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Mechwarrior Roleplay
As Connor punched in the check of which Battlemechs he would have available for the mission the following list scrolled across his screen.... Scout Section
Support Section Looking the list over he decides on the Battlemech that he wants and sends the roster out to the rest of his Battalion, The Royal Black Watch. Brocky, recently trained Mechwarrior, decides that he wants the FFL-4B Firefly Tonnage 30, and approaching his Battlemech he climbs the ladder up into the Battlemech and opens the cabin. "Systems online and ready for battle" sounds the female voice of his onboard computer. "Hi SONJA long time no see, lets see if you are as ready as you tell," he replies to the computer. Lieutenant Andrew Redburn radioed Connor, "Sorry, sir, I
just didn't realize we had acquired a TR-1 Wraith. It's, uhh--- It's my
favorite Battlemech." At the harsh glare from the colonel, the young lieutenant
quickly regained his normally reserved composure and looked down at the stats
of the machine he would pilot. It was a fine combat vehicle, boasting a
cruising speed of over 70 kilometers per hour and a flank speed of over 110
kilometers per hour. It also had the capability of "jumping" for a distance of
over 210 meters. Its large laser and twin medium lasers were mounted on its
arms for maximum close range combat flexibility. With no ammunition-dependent
weapon systems, it could sustain long term mission effectiveness without the
crippling drag of resupply operations.
The days had passed and the preparations were complete, Each Battlemech was loaded into the Dropship with infinite care. Connor saw
Andrew loving his new Wraith and Brocky in that incredibly small low fast
Battlemech. How someone could pilot such a small Battlemech he would never
know. Walkeryrie was putting the finishing touches on her Black Knight as
Connor mounted up, The HGN-733 Highlander massed the most out of the
Battlemechs in his special lance, He had hoped that Kianne would join them for
this mission but so far he only had three empty Battlemechs and no sign of
Kianne as of yet. So, Off he went to load his Battlemech into the dropship. He
had all the battlemechs loaded in combat drop position, just in case of a
combat.
Walkyrie went to the hangar to look for her Battlemech.
There she saw her as-tech Ramires working on the PPK. "What's wrong with the
PPK Ramires? We made a full inspection the last days. My Battlemech is in best
condition," she asked. "Yes the Battlemech is perfect and the PPK is OK but the
weapon don't work correct with the targeting system together," Ramires replied.
"What does this mean for me in combat?" Walkyrie replied. "The PPK fires a
little bit to the lower left side. That's all. I can fix it in the next hour,"
he answered. "Fine," with these words walks the young Battlemech warrior, known
only under her callsign, went to the bridge of the Dropship to get the latest
news. "Soon enough we will be in combat. I will see what these small
Battlemechs can do. I need my firepower to blast every enemy before he can hurt
my unit. We should have more pilots for our heavy Battlemechs," Walky thought
as she strode toward the bridge. On the way to the simulator bay Brocky saw the turbo lift
door closing behind Walkyrie.
Although space jumps from one solar system to another were
instantaneous, the space flight to reach the intended planet was long, often
taking many weeks. The jumpship would traverse 30 light years in the blink of
an eye, and then the personnel aboard the dropships, which carried them and
their equipment down to the planet itself, had to endure the monotony of life
in space until they reached the surface. To fill this time usefully, crews
often saved a large portion of their individualized training for space travel.
This training would vary from person to person, and might include anything from
martial arts and other hand-to-hand combat techniques, to running computer sims
in their war machines, to physical fitness and weight lifting. Anything to keep
their minds focused on something productive, to avoid going crazy on long
flights. "Any news?" Walkyrie ask the captain of the drop ship when
she reach the bridge. Connor's voice echoed across the radio, "Ok Mechwarriors form up. Lets take it from the top. Brocky that Battlemech your in is a Firefly top speed 81 KPH with a Coventry LRM 5 and 3 Martell medium lasers its jump capacity is 120 meters. Fast but remember you have an armor factor of 104 so do not be running into any huge Battlemechs. Redburn, Walky, Cassiday and Brocky your in my command support lance. Redburn you will be acting as my Xo so we'll do it this way in the sims. Walky you will be leading the assault Battlemechs, Cassiday you have the mediums and Brocky you have the lights. Ok people form up, here is the plan: We are looking at two stars of Clan Omni's unknown composition. So Brocky take three of your best light Battlemechs and scout the ridgeline about 15 miles east of here. Redburn I want to you track aero fighters I think that we might have some problems there and also