hehdhd - H.G.M.W.S.¹⁰¹

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 230 230 Preparation

The Materials Printers only took a few minutes to make a collection of plows for the Mecha to drag around the area, pulling the remaining corpses into piles so that they would burn off completely and make the battlefield a bit more tolerable to stay in.

Over the next few hours, while the Mecha worked to clear the battlefield, the Landers from the other Battalions all assembled on the outskirts of the battlefield, on the smoothest terrain that they could find among the craters.

That was no easy task, for the Thunder Guns did a magnificent job of rearranging the terrain over the course of the battle, and the closest thing to a flat spot on the ground was the places where the corpses had been piled so deep that they absorbed most of the damage.

The terrain was still only a secondary concern for the staff inside the Landers though. Their major concern was that something was still alive inside those piles of corpses, and would rush out to eat them when they emerged to supply and repair the Mecha from their Battalions.

The Mecha had already done multiple sweeps of the area and were starting to send out the undamaged units to double-check the zones that they had advanced through for survivors, but the thought of being eaten by an enormous cockroach was still very high on the list of bad ways to die.

Three more pods came down that evening, with munitions, rations, and repair materials, which gave the Pilots the impression that they would be staying here for an extended duration. What they were going to be doing was a question that nobody had answers for, since they couldnt fit in most of the tunnels that the Klem were going to be hiding inside, and could only target the ones that came to the surface within the mountains, but they were still glad to have a bit more fresh food instead of ration packs.

Fresh was a relative term of course since almost all of it had been preserved in some way, either canned or vacuum packed, but it was still decent food compared to the Emergency Rations.

[Colonel Max. All Mecha of the First Battalion have been resupplied, and repairs are underway, currently showing 49 units in need of some level of repairs.] Major Miller reported, proving once again the value of his supply and management experience.

The repairs continued through the night, even with four landers all equipped with repair racks, it was not a short process to repair four dozen Mecha with the sorts of torn and mangled parts that an interaction with the Klem left behind.

Out of everyone, Third Battalion had gotten the luckiest. Not only did they not lose any pilots, but they also only had thirty-two Mecha damaged, and most of them only lightly. Their zone had been very heavy on the smallest of the Klem, and incubation pods that hadnt hatched yet, so they mostly rolled over the enemy but had to spend significantly more time hunting down the hiding spots where the next wave was likely already growing and waiting to attack.

Their only complaint was that clearing waves of the smallest Klem wouldnt earn them nearly as much merit and glory as an hours-long artillery bombardment against the combined strength of the main strength of the infestation.

When morning dawned the next day, the fires were burned out, and the majority of the bodies were removed from the area, making it a bit less unpleasant to breathe in the area around the Landing Zone where Max was stationed, overlooking the work being done to get the experimental Mecha back into pristine shape for their next engagement.

Normally the army would let the little things slide until after the mission, but there was an entire sector of the ship devoted to the researchers gathering Combat data, and that data wouldnt be accurate if the force wasnt at full function when a data set started. Numbers could be accounted for, but hidden damages and limited individual capabilities were unknown variables that would skew the outcomes.

[Regimental Command to All Units. Reinforcements are reported to be incoming. Hold for further instructions.]

The message from General Yaakov took everyone by surprise. Their Mecha were supposed to be a top-secret military program. Would the Kepler Military really risk exposing them by sending them to fight alongside other units at this point in their testing, especially on a battlefield that wasnt even technically part of the Empire, as it was uninhabited and outside the borders?

That didnt make any sense at all to Max, but none of the Battalion Commanders were in any position to question the orders that they were given, so he could only hope that this decision was vetted by General Tennant and those above them so that it wouldnt turn into a total disaster for Keplers Public Relations department.

Inaccurate reporting of the capabilities of their new designs could turn out very differently than what the Emperor had intended, depending on what the leaked information said and how it was interpreted.

Should we bring the entire force back aboard and claim an urgent response to another threat within the Empires borders? It would give us leeway to keep the secret while not causing much disturbance. General Yaakov suggested.

The Klem are a Category 1 threat. Unless there is a full-scale military invasion somewhere inside the Empire, we couldnt retreat from the planet without orders from the Emperor himself. General Tennant disagreed.

Can we silence them? They are mixed Mecha regiments and infantry, so none of the three ships are likely to have anyone aboard from Central Command who outranks you. Yaakov tried another path to keeping the Mecha Project a secret.

Normally I would say yes. Let them come and then we can put a gag order on them and stop all communications, but I suspect it is already far too late for that. We are outside the borders, on an uninhabited planet. Kepler doesnt monitor this area of space, nobody else should know that the Klem landed here. Even we wouldnt have noticed if we werent right in the vicinity.

So the question is, where is the leak, and who are they trying to tip off about our expanded Mecha capabilities. General Tennant countered.

A defector, spy, or traitor in their midst would be the worst-case scenario for the mission, and both Generals knew that very well. But neither could deny the possibility that they had one or more security breaches since making planetfall, the arrival of the three transport ships full of soldiers was too strange to be a simple coincidence.

Let me contact the Imperial Command. If they cant shed any light on the situation, they can likely tell us what the backup plan is for this situation. There is no way that they didnt at least plan for the possibility that the secret would be exposed early on. General Tennant decided, then nodded to his counterpart and left the room.

Once he was in a secure office, protected against bugs, data intrusions, and all forms of external spying, General Tennant turned to his Adjutant, a woman in her late fifties, apparent age, and frowned.

Keep an eye on Yaakov, and especially that idiot assistant of his. I want to know how a signal got out of this system without us noticing.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 231 231 Mind Games

General Tennant was doing his best to come up with a way to keep the capabilities of the new Mecha secret, but there simply didnt seem to be a way, short of pulling them all back to the ship so the unexpected arrivals couldnt see them.

We could just lie through our teeth. Make up some absolute nonsense and see how long it takes them to catch on. It might even help flush out the traitors. His adjutant suggested.

Abraham Kepler is a distinct pattern of Transport vessel, a one-off that would be hard to mistake for anything else. The mecha we could play off as someone elses though, and really get the incoming troops worked up. General Tennant answered, a plan slowly forming in his mind.

He started scribbling down notes on his pad, then handed them to the adjutant. This does not get entered into the system, and only the ships crew involved will be notified. Use Mecha Bay 1, I know First Battalions support staff will be willing to play along.

In Mecha Bay 1, Sergeant Fritz was looking at the orders in his hand in shock. With everything that they had deployed, Command wanted forty Sentinel pattern scout Mecha, equipped for a planetary research mission. They already had hundreds of Drone Fighters that had sensors every bit as capable while being a hundred times more mobile, making a bunch of Sentinel Pattern Mecha made no sense at all.

But he had learned years ago that asking questions only brought headaches and answers he didnt really want to know, so he hurried to get the bay prepared.

While Sergeant Fritz was working to refurbish the bay, Nicos serious tone, an actual separate voice setting she used for official announcements caught Maxs attention. New orders from Central Command. All units are to scramble frequencies. You are in charge of picking the new ranges. No contact outside the experimental Battalions is permitted until further notice. Contact with Regimental Command will go through Central Command.

Sounds like something has gone wrong up above. Watch for further mission orders while I inform everyone. Max agreed, picking a random communications range outside the standard military frequencies and generating a new sixty-three-digit encryption code.

In Maxs memories from his past life, little things like making an encryption code one digit shorter or longer than usual made it nearly impossible for unsuspecting enemies to Crack.

Everyones frequencies are updated using your Command codes. Nobody else should know anything changed. Nico informed him, then opened the new message from General Tennant for Max to read.

[Three suspicious friendly vessels are approaching Rae 5. Operational Security has been breached. New cover identity generated: You will be Death Wind Mercenaries hired to defend the region for the Talos Mining Conglomerate. No signals on Kepler frequencies are permitted, take all measures to ensure your cover story remains viable.]

General Tennants message covered everything they needed to know, so Max put it into action immediately. He could hear over the radio that the other Battalion Commanders had also received the message, but none of them realized that Max had already scrambled their frequencies away from the standard Kepler range.

[All personnel, make a uniform change to Death Wind Civilian garb, effective immediately. Anyone found portraying themselves as Kepler Military without permission will be prosecuted under the War Secrets act.] Max called over the radio, getting everyone organized.

The change was a small one, and the black Pilots suits could be kept, but without the usual military emblems. The ground crew would have to change their distinctive pattern of coveralls to new ones created with the materials printers, but the rest of their issued gear would be fine.

All the Landers had been stripped of emblems when they were refurbished, and the Mecha themselves had no Kepler markings on them, as they were still experimental. That made the switch to their cover story as mercenaries an easy one, with the help of the fact that the unit didnt have full and official military documentation and regalia assigned to them yet.

