Session date: 2025-05-11
1 January, 3025
A dropship carries Axel, Cosmo, Max, and Joanna to Sayama IV. The ship lowers itself down a concrete silo and into the superstructure of Castle Caliburn.
Disembarking, the four go to report to their captain, but he has taped a “do not disturb except in case of interstellar war” sign on his door. Picking through the detritus of a New Year’s Eve party, they proceed to the mess hall. There they find a sleeping Jamero. The four interview the local cooks about planetary life, and toast each other.
Practicing swordfighting against a training dummy, Nathaniel remembers the events of the past three days: the routine patrol; being attacked by infantry machine gun fire; Louisa’s TBT going down in a minefield trying to engage the infantry; Emma’s WVR being blasted from behind with inferno missiles; Jackson’s GHR being swarmed and blown apart by anti-mech infantry; Nathaniel’s own retreat, making an unpowered leap over a truck-mounted laser crew. After three days in the mountains, he finally made his way back to base; the others have not returned.
The four wake Jamero and he introduces himself. He leads them to the gym, where they meet Nathaniel. Nathaniel takes them to a briefing room, where he goes over standard procedure. He tells them to be on guard because of the attack against his former lance, and orders them to be on alert whenever the regular planetary blackouts come. He relates his conclusion that none of the expected opposition possess the anti-mech training he witnessed.
Joanna investigates the chapel, and finds that while the sanctuary is encrusted with beautiful Orthodox icons, the old Orthodox priest took all the furniture from his quarters when he departed. She hangs a NAC tapestry in front of the most central Orthodox imagery.
At 15:05, all report to a briefing with Capt. MacCathasaigh. He gives them their mission parameters: they are not here to fight the 800 million residents of the planet, but to win their trust by performing precision strikes against shared enemies of the Federated Suns and Sayama IV. Their goal is to win quick, decisive victories and keep Overrun Company out of the field. Otherwise, long siege warfare will alienate the locals.
If another interstellar power invades, Moselle Battalion’s mission is basically to provide enough of a speed bump to get a warning out on the HPG network. MacCathasaigh echoes Nathaniel’s warning about the anti-mech forces, and speculates that they are mercenaries sent to destabilize the mission.
Axel and Cosmo retire to a rec room, where they play poker with Lt. Correra and try to get in her good graces.
Nathaniel goes to the chapel with Joanna and confesses two things: one is a secret, and the second is that he’s a foot soldier who has no idea how to manage the high and mighty mech pilots. Joanna agrees to become his XO.
Max checks in at the mech bay. The techs relax when they realize he is one of them, and cheer him when he delivers a case of Timbiqui. WO Song speaks to him one on one about his brilliant engineering skills, about the needless waste on Solaris, and – whispering in his ear – about a warehouse of illegal ammunition she recovered from the Outworld Alliance supply depots after the invasion.
Everyone convenes on the rec room. Max plays mechwarrior-themed pinball until Nathaniel can’t take the klaxons anymore. Then Jamero arrives with Armenian takeout, and everyone eats together.
