Free Rasalhague Republic (Clan Wolf Occupation Zone), New Caledonia, Redfev Starport, April 28th, 3050
Rylian still walked a little stiffly, Ralik noticed, as he and the others of his Star met the Star commander at the Starport, but other than that he looked well enough for combat duty.
“Welcome back, Rylian,” Sepha said. “You did well in the trial.”
“Not well enough,” Rylian replied, frowning.
Ralik understood the sentiment. It would hurt to lose a trial. How many more opportunities to earn a Bloodname would Rylian have? Bloodnamed warriors did not die often. And the Star Commander was getting old - he was already twenty-eight, past his prime. His age had not yet affected his skills, as far as Ralik could tell, but that was but a question of time. No, Ralik did not think Rylian would earn a Bloodname.
“The only one to beat you was Star Captain Vlad,” Lionel said, “who won the Trial.” He nodded. “And you lasted long against him.” And unlike almost a dozen others, Rylian had survived the trial.
“Thank you. How is the situation on the planet?” the Star Commander asked as they walked towards the transporter waiting for them.
Sepha sighed. “We are doing all we can to raise the average intelligence of the labour caste on the planet, but so far, there is no sign of progress.”
Ralik saw Rylian roll his eyes, though he was grinning. “Tian?”
Tian straightened before replying. “There were four more attacks by suspected insurgents since you left, Star Commander. An improvised explosive device was placed in the city’s centre but was detected and defused before it could detonate. Two sniper attacks on technicians working on battlefield salvage. Both died from their wounds. One inferno missile strike against our barracks. Four Elementals were wounded; three are expected to recover. Our forces killed one sniper and the perpetrator of the missile attack.”
“We have been running patrols every day,” Lionel added, “to provide security for the Clan members on the planet.”
“Any battles?” Rylian asked as they reached the transporter - the technicians had finally learned their lesson and finished the up-armouring on time.
“No,” Ralik said. The insurgents were too cowardly to attack a BattleMech. They preferred undefended targets. Like technicians. Or their own people - if that bomb had gone off, the square would have been razed.
“But as I said - the attacks do not seem to be stopping any time soon,” Sepha sighed heavily and shook her head slowly. “The locals seem to have a surplus of suicidal idiots.”
“It has only been twenty-six days,” Tian said, driving the transporter. “That is not long enough to base a trend upon.”
“It is not just this planet. It is happening on every planet, to every Clan. The idiots do not accept their defeat,” Sepha said, frowning. “Many of the attackers caught are not even warriors, but labourers. Imagine that.”
Lionel scoffed. “They would stop that nonsense if we would execute a dozen of them every time someone attacks the Clan.”
“That is against the Martial Code,” Tian said - rather sharply for the usually very calm warrior, Ralik noticed.
“Neg. Others do it already,” Lionel replied.
Sepha snorted, then pulled at her jacket. “Did I miss a Trial of Possession that made us Smoke Jaguars or Jade Falcons?”
“We are not taking hostages nor are we punishing people for the crimes of others,” Rylian stated. “We are not dezgra.”
“How are the Bears handling insurgents?” Ralik asked.
“Probably by adopting them,” Sepha joked. “You know how they are.”
That sent everyone laughing. Until they saw the smoke rising from the town.
Ralik clenched his teeth. Another attack by those cowards! At least their Cluster would leave the planet soon and prepare for the Next Wave. Warriors were wasted here.
*****
Free Rasalhague Republic (Clan Ghost Bear Occupation Zone), Thule, Fresdon Desert, April 29th, 3050
Jan Ringdahl pressed himself to the ground as another explosion shook the small hovel in which he was hiding. He heard screaming from outside - it sounded like Helga. She had been helping Olaf with the SRM launcher.
He knew he should help them. Race outside, drag them into cover. Treat their wounds. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t stand up. Couldn’t leave the hut. Couldn’t expose himself. He sobbed.
It wasn’t supposed to be like this. The invaders weren’t supposed to find them in the desert. This was their home. They knew the desert. And they had done everything as they had been trained. No fusion-powered vehicles. No tracks. No lights after dark.
