It took several seconds before Kai counsciously registered what Sun-Tzu had done. The Capellan had not accidentally targeted the BattleMaster. He had selected it most carefully and deliberately. In shooting it, he had guaranteed that all the enemy 'Mechs—a full half-dozen of them—could attack either or both the young Mech Warriors. Having ensured that the battle would become a chaotic fray, he then punched out to leave his hated cousin alone.
Part of Kai wanted to cry out that the test was no longer fair, then thought how the men he had sent against Elementals on Twycross must have cursed him the same way he wanted to curse Sun-Tzu. They had no choice. Neither do you.
That cold truth settled around him like a burdensome cloak, but he took his hopelessness and hatred and wove them into fury. Instead of that hollow feeling at his core, he felt a furnace of emotions. With his mind clear, Kai took up the gauntlet Sun-Tzu had hurled at him.
He again targeted the stricken Blackjack. With help from the BattleMaster, it had begun to regain its feet, but five missiles and the brilliant scarlet beam of Kai's large laser chopped off its right leg at the knee. Meanwhile, the Gauss rifle's silver slug pounded its way through the armor on the 'Mech's left flank and crushed the left side of its torso. The 'Mech twisted in the BattleMaster's grip, then flopped to the ground.
Kai kicked the Daishi into high gear, cutting back to the left. He turned sharply, presenting his back to the Archer. It cut loose with two score LRMs and delivered over half of them on target, blasting armor from the Daishi's head, back, right flank, and right arm. The computer, simulating the damage, threw the gyro out of phase for several seconds, but Kai fought the controls and managed to keep the loping Daishi upright.
Before the Archer could fire again, Kai put a hill between him and the enemy task force. A quick review of the damage to his armor revealed about half the rear armor blown off, but he dismissed that problem almost immediately. If I let anyone into my aft arc, I deserve to die. Damn you, Sun-Tzu. There's got to be something I can do.
Communications. He knew the Dragoons jammed radio broadcasts during the tests, but he wondered if they would lift the jamming now that Kai was alone. He switched his radio over to the tactical frequency the other trainees had used to communicate before the battle. A bone-twisting squeal ripped through the neurohelmet's speakers at first, then died abruptly.
He smiled as he brought the Daishi to the end of a small valley and cut back north toward his enemies. Kai quickly punched up a frequency command for the computer and sent out a standard code. If they're not jamming everything, maybe this will work. He hit the Enter key, then crossed his fingers for luck.
The secondary monitor flashed twice, blanking the outline of the Blackjack, and replacing it with geological survey satellite feed of data from seismic sensors in the area. Kai magnified the image several times until he got an area roughly two kilometers in diameter, centered on himself. He ordered the computer to sort for and pinpoint areas of seismic activity, then set the threshold at .01 on the Richter scale. He laughed out loud when the computer painted six squares on the screen and appended their Richter ratings to them.
He continued to work his way north. As nearly as he could work out from Richter ratings, the BattleMaster and one of Sun's opponents had headed directly out after him. The remaining two of Sun's foes had come in slowly, but they appeared more interested in using Sun's 'Mech as cover against any southwestern approach by Kai than in hunting him. The BattleMaster and its wingman headed west once they passed through the low hills, obviously seeking to drive him north.
The Archer appeared to be moving very little. As a result, its icon kept vanishing from the screen. Kai knew, both from the parting shot that had hit him and the way that warrior waited, that the pilot in that machine was cagey. That worried him because he knew the only way he would survive was by his enemies getting so cocky that they came at him using no strategy at all.
I wish I knew the access codes to some of Wolf's spy satellites. Rather have the feed from those than from this rockhound bird. Kai narrowed his eyes and took one last look at the weather report. "It's now or never," he told himself. "Last stand, part one."
Cutting east, he brought the Daishi up over a ridge line a little more than 250 meters from the Archer and almost twice that from Sun-Tzu's abandoned 'Mech. Standing on either side of it were 'Mechs Kai identified as a Marauder II—the bigger, nastier brother of one of the deadliest BattleMechs ever made—and a Thunderbolt. The Marauder shared the Daishi's hunched frame, and clawlike weapon pods capped its skinny arms. The flight stabilizers marked it as jump-capable, but made it look no more graceful than its companion.
