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As Honk-Honk's [i]Panther[/i] and Bing-Bong's [i]Hunchback[/i] both exploded in short order, the Yellow Jester reflected for a moment on how quickly things had gotten out of hand. If there were any gods out there in the blackness of space looking over him and his deeds, he'd have supposed this was some higher justice being meted out. The massacre in that little speck of a town was just the latest in a long line of 'pranks' and 'japes' he'd pulled over the years, going back well before he'd gotten into the mercenary trade. It's possible that this was just all of his sins catching up to him.

On the other hand, though, pissing off the gallant and noble Green Knights to the point where they themselves would carry out a merciless massacre of their own was a pretty great gag.

Jester's [i]Crusader[/i] leaned to one side from a sudden shift in mass, as the large laser of the Green Knight's [i]Phoenix Hawk[/i] gouged out molten chunks of armor. As the lighter mech arced through the air, determined to plant its foot directly into his cockpit, Jester licked his lips.

[color=Yellow]"Ah, so you want to play tag?"[/color] He called out, suddenly hurling the [i]Crusader's[/i] mass to one side and dodging the [i]Phoenix Hawk's[/i] foot as it came crashing down into the snow. [color=Yellow]"All right, then, [i]you're it!"[/i][/color]

The [i]Crusader[/i] swung its bulky oversized gauntlets towards the Green Knight 'Mech, but the Mechwarrior in the [i]Phoenix Hawk[/i] was no slouch at melee combat. The Green Knight ducked under the first punch, and when the second one came arcing towards its head, the lighter 'Mech got its left arm up in time to take the brunt of the blow. As the [i]Phoenix Hawk[/i] staggered from the impact, Yellow Jester took the opportunity to break away and advance on the other Green Knights.

[color=Yellow]"I believe it would be only fair to let your friends play too, ha-ha!"[/color] he jeered, surging the [i]Crusader[/i] onto the ice bridge to close the gap between himself and the wounded [i]Ostroc[/i], then letting loose with his short-range weapons. The Inferno-tipped SRMs went wild, and Jester's manic smile turned into a frustrated scowl for a moment. His lasers and machine guns, however, found their mark, raking across the [i]Ostroc's[/i] torso, a burst of 12.5mm lead stitching its way up the 'Mech to connect with its head.

[color=Yellow]"Ha! Going to need an aspirin after that, I'll bet ya!"[/color] he taunted.

[color=IndianRed]"The situation's looking pretty dire, Jester,"[/color] came the voice of Captain Waffles, the Mechwarrior in the [i]Catapult[/i] on loan from the Fire Witch, as his 'Mech strode up beside his. [color=IndianRed]"Seven on two is long odds."[/color]

As it advanced, the [i]Catapult[/i] let fly with its LRMs towards the Knights' [i]Shadow Hawk[/i]. While the first flight of missiles scattered harmlessly around the 55-tonner, the second flight found its mark, all fifteen missiles arcing directly toward the [i]Shadow Hawk's[/i] head. While the Green Knight pilot shielded its head with its left arm like the [i]Phoenix Hawk[/i], a third of them did make contact, no doubt rattling the pilot inside.

[color=Yellow]"Ohhh come now, Captain Waffles!"[/color] Jester chided him. [color=Yellow]"You're a Mechwarrior, aren't you? Since when has a trifling little thing like certain death ever scared us away? What say we bring one or two of them along for the ride?"[/color]

[color=IndianRed]"Well, the Witch did demand I burn one of these Knights in her name,"[/color] the [i]Catapult[/i] pilot said, turning his attention toward the [i]Ostroc[/i]. [color=IndianRed]"What say we take you down to hell with us?"[/color]

The 65-tonner's heat spiked as it fired all four of its Medium Lasers into the [i]Ostroc[/i]. Two of them missed, but the other two carved more into the [i]Ostroc's[/i] torso. One of the beams managed to pierce the enemy 'Mech's armor, and for a moment, 'Captain Waffles' hoped to see the telltale green smoke of a crippled gyro or the leaking plasma of an engine hit....

...but to his disappointment, he merely hit the internal 'ribcage,' and the glow of superheated metal quickly faded, as did their chances of killing the Knights' lance leader.

[color=IndianRed]"Well, since we're not getting out of here,"[/color] the [i]Catapult[/i] pilot sighed as the enemy Mechs and heavy tank closed in on them from all sides, [color=IndianRed]"I wanted you to know that, even though we never had many chances to work together.....I always hated your fucking guts, Stroheim."[/color]

[color=Yellow]"No names, Waffles!"[/color] Jester hissed.

[color=IndianRed]"....whatever....come and get it, Green Knights."[/color]