Chapter One Hundred and Seven: Mounting Defense
Northwind, September 13th, 3025
"I need that artillery fire in the grid I asked for now or we'll be overrun." Colonel Romano Senn-Liao repeated into her hardline communications. "We're barely keeping them back with our tanks and infantry."
"Sorry Colonel, we've been re-tasked with a fire mission that takes priority over yours." The artillery commander responded. "We're finishing up and then we'll swap to your fire mission."
"You don't understand." Romano repeated into the device. "We're at the final fallback point, and if we don't get that fire mission we'll have to go to ground and disperse."
"Who gave the command to retask?" Romano asked.
"Major Henderson ma'am." The artillery commander responded.
"Well I'm countermanding her," Romano said. "She has 'mechs at her disposal and can wait a little bit longer on the artillery."
"Aye Ma'am, resuming fire mission on your coordinates." The artillery commander said.
"Thank you, I'll make sure that you don't take any flack for this." Romano said as she turned to hear the rumble of the guns in the far distance and watched as the rounds arced down into the enemy battlemech company, causing them to be destroyed in the cases of the lighter machines, and to stumble and take armor damage in the case of the heavier machines, but it helped her even out the playing field, and enabled one of Romano's fiery surprises to be detonated by the falling artillery.
"Thanks for that Captain," Roman said. "You just saved two battalions of Militia." She put the receiver down and got on the encrypted short distance channel that all of the militia were plugged into courtesy of Sharpshooter Inc.
"Move it!" She commanded. "We've gotta get out of here and across the river before they manage to recover."
"Yes ma'am." The varying company officers responded as they moved to get away from the burning battlefield and into the next one."
September 15th, 3025
"You can't just countermand me like that!" Major Holly Henderson, the XO of the 1st Kearny Highlanders regiment yelled at a calm Romano. "My mechwarriors could have died."
"How many mechs did your people manage to down?" Romano asked softly.
"I'm sorry, can you repeat that?" Henderson asked violently. "I couldn't hear you over the lance that I lost."
"I said," Romano spoke a little louder but still calmly. "How many 'mechs did you manage to bring down with your battalion?"
"Equivalent to the metal we lost." Henderson replied. "Why?"
"Because my people downed an entire company of 'mechs with that artillery fire combined with the traps that we made beforehand." Romano cleaned from underneath her fingernails with a combat knife. "I would say that we didn't even need your battalion except as a distraction, so you can suck it up, and act like an officer of the Northwind Highlanders, or you can give me your command and I'll take care of it myself, I don't have time for this sort of petty behavior, and neither do you. We're outnumbered, and outmassed due to them capturing the majority of the other two regiments 'mechs, so suck it up and help me defend this section of the planet until reinforcements get here, or don't, and watch as I turn this place into a hellhole trying to make sure my people make it out alive."
Romano stood up from her chair and spun her knife in her hands before setting it down on the console in front of her to begin pulling the armored undersuit for her Mithril on. "I'm heading back out into the fight." She stepped into the outer layer of armor and started sealing it into place. "Join me if you're ready for war instead of a duel." She picked up her knife and spun it into the sheath that she kept on her chest.
Northwind, November 10th, 3025
"This is Colonel Packer of the 1st Kentares Guard." He said on the comms after they had cleared out their LZ. "Anyone from the Northwind Highlanders or Northwind Militia still alive out here?" He looked at the still burning forest around him.
"This is Colonel Romano Senn-Liao of the Northwind Militia, I'm currently the only ranking officer still able to command currently. It's damned good to hear your voice again Packer." The relief was audible in her voice.
"Good to make it here in good time." Packer said, "We moved as fast as we could, but it never feels like you make it in time."
"As long as we're still here then you made it in time." Romano said. "I just hope you brought some metal with you, because we're down to a company of 'mechs and a lot of walking wounded."
"Oh," Packer said with a grin as he walked his MAD-2T back towards the LZ. "I don't think that'll be much of a problem."
"I'll give you some coordinates, we'll meet you there, Colonel Senn-Liao out." The comms channel closed itself.
"You heard the lady." Packer said, "Move like you've got a purpose and get unloaded, we've got a lady to reinforce."
November 12th, 3025
"We've got wounded over here!" A noncom of the Northwind Militia shouted as the 1st Kentares Guard came into view.
"We've got MASH trucks in the middle of our formation." Packer responded, "Direct them to where you need them."
"Yessir." The Noncom said and he began to get the MASH trucks into places where the wounded could be loaded up and worked on.
"Colonel Senn-Liao, I wish I could say that it's a pleasure to see you again." Packer said. "But I'm afraid that may not be the case."
"Man, you're a sight for sore eyes Colonel." Romano said, "We've been holed up in this cave since most of our 'mech forces were taken out."
"Well, I hope you've got some pilots to spare, because we brought enough extra to fill out two battalions of tanks and one of 'mechs." Packer said. "We got reports that they managed to capture the repair facilities the 2nd Kearny and Marion's Highlanders were using."
