Текст книги "Shrapnel: Fragments from the Inner Sphere"

‘But he didpunch out...’

‘Are you telling me you were relying on luck?’

‘No. sir. I mean...’ She stopped, confused. Grayson Carlyle was known across the Lyran Commonwealth for his luck...and the luck of his mercenary unit. ‘Don't you. Colonel? Rely on luck. I mean?’

‘God help me, no! I use it, if it comes around, but I also remember that there're two kinds of luck, good and bad. If you want to live in this business, you learn not to gamble on fifty-fifty propositions. You can do that only so long before the odds catch up with you!’

‘Yes, sir.’ Tracy spoke stiffly, without emotion. She had come to this tent expecting congratulations, and instead she was getting a lecture.

The Colonel read her mood and frowned. ‘You joined us on Helm.’ he said.

‘Yes. sir. Your Exec recruited me on Galatea.’

‘You've been piloting Mechs ...what? Two years now?’

‘Something like that.’

It was a long and complicated story, and in any case, she was sure that Carlyle already knew her file.

Tracy Maxwell Kent had been born far across the Inner Sphere, on the world of New Avalon, heart and capital of the far-flung Federated Suns of House Davion. Her father was Lord Rodney Howard Kent, her brother Captain Sir Roderick Fitzroy Kent, and she had been the pampered daughter of one of the wealthier noble families of the Federated Suns.

The death of her brother had shattered her. She and Fitz had always been close, and news that he had died defending a nameless hill on a world in the Draconis March had led her brooding and depressed Her decision to join the military academy on New Avalon had brought about the final split between her and her family. Especially after her father used his position to have her thrown out of the academy.

That should have been the end of her MechWarrior career, but Tracy Kent was an unusually stubborn and determined young lady. Instead of returning to her family's estate, she'd joined the line infantry as a private, then taught herself what she needed to know to become a Tech Soon she'd worked her way up to Tech Sergeant with the Blackguards, and eventually she'd been given the chance to pilot a Mech on her own.

She'd fought on Cassias, and survived, though the Blackguards as a unit did not. Cashiered after the slaughter on that world, she drifted from world to world– with the Dutiful Daughter,her beloved Phoenix Hawk,until she made it to Galatea and tell in with a recruiter tor the Gray Death Legion. Hoping for a chance to kill Kurita MechWarriors, she'd been disappointed that her first fight with the Legion had been against Marik forces, on Helm.

Things had been looking up after her fight today, though. Until now. that is.

‘A MechWarrior cannot rely on luck.’ Carlyle said slowly. ‘What he relies on is the steadiness and the training and the discipline of his lancemates.’

‘Yes. sir.’

‘You had point this afternoon. You flushed that ambush. You fought well. But..,’ He let the word hang in the air a moment...a rebuke. ‘You weren't working with the rest of us. I gave you an order, and you disregarded it. You chose to fight it out on your own, and very nearly cost the Legion an expensive and hard-to-replace medium 'Mech.’ He smiled then, unexpectedly. ‘You also nearly got yourself killed, young lady…and that wouldn't do at all.’

He looked at her expectantly, as though waiting for some reply. Almost, she opened her mouth to protest, to explain that she'd done what she'd thought best, that the situation at the time had...

‘I understand, sir. It won't happen again.’

‘Good. Because I'm relying on you.’

‘Colonel?’

‘All of us have to rely on each other. Tracy. We haveto, or one day we'll meet somebody bigger and tougher than us... and it'll all be up. We work together as a team, or else we die as a mob. There are no other options.’

‘Yes. sir.’

‘Then that's all that needs to be said about it Now you'd better turn in. I'm going to need you tomorrow for a special assignment. I want you rested. Dismissed.’

Tracy couldn't help wondering if the ‘special assignment’ was punishment for her actions of the day before. It was all well and good to have the Colonel lecture her on being part of a team, but then he separated her from the main body of the unit to do some make-work far from where the action would be.

Shionoha was a forbidding world, a planet of rugged mountains and chill, broken plateaus, of continent-sized glaciers and small, land-locked seas that were as salty, ice-cold, and gray as the sky. The world owed its name, curiously enough, to the Terran Japanese colonists who had founded the first settlement close to the vast Shionohara.the salt-plain, which marked the dry, mineral-encrusted basin of a long vanished ocean.

