Chapter 11: Chapter 11

Chapter 11

               Meridian Manufacturing Plant One

               New St Andrews IV, The Periphery

               Rimward of the Circinus Federation

               19 May 3077     

 

               The mess hall at Plant One was a spartan affair, made to keep the workers fed while also reminding them they needed to eat their food and get back to work instead of lingering around talking.  Marie’s butt was getting sore sitting on the hard plastic seats, but she didn’t know anywhere else to wait.  She had been supervising the repairs to the Blossom, but the work had been straightforward.  Within a few days the ‘Mech would be ready to march back out into the field.

               Unfortunately the repairs were only half the problem.  The rest of the Hussars had arrived a few hours after the attack and had been able to escort the convoy and its guards back to Plant One for repairs and medical attention.  Marie only half-remembered what had happened after that.  There had been blast marks and ‘Mech footprints scattered all around the Plant.  She had been called to a debriefing with Caradin.  Marie couldn’t remember any of what she’d said, all she remembered was the intense look that had been on the lieutenant’s face.

               She’d crashed into bed shortly after being dismissed, waking up the next morning to get to work on repairs.  She’d expected Caradin, Coghill, or maybe Napier to want to talk to her.  But there had been total silence from the higher-ups.  For the last twenty-four hours the most she’d gotten had been when she’d briefly run into Thomas, and he’d curtly explained Caradin was in meetings with Meridian.

               She had kept herself occupied going over the Blossom’s systems and getting the ‘Mech fixed.  She’d flushed the heat sinks with fresh coolant and hooked the heat gauge back up, but now she was waiting on armor plates to be fabricated, which left her at loose ends.  She couldn’t even go over the Blossom’s battleROMs; Thomas had pulled the ‘Mech’s “black box,” including the sensor and communications records, saying Caradin needed it.

               She wasn’t sure she wanted to look at the records anyway.  She got chills when she saw the melted scar the PPC had left alongside the Blossom’s cockpit.  The convoy vehicles that had been dragged back for repairs looked even worse, pockmarked with bullet holes and with wheels blown off from mine explosions.  To say nothing of the men and women who had needed to be flown to the hospital in Kilrymont…

               “Evening,” a man said to her as he walked past.  He set a pack of cigarettes down on the table in front of her with a nod of appreciation.  Marie felt her heart get heavier at the small gesture.  She managed a tight-lipped nod and a mumbled thanks as he walked away.  Just the latest token gesture, out of dozens of she’d been getting for the past day.  Most of them had come from convoy personnel who stopped by to thank her for intervening.  There had been a few Plant workers who stopped by too, which was surprising.  She would have expected at least a few of them to be angry at her for not responding to the attack on the Plant, but they had figured out that the attack had been exactly the distraction Marie had thought it was: the pirate BattleMechs had been content to attack the building for a few minutes before withdrawing empty-handed, leaving behind a few damaged tanks but only minor injuries to the personnel.  So even the Plant workers who’d had to weather the attack were thanking her for protecting their friends in the convoy.

               “You are very popular here.”

               Hoshino dropped into a seat across the table from her.  He held a cup in each hand, and wore a concerned expression on his face.

               “Yup,” Marie replied with a dejected glance in his direction.  “I can officially destroy my lungs for free.  And I’m pretty sure I won’t need to pay for my drinks either.”  Hoshino said nothing to this, though his brows knit together in confusion over her gloomy tone.  She shook her head at him.  “Do they not know I screwed up?”

               Hoshino shrugged.  “I have seen what Meridian’s cameras recorded.  By all accounts you were the hero of the day.”

               “Some hero,” Marie muttered.  “I was only able to help because the pirates decided I wasn’t worth the effort of killing.  And I didn’t do their job for them,” she added on bitterly.  She held up her hands, which were covered in bandages from treating her burns.  “I was about three degrees away from my ammo exploding under me, and I was pulling out the safeties,” she said, shaking her head in disbelief.

               “In the end, you were still standing,” Hoshino said with another shrug.  “You were able to save half of the convoy.  And Meridian’s defenses held against the attack here, so the damage to the Plant should be repairable.”

               Marie took the cigarettes and jammed them in her uniform pocket.  “Yeah, that sure makes me feel better,” she mumbled.