"Yes, they took those in the beginning of the attack, and have been keeping their forces in the fight for far longer than we could keep up." Romano sighed, "It doesn't help that My husband, the CO of the 1st Kearny, had just gotten to New Avalon when this whole thing kicked off."
"And the remaining officers don't know how to treat this like a war." She scoffed. "They might not consider us honorable" She mocked. "There is no honor in war and there is slim to none to be found in my family."
"Well, we're here to help, where do you need us?" Packer asked, "You've been on planet since the invasion, so I figure you're the local expert, the CO of the 2nd Kentares Guard is on the second continent, trying to secure the Highlanderfactory that Sharpshooter was helping to restore."
"That would be Godbolt right?" Romano asked, trying to rack her brain for the correct name. "She's a good CO, she'll do fine over there, the main issue is the Daidachi Warrior house on this continent plus the 1st St. Ives Lancers that Candace brought with her."
"She really wants you dead doesn't she?" Packer shook his head. "I don't think I'll ever understand it."
"She has to pursue me with all of the forces she can reasonably use, or MASK will kill her." Romano said bluntly. "I'd have done exactly what she did, and that's what scares me; if I think like her now that I'm mentally stable again, just how bad off is our father and how far would my own madness have taken me?" She had a full body shudder in her Mithril, despite the interior air circulation keeping it at desired temperatures.
"Well, let's go make sure that something really bad doesn't happen, because Max might have MASK waiting with Chemical or Nuclear weapons should Candace fail." Packer said as he realized what potential things might happen, rushing over to his 'mech, he sealed his helmet and signaled for everyone of his forces to do the same, using his slate to sync up his suits comms with his 'mech's he broadcast to all of the 1st Kentares and had it sent to Colonel Godbolt as well.
"Make sure everyone's seals stay tight, we're dealing with a possible NBC threat, I repeat, seal up." He turned to Romano. "Are all of your people in Mithril?" He asked.
"No, only half of our infantry." She shook her head. "Unless you brought extra."
"We always bring a lot of spares." Packer said. "We make thousands of the suits every year, we should have enough to give them out to your current forces."
"Then we need to make that the top priority." Romano said, "Candace likely wouldn't order an NBC attack, but a fanatical MASK cell that thought she wasn't fulfilling her orders might."
November 15th, 3025
"Hit that Atlas!" Colonel Rachel Godbolt commanded her Alacorn's crew while she reviewed the battlefield. "We're not seeing enough enemy machines for that to be an entire Warrior House we're up against."
"Ma'am, Atlas is down." The gunner reported. "We've got ten salvos left."
"Good to hear, we're closing in on the Highlander factory complex." The driver said. "Why'd we relocate the damaged factory for restoration here again?" He complained.
"Because of the Northwind Highlanders you numbskull." Godbolt responded. "And we figured it would help them settle into the Federated Suns a little easier. "
"Fuck," Godbolt said suddenly as she consulted her slate. "Shut everything down right now."
Looking through the periscope, the driver shut all of the windows in order to preserve their eyesight. The Alacorn shook as a shockwave rolled over them, nearly blowing them over before breaking against the side of the ninety-five ton tank."
"Don't power anything back on yet." Godbolt ordered. "We need to wait a solid hour before we'll be sure that our stuff wasn't damaged."
"Can I check the periscope at least?" The spotter asked.
"Yeah, we need to have some info on what's going on out there." Rachel responded. "But don't throw up, our Alacorn is sealed, but we don't know if we have a breach that radiation might have entered the tank or not."
"Ma'am, you might want to see this." He gestured for her to move to the periscope and she peered through.
"Dammit." She said, "Unless any of our infantry were in a building or further away, I don't think they made it." She sighed, "The Shockwave would have pasted most of them against the insides of their own Mithril, if they were in cover or a building, they should be fine as long as they were sealed up."
"And the 'mech forces?" The driver asked. "What about them?"
"Depends on the tonnage and if they managed to duck behind a wall or building or not." Godbolt responded. "Our pilots might be alive, but we won't be able to find out until we can get recovery teams in here."
"There were over three million people in this city." The gunner finally said. "What about them?"
"Most of them are dead." Rachel said, "And the factory is going to be a smoking irradiated crater for either a long time or a short time depending on whether it was a dirty nuke or not."
"Fuck man, How am I supposed to fight a nuke?" the loader asked. "I can't beat up radiation."
"You pray that Hull sent some Oppie's with us." Godbolt said. "Because that's about all we can do right now, and when it's over, we'll go help the poor bastards that are stuck here."
November 15th, 3025 same time…
"Packer, the dropships are lifting off now, and we're not in a position to intercept, oh god, they set off nukes!" Packer stopped shooting at the enemy Locust trying to run away from him as soon as he saw the mushroom clouds in the distance, and his heart sank. "We may have just won this battle, but Northwind lost a lot more."