Part 577: Demon Hawks Campaign Vote 3

Post-Mission Fallout 2

Catherine Humphreys Memorial Staging Area
Andurien V, Andurien
T + 00:01:15

“Pass.”

“No thanks.”

Duncan and Jason spoke almost in unison, not even sparing one another a glance. They were here to fight, true, but they hadn’t been hired to be gladiators. Especially not in a game of the Clans’ choosing, where the Clans had undoubtedly if, and Jason was being charitable, unintentionally built methods of cheating in their favor right into their processes. He didn’t relish the idea of fighting an enemy who was theoretically capable of designing a battleforce to defeat the Demon Hawks at their own game in any case. If the enemy did have such a force, it would still be better to take to the field where the odds of meeting them would remain low.

“I thought that might be your reply,” the elder Amaris tipped his head. “We’ll continue to ignore the Clan transmissions until they make an earnest attempt to parley or request a ceasefire. Now—I’m eager to know, what did you think of the Atlas III?”

“Tough and durable,” Duncan rolled his shoulders in that particular way Jason knew meant he was preparing to tell someone something they wouldn’t like. “Surprisingly quick, and very powerful. But it’s also extremely limited and very uncomfortable. I couldn’t imagine running one at full capacity for an extended period, it’s much too hot—I had to rehydrate twice during the fight and by the end my water bottle had melted. The complete lack of long-range weaponry also means it’ll have issues on defense.” Duncan paused, then added, “But it is astonishingly powerful. In terms of pure shock and awe I don’t think any `Mech in the Inner Sphere right now can beat it.”

“An earnest assessment—it mirrors our own pilots. But if you had final say in producing the design, would you?”

Duncan nodded, “Without knowing what else you have in the works, I’d say yes. Being highly specialized doesn’t make a machine bad, it just makes a machine predictable—but even a predictable machine isn’t necessarily easy to stop. I gather it’s a prototype? Will you be wanting me to return it?”

“Final production prototype,” Amaris waved a hand dismissively. “We have twelve others. I just like hearing an outsider’s perspective, if nothing else it confirms that none of my people are lying to me. We’ll get you a full-body cooling suit. That should make it more bearable. Jason? What are your thoughts on the Screamer?”

Jason winced. His ribs and back still ached and his neck was stiff and sore. Coupled with the steam burns he’d received when his cockpit had been breached he hadn’t had an enjoyable time of things. He felt more inclined to head to the infirmary and pass out than to report for debriefing. “It’s—very rough. I’m not sure if any amount of restraining straps would be enough to keep it from throwing me around like a ragdoll. I don’t think I can pilot it again.”

“Would it be better if you were anchored securely?” Amaris seemed curious.

“Maybe,” Jason didn’t sound convinced. “It’d have to be almost full-body—and I’m not convinced it’d be helpful. It’d depend on how much it’d rattle my brain around. I gather you have something in mind?”

“If you’d like, I’ll gift you one of our Pilot-class light power armor suits and a crash-course in using it. You’ll be locked into your seat and the control scheme is completely different than what you’re used to, but if you think you can learn a whole new way to pilot in a week I’ll swap your Screamer for the Special Forces version that takes full advantage of the Pilot PA(L). The `Mech’s overall performance is practically identical.”

“I’ll consider it,” Jason wasn’t convinced, but it was better to humor anyone who might have a hand in writing his paycheck. “But if I can’t pick it up quickly I’m going back to my Phoenix Hawk.”

“Fair,” Amaris agreed. “We wouldn’t want you out of the fight for long. Speaking of which—since the Clans are going to be hunting you trials or no, we’re going to be using that to our advantage. We’d like you to garrison one of three locations we think we’ve successfully convinced the Clans are part of the “weapon” that destroyed the James Mckenna. They’re undoubtedly going to make a strong push for these regardless, but if we leak the one you’re defending we can better mass our forces to smash their attack. The Snow Ravens favor light and fast forces and the Sea Foxes have been content to take a defensive role, so we’re expecting a mix of fast medium and heavy `Mechs. You should have a weight advantage—but we’d be willing to uprate some of your lighter machines if you’d like to make sure. Oh—and you’ll be pleased to hear we’ve had time to recover and repair your Awesome.”

“So,” Duncan asked, “will you be personally assigning us a battle zone?”

“No, I’ve done well letting you have your way so far, this will be no different. You’ll have your choice of the three—they all have their own challenges. You have a debriefing to get to, but I’ll see that you have the tactical analysis by the end.”




Jojoken Outskirts
With the planet’s remaining population in shelters, the capitol city of Andurien is a ghost city, the perfect “hiding” place for the Bubu’tu Project. There’re plenty of nooks and crannies for BattleMechs to hide and crossing side-streets can keep units out of the line of fire while narrow chokepoints constrict movement. Unfortunately, Jojoken is was a heavily planned city and has many long straightaways that could favor Clan long-range weaponry.

Mt. Kalgalath
Located two thirds of the way up Mt. Kalgalath, the Ukur Facility is above the treeline and exposed. The steeply sloped battlefield should severely hamper the mobility of attacking Clan units, but the slopes themselves could also provide cover for incoming BattleMechs. There is also minimal cover from attacks from above, which could render the whole facility vulnerable to AeroSpace fighters.

Morgaine River Delta
The Nergal Generator is a powerful mixed hydroelectric/fusion power plant situated in the lowland deltas of the Morgaine river. The Clans have been misled into believing it’s the power source for a ground-to-space weapon of frightening power. Wet, swampy terrain should prevent the enemy from effectively deploying battle armor or infantry units, but the swamps will also slow defenders and could bog down jump-capable units.


Battlefield Vote:
1) Which Battlefield will the Demon Hawks take?
1A) Jojoken Outskirts
1B) Mt. Kalgalath
1C) Morgaine River Delta

2) Take the `Mech sidegrade?
2A) Yes
2B) No