[center][b][color=Gold]M I S S I O N   B R I E F I N G[/color][/b][/center]


[color=Olive]"Green Knights, attention!"[/color] Colonel Wayne called out.

The mine had been a buzz of activity as the technicians and crew prepared to mobilize, loading equipment onto transport vehicles, strapping down every piece of equipment and ammunition they could bring with them, trying to make sure their various creature comforts weren't going to be left behind. There was no word yet as to where they were headed or what they were going to be doing, but for many, a change of scenery was going to be welcome no matter what.

The Green Knights Mechwarriors, tankers, and infantrymen gathered in front of the Mobile HQ, where Lt. Lyons and Cadets Higgins and Windham had just finished setting up a projector display.

At the Colonel's gesture, the projector switched on, showing a map of the main Espian landmass.

[hider=Political Map][center][img]https://i.imgur.com/pup6i08.png[/img][/center][/hider]

[color=Olive]"This is the current political lay of the land,"[/color] Gaius began. [color=Olive]"As you can see, the deck is still very much stacked against us. Thanks to the Heavenly Sword's attack killing Governor Xiu and his inner circle, the last of the loyalist forces in Yuzhny Portveyn have fallen. The Espian Guards have moved a majority of their forces to secure the city, primarily now fighting with Heavenly Sword insurgents. Meanwhile, the Free People's Army have split the bulk of their forces into two smaller cells, one now operating in South Nui Awa, the other in Geum Haebyon. The cities of Nui Awa are the planet's major financial hubs, while Geum Haebyon is the largest industrial center. Because of this, you can expect the Espian Guards to dig in tight in both cities, while the FPA will do anything to break their hold."[/color]

The Colonel pointed out the new logos on the map, icons showing a drop of light blue water.

[color=Olive]"These are the four main hubs of the Aqua Vitae Corporation, who control the desalination platforms that allow for anyone on this planet to have drinkable water. When Federov seized control of the government, he assumed the AVC would fall in line, but thanks to Director Jeong and a few of her like-minded board members, the company has yet to declare one way or another. If we can persuade a majority of the board that the Green Knights can be trusted more than the Crimson Fists should be feared, we have the potential for some massive financial and political influence."[/color]

Lastly, he highlighted the three logos of a red fist.

[color=Olive]"These are the last sighted locations of the Crimson Fists,"[/color] he said, a hint of a snarl in his voice. [color=Olive]"While they are still operating as three separate Lances rather than concentrating as a whole Company, their movements are confined to a smaller and smaller area. To put it bluntly, they're closing in on us. If we don't move before they zero in on our location, they'll come at us all at once and wipe us out."[/color]

As gratifying as it was to have given the Crimson Fists a bloody nose during the supply raid, there was still the fact that the Knights were simply outnumbered at least two to one just in Battlemechs, and the Fists had an entire army at their disposal as well. Without a major change in the balance of power, a direct fight with the Crimson Fists was still near certain death.

[color=Olive]"Fortunately,"[/color] he continued, [color=Olive]"Thanks to our visitor, we now have some vital intel that nobody in Federov's regime, Malenkov's command, or the Fists' company has. Ms Jeong?"[/color]

The Aqua Vitae board member approached the projector screen, acting as if she had always been part of these briefings. In truth, she had given so many business presentations over the course of her career that she could do them in her sleep, so a military presentation wasn't too much of a stretch for her.

[color=ed145b]"Thank you, Colonel Wayne,"[/color] she said, careful to make sure she was addressing him by his proper rank, deferring to the fighting man when on his territory. [color=ed145b]"As the Colonel has already stated, the Aqua Vitae Corporation controls the largest commodity on Espia, that being fresh water. The Jeong family, however, has fortunes beyond that, having played a vital role in the planet's terraforming several centuries ago, and in the early mining operations that led to the discovery of Espia's neodymium deposits. Both of these ventures required a significant amount of infrastructure that became obsolete as soon as the air here was breathable."

