KnightofTempest
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Chapter 35
🕑 Added 2024-06-25 08:14:04 +0000 UTCThe Oberon System was home to eight planets. Four Rocky Worlds two Ice Balls, and three Gas Giants. Only one of these was habitable outside of something like a Colony Dome, however. The Sixth Planet of the system, Oberon Six, was the Capital World of the Oberon Confederation. A world shrouded in perpetual cloud cover, rain was everpresent on Oberon Six, though it was normally a sporadic drizzle. This meant that a lot of the world was covered in swampland, with only the Dao Sing Highlands near the equator being rain-free more than three days a week. Consequently, it was the Dao Sing Plain, a sort of grassy plateau in the middle of the Dao Sing Highlands where the Largest City, Dadaocheng City was. It was there that the sole Hyperpulse Generator in the Coreward Periphery lay, guarded by the ComGuards and overseen by Precentor Damian Hope.
Oberon Six itself had two moons. Titania, a rocky highland world full of minerals that was home to around a quarter of a million people, and Puck, an airless, frozen, iceball of a moon with a single population center of thirty-thousand people in a domed city harvesting methane and ammonia ice to be turned into chemicals in Dadaocheng City, where the largest city on Oberon Six had a number of refineries that could do the job.
Dadaocheng City wasn't the capital city, mind you. See, Oberon Six had been settled by three distinct groups of people. First were the Hokkien Chinese of the Dao Sing Expedition who had opted to settle in the Periphery instead of where most of the Chinese colonists had gone near Capella and Sian. They settled the Dao Sing Highlands by virtue of being the first wave of colonists and grabbing the best lands. Next were the Ukrainians of the Boyko Expedition. Some of those wound up settling on Rasalhague, but a few of the hundred-thousand-man colony ships wound up on Oberon Six. They settled the City of Novyy Pripyat in the marshes in the Northeast of the World. Lastly were the Scots of the MacGregor Expedition who settled the City of Dumalban in the Northwest. The MacGregor expedition was made up largely of a group of Colony Ships whose Jump Drives malfunctioned as they headed to New Albion to settle and instead wound up in the Coreward Periphery.
It was the Scots of the MacGregor Expedition who wound up somehow finagling themselves into the dominant position on World. It was the Scots who wound up creating the First Oberon Confederation, managing to get the English and Welsh Settlers of Blackstone and the Dutch and Belgians of Crellacor to confederate with them for mutual protection after the Lyran conquest of the Rim Worlds Republic. The state limped along for a time, until the arrival of Hendrik Grimm the First in twenty-eight-fifty-five. When Hendrik Grimm the First arrived, along with his mixture of Pirates and Rogue LCAF Units, he immediately took over the Moribund Oberon Confederation and moved on the Confederation's neighbors, conquering a swathe of worlds, some of which broke away after his death in twenty-nine-hundred. Hendrik Grimm the Second, Grandfather of the current King of the Oberon Confederation, hadn't done much to reverse the decline. His grandson on the other hand had.
Hendrik Grimm the Third had revolutionized the Oberon Guards, reconquered the lost worlds, and even expanded his borders. He had kicked industry into high gear on his various worlds, had introduced industrial farming for the Oberon Stoat, whose fur was sought after by many Inner Sphere nobles for coats and hats, and managed to build the closest thing the Coreward Periphery had to a proper Empire since the fall of the Rim Worlds Republic. Now, however, his reach had exceeded his grasp and I was here to punish him for it.
All three flotillas exploded out of the Jump Point in the Oberon System. Six Star Lord-class JumpShips and Three Tramp-class JumpShips bearing Forty-Five Dropships in total resolving into realspace. Six-Hundred Aerospace Fighters and the remains of thirteen Regiments came with them. The Fullest Might of the Ducal Guards of the Grand Duchy of New Ålborg that I could spare right now.
Opposite us, a motley collection of JumpShips and Dropships crowded around Titania, the larger of Oberon Six's two moons, not expecting to be caught in the middle of their preparations for war like this. I spotted two, large, Monolith-Class JumpShips, along with ten, smaller, JumpShips, a mix of Tramps, Merchants, Invaders, and hastily press-ganged Civilian Models, likely pilfered passenger liners that Hendrik Grimm pressed into service to carry his forces.