               Hoshino leaned back in his chair and was quiet for a few moments.  “Sometimes a warrior must accept a qualified win,” he finally said.  “I think you made the best of a bad situation.  You were very brave to fight against so many.  From what I saw the pirates were not sparing anyone who got in their way, so even saving half the convoy is half more than would have survived without you.  And the way you dodged the PPC…” he said, nodding at her approvingly.  “Not just anyone has those kind of instincts.”

               “Thanks,” Marie replied gratefully.  “That’s the first really good thing I’ve heard so far.  Mom called me yesterday.  She’d heard about what happened.  Said Caradin messed up sending me in alone.  That she should’ve at least given me more guidance than ‘get in there and fight.’”

               Hoshino made a thoughtful noise at that.  “It was a rapidly changing situation, with unreliable comms.  The rest of the Hussars are experienced fighters.  It says much that Caradin trusted you to handle the situation with such short orders.”

               “That’s what I said,” Marie bit out, exasperated.  “Not that it mattered to her anyway, nothing I say ever gets through.  It’s like she forgets I’m from a family of MechWarriors.  This job is what I’m supposed to do.”

               Hoshino rumbled in agreement.  “I know something of family obligations.  I am sure your mother wants what is best for you.”

               “You’d be surprised.  Do you have family, Hoshino?  Siblings?”

               “An older brother, yes.  A far more respectable man than I, worthy of carrying on my family name.”

               “So was he the favorite, or were you?”  Hoshino grinned a little at that, but Marie went on, her voice cold.  “I mean all parents say they don’t have a favorite, but you can tell.  Did your mom rub it in your face that your brother is the one who should’ve been in the ‘Mech cockpit?  Or that he’s the one on her mind, way, way more often than you are?  After he left your whole family behind?”  Hoshino’s smile fell at that and he stayed quiet, at a loss for words.  Marie sighed.

               “Sorry,” she said, shaking her head.  “That’s mothers for you.  They get you all mixed up inside.”

               Hoshino nodded at that.  “Family has a way of striking at your heart.  Thankfully teammates are there to help you heal it.”  He pushed a cup towards her, and raised his own up.  “As you say, you do not need to pay for your drinks here.”

               Marie took the offered cup and tapped it to his.  “To family, and all the little trials they throw at us,” she said, and they both drank.  After she swallowed, she stared into her drink for a few seconds, lost in her thoughts.  “I get the feeling I’m in trouble,” she said quietly.  “No one’s wanted to talk to me yet.”

               “What happened was so unexpected, they are trying to pull all the details together.  Be glad you are not in Caradin’s position now, she is the one who must explain how the pirates were able to attack.”

               “Yeah,” Marie mumbled.  She met Hoshino’s eyes.  “How were they able to attack, anyway?”

               Hoshino glanced around self-consciously.  “I believe the lieutenant is still trying to figure that out.  It is why she has not contacted you yet.” 

               “Just give me your opinion then.  I’m driving myself crazy thinking about what went wrong.  Last I heard, you guys had these pirates on the run, but then two strike teams got all the way down to Plant One without anyone noticing.  So between two teammates, what do you think happened?”

               Hoshino nodded somberly at that before leaning forward and lowering his voice.  “I agree, their ability to evade us is unmatched.  These pirates have been able to stay clear of us at every turn, while still attacking the people of this planet.  To manage the attack on the convoy, they would have had to send their heavier teams south while a high-mobility unit kept the rest of us occupied to the north, making enough strikes that we believed we were still on the tail of their main force.”

               “Isn’t that Bad Plans 101?” Marie whispered back.  “Dividing in the face of the enemy, and all that?  If any of you had noticed the teams headed south, their whole plan would’ve fallen apart.  How’d they dodge a team of scouts that’s actively looking for them?”

               Hoshino scratched nervously at the back of his head, the corners of his mouth going tight.  “McCloud-san, I am a simple soldier, not a tactician.  All I can say is that the pirates have the luck of the ages with them,” he finally admitted.  He chuckled.  “Perhaps they have made a bargain with the kami, the spirits of this land.”

               Marie rolled her eyes.  “Don’t tell me you actually think there’re ghosts out there.”

               “Not at all.  The kami are peaceful spirits.  I admit I am surprised to think they might be involved.  Usually the kami favor the just and noble.  Perhaps they are playing a prank to test our resolve.  They certainly cause enough malfunctions on my Katamari.”   

               Marie rolled her eyes again.  “Well that sure clears things up.  So, don’t suppose you know a wizard we could hire to tell these kami to back off?”

