Oh no. In the Marksman every officer must take shifts in the admin office and fill out his share of the forms in triplicate.
Blood on the Horizon (Reimagined)
- Thread starter MarkWarrior
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- battletech self insert
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Everyone learns how to do the paperwork. The Admin people are the same soldiers as everyone else that just gets rotated through.
They make enlisted fill out forms? That sounds like an E4 Mafia opportunity to me.
Angry Cops: "Sham on Private!"
Last edited:
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Considering that they're about two to three hundred people in total right now? Everyone has to fill out their forms. Especially given they're likely to be made officer if they keep expanding.
Chapter 46
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Chapter 46
Date: April 2, 3004
Location: Bethonolog, Magistracy of Canopus
“Why do you train like this?” Morgan staggered out of the Archer and onto the gantry. “This is fucking madness.”
“Better ammo, sweat, and some armor spent here than lives spent in combat,” Major Hull shrugged as he looked up at the DroST that passed overhead. “Sure, we spend some extra funds on supplies, but we’re gaining valuable experience that we couldn’t get anywhere else outside of combat.”
“One of those ‘training missiles’ cracked my cockpit glass,” Morgan glared. “I’d say that’s not very safe.”
“Combat isn’t safe. And it points out a flaw in that cockpit. This means that we pull it, and mark down not to purchase from that supplier in the future. Because if a training missile cracked the glass, then what do you think a single LRM would’ve done?”
“Oh.”
“Yeah,” Hull patted the young man on the back. “You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, make sure you use it. Now, it’s time for a debrief. So get on into the auditorium.”
The ‘auditorium’ was really the cafeteria. Only the seats had been changed up and the personnel had been grouped up into the teams they’d been assigned for this training scenario.
“Alright,” Sheppard stepped up with a microphone. “I know we’re all tired, so we’ll make this as short as possible. Starting with dropships, what failures and notes did you take?”
“The Black Eagles lack the aerospace bays of the Unions,” Victoria Jewel stated. “We’ve compensated by packing more weapons and armor on, but we’ll have to be mindful of that in the future.”
“The refits we’re doing for the DroSTs are good,” Lieutenant Hober spoke up. “ Frustration. But we’re going to need to reinforce the superstructure if we want to continue moving towards the idea of using it for fire support.”
“Right,” Sheppard nodded. “Get full write-ups finished and submit them, the Major and I will go over everything and decide on how we’ll invest the budget for the rest of this contract. Now, onto the ‘Mechs.”
“We’ve discovered that some of the parts suppliers we are using have shipped us inferior parts,” Major Hull was leaning up against the door. “We’ll have to start doing more quality inspections before installing stuff like that. If we’re seeing issues in training, then we’ll see even more issues out in the field. Aside from that, we’ve identified some weaknesses in our combined arms work, we’ll coordinate with Brown to fix that.”
“Alright,” Sheppard jotted down a note. “Tankers?”
“Same problem with coordinating with the ‘Mechs,” Naomi shrugged. “And our mechanics are in dire need of experience. Artillery performed well though. Their hard work on sighting and getting their maneuvers dialed in has paid off.”
“Unfortunately, our ASF is in orbit doing a patrol so we can pull off this exercise,” Sheppard smiled. “In the future, we’ll try to plan for one side or another to get support aside from the DroSTs. Now, if nothing else is critical, you’re all dismissed. Go get some showers and rest up. And don’t forget your reports! They’re how we make these exercises more successful in the future!”
The massive group of mercenaries began to filter out of the auditorium, leaving only a few officers and a blond-turned-redhead behind.
“So, first live fire exercise,” Hull looked around at his senior staff. “Economically, we can only afford to do this once more for this contract, if we do it again at all. Should we secure a more lucrative contract, we can probably do this sort of thing more frequently.”
“Excuse me, Major,” Katrina spoke up, trying to get the CO’s attention. “Can I speak to you for a moment?”
“My notes on the exercise,” Hull handed a notebook over to Sheppard. “Try to finish up without me. Just leave that back on my desk when you’re done.”
“You needed to speak with me?” Hull turned and walked to Katrina. “I try not to just say that I have an open-door policy. I try to live it out. So, what do you need, Ensign?”
“I wanted to ask about the exercises, and what gave you the idea for their introduction.”
“Well, we went back through historical archives to see what we could apply to make even a new unit like ourselves able to compete with much larger and more storied units like the Eridani Light Horse…”
–
–
“I apologize if I’m monopolizing your time,” Katrina finally realized that it had been hours since she and the Major had begun speaking. “I just had so many questions.”
“Don’t apologize,” Hull smiled. “I like answering questions. If I hadn’t been a soldier, I probably would have tried to become a teacher of some sort.”
“Right,” Katrina nodded, grabbing her notebook again. “Why the six-unit lances?”
“For one thing, because we’re a mercenary unit, we can experiment a bit to see what works. For another, it allows a bit more flexibility when it comes to engagements. Instead of a twelve mech or vehicle company made up of three smaller lances, we can field a company of eighteen, or twenty-four. Each ‘Fireteam’ (for lack of a better term) having long-range, short-range, and a decent medium punch backed up by artillery.”
“You did use a lot of artillery,” Katrina replied.
“For a damned good reason,” Hull smirked. “The two things we need in order to win any engagement are air superiority, and solid artillery spotting and shooting. ‘Mechs are great, they’re flexible and able to perform a lot of different tasks. But they pale in comparison to a bomb dropped, or an artillery barrage.”
–
–
“So, learn anything interesting?” Arthur asked as he settled back into his shared bunk with Katrina.
“Yes,” she snuggled back into her lover’s arms. “I think if we asked, that these people would support us when we get back to the Commonwealth.”
“Katrina, they’re not even a full battalion,” Arthur sighed. “It’s good to have allies, but aside from a good cover, I’m not so certain that the Marksman will be anything beyond that.”
“I guess we’ll have to see what the future holds,” Katrina replied, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.”
“You alright?” Sheppard asked me as I stretched and groaned.
“Just sore,” I replied. “Forgot to stretch after the field exercises a couple of days ago. I’ll be good to go in a minute.”
“Well, you know that you don’t have to come be my spotter, I can always ask Peterson or someone else to come do it.”
“I’m capable,” I cracked my neck and knuckles before finishing my stretches. “And I’ll be more than able to push on once I’m warmed up.”
“We’ll start light then,” Sheppard moved to a nearby treadmill. “So, you spent a lot of time with that Ensign the other day. Anything interesting happening there?”
“I’m pretty sure that that’s Katrina Steiner,” I matched pace with the other man. “If we keep her in our good graces, we might have a leg up on contracts in the Lyran Commonwealth. I’m waiting on Dunham to finish up getting into contact with some of his old friends for verification though. Until I get said confirmation though, I’m sticking with surface-level subjects. Nothing that would let a potential enemy know our weaknesses.”
“I guess it’s ultimately your decision,” Sheppard shook his head. “I’d just advise caution. You never know where all of the enemies are until it’s too late.”
“You’re right,” I agreed. “I still think that this is a relationship that could benefit us.”
“And you’re not wrong, just be careful.”
“You’re certainly welcome to purchase those vehicles that did not pass our quality control standards,” Anastasia Reed, the local Majesty Metals rep grinned. “I don’t know what you want with junk, but I’m perfectly willing to sell them to you at a twenty-five percent discount off of the factory price.”
“Ha!” I scoffed. “You aren’t going to be getting more than scrap value for them on the open markets. I’ll pay twenty-five percent of the total factory price.”
She paused, realizing that we could continue this negotiating game, or she could just make a deal and be done with it.
“Look, I’m willing to drop to sixty percent market value for all vehicles that don’t pass Quality Control if you’re willing to drop any more negotiations on it.”
“I want that in writing,” I looked her in the eye. “But you have a deal.”
“Now that business is done,” the purple-haired woman looked around the cafe where we had met for this. “What do you say we find somewhere for something more… Enjoyable?’
“I don’t do flings,” I moved her foot away from my leg. “Thank you for your business, Miss Reed. The Marksman will be happy to do business with Majesty Metals in the future. I’ll have our purchasing agents get in touch with your people so we can get a catalog put together for what we want to purchase.”
“I don’t know what you want with junk, but you’re welcome to it,” her face turned sour. “Good day, Major Hull,” she stood up and made to leave. “Our people will sort out the details. And call me if you ever decide your approach to fun has shifted.”
“Not gonna happen,” I muttered under my breath as I sipped at my coffee. “But she can dream all she wants to.”
–
–
“So, I notice that you didn’t include battlemechs in the negotiations with the Majesty Metals liaison,” Sheppard arched an eyebrow at me.
“We need to round out our conventional forces,” I shrugged. “At this point, we’ve got more ‘Mechs and artillery than the rest of our forces. So, I’ve managed to get some Manticores and Pikes that had QC issues for sixty percent of their original cost. Given we’ve got the Phoenix up there,” I pointed to space. “I figure we can do rebuilds and fix whatever was wrong with them. Sure, it’ll cost us some man hours, but we’ll be able to get some solid vics on the cheap.”
“Just have Naomi make sure it’s worth it,” my XO sighed. “Anyway, while you were out on your date, our Magistracy Liaison stopped by. She wanted to meet with the command staff, and seemed kinda antsy too.”
“I’ll give her a call once I’m settled back into my office,” I shrugged. “Got to make sure the techs don’t want to murder me first.”
“That’s probably a good idea,” Sheppard laughed. “Hopefully the machine shops are capable of what we’re hoping for, otherwise we could have some issues.”
“They’ve done everything we’ve asked of them so far,” I replied. “Including rebuilding some of those antiques into modern ‘Mechs. I think they’ll work just fine.”
“MIM has tracked down the most recent raiders to a nearby world,” our Magistracy Liaison changed the PowerPoint to a local systems map. “Seeing as that group is the most active in the area, we are activating Clause Five, Subsection Two, of our contract.”
“So you want us out of your hair entirely then,” I looked at the woman. “If you’re activating that clause, then I want the salvage rights that are listed per that activation.”
“We’re not doing compensated salvage!” She glared.
“Yes, you are,” I simply relaxed in the chair. “Per our contract, if you activate that specific clause, then you’re required to pay for every piece of salvage that we find, at market value. Your lawyers agreed to that contract. The Clause that I’m activating is the one that’s supposed to happen when you activate Clause Five. It denies us salvage, so of course I wanted compensation. We can always ask the MRB to settle this,” I offered. “Unless you’d rather us just carry out the raid and leave.”
“I need to go speak to someone,” she seemed nervous. “I will be in touch in the future.”
“Seems like someone didn’t expect a new company to know our rights and contract,” Sheppard grinned. “Five pounds says that she comes back with confirmation that we’re to carry out that clause and then leave.”
“No bet,” Naomi shook her head. “We need to swing by Eidolon on our way back through to the Concordat for one last sweep anyway. I’m pretty sure there was more there than we found.”
“It was a city,” I shrugged. “Of course, there was more. We just didn’t have time to do a comprehensive search.”
“Regardless,” Jewel finally spoke up. “We need to get ready for a fight. I doubt those pirates are just going to roll over for us.”
“I’ll start getting the camp packed up,” Peterson glanced around. “Someone else want to inform the farmers that the Lease is going to have to be terminated? I don’t want to break their hearts like that.”
“I’ll handle it,” I sighed. “They’re good people. So I’ll make sure that we pay out the rest of the lease. God knows that the local government won’t.”
Date: April 2, 3004
Location: Bethonolog, Magistracy of Canopus
“Why do you train like this?” Morgan staggered out of the Archer and onto the gantry. “This is fucking madness.”
“Better ammo, sweat, and some armor spent here than lives spent in combat,” Major Hull shrugged as he looked up at the DroST that passed overhead. “Sure, we spend some extra funds on supplies, but we’re gaining valuable experience that we couldn’t get anywhere else outside of combat.”
“One of those ‘training missiles’ cracked my cockpit glass,” Morgan glared. “I’d say that’s not very safe.”
“Combat isn’t safe. And it points out a flaw in that cockpit. This means that we pull it, and mark down not to purchase from that supplier in the future. Because if a training missile cracked the glass, then what do you think a single LRM would’ve done?”
“Oh.”
“Yeah,” Hull patted the young man on the back. “You’ve got a good head on your shoulders, make sure you use it. Now, it’s time for a debrief. So get on into the auditorium.”
The ‘auditorium’ was really the cafeteria. Only the seats had been changed up and the personnel had been grouped up into the teams they’d been assigned for this training scenario.
“Alright,” Sheppard stepped up with a microphone. “I know we’re all tired, so we’ll make this as short as possible. Starting with dropships, what failures and notes did you take?”
“The Black Eagles lack the aerospace bays of the Unions,” Victoria Jewel stated. “We’ve compensated by packing more weapons and armor on, but we’ll have to be mindful of that in the future.”
“The refits we’re doing for the DroSTs are good,” Lieutenant Hober spoke up. “ Frustration. But we’re going to need to reinforce the superstructure if we want to continue moving towards the idea of using it for fire support.”
“Right,” Sheppard nodded. “Get full write-ups finished and submit them, the Major and I will go over everything and decide on how we’ll invest the budget for the rest of this contract. Now, onto the ‘Mechs.”