The Monoliths were clearly on loan from the Combine, who operated a fleet of twenty-five Monoliths for shuttling troops back and forth to various fronts. The non-Monolith Military JumpShips were expected. The Oberon Confederation had Six Military JumpShips headed by the Tramp-Class JumpShip Bonnie MacGregor as flagship. Of Dropships, the enemy had around forty-eight, though some of these were clearly Dropships that had been stolen by Hendrik Grimm during raids and campaigns and hastily repaired to serve as extra muscle, while others were Clearly DCMS JumpShips hastily repainted to serve as transports for their 'Volunteers'.
"I wonder why they think they need more Dropship Capacity than we have?" Questioned Commodore Niskanen.
"If I had to guess? See the insignia on that Achilles-class?" I pointed out one of the Achilles-class Assault Dropships bearing an insignia of a sun enfolded in dragon's wings.
"I do. Is that insignia supposed to signify something?" Queried Commodore Niskanen.
"That's the Ninth Pesht Regulars. Who's their CO at the moment?" Asked Commodore Clarke.
"Tai-Sa, it's the combine so they use Tai-Sa. I'm fairly certain it's someone high up in the ranks of their nobility, though. The Pesht Regulars recruit from the Luthien Military District exclusively." Insisted Commodore Mickiewicz.
"The Tai-Sa of the Ninth Pesht Regulars, unless something drastic happened in the past few years, is Tai-Sa Alexander Kurita. The First Cousin Once Removed of Coordinator Takashi Kurita." I informed.
"Oh." Frowned Commodore Niskanen.
"Oh indeed. If we capture a member of the Coordinator's family, he and by extension, the Combine, lose face and Takashi will be after us for years to avenge himself. If we kill him, that's almost worse. Either way, we'll be in for long and protracted hostilities with the Combine." Frowned Commodore Clarke.
"So how do we beat him if we can't kill or capture him?" Demanded Commodore Mickiewicz.
"We allow him to withdraw. I imagine that's going to take battlefield victories and a negotiation, though." I shrugged.
"The Combine Negotiates?" Questioned Commodore Niskanen.
"You have to be able to think like they do. To the Combine, everything is about honor and saving face. We'll probably have to let them annex a few worlds and withdraw what forces they have remaining from Oberon Six so the coordinator can save face. That will probably include both Monoliths and any prisoners we take or mechs and dropships we capture. That will allow the Combine to save face and allow the Coordinator to spin things as a lesser victory. I hope nobody is particularly attached to Santander's World or Porthos." I remarked.
"Even that might not be enough to stave off the Combine's Anger." Warned Commodore Clarke.
"Probably not. Technically, the Oberon Confederation was a vassal, one that hadn't been publically declared. The combine technically gains territory out of this. However, I'd expect Coordinator Takashi to be preparing for round two at some point in the future. In the meantime, though, the Combine has other things to worry about. If we beat them here, combined with their losses in the Third Succession War, they'll likely be working on reforming and rebuilding their military for a long time. Likely it will be another decade, maybe longer. That gives us time to build up and gain more allies. When Takashi comes back for round two, we'll be even stronger than we are now." I explained.
"If we don't kill his cousin and if he agrees to negotiate." Grumbled Commodore Niskanen.
"Problems for the future. For now, worry about the enemy we'll be fighting in a few days." I nodded.
"Right. We should make preparations for battle. Any directives you wish our fleet to abide by, My Lord?" Queried Commodore Mickiewicz.
"Don't fire on the enemy JumpShips. To even have a chance at negotiating our way out of this, we'll have to return the Monoliths to the Combine. It would probably help to sweeten the deal with some captured Oberon JumpShips too. Beyond that? Defeat the enemy however you can." I commanded.
With that, the Commodores returned to their offices aboard the joint Flagship of the JumpShip section of our Fleet, the Star Lord-Class JumpShip Wisła. In the meantime, I made my way to the Bridge, eager to get as much information from the various scanners as I could before the battle began. An hour later, though, something unexpected happened.
