Post by Uesugi-dono on Jul 13, 2020 23:35:46 GMT
"I began this Restoration because my birthright was stolen," Kamea's voice struggled not to crack as she addressed the masses in Cordia City, "and I wanted it back." Her tear-rimmed eyes scanned the throngs. Her people looked weary, some emaciated. All seemed happy to see her, though. "Not for you, not for the People of the Reach," she admitted, "but because it was mine. I wanted war for all the wrong reasons." She looked down with the admission, genuine shame weighing on her.
"But on Weldry," her tone changed, "I traded that naivete for a nobler purpose. Seeing my Peoples' suffering, with my own eyes, taught me why. Why we must fight, why I must fight. Filled with purpose I built this coalition, with the determination to defeat the Directorate. Full of righteousness, I knew what I was doing was right. But on Artru I found humility. Blinded by that same righteousness, I was reckless in my pursuit of power, and it cost lives... it nearly cost my own life, and the lives of people I cared about." She paused, her thoughts on Riana who lay miles above in the Argo's Medbay; her life still in the balance. "My mistakes at Artru almost cost us the war." She cast her gaze across the crowds and lifted her chin. "On Guldra, I learned to steel my heart. I chose necessity over conscience... a choice that nearly broke me." She chanced a gaze to her right, where the battered form of Alexander Madeira stood, supported by Yang. He looked horrible, but he insisted to be here for this moment. "Finally on Coromodir, the world of my birth, I found resolve and, standing over my cousin's broken, burned body... victory. Only through these lessons, paid for in blood, did I become a ruler worthy of title. A High Lady deserving to sit on the Cormorant Throne: the Protector of Coromodir, the Sword of Restoration."
She paused again to allow the scattered cheers to subside. "But," she began, "But this question still plagues me: Am I a hero? Did I sacrifice too much at the Altar of Victory? So many have died, so many lives still hang in the balance. The final Blood Price has yet to be paid. Do my triumphs outweigh my sins?" She took a moment to compose herself. "War is a clash between Conscience and Necessity; an ocean of Chaos and bloody Compromise. War shapes History, but History chooses Heroes. Am I worthy of such an honor? I know people who are, some who have given their lives... some who still may." She looked down again, struggling for composure, before raising her head and saying in a clear voice: "Time and history will tell if I am deserving of that title. The only thing I can say to you, my People, as your High Lady is: Tonight the Reach is Free." The crowd exploded in raucous cheers and, in order to continue, she was forced to raise her voice. "Let History judge if the cost was too high. For now, let us celebrate our freedom... and bury our dead. We have much to rebuild, and we will. We will persevere. The Restoration is not yet complete. It falls to each of us to rebuild the Reach to its former glory... and beyond! Together, we will attain new heights and, never again, let us be divided into selfish, destructive conflict." She scanned the crowd once more, waiting for the cheers to die down, "an ancient general once said, and I agree: 'It is well that War is so terrible, lest we grow too fond of it,' and I will use every tool in my power, every skill, every trick... to maintain this peace."
:
"How is she??" Yang exploded out of his seat outside the Medbay as Doctor Foster emerged. Behind him a haggard and exhausted Kamea Arano also rose, her energy and adrenaline long since spent. Lord Madeira was seated beside her but he only looked on in concern, unable to rise with his own power. The others in the room crowded forward as well; Apex, Sumire, Farah, Sly, Vamp, Glitch, Darius, Corsair... they had all come and waited, some for hours, as the intensive operation continued inside the surgical suite. High Lady Arano had commanded the finest surgeons on Coromodir to attend to Doctor Foster and assist in the efforts to save Riana.
"Well," the doctor said as he pulled off his mask and leaned against the wall, "that's one down... many more surgeries to go."
"Will she survive?" Kamea demanded.
"I don't know," Foster shook his head, "her trauma is staggering. Her legs, her pelvis... it's a total loss," he shook his head," we may want to explore a cybernetic solution," he said, nodding towards Yang arm and leg, "but even then, there's no telling what her body will and won't reject. Her left eye is gone, but that's manageable, her left arm will require cloned bone and muscle restorations, and some of her organs we can save and others we may be able to clone, but her uterus..." A gasp went through the air as the crew of the Argo covered their mouths in horror.