just what the hell did you do to that Battlemech. Cassie, take that Enforcer up the hill. The ENF-6M ENFORCER III is a medium Battlemech with a top speed of 87 KPH and a jump capacity of 150 meters it mounts 1 Blasefire Extended Range Large Laser and 1 Mydron Excel Ultra AC 10 and one Chriscomp ER small laser. Walky form your people up about the base of the drop ship and be ready to move. Remember people this is a Sim but I want to treat it as real combat. Move it Mechwarriors!" Kianne slid into her assigned Battlemech with a slight chuckle. "Forever is a long time but I would have never imagined I would someday be doing something like this," she couldn't help but quip. It was a simulation and so she knew she could be light-hearted about it. But at the same time she was taking the drill seriously, as she was light-hearted about just about everything. She was focused and determined to learn as much as she could from the simulation so as to have the knowledge for when it really counted. Gaining familiarity with the controls with ease, Ki began to march the Enforcer forward. She had never been in a machine of this style but she knew mechanics well enough. After going through a few quick routines to make sure she knew how this Battlemech operated, she began to move toward the rest of her comrades. "Lieutenant Cassidy reporting in," she commented through the radio. "I'm ready and waiting." She paused. "Why is that Battlemech carrying a sword? Wouldn't lasers be slightly more effective?" Lieutenant Redburn
looked at his newly redesigned Battlemech and turned it toward the Colonel's
own. "Why?" he asked, smiling broadly. "You don't like my Inner Sphere Omnimech
variation of the Wraith? I call it the TR-2. This week's model is the primary
configuration, boasting three Clan weapons and two Inner Sphere special pieces
of equipment. Although this is a complete redesign of the Wraith, I have tried
to hold true to the intent of the original design. The Wraith is supposed to be
a very fast medium Battlemech based around non-ammo dependent weaponry. For
example, this primary configuration has a Clan Large Heavy Laser, a Clan Medium
Pulse Laser, and a Clan ER Medium Laser. All three weapons have excellent range
and firepower, and I've added extra heatsinks to accommodate the extra heat of
the heavy laser. The original Wraith moved exceptionally fast, but that speed
cost a lot in armor and weaponry, so I reduced the engine speed a bit and
gained ten tons in pod space. To all of this, I've added my own invention: a
Battlemech-sized sword and shield. The Draconis Combine's katana-style sword
wasn't quite what I was looking for, so I designed my own variety: a
titanium-sheathed blade in the shape of a greatsword from the ancient Germanic
tribes of Terra. To match it, I've designed a two-ton shield of Ferro-fibrous
armor that bolts onto the opposite arm of the Battlemech. It provides an
additional bit of armor to thwart close-quarters combat blows from opposing
Battlemechs..." Through the canopy of the simulator, Redburn could hear the
muffled sound of his commander swearing vociferously aloud, though not over the
radio. He shrugged to himself. "...What's the problem?" "Hi Drew and a warm welcome!" Brocky shoots a salve of
laser fire on the shield of the Wraith, the laser bolts reflected into a nearby
rock and left a small black scratch on the
"Yes, sir!" Redburn replied. He immediately punched up the
frequency for the battalion's alternate channel. The simulation imitated the
voice of a fellow Mechwarrior on the other end of the line, and Redburn
bellowed into his radio for two more lances of the Watch to come and reinforce
his position. The sim program knew that Redburn was the acting executive
officer, second only to the colonel for the moment, so it responded in the
affirmative and asked for enemy composition. He sent back a quick vocal reply,
describing the five Battlemechs as best he could in a few seconds, then punched
in an inquiry report to the computer so it would send more detailed technical
data and specs over the airwaves to his simulated comrades. "Now for that
aerospace threat," he mumbled to himself. Scanning his enhanced tactical radar
screen, he saw nothing. He needed some higher ground, though, to be sure. He
picked out one of the MadCat battlemechs that was targeting him, and pointed
his own Battlemech's greatsword at it. He then imitated a clan ceremonial
custom and crossed his Battlemech's arms in front of his Battlemech, and banged
them together twice before returning them to their normal position. As
expected, the opposing simulated Clan Mechwarrior responded in the same manner,
clanging its Battlemech's arms together. "Perfect," Redburn mumbled; "now
follow me." He spun his TR-2 Wraith ninety degrees and headed straight for a
large hill a few hundred meters away. He twisted the Battlemech's torso to face
his opponent and triggered the two medium lasers. "No need to let him know I
have a heavy gun, yet," he thought to himself. The extended range medium laser
missed completely, vaporizing some chance moisture in the sand near the MadCat.