How had the bastards found them? Someone must have betrayed them. But who? Something blew a hole in the wall above his head, and he whimpered. He didn’t want to die. Not like this.
This wasn’t supposed to happen. They were supposed to be heroes. Striking at the invaders when they were asleep in their stolen homes before vanishing into the desert like ghosts. Avenging angels. He sobbed again, then coughed when he inhaled sand and dust. His rifle was somewhere in the room - not that he cared any more. It wouldn’t help against the 'Mechs. Or the monsters in battle armour.
Another explosion, closer - he felt as if the ground tried to shake him off and had trouble breathing. No. No.
The screaming outside had stopped. Or Jan had gone deaf. He didn’t know. Didn’t care. He just wanted out. But if he stood up, he would die. Like Sven.
All he could was cowering behind the remains of the wall, and pray. And curse. And cry.
Suddenly, he wasn’t cowering any more. He was flying through the air. Then he crashed onto the ground. And he couldn’t breathe any more. He tried to but choked. On blood.
And then he didn’t do anything any more.
*****
‘Preliminary analysis of Clan weapon technology revealed a noticeable gap between the effectiveness of weapons used by their frontline units and the weapons used by the Com Guards. Coupled with the greater individual skill and experience of the Clan Warriors, it is evident that the Com Guards would need significant numerical superiority to achieve victory in an engagement with Clan troops. However, as far as I can tell at this point, the Clan space forces are no match for our defences. They do not have anything similar to our Caspar IV drones and if they should, which seems likely according to my information, ultimately attempt to attack Terra itself, we can expect to repel their attack with our autonomous defence systems.
Nevertheless, I urge the First Circuit to increase our weapon research programs with a focus on conventional weapons and to intensify our exchange and recruiting programs with friendly nations and mercenary units to reduce both the technology as well as the skill and experience gap as quickly as possible if the Com Guards are expected to intervene in the invasion itself.’
- Excerpt from the classified report of Precentor Martial Anastasius Focht, Terra 3050
*****
‘If you’d believe the holodramas, then every member of the AFFC panicked when they met the Clans due to their advanced weapons and OmniMechs. Shows that you can’t believe the entertainment media. We had already faced advanced weapon systems with our 'Mechs in the Fifth Succession War. Sure, the Clanners had even better kit, but we could’ve dealt with that. What made them so damn dangerous was the fact that they were the best 'MechWarriors I ever fought against and they knew perfectly how to exploit their advantages. Fighting them was a nightmare. They kept outflanking us whenever we tried to hold the line or counter-attacked, which rendered our combined arms pretty much useless, and any attempt at a war of manoeuvre was doomed from the start - trust me, we tried it with the 17th Rangers often, too often. The only time we made them bleed was when we made our last stand with our backs to the wall, and they had to come at us the hard way.’
- Sergeant Bethy ‘Hellfire’ McGonagall
*****
Free Rasalhague Republic, Verthandi, Regis, May 15th, 3050
“Six enemy BattleMechs advancing towards us from the city’s centre,” Tian’s calm voice reported.
Ralik glanced at his display while he turned a corner in his Timber Wolf, taking extra care not to brush the damaged right arm against the building - he had lost the limb’s armour to a particularly ill-timed artillery barrage. The freebirth defending the planet - the remains of the 2nd Drakøns and a battalion of mercenaries from the same unit that had bloodied the Golden Keshik in the Periphery - had made heavy use of combined arms tactics in the early phases of the battle, but the Cluster’s Binary Artillery had silenced the enemy artillery in short order, and the Roaming Lions had savaged the armour and infantry. The battle would be decided by BattleMechs, as it should be.
“They are not trying to hide any more, thinking they can ambush us. I guess even freebirth curs can learn, after half a dozen failures,” Sepha commented as Ralik saw the symbols of the enemy BattleMechs weave through the maze of roads and buildings in front of the Star. Six machines, five heavy and one medium. Not much of a force against an Assault Star, but all of the Star’s OmniMechs were damaged to some degree already.
