Текст книги "Heir To The Dragon "

Автор книги: Robert N. Charette

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57

Kanrei's Palace, Deber City, Benjamin

Benjamin Military District, Draconis Combine

28 December 3038

 

Dechan Fraser and Jenette Rand bowed to Tai-shunKester Hsium Chi. The Warlord had headed over to them as soon as the strategy meeting broke up. The white-haired Tai-shubeamed happily, his wispy beard hobbling as he spoke. "I am pleased that you two will be serving in my district of Galedon."

"It was not our first choice," Jenette grumbled.

Dechan elbowed her in the ribs at the lapse in manners. In return, she scowled in annoyance. Tai-shuChi laughed, relieving the tension. Dechan knew at once that this man was very different from the last Galedon warlord he had known.

As soon as his mirth subsided, Chi clamped a cigarette between the fingers of his artificial hand. The stark white of the cigarette contrasted sharply with the black bioplast of the prosthesis as he held it out for an aide to light. He treated himself to a long drag before fixing them with his shrewd eyes. "I appreciate your dedication to duty, then. Your previous experience should prove useful if I am not mistaken. You do know the District?"

"Too well," Dechan agreed.

"Even disagreeable experiences can be enlightening," Chi counseled, with a wink. "I met your Colonel Wolf once."

"They're no longer affiliated," Theodore reminded him as he stepped up. The Kanrei towered over the diminutive Taishu,but Chi showed not the slightest sign of being intimidated by either Theodore's rank or his imposing physical presence. Whether that was due to familiarity with the Kanrei or to Chi's own easygoing nature, Dechan could not discern. The Tai-shusimply smiled enigmatically, leaving Dechan to wonder what the Warlord had heard of the circumstances of his and Jenette's departure from the Dragoons.

"As I was saying," Chi continued, "I met Colonel Wolfe on his last visit to Luthien. He is a remarkable man, very adept at his craft. I must say that I admire him greatly. What followed was most unfortunate."

"I am sure the old Wolf will be tickled to hear that," Ninyu quipped as he and Fuhito joined the circle. "Theodore– sama, surely you could have found a better use for me than wet-nursing that pirate and his cronies in Dieron?"

Chi exhaled a long puff of smoke, causing eyes to water and cutting off the Kanrei's response by forcing a cough from him. "I knew that Noketsuna had an unusual past, even more so than my monkish confederate Shotugama, but he seems to have ordered his District well. I had not heard that he was a pirate. Is it true, Theodore, that you allow barbarians to run one of our important districts, instead of confining them to the ranks of the ISF?"

"You are impertinent, Tai-shuChi," Ninyu said, warning clear in his voice and tightened jaw muscles.

"Yet you prove him correct with your bad manners, Ninyu– kun," Theodore chuckled. The others followed the Kanrei's lead, pretending to find the comments humorous and thereby avoiding conflict. Dechan found the reaction very Kuritan, but he observed that Ninyu's slow-growing smile did not extend to his eyes.

"With regard to your assignment, Ninyu– kun, there is no change," Theodore said. "You'll go to Dieron because I have need of your special expertise along that front. You'll just have to get along with Tai-shuNoketsuna as best you can."

Dechan thought that he would rather be the third passenger in a Locustwith a bad gyro and a faulty leg actuator than be around those two. Ninyu had taken an instant dislike to Michi as soon as he had joined Theodore's shitenno,and Michi, though less vocal about it, had returned the sentiment. Jenette dismissed Michi's antipathy as the remnants of anger over events leading to the death of his mentor, Minobu Tetsuhara. Dechan wasn't so sure. He had known Michi longer and had a growing feeling that there was more behind his friend's reaction.

Much of that feud had spilled over onto Jenette and himself, connected as they were to Michi. Ninyu took any opportunity to ridicule them and remind anyone who would listen of their origins. The whole situation had not made their already precarious position in the Combine any easier. The years had gone by quickly, though, lost in training and tactical exercises. Dechan had discovered a liking for the job. The new recruits were eager and many showed great promise; teaching them was easy. Their belief in bushidogave them a drive Dechan had only seen previously among the Dragoons.

But despite the pleasure he found in imparting his skills, the years had been lonely ones. He and Jenette, shadowed by their association with Wolf's Dragoons, had encountered little sympathy among the often suspicious Kuritans, and they had no real friends here. Without Jenette, Dechan knew, he would never have lasted. There were few people with whom he was comfortable, beyond Kowalski the Tech, Asano, and Tetsuhara. Dechan still found it hard to believe that Fuhito was the brother of the old Iron Man himself. Theodore was cordial, but Dechan had never really warmed to him. His wife Tomoe was another story. She had been full of kindness, but they saw little of her.