The Death Wind territory was a largely lawless space at the very Southwestern edge of the galaxy, and often had to improvise to maintain their combat capabilities, so the rest of the Kepler forces would likely assume that these were modified from an ancient foreign pattern that the mercenaries had pilfered. The sizes of the units did put them in line with many Cygnus Mecha patterns of the past.

Nico had put a tracer on all the communications equipment in the Regiment, so she would immediately see if anyone attempted to send a signal on an unauthorized frequency, but her suspicion was that the problem that had the staff on Abraham Kepler so worked up didnt originate among the Mecha but among those left aboard the ship.

Above them, aboard Abraham Kepler, the ship was on lockdown preparing to receive visitors. The three incoming vessels had all identified themselves as Mixed Mecha Regiments, while Abraham Kepler was claiming to be on a research mission to Rae 3, but had diverted here when they detected a foreign vessel and a Klem infestation.

To further this image, General Tennant was holding the video conference in Mecha Bay 1, which was conveniently now full of research pattern Sentinel Class mecha. Sister Lilith was with him, representing the research division from Comor Prime, where she was officially still stationed.

Greetings. We didnt expect any Kepler forces to be sent here. As you can see, our planetary drops have been delayed due to the Klem presence, but under Imperial Orders, we are observing the Death Wind Mercenaries currently engaging the Infestation. General Tennant greeted them.

We had been sent intelligence that your forces had taken severe losses, so we were dispatched to relieve you and take over the clearance efforts planetside. It seems that our information was incorrect. General Muriel, the assigned leader of the expedition and senior officer among the Central Command contingent aboard the arriving vessels replied with a sour look on his surprisingly youthful face.

Now that youre here we cant well send you away with a Klem threat active on the planet, but it is unknown how the Mercenaries would react to a Military Presence. General Tennant told his counterpart with a shrug.

We will contact Sector Governance and get back to you. General Muriel replied curtly, then cut the transmission.

So, they were sent by Sector Governance, not Central Command, or Imperial Command. They should be planetary defense forces then. Find out where they were recruited from, both the Regiments and the senior staff in control of them.

Somewhere in there, we should find answers about who our mysterious data leak was in contact with. General Tennant told his adjutant with a smile. General Muriel had given away quite a bit of useful information today, and it could very well be the key points they needed to see the truth of the situation.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 232 232 Mercenary Life is Much Better

[So, let me get this straight, the forces coming to the planet are from the Kepler Military, and most likely friendly, but we have to pretend to be neutral Mercenaries from the outskirts of the Galaxy until Central Command can find out who sent them here to interrupt a Classified mission?] Colonel Lucci, the middle-aged woman in charge of the Second Battalion asked Max dubiously, despite seeing the orders from General Tennant in front of her.

[Yes, and nobody is to have direct contact with them without orders. We dont need someone getting recognized. Because Ive been in one too many propaganda films, I will be wearing a mask during all required communications and using a voice modifier. From what I can discern, they are planning to send a force to the planet to go hunt Klem in the mountains, which we couldnt do ourselves, so make the best of what we have and try not to let them die.

The chance that any of the Pilots in the three regiments have a clue what is actually going on is close to zero. Max explained.

[Does that mean no more military discipline? By default, First Battalion takes charge when Regimental Command is unreachable, so it is your call, Colonel Max.] Colonel Klinger, the wizened soldier in charge of Fifth Battalion asked.

[Yes, kick back, relax, just make sure that everything gets done. There will be no saluting, no ranks used, and no military drills until further notice. Also, I will be Commander Keres, and you can call my copilot Rage. Feel free to use nicknames that your men might have over the radio, and in person outside, just in case someone is listening. Be sure that every single one of your men understands that they are not to screw this up.] Max ordered.

[Yes, Sir.] All four other Battalion Commanders responded in unison, then began passing orders to the troops.

It only took a few minutes for the change to be visible. Gone were the orderly ranks of mecha waiting for or finished repairs, instead the Corvettes were sent to gather firewood, while the Crusader Class units crouched to block the wind from the camp areas where the Pilots were gathered.

First Battalion did the same, but their Landers were already in a circle, so they only had to close all but one of the gaps, letting them get Mecha in and out while creating a mostly sheltered central camp. The design caught on quickly, and the other Battalions moved their landers to create four more circles at the cardinal points, each a hundred meters out from the main lines.

That area had been thoroughly cleaned by the plows, so the ground was clear and somewhat level, plus it was close enough that they could make one large defensive line around everything if they needed. The Drone Fighters were landed in the fields outside the defensive lines, waiting on a refueling so that they could begin flying again, but the effect made the force look much larger than it was like they had intended to be here for an extended period of time before the Klem had arrived.

Mercenary bases were often like this, set on isolated planets nobody cared about due to their danger level, and the lack of an interstellar transport on site was no surprise, as they rarely hung around to lure outsiders to their bases.

In orbit, the representatives of the three ships had taken shuttles over to Abraham Kepler, meeting with General Tennant in Mecha Bay 1 for a strategic conversation that couldnt be conducted over a data link, for security reasons.

I looked up the Abraham Kepler, official records say youre still stationed at the Comor Station, waiting on a new crew, but attached to the Comor Research Lab. What exactly is it that your crew is here to study? General Muriel asked.

Xenobiology. Imperial Command has had some luck in developing new medicines from alien plants, and data showed that the plants and animals of Rae 3 are almost entirely indigenous, not terraformed. General Tennant explained.

If their original destination was leaked by someone before they left, they would have been expected to head for Rae 3 not the Rae 5 system, so maintaining the cover story was important to him.

Interesting. We werent told anything about a mission to Rae 3, only that we would find you here and that your team was in danger. Might I ask, what were the actual words of the message that you sent to the Sector Government? General Muriel asked.

Thats the thing. We didnt send a message to Sector Governance. In fact, we didnt send any signals at all before you made contact with us. General Tennant answered with a displeased look, and the expression on the leader of the force on the second of the three ships to arrive, General Mings face turned deadly serious.

General Ming turned to General Muriel and gave a curt nod before speaking. I will report that all forces are fully engaged in a battle against a Klem infestation on Rae 5, and then contact Imperial Command. Something is very wrong here, but as you said, we cant ignore the Klem this close to our borders.

The four Generals from Central Command and their immediate Subordinates took a seat in Mecha Bay 1 while the order was given to scramble all Mecha and infantry to the surface of Rae 5 for Klem suppression. They were to land in and around the mountains and send one Company to make contact with the Mercenaries, asking for their assistance in the endeavor.

In the eyes of the Generals, that was a risky but necessary move. If the Mercenaries had a base on the planet, they would want to recover what they could before moving their base somewhere undetected, but if they had only just landed here to start forming one, they might believe that they were being attacked by the Kepler Military when they saw all the Landers start to fall.

The biggest issue was simply communication. They didnt know what frequencies to contact the Dark Wind Mercenaries on. Or at least, most of them didnt.

General Ming spoke again, addressing the room. What I say is for your ears only. I am an Inquisitor for Imperial Command, supervising the Sector Government and deployed military forces. I have a way to contact the Dark Wind force on the planet. A code that was obtained through great difficulties, and if this temporary alliance fails, only usable once. I will attempt to contact the surface and tell them of our intentions to help with the Klem infestation then leave the region. If they agree, that Mecha force should fight on our side, for a price.

All the Generals nodded in agreement, but General Tennant was nervous. That wasnt a Mercenary force on the planet, and he had no way of knowing if they would even detect much less interpret the code that General Ming was going to use.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 233 233 Negotiations

Using the Tech Adept harness for mobility, Nico left the Mecha to go grab them some new clothes from the material printers in the Landers.

The service area in the Super Heavy Mecha had a small materials printer for parts, but there wasnt any raw material suitable for making clothes. Neither of them was short on civilian wear back aboard Abraham Kepler, but that wasnt something that a Pilot brought with them on an extermination mission.

She was only away for a few minutes, casually dodging the queue and grabbing them both one set of new clothes and a small tub of raw polymer that could be used to make anything from synthetic denim to faux leather.

In case we need to make contact, they would expect a Mercenary leader to have at least a few sets of clothes, Nico informed Max as she returned.

Her whole persona seemed to have changed. Even her standing position was cocky and relaxed, while her clothes were an eclectic blend of leather and metal in a Gothic Steampunk style Max had seen her wear before.

She had also changed her physical appearance, showing off one armored mechanical arm and turning her face into a generic feminine full conversion pattern, with a large exposed armor plate on the left side.

The combination of the changes and the Multi-Armed harness she was still wearing made her look a little terrifying, and Max decided that if they had to deal with the other Kepler forces, she would be the spokesperson.

