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Operation Overlord II
Massive fanfiction about the retaking of Terra from the WoB
by Collective of Authors |
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Kavangh's Kommando Barracks, Outreach 14 April 3058, 0102h TST
The drive back to the Barracks from downtown Harlech was a worrisome, yet uneventful, endeavor. Since both the mercenaries were engaged in watching for anything suspicious, and Rolf - being the bohemian - didn't know how to drive, Jill was conscripted to the task. And despite Olly's assurances, she was not comfortable with it. "Now there's no reason to expect anything bad to happen," he said, contradicting everything he had said and done before, "so I want you to drive in a relaxed, calm manner - no need to speed or run lights, but you don't have to dawdle or hold up traffic either. Just drive as if you were on your way to rounds."
This was all very fine to say, but when she was going to the hospital she didn't have the possibility of armed abduction in the back of her mind. Jill tried to relax as best she could - she had seen too many drivers with other things on their minds come into the ER and eventually her surgical care - but self-doubt attacked her habits: Am I driving too slow; oh, shit did I just speed up too conspicuously? Should I signal my turns and give whoever's following us plenty of lead-time, but will I attract a constable if I don't?
Following Kavanagh's directions, she managed to convey them to the Kommando's compound outside the suburbs without incident. Once they pulled to a stop in the vehicle lot, everyone else got out - Jill just sat there shivering. Olly stopped a few feet from the car, and over his shoulder, said "Nice work, Ms. Samson; wanna take our shilling as a driver?" This broke her spell, and - wiping her hands on her slacks - Jill followed the others to the building.
* * * *
Kavanagh confronted the guard at the Admin Offices' door: "Right, soldier; what does Lt. Umbutu want?"
"Sorry sir, the XO sent for you."
"Steve? He went off-duty a hour ago..."
"It's something important, sir. He came in yelling orders just after midnight; he's in the conference Room with Leutenants Umbutu, Rogers, O'Neil, and LeBlanc; Mr. Sevrensen and Mr. Fujiwara as well, sir."
"Tam? He called us back from our night-off to talk to the accountant?" Olly started to show impatience.
"He DID say it was important, sir." The guard added conspiratorially "And you know what Olt. Coleman is like when he wants his way, sir."
Kavanagh sighed, "Yes, he just doesn't give up. Sorry for getting angry, Johnson."
At that point, a tall African woman in civvies passed the party's sight at the end of the hall. "Gertrude!" Olly called out. "Would you be so kind as to escort these two people to the Officer's Mess and see that they are comfortable? Don't worry, folks; this shouldn't take too long."
Gertrude Umbutu, wife of the Air Lance's commander, chief medtech and unofficial 'matron' of the Kommando, grinned and beckoned to the civilians.
"Come, I've just put a pot of my special coffee on - we'll wait for our companions to finish 'playing soldiers' and talk!"
Olly smiled at the barb, and turned to his subordinate. "Right, let's go see what's so important to warrant an uncoded 'Return To Base' call."
* * * *
Kommando Conference Room 14 April 3058, 0110h TST
As last two members of the unit's officer cadre entered the office, the Commander called out "Right, Neslon; what's the meaning of this?" The Aerojock looked up with worry creasing his ebon features.
Coleman stepped forward, "I'm sorry, sir, but I was the one who called you here."
"I'm already aware of that, Oberleutnant, but I'd like to make sure the duty officer has been doing his job in keeping informed about events on and around this base."
Lt. Umbutu stammered "But sir, he never told me - I tried to ask - but he wouldn't..."
"That's all right, Neslon; I'm beginning to see 'our bulldog' has been up to his old tricks, despite the possibility of his Commander being fully entitled to discharge him for mutiny," Olly growled as he turned to face his Executive Officer.
"Mutiny, sir?" Olt. Coleman frowned as he glanced at his diminutive superior. "I only requested Comms to call you and Lt. Nag-"
"You disobeyed several standing orders about base protocol!" Kavanagh snapped. "You refused to explain your intentions to the Duty Officer who, regardless of seniority, is the one person fully responsible for every man, woman and child on this compound! I should have you booted straight out of the unit with no pension!!" Olly was grinning, but everyone knew there was nothing amusing about this affair.
"But sir-"
"SHUT UP! I haven't finished - so you took it upon yourself to drag Nagashi and myself back here with only the briefest of messages, only for us to see there is no threat to the well-being of this camp and its inhabitants!"