Dechan searched for Michi among the dispersing officers, but he was not there. Probably already left for Dieron,Dechan thought ruefully. So much for spending some time with old friends.Since his appointment as Tai-shuof Dieron, Michi had been uncommunicative, answering their communiques with cold brevity or ignoring them entirely. Michi had abandoned them, leaving them trapped in a promise to help Theodore protect his realm. They had little choice but to follow through. Dechan had expected to be done with that promise by now.

The invasion of the Davion-Steiner alliance that Theodore had predicted should have come and gone for good or ill, but even the Kanrei's uncanny instincts had been thrown off by events in the last few years. The formation of the Free Rasalhague Republic had triggered secessionist sentiments across the Inner Sphere. The Free Worlds League had lost the powerful Duchy of Andurien, and Duncan Marik had seized the Captain-Generalcy and launched a campaign to regain Andurien. The Isle of Skye had threatened secession as well. In response, Hanse Davion had mobilized troops to hold his fledgling empire together by force. His harsh measures proved to be unnecessary when Ryan Steiner managed to bring the matter to a peaceful settlement, thereby embarrassing the Fox. Many in the Combine had expected Davion to throw those same troops into an assault against them, but it had not happened.

Kanrei Theodore had assured his commanders that Davion would not yet attack, for the Fox would wait for the Dragon to relax its vigilance. They had a reprieve, but he warned that Hanse Davion would come, lasers blazing, as soon as he believed he had the advantage.

Now that attack loomed on the horizon. The Free Worlds League was licking its wounds. Thomas Marik had picked up the pieces left behind by Duncan Marik's death in battle, and had successfully reintegrated Andurien into the League. Romano Liao's opportunistic attempt to assert herself had been slapped back. Steiner troops were massing in Skye, and several key units of the Armed Forces of the Federated Suns had vanished from their duty stations, much as they had before the outbreak of the Fourth War. Davionist sentiment was growing stronger in the worlds of the former Galtor Thumb, while Kurita's own attempts to stir nationalist sentiment in the former Tikonov Free Republic were less successful. It would not be long before Davion attacked.

"If Steiner can be intimidated, we will be able to concentrate on Davion."

The snug fit of the comment into Dechan's thoughts wrenched him back into the conversation.

"Don't speak of them so casually as separate opponents," Theodore cautioned the young aide who had spoken. "There's little to separate them now. Steiner troops are configured into the Regimental Combat Teams of the Davion AFFS. Their officers are cross-trained and some of each House's units actually contain troops of the other House. It's one army we face."

"Veneer only," Ninyu scoffed. "It's too soon for the changes to be more than cosmetic."

"What about our own troops?" Fuhito countered. "Isn't adherence to the Kanrei's new military doctrines also young? Could it also be only a veneer?"

"To a degree," Theodore admitted. "We face certain rivalries among our troops and among our officers as well. But we are bound together by our devotion to the Combine. Our enemies, in their haste to unite their realms, are blind to the depth of the differences that separate their peoples. Nor do their societies understand the necessity of order and the strength of the group. Their leaders see what they want to see: cooperation and good cheer. We'll use their blindness to our advantage."

"Such as the message you sent to the Archon Katrina Steiner," Chi inquired.

Theodore turned an evaluating gaze on the Tai-shu."Yes. That is one tool."

"But you said our enemy is a combined force," Fuhito objected. "Why do you speak to only one leader?"

"To distract them. I wish them to believe that I don't understand their organizational changes." Theodore smiled slyly. "Let them underestimate me. My message should help them do that."

Dechan spoke up. "But what is this message?"

Theodore hesitated, perhaps reluctant to reveal the information. "I simply warned the Archon to stay out of any conflict between the Draconis Combine and the Federated Suns. I pointed out that we had no interest in a conflict with the Commonwealth at this time, but told her that we would consider any intervention on her part as a violation of the conventions of civilized warfare. I warned her that such an act would mean that the Combine was no longer bound to deal with her according to those rules of war."

"You can't be serious." Jenette's expression was one of disbelief and shock. Dechan wondered if his own mirrored it. The Kuritans were infamous for atrocities, going back for centuries. Was the Kanrei preparing to live up to his ancestral heritage? Even though he and Jenette had given their word to help Theodore, he would no longer feel bound to the sacredness of a promise should the Kanrei descend into barbarism.