"Did it work?" Doctor Murad asked, "We you able to save it?"
Kamea started to ask the obvious question when Doctor Foster continued; "The facilities on this ship are incredible," he admitted, "without them there would have been no way, but for now the uterus is stable inside the renascence tank, but I fear it will never be able to be restored to her body."
"And the embryo?" Farah asked.
"Embryo?" Kamea's shock was palpable.
"Intact," Doctor Foster said with relief, "it was a brilliant suggestion, Doctor Murad, to remove the whole organ and attempt to stabilize it in the tank. The fetal heartbeat is weak, but steady. If it survives, then the child is truly strong. When she got here we couldn't detect the heartbeat, but it was there. Faint, but there."
"Riana was pregnant??" Kamea paled as the rest of the crew turned and, almost in unison, nodded, "Who??"
"It's a long story," Farah moved forward and took the High Lady's hand, "and here is not the place for it."
"Why did no one ever tell me?!?" she demanded, taking a step back defensively, "You all let me field a pregnant woman in battle?!!?"
"She insisted," Darius began to say.
"I don't give a damn about how insistent she was!" Kamea practically roared, "Do you not have a full crew?? If someone had told me, if any of you had the courage to tell me, I would have ordered her to remain on the ship!"
"We know," Yang said softly, "and so did Riana. That's why she commanded our silence." His eyes were watery as he spoke, "We love her too, Lady Arano, and we fought this battle; over and over again. Ultimately, she asked for us to respect her. Her choice. Maybe we made the wrong decision, but I get the feeling that if we'd told you and you'd ordered her to stand down... she would have aborted the baby."
"She wanted to take control of her life," Farah continued, "she said that her entire life felt like other people had made decisions for her, decisions that forced her hand... and that's how she felt about the decision to either stay on the ship or abort the fetus; like it wasn't her choice. She chose to go to war, pregnant, and let fate determine if she was meant to be a mother or not, instead of letting us pressure her into becoming one." She walked up to the seething High Lady and stood before her calmly. "If you want to be angry, if you want to punish someone... punish me. I was the first to support her decision. I played a role in convincing the others. Let this sin be mine, it isn't my first.
"Who is the father?" she demanded, "Who is the coward who let her do this?"
"He isn't here," Farah shook her head, "and he doesn't know. She wouldn't let us tell him. She didn't want him to suffer this burden until she knew if the baby was going to be born or not."
"Then it's time someone told him," she said coldly, "you will contact the father, immediately, and inform him of the situation involving Riana and his baby. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, mi'lady," the crew bowed their heads.
"Doctor Foster," she turned towards him, "Riana Klaue is now under my protection, and the Argo is my ship. Everyone who serves aboard it does so at my pleasure, am I clear?" she scanned the crew, "you are all dismissed for now. You are not to interfere with the doctors' work. If you do anything, or if I learn of any other misguided nonsense concerning Lady Klaue, then you will be relieved of duty and welcomed to enlist at the local hiring hall. Understood?"
:
"My Lady," her attendant called, "a woman calling herself Doctor Murad is here to see you." Kamea was in her private chamber, or rather her father's private chamber. She had been... redecorating, much to the concern of her attendants who'd had to listen to the screams of rage and crashing furniture from outside of the room as she ripped down and tore at all the 'additions' her uncle had made. The attendant chanced another knock, "My lady," Suddenly, Farah shouldered past her, turning the handle on the door and entering, unbidden. "Wait, you can't!"
Inside the room was a scene of carnage. Kamea had shredded her uncle's vain self-portraits and wrecked nearly every piece of furniture in the room, most all of it bearing the goat head crest of House Espinosa. Amid it all she sat, her dropsuit opened and her sweat-stained undershirt visible beneath. She was on the floor, for there was really nowhere else to sit now, and she had one elbow propped on one knee, her sweaty, dirty hair gripped in a fist on which her head rested. Her eyes stalked upwards and fixed on Doctor Murad, a festering anger dwelling there. "Leave us," she commanded in a growl, prompting the attendant's quick departure. Farah just stood quietly, hands folded in front of her, as the attendant resecured the door. For a long moment, the two women stared at each other and neither spoke. Finally Kamea broke the silence. "What?" she grimaced, "Have you come to tell me that the father has been notified and is on his way? Because anything else may see you looking for a new employer."