Despite the planet's name, its predominant terrain was mountainous. Company A had made a combat drop onto the Shionohara flats, securing an area where the Legion's DropShips could ground and disgorge the rest of the unit's men and machines. Their primary target was Kaigun, at the site of the world's first settlement, 300 kilometers north from the drop zone. The planet's principal spaceport and 'Mech repair facilities were both located at Kaigun. Carlyle had split his force in two, the infantry and cav vehicles setting off across the mineral flats of the Shionohara. while A Company and the training cadre turned west into the mountains, climbing narrow, switchback paths into the wilderness above the vanished sea. The column of 18 'Mechs had been climbing the twisting path for two days, swinging far to the west of Kaigun before descending from the mountain passes and into the agricultural lands around the city.

Twenty klicks northwest of Kaigun was an industrial center at a village called Mi-fune. Analysis of photos taken from orbit suggested that at least some of the buildings were used for manufacturing and storing weapons and spare parts of BattleMechs. The Second Dieron Regulars were a tough, veteran unit, one with hard-earned experience fighting in the mountains. If the struggle for Shionoha turned into a prolonged campaign, the Pride of Shionoha would have to be deprived of its sources of replacements and spares. And that was Tracy's mission.

Her force, code-designated as Arrow, consisted of her own Phoenix Hawkand the six light 'Mechs—two Locusts,two Stingers,and two Wasps—of the Legion's training cadre.

Colonel Carlyle had explained that he wanted to give the training group some experience in an independent operation. Tracy suspected that he also wanted to get them clear of A Company and out of the line of fire. Thus far, except for the ambush in the mountain pass, the Second Dieron Regulars had been conspicuous by their absence, and Carlyle was plainly worried that the Kurita defenders had some nasty plans up their sleeves for the Gray Death mercenaries.

Carlyle's orders were succinct and to the point. ‘Intel says that Mitune is not protected, that the Dierons have all pulled south to protect Kaigun. I want you to destroy that factory complex. Avoid tangling with Kurita Mechs.’ His sharp glance at her had stung. ‘Keep those kids out of a real fight But destroy that factory.’

Tracy could only assume that Carlyle had detailed her for the mission because he thought she was a bit too eager to kill Kurita MechWarriors. The thought that he might not trust her gnawed at Tracy as she led her column of Mech trainees through the rugged hills toward Mifune.

Am I really part of the Legion's team,she wondered. Or is he just getting me out of the way. And how will I ever know for sure?

As their column crested a ridge, theysaw the industrial plant for the first time. It was nestled in a flat-bottomed valley astride an oily, chemical-stained stream. The village of Mifune lay beyond, on the road to Kaigun.

The way looked wide open.

‘Deploy forward!’ Tracy ordered. ‘Casey and Babbage, pull back and watch the rear!’

By doing that, she could watch the column's rear and keep their two weakest 'Mechs, the two Locusts,out of the way. They started down the ridge, alert for any sign that they were expected.

The sign came, but from an unexpected direction.

‘Arrow Leader! Arrow Leader! Bandits! Bandits on the ridge!’

The voice was that of Greg Babbage, one of the Locustpilots.

‘This is Arrow Leader.’ she replied, forcing calm to her voice as she swung her Hawkto face the ridge behind her. There was no sign of enemy 'Mechs on this side. ‘What is your sit, Arrow Six?’

‘Kurita 'Mechs, lots of 'em!’ The boy was on the edge of panic.

‘Slow down, Greg. Where? How many!’

She could hear the youngster gulping down fear. ‘On this side of the ridge... uh... the west side. Uh... don't know how many, but we've spotted a Hunchback...and an Assassin...and there're others moving up through the rocks. They're moving up the trail.’

‘Arrow Leader!’ It was Dolby, one of the Stinger pilots. and his voice sounded just as scared. ‘This is Arrow Two! Kurita 'Mechs. moving from the east. I see Dragons...’

Oh, drek!

‘Arrow Leader to all Arrows! Fall back on the ridge crest. Now!’ Tracy's decision had been immediate and obvious. The Kurita force had somehow moved unseen across the mountain path that Tracy and her men had taken, and the enemy now lay across their lines of communications with the rest of the Gray Death Legion to the west. Worse, there were heavy 'Mechs, 60-ton Dragons.closing from the east. So many Kurita 'Mechs could only mean that Tracy's force had stumbled across an important concentration of the Second Dieron Regulars.

It also meant that Tracy and her tiny command were surrounded.

From the crest of the ridge, she could see the Combine forces in both directions. As tense minutes dragged on, the composition of both forces became apparent. There was one lance of heavies, two Dragons,a Rifleman,and an Orionto the east, and at least six, possibly eight, Mechs among the tangle of rocks to the west. From the look of things, a Kurita company had been stationed here. Arrow's sudden appearance had surprised the defenders, but they were now mobilizing to surround and crush the intruders. The first long-range missiles were already arrowing into the rocky crest of the ridge.

