The Business of War: 31st Century Mercenaries [R, Sci Fi]

SUs are Open in OOC/SU Thread this thread is purely for in character roleplaying.


Date: 12th of March, 3045
Planet: Outreach
Location: The Capital of Harlech

Outreach is the hub of Mercenary activity. If you wanted to make your way as a Mercenary this was the place to be. The capital city was split into several sectors: a vast spaceport, the living quarters of the Wolf Dragoon personnel, a series of Mech and vehicle hangers belonging Wolf Dragoon's Alpha Regiment, and finally the vast area centered around a large dome building belonging to the Mercenary Review and Bonding Commission. Surrounding the center for Mercenaries to find and accept contracts where many hotels, spas, bars, and restaurants ranging from high class close to the main MRBC building to trashy areas on the periphery of the designated area built for non-Wolf Dragoon Mercenary personnel.

The only Battlemechs and combat vehicles allowed in the city belonged to the Dragoons themselves and they were used as a very effective "peace keeping force," two massive assault Mechs guarded the main entrance to the MRBC. Painted in a solid rust red with black trim an Annihilator and a Victor watched over the many Mercenaries and emissaries entering and leaving the building. While you would think guard duty would be left to newer unproven Mechwarriors, the many kill markers painted on the two Mechs said otherwise. Clearly the Wolf Dragoons were sending a message with the Mechs: This is our planet and you WILL behave yourself.

The slick black haired Jason looked up at the two Mechs before leaving the MBRC building. Jason was the pilot of the Union dropship "Wild Ride" the new Mercenary unit, "Vengeance's Heart's" only dropship. He also acted as a temporary contracting officer until a full time one could be employed. The Unit's CO: Victor Fisher was meeting with most of the unit's members at a local bar: Black Widow's Web. It was a midscale bar that offered rentals for private rooms, and was a good location to discuss the next step for the unit.

Walking inside the large bar with the sealed suitcase in hand Jason squirmed his way through the bar, and afforded to run straight into a fake web that decorated the vast bar. Pushing the plastic decoration out of his face Jason pushed past some people dancing and ended up walking straight through the middle of one of the four dance floors before coming to the soundproof door that led to the unit's private "VIP" room. Punching in the five numbered code the door unlocked and Jason quickly entered the room before shutting the door behind him. Victor was already there along with a few other members of the unit. Walking over to a small table Jason threw the suitcase on the desk and announced out enough for everyone to hear, "Thanks to some of your connections Vic it looks like we already have several offers for contracts… two from the Federated Suns and one from Defiance Industries, which is based in the Lyran Commonwealth."

Jason cleared his throat and adjusted his raven black tie before continuing, "First contract is Federated Suns… very high pay, no salvage rights, and high risk. Basically working with the Roberson Rangers to strike at the Draconis Combine world of Jubilee, enemies will be highly experienced and well equipped. Payment is extremely high, but I don't know if it's the best contract for the unit. If we pull it off we will be set for quite a while, but it's very likely it will go bad for us and we'll end up like the Mad Dogs." Jason looked over at the former Draconis Combine Mechwarrior that sat off by herself, sipping from a cup of tea. She was clearly uncomfortable with attacking her former nation, but she didn't say anything. Jason knew Victor was born in the Federated Suns and so most likely had an inbred hatred for the Dracs since the two nations had been bitter enemies since the Succession Wars broke out.

He then started talking again, "The second contract from House Davion is decent pay… nothing to brag about, but the real perk is full salvage rights. Apparently the periphery nation of Taurian Concordant is once again proving to be a minor thorn in the side of the Federated Suns. They have been hitting several back worlds and harassing Davion militias. They recently took a small planet from Davion and it seems to have emboldened them. The Taurians have increased activity and has been raiding several planets. House Davion is looking to hire a Mercenary unit to assist with a little revenge… further details will be released if the contract is accepted. The lack of information is discouraging, but full salvage rights are tempting. The Taurian military is not too well equipped and their personnel are not as experienced as the Dracs. So I would estimate this is a little less threatening than the previous contract." As Jason talked he looked like a con artist in his cheap suit and slick hair trying to pull a con as he talked with a smooth voice to his fellow mercenaries.

Jason took a cold beer from the open bar that was paid for as part of the room rental and took a drink before returning to the little table to continue, "The last contract is basically guard duty for Defiance Industries, who if you didn't know is one of the biggest Mech manufacturing companies in the Inner Sphere. Decent pay and salvage rights are 50% so we will need to negotiate for what we want to keep. The gist of the contract is with the Dracs breathing down their necks DI can't use its own personal army to defend some raw resource gathering site on the very edge of Lyran Commonwealth space. The planet doesn't belong to the Lyrans so they are unwilling to send forces there when they have bigger fish to fry. So some pirates showed up and destroyed the merger defenses there and have been "stealing" the raw resources for themselves. Their strength is unknown, but being pirates I wouldn't expect much. The reports show their symbol does not belong to any of the known pirate gangs so I would guess this is the lowest threat contract… but also the worse one payment wise. Of course if you want to be a hero who comes in to save the innocent civilians and such this is most likely the best contract for that since the pirates now control the small planet and I doubt they are treating the locals very well… Lastly it's the furthest away from us so expect a long travel time for a smaller paying contract."