"But Hauptmann, I didn't mean there was any urgency..."
"Then why be so taciturn? How am I _supposed_ to react to such a short signal? You KNOW I'm more paranoid than a long-tailed cat in a rocking-chair factory?" Ollwyn softened his expression, and everyone relaxed as they saw that his tirade was abating. He moved to a filing cabinet, declaring "So maybe you'd like to tell us all what is so important that you summon the Commanding Officer back from the first enjoyable evening he's had in months...before I find the relevant Discharge Forms?" A note of humour bellied the content of Olly's speech.
Steve sighed, "Sorry Olly, but I've got something here that you will definitely be interested in. I was examining the Company's accounts..."
"Ah yes, this would explain the sudden inclusion of Mr. Fujiwara in our staff meeting - it looks like you hauled him from his bed straight here Steve, and we all know how likely 'Tam' is to commit seppuku if he doesn't get enough sleep." Kavanagh turned and took his seat amongst the ripple of laughter.
"As I was saying, Tam and I were investigating an accounting irregularity relating to the fiscal stability of this mercenary unit."
All smiles in the room disappeared - everyone there remembered 'the Suzano Incident'.
After a tense pause, the Hauptmann croaked "Well, Steve, how far in the hole are we?"
"Not at all, sir - Tam had discovered an inexplicable SURPLUS of funds, not a deficit."
Anger slowly flared in Olly's eyes. "Surplus? You mean someone's laundering through MY company..."
"No, sir - that wasn't it either; the cash STAYS here. After we eliminated that possibility, Tametomo-san took his leave. I continued at this, even going to the old files, and found this." Coleman lifted the lockbox from his seat, carried it across the room and placed it in front of Ollwyn.
"So?!?" Malice had left Olly's face, only for consternation to fill the vacancy.
"Open it and see for yourself."
Kavanagh did so, and was confronted by a folded paper with the distinctive oval-and-swallow's-tail logo of the Inner Sphere's communication organization.
"ComStar." The rest of the officers crowded around to see.
"That, sir, is a contract between Kavanagh's Killers and ComStar for an engagement of indefinite duration."
"WHAT?!? I never - oh 'Killers'."
"Yessir - your father signed a contract with a Precentor Ramirez for Kavanagh's Killers to remain 'on retainer' for a certain contingency, that of-"
"Hold it, Coleman!" Olly turned to the only man not standing around his chair. "Mr. Sevrensen; how's the plumbing?"
"Tight as a drum, sir - we're not losing water anywhere," the small man sitting in shadow replied.
"Right, you can continue Steve; it's time we told them anyway."
"What? Oh, right sir..." Coleman's voice trailed away as he realized what he nearly did.
"It's all right XO, anyone would've been just as excited discovering what you did."
The giant's features implied that he disagreed. "Whatever sir; anyway - you should all know that the unit has been engaged for the last eight years to help with a ComStar military operation for the retaking of Terra."
Discipline went by the board as the assembled officers expressed their disbelief. "What?!?" "Bullshit!" "You gotta be KIDDING!"
Ollwyn silenced the 'discussion' and asked: "Hold on here; you said EIGHT YEARS - the WoBs haven't had Earth that long, let alone Col.Rolyat's offer..."
"Exactly. Matt Kavanagh signed a contract as a contingency plan- apparently ComStar has had this plan in place for a LONG time, and one of the previous units engaged ceased to exist eight years ago. We were approached to 'fill the gap'."
Oberleutnant Harry Rogers - a swarthy Tamar native - spoke up. "Who's this Precentor Ramirez; I've never heard of him."
The man in the shadows replied. "You wouldn't have. No one by the name of 'Ramirez' has ever officially held the title of Precentor. But then his branch of ComStar doesn't officially exist either..."
The unit's accountant coloured. "ROM?!? I ain't dealing with those bastards - they're worse than the ISF! And didn't they go over with the Blakists?"
"Not all of them - I've been in contact with some small elements still aligned to Focht, and they tacitly confirmed this document."
Coleman stared in disbelief. "What, _already_? I only found it about an hour ago and I never showed it to ANYONE!"
The 'scout' sitting opposite him merely smiled.
"ANYway, I think I'd better fill the rest of this story in myself," the CO exclaimed. "Almost a month ago, I was contacted through encrypted email by a Colonel Trebor Rolyat, commander of the Phoenix Lancers; another mercenary force under contract to C-star for this operation. He sounded me out about taking part in a re-taking of Terra. Presumably he figured I knew of this document - he must have been puzzled at my indecision.