"Lady Arano," Farah began softly, "can we please talk? There's so much you need to know."
Kamea chuckled, not out of humor but out of disbelief. "Really? I need to know? Like how I needed to know that my mercenary captain was pregnant? The woman I was selfishly depending on to carry the day?" She ground her teeth together and gnashed them at Farah as she spoke, "I called on her again and again for the most dangerous missions! It tracks that I couldn't count on her to tell me the truth, but damn it!! I thought better of you!! When I hired you to get the Argo running, when I gave you to Riana's Revenge, it was because I trusted you! I trusted you and Riana needed a steady, sound voice to countermand the chaos she wreathes herself in!"
"I know," Farah said softly, looking down at her feet.
"You do?? Well, that's just great, because you failed me, Doctor!" she climbed to her feet now, her stance loose and aggressive, "That woman was like a sister to me, we trained together! Sir Raju put Riana and I through hell to make sure we could handle it, and now she, she, she's cut in half!" Kamea paced like a panther around Farah, coiled for violence, "Did you ever think, anywhere in that genius brain of yours, that maybe allowing a pregnant woman to fight in a war was a bad idea??"
"Of course I did, my lady," she looked straight ahead, but then turned to meet her gaze. Her eyes shone with the same defiance that Kamea had seen in Riana's before, "and I and others tried to reason with her. Initially we assumed she would terminate the pregnancy, it was the only thing that made sense, but she surprised us all by deciding to keep it. Next we did as you would have, we tried to talk her out of combat; to direct missions from the CIC, but you know Riana, my lady, and you know how stubborn she is. She made her choice and we accepted it. Would you have taken it away from her?" she raised her eyebrows as Kamea struggled with the question. "She confided in me that others always made these choices for her; if you'd ordered her to stay on the Argo then you know she would have aborted the baby... a choice that you would have forced her to make."
"I..." Kamea began, "I would have wanted her safe,"
"So did we all," Farah continued, "but she's a MechWarrior. She risks her life with each and every drop. She's been injured countless times, even killed once by my count, but she is still a MechWarrior. What would you have her do? Would you take that away from her, that identity? What would that make her? Just a woman? Is that how you would have her feel?"
"That isn't fair," Kamea began to turn,
"Life isn't fair!" Farah snapped, grabbing her arm and forcing her to look at her, "Do you think this is what she wanted, to be pregnant? Lady Arano, she loved you. You are the only person she wanted to be with!"
"Well, I didn't get her pregnant!" she pulled away.
"Well, you never returned her affection either, did you?" she planted her feet in defiance, arms akimbo, "Is it so hard to fathom that she would be driven to seek comfort in the arms of another?"
"I couldn't," Kamea roared, "and you know that!! I had a war to lead, a million other things to carry... I didn't have time for love!"
"I know," Farah's tone cooled, "and she knew. But Home is the Regiment, remember? For all the MechWarriors out there in space, sometimes weeks between death-defying drops. It can get pretty lonely in the Black, and MechWarriors are a swaggering, sexy lot. So is it so hard to imagine that she, alone and rejected... possibly a little drunk, succumbed to the charms of someone who wanted her?"
Kamea deflated, sinking to the floor in a squat, her chin resting on her knees and tears streaking her face. "Who is it?" she asked, "Who was my surrogate, so to speak."
"Death Krusade," Farah sat down beside her, "Todd Ryia; a Solaran ex-detective that she picked up in a bar on Panzyr."
"Kru?" Kamea gasped, "Riana and... him?"
"There've been stranger matches," Farah tilted her head with a smirk, remembering her own husband, "but Kru was steady, reliable, and was always there for her. She counted on him, and he never let her down. So, I can see it. He's not a bad man."
"Where is he?" she asked.
"He left for the Gray Death Legion," she answered, "got poached by Grayson Carlyle."
"He felt that way about her and he left?" her anger swelled again.
"He was a detective, remember?" Farah reminded her, "he found out about you." Farah put an arm around her and pulled her close, "Riana admitted she didn't love him... she loved you, and he knew it. So, like a true gentleman, he moved out of the way. He never had any idea that she might be pregnant."
"He is a good man," Kamea admitted, "but he deserves to know." She looked at Farah almost pleading, "the baby, if it survives, deserves a father! Have you contacted him yet?"