"But I amserious," Theodore vowed. "As she may learn to her sorrow."

58

Greggville Province , New Mendham

Benjamin Military District, Draconis Combine

16 April 3039

 

"Shadow One to Tango Base, do you read?"

Davion Leftenant Roscoe Walker waited patiently for a reply. There seemed no need to worry; no one in his recon lance had seen a Kurita unit all morning. But that wasn't surprising. The High Command's strategy was based on overleaping the Kurita border planets to avoid their frontline units in the first invasion wave. This thrust into the Combine's Benjamin District was under the command of Duke James Sandoval, commander of the Draconis March. Two other thrusts were hitting the other districts on the Davion border. Federated Suns units were landing on more than twenty planets, striking deep to capture supply and communication centers, to isolate and confuse the Kuritan forces.

Only light resistance was expected at this stage, and so far the High Command was proved right. The burn in from jump point had been unopposed; the assault had caught the Dragon sleeping. Davion Light Guard Regimental Combat Team fighters had found few defenders in their path as they guided the DropShips into position for the orbital drop. The Guard 'Mechs had made planetfall hard and fast, scattering the still scrambling Kurita defense forces. The non-'Mech forces had landed safely. It had been a textbook assault.

Then Marshal Riffenberg's caution had come to the fore. Walker figured that the old man was worried about things going so well. The Marshal had ordered the AeroSpace Fighters pulled back into reserve, as a defense for the grounded DropShips and the landing zones, as well as to await a strike from hidden Kuritans. Reconnaissance was left to the swift 'Mechs of the Light Guards, including Walker's lance.

Walker keyed open the circuit to his lance. "Let's move up, people. Keep your sensors out. We're getting near target."

As the acknowledgments came in, Walker depressed the foot pedal, throttling his Hatchetmanto a fast trot. Twenty meters to his left, Alison's Hatchetmanmatched his pace. Walker knew that his forty-five-ton machine bobbed as much as hers, but the stabilized picture transmitted to his cockpit screens was steady, undisturbed by the motion of his 'Mech.

The other two 'Mechs of the lance were thirty-ton Valkyries,considerably faster than their partners. They were also more humanoid, despite massive shoulder assemblies and right forearms, which housed their Sutel IX lasers. The Davion 'Mechs were in the mottled greens-and -sand camouflage mandated for the open grasslands of New Mendham's savannah. Only the bright foxtails that Reed's machine sported, one on each of four antennae, allowed Walker to distinguish it visually from McCullough's 'Mech.

In ten minutes, they covered almost as many kilometers. The lance was still forty klicks from the Draconis town of Kempis when Walker transmitted the code for a halt. Trusting his command to scan the area, he tried again to contact Tango Base. Again, he got no response.

"Listen up, people. I still can't raise the base."

"Let's go in." Alison urged.

"It's too quiet," McCullough objected. "We should've seen some Snake troops by now."

"Don't overload your reclamation tubes, Bobby boy. You cadets spook too easy. The Snakes are more scared of us than you are of them."

"Ease off, Sergeant Alison. I'm sure you were nervous your first time out, too."

"Come on, Leftenant," Alison griped. "I dropped on St. Andre fresh out of the academy, right into a nest of Capellans. Now that was hot! The Capellans didn't go hide. They hit us before we'd even jettisoned our thruster packs.

Hellfire! Some of the Jocks were still shucking ablative shell."

"Save the war stories, Alison," Reed cut in. "If you were so hot, you wouldn't still be a Sergeant."

"I'm not stilla Sergeant, Newboy. I'm againa Sergeant. And it's not because of anything that happened in the field, unless it was the green-bottomed newboy I skinned for calling me a liar."

Walker shook his head, bemused by his lance's banter. He considered trying Tango Base again, but figured that if they hadn't answered two minutes ago, they wouldn't answer now. It was time to make a command decision. "All right. Damp the chatter. We've got a schedule to keep, so we're going in."

"Good choice, Leftenant."

* * *

Alison's Hatchetmanstalked ahead of Walker's own. Its long-crested head swung from side to side, a stoop-shouldered alien hunter searching for prey. Its right arm twitched, beating a rhythm in the air with the depleted uranium-edged blade that gave the 'Mech its name. Cross-streets gave Walker glimpses of the Valkyriesprowling a parallel course through Kempis. There were few signs of life. The Kurita civilians had mostly deserted the town or gone to ground in shelters. The Davion troopers saw only a few fleeting shadows in side alleys. None wore the tans of Draco soldiers.