The HPG Station was hailing us. . .
XXXX
Precentor Damian Hope was awakened by an Adept knocking politely on the door to his quarters. Life on Oberon Six these past few months had been hectic as Hendrik Grimm and his Combine Allies prepared to invade the domains of the Poniatowski. It had only gotten even more hectic when news broke from Blackstone and Placida that the Grand Ducal Guards of New Ålborg had pre-empted the planned invasion with an invasion of their own. Somehow, Jozef Poniatowski had stolen a march on everyone, though from what he had been hearing from Apollo, that wasn't unusual for the young man. Karen Shinomura had a march stolen on her as well with the little scheme she had lobbied Primus Tiepolo to undertake.
As Precentor Oberon, Damian had a more nuanced view of the Poniatowski's capabilities than anyone else in ComStar. It was his firm opinion that both the Primus and Precentor ROM Kristofur should leave the lad well enough alone and avoid poking the bear. It was hardly the pragmatic move, after all. Not that Precentor Kristofur and his fundamentalists cared much for pragmatism. No, they were all piss and vinegar. Unfortunately, Primus Tiepolo was just as bad in other ways. The man wasn't a zealot but he was obsessed with maintaining a balance of power in the Inner Sphere to the point where he couldn't stop himself from getting involved to try and control the Poniatowski boy, even in a tangential manner with finances.
Damian liked to think of himself as even more pragmatic than Primus Tiepolo. That had gotten him branded as too radical and sent from his position as Precentor Rasalhague, replaced with Precentor Zilya Armanovich, though Zilya Herself was hardly as faithful as either the Primus or Precentor ROM. He'd been Precentor Rasalhague for all of a year before he'd been replaced and shipped off to Oberon Six for insufficient zeal. He viewed it as a sign that he had a better head on his shoulders than either Primus Tiepolo of Precentor ROM Kristofur. After all, had not Blake done the pragmatic thing by taking a trip to Atreus instead of remaining on Terra when Amaris had launched his coup? How could they blame Damian when he was simply following Blake's example?
Regardless, Damian got out of bed and threw on a robe to answer the door. Outside was Adept Stefan Karlson, the Commander of the Level-Three Formation of ComGuards assigned to the HPG Station. Ironically, though Adepts were supposed to be transferred to a new post after a year in posting, including Senior Adepts like Stefan, a quirk of timing ensured that Stefan stayed with Damian his whole time on Rasalhague and even moved to Oberon Six with him. Apparently, the combination of the Third Successor War and being posted to the most dangerous HPG Posting in the circuit had ensured it.
"Stefan. It's four in the morning, local time. What is so urgent?" Asked Damian.
"Your presence is requested in the command center, Precentor. An Aerospace Battlefleet just exited the Jump Point two hours ago. Nine JumpShips and forty-five Dropships, all in Poniatowski Colors bearing Poniatowski IFF Codes. Six of the JumpShips are Star Lords and the DropShips all look like the strange upgraded models that hit Placida and Blackstone." Informed Stefan.
"I see. Who else knows about this?" Demanded Damian.
"Grimm and the Kurita do, they've been arguing over what to do about it since the scopes picked it up. We've known for two hours, they've only had the information for around forty-five minutes." Answered Stefan.
"And no one has spoken about contacting the First Circuit when the twelve-hour cycle is up?" Pressed Damian.
"Not as yet. I'm fairly sure that all the lads and the technicians are waiting for anything substantial to report. It's not like we can bypass the cycle, after all." Responded Stefan.
"True, even the capital of a Major Periphery State like this only merits a B-Class HPG. Still, keep an eye on the Troops and Technicians, Blake willing, we may be able to achieve something here today where Primus Tiepolo's financial plotting would have otherwise turned the Poniatowski Boy against the order." Nodded Damian.
"What are you thinking, Sir?" Questioned Stefan.
"Why, I am going to try what those fools in Tiepolo's circle were too arrogant, and the fundamentalists in Kristofur's circle too overzealous to try." Grinned Damian.
"Which is, sir?" Queried Stefan.