The medium pulse laser, however, blasted straight into one of the MadCat's arm
lasers, gutting it and throwing white hot metal in all directions. Redburn smiled
grimly, thinking, "One weapon down, about a dozen to go." His smile turned into
gritted teeth as he prepared for the onslaught from the far superior armed Clan
Battlemech. Sure enough, with deadly accuracy programmed to reflect real life
trueborn Clan mechwarriors, his simulated opponent opened up with nearly every
weapon at its disposal. This Battlemech he faced was an Omnimech, like his own
capable of switching out weapons and equipment with ease. This particular
variant was sporting one large pulse laser, two medium pulse lasers, one
extended range small laser, two anti-Battlemech machine guns, and enough short
range missile launchers to throw twenty-four high explosive projectiles. At
this range, all that would reach him were the large pulse laser and the only
remaining medium pulse laser (since he had already destroyed the other). Both
lasers hit soundly, one striking harmlessly off his arm shield, the other
melting armor off of his Battlemech's chest. "As long as I can keep out of the
Clanner's short range, I'll be able to reach that hill and check for
aerospace," he thought. He punched up the colonel's freq and informed him of
the two lances of reinforcements on the way. "That makes a full company we'll
have out here, with two companies in reserve, sir. On my way to a position to
check on possible aerospace forces. How copy, over?" Connor's commlink beeped and he heard Redburn's report. Armor sloughed off the Highlander as the Battlemech took another pummeling from the twin PPC's on the clan omni that he was fighting. Connor fought with his controls as he issued orders, "Redburn there are two I repeat two clan omni fighters coming in 30 tonners by design I cannot identify. Get some close air cover going. Ki what is your status? Give me a sit rep. Brocky get around the last mad cat and hit it from behind with everything you have. Walky how about hitting that other cat?" As Macleod called out his last order his arm came down and his left hip erupted into gouts of flame as the Ultra AC20 concealed there fired in tune with his Clan ER PPC. A boxcar of damage pummeled the clan omni as the heavily modified Highlander threw its full fury at it. The heat in Connor's cockpit spiked and he slammed the override button as he again jumped arching high above the stunned Mad Cat. Its pilot reeling from those last shots its left arm hung mangled and useless. "Well at least he knows I can bite now," Connor thought to himself. Kianne tried to find time in between firing lasers and
sidesteping attacks to reach for the radio. "Geeze, I need more hands," she
grunted, but she was determined to get used to this style of combat as quickly
as possible. "Cassidy reporting in," she replied through the radio. "I'm
attempting to approach your position. You put a lot of stuff in the way,
though, Connor." She thought she heard the LTC chuckle as the radio
transmission ended. Turning her attention back to the attacking Battlemechs, Ki
put her machine back into its motion of circling her opponents. She'd
discovered very early that this tactic made her almost impossible to hit as her
enemies had to keep trying to realign themselves with her ever-changing
position. Her own lasers missed about half of the time due to her movements but
she was certainly hitting her foes more often than they were hitting her. "New orders from Connor. Now with the whole unit make
together a sim training I have to drop my plans with Redburn and Brocky. An
interesting situation. Lets do it," Walky spoke aloud to no one in particular.
"Incoming message: Engage a Mad Cat" When we reached the landing zone, Walkyrie
ordered her assault Battlemechs around the dropship to guard it against
enemies. "1 star Mad Cats is
approaching from the rear side. One assault Battlemech follow me, the other 2
keep on guarding the ship. There is one more star with Clan Omni Battlemechs
out there." Mad Cats, Heavy Battlemechs, about 100tons, armed like an army,
lasers, missiles and so on. But they have one weak point - the feet are not as
much protected as the torso. When I can manage to cut one foot he is finished
soon. But if I only fire on his feet he have time to send to me all he have.
Walkyrie and her second Battlemech came round the dropship, approaching the
battle between the Clans and the Watch. "Cover me" she said to her second
Battlemech. I have one try, Walkyrie switched all weapons on an alpha strike.
The Battlemech slowed down and all weapons are on target. "Two Clan OmniFighters, three-zero tons, unknown configuration, aye, sir. Initiating close air support," Redburn replied into his radio. He immediately keyed in a request to battalion headquarters, back at the huge dropship that had transported them to this simulated world, for them to send along any aerospace fighter support they could muster. The simulated commander on the far end of the radio replied in the affirmative, suggesting the possibility of two lances on their way inbound to his position. "Good; that means four fighters--twice what the Clanners have. And now," he thought to himself, "I need to deal with a Mad Cat." He knew that his three primary weapons were all long range capable, and that his opponent was carrying mostly short range weapons. Having established the proper range in the preceding round of combat, the young lieutenant proceeded to walk his battlemech backwards and fire everything he had--as often as they would recharge. His TR-2 Wraith, while not as fast as the TR-1, which was capable of walking backward as fast as the Mad Cat could run forward. Redburn's Wraith's Large Heavy Laser, a big surprise to the unsuspecting Clanner, dealt out more damage than a PPC, and soon reduced the MadCat to ashes. It was only a matter of time before the Clanner went down in a smoldering heap. And none too soon! The incoming OmniFighters approached with all due haste and began unloading their weaponry upon the battlefield. He immediately began firing his medium lasers into the sky, allowing his Battlemech to cool down from his short term overuse of the heavy laser. "Where are our damn fighters?!" he screamed into the radio." The static coming through from the other end made his stomach churn. "Command?" More static. "Battalion command, this is Lieutenant Redburn. Respond, over." He turned his Battlemech and felt his face blanch as he gazed back toward their dropship. Smoke poured out of it in rapid, billowing curls that indicated heavy fire inside. "Our way home," he whispered, afraid to say it out loud. "Colonel!" he bellowed into the radio, all the while turning his Battlemech around and starting it into a full run back to the ship. "Colonel, the Clanners have damaged our dropship!" He wondered immediately how many Battlemechs or fighters must have been deployed to attack the dropship, since he knew two companies of Battlemechs had been left there to guard it. "We're in over our heads," he whispered... Connor grumbled, "Grand ... They got the dropship..." Connor flipped over to the command circuit, "All Battlemechs spread out in teams of 4 from the drop ship. Rendezvous at these coordinates." He snapped back to the Mad Cat he had been dealing with for the last few moments. "I do not have time for this..." The Highlander started into a lumbering run directly towards the Clan Omnimech. The Clanner feeling the challenge started forward too. The Two Battlemechs met in Mid-air each firing its jump jets and rising on superheated steam. The Highlanders arms caught the omni over the cockpit and crushed it just as the Battlemech kicked out pummeling the Highlanders legs and sending it off balance. Connor plummeted to the ground. "BROCKY!!! Recon that dropship and tell me what is going on. Redburn and Walky get over here I have a large clan force approaching." Where is Kianne? Connor grated at the Highlander landed on its back stunning him. The ruined clan Omnimech stumbled a few feet before laying very still.. Hearing the call for help from his commander, Lieutenant
Redburn wheeled his Battlemech back from its full run toward the dropship, and
ran back toward the small battle. "Roger, sir, I confirm minimum twenty heat
signatures headed this way. That makes four stars of Clan Omnimechs, most
likely, unless these are second-line Battlemechs." The young officer risked
pulling one hand away from the controls for a moment, and scratched an itch
that had been bothering him. He mumbled, "damn poison oak plants," remembering
the flora he had stumbled into before departure on this voyage.
