Chapter One Hundred and Seventy-Nine: Invasion of Alpheratz (Trial of Patience)
March 25th, 3036
"You're sure that you're okay with playing bait?" Ran Felsner asked David Hull-Kerensky. "Because we can find someone else if we need to."
David turned and looked at the Ducal Guard members that had shown up a couple of weeks ago with a letter from his father. "I think I'll be just fine, sir, we can run distraction for as long as you need us to."
"I'll be joining him as well," Elsa spoke up. "I will not allow David to expose himself like that without me there to back him up."
"We only need you to hold their attention for a couple of hours," Felsner continued his briefing. "That's how long it should take for us to move everyone into position for what we have planned."
"We'll either distract them for the amount of time necessary or we will kill them," a gravelly voice with an old Northwind accent spoke up. "Major MacIntosh," the man introduced himself. "I've heard some good things about you, Field Marshal. Now let's see if you measure up to them or not."
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"It's an open field with limited forests to use for cover," David muttered to himself as he moved his Crockett in formation with the seven other Mechs. "We're going to have to make every single shot count."
"We've got you covered," MacIntosh spoke up. "Just make sure you connect your shots and we'll take care of the rest."
"I can pull some of my weight," David replied. "But I know I'm standing on the backs of giants, and I hope that one day I can stand on my own."
"Well, we'll just have to wait and see about that," Macintosh grinned as his Highlander moved to take point. "But first, let's take out this scum that believes they are worthy of honor."
The trio of 'mechs painted in olive drab with the Black Watch Tartan began to pull away from the rest of the small unit, supported by two of Natasha's Marauders.
"You asked for a duel, and you have yet to appear! Where are you, Joshua Wolf?!" David taunted on open comms, playing up the bloodthirst and youth to drag the charade out for longer. "You are no soldier, but a scavenger, and a coward."
"Fine words from the son of a man who loots everything down to the bedrock when he leaves a planet," Joshua Wolf's smug voice responded. "It's not as if you've done anything but contribute to the state of war in the Inner Sphere. You and your father, you're a plague upon the galaxy, and I am the cleansing fire."
"A touch dramatic aren't ye?" MacIntosh spoke up as his Highlander moved effortlessly through the trees and undergrowth surrounding the clearing. "I'm afraid that yer opponent is ganna be mae."
"Major," Elsa sent a message on laser comms to the Black Watch Major. "Your accent is coming through a touch strong."
"Come face me and die," the three warriors of the Black Watch stood facing the twelve mechs of the Wolf's Dragoons.
"You think three mechs and their pilots can stop me?" Joshua scoffed. "I have with me eleven elite mechwarriors equipped with the best gear in the Inner Sphere, and you think that a mere eight or nine of you can stop us?"
"Stop ye?" MacIntosh leaned into his accent. "Nay, I intend to kill you. And to leave you broken and scattered across the field of battle."
"You may try," Joshua countered as his Black Knight walked over a slight hill and into view. "You may try."
Major Macintosh had decided that the time for talking was over, and instead spoke up with his Highlander's weapons, his first gauss round impacted Joshua Wolf's, Black Knight and sent it reeling back.
"Field Marshal, we are in position and ready to launch when you give the command."
"Begin operations," Field Marshal Ran Felsner ordered. "Let's get this over with."
"Copy that sir, beginning the descent now."
"Make sure to take Kristofur alive," Felsner ordered. "He has information that we can use, anyone else that isn't an HVT I want to be terminated."
"Romeo-Foxtrot copies, we're on task now."
"Godspeed," Felsner turned to his comms officer and gestured for her to change it over to the next channel. "Carter, you got your dropships in position?"
"We're ready to drop, Field Marshal," Carter's voice came over the comms systems. "Our Stings are a little over-encumbered, but we're about to fix that."
"If you can hold out for another fifteen minutes or so it'll be the opportune moment," Felsner replied.
"We can hold, but I wouldn't say that our dropship personnel will be happy with me later," Carter replied with sarcasm rich in her tone.
"Well, I'll foot the repair bill should it come to that," Felsner smiled at her words. "Just get your people ready to drop."
"We have a go," Captain Price, a member of MI6 along with the rest of Task Force 141 dropped down from low orbit. "The Field Marshal wants the leader of the Word of Blake captured and brought back to New Avalon in chains, and we're going to bring Vesar Kristofure back to First Prince Hanse Davion exactly as ordered."
"Hooah!" The rest of the Task Force responded.
The two companies of Infantry dropped quietly onto the roof of the HPG complex. What had once been the center of learning for Alpheratz had been turned into a military base and had a massive amount of security guarding it.
"Keep it whisper quiet and comms silent for the rest of the operation, the Word of Blake has good SIGINT, even if their HUMINT is lacking," Price cautioned his men and women as they activated the M-11J prototypes to begin sneaking through the compound towards their HVTs.
Sticking to the shadows to assist in the cloaking devices, Price and his teams went through the camp, quietly exterminating every single soldier that they came across while making sure to inject any VIPs with a specific cocktail of drugs to keep them unconscious until they could retrieve them.
Nearing the head office of the HPG, Captain Price and his battle buddy prepped to breach the room. Doing rock, paper, scissors, to decide who would be the point man. Price lost and shrugged before gearing himself up mentally to enter the next room. Then counting down with his fingers, his battle buddy threw the door open and tossed a flashbang in while Price polarized his Mithril's visor and went in, shooting the trio of guards in the room before grabbing the HVT and hauling him down to the ground. "I have the HVT, checking for suicide measures now," Price told his teammate while yanking out the lone suicide tooth that he found. "Injecting cocktail now, let's get the VIPs rounded up and spin up our ride out of here."
"This is Romeo-Foxtrot 141, we have secured the VIPs, and are evacing now. Be prepared to cover our exfil," Price told the officers that were in charge of his operation.
"We read you, the party has already started, just make sure you evade the people dropping in, they have an invitation," the response came back as drop pods filled with infantry, mechs, and tanks all began to drop into the middle of enemy formations.
"Roger that command, we're leaving the party now that the crashers are here," Price replied. "We're taking a superheavy VTOL on our way out, make sure not to shoot us out of the sky."
"We'll be sure to miss just enough that they think you're one of theirs," came the response. "Happy trails Romeo-Foxtrot, see you back at base."
Author's Note: Sorry for the delays this week guys. I've been having some problems IRL, and have been dealing with some stuff. Updates should be more regular again soon.