"Why, I'm going to try and cut a deal, Stefan. After all, if you can't beat them, why not join them? The Poniatowski Boy should be a lot easier to control from inside, after all." Intoned Damian.
"Of course, Sir." Nodded Stefan.
Together, the pair made their way to the command center. After Damian had properly dressed and applied copious amounts of coffee to his bloodstream, of course. No sense in conducting diplomacy half-asleep and in a robe, after all. Who knows? If he pulls this off, he might actually get back into the First Circuit's good graces.
A man could dream, anyway. . .
XXXX
Hendrik Grimm was not having a good time. He hadn't been having a good time for a few months now. Oh sure, being the Combine's unofficial go-to for dealings in the Coreward Periphery had started well. His forces had been given Combine Gear to replace worn-out or underpowered equipment of their own, he'd been able to increase the amount of Forces he had available to him. He'd gained Combine Advisors and Volunteers to help the Oberon Guards and his other formations drill and become more professional. He'd even gotten a bit of money out of it, as C-Bills from the Combine Treasury were used to pay him for the use of bases in his territory for the 'Volunteer' troops that Old Man Kurita had sent.
It had all started going downhill in the last two months. First, the Conference on Terra had wrapped up giving the Combine a huge, Rasalhague-shaped, black eye. Then he'd started being pressured by his Combine Advisors to begin preparations to attack the Poniatowski Boy. He'd not wanted to do that, if anything, he'd had his eye on the Poniatowski Boy as a potential husband for Ella, someone who would be able to claim the Oberon Throne for his daughter when he was dead and gone, avoiding the potential Civil War that his sons would likely ignite. Someone to help her rule the Confederation well. Mind you, when the Coordinator offered up his own kin to be his son-in-law instead, Hendrik hadn't said no. A Kurita would have been better than the Poniatowski Boy, he'd thought.
Maybe he should have said no because just as he'd prepared for one campaign, the Poniatowski Boy completely wrong-footed him and preempted Hendrik's own bloody invasion with one of his own! He'd struck Blackstone and Placida, rendering any pre-war plans to sever New Ålborg in two pointless. Alexander, his new Son-in-Law had argued for moving into New Ålborg's territory in a counterattack to force the Poniatowski Boy to withdraw to defend his own worlds. Ella had advised caution, and Hendrik listened to her.
He was glad he had done that now because if he'd done what Alexander had wanted, he would now be staring down the barrel of the Poniatowski Boy's invasion force without a single Dropship or Mech of his own to defend himself. He'd been told an hour ago that the Poniatowski Boy had jumped into the system with what had to be his whole damned Fleet and entire bloody army! Now, he and Alex were having an argument about what to do next. It had been stuck going around in circles for close to fifteen minutes now.
"We should try to draw him into a major engagement on Titania! He will have to land troops there regardless to avoid being taken from the rear while fighting. The Second Oberon Guards is based there and they would be able to shuttle over to the rear of his forces if he tries to land on Oberon Six without taking Titania!" Insisted Alexander Kurita.
"And if such an engagement is lost, he'll be free to assault Oberon Six with only militia and poorly equipped police units to face him. No, we should withdraw the Second Oberon Guards to the defense lines around Dadaocheng City. We'll move the official capital there as we do, it's been a long time coming anyway. Dumalban has half the population Dadaocheng does, after all, and worse weather." Argued Ella.
"A wife should not be so outspoken and if she is, she should support her husband's plans!" Growled Alexander.
"And a husband shouldn't be so quick to anger when his wife gives him advice that is only meant to help him succeed!" Retorted Ella.
Hendrik Grimm wasn't about to let the argument over strategy devolve into a marital shouting match. Instead, he decided to nip this little spat in the bud.
"Enough! Alexander had I listened to you, your damned advice would've ensured we face the Poniatowski Boy without any professional troops to speak of!" Exclaimed Hendrik Grimm.
"Have a care how you talk to me. I am of the blood of the Dragon, and father of my wife or not, that means something." Warned Alexander.
"That may be so, but the point still stands." Intoned Hendrik Grimm.
For a few moments, the two stared each other down before one of Alexander's Adjutants, a Sho-Sha named Imaidegawa Muneyori cleared his throat. That drew the attention of everyone in this informal council of war.