"Walkyrie, this is Assault 3. Many clan Battlemechs
approaching the drop ship. We can't hold the position." This is only a
simulation. Walkyrie thought about her options, we can't simulate a longer
field operation without resupplying our Battlemechs. "Assault 3 and 4 fall back
to my line, we cover the retreat of our units. We don't, we DON´T, take any
supplys from the dropship. We concentrate our fire on one Battlemech at a time.
The one with the most long rang weapons or the fastest approaching. Fall back
to Connors position 2 by 2 guarding each other. Be prepared to start a
counter-strike when we formed up at Connors position." Walkyrie turned the
Battlemech back towards the approaching clan warriors, firing the large lasers
when she had a clear target. "Assault lance move, move, move" Ki glanced at the coordinates Connor had specified. "Sorry, I can't afford to play around here any longer," she commented wryly to the last remaining enemy Battlemech she was facing. "See you!" With that she set her machine into a fast loping run, racing across the landscape at its top speed. The enemy Battlemech tried to follow, so Ki weaved and wond her way around various hills and formations to slow it down. Once she reached Connor, she spun about and focused her weapons on the path behind her, ready to pick off her foe as it approached. Connor watched the screens, Kianne cover me I have to look
into something. The Highlanders computers had been upgraded to show company
status. Connor studied the map and the Battlemechs. Brocky had lost the
Fireball out of his lance with a lucky head shot but other wise all his
Battlemechs were faring well. Redburn's lance was doing well also there was
damage to all the Battlemechs but not too bad. Walkyrie's lance had been hit
hard. The Exterminator was gone and the Grasshopper was about to fall apart.
The rest were a bit more battle worthy. Even so that all the Battlemechs had
gotten out of the dropship there was over a company or more of fresh clan Battlemechs
to deal with. Not to mention what had taken out the dropship.
Kianne faced the pass with a grim smile, her weapons aimed
perfectly. As soon as that Battlemech that was chasing her came into her
sights, it was toast. With Connor flanking her, she knew she didn't have to
worry about an attack from the rear, at least not in the immediate moment. That
allowed her to focus all of her attention in front of her, on her target. Where
was that Battlemech? It had been right behind her, for it was almost as fast if
not faster than her own Battlemech. It should be coming any moment. Ki frowned,
then abruptly spun. "It's up!" she cried out instinctively, realizing the
Battlemech had anticipated being mowed down and thus had climbed the cliffs to
approach from a different angle. Its clever move was not enough; Kianne spotted
it in time to lay down a line of fire directly at the enemy Battlemech. Her
opponent tried to strafe and got off a few hits, but seconds later collapsed
smoking to the ground. "Phew," Ki let out, turning to scan the surroundings for
further threats. "Assault lance, Exterminator and Guillotine climb on the
hills west of Connor's position, cover yourself and prepare for an strike against
the approaching Clan Battlemechs.
At the lowest level, Inner Sphere armor units of the 31st century most often organize themselves into fire teams of two. This might be two tanks, two battlemechs, two armored personnel carriers, or two hovercraft. Two fire teams combine to make one lance. The lance is normally the smallest group of vehicles that would be set aside to accomplish some given mission, whether it be reconnoitering an enemy position, probing enemy defenses, flanking an over committed enemy unit, or any of a hundred such objectives. Three or four lances combine to make a company. The company is normally the smallest group of vehicles used to tally forces on both sides. For example, Red Army has 20 companies organized into 4 heavy battalions, while Blue Army has 21 companies organized into 7 light battalions. Opposite this, the Clan militaries of the 31st century most often organize themselves into teams no smaller than 5 vehicles, called a star (as in, a five-pointed star). These stars are roughly equivalent to the lances of Inner Sphere units, but of course, in the case of battlemech units, 5 Clan Battlemechs are much more powerful than any 4 Inner Sphere Battlemechs of similar tonnage. Two stars form a binary, three stars form a trinary. While a trinary, 15 Battlemechs is closer in numerical strength to a company, 12-16 Battlemechs, a binary 10 Battlemechs is more than a match for any standard Inner Sphere company. All of this danced through Lieutenant Redburn's head in the blink of an eye, all of it reminding him how badly he hoped the incoming "company-sized element" of incoming Clan Battlemechs was a binary, not a trinary... The Highlander raced across the battlefield, the Clan Trinary had broken into two parts and was attempting to envelope the smaller unit. Connor keyed his mike on his Nuerohelemt as he pushed the Highlander harder. The waves of heat in the Battlemech were uncomfortable now but once he engaged any enemy Battlemech this would be like a cool summer day. "Walky! Detach two Battlemechs to support Redburn your fastest two he is going to need the help. Brocky, what is the status on the Drop ship. We are in over our heads, I need a report. Redburn this is Macleod we are close about 1 to 2 minutes out from your position myself and Cassiday will be in range in the next few moments." Suddenly both the Highlander and its sister Battlemech were rocked with explosions and hurled into the air as two clan omnifighters dropped their payloads of bombs just behind the Battlemechs. 100 tons of steel does not land soft and Connor' head rung once he managed to stop spinning the world. He looked over at Kianne's unmoving Battlemech. "Ki Status? KI? KIANNE!" Ki blinked her eyes open unsteadily. Lights were flashing
in front of her face in a colorful array. It seemed odd to her somehow; she
didn't recall agreeing to attend any fireworks. She shifted, trying to figure
out where she was. It hurt to move. She found herself lying on her side in a
tiny space, surrounded by metal. The lights were embedded into control panels
on all sides of her, she noticed. She was in a cockpit. Finally her memory
decided to operate again and she recalled her current mission. "Ugh, what in
blazes is my Battlemech doing on its side!?" she let out, straining to move.