Jason took another drink and asked, "So which will it be? Beating up Dracs, Taurians, or pirates?" He looked at Victor expecting the CO's response to the matter. This would be the time for the other members to put in their two cents before their leader signed the Mercenary unit's first contract in hopefully a long career.

Ayame Saito
Outreach
Black Widow's Web Bar


Ayame listened to all the contracts and frowned a bit when hearing the first one. She began to wonder if she had joined the correct Mercenary unit. Victor was from the Federated Suns as was Jason their Dropship pilot. As far as she knew she was the only person hailing from the Draconis Combine, and while she had left her home behind she still felt out of place among so many "Drac haters." She also wondered if she would be comfortable around other people from the Draconis Combine since she had dishonored herself and fled instead of facing death like a true warrior.

To distract herself from her current worries she stood up and walked over to a small table with a glass like top with a bending bench around it. Sitting down she hit a button on the table causing a series of lights inside of it flicker to life before creating a 3D imagine on the surface of the table. The holovid was the modern "TV" that created realistic looking 3D images on a table like surface or on the wall like the more classic TVs of the era before space flight. Ayame turned the volume down to a whisper and browsed through the channels until she reached a Solaris 7 match between two heavy mechs.
The battle was already underway between a Catapult and a Marauder.

The Marauder was limping around a bend to protect its already heavily damaged right leg. Considering the Marauder's infamous low armor on their legs it wasn't a surprise the Catapult's pilot had aimed for them first. The Catapult was leaping into the air using its jet jumps sending a large pillar of smoke behind the four jump jets mounted on the back of its torso. Its boxy missile launcher bay doors flipped open and Ayame counted the number of missile holes. It wasn't a surprise the Catapult's signature LRM launchers had been exchanged for different weaponry since most Solaris matches were up close and personal. By the look of the missile tubes each "arm" of the Catapult now sported a SRM 6 and a SRM 4 while it kept the 4 torso mounted Medium lasers.

Both of the Mechs were damaged but the Catapult looked like it had the advantage with just some armor damage compared to the limping Marauder. The Catapult was on the prowl as it leap on the opposite side of a very thick wall as that the Marauder was hiding behind. The Catapult turned its torso and walked around the edge of the wall firing its four lasers and its missiles just as it rounded the corner. The weapons almost all hit the Marauder that just stood there and took the hits. Before the smoke could dissipate to reveal the damage to the Marauder, three crimson beams, one from each arm and one from the over the torso gun, cut deep into the Catapult's right and center torso causing the 65 ton mech to reel back a bit from the sudden reply from the Marauder. Then two emerald beams of highly focused radiated light fired from the Marauder and torn into the huge scars left by the large lasers, the Catapult's torso erupted violently into a massive fireball as one of the medium lasers lit off the ammunition stored in that torso.

An ejection seat could be seen escaping the doomed Catapult's cockpit just in time to avoid being consumed by the ammunition fueled explosion. The camera then focused back on the Marauder that could be more clearly seen through the smoke. Its entire right leg had been torn off and now lay separate on the ground, the only reason the Mech was still standing is that it had braced itself against the wall. Clearly the Marauder's pilot had predicted the Catapult's pilot's intentions and had prepared himself for it by making sure he could still "stand" with only one leg. The rest of the armor on the Marauder was so damaged and torn up from lasers and missiles you couldn't see any of the original blue and white checkered paint scheme that the Marauder had.

Ayame was so sucked into the match on the holovid she forgot where she was and was no longer paying attention to the other two contracts being offered to the unit. At this point anyone could easily sneak up on her while all her attention was focused on the heavy mech duel.

Kathleen Ortega
Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Kat takes up small loveseat in the back of the room, stretched out comfortably on the small couch. Two empty bottle lay on the floor by her head, with a half-full bottle held loosely in her hand. She makes it halfway through the first briefing before losing interest, idly watching Ayame wander over to the holovid. She pays attention in time to hear Jason describe House Davion's contract, which catches her interest. She actually sits up as Jason talks, considering the job. Her ears prick up as Jason describes the Defiance job. Big company should pay well. "Decent pay and salvage rights are 50%..." So much for that thought. Kat slumps over in her seat after a few sentences, losing interest. Pirates sometimes had good stuff, but she wasn't willing to gamble. She finishes her bottle as Jason finishes his pitch, dropping it on the floor next to the other two.