‘Hey! There're too many of them.’

‘What'll we do?’

‘Arrow Leader! I'm hit! I'm hit!’

‘Silence on the line!’ Tracy's command cut across the babble on the tac channel. ‘Spread out and circle! Take a position and go prone!’

She was sacrificing her light 'Mechs' mobility by having them lie down, but mobility was not so much an advantage here, with no place to go. The two Waspswould be unable to fire the SRM 2s mounted in their left legs while they were lying down, but that disadvantage would be more than compensated by the enemy's inability to get a clear shot at them.

Laser fire lanced down the slope toward the lance of heavies advancing across the plain from the industrial plant. The 'Mechs to the west were closer and more numerous, but it was harder to see them. The heavies, on the other hand, made a perfect target. Light from multiple hits washed across the Orionand one of the Dragons.The Riflemanpulled to a stop and swung its double-barreled arms up and around, raking the ridge line with high-powered laser and autocannon fire, but from the bottom of the slope the angle of fire was impossible. Rock shards and gravel rattled off the defenders' armor, but no damage was done. Tracy gave another command, and synchronized bursts of coherent light struck among the attackers again, staggering the already-damaged Dragonand blasting great chunks of armor off the Orion'sleft leg and torso.

‘Arrow to Skull! Arrow to Skull! Come in, Skull!’ Though the Tek Battlecom communications system built into her Phoenix Hawkwas high-powered, long-ranged, and heavily shielded against enemy jamming, the mountains would make communication with the Gray Death difficult. She boosted her output to full and prayed as she called again. ‘Arrow to Skull! Reply!’

‘This is Skull Leader.’ Carlyle's voice was scratchy with distance and interference, but she could hear him clearly. She felt a surge of relief. ‘Go ahead, Arrow.’

‘We walked into it, Skull Leader!’ In quick, terse phrases, she outlined the situation as enemy fire burned through the afternoon sky, probing their positions. ‘We're surrounded, outnumbered, and outweighed,’ she concluded. ‘Can you assist?’

‘We're on our way,’ Carlyle replied. ‘But we're a good distance away. Can you hold for...’ The pause was interminable. ‘Can you hold for 20 minutes?’

Twenty minutes! She'd not stopped to think about the intervening distance between the two units. In BattleMech combat, even two minutes seemed to drag on forever. But 20 minutes...!

‘Skull Leader...we'll try. Come as fast as you can!’

A rush by the western force demanded her attention then. She had posted the two Locustspart way down the slope amid a sprawl of house-sized boulders. There they were hunkered down with their spidery legs folded behind them, their chin turret lasers almost resting on the ground. On either side were the two Stingers.

She arrived as a lance of Kurita 'Mechs started up the slope, spread out on either side of the rocky trail they'd followed earlier. A 50-ton Hunchbackhad the lead, its body looking misshapen under the massively armored and cooled hulk of its shoulder-mounted autocannon. The Locustshad already fired, their medium lasers heating patches on the Hunchbacksarmor to a bright cherry red. She turned her heavy laser on the same target and triggered three quick bursts. The heavy autocannon bucked and smoked with a measured thud-thud-thud,sending streams of high-explosive shells smashing into the hillside behind her.

She fired, moved, then fired again. The Hunchbackwas more heavily armored than her own Phoenix Hawk,but much slower. The defender's fire was striking it from several directions, all from higher up, and its pilot was having trouble identifying a target for its own answering fire. One of Arrow's Stingersscored a crippling hit on a Kurita Wasp,then shifted its aim to the Hunchbackas the light Combine 'Mech collapsed to the ground. Taking fire from four 'Mechs, the Hunchbackclumsily swung about and began to lumber back down the ridge, the Assassinand a Pantherproviding cover.

Tracy continued to pour fire into the retreating 'Mechs, though she mourned the loss of her left-arm laser. With yesterday's damage to her 'Mech still not repaired, she had only the medium laser and machine gun in her right arm. plus the heavy laser clamped into her right fist. She fired a last burst at the retreating Assassin,scoring a hit on the lighter Mech's leg, then scanned the terrain to left and right.

Her tac display showed that the two Waspsshe'd left defending the eastern side of the ridge were holding on. The Kurita heavies had taken damage and were falling back. Perhaps there would be time now for a maneuver of her own. With the western enemy force retreating in disarray, she might be able to slip along the west slope to north or south, loop down through the tangle ot boulders until she flanked the western force, and convince them that the defenders trapped on the ridgetop had just received reinforcements The confusion might allow her to extricate her entire command. It would be no good sending one of the others. Stingers, Wasps,and Locustswould be no good for the job she had in mind. Her Phoenix Hawk,though, with its jump jets and heavy laser, was perfect.