               Hoshino chuckled again.  “Sadly no, but we Hussars constantly fight against forces larger and better-equipped than ourselves.  Caradin will find a solution, I am sure of it.”

               “Sure.”  Just as soon as she figures out what to do with the Pilot who disobeyed orders and let her employers get attacked, she thought to herself.

               Despite herself she couldn’t help thinking about what Hoshino had said.  She sympathized with him, actually.  BattleMechs had thousands of moving parts and interconnected electronics, kept running by a constantly rotating crew of technicians who often had to improvise.  Bugs and malfunctions were nothing new, and soldiers throughout history were a superstitious lot.  She’d seen plenty of MechWarriors blame gremlins or curses or ghosts or any number of other paranormal things for the persistent glitches in their machines.  If Hoshino wanted to chalk his mech’s personality up to these kami, so be it.  But could that explain how pirates were getting the upper hand?

               It was a strange enough concept that Marie found herself considering it.  It would certainly explain a few things if the pirates had literal ghosts on their side.  What next, magic?  Disappearing ‘Mechs?  She’d certainly heard the story of Morgan Kell and his invisible Archer enough times.  She didn’t believe it, of course, but there had to be some grain of truth for the legend to spring from.  So if that were the case, where would these all-powerful kami have come from…

               Her eyes widened as an idea struck her.  She checked the chronometer on her wristcomp, seeing it was still early evening.  Caradin might still be in meetings…

               Marie and Hoshino both looked up at an energetic voice coming from the entrance of the mess hall.  Marie’s spirits fell when she recognized the reporter from earlier.  Sure enough, right behind him was his cameraman, wired up with holo lenses.  Currently the reporter was speaking with a few of the Meridian workers, but she could practically feel him getting ready to come her way.

               Marie groaned.  “One guess who he wants to talk to.” 

               “He should not,” Hoshino commented.  “Our lieutenant and his own superiors are still looking through all the details.  Talking to us would simply be spreading rumors.”

               Marie forced a smile as the reporter glanced in her direction.  “Don’t suppose there’s a back way out of this place?” she whispered to Hoshino.

               Hoshino tilted his head towards the back of the mess hall.  “Kitchens always have another door.  Go, get some rest.  I will run interference,” he said, winking at her.

               Marie whispered him a quick thanks, downed the last of her drink in one gulp, then stood up and hastily headed towards the kitchen door.  She heard the reporter call out to her, followed shortly by Hoshino’s voice interrupting him.  She mentally thanked Hoshino again and slipped through the door to the kitchen.  She walked past the busy chefs, doing her best to look like she had every right to be there and hoping her uniform would sell it.  She made it to the back in short order, finding a door to a hallway outside the mess hall.

               Once she was outside she made her way across the Plant, finding a conference room she’d seen Caradin going into earlier.  As she stepped up to knock, the door flew open and Thomas stormed out so fast that Marie stepped on his foot.

               “Watch it!” Thomas snapped, recoiling and stumbling.  “I don’t need you breaking my bones with those things, Pilot!”  Marie stepped back, apologizing quickly.  “What do you need?” he asked.

               The hard look in the man’s eyes gave Marie a moment’s pause.  “I had something I wanted to talk over with the lieutenant,” she said after she recovered.

               “LT’s not available.  She and I just got out of a meeting with Meridian,” Thomas curtly replied.  “She’ll call you when she’s got time.”

               “Well, I can talk to you about it too…” Marie began.  She trailed off as she glanced into the meeting room behind him.  Her brow furrowed as she saw one of the chairs was in pieces on the floor.  “What happened in there?”

               “Maintenance crew just came through,” Thomas said dismissively.  “The idiots disassembled half the furniture and left.”

               “That looks broken – ” Marie said, pointing at the cracked plastic pieces.

               “It’s none of your business,” he snapped.  He closed his eyes and took a breath.  “Sorry,” he said evenly.  “Meridian’s not happy, and that makes the LT unhappy.  But she’s resting now, and I’ve got work to get to.  Stay on standby, the LT will call you when she needs your input.  We need to finish cleaning up this mess before we get into another one.”

               “No seriously, I think – ” Marie said as he tried to leave.

               “You’ve done enough, Pilot,” he snapped at her.  “Dismissed."

               Marie stiffened at the anger in his voice.  She stepped back from him, mutely saluting and letting him walk past her.  She glanced back inside the conference room for a moment, her lips tight as she looked over the smashed chair.  Did Thomas really expect her to believe it was the ‘maintenance crew’? 