Without warning, an UrbanMechin dark gray splinter camouflage suddenly burst through a brick wall a hundred meters ahead. Its domed, cylindrical body swiveled and its stumpy, broad legs scattered rubble as the 'Mech stepped clear of the building that had screened it from their sensors. The UrbanMech'sside-mounted Imperator-B autocannon spewed shell casings as it hosed a stream of projectiles at the advancing Guards.

Alison fired her 'Mech's jump jets, rising on ion flame to evacuate the path of the enemy 'Mech's fire. The maneuver simultaneously cleared Walker's line of fire. The Leftenant's thumb mashed down the firing stud on his right joystick as soon as the golden crosshairs of his targeting system slid onto the stubby enemy machine. The Defiance Killer autocannon in the Hatchetman'schest coughed out armor-piercing shells.

Chunks of Durallex armor blew explosively from the UrbanMech'sbarrel body. Smoke rose from the wounds and joined the billowing cloud of brick dust in obscuring the target. The Kurita Dragon on the 'Mech's dome was revealed to Walker as it shifted to bring its weapons to bear on him. Before the Draco could fire, Alison's Hatchetmanappeared from an alley thirty meters behind it. The Guard 'Mech raised both arms and loosed twin laser pulses. The ruby energy flooded the drifting dust cloud with incarnadine light, but in spite of the diffusion effect, retained sufficient energy to melt away armor on the Kurita 'Mech's leg and upper dome.

Walker ripped another burst into the Kuritan. Depleted uranium slugs tore through the remaining armor of the UrbanMech'storso, seeking its fusion heart. The Kurita 'Mech tottered under the assault. As it canted over, its dome blew free and spun away like a child's toy. The Kurita pilot rocketed clear, his chair disappearing over the surrounding roofline. The abandoned BattleMech crashed to the ground, bringing the rest of its former shelter cascading down around it.

Alison raised her 'Mech's hand weapon in salute before pivoting her Hatchetmanback down the alley from which she had emerged. "Tally ho!"

"Keep it cautious, Alison. We don't know what they've got here," Walker warned, knowing it was unnecessary. Despite her lower rank, Alison had seen more combat than he had. She could handle herself. The young Jocks in the Valkyrieswere his real concern. He opened the comm circuit. "Reed. McCullough. Switch to mag scan. You'll have a better chance that way to spot concealed Snakes. It'll be easier to pick up their metal masses than to spot a good camo job."

They chorused acknowledgment.

"And don't push it. You run into trouble, call for help. The Guards don't want any dead heroes."

The Davion 'Mechs moved efficiently through the town. Within ten minutes, they rousted a Kurita Locustfrom a trucking center. The bird-legged 'Mech snapped a laser pulse that scarred the surface of Reed's Valkyriewithout causing serious damage. The Guards pursued, only to be ambushed by two more UrbanMechs.Concentrated fire from the Davion lasers left the first UrbanMecha pitted hulk, and the second crumpled under a blow from Alison's Hatchetman.Overmatched by the unbloodied Guards, the Locustfled the town. It, too, had been unscathed until a flight of LRMs from McCullough's Valkcratered its armor and tore off the stubby wing-mount machine gun on its port side. Walker forbade pursuit.

McCullough whooped victoriously on the lance circuit.

"Good show, kid," Alison conceded magnanimously. "I told you that this'd be easier than when we popped the Caps on Hunan."

Half an hour later, the jump troops flitted into Kempis, right on schedule. Under the watchful guardianship of the BattleMechs, they combed the town in a fruitless search for the supply dump they had been detailed to secure. They failed even to turn up any of the three Draco MechJocks who had ejected from their doomed machines. Walker put his frustration on hold as the comm circuit crackled with the voice of the regimental controller.

"Tango Base to Shadow One, report please."

"Shadow One here, where the hell have you guys been?"

"We had a little trouble with a kamikaze Snake. The sucker got inside the compound as impressed labor, then drove a hoverflat of explosives right into the commcenter. Took us a while to rig replacements."

"You want us back to guard you, Tango?" Walker jibed.

"The Marshal wants your report, Shadow One."

The snap in the comm officer's voice told Walker his levity was unappreciated. He decided to play it formal. "Light opposition, Tango Base. Target secured, but we came up empty."