"Before any of you voice concerns over our small band's capability of defeating a horde of 'WoBblies', remember that the Blakists' forces are very factionalized, that their hold on Terra is hardly stable, and a siege is still going on to this day. Also be aware that we won't be operating alone; the Lancers are a Divisional force, as are the Iron Jackals and the Spartan Legion. There are other smaller units like ours that will be used for special tasks. Oh, and the FRR has granted the use of a Marine Corps Regiment for 'Operation Overlord II'."
"Ha - they're just Comguards' puppets," Leutnant LeBlanc, the opinionated commander of Golf Platoon's 'Shadows' snapped.
"I dunno, Frankie - if the Clans had decided to settle down upspin of the Sphere, there'd probably be a few who'd say the same of your Outworlders when the ComGuards would have stopped them at the Battle for Alpheratz," Olly retorted.
LeBlanc remained silent.
"That's more like it - now this is the primary reason I've taken on all you ground-pounders, and why I nearly bankrupted us over the inception of the 'Shadows' - the Lancers and all them need LZ clearance, and that will require defense facility suppression..."
"...and yu wan' us to be the ones to 'spike da guns' for yu," the Gaelic lilt of Lt. O'Neil's voice flowed across the table.
"Spot on, Mary - that's also why I had one sneak suit custom-fitted for you!" Olly bantered back, referring to "Mighty Mary"'s 5'11", 200lb. build.
More laughter arose from the assembled mercenaries, and Lt. Nagashi leaned forward. "Fine, but what about the rest of us - the Mechjocks?"
"Ah, that's still a little more fluid - we're to join the Lancers' Scout Battalion for Relief Operations."
"Relief? Aw, I wanna be in the front; stompin' on those WoBblies!" Steve Coleman whined.
"Come on now, Steve; not everyone gets 'to ride shotgun', and the battlefield is gonna be VERY chaotic - Rolyat's gonna need every supply and medical column escorted. Especially since we can't trust the Blakist bastards to hold with the Ares Conventions..."
The room became distinctly colder as the officers remembered the actions of their opponents on Abadan.
"Um, Sir? What ARE our RoEs, anyway?"
"Well, the Lancers are a very chivalrous unit - they adhere to Ares, and the 'Laws of War' - but they're rather Old Testament-ish about breaking these rules...you might wanna carry a drumhead in your Mechs in case you catch any of the beasts who participated at Sandhurst or the sights of any other atrocities..."
"'An eye for an eye...'" Kym stated levelly.
"Give that woman a cigar - her date might like one!"
A chorus of inquiring glances focused equally upon Olly and Kym. In an attempt to break his discomfort, Kavanagh concentrated on the rest of the contents of the lock-box in front of him. "ANYWAY, what's on these discs?"
Steve responded, "They're vid-messages to us 'old timers' - the names are on the cases. If you'd like to hand them out - I've already viewed mine waiting for you." Olly did. "The deed is to a plot of land in Old 'Robber's' holdings on Port Moesby - you father's bequest to you, I think. Now ladies and gentlemen: I'll ask you to please adjourn, keeping in mind that these proceedings are still secret - the only real advantage we have against Tommy's fanatics is surprise - and your subordinates and dependents are not to know until we leave for Centaurus in a few days."
"Oh yes, and where would that world be keepin' itself, then?" Mary piped up.
"It belongs to the Lancers - we'll train there and leave our non-coms with their Militia; few JumpPilots know the coordinates, so revenge strikes won't be a problem."
As the officers filed out, Kym stayed behind and beheld her commander. "How long should I make conversation with Jill before I send her in?"
"Huh? Oh, lesse..." Olly popped the disc label with his name into a player. "Um, fifteen minute recording time. Say, twenty minutes - to give me time to straighten myself up after?"
He's was already looking a little sad, she decided. "Okay; later, little one."
* * * *
The screen filled with the head and shoulders of a man in middle-age. His hair was birch-bark gray, thinning and the crown shaven for the then-new balance feedback transmitters. His one good eye was pale blue, and slightly sad; his other eye-socket covered by a cliched-black eyepatch, the scar extending out and up his temple. He was bearded and the facial hair was 'salt-and-pepper'.