“They are not using their jump jets any more, either,” Lionel remarked. “They are trying to close the range without exposing themselves.”
Not that it mattered much in the city - most of the fighting happened in close quarters anyway. It would not help them, Ralik thought. The curs were caught in the city - the Heart Eaters had taken the starport and, for a change, the Flying Lions had kept the freebirth from escaping in their dropships. Scum who did not respond to the Batchall was not granted Hegira.
“Five hundred metres,” Tian reported. The computer updated the enemy BattleMechs’ types - QKD-4G, CRD-3R, WHM-6R, RFL-3N, GHR-5A and one GRF-1N - though Ralik knew he could not trust the results blindly. The early stages of the battle had taught them that their enemies had upgraded their inferior machines with selected Star League technology.
“Enemy unit identified as Kell Hounds,” Tian informed them.
“Assume all of them are using advanced heat sinks,” Rylian told them.
“Let us hope that that is all they have improved,” Sepha replied.
It was a faint hope, Ralik knew - the Kell Hounds had, according to the Watch, close ties to the Lyran ruling family, and therefore received preferential treatment, including new technology, even though they were mercenaries.
It did not matter. They were facing a full Star. They would lose.
Only three hundred metres now separated them - but several tall buildings including one factory blocked the line of sight. Ralik clenched his teeth, resisting the urge to charge at them. He hated waiting for the enemy to make contact. He was a wolf - a hunter, not some ambush predator!
A beep alerted him that Rylian had assigned targets. Ralik would be facing the WHM-6R - provided he would not be attacked by another enemy first.
“They are jumping,” Tian reported.
Ralik raised his weapons but managed to refrain from firing at the GRF-1N that rose into the sky, followed by the GHR-5A. They weren’t his to fight.
Rylian, though, did, raking the GHR-5A with his autocannons and SRMs. But despite previous damage, as the computer showed now, the enemy BattleMech shrugged the attack off and landed right in front of the Star Commander, firing all his weapons - even the LRMs, which went off to land on some poor civilian’s house behind them. What a pointless waste!
Rylian would handle that fool. Ralik turned to meet his own target, blocking a road with his Timber Wolf. The enemy WHM-6R stepped out of a side road at the same time, already firing. Ralik angled his OmniMech to shield its bare right arm, absorbing the enemy fire with his left side. His Timber Wolf shook under the barrage, but Ralik easily compensated and kept it stable as he returned fire.
The mercenary advanced and Ralik backed up, keeping his distance, small as it was, from the enemy. His unit had quickly learned that getting too close to an Inner Sphere 'MechWarrior invited a melee attack - Lionel’s Gargoyle A had almost lost its leg to a kick he had received earlier in the battle.
But the WHM-6R did not advance towards him - Ralik’s eyes widened when the enemy turned and went through the building to their side, emerging directly behind Rylian!
Fortunately, the Star Commander had already shifted his 'Mech, protecting its more vulnerable rear as his OmniMech shook under the fire from the two heavy BattleMechs.
Ralik pushed his Timber Wolf forward to deal with the WHM-6R before the honourless cur overwhelmed Rylian through sheer weight of fire. But he hadn’t yet reached the corner when he heard Tian yell a warning.
He looked up and saw the GRF-1N descending on the Star Commander’s Gargoyle. Before Ralik or anyone else could react, the BattleMech’s legs smashed into the Gargoyle’s head and torso and both BattleMechs crashed to the ground.
A moment later, the GHR-5A took a step forward, crushing the Star Commander’s cockpit under its foot.
Ralik gasped. Rylian was dead. Killed by three enemies ganging up on him, dragging him to the ground and stepping on him.
Snarling, he swung his Timber Wolf around and fired all his lasers at the WHM-6R, followed by his missiles. The enemy staggered back under the impact, ripping up the facade of the building behind them. Ralik followed up, firing another volley, despite the rising heat in his BattleMech. The WHM-6R’s legs - a notorious weak spot of the design - buckled under the fire, and the enemy BattleMech crashed onto the ground.
