A Rose by any Other Name - Novella V in the Chronicles of the 69th VXF

A Rose by any Other Name

Galatea
3045
Lyran Commonwealth

Private Sigil stood at the foot of his rebuilt Assassin and looked up. It was his. The Colonel had made that painfully clear. His beloved Clint was gone, vanished, poof.

He gave a long tired exhale, shrugging as he did so. Word had come down to get ready. The 69th Virginia Expeditionary Force would be leaving Galatea within the week. It was a real hush hush operation. Neither their destination nor the expected opposition had been covered in the abbreviated briefing.

The orders were short and simple. Prepare for extended combat operations in hostile territory. The parts requisition Captain Weddle handed him shortly after the briefing spoke volumes. The sheer amount of munitions, armor, replacement parts, medical supplies and rations told him more than the briefing itself. It was obvious they were going to have to be absolutely self-sufficient. Possibly for as long as three months, maybe even longer judging from the quantity of provisions.

He'd been running full out, eighteen-hour day after eighteen-hour day, handling logistics and in his rare spare time finishing up the rebuilding of his ASN-21.

The Merkel 280L fusion engine had made his dream a reality. The Assassin was now a potent short range fighter. It now carried dual Hovertec short range Quad racks in each torso and the original Martell medium laser in the right arm had been replaced by a newtech Magna 400P medium pulse model.

But his favorite addition was the matched pair of Aberdovey Mk III medium lasers. He'd chosen them for a number of reasons. First and foremost, it was the heavy shock-resistant mount integral to the design. The Aberdovey was commonly found on the 35-ton SDR-5V Spider, practically the only 'Mech in existence which could out jump his Assassin. As such, the engineers had taken pains to ensure its weaponry, which consisted exclusively of a pair of the Aberdoveys, could handle the constant stress of take-offs and landings. Which, as it turned out, was an identical situation to that of his Assassin.

The optics of most lasers were actually quite sensitive to sudden jarring movements, such as falling or landing from a jump. It tended to knock the lenses out of alignment reducing their effectiveness, or in some cases, rendering them altogether inoperable. Not these though. They expected to be jerked and jolted around. With even less armor than the humble Locust, if the Spider wasn't jumping, it would be reduced to scrap in seconds on the battlefield.

Sigil grimaced. The same was basically true of his 'Mech as well.

The fact that the spectral purity of the Aberdoveys was second to none was icing on the cake. His favorite trick was how he'd managed to position them on the Assassin. The factory ASN-21 sported a Holly LRM-5 in the right torso. He'd replaced that with a Hovertec Quad but he'd left the fifth missile tube there. He'd done a similar thing to the left torso as well, making it appear as if the ASN now carried a pair of Holly LRM-5s. Behind the cowlings, however, were the Hovertec Quads with the Aberdovey concealed in the extra fifth missile tube. It would make a nasty little surprise for his opponents. Sigil grinned, the Assassin was as combat ready as he could make it.

He turned his head as the clicking of stiletto heels echoed off the walls of the cavernous 'Mech bay. He already knew who it was.

"Uhh..., Captain Salt. Sir." He snapped to a rather sloppy attention.

Captain Varruka Salt fixed him with an icy stare. "I hope you've completed your final checks, 'tech. I'm on my way to the Snowmane for pre-flight checks. You'll be loading up that tin can as soon as I finish. And I don't wait for anybody." She glanced up at his 40-ton 'Mech.