Getting thousands of pounds of metal on its feet wasn't easy. Right about then
she became aware of her radio. Connor was screaming her name over and over. Ki
glanced around, reaching quickly for the mike. "Connor, who hit us?" she gasped
out, "and are they coming back for a second shot?" "Grashopper and Guillotine, move to Redburn and help him.
Full speed. Destroy everything that look like clan forces. Exterminator, you
and I we give long rang protection fire and watch out for the air support. Take
them down!" From the top of the hill Walkyrie had a far view over the
battlefield, firing lasers and the PPK as fast as possible without becoming
overheated. The position and the range make it difficult for the clans to fire
back. "Exterminator, omnifighters from
your left side" The exterminator and the Black Knight concentrated their fire
on the first omnifighter approaching. The fighter lost tons of armor and his
main weapons; but he had fired his weapons as well. The rockets and lasers
focused on the exterminator completely destroying the left side of the
Battlemech. "Exterminator, eject!" The clan omnifighter didn't change his
course, heading directly into the nearly destroyed Battlemech. With a great
fire ball the clan fighter and the Watch Battlemech exploded. Connor scowled at the message relay "unable to reach
destination".
Lieutenant Redburn checked his speed again. "Maxed out,"
he thought. His modified Wraith was at flank speed as he pressed ahead of his
lance for a quick recon of the terrain between themselves and the incoming Clan
trinary. He grimaced whenever he thought about those odds, but he was
determined to do his best to wipe them out. He had Schneider's excellent light
lance coming up from behind, and he could see long range fire going over his
head from Walkyrie's assault lance. The Wraith came up a small rise and saw the
Clans Battlemechs in the distance, closing fast. "Two minutes, tops," he
thought; "just enough time to plan an ambush. He'd seen enough; he turned
around and pushed the fusion engine to 110%. He could feel the heat rise in the
cockpit despite the vast array of heatsinks in his Battlemech, since only so
many of them were assigned to sink heat from the engine. "Thank God for the
rocky terrain in this pass," he thought to himself before keying the mike. He
ordered his lancemates to form up along the far end of the pass, knowing that
the Clanners would have to come through it at a slow pace due to the uneven
ground. While Walkyrie's team would continue to pound on them from above, and
his own lance would dance with them here on the ground, Brocky's lance would
pounce on them from behind. Slightly outnumbered, and much outgunned, but the
terrain here would be the equalizer and give them all a fighting chance to
destroy or repulse the incoming Clanners. Redburn's lance consisted of his 55
ton Wraith, equipped with long range, medium, and heavy-powered lasers; a 65
ton Bombardier, equipped with long range missiles; a 55 ton Kintaro, equipped
with numerous short range weapons including the deadly Narc missile beacon
launcher; and a 50 ton Crab, equipped with lasers and the legendary Dalban
Series K satellite communications system. He deployed the Bombardier to the
rear of his formation, so it could launch its payload into the walls of rock
above the incoming Clan Battlemechs. Meanwhile, he and the Crab would pick off
the Clanners, first come, first served. Once they opened a hole in its armor,
the Kintaro would unleash the Narc beacon and fire endless rounds of missiles
into the breach. Above the rise they saw the first Clan Battlemech approach, a
75ton MadCat. The Crab pinpointed its location and transmitted it to every
Battlemech in the Watch. Walkyrie's Battlemechs on the ledge above rained down
relentless fire on it with terrifying accuracy due to the Crab's hyperaccurate
targeting information. The Bombardier also made good use of the feed and
belched forth dozens of missiles to follow up the laser and PPC fire. In a few
seconds the MadCat was a pile of rubble. "One down, 14 more to go," Redburn
sighed. "I hope Brocky's light lance can make it behind these guys soon. We'll
need the extra firepower once a few of us get hit." He keyed up the radio freq for
Brocky's Battlemech. "Brock? You with us yet?" He triggered his heavy laser at
the next incoming Battlemech, a Black Hawk, reducing its leg to scrap metal in
a single shot. Before it went down, though, the Black Hawk's own array of
weapons took a toll on the Crab. Recognizing the threat, the Clanners had
immediately begun to target the valuable Battlemech. It rocked back and forth
from numerous hits. Redburn sidestepped his Wraith into the oncoming fire,
absorbing damage that could have destroyed the Crab. His shield deflected laser
fire into the walls, which shattered and sprayed rocks everywhere. The Clanners
could not all see what had happened, but the few in front visibly paused at
what they had just witnessed. More than a dozen weapons had been targeting the
Crab, and a freebirth Inner Sphere Mechwarrior had just stepped in the way to
protect it. This was something they were not used to from encounters with other
units. "Cease fire!" Redburn commanded into the mike. He was stunned to see the
Clanners paused like this. "What is this all about?" he wondered.