Ralik’s next salvo hit the ammunition bay in the torso, and the explosion ripped the BattleMech apart. He turned to engage the other two curs just as a laser barrage from the GHR-5A hit the Timber Wolf’s damaged right arm, shearing it off.
It did not matter. Ralik grinned and returned fire, breaching the enemy’s armour in several spots. But the GRF-1N was jumping again - and at Ralik. This time, though, it was intercepted in the air by PPC fire. The BattleMech almost disintegrated under the impacts, crashing into the building next to Ralik, which collapsed.
But those had been more PPCs than any one OmniMech carried in Ralik’s Star…
“Dezgra do not deserve zellbrigen, quineg?” he heard Sepha on the channel.
Ralik hesitated only a moment then nodded. “Neg, they do not.”
The GHR-5A did not last long once Lionel, Sepha and Ralik focused their fire on it. None of Rylian’s killers survived.
*****
Free Rasalhague Republic, Rasalhague Nadir Jump Point, June 2nd, 3050
Korpral Lasse Smith, 2nd Drakøns, pushed himself off the deck and floated over to the small table near his bunk. A few months ago, the room would have been crowded, even with all walls and both the ceiling and floor being available for seating in microgravity. Now, though… Lasse and his wingman had the room, which once housed their whole wing, to themselves.
No one else from the Drakøns had made it off Verthandi. Lasse and Eila had only made it out because they had been on patrol at the jump point. And they would have stayed and fought if they hadn’t been ordered out.
Lasse clenched his teeth and twisted the strap that tied him to the ceiling in his hands. He would have preferred to stay. Failing to protect his country was bad enough. But being one of only two survivors of an entire regiment?
He knew what people thought and said about him. Even the JumpShip crew, who had heard the orders from Överste Clark, gave them a wide berth.
“It wasn’t our fault,” he muttered.
“Hm?”
Lasse flinched. And now he had woken up Eila. “Nothing.”
“What?”
He hesitated. He knew how stubborn his wingman was. Which was a good thing in combat - she stuck to him like glue - but now… Then he sighed. “It’s not our fault. The bloody mercenaries were useless.” For a famous unit like the Kell Hounds, they certainly hadn’t lived up to their reputation.
Eila sat up - or down, in this case, seeing she was sitting on what he considered the ceiling. “What did you expect? All the good mercenaries get the contracts in the Commonwealth, where they get the advanced tech as payment. We get the dregs.”
He nodded. “Useless.”
“We didn’t do much better, though. Not in space, and certainly not on the ground.”
He sighed again. “It’s not our fault. We don’t have the technology to match the Combine or the Commonwealth, and certainly not these Clans. We lost every planet they attacked. And we don’t have the reserves to take them back.”
Certainly not with what mercenaries were left. And Lasse didn’t think any more would be hiring on with the Republic. The cowards wanted safe contracts, not a real war. And certainly not a war for survival.
After a moment, he asked: “I’ve heard they’re looking for volunteers for special missions...”
She didn’t hesitate. “We’re in.”
He nodded. When he had first heard about them, he had been torn about it. They made sense for a small realm like the Republic. If a country’s survival was at stake, you had to use extreme measures. But he hadn’t been sure that he’d be able to do what was needed.
But now? He knew.
Hell, he was looking forward to it.
*****
’When analysed objectively, it is obvious that the various insurgencies on the planets in the Clan Occupation zones were not quite as effective as the popular media claimed at the time. With a few exceptions, the damage done to the occupation forces was minimal, both in casualties suffered by them and equipment destroyed. And even the majority of those could have been avoided by the Clans if they had focused their forces on securing a few key areas and resources on every planet, and left the rest of them to the insurgents. However, such a strategy would have been anathema to them. What they had taken, they held. Anything else was unacceptable.
It was this psychological effect, actually, that, in my opinion, was the most important achievement of the insurgencies. The Clan Warriors were forced to realise that winning a battle didn’t mean they had won a planet. They had to face the fact that even after devastating defeats, the Inner Sphere would not break and surrender. That the population in the occupation zone would, instead, fight on.
