Le5224 wolf pack, p.18
LE5224 - Wolf Pack, page 18
Alpin nodded vigorously. "It is a bad example."
"As you say."
"But what can I do about it?" Elson wrapped his arm around Alpin's slender shoulders. "Come," he said. "I have a few ideas."
29
Michi Noketsuna had not expected to live. He had thought that his decision to face the Coordinator was fatal, whether he fulfilled his vendetta or not. Then Indrahar and the ISF had intervened and, in electing to attack the ISF Director, Michi believed he had chosen a path to certain death. To awaken in the care of a member of the Physicians of the Dragon Brotherhood was a bizarre twist of fate, a peculiar reward for his chosen course.
Truly, his karma was strange.
The fact of his survival was a puzzle that he pondered as he drifted in and out of sleep. Once, he thought he heard a doctor whispering to another that Takashi was dead and that Michi had saved him from an assassin. How could both be true? His own recollections were muddled, his constant drowsiness only obscuring things further. Perhaps with time, the mist would lift from his mind.
He slept.
When he was aware again, he considered what he had heard the doctors say. If Takashi was dead, what more reason had Michi to live? The vendetta that had driven him was complete. Takashi was dead. That, he thought with sudden certainty, was true.
But the Coordinator had not died at Michi's hand or in atonement for wrongs done to Minobu-sensei, which left Michi a failure. The tubes and machines the Brotherhood were using to sustain his existence made a mockery of him. His life was over. Why work to sustain a body when the reason for life is gone? His consciousness faded, but he remained tied to his body.
There was no release for him.
Karma.
He woke again.
The room was full of light, far brighter than artificial illumination could make it. It was day. Someone had opened the drapes to let in the sun. And someone was still in the room, standing by the bed.
That person was not wearing the bright yellow of a Brotherhood physician. Though Michi was sure that he knew the man, the tall visitor's face refused to resolve into recognizable features. It was not until the visitor spoke that Michi saw that it was Theodore Kurita, the man who had chained Michi with the bonds of duty, who had demanded, rightfully, that Michi put service to the Combine before any personal desires.
Theodore nodded gravely when he saw that Michi's eyes had focused on him and said, "My father told me of your decision in the dojo."
Michi wanted to tell Theodore to go away and leave him to his search for hell, but his voice would not work. Theodore ignored the feeble sounds.
"He asked me to give you a command again, as a reward for your loyalty to the Combine. The health of the realm was much on his mind. He said that you would make a good warlord. Anywhere but Dieron, he said."
An attempt at a head shake was thwarted by rebellious muscles. Michi's head simply rolled onto its side.
"I think Dieron would be the ideal place," Theodore said.
"No," Michi croaked, finding his voice at last. "Not Dieron. Not anywhere. I never was a politician, just a soldier. Now, I am not even that. There is no place for me in your army."
"You are tired and injured; do not decide hastily. I know what you did, and I remember how we met. You told me then that duty was the most important part of a samurai's life and that the duty to the Combine was the greatest burden a man could bear. That duty never goes away, Michi-kun. The Combine stills needs you, now more than ever. When you are ready, there is a place for you in the Ryuken. The command of Ryuken-ni, if you want it."
"Fraser commands."
"So you remember him? He would be pleased to hear it. Yes, he commands, but I have more need of him elsewhere. The Ryuken will need a commander, and I think you are the best man for the job."
"The Ryuken are the past. It is dead, as I should be."
"You are mistaken." Theodore walked to the window. The late afternoon sun cast his shadow across the bed and spared Michi's eyes from the glare. Staring out the window, Theodore said, "You saved my father's life by preempting those others. It gave him ... a new perspective. He believed he had found an honorable death."
Michi frowned. "I thought I heard a doctor say that he died in his sleep. A weak heart."
Theodore's voice was almost inaudible. "The doctors say what they must say."
"A warrior's death? I remember fighting."
