Comstar AP News Service
2 January 3068
Outreach, INN
It seems that for every mercenary command of sterling character (such as Wolf's Dragoons, The Kell Hounds or The Twelfth Vegan Rangers) there is one for whom money is the only thing that matters. The Word of Blake highlighted this with deadly clarity when they bought Waco's Rangers, Smithson's Chinese Bandits, the Tiger Sharks and the 51st Dark Panzer Jaegers and unleashed them on Harlech. Now to this roll of dishonor must be added the Broadsword Legion. Hired by Wolf's Dragoons in their moment of need, the Legion turned on their employers as the Dragoons battled to defend their homes from the onslaught of the Blakists' Sixth and Tenth Divisions.
At the height of this second battle of Outreach, just as it appeared the defenders were gaining the upper hand, the Broadsword Legion launched a furious assault on the rear of the Dragoons' Wolf Spiders Battalion. Pinned between the Legion and the Blakist Diplomacy of Force III-Alpha, the Wolf Spiders (proud holders of the Black Widow Battalion legacy) were almost annihilatedbefore they could rally. That costly act of treachery further weakened the Dragoons. In an apparent effort to finish off the famed mercenaries once and for all, the Blakist reportedly launched devastating strategic attacks against the planet from orbit.
Across the Inner Sphere, the same question is being asked: Who will next turn their coat? Which mercenary command will turn on its employers and do the evil bidding of the Word of Blake? This fear has already led to tragedy on Epsilon Indi, where the Com Guards Second Division launched an unprovoked attack on the Tooth of Ymir. Reportedly, relations between the Com Guards and the mercenaries had been strained ever since the mercenary unit arrived on world.
Faced with overwhelming odds, Colonel Shadwell wisely ordered the battered Tooth to surrender. Following an exhaustive investigation, Precentor Regis Grandi has reluctantly been forced to concede that no tangible proof exists linking the Tooth with the Word of Blake. The Tooth of Ymir, now under the minimum strength stipulated by their contract, is reportedly headed for Arc-Royal to rebuild. In the meantime, many mercenary commanders are left nervously wondering how long it will be before their equally nervous employers turn on them.
