"And where is he?"
Fuhito shrugged and helplessly spread his hands wide.
"Kerai- Kunmay be quite remarkable in some areas, but even he cannot conjure up interstellar transport from nothing."
Fuhito started to object to Theodore's dismissal of the issue, but the buzzsaw whine of a VTOL jet landing drowned out the words. The sentry threw open the door and announced the return of Tai-iNinyu Kerai. Ninyu wore a sneaksuit, the hood pulled back to reveal his tousled red hair. The circlevision visor clattered against the holstered KA-23 subgun holstered on his right hip. His smiling face was a distinct contrast to the sober expressions of the officers gathered in the room.
"What, still talking?" Ninyu asked. "I thought you'd be packed by now."
"I'm not leaving," Theodore replied. "I have a duty to the Legion."
"You're too important to die on this backwater planet."
"I'm not too important to ignore bushido.As a Kurita warrior, honor demands that I do my duty. I must fulfill my duty to my soldiers and face what they must face."
"Baka!"Tomoe shouted, spinning around. "You are a fool! You're notsome simple warrior! You are not even just the commanding officer of a regiment. You are the leader of the entire Legion of Vega, not just the Eleventh Regiment. Two more regiments of your precious buso-senshiand forty conventional units are fighting on Vega, struggling for their lives against the Lyran invaders. What is your duty to them!Will you let them die without a leader?
"You are also the Heir-Designate. If you are captured or killed here, it harms the Combine. The succession will be in dispute, and your father will be distracted from the conduct of the war. Can you believe that your death would serve the Dragon, no matter how nobly you contrive to arrange it?
"You speak of your responsibility to your troops. What of your responsibility to the Draconis Combine? Does your belief in bushidoallow you to throw your life away when you have important duties elsewhere? Will you allow the personal desire to be a noble warrior lead you away from your duty as a member of House Kurita?"
Tomoe folded her arms over her chest as she drew herself to full height. Her eyes blazed. "A samurai's road is the path of giri.It is your dutyto leave Marfik."
Theodore was stunned by her outburst, embarrassed that she would shout at him before the Legion's officers. But she seemed so sure she had the right of it. Had he been blinded by his concern for the troops here on Marfik and by his sense of personal honor? As commander of the Legion, it was the first time other Kuritans looked to him with respect for reasons other than his position by birth. They had earned his loyalty. But was Tomoe right? Did his other responsibilities, his other duties, outweigh these? It was so hard to know the right path.
"Arctic Foxis armed," he began. "Aloft, it will be easy prey for the Steiner aerospace forces. If we keep the DropShip grounded, we can adapt our defenses around it, build a firebase to gut the Lyran attack. The Steiner air power won't be able to do much against it as long as the ship stays in the cover of the forest. We can still win here on Marfik."
"Staying is a hellacious gamble," Ninyu Kerai observed. "The Rangers want your head."
"Senior Tech Kowalski's crew is already preparing the Arctic Foxfor lift-off," Fuhito Tetsuhara pointed out.
'The troops ain't changing their positions. They won't follow your plan to set up a defense around the Fox,"Esau Olivares announced. "We got volunteers already dumping what's left of our supplies onto the ship, but nobody, not even the wounded, will be riding it out unless you're onboard, Sama.My Victor's waiting there for you. It's even got its circuits tuned to your base readings. I'll jockey the 'Revenant' in the morning. That'll keep the Elsies occupied."
"The heir to the Dragon must leave Marfik," Tomoe Sakade insisted.
Theodore looked at the faces around him, their eyes hard and challenging. Not one yielded before him. His officers were resolute. With or without him, the Eleventh Legion of Vega was going to die here on Marfik in the morning. These people did not want him to die with them. How could he betray such loyalty by running away from them?
"I will take this under advisement."
* * *
Two fire lances from Wagner's Battalion moved forward on the left flank, lending their missile and energy weapon fire to the advance of the Twenty-third Armored Infantry. Kathleen Heany watched in satisfaction as her tanks and APCs drove the Snakes from their outlying defenses. It had taken all morning to get this far, and the Vegan Mech-Warriors had yet to put in an appearance.
Two Lyran AeroSpace Fighters dove out of the sun. Skimming at treetop level, the aerojocks opened the valves in their belly-slung tanks. Dense clouds billowed from the crafts' exhaust as the chemical mix ignited in smoky combustion. The long streamers of artificial fog settled on the field, screening the advance of the Lyran tanks.
Heany was pleased by the pilots' precision and adherence to the tactical plan. They were showing better discipline than that crew who had lifted their DropShip at first light, flying too close to Sitika on their way to orbit. As soon as she had time, the entire crew of that DropShip was going on report.
Booming explosions returned Heany's attention to the field. She grinned in savage anticipation. The Drac center was breaking. The Twenty-third had created a corridor through the Kuritan defenses. The Lord provides for she who prepares,Heany thought.
She pushed her Atlasto a run, signaling the rest of her command lance to follow. The Snakes would have to bring in their BattleMechs now. She and the Fourth Skye Rangers would be there to meet them. The battle's climax was to hand.
Half an hour later, her hopes were confirmed. The Fourth Skye engaged what she estimated as half the remaining Kurita 'Mechs. The fighting was sharp, exhilarating. The Kuritans retreated, falling back on a position defended by the rest of the Legion. She watched the Orionthat intel had identified as Theodore Kurita's own machine leading the fight.
Under fire from the entrenched BattleMechs, the Skye Rangers advanced. Heany was pleased with their elan. They reached the Kurita battle line with minimal damage. Hunicutt's Quickdrawwas first to reach the line. That was no surprise. The Sergeant's preference for close-in combat was legendary in the Fourth Skye.
The Quickdrawcame in on a Dragonfrom the left. The Ranger must have surprised the Snake, for the Kurita 'Mech made no effort to turn and face the Quickdraw.Hunicutt ripped off a flight of short-range missiles as he closed. Without waiting to see the results of his attack, he charged in.
Smoke from the detonations of the rockets screened Heany's vision momentarily. As soon as it cleared, the Hauptmann-Kommandant was shocked to see the Quickdrawstanding in a pile of scrap metal. Impossible! The Dragonwas a sixty-ton BattleMech. Even Hunicutt's close-combat ability could not destroy a 'Mech that fast.
The Dragonwas a fake, a decoy! All across the Kurita position, Heany could see Ranger 'Mechs discovering the same thing. Some had punched through sheet metal, shattering light metal structures built to resemble BattleMechs. Within those Trojan horses, infantry gunners and rocket teams had sheltered, simulating the firepower of BattleMechs. Only a few of the shapes in the position were real 'Mechs, and those were crippled, unable to escape the Ranger machines and incapable of utilizing more than a fraction of their weaponry.
She had been fooled again.
Heany ran a full scan of the area. Radar picked out a flock of targets moving southeast between the hills, headed toward the cursed forest. She focused the visual scanners on them: ten Kurita BattleMechs led by a drab green Orion.