Another rough draft. I hate editing.
HBK: Side Story, The Battle of Mud Hole 14
On board the HBK Union class dropship “Thorny Rose” during the 4th War of Succession.
Something was wrong, and for the life of him, Ohio James couldn't imagine what it could be. The entire unit, his unit, was celebrating the successful completion of yet another contract for the Capellan Confederation. Mechwarriors, and techs, PBIs and medics were all mingling throughout the jumpship and it's attached dropships as the massive jumpsail was being stowed for travel. Friends, family, and lovers were all taking the opportunity to reconnect with each other after months in the field with limited their contact.
The post-contract party was a long established tradition in the HBK, one Ohio encouraged. It was an important part of maintaining the tight bond of camaraderie that was fundamental to the success and longevity of a mercenary unit like the HBK. Blowing off steam, trading tall tales of battlefield exploits, and occasionally participating in physical activities that would help to generate the next generation of HBK pilots, was as important, if not more important, to the HBK than getting paid on time.
For a group of mercenaries, that was saying a lot.
So, when one of the stars of the party, who happened to be a dedicated partier and braggart, was absent, something had to be wrong. With this thought in mind, Ohio had separated himself from the festivities on board the merchant class jumpship “The T's are Silent” and made his way down to the drop bays of one of their Union class dropships. If Janet “Trapdoor” Kawoski wasn't at a party, there were only two places she would be, either in her quarters having a more personal celebration with her husband Mark Kawoski, or sitting in the cockpit of her Victor class mech brooding about something.
A quick stroll down past the couple's quarters had revealed a hatch left slightly ajar, and a complete lack of the usual array of athletic noises that would have permeated the entire deck if the two had been present.
So brooding it had to be.
Upon entering the drop bay, Ohio's was greeted by the sight of what initially appeared to be a compact to mid-sized ground car parked on the left foot of Janet's Victor. As his eyes adjusted to dimmed lighting of the drop bay (further evidence of a brooding disposition), Ohio was able to recognize the shape as belonging to Janet's rather large husband Mark “Man Mountain” Kawoski, hunched over an access panel for the Victor's foot actuator.
“Eugh... Hi Mark, is Janet around?”
With a grunt and a wave of a tectonic arm, Mark simultaneously indicated that Janet was, indeed, present, could be found in the cockpit of the Victor, and, no, thanks all the same, but I won't be coming up with you to talk to her, but I might decide to catch you when she throws you off her mech.
After taking a second to interpret this complicated monosyllable, and another to wonder at the wisdom of entering into any situation that would give pause to a tech large enough to be part battlemech himself, Ohio gave an resigned sigh and began the ascent up the drop bay's storage gantry to the cockpit level of the Victor.
Ohio experienced a brief glimmer of hope as he approached the cockpit. There, on the Victor's main screen, was a video replay of one of the mech's battle ROMs. Hope was quickly dashed, however, by the realization that if Janet was simply reliving past victories, or, more likely, honing up on details to work into her next party-long bragathon, Mark wouldn't be hovering at a discreet distance, simultaneously just far enough away to be easily targeted by hand thrown projectiles, and just close enough to respond promptly if called for. The inspection of a foot actuator that had already been checked twice since the last time the mech saw action was an obvious excuse to stay at exactly that distance and monitor the situation, without seeming to be monitoring the situation at all.
With a polite throat clearing Ohio broke what was quickly becoming an ominous silence. “Reviewing battle ROMs while there's a party going on? If you don't hurry there won't be much of that rum you like so much left.”
“I'm not going.” Janet's response was barely above a whisper, another sign of trouble from the normally boisterous mechwarrior.
“Oh, why not? I heard you had a pretty impressive encounter just before the cease-fire, aren't you going to share with the rest of us how it went down? The girls who were there are telling some pretty far-fetched tales, you might want to set things straight.”
“Tell them I said to stop, I don't want anybody to talk about it. It doesn't deserve to be talked about.”