A desperate scheme popped into Kai's brain, and after a nanosecond's study of the primary monitor and its readout on his 'Mech, he decided to take the gamble. Even as the Archer twisted left and launched two missile flights, Kai brought his weapons to bear on the empty husk of Sun-Tzu's Daishi. "You're supposed to be a big killer, well, do it!"
The Archer's missiles hammered the Daishi mercilessly. Red highlights dotted the right flank of his computer outline like spots on a leopard's pelt. The computer informed him of 40 percent reduced armor on his right arm, and a bloody circle showed where missiles had also destroyed armor on the 'Mech's foot. It again threw the gyro out of phase, but Kai wrestled the Daishi upright after a stumble and kept his weapons on their mark.
The missiles from Kai's LRM launcher chipped armor from each flank. The large laser in his right arm melted more of the same on the 'Mech's right side. Having bracketed his true target, Kai corrected his aim by a millimeter for the left crosshairs, got a target lock pulse, then punched the thumb button and uttered a short prayer.
The computer tracked the Gauss rifle's ball straight to and through the blackened hole that used to be the Daishi's cockpit. For a half-second, nothing happened, then the computer calculated the probable result of such a shot. The Daishi's torso plumped as if pregnant, then exploded.
On the computer array, its left arm swung around and hit the Thunderbolt with the Gauss rifle. The rail gun's capacitors detonated, then a subsidiary blast from within the Daishi sprayed the Thunderbolt with shrapnel and Gauss rifle slugs. The Daishi's body, reacting to the force of the explosion on its left side, teetered to the right, colliding with the Marauder.
Kai realized the computers must have cut power to the Marauder's gyros and legs because it went down beneath the Daishi's outline as though if it had been tackled. The Thunderbolt also fell and the computer quickly updated the 'Mech's status, reporting that the armor had been stripped from its right side. Looking closer, Kai saw that the 'Mech's head had been destroyed as far as the computer was concerned.
Acting on pure instinct, he sent the Daishi flying forward in fits and starts. The erratic pattern made the Archer miss with two volleys, yet kept his weapons dead on the tangled wreck of 'Mechs ahead of him. As he closed to less than 100 meters, Kai let the Marauder have a blast from the autocannon, and the computer showed the 'Mech's right leg amputated as a result of the attack.
Glancing at the earthquake display, Kai realized that neither the BattleMaster nor the other 'Mech had any way of knowing what had just happened. The BattleMaster's companion had gotten 200 meters ahead of the larger 'Mech and was racing west, almost parallel with Kai's current position. Cutting south, Kai put a hill between him and the Archer, then raced into battle with the BattleMaster's point man.
A Hoplite! Kai laughed cruelly as he intercepted the barrelchested 'Mech at point-blank range. Built for scouting and support missions, the Hoplite was neither armored nor armed for an extended battle with an Omni like the Daishi. The pilot brought his autocannon to bear. The hail of metal it spat out shredded the armor on Kai's right leg, but failed to even slow him.
In reply, Kai let the Hoplite have everything but a barrage of missiles. The autocannon stripped the armor from its right flank, and the computer reported further internal damage. The Gauss rifle tore armor from the 'Mech's left leg, while the
lasers worked on the right leg and left arm, shaving armor from both.
Sliding across Kai's approach path in a cloud of red dust, the Hoplite hit the ground and sprawled forward. Off to his left, Kai saw the BattleMaster enter the canyon the Hoplite had just traversed. Without a moment's hesitation, Kai dropped the left crosshair onto the BattleMaster's gigantic silhouette and swung his right arm over to drop the laser's crosshairs onto the prone Hoplite.
The large laser's ruby beam lanced into the Hoplite's right breast. On the computer projection, it melted away the Hoplite's skeleton. As one of the trio of pulse lasers added stream after stream of staggered bolts to the area, the computer indicated damage to the Hoplite's engine and gyro. The other two completed the destruction of armor on the Hoplite's right leg.
Kai waited for the BattleMaster to bring its PPC up before he triggered the Gauss rifle. The blue bolt of artificial lightning arced through the canyon and slashed a jagged gash across the Daishi's left thigh armor. The Gauss rifle, in return, smashed into the BattleMaster's left fist, shattering armor and snapping off a finger.
