Haakon Magnusson shook his head. "The Clans make our weapons look like toys compared to what they bring to battle."

Wolf's eyes narrowed. "If you surrender to despair now, Prince Magnusson, what chance have you to win back your realm? I have the blueprints and technical diagrams for the new BattleMech technology. Right here on Outreach, the Dragoons have produced, in very limited numbers, Battle-Mechs based on that technology. It may be dated by Clan standards, but it is still eons ahead of what the Inner Sphere currently has available."

A sudden weariness seemed to settle over Wolf like a lead cloak. "I had hoped for more time to prepare for this invasion, but so be it. My Dragoons have restored Outreach to the training facility it was in the days of the Star League. We have not yet begun mass production of OmniMechs—which is what the Clans call their line 'Mechs—but with the help of Colonel Kell, Dr. Banzai, and Clovis Holstein, we do have working prototypes of many of the new weapons the Clans use. I also have five full regiments of Dragoons ready to take the field against the Clans."

Wolf pushed up the sleeves of his jacket to mid-forearm. "There it is. My cards are on the table. I'll be fighting the Clans, no matter who does or does not join with me. But I say again that if we pull together, we can field an army that will stop the Clans."

Wolf's words sent a shiver down Victor's spine. He's right. If we don't band together, the Clans will take us apart.

Romano barked a sharp laugh. "Why should we believe you, Wolf? You've admitted having deceived us before. Why should it be any different now?" She shrugged eloquently, brushing her auburn hair away from the shoulders of her black gown. "I am not worried. The Clans will be stopped."

Wolf watched her carefully, shaking his head as though not believing what he'd heard. "I think you mistake the gravity of the situation, Lady Romano. If we don't stop the Clans, who will?"

Romano smiled broadly, then let her gaze sweep the assembly as though to share her enlightenment with all. "You forget, Colonel Wolf, that when the Star League collapsed, General Aleksandr Kerensky led away nearly the whole Star League army beyond the Periphery. They're out there. They have been waiting all this time, waiting for the day mankind would again need their help. They will come and they will save us from the Clans."

Wolf's shoulders sagged. "Lady Romano, have you heard nothing I've said?" He stared around the room in disbelief, once more shaking his head. Though his voice dropped almost to a whisper, no one missed a word in the utter silence that had fallen over the gathering.

"Don't you see?" He leaned forward, grasping the podium so hard his knuckles went white. "Kerensky's people havereturned. They are the Clans."

2

DropShip Dire Wolf

Beyond the Periphery

 2 February 3051

Sweat-soaked black hair stinging his eyes, Phelan Kell Wolf flew through the air. He twisted into a shoulder roll, bleeding off the energy of the throw that had propelled him across the small room. His left hand slapped the floor mat hard, further breaking his fall and helping to bring his body under control. He knew he could have used the remaining momentum to roll to his feet. Instead, he feigned exhaustion and let himself sprawl out flat on his back.

His opponent, red braid whipping back and forth like a snake, shot after him across the room. Though she stood a third of a meter taller, and outweighed him by seventy kilos, Evantha Fetladral moved quickly and sensuously. A grim smile locked her face into a battle-mask, but wariness burned in her brown eyes. She slowed slightly as she closed, preparing for whatever trap Phelan had laid.

Phelan scythed his left leg through the space occupied by hers. As she leaped above the sweep, Phelan let the momentum of his kick twist him over onto his stomach, then started a second sweep with his right leg. The kick caught Evantha at the ankles and smashed them together as she came down. She landed heavily on the mat, but before Phelan could turn and lunge forward to pin her, she was on her feet again.

She dropped into a crouch and waved him forward. Her sleeveless gray bodysuit ended at the knees and matched the one Phelan wore. The bands of red at shoulders and thighs were linked by a red flank stripe. Sweat glistened from her nearly bald pate and rippling muscles. "Come on, Phelan. You are good, but you are no Elemental."

The Inner Sphere expatriate wiped his left forearm across his brow. "I didn't think I was supposed to be one. I'm a MechWarrior."

Evantha frowned. "Perhaps that is what you will become, Phelan Wolf, but only if you train well and learn to speak properly."

Phelan winced. Dammit, I keep forgetting.Bowing his head slightly, he apologized. "Forgive me. When I get excited, I contract my ..."

Evantha's lunge forward made him break off. He spun to the left, just eluding her outstretched right hand, then darted forward. He hooked his right leg behind her right knee, then grabbed her shoulder and threw her down. Fingers stiffened into a spearpoint, he slashed his right hand across her throat.

Evantha slapped the mat three times with her left hand, signaling an end to the fight. "Well done," she said.

Dripping sweat made his eyes burn as Phelan dropped unceremoniously to the mat. " 'Bout time. You have been tossing me around the room for the past two hours. Returning the favor was the least I could do."

The giant woman curled up into a sitting position. She used her huge hands to wipe the sweat from her almost completely shaved head, then she dried them on the legs of her bodysuit. "Indeed, it was the least you could do." When Phelan sighed, she smiled. "I am pleased, however, that you let me take no advantage while you were offering your apology. There was once a time when you might have believed that such a formality meant a time-out in training."

"Yeah, time once was .. ." Phelan crawled toward the edge of the mat and grabbed a white towel from a pile. He tossed it to Evantha, then appropriated another for himself. "Since then, you've been kind enough to beat that misconception out of me."

Evantha played idly with the tail of her long braid. "So much the better. You must remember that you will constantly be watched and tested. Even when an exercise is over, you must be prepared for another challenge. That has always been the way of the Clans, for it is only constant testing and preparedness that has ensured our survival. It has made us what we are. Now that you are one of us, you would do well to understand that."

Phelan nodded acknowledgement, but his thoughts were far away. I've known that ever since the Clans captured me. Even when I was a bondsman, they were constantly testing me. Khan Ulric pushed me, wanting to see how far I would go in compromising my homeland, and Vlad tried his best to break my spirit. Now that I have been accepted into the Warrior caste, I am being tested as an equal, not an inferior. If anything, the testing has become more difficult.

Evantha hung her towel around her neck. "Do you want to get a shower?" When Phelan hesitated, Evantha laughed.

"Sorry, Evantha, I still have not gotten used to the familiarity between members of a sibko. Back where I come from, men and women might share duties in the field, but seldom do they share shower facilities."

"You do not seem to mind sharing showers with me."