"Don't sweat it, Shadow One." The reply was in a friendly tone once more. "You'll find it out there somewhere. Just stomp any Snakes that get in your way. Stomp them good and proper."

59

Dragon Roost, Tatsuyama Mountain, Dieron

Dieron Military District, Draconis Combine

21 April 3039

 

Ninyu Kerai held the five-pointed shuriken between the thumb and forefinger of his left hand. He passed his right hand over it, and the small throwing star vanished. He picked another star from the stack on the seat beside him. He repeated the operation, this time holding the shuriken with his right hand. When all five stars were stowed about his person, he twisted around to look out the window that was the reason for the niche in the castle's walls.

Below him in the courtyard, a VTOL rotorcraft was landing. Aides and mechanics hurried forward. The first group moved to attend to the officers deplaning, and the second, even more attentive, to the aircraft itself.

He shifted his gaze down the mountainside. Three more aircraft were headed up toward the ancient fortress that served as the headquarters for the Warlord of Dieron. The VTOLs were moving carefully, the pilots wary of down-drafts and sudden, eddying gusts that could sweep their machines to a fiery collision with the gray and black igneous rock of Tatsuyama Mountain. The city lay in the valley below the flickering dots of the climbing aircraft, seemingly quiet.

Ninyu knew better. The town had been bustling during his visit yesterday, as people stocked their shelters with whatever supplies they could afford from merchants whose prices had suddenly doubled. Soldiers had moved in squads, nervously following officers' directions to improve the city's defense works. The small landing field had been even busier, as a constant stream of DropShips arrived and departed. One was lifting as he watched. Its thunder muted by the distance, the Overlordrose toward the heavens on a tail of flame. If anything, Tatsuyama City would be more frenzied today.

Ninyu left the niche and sauntered toward the command center. He was in no rush; his presence was not required there since he was no longer in the strict military chain of command. While he waited for the go signal, he was a free agent. When the time came, he would move quickly. For now, he conserved his energy.

The command center, a multi-tiered hall cut into the living rock of the mountain, was aswarm with military and technical personnel of all ranks. Great, flat screens alive with maps and dataflows flickered fitfully in the red-lit hall. On the dimly lit levels, zealous officers clustered around consoles and map tables, forming obstructions to the bustling traffic flow. Most of the junior ranks wore standard DCMS tans, though a few could be identified as BattleMech officers by their red-striped gray jerseys and trousers. A few of each type had their sleeves rolled up in the heat of the chamber, revealing lurid tattoos. Senior officers wore black, like Ninyu's ISF uniform. Unlike the utilitarian ISF rig, with its pockets and straps, the officers' tunics were severely tailored and decorated only with epaulets, collar tabs, and the ubiquitous Kurita dragon.

Tai-shuMichi Noketsuna wore senshigrays and a padded battlejacket over them. The Warlord's split-toed 'Mech boots lacked the mirror shine of a proper officer's footwear. He stood in a cluster of similarly garbed men and women. His damned Ryuken-m crew,Ninyu observed. No surprise there.

Ninyu decided to drop in on their conversation. He wove his way through the bustling center from tier to lower tier, dodging black jackets and letting the tan-clad junior officers and red-capped Techs clear his own line of advance. The gray-jerseyed senshihe treated with respect, the safest approach with warriors who considered themselves samurai. Even those non-conformist Ryuken,he reminded himself. Just as he neared the knot of rough-garbed senshi,a Chu-iinterrupted them with a choppy bow. "Comprehensive data feed from Kessel is in, Tai-shu."

"Shunt the situation map to tank four and update the force profiles," Michi ordered.

"Hai!"

Michi said a last few words to his Ryuken officers that Ninyu was still too far away to catch. All but one turned to head for the exit. He recognized the remaining Ryuken officer as Tai-saYsabeau Johnson, commander of regiment ni.The departing officers split their group as they reached Ninyu, careful to avoid him. He found the hostile glances accompanying their perfunctory salutes pleasing, but affected total ignorance of their existence. He had no need of their good will.

He stepped closer, and Johnson greeted him in her pleasant contralto. "Sightseeing, Kerai -san?"

"Merely attending to the duties assigned to me by the Kanrei, Tai-sa."

Johnson smiled hesitantly and her eyes flicked to Michi. He made no response that the ISF officer could see. Instead, he turned his face to Ninyu.

"Your advice is welcome, Kerai -kun,"Michi stated stiffly. "But please refrain from disturbing the officers at their duty stations."

