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And how hardwired are the imperatives?  Remember Dahak's dilemma as "Comp Cent" during the mutiny?

Nice update.  Looking forward to more!

Interlude #4
Unity City, North America
Terra, Terran Hegemony
15:00 1 March 2767

Takiro Kurita had ruled the Draconis Combine since before any other member of the Star League Council had been born. In comparison to most of his family he was considered contemplative and mild of temper.

Amaris granted himself license to doubt that. The white-haired man on the screen veritably crackled with fury. “You claim to be First Lord? You? Your hands still red with the blood of my nephew’s son, you expect the submission of the Dragon? Your venality was never in doubt, Stefan Amaris, but clearly what pass for your wits are as vacant as your loyalty.”

“Now fall to your knees and pray that Kerensky reaches Terra before my loyal soldiers do. For he will merely crush you like an ant beneath his boot, while I have given my son very explicit orders as to your fate if fortune smiles and you should come into our hands.”

Remarkably, the vitriol remained fresh on the… how many times had he replayed it now?

Dammit, dammit, dammit.

It wasn’t as if Amaris had forced a gun into Drago Kurita’s hand. The stupid bastard had been in protective custody, far too valuable to risk, until the SLDF broke him out looking for Amanda Cameron.

For his part, Patrick Scoffins seemed less disconcerted by the ancient Coordinator’s wrath than resigned to it. “The garrisons at Moore, Mara and Nashira are all reporting Combine warships and transports in the outer system,” he announces, offering a sheaf of reports to the Emperor. “We don’t have enough ships there to contest the outer systems without concentrating squadrons and they’re spread all along the border.”

“Concentrate squadrons against the Combine?” Amaris snarled. “With that damn ship at Graham IV like a dagger at my back? Are you mad?”

“I don’t advocate it, but the decision is yours,” the general conceded drily. “The worlds are technically part of the Combine anyway. It’s remotely possible taking them back might satisfy the Coordinator. Shall I withdraw the garrisons? I can certainly use the soldiers elsewhere.”

Amaris makes an irritated gesture that translates to permission. OPD can handle making taking those three worlds painful for Kurita without regular units to help them, and if not they’d better learn quickly. And Scoffins has a point: other garrisons are certainly in need of reinforcements.

“What’s the situation on Carver V?” he asks.

“No change. They’re unfortunately well dug in.”

“Well that machine of Kerensky’s showed us how to deal with that.” Amaris’ mustache twitched. “I’m sure the navy can find some wrecks to drop on Quantico at… what’s the term? Sufficient velocity. Once that’s done, Milton-Davis’s forces can be cut back as well.”

“I’ll pull her off entirely, sir.” Dropping major kinetic weapons on Carver V – which didn’t have a single continental mass – was going to have far more widespread consequences than doing so on Graham IV had had on that world. Quite possibly, the resultant tsunami could eradicate the human presence there entirely.

Amaris nodded. “Yes. I’m disappointed in her. Well thought. Give me a short list of replacements within forty-eight hours, Patrick.”

“Sir.”

“That machine will be the death of me.” And the teams working on the SDS weren’t any help. He’d hung the first project leader, someone from NETC, when he’d estimated three years to bring the drones under control. Who was it who’d said it was as well to kill an Admiral every now and then? Some french name? Didn’t matter. Nothing mattered except lifting Damocles’ Sword from over his head. “All it would have to do is jump here and it would have a fleet waiting for it. More than two hundred drones.”

Scoffins nodded regretfully. “We could cause him significant problems, but even with a year to work the orbital and ground stations could not repel such an attack. Our advantage is that for the moment he lacks the ground troops to follow through on the surface.”

“That didn’t stop him at Graham IV though, did it? He found the forces for that.”

“One Division, sire. It was exceedingly rash to launch an invasion with so few soldiers and reports indicate that losses at Dekirk City were severe. Similar landings here would be a devastating failure. Invading Terra with less than a Corps would be foolhardy in the extreme and that will take time to amass and prepare.”

