Amphiplex Storage Facilities
Greater Geelong, Brisbane
Taurian Concordat
First Quarter, 3065
Stepping into the dark room, Mark "Maverick" Pike was reminded of his old days as a lone
mercenary. The wide open space of the musty room slightly resembled the storage warehouses
he had grown accustomed to sleeping in during those eariler years of his life. Looking up to the
tall ceiling overhead, he noticed a few species of alien bat-like creatures, probably native
inhabitants of this planet. Mark decided to stop looking around and concentrate on the situation
at hand.
The Strider's Strikers, whom Mark was currently a full time member of, were a relatively small
mercenary unit. With less than a regiment under Clan Commander Devon Carns and Inner
Sphere Commander Mike Strider, the Strikers had little business in dividing their forces. Yet
these were times of political fire, with an interstellar civil war raging in what was now the
remnants of the Federated Commonwealth. Cultural interactions fed fuel to these fires, causing
unease and mistrust amongst hundreds of peoples, even those far from the disaster of the civil
war.
Clan Nova Cat had been trying for years now to gain some trust from its new Inner Sphere
allies. The citizens of the Draconis Combine had yet to completely accept the Nova Cats. With
a little help from the Combine's Coordinator and products of the integration processes, like the
Strider's Strikers themselves, the Warden Clan had begun its road to acceptance.
Despite widespread unease in the Nova Cat realm of the Irece Prefecture, the Strikers had
divided their forces 4 way. Taking up contract with Davion loyalists, the Clan half of the team
under Devon Carns had traveled to Steiner space. The remaining Inner Sphere half had split into
three sections, but these were divided unequally. Probing the Steiner resistance under Duo
Maxwell's leadership, 5 lances of the team worked under a private, secret contract. Holden
Trumphay, granted his first large scale commanding duty, was the backbone of the Striker
defense remaining at the team's base within the Labrea system.
Mike Strider had left to lead a small 2 lance team towards the peripheral edge of Liao space
while searching for a team known as the Acer's Hueys. The Hueys' old base had been
discovered by Striker tank crews in the Labrea system, only adding to local rumors of a hidden
lostech spacecraft in the area. Strider, with his command lance and a group of young trainees
under lance commander Betty Stalwart, had finally found the Hueys team by travelling throughout
the Periphery. This was necessary since the Huey team had gone "rogue" almost 25 years ago, a
direct result of their partner team Llana's Breakers having been completely destroyed by
unknown forces. The Hueys database history log hinted at employer betrayal, with the Hueys
and Breakers conned into accepting patrol contracts that were actually suicide campaigns. After
breaking the contract illegally, Hueys' commander Ace Leghorn Esquire had led his team to the
Taurian Concordat in an attempt to escape any Combine bounty hunters.
After an entire year and a half of traveling space, the two lance Strider's Strikers team had finally
come to rest in Greater Geelong on the planet of Brisbane. Nearly bordering Liao space, the
Acer's Hueys had stayed close to their mother-nation, the Capellan Confederation. The Acer's
Hueys team was nearly non-functional and only took contracts when supplies, upgraded
weapons, or hard cash were needed.
Strider was indeed here for his own team's benefit, but he could also hold some future for the
Hueys. Mark knew this was an important part of steering any mercenary unit. While learning
more of the rumored Jumpship or Warship of the Labrea System, he could make a valuable
trading partner to the Hueys or offer them some sanction in the Irece Prefecture. Decades had
past since the Breakers extinction. Surely the Hueys continued fear of the Draconis
Combine could be softened. Mark thought silently while wondering what working for a rogue
team might be like.
Along with Mark, the rest of the command lance followed. Ryan Allen, pilot of the custom
Infighter BattleMech, walked alongside Mike Strider. Ryan was dressed in his usual casual
attire, enjoying the comforts of life outside the cockpit. His metal plated boots rang out low
drums on the concrete floor. He stayed just in front of the Commander, acting as a defense just
in case something might go wrong.
And plenty had gone wrong with this meeting. After attempting to communicate with Huey scout
pilots, the Strikers team had prompted Leghorn's team to scramble in defense of the Hueys'
base. It seemed that Ace Leghorn had tasted defeat sometime in the past. Mark frowned.
Maybe he really is waiting for that 25-year old retaliation from Kuritan military forces.
