Serene Foresight,this is ComStar Ground Control, Kunkai sector."
"Go ahead, Kunkai."
The ground operator's voice lost its edge. "Foresight,we have no orders concerning you, Ecstasy of Reason,or Valiant Wisdom.Things are a bit screwed up here. Can you give me confirmation of your mission?"
Galen leaned back in his seat, but did not let the edge of the cowl reveal his eyes. "Kunkai sector, I have no authorization to say more than that we are on a mission with Beta Predeir clearance. The orders were filed as Lima Zebra 0945."
"Understood, Foresight.Stand by."
Galen flicked the monitor into standby mode. "Shin, I hope I got that right."
The Combine MechWarrior nodded. "Perfect, Galen. That clearance is supposed to get us in and out with a minimum of trouble."
Victor found himself crossing his fingers. He uncrossed them and clutched them behind his back. As the three men waited in the dim, narrow confines of the newly christened Foresight'scommunication center, Victor wished for a place to plug in his cooling vest. He noticed a bead of sweat roll down Shin's face and smiled.
Galen's monitor beeped again. "Go ahead, Kunkai."
"Roger, Foresight.Because of Operation Scorpion, the demi-Precentor is exercising an Alpha priority override of your mission. Your orders say you've got troops on board and we want them delivered at 45.33 north, 2.10 west. We could really use the help. We have you ETA forty-eight hours, correct?"
In the background Victor heard some muffled explosions. He looked over at Galen and shrugged his shoulders. I wonder ... ?
Galen let his voice drop an octave into a growl. "Have problems with Kurita insurgents, Kunkai?"
"Kurita? I wish." The man's voice became strained as an explosion sounded louder. "Some damned Clan commander had his people out on surprise maneuvers earlier this week. When we went to round them up, they were gone." Another explosion resonated through the cabin. "Now they're mad."
"Roger, Kunkai. We're on our way. Peace of Blake be with you. Foresightout."
Victor's mind reeled. ComStar isfighting the Clans? Just our luck to be using "ComStar" ships to pull off this rescue.
Galen draped his arms over the top of the console. "What's the call, Victor? If we don't go to those coordinates, ground control will know we're not ComStar."
"And if we do," Shin added, "the Clan commander will be waiting for us."
"True. We have to assume the Clans have enough Elint capabilities to have monitored that exchange." Victor chewed on his lower lip for a second. "Now that we've been identified as a target, the Clans will respond to us no matter where we go."
Shin's face closed over. "Do we scrub this mission?"
"Go home empty-handed?" Victor shook his head. "No way. I know the plan was to wait until the last moment to try to pinpoint Hohiro's position, but now we've got to go early. Find out where he is and find out what kind of fighting strength he can deliver by the time we get there."
"Hai."
Galen winced. "You gonna help ComStar?"
Victor's face showed diabolical glee. "If we were caught with our tails in a vise, what would ComStar do?"
"Charge double to send messages out?"
"You got it." Victor pointed at the monitor. "You tell Kunkai we're coming down right on top of them, so they should hold at all costs. Make sure the broadcast beam is wide enough that the Clans can pick it up, too. That will make them push harder and the both of them will grind each other down."
Galen straightened up again. "Roger. Then what will we do?"
"Hey, we're strictly here on a smash and grab," Victor said with a shrug. "We're not looking for a fight, but if someone gets in our way, well, we'll give the Clans more than they bargained for."
33
Dove Costoso, Alyina
Jade Falcon Occupation Zone
5 May 3052 (Day 5 of Operation Scorpion)
Sitting on her cot, her back jammed into the furthest corner of her cell, Deirdre Lear hugged her knees tighter against her chest. Her face buried in the protective circle of her arms, she felt where her bitter tears had soaked the legs of her jumpsuit, and her jaws ached from clenching her teeth against cries of grief.
When Kai had tried to explain what the fight with Taman Malthus meant to him, she had forced herself to suspend judgement. She knew, deep down, that it was folly for him to fight a man so much bigger than he was. Kai was already exhausted from their long hike, and though his wounds from the last fight had closed and healed, he was still not at the top of his form. The fight would be savage and brutal, and it conjured up her father's ragged ghost.
Yet even as Kai and Malthus began, she could see how suited Kai was to combat. She even took pleasure in watching him feint and strike. Knowing that Kai had to be pushing himself close to the edge, it was miraculous to see his fatigue drop away. His surprisingly fluid movements and speed made her proud to have helped care for him.
As Kai and Malthus exchanged blows, she cataloged the damage they were doing to one another. Deirdre became strangely detached, as if in a clinic watching another doctor operate. The instant Kai's foot hit the Elemental's thigh, she knew the blow had crushed tissue and ruptured blood vessels. Malthus would have a hematoma at the very least. Kai might even have bruised the large man's femur if the kick had not been so short.
Punch and counter-punch had her involuntarily swaying to avoid them. Her heart had crawled up into her throat as Kai went down, but she knew, when he came back up, that he would never surrender. Part of her wanted to scream at him to give up, but she respected too much the courage he had displayed in inviting the Elemental forward.
When Kai leaped up and kicked Malthus in the head, she had wanted to cheer. When Malthus' fist hit Kai in the ribs, she shared his pain, and when he hit the ground, she did not expect him to get up again. She knew it was over, but at least Kai lived.
Then the ComStar helicopter came with guns blazing.
Distracted by the violent death of the Elemental standing nearest her, she never even saw Kai fall from the mountain.
Feeling the sharp pain of her own fingernails digging into her palms startled her out of reliving the end of that memory. Her hands reached out to haul Kai back onto the plateau, but the helicopter's pulsed thunder stole any last words, any last sounds Kai might have made.
Kai, Kai, KAI!She wanted to shout his name aloud now, as she had not done when he fell. And she wanted to scream at the Elementals housed in the cell across from her, but she would not let them see how much they had hurt her. They might own her physically, but they would never break her. Not the Clans. Not ComStar. Not anyone.
Distantly she heard the tones as someone punched the combination code into the keypad for the door. As it creaked open, she smelled food. Her stomach rumbled out of reflex, but she was too filled with pain and grief to want to eat. She did not even look up as her anonymous jailer slid a tray beneath the iron-bar door to her cage. She knew he would come and drag it back out later.