“We’ve discovered that some of the parts suppliers we are using have shipped us inferior parts,” Major Hull was leaning up against the door. “We’ll have to start doing more quality inspections before installing stuff like that. If we’re seeing issues in training, then we’ll see even more issues out in the field. Aside from that, we’ve identified some weaknesses in our combined arms work, we’ll coordinate with Brown to fix that.”
“Alright,” Sheppard jotted down a note. “Tankers?”
“Same problem with coordinating with the ‘Mechs,” Naomi shrugged. “And our mechanics are in dire need of experience. Artillery performed well though. Their hard work on sighting and getting their maneuvers dialed in has paid off.”
“Unfortunately, our ASF is in orbit doing a patrol so we can pull off this exercise,” Sheppard smiled. “In the future, we’ll try to plan for one side or another to get support aside from the DroSTs. Now, if nothing else is critical, you’re all dismissed. Go get some showers and rest up. And don’t forget your reports! They’re how we make these exercises more successful in the future!”
The massive group of mercenaries began to filter out of the auditorium, leaving only a few officers and a blond-turned-redhead behind.
“So, first live fire exercise,” Hull looked around at his senior staff. “Economically, we can only afford to do this once more for this contract, if we do it again at all. Should we secure a more lucrative contract, we can probably do this sort of thing more frequently.”
“Excuse me, Major,” Katrina spoke up, trying to get the CO’s attention. “Can I speak to you for a moment?”
“My notes on the exercise,” Hull handed a notebook over to Sheppard. “Try to finish up without me. Just leave that back on my desk when you’re done.”
“You needed to speak with me?” Hull turned and walked to Katrina. “I try not to just say that I have an open-door policy. I try to live it out. So, what do you need, Ensign?”
“I wanted to ask about the exercises, and what gave you the idea for their introduction.”
“Well, we went back through historical archives to see what we could apply to make even a new unit like ourselves able to compete with much larger and more storied units like the Eridani Light Horse…”
–
–
“I apologize if I’m monopolizing your time,” Katrina finally realized that it had been hours since she and the Major had begun speaking. “I just had so many questions.”
“Don’t apologize,” Hull smiled. “I like answering questions. If I hadn’t been a soldier, I probably would have tried to become a teacher of some sort.”
“Right,” Katrina nodded, grabbing her notebook again. “Why the six-unit lances?”
“For one thing, because we’re a mercenary unit, we can experiment a bit to see what works. For another, it allows a bit more flexibility when it comes to engagements. Instead of a twelve mech or vehicle company made up of three smaller lances, we can field a company of eighteen, or twenty-four. Each ‘Fireteam’ (for lack of a better term) having long-range, short-range, and a decent medium punch backed up by artillery.”
“You did use a lot of artillery,” Katrina replied.
“For a damned good reason,” Hull smirked. “The two things we need in order to win any engagement are air superiority, and solid artillery spotting and shooting. ‘Mechs are great, they’re flexible and able to perform a lot of different tasks. But they pale in comparison to a bomb dropped, or an artillery barrage.”
–
–
“So, learn anything interesting?” Arthur asked as he settled back into his shared bunk with Katrina.
“Yes,” she snuggled back into her lover’s arms. “I think if we asked, that these people would support us when we get back to the Commonwealth.”
“Katrina, they’re not even a full battalion,” Arthur sighed. “It’s good to have allies, but aside from a good cover, I’m not so certain that the Marksman will be anything beyond that.”
“I guess we’ll have to see what the future holds,” Katrina replied, closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.”
“You alright?” Sheppard asked me as I stretched and groaned.
“Just sore,” I replied. “Forgot to stretch after the field exercises a couple of days ago. I’ll be good to go in a minute.”
“Well, you know that you don’t have to come be my spotter, I can always ask Peterson or someone else to come do it.”
“I’m capable,” I cracked my neck and knuckles before finishing my stretches. “And I’ll be more than able to push on once I’m warmed up.”
“We’ll start light then,” Sheppard moved to a nearby treadmill. “So, you spent a lot of time with that Ensign the other day. Anything interesting happening there?”
“I’m pretty sure that that’s Katrina Steiner,” I matched pace with the other man. “If we keep her in our good graces, we might have a leg up on contracts in the Lyran Commonwealth. I’m waiting on Dunham to finish up getting into contact with some of his old friends for verification though. Until I get said confirmation though, I’m sticking with surface-level subjects. Nothing that would let a potential enemy know our weaknesses.”
“I guess it’s ultimately your decision,” Sheppard shook his head. “I’d just advise caution. You never know where all of the enemies are until it’s too late.”
“You’re right,” I agreed. “I still think that this is a relationship that could benefit us.”
“And you’re not wrong, just be careful.”
“You’re certainly welcome to purchase those vehicles that did not pass our quality control standards,” Anastasia Reed, the local Majesty Metals rep grinned. “I don’t know what you want with junk, but I’m perfectly willing to sell them to you at a twenty-five percent discount off of the factory price.”
“Ha!” I scoffed. “You aren’t going to be getting more than scrap value for them on the open markets. I’ll pay twenty-five percent of the total factory price.”
She paused, realizing that we could continue this negotiating game, or she could just make a deal and be done with it.
“Look, I’m willing to drop to sixty percent market value for all vehicles that don’t pass Quality Control if you’re willing to drop any more negotiations on it.”
“I want that in writing,” I looked her in the eye. “But you have a deal.”
“Now that business is done,” the purple-haired woman looked around the cafe where we had met for this. “What do you say we find somewhere for something more… Enjoyable?’
“I don’t do flings,” I moved her foot away from my leg. “Thank you for your business, Miss Reed. The Marksman will be happy to do business with Majesty Metals in the future. I’ll have our purchasing agents get in touch with your people so we can get a catalog put together for what we want to purchase.”
“I don’t know what you want with junk, but you’re welcome to it,” her face turned sour. “Good day, Major Hull,” she stood up and made to leave. “Our people will sort out the details. And call me if you ever decide your approach to fun has shifted.”
“Not gonna happen,” I muttered under my breath as I sipped at my coffee. “But she can dream all she wants to.”
–
–
“So, I notice that you didn’t include battlemechs in the negotiations with the Majesty Metals liaison,” Sheppard arched an eyebrow at me.
“We need to round out our conventional forces,” I shrugged. “At this point, we’ve got more ‘Mechs and artillery than the rest of our forces. So, I’ve managed to get some Manticores and Pikes that had QC issues for sixty percent of their original cost. Given we’ve got the Phoenix up there,” I pointed to space. “I figure we can do rebuilds and fix whatever was wrong with them. Sure, it’ll cost us some man hours, but we’ll be able to get some solid vics on the cheap.”
“Just have Naomi make sure it’s worth it,” my XO sighed. “Anyway, while you were out on your date, our Magistracy Liaison stopped by. She wanted to meet with the command staff, and seemed kinda antsy too.”
“I’ll give her a call once I’m settled back into my office,” I shrugged. “Got to make sure the techs don’t want to murder me first.”
“That’s probably a good idea,” Sheppard laughed. “Hopefully the machine shops are capable of what we’re hoping for, otherwise we could have some issues.”
“They’ve done everything we’ve asked of them so far,” I replied. “Including rebuilding some of those antiques into modern ‘Mechs. I think they’ll work just fine.”
“MIM has tracked down the most recent raiders to a nearby world,” our Magistracy Liaison changed the PowerPoint to a local systems map. “Seeing as that group is the most active in the area, we are activating Clause Five, Subsection Two, of our contract.”
“So you want us out of your hair entirely then,” I looked at the woman. “If you’re activating that clause, then I want the salvage rights that are listed per that activation.”
“We’re not doing compensated salvage!” She glared.
“Yes, you are,” I simply relaxed in the chair. “Per our contract, if you activate that specific clause, then you’re required to pay for every piece of salvage that we find, at market value. Your lawyers agreed to that contract. The Clause that I’m activating is the one that’s supposed to happen when you activate Clause Five. It denies us salvage, so of course I wanted compensation. We can always ask the MRB to settle this,” I offered. “Unless you’d rather us just carry out the raid and leave.”
“I need to go speak to someone,” she seemed nervous. “I will be in touch in the future.”
“Seems like someone didn’t expect a new company to know our rights and contract,” Sheppard grinned. “Five pounds says that she comes back with confirmation that we’re to carry out that clause and then leave.”
“No bet,” Naomi shook her head. “We need to swing by Eidolon on our way back through to the Concordat for one last sweep anyway. I’m pretty sure there was more there than we found.”
“It was a city,” I shrugged. “Of course, there was more. We just didn’t have time to do a comprehensive search.”
“Regardless,” Jewel finally spoke up. “We need to get ready for a fight. I doubt those pirates are just going to roll over for us.”
“I’ll start getting the camp packed up,” Peterson glanced around. “Someone else want to inform the farmers that the Lease is going to have to be terminated? I don’t want to break their hearts like that.”
“I’ll handle it,” I sighed. “They’re good people. So I’ll make sure that we pay out the rest of the lease. God knows that the local government won’t.”
Black Eagle(Marksman Modernization)
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Black Eagle(Modernized)
Type: Military Spheriod
Mass: 4,500 tons
Use: ’Mech Carrier
Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Standard)
Introduced: 3004
Mass: 4,500
Battle Value: 6,141
Tech Rating/Availability: D/X-E-D-D
Cost: 301,854,000 C-bills
Dimensions
Length: 77m
Width: 77m
Height: 90m
Fuel: 227.5 tons (6,819)
Safe Thrust: 4
Maximum Thrust: 6
Heat Sinks: 200
Structural Integrity: 16
Armor
Nose: 290
Sides: 244/244
Aft: 198
Cargo
Escape Pods: 8
Life Boats: 1
Crew: 5 officers, 18 enlisted/non-rated, 7 gunners, 28 bay personnel
Ammunition: 144 rounds of LRM 20 ammunition (24 tons)
Notes: Mounts 57 tons of standard aerospace armor.
Features the following design quirks: Easy to Maintain
Notes: While many at first confused the Marksman's Black Eagles with the more common Union, those who decided to test it soon found themselves lacking. With nearly double the armor and a third more of the firepower, the Black Eagle had found itself a new home in the Marksman, where it would serve with distinction for many years.
Type: Military Spheriod
Mass: 4,500 tons
Use: ’Mech Carrier
Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Standard)
Introduced: 3004
Mass: 4,500
Battle Value: 6,141
Tech Rating/Availability: D/X-E-D-D
Cost: 301,854,000 C-bills
Dimensions
Length: 77m
Width: 77m
Height: 90m
Fuel: 227.5 tons (6,819)
Safe Thrust: 4
Maximum Thrust: 6
Heat Sinks: 200
Structural Integrity: 16
Armor
Nose: 290
Sides: 244/244
Aft: 198
Cargo
| Bay 1: | Mech (12) | 2 Doors |
| Bay 2: | Fighter (2) | 1 Door |
| Bay 3: | Cargo (182.5 tons) | 1 Door |
Escape Pods: 8
Life Boats: 1
Crew: 5 officers, 18 enlisted/non-rated, 7 gunners, 28 bay personnel
Ammunition: 144 rounds of LRM 20 ammunition (24 tons)
Notes: Mounts 57 tons of standard aerospace armor.
Arc (Heat) | Heat | SRV | MRV | LRV | ERV | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Weapons: | Capital Attack Values (Standard) | |||||
| Nose (48 Heat) | ||||||
| 2 LRM 20, LRM 20 Ammo (36 shots) | 12 | 2(24) | 2(24) | 2(24) | 0(0) | LRM |
| 2 Large Laser | 16 | 2(16) | 2(16) | 0(0) | 0(0) | Laser |
| 2 PPC | 20 | 2(20) | 2(20) | 0(0) | 0(0) | PPC |
| RS/LS Fwd (48 Heat) | ||||||
| 2 LRM 20, LRM 20 Ammo (36 shots) | 12 | 2(24) | 2(24) | 2(24) | 0(0) | LRM |
| 2 Large Laser | 16 | 2(16) | 2(16) | 0(0) | 0(0) | Laser |
| 2 PPC | 20 | 2(20) | 2(20) | 0(0) | 0(0) | PPC |
| RS/LS Aft (46 Heat) | ||||||
| 1 LRM 20, LRM 20 Ammo (18 shots) | 6 | 1(12) | 1(12) | 1(12) | 0(0) | LRM |
| 4 Medium Laser, 1 Large Laser | 20 | 3(28) | 1(8) | 0(0) | 0(0) | Laser |
| 2 PPC | 20 | 2(20) | 2(20) | 0(0) | 0(0) | PPC |
| Aft (20 Heat) | ||||||
| 4 Medium Laser, 1 Large Laser | 20 | 3(28) | 1(8) | 0(0) | 0(0) | Laser |
Features the following design quirks: Easy to Maintain
Notes: While many at first confused the Marksman's Black Eagles with the more common Union, those who decided to test it soon found themselves lacking. With nearly double the armor and a third more of the firepower, the Black Eagle had found itself a new home in the Marksman, where it would serve with distinction for many years.