“Hmm, then why, exactly, if it doesn't deserve to be talked about, are you down here replaying it when there is a celebration going on?” It was at times like this that Ohio really regretted letting himself be appointed commander of the HBK all those years ago. Tactics, strategy, logistics, and even combat itself paled in comparison to the challenges of handling the “morale issues” of a temperamental battle-junkie like Janet.
“How much have you heard? Never mind, come in here and watch this.” With a wave of her hand Janet invited Ohio to join her in the cockpit of her assault mech. The cockpit was fairly roomy for one person, but he was forced him to stand behind her seat, balanced precariously on an ejector seat rocket while trying not to bang his head on the auxiliary com unit. There wasn't enough hazard pay in the Innersphere to tempt him into sharing the seat.
“Your Alpha and Beta lances of Green Company were in the middle of their advance towards the enemy's FOB. The fights for the southern shore approach, and the water station to the north were both nearing conclusion, and some of our recon units had just left the primary maintenance center we had set up on the edge of town, just in case they were needed to reinforce your advance, or either flank. Me and Rose were just discussing which was more likely when Kafi picked them up on her thermal.”
All this, was, of course, known to Ohio. Just because he was leading an assault himself didn't mean he had lost sight of the big picture. With the help of his comms specialist, Magneh “Mags” Dalhaug, Ohio routinely kept up to date of every unit in the reinforced battalion under his command. He had been aware of the enemy contact only seconds after Janet had been, and barely a minute after Kafi herself had reported it. Ohio simply acknowledge this information with a brief nod, wisely deciding not to interrupt.
“Rose was able to get visual on them pretty quick, and boy, were they not what we were expecting. I know you had said it was likely they would try to slip some jump capable mechs down the ridges to either circle behind your position, or raid our maintenance site, but we were figuring it would be a few lights and mediums, not a mix of heavies and assaults.
The OpFor consisted of a pair of Quickdraws, one Grasshopper, and five, freaking five! Victors! Now, we had three recon lances in the area, and the militia units and the liaison's lance of Vindi's and Urbies sitting on the town, so we weren't to worried about them hitting us, but it did occur to us that they could beat you up pretty bad if your target managed to hold out long enough for them to catch up and hit you from behind, so Rose pulled the recon units together, and I fired up the Happy Wife here and we moved out.”
With that last, Janet patted the armrest of her seat with what could only be described as affection. The Victor chassis she piloted was a custom unit, lovingly maintained by Mark in top condition. It was always restored to perfect condition after every battle, regardless of the severity of damage inflicted. Ohio had once personally witnessed Mark working on the Happy Wife for three days straight, forgoing food and sleep in order to be certain it went back to the battlefield without so much as a fleck of paint out of place.
Mercenaries in love are a strange breed.
“Now, there was no way we were going to engage them with just the recon units and lonesome me for heavy support, but we made sure the realized that if they came at you from behind, we'd be hitting them from behind. They tried to shake us off for a bit, making like they were heading for the town, then cutting toward the sea before doubling back in your direction, but it was pointless. Those fatties were way to slow to shake Rose and the scouts. She was literally running circles around those Victors, and then fading back when the Quickdraws would move to intercept.
By the time they figured out they weren't going to lose us, and we weren't going to break off, you had smashed that FOB, the enemy to the south was in retreat, and Wesley had pounded they guys attacking the water plant into scrap. They must have got back in touch with their command then, because all of a sudden they turned tail and started heading back toward the ridge. Eight mechs caught in the middle of a battalion don't stand much of a chance, even if the were all big boys, and I think they knew it.
Now, I was pretty disappointed to see them go. I had been eying those Victors with spare parts in mind the whole time. So I decided to open up a comm channel with them, and see if they wanted to have a little fun before they left. I told them I'd take any one of their Victors on in a duel.”
At this Ohio gave a slight frown. It had been reckless. Worse than that it had put the rest of the recon units in danger. If she had lost, those mechs might have decided to hit the town after all, and without her Victor to shore them up, the lighter recon units would have taken a terrible beating. They would have won, of that Ohio was certain, but it would have been costly in terms of material, and potentially lives.