"Hello, son." The voice was deep, but starting to quaver with signs of age. "It's August Twenty-Eighth, Thirty-Fifty-Two. We're about to ship out for Main Street to go beat off some pirates, and I've taken to updating my Will to you every time. Ever since you started to work with us, I just haven't felt safe...now don't get me wrong; I don't mean anything against you, it's just that seeing one's offspring excelling in the same field as you makes a man consider his mortality. Right, then let's get that legal shit outta the way first: I, Matt Kavanagh, of Sound Mind and Body, do hereby state that this is my Last Will and Testament...."
"...and this will give you legal ownership of the Killers mercenary company. Finally there's the deed in this case: that's a plot of land Robber's father gave me in apology for accusing me of dicking him around about his nephew's presumed death - that failed Court Martial was called about to find me guilty of failing to give up and return IMMEDIATELY (dontcha love the determination of those DAMN Social Generals?) - but your mother and I never stopped moving long enough to settle it. I've asked Robber to keep an eye on it for you; yes YOU; I'm dead remember?"
Matt's face grinned. "Geez, I've been recording these for a year and I'm still not comfortable talking about my future demise. Ah, well. Now to personal matters: I've noticed you and that Stinger pilot Ellie MacGregor are hitting it off; GOOD, I've to wire the money for your bail when you were 'studying' at Blackjack too many times. I shudder to think how many illegitimate grandchildren I may already have running around. By now you should be blushing - hah, bet you didn't think yer old man knew you that well, did you? Anyway, Ellie: she's a nice girl, not the best of pilots, but that matters little in the affairs of the heart.
"I'll tell you now my son, that the love of a good woman can give you more strength than a PINT of ChemCourage! Your mother......and I loved each other deeply, and though the two of you have only known each other for a couple of months, I hope you kids feel the same way she and I did when we first met... Ah, HELL; now I'm tearing up, and you know how the dye runs out of this eyepatch!" 'Mongoose' raised a shot glass in a toast. "Here's to you, son; may you command this bunch of Killers at least as ably as I have!"
The playback stopped.
Olly was sitting in the chair with his knees drawn up to his chest, his arms hugging them, and his chin resting on them. He rocked slightly back and forth as tears ran down his face. He barely flinched at a hand lightly resting on his shoulder.
"How long were you watching?" Olly addressed the static of the screen in front of him.
"Just after he talked about land, I think," Jill replied. "Olly, who-"
"A mediocre mechjock who got herself splattered across a building while ejecting."
"I'm sorry, is that why you were acting so oddly when I introduced myself?"
"Yeah, I guess - it was my first time out since..." he gasped.
"Here-here, it's gonna be okay," Jill nudged him slightly forward and sat in the chair behind him, pulling his head back onto her shoulder.
"He was killed in combat just over a week later - even though she'd only known me a few months, and been dating a couple of weeks, Ellie consoled me through his loss - it took her another year before we could bring up my dad in the normal conversation. I was so thankful to her; she'd 'patched up my shredded emotions' and made me a whole person. I loved her as deeply as dad hoped. A few years later, the unit was doing well enough I had enough 'mad money' to get her an engagement ring; I proposed to her on Christmas day. And then...then, in May of last year we went after another group of 'pirates' on the Marik world of Abadan - it turned out the planet was resisting WoB rule and so 'the Bloody Knives' started ravaging the people - rape, murder, torture, wholesale destruction of entire settlements. We'd tracked the bastards to some Succession War's ruins. In a pitched battle, one of the 'Knives' managed to destroy the leg of Ellie's Stinger. As the mech pitched forward, she must've accidentally yanked the ejection handle - she was hurled laterally into a ferrocrete wall..."
"Oh, Olly; it's okay, it's okay, it's okay..."
* * * *
Kommando Officer Barracks, Outreach 14 April 3058, 0338h TST
Kym looked at Rolf's recumbent form beside her. His breathing was deep and even. Good, she thought, as she carefully shifted to a sitting position on the bed. She slipped her disc into the player next to her, and donned an earpiece.
She sniffed as Matt's face came onto the screen...
* * * *
Kommando Mess Hall, Outreach 14 April 3058, 0641h TST
A bleary-eyed Kym Nagashi wandered into the empty mess, looking for a coffee pot to turn on. She found one urn recently brewed. She made her way to the sunward windows of the cafeteria, and found Olly sitting in front of one, staring out into the dawn.
"You're up early." She declared, sitting next to him.
"Nope; I'm still up late," he replied.
"My, my, my; who'd have thought it of 'Our Little Paladin'?"
"Goat." he retorted without any malice.