               She decided even if the lieutenant was resting, it was worth checking to see if she was awake.  If Meridian was so mad it had the sergeant destroying furniture, the Hussars needed a break, fast.  Marie headed for the apartments that had been set aside for them.

               “LT?  Are you up?” she asked, tapping on Caradin’s door.  There was a noise of movement from inside and the door opened a few seconds later.  Marie’s eyes widened.

               Wolfgang stood in the doorway.  The man was shirtless and barefoot, and smelled of sweat.  “S’cuze me,” he said, and Marie mutely stepped aside.  She numbly watched him stumble down the hallway and disappear through the door into his apartment.  Once he was out of sight, Marie apprehensively looked back into Caradin’s room.

               Caradin was on her feet and stretching.  Her bare legs were in plain view under the hem of the shirt she’d just pulled on.  “Evening, McCloud,” she said.  “Did you need something?”

               “Um…I wanted to talk to you about something.  But I can come back later,” Marie said apologetically, stepping back from the door.

               “Never mind that.  Come in.”

               Marie hesitated a few moments before stepping inside and closing the door.  She couldn’t help glancing at the bed, noting its state of disarray and the clothes scattered on the floor.  Caradin was already taking a seat at a small table on one side of the room. 

               “You have a cigarette on you?” Caradin asked.  Marie obligingly produced one and lit it for her.  The sweet, smoky smell helped to cover the musky odor that permeated the room. 

               Marie left the pack of cigarettes on the table.  “Keep ‘em, I’ve got too many all of a sudden,” she said, putting on a forced smile.  Caradin said nothing to that, just taking a long drag on the cigarette and slowly exhaling smoke.  “Do you need a minute?” Marie asked.  “Seriously, I can wait while you pull yourself together.”

               “I wear less than this when I’m in Fleetfoot,” Caradin replied, waving her off.  She noticed Marie’s tension.  “Wolf and I have an understanding.  We help each other relieve stress.” she explained.  “Don’t tell me you’re a prude, McCloud.”

               Marie shook her head and composed herself.  “I’m in no place to judge.  I’m a fan of ‘stress relief,’ too.”

               An approving smile cracked Caradin’s lips.  “Nothing wrong with grabbing a local boy for a little fun, right?”

               “Who said it’s always a boy?” Marie shot back with a little smirk. 

               Caradin quirked an eyebrow at the implication, but still made no move to cover herself.  She pointed at a chair across the table, and Marie lowered herself into it. 

               “So how are you holding up?” Caradin asked.  “First real combat engagement, how do you think you did?”

               Marie paused to consider that.  “Could’ve gone better,” she answered.  “I didn’t die and the Blossom is fixable, so there’s that.  The people from the convoy think I did well.  And Hoshino’s been really supportive.”  Caradin’s lips tightened at that, but Marie went on.  “What’s going on with Thomas, by the way?  He seemed off.”

               “Don’t worry about him,” Caradin said dismissively.  “It’s great you’re a hero to the drivers right now, but as far as Meridian’s concerned, the whole thing’s a mess.”  She took another drag on the cigarette.  “I saw your combat data.  You know you got lucky,” she said evenly.  Marie nodded quietly at that.  “Why do you think you’re still alive?  You were overheated and outnumbered four-to-one.  They controlled the battlefield and had you surrounded.  Why’d they fall back?”

               Marie’s mouth tightened; she’d been up all night turning that question over in her head.  Finally she opened her mouth.

               “The ForestryMech was just a laborer they were using to drag loot away.  It’s not made for fighting, so they had to pull it back before I could get a shot on it, or they’d risk coming away empty-handed.  The Valkyrie was just area control, it didn’t have any weapons that could actually hurt my armor.  And the Vulcan is geared for anti-infantry and anti-vehicle work, it’s at a disadvantage against a BattleMech.  So their only real fighter was that Wolverine.  He had more firepower than me, but he had to balance the damage he could do to me against what I could do to him.  When he saw I’d gotten the Blossom back online he must’ve figured it wasn’t worth staying in the fight.”

               Caradin nodded in response.  “Not bad.  You’re picking up the job quick.”

               “Sir?”