“You don't have to give me that face. I can it reflected in the screen. I know it was stupid, but I was bored and angry. Neither of my ops had worked, and I was itching for a fight. At first I thought they weren't going to bite. I figured they were under orders to return to base at best speed, I'm sure their CO was tearing his hair out over three more defeats at our hands, and didn't want to risk losing any more mechs.
So I got a bit creative. I started with some generic insults at first. Typical stuff really. Just comments about the shape of their family tree, (straight line or circle) general stuff about their level of bravery, sexual prowess, and dating habits of Davion livestock. Then I hit on a Good Idea. I told them our other two recon lances had been heading to cut them off from the moment we found them, and were now waiting for them just over the ridge. If they wanted to discuss terms for a safe withdrawal, my ears were open.”
I know, our other units were tied up chasing down the guys who fled from the water planet battle, but I figured they probably didn't know that. I was actually a bit surprised when they fell for that. I got a Major Something-or-other on the line, asking what we wanted.”
With this, Janet turned and looked straight at Ohio. Her eyes appeared to be filled with a mix of sadness and self recrimination, but that might have just been the bourbon Ohio had consumed before coming down.
“That should have been my first clue, a Major had no business operating behind our lines like that. At the time though, I was just excited they had fallen for it. So I told them some truth. I wanted a fight, a duel with one of their Victors. If they won, I promised to let them leave without a battle, and with my mech as salvage. If they lost, I would keep their guy's Victor for my parts bin. There was silence for a bit. I think they were talking it over amongst themselves, which should have been another clue. What kind of Fedrat mechwarriors would argue with a Major? I should have know, I'm sure you would have.”
Again, Ohio chose the discretion of silence over commenting. He had a pretty good idea what she was alluding too, but couldn't figure out how that would have caused Janet to be brooding like this during what was supposed to be a victory party.
“Well, a short couple of minutes later I get this guy introducing himself as Sir Lieutenant Something-pompous saying he agreed to a fight with me, and would meet me around the little mud hole he had just passed. You know those ones you'd had us scout when you were working up one of your hare-brained schemes? I think it was listed as #14.”
Ohio did, indeed, remember the scouting mission to catalog the small bodies of water that dotted the landscape around the town they were contracted to defend. He had worked up a great idea that centered around them, but had been forced to abandon it when it became clear the Davion assault would be coming late in the summer, when the small lakes had dried up to little more than large mud pits.
“This one still had a fair bit of water in it, probably enough to sink a mech in, but most of it had turned into a muddy mess. Just the kind of slippery slop that would make hopping around in a 80 ton jump capable assault mech a bit more interesting than usual. I guess at this point I might as well just show you how it went down.”
Janet turned back to the cockpits main display and quickly found the point in the recording that she was looking for. The image on the screen was taken from a camera at the front of her cockpit, showing the battlefield almost exactly as she would have seen it from her seat. They two mechs stood facing each other across mostly open terrain, no more than three or three hundred and fifty yards apart. Practically kissing distance for a modern battlefield, but a reasonable starting distance for close quarters brawlers like the Victor.
The muddy terrain surrounding the small patch of water showed up clearly as a rough patch of darker dirt, having obviously been torn up by the local wildlife in an attempt to reach the dwindling water supply. A couple patches of trees were visible to either side of the water, in the midst all the mud, while some rocky outcropping could be seen in the distance. Farther afield Ohio was able to spot the other four Victors, but the Grasshopper and Quickdraws were out of view.
“Look at that thing. A brand new 9b. I can still catch a whiff of that new-mech smell. If that thing was more than a year old, I'll eat my neurohelmet.”
Ohio stifled an exasperated sigh. He had never much cared for watching vids with the directors commentary turned on, and was hoping Janet was going to let him watch the fight unfold in silence, but he was determined to do his duty as commander and bear up under the strain of her play-by-play.
“There wasn't much going on in the way of tactics. We both said we were ready, and we just ran at each other. I knew he was going to have to either jump over that mud pit, or steer around it, and I didn't want to commit myself until he did. So we ended up with an impromptu game of chicken. THERE! Did you see that?”