“If he has been foolhardy and rash once and seen success then he will attempt it again,” decided Amaris. “Have the drones destroyed. Concentrate the entire fleet if you have to. I want them here to destroy Praetorian when he comes. But make sure he doesn’t have a fleet-in-waiting for him.”

The general paled. “The drones will defend themselves, sire. We lack the capacity to cancel that part of their orders.”

“Then the navy had better get very good at killing them. Because whatever those Caspars can do to them, I swear to you, Patrick, that pernicious machine will be far worse. So we must break him here and then roll back his conquests. Retake Graham IV and New Dallas, then Kerensky will think twice. He won’t weep to see Praetorian destroyed, I assure you.”

“The Praetorian, if it is a machine intelligence as reports suggest, appears to be an extremely able field commander, sire. It would be shortsighted of Kerensky to destroy him.”

“Aleksandr Kerensky is anything but shortsighted, Patrick. In the short term, the machine is valuable on the battlefield. In the longer term it is of uncertain allegiance and asks questions as to the legal status of an artificial intelligence that no sane ruler wishes to address. It is increasingly unlikely that Kerensky will eliminate it himself, but far more manageable from his perspective if it is a martyr for his cause.”

Scoffins was far too practised in the politics of power – at his level of the military it was all political or so close as not to matter – to show obvious nervousness. “As an alternative to mustering the entire fleet here, we could strike at Graham IV as soon as possible. It is highly probable that he would have no serious support from the SLDF and destroying him there would leave the option of retaining the drones here for your service.”

For a long moment Amaris weighed the decision and then shook his head. “No, I can’t trust them. I can’t even trust ones we build. That machine could compromise them too for all we know. I believe we have some of the drone fighters under control – use those first, use them all up. I’ll rely on men to guard me in future.”

“I’ll take care of it sire.” Scoffins bowed deeply before backing towards the door. Attention already elsewhere, Amaris reached for the controls and Kurita’s message began to repeat itself once more.

Well without the Caspars it will be a very short fight.
The League fleets will squash Amaris like a bug.

Entry #29
Graham IV, Low Orbit
Terran Hegemony
15:00 3 March 2767

“We have,” Brandt announces, “Some options to consider.”

The officers council has no binding authority over her but it’s a useful way for her to get feedback. We aren’t meeting in person. That would be imprudent, but most of III and V Corps are in the Hegemony and their HQs are set up Graham IV so we can holo-conference.

I think the refugee situation down there may be stabilising but if I say that to anyone then I’m sure Murphy will interfere so…

The Rimjobs didn’t nuke any more cities before McEvedy and Wayne managed to convincingly report that the planet was liberated but some of the towns are in a bad way for one reason or another and as far as I can tell from captured records there are a few hundred hold-outs somewhere.

I, like every other senior officer in the conference, get a side-feed with a strategic map of the Hegemony, each system decorated with a variety of icons displaying the defenses, industries and other salient data as best our intelligence could display.

“We control at this time, two planets of the Terran Hegemony. There are other contested worlds – the DCMS has mobilised to occupy worlds that were previously jointly administered and all signs are that the other Member States will follow suite, with the Lyrans likely to be next. Nonetheless, we are a long, long way from having put down the Usurpation.”

“Between General Badler and General Lyons we have enough forces to expand our little corridor. There are, of course, a variety of choices.” Coloured lights appear upon the map, distinctly marking out each. “Firstly, we could reasonably secure Bordon and Connaught. There is the possibility that Amaris would withdraw the garrisons rather than engage in an extended battle for worlds that would be less easily reinforced than others deeper into the Hegemony.”

“As an alternative, there are four worlds between New Dallas and our current position. Taking them would ease communications. Pollux and Tyrfing’s SDS drones have been confirmed as inactive – and largely compromised by Praetorian already. Castor and Devil’s Rock don’t even have Castles Brian to protect them.”

I dislike these options. Liberating any world from Amaris is a positive change of course, but not all worlds are equal. It will be another three months before the rest of Brandt’s Army Group can assemble. These worlds will leave us spread thin to protect from counter-attacks and will not increase the pressure upon Amaris.