DroST IIB (Original Refits)
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
DroST IIB (Original Refits)
Type: Military Aerodyne
Mass: 5,300 tons
Use: Cargo Transport
Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Standard)
Introduced: 3015
Mass: 5,300
Battle Value: 13,762
Tech Rating/Availability: D/X-E-D-D
Cost: 589,006,800 C-bills
Dimensions
Length: 77 meters
Width: 80 meters
Height: 31 meters
Fuel: 200 tons (6,000)
Safe Thrust: 5
Maximum Thrust: 8
Heat Sinks: 500
Structural Integrity: 45
Armor
Nose: 1017
Sides: 855/855
Aft: 693
Cargo
Escape Pods: 1
Life Boats: 2
Crew: 3 officers, 3 enlisted/non-rated, 6 gunners, 168 bay personnel, 10 passengers
Ammunition: 160 rounds of AC/20 ammunition (32 tons)
Notes: Mounts 202.5 tons of standard aerospace armor.
Features the following design quirks: Easy to Maintain
Notes: While not quite the final design and refit of the DroST called the Sting, this was the original refit and workhorse that the Marksman used. It was capable of holding its own and sticking it out until it had picked up infantry or anything else it needed before taking off once again.
Increasing the structural supports and enhancing the armor, the DroST, while not quite the gamechanger of the later Sting, was welcomed greatly among the Marksman for its reliability, and ease of maintenance.
Type: Military Aerodyne
Mass: 5,300 tons
Use: Cargo Transport
Technology Base: Inner Sphere (Standard)
Introduced: 3015
Mass: 5,300
Battle Value: 13,762
Tech Rating/Availability: D/X-E-D-D
Cost: 589,006,800 C-bills
Dimensions
Length: 77 meters
Width: 80 meters
Height: 31 meters
Fuel: 200 tons (6,000)
Safe Thrust: 5
Maximum Thrust: 8
Heat Sinks: 500
Structural Integrity: 45
Armor
Nose: 1017
Sides: 855/855
Aft: 693
Cargo
| Bay 1: | Infantry (Foot) (30) | 1 Door |
| Bay 2: | Cargo (872.0 tons) | 1 Door |
Escape Pods: 1
Life Boats: 2
Crew: 3 officers, 3 enlisted/non-rated, 6 gunners, 168 bay personnel, 10 passengers
Ammunition: 160 rounds of AC/20 ammunition (32 tons)
Notes: Mounts 202.5 tons of standard aerospace armor.
Weapons: | Capital Attack Values (Standard) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Arc (Heat) | Heat | SRV | MRV | LRV | ERV | Class |
| Nose (78 Heat) | ||||||
| 8 Large Laser | 64 | 6(64) | 6(64) | 0(0) | 0(0) | Laser |
| 2 AC/20, AC/20 Ammo (40 shots) | 14 | 4(40) | 0(0) | 0(0) | 0(0) | AC |
| RW/LW (62 Heat) | ||||||
| 6 Large Laser | 48 | 5(48) | 5(48) | 0(0) | 0(0) | Laser |
| 2 AC/20, AC/20 Ammo (40 shots) | 14 | 4(40) | 0(0) | 0(0) | 0(0) | AC |
| Aft (62 Heat) | ||||||
| 2 AC/20, AC/20 Ammo (40 shots) | 14 | 4(40) | 0(0) | 0(0) | 0(0) | AC |
| 6 Large Laser | 48 | 5(48) | 5(48) | 0(0) | 0(0) | Laser |
Features the following design quirks: Easy to Maintain
Notes: While not quite the final design and refit of the DroST called the Sting, this was the original refit and workhorse that the Marksman used. It was capable of holding its own and sticking it out until it had picked up infantry or anything else it needed before taking off once again.
Increasing the structural supports and enhancing the armor, the DroST, while not quite the gamechanger of the later Sting, was welcomed greatly among the Marksman for its reliability, and ease of maintenance.
Chapter 47
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Chapter 47
Date: April 25, 3004
Location: unnamed system one jump away from Bethonolog
"Looks like we've got some Unions or Danais parked down there. Couple of Mule's too," Victoria Jewel highlighted the egg-shaped dropships that were parked down below. "We're going to want to ground those before our Canopian scavengers clear things out."
"Based on this telemetry it looks like it's an abandoned spaceport down there," Sheppard noted the surrounding buildings. "We'll have to assume that about half of these buildings will be occupied by the pirates."
"Tanks and infantry will drop in first," I finally spoke up. "They'll be the anchor that the 'Mechs use to prevent the dropships from taking off. If you need air support, you'll get it. Same with artillery," I glanced at the spaceport. "Actually, belay that. We're going to hot drop our 'Mechs from here. They'll secure the spaceport while the vics and arty come in afterward."
"It's not a perfect plan," Sheppard shrugged. "But better a good plan executed violently now, than a perfect one next week."
"The goal is to take them by surprise and make sure they can't escape using their dropships. Even if we're upset with the Canopians over the salvage rights, I'm not willing to let the pirates survive and keep preying on people."
"Well, we're not getting all of them," Peterson finally spoke up. "Whatever Jumpship they use isn't here."
"That's not our problem," I sighed. "Now get to your positions and get ready for a combat drop. We're going in hot."
–
–
I thought about the refits as I climbed into my 'Hammer, sealing the cockpit behind me before sitting down on the Command Couch. Plugging my cooling vest in, I then grabbed the helmet that was prepped for each of the members of the 'drop squad' and settled it onto my head, the HUD linking with my 'Mech as I went through the startup and security procedures.
We had used a lot of off-the-shelf parts to refit the Black Eagle class dropship Effervescent into something that was of more use on the modern battlefield. One of those things was the drop pods used by Unions to drop 'Mechs from orbit onto a planet…
"Major," a secure channel was opened by the Archer next to me, interrupting my woolgathering.
"I hear you, Kell," I replied. "What's the problem?"
"I've never done one of these outside of the Sims."
"Follow Betty's instructions, the Star League made sure that the computers were set for these things," I stated as I glanced at the readouts for the attached jump pods to my 'back' and legs. "Follow Sheppard's lead, he's got the most experience in this."
"Alpha Company, we're ready to begin launch procedures if you are."
"Sound off!" I ordered over Teamcoms.
The individuals checked the seals on both their cockpits and helmets, going through the exhaustive list before confirming they were prepared to drop.
"Alpha's good to drop," I relayed to the 'Mech Bay's NCO.
"Launching in sequential order, standby."
The bay depressurized and the 'Mechs were gently 'Shoved' out of the 4500-ton dropship, the unknown world 'below' them.
My computer showed the calculated fall route and the projected landing for my 'Hammer before the older Star League Era computer linked up with the rest of the unit, showing each projected landing site and path.
No one spoke for the first few minutes as we slowly picked up speed, the planet's gravity dragging the pods down and the ceramic shell heating up.
"Yeehaw!" Sheppard's laugh came over our company's comms. "I missed this!"
"Crazy fool," I grinned and shook my head as my 'mech finally began bullying the atmosphere into submission.
"Don't lie! You love this!"
I didn't respond as a feeling of exhilaration filled my head and heart. I had wanted to do something like this since I was a kid and first saw the Master Chief drop onto Delta Halo. And even if this wasn't the exact same thing. It was close enough for the little kid inside of me to wish that I'd brought an SMG and SPNKR with me.
But even if I was enjoying the ride. I still had a job to do. So I began to focus on the readouts Betty provided me, the meters rushing by.
3000 meters…
2500,
2000,
1500,
1000,
At 750 meters, the bolted-on jets ignited, beginning to slow down the landing as the ceramic shell finally fell apart, revealing the blackened paint of our 'mechs.
The jets stopped at fifty meters for those of us without mounted jump jets, the remaining distance being a short fall that ended with a heavy "Thump".
"Status reports!" I barked as I ran my eyes over the wireframe of my Warhammer, noting the slight actuator damage in the knees before stepping forward and beginning to move to the dropships.
"Ankle joint's shattered," Morgan Kell reported. "I'm going to be limping."
"Stay at range and link targeting computers. You'll provide fire support."
"My 'Mech's in the same boat," Erika Lamb reported. "I'll stick with Kell and provide support."
Everyone else reported minor damage or none at all, and so the eight remaining 'Mechs interposed themselves between the barracks and the dropships.
"Looks like they came up lacking. Make sure that none of them get onto the dropships," I switched frequencies to the dropships in the void.
"Peterson, Naomi, you're clear to approach, go clear out the city, we'll hold the spaceport!"
Lieutenant Hober grinned as his DroST broke through the atmosphere, the mechanized infantry in the compartment were running the last checks on their Maxims and other APCs while a Buccaneer descended beside him.
"Hey Vagabond," Hober called out cheerfully. "Five Bulls says that my Pinup stays intact this whole op!"
"I'll take that action!" the other aerodyne replied. "I think that Farm Girl's going down!"
"Guess we'll find out," Hober chuckled. "Let's go!"
The two dropships being used for this op began their run, both Wardog and Hitman Squadrons falling into escort positions as they moved toward the ground.
"Breaking pattern," Blaze reported. "Looks like we've got some air-breathers around here. Moving to engage."
Wardog shifted to go deal with the approaching jets while Hober touched down in the middle of the town square, spinning in search of targets for his gunners.
"Area's temporarily clear, you're clear to deploy!"
The APCs roared out of the bay, the Maxims divesting themselves of infantry just as a lance of Scorpions appeared only to be disintegrated under large laser and autocannon fire from Katherine the nose gunner for the DroST. "Targets downed!" the hidden Steiner laughed.
"Vagabond deploying vehicles now," the other aerodyne descended and its ramp lowered, a bunch of tanks coming down the ramps and beginning to clear out the city.
"Remember people, we're not here for a prolonged fight!" Captain Naomi instructed her tanks as her Manticore rumbled through the small town's streets. "Clear out any enemy tanks and move on, we're not here for an urban slog!"
Of course, when she finished her speech, an Urbanmech appeared, its squat form had been hidden by a nearby water tower.
Unfortunately for said Urbanmech, the Hunters that the Marksman had salvaged from the pirates had been refitted with proper turrets for their PPCs and rocket launchers, and while half of the six tanks missed with their PPCs, the other half didn't, and the trio of PPCs melted the 'Mech's autocannon into slag.
Then the few Scorpions and LRM carriers began to fire, the autocannon and missiles dropping the light 'Mech to the ground as the tanks continued heading for the spaceport, the Maxims and APCs bringing up the rear.
–
–
"We've got movement!" Sheppard reported as his Mongoose fell back to the lines we'd established.
"Looks like a couple of "Locusts and a Thud," I identified. "Tagging thud for indirect fire."
The 'Mech was highlighted as Sheppard's Beagle Active Probe coordinated with Kell's Archer and Lamb's Griffin, the flurry of 40+ LRMs hammering the shoulders of the heavy 'Mech as it tried to push through before a bright green beam from Sheppard's Mongoose arched out tagged the Thunderbolt's knee, the combined damage sending it crashing to the ground.
"Mark that 'mech," I ordered. "I've got an idea."
Then the Locusts decided to harass us, the light 'Mechs darting in and out, evading everything fired their way aside from a handful of SRMs or a glancing blow from a medium laser.
"Stay still," I snarled, snap-firing my PPC instinctively and catching one of them in the cockpit.
"Nice hit, major!"
"Thanks, now let's kill this other bastard."
The pirate Locust danced through our fire for minutes that seemed to stretch into an eternity before a mistake was made. As the light 'Mech accelerated, it stepped into a hole in the spaceport's flat concrete, the sudden stop shattering the leg and sending parts and myomer into the air as the 'Mech seemed to screech in agony before the pilot ejected. But the seat didn't have a good arc, and the pilot became a bloody smear across the side of the lone Mule that was parked on the spaceport."
"That…" I trailed off. "Is not a good way to go."
"Major, enemy resistance in the town's cleared out," Naomi reported. "The Canopians can move in and take over."
"Copy that, hold positions for a moment," I replied.
"Glittering Prizes, you are clear to land and begin salvage operations," I contacted the lone Canopian Triumph that had accompanied us on this mission."
"Understood, Major, beginning approach."
–
–
"I know it's not much of a consolation," Colonel Jackie LeAnn of the Magistracy Armed Forces sighed. "But we're handing you guys the Thud. We're going to report it as being unsalvageable though. I think you guys have done a fucking fantastic job here. But I'm not the one in charge of making these sorts of decisions."
"I get it," I replied. "The Magistracy is going to be coughing up a lot of money though. This is a lot of intact dropships. And I'm supposed to get open market prices for every piece of salvage."
The Colonel winced while doing the math in her head. "Well, looks like my budget's going to be short this year. Again."
"Well, if you're ever looking for a change of leadership," I offered as I shook her hand. "Just let me know and I'll see what I can swing."
"Don't tempt me," the officer sighed. "I might take you up on it."
"You've got our contact info," I shrugged. "We never had a problem with your or your unit, just the politicians."
"I'll stay in touch," She smiled. "Never know when having a merc friend in your back pocket'll come in handy."
"Anyway, we've pulled out all of our material and manpower. All that's left is to collect that Thud and we'll be on our way out."
"Lemme know if you're ever in the area again," She called out as I began climbing back up into my 'Hammer. "We'll get some drinks or something."
"Copy that," I finished climbing. "See ya around, Colonel!"
Starting up the 'Hammer, I walked the 'Mech back into the Effervescent's bay and locked it down, watching as a trailer backed the pirate Thunderbolt up and into the bay where the bay workers and techs shifted to lock the other 'Mech down and prepare it for travel.