“Um, sorry, what exactly was I supposed to see?” Ohio had been busy trying to tug the hip flask out of his pocket. It was biting into his hip in an uncomfortable manner that needed to be addressed if he was going to remain hunched over in this cockpit for long. And besides, it's contents were getting warm.
“I'll play it back, watch his feet there right before he hits his jets.”
This time Ohio did see it, now that he was paying attention it was painfully obvious. The AFFS pilot had done a weird little half step. A kind of stutter-step before using both his legs to help launch his 80ton mech into the air with it's jump jets. It was the mark of a pilot who was either unfamiliar with jumping, or just plain green.
“He's about a hundred and fifty meters out at this point. I don't know why he wasn't shooting at me yet, but I was waiting for this. I figured he's run right up to the edge of the mud, and then hit his jets to one side or the other. I was lining up my shot to hit him just as he left the ground. I hoped it would mess up his jump and maybe make him land in the mud, which should have been funny. Instead he does that damn stutter, he hesitates before he hits his jets and look what happens to my perfect center-mass shot.”
Janet hit play again and the screen was partially filled with the bright lights from the tail ends of the missiles launched from her twin Holy SRM4 packs, and then mostly filled by the muzzle flash from her Pontiac 100 class 20 autocannon. Just as the enemy Victor's feet left the ground, delayed by it's little pre-takeoff hesitation, the majority of Janets's eight short range missiles impacted, sending bits of armor plate flying through the air. At almost the exact same instant, the fearsome autocannon rounds struck home.
Square into the cockpit of the enemy Victor.
There was no chance at all the enemy pilot could have survived. The entire head assembly was blown into the air as nothing more than metallic confetti. The Victor's jump jets cut out immediately, and it fell, limp and lifeless, measuring it's length out in the mud.
“Um... Nice shot, hard to pull off at a run with that range.”
“I wasn't aiming for the head. I never aim for the head. I always aim center mass, or low. Just as I was trained. Only idiots and Solaris pilots try for the head. It's too risky, you over shoot and there goes your ammo, down range with no damage at all. If he had known how to get his damned mech in the air that shot would have drilled him right in the chest, just like I planned.”
“Nothing wrong with a little luck, so you got an easy win. It happens. Nothing to sulk over. Be glad it didn't happen the other way around.”
“I'm not sulking, idiot. And if I was it wouldn't be over something as simple as this. Just watch the rest and shut up.”
Once again showing wisdom in his choice of reply's, Ohio simply nodded his head before taking another pull off his flask.
The video continued with Janet's Victor launching smoothly into the air just as the enemy mech fell. She had jumped forward and to the left, coming down in the midst of the scattered trees there, obviously a maneuver she had planned out before realizing her opponent was down.
“This is where I screwed up. I forgot I had my mic on, and I was still on the open channel I used to set this all up. I started laughing. You know how it goes, you psyche yourself up for a big slug-fest, and it all ends so quick. I just laughed at how ridiculous it all was.
“Well, my laughing at one of their guys getting blown into a fine red mist must have pissed one of them off, because next thing you know I hear this woman screaming in rage, and that Victor there comes charging at me. I see it coming, and here I hit my jets, jumping back to about where I started in order to buy some time to size this new chick up.
“See how this one takes almost the exact same approach? Practically on the last guys foot steps. It was a serious deja vu moment. If that first Victor wasn't still laying in the mud, I might have tripped out a bit. Things are a bit more serious this time though.
The video played on, and the fight unfurled for a few more seconds. Both mechs used their jump jets to hop sideways around the pond, skirting the worst of the mud as they circled each other. Janet was clearly getting the best of it though. She laid into her opponent with everything her autocannon/con, twin medium lasers, and twin SRM4 racks could put out. After a few jumps, the enemy mechwarrior must have realized she was being outgunned, and changed tactics. She landed and launched her mech right back the way she had come, nearly colliding with Janet in mid air.
“I saw this coming. See how I twist and land just behind and to the side of her? On her left side, out of danger from that big old Pontiac?”
