after they had killed Bravo.”
Des stabbed a fork grumpily into a piece of meat. Normally, he would be overjoyed to have such good food, but his mood had been spoilt by his defeat. He turned to Oasic. “All right, so how would you respond, if I had done as you suggested?”
Oasic smiled viciously, “I would have challenged your Gamma first, so in the end it would not matter what you did. I already had an eye on what was going on, despite your ECM. Did you think me stupid?” He glared at Des.
Des felt his insides shrivel a bit from the angry stare. “Neg.” The potent fusionaire was probably affecting Oasic already.
“Good, because I do not think you are stupid either. Your biggest mistake is letting yourself get taken out so early in a fight. Because you went down, your trinary lost overall coordination. You could have forced my challenge against Bravo. If anything, leaders must always be the last to go down.”
“Huh? I thought we were supposed to lead from the front!” Des placed a chunk of food into his mouth.
“Aff, but if a commander goes down too early, who would then replace him? Yes, there are many warriors of the clan eager to step into his role, but such actions are, more often than not, disastrous during a battle.” Oasic took a long drink from his fusionaire.
“So as a Star Captain, I must lead from the front, but also survive long enough to lead my men?”
“Aff, that is the gist of it. And that is why the rank of Star Captain is one of the most difficult. Star Colonels, despite their skill, are not required to lead from the front, and this applies even less to Galaxy Commanders and Khans. But Star Captains have to lead and survive at the same time, and that is no easy feat.”
Des was deep in thought as he chewed his food. Then he asked, “What about zellbrigen? How does that affect our tactics?”
“Zellbrigen makes matters more difficult in terms of tactics, reducing everything to one on one duels. For example, your positioning of Gamma behind my assaults was a smart move, but because they cannot engage immediately, you have removed, even if only temporarily, almost forty percent of your firepower from the battle. That is not a good thing.”
“And because of that, I lost.”
“Aff. From what I have read of the reports from the Inner Sphere, I suspect that zellbrigen will work against us. We cannot expect our enemies to follow our rules, and we may have to disregard dueling if we are to succeed.”
27th July 3051
“Boom! Boom!” The drums filled the air with a throbbing beat, sounding twenty times to signify the twenty clans created by Nicholas Kerensky.
A blazing bonfire burned furiously in the middle of the huge parade ground on Barcella, throwing up huge sparks of lighted ash into the air, its immense heat felt by every warrior present.
The entire touman of Clan Nova Cat was gathered there, for their monthly Chronicle of Battles. Once a month the warriors of the clan would gather, reading from their Remembrance and regaling one another with tales of adventure and glory. It served to enhance the bonds between warriors, bringing them together and making them feel part of something larger than themselves.
Part of Clan Nova Cat.
This particular occasion, however, was more special than most. For they were finally returning to the Inner Sphere. And this night, they would be speaking of glory to come in the battle ahead.
Des had found himself with a group of equally young warriors, all laughing and eating merrily as they encircled the fire. All across the parade square, hundreds of warriors, big and small, lounged around the fire, taking its warmth for the cold night. The sounds of idle talk subsided as the drums sounded, signifying the start of the ceremony.
He glanced at the stage at one end of the fire, a raised platform just before the fire where the Khan himself would address the warriors of the clan once all twenty beats had been pounded on the drums.
Indeed, Khan Severen Leroux was slowly ascending the steps as the crowd chanted “Seyla”. He stopped before the fire, and the crowd hushed in awed silence as they stared at the flames.
A nova cat, formed from flame, snarled in the bonfire. It turned around, its piercing eyes roaming around the entire assembly, as though trying to stare into the soul of every warrior present. Des could feel his own astonishment as it dropped down on its haunches before the Khan, then springing up into a soundless roar towards the stars, and then disappearing into the fire.
“Warriors of Clan Nova Cat!” Severen Leroux’s strong and confident voice spoke. “I am Khan Severen Leroux, and leader of Clan Nova Cat, the strongest of Kerensky’s children! Though I am bound to speak of past battles, past victories, I shall instead point our clan towards the Inner Sphere. Where our future lies.”
Leroux took a deep breath. “Many years ago, our ancestors followed the Great Founder to Strana Mechty, where he promised them that one day, when the time is right, their descendents shall return to the Inner Sphere and restore the Star League. Since then, our clan has fought many battles. From the first early struggles to liberate the people of the Pentagon, to the betrayal of the Not-Named Clan, we have persevered. More importantly, we have gained strength, gained in power. Power that shall enable us to restore the Star League and return humanity to a golden age!”
“The battles that await us, no matter what you might think, will not be easy. I have seen the courage of the samurai of the Draconis Combine, and the intelligence of the defenders of the Federated Commonwealth. The people of the Free Rasalhague Republic are hardly broken by their losses and fight on even harder.”
“But we are warriors as well. The descendents of the Star League Defense Force, the mightiest army in the history of man. We have never known failure, and we shall not greet it easily! Above all, the purity of our purpose, will drive us on towards success! This is the rede of the Khan of the Nova Cats, which we shall all abide until we all fall!”
“Seyla!” The entire touman of the clan shouted.