“There is also Carver V.” A planet about as close to Terra as we are now, and halfway to Brandt’s homeworld of Outreach. “We have reports that the CAAN facility there is still holding out. Relieving them would provide additional resources and it would be an excellent staging area for further operations to liberate worlds rimwards of Terra. Even a raiding campaign upon Keid’s shipyards could significantly impair Amaris’ efforts to build up his navy.”

“Alternatively there is the possibility of moving corewards. New Earth is a viable target and liberating the headquarters of the SLDF would be a significant moral victory. Taking Denebola and Alula Australis could provide a substantial reserve of Caspar drones to secure liberated worlds but that would of course be dependent upon control systems that we don’t have yet – apparently it could be a year or more to build new control stations here, much less anywhere else.”

She pauses and I am morally certain that everyone’s eyes are fixed on the target she has not mentioned.

“Your opinions, ladies and gentlemen?”

McEvedy, born and raised in Minnesota, asks the obvious question. “We have nine divisions and the HAF can hold New Dallas and Graham until the next units arrive. Why not strike at Terra before Amaris can reinforce it further?”

“I do not recommend that course of action,” I say with some regret. “While we could very likely secure the system from Terra’s high orbitals outward, to attempt landings – much less a ground campaign – would be a marginal prospect with the forces at hand.”

“What do you know,y- Praetorian?”

“I have – and have shared – a detailed breakdown of Terra’s emplaced defenses, updated with my own observations during the Coup. Absent Amaris withdrawing from the bulk of the Hegemony and focusing upon its defense, landing a liberation force on Terra before the end of the year is possible. However, we must anticipate heavy fighting and concurrently heavy losses. This is the most industrialised, urbanised, fortified and heavily populated planet in the Star League.”

“Nine divisions – less casualties during the landing – could possibly create a foothold but we do not currently have the naval strength to blockade Terra so Amaris can reinforce and grind your troops down by attrition before our own reinforcements can arrive. It’s also certain that it will be the highest priority for restoring SDS control. If we are facing a fully active drone flotilla then our chances of even a landing shrink dramatically.”

“Thank you, Praetorian,” Brandt resumes control of the meeting as if it was scripted. “We will return to Terra and the sooner the better but we will not half-ass this. Two Corps are not sufficient for this, but by the summer we will have thirteen SLDF Corps and a full HAF Corps over and above our garrisons, with First and Second Fleets rebuilt out of ships drawn from garrison postings.”

“That, however, is months away. In the meantime we should not let Amaris rest upon his laurels.”

General Lyons’ face nods on the screen. “I don’t recommend striking back towards the border then. That won’t ratchet up the pressure on Amaris.”

“Same for Castor and Devil’s Rock. They’d be easy, but there’s not the impact,” McEvedy chimes. He seems to have adjusted very quickly to being shot down.

“A valid point,” agrees Brandt. Then she looks away from the holo-camera. “What’s that?” The words in the Admiral’s command centre were too quiet for most to make out but I was under no such limitations. Damn. This isn’t going to help at all.

Brandt doesn’t try to mask the news from anyone else though. “Ladies and gentlemen, I’ve just been advised that the 34th Royal BattleMech Division and their escorts have mutinied against the orders from the Commanding General and is expected to enter the Hegemony any day now.”

“Are they traitors?” asks Lyons sharply.

“Not as such.” The Admiral faces us squarely. “According to their last transmissions they’re apparently intent on liberating their traditional homeworld, Epsilon Indi, from Amaris.”

“According to information gathered from McTiernan’s efferts, Epsilon Indi has a fully active SDS grid under Republican control,” I remind the group harshly. “The 34th don’t stand a chance.”

   Do both! Aide the  34th Royal BattleMech Division in landing at their homeworld and send in some reinforcements and supplies to the CAAN on Carver V.  Amaris is hedging his bet on what/where Praetorian can be. 

Looking forward to your next one!

I go for both myself