Ninyu held Michi's eyes long enough to express his annoyance at the older man's condescending comment, but said nothing. He turned his attention to the center of the chamber where a small elevated section held the principal strategic displays.

Five small holotanks made a rough circle around a larger one, twice their size. Four of the small ones displayed planetary surfaces, blue and red icons glowing to represent tactical dispositions of the forces engaged on the depicted planet. One of the four flickered as Ninyu watched, its image blacked out to be replaced by a new geographic configuration that stabilized as unit icons began to wink into existence. The fifth small tank was a system display, with the characteristic globes of planets and bright dots of JumpShips, DropShips, and lighters. All five were labeled with ghostly glowing characters naming the system: Athenry, Ainasi, Kervil, Kessel, and Vega.

The large tank held a stellar map of the Dieron District. Red fires haloed six suns, including the systems displayed in the smaller tanks. Scarlet flickered in and out of existence around another four systems. The solid tones were accompanied by miniature unit crests to represent the forces identified among the invaders. Some were still blank gray disks, like those that accompanied the intermittent red zones symbolizing enemy attacks short of full invasion, indicating that the exact enemy unit had not yet been identified.

A flush-faced aide bustled up and handed Michi a ComStar packet. The Tai-shuripped it open, read it swiftly, then crumpled it into a ball. He strode stiff-legged to the elevated command chair from which he could survey the center. Without sitting, he keyed on the loudspeaker mike. "All regimental commanders and general staff to assemble on the tank deck. Sugu!"

Ninyu tapped his fingers against the top of the holotank where he leaned, suddenly interested. He observed the approach of the officers, noting that several were not very prompt. He recognized protest and disapproval in their tardiness. They were all senior generals, each of whom was said to believe he should have been appointed Warlord after Kingsley's accidental death. Michi's sudden jump in rank had appalled them as much as his former renegade status. If anything, Michi's years as Warlord seemed only to strengthen their dislike and distrust.

As soon as the officers arrived, Michi spoke from the steps leading to his command chair. "Officers of the Combine, I have just received a direct communique from the Coordinator."

Ninyu watched excited expectation ripple through the assembled officers. Most expected word of the Coordinator's response to the invasion, but some, no doubt, were expecting Michi's removal.

"You are all aware of the situation here. Things are little better in Benjamin and Galedon. Davion forces are conducting a full-scale invasion of the Combine. Just as here in Dieron, they have bypassed our entrenched units on the border, passing deeper into our homeland. We have lost all communications with garrisons on Sadalbari, Huan, and Alrakis.

"From the presence of elite formations, military intelligence has estimated that the invaders are thrusting directly for the other District capitals. It appears that the invader intends to isolate Dieron before reducing it. ISF agrees with this assessment.

"The Coordinator orders us to hold at all costs. We are not to surrender a single planet. Dieron is to be fortified and held to the last man." Michi took a deep breath before adding, "You will be pleased to know that Takashi Kurita expresses complete confidence in our ability to repel the invaders.

"I expect modified defense proposals within the hour."

The gathering dissolved into a dozen different discussions and the bellowing of generals calling their staffs. Some started back to their command tables, but before they could disperse, Tai-saJohnson's voice cut sharply through the babble.

"Can't we appeal this fortress order to the Kanrei? A static defensive posture will be too limiting. We need some leeway to maneuver."

"The communique is countersigned by Theodore Kurita," Michi announced solemnly. "We are now Fortress Dieron."

Johnson ran her tongue across her upper lip. "We'll be fit for the scrap heap if we just sit and wait for them."

"Agreed."

"Let us hit them back. Release the Ryuken to raid behind the lines."

Michi paused as if in thought, but Ninyu was suspicious. The Tai-shuwould normally put off any such request with a comment about taking it under advisement. Michi's response confirmed Ninyu in his suspicions.

"Very well. I suggest Caph, Procyon, and Saffel as initial targets. I want an operational plan in an hour."

Ninyu suspected that the plan would be in the computer in minutes. This decision had already been made; Johnson's plea was a show for the other officers. The Ryuken officers would be lifting for rendezvous with their units within an hour.

What's the game, Pirate?

Michi turned to face Ninyu. The Tai-shu'sface was grim. "Sho-saKerai. We have confirmed Steiner forces on eight of our worlds, and on seven of those, Lyran forces form the bulk of the hostile forces. It is time for you to implement the Kanrei'scontingency plan."