Jason took another drink and asked, "So which will it be? Beating up Dracs, Taurians, or pirates?" Kat slides forward, kneeling behind Victor, She rests her chin on the back of his chair, awkwardly raising her hand. "I vote Taurians, Captain." She calls him that without any irony, like an affectionate nickname. "Decent pay, not much risk, and full salvage rights." The Junkion woman grins widely at that last part. "Good salvage will pay 30, maybe 40 percent of what Davion'll pay us." She leans back, sitting back on the little couch. "I'd rather not take the risk of takin' on the Combine, and I don't wanna gamble on pirates. Last time I gambled I walked away with nothing, and nothing doesn't pay six checks." She leans her head back, seemingly losing interest in the conversation.

Allen "Doc" Korhal
Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Allen sat crossed legged, scotch on the rocks in one hand, a cigarette lighted in between his finger. The other hand was stretched out over the couch as he sat with the rest of the assembled mercenary group now called the "Vengeance's Heart", in a private room in the Black Widow Bar. The music was decent, and the drinks were great, but Allen wasn't here for entertainment. He was here for business. As Jason, the "man with the plans" as Allen called him, walked into the room, he looks over at him, giving him a subtle acknowledgment as he spoke about the contracts. While the others seemed less so interested in them, Allen payed attention carefully, absorbing every detail of the contracts to the best of his ability.

To the Doctor, the choice of contract was easy, and he felt he had to voice his opinion, yet another woman beat her to the punch and spoke up first.

"I vote Taurians, Captain..."

"Of course you would, you junk greaseball." He said softly, smiling a bit. He hadn't necessarily meant it as an insult, he hadn't even necessarily said it to her, mostly to himself, but things might come out as such to him.

"If you ask my opinion," He said, in a louder voice, "I say we do the pirate contract. Here's why. First, we're a new group, only just formed, and we really don't know each other's skillsets too much. Sure the dossiers gave us some description, but you really don't know someone until you see them beating the living sh*t outta someone else. Second, it'll be a job with the end result being that not only do we get payed, but we'll be helping people, and in more than one way. On one hand, we'll be protecting..", and possibly treating, he thought to himself, "...the civilians, and on the other, we'll get a chance to remove a bunch of bastard pirates off the face of the galaxy. It'll be a win win situation. We'll start off with something easy, learn a thing or two about each other, and we'll be helping people. I can't see any way why that's not the best contract choice."

As Allen stopped talking, he took another drag of his cigarette, wondering what the others, primarily the Commander thought of this.

Vic "Trigger" Fisher
Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Vic felt good. In fact right now he felt better than he had for the past year. He felt like he was in control of life again. Vic is sitting at a small table in the VIP section of the Black Widow waiting for their drop pilot\contract guy\what ever else Jason. He is leaning over elbows on the table head looking down, and in his hands was a half finished beer. The way he was sitting his pistol was always in his sight. With that object in he vision the memories came flooding back, and Vic started to lose the feel-good feeling he had. Luckily for him Jason chose that moment to walk into the room. Vic looked up but other that that didn't move, looking just over his hands as Jason began to outline the contracts that Vic had to chose from.

As Jason went thorough the contracts Vic made little mental notes on each one, sifting out his opinion on which one he would choose. But his was not the only opinion in the group, he needed to make sure his current opinions of the contracts weren't too strong, the rest of the unit was comming up with their own opinions about the same things right now as well. The first contract, fighting against the Combine, sounded way too risky especially for a as of now rag-tag group of mercs. He didn't like the comment about the Mad Dogs though. Even if Jason didn't mean anything by it, it reopened the wound Vic had spent the last year trying to close. Vic just glared down Jason as he continued hoping he would get the point. The second one caught his interest, little risky, but for full salvage rights tempting, very tempting. The last one almost fell of Vic's interest radar. Pirates on some backwater planet that a government and a big corporation couldn't care to look after. The little voice in the back of his head shouted at him to jump at it, saving people, people like his family. But Vic shut the voice out he had to pay people too. Vic audibly sighed as he pushed this one out, the half rights to salvage and only decent pay for going way off in space, didn't make up for helping people.

Jason finished speaking and Vic leaned back in his chair, waiting to make a decision until people had a chance to speak. Kat was the first to speak up, and Vic jumped when she did. She had rested her head on the back of his chair, and since he leaned back she was literally speaking right into his ear. "I vote Taurians, Captain." she said. After getting his heart out of his throat he slightly grinned and shook his head at her calling him Captain. She made her arguments, full salvage, not too much risk, and no gambling on pirate salvage. Vic agreed it was a good idea, but still he waited.

Allen spoke up next. "If you ask my opinion, I say we do the pirate contract." He continued to say they had just formed, skill sets weren't fully discovered/realised yet. He also went to the idea of protecting people by getting rid of baddies. He made good arguments, and Vic had to agree. Nobody else seemed wanting to speak up, in fact Ayame didn't seem to be paying any attention what-so-ever.