"There is merit to both approaches, however, the defensive lines around Dadaocheng still need to be completed, yes? Perhaps Alexander-Sama could lead an effort on Titania to act as a speedbump? Six regiments in the mountains there would do wonders to bleed an overambitious boy like the Poniatowski, yes? It might buy time for the defenses around Dadaocheng to be completed sufficiently. Then the forces may withdraw inside the defenses to bolster them and break whatever is left of the Poniatowski Boy's forces. The tripwire to bleed them, the walls to break them, and a counterattack to push them off the planet seems to take the best of both approaches does it not?" Offered Sho-Sha Imadegawa.
"The plan does have merit. I can agree to that." Nodded Hendrik Grimm. After a few moments, Alexander Kurita also acquiesced with a single nod.
"It is a good plan. I will endorse it." He agreed.
"You should not risk yourself, however, Alexander-sama. The tripwire on Titania will be exposed and there is no guarantee that the forces on the moon will be able to withdraw." Insisted Tai-Sho Ninyu Kerai.
The Tai-Sho technically outranked even Alexander Kurita, being the equivalent rank of a General while Alexander was only a Colonel. However, Alexander being kin to the coordinator made that relatively straightforward hierarchy a lot more complicated than it otherwise would have been. With him being the blood of the Dragon, the entire Combine Force on Oberon Six was likely to defer to Alexander over Ninyu Kerai.
"I agree with the General. You wouldn't want to make me a widow so soon, would you?" Chimed in Ella. That seemed to make up Alexander's mind.
"Very well, Tai-Sho. However, you will serve as the replacement commander. Ensure that the tripwire plan is a success, otherwise, you will have shamed me, and that cannot be borne." Intoned Alexander.
"Of course, Lord. I will see it done by my own hand. Whatever occurs." Affirmed Tai-Sho Ninyu Kerai. It was not lost on anyone that the Tai-Sho had all but declared his intention to commit ritual suicide should he fail, least of all Hendrik Grimm.
"You Combine men are all mad." He grumbled.
"That is why the Dragon will eventually conquer all others. We have the will to do what is necessary." Scoffed Alexander.
"Right then, I guess all that's left is to get everyone in position and see how the fleet fares against the Poniatowski Boy." Huffed Hendrik Grimm.
He didn't rate the fleet's chances that highly, though. Honestly, he wasn't entirely certain he rated the odds of the current plan all that highly either. It was the best that could be come up with in the time they had, but that didn't mean shite. If things went pear-shaped, Hendrik Grimm wasn't going to go like the Tai-Sho was planning to go. No, he would prioritize his life and the lives of his children over anything else. If it came down to it, Hendrik Grimm would negotiate a betrayal of the Combine on behalf of the Poniatowski Boy.
If it came down to that, hopefully, that would be enough to let him and his keep their lives and positions. . .
XXXX
An hour after the Commodores' Meeting broke up, I found myself negotiating with the Precentor of the B-Class HPG on Oberon Six. Damian Hope was a man who seemed to have a grudge against both factions currently vying for power within the ranks of ComStar. Primus Tiepolo had labeled him too radical and essentially demoted him under the guise of a lateral move within ComStar, sending him to Oberon Six from the relatively high-ranked position of Precentor of Rasalhague. At the same time, he was completely certain that if the hardliners took power, his pragmatism and lack of religious zeal meant he would quickly find himself on the wrong end of a ROM interrogation.
He'd laid all this out for me in a private message that used encrypted intra-system communications instead of the HPG or a more open channel. He then offered me a deal that was extremely intriguing. Apparently, the person who replaced him as Precentor Rasalhague was in the same boat he was, ideologically, she was just better at hiding it from ROM and the Primus. He was, effectively, offering me an exchange of favors that he planned to cut Precentor Armanovich on Rasalhague in on.