"Not the greatest haul ever," Sheppard commented as I stepped out onto the gantry. "But the payday will be nice."
"They'll find a way to shortchange us," I sighed. "But even if they do, we're still looking at a payout of at least a quarter billion C-Bills."
"That's a lot of cash," he whistled. "We're going to have to figure out what to do with it."
"I'm sure we'll come up with something to spend it on," I laughed. "After all, our ledger was starting to look a little off after the money we spent on refitting those older dropships. Then there's the combat bonuses and the maintenance fees. Sure, we'll have a decent nest egg, but it's not as much as we might hope."
"We're going to have to go over the budget again," Sheppard sighed. "More live-fire exercises?"
"We can't afford not to do them," I shrugged. "Especially with how effective they are."
"I'll look into buying the license for the training munitions," Sheppard pulled out a small notebook and wrote down a note. "That way we don't have to spend a premium buying them when we can make our own."
"That's for the future. For now, we're going to go back and clear out the rest of Eidolon. I have a gut feeling that we missed something important there."
"I'll have Rook start working on the locations we pulled from the Phoenix, too. Might be worth checking out some of them."
"First, let's get some rest. We've got a few months to sort everything out while we head towards Eidolon."
Date: April 25, 3004
Location: unnamed system one jump away from Bethonolog
"Looks like we've got some Unions or Danais parked down there. Couple of Mule's too," Victoria Jewel highlighted the egg-shaped dropships that were parked down below. "We're going to want to ground those before our Canopian scavengers clear things out."
"Based on this telemetry it looks like it's an abandoned spaceport down there," Sheppard noted the surrounding buildings. "We'll have to assume that about half of these buildings will be occupied by the pirates."
"Tanks and infantry will drop in first," I finally spoke up. "They'll be the anchor that the 'Mechs use to prevent the dropships from taking off. If you need air support, you'll get it. Same with artillery," I glanced at the spaceport. "Actually, belay that. We're going to hot drop our 'Mechs from here. They'll secure the spaceport while the vics and arty come in afterward."
"It's not a perfect plan," Sheppard shrugged. "But better a good plan executed violently now, than a perfect one next week."
"The goal is to take them by surprise and make sure they can't escape using their dropships. Even if we're upset with the Canopians over the salvage rights, I'm not willing to let the pirates survive and keep preying on people."
"Well, we're not getting all of them," Peterson finally spoke up. "Whatever Jumpship they use isn't here."
"That's not our problem," I sighed. "Now get to your positions and get ready for a combat drop. We're going in hot."
–
–
I thought about the refits as I climbed into my 'Hammer, sealing the cockpit behind me before sitting down on the Command Couch. Plugging my cooling vest in, I then grabbed the helmet that was prepped for each of the members of the 'drop squad' and settled it onto my head, the HUD linking with my 'Mech as I went through the startup and security procedures.
We had used a lot of off-the-shelf parts to refit the Black Eagle class dropship Effervescent into something that was of more use on the modern battlefield. One of those things was the drop pods used by Unions to drop 'Mechs from orbit onto a planet…
"Major," a secure channel was opened by the Archer next to me, interrupting my woolgathering.
"I hear you, Kell," I replied. "What's the problem?"
"I've never done one of these outside of the Sims."
"Follow Betty's instructions, the Star League made sure that the computers were set for these things," I stated as I glanced at the readouts for the attached jump pods to my 'back' and legs. "Follow Sheppard's lead, he's got the most experience in this."
"Alpha Company, we're ready to begin launch procedures if you are."
"Sound off!" I ordered over Teamcoms.
The individuals checked the seals on both their cockpits and helmets, going through the exhaustive list before confirming they were prepared to drop.
"Alpha's good to drop," I relayed to the 'Mech Bay's NCO.
"Launching in sequential order, standby."
The bay depressurized and the 'Mechs were gently 'Shoved' out of the 4500-ton dropship, the unknown world 'below' them.
My computer showed the calculated fall route and the projected landing for my 'Hammer before the older Star League Era computer linked up with the rest of the unit, showing each projected landing site and path.
No one spoke for the first few minutes as we slowly picked up speed, the planet's gravity dragging the pods down and the ceramic shell heating up.
"Yeehaw!" Sheppard's laugh came over our company's comms. "I missed this!"
"Crazy fool," I grinned and shook my head as my 'mech finally began bullying the atmosphere into submission.
"Don't lie! You love this!"
I didn't respond as a feeling of exhilaration filled my head and heart. I had wanted to do something like this since I was a kid and first saw the Master Chief drop onto Delta Halo. And even if this wasn't the exact same thing. It was close enough for the little kid inside of me to wish that I'd brought an SMG and SPNKR with me.
But even if I was enjoying the ride. I still had a job to do. So I began to focus on the readouts Betty provided me, the meters rushing by.
3000 meters…
2500,
2000,
1500,
1000,
At 750 meters, the bolted-on jets ignited, beginning to slow down the landing as the ceramic shell finally fell apart, revealing the blackened paint of our 'mechs.
The jets stopped at fifty meters for those of us without mounted jump jets, the remaining distance being a short fall that ended with a heavy "Thump".
"Status reports!" I barked as I ran my eyes over the wireframe of my Warhammer, noting the slight actuator damage in the knees before stepping forward and beginning to move to the dropships.
"Ankle joint's shattered," Morgan Kell reported. "I'm going to be limping."
"Stay at range and link targeting computers. You'll provide fire support."
"My 'Mech's in the same boat," Erika Lamb reported. "I'll stick with Kell and provide support."
Everyone else reported minor damage or none at all, and so the eight remaining 'Mechs interposed themselves between the barracks and the dropships.
"Looks like they came up lacking. Make sure that none of them get onto the dropships," I switched frequencies to the dropships in the void.
"Peterson, Naomi, you're clear to approach, go clear out the city, we'll hold the spaceport!"
Lieutenant Hober grinned as his DroST broke through the atmosphere, the mechanized infantry in the compartment were running the last checks on their Maxims and other APCs while a Buccaneer descended beside him.
"Hey Vagabond," Hober called out cheerfully. "Five Bulls says that my Pinup stays intact this whole op!"
"I'll take that action!" the other aerodyne replied. "I think that Farm Girl's going down!"
"Guess we'll find out," Hober chuckled. "Let's go!"
The two dropships being used for this op began their run, both Wardog and Hitman Squadrons falling into escort positions as they moved toward the ground.
"Breaking pattern," Blaze reported. "Looks like we've got some air-breathers around here. Moving to engage."
Wardog shifted to go deal with the approaching jets while Hober touched down in the middle of the town square, spinning in search of targets for his gunners.
"Area's temporarily clear, you're clear to deploy!"
The APCs roared out of the bay, the Maxims divesting themselves of infantry just as a lance of Scorpions appeared only to be disintegrated under large laser and autocannon fire from Katherine the nose gunner for the DroST. "Targets downed!" the hidden Steiner laughed.
"Vagabond deploying vehicles now," the other aerodyne descended and its ramp lowered, a bunch of tanks coming down the ramps and beginning to clear out the city.
"Remember people, we're not here for a prolonged fight!" Captain Naomi instructed her tanks as her Manticore rumbled through the small town's streets. "Clear out any enemy tanks and move on, we're not here for an urban slog!"
Of course, when she finished her speech, an Urbanmech appeared, its squat form had been hidden by a nearby water tower.
Unfortunately for said Urbanmech, the Hunters that the Marksman had salvaged from the pirates had been refitted with proper turrets for their PPCs and rocket launchers, and while half of the six tanks missed with their PPCs, the other half didn't, and the trio of PPCs melted the 'Mech's autocannon into slag.
Then the few Scorpions and LRM carriers began to fire, the autocannon and missiles dropping the light 'Mech to the ground as the tanks continued heading for the spaceport, the Maxims and APCs bringing up the rear.
–
–
"We've got movement!" Sheppard reported as his Mongoose fell back to the lines we'd established.
"Looks like a couple of "Locusts and a Thud," I identified. "Tagging thud for indirect fire."
The 'Mech was highlighted as Sheppard's Beagle Active Probe coordinated with Kell's Archer and Lamb's Griffin, the flurry of 40+ LRMs hammering the shoulders of the heavy 'Mech as it tried to push through before a bright green beam from Sheppard's Mongoose arched out tagged the Thunderbolt's knee, the combined damage sending it crashing to the ground.
"Mark that 'mech," I ordered. "I've got an idea."
Then the Locusts decided to harass us, the light 'Mechs darting in and out, evading everything fired their way aside from a handful of SRMs or a glancing blow from a medium laser.
"Stay still," I snarled, snap-firing my PPC instinctively and catching one of them in the cockpit.
"Nice hit, major!"
"Thanks, now let's kill this other bastard."
The pirate Locust danced through our fire for minutes that seemed to stretch into an eternity before a mistake was made. As the light 'Mech accelerated, it stepped into a hole in the spaceport's flat concrete, the sudden stop shattering the leg and sending parts and myomer into the air as the 'Mech seemed to screech in agony before the pilot ejected. But the seat didn't have a good arc, and the pilot became a bloody smear across the side of the lone Mule that was parked on the spaceport."
"That…" I trailed off. "Is not a good way to go."
"Major, enemy resistance in the town's cleared out," Naomi reported. "The Canopians can move in and take over."
"Copy that, hold positions for a moment," I replied.
"Glittering Prizes, you are clear to land and begin salvage operations," I contacted the lone Canopian Triumph that had accompanied us on this mission."
"Understood, Major, beginning approach."
–
–
"I know it's not much of a consolation," Colonel Jackie LeAnn of the Magistracy Armed Forces sighed. "But we're handing you guys the Thud. We're going to report it as being unsalvageable though. I think you guys have done a fucking fantastic job here. But I'm not the one in charge of making these sorts of decisions."
"I get it," I replied. "The Magistracy is going to be coughing up a lot of money though. This is a lot of intact dropships. And I'm supposed to get open market prices for every piece of salvage."
The Colonel winced while doing the math in her head. "Well, looks like my budget's going to be short this year. Again."
"Well, if you're ever looking for a change of leadership," I offered as I shook her hand. "Just let me know and I'll see what I can swing."
"Don't tempt me," the officer sighed. "I might take you up on it."
"You've got our contact info," I shrugged. "We never had a problem with your or your unit, just the politicians."
"I'll stay in touch," She smiled. "Never know when having a merc friend in your back pocket'll come in handy."
"Anyway, we've pulled out all of our material and manpower. All that's left is to collect that Thud and we'll be on our way out."
"Lemme know if you're ever in the area again," She called out as I began climbing back up into my 'Hammer. "We'll get some drinks or something."
"Copy that," I finished climbing. "See ya around, Colonel!"
Starting up the 'Hammer, I walked the 'Mech back into the Effervescent's bay and locked it down, watching as a trailer backed the pirate Thunderbolt up and into the bay where the bay workers and techs shifted to lock the other 'Mech down and prepare it for travel.
"Not the greatest haul ever," Sheppard commented as I stepped out onto the gantry. "But the payday will be nice."
"They'll find a way to shortchange us," I sighed. "But even if they do, we're still looking at a payout of at least a quarter billion C-Bills."
"That's a lot of cash," he whistled. "We're going to have to figure out what to do with it."
"I'm sure we'll come up with something to spend it on," I laughed. "After all, our ledger was starting to look a little off after the money we spent on refitting those older dropships. Then there's the combat bonuses and the maintenance fees. Sure, we'll have a decent nest egg, but it's not as much as we might hope."
"We're going to have to go over the budget again," Sheppard sighed. "More live-fire exercises?"
"We can't afford not to do them," I shrugged. "Especially with how effective they are."
"I'll look into buying the license for the training munitions," Sheppard pulled out a small notebook and wrote down a note. "That way we don't have to spend a premium buying them when we can make our own."
"That's for the future. For now, we're going to go back and clear out the rest of Eidolon. I have a gut feeling that we missed something important there."
"I'll have Rook start working on the locations we pulled from the Phoenix, too. Might be worth checking out some of them."
"First, let's get some rest. We've got a few months to sort everything out while we head towards Eidolon."
Last edited:
Chapter 48
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Chapter 48
Date: May 8, 3004
Location: King Henry V, Invader-Class Jumpship en route to Eidolon
“Officer on deck!” Paige barked as Major Hull entered the briefing room, a small handful of reports in his hand.
“At ease, you can be seated,” the Major pulled out a chair and sat down himself. “Now, normally we’d be going through death by PowerPoint. But I’ll spare you the trauma this time around.”
The Major waited for the chuckles to die down before speaking again.
“I have here a stack of the reports from the operation we conducted against the pirates. All of you went over what worked, what didn’t work, and what we need to improve on in our training scenarios for the future. We’ll start with infantry and move on from there.”
Peterson opened his mouth to speak before closing it and gesturing for one of the senior noncoms to speak.
“We performed well on the ground but we’re going to have to work on rapid dismounts,” Staff Sergeant Packer replied. “We also need to see about expanding our officer and noncommissioned officer pool. We’ve got a lot of infantry, and not enough officers to rein them in.”
“I’ll just add that the DroSTs functioned extremely well as an infantry delivery platform,” Peterson nodded at the dropship captains. “They also were effective as support platforms once we had boots on the ground. I want more of them.”
“Noted,” Sheppard wrote something down. “There were four left on Eidolon, we’ll see if we can salvage at least two of them.”