"Well, you make a good argument Doc." Vic said standing up and heading over to where Ayame was sitting, walking up behind her. He slammed his hands on her chair as he continued. "Sorry Kat, yes my first thought was to smash Taurians, but the Doc is right we don't really know each other, personnel files only say so much. To make it up to you I'll give you first pick at the salvage." Then addressing Jason as much as the unit in total he continued, "So that's my decision, we're gonna go smear pirates into the ground. Since we have a long ways to go we're gonna leave as soon as we can, so do what you gotta, and get ready. We're done here."

Finishing speaking Vic downed the rest of his beer, grabbed his things and started to leave.

Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Ayame was a little startled by Victor slamming his hands down on the back of her chair. She looked up at the man now paying attention to him instead of the Holovid. She listened to the decision made on which contract to take and watched as Vic left the room. She went back to watching the last bit on the contract before finishing her tea and standing up to leave. She hated having to leave the bar since it meant having several men hitting on her and one even tried to grab her rear, but he quickly moved out of the way with her well developed reflexes. Ayame wanted to retaliate against the man but decided it was better not to. She glared at him then turned and left the bar, ignoring his rude comments asking her to join him tonight.

Jason wasn't happy about leaving this second and frowned when Victor walked out. Looking at his partially finished beer he said, "Well **** now I have to fly soon. No beer or fun for me… was hoping to pick up a local girl for the night…" He shrugged and closed up the briefcase and walked out of the room to go back to the hiring hall.

----

Outreach Spaceport
Dropship "Wild Ride"

Hours later Ayame walked through the busy Dropship bay looking at her Crab battlemech that stood there silently. Walking up to it she ran her hand along the red painted foot of the Medium battlemech and whispered something to the Mech as if it was her pet.

As the dropship's engines started to come alive the loudspeakers said in Jason's voice, "Yo, Vic… incoming transmission from our new bosses. I'll patch it to your office once your there. And for everyone else we will be taking off in 10 sooooo I suggest you buckle up and get ready for a bumpy ride."

Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Kat gets up as everyone prepares to leave, tilting her head at Vic in acknowledgement. "We do what we must, because we can." A bit of wisdom she had picked up from the last merc group she was in. She makes sure to grab Jason's drink, lifting it in mock toast to Doc. "Looks like we're doin' what you wanna do, Doc. Here's to us." She drains the beer and heads toward their ship. Kat notices Ayame has to avoid the patrons, but no one makes any passes at her. "Guess they're not interested in a Junk greaseball."

---- Hours pass… ----

Outreach Spaceport
Dropship "Wild Ride"

After making sure all the vehicles and equipment are secure, Kat heads toward her bunk, a small room connected to the cargo bay. She notices Ayame near a Crab mech, and wanders over. "Hey there! Noticed you back at the bar. I'm Kat. This shellfish yours?"

Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Vic was ready, he had made his decision and now everyone was starting to move.

"We do what we must, because we can." Kat said as he passed her on his way out.

"She has no idea what that means to me and this unit." Vic thought as he continued out into the main room of the bar. That one sentence, or rather the idea of it, was the only thing that made the Vengeance's Heart possible. Without it Vic would probably be sitting in some gutter drowning his sorrows away, and the unit would only be a fools dream. Passing through the bar didn't pose many problems, most of the patrons could tell he was a merc, and made barely enough room so he could pass. But behind him he heard a little commotion. He glanced over his shoulder to notice Ayame being hit on by almost every guy in the room. He continued forward, shaking his head at the seeming endless stupidity of humans.

--time elapses--

Outreach Station
Dropship "Wild Ride"

Vic was the first one to arrive on the Wild Ride, and the first place he went was to his mech. He looked it over again lost in his thoughts. This would be the first mission in a while where he wasn't piloting his baby, Ira's Justice. Running his hand over the cold armor he looked over the Centurion once more before heading off to his quarters. On the way there he passed Ayame and Kat, and he greeted them with a nod. Also on the way the ship's intercom came to life, it was Jason.

"Yo, Vic… incoming transmission from our new bosses. I'll patch it to your office once your there. And for everyone else we will be taking off in 10 sooooo I suggest you buckle up and get ready for a bumpy ride."

Vic nodded in acknowledgement, even though no one could see him, and he continued to his quarters. When he arrived he commed Jason.

"Okay Jason, I'm ready, patch'em through."

(OOC: Ketchup time!)

Logan Ran-Tolek
Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Logan sat down on a bar stool, and called over the bartender. The bartender walked over to Logan and asked,

" Hey, what do you want to drink?"