Ohio had to grudgingly admit it was a spectacular maneuver. She had planted her mech perfectly on the muddy ground, almost rubbing the enemy mech on the way down. Then the camera angle suddenly dropped, and tilted back.
“It doesn't show on this angle, but I leaned my mech back low enough that I had to put my left hand out to steady myself and jammed my foot right into her ankle. I don't know if you noticed it, but she had already gone one full circle around that damned mud hole. When I kicked her she was right back where she started. Look.”
The camera gave up it view of the sky just in time to see the enemy Victor falling over backward. Ohio was unable to suppress a wince as the powerful war machine slammed into the earth.
Well, most of it slammed into the earth.
Sure enough the fighters had gone full circle. When the enemy Victor fell over backwards, it's head connected with the skyward pointing foot of the first Victor. The force of the 80ton battlemech falling flat on it's back drove the other Victors foot halfway through it's head before the entire assembly sheared off and rolled to the side. Given that the mechs head was now roughly half it's regular size, the survival of the pilot was very much in question.
“I think I went a bit crazy here. I mean look at that! What are the odds. I just couldn't help my self. I saw those two mechs laid out, both piloted by such idiots, with one mechs head hitting the other's foot at a right angle like that and I just had to say it. Again, I completely forgot about the mic, it just came out.
Ohio took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and pinched the bridge of his nose. This was going to be an test of his patients of epic proportions.
“And what, precisely, was it that you couldn't stop yourself from saying to the enemy forces, of which there were now two less?”
“I said 'L is for Loser' and I laughed again. I didn't mean it! I swear! Just look at those mechs though, a perfect L shape! It just came out!”
“Then what happened?”
“I heard shouting on the radio, they forgot to switch channels too. Two of them were argueing with that Major guy. They sounded pretty pissed. I wasn't really paying attention though. It was all so tripy. Rose got a recording of the radio comms, but I haven't played it back yet. I'm not sure I want too.
“The rest of our guys were just standing there. I had told them not to do anything unless I said so, and I hadn't said so. Then those two who were arguing just gave that up and charged. I couldn't help myself, I just laughed again. I was giddy. It was all unreal. I started jumping like mad, firing every weapon on Happy Wife just as fast as I could get target lock. They were doing the same. I could see them both getting hot. 9bs can't do that kind of sustained fire and jump at the same time without starting to cook. The only thing that kept them from roasting alive is they kept falling down in the mud. I guess the mud must have cooled them off some, as well as giving their weapons a chance to rest while they struggled to get back up, but all that mud caked onto their mechs, and the started to look really ridiculous.
It was like she was in a trance. Janet seemed incapable of stopping her commentary as the video progressed just as she had described it. Mud Hole 14 had been churned into a blasted waste land as the three 80ton battlemechs repeatedly launched themselves into the air on their powerful jump jets, and cratered the ground with their impressive munitions. Again though, Janet was giving better than she got. The two Davion pilots were obviously not up to her level. Heck, they didn't even seem like they were up to the typical AFFS level.
The whole picture started to come together in Ohio's head. The shiny new mechs, the Major behind enemy lines with his mechwarriors arguing with him, and the substandard fighting skills in assault class mechs.
It wasn't a picture he particularly wanted to see.
“I was whittling them away, but they were getting me too. I don't know why I wasn't boiling. I should have been. I asked Mark about it and he just shrugged. Like I haven't been married to him long enough to know what that shrug means. He's done something to Happy Wife. Something that gave me an advantage. Something more than the second Holly rack. Something that helped me keep cool. He's not talking now, but he will. I thought I was challenging them to a fair duel, but it wasn't fair. I had an edge. This is where it ends. Watch close.”
Ohio tore his gaze away from the back of Janet's head, where he had been attempting to drill holes into her brain with his eyes in an attempt to figure out just what was going on in that head of hers. Of course she had an edge. They all had edges. The HBK was one of the best maintained units he'd ever seen. Their techs put most mercs to shame. Why would she complain about something that kept her alive day in and day out?