"No. He survived those others. He used your sword to hold them off long enough for the Otomo to arrive. Afterward, he told me what you had said about a samurai's choice. I think that your example is what turned his mind. In the end, he freely chose what others tried to force on him. He thought it wisdom."
The twisted irony of the situation made Michi want to laugh, but the pain in his chest turned his amusement to agony. When the spasm subsided, he said, "He refused such a death when I offered it."
"He never responded well to the younger generation," Theodore said ruefully. He returned to Michi's bedside. "I wish to reward you."
A fleeting burst of strength allowed Michi to rock his head back and forth. "It is inappropriate."
"Because you raised your hand against the House of Kurita?"
"Hai."
"And if I, as head of that House, say that you were ever loyal, as a samurai should be?"
Michi met Theodore's gaze. He felt the strength in the Kanrei's spirit, the power to rule. But Michi had his own strength. "It would not change the truth. I have lived my last lie."
Theodore sighed. Bowing his head, he asked, "Will you become a monk?"
"Perhaps, in time."
They spoke no more for some time. Michi thought he must have slept, but when he was aware again, Theodore was still there, his position unchanged. Michi said, "If you have told me the truth, I have one more duty."
"On Awano?"
Michi shook his head. Awano, the ancestral home of his mentor Minobu, was as closed to him as Luthien and the inner circles of Kurita politics. Tetsuhara-sensei had cursed him from the family estate when Michi had brought him the head of Minobu's chief tormentor Samsonov. The old man had refused the validity of Michi's vendetta to restore the honor of his eldest son, Minobu. The old sensei had cursed him, but there had been a package waiting for Michi at the spaceport. A long slender box. That box now lay in a bank vault on the outskirts of Imperial City. The instructions he had left for its disposition no longer applied.
Theodore interrupted his thoughts. "Where will you go, then?"
"To fulfill my last duty," he said, but he would not elaborate despite the Kanrei's probing. This matter had nothing to do with Theodore, and everything to do with who Michi was and what he had become. Until that duty was done, he would not be free to go onward. "When will the doctors release me?"
"When you are able to travel. I will have a ship waiting for you."
"It is unnecessary."
"For you, but not for me. You will accept that at least."
Theodore's voice was firm, full of his conviction. Michi nodded. They understood each other at last.
30
The Wolf stopped short when he saw the man who stood at the window, back to the door. Even I knew enough to see that the tall man was not the stocky Takashi Kurita, with whom we were to meet. As we entered the room, the man turned to greet us and I recognized Theodore Kurita, Gunji-no-Kanrei of the Combine. He looked tired.
"Colonel Wolf, I am glad to see you."
"Good evening, Kanrei," the Colonel responded guardedly.
Theodore frowned, an uncharacteristically revealing expression from one schooled in Kuritan politics. Something was obviously upsetting him. I wondered if he approved of Jaime Wolf's duel with his father.
"Please take a seat," he said, gesturing to a group of intricately carved chairs near the center of the room. We took seats, but he remained standing. "I regret to inform you that your salutation is obsolete. My father passed on this morning. I am no longer Kanrei, but Coordinator."
Colonel Wolf stiffened, but his voice was steady and calm. "I did not know he was ill."
"It was sudden. The physicians say heart failure."
"Your circumspection suggests that you suspect otherwise."
"You are as perceptive as ever, Colonel Wolf. I am not sure whether you will find the news welcome or not, but I can assure you that my father did not die by treachery."
"I never wished him a dishonorable death."
"But you did wish him dead. Why else would you have accepted his challenge?"
"I came to end the feud."
"Ah yes, the feud." Theodore shook his head sadly. "Will my father's death bring an end to the hostilities between House Kurita and your Dragoons?"
"I came for the duel. It would have been a closure."
"There are many ways to reach an end, Colonel. What good is a vendetta prosecuted against innocents?"
The Wolf smiled grimly. "I could ask you the same thing."