Kai swung his Daishi around to bring all his weapons into line with the BattleMaster, and its pilot suddenly realized that his 'Mech was not well-suited to battle waged at a distance. Kai waited to see if the warrior would quickly reverse course or would resign himself to his fate and carry out a charge.
He charged.
The PPC hit the Daishi again. The blue beam melted a diagonal scar over the barrel of the Gauss rifle, but did no damage to its mechanism. Setting his 'Mech, Kai let the BattleMaster have it with his long-range weaponry.
A grouping of five missiles drilled into the BattleMaster's chest, dropping shards of computer-drawn armor to the ground. The Gauss rifle's ball cored the missiles' fireball. The computer stripped layer after layer of armor from over the BattleMaster's heart, but it showed plenty of armor still protecting the 'Mech's chest.
Missiles and the large laser were more effective on the 'Mech's left arm. The computer showed Kai's assaults had denuded the arm of shielding as the large laser's beam sawed through it. The computer's projection of myomer muscles snapped apart. The arm fell slack, nothing more than dead weight on the BattleMaster's left side.
The assault 'Mech closed to within 100 meters and brought other weapons to bear in addition to its PPC. Kai watched his computer update the outline of the Daishi with new damage and grimly acknowledged the pilot of the BattleMaster as very good. The PPC slashed more armor from the Gauss rifle, but still failed to breach its protection. The four medium lasers, two each mounted in the left and right flanks of the BattleMaster, seared armor from the Daishi's chest and right flank. One scarlet beam cut back across the Daishi's left leg, combining with a PPC scar to mark the limb with an X.
Kai's eyes slitted as he centered his crosshairs on the BattleMaster. I have got to end this now. The gold dot in the center of the crosshairs flashed in fast syncopation with his heartbeat as he triggered all his weapons. The rush of heat vented into the cockpit threatened to overwhelm him, but he held the weapons on target.
Missiles chipped armor from the enemy 'Mech's left flank, left arm, and right leg, while only two of Kai's trio of pulse lasers hit their target. The first left a trail of six smoking holes in the armor over the BattleMaster's midline. The second vaporized the ferro-titanium bones in its left arm, and the computer erased that limb from the 'Mech's outline.
The large laser's bloody beam swept out from the Daishi's right arm muzzle, spearing straight into the BattleMaster's blocky chest. The computer painted a heat glow over the damage to the 'Mech's chest, and Kai smiled. That's damage to the engine. That monster's going to be running hot now.
The autocannon in the left side of the Daishi's chest sent out a stream of depleted-uranium phantom slugs and obliterated what little armor remained on the right arm. The computer showed the PPC disintegrating as the slugs punched through its housing. Myomer muscles parted easily and hung like frayed pieces of rope from the 'Mech's skeleton.
The lights in the cockpit dimmed as the Gauss rifle cut loose. Its sphere hit the BattleMaster in the shoulder socket and ricocheted into its left breast. Medium lasers exploded and their muzzles tipped toward the ground. The computer painted the 'Mech's outline with a series of subsidiary short-range missile explosions that shattered what little of the skeletal structure remained on that flank. In a burst of fire, the computer's image of the boxy SRM launcher on the BattleMaster's shoulder vaulted into the air. The 'Mech's whole left side collapsed, and behind the computer projection, the actual machine crashed to the ground.
"Yes!" Kai slammed his right fist down on the command chair's arm. "Five down and one to go."
An inner voice reminded him, with chilling truth, that cockiness would kill him. He tried to ignore it, to let his emotions override it, but the more he tried to push the thought away, the stronger it became. It's a game now, Kai, but what about when it's real?
Kai snarled and looked at his secondary monitor. The BattleMaster's fall had created enough of a seismic disturbance that the satellite failed to paint the Archer's position until it took the last step into the canyon beyond the BattleMaster. Looking up, Kai spotted its squat form immediately. At just over 200 meters, it stood at its optimum range and flicked open the armored covers over the LRM launch tubes mounted on each shoulder.