He was effectively offering me cooperation in the hope of somehow using favors from me to increase his standing within ComStar, and by extension, that of the Precentor of Rasalhague once she agreed to the deal as well. It had been tempting if I could trust his word, and if it wasn't all just some elaborate ruse on the part of ROM. This could be yet another way that ComStar was attempting to gain some measure of soft control over me now that it appeared their economic plan would fail. Unfortunately, I didn't have Minister Simowitz with me to check on things at the moment. I would have to play this by ear for the time being.
"Why should I believe you? I've been reliably informed that ComStar has attempted to charge me interest rates on loans they did not think I was capable of paying back in a timely manner as a way of gaining some measure of economic control over my Grand Duchy. How is this not a similar tactic?" I queried.
"If you want sureties, I can offer nothing but my word. That, plus a bit of information given as a good-faith gesture. I am reliably informed that the current plan to defend against your planetary assault is a tripwire battle in the mountains of Titania to bleed you with six regiments, followed by defending a defensive ring around the City of Dadaocheng, which will be made the official capital in an announcement some two days before you arrive from the jump point. They plan to bleed you on Titania before breaking your army on the defenses around Dadaocheng and pushing you off-world with a counterattack. My office has intercepted the orders to the six regiments moving to Titania, including details on positioning." Informed Precentor Hope.
"And you would be willing to give me those details in exchange for a favor in kind, am I correct?" I frowned.
"In this case, simply promise to ensure that no damage befalls the HPG Complex in Dadaocheng City and we will call it even. Let's call it a taste of the fruits of potential future cooperation." Grinned Precentor Hope.
"The first taste is always free, huh?" I muttered under my breath.
"Apologies, I didn't catch that." Responded Precentor Hope.
"This exchange of favors will be ad-hoc. I won't compromise my position or anything simply to trade favors with you." I cautioned.
"That is acceptable, I suppose. I am sure that once you see the benefits of this arrangement, you will change your mind. I will transmit a copy of the intercepted orders to your ship via this same encrypted comms link shortly. May Blake smile on your endeavors here." Nodded Precentor Hope.
Then the comms cut out. As the transmission shifted to read-only and the orders that the Precentor intercepted came through, I couldn't help but wonder if I had just made a deal with the metaphorical devil. An ad-hoc exchange of favors could still go wrong in a few ways, after all. I was sure that Minister Simowitz would be able to explain all the myriad ways I had just fucked up once I got back home to tell him. For now, though, I had a war to win, and this information would help to turn what would have almost certainly been a pyrrhic victory at best into a more concrete win for me. Just to be on the safe side, I authenticated the data as best I could with what Agents Minister Simowitz sent with the Invasion Force. It all checked out as best as we could tell.
I disseminated copies of the intercepted orders to the various Regimental Commanders and we would wind up coming up with a plan for a counter-ambush on Titania over the course of the next three days using the intel. It was a decent plan and it had a decent shot of giving us an unqualified victory against six regiments ambushing us from the mountains of Titania as we attempted to secure the moon. Once that was done, there was nothing left to do but wait the remaining eleven days until we met the enemy in space.
When we did, the fighting wouldn't stop until we had conquered Oberon Six. . .
XXXX
AN: All right, so here we have a bit of skullduggery going on in ComStar. It turns out that the number of precentors in ComStar who are too radically pragmatic even for Primus Tiepolo's moderates is small but non-zero. Mostly, they're found in places where they have little if any chance for advancement, like be scant handful of B-class HPGs in the Periphery. Otherwise, they're good enough at faking it to skate by on worlds deemed less important but still within the Inner Sphere.
Jozef just happened to luck out in finding one here, although Damian Hope isn't exactly a firm ally. Mostly, he intends to use the ad-hoc exchange of favors to help him accomplish enough of ComStar's secondary goals to convince the First Circuit that there's another way of doing things that isn't so pointlessly antagonistic. He hopes that in doing so, he can finally get back on track to advance further up the chain of command.
Mind you, that's pretty much a pipe dream given the current factions at the top of ComStar, but he's going to try. It's more likely that Primus Tiepolo orders him to use his favors as a lever to control Jozef. That won't go over well. That, however, is in the future. For now, we have an invasion to go through.
The next chapter will involve the fleet clash above Oberon Six.
Stay tuned. . .
Comments
Grey Heart
Awesome chapter, can't wait for more.