"In particular,"[/color] she said, making no effort to suppress a sly grin, [color=ed145b]"These early terraforming operations required a network of subterranean tunnels to transport heavy machinery across the continent. Tunnels big enough to move excavators, atmospheric processors, fleets of IndustrialMechs...or, say, a reinforced Lance of Battlemechs."[/color]

She mimicked Colonel Wayne's gesture to Lieutenant Lyons, who switched the projector screen to the next slide. It was the same map, but now crisscrossed with thick white lines.

[hider=Tunnels][img]https://i.imgur.com/I7WYFKL.png[/img][/hider]

[color=ed145b]"These are the tunnels used by the Star League Department of Mega-Engineering in the 2500s to settle Espia,"[/color] she stated with pride, [color=ed145b]"Overseen by Executive Director Valten Jeong, one of my direct ancestors. After the Star League lost interest in this world, his grandson Dae-Sun Jeong founded Bari Gongju MetalWorks, expanding the tunnel networks for mining neodymium and other precious metals. In 2750, when the Capellan Confederation annexed Espia, BG MetalWorks was nationalized, and Michelle Jeong-Dulka bought into the Aqua Vitae Corporation. Thanks to House Liao's history of mismanagement, the MetalWorks quickly went under, but the Jeong family continued to make use of the tunnel network for mining and other business ventures, carefully editing public records over time to ensure their existence would become more or less a family secret."[/color]

She pointed out the white lines on the map, some interrupted by crack marks, and the red and green icons that punctuated each line.

[color=ed145b]"As I'm sure you can already surmise, the white lines represent a part of the tunnel network large enough to transport the Green Knights and all of your equipment. The green tunnel icons are entrances to the network that I know are still usable. The [i]red[/i] tunnel icons, on the other hand, are no longer usable, destroyed by cave-ins or blocked by later construction. The crack marks are places where the tunnels have caved in, and will need to be cleared with demolition charges before they can be used."[/color]

[color=Olive]"This will let us relocate without the risk of exposing ourselves to enemy fire,"[/color] Colonel Wayne piped back in. [color=Olive]"However, there's a risk of tipping our hand. If the enemy finds out about the tunnel networks, they'll start using them too."[/color]

As the Colonel stepped forward, Cassandra realized her portion in this presentation was over, and casually stepped to one side.

[color=Olive]"The tunnel network is going to allow us not only to slip out from under the Crimson Fists, but will also allow us to conduct multiple operations at once."[/color]

Gaius gestured to Lyons, who again switched the projector to the next slide.

[color=Olive]"Within 24 hours, we will use demolition charges to clear an entrance to the tunnel network and relocate. Our new location is in Sector J-13: an industrial scrap-yard known called 'Uncle Mack's.'"[/color]

The slide changed to an image of the scrap yard.

[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/0aqw2qCm.jpg[/img][/center]

[color=Olive]"Uncle Mack's is officially owned by Maxwell Metals, which in itself is owned by the AVC. [i]Un[/i]officially, 'Maxwell Metals' is comprised almost entirely of the Maxwell and Morozov families, two tribes of rather eccentric indig folks. In addition to a good 21 acres of spare parts and scrap metal, it also hosts a small team of [i]Powerman[/i] and [i]Loader King[/i] IndustrialMechs, meaning that it has fully functioning 'Mech bays, and that the seismic activity of our own 'Mechs moving about has a good chance of being mistaken for theirs."[/color]

[color=ed145b]"The Maxwells and Morozovs are both very welcoming families, as well,"[/color] Cassandra added, [color=ed145b]"and have converted rather large portions of the old storage warehouses and the yard itself into living quarters. Do keep an eye open, however- not to perpetuate nasty stereotypes, but some of the Maxwell men have a habit of procuring new scrap in, shall we say, questionable ways."[/color]

[color=Olive]"Thank you, Ms. Jeong,"[/color] the Colonel said with a nod. [color=Olive]"Strategically, Uncle Mack's scrap-yard is within easy access of both the cities of North Nui Awa and Geum Haebyon....as well as Fort Tie Shan. At this point a direct assault on the fort will still only get our people killed, but when the time comes, it will make for an easier extraction."[/color]

Nobody wanted to storm the fort more than the Colonel himself, but they had to find the right way to crack it first. Besides, there was more work to do on this planet.

