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Family Feud
A possible future story for Battletech
by Lerxst |
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"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" asked Curatis.
"It has to be done. After what she tried...it has to end here."
"It could turn out to be a political nightmare for you. If you were to be linked with this...after you take the throne there could be uprisings. Dissent in the populace. The same kind of thing you suffered after Ryan's death."
"I told you once before, I'm not going to take the throne. Yvonne will. Hopefully that will kill the image of me being a power-mad dictator."
"Yvonne failed you once before you know."
"She won't this time. I'm here, and I don't plan on leaving for a while. I can help her behind the scenes. We've thought this one through, moreso than Solaris."
"Alright." Intelligence Secretariat agent Curatis paused for a moment as a voice entered his ear through the earpiece common to all spies and bodyguards virtually since their invention. "Sir, he's here."
"Send him up, and let's get this over with."
After a moment, the assassin, flanked by more Davion agents, stepped from the elevator onto the rooftop of a nearly-completed Tharkad apartment building. Curatis had arranged for the building to be vacated for the day. How exactly he had accomplished it, Victor Davion did not know. But the half-dozen conspirators were the only people on or near the high-rise.
The assassin gazed upon both Victor and Curatis before he spoke. "I need a rifle."
"He doesn't waste time, does he Curatis? Show him what your men brought."
Franceska Jenkins stepped out from behind the assassin and placed a rifle case on a makeshift table, set up by the construction crew for their lunch breaks. She popped the latches and opened the case.
"Loftgren Supreme One-fifty, modified. Found in room 807 of the Armored Fist Hotel on Solaris, along with the bodies of agents Joanna Mitchell and Kevin Warner," Curatis said.
If Curatis was looking for a reaction, he found none on the face of the assassin. The Dancing Joker walked over to the table and pulled the rifle out of the styrofoam.
Before anyone else could speak, Victor added, "Same model rifle as the one used in the attempt on Omi Kurita's life two months ago." Victor felt his anger roiling up.
He and Omi had been giving a speech at the opening ceremony of a new Combine children's hospital. A reflection of light off of the scope lens had first warned Captain Tiaret Nevversan of the presence of a shooter. She had tackled the pair, practically crushing them just as the assassin's bullet left the gun's barrel destined for Omi Kurita's skull. Instead, it had slammed into a cement flower pot. After missing his once chance, the assassin had wisely left the gun and fled the scene on foot. A legendary chase had ensued, with Nevversan leading the pack of ROM agents. The Joker had encountered neither ROM nor Clan Elementals in his career. The second to last mistake he made in his life was to underestimate both of them. Though the female Elemental looked like she was built to stop a Gauss slug with her torso, she was incredibly agile and a quick runner. She had been the one to take him down.
And now, once more, the Dancing Joker served Victor Steiner-Davion.
"The bullet could be traced...." mentioned the assassin.
"They won't find the bullet," replied agent Curatis. "We have insiders."
The assassin shrugged and began to prep the rifle. "So how do you plan on telling the Inner Sphere that your sister committed suicide Precentor Martial?"
"Interesting conclusion."
"The logical one. Suicide removes the blame from everyone. You, Davion loyalists, mad gunmen....disgruntled assassins."
Victor smiled only slightly. "Tomorrow morning, all the Inner Sphere news agencies will broadcast evidence linking her to the death of my mother. I've got plenty, and it will stand up in any court of the Inner Sphere or the Clans. She got wind of it, and decided to take her own life, rather than face a life in prison or lynching by an angry mob of Lyrans. Or even Davion loyalists."
The assassin slipped his arm through the strap that would help steady the rifle. "Creative, your Archonship."
"I don't plan on taking the throne again. Not now. If I learned something from this mess, it's that I might be better off sticking with BattleMechs rather than politicians."
"I'm not sure. You've got the hang of the draconian politics."
"Maybe, but I don't see any other option for dealing with her. I'm not happy with the solution, but it does remove a dangerous and volatile person from everyone's life. Her attack on Omi was the final straw." Victor clenched his jaw.
The assassin popped the lens caps off the gun scope and set the barrel on a convenient window frame. He found Katrina's office window and rested the crosshairs on her head.
"Care to say goodbye first, Precentor?"
"I've nothing to say to her. Except maybe that I'm sorry. I'm sorry it had to come to this. I don't know why she did what she did. I just wish things could have been different. But if it's kill or be killed, I'm planning on living for quite a while."
The assassin smiled as he felt the eyes of the Secretariats burn into his back. "I'm not really used to working with an audience."
Curatis' ice blue eyes hardened. "We learn from previous mistakes."
Cringing inwardly, the Dancing Joker steadied the gun and put his finger on the trigger. Exhaling audibly, the assassin tightened his trigger finger, just as Victor Davion turned his back on his sister's office.
A split second later the Joker muttered, "It is done."
Curatis met Victor's eyes. He then turned to one of the Secretariat agents and nodded slightly.
The final mistake the Dancing Joker ever made was underestimating Victor Ian Steiner-Davion. Before he could turn around, the Davion agent had placed the barrel of a needler to the assassin's right temple and squeezed the trigger. Victor cringed slightly and sighed as the agent placed the needler in the Joker's right hand, taking care to get the Joker's fingerprints on the grip and trigger.
"It's over Curatis," said Victor Davion.
Gathering all the evidence that might implicate them, Victor and his men walked into the elevator, leaving two fresh corpses on Tharkad. |
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