In spite of his Summoner'shermetic seals, necessary when a 'Mech might suddenly be submerged in water, and the supposedly efficient circulation system, Aidan was certain that the spoiled egg and chemical burning smells were not just figments of his imagination.
On the good side, it looked as though Operations had done well in mapping out the route. Aidan had been instructed that at no point would any of the 'Mechs of his Star be under water and that, in fact, when they emerged from Blood Swamp the water would be no more than knee level. Still, as he carefully used the inertial guidance system to move his 'Mech through the misty dark, Aidan could not shake the anticipation that the next step would be into deeper water or, worse, into the mysterious swirling quicksand that legend said lurked in parts of Blood Swamp. Experts said such a quicksand was a fantasy, but the warriors were not sure. So far no record existed of anyone being lost in the swamp, but then warriors only went into it under orders, never voluntarily.
On his monitor screen, Aidan saw something fairly large moving toward his 'Mech. It was too small to be a vehicle but too large to be a human being, unless it was an Elemental. Also, its outline suggested it was moving on all fours. It came close, but none of Aidan's equipment could identify it as a Gloryan animal, so it had to be one of the mysterious creatures that inhabited the swamp. Whatever it was, the thing made a desultory snap at the Summoner'sleg, then slunk away.
The fog was now so thick that, if not for their instrumentation, the 'Mechs would probably have wound up walking circles around each other. As it was, they were proceeding apace, almost as if on normal terrain with good sightlines. Every once in a while, a 'Mech teetered slightly as its heavy foot came down on some thick vegetation or encountered a rocky patch, but all in all, the Star was making good time. They were already halfway into Blood Swamp.
"Star Commander?" It was the voice of Horse coming over the commlink. Aidan always felt comfort in hearing Horse's voice. They had been together so long, ever since the Trial in which both had qualified as warriors. There were times when Aidan would have liked to have Horse always at his side, but Horse was a good warrior and would one day be promoted to Star Commander himself. If not for the heavy discrimination against any freeborn warrior, Horse's achievements would have earned him the promotion by now.
"What is it, Horse?"
"Well, I hate to tell you this, but I am picking up some kind of anomaly ahead. And it is very large, too large to be one of those mythical swamp animals, or else we are about to encounter a monster. From its outline on my radar, I would say it is a BattleMech. If it were not staggering about so much, I would also say I was sure it was a 'Mech. See for yourself."
Horse gave him the coordinates and Aidan keyed in on the intruder. At first look, he saw what Horse meant. The object was most certainly a BattleMech, a Mad Dog,by its thin legs and LRM 20 shoulder launchers. But it was not proceeding with the sureness of a Mad Dog.Apparently its right leg had taken some damage, for it stuck out from its upper-leg mainframe at an odd angle. The angle made it walk sideways in what looked like drunken lurches. Each step sent it a bit off its course, and there was a sense of its pilot trying to correct it.
"Do you think it is friend or foe, Horse?"
"Well, it looks like one of us after a few fusionnaires. I have never heard of the Wolves indulging, so perhaps it is a Jade Falcon pilot and his 'Mech out for a midnight jaunt through Glory's most colorful terrain."
Aiden smiled, not only at Horse's comments, but at the careful way Horse avoided the easy contractions of the freeborn when speaking on the commline. There were times when Horse was all-duty in action and speech, and Aidan appreciated the effort.
"Well, we should be careful, in case it is enemy. With the odds already against us, we must be wary of walking into one of Clan Wolf's well-known traps. Shall you approach them or shall I?"
"You speak so eloquently, we cannot risk you at this time. I win this bid, Star Commander, quiaff?"
"Aff. You fight better in muck than I do, anyway."
"Oh? We must discuss that when there is time."
"When there is time."
Aidan tracked Horse's path as he took his Summonerout ahead of the rest of the Star. Both Horse and Aidan had piloted Summonersever since winning their Trial of Position in the 'Mech. The machines did not have the maneuverability and firepower of any of the OmniMechs Kael Pershaw had co-opted for his Trinary Strikers, but there was a solid, old-fashioned efficiency about them.
When he came close to the staggering Mad Dog,Horse addressed its pilot formally over the open radio channel. "I am MechWarrior Horse of Bravo Star, Trinary First Garrison, Glory Station Cluster. Do I address an honorable warrior from Clan Wolf or Clan Jade Falcon?"
The voice that responded sounded bleary, or perhaps there had been damage to its 'Mech's communication system. "MechWarrior Enrique, from Charlie Star, Hades Surats, Clan Jade Falcon. We, uh, I come with Trinary. Trinary rotating to Glory Station. On DropShip. It crashed. I, uh, I do not know where I am. Is this Glory? Where is Glory Station? I have been wandering ever since my cocoon hit . . . crashed . . . whatever it did."
Horse responded to the wandering pilot softly, told him where he was. Aidan brought his Summonerforward and addressed Enrique. "Warrior, you will never get out of this swamp by yourself in the condition you are in. And your BattleMech is badly in need of repair. We must get you to Glory Station as soon as possible, since we will need both you and your 'Mech very soon. MechWarrior Nis!"
"Yes, Star Commander?" Nis's soft voice belied her fierceness as a warrior.
"You will lead MechWarrior Enrique out of the swamp. He is too disabled to make his way alone."
Nis sounded disappointed as she affirmed the order. Like Aidan or Horse—for that matter, like all Clan warriors—Nis did not want to be left out of a fight or a mission. But she was a loyal freeborn warrior, able to take orders as well as stand up against the insults of a trueborn. She would guide Enrique patiently back to Glory Station. Not only that, she had some tech abilities, and once the two 'Mechs were clear of this part of the swamp, she could find some high ground and work out field repairs for Enrique's Mad Dog.She would save both pilot and 'Mech, but in return would probably get only surliness from Enrique once he discovered she was a freeborn.
Enrique's short-ranged TBS system was the only part of his communications system still in operation. Nis was able to verbally transmit a general route that they would follow, but could not directly download into Enrique's navigation system.
"Did you come across any others from your Trinary after you crashed?" Aidan asked Enrique.
"One. 'Mech smashed, pilot with crushed chest. Still alive, but not for long. She could not talk."
"She? It was not your leader, was it?"
"Star Captain Joanna? No. With a crushed chest, she would be up and walking."