"It would not be fitting to have a Chu-sain command of a regiment, let alone the whole Legion."
17
Legion of Vega HQ, Massingham, Marfik
Dieron Military District, Draconis Combine
1 April 3025
Theodore tossed the rag down and turned away. The "Revenant" had come through the three months of transit with minimal freeze-up. He looked for Kowalski, intending to commend him on his diligent maintenance, but the Senior Tech was nowhere in sight.
He scanned the hangar. It was strangely quiet, the only noise coming from the bays housing the 'Mechs of his command lance. He rubbed sweat from his brow with his forearm and frowned.
Theodore had seen the sorry state of the Legion's 'Mechs when they brought the lance's machines in last night. He had told Sandersen to post an order suspending the regular work schedule, accompanied by a request for voluntary maintenance work. When the Legionnaires arrived, he planned that they would find him already present, working on his own Orion.Theodore had hoped it would show the men he was on their side, and not some tight-assed, spit-and-polish martinet. He also believed it would be a good way to get to know the men of his new command.
In a way, he had been right, but the lesson he was getting about his men was a sad one. Rows of Legion BattleMechs stood silent and unattended in their bays, a frozen carnival of shapes and colors. There was no pride here, he decided. No discipline, either.
He walked to the next bay, where Tomoe's black Pantherstood. She was fussing over an actuator linkage in the foot assembly. Though the pose did not show her to her best advantage, she was as beautiful as ever. And as alluring. When he reached out to caress her buttocks, she did not start in surprise, but simply slapped his hand away distractedly.
"Have you seen Kowalski?" he asked her south end.
"Not recently," came the muffled response from within the armored foot assembly. "Thought I saw him heading over to the supply shed to scrounge up a part."
Theodore wondered how lucky the Tech would be. The documents Theodore had studied on the trip to Marfik had indicated the supply situation for the Legion was bleak. He remembered one particular complaint that claimed that the Procurement Department had forgotten the Legion's existence. If the documents were correct, Kowalski would need all his fabled scrounging skill to get whatever he needed.
Taking a firm grip on Tomoe's hips, he tugged her from the dark confines of the Panther'sfoot. "We've put in enough time for today, especially with all the support we're getting. Let's knock off."
She took in the quiet hangar, a slight furrow appearing between her brows. She shrugged off her reaction without sharing it and said, "I'm getting hungry. How about you?"
"Now that you mention it, yes. Let's pull out the other two and head for the mess. Maybe we'll run into Kowalski on our way. Let's not take too long, though. I promised Hohiro we would be out to see him tonight."
Hohiro.Theodore reflected fondly on the last night's parting. The boy was too young to understand the necessity of a nighttime landing at the Massingham starport and a hurried trip to a prepared safe house, but he had been a brave soldier when Theodore said goodbye. Already the boy was used to partings from his devoted, but far too often absent, parents. At least, Tomoe had been able to spend almost a year with him after his birth. The deceptions were complicated, but with the aid of the O5P and a few favors from Subhash Indrahar, they were managing to keep the boy's existence a secret.
Theodore squeezed his wife's hand before walking down to the next bay. His call was greeted by the plastic smile of Ben Tourneville. Theodore smiled back as though he didn't know that the man was an enemy, a spy for the Coordinator.
Tourneville continued to be the biggest threat to their secrets, but Theodore saw no good way to replace him without arousing suspicion. The man's proximity to their daily lives was a constant danger, but the ever-loyal Sandersen, privy to the secret, helped immensely in distracting Takashi's spy.
Hirushi Sandersen had heard the call as well and appeared from behind the half wall separating the bays. The tall man grinned pleasantly as he said, '"Bout time you decided to break for food, Theodore-sawa. Those sandwiches Kowalski hauled in for lunch weren't enough to fill the belly of one of the local microlizards."
"You always say you never get enough food," Tourneville griped. "Even when you eat twice what I do."
Theodore just shook his head and continued toward the hangar door, where the little group came to an abrupt halt when he nearly stumbled over a huddled, sobbing shape.
"Kowalski?"
"Sir," the Tech mumbled as he struggled to his feet, pain obvious in the way he moved. Kowalski was bruised, his uniform torn and smudged. Dried blood crusted his hairline, making his normally immaculate gray hair stick up haphazardly on one side.
"What happened?"
"They said I didn't have the authority to requisition parts. When I told them I was your personal Tech, they laughed. They said my word wasn't enough. They offered me a chance to establish my authority. I didn't do very well."
"Who were they, Kowalski- san?"
Kowalski turned away from Theodore's gaze, his shoulders slumping. "I can't say, sir."
Theodore's eyes narrowed. "I'll find out who was responsible."
"No," the Tech protested, twisted back to face Theodore. "Sir, please don't. That's not the way it works here."
Theodore could not ignore the naked plea in the Tech's eyes. "All right, Kowalski- san. I'll do nothing for now, if you'll report to the infirmary. You are off-duty till further notice."
Kowalski bowed awkwardly and limped away.
"He's right, you know."
The four Kuritans spun to face the new speaker. The tall, strongly-built man leaned against the wall of the shed. A thatch of red hair bushed out from under his black uniform cap to shade a freckled face wearing a relaxed grin. The man wore a MechWarrior's jumpsuit with a Tai-i'sblue katakana "5" on his left collar. His cap insignia identified him as belonging to First Company, Second Battalion, of the Second Legion of Vega.
"Ninyu!" Theodore exclaimed, recognizing the face he had first seen in a dark alley on Kagoshima. "I haven't seen you since that commando scare on Al Na'ir."
"It's been too long, my friend. Still keeping up your kendo?"
"Not as much as I would like. It's hard to find an opponent of Subhash -sama's caliber," Theodore said as he stepped up to shake his friend's hand. "What are you doing here?"
"This is my station," Ninyu replied, tapping the insignia on his cap. "Loyal MechWarrior among the scum of the Combine."
Theodore nodded. He knew Ninyu was a fellow member of Indrahar's Sons of the Dragons, and unlike himself, well-versed in subterfuge and the dark side of the military. If Ninyu was here, there would be a reason, quite possibly one not to be pursued before witnesses. To cover what was becoming an awkward pause, he said, "Let me introduce you to my lance."
Theodore indicated each of his companions with a gesture and each made a formal bow of greeting to Ninyu. "Tai-iTomoe Sakade, my exec. Chu-iHirushi Sandersen, operations specialist. Chu-iBenjamin Tourneville, comm specialist."
"Chu-iTourneville and I are old acquaintances," Ninyu said.