Brikai Buhalin smiled softly to himself. The conquest of Anywhere had taken less time than he’d planned, and it had cost him relatively few assets. The worst casualty was Star Captain Serena, but she had been critically injured, not killed. Her injuries would guarantee that she would never see combat again, but it had presented the two of them with an opportunity. They’d discussed the matter at length, and it had required some communication with the Khans, but the plan basically moved along the lines of transferring her out of the 8th Regulars and into a newly formed Provisional Garrison Cluster. She would take over the administration of Anywhere as part of that responsibility, and second line troops would be brought in from the homeworlds to help her watch over the world and make it a valuable, productive holding for the Jade Falcon Clan.
In an unusual bit of administrative details, he was meeting with his staff at a restaurant, a newer idea from the Inner Sphere. The concept of exchanging currency units for food was an unusual idea for the clans of Kerensky, but his merchant caste advisors had assured him they would have the situation in hand by the end of the year. Brikai had four trinaries in his cluster, three battlemech Trinaries and an Elemental Trinary. The loss of Star Captain Serena had left an opening for promotion, and he was curious to see which of his officers would try and fill that gap. His educated guess was on Luna Hazen, but there were some other contenders in the pack.
The Commander of the local militia had suggested this as a place to have a meal that would leave an impression..that’s how he’d phrased it. The staff car had rolled to a stop in front of the quaint building and they had quickly entered. The Merchant who was running the eatery looked aghast as they entered.
“Can...I help all of you?” he said meekly, shrinking back behind the counter.
“We would like to eat here, today, can that be arranged?” Brikai said quietly to the startled merchant. The rest of his staff gave him an incredulous look. Merchants answered the questions of warriors, not the other way around. One of the Elementals was watching the door behind them, making sure that they were safe.
“I will have to put several tables together for all of you, but i believe we can arrange that, Sir.”
“That would be ideal, if you have room for us, that would go a long way towards showing my officer corp that the Inner Sphere has much to offer Clan Jade Falcon.” The merchant nodded slowly and several of his laborers went to work arranging a space for them in the back. One of them offered to help Star Captain Serena to her seat but was quickly rebuffed by an Elemental Star Commander. There was a brief scream as the Elemental closed the distance.
“He meant no offense sirs, he was attempting to show hospitality!” The merchant exclaimed quickly.
“Spheroid Hospitality…” the Elemental said firmly.
“Farraday, we are new to this world and its customs, and these are Jade Falcons now. They were trying to be gracious hosts, we will be gracious guests.” Brikai’s eyes narrowed at the Elemental. She was hell on the Battlefield, but would not rise much above the rank of Star Commander. She didn’t have the temperament for command. The warriors took their offered seats and laborers started to take orders and answer questions about the food. The Falcons had brought their merchant liason and a senior technician for additional civilian input. Brikai shook his head as the old technician perused the alcohol selections.
“Congratulations to all of you on your successful conquest of this world. You bring honor to the Jade Falcons with the speed of your victory. We are at least two weeks ahead of schedule for our follow up strike on Steelton.” Brikai addressed his people.
“My Trinary will be ready.” Star Captain Prince said quietly.
“According to my technical staff, We will pick up the last bit of our supplies from our ships in orbit.” Star Captain Wayne said with a strain of incredulity in his voice. His troops hadn’t been actively engaged in the battle for Anywhere, and most of their damage had been sustained in a miscued orbital drop.
Star Captain Leo, the elemental Star Captain nodded, though most of his attention was focused on the menu in front of his eyes. “We lost a few suits during the engagements for the Rim Worlds facility, but my warriors are still combat ready.”
“These spheroids are simpletons, and barely functional warriors, quiaff?” Star Commander Farraday said with a quiet snort.
“Neg, they have shown themselves to be quite capable in certain circumstances.” Luna answered her question.
“Despite their amazing ability to incorrectly fire their weapons, i believe they have...potential.” Ayat Icaza agreed with her fellow officer.
“How are your bondsmen working out?” Brikai asked quietly.
“I am enjoying Mackenzie.” Star Captain Prince said with a smile. “She’s what i would expect one of us to be like. Hot tempered, violent, capable of following orders.”
The Merchant cleared his throat softly, and Brikai knew he was subtly asking for permission to add to the conversation. “I believe George has something to add…?”
“Most of the Bondsmen taken are unlikely to be servicable to the warrior caste, and Thane and i have been marking out the likely suitabilities for each, based on their aptitudes.” Thane nodded in agreement, but his eyes were boring their way into a bottle of bright red liquor. “I think once the cultural shock wears off, they will embrace their new culture and become valued members of their respective castes.”
“Have you detected any malcontents among their ranks?” Ayat asked thoughtfully.
“Malcontents?” Thane looked up from his prize.
“Those who will not embrace the way of the Clans…”
“The ones that we have taken as bondsmen? I do not think they will prove to be a problem, other than Mason. The rest of the planet? I have no earthly idea. I am just a technician, after all.”
“What is the problem with Mason?” Brikai asked quietly.
“He’s at war with his own heart.” Thane said softly. The entire table full of warriors studied him with a combination of amusement, bewilderment and apathy. “Don’t look at me like that. You are all trueborn warriors who have had one goal in your entire life. He’s a boy, coming from a completely different culture who has no idea what any of our words mean. He’s probably looking for a sense of belonging that he has never experienced before.” He took a long sip of the alcohol and the tips of his ears turned a bright red.
“However, he feels loyalty to the place and the people he comes from. The Sokolov children were raised by people like us, and have a semblance of our ways. If the rumors are true, they were taken in at a fairly early age by a Trueborn, who taught them our ways. Mason is going to have to ultimately decide what his heart wants. If he chooses us, he can be a powerful asset to the clan. If he chooses the other direction, he will be difficult to manage.”
“Have you been hit in the head recently?” Ayat asked him incredulously.
“Not since i had a Gauss Rifle capacitor land on me during the build up to Revival.”
“He swore the Oath, he was taken.” Farraday asked with disdain.
“If he does not understand what the words mean, then the Oath has no value, my esteemed warriors. He has the potential to go far, and with the right handling, he could prove very valuable to our Clan.” Thane answered their questions.
“He has potential, but he likes to talk, potentially more than he likes to fight.” Luna Hazen added.
“We will have to test the warrior spirit within him.” Brikai said with a nod.
The laborers brought the ordered food, and the table quickly filled with food of an unusual style. Brikai nodded at the laborers asking one quietly “What precisely is this called?”
“It’s a barbecue, Sir. It’s a style of cooking that involves smoking meat over an extended period of time using aromatic woods.” the startled laborer answered him.
He tasted some of the offered meat, and smiled. Juicy, with a hint of spice and wood. He thought he would grow to like this barbecue...
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