A few hours later after repairing the simulator the team is seated in the briefing room. Well mechwarriors that was a good simulation in many ways and perhaps may even be the odds we face down there. Connor glanced at Redburn and commended him, "even though I do detest replacing that simulator again I must applaud you LT Redburn well done, now lads and lasses, we have made the last jump in system and should be at the separation point in about 11 hours. The burn will be about 2 days to the planet. This is for real this time no sims, no coming back if you make a big mistake. Get some rest and relaxation and be prepared. Next week may be a bit rough. DISMISSED!" Connor walked over to his command staff, "how about a drink in the catenina before I knock off for the night? And mayhap a game or two of poker I seem to be a little short after having to replace another simulator. You know Kianne those Battlemech summersoughts are hard on the hardware," he added with an evil grin.
After the briefing Walkyrie ordered her assault lance for a separate briefing in her room. "OK now we are all here. What do you think what was good and what was bad?" The members of the assault lance talk about an hour about the sim, getting together was done right and what can be done better. There are points like more info from the recon team, don't fall too far apart, stay together and to stay in range that all can fire on the same Battlemech, don't use long range weapons in the mountains with a close combat. "Now we know what we have to do better next time and you all know why we make this sim trainings. Look for your Battlemechs, get all tac info about our destination you can get and get ready for a real combat. Dismissed! And now I need a drink..." thought Walkyrie as she headed for the casino. Drew headed for his bedroom after the debriefing, since he didn't have anyone directly assigned to him to further debrief. He was hot and sweaty and felt like he'd never taken that shower just a couple of hours ago. That didn't phase him, though, as he dropped into a coma after setting the alarm for tomorrow morning. He dreamt of killing Clanners, and of what kind of terrain they would fight on, and of what further modifications he could make to his beloved Wraith The Dropship separated from the jumpship. On board each member began to prepare it would not be long before the burn towards their target would be over. A dusty desert world with very little cover and even less life. The day temperature was normally over 90 degrees and the nights were still warm. Connor oversaw the modification of his Highlander to the higher temperature settings, and he checked and rechecked every system. Soon all he would have between him and his enemies would be this battlemech. "I have traced the message as best I can. This system is
unfamiliar." Beads of sweat slowly trailed down the skin the wizard holding his
focus on the fine thread connecting this world with the source of the distant
message. His brow furrled over vivid red eyes, "I don't think you should
go...this portal is unstable."
The red lights flashed and the siren screamed, indicating
an attack against the dropship. Personnel of all varieties ran to and fro
across the many decks of the ship, attempting to reach their battle stations.
Pilots suited up and climbed into their aerospace fighters; battlemech jockeys
stopped work on their behemoth war machines and ran for the interior spaces of
the ship in case the hull became breached; ship crew members manned the weapons
and other critical systems of the ship's defenses. The intercom blared to life,
issuing commands from the ship's captain. "We are under attack by Clan
OmniFighters! An ambush from the large moon that orbits the planet! All
fighters launch immediately! Man all weapons! Shut all compartment bulkheads!
Switch all power systems other than weapons and life support to standby!"
Without hesitation, the crew and passengers followed the captain's orders,
knowing that they had trained fully and properly for this moment. They didn't
have to think, only act. Their captain was more than capable of reacting to
this threat, and their fighter cover was more than capable of repelling it. On
the outer hull, impacts of missile weapons, projectile weapons, and energy
weapons tore away chunks of armor. More than once, small breaches sucked away
the air from the space between the outer and inner hulls, making a terrible
screeching noise as the air whistled through the openings. But the inner hull
was strong, and nothing punched a hole in it. In a few minutes it was all over.
The explosions ceased and the fighters returned to their bays. Not all of them
returned, but then no one had expected them all to return. The Clan forces had
been superior in technology, but the Royal Black Watch was far superior in
skill. After teams were dispatched in zero-G suits to repair the damage to the
outer hull, life returned to normal aboard the dropship. The Dropship spun upon its axis and then began the descent
into the atmosphere of the planet, Mechwarriors seated inside their Battlemechs
all waited for the order or for the death they would never know, The
omni-fighters attack had been expected but it had been very strange in its
execution, Once the dropship had gotten into vector there had been no other
attacks. Nothing from the ground at all and the fighters from the nearby moon
had stopped all attempts at pursuit. Connor watched the readout and then felt
the buffeting by the atmosphere. The ship rattled and the Mechwarriors braced.
