Part 120: Political Vote 6 Results and Combat Theater Vote 6 - Sabotage and Piracy

Sabotage and Piracy: Political Vote 6 Results and Combat Theater Vote 7

“You can’t be serious, Hanse!” Duke John Sandoval barked, rattling glasses of fine scotch as he slammed his fist against the hardwood table. “First, you let a snake—a Kurita at that—simply walk out of your throne-room, and now you tell me you’re stripping troops from the border for a military exercise?”

“We’re still under threat of interdiction,” Duke Michael Hasek pointed out. “Even if the Draconis Combine is vulnerable, we can’t exploit it—and if these Clans can destroy portions of ComStar’s HPG grid at will, I’m not sure I’d want to.”

Hasek’s hand closed on Hanse’s shoulder in a display of solidarity. “Let the Dragon knock itself senseless, John,” Hanse advised, “We’ll have plenty of time to pick up the pieces once they’ve broken these invaders.”

He templed his fingers, and rested his elbows against the Terran oak table. “I want our troops sharp enough to finish beheading the Dragon when the time comes, which means a ‘military exercise.’ I want to see how quickly we can mobilize the AFFS.”

Sandoval paled. “Th-the entire AFFS?”

Davion nodded, his lips twisting into a satisfied grin. “There’s something I’ve been dying to try—and this is the first opportunity we’ve had.”

John shook his head, “I admire your vision, Highness, but I don’t think it can be done. The Kurita—”

“I won’t know unless I try,” Davion countered. “Besides, Quintus did some checking. ‘Uncle Chandy’ Kurita is considered a ‘fool’ by Takashi’s court. He’s far more valuable to us there than he is on New Avalon.”

“Is he now?”

Hanse smirked, “He’s a more dangerous man than he lets on and a strong supporter of Takashi’s ‘dishonored’ son, Theodore. He also surrounds himself with extremely capable, dangerous individuals.”

“The Mirza?” John asked, lifting his glass.

“Just so. His other companion? His, what—” Hanse looked to Qintus for confirmation, “second cousin? Jannike Kurita? She’s Yorinaga Kurita’s daughter—”

Sandoval choked and sputtered. “You—”

“Yorinaga was nearly ordered to commit Seppuku, I hear,” Quintus interrupted, “when he decided to train her as a ‘Mechwarrior. Her scores at the Sun Zhang academy were exemplary. It’s quite possible she’s the best pilot of her generation—”

“Only if we exclude your sons, Quintus,” Michael chuckled.

“I suspect that Chandrasekhar Kurita is a destabilizing influence in Takashi’s court. So long as he’s there, Takashi will never have things completely his way. Besides,” Hanse grinned, “he didn’t leave empty-handed.”

“I sent a canary with him.”



********************



Jannike Kurita drifted slowly across the cabin, her expression placid, her posture meditative, but her mind whirled. Her ‘Uncle’ Chandrasekhar rubbed his brow in consternation—the scantly-clad serving girls he favored forgotten, their charms, their overflowing bowls of exotic fruits. Gone was the happy-go-lucky yet vaguely befuddled expression he wore in public, replaced instead by a sharply focused gaze which Jannike before observed only in her own father. She blinked, and quietly added Prince Hanse Davion to the list as well—he’d seen through everything Chandrasekhar had said, and understood the deeper motives and pressures behind him.

She shivered quietly, and understood why the Prince of the Federated Suns was such a great threat to the Combine. He understood them. Possibly better than they themselves did.

The object of her Uncle’s attention flapped helplessly in a golden cage. It was unlikely that the canary would survive the first jump, much less the three-month journey to Luthien; but as a gift for the Coordinator, Chandrasekhar was honor-bound to make the attempt.

“Uncle,” She spoke—an act that would have seen her beaten in the court of a less liberal Kurita—in soft and respectful tones, like the dutiful daughter she’d always been. “What troubles you?”

Chandrasekhar smiled, though it was hardly friendly. “This gift will not please Takashi.”

“I do not understand, Uncle. It’s only a bird.”

“Did your father ever speak of the mercenary, Morgan Kell?” Chandrasekhar chuckled, his gaze hardening perceptibly when she shook her head ‘no.’

“Well, it’s no matter. I would have thought he’d have taught you the old stories.”

“He was too busy training me, in secret,” she replied. “You know that, Uncle.”

Chandrasekhar remained silent for a few minutes, perhaps organizing his thoughts. “In the old legends, there is but one thing that can destroy the Dragon: a yellow bird. Hanse Davion’s gift…”

Jannike swallowed, her cousin was turning this into a lesson—or perhaps testing her thinking. “It’s not a gift,” she postulated, “it’s a threat: if we do not defeat the Clans with the bulk of our military intact—”

“Not a threat,” Chandrasekhar amended, “but a promise. Should the Combine falter; should we fail to stop the Clans, Hanse Davion will destroy us.”

“If we fail to stop the Clans, he’ll have to fight them for the privilege.”

Chandrasekhar’s one-word reply sent a chill down her spine.

“Precisely.”






Combat Theater Vote 7

13th Rasalhague Regulars
Deep in the Silent Shoals, the shattered remnants of the 13th Rasalhague Regulars fight a desperate guerilla war against the forces of Clan Widowmaker.

First Kearny Highlanders
Growing discontent among the Northwind Highlanders has prompted a visit by Chancellor Maximillian Liao to reassure the highlanders that their world has not been forgotten. Warning, this mission will probably be a clusterfuck (but it’s also not going to go away immediately).

McCarron’s Armored Cavalry
The Big M.A.C. is Romano Liao’s spearhead in the Capellan Confederation’s invasion and the FWLM hasn’t been able to even slow them down; but it seems Duncan Marik has finally grown tired of their advance. Can McCarron’s Armored Cavalry win against the elite regiments of the Free Worlds Guards?

???
So, I hear you goons like mystery options. Travel into the Silent Shoal to do… something. For someone. Possibly against someone.

Death’s Consorts
The Tortuga Dominions have always been a plague on the Federated Suns; but they were seen as a threat isolated to a few periphery worlds within easy reach. Dame Murderess Extraordinaire Paula Trevaline, known to her foes as the Lady Death, has decided to exploit that confidence and launch a bold (or, as some whisper when Lady Death is out of earshot: suicidal) assault on New Avalon itself.





So, what’ll it be, goons?

Combat Theater Vote 7

A) 13th Rasalhague Regulars
B) Northwind Highlanders
C) McCarron’s Armored Cavalry
D) ???
E) Death’s Consorts