She was the better actor, and nobody would believe she was a proper Kepler Officer when she was looking like that.

The clothes she had picked for him were in a similar style to her own, as the Reavers fashions were popular with the Death Wind Mercenaries.

The others are almost all changed now, so we can start working on our act in a few hours, Nico added, returning to her chair.

They wouldnt have hours to prepare, though. Only fifteen minutes later, the flames of Landers entering the atmosphere lit up the sky, and Nicos eyes opened wide in shock.

We are receiving a signal on one of the secure encryption patterns that my family uses as our private channels back home. The one that we use for the interplanetary trade ships. Even the security codes check out as one of ours. I think it is being sent by someone from the familys fleet branch. Nico informed Max, who rushed to put his shiny golden mask on.

Do it. Lets see what they want. Max instructed, and Nico opened the video link, bringing up the image of an unknown but youthful man in a Kepler Generals uniform.

[Youve got some big brass ones to be using this Cypher, dont you, Kepler? Well, get to it then. What in the seven hells do you want?] She asked the serious-looking young General on the other side of the screen.

[The Tarith Reavers granted me a favor.] He answered calmly while holding up a gold coin of a design Max didnt recognize, and Nico nodded.

[Speak then. What is your request.]

The General looked visibly relieved before he spoke again. [We have sent forces to the ground to eliminate the Klem threat. They are too close to our borders to be allowed to thrive here. Are you willing to cooperate with our efforts?]

Nico nodded decisively. [We share a common enemy. This trade depot cant be established while they still live. For that reason, we will work with you for a reasonable price.]

The mention of money didnt seem to phase the General, but Max could hear muffled sounds of amusement in the background that he was sure came from General Tennant.

[Name your price, and we can negotiate.] The General agreed after a moment.

[As I said, I am a reasonable woman. One hundred tons of raw materials for Battle Cannon munitions, and you leave the system once the threat is nullified.] Nico smiled.

Weapon-grade materials were always in short supply outside of the frontline forces, and they had used a lot of them lately to reload the Mecha, mostly depleting what they were dropped with. The amount she asked for was equivalent to three supply pods full and would fully restock the entire regiment.

[Your version of reasonable is still very steep, isnt it?] General Ming asked, intending to drive the cost down.

[I know you can see us from orbit, take a good long look. We arent some petty band of ore smugglers, I need munitions to stay at full strength. How about one hundred tons of materials, plus your withdrawal after the battle, and we call this an even cooperation.] Nicos offer meant that the unnamed General wouldnt use up a favor by asking them to risk their lives.

Not that they were in any position to claim the favor anyhow, since they werent actually Death Wind Mercenaries. Though the way Nico negotiated, Max was beginning to question if that was true or not. If you dressed like Mercenaries, acted like Mercenaries, and received secure Communications intended for the Mercenaries, at what point did you actually start being Mercenaries?

Nicos family was into a bit of everything and had a suspicious amount of political influence on Kepler Terminus, despite the appearance of only being moderately wealthy. But Nico either didnt know or refused to think about the truth behind her familys continued influence, so Max didnt know the full extent of their activities.

[Deal. The materials will arrive in eight hours. I will be in contact.] General Ming agreed.

[A pleasure doing business with you.] Nico told him, then cut the video link.

One day, I will find out the truth about your family. Normal people dont get name-dropped when you are asking for favors from Mercenaries that live on the edge of the Galaxy. Max told her, but Nico just smiled.

You already knew a branch of the Tarith family were Reavers, remember? Back when we were on Kepler 142, they told you all about it.

That was a very generous description of events. Max recalled hearing about the quasi-legal trading arm of the Tarith family exactly one time before. But at the time, it had seemed like a historical event, not something ongoing.

That was quite the negotiation, General. They might only be a small Regiment, but those Mercenaries look strong. Muriel said to Ming once the conversation was over.

That conversation was more strange than you could ever know. But it worked out in the end. General Ming agreed.

When he contacted the Mercenaries, they needed to authenticate the Cypher he had used to open the video link. A normal Mercenary band would have had to contact their bosses to get the code verified, but this one answered right away. Every Kepler Imperial Inquisitor was a curious person by nature, and now General Ming was very interested to know what these Mercenaries were doing so far from home with such a strong military force.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 234 Terminus Trading Company

[The Landers seem to be friendly, and they have accepted our cover as Mercenaries, with a promise of large amounts of raw materials for our assistance in clearing out the Klem that are hiding in the mountains. They dont know the extent of the infestation at the moment, and we are not going to tell them that it was only a small percentage that broke our containment.

It would lead to too many questions that I have no intentions of answering. Be sure you are all in character as Death Wind Mercenaries, and we are ready to go.] Max instructed the Regiment over the recently changed main channel.

[If were going to pull this off, we need a name. Eventually, someone is going to ask about contact information, and if we dont know what to say, someone is going to screw it up.] Major Miller pointed out.

[The man has a point. Something simple and easy to remember.] Another voice agreed.

Max thought about it for a few moments, trying to come up with something that was suitable to a group of mercenary Mecha pilots but not so obvious that it would be taken by another group and arouse suspicion if anyone looked into it.

[If anyone asks, we are the Terminus Trading Company. It fits with the Death Winds way of naming their Mercenary forces as if they were legitimate businesses, and I am reasonably sure that it isnt taken yet. My copilot, Rage, has checked it out and says that it looks clean and usable.] Max told the Regiment, giving Nico a thumbs up for her timely search of their available data.

The Landers started falling all through the mountain range, clustered in flat spots near every region where Abraham Keplers sensors had detected that the Klem might have gone to hide.

The ship had, of course, been keeping very close tabs on the Klem forces movements, so the orbital insertion was very focused, without the usual scattering of troops to far flung regions, just in case.

As the Pilots of Maxs Battalion watched the troops arrive, the expanded Central Command contingent aboard Abraham Kepler was working out the best way to deploy the Mercenaries.

Just look at the number of Super Heavy Mecha. They could take a small Empire. Asking them to spread out to cover more territory with that vicious-looking artillery shouldnt be an issue.

The brigands of the Death Wind territories are many things, but nobody would dare call them cowards. General Tennant suggested, and the other officers nodded in agreement.

Inquisitor General Ming suspected that General Tennant might know more about these Mercenaries intentions than he was letting on. But by their position between Kepler and the Klem on the edge of the Galactic Core, where few habitable planets existed among the vast nothingness of empty space, he suspected that the group was planning something much more insane than a simple Trade Depot.

General Ming suspected that this bunch might actually be planning to raid Klem territory for precious resources. The insectoid aliens gathered everything that they needed near a Queen once a planet was fully under their control. With twenty Super Heavy Mecha, it was conceivable that the Mercenaries were going to raid one and loot them dry.

If only he had seen their vessel, he would know for sure.

Contact the Mercenary team and convince them to split up. Its your idea, so you get the honors, Tennant. Ming instructed, using his rank as Inquisitor to take the lead among the Central Command team.

Inquisitor Ming had already sent a silent query out into the intelligence community, wanting to know more about these Mercenaries and which Clan Leader might be here to authorize the decryption of his request without delay, but a response could take a few days, assuming that someone else had noticed that they were in the region at all.

[Mercenary Force, this is General Tennant of Kepler Central Command. We have a deployment request for you. We are sending six Regiments of infantry with light mecha support to the surface and would ask that you spread your force to provide Heavy support for them.

It would free up a lot of our infantry and light mechanized forces to enter the underground without fear of being ambushed from behind.] General Tennants request was reasonable and didnt ask the Mercenaries to take all the risk, only to protect their backs while the Kepler Military hunted the Klem.

[Would you like the whole force on guard duty?] Nico answered, looking as if she was considering the matter.

[If you can spare forces, the supply depot could use heavy Mecha support as well.] General Tennant suggested, after referring to General Ming.

[Agreed. Place your supply facilities between our camp and the first mountain face. I will have my men stationed to defend the camps.]

The Generals all relaxed a little when she agreed. Most of them because they previously werent sure how the idea would be received, and General Tennant because he understood Nicos personality and had feared that she would make them sweat over it for her own personal amusement.

While the meeting between the other Generals was ongoing, General Yaakov was hunting for the traitor in their midst.

He hated to admit it, but logically, he was the prime suspect. The Empire was bordering on civil war thanks to Bureaucratic Nobility who wanted to overthrow the Royal Family, and he came from a noble lineage as old as the colonization of his home system, with many family members serving the bureaucracy.

For that reason, he couldnt tell any of his own inner circle what he was looking for, or anything that he suspected. Most of his staff was chosen for loyalty, but it was Loyalty to the family more often than to him personally.