               “With everything going wrong you still saw what they had and could make sense of their tactics.  My training regimen’s going to make a good Pilot out of you yet.  I knew it was right to have Thomas push you,” she said with a little smile, which quickly faded away.  “Maybe getting a new Pilot will be the one bright spot in this whole thing.  This was supposed to be an easy job, you know.  Stand guard, train the security, and get paid.  Pirates weren’t supposed to be on-planet when we landed.  They weren’t supposed to be making hits on the factories or the convoys.”

               Marie nodded.  “I’m sorry about that, sir.  I know I didn’t get to the Plant when they were under attack.  I was doing my best.”

               Caradin made a quiet noise of agreement.  “Client’s expecting me to work miracles.  I don’t know what they were expecting, having my newest Pilot as their only guard.  The thing is, this job is all about appearances, and right now we don’t have a good look.  We’ve been on deployment a month, and all we’ve got is my people walking through the woods to come up with nothing, and one Pilot who didn’t respond to an attack on the Plant she was assigned to protect.  I’ve got to give Meridian something to show we’re on the ball with this one, or they might cut us loose.  I can’t afford that happening again.”

               “That’s the thing, I think I know how we can solve the problem,” Marie said.  “Or how the pirates are working, anyway.”

               Caradin regarded her pensively for a long moment before responding.  “All right.  I’m listening.”

               “They were able to set up and spring a trap,” Marie began.

               “I could tell that,” Caradin said.  “I run a scout lance, you think I can’t spot a trap?  It was an ambush from the start, the kind of thing Meridian expects my people to protect them from, preferably before it goes off.”

               Marie flinched at the sharp tone in her voice, but went on.  “I mean their timing was too good.  They organized a feint attack on the Plant exactly when I was in a position to hear the call for help.  Then they hit the convoy just in time for me to have left it behind.  If their timing was off by just a few minutes it wouldn’t have worked.  Their attacks on the Plant and the convoy were coordinated.  I think they’ve got a communications hub on-planet, and from what I saw, I think it’s that Wolverine.  He looked like he had half an HPG grafted onto his shoulder.  That’s why he pulled back when I got the Blossom back online.  He couldn’t risk me hitting his comms gear with a lucky shot.”

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               “So they’ve got equipment that can get past the scrambling, I figured they had something like that,” Caradin said.  “So what?”

               “So…even with top-end hardware, to get any kind of reliable long-distance communication on this planet they’d need a satellite to bounce signals off of.  And the Wolverine had a satellite dish.”  Marie gave that a moment to sink in, but Caradin remained poker-faced.  “If they can use a satellite for communications, they can use one for spying too, right?  They could have an eye in the sky watching everything we’re doing.  They’d know exactly how to avoid us that way, and exactly which targets to hit.”

               Caradin shook her head.  “That sounds like grasping at straws, McCloud.  You’re filling in blanks when there’s an easier answer.  No one needs orbital communications on this planet.  You were able to contact me just by getting up on a ridge, odds are they do the same thing.  And I don’t care if this Wolverine has the best satellite uplink in the Inner Sphere and a Comstar precentor personally running it, it’s still worth nothing on a planet with no satellites.”

               “There weren’t any before the pirates arrived,” Marie corrected.  “What if they put one in orbit on their way in?  Their dropship’s engines would’ve been making so much noise no one would have noticed it deploying something like that.”

               “Making a spy satellite like that takes manufacturing facilities, computer programming, and a dozen other things,” Caradin replied skeptically.  “And there’s been no reports of this group picking up a satellite on their way off-planet, or anyone finding one on any of the other planets they’ve hit.”

               “A little spy satellite’s not that much more advanced than the damn camera drones Meridian’s swarming us with,” Marie argued.  “And they might have all the facilities to make it on their dropship.  They could build a satellite en route to a planet, and just leave it behind when they leave.  It would burn up in atmosphere or crash, and it’d be months before anyone even finds the debris, let alone figures out what it’s for.”

               Caradin thought about that.  “It would explain how they’re able to avoid us,” she finally muttered.  “OK, let’s say that’s the case.  Do you have a plan for how to deal with it?  You have some way to track down a satellite no one else has ever been able to spot?”

               “That’s the thing.  We don’t need to find it, just find what it’s talking to,” Marie said, holding up a finger.  Caradin quirked an eyebrow and she gestured for Marie to go on.  “They’re probably using line-of-sight communication to avoid detection, but that means the Wolverine has to stick its head out long enough to line up its dish and shoot a laser communication up to orbit and back again.  If we get a clear view of the area and look for high-power laser signals, we can catch them when they communicate with their satellite.  Their own transmission will point us right to them.”  She took a breath, steadying herself for the next part.  “We’ve got a rough idea of where they’re operating just based on the strikes they’re making.  I can watch the whole area for a signal if I’m airborne.” 

