Rose could see the anger and frustration building in Bell as he spoke. He was standing now and had begun to pace. Rose listened, keeping his eyes on the scanner. He wanted to know why Bell had fired the missiles, not the story of his life.
"First I throw away my career for Salander Morgain and then I follow him to Borghese." Rose was impressed. He'd never heard the name pronounced with such contempt. "I signed on to form a mercenary unit, not to sit back and watch the war go by.
"You probably didn't know that he kept us virtual prisoners on the estate. Morgain held our 'Mechs to ensure our cooperation and support. The day I met you was the first time I'd been off the estate in months. I'd have carried you on my back for those recons if it would have gotten me off that property. I hated the place and the cronies Morgain surrounded himself with. I guess I even hated myself for being fooled by him." Bell sighed and ran his hand distractedly through his long hair. When he spoke again, his voice was softer. Rose could hear sorrow fill the void created as the anger drained away.
Bell looked at the immobile Marauder."I hated him, but I didn't want him dead.
"Then I found out he was involved in a scheme with Crenshaw. I knew it was bad, but I figured it must be something like a repeat of the black market. This time I decided to get to the truth before things got out of control. Which is when I found out about the Preservationists. Crenshaw is the head of the group and Morgain is, or was, the muscle.
"The Preservationists captured the Bristol and traveled to Clan-occupied space. They actually invited the Falcons to come to Borghese. Crenshaw saw it as an opportunity to make sure the planet not only survived an invasion, but to turn a profit as well. I guess he figured that if the Clans were invited, they'd treat us better, especially the planetary rulers.
"You and Cooke were the only problem. Crenshaw got rid of Cooke, and Morgain was supposed to get rid of you. I learned of the plot the night you were attacked. Morgain was furious that the soldiers didn't hit you before you got to the 'Mechs." Bell paused and rubbed his chin.
"They were supposed to attack your base before the DropShip. If the troops had been better trained, we wouldn't be having this conversation. In any event, I've spent the last few weeks trying to decide what to do.
"I could have left, but Morgain would never have let me take my 'Mech. My only other choice was to go along with them. I was going to do it, too." Bell paused and Rose realized how close he'd come to receiving that final shot instead of Morgain. Bell began to shake his head. He turned to climb down the Bansheeand Rose increased the volume of the microphone.
"Like always, Morgain got cocky. I was the second-in-command, so I knew all the frequencies we were using. It was supposed to be a private conversation between you two, but I decided to listen in. When I realized the importance, I fed the link to the militia commanders." Bell lowered himself to the Banshee'sladder and began to climb down. "The militia knows they've been played for fools. Once they're sure this is over between you and Morgain, they'll come in." As Bell started down, soon only his head was visible. "Oh, by the way, I surrender. I'll wait for you on the ground."
Rose sat in his 'Mech as Bell climbed down the Banshee,then calmly waited on the 'Mech's foot to be taken prisoner. Rianna contacted the militia leaders. Being on the opposite side of the Banshee,she couldn't see Bell, but her microphones were slightly better, so she'd heard the entire conversation. While Rose considered what to do, Rianna arranged a truce with the Green Team.
The first order of business was to inform the Thorns of what was going on. Opening the unit-wide channel, Rose gave his team a summary of their current situation. He had keyed the commlink to one-way communication because he didn't want to answer a lot of questions, but by the time he was done, every one of the pilots was signaling requests for a private line. Rose told them as much as possible, postponing further questions until they could assemble in one location.
When Colonel Bahlyard, the Green Team commander, arrived thirty minutes later, Rose was sitting on the foot of the Bansheealongside Bell. He still hadn't figured out what to do about the unit's current situation, but he hoped to get help from the sandy-haired infantryman. His first requests to the colonel were for help in retrieving the rest of the Black Thorns. Rianna, Ajax, and Angus were clustered around the Bansheeand Charger.
Hawg had crawled out of the remains of the Zeusunder his own power and taken a seat on the Banshee'sother foot. Although he looked fine physically, the death of his Zeuswas hitting him hard. Rose had seen the look before on the faces of other Mech Warriors, something between amazement and horror. At least he wasn't crying, but that would probably come later.
It would take some doing to retrieve the final two members of the team. Esmeralda would have to be cut free from her 'Mech, but only because a severed support spar had jammed the cockpit hatch shut. A 'Mech could pry the spar away, but the militia probably had the tools to do the job better and with less collateral damage to the supporting structure.
Badicus' ejection seat was still emitting a strong signal, but he'd landed in a dense copse of trees. A 'Mech could probably retrieve him, but only after battering aside the trees that hemmed him in. Rianna had requested a VTOL retrieval, which Colonel Bahlyard immediately authorized. The flight crew had found O'Shea strapped to his chair and sitting in a tree twenty meters above the ground. They were still working on the rescue.
Rianna crawled down from her Phoenix Hawkwith the unit's portable communications system slung over one shoulder. She sat it on the ground at her feet, slipped the headset over her ear, and adjusted the microphone. She could keep track of the two militia teams assisting the mercenaries and still listen to what was going on. Rose waited until Ajax and Angus joined them at the Banshee'sfeet before beginning.
"I guess we all know each other," he said. "I'm sure you all remember Commander Bahlyard, who also happens to be in charge of the force that's been making life so hard for us for the last few weeks." Rose noticed the colonel's face was slightly flushed and hoped it was the red of embarrassment instead of being his natural color. In Rose's experience no commander could accept looking like a fool, and the higher the chain of command, the worse they took it.
"Gentlemen, and lady," Rose said with a nod to his sister, "this is strictly an information meeting. We've got precious little of that right now but I need a better picture of what's going on." Rose looked around the group. The Black Thorns were practically dead on their feet from fatigue and the usual post-battle slump. "We'll make this quick," he promised, then waited until he was sure he had everyone's attention.
"We're about as far as we can be from Houston and not be under water. We know that the Clans are coming and that they'll probably be received as honored guests at the capital. Antioch, is there anything else?"
Antioch Bell rubbed his eyes and looked around at the mercenaries. "From what little I know about it, the Preservationists weren't too worried about your command. I guess they had a lot of faith in Colonel Bahlyard's men and our 'Mechs." He shrugged and smiled slightly. "Go figure."
"That confirms my last orders." All heads turned to Bahlyard. "They came directly from the Council. I'm supposed to report when you either surrender or have been eliminated. They didn't seem to think an engagement would go any other way.