DMHWPG8

Chapter 8

Dead Man's Hand: What Price Glory

Cambridgeshire Forest
Port Arthur, Clan Smoke Jaguar Occupation Zone
June 9th, 3059

---

Calvin felt at least one of his ribs crack, if not outright break, as his Commando rolled down an embankment, bouncing of several trees that looked like they'd have given an Atlas pause for thought, before coming to an undignified stop at the bottom. The coppery tang of blood filled his mouth, and he almost absentmindedly spat out a tooth as he examined his secondary monitor: the armor on the rear of his 'Mech was very much relegated to the past-tense, and his left arm, and the medium laser it housed, was held on by a strands of myomer cable. On the plus side, there were no apparent signs of internal damage... something that was very much likely to change in the near future if his threat detector was to be believed.

Commando

Using the still operational right arm for balance, he was able to get the Commando back to its feet before the trees around him exploded in a shower of smoke and splintered wood as a long, roaring blast from an LB 10-X autocannon tore into them. They were too sturdy to disintegrate under the onslaught, but that didn't stop massive gouges being torn out of them.

Spinning round, he pointed his 'Mech back up the hill in the direction of the incoming fire, and was rewarded with the pulsing tone of a partial lock. Knowing that the Streak-SRM launchers wouldn't fire without a lock, he timed his pull of the trigger carefully, and was rewarded with the sight of a half-dozen heavy, stubby missiles roaring through the trees on trails of smoke and flame. Calvin didn't wait to see if he'd actually hit anything, but insisted took off as fast as his damaged 'Mech would allow, stepping between the massive trees as deftly as he could, even as a flight of LRM' s did their best to turn them into kindling around him.

Lt. Basu had made it all sound so easy back at the Mercenaries DropShip, using the captured Puma and Prime Mover as cover. They'd approach a Smoke Jaguar field base, capture it, and grab two of the BattleMechs being serviced there. Then so Twitch and Boomer could join them as they made their way to link back up with the rest of the First Davion Guards. Then they'd kick the Jaguars off of Port Arthur, and it would be medals and glory all round!

Puma Light OmniMech

Unfortunately, as is often quoted, no plan survives first contact with the enemy.

What they had thought was a minor depot supporting garrison and solahma troops, had turned out to be in the middle of refitting an entire Star of crack, front line Mechwarriors. They'd easily seen through the ruse, blasting the defenseless Prime Mover and everyone in it to hell, before turning in the two BattleMechs. There may only have been two Jaguar 'Mechs operational, but they were a Thor and a Vulture, either one of which out-weighed and out-gunned the two attackers. The Vulture hand singled out Lt Basu's Puma, leaving the Thor to hunt down Calvin and his Commando. True, over open ground, he had a slight speed advantage, but leaving the confines of the forest would be tantamount to suicide, as it was only the massive, closely packed trees that were stopping the Thor from crushing him like an empty beer can. They also prevented the Clan pilot from using their jump-jets to outflank Calvin, which was all the more reason to stay within the tree-lined.

Vulture Heavy OmniMech

Unfortunately, the Jaguar pilot also knew this, and was doing everything they could to maneuver Calvin out into the open, where their superior long-range firepower would be most effective.

Cursing under his breath, Calvin turned to make his last stand, determined to make his opponent pay for it.

"Fumbles," a voice called out over an open frequency, "pull your bloody socks up!"

Instinctively, Calvin dropped his Commando as low as he could, just as the Jaguar Thor stepped out from between two trees. It was instantly his by a massive barrage of LB 10-X autocannon fire, its broad chest seeming to almost ripple as the armor was sandblasted away. The larger machine stumbled backwards, the pilot obviously surprised by the savage and unexpected attack. Looking at his secondary screen, Calvin saw the unmistakable shapes of a Shadow Hawk and a Wolverine half hidden amongst the trees, the Aces-over-Eights insignia of Dead Man's Hand clearly visible on the latter's chest.

Shadow Hawk

Not out of the fight, the Thor responded with a beam of man-made lightning from its particle cannon, clipping the Shadow Hawks left shoulder, shattering the armor plate but doing no damage to the structure below. The two lighter 'Mechs responded with a second burst from their autocannons, adding their SRM's and medium lasers to the mix.

Thor Heavy OmniMech firing it's ER PPC

"Fumbles, get the hell out of there, now!" the voice added, Calvin recognizing it as belonging to Scilicorn.

Not needing to be told twice, he rabbited to his left. Taking what cover he could, leaving the better armed and armored mercenaries to deal with the Thor.

---

Previous Chapter - Return to Story Index - Next Chapter