               Caradin’s eyes hardened.  “I thought I made myself clear, McCloud.  No flying until I’m convinced you’re up to it.”

               “You know I’m up to it.  And I’ve been training on the simulator every chance I get.” 

               Caradin gave her a skeptical look.  “I know how much time you’ve been spending in there, and I also know Meridian doesn’t have a LAM simulator on hand.”

               “They don’t, that’s why I rewired it.  Now the simulator runs a pretty good copy of the Blossom.”

               “You rewired it,” Caradin repeated flatly.  “And you thought it was all right to mess around with Meridian’s property?  I’m the one that has to answer to these people for every mistake, McCloud.”

               “I knew what I was doing,” Marie protested.  “And I had to get training in somehow if I ever wanted to fly her.  It’s not like I’ve got a standard ‘Mech.”

               “You’ve got no ‘Mech,” Caradin sharply corrected.  “I own that machine.  I hired you because you’re qualified to pilot it, but I thought you understood you’re doing it under my command.  I can’t have one of my people deciding they know better, got it?”

               Marie held up her hands.  “All right, sorry,” she said.

               Caradin sighed and took another drag on the cigarette.  Her eyes softened slightly as she exhaled.

               “Let’s call it a learning experience,” she said.  “It’d be more concerning if you were a fresh academy grad.  I have to remind myself that you’re new at this game.  This is just part of breaking you in and getting you up to speed with the rest of us.”

               Marie felt a little wash of relief in her chest at that.  “All right.  Thank you, sir.  So…what about aerial patrols?”

               Caradin shook her head.  “Sorry, McCloud.  We’re barely being paid enough to keep our machines running.  Even if these pirates don’t have anti-air capability, which is a big ‘if,’ I can’t afford to keep you fueled up long enough to comb the whole sky hoping to spot a laser beam that’s only visible for a millisecond.  In case you didn’t notice, it’s a really big sky.  And you’ve got nothing to go off of but your hunch.  It’s not worth risking the LAM and the fuel over that.”

               Marie’s expression tightened.  “I’m saying we could actually find the pirates and take the fight to them.  That’s got to be a better look than just going back to wandering through the woods.  And we get a bonus if we actually get rid of them, right?” she asked, trying to remember the terms of the contract she’d read a month ago.  “If I can find them, that bonus will cover all the fuel I burn a dozen times over, and we’ll get their ‘Mechs as salvage.”  Caradin stayed quiet at that.  “Do you really want to let the pirates get air superiority with a ten-kilo camera?”

               Caradin sighed and flicked ashes from the cigarette.  “I already made my decision, McCloud.  Good for you showing some initiative, it’s more than anyone else is doing for me right now.  But I can’t afford the risk.”

               Marie’s shoulders fell.  “I understand, sir.” 

               Caradin took a long drag on the cigarette, burning it almost down to the butt.  The woman kept her eyes on Marie as she slowly breathed the smoke out her nostrils.  Finally, she opened her mouth.  “How are repairs going?  Is the LAM holding up after that engagement?”

               “She’s fine,” Marie answered.  “Front landing gear got knocked out of alignment again, but I’ll get that straightened after I finish the armor.  She’ll be ready to go back on guard duty in another day.”

               “Tell you what, we’re recommencing scouting sweeps tomorrow.  As soon as the Blossom’s fixed, you can come out to join us.  I think you’ve earned a break from just standing around.”

               Marie blinked.  “Really?”

               “Why not?  I told Meridian I’m calling you out as soon as I get a hint of pirate activity.  If nothing else, what happened at the convoy counts as a hint.  And I could use someone out there who’s able to think for herself.”

               “I…thank you, sir.  I won’t let you down.”

               “See that you don’t.  Now go get some rest, I need you fresh if you’re going out in the field.  Oh, and McCloud?” she asked as Marie turned to go.  Marie looked over her shoulder back at her.  “If you’re thinking about getting some ‘stress relief,’ remember Wolf is my personal distraction.  And frankly I’d warn you off of Hoshino.”

               Something in Caradin’s voice made Marie turn around to look at her, a questioning look on her face.  “Something I should know?” she asked.