[color=Olive]"As our technicians and crew relocate to our new base of operations, you yourselves will deploy on three separate missions, which will go down concurrently."[/color]

The slide changed back to the world map, with three areas designated A, B, and C.

[hider=Mission 2 A, B, and C][img]https://i.imgur.com/ykJ9wen.png[/img][/hider]

[color=Olive]"Mission Alpha: there is a large hydroelectric dam in Sector I-16, on the mouth of the Tie Shan River. This provides power to both cities of North and South Nui Awa. Comms chatter picked up by Ms. Jeong's employees, and corroborated by Lt. Lyons and Cadet Windham, suggest that elements of the Heavenly Sword are planning to attack this dam within the next 48 hours. If they succeed, not only will they cut off the power to both cities, but the destruction of the dam will cause a tidal wave that could kill countless civilians.

Task Force Alpha will consist of Family Man, Steel Rain, and Giggles, as well as Sergeant Dalton's infantry platoons. Our new associate Mr. McCord will also be joining you, as the dam is AVC property. The orders are to lay low until operatives of the Heavenly Sword are spotted, then drive them away by any means necessary. If reasonably doable, your secondary objective is to take at least one insurgent alive for questioning, but neutralizing the threat is far and away your primary objective. Collateral damage is to be kept to a minimum, so make your shots count."[/color]

Moving his pointer westward, he highlighted the 'B' icon.

[color=Olive]"Mission Bravo: there is an information broker in North Nui Awa who goes by the alias 'Stiletto,' who we have reason to believe is working with the FPA. Between what Ms. Jeong has told us and what we've been able to decipher from intercepted comms chatter, Stiletto is embedded with Espian Guard soldiers, gets whatever intelligence they can from them, then sells the intel to FPA operatives. Their most recent whereabouts are a dive bar in the far end of the city called the Diamond in the Rough.

Task Force Bravo will consist of Ramrod, Wyatt, and a fireteam from Sgt. Dalton's platoon. Your objective will be to identify and contact Stiletto, see what sort of intel they can give us regarding our enemies, and if they can get us in contact with the FPA. We have a small nest-egg of C-Bills we can access if Stiletto wants cash, but you are not to give away intel regarding the Green Knights. This bar is frequented by Espian Guard soldiers, so be on your guard. If things get hairy, Dalton's fireteam will pull you out."[/color]

The pointer then moved far north, near the top of the map.

[color=Olive]"Mission Charlie: the spaceport near the capital city of Balya Gora has been under the control of the NPDRE, but some transmissions indicate at least one DropShip has arrived from off-world since the coup. It is very likely that whoever the Crimson Fists are working for, they're also providing new hardware for the Espian Guards. We need to know what is coming off of that ship, and who is sending it to them.

"Task Force Charlie will consist of Alley Cat and Desperado. The [i]Raven[/i] can scout out the spaceport at range, with the [i]Phoenix Hawk[/i] providing cover if needed. If a full scan of the spaceport proves not possible from a distance, or there is no approach without giving away your position, ditch the 'Mechs somewhere safe and approach on foot. Your priorities are to get sensor scans, photographs, captured documents, anything to give us an idea of who is supplying Federov and his cronies, and what they're sending against us. This is strictly reconnaissance, so do not engage the enemy unless absolutely necessary."[/color]

The slides ended, and the Colonel stood before his Knights.

[color=Olive]"These missions have a lot of moving parts, and I need to know you're up to the job. If you've got questions or concerns, I want to hear them now."[/color]