Mace Volt, a Comstar veteran of the famous Tukayyid war against the Clans, followed closely
behind Ryan. Mace had always been a man of military conduct. Today he wore his Comstar
dress uniform with a small Strikers pin, wielding his ever-preferred Dirk sword at his side. Mace
always remained strict to his duties, though he could completely relax in the comfort of his 3
lancemates if he wanted to do so.
Mike Strider followed shortly behind one of the Huey's guards. Compared to the younger
soldier, Mike looked like an old outsider. His face bore a week's worth of unshaven stubble,
while his usual tan overcoat did little to enhance his remaining attire. Heavy Gripper gloves
swung about his right hip, keeping the Commander ever ready for any sudden wall-climbing
situations. Mark had never understood the need for those damn things.
Mark himself was dressed in his usual outfit. His black cape and long hair nearly blended
together, giving him a shady foreboding form similar to a dark wizard of past ages. Thick
eyebrows and a trimmed mustache disguised much of his face, leaving his appearance about as
appealing as the Commander's. The two of them were definitely not looking for female
companions. Mark took up the rear of the group, keeping his eyes out for anything suspicious as
the group came to a gradual halt. One could never be too safe in the lair of a yet untrusted ally.
The host of this meeting, Acer's Huey Commander Ace Leghorn Esquire, stood before them. It
was obvious the years of running and hiding had been hard on the Commander, but the man still
stood at his full height despite his age of 78. Ace sported a well trimmed full head of short hair
without the additions of a mustache or beard. His smile was easily recognizable as genuine,
stretching his lips and cheeks to their limits in an untamed show of glee. Apparently he was going
to listen to Mike's proposals and seriously consider the Strikers as powerful new allies.
"Welcome to my humble abode," Ace nodded, pointed his arms out slowly to the enveloping
darkness within the warehouse walls. "And yes, I do mean humble." He smiled.
"You have our thanks, Ace Leghorn Esquire." Mike grinned. "It's nice to finally get the chance
to freely talk with you and your team."
"Yes, I suppose it is Mike Strider. From what Hubart has told me, you have been looking for us
for quite some time." Ace took on a more serious look. "I am glad you have finally found us,
but I'm also sad to hear you found us this easily. There is no telling what some of those in the
Combine's higher military might have sent if they had discovered our memory core." He frowned.
"That is a good point." Mike declared. " It would have been possible for the DCMS to crack
your memory core's code, just as our analyst did." Mike's head shook uncontrollably back and
forth ever so slightly, hinting that his own military years had not been kind to him. "Rest assured,
the Combine would not have sent an assassin after you."
"Oh but one can never know for sure," Ace spoke. "I remember a time when I thought I would
never stoop that low."
Mike shrugged, rethinking his own use of an assassin against Word of Blake aggressors without
Striker Co-Commander Devon Carns ever knowing. If the truth ever did leak out amongst the
Clan members of the Strider's Strikers, Mike's situation would turn to hell fast. Not only did
Clan doctrine extremely prohibit such dishonorable actions, but he might face Clan challenges to
regain his current honor and reputation. It might even be possible that the Nova Cats would
withdraw from the team, leaving the Strikers stranded with very few assets. As it turned out, that
same assassin had been the one the Acer's Hueys had hired years before. It seemed fate had
brought the two team's together via Alexus Capone whether they liked it or not.
"Well, you have a good point. I suppose some of the Draconis Combine's politicians may not be
feeling up to par when it comes to abiding by their own rules." Mike shrugged once more.
"Then again, maybe they will never send a force after you. It has been 25 years and all."
Ace slowly raised his index finger, "Trust me, my new friend, to know secrets such as my team
does cannot go without price. Such information is only prey to the predator of war." He looked
the other commander in the eyes, seemingly judging the younger's knowledge of politics. "You
may not understand the system even yet, but surely you know that underestimating politics can
be dancing with death. My friend Llana learned that all too well. For her mistake, her entire unit
was destroyed."
Mike now realized how this man had survived such an exile from the mercenary business. As
with any good commander, Ace's team was his first priority. Ace had been close friends or even
more with Llana of Llana's Breakers, the companion team of the Acer's Hueys. By losing her
and her entire team, Ace was forced to take whatever actions he could to ensure the survival of
his own team. Unfortunately along with Ace's safety net, all the Acer's Hueys were condemned
to a life of never ending hiding. Ace and Mike both hoped to change that soon.