Though he largely agreed that the System of Royalty was outdated, he also saw the greed and self-interest that drove the rebellion and how the lack of strong leadership would inevitably cripple the Empire.

General Yaakov strongly valued stability, unlike the upstart Bureaucratic Nobles faction, most of whom still had family members who were alive the day they were granted titles for their administrative work. After all, with modern medicine, it wasnt unreasonable to expect an oligarch to survive for close to three centuries if they werent assassinated. Longer if they got lucky with the bonuses from a higher System Compatibility.

His Yaakov Family had a lot in common with the Tarith Family. They had held power for nearly three thousand years before the Kepler Empire was founded and their influence extended well beyond their home planet.

But unlike the Tarith Family, which suffered a tragedy on their homeworld and focused on spreading their power in the shadows, the Yaakov Family proudly held their homeworld and openly supported their other businesses, which limited their ability to spread their reach.

The Nobility was a jealous sort of culture, after all.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 235 235 In Position

With the official request for deployment made, Max started to set the strategy, as interim operation leader.

Fourth and Fifth Battalions, split into Companies and join with the Infantry forces. Second and Third Battalions, do the same and join with the Kepler Light Mecha groups. There should be six of each headed to the planet at regimental strength. One Super Heavy and a Company of Heavy Mecha each should set their minds at ease while they work.

I will take the First Battalion and spread our forces along the line between the Kepler staging area and the mountains, so we can guard the exit of any mecha needing to reload or get repairs at the main supply depot. Max ordered, spurring the other Battalion Commanders into action.

Oh, how I wish someone had just shown up with a Phalanx Class Mecha and a company of Heavy Mecha back when I was still a Light Mecha Company Commander. Major Ivanov of Maxs Able Company laughed, watching the Mecha start moving out into the mountains.

They wouldnt take their Landers, though a short hop would significantly reduce travel time. The landers had a limited amount of fuel in them, and as they werent expecting heavy casualties, they would need most of what they had to get back up to Abraham Kepler once this was all finished.

Since they couldnt risk communication with the Kepler Navy right now, it would be up to General Tennant to get rid of the other ships and come back for them after the mission was complete, assuming that they did manage to complete it without alerting the newly arrived forces to their true identity.

[Use the Materials Printers to make some crude Hover Trucks. Load some munitions and repair materials inside, along with provisions for a week, and send whoever you deem necessary to join the Mecha Companies on their mission. It would be too suspicious if the Mercenaries showed up without any sort of support vehicles or even a camp kitchen.] Nico instructed all of the logistics and repair officers from the Regiment, covering a small detail that most of the force had overlooked.

If they needed anything, they could have it sent over in a hurry, they had the technology, but a Mercenary force wouldnt leave them behind and risk being cut off without supplies. Mercenaries were much more used to fighting in small groups than a military force was, so a Mercenary squad would still stick together in times like this when many smaller groups had assembled.

There were a lot of jokes about having to rough it for a change since the Corvette Class Pilots would be sleeping in large tents instead of the Landers, but everyone moved out smoothly, headed for their chosen unit.

All five Battalion Commanders stayed back, waiting to see where they would be needed, while the Company Command units brought moral support to the Light Mecha and infantry units they went to support.

Eight Super Heavy Mecha to defend the base camps? I dont know if they are being overly cautious, or do they have something at their camp so valuable that they wont risk it? One of the Command officers aboard Abraham Kepler asked, pointing to the defensive line in the satellite feeds.

My first thought is that the extras are their Command Group, the Clan Leaders. But since they are all artillery spec Mecha, its possible they are simply taking a position to give long-range support.

If those are Mass Driver style artillery weapons, they could have an indirect firing range of hundreds of kilometers. General Tennant offered, already knowing who they were and what the guns should theoretically be capable of.

My System Scan says they can hit most of the Mountain Range from there. I have threat assessment as an Innate Talent, and it doesnt like those Mecha, they are much more dangerous than they look, especially the ones with the jump packs.

If they turn against us, the System data believes they should take under ten percent losses to eliminate all Six Regiments. General Jefferson, the most silent of the group informed them.

Compared to infantry and light mecha, they certainly had the advantage, but the Regiments did have their own Heavy Mecha. The System was usually very accurate though, so unless there was a large tactical blunder, Jeffersons predictions should be close.

So we keep them on our side. Then we find out where they got those units from. They look a bit like stylized Cygnus units, so they might have manufacturing facilities somewhere that we havent detected yet.

Imperial Command would love to get their hands on new toys like that. Inquisitor General Ming agreed.

He would add the other Generals opinion on the threat level posed by these unknown Mercenaries to the daily reports he sent to the Emperors Intelligence Minister. Hopefully, he would get permission to negotiate a trade deal for the designs.

They could send an overwhelming force to take them, but whoever designed the mecha would probably sell the plans to every enemy the Kepler Empire has in retaliation. A sanctioned deal would be infinitely better.

Generals, we have first contact. Mostly warriors, with an assortment of smaller species. Lupo Regiments Light Mecha have engaged and by all that is holy.

The junior officers report cut off suddenly, and General Jefferson brought up the feed the man was watching on the War Rooms Main screen.

The infantry had just engaged the Klem, and their Line Mecha support was moving into position when the valley they were walking through exploded with fire and flying dirt from an artillery Bombardment. Then twenty Crusader Class Mecha came flying over the Ridgeline, bathing the Klem in fire from their arm-mounted weapons.

The temperature of the flames capped out the thermal sensors at over two thousand degrees, and the Klem group vanished in an instant.

[Greetings fellow humans. Doc Engels and Casanova of the Terminus Trading Company at your service. As determined by our game of dice, I will be guarding the Line Mecha here, while young Casanova will be taking very good care of the men and women of the Infantry.]

The announcement came as two Super Heavy Mecha marched into sight over the Ridgeline where the flying Crusaders appeared from. They were accompanied by nearly a hundred more Crusaders and two hundred Corvette Class mecha, all jogging toward the Kepler Army.

Looks like we have some interesting allies this time. The infantry Colonel laughed, watching the strange jump pack Mecha land among his troops

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 236 236 Revelations

Similar scenes played out all through the mountains. Compared to the nightmare of a battle they just finished, these pockets of Klem resistance seemed positively harmless. Their enthusiastic killing also helped assure the infantry that these strangers truly had their backs.

Max had given orders to limit contact though, so only the Company Commanders actually talked to the allied forces,and they set up a comfortable distance away to discourage mingling.

The infantry understood that they were on their own for the next part, with only sporadic support from Line Mecha where they could fit in the tunnels. They didnt have to wait until they were underground to find another fight though.

The Klem needed food to reproduce, and they hadnt had time to stock up on plant life from the mountain valleys. The infantry above them drew a large number of Klem swarming to the surface, eager to gather food and bring it back to the tunnels where they were attempting to incubate more Warriors and Shredders.

They would start breeding the behemoths that could eliminate the hateful Mecha soon, but their instinctive drive compelled them to create the smaller warriors that were needed to protect their leaders first.

A thousand generations of genetic memories told them that without guards the behemoth was vulnerable, so the thought of doing anything differently never entered their minds.

[More of the gribblies and a pair of warriors in the south.] One of the infantry Sergeants reported as his shift came to an end and he prayed his men would be able to finish the fight and retreat without any more casualties.

The small Klem came in many shapes, so the infantry had coined the word Gribbly as a catch-all for any Klem smaller than a human.

Suddenly the two Warriors exploded in a cascade of gore and a plume of fire spread out over the heads of the infantry toward the remaining Klem. One of the Mercenary Crusaders had come to their assistance, using the strange energy weapon on its shoulder to eliminate the warriors before burning off most of the smaller Klem.

[Finish the group and change shifts, its time.] The Sergeant informed his troops, giving the Mercenary Pilot a salute.

Far above their heads, Inquisitor General Ming finally received a response from Imperial Intelligence to his inquiries about the Terminus Trading Company and their unusual Mecha.

[Everything I could find about that force and their unique Mecha is Vermilion level classified, with maximum access security. For the sake of your health, I recommend you stop looking. A loyalty assurance team has been dispatched to Sector Governance as of this morning.

Be safe.

Your Friend, John]

That created more questions than it answered, but Inquisitor General Ming was no fool, he would stop asking questions before he also got a nighttime visit to correct his attitude.

His best course of action right now was to do what General Tennant was doing and just go with the flow, not drawing any suspicion on himself while others investigated the situation.

In Mings mind, it was very possible that Tennant was here to observe the Mecha in action and make a deal with the creator when the unexpected arrivals interrupted his Top Secret mission.