" A glass of Tharkadian glacier Vodka please," Logan responded. The bartender poured a glass of the vodka, and handed it to Logan. Logan grabbed the vodka and threw some money on the counter. Logan walked towards a V.I.P room where he was supposed to meet a mercenary group. Logan would have preferred going back to Calicron Transport Services, but they folded after Logan went to that S***hole gulag in the Draconis Combine. Logan punched in the number code he was given, and walked into the room. Logan looked at the others, not seeing much in them, and sat down. Logan took a sip of his Vodka, and watched as a Dropship pilot walked into the room. Logan sat back and listened as the unit discussed about which contract to complete. Logan decided he didn't want to debate, although a chance to kill Dracs always caught Logan's attention. Logan quietly waited as the others came to the verdict: To go fight Pirates. Logan sighed as he got up out of his seat, and followed the group out. Logan downed the rest of his Vodka, and took a bottle of Vodka from the V.I.P. Room before exiting the room. Logan walked out of the Bar.

--doo-doo-doo time passes--

Logan Ran-Tolek
Outreach
Dropship "Wild Ride"

Logan stepped into the ship, and looked around to see if everyone was there. He noticed that one person was missing, but Logan thought that they must be late. Logan headed down to where his AeroTech, a CSR-V12 Corsair. Not bad, Logan thought, inspecting the AeroTech. After finishing his exterior inspection, Logan jumped into the cockpit, and looked around. It seemed that the GPS may have some problems, but with a bit of talking with Carus, Logan could fix that. Logan got out of the cockpit, and looked around in the dropship.

Allen "Doc" Korhal
Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Allen sat as the others decided amongst themselves on the pirate contract. Allen couldn't help but give a slight smile as he took another sip of his scotch in a sense of victory. The others began walking off. Kat looked at the Doctor and spoke.

"Looks like we're doin' what you wanna do, Doc. Here's to us." Allen lifted his glass in the air at her as well, and smiled. He drank the contents of the liquid down in one go. Usually, he wouldn't waste good scotch like this, but it seemed everyone else was going, so he decided to leave as well.

As he made his way through the bar, however, Allen caught sight of an old bottle of whiskey imported, at the bar area. He approached the bartender, and looked among the others of his group. He spoke out loud to himself.

"I got time." He said, and ordered another drink.

--Later...--

Allen "Doc" Korhal
Outreach
Black Widow Bar

Allen was extra careful with the first step on the way to the dropship. The other steps would be much easier, as long as he got past his first step, struggling to bring his left leg forward, and onto the dropship.

At least that's how he was thinking in his inebriation. Still holding a bottle of the good stuff from the Highlands, his second for the night, Allen attempted to get onto the dropship, hopefully without making a scene, as to not put his professionalism into question.

He looked around the others in the ship. There were a lot more of them than he thought. No, there was the same amount, it just appeared like there were a lot more. Trying to maintain his focus, Allen decided deep in his mind to sit straight down, and avoid talking to anyone. Of course, when one is in this state of mind, logic and the little voice in your head is often silence, and replaced with...something very different.

He approached two(?) women(?) and sat on a bench next to them as it appeared they were having a conversation. He held up his bottle, trying to be as collected as possible.

"Would any of you drinks like a girl?" He said politely, smiling a rather odd looking smile.

Outreach Spaceport
Dropship "Wide Ride"
Mech Bay

Ayame looked at Kat for a second and started to say, "Its actually…" She then realized what Kat and said, "Yes this is my Crab Battlemech… not very attractive I know but she is mine, and I wouldn't trade her for any other Mech." She then blushed a little and said while giving a slight bow, "Sorry for my rudeness my name is Ayame Sato nice to meet you Kat. Do you own a Mech as well?"

Just then Allen walked up and offered the two ladies a drink. Ayame looked the man over and could tell he was drunk, but she still acted polite and responded to him with a smile, "I'm sorry I don't like to drink."

---

Dropship "Wild Ride"
Victor's Officer

The small screen on Vic's desk lit up and a tall, skinny man in his 40s with long brown hair and a bored look in his eyes appeared on the screen. "Victor I assume… I'm going to be the representative for Defiance Industries to your unit for the duration of the contract. We have a few days to prepare before we arrive in system so if you have any questions I will do my best to answer your questions. Now that the formalities are out of the way first I request… no I insist no one in your unit talks about this planet or its location once we are there. We have reports that the locals discovered a rather large deposit of raw resources on the planet, and we would prefer to keep it secret from our competitors. If you are able to do this, and recapture the mining operations then defend them intact we can discuss increasing your salvage rights throughout the campaign." The man then became quiet as he patiently waited for a response from the Mercenary commander.

Dropship "Wild Ride"
Vic's Office

The screen on Vic's desk came to life, and upon it was a scrawny twig of a man who Vic assumed to be in his forties. He looked very bored as he began to speak.

"Victor I assume… I'm going to be the representative for Defiance Industries to your unit for the duration of the contract. We have a few days to prepare before we arrive in system so if you have any questions I will do my best to answer your questions. Now that the formalities are out of the way..."

"Man this guy can drone. And the formalities weren't even very formal" Vic thought as the man kept going.

"...first I request… no I insist no one in your unit talks about this planet or its location once we are there. We have reports that the locals discovered a rather large deposit of raw resources on the planet, and we would prefer to keep it secret from our competitors. If you are able to do this, and recapture the mining operations then defend them intact we can discuss increasing your salvage rights throughout the campaign."

