BattleTech Legends: Illusions of Victory by Loren L. Coleman

Author:Loren L. Coleman
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Catalyst Game Labs
Published: 2016-07-04T00:00:00+00:00

Seen almost in miniature on a holovid screen, the Overlord Class DropShip looked nowhere near as massive as one might expect. Its ovoid shape rested on a half-dozen blunt-footed landing pads that extended out from its base. Only one large ramp was still extended onto the spaceport tarmac, guarded by two sentries. And as they turned to walk up the ramp and into the DropShip, the final passengers to be loaded, someone might guess the vessel no larger than ten stories—twelve at best.

Until that person realized that those passengers were not people, but BattleMechs topping ten to twelve meters each. The tiny ants, now scurrying away to clear the area in their toy-sized vehicles—those were the people. The Overlord topped out at one hundred-thirty meters, about forty stories high. It was as if someone had plunked down a skyscraper in the middle of a desolate field of ferrocrete, but instead of steel and glass it was white-painted armor and weapon turrets looking out on the world of Solaris VII.

A world being bid farewell, as the first curls of fiery plasma scorched the field and roiled up from underneath the titanic ship. The force shook the ground. Even with the camera set back far enough to capture the entire ship in one shot, the image still trembled. Then slowly, majestically, the leviathan rose from the ground, picking up speed as the giant fusion drive lifted the DropShip out of gravity’s embrace. The camera followed it until it became a false star in a pale gray sky and was finally lost to the near-eternal cloud cover that blanketed the continent of Equatus.

“That was the scene at Mantraa’s Fulcrum Fields today, as the first three companies of ComStar’s Eighth Army, Fifty-sixth Division, lifted off Solaris VII under orders from Archon Katrina Steiner-Davion. The Martial’s Sword division, lately under the command of Precentor Celene Jussiaume, has been posted on the Game World for the past decade. The bulk of the division will continue to evacuate over the next twenty-four hours, leaving behind only a small logistics detachment responsible for arranging the relocation of personal effects of those family members not able to make such a rapid departure because of work contracts.”

The scene cut to a live feed of Julian Nero. He was now the leading Silesian journalist covering the growing civil unrest and liked to think he’d brought his own personal flair to what was, in truth, a grim reality. Certainly he was in demand—the highest in his career. His commentaries led every news piece that left Solaris VII by HPG, bound for either the Lyran Alliance or the Federated Suns. Only Mason Wells, the popular Black Hills anchorman, came close to matching the Great Nero’s current popularity. For the first twenty-four hours of the crisis Julian had even managed to avoid routines such as plugging sponsors, worrying about running long into the next feature, or toeing the line of state policy.

Though that was about to change. He felt the frown straining at the edge of his mouth, and instead gave the viewing audience a brilliant, false smile.

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