Mings most reliable friend at Imperial Command didnt say anything about General Tennant, only that Sector Governance was being investigated, which meant that his presence here was sanctioned and that even a Sector Governor, a Duke of the Empire, and normally a trusted advisor of the Emperor himself was being censured for sending ships to his location, a bit of knowledge that meant General Tennant was trusted above all others in this matter.

That line of thought led Inquisitor Ming to recall that General Tennant, aboard Abraham Kepler, was until very recently awaiting refit at Comor Station. Then suddenly he was here with an ultra-secret research squad and a whole lot of Mecha that nobody had ever seen before.

But he wasnt the only notable figure on the planet Comor, was he? A Cygnus delegation had left just a week ago, celebrating a marriage between Comors ruling Chen family and their Imperial family.

There were also a number of famous Pilots vacationing on the planet recently. That Keres Max fellow, and the one with crazy close combat skills.

Tarith Nico, that was her name, General Ming realized, and all the pieces fell in place in his mind. The Tarith Reavers Cypher being instantly decrypted, the reports that the unit was called the Terminus Trading company when the two most famous absentee Pilots in the Empire were from Kepler Terminus. The presence of the new Mecha, and those Corvettes that looked so much like the rumored new Comor Pattern units.

He, an Imperial Inquisitor, had been fooled by a pair of pilots that hadnt even seen their twentieth birthday, and General Tennant had ever so humbly asked for the assistance of his own Research and Development team.

Then he had them trick the reinforcements into sending them munitions materials out of their own supply when there was no doubt that Abraham Kepler was loaded to the gills with everything imaginable to keep the Test Units functioning.

General Mings friend John had a point though. He would be best off not saying a single word of this to anyone. They would clear out the Klem, leave the system after accepting whatever nonsense excuse General Tennant found to stay behind and forget that this ever happened.

It was the only sane and safe way to ensure that the Regiments he had accompanied here werent purged as a threat to National Security.

There might be no saving the Sector Governance department, or whoever tipped them off though.

But those were the risks that a subversive agent took. They might think their cause was just and noble, or even essential for survival, but if they werent on the winning end of the game, their lives were forfeit by default.

Whatever idiot had set this all in motion had better suffer a very slow and painful death, or General Ming would not be a happy man when he returned to his station.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 237 237 Big Boom

All of the Mercenary forces were in position now, and the infantry was waiting for the orbital scans intended to detect subterranean caverns were finished before they began their assault.

The scan wouldnt tell them which areas were dangerous, but even having a general idea of where to look would save them a considerable amount of time and effort tomorrow.

The data they had already gathered told them that the Klem force was limited, so they would not face a full incursion that went underground, only the portion that escaped from the Mercenary force.

With that in mind, their gear was optimized to fight smaller enemies instead of loading the infantry with large amounts of anti-armour, which was necessary to deal with the Shredders.

[Attention, all forces. The assault in the tunnel system begins in 30 minutes.]

With the announcement from Central Command, everyone sprung into action. The movement would attract the Klem, so the surface would see a rush of the ravenous creatures until the light mecha dispersed and spread the vibrations through the whole region.

The infantry walking shouldnt draw much attention, but thousands of Line Mecha in one spot were hard to miss. Once they were dispersed and moving through the tunnels, they would be harder to distinguish from Klem activity.

As predicted, an impressive host of Warriors charged up through the tunnels to meet the Mecha the moment that they began to mobilize.

The first wave met the Fusion Flamers that the X109 units had pointed in the tunnel mouths, and the disgusting smell of roast Klem filled the air. The Crusader Class X104 Pilots took advantage of the scent, using tarps as fans to blow it through the tunnels, much to the foot soldiers dismay.

But that brought thousands more Klem to the surface, all through the mountains, which was exactly what they wanted.

The more bugs they killed up here, the fewer men they would lose below.

It took over an hour for the surface to be declared clear, thanks to the constant stream of new arrivals, and the test Regiment began to question how many Klem had made it through the breach in their lines.

Initial reports said it shouldnt be this many, but the Klem hatched reinforcements at an astounding rate.

[The surface is clear, moving downward.]

The light mecha moved out first to clear the main tunnels so the infantry could move unimpeded.

The Mecha were faster, so the infantry left right behind them, on a complex deployment, to search all the small side tunnels that the orbital scans had detected.

On the surface, there was nothing left to do but wait.

The front hatch on the Comor Pattern Corvettes swung downward, creating a ramp for the pilot when the suit was crouched, but it could also be dropped halfway, and thats what the Pilots did now, standing their Mecha in a circle and sitting on the hatch to play cards.

In an emergency, they could jump back into their seats and be active in under ten seconds, but until then, they could relax.

The second shift of Line Mecha stared at them in envy, cramped in their tiny cockpits, while the Terminus Trading Company laughed and joked around.

But with a Super Heavy Mecha at every position, they had a good reason for their confidence.

[Line Mecha report that the Klem are scattering east, headed back for the foothills. Possible Behemoth sighting.] General Tennant reported to the line of mecha defending the base camps.

That, too, was expected. If they could get to the open grassland again, the Klem would have enough food to repopulate faster than the Mecha could destroy them.

[We are on it. Care to make a small wager on whether they will make it into flamer range?] Nico responded, looking to the lower bunk where Max was sleeping.

So far, he had been awake for all the major artillery Bombardments; she hadnt gotten the chance to play with the Thunder Guns as much as she wanted.

[One case of Carib Rum says you cant stop them from reaching flame range.] General Ming answered for the command group.

Carib Rum was a slightly sweet black Rum popular with Soldiers and Mercenaries all over the quadrant. The planet that made it was an open port, a neutral nation that bordered Kepler, Cygnus and two other small countries.

[You hear that, boys? Free Rum. As soon as you see them, give them hell.] Nico laughed, and all the X137 Pilots moved into attack position, stabilizing their mecha for maximum rate of fire.

The Klem group was slightly over two hundred kilometres from the defensive line when they breached a cliff face and reached the open air.

Hundreds of Shredders and thousands of warriors surrounded a pair of Behemoths with six legs and elongated, barrel-shaped bodies.

Nico recognized these from the training data; they could fire a caustic poison hundreds of meters, melting through flesh and armour equally. The goo that was left was easily processed into nutrition to hatch new Klem.

Once the group was too far from the hole in the wall to escape, every Cannon on the eight X137 units barked at once. To the Klems great misfortune, they had left the mountains at the top of a Ridgeline in clear sight of the distant mecha as they raced down the hill toward the abundance of food in the form of a coniferous forest.

The Klem didnt miss the incoming balls of energy and stopped, seeing that most had been fired on a trajectory that was expecting them to keep moving.

That was exactly what the artillery wanted, stationary targets. Over the next ten seconds, as the Klem panicked, over a hundred shells rained down on them, the large explosions annihilating the warriors and crippling the Shredders that accompanied the Behemoths.

So they are Mass Drivers and not cartridge projectiles. That range is impressive. General Ming laughed, watching the Mercenaries put his payment for their services to exemplary work.

I hope you have a case of Rum on hand because I think theyve got this one handled. General Tennant pointed out, watching the video feed of sixteen Ion Bombard Arrays furiously hurling rounds at the Behemoths who were doing their best to employ an evasive running pattern.

They were too heavily Armored to truly fear the Artillery, but the Ion weapons punched holes in their chitin every time they landed a solid hit.

The Klem never even made it into a range of the Crusaders before being blasted into oblivion, and General Ming smiled.

A small price to pay for such an impressive show.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 238 238 Rude Awakening

Max was abruptly pulled from a deep sleep when the Thunder Guns started firing, showing the entire chassis. He quickly checked Nicos memory and found that a large Klem Contingent, including the first Behemoths they had seen, had emerged from the mountains and were facing the fury of the Command group.

Though Nico wasnt at the controls, Max could tell that the Mecha was firing at seventy-five percent of the maximum rate. She was deliberately holding back, either for the sake of their orbital audience or for heat management.

According to the sensor feeds, the others were doing the same, so it looked like the firing rate was coordinated at the very least.

Unlike everyone else, who would strap themselves in to keep a steady hand on the controls, Nico was on her feet, singing and dancing in time with the gunfire.

Its raining Klem, hallelujah its raining Klem She sang and giggled while she danced.

Max didnt know the song, but he had to admit that it was a pretty catchy tune.

Care to come dance with me? Nico asked as the Mecha shook, and the pulses from the Ion Bombard Arrays that were now firing forced her to change her rhythm.

The dance took all her weight off the floor in time with every shot, letting the Mecha move under her while she remained stationary.

Max shook his head and got dressed. Since he was awake he might as well work. It wasnt until he took over the controls that Nico stopped her dance and flopped down into the seat beside him.