But there were no sounds of attack. Nothing, but the ship falling thru the
atmosphere. Strange... Strange indeed... A full day of searching for the enemy had revealed no
survivors thus far. Apparently there had been either an internal war or an
attack from some other source. Since internal Clan conflicts were most often
handled with the smallest force possible, the first option seemed impossible
considering the amount of mass carnage found here. That left the second, more
disturbing option open for discussion. Lieutenant Redburn's lance had been given
the illustrious duty of sweeping a deep recon to the far side of the continent.
They had dropped out of the dropship prematurely by way of combat drop shells,
which had deposited them to the ground as gently as falling rocks. They had
swept for possible enemy positions and found nothing. Now it was time to report
in. His lancemate, SGT Gerion Rottnagel, piloting the Crab battlemech some 200
meters behind him, was maintaining an open communications link with all the
Battlemechs on the ground via a signal bounced off of the jumpship stationed
near the planet's sun. Normally this would have been accomplished with a
standard orbiting satellite that would deploy from the dropship before landing,
but that satellite had been knocked around a bit during the omnifighter attack,
so this patch would have to do for now. It made the transmission time a bit
slower for Redburn's messages, since it had to travel the 7 minute trip to the
jumpship in order to be relayed back for another 7 minutes down to the planet
to whoever he wanted to talk to, and then whoever responded had to wait the
same 14 minutes for their message to reach him. It was tedious, but effective.
His lance had no need to keep up constant communications, just to report in
from time to time with updates or requests for data and other information. The
red haired junior officer recorded a message for his commander. "Sir, this is
Lieutenant Redburn. We have encountered multiple enemy positions, all
abandoned. Similar Battlemech wreckage here also. It appears recent, perhaps
three to five days old. My guess is a local pirate group out for revenge, or
perhaps a training exercise for the Ghost Regiments of the Draconis Combine. It
seems unlikely that the Clanners were fighting themselves, since that would
amount to mass suicide, which is certainly not within the normal range of
behavior for elite Clan warriors. Unless you have specific orders for further
investigation, I request immediate deployment of the dropship to come pick us
up at the following coordinates..." He attached a file indicating his unit's
status, including location and current supply levels, then saved the recording
to a database and sent it out from his Wraith, through the Crab, out to the
jumpship, back to the dropship on the ground a thousand kilometers away, and
finally to Colonel MacLeod's Highlander. Twenty-eight minutes after he sent the
message, he received a response from the commander. "That is a negative LT
Redburn continue your sweep for 150 KM then set up a temporary perimeter...We
will sweep towards your position... Good Drop."
Jamie Macartuer pivoted her Raven over the terrain like an
old pro. Scanning left and right her new Apple-churchill 2500 was working like
a charm, she thought back to her beginnings a born and bred Mechwarrior she had
joined the Watch back on Northwind. Then a secret order it was just in the last
few years that the Watch had again flown its colors and like all her clansmen
she had been with the Highalnders from the beginning.
"Roger, sir. Continuing sweep for 150 additional klicks
back toward your position. Will set up perimeter and await further instructions.
Final position should leave us approximately 800 klicks from you, minus any
advance you make in this direction. If I don't hear any word from you in 12
hours, I will check in on this secure frequency. Redburn out." The lieutenant
sent the recorded message out via the same process, then switched to his
lance's private channel to relay orders. "We're continuing the sweep, folks.
Another hundred and fifty kilometers back toward their position. We'll find a
nice cozy place to set up shop and wait to see what the colonel comes up with
on his end. Rottnagel, keep a tight watch on your sensors; I don't want
whatever did this damage to come back without us knowing it first. Go ahead and
send periodic updates of our position to the colonel, and keep me informed of
any changes in Battlemech positions planetwide. If the colonel decides to split
up his forces, I want to know about it."
Connor was worried. It had been almost 35 minutes since he had sent the message to Brocky to check on the other Battlemech. Still nothing. "All Lance Leaders report on your status," just as Connor said that another Battlemech fell off his scope. "What the hell!!" Connor murmured to no one in particular, "What is going on... Status?" The dense forest shuddered in a growing rumble, distant
yet nearing. Animals fled what they rightly sensed was danger. Leaves danced as
the trees swayed and many fell free from their desperate clasps. Earth and
gravel settled in even levels as the ground shook them flat. A giant emerged
from the shadows of the trees. Massive oaks gave deafening cracks before they
fell. The giant, of pure metal and unrivaled power, stepped clear of the trees.
At a staggering 18 meters in height and a crushing 100 tons in all, it surveyed
its surroundings before waving a massive fist. The King Crab was a product of
man's obsession with war. Bristling with literally tons of weapons and virtually
impervious Armour, it feared nothing save another of its kind. The Battlemech,
a product of centuries of continuous warfare, stood ready prepared for war. It
was indeed a fearsome sight. It barely had a head to speak of, with its visage
of horror. Its hands wielded claws and its broad chest told of its solid power.
Its companions, though awesome in their own right, diminished in its presence.
