[dcs_p]“I’m afraid so, Navin. My guess is that the majority of us Hueys will take one
specific incident to the grave.” Harry set his fork back onto the table. “As small
as our unit is, most people wouldn’t guess that the Hueys were once involved in
something big.” Watching his grandson’s eyes fill with awe, Harry stretched his
back and leaned his chair against the wall behind him. His eyes scanned the
area, wary of any attention his statement might have caught. However, no one in
the bar had broke from their own conversations.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]“Go on, you’ve got my interest.” Navin grinned. He grabbed his fork and knife,
and began cutting his steak while he glanced back and forth between plate and
storyteller.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]Harry relaxed back into his seat, using his own legs to balance his weight onto
the chair’s back legs. “I remember a time almost thirty years ago, when the
Hueys had allied with a mercenary team called Llana’s Breakers. You’ve
probably heard of the Breakers before. Yauri Swift used to be a member of their
team until he’d gotten into a big fight with Llana Huxley herself.”[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]“Yeah I remember talking with Yauri about it years ago. I’d asked him about how
he’d first been interested in piloting BattleMechs. He seemed a bit uncomfortable
with discussing it so I didn’t press for much information at the time.” Navin
stopped as he put a morsel of the cheap steak into his mouth. Despite its
delicious taste, he detected something unnatural about the aftertaste as he
swallowed it. Probably genetic, Navin thought.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]“Yes, I imagine he did. The Breakers and the Hueys had a very complicated,
though short, relationship. At one point, our commanders had almost melded the
teams into one.” Harry looked down to his plate again. As his face began to
show another look of disgust, he continued. “The Hueys and Breakers had joined
forces as separate teams on a couple of occasions. The disaster that ensued
after one of those times is the root of all the Hueys’ current problems.”[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]“So you mean to say that the partnership of the two caused the blind fear that
has been destroying Ace for so long? The fear that the Combine will retaliate
against us for contract violation?” Navin paused a moment, realizing he might
have let too much of his own opinion slip from his mouth. Regardless of the
private setting and informal conversation, Navin didn’t want to discuss the Acer’s
Hueys commander and the man’s apparent mental illness.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]“It is true that Ace Leghorn lives his life by fear. I can see in your eyes you
regret saying that. Don’t.” Harry smiled at his grandson. “You know for your
age, you are a pretty good reader of a person’s character.”[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]“Well…I suppose so. I didn’t mean to be offensive. I guess mom’s opinion has
rubbed off on me more than I realized.” Navin smiled.[/dcs_p]
[dcs_p]Harry sat forward into his chair, obviously disturbed at the mentioning of his own
daughter. Mia Higgins had opted to live the life of a Mechwarrior while in her
twenties. Harry had been heartbroken, watching his daughter make the same
decision that he had when in his youth. These years, Harry despised his past as
a Mechwarrior. More than anything else, Harry regretted his choice of lifestyle
and how much confusion and pain it had caused within his own family. Watching
his daughter make the same decision had caused the old man additional worry.
He could only pray that his grandson Navin might do something else with his life,
ending the legacy of war and fear that the boy’s mother had decided to continue.[/dcs_p]