‘Arrow Leader to Arrow Two!’ she called. ‘Dolby, come in!’

‘Go ahead, Arrow Leader.’ He no longer sounded scared, but his voice was still dry and tight.

‘You're in command. I'm going to try to flank em.’

‘What...now?’

‘We have them on the run. Dolby. Just hold them But be ready to pull the group out when I give the word!’

‘Uh...O.K...’ He sounded uncertain.

Explosions savaged their way along the ridge crest, blasting great chunks of rock and dirt skyward. Tracy glanced at her tac display, and saw red blips astride the ridge to the south. With a shock, she realized that the Kurita forces had flanked their position, having sent one of the two west-slope lances south and around her by straddling the ridge. They were moving toward her now with the slow determination of a heavy earth-mover, ripping the landscape with shell and beam in an effort to root the defenders from the ridge.

But that could be good! It meant that there were only four enemy 'Mechs along the path to the west, and those were battle-damaged and in disorder. If she could flank them, they would scatter, moving south through the boulder fields to join their companions. The way would be open for the Arrow force.

‘Hang on. Dolby!’ she called. ‘Hold them off for five minutes, and I'll have a hole for us to move through! Attention all Arrows! Arrow Two is in command! Hold tight and pour it on! I'm going to open a door for us off this ridge!’

She triggered her jump jets, keeping her 'Mech low to the ground in a series of bounding hops that carried her down the slope. Behind her, the ridgetop was blotted out by black smoke and a rain of dirt and sky-borne debris.

‘Arrow Two! This is Seven! I'm hit bad!’

‘Arrow Two! Arrow Four! The heavies are moving! We're taking fire from the east!’

‘Arrow Two! Respond, please!’

Tracy brought the Dutiful Daughterto a halt at the base of the ridge. She could hear the panic rising in the voices of the cadre apprentices. Ahead, she could see a pillar of smoke where one of the 'Mechs they'd engaged a moment ago was now burning.

And yet..

‘Arrow Two! Arrow Two! Come in. please!’ Thatvoice was touched by stark terror. Who was it... Lannetti?

‘Lannetti! This is Arrow Leader! What's the problem?’

‘Arrow Leader! Dolby's 'Mech is down! I think he's dead!’

Oh. damn...

And with that moment's anguish came a greater one. I've gone and done it again, wandering off on my own after half the Kurita assault force.

She spun the Dutiful Daughterat the base of the ridge and fired her jump jets. In a long, sailing bound, she skimmed to the crest of the ridge.

Smoke choked the sky. where missile trails snarled and tangled amid the pale flash of laser beams. She spotted Dolby's Stinger.collapsed against a boulder on the east slope. Close by, the other Stingerwas holding off a Pantherin an unequal duel that could not last more than a few seconds.

She jumped again, bringing her 'Mech in for an unsteady landing just up the hill from the Panther.Her large laser burned, sloughing half-molten chunks of armor from the Combine Mech's left pauldron and torso plating. The remaining Stingerchose that moment to charge, and Tracy saw the numbers that identified it as Lanneti's Mech. He caught the heavier Pantheras it turned to face its new attacker, colliding with it in a crash that sent the Pantherteetering backward, its feet clawing for a foothold in the loose gravel.

Tracy's second shot tore into wiring and internal structure exposed by the earlier shot. Flame belched, orange against oily black. The 'Mech's head flew apart and its pilot ejected, leaving dead metal burning on the ridge below him.

The heavies were at the base of the ridge to the east, already starting up. Shouting orders, Tracy urged the wavering line of trainee pilots around to face this new threat.

‘We've got to get out of here!’ she heard someone wail.

Tracy was about to respond, but Carolyn Lannetti's voice cut in before she could decide what to say. ‘Stow it and fight, Foster! We've got Tracy back with us and help's on the way! Isn't that right. Tracy?’

‘Right you are. Arrow Five! Move to your left...behind that big rock. Target the Orion!Carolyn...help me with the Dragonon the right...’

Again, white flame speared down the side of the ridge, catching the heavy Kurita Mechs as they began to lumber up the slope. The Dragonlost a right arm and the autocannon it mounted. The Orionwas limping, with black-molten damage showing at its right hip and knee. Unable to get a clear shot, they withdrew again toward the factory buildings across the plain.