And, even worse, they were not just facing soldiers who had scattered in the wilderness after their units were broken, not just agents who had trained for this, but civilians who decided to take up arms and fight for their homes. People the Clan Warriors dismissed as beneath their notice would keep fighting, no matter the cost. This challenged the very core of their caste system.’
- Excerpt from ‘The Invasion of the Clans - An Analysis’ by Jeffrey Meier, Tharkad, 3064
*****
‘I never understood why the Rasalhague people hated us mercenaries so much - before the Clans, I mean. People smarter than I claim they hated that they needed us, that our very presence was a constant reminder of how weak they are. I don’t buy that. We came to help them. Sure, we were paid for it, and sure, some of the bigger units used the contracts to bloody their rookies against pirates, but we were there, protecting their planets. And when the Clans invaded, we stayed and fought, as we were paid to - side by side with the KungsArmé. Or so we would have if the idiots had worked with us as they should have. We wouldn’t have won, of course - the Clans shattered line units from the DCMS and the FedCom in the early waves - but we might have done more than we did. And we might have saved a few more people, too.’
- Leftenant Marcel ‘Mackie’ Dubois, formerly of the Skinner’s Scimitars
*****
Free Rasalhague Republic, Verthandi, Regis, May 30th, 3050
“Can you imagine how much this must irk the Falcons, Bears and Jaguars? They struggle in their corridors, barely keeping up with the timetable, while we race ahead towards Terra!” Sepha lifted her mug and downed it in one gulp, then slammed it down on the table with so much force, it broke.
Ralik grinned as the other Warrior blinked and stared at the handle, which had remained, in her hand as if she could not understand what had happened. It had not been her first beer of the evening.
She quickly scowled, though, and brushed the remains off the table. “I should have known that the local mugs were as bad as the local troops!” she loudly declared, her voice easily filling the BattleMech hangar the Clan had erected in Regisport. Ralik even saw some of the technicians who were working on the OmniMechs of their Cluster glance their way, but a glare sent them back to work. The Khan had announced that the Clan would start the third wave early, so everyone had to work hard to ensure they would be victorious.
“You were the one who took it,” Lionel pointed out. “It is your own fault, quiaff?”
“I also took the keg you all have been emptying!” Sepha retorted with another scowl as she sat down at the table they had commandeered in the hangar’s corner.
“I did not hear anything about the other Clans struggling,” Brell remarked. “By all accounts, they are advancing on schedule even though they are facing harder resistance than our own forces.”
Ralik looked at their new Star Commander. Brell was an excellent Warrior - he had earned his rank in his Blooding and, since this was his first posting, he was eager to earn more glory, as a good commander should be - but he was not yet familiar with the Star. “Sepha has a friend in the Watch,” Ralik explained.
“Aff,” Sepha said. “And he has let me read the latest report - the Falcons and Jaguars are downplaying their losses against the freebirths. And the Bears lost an entire dropship to sabotage.” She grinned widely. “None of them is in a state to step up the pace - we will outrace them!”
“The Khan’s plan seems to be a bit of a gamble, though,” Tian cut in.
Ralik was surprised - the other Warrior rarely voiced such criticism. He saw Brell narrow his eyes. “Do you think that the touman should not be advancing so boldly?” the Star Commander asked.
Tian set her jaw - she hadn’t missed how Brell had questioned her courage, of course. “I question the wisdom of sending our supplies ahead into the enemy territory with minimal protection so we can speed up our operations.”
“They will be going through uninhabited systems,” Brell replied. “I would have thought you would be aware of using stealth as protection. You are usually acting as the Star’s van, quiaff?”
“Aff. But I’m a Warrior, not a merchant.” Tian met the commander’s eyes. Ralik could almost feel the tension growing.
Sepha chuckled. “As long as they do not rely on the Failing Lions for protection, they should be fine.”
Brell looked puzzled. “The Failing Lions?”
“You have not yet heard the tale of their failures?” Sepha grinned widely as she leaned forward. “Let me regale you with a tale most amusing - unless you were with the Command Nova.”