Vic couldn't believe the terms set out before him. Extra salvage rights were a good thing, but absolutely no indication of where they were, that was nearly impossible. He could understand the business end of the request, but still it was extreme.

"I can understand why you would want to keep this info under wraps and your offer for keeping it that was is quite tempting. I have to say this, people don't just pack up everything disappear for a week or two, and then return bloodied and battered. Someone is going to wonder where we have been, and we can't just say, 'Oh we went off on a pleasure cruse.' Also I don't have complete dictatorial control over my crew, I can order them not to speak, but they can blatantly disregard it and still speak. My point is there is no way that we would be able to keep complete silence about this planet, these reports you have received are another story though. I can forget I ever heard that you may have found lots of resources. I can forget to relay that info to the crew, so they wouldn't even know of this info making it even less possible for a leak, but even that goes with how many people know right now. If the entire planet knows my team may overhear and wouldn't know not to spill, but if very few people know, my team will most likely not hear, and therefore the chance of a leak is smaller than if I told them. So that's my question how many people know of this report? Also are we looking at storming an established pirate base or raids? And how many critical targets are there to protect? All this would be quite helpful in determining our strategies."

Outreach Spaceport
Dropship "Wide Ride"
Mech Bay

Kat is having a nice little talk with Ayame, when Allen suddenly arrives, sitting on a bench nearby. He gives a rather dopey grin, offering a bottle. "Would any of you drinks like a girl?" Kat cocks an eyebrow at his vocal fumble, and can smell the alcohol on his breath. She gives him an impish grin, gesturing to Ayame. "I've already got a girl, but thanks." She takes a minute to notice, but she recognizes the man. "But I'll take that bottle, Doc. I think you've had your fair share." She reaches out a hand for it, and gives it a curious sniff before drinking.

Outreach
Dropship "Wild Ride"
Victor's Office

The representative rolled his eyes at Victor and said, "Well you can always leave out the important details and I doubt many will be curious about a newly formed Mercenary unit. That is one reason we hired your unit… your new, and no one cares or is interested about you other than a few employers hoping for a little help, but since you're on contract with us now they don't care anymore either. Also as the commanding officer if you can't control your people from opening their mouths too much I wonder how well you will be at commanding them in the heat of battle…"

The man smiled a bit while to let his words sink in before continuing, "Anyhow the pirates will most likely have dug in some, but the size of their force is unknown at this point. The only report we got suggested they did have mechs, but nothing too threatening mostly lights with maybe a medium or two, but the existence of combat vehicles and conventional fighters were mentioned. I would guess their two strong holds would be the small spaceport on planet and the main mining operations. They might have a minimal force stationed in the city or if they relocated the few locals whatever prison camp there to keep people in line. Sorry but that is all the intelligence we have since the last transmission we received was cut short."

---

Outreach
Dropship "Wild Ride"
Mech Bay

Ayame looked over at Kat as the woman pointed to her. Just as Kat took a drink the loudspeaker came on again, "This is your one minute warning to get your rears strapped down before this tin can takes off."

Ayame looked around the hanger while saying, "I think we should secure ourselves so we don't get injured when the ship takes off." She then motioned to some close by seats that had safety belts on them to hold one in place during takeoff and zero gravity situations. Ayame then walked over to the seats and strapped the X shaped chest belt over herself and hoped the other two would do the same. If they didn't strap in they were likely to get hurt, and that would be a horrible way to start the campaign especially since the drunk man was their only real medical personnel.

Allen "Doc" Korhal
Dropship "Wide Ride"
Mech Bay

Kat gestures to the other woman and speaks.

"I've already got a girl, but thanks." she says with a grin. Allen realizes his mistake in his previous sentence only briefly, but decides not to say anything on the topic. "But I'll take that bottle, Doc. I think you've had your fair share." She says, taking the bottle away from and sniffs it before drinking. Allen speaks to her.

"Ah, I see you know yer' stuff. That there's uh good quality brevrege (beverage). Worth eber (every) penny." He says, smiling at her. Suddenly, Allen hears the loudspeaker going off.
"This is your one minute warning to get your rears strapped down before this tin can takes off."

"Aww, Sh*t." He says out loud, wondering what he's supposed to be doing. He looked around, walking in circles, his state of mind denying him the most basic logic at the moment. Suddenly, the other woman spoke up.

"I think we should secure ourselves so we don't get injured when the ship takes off." She says as she walks over and secures herself in the strap. Allen does the same, looking at how she did it to figure out how to do his. It takes him a moment longer, but he finally gets the straps in, his head spinning. He looks over both of them again, his eyes wandering around, then speaks.

"I'm Allen, bah the way, Allen Korhal. You cin caw me Doc if you like, though..." He realized they probably already saw his dossier, as he saw theirs, but figured he should introduce himself anyways. He extends his arm out in front of one, then the other, not sure who's hand he should shake first, going back and forth in that motion before giving up and placing his hand down.

