It's done.

Electric blue light filled his cockpit and the crackling static that accompanied a blast from a particle projection cannon filled his headphones. The foot's dark shadow wavered then vanished as the Daishipitched over onto its back. A momentary glance showed smoke trailing from the melted ruin of its head, and the shoulder-mounted LRM canister exploded when the 'Mech hit the ground.

Shin rolled the Phoenix Hawkover onto its right side and obtained a three-point stance on thick stumps and a wrist stub. His 'Mech hunched over like a chimp, Shin lifted the 'Mech's left arm, ready to use the machine gun and medium laser mounted there. Scanning his holographic display for a target, Shin tasted blood dripping down from his nose.

Behind his 'Mech he saw a Grand Dragon.It showed battle wear and broken armor, but the crest over its right breast had survived. The gold dragon against a field of red, jaws agape and ready to devour enemies, told him who piloted that craft and who had saved him.

"Why, Takashi, why?"

"I may hate you and your kind, Shin Yodama, but you are a citizen of the Combine. No one or nothing will stop me from doing my duty to protect the people of my realm."

"So it is with the rest of us, Coordinator. Our tactics might be different, but our goals are the same." Shin licked the blood from his lips. "So if you'd be so kind as to lure some Nova Cats over here, we can both do our duty."

45

DropShip Barbarossa , Outbound

Alyina, Jade Falcon Occupation Zone (Trellshire, Federated Commonwealth)

6 January 3052

Victor barely glanced up at Galen as the junior officer entered the lounge area. He saw the light reflect in rainbow spears from the surface of a holodisk, but attached no importance to it. Seeing Galen order the other officers out of the room, he realized the disk was more than data uploaded from headquarters on the planet they were abandoning. The grim look on Galen's face broke through Victor's distracted state enough that he guessed he would be called upon to do something.

Settled deep in a chair, with knees drawn up to his chest, Victor clutched the dark woolen blanket closer around himself. "It can wait, Galen."

Galen's eyes glittered like unforgiving chips of ice. "I am afraid it cannot, Kommandant." The scorn in his voice as he addressed Victor by rank stung the Prince, yet the pain felt very distant. 'This holodisk was inscribed because of a Priority Alpha message transmitted by ComStar. It is for you, Eyes Only."

Galen held out the disk, but Victor shook his head. "That means it's from or about my father. I don't want to see it now."

Disgusted, Galen stuffed the disk into the viewer built into the DropShip's bulkhead and swiveled Victor's chair around to face it. "The message was urgent and your father entrusted it to ComStar. Given the current circumstances, you know that means it's very important. Let me know when you're done viewing and I'll come back and have it destroyed."

Galen started out through the hatch, but Victor called him back. "Wait, Galen. Stay for this."

The blond MechWarrior shook his head. "It's 'Eyes Only' and I don't have that sort of clearance. I must go."

"I want you to stay."

"I don't have that clearance level, Kommandant."

"You do now!" Victor knew from the sour look on Galen's face that his protest was a facade over the real reason he wanted to leave. "Stay. That's an order, Hauptmann."

"As you command, Kommandant!"

Victor reached out and punched the Play button on the viewer. The screen opened with a burst of gray-white static, then dissolved into a close-up shot of Hanse Davion looking very small against his throne. Seeing how old and tired his father looked shocked Victor halfway out of his lethargy.

Hanse Davion tried to put on a brave smile, but the effort seemed to die for lack of energy. "Greetings, Victor. I wish this message could be more pleasant, but it cannot. I regret having to make this request of you, but to do less would be a gross injustice."

Victor saw his father swallow hard, and he felt a sympathetic lump rising in his own throat.

His lower lip trembling, Hanse continued. "On the fifth of January, an assassin succeeded in slaying Duchess Candace Liao and Minister Justin Allard. He slipped into the St. Ives Consulate and awaited his chance there. First he shot and killed Candace, then mortally wounded Justin. Despite his injuries, Justin managed to kill the assassin and summon help, but it was too late."

Victor's jaw dropped open. "No, that's impossible! Not yesterday. No!" He glanced over at Galen, whose face wore the same look of blanched surprise that Victor felt. "God, no."

Hanse Davion balled his hands into fists. "We know the assassin was an agent in the employ of Romano Liao. He lived in the Sarna March on Shipka, but in 3042 moved to New Avalon. He became a full citizen in 3048. We had no way of knowing he was a sleeper agent

"Tormana Liao has been appointed regent of the St. Ives Compact, though Kai's sister Kuan Yin attends to the actual running of the government. I have sent several reserve units to the Compact to discourage adventurism on Romano's part. Kai is, of course, the Duke of St. Ives and will be released from immediate duty so that he may assume the throne, or if he chooses, to head up the troops Candace lent to the war against the Clans."

Hanse's eyes narrowed. "We have undertaken an operation to avenge Justin and his wife, but it will not bear fruit for some months. If Kai wants to engage in a military solution to this situation, I would counsel him against it, but I would support any decision he makes. His parents will lie in state for two days here in the capital, then their bodies will be sent to Kestrel to be interred in the Allard family tomb. Cassandra and Quintus Daniel have been given the temporary duty of heading the honor guard taking the bodies to Kestrel.

"I know that it will not be easy, Victor, for you to break this news to Kai. Again, I apologize for asking you to do this, but I would not have him hear of his parents' death from anyone but a friend. Were it possible for me to be there, I would do it myself."

Victor tasted bitter tears on his lips. He wanted to shut the message off, but he also wanted to hear his father out.

"Victor, tell Kai that the loss of his parents hurts us all, as a nation and as a people. My relationship with his father and his grandfather was very special. If not for them, history would be very much different in the Inner Sphere. Your mother and I both take pride in your friendship with Kai because we know he can offer you the same support and wisdom his forebears have given us."

The screen darkened, and reading the end of message code, the machine shut off. Still staring at the black screen, Victor slammed his right fist down on his thigh again and again. "Damn, damn, damn, damn! Why did he have to die, Galen? Why was his life wasted?"

"How dare you!?"

The naked anger in Galen's voice snapped Victor's head around like a punch. "Wh-what?"

"How dare you say Kai's life was wasted!"

The furious spark in Galen's eyes and the rage in his voice kindled a reaction in Victor. "It was, dammit. Fifteen minutes after Kai died, we deserted Alyina, or have you forgotten? Kai died for nothing!"

Galen stood and looked down at the Prince. "Is that your judgement or a prophecy you want to fulfill? We may have lost Alyina, but Kai didn't die to save Alyina. You were there, you heard his men. He ordered them to get you out, and he knew he was buying time that only he, with those new myomers, could. The Clanners on the cliff, or the Clanners in the forest, it didn't matter. He never hesitated because he knew he was dead. He wanted to get you out of there, and damn you, he fulfilled his mission."