The behemoths had just fallen, and the area was clear again when Nico opened a communication channel to Central Command aboard Abraham Kepler.

[Thats one case of Carib Rum for me, General. Feel free to send it down with the ores you promised.] Nico gloated, as Max scowled at her.

You know that you could have warned me, right? Max asked.

But then you would wake up and I wouldnt get to play with the Klem. I hadnt killed anything in like two days, it was getting boring in here. Nico answered and shrugged in response.

You could have taken up the offer to lead the maintenance team. I am sure you would have killed someone the first day. Max pointed out, and Nico smirked.

It is a good thing I didnt. General Yaakov is the one in charge of hunting down whoever sent the transmission to Sector Governance. If he was gone we might have to do an actual investigation on our own.

Max wondered how she could be so sure that he wasnt the source of the problem, to begin with. He might be a trusted General, but even Planetary Governors and senior military officers had chosen to side with the rebels they had already fought.

Her thoughts said she was certain though, so she had been watching him. A minor detail, which also meant that she hacked Abraham Keplers security cameras or got General Tennant to grant her access.

Of the two, only one option was realistic. She definitely hacked the ship.

[Line Mecha report at least one more Behemoth headed toward the East. It looks like they are trying to abandon the mountain tunnels for lack of food now that we have arrived to attack them and they know that hiding underground isnt going to save them.] Colonel Klinger reported.

[Lets wait and see if they try to take the same tunnels out of the mountains. If they do, the Light Mecha might be able to push the entire Klem force out into the open where we can deal with them.] Max instructed.

There was a lot of combat data to catch up with after his nap, so Max started sorting through the battle reports, making notes of where the clusters were found, and what sort of combat power the Klem were hiding underground.

With eight Super Heavy Mecha out here to intercept them, Max wasnt worried about being overrun if they exited the mountains, but there was a chance that some of the forces in the mountain valleys might be, especially infantry that had been separated from their support.

The reports all followed the same pattern. Heavy resistance at the start, with a rush for the surface, followed by steadily decreasing enemy numbers through the side tunnels, and occasional spotting of Shredders and possible Behemoths off the Main caverns.

Two of them had fallen to the Command group on the ground, while one more possible sighting remained unresolved and at large in the mountains.

For Max, it was a case of hurry up and wait since his job was to defend the camps, but even for the support units waiting above ground for the Infantry and Light Mecha to return it was the same. After the initial battle, the Klem hadnt dared show themselves aboveground again.

[Sorry about your luck Commander, we have spotted the last Behemoth.] The Colonel in charge of the Fifth Battalion laughed, and Maxs sensors picked up the flash of an Ion Bombard Array the same second that they finally reported the Behemoth coming into range in a mountain valley just past the second ridge.

Klingers Company Commander wasnt the only one with a clear shot though. Second Company of the Third Battalion was only a mountain away and had a clear shot into the valley where the behemoth had been sighted. They couldnt use Ion weapons, due to the mountain between them, but they certainly could fire artillery at it, so thats exactly what they did.

[Just a friendly reminder that you cant hog all the glory.] The pilot laughed over the radio, and Maxs sensors showed a large number of high explosive shells landing in the valley near the heat signature that was the Behemoth.

It had picked a terrible spot to come to the surface. Not only was it the first one out of the tunnel, but it was also in the range of two Super Heavy Mecha, and in direct line of sight of an entire Heavy Mecha Company in the new pattern units. Everyone was competing to see who would get the killing blow on the enormous target, but in the end, it was impossible to tell. Too many rounds hit it at nearly the same time, tearing the beast apart before the Fusion Flamers set it on fire and sent acrid smoke billowing down into the tunnels.

[Infantry, be aware of smoke in the tunnels. Equip smoke prevention and low oxygen gear.] Max reported before he even bothered to check the results. The question wasnt if the tunnels would be full of smoke, but how many of them would be.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 239 239 Never Fight In A Basement

With their gas masks on and the rebreathers active, the Infantry forces slowly advanced their way through the smaller tunnels of the mountain complex.

Made of limestone, and naturally formed over thousands of years of runoff, these caverns were an amazing testament to the natural powers of running water. Or at least they were before the Klem arrived.

The monstrous insects presence was everywhere here, and unmistakable, as their sharp legs made distinct patterns in the soft stone, and they carved away large portions of the existing tunnel walls to make way for themselves, not worried or not understanding that their cleared path only made it easier for the humans to follow them.

Pan right, I see claw marks headed up the wall. Lieutenant Calda barked at his squad.

The claw marks were unmistakable, but they didnt seem to lead anywhere, only into the darkness above them. The Lieutenant turned his spotlight upward to illuminate the roofline better than the small lights on the laser rifles could, bringing a hidden cavern entrance into view.

Grenade out, Calda called, lobbing the fist-sized projectile with every bit of strength he could muster.

For a Kepler soldier with a Strength base primary bonus, that was much further than what an average human could manage, and the grenade bounced off the wall fifty meters away and rolled down into the cavern on the other side before exploding.

The sound of Klem shrieking as flames engulfed the room echoed through the caverns, and an enraged rush of Klem Warriors came from the tunnel mouth, racing toward the human threat, while Lasers burned holes in their chitin.

The squad had the Warriors at bay, and the bodies were beginning to plug the exit, keeping the smoke and flames from the incendiary grenade contained, until suddenly the clatter of running feet came from behind them as well.

The branch tunnel they were in was a dead end, there was no other way out than the way they came in, or possibly out of the other side of the cavern that they had just lit on fire to eliminate the Klem inside.

Circle up, were fighting on two fronts now. Lieutenant Calda ordered with a grim smile on his face.

They had already spent every charge from their heavy weapons dealing with a pair of Shredders they had come across a few minutes ago, and now they were boxed in by the Klem.

The Oxygen warning on his mask began to beep, notifying him that the flames in the other room had run their course, burning all of the oxygen out of the enclosed space until they could burn no more.

That was a small blessing for his men, as the Klem still needed to breathe once they were active, but his men had an air supply that would last at least another eight hours. The lack of breathable air didnt seem to be slowing the ones that were coming down the tunnels toward him though, they were simply charging over the fallen bodies of their compatriots through the six-meter-wide tunnel spur, eager to get to the fresh meat at the end.

One after another they fell, and slowly the sounds in the cavern behind the squad fell silent, leaving them to fight on only one front, with a few men watching the rear for signs of activity.

The tide of warriors stopped, leaving a pool of greenish ichor among the bodies scattered on the floor, and the Infantrymen were cautiously optimistic. They had won this engagement, and their rotation was almost over, they could head to the surface again soon.

Move out, lets get back to fresh air and start making our way to the surface. Lieutenant Calda ordered, making a note that the final chamber hadnt been verified due to heat and lack of oxygen.

Retracing their steps was the most efficient way out, so the squad started moving back the way they came from, past the corpses, and the small lake of disgusting blood.

They were almost to the exit when the scouts froze in terror. Not one, but two Shredders stood between them and the blessed light of the surface above them, blocking the main hallway. Corpses of infantry, and Line Mecha that Lieutenant Calda recognized as their reinforcements from the second shift littered the hallway along with dozens and dozens of Klem corpses.

Back away before they see us. We will find an alternate exit to the tunnel complex. Calda whispered, backing away from the horrific sight. But he knew that wasnt going to happen. They had explored every inch of this branch except the final chamber. There was only one way in and one way out, and it was right behind that pair of Shredders. ϺѴⅬΕϺⱣƳᏒ.ϲӨᎷ

On the other side of the Mountain range, things looked much different. Lieutenant Johns had been leading his squad through the caverns for ten hours now and hadnt found a single sign of life. There were abundant signs that the Klem had been here, and were headed east, but after that, just nothing.

He had checked side caverns and sent men crawling through tunnels barely larger than their bodies to see if there was anything hiding on the other side, but it was empty, the entire cavern complex in his region had been abandoned.

[Johns to Company Command. Spur TXC13B confirmed clear, no signs of previous Klem activity.] He reported, making a note on the digital map.

Lieutenant, there is light up ahead at the end of the next main tunnel. One of his scouts reported, crouching down to stay out of sight of any Klem that might still be near the source of the light.

Move out men, if thats an unknown exit from the caverns, Command needs to know about it. The map doesnt show anything here, much less a major cavern headed east. Johns sighed, wishing there was a better way to keep the maps updated.

The satellite data was very good, at least it was when they got it. But they had been underground for half a day, where they couldnt get updates, and even their radio signals had a hard time reaching their closest allies, so they couldnt know what the Klem had been up to until they stumbled across it.