“Now, onto vehicles tanks and how everything went during their portion of the operation,” The Major moved the discussion along.
“We’ve got to start training gunnery more than we did before,” Naomi stated, a stern expression on the short woman’s face. “We have vehicles with fusion engines and the fuel for that is cheap. So next chance we get, we’re running drills on movement and firing at the same time. There’s no reason for half of our modified Hunters to miss like that.”
“Alright, and lastly, the ‘Mechs. Our Artillery didn’t get to play around all that much on the last op, so we’ll leave them for our next debrief.”
“If we’re going to be doing orbital drops, then we need to be running simulators on them,” Sheppard shrugged. “Aside from that, we acquitted ourselves decently. Though we should probably work on more combined arms warfare.”
“Is there anything else that needs to be pointed out?” Major Hull asked. “If not, then you’re all dismissed, go take care of your people and get some rest.”
Date: July 4, 3004
Location: Eidolon
“Those aren’t regular Jumpships,” Katrina muttered as she checked the sensors.
“No, they aren’t,” Hober replied. “Most of the ships in the graveyard here predate the Star League’s first war with the Periphery-.”
“That’s a Conestoga!” Katrina cut the Lieutenant off. “Those ships should be in a museum somewhere.”
“Probably,” Hober shrugged. “But we don’t have the time or resources to repair them and get them pulled to a settled world at the moment.”
“Any chance I can get the coordinates?” Katrina asked.
“First of all, the coordinates are classified. Secondly, we’re trying to keep this system off of the official records in case we manage to piss off any of the House Lords. We might need a place to lay low, after all.”
“I can understand that,” the blond’s voice took on a somber tone. “Still, these should be preserved somewhere, not left here forgotten in the void forever.”
“I’m sure that the Powers that Be have their plans,” Hober chuckled. “But for now, we’ve got our own job to do. So man that sensor station and get ready to shoot if need be. Just because a system was clear last time, doesn’t mean that it is this time.”
—
—
“So what makes you so sure that we’re going to find things that we missed the first time?” Victoria Jewel asked as the Messenger glided down onto the remnants of the spaceport, the other dropships falling into place around her. “After all, Archeologists spent months here looking through things.”
“Because they were focused on pulling data from computers and the government buildings,” I grinned. “And I’ve got a superpower that we didn’t have the first time around.”
“And what might that be?” Captain Jewel asked.
“Bored soldiers given an entire city to explore and do dumb shit around,” my grin grew. “And I’ll probably throw some of Paige’s Marines down here too. Just to increase the odds of something stupidly impressive happening.”
Date: July 8, 3004
Location: Eidolon
“Sarge, why are we just walking through an abandoned city?” Specialist Jenkins asked, his rifle hanging from his vest. “Aren’t there better things to do than this?”
“We’re not the only ones walking through the city like this,” Packer replied. “It’s all hands on deck exploring the city. So get used to being bored.”
“Fine,” Jenkins sighed. “Can we at least take a break? It’s really fucking hot out here today.”
“Sunset’s in two hours,” Packer replied. “We’ll start looking for a building to make camp in, I figure we’ll be at this for a few weeks before the Major and the rest of the Senior Staff get tired of not finding anything.”
“That building’s got a bunch of caduceus all over it,” Jenkins pointed out. “And where there’s a hospital, there are beds. Sure, they won’t be great. But they’ll be better than sleeping on the ground.”
“Alright,” Packer nodded. “We’ll finish up this block and then head for the hospital, we can spend our last hour exploring it before we bunk down for the night.”
–
–
“You guys are going to get in so much trouble if Sarge finds out,” Jenkins looked at the six soldiers who were pouring out medical-grade alcohol onto improvised torches.
“It’s not like it’s going to hurt anyone, and besides, in the dark, this building feels a lot like a castle or a dungeon. So why not play into it a bit?”
“Fine,” Jenkins sighed. “But I’m coming with, someone needs to be the voice of reason here.”
The small fireteam moved through the abandoned hospital, laughing as they told stories and played with the torches they’d manufactured.
The halls were quiet though, and the laughter and fun slowly faded away as the atmosphere grew somber.
“It’s so odd,” One of them finally said. “There should be bodies, there should be more dead people, but instead all we found was nothing. Sure, we found the graveyard, but there should have been a lot more graves. So what happened?”
“I have no idea,” Jenkins shrugged as he opened a door to a stairwell, a thoughtful look on his face as he realized that this set of stairs didn’t just go up. But that there were several floors below them.
“Dropping a chemlight here,” He cracked the green stick and tossed it down, counting the flights of stairs as it fell. “Charlie, take your partner and go grab the Sarge and the rest of the squad. I’ve got a feeling that we just found something interesting.”
“Copy that,” the soldier grabbed his battle buddy and headed for the area where the rest of the squad had bunked down for the night.
“The rest of you, follow me, we’re going to see what’s down there. I want those torches doused and your Night vision gear ready.”
The four of them plus Jenkins smothered the fire on the torches before reaching into pouches and removing their night vision goggles.
“I’ve got point,” Jenkins shifted into low ready as he moved down the stairs and into the first sub-basement level. “Opening on the right.”
“Checking,” two of them branched off to check the open doors.
“There’s a fusion reactor here,” one of them peeked into the room. “Looks like it’ll power the entire complex.”
“Leave a chemlight at that door, we’re Oscar-Mike.”
–
–
“Well Jenkins,” Packer looked at the now well-lit sub-basement. “I have no idea how you found this place, but I’m glad that you did.”
“I just reined in the chucklefucks who were trying to be stupid,” Jenkins shrugged. “There’s still three more levels that we haven’t checked out. “But I figured we’d want to get power restored first.”
“Agreed,” Packer pulled out a cigar and lit it, tossing the match to the ground and stubbing it out. “Now, I want you on point at the lowest level, we’ll clear the rest of the levels simultaneously. The techs’ll leave a relay at the stairwell so we don’t lose comms.”
“Understood,” Jenkins nodded before gesturing for the fireteam he’d been with all night to fall in behind him. “You heard Sarge, we’re going down to the ninth level. Let’s just hope that there aren’t any demons waiting to torment us down there.”
“This doesn’t bode well,” Jenkins glanced at the five centimeters of water that covered the floor. “Ready?”
“On you, boss.”
Pulling the doors open, Jenkins pied the door before picking a section and moving in, trusting the rest of the fireteam to have his back.
“This is a lot of water,” Charlie commented as he looked around the room. “Odds are that there are rooms that are entirely flooded.”
“If they’re this close to sea level, there should be pumps that can be activated.”
Jenkins continued through the hall, pointing out openings for the fireteam to clear as he checked the far door.
“This door’s locked. It’s electronic too. We’ll need some techs to get down here and breach this one.”
“No, we won’t,” Charlie stepped forward. “This model still exists in the Concordat, and when the power’s been disconnected for a certain length of time, it factory resets. And the default code is one through six.”
The fireteam member tapped the numbers in sequence before the door slid open, revealing a much larger room.
“Someone get Packer down here, and the Major too. We just hit the motherfucking jackpot.”
Date: May 8, 3004
Location: King Henry V, Invader-Class Jumpship en route to Eidolon
“Officer on deck!” Paige barked as Major Hull entered the briefing room, a small handful of reports in his hand.
“At ease, you can be seated,” the Major pulled out a chair and sat down himself. “Now, normally we’d be going through death by PowerPoint. But I’ll spare you the trauma this time around.”
The Major waited for the chuckles to die down before speaking again.
“I have here a stack of the reports from the operation we conducted against the pirates. All of you went over what worked, what didn’t work, and what we need to improve on in our training scenarios for the future. We’ll start with infantry and move on from there.”
Peterson opened his mouth to speak before closing it and gesturing for one of the senior noncoms to speak.
“We performed well on the ground but we’re going to have to work on rapid dismounts,” Staff Sergeant Packer replied. “We also need to see about expanding our officer and noncommissioned officer pool. We’ve got a lot of infantry, and not enough officers to rein them in.”
“I’ll just add that the DroSTs functioned extremely well as an infantry delivery platform,” Peterson nodded at the dropship captains. “They also were effective as support platforms once we had boots on the ground. I want more of them.”
“Noted,” Sheppard wrote something down. “There were four left on Eidolon, we’ll see if we can salvage at least two of them.”
“Now, onto vehicles tanks and how everything went during their portion of the operation,” The Major moved the discussion along.
“We’ve got to start training gunnery more than we did before,” Naomi stated, a stern expression on the short woman’s face. “We have vehicles with fusion engines and the fuel for that is cheap. So next chance we get, we’re running drills on movement and firing at the same time. There’s no reason for half of our modified Hunters to miss like that.”
“Alright, and lastly, the ‘Mechs. Our Artillery didn’t get to play around all that much on the last op, so we’ll leave them for our next debrief.”
“If we’re going to be doing orbital drops, then we need to be running simulators on them,” Sheppard shrugged. “Aside from that, we acquitted ourselves decently. Though we should probably work on more combined arms warfare.”
“Is there anything else that needs to be pointed out?” Major Hull asked. “If not, then you’re all dismissed, go take care of your people and get some rest.”
Date: July 4, 3004
Location: Eidolon
“Those aren’t regular Jumpships,” Katrina muttered as she checked the sensors.
“No, they aren’t,” Hober replied. “Most of the ships in the graveyard here predate the Star League’s first war with the Periphery-.”
“That’s a Conestoga!” Katrina cut the Lieutenant off. “Those ships should be in a museum somewhere.”
“Probably,” Hober shrugged. “But we don’t have the time or resources to repair them and get them pulled to a settled world at the moment.”
“Any chance I can get the coordinates?” Katrina asked.
“First of all, the coordinates are classified. Secondly, we’re trying to keep this system off of the official records in case we manage to piss off any of the House Lords. We might need a place to lay low, after all.”
“I can understand that,” the blond’s voice took on a somber tone. “Still, these should be preserved somewhere, not left here forgotten in the void forever.”
“I’m sure that the Powers that Be have their plans,” Hober chuckled. “But for now, we’ve got our own job to do. So man that sensor station and get ready to shoot if need be. Just because a system was clear last time, doesn’t mean that it is this time.”
—
—
“So what makes you so sure that we’re going to find things that we missed the first time?” Victoria Jewel asked as the Messenger glided down onto the remnants of the spaceport, the other dropships falling into place around her. “After all, Archeologists spent months here looking through things.”
“Because they were focused on pulling data from computers and the government buildings,” I grinned. “And I’ve got a superpower that we didn’t have the first time around.”
“And what might that be?” Captain Jewel asked.
“Bored soldiers given an entire city to explore and do dumb shit around,” my grin grew. “And I’ll probably throw some of Paige’s Marines down here too. Just to increase the odds of something stupidly impressive happening.”
Date: July 8, 3004
Location: Eidolon
“Sarge, why are we just walking through an abandoned city?” Specialist Jenkins asked, his rifle hanging from his vest. “Aren’t there better things to do than this?”
“We’re not the only ones walking through the city like this,” Packer replied. “It’s all hands on deck exploring the city. So get used to being bored.”
“Fine,” Jenkins sighed. “Can we at least take a break? It’s really fucking hot out here today.”
“Sunset’s in two hours,” Packer replied. “We’ll start looking for a building to make camp in, I figure we’ll be at this for a few weeks before the Major and the rest of the Senior Staff get tired of not finding anything.”
“That building’s got a bunch of caduceus all over it,” Jenkins pointed out. “And where there’s a hospital, there are beds. Sure, they won’t be great. But they’ll be better than sleeping on the ground.”
“Alright,” Packer nodded. “We’ll finish up this block and then head for the hospital, we can spend our last hour exploring it before we bunk down for the night.”
–
–
“You guys are going to get in so much trouble if Sarge finds out,” Jenkins looked at the six soldiers who were pouring out medical-grade alcohol onto improvised torches.
“It’s not like it’s going to hurt anyone, and besides, in the dark, this building feels a lot like a castle or a dungeon. So why not play into it a bit?”
“Fine,” Jenkins sighed. “But I’m coming with, someone needs to be the voice of reason here.”
The small fireteam moved through the abandoned hospital, laughing as they told stories and played with the torches they’d manufactured.
The halls were quiet though, and the laughter and fun slowly faded away as the atmosphere grew somber.
“It’s so odd,” One of them finally said. “There should be bodies, there should be more dead people, but instead all we found was nothing. Sure, we found the graveyard, but there should have been a lot more graves. So what happened?”
“I have no idea,” Jenkins shrugged as he opened a door to a stairwell, a thoughtful look on his face as he realized that this set of stairs didn’t just go up. But that there were several floors below them.
“Dropping a chemlight here,” He cracked the green stick and tossed it down, counting the flights of stairs as it fell. “Charlie, take your partner and go grab the Sarge and the rest of the squad. I’ve got a feeling that we just found something interesting.”
“Copy that,” the soldier grabbed his battle buddy and headed for the area where the rest of the squad had bunked down for the night.
“The rest of you, follow me, we’re going to see what’s down there. I want those torches doused and your Night vision gear ready.”
The four of them plus Jenkins smothered the fire on the torches before reaching into pouches and removing their night vision goggles.
“I’ve got point,” Jenkins shifted into low ready as he moved down the stairs and into the first sub-basement level. “Opening on the right.”