"Prude. So you drove her back?"
"Yeah, she had morning rounds."
"So will we be expecting the enlistment of a Field Surgeon?"
"Naaaaa...we talked about it, but she's got her heart set on hospital work. That and she's still got a month or two before she graduates; by that time, we'll be on our way to Terra."
"You didn't say anything..."
"Relax; as far as she knows, we're shipping out to some Chaos March world to quell dissent; no mention of Op Overlord 2."
"Pity, she's a nice girl."
"Yeah, great conversationalist, but to be honest a real STIFF in bed."
"OLLY!"
"What? 'Just because I still carry a torch for a dead woman, doesn't mean I can't fulfill some baser and more insistent...'"
"Yah, yah, yah - it's just I didn't expect you to, well 'Kiss and Tell'!"
"What; don't you remember what I was like before I met Ellie?"
"Yes, but you were such a changed man during and...er...after..."
"Say it - HER DEATH; Jill managed to talk me through it all; she's already got a degree in Psychology. But anyway, she went past inexperienced all the way to INHIBITED. She was so nervous, it took me all night to-"
"Please Olly; I think I like you better when you were a repressed prude!"
"Looks like the 'randy old goat' isn't so eager to 'trade notes'!"
"But ANYWAY, you're over Ellie?"
" Yeah...I think I might get a little maudlin now and again - no tears, or 'broadcasts', but just wistful, you know?"
Kym hugged her young friend. "Yes, little one; I think I know what that's like."
"Huh; so what'd dad have to say to you..."
"That you were wrong; they both knew."
"WHAT?"
"Yes, surely you didn't think to consider that your 'talent' might be hereditary?"
"But dad never...oh! Aw, geez, Kym; I'm sorry, I hope she wasn't too mean..."
"Not at all; we'd talked it over when Matt took you to Blackjack.We were totally happy with each other when he got back."
"Oh, well good for mom. I always thought she was a reasonable person."
"Yes, you don't know the half of it."
"Hmmm?"
"Reggie had Matt patch a section of a video from her to me before she died."
"Really?"
"Yes, she regretted that she had to leave us so early, but promised to get things set up for the three of us in heaven."
"Aw, that's just like her to be so sweet, you practically have to go brush your tee...hold on here; 'THREE of us'?!?"
Kym just blushed, her olive skin turning muddy brown.
"But you said you never-"
"Careful, I'd said your father and I never..."
"But-but-but-you-she-the two of you-he-" Olly placed his mug on the table to keep from dropping it.
"Never knew a thing until she told him; he took it rather well."
Olly was still pale as the porcelain mug next to him. "Now just hold on here, you and my mother.......is this what a stroke feels like?"
"Well, looks like the repressed prude is back."
"Hardly; I'm not shocked by that; I'm just pissed you three never bothered to tell me!"
"Really? You're not angry at me..."
"Heh; not at all - I just don't like secrets...or surprises!"
"I'm sorry, but I didn't know if they'd tell you, and after they passed on."
"Oh, well - heh! So you're pining after dad, AND being intimate with mom, and though he knows and - apparently - approves of the relationship, neither of you tell him how you felt for him; what a tangled web of secrecy THAT must've been!"
"Well, we didn't meet often; we rarely get the chance..."
"Enough of this! I'm still angry at you for not telling me; at LEAST after her death. I'm gonna go get another cuppa, and when I return, I want the topic of conversation to change!" He smiled, stood and walked off to the kitchen.
Kym sipped her java, listening to the grumbling of "never said a word!", "I would've understood", and "how could they keep that from their own son?" coming from next door.
Olly returned and took his seat. "So what's Rolf's story?"
Kym smiled. "He's the bastard son of Caesar Steiner, apparently. His mother told him fairly early on, but he's never publicly admitted it. He took the name "Rolf Caesarssen" in the FRR, and no one commented, so..."
"So are we gonna see a pottery wheel and lots of clay, plaster and marble in your share of the cargo hold?"
"Maaaaybe; Rolf's having trouble with getting work right now - Rico's is his only source of income..."
"Now don't even THINK about it; what are we gonna do with STATUES? Of you. In the nude, no doubt! If he was a painter, maybe..." Olly joked.
Nagashi playfully struck Olly. "Hey! I -never- posed for him!"
" I doubt you'd have to; after a night like that - I heard the two of you down the hall all night - I'd say your figure is etched in his memory permanently!"
"Randy young goat."
"Repressed old prude." |
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