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The Federated Suns Reborn
- Chapter 224[]
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November 3070
Interlude: Ambition/Annihilation
Gabenstad
Former Rim Worlds Republic
Periphery
Looking around the "spaceport" on which the remnants of Beta, Delta, and Zeta Prime Galaxies's dropships were scattered saKhan Cage had to fight to keep the snarl of her face. Less than a single Galaxy worth of troops had survived the fighting against first the Lyrans and then their caged Wolves. The freebirth traitor Kell had smashed her own Beta Galaxy's 121st Hellion Lancers and the 90th Strike Irregulars on Chapultepec and then moved on and destroyed over half her own unit the 200th Attack Cluster on Hood. Delta Galaxy's 33rd and 53rd Strike Irregulars had met a similar fate to the troops on Chapultepec, while the 2nd Assault Cavaliers and 45th Strike Irregulars could between them perhaps form a single cluster after their mauling on Winter. The freebirths of Zeta Prime Galaxy had fared little better on Jesenice where the 176th Attack Cluster had been wiped out or taken as bondsmen.
Sellen Cage knew that as soon as word reached the Homeworlds of her losses, Khan Taney would order a Trial of Annihilation against her. That is if her own troops didn't kill her in a Trial of Grievance or Position first. Worse however, with the effective destruction of two thirds of her Clan's front line forces might follow her into death. The Steel Vipers or Star Adders would gladly pounce on a fatally weakened Clan Ice Hellion and absorb what little remained of it's strength.
Despite knowing that her death was almost certainly a forgone conclusion, the saKhan began to plan for the reorganization of her forces. The survivors of the 2nd Assault Cavaliers would be split between her own 200th Attack Cluster and the 45th Strike Irregulars to bring them to at least a combat effective level. Along with the best of the 175th Attack Cluster and 52nd Hector Cavaliers warriors. Much as it pained her to allow more freebirths into Beta Galaxy the simple fact was that if she wanted to have even a marginally effective front line Galaxy she needed them. Between the transfers and disbanding of the 2nd Assault Cavaliers she could at least have two almost full strength Clusters within Beta Galaxy, at the cost of totally disbanding Delta. Combined with the two remaining Clusters in Zeta Prime, she would at least have a force that could still fight. For now however the "defense" of their single remaining conquest, if you could call the annexation of a subsistence farm world which had fallen of the maps a conquest, was in the hands of the CIH Cold Hunter, her single remaining warship.
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Lola III Class Destroyer, CIH Cold Hunter
Somewhere within her, the saKhan could hear the voice of her ambition to be included within the Invasion over any loyalty to a single Clan. The whisper that she could avoid her Annihilation if she were to lead her warriors back into the Inner Sphere and launch a Trial of Position for a place within either the Wolves, Falcons or Bears... She couldn't help but think that the Wolves in particular would welcome even two under strength Galaxies of warriors given their strained position... But doing that would certainly doom the remaining Ice Hellions in the Homeworlds...