“Checking,” two of them branched off to check the open doors.
“There’s a fusion reactor here,” one of them peeked into the room. “Looks like it’ll power the entire complex.”
“Leave a chemlight at that door, we’re Oscar-Mike.”
–
–
“Well Jenkins,” Packer looked at the now well-lit sub-basement. “I have no idea how you found this place, but I’m glad that you did.”
“I just reined in the chucklefucks who were trying to be stupid,” Jenkins shrugged. “There’s still three more levels that we haven’t checked out. “But I figured we’d want to get power restored first.”
“Agreed,” Packer pulled out a cigar and lit it, tossing the match to the ground and stubbing it out. “Now, I want you on point at the lowest level, we’ll clear the rest of the levels simultaneously. The techs’ll leave a relay at the stairwell so we don’t lose comms.”
“Understood,” Jenkins nodded before gesturing for the fireteam he’d been with all night to fall in behind him. “You heard Sarge, we’re going down to the ninth level. Let’s just hope that there aren’t any demons waiting to torment us down there.”
“This doesn’t bode well,” Jenkins glanced at the five centimeters of water that covered the floor. “Ready?”
“On you, boss.”
Pulling the doors open, Jenkins pied the door before picking a section and moving in, trusting the rest of the fireteam to have his back.
“This is a lot of water,” Charlie commented as he looked around the room. “Odds are that there are rooms that are entirely flooded.”
“If they’re this close to sea level, there should be pumps that can be activated.”
Jenkins continued through the hall, pointing out openings for the fireteam to clear as he checked the far door.
“This door’s locked. It’s electronic too. We’ll need some techs to get down here and breach this one.”
“No, we won’t,” Charlie stepped forward. “This model still exists in the Concordat, and when the power’s been disconnected for a certain length of time, it factory resets. And the default code is one through six.”
The fireteam member tapped the numbers in sequence before the door slid open, revealing a much larger room.
“Someone get Packer down here, and the Major too. We just hit the motherfucking jackpot.”
Shouldn't the correct phrase be "EUREKA!!!!"
Chapter 49
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Chapter 49
“So,” I looked at the rows of battlemechs. “What exactly am I looking at here?”
“Toros,” A Taurian noncom replied, a tear trickling down his face. “It’s two companies of Toros.”
“And that’s not the most interesting thing that we found here,” Staff Sergeant Packer chimed in. “We found out why there aren’t any people around.”
“Okay?” I raised an eyebrow and followed him through the lit corridors. “Do explain.”
“This door is sealed for a reason, and it was one of three chambers that weren’t covered in water when the pumps failed.”
The noncom entered a six-digit code and the door slid open, revealing rows of cryogenics pods, the frost remaining on all of them showcasing that they were still functional.
“We’ve run all of the tests,” Doctor Janet Hale glanced up from the pod she was inspecting. “This and one other chamber are the only survivors. And we’re finding more flooded cryo chambers in buildings all across the city.”
“So, what are our options here?” I asked the woman we’d picked up as our CMO while in Canopian space.
“Trying to move the pods is risky,” She sighed. “And I have no idea how long they’ve been in here, so we’re talking about muscle density loss, potentially ice being generated in the brain, all sorts of potential problems. The real question is, do we have the space to transport four thousand people to their old home?”
“We sure they’re Taurian, and not Canopian?” I looked into one of the pods before averting my eyes after catching an eyeful of a young woman’s breasts.
“All of the markings we’ve found show that this was a Taurian failsafe,” Packer responded. “We’re not quite sure what happened here, but aside from the standard issues of being on ice for so long, these people are perfectly healthy.”
“Alright,” I stroked my beard in thought. “We’re going to advance our timeline a bit. I’ll be reassigning some of you to finish repairing the dropships so we can leave here in a hurry. We can set up temporary quarters in the DroSTs Cargo bays, and make sure that these people are as comfortable as possible. We’ll dock them with access to the Phoenix so that they can have immediate medical treatment if an emergency case arises.”
I looked at the pods and turned around to look at the ‘Mechs.
“Load up these ‘Mechs, and get Rook over here to pull what data he can from the computers here. There might be a factory hidden around here. I doubt these were hand-tooled and crafted,” I rolled up the sleeves on my duty uniform. “Now, where do you need me to help?”
“Easy,” I held out the heated blanket to the older gentleman as he slowly began to comprehend what was going on. “Let’s get you warmed up now.”
I smiled as the man tucked the blanket around him and blinked, taking in the bright lights of the underground room.
“How long did we sleep?” He asked as he allowed me to direct him to a nearby table where some sets of PT gear had been left for them to wear. “Who are you people?”
“We’re friends,” I helped him stand while he pulled on the underwear and then helped with the sweatpants and hoodie before handing him a cup of hot soup.
All around us, Marksman were helping people out of cryostasis and into clothes of their own, and the somber mood that had been in the chamber while the pods were closed lifted as the people began to become more lively.
“Sir, if you’ll follow the signs, we have people ready to get you outside and into the sun, and there are others who we woke up that can explain things to you further.”
He simply nodded and began to slurp the soup as if he had been starved of food for weeks.
Then he slowly walked through the doors where a soldier began to assist him up the stairs.
“Doing this in groups of ten made it a lot easier,” Lieutenant Hober commented as we took a small break. “Thank you.”
“For what Lieutenant?” I asked as I began ladling soup into more readied cups.
“For doing this the right way,” he replied as he folded up some more blankets and stuffed them into the drier we’d brought down. “Even the Taurians back home would have just left them in the pods until we got back to space. Simply because it’s the easier option.”
“Just because something is easy, does not make it the best way to do something,” I replied. “If it were easy, It wouldn’t be Black Watch,” I muttered the last bit under my breath.
“What was that?” Henry Hober asked.
“Nothing, Lieutenant,” I replied. “Just something I heard while operating the sims a time or three.”
“Well, it looks like the next group is ready to go,” Hober reached into one of the driers and pulled out two blankets before handing me one. “Let’s give them a warm welcome, shall we?”
“Heh, Warm welcome,” I chuckled as I held the freshly hot blanket. “Nice.”
“Captain Johnson, It’s good to see that you’re one of the ones that made it,” a frail-looking man shivered under the sunlight.
“So many of us didn’t,” The captain sighed, turning to face more into the sun’s warmth. “Take a seat, Corporal, we’re going to be here for a while,” Johnson patted the seat next to her.
“Corporal, what do you think about our new hosts,” Johnson asked, pulling a small set of sunglasses further up her nose.
“They’re definitely mercenaries,” The Corporal replied. “Their kit isn’t uniform enough for them to be standard military.”
“You mean their hardware,” Johnson corrected. “Their uniforms are good, and aside from the beards, you’d never know that they aren’t full spectrum military instead of a PMC.”
“They took our ‘Mechs, Captain.”
“I know, Corporal,” Johnson finally looked directly at the corporal, allowing him to see her eyes. “But there’s not anything we can do about it. And given the information we’ve been given, not many of us survived.”
“You’re buying what they said about the sea level?”
“It makes sense,” Johnson shrugged. “The water table was always high on this planet. And given the scans that I was shown compared to what it looked like originally…” She trailed off as her voice and throat choked up. “So many people, just gone.”
They remained in silence for a little while before they were approached by one of the uniformed mercenaries.
“Excuse me, I’m looking for a Captain Johnson?”
“That’s me,” she stood up, her legs still somewhat weak, but it was nothing compared to when fresh out of the pod.
“We found your personal effects,” the man’s rank, a cloth oakleaf was sewn into the shoulder. “I know it’s a cold comfort, but we’re trying to do what we can to make sure that we do right by you and yours. We’re currently getting things arranged to take you back to the Concordat.”
“The Concordat still lives?” The Corporal asked.
“Indeed it does,” the mercenary smiled sadly. “Not quite the same as when y’all left, but they’re doing just fine from what I can tell.”
“What do you need us to do?” the Captain asked, looking for a job to do.
“Well, I wasn’t planning on putting any of you to work at all,” the man stroked his beard. “But if you need something to do, then you can help us locate the rest of the buildings with chambers in them,” his expression fell. “We don’t have time to give everyone a burial, but we can at least hold a funeral ceremony in front of the buildings that are their final resting place.”
“I’ll gladly help with that,” Johnson locked eyes. “Now, I never got your name, mister?”
“Hull,” the man replied. “Major Mark Hull, Owner and Commanding Officer of the Marksman…”
“So,” I looked at the rows of battlemechs. “What exactly am I looking at here?”
“Toros,” A Taurian noncom replied, a tear trickling down his face. “It’s two companies of Toros.”
“And that’s not the most interesting thing that we found here,” Staff Sergeant Packer chimed in. “We found out why there aren’t any people around.”
“Okay?” I raised an eyebrow and followed him through the lit corridors. “Do explain.”
“This door is sealed for a reason, and it was one of three chambers that weren’t covered in water when the pumps failed.”
The noncom entered a six-digit code and the door slid open, revealing rows of cryogenics pods, the frost remaining on all of them showcasing that they were still functional.
“We’ve run all of the tests,” Doctor Janet Hale glanced up from the pod she was inspecting. “This and one other chamber are the only survivors. And we’re finding more flooded cryo chambers in buildings all across the city.”
“So, what are our options here?” I asked the woman we’d picked up as our CMO while in Canopian space.
“Trying to move the pods is risky,” She sighed. “And I have no idea how long they’ve been in here, so we’re talking about muscle density loss, potentially ice being generated in the brain, all sorts of potential problems. The real question is, do we have the space to transport four thousand people to their old home?”
“We sure they’re Taurian, and not Canopian?” I looked into one of the pods before averting my eyes after catching an eyeful of a young woman’s breasts.
“All of the markings we’ve found show that this was a Taurian failsafe,” Packer responded. “We’re not quite sure what happened here, but aside from the standard issues of being on ice for so long, these people are perfectly healthy.”
“Alright,” I stroked my beard in thought. “We’re going to advance our timeline a bit. I’ll be reassigning some of you to finish repairing the dropships so we can leave here in a hurry. We can set up temporary quarters in the DroSTs Cargo bays, and make sure that these people are as comfortable as possible. We’ll dock them with access to the Phoenix so that they can have immediate medical treatment if an emergency case arises.”
I looked at the pods and turned around to look at the ‘Mechs.
“Load up these ‘Mechs, and get Rook over here to pull what data he can from the computers here. There might be a factory hidden around here. I doubt these were hand-tooled and crafted,” I rolled up the sleeves on my duty uniform. “Now, where do you need me to help?”
“Easy,” I held out the heated blanket to the older gentleman as he slowly began to comprehend what was going on. “Let’s get you warmed up now.”
I smiled as the man tucked the blanket around him and blinked, taking in the bright lights of the underground room.
“How long did we sleep?” He asked as he allowed me to direct him to a nearby table where some sets of PT gear had been left for them to wear. “Who are you people?”
“We’re friends,” I helped him stand while he pulled on the underwear and then helped with the sweatpants and hoodie before handing him a cup of hot soup.
All around us, Marksman were helping people out of cryostasis and into clothes of their own, and the somber mood that had been in the chamber while the pods were closed lifted as the people began to become more lively.
“Sir, if you’ll follow the signs, we have people ready to get you outside and into the sun, and there are others who we woke up that can explain things to you further.”
He simply nodded and began to slurp the soup as if he had been starved of food for weeks.
Then he slowly walked through the doors where a soldier began to assist him up the stairs.
“Doing this in groups of ten made it a lot easier,” Lieutenant Hober commented as we took a small break. “Thank you.”
“For what Lieutenant?” I asked as I began ladling soup into more readied cups.
“For doing this the right way,” he replied as he folded up some more blankets and stuffed them into the drier we’d brought down. “Even the Taurians back home would have just left them in the pods until we got back to space. Simply because it’s the easier option.”
“Just because something is easy, does not make it the best way to do something,” I replied. “If it were easy, It wouldn’t be Black Watch,” I muttered the last bit under my breath.
“What was that?” Henry Hober asked.
“Nothing, Lieutenant,” I replied. “Just something I heard while operating the sims a time or three.”
“Well, it looks like the next group is ready to go,” Hober reached into one of the driers and pulled out two blankets before handing me one. “Let’s give them a warm welcome, shall we?”
“Heh, Warm welcome,” I chuckled as I held the freshly hot blanket. “Nice.”
“Captain Johnson, It’s good to see that you’re one of the ones that made it,” a frail-looking man shivered under the sunlight.
“So many of us didn’t,” The captain sighed, turning to face more into the sun’s warmth. “Take a seat, Corporal, we’re going to be here for a while,” Johnson patted the seat next to her.
“Corporal, what do you think about our new hosts,” Johnson asked, pulling a small set of sunglasses further up her nose.
“They’re definitely mercenaries,” The Corporal replied. “Their kit isn’t uniform enough for them to be standard military.”
“You mean their hardware,” Johnson corrected. “Their uniforms are good, and aside from the beards, you’d never know that they aren’t full spectrum military instead of a PMC.”
“They took our ‘Mechs, Captain.”
“I know, Corporal,” Johnson finally looked directly at the corporal, allowing him to see her eyes. “But there’s not anything we can do about it. And given the information we’ve been given, not many of us survived.”
“You’re buying what they said about the sea level?”
