Battletech: The Ghost Who Walks (Battletech Isekai)

[Imperator Pax]

How would the Magistracy have gotten their hands on a Rimworld factory? The actual Rimworlds Republic was on the far side of Steiner space from them, they would have had to go through the Mariks and the Steiners.

Click to shrink...

Its more correctly a Amaris's Hidden Army factory that was in the Rimward Periphery world of Pioche rather than one of the publicly declared Rimworld Republic factories inside the Rimworld proper.

 

[Imperator Pax]

Departure Interlude


The data packages were processing. Dante was uncharacteristically quiet as he worked, and that left the command staff sitting in their chairs, or floating in microgravity waiting for the machines to come to life with news data from the ground side station. They weren't planning to disembark this jump so they were sitting here waiting.


"You will be leaving MacKay in command of the Battalion?"


"He's done well so far." Gene replied. The Eisenhower's star chart showed the route to Coromodir, the route that a couple of the Dobrev Ice Cubes would take to bring McEvedy's personal message to High Lord Tamati Arano. "I don't see a second attack being mounted on Canopus any time soon, but we'll transfer material to resupply."


MacIntyre was satisfied with that arrangement.


That did mean replacing battlemechs, or repairing them out cache driven supplies... which would attract attention but in the short term from the Canopians. Still that was mostly about pushing replacement archers, and Highlanders to the forces on Canopus from old Hegemony stockpiles and that could be relied on to keep attention if not low less intrusive that it could have been. If not for the horrific dangers of the ongoing conflict Black Jack Kelly, and the Amaris pretender running around it was just as likely that there would have been LosTech prospectors desperately scrambling to try and find and stake claims... but that wasn't something they could worry about in the present.


"That may not be enough," McEvedy replied.


"You think they'll mount another attack, Canopus is arguably the best defended world in the Magistracy," That it was also the capital went without saying. "doubling down would be a mistake."


"Amaris's thugs aren't acting rational, if it was they'd be trying to seize and hold territory." and she was right this was no longer really about fighting Piracy, even though Black Jack could still be called a pirate.


There was a chirp, "Latest update is in from Ground Side Control." Announced the voice from the JumpShip the Eisenhower was docked to. From his terminal he skimmed the first couple headlines The news packet didn't look like anything, at least not from the headlines on the files... there'd be time to watch them while they waited for the JumpDrives to charge.


Septim's message ... appended to the report on the Company's efforts in the north had summarized the situation as the playground was getting crowded. The Magistracy was consenting the movement of independent mercenary commands... i.e. The Wolf Dragoons, and the Knights of St Cameron under the existing freedom of navigation scheme. In theory those same star leaague era laws also allowed house troops to transit space but that was much more uncomfortable issue for state governments and planetary ones.


"The Knights of St Cameron have started fielding inCrocketts." The General remarked tapping through the holographic display drawing from her personal files. It settled on machines that were temperate SLDF camo, Riflemen scanning for inbound threats as larger Assault BattleMech's advanced. It a news cast. An imagine of fighting back against the new Amaris threat.


Cameron starbursts badged the machines of the Heavy Support Lance backing up medium machines that had already advanced inward. The Knights of St Cameron... and presumably the broader cult supported the fight in the periphery as a holy war. It was dressed up in religious language, every broadcast every statement framed with imagery of the martyred ruling house of the Star League and the Hegemony.


The images had been weeks old by the time they had left Luxen. They'd been images only Septim had thought to mention and even that had been in his report not verbally over the HPG link. He'd made other notations.


That the Knights ordinarily favored fighting one on one was not stopping them from massing fire power and weapons on Rim World designs, or former SLDF machines. The Captain General had also probably benefitted not just from the PR bonus but by not having to worry about a regiment of nominal Mercenaries not being in the Lyran Commonwealth.


"We may learn more when we link up with Septim." He replied. The image itself didn't bother him, but there was the fact that its entry into service date was late... regardless of Terran acquisition of it to train mechwarriors... and that these machines were fitted with their original Blankenburg LBX series autocannons. If the Knights had claimed that these machines were heritage battlemechs or discovered in a recent cache by the faithful that would have been potentially believable... but McEvedy's tone... "you think there is something there?" Pasha certainly did, given what they knew of the SLDF machines that Black Jack's forces were using.