"Not yet," Farah answered, "I wanted you to have the full story first." She drew close and looked in Lady Arano's eyes. "Riana wanted to bear this burden on her own. If we tell him now, with the baby's life in the balance, that would shift the burden to him, wouldn't it?"
"That's his choice, doctor," Kamea was resolute, "if it were me; I'd want to know."
"Then let's make the call," she smiled at her, "together."
:
Thirteen Months Later...
"You made the liberation of the Aurigan Reach a reality," Kamea spoke in her most official voice before the hundreds gathered at the palace, "every trial I faced would have been my last without your skill on the battlefield," she smiled warmly as she spoke to Riana; standing before her at parade rest on mechanical legs with an eyepatch stylishly covering her left eye, "I don't know for certain if you fought for honor, or for the thrill of it, or for belief in my cause... or just for my money," a chuckled murmured through the assembly but Riana remained steadfast, her one good eye fixed on the High Lady, "but whether it was your noble heart or your mercenary mind, your actions gave us hope. That makes you a Hero in the eyes of History, and do you know what?" she smirked coyly, "it doesn't matter if you believe it or not. Others do. I do, as I believed in the heroes of the stories my father told me, after all... when we are gone, stories are what remain."
She rose from her throne, all others falling to their knees, as she approached Riana. "Mercenary callsign: Hysteria, kneel before me." She winced as Riana attempted to comply, the servos in her legs whirring as she struggled to her knees in visible pain. As she got down, Lord Madeira approached from behind with a saber on a pillow and folded flag, presenting it for High Lady Arano to take. She grasped it in a gloved hand and lifted it to her face, the blade perpendicular, and nearly touched her nose with it. "For Valor in battle and unwavering Dedication to House Arano and the Aurigan Reach I hereby anoint you Dame Riana, Knight of the Reach," she lowered the blade first to one shoulder and then the other, "I also hereby restore your family name and title, Lady Riana Annika Klaue, noble of Coromodir. Since your family holds title to the hab in orbit of Artru, I grant you the the lands and estate of Cormorant Falls." She smiled warmly, bending down to help Riana to her feet, "Rise, Dame Riana, for I am not finished with you yet." Once she was back on her feet, Kamea turned once more to Lord Madeira and took from the pillow a medal. She extended it in her hands, allowing Riana to look at it before presenting it to the room, "I also honor you with the Cormorant Cross, the highest honor within my power to bestow," she affixed the medal to Riana, who stood ramrod straight, "and I have one more thing to ask of the brave mercenary-turned-knight who saved the Reach and the Restoration," she took both of Riana's hands in hers, causing Riana to jerk slightly and look at her directly in her eyes, "Dame Riana Klaue, Lady of Cormorant Falls, would you do Us the honor of becoming Our Master-at-Arms?" she smiled and struggled to keep back her tears as she spoke, "It is a position of Storied Honor, held once by the bravest and most noble MechWarrior I've had the honor to know; Sir Raju "Mastiff" Montgomery. It would be nearly impossible to fill his shoes, but I can think of none other worthy to try."
Riana looked terrified. A bead of sweat ran down her forehead. "M..my lady,"
Kamea smirked again and leaned in close, whispering so only she could hear: "This is the part where you usually say: 'Revenge is yours.'" She took a step back, hands still grasping Riana's, and said for all to hear: "Well, noble knight, what say you?"
:
"You really put me on the spot," Riana growled as she filled first her glass, then Apex's.
"Well, I needed to make an impression," Kamea smiled warmly.
"I thought this was just some formality," Riana tilted back the shot in unison with Apex, then turned the shotglass upside down and slammed it on the table, "you could have warned me you were gonna call me 'dame.'"
"Hehe," Jordan grinned, "this dame's still got some spark in her!"
"Shut up!" Riana cut her eyes at her.
"I needed to make a statement," Kamea continued, now out of the formal dress that she'd worn, "that the Reach owed you a debt and that you were worthy of the title of Master-at-Arms," she paused as Alexander appeared and leaned in to kiss her cheek, "now there is no doubt."
"I dunno," Riana sighed, "I feel like you made this decision without me."