“It makes sense,” Johnson shrugged. “The water table was always high on this planet. And given the scans that I was shown compared to what it looked like originally…” She trailed off as her voice and throat choked up. “So many people, just gone.”
They remained in silence for a little while before they were approached by one of the uniformed mercenaries.
“Excuse me, I’m looking for a Captain Johnson?”
“That’s me,” she stood up, her legs still somewhat weak, but it was nothing compared to when fresh out of the pod.
“We found your personal effects,” the man’s rank, a cloth oakleaf was sewn into the shoulder. “I know it’s a cold comfort, but we’re trying to do what we can to make sure that we do right by you and yours. We’re currently getting things arranged to take you back to the Concordat.”
“The Concordat still lives?” The Corporal asked.
“Indeed it does,” the mercenary smiled sadly. “Not quite the same as when y’all left, but they’re doing just fine from what I can tell.”
“What do you need us to do?” the Captain asked, looking for a job to do.
“Well, I wasn’t planning on putting any of you to work at all,” the man stroked his beard. “But if you need something to do, then you can help us locate the rest of the buildings with chambers in them,” his expression fell. “We don’t have time to give everyone a burial, but we can at least hold a funeral ceremony in front of the buildings that are their final resting place.”
“I’ll gladly help with that,” Johnson locked eyes. “Now, I never got your name, mister?”
“Hull,” the man replied. “Major Mark Hull, Owner and Commanding Officer of the Marksman…”
Last edited:
Chapter 50
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Chapter 50
Date: July 13, 3004
Location: Eidolon
“Major Hull,” someone knocked on the door of the room I had been using as a temporary office.
“Come in,” I replied, setting aside the reports I had been reviewing.
The door slid open, revealing a frail-looking brunette, her form swallowed by the PT gear she’d been loaned.
“Captain Johnson,” I stood up and greeted her. “How are you feeling?”
“I’ve been better,” She smiled a bit. “But don’t let any of the enlisted hear about it. They think this is just a normal Tuesday for me.”
“I’ll keep my lips sealed,” I laughed. “I’m pretty sure that you didn’t just come in to discuss that sort of thing with me though.”
“I want to sign up,” she leaned forward, resting her elbows and forearms on the desk, her green eyes flashing in the harsh artificial light. “I’ve read the history that you have available on the Concordat of the present day…” She trailed off for a moment as she seemed to get lost in thought before shaking her head and refocusing. “I won’t fit there, it’s not the Concordat I grew up in. For the others, they might be able to make it work, what with them having family that survived the freezers. But I don’t have that.”
“I’m not one to turn down a good hire,” I replied. “But is your only reason for not wanting to go back because of not being able to adapt to the current state of the Concordat?”
“No,” she sighed, a tired look coming over her face. “There are other reasons, but they’re my own.”
“Alright,” I nodded. “If that’s your decision, then we’ll process the paperwork and get you brought in. I unfortunately can’t just bring you in as a senior officer right away. Even if you do have the experience for it.”
“I understand,” Johnson replied. “I just have one request.”
“You want your ‘Mech,” I finished.
“She’s mine,” the woman replied. “And I have the paperwork to prove that I own her.”
“We weren’t planning on holding all of them,” I admitted. “But given we’ve got a decent amount of staff from the Federated Suns, we didn’t want to give y’all access to them until we’d had the chance to explain ourselves.”
“Understandable,” the officer nodded. “But I still would like to join.”
“Then it’s a pleasure to welcome you to the Marksman,” I shook her hand.
“Speaking of which,” she commented. “Why is it Marksman instead of Marksmen?”
“That is a story better suited for a bar and a group of friends,” I replied with a grin. “Because it involves paperwork SNAFUs and MRB guidelines.”
“Look,” Doctor Adamina Rogers sighed. “I’m more of an exoskeleton girl, but we can figure out how to pack up a factory and load it onto the Jumbo. It’ll just take a little bit of work.”
“I just need a solid ETA,” I replied. “And I can send you as many bodies as you need to throw at the problem.”
The engineer chewed on the end of a pen in though, removing it to tap on the notebook that she held.
“Call it two to three weeks?” She asked. “I can’t guarantee that it’ll be done in that timeframe, but that would be my rough guess.”
“Alright,” I nodded. “Just let me know what kind of manpower needs you’re looking at and I’ll make sure that you get it.”
“I’ll have it to you in a couple of hours,” Adamina wrote something down in her notebook. “Major, if you don’t mind me asking. What are you planning on doing with the factory?”
“It’s a factory that makes Toros,” I replied. “I’m giving it to the people that it belongs to.”
“As a Taurian Citizen, I appreciate it, but I also have some questions about why you’d do that. Especially when one of the larger states might be willing to pay you a lot of money for the intact factory.”
“I might be a mercenary. But I know that there are many more forms of currency than cold hard cash. Favors and an entire nation being in your debt is not a bad thing to have.”
“If you’re sure,” the Doctor shrugged.
“Doctor Rogers,” I set my shoulders and rested my hands on the desk, my fingers interlaced together. “This wasn’t just my decision. We had a command staff meeting about this. And when we asked for your presence, you said that you were busy. After the meeting concluded, you were sent the minutes and agenda of the meeting as well as the decisions that were made. I understand that you are busy with research and that you are trying to do something new. But that is no excuse for you to ignore the other responsibilities of your position. So, to make you aware of it. We are not in the civilian world anymore. Command staff meetings are mandatory. If you are not present at one in the future for anything less than an emergency, there will be consequences. And if you do happen to miss a meeting,” I shrugged. “Because you are human and it will happen in the future. Then you review the meeting and ask questions so that you’re not left in the dark. Am I understood?”
“Yes, Major,” she gulped and nodded. “I understand.”
“Good,” I allowed myself to relax. “I’ll take a look at that manpower list that you have once it’s available. Until then, I have work to do.”
Date: August 1, 3004
Location: Eidolon
“I don’t need them to be refitted to what we have on the other DroSTs,” I sighed, looking at Hober, Katherine, and the work crews. “I appreciate the efforts, but we can do that later. We need them spaceworthy and able to hold people and cargo. That’s it, nothing more, nothing less.”
“But what about defense?” the Lieutenant asked. “We’re going to be transporting them from here to the Concordat, we need to be able to defend them.”
“That’s what the first two refits and the ASF squadrons are for,” I replied. “We can do the refits later. Right now, we have priorities. Get them ready for cargo and passengers, and ensure they’re spaceworthy. The Black Eagle’s work crew is already finished and is going through the tests now. So strip the two that we can’t fully repair in a decent timeframe, and get the other two ready to go.”
“Aye sir,” the Lieutenant responded before turning and beginning to supervise his work crew. “You heard the Major. Want teams Alpha and Bravo to strip dropship Foxtrot, on our last survey that was the dropship that would take the most to get repaired and modernized.”
The crews dispersed and the sound of plasma torches, cutters, and welding devices were heard as the crews focused on the one dropship.
“So, dropships Charlie and Delta’s status?” I asked.
“I’ve got the reports here,” Katherine Smith (AKA Katrina Steiner) handed me a clipboard. “We’re not too far off schedule, but we still have to do a full check of the life support systems on Charlie, and ensure that the conduits and power is working through all of Delta.”
“You have a week,” I glanced at the Lieutenant, making sure that I wasn’t glaring anymore. “I understand your caution and the decision that you made. But there are some other things that we need to be worried about right now.”
“I take it some of it is beyond my pay grade, sir?”
“For the moment, yes. Just know that the more quickly we do this, the less chances we have of something going wrong.”
“Understood,” Hober nodded, his long legs carrying him over to the two dropships that were being repaired, a ‘noteputer finding itself in his hands as he climbed in to diagnose problems.
“Major, I have a few questions if you don’t mind,” Katherine pulled me to the side.
“I have answers,” I replied. “Let’s hope that they match.”
“What are your intentions for the jumpships that are at the jump point?”
“For them to remain there aside from the other Leviathan. We’re already going to be catching attention for growing so fast. And I’d rather not have the Successor States paying a lot of undue attention to my unit. But I’m sure that eventually, I’ll pay to have some of them repaired and transported back to known space. Most of those ships are history, and I’d like for them to be preserved as such.”
“If you ever decide to do such, remember to keep me posted,” the woman responded. “I have some connections that might be willing to assist with the funding for that sort of thing.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Now, Ensign, I’m pretty sure that they need you over there,” I indicated the dropship where her work crew was. “And I have some paperwork to attend to.”
“Right, understood, sir,” the blond-turned-redhead joined the teams and began working.
“And now for the fun bits,” I sighed.
“You’re certain that this is a list of all of the agents that have infiltrated the unit?” I asked.
“You can never be a hundred percent certain,” James Dunham replied. “But it’s as good of a list as I can give you.”
“So two noncoms, someone’s wife, a mechanic, and the three that I brought to your attention,” I flipped through the document. “Any idea which nation they’re from?”
“One of the noncoms is MIIO,” the large man shrugged. “Based on behavior, she’s simply reporting which nation we’re hired for and base unit strength. If we ever ended up on a contract against the Fedsuns, she’d find a way to leave and give all of her intel to them. But as long as we don’t have an issue with them, she should be fine. The mechanic is a spy for the Canopians, and the wife is probably working for TMI. But she’s not able to pass on a lot of information due to not having access.”
“I’m not worried about her at the moment,” I waved aside that concern. “Unless the marriage is a sham, we can deal with a TMI agent that passes along the occasional location information. Which leaves the other noncom.”
“I have no idea which nation she’s a part of,” he replied. “But she’s passing on every scrap of data that she gets. Oddly enough, while her technology training is top-notch, it was her lack of knowing how to cover for herself that got her caught. She tried to transmit a data package so large that the unit ended up getting charged a fee.”
“She got caught because of a transmission fee?” I raised an eyebrow. “That's not a joke?”
“You’d be surprised at how often the little things are what gives people away,” the Terry Crews lookalike shrugged. “But either way, we’re ready to deal with them when you want.”
“Leave them be for now,” I stroked my beard. “But when we take care of them, I want that sergeant taken care of first.”
“And you want us to leave the Lyrans alone?”
“Yeah. They’re going to be our inroad into the Commonwealth later. They might be exiles right now, but I have a feeling that they’ll be much more important than that in the long run.”
“Understood,” Dunham stuffed the reports into a nearby shredder. “If that was everything, I’ll get back to work.”
“Remember to get some rest,” I reminded my S2. “We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.”
Author’s note: Dunham’s backstory will be explored in a sidestory I’m going to be writing called “Debts and Debtors. It won’t be updated as often as the main thread though.
Date: July 13, 3004
Location: Eidolon
“Major Hull,” someone knocked on the door of the room I had been using as a temporary office.
“Come in,” I replied, setting aside the reports I had been reviewing.
The door slid open, revealing a frail-looking brunette, her form swallowed by the PT gear she’d been loaned.
“Captain Johnson,” I stood up and greeted her. “How are you feeling?”
“I’ve been better,” She smiled a bit. “But don’t let any of the enlisted hear about it. They think this is just a normal Tuesday for me.”
“I’ll keep my lips sealed,” I laughed. “I’m pretty sure that you didn’t just come in to discuss that sort of thing with me though.”
“I want to sign up,” she leaned forward, resting her elbows and forearms on the desk, her green eyes flashing in the harsh artificial light. “I’ve read the history that you have available on the Concordat of the present day…” She trailed off for a moment as she seemed to get lost in thought before shaking her head and refocusing. “I won’t fit there, it’s not the Concordat I grew up in. For the others, they might be able to make it work, what with them having family that survived the freezers. But I don’t have that.”
“I’m not one to turn down a good hire,” I replied. “But is your only reason for not wanting to go back because of not being able to adapt to the current state of the Concordat?”
“No,” she sighed, a tired look coming over her face. “There are other reasons, but they’re my own.”
“Alright,” I nodded. “If that’s your decision, then we’ll process the paperwork and get you brought in. I unfortunately can’t just bring you in as a senior officer right away. Even if you do have the experience for it.”
“I understand,” Johnson replied. “I just have one request.”
“You want your ‘Mech,” I finished.
“She’s mine,” the woman replied. “And I have the paperwork to prove that I own her.”
“We weren’t planning on holding all of them,” I admitted. “But given we’ve got a decent amount of staff from the Federated Suns, we didn’t want to give y’all access to them until we’d had the chance to explain ourselves.”
“Understandable,” the officer nodded. “But I still would like to join.”
“Then it’s a pleasure to welcome you to the Marksman,” I shook her hand.
“Speaking of which,” she commented. “Why is it Marksman instead of Marksmen?”
“That is a story better suited for a bar and a group of friends,” I replied with a grin. “Because it involves paperwork SNAFUs and MRB guidelines.”
“Look,” Doctor Adamina Rogers sighed. “I’m more of an exoskeleton girl, but we can figure out how to pack up a factory and load it onto the Jumbo. It’ll just take a little bit of work.”
“I just need a solid ETA,” I replied. “And I can send you as many bodies as you need to throw at the problem.”
The engineer chewed on the end of a pen in though, removing it to tap on the notebook that she held.
“Call it two to three weeks?” She asked. “I can’t guarantee that it’ll be done in that timeframe, but that would be my rough guess.”
“Alright,” I nodded. “Just let me know what kind of manpower needs you’re looking at and I’ll make sure that you get it.”