               Caradin shrugged and casually ground the cigarette out on the table.  “Every Hussar has something in their past they’re moving away from,” she said.  “Hoshino had a little incident with a girl way back when.  The kind where she wasn’t interested but he wasn’t having it, if you get my drift.”

               Marie’s eyes widened.  “You mean…” 

               Caradin shrugged again.  “A little unit like mine can’t be too picky about who we hire, so I tolerate his past.  I get it, he’s a funny guy, or at least he tries to be.  But it’s best not to tempt him.” 

               “A…all right, sir,” Marie said, and stepped outside, quietly closing the door behind herself.

 

                                                            *             *             *

 

               Meridian Manufacturing Plant Two

               New St Andrews IV, The Periphery

               Rimward of the Circinus Federation

               21 May 3077     

 

               After another day of repairs Marie was up and piloting the Blossom on her first actual scouting sweep.  Caradin kept Wolf and Hoshino back at Plant One for rest and guard duty while she and Marie headed out alongside Bower in his Arbiter, making way for Plant Two.  The operation was fairly straightforward: Caradin ranged out ahead in Fleetfoot, laying out a path for Marie and Bower to follow along while they kept an eye on their sensors.  Marie suspected Caradin was relying on her for that last part; the Arbiter’s sensors were so outdated you were almost better off just looking out the canopy.  On the upside, the Arbiter was no faster than the Blossom, which made it easy to keep up with.

               The main drawback to escorting Bower was that he was a talker.  Despite everything else going on, Meridian was still moving ahead with their marketing campaign, and the latest holo advertisement was due to drop in another week.  He was full of comments about the camera angles, scripts, and CGI that were being used.  Having been exposed to comments like that for the last few weeks already, Marie could only listen to him with half an ear, occasionally making a noise of agreement.

               As such, it caught her off-guard when Bower asked her how big of a runway she would need to take off.

               “Uh…I mean, it would have to be smooth and not aimed at any trees,” she answered.  “But if I had that…I wouldn’t need a very long one.” 

               “Aye.  So is this smooth enough?” he asked, sweeping his Arbiter’s apelike arm to encompass the back country road they were walking along.  “Why don’t ye give it a shot?”  Before Marie could say anything, his cockpit hatch popped open and he tossed out a camera drone.

               “Uh…” Marie stammered again.  “Well I guess if I had the space to…” she caught herself, Caradin’s warning from earlier echoing in her ears.  “…actually, you should talk to my LT.  The ‘Mech’s not m…I mean, I have to clear flight time with her first.”

               “Nae lassie, you’re already cleared,” Bower answered, sounding almost confused.  “She brought it up with me a’fore we left.”

               Marie’s brow furrowed.  “Say again?”

               “Your lieutenant came to me this morning with her updated scouting plan.  Aerial reconnaissance, it sounds like a great idea ter me.  Ye kin look for any kind o’ camps out there without getting’ stuck in the woods, aye?  I figured she’d already filled ye in.  Or…wait, are we switching pilots in your machine?”

               “No, I’m the aero pilot…” Marie answered distractedly as she tried to process what he’d said.  “You know what, hang on, let me just check the flight plan,” she said before she switched her commline over to the Hussars’ lance channel.  “Fleetfoot, this is Blossom.  Come in?”

               “This is Fleetfoot,” Caradin replied, her voice distorted by even the relatively short distance she was from Marie.  “Report, Blossom.”

               “Sir, I’ve got Bower telling me to take off and conduct aerial patrols.  Did you authorize those?”

               “Yes, I was discussing them with the client this morning.  Turns out they like the idea.”

               Marie twitched.  “I talked to you about this just a day ago.  You said we can’t risk it.”

               “I rethought things this morning.  I figured it was worth running past the client,” Caradin replied smoothly.  “I’m glad you came to me with the idea first, by the way.  If you’d gone straight to the client they might not have been up for it.”

               “What?  Why?”

               “They’ve known for a while that the raiders are getting information from somewhere.  Up until this morning they’ve figured there’s a mole feeding them intel.  It’s not hard to slip a few C-bills in the right pocket.”

               “What are you saying?” Marie asked.

               “They know you’re new at this, and you’re hungry.  And, well I wasn’t going to bring this up, but…they’ve been seeing you on the communicator a lot during your off hours, talking about the Hussars’ patrols.”

               Marie blinked.  “I’m talking to my mom,” she said incredulously.  “She checks in on me.”