Kai flicked a glance at the edge of his combat array, then at his primary monitor. I've taken too much damage to engage it straightaway. If I run ... No, I can't. But if I charge ... As he searched for a solution, the Archer's first two flights scattered missiles all over the Daishi. They blasted its cylindrical chest and right flank, gouging deeper holes into the already pitted armor. A flight of five missiles completed the armor destruction job begun by the BattleMaster on the Gauss rifle, while five others tore sheets of armor flying from the Daishi's left shin.
The computer snapped the gyro out of line for half a second, bringing Kai out of his deliberations. He kept the 'Mech upright, then started it hurling down the canyon at the Archer. Despite the bumpy ride and the leap over the fallen BattleMaster, Kai dropped his crosshairs onto the Archer and triggered only two weapons to keep the heat down.
The LRMs exploded like a string of firecrackers on the Archer's chest, leaving an uneven line of craters on the computer image. More missiles tore at the armor on the 'Mech's left shoulder, but did little more than dent it. The Gauss rifle's projectile slammed into the Archer's right arm, shivering off most of the armor from the computer projection. Yet it failed to do any serious damage.
Kai knew that much damage should have made the computer dephase the gyro, but if it had, the enemy pilot's sure hand on the controls had recovered without noticeable effect. Why did I save the best pilot for last?
The inner voice answered him. Because you knew he would kill you.
Kai ground his teeth. "I'm not dead yet!"
You are. You've just not acknowledged it.
The Archer's missile barrage hammered him. More armor flew from his chest, leaving his right flank open. Missiles blasted into the Gauss rifle, and Kai winced as he saw the weapon disappear. Even worse, he saw the left arm evaporate and damage appear on the oudine of the 'Mech's skeleton.
Fighting the gyro decycle, Kai kept the Daishi rushing in at the Archer. Desperate, he dragged the crosshairs down onto the Archer and fired even before he had a confirmed weapons lock. The autocannon tore chunks of armor from the Archer's leg, but failed to knock the 'Mech down. The trio of pulse lasers hit, with one melting away armor on the Archer's right flank. The other two completed the destruction of the 'Mech's right arm that the Gauss rifle had begun. Myomers parted like smoke as the lasers pulsed into them, leaving the limb hanging like a wet rag and the medium laser a useless collection of lenses.
Kai smiled. "Got him!"
You know that's not nearly enough to stop him.
At closer range, the Archer only became that much more deadly. His missiles tore into the Daishi like
piranha. They chewed away the last bits of armor on the Omni's right arm and took revenge for the loss of the Archer's medium laser by destroying the Daishi's main weapon. More important, the missiles devoured the right leg of Kai's 'Mech, weakening its muscles and skeleton enough that the next bone-jarring footfall snapped the limb like a rotten stick.
Kai's stomach rose to his throat as the computer cut the gyro. He struggled vainly against the controls, trying somehow to manhandle the Omni upright against the forces of gravity. His momentum kept the Daishi moving forward, so that it hit on its chin, bounced once, then slid along the canyon floor.
Sparks flew in the cockpit and Kai's chest ached from being thrown against the command chair's restraining straps. The computer's warning lights told him he could not eject, but that was no cause for panic. If I never get out of here, it'll be too soon. How could I have been so stupid? Charging an Archer. I should have waited. I should have ambushed him somehow.
You failed, Kai. You failed because you stopped to think and because you exulted in your victory. It was the moment you counted yourself a winner that you doomed yourself to defeat.
The voice was right. "When I act, somehow I manage to do the right thing. When I hesitate, when I wait and I over-think a problem, I screw up. This is it. This is the last time."
Kai nodded to himself in the fastness of his cockpit. I've embarrassed myself and my family horribly in this defeat. Never again! I'll die before I let it happen again.
21
Clan Council Chamber, Hall of the Wolves
Strana Mechty, Beyond the Periphery
22 July 3051
Phelan Wolf set his face into a mask as unrevealing as those worn by the people assembled in the small reception room. He wore the snug-fitting gray leather pants and sleeveless jerkin they had given him, with the long cloak thrown back at each shoulder, bunching the wolf-fur that topped his shoulders and the back of the cloak. The silver knife he had received upon acceptance into the Warrior caste was thrust into his boot scabbard.