“I’ll have it to you in a couple of hours,” Adamina wrote something down in her notebook. “Major, if you don’t mind me asking. What are you planning on doing with the factory?”
“It’s a factory that makes Toros,” I replied. “I’m giving it to the people that it belongs to.”
“As a Taurian Citizen, I appreciate it, but I also have some questions about why you’d do that. Especially when one of the larger states might be willing to pay you a lot of money for the intact factory.”
“I might be a mercenary. But I know that there are many more forms of currency than cold hard cash. Favors and an entire nation being in your debt is not a bad thing to have.”
“If you’re sure,” the Doctor shrugged.
“Doctor Rogers,” I set my shoulders and rested my hands on the desk, my fingers interlaced together. “This wasn’t just my decision. We had a command staff meeting about this. And when we asked for your presence, you said that you were busy. After the meeting concluded, you were sent the minutes and agenda of the meeting as well as the decisions that were made. I understand that you are busy with research and that you are trying to do something new. But that is no excuse for you to ignore the other responsibilities of your position. So, to make you aware of it. We are not in the civilian world anymore. Command staff meetings are mandatory. If you are not present at one in the future for anything less than an emergency, there will be consequences. And if you do happen to miss a meeting,” I shrugged. “Because you are human and it will happen in the future. Then you review the meeting and ask questions so that you’re not left in the dark. Am I understood?”
“Yes, Major,” she gulped and nodded. “I understand.”
“Good,” I allowed myself to relax. “I’ll take a look at that manpower list that you have once it’s available. Until then, I have work to do.”
Date: August 1, 3004
Location: Eidolon
“I don’t need them to be refitted to what we have on the other DroSTs,” I sighed, looking at Hober, Katherine, and the work crews. “I appreciate the efforts, but we can do that later. We need them spaceworthy and able to hold people and cargo. That’s it, nothing more, nothing less.”
“But what about defense?” the Lieutenant asked. “We’re going to be transporting them from here to the Concordat, we need to be able to defend them.”
“That’s what the first two refits and the ASF squadrons are for,” I replied. “We can do the refits later. Right now, we have priorities. Get them ready for cargo and passengers, and ensure they’re spaceworthy. The Black Eagle’s work crew is already finished and is going through the tests now. So strip the two that we can’t fully repair in a decent timeframe, and get the other two ready to go.”
“Aye sir,” the Lieutenant responded before turning and beginning to supervise his work crew. “You heard the Major. Want teams Alpha and Bravo to strip dropship Foxtrot, on our last survey that was the dropship that would take the most to get repaired and modernized.”
The crews dispersed and the sound of plasma torches, cutters, and welding devices were heard as the crews focused on the one dropship.
“So, dropships Charlie and Delta’s status?” I asked.
“I’ve got the reports here,” Katherine Smith (AKA Katrina Steiner) handed me a clipboard. “We’re not too far off schedule, but we still have to do a full check of the life support systems on Charlie, and ensure that the conduits and power is working through all of Delta.”
“You have a week,” I glanced at the Lieutenant, making sure that I wasn’t glaring anymore. “I understand your caution and the decision that you made. But there are some other things that we need to be worried about right now.”
“I take it some of it is beyond my pay grade, sir?”
“For the moment, yes. Just know that the more quickly we do this, the less chances we have of something going wrong.”
“Understood,” Hober nodded, his long legs carrying him over to the two dropships that were being repaired, a ‘noteputer finding itself in his hands as he climbed in to diagnose problems.
“Major, I have a few questions if you don’t mind,” Katherine pulled me to the side.
“I have answers,” I replied. “Let’s hope that they match.”
“What are your intentions for the jumpships that are at the jump point?”
“For them to remain there aside from the other Leviathan. We’re already going to be catching attention for growing so fast. And I’d rather not have the Successor States paying a lot of undue attention to my unit. But I’m sure that eventually, I’ll pay to have some of them repaired and transported back to known space. Most of those ships are history, and I’d like for them to be preserved as such.”
“If you ever decide to do such, remember to keep me posted,” the woman responded. “I have some connections that might be willing to assist with the funding for that sort of thing.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Now, Ensign, I’m pretty sure that they need you over there,” I indicated the dropship where her work crew was. “And I have some paperwork to attend to.”
“Right, understood, sir,” the blond-turned-redhead joined the teams and began working.
“And now for the fun bits,” I sighed.
“You’re certain that this is a list of all of the agents that have infiltrated the unit?” I asked.
“You can never be a hundred percent certain,” James Dunham replied. “But it’s as good of a list as I can give you.”
“So two noncoms, someone’s wife, a mechanic, and the three that I brought to your attention,” I flipped through the document. “Any idea which nation they’re from?”
“One of the noncoms is MIIO,” the large man shrugged. “Based on behavior, she’s simply reporting which nation we’re hired for and base unit strength. If we ever ended up on a contract against the Fedsuns, she’d find a way to leave and give all of her intel to them. But as long as we don’t have an issue with them, she should be fine. The mechanic is a spy for the Canopians, and the wife is probably working for TMI. But she’s not able to pass on a lot of information due to not having access.”
“I’m not worried about her at the moment,” I waved aside that concern. “Unless the marriage is a sham, we can deal with a TMI agent that passes along the occasional location information. Which leaves the other noncom.”
“I have no idea which nation she’s a part of,” he replied. “But she’s passing on every scrap of data that she gets. Oddly enough, while her technology training is top-notch, it was her lack of knowing how to cover for herself that got her caught. She tried to transmit a data package so large that the unit ended up getting charged a fee.”
“She got caught because of a transmission fee?” I raised an eyebrow. “That's not a joke?”
“You’d be surprised at how often the little things are what gives people away,” the Terry Crews lookalike shrugged. “But either way, we’re ready to deal with them when you want.”
“Leave them be for now,” I stroked my beard. “But when we take care of them, I want that sergeant taken care of first.”
“And you want us to leave the Lyrans alone?”
“Yeah. They’re going to be our inroad into the Commonwealth later. They might be exiles right now, but I have a feeling that they’ll be much more important than that in the long run.”
“Understood,” Dunham stuffed the reports into a nearby shredder. “If that was everything, I’ll get back to work.”
“Remember to get some rest,” I reminded my S2. “We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us.”
Author’s note: Dunham’s backstory will be explored in a sidestory I’m going to be writing called “Debts and Debtors. It won’t be updated as often as the main thread though.
Eidolon Salvage Report (August 1, 3004)
MarkWarrior
Well-known member
Eidolon Salvage Report (August 1, 3004)
The Details of what was recovered from planet Codenamed: EIDOLON during the second visit are as follows.
3000 people, mixed civilian Specialists, Scientists, Engineers, and military personnel from colony.
(Notes from Chief Medical Officer Doctor Janet Hale)
Approximately ⅓ of all personnel suffered physical damage from being in crystasis for the long period of time. While our medical supplies and resources are enough to treat the physical damage, we don't have the capacity to treat the ⅓ that suffered from minor brain damage. The last ⅓ are completely functional aside from loss of muscle mass. They will be the easiest to handle, provided they are willing to undergo a diet and physical regimen to return to proper health. Our food supplies are strong, but we're going to have to keep a careful eye on the health hazards.
(End Notes)
1 Black Eagle Class Dropship
2 Drost Class Dropships
1 Leviathan Class Jumpship.
24 Toro Light Battlemechs
4 Talos Medium Battlemechs
1 Light Battlemech factory.
(Notes from salvage teams are as follows.)
(Dropship team)
The dropships will survive the trip back to the Concordat, but I want them looked over by a solid repair team once we make it back to civilization. I don't want to leave anything to chance in case we screwed something up.
And we're going to need to find a source of spare parts. Because we basically used everything we could salvage from Eidolon for the Black Eagles. I can find DroST parts on the open market pretty much whenever I need to. The Black Eagles, they're near-extinct. So we're going to have to either hand make any spare parts, or pay someone to set up a factory somewhere. Either way, it's going to be expensive.
–
–
(Jumpship Team)
Repairs went about as expected, we hit a few snags on some of the seals we brought with us being bad, but luckily we were good about bringing some spares with us. So we now have the Whirlwind and Tornado ready to leave with us.
–
–
The Toros are in fantastic shape. They were mothballed properly and it shows. And don't even get me started on the amount of spare parts we grabbed for the things. We could build another company out of Spare parts alone!
I'd recommend we sell the lance of Talos that we found. They're ammo bombs waiting to happen, and the Concordat might like to have them as museum pieces.
Regarding the factory we found. It's not a full Star League era factory, but there are some advantages to it being a couple of steps downward from one. For one thing, this is intended to be operated by people, and the fabrication software and hardware is something that any industrial world should be able to manufacture and accomplish. While it's not as automated as other factories, this should be able to be more easily fixed. And, if I read the documentation on things right, then it can be upscaled or downscaled as needed as well as being fairly mobile. (Which we proved by packing it up onto the Jumbo…)
I fully expect that while the factory is valuable, the scientists and other people that were in the cryopods are the true treasure that we found on Eidolon. Several of them had notes and documentation among their personal effects that should accelerate project Tolkien's progress by years, if not decades. Either way, we're going to be busy for a little while.
(End Official report)
…..
…..
File Encrypted…
Please Input Decryption Key…
…Decryption code accepted,
Welcome, Major Hull…
Begin Classified Message…
Major,
The data core that was recovered in the factory has had several copies made and stored among every ship in the fleet. All documentation is to be classified under the same restrictions as the data from the Phoenix.
Please see attached report for more details.
Lieutenant Dunham
End Encrypted Message…
The Details of what was recovered from planet Codenamed: EIDOLON during the second visit are as follows.
3000 people, mixed civilian Specialists, Scientists, Engineers, and military personnel from colony.
(Notes from Chief Medical Officer Doctor Janet Hale)
Approximately ⅓ of all personnel suffered physical damage from being in crystasis for the long period of time. While our medical supplies and resources are enough to treat the physical damage, we don't have the capacity to treat the ⅓ that suffered from minor brain damage. The last ⅓ are completely functional aside from loss of muscle mass. They will be the easiest to handle, provided they are willing to undergo a diet and physical regimen to return to proper health. Our food supplies are strong, but we're going to have to keep a careful eye on the health hazards.
(End Notes)
1 Black Eagle Class Dropship
2 Drost Class Dropships
1 Leviathan Class Jumpship.
24 Toro Light Battlemechs
4 Talos Medium Battlemechs
1 Light Battlemech factory.
(Notes from salvage teams are as follows.)
(Dropship team)
The dropships will survive the trip back to the Concordat, but I want them looked over by a solid repair team once we make it back to civilization. I don't want to leave anything to chance in case we screwed something up.
And we're going to need to find a source of spare parts. Because we basically used everything we could salvage from Eidolon for the Black Eagles. I can find DroST parts on the open market pretty much whenever I need to. The Black Eagles, they're near-extinct. So we're going to have to either hand make any spare parts, or pay someone to set up a factory somewhere. Either way, it's going to be expensive.
–
–
(Jumpship Team)
Repairs went about as expected, we hit a few snags on some of the seals we brought with us being bad, but luckily we were good about bringing some spares with us. So we now have the Whirlwind and Tornado ready to leave with us.
–
–
The Toros are in fantastic shape. They were mothballed properly and it shows. And don't even get me started on the amount of spare parts we grabbed for the things. We could build another company out of Spare parts alone!
I'd recommend we sell the lance of Talos that we found. They're ammo bombs waiting to happen, and the Concordat might like to have them as museum pieces.
Regarding the factory we found. It's not a full Star League era factory, but there are some advantages to it being a couple of steps downward from one. For one thing, this is intended to be operated by people, and the fabrication software and hardware is something that any industrial world should be able to manufacture and accomplish. While it's not as automated as other factories, this should be able to be more easily fixed. And, if I read the documentation on things right, then it can be upscaled or downscaled as needed as well as being fairly mobile. (Which we proved by packing it up onto the Jumbo…)
I fully expect that while the factory is valuable, the scientists and other people that were in the cryopods are the true treasure that we found on Eidolon. Several of them had notes and documentation among their personal effects that should accelerate project Tolkien's progress by years, if not decades. Either way, we're going to be busy for a little while.
(End Official report)
…..
…..
File Encrypted…
Please Input Decryption Key…
…Decryption code accepted,
Welcome, Major Hull…
Begin Classified Message…
Major,
The data core that was recovered in the factory has had several copies made and stored among every ship in the fleet. All documentation is to be classified under the same restrictions as the data from the Phoenix.
Please see attached report for more details.
Lieutenant Dunham
End Encrypted Message…
Oh goodness...
Blasterbot
Well-known member
Comstar? yeah sounds like Comstar.
the toro is kinda neat I guess. like a panther but kinda less good. if it is all you got it is all you got. 10 heat sinks paired with a PPC is a bit too hot. the LRM 5s would only really come into play when the PPC is out of range or you are trying to cool down. definitely worth trading in to the taurians for some favors. getting some heavies from them could be big.
the toro is kinda neat I guess. like a panther but kinda less good. if it is all you got it is all you got. 10 heat sinks paired with a PPC is a bit too hot. the LRM 5s would only really come into play when the PPC is out of range or you are trying to cool down. definitely worth trading in to the taurians for some favors. getting some heavies from them could be big.