"I think the resurgence of the Vandenburg White Wings is entirely too coincidental." More than that... that she thought someone wanted to make sure that Black Jack's advantage holding SLDF royal technology would not be as overbearing.


This was more than more 'Fancy SLDF Assault Mechs' as Septim had called them.


This more than worrying if the White Wings were somehow tied up more broadly... the problem there was that neither the Tripitz nor the Vincent more recently had been operational ships. How successful they might be against a ship under thrust was questionable but hopefully they might try going after the Rim World warships. Then of course there was the mess of the original problem, which he was trying to work back around to... in part because they really didn't know enough about the White Wings situation, "The Combine's activities are a problem." but on the other hand, the idea that the Combine would make a swipe at Claymore or Bardiche on Canopus or Farandir seemed pretty out there... and yet Gene had to wonder if that was enough, there was still fighting going on in the Inner Sphere despite pleas for unity, calls for peace, and everything else. "Especially given their numbers."


Worries about the Combine weren't the only issue, the Command Deck of the Eisenhower had holographic maps up displaying what they knew of what the other great houses were doing. Though originally Lyran the Knights of St Cameron were a religious order more than traditional mercenaries. It seemed as if Andurien separate of the Captain General was already making overtures to the Magistracy of Canopus... and the Capellans still had the Lancers nearby. Then there were the Taurians, and the Aurigans and beyond them the matter of tentative reports about Tortuga flaring up again.


MacIntyre spoke up, "If I'd hazard a guess it looks like the Kuritans are cutting east anyway, we can't know that for sure, but I think he's heading into the Reach."


"For what purpose?" McEvedy questioned suddenly concerned since her envoy to the Aurigans was high up on her list of personal priorities after tracking down other Exodites... any tie to descendants of the SLDF was a priority in her book. "At best it would allow him to avoid further conflict with the Free Worlds League but would push him in the opposite direction of travel to the pirates." But the Kuritan task force couldn't risk getting bogged down inside of the League either, which was a risk given the spread of House Marik's domain. "It would make more sense for them to move to and stage a confrontation at Detroit."


"I do not agree," Pasha replied, "The Aurigans origins is hardly a secret, nor is the fact the Dragon claims he is the legitimate heir to House Cameron. There is also the link to the community." In that there was a security risk, where Theodore Kurita might potentially, and certainly if he had the loyalty, which he appeared to have, of the Arkab Legion might find friendly ports. "Our cousins would support any fighting force against the Satan Amaris, we ourselves fought Rimworld troops on Fjaldr." Or pirates with Rim World Machines, but for the Azami the distinction was minimal. "And we know the enemy continues to mount raids into Capellan space as well... and we should not discount the possibility that the Dragon will once they do leave the periphery will strike the Capellan March," Of the Federated Suns, "Before returning to the Combine."


McEvedy nodded in agreement particularly of the last bit of Pasha's... ultimately prescient warning on Combine Strategic Operations in the Periphery. Gene went ahead and voiced the obvious, "We couldn't have known, predicting this pivot wouldn't have changed our broader objectives." As it was... intelligence limitations Theodore Kurita would probably be well positioned to mop up Bauman's remaining network and other supporters operating in the Aurigan Reach. "Claymore and Bardiche will both need time to recover. They will stay where they are."
--
Septim looked at the assault mech in the storage bay. "Its called a Bullshark?"


"Yeah," The boss replied thumbs tucked in the pockets of the half zipped jacket, "McEvedy said it was Hallis's project, wasn't finished by the time of the Exodus. It was a development between another Clan," so it was possible Gene supposed, "Clan Mongoose may have completed a version of it... on the other hand the Wolf Dragoons seem to believe that their Imp was developed by the Star League not by Kerensky early in their history."


"That's crazy," Septim shrugged, "I mean still,"


"We're keeping them in reserve now, but Bauman was able toturn the factory aboard the Dobrev on, and feed it material to get it to work."


"How many?"


"At least a company's worth were built and shipped off world, plus however many were in storage and intact when Dobrev crash landed."


"And the factory? That would be like what the rimworld built on Pioche right?" The same fundamentals, "Won't Kelly try and come back and take it?"