"I did," she admitted, holding out her glass for Riana to fill, "for the good of the Reach. From here you will train our MechWarriors and lead the defense of House Arano and Cordia City."
"You presume quite a bit, don't you?" Riana asked as she filled four glasses, including one for Lord Madeira.
"Okay," Kamea lifted both hands, swirling her drink in one before taking the shot, "you caught me: I just wanted to keep you close to me."
"Mmm, hmm," Riana answered, draining her own as the four slammed them down in unison, "I guessed there was some ulterior motive."
"So you'll do it, right?" Kamea continued, "I expect you to be at my right hand for this."
"I said I'd do it," she waved it off as Apex filled the glasses for another round, "but I don't know why you want me clanking around in a fancy dress."
"Because there is no one else worthy," she leaned forward and put a hand on Riana's, "no one else I'd want as my maid-of-honor."
"I'm hardly a maid," Riana blushed.
"You can say that again," Jordan chuckled as Riana elbowed her hard.
"I, uh," Riana began, "I'm going to head to the memorial later tonight. Would you..."
"I'll be there," Kamea nodded, "I wouldn't miss it."
"Good," Riana lowered her gaze, "he's starting to crawl around a bit... I figured it's time he met his father."
"To Todd Ryia," Kamea intoned as the others all raised their glass, "as good a man who has ever lived, as legendary a MechWarrior as we've ever deserved."
"To Kru!" Jordan followed, as all four of them drained their glasses and slammed them back on the table.
Riana looked forlorn. When she'd regained consciousness she'd first asked about Kamea, then the baby, but when she learned that Kru had died in combat on Caledonia, laying down his life to protect his lancemates, she had sank back into a deep depression... one that clawed at her even now. "So, this is life now, eh?" she mumbled, drawing attention, " the pampered life of a noble," she snorted, "all awards and tea parties."
"You've a funny idea of tea," Alexander said as he called for another round.
"That's enough," Kamea said, motioning for Apex to stop, "it looks like we have a visitor!"
Farah appeared carrying a seven-month old baby in her arms. His dark hair and piercing blue eyes flashed as they spied his mother. "I believe someone is ready to spend some quality time."
"C'mere you," Riana beckoned for him, her mood genuinely lightening, "c'mere my little Warborn."
"This is the only kid in the sphere who came factory-installed with a callsign!" Jordan joked.
"It may also be the most fitting I've ever heard," Alexander added.
"The way I see it," Riana began, "this boy has zero chance of being anything but a MechWarrior!"
"Considering who his parents are!" Kamea laughed, waving to the cooing infant, "but you really should call him by his proper name!"
"Oh I do," Riana grinned a lop-sided grin as she held her son aloft in the shining, afternoon light, "my glorious... Raju."
~Fin~
:
Epilogue
"He's late," Riana growled. She was much older and grayer now, and well-accustomed on getting around on her mechanical legs. She preferred a set with reversed knees which made her look far more intimidating, plus it enabled her to leap up the side of a Mech much more easily than with her old legs. The clawed toes of the legs scratched at the stone as she paced back and forth.
"Give him time," High Lady Arano counseled, " his unit just touched down an hour ago.
"Finally!" Riana exclaimed as the doors to the throne room opened and Lieutenant Raju Klaue strode in, still in his dropsuit. He moved forward with military precision and saluted as he neared the throne, falling to one knee afterwards. "It's about time you arrived!" Riana snapped as High Lady Arano bid him to rise.
"Hello, Mother," he nodded in her direction, "nice to see you as well."
"Lieutenant Klaue," Kamea interrupted the terse reunion, "you have served the Aurigan Coalition for, what, four years now?"
"My Lady!" he snapped back to attention, "it has been my distinct honor to serve since my eighteenth birthday, my Lady!"
"As I understand it," she continued, "you have become quite an accomplished MechWarrior."
"Thank you, my Lady!" came his quick response.
"That is why I have decided to release you from my service, Lieutenant..." she smirked at him.
Raju looked confused. "My Lady, I do not understand. Have I offended you?"
"Not at all, Raju," she answered, dropping the formalities, "but your mother and I have decided..."
"My mother!?" he turned to her with a snarl, "what have you done, old woman!?"
"Keep your mouth shut!" she stormed up to him, staring him in the eye and daring him to slight her again.
