Chung's smile remained in place as he heard the jump seat snap down into place and the metallic click of the safety straps being fastened together. His hands slid down to the joysticks on the ends of his command couch. On the primary screen in front of him, he had the docking link for the JumpShip Kensing Bay.As he moved the left joystick up a bit, the computer-projected crosshairs centered themselves on the dock link. The crosshairs pulsed and Chung hit the button on top of the joystick to lock the DropShip on course.

"Not unlike lining up a target for a 'Mech's weapons, eh, Chung?"

"True." With the right joystick, he cut his velocity so the DropShip drifted very slowly to the appointed link-up. "Fortunately, JumpShips do not shoot back."

His passenger did not answer immediately and Chung sensed deep and dark thought emanating from that corner of the pilot's station. He knew that when his ship hooked up with the JumpShip Kensing Bay ,the JumpShip's Captain would trigger the jump to Daniels. In the blink of an eye, the very fabric of space would warp around both ships and they would reappear in another star system over thirty light years distant.

And thirty light-years closer to Sian. Thirty light-years closer to Romano Liao.

Chung turned in his chair but could barely make out his passenger in the shadows. "Are you certain you want to continue this journey? You need not go, you know."

"I have no choice, Chung." A fist sheathed with a black glove emerged from the shadows. "Romano Liao killed my beloved. She all but orphaned my children. Her predations have slaughtered hundreds of millions within the Capellan Confederation." The fist vanished, to be replaced by a heavy thump of something hitting the bulkhead. "This is a journey I should have made years ago. I waited too long and it has cost me dearly. No more."

A metallic thunk echoed through the ship. "We're linked. Brace for jump."

Though he made his living piloting DropShips between JumpShips and planets, Nicholas Chung never got used to the sensation of jumping between worlds. Everything he saw blurred, then each star expanded until the brilliant rainbow of lights swirled around in a crazy mosaic of colors. He felt himself being smashed flat down into one dimension, then cycling around through a dozen other dimensions until suddenly he was back in the solid reality of the three dimensions where he spent most of his time.

He shook himself, then grabbed the command couch arms as a wave of nausea passed through him. He swallowed against the bile, then hit a switch on the panel at his right. "DropShip Te Kuaicheis away. Thanks for the lift, Kensing Bay ."

Chung glanced over at his passenger. "You said you had passage for us into the Compact from Daniels?"

His guest nodded. "Bring up a system chart. The Jump-Ship is supposed to be waiting in a wide orbit around the fourth world."

Chung punched up the chart for the Daniels system and touched the icon of a JumpShip near the fourth planet. "The only thing there is the FCSS valiant Heart,and it's at 2 AU from the world. Is that it?"

"Steady as she goes, Captain Chung."

Chung's jaw dropped. "You can't be serious. That's a Federated Commonwealth JumpShip. It will be heading out toward the front with the Clans, not into the Compact."

"Chung, even Hanse Davion acknowledges the seriousness of my mission. The Valiant Heartis waiting for us."

Chung set a course and started his ship accelerating toward the warship. "I hope you know what you are doing."

"Rest assured, Chung, I do. 'An eye for an eye' is a concept simple enough for even Romano to understand on first pass." A low laugh sounded from the corner. "Too bad it will be her last!"

20

Fort Ian Training Center , Port Moseby

Virginia Shire, Federated Commonwealth

21 March 3052

Even though the shadows of the briefing room shrouded him, Shin Yodama felt conspicuous among so many Federated Commonwealth officers. Seated at Victor Davion's left hand, across the dark table from Galen Cox, he wished he were invisible. He noticed that the seat next to him remained vacant and only Galen had made an attempt to engage him in conversation before the briefing began.

The tension in the room was so thick it almost smothered him. For a half-second, he imagined it was focused upon him, then rejected the thought with a quick, involuntary shake of his head. Not focused on me, but on this end of the table.

Hovering directly over the center of the rectangular briefing table, holographic BattleMechs went through their paces. The exercise footage, taken from the gun-cameras mounted in Locustsused for observation, showed the incredible firepower of the assembled BattleMech unit. In highly coordinated assaults, they combined their fire to reduce targets to scrap in seconds.

Shin, though he had been present at the exercise, took time to review his assessment of this unit, Victor Davion's Revenants. They had been reorganized into a reinforced battalion of just over fifty 'Mechs. The unit was further divided into a fire support company, an assault company, and two fast-response "sprint" companies. Victor's command lance was made up of swift 'Mechs, making it a complement of the sprint companies.

And what 'Mechs they are!Shin knew from conversations with Victor that even the Prince had not expected his unit to be refitted so quickly and well. In the holographic battle being waged above the table, Shin saw BattleMechs that had never before appeared in the battles of the Successor States. Axmen, Marauder II's,and a host of other new 'Mech models populated the Revenant ranks, making the holovid of the training session look more like a commercial HV release than a record of a unit in action.

Victor's own DaishiOmniMech was the jewel of the lot. Shin had seen pictures of its condition after Alyina, and yet its refitting was now amazingly complete. The squat, boxy torso showed none of the damage it had taken in battle with the Clans, and the right foot had been replaced. Though the 'Mech's birdlike legs gave it an odd gait, Shin saw in Victor's steady piloting a deadly intent that the Daishi'scrushing firepower fulfilled. Its array of missiles, lasers, and autocannons made the OmniMech well-suited for anything from indirect fire-support missions to the fiercest infighting.

Even the normal 'Mechs that had survived Alyina, like Galen Cox's Crusader,had been swapped out for the new and unusual avatars of their former selves. The Crusaderlost some firepower in the revamping of its short-range missile systems and the removal of one machine gun, but the addition of a flamer and an anti-missile system more than compensated the loss. More important, the new Crusaderfeatured jump jets, which gave the huge 'Mech far more mobility. Double-strength heat sinks meant it would not overheat as quickly, increasing its ability to sustain an assault during battle.

Victor hit a switch as the holovid ended, and slowly brought up the lights. Shin noted the seriousness of Victor's expression as he gazed at the officers who commanded his lances. If he has changed in the time since we trained on Outreach, it is only in his maturity. It is the Dragon's good fortune that the Fox's son plots with us and not against us.

Victor pointed toward where the 'Mechs had been battling. "You've all seen the holovids before, but I wanted us to review that section together to let you know I'm very pleased with our progress. Your people are meshing well together, and everyone has come up to speed on their new 'Mechs far more quickly than I expected. This is good, and I commend you all for this level of improvement." He toyed with the zipper of his olive jumpsuit. "Letters of commendation have been entered in all your files over General Kaulkas' signature."