"We stripped Dobrev and made sure the magazines were wired when we blew the ship." Those videos had gone out through the HPG network, "And we're evacuating that salvage as far from the conflict zone as possible. The other problem and this is the techs saying they're not sure how robust of a machine this will be in a sustained fight. It mounts a completely new model XL Fusion engine, on top of that artillery piece, if we need to sortie with them we'll treat them similar to how I treat the Devastator."


Septim looked at the ninety five ton machine, "But there are twenty to thirty of these? Better tech than what the Star League had." But it was also more than just LosTech... he thought of the dreams that had convinced him to leave the Lyran Guard in the first place, green birds with weapons better than anything the Commonwealth had, "The clans are going to invade aren't they? Have all this tech, maybe better than this? It'd be like an entire army of LosTech machines." Never mind that that was already what they were sort of fighting with Black Jack... and now Kelly, and Amaris.


The expression on the boss's face confirmed it without him immediately replying, "From what I understand the jig is up for the Dragoons, I think basically everyone has figured out that they're descendants of Kerensky's exodus north. That doesn't mean we're looking at a fight, but too many things don't add up, there are too many ways things could go wrong. Too many unaswered questions."


"Like where the Knights got those LosTech SLDF 'mechs?" The crocketts are fitted with the weapons they should have been, according to specs the Good Stuff, "they're using them. They had to get them from somewhere right? And then the White Wings just mysteriously showed back up on top of that, its too much..."


"You're right," He moved a slip of paper over, "McEvedy has confirmed a list of the Clans of Kerensky," He didn't touch on the the fact that the Wolf Dragoons were in the Commonwealth now, "Twenty clans originally, an estimate on how many warships they had at the time Wolverine left when we get back to the Federated Suns we're going to share that with Doctor Abner, with the Field Marshal."


There was a resignation in the tone almost imperceptible to anyone not familiar with the way boss ordinarily talked... and that was enough to fill Septim with a near existential dread. Black Jack's pirates having SLDF metal had been bad enough, "We're on our own aren't we? I mean we're the only ones who really know what we might be up against... and, the knights," He had gotten the opportunity to talk to their people, "The Church of St Cameron believes that the SLDF would return ands what-"


"Our evidence suggests Kerensky's people are not necessarily our friends. We shouldn't assume further than that, but Dante and I, and Mother Bear have all agreed that we have a moral responsibility to put the Inner Sphere defenders, beginning with the Federated Suns in the best possible position to defend themselves against threats. Whether that is House Kurita, or one or more of these clans..."


Because regardless of possible temporary cooperation against Amaris, a fight with the Combine in the long run was unavoidable...Septim knew that, had known that since Elidere. "We go link backup with St George?"


"At some point yes." He replied, "McEvedy stays here, looks for other survivors of the Minnesota tribe, talks with IE, and we try and find evidence of where the Tripitz was going on our next rotation back." The plan, it sounded nice, it sounded clean... it sounded far less complicated than Septim figured it would be in practice.

The thought struck him, "It might be nothing, but from what I heard the Knights and the Wolf Dragoons ... exchanged pointers. I kind of chalked how the KSC fought as being more like what we see with the snakes, but from the Roms, there was a lot of similarity there. I think the Dragoons liked that, maybe like is the wrong word but it was just a vibe."

"I'll keep that in mind." Gene replied. "I appreciate that observation Septim."
--
Notes: We drop into the next few interludes with 3rd​Luxen finally happening, originally I had planned to cover both Farandir and Canopus I just never got to writing them out the way Iwanted them, and even 3rd​ Luxen has proven hard to write down.

EDIT: Damn Praetorian fast. Anyway so yeah next update will be 'mech combat, we will also touch on more basically more Advanced Tech on both sides, we will see the post fallout of the Marik Civil War touched on but mostly giant stompy robots.

 

[frozone]

Must weigh heavily on the mind, looking for other pockets of SLDF survivors and finding out the largest concentration went techno Barbarian

 

[Imperator Pax]

Must weigh heavily on the mind, looking for other pockets of SLDF survivors and finding out the largest concentration went techno Barbarian

Click to shrink...

Oh you think its bad now, wait until Smoke Jaguar and Jade Falcon actually show up in force.

 

[frozone]

Oh you think its bad now, wait until Smoke Jaguar and Jade Falcon actually show up in force.

Click to shrink...

What i hope is that we have more SLDF remnants that stayed and still act like it, like the light horse grouping up together to fight thw clans