Ralik shook his head at Sepha’s theatrics, but he appreciated her defusing the tension. Having Tian start a Trial of Grievance over the implied insult to her courage would have been a very bad way to start the next wave.
*****
Free Rasalhague Republic, D-1204 System, unnamed asteroid, June 5th, 3050
“Installing supply depots behind the enemy lines! It would be far quicker and less wasteful to simply shoot us instead!”
Harten rolled his eyes; Junis was always complaining. If she were not so good at her job, she would have been sent to a less prestigious posting long ago - or sent home to instruct children or something. “We are in an uninhabited system without any value. No one will find us here.” D-1204 had been surveyed extensively during the days of the Star League, and no resources that would make settling and developing it had been found, after all. “You know what the Khan said - thanks to our work, the touman will be able to outpace our rivals.” Clan Wolf would be the first to reach Terra and become the il-Clan. And Harten would be among those who achieved this. The Merchants of Clan Wolf would be honoured for their contribution to the cause.
He heard Junis snort over the radio. He knew she was not fully behind Operation Revival, but the Clan was committed now, and everyone had to do their part. “Do you know what I think?” she asked.
“Neg.”
“I think we were sent out here to build a supply depot on a piece of rock without atmosphere because the Warriors failed to pacify the occupied worlds where we should have been building this depot.” Junis scoffed.
“This system is just one jump from the targets of the next wave,” Harten retorted. “We can move supplies much faster from here.”
She ignored him. “Did you hear how they let half the enemy infantry escape again despite explicit orders to destroy them? No wonder we cannot step a foot outside the bases without getting shot at!”
He rolled his eyes inside his suit. Junis would be complaining for quite a while, he knew it well. But, at least, she would be working as hard as she was complaining. Which meant they would - probably - make their deadline.
Unless Junis started complaining where some of the few warriors serving as their escorts could overhear her. That wouldn’t end well.
*****
‘Operation Revival, as the Clans called their invasion, was one of the biggest logistical challenges in the history of mankind’s militaries. From their homeworlds, they had to travel over a thousand light-years to reach the Inner Sphere. Even with an ideal route, it would take over thirty jumps. The number of JumpShips required to carry the invading force and keep it supplied is staggering. Nevertheless, the operation was not quite as foolhardy as some claim. The Clans didn’t attempt to resupply their forces from their homeworlds, but spent months before the invasion shipping supplies to extensive depots in the Periphery, significantly reducing their supply lines and creating staging areas for their forces. Clan Wolf went as far as moving a factory station to the Periphery to support their invasion. That even the stockpiles of the Clans who prepared for a costly, lengthy campaign proved to be inadequate was not solely or even primarily due to their overconfidence and arrogance, but the result of faulty intelligence.
The last reports the Clans had received from their spies in the Inner Sphere dated back to the Third Succession War when limited raids and skirmishes rather than large-scale operations were the norm. If the Clans had invaded in the 3020s, before the Federated Commonwealth, followed by the other realms, used the Helm Library Core to greatly increase JumpShip production to both improve the logistics and strategic mobility of their forces, the Clans’ estimations would have likely been on the mark. That didn’t help them, of course, when their supplies started to run out and their only sources for more were either a thousand light-years away, occupied planets with a hostile population, or an overworked factory station which soon started to run out of resources.
- Excerpt from the term paper ‘Logistics of the Clan Invasion’ by Cadet Mark Hammond, NAIS, New Avalon, 3069
*****
‘We’ve all heard a variant or three of the saying that amateurs study tactics and professionals study logistics. It’s not wrong, but the problem during the invasion was that the Clans were damn good tacticians and that their OmniMechs were far easier to maintain than anything we had since they could swap out almost all parts between all their 'Mechs. It goes without saying that logistics are much easier to handle when you don’t have to stock and ship hundreds of different parts for each different model in every unit, but can use a single stockpile for most of your needs. Makes it easier to train your techs as well. That, far more than the ability to swap weapons for different missions, was the real advantage of the OmniMechs.’
- Warrant-Officer Cyril Hagelmeier, AFFC, retired
*****
