Part 22: Political Vote 1 Results and Combat Theater Vote 1

Political Update Results & Second Vote:

Takashi Kurita sat, legs crossed, his body stiff and proud, hands hovering before his hara, his belly, that place where all true decisions were made. His staff sat in silence, waiting; the holotank in the center of the room dead silent.

Theodore coughed, and received several dark glances for his trouble. Nearly an hour had passed since Julien Tiepolo’s message to the combine had ended. Finally, Takashi spoke to his assembled generals.

“Thoughts—”

Sho-sho Oda Hideyoshi spoke out of turn, “—seeks to cripple our war with Hanse Davion! The Fox must be in more trouble than we expected, we should redouble our efforts—”

Theodore Kurita coughed again, and Takashi glowered at him. Soft footsteps came from the side, Takashi didn’t need to look to know it was his spymaster, Subhash Indrahar, “The Smiling One”. Subhash dropped to his knees in a low bow, then straightened. Takashi felt his palms grow clammy, crushed his physical reactions under the hard steel veneer of the samurai.

He nodded silently at the Smiling One.

“House Davion’s forces have broken contact with our troops,” Subhash began, “But have not withdrawn from the occupied worlds. He likely seeks to goad us into overextending ourselves.”

“We should attack at once!” Sho-sho Hideyoshi demanded, pounding his fist on the tatami.

“Hanse Davion will bide his time,” Theodore Kurita said quietly, his voice all the more powerful for not being raised. Takashi was silently impressed with his son’s temerity, he was here only as an observer. “He cannot attack, or risk interdiction, but he can draw our forces into attacking and let them do the work for him. Our troops on contested worlds should be ordered to stand down. Hanse Davion’s soldiers will grow impatient, attack, and cost him the whole of the invasion.” He held out his hands, it was an intellectual choice—not the choice of a samurai, but Takashi could see the wisdom nonetheless. “In the interim, we can see how these Clans fare against a real regiment instead of a scattered company or rear-line garrison lance and a few pitiable Com Star warriors.”

Takashi made one of those neutral sounds that were all too easily mistaken for assent in Japanese. Subhash gave Theodore a subtle nod, regarding the young man with eyes that had always before been dismissive, but this time were not. “We have a grave task, to help ComStar recover their Precentor Deiron. They have been loyal subjects to the true First Lord of the Star League, is it not our giri—”

“I have decided,” Takashi announced suddenly, and the room fell silent. He was certain of his choice. “We shall let Hanse Davion outfox himself. Order our troops to stillness, they are not to fire unless they have proof The Davion’s troops fire upon them.” He looked at another of his generals, a dark-skinned Arkab. “Send all but two of the Arkab regiments to battle these Clans. I would see how they fare against real warriors.”



******


“I don’t like this,” Desmond hissed quietly into his microphone. They’d drawn patrol duty again, under the explicit orders not to fire on any DCMS troops. Still short St. Croix’ Vulcan, the short lance of three ‘Mechs was still more than a match for a Drac scout lance—provided they weren’t supported by a heavy.

This one contained nothing but, including the terrifying shape of a Grand Dragon. Lt. Barnes was on the horn with command, the two lances has come out of the forests nearly on top of each other. They stood, immobile, staring at each other across less than a fifty meter gap, and had been doing so for over ten minutes.

Neither side fired a shot, but Desmond thought both looked as though they wanted to.

Lt. Barnes’ Griffin stepped forward, presumably under orders. Three autocannons and a PPC trained on his ‘Mech. He stopped, a ‘Mech’s height in front of the rest of the lance and, in a display of piloting that must’ve taken great effort for someone who was all-around bad at it, dropped his Griffin into a respectful bow. Desmond could hear Yoshita suck air through his teeth—the comms were surprisingly clear without St. Croix’s Vulcan acting as a hub. Absently, Desmond resolved to suggest that the astechs check out her comm. system; then promptly forgot the resolution.

The Grand Dragon bowed as well, a much smoother motion. Lt. Barnes turned his back on the Kuritans, and walked back into the forests; calling for his lance to do the same. Yoshita did so without hesitation. Desmond cringed, and turned, expecting to feel the impact of forty-odd LRMs or a PPC carve into his back armor.

The shots never came.



Vote 2

2nd Donegal Guards
Presently stationed on Somerset and several other nearby worlds, the 2nd Donegal Guards is an ordinary Lyran unit noted only for the presence of the young troublemaker Major Caeser Steiner on its command staff.

Miller’s Marauders
An elite unit convinced of the superiority of the Marauder battlemech, the two Battalions of Miller’s Marauders fields nothing but Marauders in their various forms. Currently stationed on Trell I to discourage Kurita aggression, the Marauders are in a perfect position to resist Clan Widowmaker’s assault.

Com Guards
As before, the Com Guards are the only group to provide ‘real’ resistance to the Goliath Scorpion advance. As before, they will almost certainly fail.

6th Arkab Legion
Under orders from Takashi Kurita himself, the Arkab Legions have mobilized and stand ready to resist the second wave invasion of Clan Hell’s Horses or, if no invasion occurs, to push and retake the worlds they currently hold.

1st Fusiliers of Oriente
With the expected Marik civil war ending on the death of Thomas Marik, the Free Worlds League has been united in spirit by the Capellan assault. The 1st Fusiliers are pushing hard on Liao space, hoping to take some territory and draw a few Capellan regiments from the front lines in Oriente.

17th Recon
Responsible for a counter-attack that’s threatening to cut the Capellan supply lines, the 17th recon is holding a world that forces the Capellans to make an extra jump. Their presence has stalled the Death Commando assault through the Oriente province.

Death Commandos
Frustrated by their delay, a full Battalion of the Death Commandos has been recalled to assault the 17th Recon and relieve the threat to their supply lines while the bulk of the Commandos press their assault on Oriente.





Voting is Open for:
A) 2nd Donegal Guards
B) Miller’s Marauders
C) Com Guards
D) 6th Arkab Legion
E) 1st Fusiliers of Oriente
F) 17th Recon Regiment “Camacho’s Caballeros”
G) Death Commandos

No pros/cons ‘cause I really need to leave for work like, five minutes ago. >_>