Main Event

Rose turned to the Marauder,which showed signs of recent damage, but none of it serious. He called up the schematics for hundred-ton 'Mechs and looked for a weakness as he triggered a flight of missiles.

"Command Two, try to get behind it, and make it fast. We won't be able to hold it for long."

Rose moved away from Esmeralda's Warhammer,forcing the Marauderto choose between the two targets. For a moment the huge arms hovered between the two Thorn 'Mechs, then they zeroed in on the heavily damaged Warhammer.Esmeralda fired her PPCs as the Marauderdid the same. The Warhammer'sfire struck undamaged armor, but the thick plating resisted both shots. The Marauder'sshots were luckier, punching through the damaged right leg of the Warhammer,its armor already destroyed by the Awesome'srepeated attacks, leaving only the 'Mech's skeleton to absorb the damage. The internal structure simply disappeared under the azure beam. The Warhammerhopped once, then crashed to the ground. Rose knew that Esmeralda, whose 'Mech had guns instead of arms, would never get the Warhammerto stand without assistance. That left Rose and Ria

As if sensing Rose's thoughts, the Marauderpilot triggered its powerful jump jets. Guided by the thrust of the jets and the fins protruding from its back, the massive 'Mech touched down almost a hundred meters away from its previous position. Now Ria

The LB-10 tracked the slow-moving Chargerand sent two shells streaking across the clearing. The first streaked across the clearing, one shell blowing away the remaining armor on the Charger'sright leg, scarring the skeleton underneath. The rest hit the hill behind Rose, showering the 'Mech with dirt and rocks. Shifting position, Rose tried to protect the damaged leg. Another hit like the last one and he'd suffer the same fate as Esmeralda.

Rose bracketed the Marauderwith the Shigunga and fired again. He also triggered the medium pulse lasers, but at this extreme range, only two of the four scored hits. He knew it was too little, too late. Moving to the side, he saw the Bansheeemerge from the trees and approach the Marauder.Rose knew he was finished, but something screamed at him to keep moving. He checked the sca

The Marauderwas bringing up both arms and the Bansheeraising its right. Rose kept moving, but knew there was little chance either of the pilots would miss. The Shigunga was still in the midst of reload. By the time his missiles and lasers were ready to fire again, Rose wouldn't be around to press the trigger. As he took one final look out the cockpit, the Bansheeshifted its arm and fired.

Rose stopped in his tracks as the Bansheeplaced the muzzle of its right arm missile launcher lightly against the cockpit of the Marauder IIand fired. Fired at point-blank range, all six missiles ripped through the cockpit armor and shredded the inside. The controls, the command chair, and the pilot simply ceased to exist. The Marauder'slimbs locked firmly in place as the feedback circuit to the cockpit was severed.

Rose continued to stare as the Bansheelowered its arm and began to power down. Rose's sca

Ria

29

The Cedars, Borghese

14 July 3055

The militia was still closing in on the Thorns, but their progress had slowed to a crawl. Despite the battered condition of Rose's 'Mech, there was no chance he would abandon it to talk face to face with Antioch Bell. The Chargerlimped over to the still form of the Bansheeand the man sitting on the shoulder.

"Pursuit Lance, this is Command One. What's going on with the BattleMaster?"

"Command, this is Pursuit One. Ajax has exited his 'Mech and is administering first aid to the BattleMasterpilot. I can see them both from here."

"Is he crazy? The militia is still closing. Get him back into the cockpit, and scan the incoming units. Get back to me when you're finished." Rose closed the cha

"I'm not sure why you did it, Antioch, but thank you for saving my command, and my life." Rose zoomed in on the seated pilot. Bell gave a halfhearted salute and pulled his knees tightly to his chest.

"I take it that the Marauderwas piloted by Morgain." Bell nodded and Rose continued. "The militia is closing in. We've got to either leave or fight. Since I won't fight them, we'll leave. Will you make sure that Esmeralda, Hawg, and O'Shea are treated fairly by the militia?"

Bell lifted his chin off his knees and spoke, but the Charger'sexternal microphone did not pick up the words. Rose increased the gain. "What's that?"

Through the static Rose could just make out Bell's words. "The militia won't engage."

Rose was shocked. "Why not?" He adjusted the microphone and Bell's voice became clearer.

"I fed them the last transmission you had with Morgain. They know what's happening in Houston and they know about the arrival of the Clans." Bell paused, his chest heaving massively as he fought to control his emotions. Rose had killed men before, but he had never fired on anyone he knew. He could barely imagine what it must be like to kill a friend.

"Why, Antioch? I know that I owe you, but I want to know why."

With one last sigh, Bell unwrapped his legs and looked up at the Charger.With Rose's camera on zoom and the microphone on high, Bell seemed almost to be standing right next to Rose. On the other end, however, Rose knew his voice was coming across on an amplified mechanical speaker. Bell could see where Rose was sitting, but could not look him in the eye. Rose wanted to help his friend, but until he knew more, he could not risk leaving the , Charger.

The words came tumbling out. "I knew Morgain was up to something. I've always been able to tell when he's in over his head." Bell spoke without expressing emotion, but Rose could see the pain on his face.

"A war hero? What a pile of drek. Morgain was offered an honorable way out of the Twenty-sixth when Colonel Farnsgate discovered that he was selling stores to the black market. If the old man could have proved it, I'd be in prison right now.

"Twelve men and women in the company, and only two of us were not directly involved. Not that it really mattered, because we both knew about it and we both went along."