"You would do well, young Raju, to remember to whom you speak," Kamea said dangerously, "I have decided to end your enlistment, I could just as easily strip your rank and set you to cleaning heads until you learn how to show the proper respect to your mother!"
"F..forgive me, mother, my Lady," Raju stammered, turning away from his mother's glare and returning to attention, "but may I ask why? What have I done to deserve this? I was planning to re-enlist and..."
"The Reach is at peace," Kamea said with a bored tone, "largely. There is little for a promising young Coalition soldier to do... but a MechWarrior..."
"I am a MechWarrior, my Lady," Raju insisted.
"And a damn good one," his mother stalked around him on clawed, metal legs, "one of the finest I've yet trained. So it is a shame to see such talent squandered here."
"Your mother and I have decided that you would best serve the Reach as a Captain, not a lieutenant." Kamea said.
"My Lady?" Raju tilted his head in confusion, "I am to be promoted?"
"In a sense: yes," Kamea acknowledged, "I grant you the use of the DropShip Argo. She was your mother's ship, and served her well."
"The derelict?" he asked, "the one in orbit since the end of the war?"
"The very one," Kamea nodded, "you shall helm your own mercenary company, but I will grant you a competent team," she turned her head, "send them in." One by one, they appeared: Sumire, Yang, Darius, and Doctor Murad. All were older, like Riana, but all still looked spry... except maybe for Yang, who had gained a bit of weight over the years.
"Uncle Yang," Raju began, "Aunt Su... what are you guys doing here?"
"They will help you get your company up and running, Raju," Riana answered, "I would trust no others."
"Mother," Raju turned back to her, "why are you doing this? I am happy to serve the Reach as a soldier."
"Because you need experience," Riana answered him, "and because it is your destiny. You are the son of MechWarriors, you were born to war, but here on Coromodir your skills will atrophy, so Kamea and I have decided that you will go to the stars."
"Coromodir is my home," he began in protest.
"Home is the Regiment!" she reached out and placed an arm on his shoulder, "And it is time you learned this. You will spend the next three years, minimum, at the helm of your own mercenary company. Take the contracts you want, get involved in the wars you want, and when your time is up... well, then it is up to you."
"I will accept you as a fully commissioned Captain in the army if that is what you choose," Kamea added, "or you may continue to forge your own legend. The choice will be yours."
"Mother," he turned to face her, "I..."
"Shh," she placed a finger to his lips, "you must do this. This is the last thing I will ever ask of you. Finish this mission, and I will accept you as the man you want to be. I taught you how to pilot a BattleMech, and the army taught you how to obey, but now I want you to learn one final thing, Raju, how to be your own man. Make your own decisions, your own mistakes," she pulled him close and let their foreheads touch, "make your father and I proud, son."
"Yes, Mother," he said finally, before turning and facing High Lady Arano once more, "yes my Lady, I understand and accept."
"Good," Kamea smiled, "now let's dispense with all this decorum... get up here and give your favorite aunt a hug!"
:
To everyone who has been reading this, the Journal of my Campaign in BattleTech, Thank you! You guys have made this project so much fun! Also thank you to Harebrained Schemes and Paradox for bringing us such a wonderful game that allowed my Head Canon to run wild!
So, yeah, Raju "Warborn" Klaue will be the hero at the helm of my Career run in BTA 3062 and LET ME TELL YOU HOW HONORED I AM that, in that mod under the character picture select, I found THIS:
That's Riana!! In the original artwork (thank you and sorry, original artist whose name I don't know) her eyes are blue. For Riana, I changed them to brown and added her scars so, no doubt, whoever built this part of the mod is either a Reader of Journal of a MechWarrior or at least pulled THIS pic from the Paradox Forums! I think that is SO cool.
So, what's next for me? Well, I'll spare you Raju's adventures, largely because Career mode is long and it can be tough to keep up with the writing, but I will do one final installment, Part 40, where I welcome you guys to ask any questions you have about the story, my process, or anything else. I will also try to compile all 39 parts into a .pdf so if you care to read it all in one go, you can.
Thank you all so much for sharing this ride with me!
If you want to ask a question for Part 40 please feel free to DM me! I will try to answer it there. Part 40 may take a little time, but you can expect to see it probably around late July or early August.
Thank you!!