"Your words are for my father, not me. We live in this world, Colonel Wolf. The universe is, now and tomorrow, what we make it." Finally, Theodore sat. He leaned forward, his expression earnest. "Will you not let the past go?"
Expressionless, the Colonel replied, "Too many Dragoons have died at Kurita hands."
"More deaths will not bring them back. Many Kuritans have died at the hands of Dragoons, and I do not hold you accountable. I thought you were offering a reconciliation when you invited me to Outreach."
"I called you, not your father. The Clans had to be stopped."
"And then you came and fought for Luthien. You might have stayed away and let the Clans settle your old debts."
"Hanse Davion invoked our contract with the Federated Commonwealth and forced us to come to Luthien, but I assure you it was against my wishes."
"You did not think it wise to defend Luthien against the invaders?"
"You should have met them in space and fallen back with your ground forces. Benjamin was defensible." The Wolf broke off then, dismissing the strategic considerations with a wave of his hand. "Now that Hanse is dead, I won't be forced into aiding Kurita again. My position remains unchanged."
"You will not help us against the Clans?"
"I won't fight your battles and have Dragoons give their lives for Kuritans. But if you offer no battles, I'll start none. We have no need to meet on the battlefield."
"If we did, you would not have the success you did against my father. My army is not so reckless as his."
"Start the fighting and you'll have more dead to bury than you can count."
Theodore sat back and a strange calm descended on him. "You speak much of death, Colonel. Is it death you seek? There are those who would be happy to arrange it."
"Threats aren't your style, Theodore-san."
"Are they yours?"
"I didn't start this feud," the Wolf responded hotly. Ice to the fire, Theodore said, "But you are willing to finish it." The Wolf nodded.
"I will not stand for a shadow war." Theodore leaned forward again, hig face stern. "If you strike at me, you will reap the whirlwind. There will be no piecemeal attacks, no raids, no unorganized assaults for you to destroy at leisure. Your Dragoons have a permanent home now; they are more vulnerable than ever. Living in Davion's shadow, you must be more aware than ever of the Kuritan reputation for atrocities. Outreach is not so far from Kentares," he said ominously.
The threat was barely veiled, for the name Kentares was infamous. It was on that world that one of Theodore's forebears had perpetrated a massacre that amounted to planetary genocide.
The Wolf's expression hardened. "We Dragoons have dealt with threats to our families before, always harshly." He stared at Theodore for a long moment. "Besides, I don't believe you would start a war with the Clans at your back and the Federated Commonwealth on two sides."
"You are not Davion's people, for all you hide in his shadow. Who will cry for mercenaries when so much can be gained by picking their bones?"
Though Theodore's words were subtle, his meaning was crystal clear. I had seen the reports about the spies who attempted to steal our secrets. I had seen the results of the Capellans' raid. Since first arriving in the Inner Sphere, the Dragoons had fought in turn for each of the Great Houses, and in doing so, we had fought against each one as well. And by hiding our Clan origins, we had lied to the leaders of the Inner Sphere for decades. They could not trust us now, no matter how open we seemed. History has shown that what a Successor Lord does not trust, he considers an enemy. Outreach made a tempting target—so small, compared to the power of the leaders of the Inner Sphere, and so full of technological loot. We knew they envied our resources. History had also shown a distressing tendency for the lords of the Inner Sphere to take what they wanted if they thought they could get away with it. As Theodore implied, the other Great House lords might sit by while he dismembered us, but more likely they would fight each other over the spoils. But that wouldn't help us; once the fighting began, no one would want us working for another. Any one of the Inner Sphere leaders might decide to destroy us first, no doubt hoping to gain the prize of our technologies for his own state.
The Wolf's expression went dark. "Luthien is vulnerable as well."
"You have not the strength to stand before the regiments I can gather here," Theodore said confidently.