Crouched low to the floor and hugging the shadows of the wall, Lieutenant Johns crept toward the light, through a tunnel large enough that a Crusader Class Mecha could have passed by him with room to spare. No other tunnel he had seen was this large, and it was clearly not a natural formation.

Make a note, possible Behemoth activity, Johns instructed the scout closest to him as he reached the light.

It was an exit from the caverns, atop a high ridge with a steeply sloping hill, facing east. From here he could see the Base Camp and the defensive line of Mecha that was defending it. But more importantly, he could see the smoldering corpses of two Behemoths and thousands of Klem Warriors and Shredders.

By the Emperor. Now we know where the Klem went, and I for one am glad we werent here before they left. Even the whole Regiment assembled would barely make a snack for that force. Lieutenant Johns sighed, then sent the signal indicating that he had reached an exit, as well as sending the update of the tunnel structure to the ships above him since he could finally see the sky again.

Lets stop here for a break, get everyone out into the light, Johns ordered, bringing his squad forward and breathing in the relatively fresh mountain air. With all the fighting, the tunnels had turned smoky, stuffy, and suffocating, it was good to be back in the real world.

[Lieutenant Johns, proceed to base camp to reload and restock, as it is the closest accessible position to your location.] Came the order from his Commander.

You heard the man, its the closest accessible position, Johns ordered his troops, who could only sigh and look at the hill in front of them.

I dont know what happened behind us, but if two hundred kilometers on foot in plain sight of an entire squad of Super Heavy Mecha are our orders, I am not going to ask to go back into those tunnels. Now finish your smoke and get moving. His Sergeant agreed, making the men chuckle.

It might take them all day, and most of tomorrow to get there, but anything was better than fighting below ground. Their only concern was the talk of the other exits not being accessible. The infantry had no way to know that the Fusion Flamers had lit a number of the tunnels on fire, or that some had collapsed due to heavy weapons. The stone of the tunnels blocked most communications, so they only knew what was relayed to them, and that was to watch for loss of oxygen as they explored the vast underground network.

[Twenty Credits says that they dont make it here before dark tomorrow.] Colonel DiFranco of the Fourth Battalion laughed, looking at the pair of five hundred-foot vertical walls bordering a raging river that was between the infantry that had been ordered their way and their final destination.

[Twenty Credits on Sunset tomorrow minus three hours.] Colonel Klinger wagered, making the rest of the Battalion Commanders laugh, and the maintenance staff around them sigh.

I guess that means the Mercs arent going to send a hover truck to pick them up. One of the repair technicians told his partner with a wink.

Likely means that if we try we would make enemies of everyone who didnt win the bet as well. Just keep your binoculars at the ready, we should be able to see them almost the entire route back to camp.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 240 240 Tunnels Clear

While the Command group was enjoying the spectacle of an infantry unit slogging down a mountain to get to the base camp, the first round of supply shipments was sent out to resupply the troops that returned to their starting points.

The transports raced away toward their destinations, loaded up with equipment and munitions that had been created at the Materials Printers inside the Landers, while the Mecha support ran power cables to chargers, set up to handle all of the Infantry units Laser Rifle power packs at once. They could also recharge the Plasma Blasters power packs, and those had been the first items on the charging stands, in the expectation that the number of large Klem would only increase the next time they went below.

Many of them had been trapped for hours by Shredders blocking passages and a lack of sufficient firepower to deal with them. Fortunately, the Mercenaries took pity on them and sent in squads of Corvette Class Mecha to clear the exits when they received signals that the units in the tunnels were having a hard time.

There was something odd about those mecha though. More than one trooper had reported strikes from the giant aliens simply bouncing off the Mecha, leaving not even a scratch despite the ferocity with which they struck.

The Infantry commanders wrote it off as superstition at first, but there were some highly respected officers spreading the rumor, so they couldnt keep it out of the reports forever. Central Command was used to strange sightings and superstition in the reports anyhow, it was just how soldiers were, but in this case, even a rumor of the capabilities that their allies could field would be incredibly valuable.

Aboard Abraham Kepler, the staff dutifully recorded the reports, then redacted them for transmission away from the vessel. Unlike the complement of the other ships, the staff aboard Abraham Kepler knew full well what was going on, and that the Mecha they were seeing were experimental units, not an alien Mercenary Group, as the reports insisted.

[Good news, General. The mole problem aboard the ship has been settled to my satisfaction.] General Yaakov sent to General Tennant while making a gesture of respect for the dead toward the body slowly floating away from the airlock in the landing bays.

Over the course of the last few days, he had spent every waking hour, and some of his sleeping hours dedicated to finding out everyone who sympathized with the Bureaucratic Nobles and to exactly what extent they had or would assist the movement.

His reputation as a Noble snob who refused to speak directly to his lessers helped him immensely in this case, causing most of the men he questioned to view him as an ally, right up until the very end.

He was greatly saddened to see the level of disloyalty and self-interest among the officers that he talked to, with a good portion of the officers who werent even nobles, much less ingrained parts of the Bureaucracy, being sympathetic on some level to the notion that the Emperor should be removed from power.

The sentiment that a rebellion was the way or even acceptable, was fortunately much rarer, with most of the disgruntled forces believing that the Military should be the ones to take over the running of things in the Kepler Empire.

That was somewhat understandable, and as loyal soldiers, as long as their superior officers were loyal, they would be as well.

In the end, he had only needed to eliminate a dozen people before the entire conspiracy to have the Bureaucracy expose and capture the Prototype Mecha was fully revealed. There was only one remaining issue, there were four more names on his list that werent on his ship. General Yaakov didnt have any authority over the other vessels, so he had to come up with something before the ships left and the traitors would feel safe enough to send another message out.

So, he had to take a risk of having missed someone important and inform another General of his findings.

Inquisitor General Ming was the obvious choice. Yaakov knew that it would lead to an inquiry into his own loyalty, but he was ready for that. There was nothing but loyalty to the Emperor to be found, so he could withstand a few days or weeks of interrogation before the truth was settled.

So, General Yaakov took the final step and forwarded the data that he had found not only to General Tennant but also to the Inquisitor, hoping that the turncoats that had arrived with the other ships could be exposed and dealt with before they left the planet.

His actions had been stealthy, but there was a small change that none of the other Generals missed. This morning, the obnoxious sidekick that followed him everywhere was nowhere to be found.

General Yaakov, I do hope your Nephew is doing well. Though his presence was a distraction, he seemed to be an enthusiastic officer. General Tennant greeted him, giving him an easy chance to explain the disappearance.

Unfortunately, it seems that his enthusiasm cost him dearly this time. While he was on a tour of the repair bays, a misplaced wrench fell on his head. Though the physical wound was healed quickly, the mental damage is extensive. General Yaakov replied sadly.

The mental damage would never heal, he had made absolutely sure of it.

A pity. Be sure to send a condolence letter to his parents when you get a chance. General Tennant replied, then turned back to the mission plans.

Once this sweep is finished, we should have full clearance on the tunnels. Most of the Klem have been either cornered and eliminated or swept out of the entrances to be dealt with by the Heavy Mecha squads. They just have to double-check areas that could not be verified due to combat damages, which means clearing a few collapsed tunnels and waiting for others to cool. General Tennant brought the Regimental Commander up to speed, pointing to the relevant spots on the map.

The others in the room all assumed that he was a member of the Central Command team sent with General Tennant on this research mission, since there wasnt officially any Mecha Regiment aboard the ship, so no questions were raised when he rejoined the group after days of other duties to attend.

Shall we collapse the tunnels once they are verified clear? General Yaakov suggested, highlighting the spots where an orbital strike could collapse a large portion of the mountain range.

Imperial Command says no. They intend to assign a defensive colony here in the future, due to the continued threat of Klem incursion into the Empire, so they want the atmosphere in pristine condition if possible.

Yaakov nodded, seeing the logic behind the order. Understood. It will lead to a few more losses, but from what I can see in the data, the total loss to combat this mission will be under five percent, a resounding victory unless the unexpected should happen in the final stages.

General Ming interrupted their conversation by clearing his throat. Now that our numbers have been bolstered by the return of General Yaakov, I have a few matters to attend to back aboard my own vessel. I will return by the end of the day, but I can stop off if anyone else needs anything.

The other two Generals nodded in agreement but waved off his offer.

On second thought, bring over some extra Carib Rum. You sent the only case we had here on Abraham Kepler down to the Mercenaries and Ive got a bit of a thirst.

And a case of cigars from my locker. My adjutant will happily give them to you if you stop off.

Their small errands gave the General the perfect excuse to visit all three vessels for a few minutes and contact the hidden Inquisition officers aboard each, having them judiciously deal with the issue of the suspected traitors. Communication by radio wasnt secure, but in person, he could get all the updates that he needed on how things had been going.