Ohio returned his gaze to the display just in time to see the beginning of the end for the two Victors. The first took a burst from Janet's autocannon just before it landed from a jump. The shots weakened the leg to the point where it collapsed on impact. The other leg, left with the burden of absorbing the impact of an 80ton battlemech on it's on, crumpled like an accordion. Just about the same time the mechs hips buried themselves in the mud amongst the scattered debris that used to hold it upright, canopy blew open and the pilot flew out on his ejector seat.
For one brief second, Ohio was pleased. This one would live. It wasn't going to be a complete disaster for the Davions. One of their boys would go home.
Then reality interjected. The Davion's Victor had been at an angle when he ejected. The seat flew up, and to the side, right into the back of his friends airborne mech.
Right into the middle of it's lower back.
Right where the jump jet is.
What hit the ground looked more like something in the bottom of a charcoal grill than it did a man on an ejector seat.
There was no movement.
The other Victor pilot must have been distracted by the loss of his comrade. He landed poorly from his jump, spilling over onto his side on the treacherous mud.
His right side.
Where the autocannon ammunition is stored.
The bast triggered his ejection seat as the remainder of his ammunition turned his mech into an expanding cloud of chaff. The ejection should have saved his life, but his mech was on it's side. The seat flew parallel to the ground for a ways, straight into the small stand of trees by the side of the water.
It didn't come out the other side.
Ohio didn't have to see what happened. His imagination was vivid enough.
“It was eerie. Everything just seemed to stop. The whole world froze. Then that Major came on the comms again. I think I'll remember what he said for the rest of my life, even if I never do remember his name.”
“'Those Recruits were entrusted to me by their families. All four came from long lines of distinguished Mechwarriors. This was their first tour of duty. A little stroll behind enemy lines so they would have something to talk about when they got back to court. We never expected to engage you. I can't go back without them. It's all over.'
“Then he charged. He was obviously better than any of the other pilots. The veteran sent to chaperone a group of kids. Kids in brand new mechs that are somehow inferior to my old one. Kids who were out gunned and out classed, and nobody told me I had an edge on KIDS!”
Janet was silent as the rest of the recording played out. The Major's Victor was an older model 9A. In the end it's reduced torso armor spelled out it's doom. An SRM from one of Janet's Holly-4 racks flew through a hole punched earlier by one of the last rounds in her Pontiac 100 autocannon and detonated the Major's SRM magazine.
In the split second it took for the expanding fireball to engulf the Victor, Ohio found himself both hopeful and fearful that the Major would eject in time. It was all so senseless. The battles had all already been fought. There was nothing to gain from more death, but at the same time, Ohio knew there was no was the proud Davion could go home after shamefully losing all four of his charges like that. Maybe an honorable death on the battlefield was for the best.
In the end the Major must have agreed with the second theory. He never ejected. He must have gone into the fight with his auto eject disabled, expecting to die.
“I killed them Ohio. People are going to talk about this. The lady mechwarrior who took on five Davions of noble blood and killed them all. Five to one and I won, but it was all lies. It wasn't skill. Luck and cheats. I don't deserve it, I don't want anybody to know about it. I wish it never happened.”
Ohio stood shocked for a moment. This was the infamous Trapdoor. The woman given that name for her brutal ambush tactics and total belief in herself as the best woman mechwarrior in the universe. The same woman, who, just days ago, would have gladly killed for a chance at this level of fame. Five kills in less than an hour. Five kills against the same chassis she herself piloted. There was no more clear testament to skill than to defeat an opponent in the same type of mech as yourself. To take five of them back to back, even two at a time, was unheard of.
But the victory had turned to ash in her mouth. This woman who Ohio had always thought as a bloodthirsty adrenaline junky who got her fix on the battlefield was feeling remorse for enemy combatants. She was sulking when she had every right to celebrate.
For the first time in his life Ohio James chose silence, not because it was the prudent action, but because he could think of nothing to say.
“He was just a guy Ohio. A guy trying to look out for some kids. Remind you of anyone, Ohio? Like maybe two people in this cockpit?”