               This earned her a mildly annoyed sigh in response.  “I thought you and your mother traveled with mercenaries before?  Soldiers since the beginning have understood that calls home have to wait when they’re on deployment.”

               “Yes, sir.  But I mean, it was harmless, I swear.  She just doesn’t have much else happening in her life.  And I wasn’t really on deployment, I was just sitting through photo shoots half the time…”

               “You really should save that for when you’re on leave.  A lot of people don’t trust mercenaries, McCloud.  Imagine what it would look like if the rookie Pilot who’s messing around with their equipment and making backroom calls suddenly knows exactly how to find the pirates’ camp.”

               “All right…sorry,” Marie mumbled.

               “It’s all right.  Because you came to me first I managed to present the idea more politically, and now they’re giving the Hussars a chance to impress them.  So you’re up.  Let’s see if that simulator you wired is as good as you say.”

               Marie blinked again.  “Uh…no problem, sir.  I’m up to it.”

               She maneuvered the Blossom to the middle of the road.  “All right Bower, stand clear,” she warned.  Biting her lip in anticipation, she reached over to the mode selection lever and pulled it down to the first notch, changing the ‘Mech over to an AirMech.  The Blossom kept her legs under her as she bent over at the waist and her wings and nosecone unfolded.  Marie heard Bower make a noise of appreciation at the display.

               Marie’s balance swam as the Blossom transformed; Meridian’s simulator couldn’t match the real feel of the AirMech, and her brain was unused to the Blossom’s radically changed shape.  She closed her eyes and waited for the wave of nausea to pass.  As her vision steadied she took a deep breath to calm herself.

               “Here we go, old girl,” she whispered to the Blossom.  Then she stomped her toes down on the jump jet tabs.  The thrusters on the Blossom’s back roared, and the AirMech was launched forwards.

               Her eyes widened at the sensation.  Jumping in a BattleMech was an awkward affair, with most of the energy going into lifting the multi-ton machine skywards.  Transformed into an AirMech, the Blossom’s thrusters were turned sideways, and so instead of going up she was sent shooting over the ground.  Marie reflexively pulled back on the stick as she saw trees approaching.  The AirMech lifted up, her feet taking the tops off a couple trees as she took to the air. 

               That only left the hardest part, as the jump jets began to cool off.  Marie white-knuckled the sticks, fighting to keep the Blossom under control as the ground came back up at her.  Her mind raced through the self-taught steps of landing the clumsy machine.  Check altitude pull up at the last dozen meters throttle to zero tap the jets check the balance EXTEND THE LEGS!!

               The AirMech landed hard, flexing her knees to take the impact before skidding to a halt.  The Blossom teetered for a heart-stopping moment before Marie caught her balance.  She half-turned so she could look out the side display to see Bower’s Arbiter.  She blinked in surprise; the ‘Mech had shrunk to the size of a child’s toy.  The computers registered it as being almost half a kilometer away.

               “A bonnie show!” Bower exclaimed.  “But I thought it were supposed ter change ter an aerofighter?

               Marie let out the breath she’d been holding.  “Sorry,” she breathlessly replied.  “The road just didn’t look smooth enough.  I figured if I still had legs I could handle a few bumps.”

               “Smart move, McCloud, you’re thinking,” Caradin’s voice said over the comm.  Fleetfoot reappeared, slipping between the trees and coming up alongside Bower’s ‘Mech.  “Not quite the air superiority I was promised, though.  I thought that thing could actually fly?”

               “Just getting a feel for her!” Marie insisted.  She tried to swing the Blossom around to aim back the way she’d come.  That turned out to be an awkward affair; the transformation had locked the ‘Mech’s hips in place, leaving her not walking so much as clumsily waddling over the ground.  Marie’s balance swam on the first step, swaying threateningly as she tried to turn the AirMech.

               She was forced to stop and give the world a chance to stop spinning.  Once her balance had steadied, Marie took a deep breath and hit the jets again.  This time she was ready for the burst of acceleration and pulled up much quicker, flying up into the sky.  As she leveled off she throttled up, and the Blossom tucked in her arms and legs like a skier shooting down the slopes.  The AirMech wobbled as she flew, the controls feeling sluggish in Marie’s hands.  She still managed to loop around, coming in for a high-altitude pass over Bower and Caradin.

               “Not bad, McCloud,” Caradin’s voice said over the commline.  “I knew it was a good idea to get you up there.  The Hussars just got their own air support.”

 

*End of Chapter 11*

 

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