Dropship "Wild Ride"
Victor's Office

The man just rolled his eyes and continued speaking. Vic more or less half listened to what he had to say. But then the man said something that made Vic really listen.

"...commanding officer if you can't control your people from opening their mouths too much I wonder how well you will be at commanding them in the heat of battle..." the man trailed off and smirked.

Vic caught what was thrown, it was a low blow, a very low blow. Taking a shot at him and his ability, without even seeing them first. Vic wasn't very happy about that, but the man just kept on speaking. This time is was all the important stuff, the intell that they would have to work with. Unfortunately it wasn't very much, speculation and 'most likelys', but it was something, and they would have to make do.

Vic was about to respond to the challenge of his command prowess, but he was stopped short by Jason over the loudspeakers.

"This is your one minute warning to get your rears strapped down before this tin can takes off." He said, and Vic took it as time to wrap up the conversation before he would say anything stupid.

"Well that's not the only transmission that has to be cut short, but as you may have heard we are about to be leaving. So if you have any last advice I advise you say it quickly." Vic said as he sat down in the seat behind the desk and strapped himself in.

Dropship "Wide Ride"


"Don't die and don't double cross us," responded the man with a smile as the transmission ended. Just then the dropship rumbled violently before it took off. In a few seconds the spheroid dropship had broken the sound barrier and was climbing toward space. The ship broke through the atmosphere almost effortlessly and once it did everyone on board started feeling the effects of zero gravity. Like most ships this one was not built with any sort of artificial gravity so one would have to deal with weightlessness for the several hour trip to the Jumpship that lay waiting at a jump node.

Ayame unbuckled herself and she instantly started floating up a little. She tried moving toward her crab mech but after only getting 5 feet she somehow ended up putting herself into a spinning motion. She began to freak out and asked her two companions for help with a frantic voice. She half asked in English and half in Japanese as she started to look a little ill as her efforts to save herself only made her situation worse. It was clear she was NOT used to space travel at all, and this trip was going to be a lot worse for her than some others.

Kat
Dropship "Wild Ride"

Kat manages to escort Doc to a seat and buckle him in. Just as she sits in her own seat, the ship takes off, knocking her out of her seat. She rolls across the floor, colliding with the wall of the Mech bay. G-force holds her there until the ship breaks free of the atmosphere and weightlessness sets in. She shakes her head, swearing in Spanish as she holds onto a bar for support. "Maldito, que era salvaje! I guess 'Wild Ride' is an appropriate name!"

As she had taken space flights several times over her life, she knew how to move around in Zero-G. She pushes off the wall, grabbing Ayame in mid-air and pushing her towards her Crab. "I got you, niña. You never gone swimming before?" Kat spins so her feet collide with the Mech, grabbing it for support and catching Ayame. "Maybe hug the wall until you get it figured out, okay? I'll go help the Doc."

Dropship "Wild Ride"
Enroute to the Planet Drush

After several hours of flying out to the Jumpship the Mercenaries were disappointed to find out the Jumpship was an old model that didn't have an operational artificial gravity generator. So they all lived in zero gravity for 6 weeks while the Jumpship made several jumps by tearing a "rip" in space and passing through this rip almost instantly appearing over a hundred light years away. The feeling it gave the passengers was being stretched across the universe and several (including Ayame) experienced "jump sickness." After each jump the jumpship would be forced to stop and unravel its giant jump sail that collected solar energy to recharge the jump drive. Finally after the third jump they appeared in the target system hundreds of miles away the planet Drush.



Looking at the planet it appeared to be mostly a wasteland, but considering the "popularity" of the planet that was no surprise. The slender ring around it appeared to be a small glimmer of beauty against a hash unforgiving world. Two very small moons orbited the planet, but from the reports held no significance at all. The planet itself was only slightly larger than earth so the gravity would be about standard. Its atmosphere kept enough breathable oxygen to not require masks, but it was further from the sun than most habitable planets so kept an almost constant below freezing temperature. The lack of moisture on the planet was the main reason for such a small number of people for such a large planet. The reports given to Victor revealed Defiance Industries had been trading water and many types of food to the locals. On the darkened side of the planet was the singular city that spread out for 50 miles from the center in every direction. The unusual lights seen on the darkened side are vast rock formations made of an unusual substance that retains the sun's light for hours creating a glowing appearance.

"4 Hours to planet fall," said Jason over the loud speakers as the Dropship disconnected from the jumpship and began burning toward the planet. While they had discussed several plans before, the Mercenaries once again gathered in the main planning room for one last pre battle brief in their entry. The group of ragtag guns for hire all stood around a small table in the main deck of the dropship overlooking the target planet. "Ok Vic once we make it into the atmosphere where do you want to set this bird down? Out in the middle of nowhere for the safest deployment? Or should we hope our story about being a merchant vessel tricks the pirates and land right on top of an objective and hopefully catch them with their pants down?"