The massive machine turned from side to side, examining the maze of blood red
ravines. There were towering cliffs, house sized boulders and gusts of red
dust. By some quark of nature, this dead and barren desert stood next to the
thick and rich forest. The King Crab seemed annoyed in its movements and
somewhat pensive. The redness of the rocks was caused by large amounts of rust,
which fouled sensors. Corporal Lucas North pushed his Battlemech further thru
the ravine. Without communications and sensors the crab was a bit blind and
alone but he was not worried. He was in an assault class Battlemech and at odds
with any other assault he was even and far superior to any other class of
Battlemech. He started into the ravine. Without warning there came a blaze of
gray-green fire impaling the King Crap and driving it backwards. Lucas was
smashed up against the restraining straps and his left torso showed huge
amounts of damage. A strange spindly-legged Battlemech was standing at the end
of the ravine. Lucas opened up with both his Ultra Auto cannons staccato pops
and cracks filled the air as a stream of auto cannon fire caught the strange
Battlemech square in the chest. Its chest cracked and buckled by the incoming
rounds, the strange 'Battlemech toppled over and tumbled down the cliff in a
cloud of dust and screeching metal. It landed hard on its face. Lucas turned the
King Crab towards the shortest path out of the canyon and lurched the
Battlemech into a run. He had to report this. Those were his last thoughts as
the strange Battlemech popped back up over the cliff rising on superheated jets
of steam. Twin lances of Grey-Green fire enveloped the King Crab and drove
directly into its nuclear heart. Heat Spiked into Lucas cockpit and he knew
that he would have to kill this thing to leave this ravine alive. But as he
watched the armor that he had so recently destroyed was repairing itself.
"Status of the assault lance: 100% ready" Walkyrie asked
to Connors request. "Sergeant Walkyrie, we have lost the crab on our monitors"
the pilot of the Exterminator informed Walkyrie "and we have energy signatures
6 klicks north"
The system message came back from the dropship with
Colonel MacLeod's voice response included. Sergeant Rottnagel spoke into his
mike. "Data feed shows numerous Battlemechs shut down and two Battlemechs
missing, sir."
***error***error***error*** "Dam thing" Really frustrated Walkyrie hit the emergency
out button. "Reboot you silly pile of rubbish" Walkyrie started to reboot the
computers of her Battlemech, angry because it needed too long. System after
system showed her it optimal function, and in a few seconds she can power up
the Battlemech. All in all I took to long for her mute. When she look out she
see the cockpit lights of the other Battlemechs of her lance switch on. Then
suddenly she hear the first curse over her comset. "Lance when you are ready to
fire, immediately fire in the direction where we last saw the enemy. Single
shoots. If we don't hit ém, fire randomly in that direction until we have found
him. Then hold fire on that bastard until further commands."
The PAIN!!! But the innersphere freebirths were here now... They had come again. The Biogentically altered Clan Warrior spun his Battlemech about dodging another PPC blast. He felt alive like the Battlemech was himself. In fact this new nero-helment was grand.. A part of his crazed mind rationalized how much better it was. In truth the new Battlemech was nothing more then a shell for a body that was beginning to get used up bare nerves were attached to receptors the Mechwarrior now lived and died in his Battlemech. This travesty of Science was what drove the man insane and made him into a blind berserker. One with his 13 brothers and sisters bent on the destruction of the innersphere freebirth scum that had come to destroy their world. Now they would pay, in rivers of red. The assault lance started firing in the direction they
last saw the strange Battlemech. All they hit were the rocks on the ground. The
fire moveed from the front to the sides, when suddenly a lance of light hit the
exterminator, doing medium damage to his torso. All assault Battlemechs fire in
the direction, that shoot come from." Suddenly they hit em. "Walkyrie, Connor found 13 of that Battlemechs. And it
looks like if only 2 of them are scouts. The others are bigger."
Lieutenant Redburn and his lance figured out quickly that
they would never make it back in time to support the main body of their
battalion. On the way back, therefore, they discussed options open to them. One
young Mechwarrior suggested going into radio silence in order to blind the
enemy to their presence--that way, hopefully, they could surprise whatever enemy
survived the battle. While this idea had merit, it would also blind their
fellow Watch members to their status and possibly give them false hope of
reinforcement. Sergeant Rottnagel, piloting the awesomely equipped Crab,
suggested simply tracking the battle from a distance and extrapolating any
information they could get, before attacking on their own. This, too, had a
kernel of intuitive thought, but had to be struck down because of its lack of
positive action. It was only after someone voiced what everyone was thinking
that Lieutenant Redburn finally thought of something better. What everyone was
thinking was: "We need longer reach." Once that thought was expressed, Redburn
realized that there was one asset that was being underutilized.
It looked like a cemetery here and I feel so too. Walkyrie
look over the battlefield checking the area. "Assault lance we secure our camp.
Assault 1 you go back to the techs and get repaired. When you finished No 2,
then 3 and last me. 2 of us are patrolling the area. One take the inner circle,
one the outer circle. Everyone takes turns of 4 hours. Walkyrie out" Walkyrie
took a look at the area and switched the com to her private channel to her
tech. "Walter, if you find a weapon of the aliens which work, I want it for my
Battlemech. Go out and seek for one. Perhaps we find one and can install it on
my Battlemech. Don't tell that someone other." "Roger"
The watch had completed their burials and loaded their
battlemechs. LT Redburn delivered a stirring speech over the battlefield and
the Watch moved back into the stars.
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