I will see you all at dinner. I hope to hear good news. Inquisitor General Ming told them as he left the room.

Now that hes gone, we can relax a little. There has been enough by the book, lets send in the Fusion Flamers and have them clear the last pockets of resistance. Not many of the side spurs are more than seventy meters long, and a little burnt limestone shouldnt bring the whole mountain down on them. General Tennant told the others with a smile.

Officially, the Mercenaries were a support force, not to be sent underground to the front lines, but those nasty flamers would burn to ash anything from Klem Chitin to the very walls of the caverns they were hiding inside. In a pinch, the Disintegrators could also be used to open up tunnels, but the dimensions that they had for the main caverns showed that they should be able to move Crusader Class Mecha down them far enough to do a final clearance after the Infantry had gotten everything they could find.

The Klem were sneaky, but a fire would guarantee that nothing they hid in the mountains would survive to hatch, while the planet itself wouldnt suffer as much as if they used an orbital bombardment to do the same task.

It was a minor technicality that the Inquisitor would surely catch, but if it was done before he returned, it was safe to assume that it was close enough to within regulation that he wouldnt have an issue with it.

Humanity's Greatest Mecha Warrior System

Chapter 241 241 Scorched Earth

[All infantry units accounted for. Survivors have exited the tunnel system.]

The report from the infantry commanders was the signal to send the X109 Fast Attack Mecha into the underground labyrinth.

The terrain was incredibly poorly suited to the fast-moving Crusader Class chassis, but their weapons were ideal for the situation and enemies that they would be facing today.

That alone was reason enough to send them. The perfect weapons on a less-than-ideal chassis? That was an excellent start to a data set that would justify additional weapon sets for the Corvette Class Mecha, or even for infantry units in the future.

The researchers were overjoyed with the situation, and Sister Lilith had them all working well beyond their usual quotas in order to process the data that they were getting in a timely manner.

On a normal deployment, the data sets from just the first battle against the Klem would have taken three to six months to process, and indeed they were far from done, but the need to form at least an operational outline of every ongoing engagement couldnt be ignored, so the deep analysis was put on hold in favor of simply gathering the most relevant points for the Senior developers back on Comor.

Who was in charge of analyzing the probability data for a runaway burn of the Limestone caverns? Moonie called from across the research lab, trying to keep everyone on task in her role as Liliths assistant.

Over here, Moon. Our numbers say an eight percent chance, but if they limit the Flamer bursts to under five seconds at a time they should have a one hundred percent purge rate, with a less than one percent chance of a runaway Limestone burn taking down the entire mountain. One of the team members shouted back.

Thank you. Now, who has the data on the Disruptors penetration rates? Can they safely be used against Limestone that doesnt lead directly to a cavern?

Ten meters per second in natural limestone. Safety rates are within tolerances. Another group called.

Sister Lilith, all the data looks good, you are clear to send them into the caverns, Moonie informed her boss and best friend.

Thank you, Moonie. Get ready for a flood of data to be sent up when they reach the surface again since we dont know how well the communication devices that they are equipped with will be able to contact us while they are underground. Sister Liliths instructions dampened the mood in the room instantly.

They all knew that they were going to be getting a flood of data, but if it came in all day long it was manageable. If it all came in at once at the end of the shift it was a nightmare of information overload for the research teams.

Have some faith, Sister. We designed the new communication systems with very high gain digital audio, it should be able to reach the surface well enough for the rest of the team to relay it back to the surface. One of the team leaders said hopefully, crossing his fingers behind his back for luck.

They would need it. The Fusion Flamers caused a load of interference on their own, and coupled with the underground environment, getting any sort of useful data through was going to be a minor miracle. At best, they could relay audio, but a full set of sensor data would be too corrupted to be interpreted by the time it made the surface.

[Send them In.] Sister Lilith ordered, and General Tennant sent the official Commands to the surface.

Now Ladies, dont fret. Your beloved Cassanova will be here with you even after our fast attack units head below. Whenever you are ready, gentlemen. Company Commander Carlton, better known as Cassanova or Young Cassanova, relayed the order to his Mecha, making the Pilots laugh.

Unlike his namesake, the Company Commander had not had much luck with the ladies of the Sector Defense Regiment that he was assigned to. In fact, he had none at all, if you didnt count them humoring him with playful conversation.

That was exactly what the unit counted on though. Cassanova was a forty-seven-year-old virgin with horrible luck in love. He had only managed one girlfriend that anyone knew of, and she cleared out his bank accounts and tried to claim military spousal benefits for the six children she already had when they met.

On the other hand, his antics made the rest of his men look better, by comparison, so they were happy to play along and help him with his technique and morale.

In person, he could start out incredibly suave, but after a few drinks or a day of interaction, his true nature would come through. None of the Pilots could explain why, but despite actually being a decent guy, he immediately turned off every woman he interacted with.

Some even suspected that it was a prank played on him by the System during one of his advancements, forcing the wannabe playboy to focus on Mecha Piloting, for lack of luck at anything else.

One squad after another, the Fast Attack Crusaders went below, heading for the end of the tunnel system to start their purge, so that they could work back to their origin point without having to cross over regions that they had already burned to lime dust.

Within an hour, the entire mountain range looked like a forest fire had spread through it, but all of the smoke was coming from underground.

Here and there, pockets of Klem that had been hiding were burned to ash, with a few even managing to make close combat with the Mecha that was burning them out of their hiding spots, but none of them managed to do any serious damage before they were obliterated either by fire or Disintegrators.

[Rockstar to Command. We have a minor issue. Fusion Flamers have found a Coal seam among the stones.] One of the squad leaders reported, catching Maxs attention.

That wasnt good news. Coal would burn nearly forever in an underground environment, maintaining heat for decades despite the absence of oxygen.

[This is Keres. Do what you can to isolate the burning seam with your Disruptors. If necessary, we will dispatch a team with cryogenic tanks to cool the area. Pure Carbon is a valuable building material.] Max ordered, then listened as the message was relayed through all the units in the Mountains.

With a resounding explosion, that proved to be a failed attempt. The disruptors broke apart the molecules, but even independent, floating Carbon atoms were highly reactive to heat, and explosive when exposed to fire.

[Attempt Failed, Unit retreating from the region for fire control entry.] The Pilots reported.

The rest of the Company Commanders sent out orders to watch for signs of Coal seams while they were working so that the fires could be contained, and a hover truck with a liquid nitrogen tanker was quickly printed and sent out to quell the fires.

The Disruptors had slowed the fire by creating a small fire break, but the area still needed to be cooled to end the fire, and the supercooled liquid would do the job reasonably well.

[Commander Rage, we have a report. A munitions transport wagon has picked up an infantry unit on the mountain and returned them to the defensive line. Barring a rest break, ETA for the wagered unit is two hours to Staging.] Colonel Klinger reported.

They had been so distracted with actual work that they had missed the unit they were watching walk down the mountain being picked up by an unsuspecting transport truck.

Thats too early by a lot. Nobody is within six hours of that time. Nico grumbled, having abstained from wagering so that she could referee.

[Logistics team. There is an infantry unit at the front lines that look pretty hungry. Why dont you head over and get them a nice hot meal?] Nico ordered on a private channel just to the staff that was working on the front lines.

[Got it, boss. We are on standby here, and the Stew is still hot.] The logistics sergeant replied, thinking that the Major was only being kind to the infantry who had walked so far to get back to their location.

They didnt hear the order, but everyone in the area could see the Lunch Truck heading to the infantry, who gathered around it for their first hot and proper meal in days. That would delay them at least a few hours, and it would soon be mid-afternoon, and most units preferred not to march in the direct sun, so they might stop a few extra hours before continuing on.

The Mecha were starting to return back to their units already, having only needed to blast open a few tunnels and burn mostly empty caverns. Forty Mecha for that job was overkill, but it got the job done before anyone could complain, plus the data that they collected would prove incredibly valuable to the research teams, once they had time to analyze the effects.

[Good job everyone. Standby as units and wait for further orders.]

As far as Max could tell, the Klem infestation was contained and annihilated, they just had to wait and see if there was any more activity detected over the next few days. If there wasnt they should be able to send these spectators away back to their home deployment and move on to their next assignment without causing any more ripples in the layer of secrecy over their deployment.

Inquisitor General Ming was thinking exactly the same thing. The other ships had all been watching the action on the ground and detected the deployment of the Mercenaries belowground before the underground temperature readings spiked to incredible levels, indicating that they had burned out any chance of Klem survivors.

They had perfect timing. He had just enough time while everyone was distracted to deal with the suspects on the other vessels and return to Abraham Kepler before they returned to the surface.

Chapter 16 - hehdhd