Jason looked over a small map again and said, "Spaceport is on the southern perimeter of the city… most likely we will meet the most resistance there. Also a surprise attack can go the most wrong there since the Pirates will be preparing to seize our "almost defenseless merchant ship." Their forces will have the quickest reaction speed there and we will be in the thick of it quickly. Also high chance of collateral damage since we will be fighting in an urban environment, and it favors more short ranged units due to city fights being short range brawls… That Hunchback we got will love this approach. One huge advantage to this approach will be if we pull it off we might be able to destroy/disable/capture all the pirate's air support and drop ships in one strike…. Most likely we will need to pull a hit and run here.

Second option is the mining area… it will be defended, but most likely not as much as the city. Less collateral damage, but they will know something is fishy if we try to land there so the element of surprise will be less. The ragged terrain with many large digging sights will favor mechs with jump jets… Lastly we land between the two in the middle of nowhere. There will be no element of surprise, but our drop zone will be much safer and we will be able to see them coming at us miles away… of coarse then they will see us coming from miles away also." Jason stopped as he looked out into the vastness of space at the planet and added, "Or if any of you have a better idea."

Ayame actually spoke up this time and said, "All three are a risk in some way or another. The overall safest I think is the land in the middle of nowhere since we will not be forced into a fight right off the bat, but this will allow our enemies to fortify their positions. Most likely this method will cause the campaign to drag out the longest. The other two methods we hope to take the advantage early and keep the advantage. They are riskier but the payoff from the initial surprise could quickly give us the upper hand. One huge issue with landing out in the middle of nowhere is that they can set up defenses in the mine or city to react to our incoming forces… we lack a lot of range firepower such as LRMs, and our mechs are not the fastest models so they could try weakening us at a distance while we close in on the city." The woman then looked up at Victor wondering which he would choose.

Allen "Doc" Korhal
Dropship "Wide Ride"
Enroute to the Planet Drush

It only took a few hours and a nap to get Allen to recover from his..."illness", but it was enough, and after the whole incident, Allen quickly got to work getting to know the ship, particularly all of the medical equipment he has there, as well as anything else he might need. Thankfully, the mercenary group was supplied enough with the basics, and that would do for now. If he would need anything else, he was sure they'd be able to locate or buy anything else along the way, after missions if they had the gold, which they probably would.

Allen disliked the zero gee environment, but had gotten used to it after a few weeks. He was now able to maneuver through it without a problem or second thought, as if it was all completely normal. Over time, Allen had become good acquantances with his fellow medical staff and their assistants, but kept himself less familiar with the rest of the crew. He had a reason behind this. Allen had been with plenty of merc groups over the years since he became a mercenary doctor, and many of them were, quite frankly, terrible. Some were good, true, but that wasn't always the case. He knew this first mission would reveal how they really operated. If they survived and performed well, he might consider getting a bit more "cozy" with them. If they all died here, better that he never knew them too personally so he wouldn't have had any emotional attachments. However, the medical and tech crews weren't going into the battlefield below with them, so Allen didn't mind getting a bit friendly with them.

It had been a while but finally, they had arrived at their destination. Allen looked out the window, lighting a cigarette, to see a planet with a thin ring. It was quite a sight to see, seeing as most of the journey itself was spent in black space, without any signs of a planet at all. It made Allen slightly at ease, a strange thing, as the reason they came to this planet is anything but something to be "at ease" at.

"4 Hours to planet fall," he heard on the intercom, and stepped away from the window. He looked over his medical assistant Rick. He was a good help, maybe 5 years his junior, curly brown hair and blue eyes. He was short too, much shorter than Allen. Still, he was a riot, and a helluva drinker. Nothing at all what you'd expect from looking at him.

"Alright, Rick, I'm heading off." Allen said.

"You get yer' ass back here in one piece, Doc. Ya hear?"

Allen waved his hand back at him as he left, going towards the briefing room. They were all mostly there already, Jason beginning to explain his options to Vic. Allen kept quiet through the explanation. When it was time to put some input, Ayame spoke up first, suggesting the middle of nowhere path to the ground. Although Allen didn't speak, he agreed, taking another breath of his cigarette, and puffing the smoke up into the ceiling. He was a Mech Warrior, true, but he was first and foremost a Doctor, and he'd rather take the safest route with the most likely chance of survival. Besides, the other two options really required a lot more trust in each other, as they would have to work together more to fight successfully, something they didn't have yet. In this option, Allen would be able to fight without having to worry much about the others. He decided not to say this out loud, but spoke a bit.

"Sounds reasonable. I agree, but I'll leave it up to you, sir." Allen said, taking in his cigarette again. He was enjoying it to the fullest. He loved to smoke. Say what you like about it, it's bad for you, it causes all sorts of problems, but Allen loved it too damn much to ever give it up.