Act 3 - Depression[]
With A Bared Sword[]
Chapter 49[]
<<Previous Chapter - Return to Story Index - Next Chapter>>
The Triad, Tharkad
Donegal March, Federated Commonwealth
9 February 3058
Victor rose to greet Phelan Kell as the Khan of half of Clan Wolf entered his office. “Phelan, how’s your father?”
“He is adjusting well to the new arm. Losing mom…” His cousin shook his head. “Not so much.” They reached out, Victor going for a handshake but Phelan turned it into a clasp of forearms.
“Good job on Morges,” the Archon-Prince said. “Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to have taken the wind out of the Jade Falcon sails.”
IlKhan Kerensky had instructed Phelan to bring the more warden-leaning members of Clan Wolf's touman into the Inner Sphere, safe from retribution from the Jade Falcons. His message, delivered as they crossed into the Inner Sphere, made it clear that their leader did not expect to survive his attack on Wotan. In what might have been his last act as the ilKhan, Kerensky had created the Kell bloodname for Phelan - perhaps the greatest honor that the Clans had among their rank. It was a burden Victor's cousin was clearly still coming to terms with.
“I am not sure how they have the warriors or equipment to make another attack,” Phelan admitted. He sat down on the couch and crossed his legs. “We beat them on Morges but it will be months before I would want to take my warriors into that sort of campaign. Which means I cannot help you out with them at the moment.”
“Our belief is that they absorbed Clan Wolf into their ranks, or at least all the survivors in the forces Ulric and Natasha were leading.”
The Khan’s eyes narrowed. “No, that is not it. Or rather… they did, but then they turned them loose again.”
Victor gave him a curious look. “Go on?”
“It’s complicated. Summing it up, the Jade Falcons did declare absorption of the Wolves, but either because of internal frictions with the Wolves or between their Khans they carved them off as the ‘Jade Wolves’. Then the Wolves dropped the first part of that. Technically they’re a new Clan, but basically it’s back to the old Clan but without the Wardens. Our information is that they’ll need to take time to rebuild and I can’t see how the Falcons are better off.”
“We’ve seen at least three Galaxy designations that we haven’t before,” the Archon-Prince told him. “It could be the result of reorganization, or new forces from their homeworlds. They’re showing off a lot new ‘mechs we haven’t seen before.”
Phelan’s brow furrowed. “I wish I could help more.”
“I doubt this will be our last campaign against the Clans,” he replied.
In the long run, the technicians Phelan had brought might be more important. Right now there were teams from Tharkad, Hesperus II and - ironically - Coventry - helping the Wolves set up the factories they had brought in order to support rebuilding their forces. But once that was over they would be taking what they had learned of Clan technology back to the factories they worked with. He’d have wanted NAIS participation, but that was obviously going to be a problem.
“Speaking of other campaigns,” he added, “Let’s talk Conal Ward.”
Phelan paled. “Shit.”
“Yeah, I appreciate Dan Allard keeping it quiet until I could call you on that myself.” Victor leant forwards. “Why did you delete that data?”
The Khan stiffened. “It had to be kept secret. Conal could have won a Trial and even if he lost he would have been a martyr to the Crusaders. I killed him myself, but no one could know or the Truce would have collapsed there and then.”
“We were supposed to be working together!”
“What would you have done, demanded that Ulric turn him over to you?”
Victor shook his head. “I already had to give up on hunting down the Red Corsair myself. I understand that he couldn’t have done that.” He steepled his fingers. “No, I would have asked for something much like what you did: to clean up your own mess.”
“Hey, you got Ryan Steiner. I should get something!”
He glared at the attempted humor. “Yes. I did get Ryan. And Richard, and Robert. And I may have burned some bridges with Ilse Aten by sending her sister Hermione join them at the gallows. I’m not sure where she’s going to stand politically. The point isn’t that you dealt with Conal and I didn’t, the point was you lying to me about it!”
The defiance bled out of his cousin and for a moment, Victor saw himself in the Kell. He’d inherited Clan Wolf from Ulric and Natasha, much as he himself had inherited the Federated Commonwealth. And he too had lost half of his people.
“Don’t do that again, Phelan,” Victor told him, easing his tone. “I’ve made my own mistakes. It’s important we both learn from them.”
Phelan nodded, not meeting his eyes. “Alright.”
“Look at me when you say that.”
The Wolf - and he was a Wolf now, not a Kell Hound or a Lyran - snapped his gaze up and their eyes met. For a long moment the cousins exchanged glares and Phelan was the first to break away.
“Alright,” Victor agreed. “I believe you.”
“Do you mind telling me what’s happening with Katie?” the other man asked, trying to change the subject.
Victor accepted that. “Turns out, she’s been signing her letters as Kate since her first year at NAIS.”
He got a bemused look from Phelan. “That was ten years ago, Victor. Granted, she’s always going to be little Katie who hated getting her dress dirty, but I’d have thought you’d have noticed.”
“You know how you always skim the last bits of a letter because it’s just the usual goodbyes and you know that already? It’s not like she talks about herself in third person on videos or in person.” Also he’d kind of tuned out the ‘in addition, you should come to New Avalon’ that had featured in just about every message she sent him. That was what he’d been reviewing the letters for - noticing she signed them had been an unexpected byproduct of that re-read.
Phelan shook her head. “Caitlin would have kicked my ass if I called her something else. Katie... Kate is too easy on you. Anyway, what is going on with New Avalon?”
“Currently, the High Council is looking for its head.”
“Have they checked their ******?” Phelan shook his head. “Do you think the Federated Commonwealth will survive? Can you even regain the throne?”
“I might win the throne back in a civil war, but I’d lose a lot in doing so,” Victor leant back in his chair. “In theory they can vote me back in - log this as some sort of extreme protest. It would be contingent, explicitly or implicitly, in my going to New Avalon.”
“And would that cost you the Archon’s throne?”
He snorted. “I’ve spoken to the Speaker of the Assembly, and laid the groundwork. It would mean not taking command on Coventry, but keeping New Avalon would be worth it.”
“Who would replace you on Coventry then? Morgan Hasek-Davion?”
“No, I’d take him with me. I was thinking I’d re-activate your father’s commission.”
Phelan scowled at him. “I’m not sure that’s the best idea.”
“We lose too many good officers to the merc trade,” Victor told him. “There are times I think I’d be better firing everyone at Mount Asgard and replacing them with a half-dozen mercenary commanders. Your father isn’t the only mercenary officer I’ve been reaching out to. We need new blood at the top, something to change the culture of our officers.”
“I wish I could say you were wrong,” Phelan conceded. “What would he be leading?”
“Twelfth Donegal Guards and Tenth Lyran Guards are on their way. The Kathil Uhlans will be on the next collars available. Besides that, there are mercs moving. Gray Death Legion, Second Kearny Highlanders… First Kell Hounds.”
“Against three galaxies, that may not be enough,” warned his cousin.
“We are looking at moving in some more RCTs,” Victor admitted. “It may be more than three galaxies, that’s just what we’ve seen so far. I can’t be sure they don’t have more in their quiver given we didn’t think they could do this much.”