"I wouldn't have to." The Wolf leaned forward and bared his teeth. "Do you know what a warship, a real warship, can do from orbit? If not, go look up your records of the Clan attack against Edo. We came to the Inner Sphere with ships just like those of the Clans, but we have kept them hidden in the Periphery. We wanted no one to know who we were or where we came from, and the ships were too big a clue. Now that we're revealed as wolves, we no longer have need for sheep's clothing. We could bring those ships in; we needn't hide them any longer. The Dragoons have the power to obliterate your capital from orbit. What good are all your BattleMechs against that kind of threat?"
Theodore stood up and stalked away from the chairs. Taking up a position by the window, he turned slowly to face us again. His form was a dark shape against the dying light.
"The dragon might be wounded, but the wolf will die. Your force cannot be so great that you can stand against an entire star empire."
"Maybe not. But we'll bloody whoever tries."
"You would violate the Ares Conventions by using your warships against a planet?"
The Wolf's face remained impassive. "I will defend my people with whatever means I have to hand."
"If you used such ships, you would be outlawed."
"A small price, and one I have paid before." The Colonel settled back in his chair. "Are you willing to call my bluff?"
"Yes."
Theodore's reply brought silence. There was conviction in his voice that could not be denied. The two men stared silently at each another, and I felt cold sweat trickle down my sides. If the Wolf was pushed to implement his threat, I doubted we would leave the palace alive. Theodore would have nothing to lose.
At last the Colonel asked, "Why?"
Drawing himself up, Theodore folded his arms across his chest. "I will see this madness ended. My realm has fought on too many fronts for too long. We have a grave enemy now, one who demands all our attention. That enemy is yours, too, if your talk on Outreach was more than wind." I think he smiled slightly, but I couldn't be sure. "Would Minobu Tetsuhara have denied himself access to half the forces of his enemy merely to soothe dead grief?"
"That was low."
"If it was, I apologize, Colonel Wolf." Theodore bowed. "Your threat to Luthien was unbecoming of a warrior as well."
Slowly, the Colonel stood. He sketched a slight bow.
"We are practical men, Colonel Wolf. We each know that the other will do anything to safeguard his people. I gave up a fifth of my realm to save the rest. At the time, I thought it necessary, but the wheel turns, as it always does. Now the Clans have come and I see that the Combine's sacrifice may have been in vain. The invaders threaten to take the rest of the Combine away from me. If the Combine falls, what then? Will the Federated Commonwealth be able to stop the invaders? Will Marik's Free Worlds League? Will you? Is the tired lure of revenge worth the gamble?"
Jaime Wolf was quiet for a long time. "I will think about what you have said, Theodore-san."
31
Dechan Fraser stopped down the street from the mansion that had been a reward from Theodore Kurita for loyal service. At first he thought his tired eyes were confused, tricked by the evening light. He recognized the mane and beard of gray, the short, compact silhouette. Though he had not worn one in years, he knew the Dragoon dress uniform as well. He could not be mistaken. This unexpected guest waiting by his gate was Colonel Jaime Wolf.
He had heard a rumor that the duel had been postponed, but he never imagined that Wolf would make a visit to Dechan Fraser part of his itinerary. Curious, confused, and not a little angry, Dechan walked up to his former commander. "Looking for someone?"
Wolf turned and glanced up at him. "Dechan, you're looking well."
Ignoring the offered hand, Dechan said, "Receiving visitors in the street is bad manners. Please, come in."
Dechan palmed the lock and, when the door opened, gestured that Wolf should precede him. The Colonel entered and gave his cloak to the servant who appeared, then disappeared just as silently. Dechan led him into the common room where the servants had prepared tea and a tray of small cakes. There was a third cup beside his and Jenette's; the servants had known the visitor was waiting.
"I hope I'm not troubling you," Wolf said in pale imitation of Kuritan politeness. He looked for a chair and, finding none, knelt awkwardly in the Kuritan fashion.
"Do itashimashite," said Dechan, kneeling too. As he did, he realized how easily he had slipped into the formal role of host and begun speaking in Japanese. The Kurita style had become a part of his own: politeness hiding personal feelings to make all smooth and to save face.
