Chapter One Hundred and Two: Settling Arguments (Without Casting Fist)
Proserpina, June 8th, 3020
"One hell of a birthday present you left me with Ian." I muttered underneath my breath while looking at the two House Lords that were drinking and discussing the battle.
"Were you addressing me?" Tai-ShoRentoshi asked. "Because if you were, I did not quite hear you."
"No Tai-Sho." I responded. " I was merely going over the battlelogs and thinking about it out loud."
"Well, we cannot decide a victor of the duel based on a few seconds delay between reactors." Rentoshi said. "It is simply impossible to truly tell whose reactor failed first according to our sensors and camera logs."
"And with their Battleroms being unsalvageable." I said with a curse. "We have no way of settling a draw because we did not plan for this."
"Yes." The Tai-Sho agreed. "Had we planned for this, we would have already reached a final decision."
"Let's bring what we have now to them, and see what the First Prince and Coordinator desire." I told Rentoshi."
"Yes, let's." He agreed, "I am curious as to what their wishes might be."
"Coordinator," Rentoshi greeted," I regret to inform you that we have no conclusive evidence as to whom the victor might be."
"Yes, I feared that might be the case." Takashi Kurita said as he rubbed at his broken arm. "First Prince, have you any ideas how we might settle this once and for all?"
"Isn't this the reason that we have seconds?" Ian asked as he shifted to make his braced leg more comfortable. "Let them finish the duel on our behalf."
"Hmm." Takashi thought out loud. "I like this idea."
"I thought you would." Ian said with a small smile. "We should have taken better care of our 'mechs in this fight."
"Yes." Takashi agreed. "But it was… an enjoyable duel."
"Agreed." Ian said. "Now, I believe our seconds shall settle this, with the same rules as before."
"That is agreeable to me." Takashi said. "They shall duel in the same arena as we did, but they shall need their own seconds."
I just sighed and looked at the Tai-Sho. "I will agree to a 'mech duel, hand to hand, or pistols."
"I will accept that." Rentoshi said. "My XO will be my second."
"Let me go find my wife." I said. "She'll be my second."
June 9th, 3020;
"I really hate this kind of thing Ian." I told the First Prince. "This is stupid, and unecessary."
"Maybe that's because you were once a part of the Star League and SLIC." Ian smiled. "For you, honor doesn't come from the battlefield, but for us Davions and the Kuritans, it does."
"I'm not so sure that Hanse agrees with that statement." I said with a shrug. "He seems to think there's more honor in victory than in a pointless fight."
"Hanse would have made a better First Prince." Ian admitted, "I've even told him as much, but I fully expect you to follow through on this as my "Left hand"."
"I can't believe I get called that." I facepalmed. "I'll go fight this duel for you, but I'm going to be spending the next five years on Kentares." I said. "If you want something from me, you'll have to send Hanse or Dana to come talk to me." I held up a hand to stop him from responding. "I'm not angry at you anymore, and I'm going to go out and settle this, but I'm tired of having to fight what feels like the entire inner sphere. I'm taking a break, and I don't want to have to deal with the politics for the next five years."
"I'll do what I can do." Ian agreed, "Now go win this thing."
"I'm not going to brawl like you and Takashi did." I said, "I got that out of my system years ago with Colonel Wolf."
"I saw that tri-vid." Ian laughed, "It was funny."
"Well, this duel is a lot more serious than that." I said. "I'm going to drop this guys 'mech and go home."
June 10th, 3020
"Let's do this." I muttered to myself as I powered up my Warhammer and got ready to finish this stupid duelling crap. "I'm tired and want to go home."
"You may begin the duel." Rentoshi's second said over open comms, and I throttled my 'mech forward.
Moving forward at half of my flank speed, I alternated fire with my Clan based ERPPC's, making sure to ride the curve of my clan based freezers. I kept moving at a steady walk forwards, keeping him at the outer edge of my range until he began blasting me with his own ERPPC's.
I moved my 'mech forward into a run, rotating my torso as I flashed by and laying my Medium Lasers into the Marauder's right leg, causing actuators to short out and it to slow down. Then, I moved to try and come behind the Marauder but the Tai-Sho had spun around by coming to a full stop and dropping onto a knee. Bracing his Marauder, he unleashed an alpha into the center torso of my Warhammer, causing me to stagger for a brief moment before I took off the leg that his Marauder was crouching on, leaving him immoble.
The Tai-Sho didn't miss a beat to his credit, using his PPC's and Medium lasers to chip away at me while I continued stripping his armor while he was unable to move, finally. I weakened the armor over all of his 'mech enough that it was almost down to a mere skeleton, while I had enough armor that I could probably have fought another duel and been fine.
"Tai-Sho." I finally opened up a channel. "If you give up now, no one will be able to say that you did not do your best."
"I am afraid that I must continue the fight until I am unable to fight on, this is what my honor dictates." Rentoshi replied. "For I am Samurai, and to dishonor the coordinator in this way would mean death."
"Fucking weebs." I muttered to myself after I had cut off my comms. "You'd think they'd have learned by now." I joined my PPC fire into his AC/5, and cut it off from his Marauder and then proceeded to use my laser to rid him of his arm mounted ERPPC's and lasers.
"I do not wish to savage your 'mech anymore Rentoshi." I said one last time. "Surrender this duel to myself and I will leave you with your remaining leg."
"I cannot do that, Duke Hull." He stood and began to limp towards my Warhammer. "I shall continue to fight for this is but a mere flesh wound."
"I really hope you understand the reference you just made." I said as I cut off his remaining leg at the knee joint with an alpha strike. "Because if you didn't then that would just be sad."
"Duke Hull is the winner of the duel." Rentoshi's second cut in. "Cease all activity."
"Backing off now." I responded. "I always keep my word."
June 11th, 3020
"I will allow you to keep Dieron." Ian said finally, "But Proserpina now belongs to the Federated Suns, along with Styx, and Delsher.
"That is acceptable." Takashi replied. "May we have a long and prosperous ten years of peace and potentially more."
"May we indeed." Ian replied, "May we indeed."